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STORIES
FROM
NORTHERN MYTHS

BY
EMILIE KIP BAKER
AUTHOR OF
“STORIES OF OLD GREECE AND ROME”

New York
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY
1914
All rights reserved

Copyright, 1914,
By THE MACMILLAN COMPANY.
——
Set up and electrotyped. Published September, 1914.

Norwood Press
J. S. Cushing Co.—Berwick & Smith Co.
Norwood, Mass., U.S.A.

STORIES FROM NORTHERN MYTHS

THE MACMILLAN COMPANY
NEW YORK · BOSTON · CHICAGO · DALLAS
ATLANTA · SAN FRANCISCO

MACMILLAN & CO., Limited
LONDON · BOMBAY · CALCUTTA
MELBOURNE

THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, Ltd.
TORONTO

[Pgvii]

CONTENTS

[Pgix]

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

[Pg1]

Stories from Northern Myths

How All Things Began

LONG, long ago, before the earth was made,—andthere was no sea and sky or nightand day,—the vast, unending Land of Miststretched away on one side of a bottomless gulf,[1] onthe other side of which lay the Land of Fire. TheLand of Mist was called Niflheim, and here eternalwinter reigned with fog and snow and darkness thatwrapped the dreary land about like a shroud. Fromthe heart of Niflheim there flowed a dark, tumultuousriver, and as it rushed down into the chasm at itsedge, the waters met the cold blasts that swept upfrom below, and great mountains of ice were formedon the side of the gulf over which the chill fogs gatheredand the bitter winds blew.

The never changing twilight which brooded overthe gulf was sometimes illuminated by sparks thatwere blown over from the Land of Fire that lay just[Pg2]beyond. This place was called Muspelheim, andhere the whole land glowed like a living furnace withflames that burned with the heat of a million suns.Sparks of fire flew up in great numbers into theclouds, and these, glowing like balls of fire, werethrown far and wide on the land. Some of theburning sparks floated northward toward the landof snows, and as they fell into the ice-filled gulf,they changed to clouds of steam which were sooncongealed into hoar-frost. Then one day this greatmass of frost, on which fresh sparks of fire still fell,was suddenly warmed into life, and out of ice andsnow and fire and heat the great giant Ymir wasmade.

Now although Ymir was fashioned out of thesestrange elements and so never felt the cold, he wassoon very hungry in his home of ice and snow, andthere was no food to be found anywhere. For a longtime the giant wandered over the frost-bound land,and then one day he came upon the gigantic cow Audhumbla,who stood among the ice-hills calmly chewingher cud. From her udders flowed four streamsof milk, and this was more than enough to satisfythe giant’s hunger. He never strayed far from thewonderful cow, and one day, as he watched her lickingsalt from the blocks of ice, he was surprised tosee a head suddenly appear through the melting ice.Audhumbla kept on licking with her strong, rough[Pg3]tongue, and soon the whole body of a man emerged.As this strange being stood before the eyes of theastonished Ymir, the giant was filled with fear andhatred, for he knew that from the mighty Iceman[2]would spring a new race that would soon make warupon the giants and destroy them.

This is, indeed, just what did happen later on, forfrom the children of the Iceman came the gods Odin,Vile and Ve, who began at once to make war uponYmir and all his kindred. In the terrible battlethat took place between the gods and giants, Ymirwas killed; and from his body poured forth such agreat river of blood that all of the giants weredrowned in it except two. These were Bergelemerand his wife, who escaped on a chest that floatedaway to the edge of the world. From them sprang anew race of frost-giants who continued to maketrouble for the gods just as their forefathers had done.

Then Odin[3] took the body of Ymir, and with thehelp of his brothers he fashioned from it the earthand the sea and the sky. From the great masses offlesh they formed the earth, and all around it theyplanted Ymir’s eyebrows to make a high fence asa protection against the frost-giants. His immense[Pg4]bones they shaped into hills, and out of his teeth theymade the cliffs, while his thick hair they used fortrees and bushes and grass. His blood supplied theboundless ocean, and his skull formed the archingsky in which the gods placed some of the sparks thatfloated out of Muspelheim. These they caught andset in the heavens and called them stars. The skywas held in place by four strong dwarfs who stoodeast and west and south and north with the greatweight resting on their shoulders. All this workseemed good in the eyes of the gods, and they knewthat everything as it left their hands would prosperif only the frost-giants would stay in Jötunheim—theirdreary, fog-wrapped country that lay beyondthe ocean which now encircled the earth.

To the giantess Night, and her son, Day, the godsgave chariots and swift horses, so that they mightdrive through the sky every twenty-four hours.Night had a dark chariot drawn by the black horseHrimfaxe (Frosty-mane), who rushed so swiftlythrough the heavens that drops fell from his sweatingflanks and bit, and these became dew or hoar-frostas they lighted on the earth. Day drove awhite horse which was called Skinfaxe (Shining-mane);and when the chariot of his dusky mothersank out of sight behind the hills, he harnessed hisshining steed and followed in the same path she hadchosen.

[Pg5]Beside the chariots which belonged to Night andDay, the gods set two others in the heavens to lightthe newly made earth. From the flames that leapedforever out of the Land of Fire they made the sunand moon, and placed each one in a golden chariotso that they might be driven through the sky. Thehorses which drew the sun and moon were beautifulwhite creatures with shining golden manes. In orderthat the restive steeds of the sun should not bescorched by its fierce heat, the gods placed a greatshield in front of the chariot to protect the animals’flowing manes. The moon horses did not needanything to stand between them and its mild rays.

Then Odin chose Mani and Sol—the son anddaughter of a giantess—to drive the chariots ofthe sun and moon; and the story goes that many,many years later, when there were people on theearth, Mani looked out of his golden chariot one nightand saw two little children—a boy and a girl—carryingbetween them a heavy pail of water.These children were the servants of a cruel giantwho made them work all night instead of sleeping;and Mani, feeling very sorry for them, and beingrather lonely all by himself, put out a long arm andcaught up the children from the earth. Then he setthem beside him in the moon; and they have remainedthere with Mani ever since.

The frost-giants, who loved dreariness and gloom,[Pg6]were very angry when they saw how bright theworld was with the light of the sun and moon; sothey sent two fierce gray wolves to follow close uponthe track of the bright chariots. Sometimes theycame so near that their great black shadows dimmedthe brightness of the sun, and sometimes they hungso close to the wheels of the moon-car that its lightnever reached the earth. The wolves never succeeded,however, in eating up the chariots, thoughtheir grim shapes often lingered threateningly in thesky.

When the gods had formed the earth—which theycalled Midgard—they chose the most beautiful spotthey could find for their home. In the very centreof the earth rose a lofty mountain, and on the topof it was a broad, lovely meadow where the godsbuilt their shining city of Asgard. In the midstof the city was a spacious hall, made of gold and thepurest marble, and here were the thrones where thegods sat when in council.[4] Beyond the hall were thepalaces of the gods[5A] and goddesses,[5B] also made ofmarble and silver or gold, and near by was a hugesmithy where the gods forged the weapons neededto defend their city from their enemies the frost-giants.

[Pg7]From Asgard to Midgard the gods stretched arainbow bridge which they called Bifrost; and overthis they passed and repassed on their frequentjourneys to the earth. There was no human beingon the earth at this time, and the gods felt sorrythat no eyes but their own could look upon the fruitful,blossoming land. No one ploughed the fields orbuilt houses, or sailed in ships across the seas. Novoices of children rang over the meadows; no soundof the reaper’s scythe broke the stillness of the fields;and no ringing of metal on the smith’s firm anvilwas heard throughout the silent earth.

Then the gods took some of the earth-mould andmade of it a host of tiny creatures which they calledDwarfs or Gnomes[6]; but when Odin saw how uglythey were, with their misshapen bodies and greatheads, he condemned them to live undergroundand never to come up into the light of day. So thedwarfs spent their time delving into the heart of theearth for gold and silver and precious stones; andthey became the cleverest workmen at their tinyforges, making wonderful things of every kind ofmetal. They were cunning, too, and kept theirsecrets well, so that neither gods nor men knew thehiding-place of their treasures.

Besides the dwarfs, the gods made the Fairies,—orElves,—but these were so airily and daintily[Pg8]fashioned that they seemed to belong to the skyinstead of the earth. So the gods built the fairyfolk a home between Midgard and Asgard—abeautiful place called Elfland, all made of rainbowcolours and moonbeams, and gossamer silks anddelicate spiders’ webs. The gods also gave theselittle people gauzy wings so that they could fly downto earth and play with the butterflies, and make capsof harebells, and dance in the moonlight round afairy ring. They were never wicked and spitefullike the Gnomes, though they sometimes liked toplay good-natured tricks on stupid people; andfortunate indeed was the child or man who won afairy for his friend.

One day Odin and Hœnir and Loki were walkingabout on the earth; and as they drew near to the seashorethey saw two stately trees, an ash and an elm,standing side by side. Then Odin took the trees,and out of them he made two living beings thatresembled the gods themselves in form and feature.Hœnir touched their foreheads, that they might havesight and wisdom, and Loki gave them warm blood,with the power to speak and hear and feel. Thusman and woman were created; and the gods calledthe man Ask, and the woman Embla, from thenames of the trees from which they were made.

[Pg9]

Odin’s Search for Wisdom

AT the end of the rainbow bridge stood thewonderful tree Ygdrasil, which bound allthe worlds together in the grasp of itsmighty hands. Some of the roots were firmly fixedin Midgard, and even extended underground to thehome of the swarthy elves. Some roots branchedout into Jötunheim, where the frost-giants everstrove to tear them out; and one root struck downinto the very depths of the earth, to that dark regionof the dead where ruled the terrible goddess Hel.The Tree of Life also grew upwards to a marvellousheight, and its branches spread out so widely thatmany birds and beasts came to it for shelter. Thetopmost boughs reached up to Asgard, where theyovershadowed Odin’s hall.

At the foot of the tree Ygdrasil sat the threeNorns—or Fates[7]—who weave the thread ofeach man’s life. Every day the Norns sprinkled thetree with water from the sacred Urdar fountain; sothe tree always flourished, and its leaves kept freshand green in spite of the dragon[8] which forever[Pg10]gnawed at its roots, hoping to destroy it. Theheavy foliage that crowned its upper boughs neverlacked for moisture, but grew more beautiful eachyear, although Heidrun, the goat of Odin, browsedon its leaves, and though it furnished food to fourgreat stags who grazed beside it. From the hornsof these stags dew continually fell in such abundancethat it supplied water for all the rivers of the earth.

The very topmost branch of the Tree of Life wascalled the Peace Bough, and on it sat a great eagle whokept watch over all that happened in the worlds below.Up and down the trunk of the mighty Ygdrasilscampered the squirrel Ratatosk, a mischievous littlefellow who delighted to make trouble between theeagle and the dragon at the foot of the tree by repeatingmalicious speeches which he said each had madeof the other. In this way he hoped to stir up suchstrife that he would some day see a terrible battlefought between them. Ratatosk was daring enoughto explore all the land that was overshadowed bythe boughs of Ygdrasil, but he never ventured nearthe gates of Asgard, nor did he risk going into thedeep grove that sheltered Mimer’s well—that wonderfulwell whose waters flowed down into the rootsof the Tree of Life.

The Peace Bough hung over the hall of the godsjust above the golden throne where Odin sat rulingthe affairs of gods and men. On Odin’s head was a[Pg11]shining helmet shaped like an eagle, and over hisshoulders was thrown a mantle of deep blue with sucha wonderfully jewelled hem that it looked as if thecloak were edged with stars. In his hand he held aspear which was deemed so sacred that if any oneswore an oath upon its point, he would never dareto break it. At Odin’s feet crouched two greatwolves[9] which he fed daily with his own hand; andon his shoulders perched his two ravens Hugin andMunin (Thought and Memory) who flew eachmorning over the earth and brought back to Odinthe news of all that was going on in the earth below.Sometimes they told him of the brave deeds ofheroes; sometimes they spoke of the swarthy elves,or of the frost-giants plotting vengeance in theirhome beyond the frozen seas; and sometimes theywarned him that the Midgard serpent, who lay withhis immense body encircling the earth, was lashingthe sea into foam with his tail and rolling up thewaves until they threatened to cover the earth.

Since the ruling of the world was in Odin’s hands,he was anxious to gain wisdom enough for this greattask; and though the gods far excelled the earth-folkin knowledge, there were some of the frost-giantswho were wiser than Odin, for they knew of thingsthat happened long before the coming of the gods.On this account the dwellers in Asgard were ever[Pg12]fearful lest their enemies should destroy their shiningcity; and Odin longed for the knowledge that wouldmake him greater than any one in all the worlds.

There was only one way to get such wisdom asOdin wanted, and that was to drink deep of the waterthat flowed into Mimer’s well. No one save thehoary old giant himself had ever tasted the water ofthe Well of Wisdom; but Odin knew that without ithe could never learn of things past and present and tocome. So he laid aside his spear and helmet; andmounting his eight-legged horse Sleipnir, rode overthe rainbow bridge to the deep grove of trees in theheart of which old Mimer sat guarding his sacredwell.

Leaving Sleipnir some distance behind, Odinadvanced alone; and soon came in sight of the giantseated like a stone image beside the Well of Wisdom.Mimer was so very, very old that he looked as if hehad sat there ever since the beginning of time; andas Odin stood in the dimly lighted grove, he seemedto be the only living thing in all that vast stillness.The giant’s hair was white, and his beard hadgrown so long that it reached almost to the ground ashe leaned forward with his head resting on his hand.In the other hand he held an ivory horn; but thoughmany had passed by the sacred well, no god or mortalhad ever been given a drink from Mimer’s horn.

Odin advanced slowly to the giant’s side; and the[Pg13]old man, who had sat for ages and ages looking downinto the clear depths of the water, now raised his eyesand fixed them, not unkindly, on the waiting god.Great and wise as Odin was, being ruler of gods andmen, he felt a strange awe in the presence of thishoary old Mimer, who lived long before the creationof the worlds and was living before the gods and thefrost-giants engaged in their terrible warfare. AsOdin approached the sacred well, Mimer was fullyaware of who his visitor was, for he knew all thingsthat ever had been, or are, or were yet to be. Hiseyes, so keen and piercing, looked kindly upon thegod from beneath his shaggy brows; and his voicesounded soft to Odin’s ears as he said slowly:—

“What does the All-Father seek so far from sunnyAsgard?”

“I have come to beg a draught from your well, OMimer,” answered Odin.

The old giant’s face grew grave. “Whoever asksfor that,” he said, “must be willing to give muchin return. Many desire to drink of the waters ofwisdom, but few will pay the price. What will yougive in return for a draught from Mimer’s well?”

Only a moment did Odin hesitate; then he saidboldly, “I will give anything you ask.” At thesewords Mimer handed him the ivory horn, saying:“Drink, then; and the wisdom of the ages shall beyours. But before you go hence, leave with me as a[Pg14]pledge one of your eyes.” So Odin drank deep of thewell of wisdom; and thereafter no one in all theworlds was able to compare with the Father of theGods in wisdom. None of the dwellers in Asgardever questioned Odin concerning his visit to Mimer’swell; but they honoured him more deeply for thegreat sacrifice he had made; and whenever Odinvisited the earth to mingle in the affairs of men,people knew him as the god who had but a singleeye.

There was one other person besides old Mimer whowas reputed to have greater wisdom than the gods,and this was the frost-giant Vafthrudner. NowOdin was very anxious to measure his knowledge withthat of his old enemy, for if the frost-giants were nolonger wiser than the wisest of the gods, there wasless need to fear them. To put his wisdom to thetest, Odin set out on the long, dreary journey toJötunheim; and soon he found Vafthrudner sittingat the door of his snow-house. When the giant sawa visitor approaching, he stopped shaking the iciclesfrom his frozen beard, and stared hard at the intruder.Odin had disguised himself as a traveller,so Vafthrudner did not know him and thought hewas another foolish adventurer who had come tolearn wisdom at the cost of his life. For the penaltywhich the loser must pay in his strife with thegiant’s wisdom was death.

[Pg15]So Vafthrudner laughed until the mountainsshook when Odin declared that this was the object ofhis journey to Jötunheim; for it amused the giantvastly to think that a mere man had come to contendwith him in wisdom. He bade the stranger sitdown, and Odin obeyed, pulling his slouched hatwell over his eye, so that the giant might not guesswho his visitor was. “Tell me,” said Vafthrudner,“the name of the river that divides Asgard fromJötunheim.”

“The river Ifing, where the waters are neverfrozen,” replied Odin, quickly. The frost-giantlooked surprised, but he only said:—

“You have answered rightly, O Wise One. Andnow tell me the names of the horses that draw thechariots of Night and Day.”

“Skinfaxe and Hrimfaxe,” promptly replied Odin.Vafthrudner turned and looked hard at this remarkablestranger who could speak so readily ofthings that no man was thought to know. Thenhe asked many more questions, to which Odin gaveunhesitatingly the right answers; and soon the frost-giantbegan to feel afraid of the strange travellerwho seemed to know more than the gods themselves.Anxiously he put the last question, saying,“Tell me, O Great One, the name of the plain onwhich the Last Battle will be fought.” Now Vafthrudnerknew that no mortal man could possibly[Pg16]answer this question, so he waited fearfully for Odin’sreply.

“On the plain of Vigrid, which is a hundred mileson each side,” came the answer; and at this thefrost-giant began to quake with fear, for his boastedwisdom had been fairly met, and at last some onehad come to Jötunheim to defeat him.

Now it was Odin’s turn to ask questions; and hedrew from this wisest of the giants a knowledge ofthings that happened long before the gods came todwell in Asgard. He learned all the secrets thatthe giants guarded so carefully; and he made Vafthrudnertell him of the dim unknown future, and ofthe events that would shape the lives of gods andmen. So eager was Odin to gain the desired wisdomthat he forgot how long he had been sitting atthe frost-giant’s side and listening while Vafthrudnertold him of the time when no gods were living, andof the time when no gods should be.

The long day waned, and the curious stars peepedout, and Mani—as he drove his horses over thewestern hills—wondered why Odin lingered solong in dreary Jötunheim. When the All-Fatherhad learned all he desired to know, he rose up andsaid: “One last question I will put, O Vafthrudner;and by its answer we may judge which is the wiserof us two. What did Odin whisper in the ear ofBalder as that shining one lay on the funeral pyre?”[Pg17]When the frost-giant heard this question he knew atlast who it was that had been contending with him,and he answered humbly: “Who but thyself, OOdin, can tell the words which thou didst say to thyson? Thou art truly the wisest of all.”

So Odin departed on the long journey back toAsgard, and the gods rejoiced at his return, forhitherto no one had ever been known to strive withVafthrudner and live.

[Pg18]

The Story of the Magic Mead

THERE once lived on the earth a man namedKvasir; and he was much beloved by thegods because they had given him thewonderful gift of poetry. Kvasir was a greattraveller, and wherever he went men begged him totell them, in his singing words, of the life of the godsand of the brave deeds of heroes. So the poetwent from cottage to castle sharing his gift with richand poor alike. Sometimes he told the familiar talesthat had grown old on men’s lips; and sometimeshe sang of heroes in far-off forgotten lands.

Every one loved Kvasir—every one except thespiteful little dwarfs who grew jealous of him, andlonged to do him some evil. So one day when thepoet was walking on the seashore, two of the dwarfsnamed Fialar and Galar came up to him and beggedhim to visit their cave in the rocks. Now Kvasirnever suspected wrong of any one, so he willinglyfollowed the dwarfs into a dark cavern underground.Here the treacherous brothers slew him, and drainedhis blood into three jars in which they had alreadyplaced some honey. Thus of sweetness mingled witha poet’s life-blood they brewed the Magic Mead,[Pg19]which would give to any one who drank of it gentlenessand wisdom and the gift of poesy.

When the dwarfs had mixed the mead, they tookgreat care to hide it in a secret cave; and then, proudof their cruel cunning, they set off in search of furtheradventures. Soon they found the giant Gillingasleep on the seashore; and after pinching himawake, they asked him to row them a little way inhis boat. The giant, who was both good-naturedand stupid, took the dwarfs into his boat, and beganto row vigorously. Then Galar suddenly steeredthe boat so that it struck on a sharp rock and wasoverturned. The poor giant, who could not swim,was immediately drowned; while the wicked littledwarfs climbed upon the keel of the boat and finallydrifted ashore.

Not content with this cruel act, they went straightwayto the giant’s house and called to his wife tocome quickly, for Gilling was drowning. Thegiantess at once hurried to her husband’s aid; andas she came through the doorway, Fialar, who hadclimbed up above the lintel, suddenly dropped amillstone on her head, killing her instantly.

As the dwarfs were jumping up and down exultingover their success, the giant’s son—whose namewas Suttung—came along. When he saw hismother stretched dead upon the ground, and thelittle men skipping about in their wicked glee, he[Pg20]guessed who was guilty of this shameful deed. Sohe seized Galar and Fialar, one in each hand; and,wading far out into the sea, he set them on a certainrock which was sure to be covered with water whenthe tide rose. As he turned to go away, the dwarfsscreamed to him in terror and begged him to takethem back to land. In their fright they promisedto give him anything he might ask if only he wouldput them safe on shore.

Now Suttung had heard of the Magic Mead, andhe longed very much to possess it; so he made thedwarfs promise to give him the three jars in exchangefor their lives. Much as Galar and Fialar hated todo this, they had no choice but to agree to the giant’sdemand; so as soon as they were on land again, theydelivered the precious mead into his hands. AsSuttung could not be at home all day to guard histreasure, he hid the jars in a deep recess in the rocks,and bade his daughter Gunlod watch over themnight and day. The mouth of the cavern was sealedup with an enormous stone so that no one could enterexcept by a passageway known only to Gunlod, andSuttung felt that his treasure was safe from bothgods and men.

Odin disguised as a Traveller

Meanwhile the news of Kvasir’s death had beenbrought to Odin by his ravens Hugin and Munin,and he determined to get possession of the wonderfulmead that had been brewed from the poet’s blood.[Pg21]So he disguised himself as a traveller, pulled his grayhat well over his face and set out for the countrywhere the Magic Mead was hidden. As he nearedthe giant’s home, he saw a field in which nine sturdythralls[10] were mowing hay. These men did notbelong to Suttung, but were the servants of hisbrother Baugi. This suited Odin’s purpose just aswell, so he went quickly up to the thralls and said:“Your scythes seem very dull. How much fasteryou could work if they were sharper. Shall I whetthem for you?” The men were surprised at thisunexpected offer of help; but they accepted thestranger’s assistance gladly. When they found howsharp he had made their scythes, they begged him tosell or give them the marvellous whetstone. To thisOdin replied, “Whoever can catch it, may have itas a gift,” and with these words he threw the stoneamong them. Then began a fierce battle amongthe thralls for the possession of the prize; and theycut at each other so fiercely with their scythesthat by evening every one of them lay dead in thefield.

While they were fighting thus savagely, Odinsought out Baugi’s house and begged for supper anda night’s lodging. The giant received him hospitably;and as they sat eating, word was brought toBaugi that his nine thralls were dead. For a time[Pg22]Odin listened to his host’s complaints of his evil luckand of how much wealth he would lose through hisunmowed fields. Then he offered his services toBaugi, promising to do as much work as the ninethralls. The giant was very doubtful whether hisvisitor could make good this boast; but he acceptedthe offer quickly, and next morning Odin set towork in the fields.

Before many days had passed, all the hay onBaugi’s land was carefully stored away in the barns,and Odin came to the giant to demand his wages.“What payment shall I make you?” asked Baugi,fearing that a great sum would be named as the priceof such remarkable service. He was surprised,therefore, when Odin answered, “All I ask is adraught of the Magic Mead which your brotherSuttung keeps hidden in a cavern.”

“That is not an easy thing to get,” replied thegiant, “for though I would be glad to fetch yousome of the mead, my brother has never let me enterthe cave. However, I will ask him to bring you asingle draught.” So Baugi went in search of hisbrother, and told him of the wonderful service thatOdin had rendered. Then he asked for one drinkof the Magic Mead for his servant. At this Suttungflew into a great rage and cried:—

“Do you think I would give any of the mead to astranger who can do the work of nine thralls? No[Pg23]man could have such wonderful power. It is a godthat you have been calling your servant, and thegods have been our enemies since the beginning oftime.”

Now Baugi feared and hated the gods as much ashis brother; but he had given his word to Odin tohelp him get the Magic Mead, and he did not dareto break his promise. So when he returned to hisone-time servant, and told of the ill success of hisvisit to Suttung, Odin answered: “Then we musttry some other way. Take me to the cavern wherethe mead is hidden; but see that your brother knowsnothing of our going.”

Very unwillingly Baugi consented to show Odinthe secret cave; and as they walked, he plotted howto get rid of his troublesome servant. It seemedto take the giant a very long time to find the cavern;but when they finally reached it, Odin drew an augurfrom his pocket, and began to bore a hole in thegreat stone that stood at the cave’s mouth. Assoon as he grew tired, he made Baugi take his turnat the augur; and, owing to the giant’s greatstrength, a hole was soon bored through the rock.Then Odin quickly turned himself into a snake andcrept into the opening while Baugi, seeing his servantno longer beside him, and realizing what thesudden transformation meant, made a stab at thesnake with the augur, hoping to kill it. But Odin[Pg24]had slid safely through the hole, and was alreadyinside the cave.

Taking his rightful form, Odin now began to lookeagerly about him, and when his eyes grew accustomedto the dimness of the cavern, he saw thedaughter of Suttung seated in the furthest cornerbeside the three jars that contained the Magic Mead.He came softly to Gunlod’s side, and spoke to her sogently that she was not frightened at the suddenappearance of a stranger; and when he smiled ather with a reassuring look, she asked, “Who are you,and why are you here?”

“I am a traveller, tired and thirsty after my longjourney,” answered Odin. “Will you not give mesomething to drink?”

Gunlod shook her head. “I have nothing heresave the Magic Mead, and that I dare not give you,”she said sadly. Then Odin begged for just a singledraught, but the giant’s daughter firmly refused tolet him touch the jars.

At last, after much coaxing and soft words, Gunlodallowed her visitor to take one sip of the mead;but as soon as Odin got the jars in his hands, hedrained each one dry before the astonished maidenhad realized what had happened. Then he changedhimself quickly into a snake, and glided out throughthe opening in the rock. It was now but a moment’swork to assume an eagle’s form, and start at once on[Pg25]his journey back to Asgard. He knew well that therewas no time to lose, for Baugi had already gone to hisbrother with the news of what had happened at thecave’s mouth.

When Suttung heard Baugi’s story and realizedthat his precious mead was being stolen by one ofthe gods, he hurried at once to the cavern. Justas he reached it, he saw an eagle rise heavily up fromthe earth, and he knew this was some god in disguisebearing away the Magic Mead to Asgard. So hequickly changed himself into an eagle, and startedin pursuit of the one with slowly moving wings.Odin could not fly very fast, for the mead made himheavy; and he was much distressed to see that thegiant was easily gaining on him. As they bothneared the gates of Asgard, some of the gods werelooking out, and they saw the two birds approaching.They wondered what the pursuit might mean; butit was not until the eagles neared the outer wallsthat the watchers realized that it was Odin fleeingfrom an enemy, and straining his weary wings toreach Asgard.

Then they laid a great pile of wood on the innerwalls, and to this they applied a torch the momentthat the first eagle had passed safely over. Theflames shot up with a roar just as the pursuer hadalmost caught his prey. The fire scorched Baugi’sgreat wings, and the smoke blinded his eyes so that[Pg26]he fluttered helplessly down to the earth. Meanwhilethe Magic Mead was safe in Asgard, and thereit was put in care of Bragi, the white-haired son ofOdin. Thus the mead remained forever with thegods; but sometimes a favoured mortal is given, athis birth, a drop of this divine drink; and then, inlater years, men find that a poet has been bornamong them.

[Pg27]

Gods and Men

I

NEAR Odin’s council hall was a fair white buildingcalled the Hall of Mists,[11] and here satFrigga,[12] the wife of Odin, spinning the many-colouredclouds. She spent long hours beside hergolden wheel; and when she spun by day, the cloudswere white and soft and fleecy; but toward eveningFrigga put a touch of colour into her work, and thenthe heavens glowed with yellow and violet and red.It was through Odin’s careful wife that snow fellplentifully in winter, for then Frigga shook herfeather beds, and made them ready for the touch ofthe spring sunshine. At her command the rain fellall through the year, so that the streets of Asgardmight always be kept spotless. It was Frigga, too,who made the wonderful gift of flax to men; andshe taught the women how to spin and weave.

Frigga was very fond of children; and one day,as she looked down upon the earth, she saw two littleboys playing together on the seashore. They were[Pg28]Geirrod and Agnar, sons of a wealthy king[13]; andFrigga grew to love them very dearly. She was soanxious to talk to them and know them, that shepersuaded Odin to go with her down to the earth;and, having disguised themselves as an old fishermanand his wife, they took possession of a deserted hut.This hut was on an island many miles from the countrywhere Geirrod and Agnar lived; but Odin promisedFrigga that in spite of this, the children wouldcome to her.

One day Geirrod and his brother went out rowingin their boat, and a storm came up which blew thetiny craft far out to sea. The boys became terriblyfrightened; and the wind tossed them about on theangry waves until they would surely have perishedif Odin had not been watching over them. He kepttheir frail boat from sinking, and guided it to thevery shore on which he and Frigga were living inthe little hut. The boys were glad indeed whentheir feet once more touched the solid earth; forthey were tired and hungry and cold, and a good dealfrightened, too. They knew that they must be farfrom their own country; but they were so glad tobe out of reach of the waves that it mattered littleto them what land it was to which the wind hadbrought them.

When they began to look about them, they found[Pg29]that the island was very bleak and bare, with noflowers nor fruits nor berries to be seen anywhere.Nothing seemed to be growing there but low, thornybushes that scratched them and tore their clothes asthey attempted to make their way further into theisland. Soon it began to get dark, and the boysstumbled helplessly through the briers; but at lastthey saw the glimmer of a light, and groped theirway toward it. Presently they came to a smallhut, through whose open window the friendly lightwas streaming, and, without a moment’s hesitation,they knocked loudly at the door.

They were a bit surprised at the appearance ofthe two people within the hut; for although theywere simply clad as peasants, there was somethingin their bearing that reminded Geirrod and Agnarof the lordly guests who had sat at their father’stable. But the boys were too hungry and tired topay much attention to the kind folk who took themin, though they were grateful for the food and dryclothing and a warm place by the fire. Some dayslater, Geirrod inquired of his host how a fishermancould afford such wonderfully soft beds and food fitfor kings to dine upon. Agnar asked no questions,but wondered why the flowers bloomed so plentifullyaround the cottage door, and why the birdssang all day.

It was too stormy for the boys to attempt to[Pg30]venture on the sea for many days; and even whenthe storm was over, the waves looked dark andmenacing. Winter was coming on, and there waslittle chance that the sea would grow calm; so Geirrodand Agnar lingered day after day in the fisherman’scottage, needing no persuasion to remainwith their new-found friends. Geirrod spent allof his time with the fisherman,[14] learning the lore ofthe sea and becoming very adept in the use of thespear as well as the humbler net and line. He wasalso taught to hunt the game that was plentiful onthe island, and he grew very proud of his skill withthe bow. All day he stayed at the fisherman’sside, listening, learning and wondering at the greatknowledge which his companion had of things thathad happened before the world was made. Heheard many tales of heroes, and learned of bravedeeds that had been done by men of his own race.He knew that the fisherman told these stories sothat he himself might see how fine a thing it was tobe brave and strong and noble; and Geirrod, whowas by nature selfish and cruel, felt so thrilled bythe old man’s stirring words that he wished to belike the heroes whose lives were so loudly praised.

Agnar usually stayed with the fisherman’s wifein the cottage; for he was gentler and more timidthan his brother, and preferred to help his kind[Pg31]foster-mother instead of hunting with Geirrod orventuring out on the sea to spear the great fish.Agnar, too, heard many stories as he sat by the goodwife’sside while she spun her flax; but these werenot hero-tales nor stories of adventure. She toldhim how the god Freyr makes the flowers bloom,and the fruits ripen; and how his sister Freyawatches over the earth all through the springtime.She spoke of the love which these two had for allthe beautiful things in nature, for music and poetry,and how they even watched with delight the dancingof the fairies in Elfheim. She told him how wonderfulthe city of Asgard looked when the sun shone on thebroad, golden streets; and how the sounds reëchoedthrough the great hall called Valhalla where Odinfeasted with the heroes chosen from the battle-field.

So the winter passed quickly, and when springcame the fisherman built a new, strong boat inwhich the boys were to make their voyage homeward.Then Geirrod and Agnar said good-by to the kindfolk with whom they had passed so many happydays. Reluctantly they sailed away from thefriendly island, and soon came in sight of their owncountry. A fair wind carried them gently all theway, for Odin had commanded Njord, the stormgod, to keep his blusterous winds under control.As the boat neared the familiar shores, Geirrod forgot[Pg32]all the generous lessons that the fisherman hadtried to teach him, and he began to look with hatredat his brother. As Agnar was the older of the two,he would inherit the kingdom; so Geirrod was filledwith a sudden rage against the gentle boy who stoodin the way of his becoming king.

As the boat drew toward the shore, Geirrod sprangout, and giving the boat a mighty shove toward theopen sea he cried: “Go back to the island, you weak,timid girl. You are not fit to be king.” Then,being a sturdy swimmer, he made for the land. Theboat drifted out again to sea, and carried Agnar toa strange land, where he lived many years. Finallyhe returned to his own country in disguise andbecame a servant in his father’s palace—but bythis time Geirrod had already been made king. Forwhen Geirrod swam ashore, he hastened at onceto his father and told him the whole story of hisadventure with the fisherman on the island. Whenthe king asked for Agnar, Geirrod said that hisbrother had been drowned on the journey home byfalling over the edge of the boat. As there was noreason to doubt this story, the king mourned forAgnar as one dead; and the younger brother wasacknowledged heir to the throne. Not many yearslater, the king died and Geirrod was made rulerover the whole kingdom.

When Odin and Frigga, who had long since left[Pg33]the island and returned to Asgard, learned what hadbecome of their favourites, Odin was very proud thatGeirrod had become a great king. Frigga grieved,however, that the gentle Agnar had suffered throughhis brother’s treachery, and hated to see him servingas a menial in Geirrod’s hall. When Odin praisedhis former pupil, she would say: “He is a greatking, but a cruel man. No stranger would dare totrust to his mercy.”

Now as unkindness to a stranger was a very despicabletrait in those days, this taunt of Frigga’sroused Odin’s wrath; and he determined to showher that Geirrod was not the heartless king she declaredhim to be. So he disguised himself as anaged traveller, and presented himself at Geirrod’spalace asking for food and shelter. Frigga, however,was equally determined to prove Geirrod’scruelty, and thus defend her favourite, Agnar. Soshe secretly sent a messenger to the king biddinghim beware of a strange old man who would come tothe palace claiming the rights of hospitality.

Odin was much surprised when he met with roughusage at the hands of Geirrod’s servants, not knowingthat the king had commanded them to seizeany aged traveller who might come to the palace.He was not welcomed to the well-filled table as hehad expected, but was rudely dragged before theking. Now Geirrod, believing that this was the[Pg34]stranger of whom he had been warned to beware,commanded the old man to tell his name and theobject of his visit. The traveller stood with bowedhead, refusing to speak; and this made the kingso angry that he threatened the old man with tortureand death if he did not answer.

As the stranger continued to keep silent, Geirrodcommanded his servants to chain him to a pillarin the great hall and build on each side of him a hotfire whose flames would torture without destroyinghim. So they dragged the unresisting old man tothe pillar and bound him with chains too strong foreven the stoutest warrior to break. Then theykindled fires on either side of him and stood off,laughing and mocking at the trembling figure thatseemed to crouch in terror against the pillar.

For eight days and nights the fires were kept burning,and during all this time the cruel king allowedno meat or drink to be given to his prisoner. Butone night, when the watchers were drowsy with aleand the heat of the fires, a servant stole softly intothe hall with a great drinking-horn in his hand.This he carried to the old man, who appeared tobe in great suffering, and he smiled happily when hesaw the prisoner drain the cool drink to the lastdrop. This servant was Agnar, the king’s brother,whom every one believed to be dead.

The next morning, Geirrod assembled all his[Pg35]nobles in the great hall, and they began to makemerry over the prisoner’s misery, asking him if hewould now speak and tell them who he was and fromwhence he came. The old man shook his head, refusingto speak; but suddenly, to the astonishmentof all, he began to sing. And as he sang, the listenersgrew strangely silent, while a nameless fearseized the whole company as they saw no longer thecrouching figure by the pillar, but a tall commandingform before whose awful majesty they shrank backtrembling and afraid. As the singing continued,the power and sweetness of the music filled the echoinghalls; and when the song was over, the chainsfell suddenly from the prisoner’s arms and he stood—aterrible accusing power—before the eyes ofthe terrified people. Geirrod as well as his noblesknew now that a god had come among them; andthe king, fearing for his life, tried madly to defendhimself. He seized his sword and rushed blindlyat the tall form confronting him, forgetting—in histerror—that no weapon could prevail against animmortal. Blinded by his fury, he fell forwardupon his own sword, and in a moment lay dead atOdin’s feet.

Then the All-Father called to Agnar and bade himtake his rightful place on the throne which hisbrother had usurped. The people gladly welcomeda kindlier ruler; and Odin, having righted the[Pg36]wrongs which Geirrod’s cruelty had created, nowreturned to Asgard to report to the anxious Friggathat her favourite was at last made king.

II

There was once a king named Gylfe who wasreputed to be the wisest ruler of his time. He keptmany learned men at his court; but he was eagerto gain more knowledge than all these sages couldcommand, and so sent far and wide for men skilledin magic and those whose eyes could read the secretsof the stars.

One day an old woman[15] came to Gylfe’s palaceasking alms, and she was brought at once into thepresence of the king. Gylfe treated her with greatkindness, and while she sat at the king’s table eatingof his own rich food, she turned to the monarch saying:“Never has the stranger met with such kindnessas this. What can I give you in return?”The guests who were feasting began to laugh merrily,but the king answered, “There is nothing thatI wish for except wisdom.” “Then, listen,” saidthe strange old woman, and she began to tell theking a story of the world as it was when it came freshfrom the hands of the gods. Then she spoke of thefrost-giants, the ancient enemies of the shining onesof Asgard; and as the king listened, he seemed to[Pg37]see how all things must have looked in that firstmorning of the world.

When the old woman finished speaking and turnedto leave the palace, Gylfe begged her to accept somegift in return for her wonderful stories; and thestranger, who was really a giantess, replied: “Iwill take as much land as four oxen can plough in aday and a night.” Now the frost-giants had beenenvying the earth-folk many years, and they wishedto add more land to their country beyond the frozenseas. So when Gylfe consented to the old woman’sstrange request, she brought four immense oxen fromJötunheim, and harnessed them to a huge plough.Then the giantess cut such a deep furrow into theearth that a great tract of land was torn away; andthis, being carried out to sea by the oxen, was bornewestward to Jötunheim. Thus Gylfe lost a largepart of his kingdom, but he felt that even that wasnot too great a price to pay for the knowledge whichhe had gained.

Having learned from the giantess how wise wereall the dwellers in Asgard, Gylfe determined to seekthe gods themselves; though he knew that in hiseager desire for more wisdom he was likely to meetdeath at their hands for his presumption. So he setout on the journey to Asgard; but he would surelyhave never reached those sacred halls if Odin hadnot guided his footsteps and led him to the rainbow[Pg38]bridge that reached up from Midgard to the city ofthe gods. Here, at the end of Bifrost, he met Heimdall,the watchman who stood all day and nightguarding the shining city from the approach of thegiants. Whenever a stranger appeared at therainbow bridge he sounded his horn[16] to warn the godsof possible danger. Heimdall never slept; and henot only saw as well by night as by day, but hiseyes had the wonderful power of seeing a hundredmiles all around. He also had such remarkableears that he could hear the grass growing, and tellwhether the wind was blowing on the sea.

Having received a command from Odin to letthe stranger pass, Heimdall allowed the king to enterthe sacred city; and Gylfe soon found himself inthe presence of Odin. The Father of the Gods receivedhim kindly; and, after learning the objectof his journey, permitted Gylfe to seat himself inthe great council-hall. Then Odin asked the kingwhat it was he wished to know, and Gylfe began toquestion him freely and fearlessly. He asked aboutthe creation of the world, about the seasons and therainfalls, and the changes of the moon. He askedwhy the elves kept themselves forever hidden in theearth, and why the fairies danced only in the moonlight.He spoke, though timidly, of the dark underworld,[Pg39]and asked why the dead never came back toearth again. He even questioned Odin concerningthe gods themselves; and to all these eagerqueries, the All-Father gave a willing answer.

Suddenly the hall grew full of mist and shadows,and Gylfe could hardly see the foot of Odin’s throne.A great noise like some deafening thunder shook thecouncil-hall, and the king, bewildered and frightened,did not know where to turn for safety. Thenall at once the darkness and the sounds vanished,and Gylfe found himself on a broad plain. At firsthe thought that he had seen the shield-hung halland the shining streets of Asgard only in a dream;but soon the words of Odin came back to him, andhe knew that he had indeed talked with the greatestof the gods.

So Gylfe became the wisest ruler on the earth;but though all men honoured him for his great wisdom,many refused to believe that he had reallybeen within the gates of Asgard.

[Pg40]

Sif’s Golden Hair and the Makingof the Hammer

I

AMONG the gods there was one who was reallyunfit to be a god and to live in the shiningcity of Asgard. He was the cause of muchtrouble and mischief in his frequent journeys to theearth, and he brought evil upon even the gods themselves.But as Loki was the brother of Odin, hecould not very well be banished from Asgard, so thegods endured his presence as best they could. Lokidid many unkind things that the gods never heardof; but once he met with just punishment for hismeanness. This was the time that he robbed Sifof her golden hair.

Loki

Sif was the wife of Thor[17] the god of thunder.She had beautiful long hair that fell over hershoulders like a shower of gold, and of this she wasvery proud. One day Sif fell asleep on the stepsof Thor’s palace,[18] and while she lay there sleepingLoki came walking by. There was nothing so dear[Pg41]to Loki as a chance to do mischief, and he never sawanything beautiful without wishing to spoil it; sowhen he found Sif fast asleep, he stole up softlybehind her and cut off all her golden hair.

When Sif woke at last and saw what had happened,she began to cry bitterly, for her golden hairwas the pride and joy of Thor, and she was afraidthat he would never want to look at her again nowthat it was gone. So she got up from the steps whereshe was sitting, and went away to hide in the garden.When Thor came home, he looked for her all throughthe palace, and went from room to room calling hername. Not finding her in the house, he went outinto the garden, and after searching for a long timefinally found poor Sif behind a stone, sobbingbitterly. When he heard her story, he tried tocomfort her the best he could, but Sif continuedweeping and covered her shorn head with her arms.

“I know who did this shameful thing,” criedThor, wrathfully; “it was that mischief-makerLoki, but this time he shall pay dearly for his wickedness.”And he strode out of the palace with a lookso threatening that even the gods might havetrembled before him. Now Loki was not expectingto be caught so soon, and he had not thought ofseeking a hiding place; so when Thor came suddenlyupon him he was too frightened to try to escape.He even forgot his ready lies, and when Thor shook[Pg42]him angrily and threatened to kill him for his wickedact, he made no denial, only begged for mercy andpromised to restore to Sif the hair he had cut off.Thor therefore released him, after binding him by asolemn oath to fulfil his promise.

The real hair which Loki had cut off he had alreadylost, so to keep his word to Thor he must findsomething else which would resemble it closelyenough to make Sif believe she had indeed her ownhair again. As there was only one place whereskilful and cunning work like this could be done,Loki crossed the rainbow bridge that spans the gulfbetween Asgard and the earth, and hurried to thetall mountain which hides, amid its rocks, the entranceto the lower world. No one but a god, orone of the swarthy elves themselves, could havefound this hidden opening, but Loki knew it well.He first looked for a tiny stream which flowed alongat the foot of the mountain. This he followed toits source in a deep cave among the rocks, and whenhe came to the spot where it bubbled up from theground, he raised a huge log that was lying, apparentlyby chance, close beside it. This discloseda small passage leading down into the very centreof the earth, and along this path Loki hastened,often stumbling about in the darkness, until he cameto the underworld where lived the swarthy elves.They were busily engaged in their wonderful workshop,[Pg43]which was lighted only by the fires from theforge, but when they saw Loki they laid down theirtools and asked him how they could serve him.

“I have a task,” answered Loki, “which requiressuch great skill to perform that I hardly dare askyou to attempt it. It is nothing less than for you tomake of your gold some locks of hair that will beas soft and fine and beautiful as the golden hairwhich adorns the head of Sif, the wife of Thor. Youhave heard, no doubt, of its beauty, so you know howdifficult a task I have given you.”

The elves, nothing daunted, set at once to work,and selecting a bar of perfect gold, they poundedit very soft, then spun it into threads so fine thatthey looked like sunbeams, and so soft that theyfelt like silk. When the work was finished andplaced in Loki’s hand, it exceeded in beauty anythinghe had ever seen, and he felt sure that Thorcould not complain of his gift. Then he thankedthe swarthy elves and hastened with his prize backto Asgard and to the palace of Thor, where all thegods had assembled to see the fulfilment of Loki’spromise.

In spite of the success of his undertaking, the fearof Thor’s hasty temper kept Loki somewhat humbled,for the Thunderer had been known to crush theobject of his anger with his hammer when once hiswrath was fully roused. His face was now dark and[Pg44]threatening as Loki approached, and beside himstood Sif, weeping bitterly, and trying to cover herhead with her hands. But Loki came up boldlyand placed the golden hair which the elves had made,upon her head. To the astonishment of all, it immediatelygrew fast, and no one could have told thatit was not her own golden hair. So Sif was proudand happy once again, and Loki was forgiven.

II

When Loki went to the underground home of theelves to find the golden hair for Sif, he thought thatit would be as well to get two other gifts—one forOdin and one for Freyr—so that their anger wouldfall less heavily on him for his cruelty to Thor’sbeautiful wife. The dwarfs were always very gladto help Loki when he was in trouble, for they, too,delighted in mischief-making; so when he asked themfor the two other gifts, they gladly set to work. Thespun-gold hair they had already placed in Loki’shands; and now they hurried about, getting togethera hundred different materials to use in their work—forthings of earth, air, fire and water went into themaking of the wonderful gifts that came from thehands of the elves.

In a short time they handed to the waiting goda spear[19] that would always hit the mark no matter[Pg45]how badly it was thrown, and a marvellous boat[20]that would fold up into a tiny package, but couldalso expand large enough to hold all the gods andgoddesses in Asgard. Loki was delighted withthese gifts and hurried with them back to Odin’scouncil-hall where the gods had assembled to passjudgment on him for his cruel treatment of Sif.

Though the hair of spun gold proved to be so perfectthat Loki had nothing to fear from Thor’sanger, he saw that Odin was still displeased and waslooking at him with stern brows. So the wily godproduced his two other gifts, and handed the spearto Odin and the boat to Freyr. Both the gods weredelighted with the clever workmanship of the elves;and all the company were so busy examining Loki’sgifts that they did not notice the dwarf Brock, whohad followed Loki to Asgard and was now standingin the shadow of Odin’s throne.

When the gods grew loud in their approval of themagic spear and boat, Brock could contain his angerno longer and cried out: “Can you find nothingbetter than those petty toys to praise? My brotherSindri can make far more wonderful things thanthese.” At this boastful interference Loki grewvery angry and said: “Prove it, then; for I knowthat your brother is only a stupid workman. Letus make a wager that you cannot bring here three[Pg46]gifts better than those you scorn; and whichever ofus loses in the contest shall pay for it with his head.”Brock accepted the challenge and set off at once tothe cave where Sindri kept his dwarfs at work nightand day.

He told his brother of the wager he had made withLoki, and Sindri laughed and promised that thegod’s head should hang that night in the cave as atrophy. Then he made ready a huge fire, and as heworked busily over his tools he bade Brock keep thebellows going as hard as he could so that the flameswould leap higher and higher. Then, when hethought the right moment had come, he threw intothe fire a pigskin; and bidding Brock keep steadily atwork on the bellows, he left the cave.

The dwarf blew hard at the fire, and the forgegleamed so brightly that the whole cave was lit up,and Brock could see the piles of gold and silverand glittering gems that lay all around. Thensuddenly an enormous gadfly flew into the room;and, lighting on his hand, stung him so badly thathe roared with pain. Still he did not take his handfrom the bellows, for, with the cunning of his race, heknew that the gadfly was none other than Loki whohad taken this form, hoping to spoil Sindri’s work.

When the master-smith returned, he looked eagerlyat the forge and saw that the fire glowed as brightlyas ever. So he muttered a few magic words over[Pg47]the flames and drew forth a golden boar. This hehanded to his brother, saying that the boar had thepower to fly through the air, and shed light from hisgolden bristles as he flew. Brock was so muchpleased with this gift that he said nothing about hisswollen hand; and when Sindri asked him to keephis place at the bellows, he willingly agreed.

The smith then threw a lump of gold into theflames; and bidding Brock keep the fire at whiteheat, he again left the cave. Brock began to workharder than ever at the bellows; and as the fireglowed so that it seemed like daylight in the room,the gadfly flew at him and stung him on the neck.He screamed with pain and tried to shake off histormentor, but still he kept faithfully at his workand never lifted his hand a moment from the bellows.When Sindri returned, he found the fire glowingbrightly, and, leaning over it, he pulled out of theflames a fine gold ring, which every ninth night woulddrop nine gold rings as wonderful as itself.

Brock was so delighted with this gift that he almostforgot about his wounded neck; and obedientlykept his place at the bellows. Then Sindri threw alump of iron into the fire, and bidding his brotherwork steadily at his task—for this was the mostimportant gift of all—he went out of the cave.Brock grasped the bellows firmly, and began to workwith all his might. Just as the flames were leaping[Pg48]fiercely and the room seemed lit by a million candles,the gadfly flew at Brock and stung him between theeyes.

The poor little dwarf was almost frantic from thepain of the wound and from the blood that pouredinto his eyes. But though dazed and blinded sothat he could hardly see the fire, he kept doggedlyat work on the bellows, only lifting one hand for amoment to wipe the blood from his eyes. The firehad been glowing like a furnace, but in that oneinstant the flames burned less brightly, and Sindri—whohad just entered the room—began to beratehis brother for his carelessness. Then the smithdrew out of the fire a mighty hammer, perfect inevery way except that the handle was too short,owing to Brock’s having lifted his hand a momentfrom the bellows.

Sindri gave the three gifts to his brother, andbade him hasten to Asgard, and bring back the headof Loki as payment for the lost wager. When thedwarf reached Odin’s council-hall, the gods had assembledto decide the contest, for every one waseager to see what gifts Sindri had sent. Brockhanded the ring[21A] to Odin, who praised it highly andsaid, “Now, I shall never want for gold.” Freyrwas delighted with his gift of the golden boar[21B] andsaid that it would be much more entertaining to[Pg49]ride on its back than in Loki’s magic boat. LastlyBrock gave the wonderful hammer Mjölner to Thor,saying, “Here is a hammer which can crush mountains,can cause lightning and thunder when it swingsthrough the air, and will always come back to yourhand no matter how far you may throw it.” Thenthe dwarf turned to Odin and said, “Decide nowbetween Loki and me, O Wise One, and declare whosegifts are worth most to Asgard.”

Though the gods were reluctant to condemn oneof their number in favour of a dwarf, there was nodisputing the fact that Thor’s hammer was worthmore than all of Loki’s gifts, for it meant a sureprotection to Asgard from the attacks of the frost-giants.So Odin declared that Brock had won thewager, and that Loki must pay the forfeit with hishead. Now Loki had no intention of submitting tothis decree, so he first offered the dwarf a huge sumof money as a ransom; but Brock angrily refused thegold, and insisted that the bargain should be kept.Then Loki cried out, “Well, you must catch mefirst,” and sped off on his magic shoes, which couldcarry him through the air and over the water withwonderful swiftness. As Brock knew he couldnever catch the fugitive, he grew black with rage,and turned upon Odin, crying, “Is this the waythat the gods keep faith, or shall the word of Odinstand fast?” Now all the company knew well[Pg50]that a promise made by even the meanest amongthem must be held sacred; so Odin sent Thor afterLoki. In his swift chariot, drawn by the snow-whitegoats, the Thunderer easily overtook the runawayand brought him back to Asgard. Then Loki sawthat he must save his life by cunning, and he saidto Brock, “You may take my head if you wish,but you must not touch my neck.”

Now as this was obviously impossible, the dwarfknew that he was outwitted by the crafty Loki, sohe went away fuming with rage and disappointment.But before he left Asgard, he took out of his pocketan awl and a thong, and sewed Loki’s lips togetherso that, for a while at least, the tricky god couldnot do any more boasting.

[Pg51]

The Binding of the Fenris Wolf

IN the very beginning of time, when the gods firstmade the world, there was joy and gladness notonly in Asgard but over all the earth; sin andevil were unknown, and death had not yet come evenamong men. So the gods were very happy—all exceptLoki, who looked on with jealous eyes at thegladness which he could not share; for he knew nopleasure save in devising mischief. Not satisfiedwith grudging others their happiness, he soughtsome means to bring about trouble, but finding himselftoo powerless to accomplish anything alone, hemarried a fierce giantess[22] and had three terriblechildren—Hel, the Midgard serpent and the Fenriswolf.

These dreadful creatures soon grew very strongand fearful to look upon; and Loki was not contentto keep them in the dark cave in Jötunheim withtheir gruesome mother, but allowed them to roamabout the earth. Soon they wearied of the narrowlimits of the earth and found no longer any pleasurein bringing terror and even death to many lands.So Loki took them up to Asgard and begged the gods[Pg52]to let him keep them there. For a while all wentwell, but soon the presence of Loki’s children becamea menace to even the gods’ safety; and theygrew fearful of Hel’s deadly eyes, and the serpent’sfoaming mouth and Fenrer’s cruel jaws.

So one day Odin rose up from his throne, stern andwrathful, and cast Hel down into the centre of theearth, to rule over the dark region of the dead. Thenhe threw the Midgard serpent into the bottom of thesea, where he grew larger and larger, until his hugebody encircled the whole earth. But before hecould banish Fenrer, Loki came forward and beggedthat the wolf might be spared and allowed to remain,promising the gods that he would see that it did noharm. So Odin consented, though with doubt andmistrust.

After a while the wolf became very large and fierce,and nothing seemed to appease his savage hunger.Only Tyr, the sword-god, dared feed him, and hewandered about Asgard growing daily more hungry,and more cruel and terrible to see. At lengthOdin called the gods together in council and said tothem:—

“Fenrer is getting to be more of a menace to ourlives every day, and I no longer trust Loki’s promiseto guard our safety. We must therefore find someway to control the wolf, for we cannot kill him andso stain our shining city with his blood.”

[Pg53]Then Thor proposed that they should bind Fenrerwith a strong chain which he himself would make;and to this plan the gods gladly agreed. So allthat night and for many days to come the soundof Thor’s hammer could be heard throughout Asgardas he forged the links of a massive chain that shouldbind the Fenris wolf.[23] When it was finished, thegods assembled before Odin, Thor carrying the heavychain upon his shoulders, and Loki coming upcautiously with Fenrer, who stalked boldly beside him.No force could possibly be used with a creature sostrong and fierce, so the gods sought to gain theirend by flattery, praising the wolf’s size and strength,and daring him to match it against the strength ofthe chain which Thor had made.

Now Fenrer knew far better than they how terriblystrong he had become, and therefore he willingly laydown and let them fasten the chain around his greatbody, and then secure it to a rock. When this wasdone, the gods breathed more freely, for it seemed as ifthey had nothing to fear from the wolf any longer;but in a moment Fenrer rose, stretched his hugelimbs and shook himself once. As he did so, thechain fell to pieces as easily as if it were made ofglass. The gods looked on in wonder and dismay,and the wolf walked off with a low, threatening growl.Even Odin was silent with fear, for it had been[Pg54]revealed to him in the runes that in the final overthrowof Asgard, the Fenris wolf should bear a part.

Thor now came forward and begged permissionto try again at making another chain much largerand stronger than the last. The forging of thissecond chain took many days and nights, for Thortested every link to see that it was strong and sure.[24]At last it was finished, and brought on the shouldersof the strongest of the gods to the foot of Odin’sthrone. Fenrer was again summoned, but whenhe saw the chain, he refused to be bound. No flatteryor coaxing could move him, so the gods beganto taunt him, laughing at his boasted strength andaccusing him of cowardice. Apparently with greatreluctance, the wolf again allowed himself to bebound; and when the chain was secured about hisshaggy body and fastened tightly to the ground,the gods looked on, feeling fearful and yet full of joy,for surely nothing could be stronger than the massivechain which was wound round and round the prostratewolf. But Fenrer rose slowly, stretched himself,and gave one bound into the air, while the godsdrew back in dismay before the rattling shower ofbroken links.

Then Odin saw that no brass or steel or any metalcould withstand the terrible strength of the wolf,and he bade Thor give up all further attempts to[Pg55]forge a chain, while he had it proclaimed throughoutAsgard that Fenrer was to roam wherever hewould. Shortly after this he sent Loki on a journeyfar across the seas to a country so distant from Asgardthat he would have to be gone many days. Thoughusually alert and suspicious, Loki set off on hiserrand, not dreaming that Odin had some purposein sending him away. As soon as he was gone, Odindespatched Skirner, Freyr’s trusty servant, withall speed to the home of the swarthy elves, and badehim procure from them an enchanted chain, such asthey alone knew how to make. Skirner set out atonce and found his journey a safer and pleasanterone than he had expected, for though the home of thedwarfs was underground, the road was easy to find.Odin had instructed him to look at the base of acertain mountain for a tiny stream of opal-tintedwater. Having come to the foot of the mountain,Skirner followed the stream to its rocky source, andthe rest of the journey was quickly made.

When he delivered his message to the elves,[25]they set immediately to work, and for nine days andnights Skirner heard no sound in the workshop asthe little men plied their task. No stroke of hammeror noise of anvil was necessary in the making of thiswonderful chain, for into its weaving went the strangestthings that Skirner had ever seen,—the down[Pg56]from a butterfly’s wing, a handful of moonbeams, thelace of a spider’s web, a humming bird’s lance, thebreath of the night wind and many other queerand mysterious things. The work was all done inperfect silence, and Skirner sat by looking on inwonder as the magic chain grew into being under theelves’ skilful fingers. At last it was finished, andwith the precious gift in his hands, Skirner hastenedback to Asgard.[26]

Then Odin called the gods together and summonedFenrer to come and try his strength a third time.When the wolf saw the chain which was to bind him,he became at once suspicious, especially when hefound that Loki was absent. He had no doubt ofhis power to break brass and steel, but he scented apossible danger in the soft, fine thread which lay inOdin’s hand. As he had no one here to warn himif the gods meant mischief, he felt that it was saferto wait until Loki was present; so he drew away,growling and showing his teeth. At this Thorcried out,—

“How now, Fenrer, have you used up all yourstrength in breaking those heavy chains, and havenot enough left to snap this slender thread?”

This taunt made the wolf growl more fiercely thanever, though he consented a third time to be bound,demanding first, however, that one of the gods should[Pg57]put his hand in the huge mouth, and leave it thereas a pledge that no magic arts were being used againsthim. None of the gods wished to take such a risk,and they all drew back in dismay except Tyr, thesword-god, who stepped boldly forward and thrusthis hand into the wolf’s mouth. Then Fenrer submittedto be bound, and allowed the gods to wind theslender thread all about him and fasten the end toa rock. The moment it was secured, the wolf triedas before to shake himself free, but the more hestruggled and strained, the tighter grew the magicthread, until at last Fenrer lay bound and helplessand foaming madly with rage. Seeing that he hadbeen tricked, he closed his teeth savagely upon Tyr’sfingers, and bit off his whole hand. But the sword-godfelt repaid for the loss of his hand since thewolf at last was bound. Thus the gods left himsecurely chained to the rock; and there he lay untilthe final terrible day when it was decreed that heshould break loose again, and help in bringingdestruction upon all the dwellers of Asgard.

[Pg58]

How Thor Went Fishing

ONE day the gods went to a feast given byÆger the sea-god; and they drank so muchale that before the meal was half over thevessel which old Æger had filled was drained dry.He was greatly distressed at finding there was notenough to drink, and he began at once to brew moreof the foaming ale. As his kettle was rather smallfor so great a company, he asked Thor to find hima larger one that would better suit the needs of thegods. To this Thor, who was always ready for anysort of adventure, replied readily,—

“Tell me where to get the kettle, and I will fetchit, even if it is from the very heart of Jötunheim.”

Now Æger had no idea where to look for such anenormous kettle as he needed; but just then Tyrspoke up and said:—

“My father Hymer has a kettle that is one miledeep and half a mile wide. If Thor wishes to riskthe giant’s anger, he can go with me to Hymer’scastle.”

So the two gods set off for their long journey inThor’s swift goat-chariot; and though they travelledquickly over the frost-bound country that stretched[Pg59]far away to the north, it was a long time before theycame to the land where Hymer and his kindredlived. Here they had to cross two half-frozen riversover which the goats carried them safely, and thenthey came to the foot of a great ice-covered mountainthat looked as smooth as glass. Tyr advisedthat they go the rest of the way on foot; so, leavingthe chariot by some low fir trees, the two gods proceededto climb up the slippery side of the mountain.

Almost at the top they came upon Hymer’scastle, and they entered the spacious hall where ahuge fire, made of entire trees, was burning on thehearth. Near the fire was seated Tyr’s grandmother,a hideous old giantess who did not speak to the twogods as they entered, but only grinned horridly atthem, showing her long, pointed teeth that lookedlike a wolf’s fangs. Beside her sat a beautiful womanspinning flax with a golden wheel. This was Tyr’smother, who was as lovely as the old woman washideous, and as kind as the hag was cruel. Shewelcomed her son affectionately, but warned himthat both he and Thor had better keep hidden untilthey found out whether Hymer was disposed to befriendly—for when the giant was angry he wasnot a pleasant person to encounter.

Late in the evening Hymer came home, tired andill-tempered after an unsuccessful day’s fishing. Heshook the snow from his clothes and combed the ice[Pg60]out of his long, white beard. Then he sat down bythe fire, and while he watched the meat turn on thespit, Tyr’s mother said softly: “Our son has cometo see you. Shall we welcome him to the fire?”Before Hymer could answer, the old giantess croakedout, “And Thor has come with him—the strongestgod in Asgard and the enemy of our race.”

Hymer looked very angry as he heard this, andwhen his old mother cried, “Look, they are hidingbehind the furthest pillar,” the giant stared at thepillar with such a piercing look that it cracked intwo. Then the beam overhead suddenly snapped,and the kettles that were hanging from it fell witha crash to the floor. There were eight of thesekettles, and among them was the huge one of whichTyr had spoken to the sea-god. All of the kettleswere broken by the fall except the largest; andas Hymer was stooping to pick this up, Tyr andThor walked out from behind the pillar.

The giant was not very well pleased to see Thor,but as the visitor came in company with his son, hedecided to treat him civilly. So he invited thetwo gods to come and eat with him, and made aplace for them by the fire. There were three oxenserved for supper; and after Thor had eaten two ofthem and started on a third, Hymer cried:—

“Ho, there! If you eat all our meat, you willhave to catch us some fish to-morrow.” Thor[Pg61]laughed and replied that he was only too glad of achance to go fishing. So next morning when thegiant set off at sunrise, Thor went with him to thebeach, and watched him get the lines and the netsready. “If I am to catch the fish, will you giveme some bait?” he asked, and Hymer replied witha growl, “Go and find some for yourself.”

So Thor went over to the meadow where the giant’scattle were grazing, and, seizing the largest bull bythe neck, he wrung off its head, and carried thisdown to the boat. Hymer was very angry at thistreatment of his property, but he said nothing, onlybade Thor take the oars. Then he gave the boata great shove, and sprang in with such violence thatthe whole craft was almost overturned.

Under Thor’s quick strokes the boat shot overthe water like an arrow, and the giant looked a bitsurprised to see how well his companion could pull.With every dip of the oars the boat gathered speed,and they very soon reached Hymer’s fishing ground.He then called to Thor to stop rowing, but the godonly shook his head and pulled all the harder. Ina few moments they were out of sight of land, andthe boat was swinging heavily in the trough of thesea. Hymer begged Thor not to go any farther,but the god laughed and said,—

“There is much better fishing a few miles ahead.”Then he bent hard at the oars, and the boat flew over[Pg62]the waves with incredible swiftness. Soon Hymerbegan to be frightened, and called loudly, “If yougo much farther, we shall be over the Midgardserpent.”

Now this was just what Thor intended; so hekept on rowing until they were just over the spotwhere the huge snake lay coiled at the bottom ofthe ocean with his tail in his mouth. Then Thordrew in his oars and began to bait his line with thebull’s head. Hymer had his things all ready forfishing, and as soon as he dropped his line into thesea the bait was grabbed with a sudden jerk whichnearly toppled the giant overboard. Regaining hisbalance, he proudly pulled up out of the water twowhales, and flung them in the boat. Then Thorthrew out his line, and in a moment the whole seawas in an uproar, for the bait had been seized by theMidgard serpent and the hook was now caught fastin its great mouth.

When Thor felt the terrible pull on his line, hegrasped it with all his might, and braced himselfagainst the side of the boat. The serpent was indeeda match for him in strength, and Thor—toprevent being dragged out into the water—sethimself with such force against the framework of theboat that his feet broke right through, and he foundhimself standing on the bottom of the sea. Herehe could take such firm hold that he was able to[Pg63]draw the serpent up to the edge of the boat. Themonster lashed the waves fiercely with its tail, andchurned the water into foam as it writhed aboutin its efforts to get free from the torturing hook.Its great head rose above the boat’s side, and in itsstruggles the beast looked more terrifying thanwhen its glittering eyes and great coiled body frightenedthe dwellers in Asgard.

But Thor was determined not to let the serpentgo, so he only pulled the harder and the sea becamea great whirlpool of blood and foam and tossingwaves. Hymer, who had been looking on in amazementat Thor’s strength, now sprang forward andcut the line just as the god was raising his hammer tocrush the monster’s head. The Midgard serpentimmediately sank out of sight, and Thor—wrathfulat Hymer’s interference—struck the giant such ablow that he tumbled headlong into the sea. In amoment, however, he had scrambled back into theboat, and bade Thor take up the oars and row backto land. When they reached the shore, Hymerslung the two whales over his shoulder, and carriedthem up to his castle. Thor, having no fish, pickedup the boat, and brought it along with him.

As soon as they were seated again by the fire,Hymer challenged his guest to prove his greatstrength by breaking a certain drinking-cup. Thortook the cup and threw it against the furthest stone[Pg64]pillar. It struck with a terrific crash, but—much toThor’s surprise—it fell to the ground unbroken.Then he hurled it at the massive granite wall, butit bounded back like a ball, and dropped at his feet.Thor looked very disconcerted as he stared at theuncracked surface of the cup; and, as he was aboutto own himself defeated, he heard a soft voice say,“Throw it at Hymer’s head.”

Though he knew that this kindly advice wasgiven by Tyr’s mother, he did not dare to turn andthank her, but he took up the cup and dashed it atHymer’s forehead. Terrific as the blow was, it didnot seem to harm the giant at all, but the cup wasshattered in a thousand pieces. The giant was veryangry at having lost his wager; but he was now sothoroughly afraid of Thor’s great strength and cunningthat he made no objection when Tyr asked forthe great kettle to carry back to the sea-god Æger.“Take it then, if you must,” he growled sullenly.Tyr made the first attempt to lift the kettle, but hecould not so much as raise it from the ground.Thor, however, picked it up with great ease and setit on his head like a helmet. Then he marchedboldly out of Hymer’s castle with Tyr followingclose behind him.

They had not gone very far down the mountainwhen Tyr, looking back, cried out that they werebeing pursued. And true enough, right at their[Pg65]heels was Hymer with a great company of giantsready to fall upon them. Thor did not even liftthe kettle from his shoulders, but he swung Mjölneraround his head until the lightning flashed and thethunder shook the hills. Then he rushed at thegiants, hurling the hammer right and left; and ina short time not one of the pursuers remained alive.Then Thor and Tyr resumed their journey, and sooncame to the spot where the goat-chariot was waiting.This bore them swiftly to Æger’s palace, and thegods laughed merrily when they saw Thor enterwith the kettle on his head. That night there wassuch a mighty brewing of ale that it seemed as ifnone of the company could ever be thirsty again.

[Pg66]

The Building of the Fortress

ALTHOUGH the gods had felt less fear of thefrost-giants since the mighty Mjölner had beengiven to Thor, they were often very anxiouswhen the Thunderer was obliged—as he sometimeswas—to go off on a long journey. Then Asgardwas left quite unprotected; for although the godswere brave and strong fighters, they would be nomatch for the frost-giants if their old enemies cameagainst them in great numbers. So they wishedvery much for some assurance of safety in Thor’sabsence; and the best protection would undoubtedlybe a high stone fortress that would encircle the wholeof Asgard. But who was to build it?

Even if some of the gods were willing to undertakesuch a long, difficult task, who among themcould spare the time for it, and who could lift theheavy stones that would be needed for the work?It seemed therefore as if the hope of having a fortressmust be given up, for even Loki’s quick wit coulddevise nothing; but one morning Heimdall, whoguarded the rainbow bridge, blew a loud blast onhis horn to announce the approach of a stranger.When Odin looked down from his throne, he saw[Pg67]a huge figure standing beside Heimdall, and he knewat once that his visitor was one of the frost-giants.He stepped down from his golden throne, and, crossingthe many-coloured Bifrost, he stood before thestranger.

“What do you seek here in sunny Asgard?”he asked.

“I am a master-builder,” replied the giant,“and I have been told that you needed a clevermason to build you a fortress. Give me the workto do and you shall have a strong wall about yourshining city.”

Now Odin knew that no word about the proposedfortress had ever been breathed outside of Asgard;but he knew also that it was useless to make anydenial, for the frost-giants, with their mysteriouswisdom, had somehow learned the truth. So hesaid to the stranger: “Wedo need a fortress. Canyou build one strong enough to resist any attack?”

“That I can,” replied the giant, quickly. “Andwhen my work is finished, I will promise you thatall the forces in the universe could not move onestone from the wall.”

“How long will it take you to build the fortress?”asked Odin.

“Just one year—which is a very short allowanceof time for so great a task,” answered thegiant.

[Pg68]“And what payment do you ask for your work?”

“My wages must be the sun and moon and Freyafor my wife,” cried the giant, boldly.

This demand astonished and angered Odin; but,remembering how much he was in need of such helpas the giant could give, he concealed his wrath undersoft words and bade the master-builder come thenext day for his answer.

When Odin called the gods together in the greatcouncil-hall and told them what the frost-giant demandedas payment for his work, a murmur of disapprovalarose. Soon all the company cried outagainst making so dreadful a sacrifice; for it wouldbe cruel to deliver the beautiful Freya to the arms ofa giant. It was impossible to lose the maiden whowas the light and joy of Asgard, and it was equallyimpossible to take the sun and moon from theheavens and compel the helpless earth to sit foreverin darkness. So the gods decided to tell the giantthat they would not accept his terms. Just thenLoki spoke up.

“Let my wit and cunning—which you alwayscondemn—find a way out of the difficulty. We willagree to the builder’s demands, but you may trustme to see that he does not get a single one of thethings he covets.”

The gods were apt to doubt Loki’s wisdom, andthey always distrusted his motives; but they knew[Pg69]that his craftiness and trickery often helped him inhis own difficulties, and they were now willing touse any means that offered a way out of their trouble.So they listened to Loki’s plans, and next day, whenthe giant came for his answer, Odin told him thatthe gods would accept his terms if he would promiseto build the fortress in a single winter. He was alsoto agree to give up his claims if the work was notfinished by the first day of summer.

The giant was not pleased with these conditions,and he grumbled a great deal about the short timethat was given him. He promised, however, toundertake the building of the fortress, and agreedto have it finished by the first day of summer if hecould have his horse to help him in his work. NowLoki was not present when the giant made this request;but Odin saw no reason why it should notbe granted, so he told the builder to come the nextday at sunrise and bring his horse with him. WhenLoki saw how the giant was going to be helped inthe work, he was not so certain that his own witcould save the day; for the helper which the builderbrought was an immense horse named Svadilfare,who could work night and day. This wonderfulcreature not only dragged the great blocks of stonefor the building, but also set them in place with hisstrong fore-legs. The gods looked on in dismay asthey saw how fast the work progressed, and berated[Pg70]Loki for having induced them to accept the giant’soffer.

The long winter wore on, and the fortress grewas if by magic. The giant worked steadily withouttaking a moment to rest, and the wonderfulSvadilfare brought pile after pile of huge stones tothe spot where the builder was toiling with mightand main. A few days before the end of the winterthe work was all finished except one large slab thatwas to form the top of the gateway. The godswere now so alarmed at the prospect of having topay the giant his extortionate wages that theythreatened Loki with the direst punishments ifhe did not find some way out of the difficulty.

So that night as Svadilfare was wearily draggingto the gateway the last stone that was to completethe fortress, Loki changed himself into a prettylittle mare; and, trotting up to the great horse, said—inperfect equine language—“Why must youwork so hard when there are yet three days in whichto lay this stone? Come with me for a romp in themeadows. You can be back again before yourmaster returns.”

Now Svadilfare knew that he ought not to leavehis work; but his master was absent and he wasvery tired, and there was plenty of time to lay thislast stone. So when the little mare trotted awaystill calling to him, he kicked off his harness and[Pg71]galloped delightedly after her. When the giantcame to view the last of the work, one great stonelay by the unfinished gateway and the horse wasnowhere to be seen. Believing that the gods hadpurposely hidden him in Asgard, he demanded theright to search the city; but no print of Svadilfare’sfeet were to be seen on the unmarred streetsof gold. Then the giant rushed madly over theearth, and so heavy was his tread that the dwellersin Midgard awoke at night in terror, fearing that anearthquake was shaking the ground beneath them.Into the remotest corners of the earth and even asfar as Jötunheim the giant searched for his missinghorse; but he never found the secret grove whereLoki was in hiding with Svadilfare. When thebuilder at last returned to Asgard, the first day ofsummer had dawned, and, by the terms of the agreement,he had forfeited his wages.

The gods had assembled just inside the fortress;and when the giant came raging toward them theywere glad that Thor had returned from his longjourney and now stood among them with the mightyMjölner in his hand. The builder knew that insome way he had been tricked into losing his wager;so when Odin demanded that he should leave Asgardand not trouble the gods any further, he flew into aterrible rage and cried,—

“If this fortress were not so strongly built, I[Pg72]would pull it to pieces so that you might not mockme.” Then he rushed past the assembled companyand into the many-pillared hall of Valhalla, crying:“Not for nothing does a frost-giant stand withinthe walls of Asgard. Your palaces are not builtto stand forever, and I will send them crashing aboutyour heads.”

As he spoke, he grasped two of the pillars in hispowerful arms, and it is probable that the beautifulbuilding would have fallen if Thor had not rushedforward at this moment and struck the giant sucha blow with his hammer that the builder’s head wasshattered in a thousand pieces. Then the hugebody toppled headlong over the rainbow bridge, andkept on falling until at last it sank into the fathomlessgulf that borders on the Land of Mists.

Thus the gods obtained their much-needed fortress,and Freya stayed happily in Asgard. There wasnow a sure protection against the invasion of thefrost-giants; but over the gateway, one stone wasalways lacking, for no one among the gods was strongenough to set it into place.

[Pg73]

How the Hammer Was Lost andFound

THE mighty hammer Mjölner was not onlya protection to Asgard, but served to keep thefrost-giants from doing harm to the earth.This whole race hated brightness, and were not contentto live themselves in a land of ice and snow andmist, but tried to make all the world like their owndreary country. They longed to take the sunlightfrom the earth, to kill the flowers and cover every greenthing with a mantle of blighting frost. They wouldhave done all this if they had not been afraid of Thor’shammer, for whenever they strayed too far fromJötunheim and tried to nip the leaves and flowers withtheir icy fingers, Thor would drive them out of Midgardwith his hammer; and the thunder and lightningwould follow hard upon them until they wereonce more within the limits of their frozen hills.

One day Thor came back from a long journey,and being very tired he dropped down on the stepsof his palace and fell into a heavy sleep. When atlength he awoke, he found to his horror and dismaythat Mjölner was no longer in his hand or by his side.Some one must have come while he was sleeping and[Pg74]stolen it away. Thor felt certain that it was one ofthe frost-giants, for none of the gods, not even themischief-loving Loki, would have dared to committhis theft. But no one had seen any of the giantslurking about Asgard, and Odin’s ravens had not metwith them in their flights to and from the earth.Yet it must have been some one of their ancientenemies who had stolen Mjölner, and thereforethe hammer must be recovered speedily or the wholerace of giants would soon come to take possession ofAsgard now that its chief means of defence was gone.So Thor went in haste to Loki and begged him todevise some plan to recover the hammer.

“I will go myself,” said Loki, “and see if I canfind out who has stolen Mjölner. Perhaps we canregain it before it is too late, for the thief may notyet have spread the news of its capture to his kindred.”Thor was ready to welcome any suggestion,so he readily agreed to this plan, and Loki hurriedoff to the flower-filled garden where Freya was wontto walk.[27] He told the goddess of the theft ofMjölner and begged her to lend him her falcon plumageso that he might waste no time in his search.Freya gladly gave him her feathery disguise, andLoki sped northward across the frozen sea until[Pg75]he came to Jötunheim. He shivered continuallyunder his delicate plumage, for this ice-bound landwith its snow-covered mountains wrapped in the coldof eternal winter was different indeed from sunnyAsgard.

He walked for a long time without meeting anyone, but at last he found the giant Thrym seated onthe side of a mountain, counting his flock of sheep.The giant was very ugly, and he was also terriblybig and strong, but Loki felt no fear of him. Heperched on a rock beside Thrym, who looked at himcraftily a moment and then said, “Why does Lokitry to deceive those who know more than the gods?”

Seeing that his disguise would now be of littleservice, Loki assumed his own form, and drawingnearer to the giant greeted him in turn as a friend.Thrym did not seem at all surprised at seeing agod in Jötunheim; but he looked rather uneasilyaround, and went on counting his sheep withoutreplying to Loki’s greeting. The cunning god theninstantly surmised that here was the thief who hadtaken Thor’s hammer; so, in threatening tones, heaccused the giant of the theft, and demanded thatMjölner be at once returned. It was a bold stroke,but it did not deceive Thrym in the least, for he knewthat Loki was making mere empty threats, sinceMjölner was no longer in Asgard.

Then Loki made the giant many promises of rich[Pg76]rewards from Odin, and told him of the good-willwhich all the gods would have for him if he returnedthe hammer to Thor. At this Thrym began to laugh,and he laughed so loud that the trees upon the mountainshook. Then he tore up by the roots a huge oaktree and threw it like a straw into the sea, andturning to Loki said: “You will never find thathammer, friend Loki, for I have buried it ninefathoms in the earth, and neither you nor Thor shallever see it again. Yet, if you really need the hammeras a protection to your city, there is one conditionon which I return it. You must give me the beautifulFreya for my wife.”

This proposal rather staggered Loki, for he knewhow impossible such a thing was. But he said nothing,only bade Thrym good-by and hastened backto Asgard.

When Loki reported to Odin the result of hisjourney, the gods held a council to decide what itwas best to do. Of course it was out of the questionto try to induce Freya to become Thrym’s wife, andOdin could not feel justified in demanding such asacrifice. When the maiden herself learned of thegiant’s proposal, she grew so angry at the insultthat the necklace of stars which she wore around herslender throat broke; and as the shining pieces fellthrough the air, people in Midgard exclaimed withdelight at the shooting stars.

[Pg77]Since it was impossible to think of yielding Freyato a giant even to recover Mjölner, the gods tried toform some other plan, and again they turned toLoki for help, for he alone was clever enough to outwitthe giant.

“There is no way to get the hammer,” said Loki,“except by giving Thrym a bride; and since wecannot send any of the goddesses to the cold northland,we must find the giant another wife. Let usdress up Thor like a woman and send him instead.”

“Never,” roared Thor; “I should be the laughing-stockof every one in Asgard.”

“Nonsense,” replied Loki, who rather enjoyedhaving Thor at his mercy; “and what if you were?Is that anything compared to seeing the whole raceof frost-giants at the gates of Asgard? If somethingis not done very soon, they will be ruling here in ourplaces.”

The situation was indeed so critical that at lengthThor consented to the plan, though much againsthis will. So Loki put on him a rich robe embroideredwith gold, and wound a chain about his neck and puta beautiful girdle at his waist. Then he threw overThor’s head a long bridal-veil, while he attiredhimself as a waiting maid to attend the bride.The gods harnessed Thor’s milk-white goats to thechariot, and together Thor and Loki set out for thefrost-giants’ country. It was very difficult to[Pg78]restrain the pretended bride from thrusting her sinewyhands from under the veil, and Loki feared that evena love-lorn giant would not be fooled into believingthat those massive shoulders belonged to a maiden.

When Thrym beheld the bridal party coming, hewas filled with joy and ran to meet them. He wishedvery much to raise the bride’s veil, but Loki forbadehim until after the wedding ceremony.

“The goddess Freya who has come to be your wifeis very timid,” said Loki, “and you must not distressher with your attentions, or she may growfrightened and wish to return to Asgard.” SoThrym obeyed Loki’s command, and led the brideto his palace, where his kinsmen were assembled.There they found the tables spread with meat andwine as if for a feast. Thrym urged his bride topartake of the fruits and delicacies which had beenbrought especially for her, and with some show ofreluctance the supposed woman began to eat. Firstshe devoured eight large salmon, then twelve roastedbirds, and soon followed this up with eating a wholeox and drinking three barrels of mead.

“Did ever a maiden eat like this one?” thought thegiants, and in their hearts they pitied Thrym forgetting such a wife. When they spoke of the bride’sappetite to Loki, he replied, “It is eight days sinceFreya has eaten anything, for she was so overjoyedat wedding Thrym, that she could not touch any[Pg79]food.” Thrym was too happy to notice what thebride ate, and when the feast was over he cried to hisbrother, “Bring hither the hammer Mjölner andplace it in the bride’s lap; then let us be wedded inthe name of Var.”

So the hammer was brought and placed in Thor’shand; but the minute his fingers closed around ithe tore the veil from his face, and the terrified giantsbeheld, not the mild countenance of Freya, but theface of the Thunderer himself. It was too latenow to escape, and the giants were so frightenedthat they could not move, even if they had knownwhere to flee from the fierce anger that blazed inThor’s eyes. He had barely swung the hammertwice around his head when thunder and lightningwas mingled with the crash of falling buildings;and those of the giants who were not killed by theblows of the hammer were buried beneath thecrumbling ruins. Thus did Mjölner return at lastto Asgard.

[Pg80]

Iduna’s Apples

THOUGH sorrow sometimes came to the peopleof Asgard and they shared the burden ofgrief and trouble that afflicted the humanrace, yet as gods they had one privilege which belongedto them alone,—the blessing of eternalyouth. Sickness and old age never came within thegates of Asgard; and this was because the goddessIduna had some very wonderful apples which gave,to those who ate of them, the strength and beautyof youth.

In appearance they were very much like otherapples, of a beautiful red and gold; but when thegods had eaten of them they knew that such fruitcould not be found anywhere outside of Asgard.For no other apples except those in Iduna’s casketcould bestow eternal youth and the power to defyall sickness and pain.

The goddess herself was very proud of her treasures,and proud, too, of the confidence which Odinplaced in her in making her the guardian of a thingso priceless. The casket in which she kept the appleshad only a single key, and this Iduna kept fastenedto her girdle. Wherever she went she carried the[Pg81]precious casket with her, and never let it be for amoment out of her sight. The gods felt no uneasinesswhile the apples were in such safe keeping, andthere seemed to be no reason why they should everlose the beauty and health and youth which hadalways been theirs. But one day both Iduna andher golden apples disappeared from Asgard, and noone knew where they had gone,—no one but Loki,and he would not tell. This is how it happened.

Odin and Loki and Hœnir once went on a visitto the land of the frost-giants to find out, if possible,whether they were plotting any new invasion ofAsgard. It was an uncomfortable journey, for theair was bitterly cold and the ground hard and frozen,so there was no pleasure in travelling. They evenfelt rather sorry for the people who were condemnedto live forever in such a cheerless country. They werehungry, too, and could find nothing to eat; no gameto kill, no fish to catch, not even any wild berriesupon the barren hillsides. So Odin proposed thatthey return at once to Asgard; but just then Lokisaw a herd of cows grazing near by, and exclaimed:—

“Here is meat in abundance. Let us eat beforewe set out again on our journey.”

Then he killed the fattest of the cows, and boreit on his shoulder to the spot where Odin and Hœnirwere already building a fire. They cut the meat andput it upon a spit; and while Loki turned it, the two[Pg82]others piled logs upon the fire. Now and then theytasted the flesh, thinking it must be cooked; buteach time it was as raw as when they had first cutit. Then Odin threw on more logs, and the heatbecame so intense that the gods could hardly standnear it. Still the meat remained uncooked. Allnight long they took turns cooking and tending thefire; but morning found them hungrier than ever,and with yet no prospect of a meal. This was toomuch for even the good-natured Hœnir, while Lokibecame so angry that he would have killed the wholeherd of cows and thrown them into the sea out ofmere spite. But Odin laughed and said:—

“Nay, Loki, do not let us vent our anger sofoolishly. We will return, rather, to Asgard, andtell the gods that, in spite of the drink from Mimir’swell, the frost-giants are yet wiser than Odin.”For he knew that it was through some mysteriousintervention of their old enemy that they could notenjoy the much-needed dinner.

Just then there came a loud noise and a whirringof wings overhead, and, looking up, they saw a largeeagle hovering above them.

“Ha, ha,” he cried, “so you cannot cook yourdinner, I see. The meat must be tough indeed thatwill not yield to such a fire. But give me yourpromise that you will share the feast with me, andI will pledge you to get it cooked.”

[Pg83]The gods promised very gladly, and the eagle,moving nearer, said,—

“Stand aside and let me blow up the fire.”

Suspecting nothing, the gods moved away, and asthey did so the eagle swooped down, and, seizing inhis strong claws all the meat that was on the spit,he began to flap his huge wings and rise slowly intothe air.

When the gods saw that the eagle meant to trickthem, they grew very angry, and Loki, hoping tosnatch his prize from the treacherous giant,—forthat was what the thief really was,—grasped oneend of the spit as it rose into the air and tried to dragit downward. But the eagle’s strength was greaterthan the god’s, and he flew higher and higher, carryingthe luckless Loki with him. Up they soared, farabove the heads of the bewildered Hœnir and Odin,who were helpless to rescue their comrade, and couldonly stand by and watch him disappearing from view.Over the frozen sea and the snow-covered mountainsthe eagle carried the unhappy Loki, not pausing inhis flight until they reached a huge iceberg. Herehe stopped, and dropped Loki upon the ground, wherethe bruised and weary god was glad to rest; for theeagle had dragged him over ice and snow, sharpstones and frost-bound stubble that stung like somany thorns.

The moment the bird alighted it was no longer[Pg84]an eagle, but the giant Thiassi, who grinned maliciouslyand said,—

“How do you like flying, friend Loki?”

Loki was in such a rage that he was tempted totry to hurl the giant from the iceberg. He knew,however, that this would only shut him off from aspeedy return to his companions, so he restrained hisanger and said:—

“You can indeed rival the gods in swiftness, and Ishould be glad to journey farther with you, butOdin demands my return to Asgard. Take me backto him, therefore, with all speed.”

The giant laughed at Loki’s assumed boldness, andanswered: “The gods are great indeed, but the frost-giantshave no fear of them. Odin may need youin Asgard, but you shall not return except on onecondition—that you promise to deliver into mypower the goddess Iduna and her golden apples.”

For some time Loki did not answer, for he hardlydared to make such a promise, since the loss ofIduna from Asgard would mean old age and possibledeath to the gods. Still, he did not intend to remainany longer on the iceberg. Knowing well thestubborn persistence of the whole race of giants,he felt that cajolery and threats were alike useless,so he said,—

“I will promise.”

The giant knew Loki’s reputation for cunning, and[Pg85]therefore he demanded that the god should swearby Odin’s spear to keep his promise. Loki did this,though with great reluctance, and the giant thenassumed his eagle plumage and carried the godswiftly back to the place where Odin and Hœnir werestill standing by the burnt-out fire. In answer totheir questions, Loki told them of his strange journey,but made no mention of his promise to the giant.Then the three gods returned to Asgard.

Some time later, Loki went to the palace of Idunaand asked to see her apples. The goddess willinglybrought out her casket, for she never wearied oflooking at the precious fruit; but as she handedLoki the apples, she said,—

“It is strange indeed for you to care so much forbeauty—or is it that life is aging you more quicklythan the others of Asgard, and you need still anotherof Iduna’s apples?”

“Nay,” replied Loki, “it is not for that reasonthat I desire to see your beautiful fruit; but becauseI wish to assure myself that they are really the bestapples in the world.”

“Why, where would you find such as these?”asked Iduna in surprise.

“Just beyond the gates of Asgard,” answeredLoki, “is a wonderful tree which bears fruit in allrespects like these apples you prize so highly. Ithink they look even fresher, and as I tasted them I[Pg86]felt sure that they were finer in flavour than anyyou have here. It is a pity you cannot go and seethem.”

“Is it far from here?” asked the goddess, wistfully.

“No, indeed,” replied Loki; “just outside thecity gates. It would be such a delight to you to seethem, for they are so fine as they hang in the sunlight,and so easy to reach, too. Some day I will tell youmore about them, but now I must be away, for Odinhas a commission for me to-day.” So saying, hetook his departure, and Iduna was left alone.

For a long time she thought over what Loki hadsaid, and the longing grew very strong to go and seethose apples which he had declared were even finerthan her own. She dared not go away and leaveher casket behind; but there surely could be noharm in taking it with her just a little way outsidethe gates of Asgard. Still she was doubtful andtroubled, and wished that her husband, Bragi, wereat home, that she might ask his advice. For a longtime she hesitated, but at last her curiosity grew toostrong to be resisted, and with her casket on herarm she left the palace and hurried outside the citygates.

She looked carefully all about her, but she saw notree such as Loki had described. Discouraged anddisappointed, she was about to return home, when sheheard a loud noise overhead, and, looking up, saw[Pg87]a large eagle flying toward her. In a moment hehad rushed down upon her, and before the terrifiedgoddess realized what had happened, he had caughther up in his strong claws, and was carrying her abovethe tree tops. In vain did she scream and struggle,for the eagle soared higher and higher, carrying herfar out of sight of Asgard. He flew straight as anarrow across the mountains and over the frozen seatill he came to his home in the dreary northland.Here he took the form of the terrible giant Thiassiand began to beg the goddess for one of her apples.Iduna, frightened and trembling, kept the preciouskey of the casket clasped tight in her hand, andboldly refused to betray her trust by giving the gianteven a sight of the apples. So Thiassi shut her upin his ice-walled palace[28] and kept her there manydays, not caring though she grew pale and sick withlonging to return to sunny Asgard.

Meantime, the gods were greatly troubled at thesudden disappearance of Iduna; and her husband,Bragi, sought her, sorrowing, over all the earth.No one had seen her leave Asgard, and none knewwhere she had gone or when she would return,—nonesave Loki, and he very wisely kept silent. Atfirst the gods did not realize what the loss of Idunaand her apples meant to them; but as time went onand they felt weariness and old age creeping over[Pg88]them, they were filled with fear lest the goddess mightnever return, and there would be no longer any wayto keep Death without the gates of Asgard. Odin’scalm brow now became clouded, for not even hisgreat wisdom was of any help in solving the mysteryof Iduna’s strange disappearance. The ravens,flying far and wide each day, brought no news ofthe missing goddess; and meanwhile Time was leavingits unwelcome marks on the faces of the godsand goddesses. Frigga’s hair began to turn white,and wrinkles furrowed the fair cheeks of Freya.The mighty Mjölner now trembled in the unsteadyhand of Thor, and the feeble fingers of Bragi couldno longer draw sweet music from his harp; in fact,all the dwellers in Asgard were growing old, andthere was no way for them to renew their youth.

One day the ravens whispered to Odin that heshould question Loki in regard to Iduna’s disappearance,and Loki was summoned to appear beforeOdin’s throne. When accused of knowing somethingof the missing goddess, he at first stoutly denied allknowledge of her; but Odin’s look seemed to searchhis thoughts, and he saw that lying and deceit wereof no avail. So he told all that he had done, andbegged Odin’s forgiveness. He promised to set outat once in search of the stolen goddess, and sworethat he would not return to Asgard until he had foundher and had brought Iduna and her apples safely home[Pg89]again. Once more he borrowed the falcon plumage ofFreya and flew over to the frozen northland to theplace where the giant kept Iduna a prisoner in hisice palace. He found her sitting alone and weepingbitterly; but Loki wasted no time in trying tocomfort her. She was so overjoyed when the godassumed his own form and told her why he had comethat she even forgave him for the misery he had ledher into by his treachery. She said that fortunatelyThiassi was off on his daily walk across the hills;but Loki, wishing to take all precautions, again puton his falcon plumage, and, by his magic arts, changedthe goddess into a nut which he grasped firmly in histalons. Then, being warned by Iduna that the giantnever remained long away, he flew with her straighttoward Asgard.

They had not gone far when Thiassi came home;and when he found Iduna gone, he knew that someof the gods must have come to her rescue. Neverthelesshe determined not to lose her so easily;and taking the form of an eagle he flew high up intothe air and looked about for some sign of the fugitive.Far in the distance he saw a moving speckamong the clouds, and he followed quickly in pursuit.As he drew nearer he saw the falcon and itsburden, and he knew that Iduna was being carriedback to Asgard. So he redoubled his speed, and hisgreat wings brought him rapidly nearer the falcon,[Pg90]whose laboured flight seemed to make an escape fromthe enemy impossible.

At Asgard the gods had assembled on the citywalls, and they were now looking anxiously acrossthe earth, fearing that some misfortune had overtakenLoki. At last they saw the falcon flying towardthem, and they felt sure that this was Lokireturning with his precious charge. But with thejoy of this discovery came also a sudden fear as theysaw the eagle following close behind the falcon, andseemingly in hot pursuit. These fears were confirmedas the birds drew nearer; and then the godsrealized that if they would save Loki and Iduna,something must be done at once. Nearer and nearercame the falcon; but though his flight was swift,he could not keep the pace of his pursuer, and theeagle was steadily gaining on him. By this time thegods had built a great pile of wood on the city wallsand were waiting until the falcon with his pricelessburden had flown across it. The moment Lokipassed, they quickly set fire to the wood; and as theeagle came rushing blindly on, he flew directly overthe flames, which caught his feathers and drew himdown into the fire, burning him to death.

Iduna and her apples were safe at last in Asgard,and to celebrate her return Odin made a great feast inhis palace hall, and the gods ate again of the goldenfruit and became young and beautiful once more.

[Pg91]

How Thor’s Pride Was BroughtLow

PART I

ONE morning Thor drove hurriedly out ofAsgard in his chariot drawn by the milk-whitegoats, and set out on a wonderfuljourney. He did not tell Odin where he intended togo, for he knew that the All-Wise One would try topersuade him to give up the foolish expedition.For Thor’s purpose was to travel all through Jötunheimuntil he met with the strongest of the giants,and then challenge him to a combat.

So he left Asgard secretly, and, avoiding the rainbowbridge as he always did when in his heavy-wheeledchariot, he directed his swift steeds towardJötunheim. But though he passed through the gatesof Asgard unseen by Odin, he was not quick enoughfor Loki, who, thinking that Thor’s haste betokenedsome unusual adventure, put on his magic shoes andfollowed the goats’ flying feet. He found Thorquite willing to take him as a companion, andtogether the two gods hurried northward. Theyhad hoped to reach Utgard, the great city of the[Pg92]giants, before night fell; but by the time they gainedthe shores of the ever-frozen sea that marks theboundary of Jötunheim, they found that it was toodark to travel any farther. So they looked about forsome place to pass the night, and just over the hillthey saw a small hut with a friendly light streamingfrom the window. When they asked here for foodand shelter, the cottager gladly offered them alodging for the night, but he confessed, reluctantly,that he had no food to give them.

“That trouble is soon remedied,” cried Thor;and stepping over to where his goats stood browsingon the scanty grass, he struck them dead with oneblow of his hammer. Then to the great surprise ofthe peasant and his family, he skinned the goats andspread their hides carefully upon the ground. Afterthis was done, he offered their bodies to his host,saying: “Here is meat enough to furnish us with abountiful dinner. I must beg of you, however, notto break a single one of the animals’ bones, butthrow them all on the goatskins.”

The peasant and his wife carefully obeyed Thor’sinstructions, but the son, Thialfi, was so eager to getat the marrow in his bone that he broke it. Thisgreedy act was not seen, however, so the boy hopedthat no harm would come from his disobedience.The next morning when the gods made ready toresume their journey, Thor struck the goatskins[Pg93]with his hammer, and immediately the bones leapedinto place. In a moment the two animals stoodalive and whole before the eyes of the astonishedcottagers; but one of the goats limped badly.When Thor noticed this he knew that his commandshad been disobeyed, and he questioned the peasantsangrily. He looked so terrible in his wrath that poorThialfi did not dare to confess that he had broken thebone; and it was only when Thor threatened tokill the whole family if the guilt were not acknowledged,that the boy, terrified and trembling, admittedhis deed.

As he seemed so truly sorry for what he had done,Thor relented and offered to take the lad with himas his servant. So, leaving the goats and the chariotin care of the peasant, the two gods resumed theirjourney. It was impossible to go very fast on foot,as the ground was frozen hard and covered withsharp bits of ice that cut through the travellers’light sandals. The difficulty in crossing the riverwas increased by the strong wind which blew fromthe high, bleak hills of Jötunheim, and seemed to layan icy hand upon them.

So it was well on into the night before Thor andLoki reached a desolate stretch of moorland withmountains standing like grim sentinels all aroundit. This was the very heart of the frost-giants’country. There was no protection here that promised[Pg94]a night’s rest, so the travellers kept on till theycame to a strange building which, in the darkness,seemed to be a five-doored house, opening into alarge courtyard. Here the gods built a fire to cooktheir evening meal, and then went gladly to bed,each of them taking one of the long, narrow rooms.

They had just fallen asleep when a great noise likethe roaring of an angry sea filled their ears, and thiswas accompanied by a sort of trembling in theground beneath them. Thinking it was a suddenearthquake, they waited for it to subside; butthe rumbling only increased, and the strange noisegrew almost deafening. This continued for hours,so that the travellers gave up all hope of sleeping, andat sunrise they set off again on their journey, aftereating a hasty and sullen meal.

Their road now lay through the thick woods, andhere they were soon halted by the sight of a giantstretched full length upon the ground. He was sobig that even Thor and Loki, accustomed as theywere to the size of the frost-giants, stared at him insurprise. As for Thialfi, he dropped the bag ofprovisions he was carrying, and hid behind a tree.The mystery of the strange noise was now solved,for the gods saw that it was merely the giant’ssnoring. The trees around him shook with histremendous breathing, and the hills reëchoed to thedeafening roar.

[Pg95]The sight of the giant sleeping so peacefullyaroused Thor’s anger, and he determined not to bedisturbed any longer by the prodigious snoring.So he raised his hammer to strike a well-aimedblow at the sleeper; but just then the giant awoke.He sat up, and, smiling good-naturedly at thetravellers, said, “What brings the mighty Thor andcunning Loki so far from Asgard?”

As it would be useless to try and deceive any oneas wise as a frost-giant, Thor replied: “I have cometo Jötunheim to measure my strength against themightiest of your people. Will you show us theway to the city of Utgard?”

“That I will do very gladly,” cried the giant,getting up from the ground and stretching his hugebody until it seemed as if his hands would touch theclouds. He then picked up a large sack that waslying near by, and throwing it over his shoulders,bade Thor and Loki follow him. Before they hadgone far, he stopped, saying, “I have forgotten myglove; it must be somewhere in the forest.” As herefused to proceed any further until it was found,the gods and Thialfi helped him in his search.Suddenly the giant reached over the tops of the trees,and picking up the very house in which the travellershad spent the night, exclaimed, “Here is myglove! I must have dropped it just before I went tosleep.”

[Pg96]Putting the glove into his capacious pocket, andthrowing his bag of provisions again upon his back,the giant started off across the hills. The godshad great difficulty in keeping within sight of him;and Thialfi, who was a swift runner, could barelyhold to the pace the giant set as he covered mileafter mile with each of his great strides.

At nightfall they were still far from the city ofUtgard, so the giant proposed that they should eattheir evening meal, and then sleep under the trees.The dinner was soon disposed of, and after the gianthad eaten two roasted sheep and drunk a keg of ale,he stretched himself full length upon the ground.In a moment he was fast asleep and snoring louderthan ever before.

The two gods knew that it was no use for them tothink of sleeping, so Thor, having nothing betterto do, laid hold of the giant’s sack and tried to unfastenthe string with which it seemed so looselytied. But the more he pulled at it, the tighter drewthe cord, and Thor despaired of seeing what wasinside the sack unless he ripped it open. This failuremade him very angry, and his anger was furtherincreased by the giant’s continued snoring. Whenthe gods wished to speak to each other, they couldbarely hear their voices above the thunder of thegiant’s snores.

At last Thor could restrain his wrath no longer;[Pg97]and, raising Mjölner high above his head, he dealtthe sleeping figure a terrific blow. The giant openedhis eyes, and looked slowly around him. “Did aleaf fall on my head?” he asked. “I thought thatI felt something touch me.” Then he went off tosleep again, and began to snore so heavily that thegods felt the ground shaking beneath them.

Thor was surprised at the ill-success of his blow,and he grew angrier than ever at the sight of thegiant peacefully sleeping. Then he looked at thesack with its seemingly simple cord which he couldnot untie, and his wrath blazed out afresh. Herushed at the giant like a charging bull, and the blowwhich he dealt him made such a noise that for amoment it drowned the thunderous snoring. Thegiant roused himself with a shake and called, “Isany one throwing acorns at me, or did a twig fallon my head?”

On receiving no answer to his question, he sat up,and looking around at Thor he smiled pleasantlyand said: “Why are you not sleeping, my friends?If you do not rest, you will be too tired for your journeyto-morrow. But perhaps you are still hungry;so take what you wish from my sack. There isplenty for us all.” He tossed his bag of provisionsnearer to the gods—then lay down again and wentto sleep.

Thor was so furious by this time that he could[Pg98]barely wait until the giant was asleep before hegrasped Mjölner in both hands and hurled it at thegiant’s head. Thialfi, seeing the god beside himselfwith rage, shrank back in fear before the terriblewrath that blazed in the Thunderer’s eyes; and hehid his face in his hands when he heard the crashthat shook the forest when Mjölner sank almost up tothe handle in the giant’s forehead.

The sleeper stirred uneasily, then sat up, lookingfirst at the travellers, then up at the trees. “Arethere any birds about here?” he asked. “I thoughtI felt one pecking at my forehead.” Then he sprangto his feet, and, taking up his sack of provisions, heopened the bag very easily and took out half an ox.“It is almost daylight, and we must have an earlystart if we wish to reach Utgard by midday,” hecontinued, smiling pleasantly at his companions,and offering them the contents of his sack.

Thor was so angry that he could not eat, but Lokiand Thialfi made a good breakfast, and as they ate,the giant told them what they might expect whenthey reached the city of Utgard. “You may thinkthat I am a fairly big fellow,” he said, “but whenyou see those who live at the court of the king, youwill consider me but a puny thing to be called agiant. If Thor wishes to find a worthy opponent,he will meet his equal among Utgard-Loke’s men.”

When the giant finished eating, he shouldered his[Pg99]sack, and laid on top of it the bag of provisions thatthe two gods had brought, hoping thus to lightentheir travelling. Then he struck off on a rough pathacross the hills, with Thor and Loki hurrying afterhim, and Thialfi running at his heels. Soon theycame within sight of Utgard, and when they reachedthe city gates, the giant said: “I must leave you now,for my way lies in another direction. I think youwill find a kindly welcome at the court of our king,and you need have no fear of coming to any harm,for the frost-giants respect the rights of a guesteven if it is their ancient enemy. But I adviseThor not to boast too loudly of his strength untilhe is sure that his pride will not be humbled.”

This last remark made Thor very angry, and hisfingers closed tightly upon Mjölner; but he wiselykept his temper. He paid no heed to the friendlywords of caution which the giant added as he saidgood-by, but strode on ahead through the greatgates that guarded the city of Utgard.

[Pg100]

How Thor’s Pride Was BroughtLow

PART II

THE way to the palace was quickly found, andhere the two gods were welcomed by the king.Utgard-Loke sat upon a lordly throne, surroundedby a company of giants so much larger thanthe others of this race which had from time to timemade threatening visits to Asgard that Thor feltglad of the possession of Mjölner. When the travellersentered his halls, the king greeted them kindlyand asked the object of their journey. Thor toldhim boldly that he had come to measure his strengthagainst that of the giants, and Utgard-Loke courteouslyreplied: “We have heard many tales ofthe might of Thor, the defender of Asgard; but wehope to show him that the frost-giants are no unworthyopponents. Before we begin our tests ofstrength, however, I will ask one of our youths tomeet your servant in some game of skill. Do youchoose what it shall be.”

Now Thor knew that Thialfi was a very swiftrunner, so he answered that his servant would run[Pg101]a race with any one of the king’s young men. Utgard-Lokethen called to a tall, slender youth namedHugi, and bade him make ready for the race. Thecompany adjourned to an open meadow, and herethe runners met to test their skill. Thialfi shot overthe ground like an arrow sent by the practised bowman;but Hugi quickly outdistanced him and camefirst to the goal.

The gods were surprised and angry at the easewith which Hugi gained the victory; but when theking asked to have a second race, Thor eagerlyagreed, and again Thialfi ran his swiftest. Butalthough he flew with the lightness and speed of arace-horse, he found Hugi waiting for him at theend of the course.

Then Utgard-Loke said, “You are a good runner,Thialfi, but you need to put more speed in your feetbefore you can rival Hugi.” Now Thor’s servantwas almost breathless from his running, and he wasalso very tired; but the king’s tone seemed so insultingthat he insisted upon a third trial. Againthe two contestants ran over the course, but thistime Hugi gave Thialfi the start of half a mile. Inspite of this advantage, however, the young giantpassed his competitor like the rush of the wind, andThialfi lost the race a third time.

As the company had had enough of racing, theyreturned to the palace; and Thor, feeling angry and[Pg102]ashamed at his servant’s defeat, began to wish hehad never come to Jötunheim. Then Utgard-Lokeasked his guests if either of them cared to challengeone of his men at an eating contest, and Loki eagerlyaccepted this chance to prove his ability. “I can eatmore than any two of this company,” he cried boastfully,and gave a loud laugh of scorn when an immensetrough full of meat was brought into the roomand placed before him. Then the king summonedLogi to contend with the brother of Odin, and he andLoki sat one at each end of the trough.

There was surely never such eating seen beforein all the world. Loki devoured the food so fastthat it seemed as if he would finish all that was setbefore him in less than a minute; but when he cameto the middle of the great dish, he found that Logi hadnot only eaten his own share, but had finished up themeat and bones and trough all together.

“Now let us see what the mightiest of the godscan do,” said the king, as Loki withdrew to the furthestend of the hall. Thor had been looking ongloomily at Loki’s failure; but the king’s tone rousedup all his anger, and he stepped boldly forward, saying,“I will undertake to empty in one draughtany drinking horn that you can place before me.”So Utgard-Loke commanded his men to bring out agreat drinking horn, and as he handed it to Thorthe king said: “Here is a cup which the youngest[Pg103]among us can empty in three draughts. A strongman needs to quaff it twice, but a mighty warriorsuch as you should finish it all at one drinking.”The king’s tone was so insulting that Thor felt hisfingers tighten on the handle of his hammer, and helonged to hurl it at Utgard-Loke’s head; but hetook the horn and set it to his lips.

He drank long and deeply until he felt sure thathe had drained every drop of the liquid; but when helooked into the horn, he saw that it was but halfemptied. “What is the trouble, is the drink toolarge for the Mighty One of Asgard?” asked Utgard-Loke,contemptuously. At these words Thorflew into a great rage, and, grasping the horn moretightly, he drank as he had never drunk before. Thenhe set the vessel down, feeling sure that it must nowbe empty; but he found to his surprise that it washardly less full than before he began to drink. Aloud laugh of derision greeted him, and the kingcried scornfully: “Is this the great skill in drinkingof which you boasted so freely? The emptying ofthis horn should be but child’s play; but perhapsthe mighty Thor is weary.”

“Give me the horn,” roared the angry god, whowas raging inwardly at having to endure these taunts.So a third time Thor drank; and when he stoppedto take breath, he threw the horn aside, not waitingto look down into it, for he felt certain that there[Pg104]could not be a drop left in it. But one of the giantscaught it up and showed him how much of theliquid still remained. Enraged at this unexpectedhumiliation, Thor refused to drink any longer, andwould barely listen when Utgard-Loke asked him ifhe would engage in any trial of strength. “We willpropose a game which is a favourite pastime amongour children, so the defender of Asgard will be ableto do the thing with ease. It is merely to lift mycat from the ground.”

These words so infuriated Thor that he strodeangrily out of the hall, but before he had gone far,he encountered a huge bunch of bristling fur thateffectively barred his way. His first impulse was tostrike the cat with his hammer, but rememberingUtgard-Loke’s insulting words, he grasped the greatcreature by the middle, intending to throw it aside.But though he tried with all the strength of hispowerful arm to move the cat, he could not stir itfrom its place; and the higher he sought to lift it,the higher it arched its back without ever raisingone foot from the ground. Thor’s arm was nowlifted as high as it would go, but he could not budgethe great cat an inch. So at last he let go his holdand turned to meet the scornful laughter of the wholecompany of giants.

“Is this the strength we have been taught tofear?” cried Utgard-Loke. “Surely the gods do[Pg105]not call so puny a fellow as this the defender ofAsgard. Perhaps Thor is only mocking us, however,and will prove his boasted strength in someworthier contest.”

“Give me a chance to wrestle with the strongestgiant among you, and I will soon show you whethermy strength can be scorned!” cried Thor, who waslonging to hurl his hammer at the king’s head andmake him cease his insulting words.

“Your boasting has all been idle,” said Utgard-Loke,looking sternly at the angry god, “so I willnot match you against our strongest men. Buthere comes my old nurse, Ellie, and you may try awrestle with her.”

Thor looked around as a shrivelled old woman,bent and toothless, hobbled feebly into the hall.Her sightless eyes seemed to blink with an almostsupernatural intelligence as she made her waystraight toward the spot where the god was standing.“Do not scorn to wrestle with old Ellie,” cried theking, “for she has got the better of many a strongman before now.”

So Thor grasped the hag firmly and tried to throwher to the ground, but she gripped his body with herthin arms and clung to him with such amazingstrength that he had to exert all his force to keepfrom being strangled. The more he struggled, thetighter grew the old woman’s hold, and even his[Pg106]arm which held the hammer was rendered useless byher vise-like grip. He felt himself slowly weakening,and soon one knee was on the ground. Then thehag loosed her hold, and, with a mocking laugh,hobbled out of the hall.

Thor rose up, ashamed and humiliated by thislast defeat; but the anger had died out of his eyes,and he stood before Utgard-Loke with bent head.No one had ever seen the strongest of the gods sohumbled. Then the king smiled upon him kindlyand said, “Let us forget both our pride and ourfoolish boasting, and share the feast as friends; forwe will now offer you the best of food and drink thatthere is in the land of Jötunheim.” So a bountifulmeal was spread before them; and, in the friendlyhospitality of the king, Thor forgot the insults whichhe had lately received at Utgard-Loke’s hands.

The next morning the king accompanied hisguests to the gates of the city; and when they werewell outside the walls he said to Thor: “Now thatyou are no longer within our gates, I will confess toyou that during your brief stay among us, we havebeen not only amazed but terrified at seeing howgreat indeed is your strength. We know now thatall our combined forces would have been powerlessagainst you unless we had deceived you by ourmagic arts. For it was not superior skill or strengththat defeated you in the contests, but enchantment.[Pg107]It was I whom you met in the forest,[29] and when Ifound how terrible was Thor’s strength, I knew thatit was rash to admit such a foe within our gatesunless he could be deceived by magic, and his strengthbe met by cunning. I tied the sack with a cord thatno one but myself could possibly undo, for everyknot was made under a magic spell. Each timeThor struck me those terrific blows, I quickly slida mountain between myself and the hammer; andyou may now see the deep clefts which those blowshave made. When Thialfi ran with Hugi, it wasagainst Thought that he was racing; and whenLoki strove with Logi, his opponent was none otherthan Fire, who consumes whatever he touches. Thortook such deep draughts from the horn that we wereall amazed at his wonderful drinking; but the otherend of the horn was in the sea, so try as he would hecould never drain it dry. You will notice, however,as you look over the earth, that the level of the oceanhas fallen far beyond its lowest ebb-line, owing toThor’s enormous drinking. The cat which could notbe raised from the ground was really the Midgardserpent, and we giants trembled, indeed, when we sawhow high Thor lifted it. Lastly the old nurse, Ellie,whose strength seemed so marvellous to you, was nota woman, but Old Age itself; and in her hold eventhe greatest warrior is bound to weaken and fall.”

[Pg108]When Thor heard these words of Utgard-Loke’s,he was so furious at the trickery that had been putupon him that he rushed at the speaker with upraisedhammer. But before the blow could fall, the gianthad disappeared; and when Thor looked about himhe no longer saw the gates of Utgard nor any sightof the great city. He and Loki were standing onone of the bleak moorlands over which the winds ofJötunheim blew forever night and day.

[Pg109]

The Wooing of Gerd

THE god Freyr was busy enough in the summertimewhen the sun shone upon the earth andeverything bloomed and blossomed under hisuntiring care; but when winter came there was nowork for him to do in orchards or meadows, and hegrew restless from the long enforced idleness. Soone day when Odin was away on some necessaryjourney, Freyr strolled idly through the golden streetsof Asgard, and wished that he might sometime betaken as a companion when Odin went wanderingamong the dwellings of men. He wondered whetherthere was any spot in Asgard from which he couldlook down and see what was going on in the earth,and the longing grew very strong to see where Odinhad gone.

There was one place which commanded a viewof all the world, but Freyr did not dare to think ofusurping it, for Odin’s throne was held so sacred thatno other god had ever ventured to set foot there.Dismissing this thought from his mind, Freyr wanderedrestlessly about from one marble hall to another,but getting nearer each moment to the greatgold throne, until at last he stood directly before it.[Pg110]A long time he hesitated, thinking of the punishmentthat might fall upon him if Odin suddenly returned;but finally the desire to see all the kingdomsof the earth grew too strong to be resisted, andFreyr boldly stepped into Odin’s sacred seat.

He gave a gasp of wonder and delight as his eyestravelled quickly over the wonderful panorama ofearth and sky that lay spread out before him. Faraway to the north stretched ice-encircled Jötunheim,whose snow-capped mountains reached up into theclouds. Still farther away lay the Land of Mistswith its chill fogs, reaching out toward Muspelheim.The earth itself, which Freyr knew so well, lookedwonderfully fresh and new when seen from thisexalted place; and he felt that he himself wouldnever weary of watching over the affairs of men, ifonly he could occupy Odin’s seat.

He did not care to rest his gaze very long onfrozen Jötunheim, for there was nothing in thatdreary country to attract the beauty-loving Freyr;but as he chanced to look at a tall old castle standingon the top of one of the wind-swept hills, he saw thedoor suddenly open. Then a maiden appeared onthe threshold, and Freyr gazed upon her with surpriseand delight, for she seemed too beautiful tobelong to the grim race of giants.

She stood a moment in the doorway, a very embodimentof warmth and youth and light; and when[Pg111]the doors at length closed behind her, Freyr feltthat all the brightness had gone out of the world.Never before had he seen any maiden whom he wishedto make his wife; but here in the land of the frost-giantshe had found one whose loveliness alreadymade him thrill at the mere thought of her.

He descended slowly and sadly from Odin’s throne,and began to wander aimlessly about Asgard, morerestless and unhappy than before he had taken thatunfortunate glance toward Jötunheim. For manydays he roamed through the marble-pillared halls,seeking some distraction to make him forget thegolden-haired maiden whom he loved; but alwayshis thoughts turned toward the castle on the wind-swepthill, and he longed—till he grew sick withlonging—for a sight of the giant’s daughter.

One day his trusted servant Skirner asked himwhy he looked so sad; so Freyr told him of hislonging for the golden-haired maiden, and of howhe had watched her from Odin’s throne. ThenSkirner offered to make the journey into Jötunheimat once, and do his best to woo the giant’s daughterfor his master. So Freyr gave him his swiftesthorse, and filled his hands with rich gifts, and finallygirded upon Skirner his own sword, which he promisedto give to the wearer if the mission should besuccessful. Then he bade Skirner ride with allspeed northward.

[Pg112]As fast as the faithful horse could carry him,Skirner hurried toward the giants’ country; andwhen the setting sun threw the long, black shadowsof the hills across the snow-covered ground, hecrossed the last of the fiords that lay at the edge ofJötunheim. Then a short, hard gallop over thefrozen ground brought him to the foot of the castlewhere the giant Gymer lived with his beautifuldaughter. As he neared the gates, two enormousdogs sprang at him, barking furiously; and it waswith difficulty that Skirner guided his horse well outof their reach. Not far away was a shepherd leadinghis flock to the scanty pasturage; and Skirner,riding slowly up to him, asked how he might be ableto enter the castle.

“What do you seek here?” inquired the shepherd.“No stranger ever comes to Gymer’s hall.”

“I wish to speak with the giant’s daughter,”replied Skirner.

The shepherd shook his head. “It is safer tohave speech with Gymer than with the beautifulGerd,” he said. Then, looking kindly at the horseand rider, he added, “If you are wise, you will notgo too near the castle gates, but call aloud her name,and perchance she may come to answer you.”

So Skirner called loudly to the maiden until thehills reëchoed to the name of Gerd; and the giant’sdaughter listened to the cry, wondering who the[Pg113]stranger might be that would dare to use her namethus boldly.

Angry, and yet curious to see who stood withoutthe castle, Gerd threw open the great hall doors;and at the sight of her the two fierce dogs stoppedhowling and lay quiet at her feet. Then Skirnercame boldly to the maiden’s side and begged her tolisten to his story. As the laws of hospitality prevailedeven in Jötunheim, the beautiful Gerd badehim enter; and when they were seated by a greatfire in the hall, Skirner told the maiden how Freyrhad seen her from Odin’s seat and had loved her witha passion that would surely kill the once-joyous godunless she consented to become his wife.

Gerd listened coldly to the speaker’s words, andhis impassioned pleading left her unmoved. WhenSkirner finally spoke of taking her at once with himto Asgard, she cried angrily, “Go back to your masterand tell him that though he should die for love ofme, Gymer’s daughter will never wed with one whois the enemy of her race.”

Then Skirner brought out a wonderful ring andmany costly gems—the gift of Freyr—and offeredthem to Gerd; but she haughtily refused to touchthem.

“You cannot tempt the daughter of Gymer withgold,” she said. “I have plenty here in my father’spalace.”

[Pg114]Failing in this, Skirner drew his sword—thecoveted blade which he hoped to win for himself bythe success of his mission—and flashing this beforethe maiden’s eyes he swore by the spear of Odin thathe would kill her if she would not consent to wed withFreyr. But Gerd only laughed at his threats, andlooked unmoved at the glistening steel.

“Keep your sword to terrify mortal maidens, orthose who sit spinning in the halls of Asgard. Thedaughter of Gymer knows no such thing as fear,”she said.

As neither gold nor threats could move the beautifulGerd to listen to his master’s suit, Skirner triedhis last resource; and, calling upon all the powersof earth and air and water, he pronounced a terriblecurse upon the maiden for her coldness to the unhappyFreyr. “May the sun never shine withoutbringing pestilence upon your land, and may eachday add some trouble to those which already burdenyou. May sickness throw its blight upon you, andloathsome diseases render your beauty hideous.May old age lay its hand on you before youth isover, and may you sit lonely and desolate amongyour barren hills. May all the good things of lifeturn to gnawing pains until you are glad to pray fordeath. So shall there be no peace for you in all theworld for having spurned the love of Freyr.”

At first the maiden paid no heed to these fearful[Pg115]words; but soon they seemed to weave a sort ofmagic spell about her. She trembled, and her beautifulface grew pale with fear. Suddenly shestretched out both white arms to Skirner, crying,“Does Freyr indeed love me so deeply that he caninvoke all the powers of the earth to curse me for notwedding him?” Then Skirner told her how greathis master was, and how truly the curse would befulfilled if she hardened her heart against the loveof Freyr. And as she listened to the speaker’s eagerwords of praise, the heart of Gerd was touched andshe gave Skirner her promise to become Freyr’s wife.

“Though,” she added sadly, “it is strange indeedfor Gymer’s daughter to wed with a god.” Skirnertried to persuade her to return with him at once toAsgard, but she said, “Go back to your master andtell him that I will meet him nine days hence in thegroves of Bar-isle.”

So Skirner mounted his horse again and rodeaway from Jötunheim. Though the journey backto Asgard was as long and hard as his coming hadbeen, it seemed to him to be far less wearisome; forthe horse shared his rider’s gladness and gallopedmore lightly over the frozen ground, and the woodslooked no longer as if peopled with dreadful shapesand shadows. When Skirner neared Asgard he sawfar in the distance Freyr standing by the rainbowbridge eagerly watching for his messenger’s return.[Pg116]The impatient god did not wait, however, untilhorse and rider came close enough for him to seethe gladness on Skirner’s face; but, believing thathis servant had been unsuccessful, since he rodealone, Freyr turned sadly away. He did not evenwish to speak with the man who had done him sogreat a service; but thought only of the loss of Gerd.

Then Skirner spurred his faithful horse till itshoofs struck fire from the hard stones beneath; andwhen the gates of Asgard were reached, he rushedeagerly in search of Freyr to tell him of Gerd’spromise. The god’s face was lit with a great joyas he heard that his love was to be rewarded, andthat Gymer’s beautiful daughter was willing to becomehis wife.

The nine days of waiting seemed very long tothe impatient lover; but at last the time came whenthe sun shone as it had never shone before, thetrees blossomed—although it was still winter—andflowers bloomed along the path that led to the grovesof Bar-isle. Then Freyr, full of the glad spirit ofyouth and love and springtime, went gayly to thetrysting place; and there beneath the newly leafingtrees stood Gerd, more beautiful by far than whenhe had seen her standing in her father’s halls.

[Pg117]

How Thor Fought the GiantHrungner

ONE day Odin took a long journey into a landfar beyond the seas; and as his road homewardlay through Jötunheim, he went withall speed across that dreary country. With the swiftnessof the wind his wonderful horse Sleipnir carriedhim over the ice and snow that lay thick on thefrozen ground; and sometimes, when the mountainsloomed very tall in front of them, the horserose into the air, soaring through mist and cloud aseasily as some great bird.

Then as the golden hoofs of Sleipnir struck firefrom the hard rocks that seemed to spring up everywherebeneath his feet, Odin rejoiced in the strengthand beauty of his horse, for he knew that there wasnot its like in all the world. He had almost crossedthe last stretch of treeless country on the edge ofJötunheim, when he saw a giant seated on a rock,with his horse standing idly beside him. As Sleipnircame rushing by, the giant called out: “Ho!stranger. Why do you ride so swiftly?”

Odin drew rein and came back to the rock where[Pg118]the speaker sat. The giant looked critically atSleipnir’s splendid head and arching neck; then hesaid, “That is a fine horse you have.”

“There is no steed that can equal him in beautyor in swiftness,” replied Odin, proudly. The giantscowled at these boastful words, and replied angrily:

“Not so fast, my friend. It is easier to talk thanto prove the truth of one’s words. Now my horseGoldfax is fully as fine as yours; and there is nothingto match him for speed in the whole land ofJötunheim.”

“Jötunheim!” cried Odin, contemptuously.“What could you expect from such a country asthis? Why, my steed was reared in the sunnymeadows of Asgard, where he still pastures nightand day.”

“Well, whatever he is, there is no need for us towaste words in boasting,” said the giant. “Letus run a race and prove whose horse is the better.”

Odin gladly agreed to this; and when the giantmounted his horse Goldfax, the two riders set off ona gallop that made the hills reëcho to the sound ofclattering hoofs. Sleipnir, overjoyed at the prospectof a race with something worth his mettle,threw back his head and sped like an arrow towardAsgard. The giant followed close behind, and sofull was he of the excitement of the chase that he wasunaware of being carried within his enemy’s gates.[Pg119]Heimdall, who stood watching by the rainbow bridge,looked on in surprise as the Ruler of Asgard rushedswiftly by; and he would have sounded the usualalarm at the sight of the giant following, if Odin hadnot signalled to him to let the strange horse and ridergo past.

When the giant, whose name was Hrungner, foundhimself surrounded by so many of those who werehis sworn enemies, he grew fearful and began tolook helplessly about him. Soon he realized, however,that the laws of hospitality assured every kindnessto a guest, and he knew that he was as safe inAsgard as he would be in Jötunheim. So when Odinsummoned him to the feast at Valhalla, Hrungnersat down to eat and drink with the gods, feeling atheart very proud to be in the midst of so noble acompany.

As the feast progressed, and the giant drained onehorn after another of the sparkling drink the godssupplied, he began to grow boastful. He laughedat the smallness of Odin’s shield-hung hall, and toldof the great palaces that were built by the frost-giants.He boasted loudly of his own great strength;and as he drank more and more of the wine so freelypoured, he cried: “What a puny lot of men you areto call yourselves gods! There is not a giant inJötunheim who could not beat any one of you insingle combat. If I chose to make so unfair a return[Pg120]for your hospitality, I could pull this poor little hallabout your ears, and not leave one stone upon anotherin the whole of Asgard.”

The gods grew very angry at these insulting words;but as Hrungner was their guest, they could notpunish him as he deserved. So the giant continueddrinking; and as his swaggering grew more unbearable,the gods with difficulty restrained themselvesfrom striking him dead where he sat. “I shalldrink every drop of wine in Asgard before I leavehere,” he cried, glaring drunkenly at Odin. “ThenI shall pick up a handful of you people that are calledgods, and carry you off to Jötunheim as playthingsfor my children.”

So pleased was the giant with his own wit that hebegan to laugh until the cups rattled upon the table.The gods felt they could not endure his presenceany longer, and determined to hurl him out of Asgard,even if he was their guest. But Loki, who wasenjoying the giant’s boasts and drunken wit, beggedthem not to act too hastily; so Hrungner kept ondrinking unmolested. Suddenly he threw his cupwith a crash to the ground, and, looking insolentlyaround at the company, cried, “The gods have alwaysbeen the enemies of the frost-giants; but soon Iwill drive them from their lofty place, and take Sifand Freya to be my servants.”

This insulting speech was more than the gods could[Pg121]bear; so they called upon Thor to rid them of thebraggart in any way he desired. Then Hrungnersaw the wrathful face of the god approaching, andsaw, too, the upraised hammer; but he was too fullof drunken courage to feel afraid. Before Mjölnerfell, he roared savagely at Thor: “If I had my shieldand flint stone here, you would not dare to come atme with your wonderful hammer. It is very braveof you to strike an unprotected guest.”

At these words Thor’s arm dropped to his side,and the giant gave a mocking laugh.

“Let this mighty fighter meet me in single combaton the plains of Jötunheim, and then I will provethat the frost-giants are stronger than any of thetimid dwellers in Asgard.”

Thor was only too ready to accept the challenge,and arranged to meet the giant on a certain plain inJötunheim.[30] Then Hrungner, who felt that therewas nothing more for him to do or say in Asgard,took his departure; and, returning to his owncountry, spread the news that there was to be amighty combat between himself and Thor. Thegiants did not feel very certain of Hrungner’s victoryover the god, so they decided to help him in everypossible way. They made a huge giant out of clayand stood him on the plain where the battle was tobe fought, hoping by this stratagem to deceive Thor.[Pg122]As there was no human heart to put into the claygiant,[31] they gave him a mare’s heart, and this madethe poor creature so timid that he could barely beinduced to stand still on the plain and await Thor’scoming.

Beside the newly made giant stood Hrungner withhis shield and flintstone, secretly hoping that Thorwould mistake the clay figure for that of his opponent,and so spend the first force of his blows onthe mock giant’s head. Suddenly on the crest ofthe mountain appeared a runner; and soon Thor’sservant, Thialfi, came speeding toward them. Hecalled loudly to Hrungner: “My master is on hisway to meet you; but he will not follow on the roadI came. He is coming along underground, and willattack you from beneath.” The stupid giant believedthis; so he threw his shield on the groundand stood firmly upon it, with the flintstone in hishand, ready to strike Thor’s head the moment itemerged.

Soon there came a sudden roaring sound as if allthe waters of the earth were rushing to pour themselvesinto the sea; the sky darkened, and throughthe thick clouds the lightning gleamed and flashedover the darkening plain. Nearer and nearer camethe crashing of thunder which heralded Thor’s approach,and the hills answered with long, deep peals.[Pg123]Then on the brow of the hill overlooking the plainappeared Thor’s majestic figure, so terrible to beholdthat most of the giants fled away in fear. Withincredible swiftness he rushed upon Hrungner, andthe hammer—whirled through the air by his mightyarm—flew straight at the giant’s head. The terrificforce of the blow hurled Hrungner at once tothe ground, but not before he had thrown his flintstoneat Thor’s forehead.

The noise of the combat was like the crashing ofmany mountains together. Hrungner fell to theground like an oak tree that has received the laststroke of the axe; and, as he fell, Thialfi sprang at theclay giant and disposed of him with one straightblow. The flintstone which Hrungner had thrown,sank into Thor’s forehead; and the sudden painmade him so dizzy that he staggered forward andfell just where Hrungner’s great body lay stretchedupon the ground. Then Thor found to his dismaythat one of the giant’s feet was resting firmly on hisneck; and, try as he would, he could not get free.So he bade Thialfi bring his little Magne, who wasonly three days old, and when the child came, heeasily lifted the great foot from his father’s neck.Thor was very proud of this display of strength,and he wished to give his son the giant’s horse Goldfax,but Odin would not permit the gift.

The frost-giants were discouraged over the[Pg124]complete defeat of their champion, but they took greatsatisfaction in seeing the flintstone which Hrungnerhad driven into Thor’s forehead. When the Thundererreturned to Asgard he found that the stonecaused him much pain, and there seemed to be no wayto remove it. So he sent for the sorceress Groa,who, as soon as she came, began to weave her magicspells, and chant weird songs, and Thor felt the stonein his head already beginning to loosen. WhileGroa continued her incantations, and the pain inhis head grew less and less each moment, Thor triedto think of some way in which he could reward hisbenefactress for her kindness. Orvandel, Groa’shusband, had been for many years away from hishome; and as the sorceress loved him very dearly,there was nothing she wished for so much as hisreturn. Thor was partly responsible for her husband’sdisappearance, for Orvandel had once angeredhim so that he had put the offender into abasket and carried him to a far-off country, wherehe left the unfortunate man to find his way backalone. During the journey the air was so cold thatpoor Orvandel nearly perished in his narrow prison.As it was, one of his toes which protruded from thebasket really did freeze; and this made Thor soashamed of his harsh treatment of Orvandel that heset the prisoner free. Then he placed his toe in thesky as a star, and in the northern heavens there is a[Pg125]bright constellation which is still known as Orvandel’sToe.

When Thor told Groa what he had done, andpromised to bring her husband back to her at once,the sorceress became so overjoyed at the prospect ofOrvandel’s return that she forgot all her magic artsand spells. Full of happiness at the thought ofseeing her husband, she suddenly stopped her weirdsinging, and was unable to resume it, though Thorbegged her to continue the enchantment until thestone was loosed. But Groa had lost all her mysticpower, and could never charm things from theirplace again. So the flintstone remained in Thor’sforehead, and in the far-off countries of the north,the children are taught not to throw any stone toohard upon the floor, for when it strikes the groundthe flint in Thor’s forehead moves, and causes thegod much pain.

[Pg126]

The Story of Balder

IN all the city of Asgard there was no god sobeautiful or so dearly loved as Balder. Whereverhe went it was like the coming of sunshine,and every grief fled away before the brightnessof his presence. In all his happy life he hadnever known a moment’s sadness, and the gods believedthat none could ever come to him. So beautifuland joyous and free from care was Balder thathe seemed to the gods to be the one among themwho could surely never share in the final doom whichthey knew awaited all the dwellers in Asgard.

The days passed happily for Balder,[32] and nothought of sorrow crossed his untroubled mind,until one night he had a dream which filled him withstrange fear. When the gods met again in councilhe told them his dream, and begged them to interpretits meaning. They tried to laugh and banishhis fears, but at heart they felt that an evil day hadcome. Over Asgard now hung a dark shadow whichforeboded the coming sorrow, for the dream spoke ofapproaching evil, even of death. So full of sadness[Pg127]did the gods become at the thought of losing Balder,that they cared no longer to join in their accustomedgames or to make merry while some tragic fate mightbe overshadowing the bright and joyous youth.

Odin could not rest until he learned the truthabout his favourite son; so he mounted Sleipnir androde down to the dark region where the goddess Helruled over her innumerable dead. In those silenthalls[33] he found a table spread, and dishes of goldand silver were set out as if for some honoured guest.At the head of the table was one vacant seat; andwhen Odin saw this, his heart sank with fear, for heknew too well for whom the chair was waiting.Hoping against hope, in spite of this sinister sight,Odin returned to the earth and sought out a certainwood where a famous prophetess had long ago beenburied. Over her grave he uttered some mysticwords that roused the sleeper from her age-long rest,and at last she spoke in a faint, far-off voice. “Whois it that comes to break my sleep?”

And Odin answered, “I am Voltam, and I havecome to ask why the table is so richly spread inHelheim and for whom the vacant chair standswaiting.” Thus Odin spoke, for he feared to tellher his name.

A silence fell over the dim old forest, and for amoment Odin feared that his spells could not compel[Pg128]the dead to speak. But at last a faint voice whispered,“It is for the shining Balder that Hel and allher hosts are waiting.”

“Who then shall send the Beloved of the gods toHelheim?” asked Odin, and he waited fearfully forthe answer.

“Blind Höder shall slay him, for so it has beenwritten, and so it shall be,” came the words whichthe anxious listener dreaded and yet waited to hear.

“And who shall avenge the death of Balder?” heasked sorrowfully. For a long time no answer came;then the voice, which sounded still farther away,cried mournfully:—

“Keep me no longer from my well-earned rest.For ages upon ages I have lain here, and the rain andsnow have beat upon my head and the winds havesung their songs in my ears. Depart thou henceand leave me to my sleep.”

So Odin left the forest, for he knew that the deadwould speak no more; and slowly and sorrowfullyhe returned to Asgard. He did not tell the gods ofhis visit to Helheim; but kept to himself the sadknowledge he had gained.

Meantime the goddess Frigga determined toavert, if possible, the unknown danger that threatenedher son; so she went out one day from herpalace and wandered over the whole earth. Andas she went she begged everything which she met to[Pg129]swear by a solemn oath never to hurt Balder. Fire,water, rocks, trees, iron, brass, birds and beasts,—allwere bound by a vow to do no harm to him; andeverything on earth gave the promise gladly, forall the world loved the bright and joyous Balder.As Frigga was returning home, she saw just outsidethe gates of Asgard a small plant called the mistletoe;but it looked so harmless that she passed it by withoutasking for the promise, and hurried on to tellOdin of the success of her journey.

When the gods heard how everything had swornnever to hurt Balder, there was gladness again amongthem. But Odin, knowing the decree of the Norns,could not rejoice with the rest; though in the generalhappiness that reigned now in Asgard, no one markedhis sadness. Then, to prove whether all the thingswhich had given the promise would really keep theirword to Frigga, the gods placed the youth as a targetbefore them, and hurled at him huge stones andsharp-pointed spears and the weapons which theyused in battle; but each missile turned aside, andrefused to hurt the shining Balder. Even thedeadly battle-axes fell harmless at his feet. NowLoki, who always hated everything beautiful, andwho was jealous of Balder because the gods lovedhim, stood by watching the game. His heart wasfull of bitterness and envy, and he hated the gloriousyouth who could be so confident and secure in the[Pg130]love which all the world had owned for him. So hedetermined to work some harm to Balder.

One day a strange old woman came to the palaceof Frigga and asked to have speech with her. Thegoddess was sitting with her maidens spinning, andwhen the old woman was admitted to her presence,she spoke to her kindly and asked the object of hervisit.

“I have come, lady,” said the old woman, whowas really Loki in disguise, “to learn what is goingon here in Asgard that the shouts of joy reach evento the earth. I hear laughter and cheering in thecourt where the gods are at their games. Tell me,what does it mean?” Then Frigga smiled happilyand said, “It means that the gods are hurling theirbattle-axes at Balder and trying to wound him,but he stands before them unhurt, for everythingon earth has sworn to me to do him no harm.”

“Has everything indeed made you this promise?”asked Loki.

“Yes,” answered Frigga; “everything except alittle plant called the mistletoe, and this looked sosmall and weak that I did not ask it to promise.”

“And does this mistletoe grow far from here?”continued the pretended old woman.

“Just at the gates of Asgard,” answered Frigga.And Loki, having learned what he wished, left thepalace exulting in the ease with which he had[Pg131]deceived the unsuspecting goddess. Laying aside hisdisguise, he sought the place where the mistletoegrew, and cutting off a branch, he shaped it into anarrow. Then he went to join the gods in theirsport.

Just outside the circle of the players stood Höder,the brother of Balder, silent and alone, for he wasblind and could not share in the games. Going upto him, Loki said,—

“Why do you not join in the sport, Höder, andthrow some missile at the wonderful Balder who nowbears a charmed life?”

“Because I cannot see where he is standing,”answered Höder, “and besides, I have no weaponto throw.”

“If that is all,” said Loki, “come with me and Iwill give you an arrow and help you shoot it.” Sohe led Höder forward, and the blind god followedhim willingly, for he dreamed of no evil.

Then Loki put the arrow into his hand and directedhis aim so well that the fatal shaft flew straight toBalder’s heart, and in a moment the beautiful godlay dead.

There was mourning now in Asgard, and overall the world. The sun no longer shone with itsaccustomed brightness; the birds stopped theirsinging, and the flowers drooped their heads; eventhe beasts felt the sadness that lay upon the earth,[Pg132]and crouched silent in their dens. Everything thatloved the shining Balder now wept and mournedfor him. Then the gods arrayed his body in thefinest cloth of gold, and brought it down to the sea,where Balder’s ship[34] lay close to the water’s edge.Very sadly they laid the body upon its deck, andheaped around the beloved form rings and chainsof finest gold, jewels and weapons such as warriorslove. When Nanna, Balder’s wife, saw the bodywrapped in readiness for burning, her heart brokefrom her great grief, and the gods laid her, dead,beside her husband.

Then they lit the funeral fires with a thorn-twig,which is the emblem of sleep; and took their lastlook at the dead Balder as he lay upon the burningpyre. Odin, stepping forward, whispered in theunhearing ear of his son; but what he said no oneever knew.

When they tried to launch the ship, they foundto their dismay that it was too heavily laden fortheir united efforts. So they sent for the mountain-giantessHyrroken—who had ever been friendlyto the people of Asgard—and begged her to grantthis last service to the beloved of the gods. Thegiantess came, riding on a fierce wolf, with twistedsnakes in her hands for reins. She gladly offeredher help to the gods, and putting her shoulder to[Pg133]the prow, she gave it a mighty shove which sent theburning ship far out from the shore.

The flames rose higher and higher as the vesseldrifted out toward the sea, bearing with it the lightand joy of Asgard. A silence fell on all the watchers,and great sorrow filled their hearts. All the worldseemed under a shadow, and in the solemn stillnessno sound was heard but the roaring of the flameson the burning ship. The gods stood upon theshore watching the funeral pyre, and, mingled withtheir sadness, was a dread foreboding of evil; foroutside the ring of the shining ones of Asgard wasanother group of watchers—the frost-giants—whoseemed to be looking on in mockery at the solemnrites, and now and then drew nearer, their tall formslooming up grim and threatening and terrible.

Then the sea and sky seemed to burst into onemass of glowing flame and a wonderful golden lightspread over the earth as the fire upon the slowlymoving ship burned each moment more brightly.Thus the vessel drifted westward toward the sea,and the gods knew that Balder had passed foreverfrom their sight.

One by one they returned sadly to Asgard; butOdin could not give up his son without one lasteffort to reclaim him. He determined to go himselfto Helheim, and offer a ransom to the goddess Helif she would give Balder back to him. Meantime[Pg134]poor blind Höder had been mourning over the greatevil which he had innocently wrought, and he wishedwith all the fervor of his loving heart that he couldbring Balder back to Asgard. Sadly he sought thepalace of his mother Frigga, and asked her whetherhe might not go to Helheim and offer his life to thedread goddess in exchange for Balder’s. “The roadis long and hard to find,” said Frigga, “and whatcould a blind god do in the path where the besttraveller would lose his way? Go back to your owndwelling, and send for Hermod, our swift messenger.He loved the shining Balder and now mourns forhim. Bid him ride to Helheim.”

Höder did as his mother commanded, and foundHermod only too willing to take the fearful journeyfor the sake of Balder. Odin gave him his own horseSleipnir, who up to this time had never allowedanother rider to mount him. Nine days and nightsHermod rode through the earth in darkness so thickthat his horse could not see where to step. It wasa black and steep and fearful road down to Helheim,and only on Odin’s horse could the journey havebeen made. On the tenth morning he came to thegolden bridge that spanned the river Giöll; andhere a maiden,[35] pale and sorrowful, kept guard.She halted Hermod as he rode across the bridge,and said:—

[Pg135]“Who are you, and what do you seek here amongthe dead? Yesterday five hands of men rode acrossthe bridge, but they did not shake it as you alonehave done. Your face is not as the face of thedead. Why do you come here? It is no place forthe living.”

Then Hermod asked if she had seen the shiningBalder pass over her bridge; and the maidenanswered,—

“He has crossed it already, and has gone to thedark hall where the feast is now spread.”

So Hermod rode on until he reached Hel’s gloomypalace and came face to face with the terrible queenwho ruled over the kingdom of the dead. Hermodtrembled with fear as he looked about him, but hislove for Balder gave him courage, and he stepped upboldly before the goddess, saying:—

“I have come to beg a boon of thee, O Hel. Yourland is full without the shining Balder, and Asgardis empty and lonely since he has gone. Every heartmourns for him, and every eye is filled with tears.Give him back to us.”

Slowly and sternly Hel replied: “Is there indeedno dry eye upon the earth? If it be true as thousayest, that everything weeps for Balder, he shallreturn to Asgard; but if there is one who will notweep, he shall stay forever in Helheim.”

Then Hermod hurried with the message back to[Pg136]Asgard, and when Odin heard the answer Hel hadmade, he gave the command, and everything uponthe earth wept and mourned for Balder. Throughoutthe whole world arose the sound of bitter wailing;and not a single eye remained undimmed bytears. But among the mourners in Asgard therewas one old woman[36] whom Odin spied standingapart and shedding no tear.

“Weep,” he cried, “weep for Balder that he mayreturn.”

“Nay,” replied the old woman, “I will not weep.He has done naught for me that I should mournhim. Let him stay in Helheim.” Then with amocking laugh she hurried away, and Odin knewthat it was Loki.

So Balder never came back to Asgard.

[Pg137]

Andvari’s Hoard

ONCE Odin and Hœnir and Loki went on a visitto the earth, and in order to mingle freely withpeople without being recognized as gods, theylaid aside all their divine powers and became, evenin appearance, like ordinary men. When they hadwandered about the earth many days, and talkedwith many people,—who never knew, of course,that the gods were among them,—they grew tiredof the busy life of the world, and longed to findsome place of quiet and rest. So they went farinto the heart of the forest, and sat down beside abrook where many fish were leaping about and dartingthrough the sparkling water. The gods layidly upon the grass and watched them for a longtime. Presently, they spied an otter sitting onthe bank of the stream, lazily eating a fish whichhe had just caught. The gods looked on at themeal, and it made them remember that they toowere hungry. Odin therefore proposed that theyjourney on in search of food, and to this the othersreadily consented; but as they rose to go, Lokisuddenly took up a large stone, and, throwing itat the otter, killed him instantly. At this wanton[Pg138]cruelty Odin became angry, and rebuked Loki forhis act[37]; but Loki only laughed, while he skinnedthe otter and cast its body back into the stream.

The gods then wandered on until almost nightfallbefore they came to any dwelling, and this wasonly a rude hut built on the side of a mountain.But they were too weary to look further, so theystopped to beg food and a lodging for the night.The old man[38] who lived in the hut bade them enterand share his simple fare, and in return he askedthem to tell him of their adventures. Withoutrevealing their identity, Odin told him of theirwanderings among men, and of the strange thingsthey had seen. Hœnir also related many stories;but his were of brave heroes who had wrought themightiest deeds on bloody battlefields. When itcame Loki’s turn, they asked him to tell all he knewof the life lived by the bright dwellers in Asgard, butLoki laughed and threw upon the ground his otter’sskin. When the old man saw this, he cried out:—

“O wicked, cruel man, you have killed my son.He was fishing to-day in the stream, and at thissport he always takes the form of an otter. Alas,this is indeed he, and you have slain him.”

[Pg139]Then he raised a loud cry, and called for helpto his two sons, Fafnir and Regin, who came runningin from the woods near by. As soon as theyheard of the killing of their brother, they seizedthe three gods and bound them hand and foot,for, in becoming men, the gods had lost all theirdivine powers, and they had no choice but to yield.

When Odin begged the old man to ask whateverhe would in payment for their ransom, both Fafnirand Regin demanded the life of one of the gods inreturn for their brother’s. But their father spreadthe otter’s skin upon the ground, and, turning toOdin, said,—

“You and your wicked companions shall be freewhen you have covered every hair of this hidewith a piece of gold or a precious stone.”

“We will do this,” answered Odin; “but firstyou must set one of us free that he may go and procurethe treasure. Let the other two stay bound ashostages until he returns.”

To this the old man and his sons agreed, andOdin bade them unbind Loki, for he alone wouldknow where to find such vast treasure as they needed.Accordingly Loki was freed, and promising hiscompanions to return with their ransom, he hurriedaway. There was only one place where a hoardof gold and precious stones might be found, andthither Loki directed his steps. There were many[Pg140]mountains to climb and rivers to cross before hereached the place he sought, and night coming onmade the journey more difficult and wearisome.

At last he spied upon a rocky mountain side thething he had come so far to find, a small, deep cavernin the rocks. As Loki drew nearer, the moonlightrevealed a little brook gushing from the mouth ofthe cavern and winding in and out among the rocksbelow. It was small, but beautifully clear, and thepebbles in its bed shone in the moonlight like diamonds.Just where it issued from the cave, thewater flowed swiftly over a deep pool, and here itwas so dark that only the sharp eyes of Loki couldhave caught the faint shimmer of a salmon whichlay lurking in its depths.

Loki saw it, however, and his heart leaped for joy,for this salmon was no other than the cunning dwarfAndvari, the owner of a wonderful hoard of goldand gems. The treasure was buried somewherenear the cavern, and it was to gain this glitteringhoard that Loki had come so far. So he now putforth all his skill to catch the wily salmon as it dartedto and fro in the stream. The dwarf knew, however,who the fisherman was, and why he had come,and he had no intention of being caught and madeto yield up his treasures. Loki spent many hourstrying to lure the salmon into the shallows, but allhis efforts were in vain. The crafty fish never[Pg141]moved from his deep, dark pool. Then Loki sawthat further attempts would be useless unless he hadhelp from some one with magic skill, so he determinedto seek the aid of Queen Ran and her wonderfulnet.

Leaving the cave, he hurried down to the sea,and for many hours he walked along the shore,searching carefully among the rocks for the hidingplace of the cruel ocean queen. Somewhere here,or upon the jagged reefs, he would be sure to findher spreading a net for her prey. But thoughhe wandered for miles along the water’s edge, hecaught no glimpse of her anywhere; and, weariedand disheartened, he was about to give up hissearch, when he heard a low, rippling laugh justbehind him, and turning he saw the beautifuldaughters of the sea-king seated on the rocks combingtheir golden hair. Loki went over to themand begged them to tell him where he could findtheir mother, Queen Ran.

“Why do you seek her?” one of the maidens asked.

“Because I am a fisherman, and would like to askher where the big fish are gathering now,” repliedLoki.

The sea-maidens laughed again and said:—

“O crafty, cunning Loki, do not think to deceiveus who know well who you are, and whyyou have come hither. Play no tricks, then, and[Pg142]tell no lies to our mother, or you will not gain theobject of your journey.”

Loki promised, and begged the nymphs to tellhim where to find Queen Ran, since no other thanOdin himself needed her help.

“You must go about ten miles farther,” answeredone of the maidens, “until you come to aplace where the rocks are high, and project in sharp,dangerous reefs far out into the sea. Here the wavesdash with tremendous fury, and here is many agood ship wrecked and all her cargo lost. Lookamong the shadows of the rocks, and you will findour mother sitting there mending her net.”

Loki thanked the nymphs and hurried on, forthe night was growing black and the moon wascompletely hidden, and he had yet far to go. Whenhe felt sure that ten miles lay between him and thedaughters of the sea, he stopped and looked carefullyabout him. Near by was a group of tall,jagged rocks over which the waves dashed withgreat force; but there was one spot so protectedthat even the spray from the water did not reach it,and here Loki spied Queen Ran, long-fingered,greedy and cruel, mending her magic net. Whenshe saw Loki, she tried to hide in the shadow of therocks, for she knew him and feared he had come withsome unfriendly message from Odin. But Lokicalled to her and said:—

[Pg143]“Be not afraid, O Queen, for I come as a petitionerto beg a great boon of thee;” and Ran replied,“What does Loki wish, that he leaves theshining halls of Asgard to travel over the earthto speak to the wife of Æger?”

“I have journeyed thus far,” answered Loki,“because I have heard of your wonderful net.They say that it will catch whatever you wish, andthat anything once caught cannot escape from itsmagic meshes. Therefore I have come to ask yourhelp, for there is a certain salmon which I have longtried to snare, but which is too cunning to be caughtby ordinary means. Lend me, I beg, your magicnet.”

“I cannot! I cannot!” cried Ran, “there is aship sailing hither which will reach these rocks inthe morning, and it is full of great treasure—jewels,and gold, and rich apparel. I have sentmy mermaids to lure it to the reefs, where it willbe dashed to pieces, and the prize be gathered intomy net. No, I cannot lend it to you.”

“But let me have it for just one hour,” pleadedLoki, “and I will promise to return it in that time.I swear it on the word of a god.”

The oath was reassuring, but still Ran hesitatedto let the precious net leave her hands. At length,however, she was persuaded, and with many expressionsof gratitude, Loki said good-by and[Pg144]hastened back to the cave of Andvari, for the night wasnow far spent, and at daylight the salmon wouldbe sure to leave his haunts.

When he reached the cavern, the fish was stilllying idly in the water, but upon seeing the net inLoki’s hand it darted like a flash down the stream.Then Loki quickly cast his net, and though thecunning fish swam with wonderful swiftness, itcould not escape the magic net which began toclose slowly and surely about it. As soon as Lokithought that his prize was secure, he drew the neton land, and, after slowly loosening the meshes,he at last grasped the struggling fish in his hand.Now, however, it was no longer a salmon fightingfor its freedom, but the crafty dwarf Andvari.Any one less wise than Loki would have droppedhim immediately in surprise at the transformation,but Loki only held on the tighter, and shook the poordwarf until he cried for mercy.

“No mercy will I grant thee, thou master thief,”exclaimed the god, “until thou hast revealed tome the hiding place of thy ill-gotten treasures.Show me where it lies, or I will dash thee to piecesupon these rocks.”

Seeing that there was no hope of escape, Andvaripromised to yield up his hoard, and pointing toa large rock near by bade Loki raise it and look beneath.Without loosening his hold of the dwarf,[Pg145]Loki tried to lift the stone, but though it was farfrom being heavy or beyond his strength, he foundthat he could not move it. Then he knew that hewas being tricked, and, grasping the dwarf stilltighter, he shook him fiercely and commanded himto give his help. Andvari laid his finger on thestone and immediately it turned over and discloseda large pit beneath.

It was quite dark now and the moon was completelyhidden; yet even in the dim light Loki sawthe sparkle of thousands of precious gems and theshimmer of many dazzling heaps of gold. It wastruly a wonderful sight, and would have bewilderedthe ordinary finder of such wealth; but Loki hadno time to spend in admiration. He gathered allthe treasure together in the net, which, by its magicpower, grew larger and larger as he continued tofill it.

The dwarf meanwhile stood by sullen and angry,watching the gold and gems being poured into thenet. Had it been Odin who was robbing him of hishoard, he would have begged that some small portionof it might be left him, but he knew better than tomake such a request of Loki. So when the last ofthe treasure had been gathered up, he turned awayand was disappearing into the woods when Lokicaught the glitter of something upon his finger, andseizing him roughly, cried out: “Ho, ho, my[Pg146]cunning elf. So you would keep back some of thegems, I see. Yield me that ring upon your finger,or you shall not have one moment more to live.”

Andvari’s face grew black with rage, and herefused to give up his ring, stamping his foot allthe while upon the ground and cursing Loki for hisavarice and greed. Yet he knew too well that hisfury was in vain, and soon he changed his tone, beggingLoki, humbly, to leave him his one poor gem.This appeal would have moved any other of thegods, but Loki was never known to do a generousthing in all his life. He only gave a mocking,hateful laugh, and, seizing the dwarf, tore the ringfrom his finger.

It was a wonderful ring, shaped like a serpent,coiled, with its tail in its mouth. It had two blood-redrubies for eyes, and in the dim light they seemedto Loki to glow with all the cunning and cruelty ofa living serpent. But this did not deter him fromslipping the ring on his finger, and laughing triumphantlyat the dwarf, who was now foaming with helplessrage. Then Andvari cursed the ring and said:“May this ring be your bane, and the bane of allwho shall possess it. May it bring sorrow and evilupon him who shall wear it, and from this day be thesource of envy and hatred and bloodshed.”

To these dreadful words Loki paid no heed, and,throwing his precious burden upon his shoulder, he[Pg147]hurried down the mountain side and sped swiftly onto the old man’s cottage. Odin and Hœnir werestill bound, and they had almost given up hopeof Loki’s return. But they forgot the tediousnessof their captivity when they saw the great heap ofgold and gems which Loki poured out of the net;for here was surely more than enough to cover tenotters’ skins, and the remainder of the treasurewould be their own.

Fafnir and Regin stretched the skin upon theground, and bade Loki cover every hair. Thisseemed at first an easy thing to do; but the moregold and precious stones that Loki spread upon it,the larger the skin seemed to grow, until it coveredthe entire floor of the hut; and though Loki stilladded handfuls of gold, the brothers always foundsome spot uncovered. At last every hair of thehide was completely hidden beneath some coin orgem, and the gods demanded their release. Theold man unloosed the cords which bound them andwas bidding them depart, when Regin uttered aloud cry and declared that there was one hair yetuncovered upon the otter’s head.

Odin and Hœnir looked at each other in dismay,for the net was now empty, and there was no way toprocure further treasure. Meanwhile, the old manand his sons were clamouring loudly for the gods tofulfil their promise. The case seemed indeed[Pg148]desperate; until Loki drew from his finger the serpentring of Andvari, and laid it upon the hair.The brothers being now satisfied, the gods leftthe hut with all speed. Odin and Hœnir returnedat once to Asgard, while Loki took back the net toQueen Ran, who was anxiously waiting, and reachedher just as the dawn was breaking.

The treasure soon became, according to Andvari’swords, a source of hatred and bloodshed; for the oldman, wishing to keep the wealth for himself, drove hissons from the house, and shut himself up with histreasure. All day long he sat poring greedily overthe heap of glittering gems, and running his fingersthrough the shining gold. Above all, he loved towatch the serpent ring, with its glowing ruby eyes.

Then one night Fafnir came suddenly upon him,demanding his share of the gold; and when the oldman refused to yield up even one stone, Fafnirslew him in his anger, and took possession of allthe treasure. Soon he grew fearful that his brothermight steal upon him sometime and rob, or perchancekill him; so he changed himself into a monstrousdragon which breathed forth fire and spatdeadly poison. Thus secured, he coiled himselfabout the hoard, and no one dared to approachhim. Regin meanwhile fled to a neighbouring city,and became the king’s master-smith, the maker ofstrong swords.

[Pg149]

The Story of Siegmund

THE king whose protection Regin sought wasnamed Alf, and when he learned of the greatskill that belonged to this stranger in hisrealm, he gave Regin a place of honour among thesword-makers, and soon promoted him to be master-smith.Before many years passed the fame ofRegin’s smithy had spread far and wide; for heremen gathered not only to learn the master’s craft,but to share in that wisdom which he seemed to havegathered from all the ages. Even the noted wisemen of the kingdom came to him, wondering at hisgreat knowledge; and the king sought his counselin all the difficult affairs of state.

At the court of King Alf lived his foster-son Siegfried,[39]who was much beloved by the king, althoughhe was not of his own blood. The youth was talland strong, of fearless bearing, and with so keen aneye that men often quailed before his glance. Hishair was golden red, and fell down in long locks overhis shoulders; and his body was of a strength thatmatched the beauty of his face. Men said of him[Pg150]that “never did he lose heart, and of naught washe afraid.” When Siegfried grew to manhood,King Alf sent him to Regin’s smithy that he mightnot only profit by the wisdom of this wisest of teachers,but also be taught to fashion a sword that couldbe worthily borne by one of his name and race, forSiegfried was the last of the Volsungs—a race ofwarriors whose fame was still fresh in the minds ofmen.

At first Siegfried did not like to wear the woollencoat and rough leather apron of a smith, for he wasa prince’s son and he thought the work menial; buthe soon learned to respect his great teacher so muchthat the place took on a new dignity in his eyes andhe no longer chafed at the hard work or the simplefare he shared with Regin. Early in the morningthe sound of Siegfried’s hammer could be heard ashe worked blithely at his trade, and he almost forgotthat he had ever known any other life than this oneby Regin’s side. When the long day was over andhe sat with his master by the glowing light of theforge, Regin would tell him wonderful tales of godsand heroes and especially of the warrior race fromwhich Siegfried sprang. Many times they sat untilthe last bit of fire in the forge sank into lifeless embers,and still the youth listened eagerly to the storiesof brave deeds wrought by the long-dead Volsungs.The story which he never tired of hearing was that[Pg151]of his own birth, and in this wise did Regin alwaysbegin the tale:—

There was once a mighty king named Volsung,[40]who built a lordly palace such as men never sawbefore nor will ever see again; for its walls glistenedwith thousands of shields taken from his enemies inbattle, and in the centre of the palace was a largecourtyard in which grew a wonderful tree. Thistree was so high that it towered above the castlewalls, and its branches grew so thick that theyspread like a roof over the whole palace. The kingcalled this tree Branstock, and about its mightytrunk the Volsungs gathered to feast and sing songsin praise of their king and their race.

Ten sons and one daughter were born to KingVolsung, and of these the great ruler was rightlyproud, for the youths bid fair to excel their kinsmenin strength and courage, while the daughter, Signy,was so famed for her beauty that suitors came frommany distant lands. Now there was a certain kingnamed Siggeir, ruler of the Goths, who wooed thefair Signy with many rich gifts, all of which themaiden coldly disdained, for she distrusted his dark,evil-looking face. King Volsung, however, wasmuch taken with the wealth of Siggeir and his seeminggenerosity, and he urged his daughter to accept[Pg152]this giver of rich gifts. For a long time Signyrefused to listen to her father’s words, but at lengthshe yielded and was betrothed to her hated suitor.Then a great feast was proclaimed throughout thekingdom, and Siggeir gave freely of his gold. Thewedding banquet was served in the courtyardbeneath the spreading boughs of the mighty Branstock,and the guests were so many in number thatthey well-nigh filled the halls to overflowing.

When the feasting and merriment were at theirhighest, there suddenly appeared in the midst ofthe revellers a tall old man. He had a blue cloakthrown over his shoulders, and his beard was longand white. Only a few of the guests caught a glimpseof his face, but those who did affirmed that he hadonly one eye. Stepping quickly up to King Volsung’swonderful tree, he drew from beneath hiscloak a gleaming sword and drove it with greatforce into the tree trunk, up to the very hilt. Thenturning to the astonished company, he said, “Whosodraweth this sword from the tree shall have it asa gift from me; and he shall find that he never borein his hand a better sword than this.” So saying,the old man went forth from the hall, and none knewwho he was nor whither he went; but some whisperedthat it was Odin himself who had been amongthem.

Then one by one the guests of King Volsung tried[Pg153]to draw out the sword, but, though many of themwere strong-armed warriors, not a single man hadthe power so much as to loosen it from the tree.King Siggeir was among the last to try his strength,and he strove until his eyes almost started from hishead. But he, too, failed as the others had done, andreturned to his place angered and humiliated at hisdefeat. When all the guests had been put to thetest, and no one had drawn the sword, a certain lordsaid to King Volsung, “Have you no more sons?”and the king answered: “There is yet one more, buthe is a mere lad. It would be cruel to shame himbefore so great a company.” The warriors urgedhim, however, to summon the youth; and thoughanxious to spare his youngest son, the king reluctantlyconsented to have Siegmund[41] appear. Thelad stood straight and strong and fearless before thelordly company, and asked what was the king’s will.Volsung pointed to the sword, and bade young Siegmunddraw it forth. To the astonishment of allbeholders, the lad stepped boldly up to the Branstock,and, grasping the hilt of the sword, drew it out aseasily as if it had only been in the scabbard. Theguests were delighted at this evidence of Odin’sfavour toward an untried stripling; and they allpraised Siegmund’s good fortune—all but KingSiggeir, who hated the youth from that day. He[Pg154]sought to buy the sword of Siegmund by offeringhim thrice its weight in gold, but the youth replied:“You might have had the sword if it were Odin’swill that you should bear it. But now it shall staymine, though you offered me all the gold you have.”Then was King Siggeir filled with wrath at thesescornful words and vowed vengeance against Siegmundand all the Volsungs.

When the wedding feast was over and the timecame for Signy to set sail with her husband to hisown land, King Siggeir spoke fair words to Volsungand his ten sons, and begged them to visit him inGothland. Then said Signy to her father, “Ipray thee, urge me not to go away with King Siggeir,for by my foreknowledge I am certain that no goodwill come of this marriage.” But Volsung answered:“Speak not so, my daughter; and go with thy husband,for it will bring great shame to us if we failto trust him without reason. Moreover, he will payus back most evilly if we break faith with him for nocause.” So Signy went with her husband, and theysailed away from the land of the Volsungs.

Now at the appointed time when the king hadpromised Siggeir to visit him in Gothland, Volsungand his ten sons put forth in the ships with a goodlyfollowing of men. After many days of pleasantvoyaging, they reached the stranger’s country, andcame in toward the shore on the evening tide. But[Pg155]before they made a landing, Signy the queen camesecretly to them, and begged them to return at onceto their own land, for Siggeir had sworn to kill them.Her pleadings were in vain, however, for the grislyold king of the Volsungs had never yet turned hisback to a foe, and he had no fear of Siggeir and hishosts. So Signy went back to the palace, and theold king with his followers waited for the dawn.At a fitting time they left the boats, and soughtthe way to King Siggeir’s palace. They seemed agayly dressed company that had come as gueststo a marriage feast, but under their cloaks eachman carried a sword—being mindful of Signy’swarning.

No messenger came forth to welcome them, butas they neared the palace King Siggeir fell upon themwith a great army, and neither bravery nor a goodsword could withstand the assault of such numbers.The Volsungs fought hard, and with all the courageof their race, and many a Goth lay dead at the oldking’s feet and at the feet of his sons; but at lastVolsung himself was struck down by a treacherousblow; and when his followers saw their leader dead,they lost heart for the fight. Then all of the goodlycompany that had come to Gothland with the kingwere slain by Siggeir’s men, and soon none were leftof all the Volsungs but the king’s ten sons. Thesewere sorely wounded, yet alive, so they were bound[Pg156]with chains and carried before Siggeir that he mightdetermine by what torment they should die.

Now came Signy to the palace hall and beggedtheir lives of the king; but Siggeir laughed at herprayers and bade his men slay the sons of Volsungbefore their sister’s eyes. But first he took fromSiegmund the coveted gift of Odin, declaring thatthe youth should die by a stroke from his own sword.Then Signy threw herself at the feet of her lord andbegged him to grant her brothers a few more daysof life. At the end of that time he might do withthem as he wished, and she would plead no more.To prove that she had no thought of trying to releasethem, she asked that they might be chainedto a certain fallen oak in the forest so that she couldvisit them without incurring the king’s displeasure.As all of the Volsungs were wounded, and some ofthem suffering greatly, this idea of prolonging theirtorment pleased Siggeir’s fancy; and he agreed tolet the brothers live for a few days chained to thefallen oak; but meantime he shut Signy up in thepalace under a strict watch.

Now it happened that at midnight a she-wolfcame out of the heart of the forest; and, seizing uponone of the Volsungs, devoured him, and then wenther way. When news of this dreadful disasterreached Signy, she begged Siggeir to put her brothersin prison; but the king only laughed again and left[Pg157]the Volsungs in the forest. Each night, at midnight,the she-wolf came out of the deep woods to eat oneof the brothers; and this was repeated until allwere devoured except Siegmund.[42] Then Signycalled to her a trusted servant, and putting a potof honey in his hand, she bade him go into the forestand smear the face and hands of her brother withthe sweet liquid. The servant did as the queen instructedhim; so that night, when the she-wolfcame out of the forest, she smelt the sweet odour, andinstead of falling upon Siegmund to tear him topieces, she began to lick the honey from his face andhands.

Some of the liquid had dripped over Siegmund’slips, and when the she-wolf thrust her greedy tongueinto his mouth, he caught it firmly between histeeth and bit with all his strength. In her franticefforts to get loose from the torturing grip, the she-wolfset her feet against the fallen tree and strainedso mightily that the chain which bound Siegmundsnapped in two pieces and the youth found himselffree. Then he seized the wolf by the throat, andstrangled her with his mere hands. Leaving thebeast’s body and his own torn clothes by the oaktree, he fled far into the forest.

King Siggeir believed that the last of the Volsungs[Pg158]had died in the same manner as his brothers; butSigny felt in her heart that Siegmund had succeeded,through her strategy, in escaping. Soon word wasbrought to her by her faithful servant that Siegmundwas alive and in need of help; so each day she sentthe messenger to the forest with food for her brotherand the assurance that she would always watch overhis needs. Then Siegmund built himself an undergroundhut in the woods, and lived as a wild man;and thither came Signy by night, for King Siggeirhad granted the queen her liberty, believing that allthe Volsungs were dead. Between them they plottedmany things to avenge the murder of their kinsmen;but as yet their plans seemed futile, for how couldone youth prevail against a king’s army?

[Pg159]

The Vengeance of the Volsungs

SO, many years went by, and two sons were bornto Signy and King Siggeir, both of them solike their father that the queen saw no touchof the Volsung spirit in either one, and no courageon which she could rely to help her and Siegmundin their work of vengeance. When the eldest wasten years old, his mother sent him to the forestthat he might be trained by Siegmund if there wereaught in him worthy of the Volsung race. Whenthe lad came to the earth-dwelling, Siegmund sawthat he had none of the right mettle in him; buthe welcomed his sister’s son and bade him make readythe bread for the evening meal while he himself wentto seek firewood. On Siegmund’s return the ladwas still standing with the bag of meal in his hand,and there was no bread laid upon the coals. WhenSiegmund questioned him, he answered, “I darednot set hand in the sack, for there was somethingmoving in the meal.” So Siegmund sent the ladback to his mother, for he knew that such a faint-heartedyouth could never help him to avenge hismurdered kinsmen.

Next year Signy sent her second son into the[Pg160]forest; but he too was fearful of the meal, and saidon Siegmund’s return, “There is something alivein the sack, so I dared not touch it.” Then Siegmundbade him return to his mother. Some yearslater another son was born to Signy who in all waysresembled the Volsungs, so tall and strong and fiercehe was, yet fair of face like Siegmund. When hismother deemed him courageous enough and of hardihoodenough to stand an extreme test, she sewedhis shirt to his skin and then suddenly tore it off,at which the child only laughed and said, “Howlittle would a Volsung care for such a smart as that!”Then Signy knew that she might send the lad atonce to her brother; so she bade him go forthwithto the earth house in the forest.

As soon as the lad, who was called Sinfiotli, cameto Siegmund’s hut, he was told to knead the meal forthe baking, just as his brothers had been. Thenhe was left alone, and when Siegmund returned fromgathering firewood, the bread was ready baked andlying on the hearth. When asked if he had seenanything move in the meal, the lad replied, “Yes,I felt there was something alive in the sack, but whateverit was I have kneaded it all together with themeal.”

Then Siegmund laughed and said:—

“Naught wilt thou eat of bread this night, forthou hast kneaded up the most deadly of serpents.[Pg161]Though I may eat of any poison and live, there isno venom which thou mayst take and remain alive.”

Now Sinfiotli stayed with Siegmund in the earth-dwelling,and was trained in all things that befitteda warrior of the Volsungs. Together they roamedthe wild woods, hunting, fighting wild beasts andplundering like outlaws—for in no other way couldthey gain wealth. Sinfiotli soon forgot the days hehad spent in King Siggeir’s palace and believed himselfin very truth a Volsung. Now it happenedthat one day as they journeyed together through theforest, they came upon a certain house in which laytwo men fast asleep. On the wrists and ankles ofthe sleepers were heavy gold rings, and over theirheads hung two gray wolfskins. By this Siegmundknew that they were werewolves and that thismust be the tenth night—at which time the spellis removed and the enchanted may resume theirhuman shape.

Then Siegmund and Sinfiotli put on the wolfskinswhile the men lay asleep; and having once donethis, they could in no way free themselves from theenchantment until the appointed time. So theyrushed forth into the forest howling like wolves,though each knew the meaning of the other’s cries.Having the nature of wild beasts, they went in searchof prey, but before taking their separate ways, theyagreed to come to each other’s aid in this wise:[Pg162]that if more than seven men set upon either of thetwain, he should howl in wolfish fashion so loudthat his companion would hear him. So each wenthis way, and in time Siegmund met with a band ofmen who set upon him with spears; but he gaveforth a deep, far-sounding howl that brought hisfellow-wolf at once to aid him. Still in his wolfishshape, Sinfiotli killed every one of the men who hadattacked Siegmund, and once more the friends parted.Before he had gone far into the woods again, Sinfiotliwas suddenly surprised by eleven men withstout hunting gear; but so fiercely did he fightthat in a short time the whole number were lyingdead upon the ground.

As Sinfiotli, weary from the battle, lay under anoak tree, Siegmund came to him, and seeing all thedead men, straightway asked, “Why did you nothowl to me for help?” And Sinfiotli answered,“I was loath to call on you for the killing of onlyeleven men.” Then a sudden wolfish anger cameover Siegmund, and he sprang upon Sinfiotli andbit him in the throat. But as soon as he saw hisfriend lying dead, he sorrowed greatly, and stroveto bear the body on his back to the earth-house.The following day, as he lay at the door of the dwelling,he saw two weasels fighting, and one of them bitthe other so that he died. Then the destroyer raninto a thicket and returned with a leaf in his mouth[Pg163]which he laid on the wound of the dead weasel. ToSiegmund’s surprise, it immediately sprang up welland whole. Then a raven flew overhead with a leafof the same herb in his mouth, and this he droppedjust at the werewolf’s feet. So Siegmund took theleaf and laid it on Sinfiotli’s wound, and he at oncecame to life again. Then the two waited until theday on which the enchantment was ended and theymight cast off their wolf shapes. On this day theytook the skins and burned them in the fire, that nofurther harm might come to any man throughtaking them.

Now by the time Sinfiotli had grown into manhood,Siegmund felt that the hour had come for avengingthe death of the Volsungs, for he had tried the ladfully, and found no fear in him. So on a certainday they both left the earth-house and came latein the evening to King Siggeir’s palace. They hadno mind to walk at once into the king’s presence,so they hid themselves among some casks of alewhich were heaped up in the hall. While they laythus hidden, Signy was aware of their coming; andas the king sat drinking deep she came out to themand spoke softly with them. Then they plottedtogether how they should slay King Siggeir, but thequeen dared not stay long with them lest some servantshould see her and tell it to the king.

Now that very night as the two children of Signy[Pg164]and the king were playing with a ball, one of therings came off, and, rolling out into the hall, glidedamong the casks of ale. The children ran eagerlyafter it, but when they spied the two grim and well-armedmen among the casks, they ran screaming totheir father and told him what they had seen. Thenthe king grew fearful that some evil was awaitinghim; and as he sat not knowing what to do, Signyled the children into the hall and said to her brother:“See, these two have betrayed you. Kill them,therefore.” But Siegmund answered, “Never willI slay thy children for telling where I lay hid.”Hardly had he spoken these words when Sinfiotlidrew his sword and killed both the children. Thenhe took up the bodies and cast them at King Siggeir’sfeet. This sight roused such wrath in the king thathe forgot his fear and ordered his men to seize holdupon the strangers and bind them with fetters.

So Siegmund and Sinfiotli were set upon by a greatcompany of the king’s men, but they fought so hardand bravely that many bodies lay dead all aroundthem, and those who were wounded long rememberedthis night’s fighting. At last the strangers wereoverpowered and bound with strong chains. ThenKing Siggeir had them cast into a dungeon, while hepondered all through the night as to what form ofdeath he could mete out to them. In the morninghe had a great pit dug, and in the midst of it he stood[Pg165]on end a flat stone that reached from one side of thepit to the other, but was so high that none couldclimb over it. Then he set Siegmund in the pit onone side of the flat stone, and Sinfiotli on the other,and bade his men cover over the pit with turf, thatthey might be buried alive. But while the servantswere laying on the turf, Signy came by with a bundleof straw in her arms. This she threw into the pitto Sinfiotli, and bade the servants say no word ofit to the king. Then the covering of turf was laidon, and Signy went her way again.

As soon as he judged the night had come, Sinfiotliunwrapped the bundle of straw to make himselfa bed; and as he groped through the bale in thedarkness he found a great lump of swine’s flesh.This he tore eagerly apart, for King Siggeir had giventhe captives naught to eat since they were takenprisoners. Then as he was rending the flesh in pieces,his fingers suddenly closed upon some hard steel;and when he drew it forth he found in his hand asword. It was Siegmund’s sword, the gift of Odin,which Signy had concealed in the straw unknown tothe king. Sinfiotli uttered a cry of joy, and graspingthe hilt firmly, he drove the point of the swordinto the great rock that divided him from Siegmund.So fierce a blow did he deal that the sword cutthrough the stone up to the hilt; and by means ofthe great rent which it made, the two captives wereable to speak with each other.

[Pg166]Then Siegmund grasped the blade of the sword,and together he and Sinfiotli worked all night untilthey had cut the great stone in half. When dawncame, they had sawed so fiercely that the sword-bladeglowed in the darkness of the pit; and yetthe keenness of its edge had never dulled. SoonSiegmund had cut a way through the turf and stonesthat covered the pit; and he and Sinfiotli stood togetherin front of King Siggeir’s palace. There wasno sound within, for all were yet asleep; so Siegmundand Sinfiotli crept softly into the hall carrying woodin their arms; and this they placed in great pilesaround the sleepers. Then they kindled a firewhich spread quickly through the dry leaves andwood; and the smell of it awoke the sleeping men,who looked about and wondered why so thick a smokewas filling the hall. Soon the king was wakened bythe loud screams of the women, and when he saw thesmoke and flame he cried out,—

“Who has kindled this fire in which I burn?”

And Siegmund answered him from without thehall, “It is I, Siegmund the Volsung, with Sinfiotli,my sister’s son; and now thou mayst know at lastthat all of my race are not dead.”

Then he closed and barred the palace doors thatnone might escape, but first he begged Signy tocome quickly out of the hall lest she should perishin the flames. And when she did not come, he[Pg167]offered her rich gifts and a place of honour amongher own people; but Signy stood by the king’s sideand answered:—

“I have kept well in memory the slaying of theVolsungs, and that it was King Siggeir who wroughtthe shameful deed. I sent two of my sons into theforest to learn how to avenge the wrong, and thencame unto thee Sinfiotli who is a Volsung and noneof King Siggeir’s race. I also bade thee kill myyoung children, since their words had betrayed thee.For this and naught else have I wrought all theseyears that Siggeir might get his bane at last. Nowvengeance has fallen upon him, but let the end comealso to me, for merrily will I die with King Siggeir,though I was not merry to wed with him.”

So Signy perished in the fire with her husband,and many died with them that the wrath of Siegmundthe Volsung might be satisfied. Then hegathered together a great company of folk, andfilled many ships with the treasures of King Siggeir,and with Sinfiotli he set sail for his own land. Whenhe reached the country of the Volsungs, he found thata neighbouring king had usurped the throne, and wasreigning in the old king’s stead. Siegmund drovehim from the country and himself took the throneof his father, where he ruled thereafter for manyyears. He and Sinfiotli waged war with otherkings, and their fame spread abroad throughout[Pg168]the land. None could equal them in strength andvalour, and of all the Volsungs King Siegmund badefair to be greatest in renown.

As Regin spoke these last words, he turned to theyouth at his side and smiled when he saw the glowof pride that shone in Siegfried’s face as the masterspoke of the brave deeds of the Volsungs.

“Shall I tell you the rest of the tale, and of howthe sword of Odin failed your father in his need?”he asked, knowing well the answer Siegfried wouldmake. Then the youth laid new coals on the fire;and the master resumed the oft-told tale.

[Pg169]

The Magic Sword

SO Siegmund became a mighty king,—saidRegin,—and was known far and wide as thegiver of rich gifts. In time of war he foughtwith Sinfiotli at his side; and when peace reignedin the kingdom, the son of Signy sat in the seat ofhonour by the king’s throne. Now Sinfiotli loveda fair woman who was also wooed by the brother ofBorghild, Siegmund’s queen; and when they foughtthis matter out between them, Sinfiotli killed thequeen’s brother and took the maiden for his wife.Then Borghild demanded that the slayer be drivenout of the kingdom because of this deed; but Siegmundsaid that the man was killed in fair fight, andtherefore Sinfiotli should not pay the forfeit of banishment.Hoping to soften the queen’s anger, heoffered her gold and treasure as payment for herbrother’s life, but she would have none of it. Seeing,however, that she could not win her way with theking, she pretended to forgive the deed; and askedboth Siegmund and Sinfiotli to the funeral feastwhich she held in her brother’s honour.

There were many guests gathered to the feast,and Borghild, the queen, brought drink to each one.[Pg170]When she came to Sinfiotli with the great horn in herhand, she said, “Drink now, fair stepson.” Butwhen the youth looked into the horn he answered,“Nay, I will not, for the drink is charmed.” Thenthe queen laughed and handed the horn to Siegmund,who drank the ale to the last drop, for no poisonnor charmed drink could work him any harm. Asecond time did Borghild come to Sinfiotli with thehorn in her hand offering him drink, and again herefused it, saying, “Guile is in the drink.” SoSiegmund took the horn and emptied it while thequeen taunted Sinfiotli with his fears and said,“Why must other men drink thine ale for thee?”A third time Borghild came with the horn, and shegoaded Sinfiotli with these words, “Drink now, ifthere is in thee the heart of a Volsung.” So hetook the horn, but when he looked into it, he said,“Venom is therein.”

Now by this time Siegmund was so dazed withdrinking that he had forgotten the queen’s formerhatred for her brother’s slayer, and he cried toSinfiotli, “Drink and fear naught.” So Sinfiotlidrank, and straightway fell down dead. WhenSiegmund saw the youth lying dead at his feet, hissenses returned to him, and he sorrowed greatly overthe words he had spoken. Then he lifted the body ofSinfiotli in his arms and bore it out of the palace hallwhile the funeral guests sat silent, none daring to[Pg171]intrude upon the king’s sorrow. Now Siegmundfared on through the woods till he came to the seashore,and here he found a little boat with an oldman seated at the oars. The man wore a dark bluecloak, and his hat was drawn down over his face;but Siegmund saw none of this, for his thoughts werewith his dead companion. The old man asked ifthey would be ferried to the other side of the bay,and Siegmund came with his burden to the water’sedge. The little boat could not hold them all, soSiegmund laid the body of Sinfiotli beside the ferryman.But as soon as it was placed within, both theboat and the old man vanished, and Siegmund foundhimself alone. Yet his heart was full of gladness,for he knew that it was Odin himself who had cometo take another Volsung to join the heroes in Valhalla.Then Siegmund returned to his own hall, andso hateful did the queen become in his eyes that hecould bear the sight of her no longer and drove herforth from the palace. Not many months after this,word was brought to him that Borghild was dead.

Now there lived in a neighbouring country a wealthyking who had a daughter named Hiordis—the fairestand wisest among women. When Siegmundheard of the maiden’s beauty, he desired to wed her,though he himself was now well on in years. So hechose the bravest warriors of his court, and withhis horses well-loaded with gifts, he set out for the[Pg172]country where Hiordis lived. At her father’s palacehe was royally welcomed, and his proposals werereceived with favour; but there was another kingsuing for the maiden’s hand, so no promise couldbe given to Siegmund. The father of Hiordis fearedthat, whichever of the suitors was rejected, war andtrouble would arise, and therefore he knew not howto answer them. So he went to his daughter andsaid: “You are a wise woman, and I will let thismatter rest in your hands. Choose a husband foryourself, and I will abide by your choice thoughmy whole kingdom be plunged into warfare.”Then Hiordis answered, “Though King Lyngi isfar younger than Siegmund, yet I will choose Siegmundfor my husband, for his fame as a warrior isgreater and we can rely upon his strength.” SoHiordis was wedded to Siegmund the Volsung, and agreat feast was held which lasted many days. KingLyngi departed to his own country, but Siegmundknew that he would hear of him again. After thewedding festivities were over, the Volsungs returnedhome; but they had been there only a few daysbefore word was sent to Siegmund that King Lyngihad landed on his coast with a host of followers, anddemanded that the Volsungs should meet him inbattle.

Siegmund knew well that a great army had comeagainst him, yet he answered that he would fight[Pg173]until no man was left in his kingdom; and accordinglyhe gathered his army together and met theforces of King Lyngi in an open field. The enemyrushed from their boats in such numbers that itseemed as if there was no end to them; and Siegmundsaw that his followers would be no match forthe great horde of fighting men that swept down fromthe enemy’s ships. Nevertheless the Volsungsfought bravely when the horns blew that called themen to battle, and Siegmund, at the head of his army,cheered his followers on to the fight. He rushedboldly through the ranks of the foe, and no helmetor shield could withstand the stroke of his sword.So fiercely did he fight that none could tell the taleof those who fell before him, and his arms were redwith blood even to the shoulders.

Now when the battle had raged a long while, therecame a strange man suddenly into the midst of thefight. He had a blue cloak upon his shoulders,and a slouched hat was pulled down over his faceso that none might see he had only one eye. Headvanced upon Siegmund with a shield held aloft;and the leader of the Volsungs—now sore spent withbattle—knew not who the stranger might be, sohe smote upon the upraised shield with all hisstrength. Never yet had the magic sword failed himin battle, but now it broke in half, and as its piecesfell to the ground, the stranger in the blue cloak[Pg174]disappeared. Then Siegmund knew who it was thathad come against him, and he lost all heart for thefight. His men fell fast all around him, and althoughhe fought on bravely, as became a Volsung,he saw that the battle was already lost. Soon hehimself received a mortal wound, and when his mensaw their leader drop from the ranks, they had nolonger any hope of victory, and died fighting half-heartedlybeside the fallen Siegmund.

Now Hiordis had left the palace with her handmaidwhen the battle first began, and she lay hiddenin the forest where none of King Lyngi’s people mightfind her. She had brought with her from the palaceas much gold and treasure as she and her bondwomancould carry, that the conquering host mightnot enjoy the whole of Siegmund’s wealth. Whenmost of the Volsungs had fallen in battle, and KingLyngi knew himself victor, he hurried to the palaceto take possession of Siegmund’s riches and alsoSiegmund’s queen. But when he entered the palace,he found everything in confusion. The treasurechests had been emptied, and none of the frightenedservants could tell him what had happened norwhere the queen might be found. So King Lyngicontented himself with what riches he found, and thatnight his followers made merry in the halls of theVolsung, drinking ale and boasting of the day’svictory.

[Pg175]When Hiordis heard the noise of the midnightrevels, she crept out of her hiding-place and soughtfor Siegmund among the countless dead. Thebattle-field was a gruesome place, and she gropedblindly and fearfully among the wounded, hoping thatit might be here and not among the dead that shewould find her lord. At last she came upon Siegmund,and tried to staunch the blood that stillflowed from his wounds; but he put her aside,saying, “I will not suffer myself to be healed, sinceOdin wills that I should never draw sword again.”Then the queen wept softly and answered, “If thoudiest, who will then avenge us?” And Siegmundsaid: “Fear not that the last of the Volsungs hasstood to do mighty deeds, for a son will be born tothee and me who shall be greater than all those whohave been before him. Cherish carefully the pieces ofOdin’s sword which lie here beside me, for of theseshall a goodly sword be made, and our son shall bearit, and with it he shall work many a great work so thathis name shall be honoured as long as the worldendures. Go now, for I grow weary with mywounds and would fain follow my kinsmen. Soon Ishall be with all the Volsungs who have gone beforeme.”

So Hiordis the queen kept silent, but she stayedbeside Siegmund until the dawning; and when sheknew he was dead, she took up the pieces of the[Pg176]broken sword and carried them back with her intothe forest. Then she said to her handmaid: “Letus now change raiment, and do thou henceforth becalled by my name and say that thou art the king’sdaughter. Look over there to the sea, where someships are now sailing toward our shores. Neitherto King Lyngi nor to the strangers that are approachingwould I be known as Siegmund’s queen.”Then the women changed raiment, and stoodwatching the ships as they neared the land.

The newcomers were not of King Lyngi’s following,but were Vikings who had put into that coaston account of the high seas; and when they made alanding they came up over the shore and lookedwith wonder at the battle-field and the great numberof the dead. The leader of the Vikings was Alf,the son of Hjalprek, king of Denmark, and as hegazed across the battle-field he saw the two womenwatching him, so he sent his men to bring them tohim. When Hiordis and her handmaid stood beforeAlf, he asked them why they were standing thusalone, and why so many men lay dead upon the field.Then Hiordis, remembering the lowly position shehad assumed, kept silent, but the handmaid spoketo him as befitted a king’s daughter, and told him ofthe fall of Siegmund and the death of the Volsungsat the hand of King Lyngi and his hosts.

When Alf learned that the woman to whom he was[Pg177]speaking was of the royal household, he asked if sheknew where the Volsungs’ treasure was hid; and thebondmaid answered that she had the greater part ofit with her in the forest. So she led him to the spotwhere the gold and silver lay; and such a wonderof wealth was there that the men thought they hadnever seen so many priceless things heaped togetherin one place. All this treasure the Vikings carriedto their ships; and when they set sail it was with thewealth of Siegmund on board as well as QueenHiordis and her handmaid. They spent many dayson the sea before they reached Denmark, andduring that time Alf spoke frequently with Hiordisand her maiden, but often he sat by the bondwoman’sside, believing her to be the king’s daughter.

When the Vikings at last reached their owncountry, they were met by the queen mother, wholistened gladly to the tale of their wanderings andwelcomed the strangers to the palace. Before theyhad been home many days, she came to King Alfand asked him why the fairer of the two women hadfewer rings and meaner attire than her companion.“For,” she said, “I deem the one whom you haveheld of least account to be the nobler born.” AndAlf answered: “I, too, have doubted that she is reallya bondmaid; for though she spoke but little when Ifirst greeted her, she bore herself proudly like a king’sdaughter. But now let us make a trial of the two.”[Pg178]So when the men were feasting that night, Alf lefthis companions and came and sat down by thewomen. Turning to the handmaiden, he said,“How do you know what is the hour for rising inwinter when there are no lights in the heavens?”And the bondwoman answered, “In my youth Iwas wont to get up at dawn to begin my tasks, andnow I waken as soon as the day breaks.”

“Ill manners for a king’s daughter,” laughedAlf, and, turning to Hiordis, he asked her the samequestion.

The queen then unhesitatingly replied: “Myfather once gave me a little gold ring, and thisalways grows cold on my finger as the day dawns.Thus I know it is soon time to rise.”

At these words King Alf sprang up, crying:“Gold rings are not given to bondmaids. Thouart the king’s daughter.”

Then Hiordis the queen, seeing that she coulddeceive Alf no longer, told him the truth concerningher history, and when he knew she was the wife ofSiegmund he decreed that she should be held in greathonour. Not long after this the son of Hiordis andSiegmund was born, and great rejoicing was madethroughout the kingdom, for when the child wasbut a few days old, King Alf wedded Hiordis, whom hehad found the worthiest of women. The boy wasmuch beloved by his stepfather, and no one who[Pg179]looked upon him desired any other to succeedKing Alf upon the throne, for the child was beautifulto see, brave and bold-looking, even as an infant.His eyes had already the keenness of a falcon, andso straight and strong he grew that the heart of KingAlf was filled with joy.

When Regin reached this part of his story, heturned to Siegfried and laid his hand on the youth’sshoulder, saying: “The gods have placed youamong a kindly people, and given you a foster-fatherthat has ever sought to train you in wisdomand in strength. But you are not of this people,and your place is not among them. Great deeds arein store for you, and you are to be worthy of yourrace. All that I could teach you, you have learned.Go forth, therefore, and by your own hand win famethat shall add to the glory of the Volsungs. Tomorrowyou shall fashion a sword for your use, andit shall be mightier than any that has come fromour hands. But let us drop the tale now and sleep,for it is almost daylight, and only a spark glimmersin the forge.”

The next day Siegfried made ready the fire, butbefore he laid the steel in it he asked Regin what hadbecome of the pieces of Odin’s famous sword. “Noone knows where they are hidden,”[43] answered the[Pg180]master, “for on the death of your mother Hiordis,the secret was lost, and no man can tell wherethe place of their hiding may be.” So Regin selectedthe very finest steel for Siegfried’s sword, and theyouth set to work eagerly, for Regin’s story hadfilled him with a burning desire to go out into distantlands and do great deeds worthy of his name andrace. For seven days and nights he never left hisforge, but stood tempering and testing his steel, andthrowing aside every piece that did not seem perfect.At last a blade was finished that promised to beworthy of a Volsung. Regin praised it highly andsaid he had never felt a finer edge. But Siegfriedonly said, “Let us prove it.” So he took the swordand smote with all his strength upon the anvil. Theblade shivered into a dozen pieces.

Nothing disheartened, Siegfried set to work again,and spent many days and nights at his forge, oftenforgetting to eat or sleep in his eagerness to finishhis task. When at last the steel had been finelytempered and seemed of perfect workmanship, hecalled to Regin and bade him try its strength.“Nay, let us not dull the edge,” replied the master;“there is no need to put it to the test, for I can seethat it is true and strong.” But Siegfried took thesword and smote again upon the anvil; this timethe blade was blunted, though it did not break inpieces. Then Regin besought him to try no longer,[Pg181]but the youth, grim and determined, returned to theforge and made ready his tools for another effort.

That night he paused many times in his work, andoften felt so discouraged that he was tempted to giveup the task; but each time he became ashamed ofhis weakness, and bravely set to work again. Oncewhen he sat down by the fire to rest, he was consciousof some one’s being in the room, but thinking itwas Regin who had come to inspect his work, he didnot look up to see. At length, however, the silencegrew uncomfortable, and Siegfried turned around.Close beside him was standing a tall man wrappedin a dark blue mantle. His beard and hair werevery long and very white, and by the dim light of thefire Siegfried noticed that he had only one eye.His face was kindly, and his whole presence had anair both gentle and reassuring, yet something abouthim filled the youth with a strange awe. He waitedfor the stranger to speak, but no word came, andSiegfried began to tremble with nervous fear. Atthis the old man smiled, and handed him the pieces ofa broken sword. Siegfried took them in wonder,but before he could frame a question he found himselfsuddenly alone; the stranger had disappeared.

The next morning Siegfried hastened to Regin andtold him of his strange visitor. Regin thought atfirst that the lad had been dreaming, but when hesaw the pieces of broken sword, he cried out joyfully:

[Pg182]“Fortune now be with you, Siegfried; for it wasno other than Odin who visited you, and these piecesare of the famous sword which in former days theruler of the gods gave to your father. There is nofear for your future now, since Odin has chosen towatch over your welfare; and by his decree you willstand or fall.”

Grasping the pieces of Odin’s sword firmly in hishand, Siegfried welded them together into a mightyweapon, the strongest that had ever come from thehand of man. And he called the sword Balmung.[44]Then he bade Regin test the mettle of the new blade,and when the master looked upon it, it seemed asthough a fire burned along the edges of the sword.Now Siegfried grasped the weapon in his two handsand smote with all his strength upon the anvil, butno pieces of steel fell shattered at his feet, for thesword had cut the anvil in two as easily as if it hadbeen a feather. So Siegfried was satisfied.

Siegfried and the Famous Sword Balmung

[Pg183]

The Slaying of Fafnir[45]

ONE day Regin said to Siegfried, “You haveforged for yourself the famous sword Balmungas your father Siegmund foretold.Now it remains for you to fulfil the rest of theprophecy and win fame that will add glory to thename of the Volsungs. Of my celebrated wisdomyou have already learned all there is of worth, andthere are no ties to hold you to this people; butbefore you leave the land which has nourished you,there is one more task which I would fain lay uponyou—the slaying of the dragon which guards awonderful treasure.”

“How can I start out upon adventures with nothingbut a sword, even though that sword be Odin’sgift?” asked Siegfried. “I have no horse, and Ishould make a sorry appearance if I went on foot.”

“Go out into yonder meadow,” said Regin, “andthere you will find the best steeds that King Alf hasgathered either by purchase or as the spoil of battle.Choose yourself one from among them; they areall of noble race.”

[Pg184]Siegfried went over to the meadow where the statelyhorses were grazing, and saw that each one of themwas truly fine enough to be the charger of a king’sson. Indeed, they all seemed to him so desirablethat there was none which he would prefer aboveanother. While he was hesitating, he heard a voiceat his side ask, “Would you choose a steed, SirSiegfried?”

Siegfried turned quickly around, for he had notheard any one approaching, and his heart beat fastwhen he saw beside him a tall form wrapped in a bluemantle. He dared not look closer, and he tremblednow with both fear and joy, for the form and voicewere strangely familiar. Then falteringly heanswered:—

“I would indeed choose, but all the horses seemto me to be of equal beauty and strength.”

The stranger shook his head and said: “There isone horse here which far surpasses all the rest, forhe came from Odin’s pastures on the sunny slopesof Asgard. He it is you must choose.”

“Gladly would I do so,” replied Siegfried, “butI am too ignorant to know which he is.”

“Drive all the horses into the river,” said theold man, “and I think you will then find the choiceeasy.”

So Siegfried drove them out of the meadow, anddown a steep bank into the stream below. They[Pg185]all plunged in boldly, but soon began to strugglefrantically against the current which was bearingthem rapidly down the river upon a bank of rocksbelow. Some of the horses turned back when theyfelt the force of the water; some fought helplesslyagainst it and were carried down toward the rocks;but one swam to the other side and sprang up on thegreen bank. Here he stopped a moment to graze,then he plunged again into the stream, and, breastingthe current with apparent ease, he swam to the shoreand stood at Siegfried’s side.

The youth stroked the stately head and lookedinto the large, beautiful eyes. Then turning tothe stranger he said, “This is he.”

“Yes,” replied the old man, “this is he, and abetter steed did man never have. His name isGreyfel,[46] and he is yours as a gift from Odin.”

So saying, the strange visitor disappeared, andSiegfried returned to his forge full of joy and pride,for he knew that no other than the Father of theGods himself had come to direct his choice.

When Regin heard of this second visit of Odin’she said to Siegfried: “You are truly blest andfavoured of the gods, and it may be that you are theone chosen to perform the task of which I havealready spoken to you. I have cherished the hopefor many years that in you I might find one brave[Pg186]enough to face the dragon, and restore the treasure toits rightful owner.” Then he told Siegfried ofAndvari’s hoard, and of how it came to be guarded bythe dragon Fafnir. “This monster,” he continued,“does not rest satisfied with the possession of histreasure, but must needs live upon the flesh of men;and he has thus become the terror of all the countryround. Many brave men have sought to slay himfor the sake of the gold, but they have only miserablyperished; for the dragon breathes out fire which willconsume ten men at a breath; and he spits forthpoison so deadly that one drop of it can kill. He is,as I have told you, my brother, but nevertheless Ibid you slay him.”

“I will go,” cried Siegfried, eagerly; “for thoughthe monster be all that you have said, with Greyfeland my sword Balmung I fear neither man norbeast.”

The following day Siegfried bade farewell toKing Alf and started on his journey, taking Reginwith him, since the latter knew the road so well andcould guide him to the dragon’s cave. Theytravelled for many days and nights, and at last cameto a narrow river whose current was so fierce thatno boat, Regin said, was ever known to brave itswaters. But neither Siegfried nor Greyfel felt atouch of fear, and the noble horse carried both riderssafely to the opposite bank. Here they found[Pg187]themselves at the foot of a tall mountain, which seemedto rise straight up like a wall from the river’s edge.It was apparently of solid rock, for no tree or shrubor blade of grass grew upon its steep side. Therewere no sounds of birds in the air, no sign of any livingthing inhabiting this dreary place; nothing to seebut the rushing river over which the mountain castits gloomy shadow. It was enough to disheartenthe stoutest hero, but Siegfried refused to turn back,though Regin, now trembling and fearful, besoughthim to give up the adventure.

They went on some distance farther along theriver bank, to a place where the mountain appearedless rocky and forbidding. There were patches ofearth to be seen here and there, and occasionallya straggling tree sought to strike its roots into theunfriendly soil. Pointing up through the trees,Regin said:—

“Look close and you will see what seems to bea path worn in the earth. It reaches from themountain top down to the water’s edge, and it isthe trail of the dragon. Over this he will cometo-morrow at sunrise, but think not to encounterhim face to face, for you could not do it and live.You must depend upon stratagem if you would hopeto slay him. Dig, therefore, a series of pits and coverthem with boughs, so that the dragon, as he rushesdown the mountain side, may fall into one of them[Pg188]and not get out until you have slain him. As forme, I will go some distance below, where the viewof Fafnir’s cave is plainer, and I can warn you ofhis approach.” So saying, he went away, andSiegfried remained alone, wondering at Regin’scowardice, but content to face the danger withonly the help of Balmung.

It was now night, and the place became full ofunknown terrors. Even the stars and the moonwere hidden by thick clouds, and Siegfried couldhardly see to dig his pits. Every time he struckthe earth, the blow brought a deep echo from themountain, and now and then he heard the dismalhoot of an owl. There was no other sound savethe noise of the swiftly running river, and his ownheavy breathing as he worked away at his task.

Suddenly he was aware that some one was standingbeside him, and when he turned to look, hisheart beat fast with joy, for even in the darknesshe fancied he saw the blueness of the stranger’scoat, and his long, white beard beneath the hood.

“What are you doing in this dismal country,Sir Siegfried?” asked the old man.

“I have come to slay Fafnir,” replied the youth.

“Have you no fear, then?” continued thestranger, “or no love for your life that you riskit thus boldly? Many a brave man has met deathere this in the perilous encounter you would try.[Pg189]You are young yet, and life is full of pleasures.Give up this adventure, then, and return to yourfather’s hall.”

“No, I cannot,” answered Siegfried. “I amyoung, it is true, but I have no fear of the dragon,since Odin’s sword is in my hands.”

“It is well said,” replied the old man; “but ifyou are to accomplish the slaying of Fafnir, do notdig any pits here on the river’s bank, for it will beof no avail. But go up on the mountain side untilyou have found a narrow path worn deep into theearth. It is Fafnir’s trail, and over it he is sure tocome. Dig there a deep pit, and hide in it yourself,first covering the top with a few boughs. Asthe dragon’s huge body passes over this, you canstrike him from beneath with your sword.”

As the stranger finished speaking, Siegfried turnedto thank him, but he saw no one there; only Greyfelwas standing at his side. But his courage now rosehigh, for he knew that it was Odin who had talkedwith him. He hurried up the mountain side andsoon found the dragon’s trail. Here he dug a deeppit and crept into it himself, covering the top asOdin had directed. For hours he lay still and waited,and it seemed to him that the night would never end.At last a faint streak of light appeared in the east,and it soon grew bright enough for Siegfried to seeplainly about him. He raised one corner of his[Pg190]roof of boughs and peeped cautiously out. Justthen there came a terrible roar which seemed toshake the whole mountain. This was followed ina moment by a loud rushing sound like some mightywind, and the air was full of heat and smoke as froma furnace. Siegfried dropped quickly back into hishiding-place, for he knew that the dragon had lefthis cave.

Louder and louder grew the fearful sound, as themonster rushed swiftly down the mountain side,leaving smoke and fire in his trail. His claws struckdeep into the ground, and in his rapid descent hesometimes tore up the roots of trees. His huge wingsflapping at his side made a frightful noise, while theblack scaly tail left behind it a track of deadly slime.On he went until, all unknowing, he glided over theloosely strewn boughs which covered the pit, andSiegfried struck with his good sword Balmung.It seemed to him that he had struck blindly. Yetin a moment he knew that the blow was sure andhad pierced the monster’s heart, for he heard it giveone roar of mortal pain. Then, as he drew out hissword, the huge body quivered an instant and rolledwith a crash down the mountain side. But indrawing out his sword from the dragon’s heart, agreat gush of blood followed which bathed Siegfriedfrom head to foot in its crimson stream. He didnot heed this, however, but sprang out of the pit and[Pg191]hurried down to where the dragon, so lately a thingof dread and horror, now lay apparently lifeless atthe foot of the mountain.

Siegfried fighting the Dragon

When Fafnir was aware that he had received hisdeath-wound, he began to lash out fiercely with hishead and tail, in hopes that he would thereby killthe thing which had destroyed him. But Siegfriedstayed at a safe distance; and when he saw thedragon cease its frantic struggles and lie quiet on theground, he came nearer and gazed at it in wonder andhalf in fear—for Fafnir, though dying, was stilla terrible creature to look upon.

The dragon slowly raised its head as Siegfriedapproached, and said, “Who art thou, and who isthy father and thy kin that thou wert so bold as tocome against me?” At first Siegfried was loathto tell his name[47]; but soon he felt ashamed of hisfears and answered boldly: “Siegfried I am called,and my father was Siegmund the Volsung.” Thensaid Fafnir, “Who urged thee to this deed?” andSiegfried answered, “A bold heart urged me; andmy strong hand and good sword aided me to do thedeed.”

Now Fafnir knew well who it was that had setthe youth upon this adventure, and he said: “Ofwhat use is it to lie? Regin, my brother, hath sent[Pg192]thee to work my death, for he is eager to gain thetreasure which I guarded these many years. Go,therefore, and seek it out, but first I will give theethis counsel; turn away thy steps from this ill-fatedgold, for a curse rests upon it, and it shall be the baneof every one that possesses it.” As he spoke thesewords, Fafnir gave a fearful shudder that seemed tomake the trees around him tremble; and in a momentSiegfried saw that the great dragon was dead.

Then Regin crept out of his hiding-place, and drewnear to the dead creature, peering closely into thedull, glazed eyes to see if it were really a thing nolonger to be feared. A look of hatred came into hisface, but it disappeared quickly when he turnedto the youth at his side and said:—

“Bravely done, Siegfried! You have this daywrought a great deed which shall be told and sungas long as the world stands fast.” Then he addedeagerly, “Have you found the hoard?”

“I did not look for it,” answered Siegfried;“for after what you have told me of the cursewhich rests upon it, I had no desire to touch it.”

Regin seemed now to be trembling with excitement,and he exclaimed hurriedly: “We mustseek it at once, yes, at once, before any one cancome to claim it and we thereby lose a wonderfultreasure. But let me go alone to find it, for youwould surely lose your way.” Then as he saw[Pg193]Siegfried wiping his blood-stained sword on the earth, hegrasped the youth’s arm fiercely and said: “Do notput the blade into its sheath until you have done onething further. While I am searching for the cave, doyou cut out Fafnir’s heart and roast it, that I mayeat it upon my return.”

While he was speaking, Regin’s face had lost itsusual gentle and kindly look, and had become craftyand sly and full of cruel cunning. He looked nowand then suspiciously at Siegfried, but the youthturned his head away, for he could not bear to lookon at such a dreadful transformation. MeanwhileRegin was muttering to himself: “The gold! thegold! and precious gems in great glittering heaps!All of Andvari’s hoard is mine now,—all mine.”And he hurried away, leaving Siegfried surprisedand sorrowing to find how soon the curse of that ill-fatedgold had fallen on its would-be possessor.

When Regin had gone, Siegfried set to work toroast Fafnir’s heart, and when the dreadful mealwas cooked, he laid it upon the grass, but in sodoing, some of the blood dropped upon his hand.Wondering what taste there could be in the dragon’sheart to make Regin desire to eat it, Siegfried putthe finger, on which the blood had dropped, to hislips. All at once he heard a hum of voices in the air.It was only a flock of crows flying overhead andchattering to themselves, but it sounded like human[Pg194]voices, and Siegfried could plainly tell what the crowswere saying. A moment later two ravens cameflying by, and he heard one of them say, “Theresits Siegfried roasting Fafnir’s heart that he may giveit to Regin, who will taste the blood, and so be ableto understand the language of birds.”

“Yes,” replied the other raven, “and he iswaiting for Regin to return, not knowing that whenRegin has taken possession of the hoard, he willcome back and slay Siegfried.”

The youth listened to these words in sorrow andsurprise, for in spite of the look which he had seenon Regin’s face, he could not believe his masterguilty of such murderous thoughts.

Soon Regin returned, but what a change hadcome over him. Siegfried saw that the raven’swords were indeed true, and that the curse of Andvarihad fallen upon the new possessor of the hoard.If Regin’s face had been mean and crafty before,it was now ten times more dreadful, and his mouthwore an evil smile which made Siegfried shudder.It seemed, too, as if his body had shrunk, and itsmotion was not unlike the gliding of a serpent.He was talking to himself as he came along, andappeared to be counting busily on his fingers. WhenSiegfried spoke, he looked up and eyed him furtively,then his face became suddenly black withrage, and he sprang at the youth, crying: “Fool and[Pg195]murderer, you shall have none of the gold. It ismine, all mine.”

With the strength of a madman he dashed Siegfriedupon the ground, and seizing a large stick struckhim with all his force. But Siegfried sprang upquickly and, drawing Balmung, prepared to defendhimself against Regin’s attack. Enraged now tothe point of frenzy, Regin struck again and again,and suddenly, in his blind fury, rushed upon Siegfried’ssword. Siegfried uttered a cry of horror andclosed his eyes, for he could not look upon the painfulsight. When he opened them again, Regin waslying dead at his feet. Then he drew out his sword,and, sitting down beside his slain friend, wept bitterly.At length he arose, and mounting Greyfel rodesorrowfully away.

The good horse bore him straight to Glistenheath—tothe cave where Fafnir had hidden the ill-fatedhoard. Here he found gold and gems in such heapsthat his eyes were dazzled, and he turned awayfearing to burden himself with the treasure and thecurse which rested upon it. But from the pile hetook Andvari’s ring, which he placed upon hisfinger, and a gold helmet. He also chose from thetreasures of the hoard a magic cape and a shield.Then he remounted Greyfel, after placing upon himas many sacks of gold as the horse could well carry.

[Pg196]

The Valkyrie[48]

FOR many days Siegfried travelled on, saddenedand discouraged, and having no heart forfurther adventures, since his first one hadended so sadly. He felt that he cared but little whatbecame of him, and, letting the reins lie loose on Greyfel’sneck, he allowed the horse to carry him whereverit would. At night he rested under the shade of theforest trees, and by day he wandered aimlessly overthe country, too disheartened even to wish to returnto King Alf’s court again. But although he didnot care to guide Greyfel, the horse was being ledby a hand far wiser than his own, for Odin had othertasks in store for Siegfried, and it was he who nowdirected the young hero’s path.

One day at nightfall they came to the foot of amountain[49] and Greyfel stopped, as if waiting forhis master to dismount. Siegfried, not wishing torest here, urged his horse forward; but, for the firsttime, Greyfel refused to obey. His master, wondering[Pg197]at this stubbornness, but too tired and indifferentto force him further, dismounted and preparedto remain where he was for the night. Somethingabout the place, its loneliness and silence, recalledthe other mountain side where his first deed ofglory and his first great sorrow had come to him.He could not sleep, so he wandered about among thetrees, now and then stopping to listen as some soundbroke the stillness of the night.

Once when he was looking toward the mountaintop, he fancied he caught the glimmer of a lightsomewhere among the trees; and as he watched itlonger, he saw what appeared to be tongues of flameleaping up and then disappearing. Alert now, andeager to get nearer this strange sight, he mountedGreyfel and directed him toward the fire. Thehorse obeyed readily, seeming to know the way;and when Siegfried drew nearer, he found that thiswas no common fire, but a circle of flames enclosinga large rock. There was no path up the mountain,and Siegfried felt uncertain whether to proceed.The horse, however, did not hesitate, but began theascent boldly, picking his way among the trees andover the fallen trunks; sometimes stumbling andsometimes bruising his legs, but never once falteringor showing a desire to turn back.

Suddenly Siegfried felt upon his face a scorchingwind followed by thick smoke that blinded his eyes.[Pg198]A quick turn of Greyfel’s had brought them almostupon a wall of leaping flames, which rose so high thatSiegfried could see nothing beyond them. Theintense heat burned his face, and he dared not openhis eyes to look about him. Greyfel snorted andpawed the ground, then suddenly made a movementforward as if to plunge into the flames. For aninstant Siegfried thought of the prophecy made byhis father Siegmund that he should be the greatestof the Volsungs, and he hesitated to risk his lifethus lightly. Then he felt ashamed of the momentarycowardice, and with but one quick throb offear at the peril he was rushing into, he bent forwardand spurred Greyfel into the fire.

It was all over in an instant. He felt the scorchingflames lick his face, and then he heard the horse’sfeet strike upon solid rock. When he opened hiseyes to look about him, he realized that he had riddenthrough the fire all unharmed, and he was full ofwonder at his safety. Greyfel, too, was unhurt; nota single hair upon his mane was singed; and Siegfriedoffered a silent prayer to Odin, who had guided themthrough such peril.

He dismounted and looked about, and found thathe was standing upon the rock which he had seen frombelow, and which he now discovered to be completelyencircled by the wall of fire. But strangereven than this was the sight of a man lying full[Pg199]length upon the rock, and seemingly unconsciousof the fire which was raging all around him.[50] Hisshield was on the ground beside him, but his helmetcovered his face so that Siegfried could not tellwhether he was dead or sleeping. His figure wasyouthful and his dress of richest texture, while thearmor which he bore seemed too fine to bear thebrunt of warfare.

For a long time Siegfried stood beside the unconsciousfigure, wondering whether he had best awakethe sleeper, or go away and leave him undisturbed.At last his curiosity became too strong, and, liftingthe youth gently, he raised the helmet and gazedwith wonder and delight at the beautiful facebeneath. Then, as the sleeper did not awake, Siegfriedtook off his helmet, hoping thus to rouse him;but what was his surprise to see a shower of longgolden hair fall down over the shoulders of theseeming youth. He started back so suddenly thatthe maiden awoke, and looking up at Siegfried saidsoftly, “So you have come at last.”

The young hero was too astonished to make anyreply, but remained kneeling beside her, waiting forher to speak again. He wondered whether she wasreally human, or only some spirit of the night.Seeing his surprise, the maiden smiled, and, seating[Pg200]herself upon the rock, she pointed to a place besideher and said:—

“Sit down, Sir Siegfried, and I will tell you mystory, and how I came to be sleeping in this strangeplace.”

Still wondering, especially at hearing himself thusaddressed, Siegfried obeyed, and the maiden began:—

Valkyrie bearing Hero to Valhalla

“My name is Brunhilde, and I am one of Odin’sValkyries, or choosers of the slain. There are eightof us who do this service, and we ride to battle onswift-winged horses, wearing such armor as warriorscarry, except that it is invulnerable.[51] We go intothe midst of the fight even when it is fiercest, andwhen any of the heroes whom Odin has chosen areslain, we raise him from the battle-field, lay himbefore us on the horse, and ride with him to Asgard,to the place called Valhalla. This is a beautifulhall made of gold and marble, and it has five andforty doors wide enough for eight hundred warriorsto march in abreast. Inside, its roof is made ofgolden shields, and its walls are hung with spearsof polished steel that give a wonderful bright lightto all the hall. Every day the warriors drink of themead which is prepared for the gods themselves,and they feast on the meat of a wonderful boar[52][Pg201]which is daily slain and boiled in the great caldron,and which always comes to life again just before theheroes are ready to eat.

“Sometimes Odin sits at the board and shares thefeast with them, and when the Valkyries are notdoing service on the battle-field, they lay aside theirarmor and clothe themselves in pure white robes,to wait upon the heroes. When the feast is over,the warriors call for their weapons, and spear in handthey go out into the great courtyard, where theyfight desperate battles and deal terrible wounds,performing deeds of valour such as they achievedwhile on the earth. Since in Asgard there is nodying, every combatant who receives some terriblewound is healed at once by magic power. Thusthe heroes share the blessings and privileges of thegods, and live forever, having won great fame andglory.

“Now there was a certain battle being waged in acountry far from here, in which the combatants werean old warrior named Helm Gunnar, and a youth calledAgnar. Odin had commanded me to bear HelmGunnar to Valhalla, and leave the other to the mercyof the conquerors. The youth of Agnar moved me,however, to pity; so I left the old warrior upon thebattle-field, though he was already sore wounded.Then I lifted Agnar from the ground, and, layinghim upon my horse, I carried him to Asgard.

[Pg202]“In punishment for my disobedience and daring,the All-father took from me forever my privilege ofbeing a Valkyrie, or shield-maiden. He also condemnedme to the life of a mortal, and then hebrought me to this rock, where he stung me with thesleep-thorn, and made this my sleeping place. Butfirst he surrounded the rock with a wall of fire, andhe decreed that I should sleep here until a hero whoknew no fear should ride through the flames andwaken me. I am well versed in the lore of runes, andI read there long ago that he who knows no fear isSiegfried, the slayer of Fafnir. Therefore thou artSiegfried and my deliverer.”

For a long time Brunhilde talked with him, and toldhim many wonderful things, of the noble deeds ofheroes and of bloody battles fought in far-off lands.Then, knowing that he was but a youth in spite ofhis brave acts, she imparted to him something ofthe wisdom she had gained as “one of the greatestamong great women”—for thus it was that menspoke of her. She warned Siegfried of the dangershe would encounter on his journey, and bade himbeware of the wiles of those who would call themselveshis friends. She charged him to abide alwaysby his oath, “for great and grim is the reward forthe breaking of plighted troth.”

“Bear and forbear, and so win for thyself long,enduring praise of men.

Wotan’s Farewell to Brunhilde

[Pg203]“Give kind heed to dead men—sick-dead, sea-dead,or sword-dead.”

Thus spoke Brunhilde, and Siegfried listened,and ever, as she stopped speaking, he begged to hearstill more. Then she read for him many thingswritten in the runes, and Siegfried listened, marvellingat her wisdom.

The circle of fire had now burnt itself out, butdaylight had come, and Siegfried could plainly seethe perilous ascent he had made up the mountain.Brunhilde took his hand and bade him farewell,but, before she left him, Siegfried put upon herfinger the ring which he had taken from Andvari’shoard. Then he watched her depart toward hercastle in Isenland, feeling very lonely, and wishinghe might follow her. But Greyfel’s head was turneda different way, and Siegfried knew that Odin hadother things for him to do, so he allowed the horseto carry him away from Brunhilde’s country, thoughhe would fain have gone thither. And Siegfriedlonged for the maiden, and sorrowed at parting fromher; but Brunhilde, though she loved him well,bade him go his way, since thus it was written in therunes that not she, but another, should be the wifeof Siegfried.

[Pg204]

Siegfried at Gunther’s Court

FOR several days Siegfried rode across the countrywithout meeting any one who could tellhim in what land he was, or whither the roadswould lead him. At times he longed to return to thepalace of King Alf, and again he hoped that Odinwas conducting him to new adventures which wouldprove that his father Siegmund had not prophesiedgreat things of him in vain. He was growing veryweary of the continued stretch of forest and mountainthat never seemed to end, and he began to wonderwhether his dream of greatness was not, after all,a thing of shadows—a mere will-o’-the-wisp, whichit would be foolish for him to follow. Yet Odin’ssword was in his hand, and the strange blue-cloakedold man had already come to help him when he wasmost in need of guidance. So, not knowing, himself,in which direction to go, he let the reins lie looselyon Greyfel’s neck, and trusted to Odin to lead them.

Soon the forest ended and they came out into theopen country where Siegfried hoped he might meetwith some one who could tell him whither he wasfaring. The landscape now changed to meadows andploughed fields, with here and there a castle perched[Pg205]high on the protecting hills. Siegfried kept as muchas he could on the well-travelled roads, since there hewould be most likely to meet with some other riderwho could direct his way; but all those whom he sawseemed to be wanderers, like himself, and they couldtell him little of the country or the people. Inreturn, they would ask him whither he was going,and what was the object of his journey, but to allquestions he offered no reply save that he was travellingin search of adventures. But at heart he hadno desire for adventures, unless they led him amongpeople and into the life of the world. He had grownweary of his solitude and his aimless wandering, andlonged for the companionship of men.

One day, late in the evening, he found himself onthe edge of a thick forest. He did not wish to enterthis, for it looked dark and impenetrable, and alreadyGreyfel was picking his way among brambles andover uncertain ground; so he turned the horse’shead and prepared to go back to the road he hadlately left. But Greyfel knew better than his masterwhere to go, and persisted in moving forward intowhat seemed to be the very heart of the forest. Ina moment, however, Siegfried found that they werenot stumbling helplessly about, for he heard the sharp,clear sound of the horse’s hoofs upon a hard road,while the glimmer of many lights in the distance toldhim he was not in a forest wilderness, but near some[Pg206]great city. Soon he met a man on horseback, andinquired of him what country this was, and whitherthe road would lead him.

“This is Burgundy, sir,” answered the stranger,“and yonder is the city where King Gunther[53A] himselfdwells. There you are sure of finding shelter andentertainment for the night.” Siegfried thankedhim, and spurred Greyfel toward the city.

In the palace of King Gunther, a great feast wasbeing held. There was wine in costly beakers, andmeat served upon plates of gold. At the place ofeach guest was a silver goblet, and these were oftenlifted high as the company drank to the health ofGunther and all his noble race. While the menfeasted and drank, the women of the household stoodat the palace windows looking down the road to seeif some strolling minstrel might not be passing bywho could be summoned in to help them beguilethe weary hours that would follow the days offeasting.

The king’s mother, Queen Ute,[53B] was busy with herloom, for she cared no longer for the gayety of thepalace nor for any entertainment that some wanderingharper might provide. She was a wise woman,learned in magic arts and the reading of dreams.

One day when her daughter, Kriemhild,[53C] the[Pg207]beautiful sister of King Gunther, came to her withtroubled face, she asked the maiden why she seemedso sad, and Kriemhild answered: “I dreamed lastnight that a hawk with feathers of gold lighted onmy wrist; and naught was so dear to me as this hawk.And I dreamed that I told both you and the king, mybrother, that I would cast aside all my rich raimentand gems rather than lose the hawk that wasfeathered with gold.”

Then said Queen Ute, the witch-wife: “Troublenot yourself over strange dreams. A hero is comingto woo you, and he shall stay at your side even asthe hawk upon your wrist.”

Now on this day when King Gunther was feasting,[54]and the women idly watched the long white line ofroad where often a gallant horse and rider came gallopingtoward the castle gates, the fair Kriemhildsuddenly exclaimed that some one was riding slowlyalong the road. Her mother rose from the loom,and standing by the open window she watched theapproaching figure with great interest. Then QueenUte said:—

“That is no wandering harper, child, for see hownobly he sits his horse. It is some knight withtidings from a far country, or some king come hither[Pg208]to claim your brother’s hospitality. But summonHagen and question him concerning the stranger.”So Kriemhild went out into the hall where Guntherand his vassals sat at the great table drinking andsinging war-songs. Stepping softly to her uncle’sside, she whispered that a stranger was approachingthe castle, and begged him to look out and see if heknew who the rider might be.

Hagen[55] was the oldest and most formidable warriorin all the land of Burgundy. He was tall andpowerfully built, and gave the impression of greatstrength, in spite of his gray hairs. His face was darkand deeply furrowed, and the frown which he alwayswore made him look grim and stern, as indeed he was.He had never been known to care for any one or toshow the least regard for even his own sister Ute andher household. Only toward Gunther, his liege lord,did Hagen have perfect loyalty and a kind of doglikefidelity, which kept him ever at the king’s sidein the midst of the fiercest battles, and constant athis service at the court when Gunther needed hisadvice or support. He was famous, too, for his skillin statecraft, and in all matters of government wasconsidered wiser than any of the king’s other counsellors.He also added to this a wonderful knowledgeof men and things, and could recount the deeds of[Pg209]famous heroes, all of whom he knew by name andlineage.

When Hagen came to the window at Kriemhild’srequest, he looked out for some moments in silence,then he said: “The youth whom you see approachingis Siegfried, the slayer of Fafnir, and owner of afamous hoard.[56] It would be well for the king if hemade this man his guest.”

The queen hastened to send word to the portersto open the castle gates and invite the stranger toenter. Then she told the king that a noble princehad come to be his guest.

So Gunther and Hagen, followed by a retinue ofknights, went to the great door of the palace andwelcomed Siegfried to Burgundy. The young herowas surprised and pleased at such a cordial reception,and when the king urged him to remain with themsome days, he gladly consented, for the castle withits gracious household seemed a pleasant resting-placeafter his days of wandering.

Many feasts were now given, and games were heldin Siegfried’s honour, to which all the princes of Burgundywere invited. The king would not allow himto speak of leaving them, and Siegfried was readilypersuaded to stay yet longer, for the days passedquickly and happily at Gunther’s court. The king[Pg210]became his friend and constant companion, and thebeautiful Kriemhild often talked with him. OnlyHagen kept aloof, grim, silent and distrustful.

Just before Siegfried’s arrival, Gunther had becomeinvolved in a war with one of the neighbouringprinces, and as the number of his forces was muchinferior to that of the enemy, he feared defeat andthe possible loss of his crown. Since the very beginning,fortune had been against him, and he grewdaily more fearful lest it should end in the overthrowof his kingdom. Not wishing to risk another disastrousbattle, Hagen went to the king one day andsaid: “Let us not allow Siegfried to sit idly here inthe palace while we go to the battle-field. Bid himhelp us before it is too late.”

“Nay, he is our guest,” replied the king.

“What of that,” cried Hagen, impatiently; “hehas been here many days, and, as he holds himselfyour friend, your cause should be his also. We needhelp, and he alone is powerful enough to turn thetide of battle in our favour. He has a magic cloakcalled the Tarnkappe, which is of little use to himas he sits here in the palace. He also has the mightyBalmung, which was forged from the pieces of Odin’sfamous sword, and which should not be allowed tohang idle at his side. With Siegfried as an ally, noenemy can stand against us. Entreat him, therefore,before another day has passed.”

Siegfried’s Triumphant Entry into Burgundy with Captives and Spoils

[Pg211]So Gunther sought out Siegfried, and, after tellinghim of the plight of the Burgundians, begged him toaid them.

“Right willingly will I join you, my friend,” saidSiegfried. “There is nothing I would gladlier dothan help your cause. I would have been at yourside long since had not your gentle sister besoughtme not to trouble myself over the affairs of yourkingdom, and assured me that your forces were morethan a match for the enemy.”

The next day Siegfried fought beside the king, andthen victory followed victory for the disabled ranksof the Burgundians. The soldiers rallied under hisleadership, and went boldly into the fight, while theenemy fell in great numbers beneath the terriblestrokes of Balmung. A sudden panic came upon thehitherto victorious host, and they fled in terror beforeGunther’s pursuing army. This battle was followedby many others in which the Burgundians completelyrouted the enemy’s forces, and their leader wasobliged to sue for peace. So the war was ended, andthe heroes returned to their homes to exchange thesword and shield for the milder pleasures of thepalace.

Soon after this, Hagen came again to King Guntherand said: “This great victory has proved how strongan ally we have in Siegfried. It were well, therefore,to keep him with us, lest trouble arise again and we[Pg212]need his help. Let us bind him to our house by someclose tie, and as no bond is closer than marriage,you must wed him to your sister Kriemhild, who alreadylooks upon him with favour.”

“But that cannot be, much as I desire it,” answeredGunther, “for Siegfried will not wed with mysister, since his heart yearns for Brunhilde, and heis even now planning to seek her in Isenland.”

“All this is true,” answered the wily Hagen; “andwhile Siegfried longs for the shield-maiden, nothingcan be done; but summon your mother hither,and bade her mix for him a draught of forgetfulness.She is skilled in magic potions, and will give us suchhelp as we need.”

Gunther sent at once for Queen Ute and told herof Hagen’s plan, to which she willingly offered herassistance; and that night when Siegfried returnedfrom a journey to a neighbouring city, she offeredhim a cup into which she had put a magic drinkwhich made him forget Brunhilde and his ridethrough the wall of fire. Then he turned morekindly eyes upon the beautiful Kriemhild, and beforemany days went by, he sought her hand in marriageof Gunther and the queen. Even to the unfriendlyHagen did he urge the acceptance of hissuit, and the grim old warrior replied, “Gladly do weyield to you this flower of Burgundy; but to no otherman would we have given her for all his prayers.”

[Pg213]When it was known throughout the kingdom thatsuch a powerful prince as Siegfried was going toally himself with the house of Burgundy, there wasgreat rejoicing among the people, for Siegfried hadalready made himself both feared and loved. Thewedding festivities lasted several weeks, and manycostly gifts were distributed by King Gunther amonghis vassals.

Yet in the midst of all the rejoicing, a strange feelingof uneasiness oppressed Siegfried, and he felthimself struggling with some memory that would nottake shape in his mind. As his troubled looks seemedto worry the gentle Kriemhild, he tried to banishthe haunting memory, and join in the merrimentthat attended his marriage.

Soon Hagen, who knew that Siegfried was the possessorof Andvari’s hoard, caused it to be whisperedabout that the young hero had brought no gift tohis bride, and that he lived, with empty hands, uponKing Gunther’s bounty. When this rumour reachedSiegfried, he grew pale with angry pride; then, inthe presence of all the court, he made a formal giftto Kriemhild of all his treasure, both the chests ofgold which he had carried on his horse, and the greathoard which still lay in Fafnir’s cave. In his resentmentand wounded pride he forgot the curse whichstill rested upon it, and because of the drink whichQueen Ute had given him, he forgot the ring that he[Pg214]had placed on Brunhilde’s finger. Gunther and hispeople were delighted with the magnificence of thebridal gift, and even Hagen felt satisfied, for heknew nothing of the curse, and hoped sometime toinduce Siegfried to have the hoard brought to Burgundy.

[Pg215]

The Wooing of Brunhilde

SIEGFRIED’S days passed happily at Gunther’scourt, and now that he had become the husbandof the beautiful Kriemhild he desirednothing better than to spend his life beside her in thepleasant land of Burgundy. Ever since the day ofhis marriage all of his former life seemed to beshrouded in mist. He but dimly remembered theforging of Balmung and his fight with the dragonFafnir, while the meeting with Brunhilde had, owingto the magic potion, passed wholly from his memory.He was very happy with the lovely and gentleKriemhild, who had wedded him believing that shealone had won the young hero’s heart, for her motherhad spoken no word to her of the Valkyrie whomSiegfried loved, or of the draught which had beengiven to make him forget her. As for Siegfried, hewas proud of being chosen above all the other suitorswho came to win the hand of Gunther’s sister; andhe was sure that there lived upon the earth no maidenfairer than the peerless Kriemhild.

One day there came to the palace an old harper.His hair was white and his figure bent with age, buthe could still play wonderful music, and sing bravely[Pg216]of the deeds of heroes. Many days and nights hesang in the great hall of the castle, and the listenersnever wearied of his music. Sometimes he laidaside his harp and told strange tales of his wanderings;and one night as he sat before Siegfried andKing Gunther at the feast, he spoke to them of acertain country called Isenland, where dwelt a beautifulmaiden whom many kings and princes hadsought to wed. “But,” continued the old man,“she has never yet been won, for she is a warriorqueen, and to those who seek her hand she proposesa trial of strength with the condition that he wholoses in the contest must also lose his life. Thishas daunted many a suitor, for the fame of themaiden’s strength has spread far and wide, yet therehave been some brave men who have dared to try,and, failing, have forfeited their lives.”

“But why is she willing to marry, if she has morethan a man’s strength, and can go to battle like anywarrior?” asked Gunther.

“She does not wish to do so,” replied the harper;“but it is written in the runes that she must wed.She is determined, however, to yield only to the herowhose strength can surpass her own, and thereforeshe demands that all suitors shall meet her in thiscontest.”

“What is her name?” asked the king.

“It is Brunhilde,” answered the old man, and[Pg217]at this Gunther looked fearfully at Siegfried, wonderingif the name would bring back to him thememory of his ride through the fire and his meetingwith the Valkyrie. But on Siegfried’s face was alook of entire unconcern, and he smiled as the bloodrushed into Gunther’s cheeks, and cried:—

“Look now at the king’s face, Sir Harper, andsee how quickly you have found another victim forthe warrior maiden. Methinks he is already eagerto behold her beauty and win her for his queen.How is it, friend Gunther?”

“Even as you have said,” replied the king, “forI would fain risk my life to gain this wonderfulmaiden.”

Indeed, Gunther was so much in earnest in hiswish, and so determined to journey to Isenland, thatno advice from Hagen could turn him from his purpose,neither were the gentle pleadings of Kriemhildof any avail. He would have Brunhilde and no oneelse for his queen.

When it was settled that he should go to Isenland,Hagen came secretly to him and said: “If youare really bent upon going on this foolhardy journey,and desire to risk your life for a woman who is doubtlessnot worth the winning, take Siegfried with you.He has the sword Balmung with which to fight yourbattles, should you be beset with foes, and he has alsothe magic Tarnkappe which renders him invisible.[Pg218]This will help to bring you out of many unknowndifficulties. Urge him, therefore, to go with you.”

Gunther did as Hagen advised, but it neededno urging to obtain Siegfried’s ready consent toaccompany the king. He had grown somewhatweary of the quiet, uneventful life at the court,and longed for new adventures. The beautifulKriemhild wept and besought him not to go into afar country, and on an undertaking fraught withmany dangers; but Siegfried only laughed at herfears, and bade her get his clothing and armour readyfor the journey. To Gunther he said, “Thereis one thing you must do if you wish me to accompanyyou, and that is to give me your promise notto take any train of warriors with us, but to goalone with only Hagen and your brother Dankwart.”

This seemed a very singular demand, and Hagendeclared that the king should not listen to it; butGunther trusted Siegfried’s discretion, and waswilling to be guided by his wishes, so he consented,and no one prepared for the voyage to Isenland savethose whom Siegfried had chosen.

Kriemhild and her maidens spent many daysmaking rich garments and embroidering costlyrobes, for she wished to have the warriors of Burgundyapparelled as became their rank. QueenUte, also, brought out from her large chests manyfine fabrics and rare jewels, and with threads of[Pg219]purest gold worked beautiful pieces of raiment,that Gunther and his friends might make a suitableappearance at the court of Brunhilde. But ittroubled her that no retinue of lords was to be allowedto attend the king, as was customary whenroyalty travelled abroad; and she felt some resentmenttoward Siegfried for compelling the ruler ofall Burgundy to go to a foreign court with no followerssave three of his own kinsmen.

While Queen Ute and Kriemhild were busy attheir needlework, the ship on which the king was tosail was made ready, and fitted up with all thingswhich might be needed on the voyage. The mostskilful rowers in the kingdom were placed at the oars,and at last the ship was launched and the sails set.There was much weeping at the departure of Guntherand his friends, and the watchers on the shorefelt that they would never return from the journey.But the heroes themselves were eager for the voyage,and full of hope that their adventure would be successful,—allbut Hagen, who stood on the deck,grim-visaged and scornful, for he had no faith in thisfoolish undertaking, though he would have followedhis king to the ends of the earth.

The voyage to Isenland was long, but no perilof wind or weather followed the ship, and no dangersof rocks and shoals marred the pleasure of the journey,or hindered the good ship’s speed. When at[Pg220]last they came in sight of a rocky coast, and saw onthe top of the cliffs a tall, fortressed castle with frowningtowers, Hagen told them that they had nowreached Isenland, and that before them was thepalace of Brunhilde. It looked very forbidding,and Gunther began to doubt if, after all, this venturehad been a wise one; but Siegfried was light-heartedas ever, and the gloomy towers brought him no anxietyor fears. As they were about to land he saidto the king:—

“One thing further you must do if we wish towin in this undertaking. Tell every one at Brunhilde’spalace that I am your vassal, and have comehither at your command to attend you.”

Gunther looked surprised at this demand, buthe consented, and on the way to the castle Siegfriedfollowed behind the king, as became a vassal inattendance on his lord.

From her chamber window the queen was lookingdown upon the knights as they rode toward thecastle,[57] and calling her maidens to her she said:“Who are these strangers that have come to ourgates? They seem of noble bearing, yet they haveno attendants, so cannot be of royal blood. Letsome one go to meet them, and inquire of their[Pg221]names, and why they have voyaged to Isenland,for in the harbour yonder I see a white-sailed ship.”

One of the maidens went away at the queen’sbidding, and soon returned breathless with excitement.

“It is Gunther, king of Burgundy, my lady,”she cried, “and with him are his brother and uncle,and a noble youth named Siegfried. I hear thatthey have come to match strength with you in thegames.”

When Brunhilde learned that it was Siegfriedwho was at her castle gates, she trembled with delightand surprise; forshe had been given no draughtof forgetfulness, and she well remembered the braveyouth who had ridden through the fire and wakenedher from sleep. If he had come to win her, she hopedthat his strength was equal to his valour, and that itwould surpass her own. For the first time sinceOdin took away her shield, and with it the glory ofbeing a Valkyrie, she felt glad that she was a mortalmaiden.

Word was sent to the lords within the castle tolet down the drawbridge, and welcome the strangersto Isenland. The queen also bade them give theguests the best which the palace afforded, and doeverything which would make for their pleasureand comfort. When she herself was arrayed in hercostliest robes, she descended to the great hall of[Pg222]the castle. There, seated upon a marble throne,and surrounded by her chosen warriors, she receivedthe stranger knights in royal state.

To Gunther, who approached first, she offered herhand and bade him welcome. This courtesy shealso extended to Dankwart and Hagen; but whenSiegfried stood before her she rose, and, taking bothhis hands in hers, she said softly: “So you havecome again to seek me, Sir Siegfried, but this timeit is not through a circle of fire. It is long since welast met, but I have not forgotten you, nor have Ilost the ring you placed upon my finger. There isno one whom Brunhilde would gladlier see withinher halls.”

Siegfried at first seemed bewildered at her words;then a troubled look passed over his face, and herubbed his eyes as if awakening from sleep. Hegazed long into the queen’s face, murmuring, “Brunhilde—theValkyrie—the wall of fire.” Thenall at once a mist was lifted from his eyes; he rememberedhis ride through the flames, the sleepingmaiden, and all of the past which had been so longforgotten.

Brunhilde saw the change in his face, but shemistook its meaning. She thought that he hadcarelessly forgotten her, and was now trying torecall some memory of her. So her soft mannerturned to hardness, for her pride was hurt, and[Pg223]maiden shame forbade her to show favours to onewho could so easily forget her. During all hisstay at the castle she kept aloof from Siegfried, andtreated him with more coldness than she showed evento the grim-visaged Hagen.

As for Siegfried, he knew that something hadhappened which had blotted out the memory ofBrunhilde during all the years he had been in Burgundy;and he knew also that if he could nowchoose his bride, it would be the haughty queen whotreated him so scornfully. But he was here asGunther’s friend and vassal, and to help Guntherwin this maiden for his wife; so he laid aside his ownregrets, and determined to do all in his power tofurther the king’s suit.

Soon after the arrival of the Burgundians, a daywas set for the contest between King Gunther andthe warrior queen. At the appointed time theyassembled in the courtyard of the palace, and Hagenhad many misgivings when he saw five hundredarmed knights standing about, whose faces betokenedno good-will to the strangers. However, it was nowtoo late to retreat, and he muttered to the king,—

“We have truly come hither on a fool’s errand;for whether you win or lose in this contest, we willnever be allowed to leave this place alive.”

At this Gunther only laughed and said: “Yourgray hairs make you full of fears, O Hagen; and[Pg224]your age makes you blind to the beauty of thiswonderful maiden, for whom a man might wellrisk his life. But fear not for me, as something tellsme that I shall win.”

And he went away, leaving Hagen to muttercurses on the whole mad adventure.

When Brunhilde appeared in the courtyard cladin her coat of mail, the four Burgundian warriorsapproached her, and Siegfried said, “My liege lordhas come from far to match strength with you, OBrunhilde, and should he win in the contest, there isnone who will give you allegiance as his queen moregladly than the humble and loyal vassal Siegfried.”

To this Brunhilde answered coldly, “Does yourlord know the conditions of the contest and the forfeitwe demand, should he lose?”

“He does,” replied Siegfried; “but nothing outweighsthe chance of possessing Brunhilde for hisqueen.”

“Then we accept the challenge,” said the maiden,and, turning to one of her attendants she added,“Bring hither my armour, and let the games begin.”The servants then brought her a golden helmet, acorselet of finely wrought silver, and a shield broadand heavy enough for the most powerful warrior.After arming herself with these, her spear was carriedin on the shoulders of three strong men. Itwas very long, and of such tremendous weight that[Pg225]no arm but Brunhilde’s had ever been known tolift it.

While these preparations were going on, the Burgundianheroes were watching with amazement,half mingled with fear, and Hagen muttered aloud,“Shall we stand idly by and see our king slain by awoman’s hand?” But Siegfried whispered in Gunther’sear, “Take courage and we shall win, onlyshow no sign of fear.” Then he slipped out of thecrowd and hurried down to the seashore where theship lay at anchor. Here he hastily donned hisTarnkappe, and then went back, unseen, to thecourtyard, where Gunther had already taken up hisshield, and Brunhilde was poising her spear in theair ready to throw.

He took his stand close to the king’s side andwhispered, “Fear not, only do as I bid you.”

Though he could see no one, Gunther knew thatit was Siegfried who was beside him, so he tookcourage and grasped his shield more firmly.

The signal was given, and Brunhilde hurled herspear at Gunther’s shield. The blow was a terribleone, and both Siegfried and the king staggeredbeneath it. Borne down by the weight of the spear,and by the force with which it was thrown, Guntherwould have been crushed under his shield had notSiegfried broken the force of the blow by placinghimself in front of the king, while he held before him[Pg226]the magic shield which he had taken from Andvari’shoard. Then he quickly raised the king, and beforethe astonished spectators realized what had happened,he picked up the huge spear and sent it, apparentlyfrom Gunther’s hand, back to Brunhilde. It spedwith terrible swiftness, and struck her shield with atremendous crash, carrying the warrior maiden tothe ground. In a moment she recovered herself androse, flushing with shame and anger. Going towhere the king stood, she said,—

“That was a noble blow, King Gunther, and Icount myself fairly beaten at this first game, but youmust also win in casting the stone and in leaping.”

As she spoke, ten men came forward, carrying animmense stone upon their shoulders. This themaiden raised easily in her white arms, and swingingit once or twice above her head, she threw it to thefarther end of the castle yard, some hundred yardsaway, and then leaped after it, landing just besideit.

The followers of Brunhilde shouted with delight,and every face showed pride in their wonderfulqueen; but Dankwart trembled with fear, and oldHagen bit his lip and cursed the day that had broughtthem to Isenland. At Gunther’s side, however, wasSiegfried, still whispering courage to the king, whocould not see his friend, though he knew who it wasthat was winning the contest for him. Together[Pg227]they walked to where the great stone was lying, andSiegfried raised it from the ground, while it seemedto the spectators that it was lifted by the king’shand. Then he swung it above his head, and hurledit across the courtyard, where it landed far beyondthe spot from which Brunhilde had first thrown it.Immediately he seized Gunther in his arms and sprangafter the stone, reaching the very place where it layhalf buried in the earth.

The warrior maiden could do naught but ownherself beaten in all the games, and though her faceshowed disappointment and chagrin, she offered herhand to Gunther, saying:—

“We acknowledge ourselves defeated, my lord,and from henceforth Brunhilde is no longer herown master, but the wife and vassal of the king ofBurgundy,” and, turning to her knights and attendants,she bade them acknowledge Gunther as theirrightful lord.

That night there was great feasting in the palace,though the hearts of the people of Isenland wereheavy at the thought of losing their queen. Sheherself strove to appear happy and proud at becomingthe wife of a hero whose strength surpassed herown; yet while she seemed to honour her liege lord,her heart longed for Siegfried, and she rued the daythat had brought the Burgundians to Isenland.

[Pg228]

How Brunhilde Came to Burgundy

SO Brunhilde and the Lord of Burgundy werewedded, and, after many days spent in feastingand merriment, Gunther told his queenthat they must prepare for the return voyage. Itwas some time since he and his friends had set outon their journey to Isenland, and he feared that ifhe stayed much longer at Brunhilde’s palace, his ownpeople would give them up for dead. Then hewent secretly to Siegfried, and with a shamed,flushed face he said: “My friend and brother, Ihave come to ask your help in a strange matter. Icannot return to Burgundy with a wife who is mymaster, even as Brunhilde is now, for I shall becomethe laughing-stock of all my people. The queen ofIsenland does not love me, and she treats me eachday with more contempt. She does not scruple toinsult me by making me the victim of her greatstrength, which I am powerless to meet. Her might—whichno other woman has ever equalled—dependson a wonderful girdle which she wears; andwhen I tried to wrest this from her, she tied me hand[Pg229]and foot and hung me on a nail in the chamber wall.Only by my promising never to trouble her againwas I able to get release.”

Siegfried felt sorry indeed for Gunther’s plight,and he offered to try and subdue the warrior queento her husband’s will. So that night he assumed theform of Gunther, and wrestled with Brunhilde untilhe had taken from her the wonderful girdle in whichlay all her unwomanly strength. He also took fromher finger the serpent ring of Andvari which he himselfhad given her when they had talked together onthe mountain. Brunhilde, being now quite ready toobey her lord, believing that he was truly her masterby virtue of his superior strength, prepared for herdeparture from Isenland, and took with her as manyof her own followers as Gunther would allow. Hebesought her not to overburden the good ship whichhad brought them thither with chests of raiment andhousehold goods, since Queen Ute could amply provideall that Brunhilde might desire.

As to the wealth she had at her command, he badeher leave all that behind, for the rich lands of Burgundyyielded more than enough to satisfy the proudestheart. The queen therefore opened her chestsfull of gold and silver and divided them among herknights and among the poor of her kingdom. Herrich robes, and all the costly apparel she had worn,she gave to her maidens, and arranged to take with[Pg230]her only a small part of her possessions. Whilepreparations were being made for the departure ofBrunhilde to the country of her liege lord and husband,Hagen was fuming uneasily at the long delay,and predicting all manner of misfortunes if they didnot speedily leave Isenland. Gunther tried to allayhis fears and said:—

“You are restless, Hagen, because you are old,and cannot share your lord’s joy in having won thispeerless maiden for his queen. There is really nocause for alarm, for the people here are friendly tous now that I am their acknowledged king. Besides,have we not Siegfried with us, and how can we fearany harm when he is here to protect us?”

“Yes, yes,” answered Hagen, angrily, “to be surewe have Siegfried with us, but it is always Siegfriedwhom we have to lean on like a babe on its mother.Before he came among us, we ourselves were countedwarriors worthy to be feared; but now it is alwaysSiegfried who fights our battles, guides our ship,and brings us out of all our difficulties. It is Siegfried,too, who wins us a warrior maiden whom wewould never have conquered alone, weak and nervelessmen that we are. It is Siegfried, always Siegfried,and I hate his very name.”

“Nay, now, good Hagen,” said the king, soothingly,“these things should not provoke you tojealousy, but rather make you hold the youth in[Pg231]respect and honour. What would Burgundy do withoutSiegfried?”

“That is just it,” retorted Hagen, bitterly.“Burgundy is naught except as she holds thisforeign prince in her court. She boasts no warriorso valiant, no soldier so dear to her people, as thisman who came to us a stranger. Better far thathe should return to his own country than to staylonger among us.”

“Nay, nay,” answered Gunther; “if Siegfried isso beloved by our people, it is a greater reason forhis remaining with them.” But Hagen shook hishead, and muttered something which the king didnot understand.

Everything was at last ready for Brunhilde’sdeparture, and she bade a sorrowful farewell to allher household and to all the people of Isenland.Then she embarked on the white-sailed ship with thefour Burgundian warriors. In a few days she wasfar out of sight of the land she loved, and was beingborne toward a country unfamiliar and unwelcome.For even though she had been forced to own herselfconquered in the games, Brunhilde had never beenwilling to become Gunther’s wife, or to go with himto his home across the sea.

The voyage was quickly and pleasantly spentto all except the queen, who sat upon the deck,moody and silent, ignoring all Gunther’s efforts[Pg232]to divert her. Siegfried felt happy at the thoughtof returning to the beautiful Kriemhild, thoughhis heart was heavy with fear that the coming ofBrunhilde to Burgundy would bring trouble andsorrow in its train. The evident dislike which thequeen felt for King Gunther boded no good for thefuture to him or to his friends. Only toward Hagendid she show any kindness, and her overtures offriendship were, strange to say, very willingly metby the grim, reserved man. She would talk forhours with Hagen when no one else could get fromher a moment’s notice, and the gray-haired oldwarrior seemed ever ready to please and serve her.

At last the voyage was over, and the king wasagain in his own land and among his own people.Great rejoicing was made over his return, andfeasts were held for many days in honour of the wonderfulmaiden who was now King Gunther’s wife.But though everything was done for her pleasure,and many princes of the provinces of Burgundycame to do homage to their queen, Brunhilde remainedever moody and silent. The gentle Kriemhildtried in vain to induce her to join in the feastingand merriment, but Brunhilde refused, almost angrily,and sat apart, brooding over her unhappylot. After a time Gunther sought his mother, QueenUte, and begged her to give Brunhilde some drinkwhich would make her forget Isenland, and so be[Pg233]content to dwell with him. Queen Ute shook herhead, and said sadly that she had nothing whichcould accomplish this for him.

Gunther and Brunhilde arrive at Burgundy and are received by Kriemhild

The king went next to Hagen and said: “Youhave won Brunhilde’s confidence, my uncle. Tellme, therefore, why the queen is silent and unhappy.”

At this Hagen laughed mockingly and whispered:“Ask your noble friend Siegfried whom you loveand trust so fully what it is that makes Brunhilde’sheart so heavy with longing, and so full of bitterness.He can tell you far better than I.” But shame andpride forbade Gunther to go again with his troublesto Siegfried, so he kept silent, and waited for time tocure the queen’s grief.

Things went on in this way for some time, fornothing seemed to change the haughty queen, orsoften her dislike for all of Gunther’s householdexcept Hagen. He remained her devoted follower,and her one confidant and friend. Toward thegentle Kriemhild she showed both jealousy andaversion, though the sweet, friendly wife of Siegfriedwas at a loss to understand the reason for her sister-in-law’sbehaviour.

On his return to Burgundy, Siegfried had beenunwise enough to tell Kriemhild of the stratagemby which he had won Brunhilde for the king, andhow later he had wrestled with the mighty queen,and taken from her the magic girdle. He also gave[Pg234]Kriemhild the serpent ring which Brunhilde hadprized more than all her possessions, but which shehad yielded when—as she supposed—Gunther hadoutmatched her in strength. All this trickery Brunhildedid not as yet even suspect, so Kriemhildwondered at her ill-concealed hatred of the king.

One day Brunhilde and Kriemhild were walkingtogether in the palace garden, and as they were aboutto enter the great feasting hall, Kriemhild, being alittle in advance of the queen, was just crossing thedoorway when Brunhilde called out angrily,—

“Do you presume to enter before me, your queen?you who are the wife of a vassal?”

“I am no vassal,” retorted Kriemhild, quickly,“for Siegfried owns allegiance neither to you nor toany other.”

“That is a lie,” cried Brunhilde, wrathfully, “forwhen Siegfried came to Isenland, he declared thatGunther was his liege lord, and himself a humblevassal.”

“That was only to save your pride,” answeredKriemhild, now dropping her angry tone, for she sawthat the queen was in a towering rage.

“Gunther deceived me, then,” stormed Brunhilde,furiously; then she added mockingly, “Since Siegfriedis no vassal of the king’s, I suppose he is amuch greater and richer prince; that he is braveralso, and stronger, and could outstrip the king in[Pg235]a contest of strength such as that in which Guntherwon me for his wife.”

“Even so,” replied Kriemhild, “for it was reallySiegfried who outdid you in the games, and notGunther at all. It was Siegfried, too, who wrestedfrom you the girdle and the ring, and he gave themto me as a trophy dearly won.” As she said this,Kriemhild showed her two possessions and thenpassed quietly into the hall, while Brunhilde stoodat the door too bewildered by her words to speak.

At length she realized the meaning of Kriemhild’sspeech. Full of anger and fearful suspicion, shesought out Hagen, and demanded that he shouldtell her all he knew of Siegfried’s part in the contest.And Hagen told her how Siegfried had put on hisTarnkappe and stood before the king unseen; howhe, and not Gunther, had flung the spear, and hurledthe stone and made the wonderful leap; how it wasSiegfried alone who had gained the victory, and hewho should rightfully have won her.

Upon hearing this, Brunhilde wept in anger andsorrow, and said bitterly: “I might have known thatnone but Siegfried could claim the warrior queenfor his bride. That fool and weakling, King Gunther,is no mate for Brunhilde, and never would he havecalled me wife had I not been tricked and deceived.He is a coward, and merits all the hatred and contemptI have shown him.” Then her anger grew[Pg236]fiercer than ever, and she swore vengeance uponthose who had wronged her.

“Cherish not your wrath against the king,” saidHagen, “for it is Siegfried who has brought thisshame upon you. He has been a source of evilever since he came among us, and he will yet bethe king’s bane; yea, and thine also. It were betterthat he died,—and soon.”

“He shall die,” cried Brunhilde. “I will callGunther hither and taunt him with his weaknessand cowardice. Then if he is a man, he will avengeme of this insult which Kriemhild has put upon me.”

So she summoned the king to her presence andpoured forth the story of her wrongs, bidding himslay Siegfried if he ever hoped to merit anything buther hatred and contempt. The king listened to herwords, but though he felt ashamed of the sorry parthe had played, he would not give her the promiseshe desired, for he loved Siegfried, and could notfind it in his heart to kill him, even to win Brunhilde’slove.

Seeing that neither threats nor pleading wouldmove the king to do what she desired, Hagen beggedthe queen to leave them, and give Gunther moretime to make his decision. So Brunhilde went away,and when Hagen was sure that there was no dangerof her returning, he came close to the king andwhispered:—

Gunther and Brunhilde

[Pg237]“Blind fool that you are! Do you not seeeven yet why the queen has been unhappy eversince she came to Burgundy? She loves your friendSiegfried, and it is he whom she would fain callhusband and lord!” Then he left the king alone,and Gunther sat for a long time thinking over whatHagen had said. He felt discouraged and sick atheart; for he knew that he was unable to solve thedifficulties before him, or to avert the dreadful fatewhich seemed to be overshadowing him and all hishousehold.

[Pg238]

The Death of Siegfried

SHORTLY after this Hagen came one day to theking, and said: “As long as Siegfried lives,there is naught that will appease the wrath ofBrunhilde, or make her cease to weep. If you wouldhave peace for yourself and would win the queen’slove, it must be by Siegfried’s death.”

“But I cannot slay him, Hagen,” answered Gunther,sadly; “he is my friend, and also my brother,and I cannot do such a treacherous thing.”

“There is no need for you to perform the deedyourself. Only consent to having Siegfried killed,and another hand than yours will carry it out. Itis useless to try and pacify the queen so long asSiegfried lives to arouse daily her jealous wrath.Consent, therefore, to his death,” urged Hagen,“and I myself will slay him and take all the burdenof the guilt upon my shoulders.”

For many hours he talked with the king, workingupon a weak will and unsteady purpose, and rousingin Gunther the jealous fear that Siegfried would playhim false. There seemed, indeed, only one way outof the difficulty, and at last Gunther consented to[Pg239]Hagen’s wish and promised to aid him in carryingout his plans.

“If I cannot win Brunhilde’s love except by Siegfried’sdeath, then he had better die,” cried the king;“for there is ever raging in my ears the queen’swords: ‘Never will I live to be mocked by Kriemhild.This thing must be ended by Siegfried’sdeath, or my death, or yours. Would that I wereagain in Odin’s hall—a shield-maiden starting forbattle or returning with my weapons stained withred blood.’ Do what you will then, my uncle, forI would lay down my life to win Brunhilde’s love.”

Having won over the king, Hagen went away,determined to avenge Brunhilde’s wrongs and ridthe kingdom of one whom he had long feared andhated. His plans were then quickly made. He rememberedthat he had often heard it whisperedabout the palace that some magic charm kept Siegfriedfrom ever being wounded in battle, since noweapon had the power to harm him. So before hecould carry out his plans, he must learn with certaintywhether the report was true or false. Therewas but one person who would be likely to know this;and accordingly on a certain day when Siegfriedhad gone hunting with the king, Hagen went toKriemhild, and seating himself beside her he inquiredkindly if she were very happy as the wife ofSiegfried.

[Pg240]Kriemhild looked surprised at this unexpectedvisit from her uncle, for he seldom took any noticeof her; but she thought that he was prompted to ashow of interest in her by his fondness for Siegfried.So she welcomed him gladly and answered hisquestion in a way to settle all doubts concerningher happiness, had her uncle really felt any friendlyinterest. Hagen smiled at her reply, and said,—

“Then what will you do if Siegfried is woundedin battle, and brought home dead upon his shield?”

“That cannot happen,” answered Kriemhild,betrayed into further confidence by Hagen’s seeminglyaffectionate concern.

“But such things do happen, even to the bravestwarrior,” persisted Hagen, “unless it be true, as Ihave sometimes heard, that Siegfried is invulnerable.”

Not dreaming of his purpose in asking this question,Kriemhild proudly replied, “It is indeedtrue, and that is why I have no fears when mylord goes to battle.”

“Was this great gift from Odin?” asked Hagen.

Now Kriemhild knew that Siegfried had forbiddenher to speak of this matter to any one, but shethought there could surely be no harm in revealingthe secret to one so devoted and loyal as her uncle,so she told Hagen all about the slaying of Fafnir.She said also that Siegfried had been bathed in the[Pg241]dragon’s blood, and that this was supposed to renderhim invulnerable.

Siegfried and Kriemhild

“Was he completely covered by the stream ofblood?” asked Hagen, with great interest.

“Yes,” answered Kriemhild, “he was bathedfrom head to foot, except one small spot upon hisshoulder, on which a leaf happened to fall.”

“Are you not afraid that he may be struck in thatplace by a spear or arrow, and so meet his death?”

“It might indeed be so,” said Kriemhild, “but Ido not fear it.”

“Still,” persisted Hagen, “it would be well tohave some one always near Siegfried in battle, toguard him against any death-blow, and since Ialone know of his point of weakness, let me be theone to protect him. This service I shall be betterable to render if you will sew a mark upon his coatover the exact spot on his shoulder where the leaffell, so that when we are beset by enemies upon theroad, or go forth to battle, I may keep beside himand shield him from a possible death blow.”

Kriemhild was greatly moved by this evidenceof loyalty in Hagen, and thanking him warmly forhis devotion, she promised to sew upon Siegfried’scoat some mark by which the vulnerable spot couldbe known. Then she hurried away to begin hertask, not dreaming of Hagen’s wicked purpose inobtaining her secret.

[Pg242]Some days later Hagen proposed that thereshould be a great hunt given in one of the neighbouringforests, and Gunther, who had promised toaid him in his plans, urged Siegfried to accompanythem. Siegfried gladly consented, for he hadgreatly enjoyed this sport since his first coming toBurgundy, and had spent many a pleasant hourwith Gunther and his knights in search of deer orfox, or the fierce wild boar. In all of these expeditionshe had been foremost in the hunt, and hadusually borne off the prize, both in the size and numberof his game. His spear was sharp, and shonebrightly as he rode along, mounted on the faithfulGreyfel, and his aim was so quick and sure that hisweapon never missed its mark, but went straightto the heart of the beast he was pursuing. Thissuperiority in the chase added much to Hagen’sanger and jealousy, for as Siegfried had proved himselfthe greatest of warriors on the battle-field, so inthe hunt he was the peer of all the knights of Burgundy.

A day was set for the great hunt, and a forestwas chosen which was famous for the numberand fierceness of its wild beasts. Then early onemorning Gunther, Hagen and Siegfried set forthwith their knights, in full expectation of having aprofitable as well as exciting day. It was a beautifulmorning in early spring, and the spirits of the[Pg243]hunting party rose high as they cantered out of thecity gates and made their way toward the forest.

Siegfried rode ahead of the party, with Guntherand Hagen beside him. His suit was of royalpurple, embroidered richly by Kriemhild’s lovingfingers, and his spear shone bright in the sunlightas he galloped along, light-hearted and unsuspicious ofthe black thoughts which were harboured in Hagen’swicked heart. He looked so brave and joyous, sobeautiful as a youth and so gallant as a knight, thatall the warriors in Gunther’s train said among themselvesthat no one in Burgundy was fit to be comparedto Siegfried.

These remarks soon came to Hagen’s ears, andhardened him in his determination to slay thisforeign prince whom all his own countrymen wouldso gladly make their king in place of the weak andunwarlike Gunther. He hid this feeling, however,and kept close to Siegfried’s side, looking eagerlyfor the spot upon his shoulder where the loving butfoolish Kriemhild had sewed the fatal mark.

The hunting party soon came to the edge ofthe forest, where they divided into three groups.Each leader took with him a party of followers,and they set out in different directions, with theagreement that when the sun was overhead theyshould meet at a well-known place where Guntherhad arranged that their dinner was to be set out.[Pg244]Siegfried galloped away, and a greater part of theknights followed him. Hagen saw this and frowneddarkly, but he said nothing, only waited for Siegfriedto get out of sight. Then he whispered to theking:—

“To-day is the day for our deed. This must bethe last time that your friend Siegfried flaunts hissuperiority over the king.”

Gunther trembled and answered weakly:—

“Must it be done, Hagen? Is there no otherway to rid our kingdom of him?”

“No way but by his death,” replied Hagen,firmly; then he added: “and do not you give wayto foolish fancies, or my plans may fail. I haveno womanish scruples, and Siegfried must dieto-day.”

Not wishing to have it appear that anythingunusual was in preparation, Hagen ceased to conferwith the king, but summoned his knights tothe chase, and, putting spurs to their horses, theystarted through the forest. But something in thefaces of the leaders made the men only half-heartedin their eagerness for the hunt, and a spirit ofsilence and gloom spread over the whole party.

They hunted all the morning, but their successwas small, and when they finally drew up at themeeting-place, they found that they had very littlegame to boast of. The men had already come[Pg245]from the castle with great baskets of provisions,so the knights dismounted, and sat upon the grassto await the coming of Siegfried.

Soon they heard the loud blast of horns, and thejoyous hallooing of men mingled with the barkingand yelping of hounds; and in a moment Siegfriedand his followers came in sight. They shoutedmerrily to their comrades, and galloped forwardto join them, while those seated upon the groundlooked with delight and surprise at the beastswhich had been slain by Siegfried’s skilful hand.There was a large black bear of the kind whichwas known to be so fierce that it was well-nighimpossible to kill or capture him. There was alsoa huge wild boar and three shaggy wolves, besidesa great number of smaller animals, such as thefox and deer. The knights were all loud in theirpraises of Siegfried’s wonderful skill, and he tooktheir homage gladly, seeming wholly unconsciousof Hagen’s cruel face or Gunther’s averted eyes.

Soon the midday feast was ready, and the mensat down to eat. Some of the game they had caughtthat morning was roasted and placed before them,and they ate almost greedily, for the sport had giventhem sufficient excuse for hunger. Presently Gunthersaid:—

“Is there no wine to accompany our meat? Toeat without drinking is but a poor way to feast.”

[Pg246]The attendant to whom he spoke answered,—

“There was no wine provided, my lord.”

“How is that?” demanded the king, angrily.

“It was Prince Hagen’s command,” replied theservant, humbly, and at this Hagen interposed,saying:—

“Why should the king ask for wine when nota hundred rods away is a beautiful stream moreclear and sparkling than the finest wine? Let usgo there and quench our thirst.”

“Very well,” said Gunther; “and for my part,I am satisfied with the drink you offer. It remainsfor my guest to declare himself content.”

At this Siegfried rose and exclaimed eagerly:—

“If that fear weighs upon you, let me provehow little you should cherish it. I will go firstto the stream, and come and tell you how pure andsweet is its water.”

“Let me show you the way, then,” said Hagen,and as he and Siegfried moved away together, heasked hesitatingly:—

“Will you run a race with me, Sir Siegfried, tosee which of us will reach the stream first? Forthough I am much older than you in years, I wasaccounted a famous runner in my time.”

“Gladly,” replied Siegfried; and they startedoff toward the stream. But although Hagen wentwith wonderful swiftness considering his years,[Pg247]he could not outrun the fleet-footed Siegfried, whoreached the goal some minutes before Hagen came up.

“You are truly a swift runner, even now, friendHagen,” he cried gayly, “and I can easily believeyour boast that you were once the most famousrunner in the kingdom.”

At this Hagen smiled and said,—

“But what are we poor men, even the best ofus, beside the noble Siegfried, who can outstrip allthe warriors of Burgundy, no matter what thecontest may be?”

“Nay, you are overzealous in your praise,”laughed Siegfried, but he was pleased with Hagen’sfriendly words, for he did not detect the undertoneof jealousy and anger. Then courteouslyhe bade Hagen drink of the stream, but Hagenanswered:—

“Do you drink first, and let me follow you,for though you would yield the courtesy to me becauseof my age, I would rather give precedenceto you as the better runner. Drink, therefore, butfirst lay aside your armour, for the weight of it mightthrow you into the stream.”

Siegfried, ever trustful and unsuspicious, threwoff his coat of mail and laid his spear beside it, thusleaving unprotected the inner coat on which Kriemhildhad sewed the fatal mark. Then he knelt uponthe ground, and stooping over put his hand into the[Pg248]stream and prepared to raise the water to his lips.At this moment Hagen, with catlike swiftness,caught up Siegfried’s shining spear, and, aiming itdirectly toward the mark, hurled it with all his force.[58]

The weapon sank into the stooping body, andwith a groan Siegfried rolled over upon the ground.As soon as he was able, he turned to see who haddone this cowardly deed; and only when he sawHagen fleeing in guilty haste, could he believe thatthe blow was dealt by one who so lately seemedhis friend. Siegfried put his hand feebly to hisshoulder, and when he found where the spear hadstruck, he knew that his wound was mortal. Hemade one great effort to rise, and gathering togetherall his strength, he drew out the spear and startedin pursuit of Hagen.

The treacherous murderer had fled for protectionto the king, and thither Siegfried followed him;but before he reached the astonished and horror-strickengroup who were watching his approach,the blood began to gush forth from his wound, andhe sank helplessly to the ground. The whole companyof knights knelt down beside him, weepingand lamenting over the loss of their leader. Oneof them raised the dying hero’s head and placed it[Pg249]upon his knee, while others tried to stanch the bloodfrom his wound. Siegfried, however, bade themcease their efforts, for his end had now come.

Then he turned to Hagen, and upbraided him forhis cowardly deed, and for his treachery in obtainingthe secret of his vulnerability from Kriemhild to useit in such a dastardly way. His strength was nowalmost exhausted, and his eyes began to close; butsuddenly he roused again, and said to the tremblingand terrified king:—

“Thou hast played a coward’s part to thy friendwho trusted thee, O Gunther, and some day thouwilt bitterly repent of having aided thine uncle inhis wickedness. But for this I will not reproachthee, for thou art already sorrowing. One thingonly I ask of thee, and do thou promise it, andmake what amends thou canst. Take care of thysister Kriemhild, and do not let Hagen’s vengeanceextend to her. Though thou hast proved an unworthyfriend to me, yet I commend my wife to thykeeping. Wilt thou swear to protect and cherishher?”

“I swear it,” replied Gunther, now weeping remorsefultears.

“Then see that thou play the man, nay, be foronce the king, and keep thine oath to the dying.”

As he finished these words, Siegfried sank backlifeless into the arms of the knight who supported[Pg250]him. All at once the clouds overhead grew fearfullydark, and the air seemed full of a strange,ominous stillness. The birds stopped their singing,and the forest was silent with the hush ofnight. The warriors stood weeping beside thebody of their slain leader, but no one dared tospeak. Slowly and sadly they raised Siegfriedfrom the ground; and, placing him on their shoulders,bore him to the place where the faithful Greyfelwas standing, patiently awaiting the comingof his master. One of the knights led the horse,while a solemn group of mourners followed, andnot even the sternest old warrior among them feltashamed of the tears he shed for the dead hero.

When the sorrowful procession reached the citygates, the news was quickly spread that Siegfriedwas slain, and by the hand of Hagen. There wasgreat mourning throughout the city, and beneaththe wail of sorrow was a muttered undertone ofthreats towards the man who could do such a cowardlyand treacherous thing as to kill the friendwho trusted him. But Hagen faced the people,calm and grim as ever, and said boldly:—

“Let all the guilt of this deed rest upon me,for it was by my hand that Siegfried died. Nowthere is but one lord of Burgundy, King Gunther,and no longer shall Brunhilde sit in tears, for theinsult put upon her is avenged.”

[Pg251]

The Last of the Hoard

THOUGH the news of the death of Siegfriedhad spread throughout the city, no one dared tobring the dreadful tidings to Kriemhild, who satin her bower with her maidens, waiting her lord’sreturn. The day was now far spent, and she beganto wonder at his long delay, when the sound of somedisturbance in the street reached her chamber windows,and she looked out to see what the unusualnoise might be. At first she feared it was an outbreakof war, but the solemn procession which waswending its way toward the palace was not martialin its bearing, but full of the awful stillness of afuneral march. She saw that some one was beingborne on the shoulders of the men—some one dead—andthe others were his mourning followers.She wondered who it could be, and why they werebringing him to the palace.

Among the group of knights who formed thefuneral train, she presently discerned the figuresof Gunther and Hagen, and she began to tremblewith fear and dread foreboding when she saw thatSiegfried was not with them. She strained her eyes[Pg252]to see if she could recognize the features of the dead,but she was too far away, and could not see; soshe waited fearfully by the window, while the processionwound its way through the courtyard, andthen into the great hall. Unable to bear the suspenseany longer, she left the room and hurried downto meet her brother and learn tidings of Siegfried.But the moment she entered the hall, the faces ofthe men told her all she wished to know, and she didnot need to inquire who the dead might be.

Every one in the palace shared the grief of Siegfried’sgentle wife, and all the city mourned with herin the loss of one so greatly beloved as the hero whomHagen called a “stranger.” As long as the firstshock of Siegfried’s tragic death engrossed all ofKriemhild’s thought and feeling, she did not realizethe part which Hagen had played in the event; butas the days went by and she had time to think of allthat had gone before, she remembered how heruncle had traitorously obtained the secret of Siegfried’svulnerable spot from her, and how she herselfhad, at his request, sewed the fatal mark upon herhusband’s coat. She had heard that it was byHagen’s hand that Siegfried met his death, yetshe could not believe him guilty of such a terribledeed. So one day she went weeping to Hagen, andasked him to tell her by whom Siegfried was slain.

“The story of such things is not for a woman’s[Pg253]ears,” replied Hagen, “and whether he died by myhand or another’s is of small moment. It was thewill of the Norns, who rule the life of every man,that he should die, and their decrees no one of uscan change or avert.”

When the day was set for the great funeral firesto be lit, all the princes of Burgundy came to attendthe solemn festival, and sought to do homageto the dead hero by bringing rich gifts to be laid uponthe funeral pyre. This imposing structure waserected in front of the palace, and on the appointedday the foremost lords of Gunther’s householdbrought the body of Siegfried from the palace whereit had lain in state, and placed it sorrowfully uponthe funeral pyre. Beside him was laid his armour andhis magic Tarnkappe, and last of all the famoussword Balmung. The king had ordered that Greyfelbe carefully guarded for fear that if he were broughtupon the scene, he would leap into the flames andperish with his master.

Around these things, which were sacred to thememory of Siegfried, the princes of Burgundypiled their most costly gifts, and everything wasready for the fires to be lit. But no one of Gunther’smen could bear to place a torch to the wood,and a dreadful stillness fell over the whole assembly.At length Hagen came boldly forward and laid aburning brand to the pile of logs which formed the[Pg254]funeral pyre. In a moment the whole structurewas ablaze, and the hungry flames leaped upwardtoward the sky.

Gunther stood by, trembling and fearful, lestOdin should send some terrible retribution upon theone who had slain his chosen hero. Kriemhild,weeping, hid her face in her hands, for she couldnot watch the dreadful fires. On the faces of allthe watchers was reflected a great sorrow, for noprince of Burgundy was so dear to them as Siegfried,even though he came from a foreign land. OnlyHagen showed no grief or any sign of repentancefor his deed, but stood by unmoved, like a grim,avenging god.

Then suddenly a figure appeared in their midst,wild and dishevelled, and seemingly mad with grief.It was Brunhilde, once a Valkyrie, come to claimher slain. Turning to the astonished group ofmourners, she cried exultingly:—

“Look, you people of Burgundy, for the lasttime upon your queen whom you have ever seenfulfilling the common lot of mortal woman, andknow that I was once a shield-maiden, one of Odin’sValkyries. I was condemned to eternal sleep bythe great All-father, but was rescued by Siegfried,the hero who knows no fear. And here he lies whorode through the wall of fire to waken me, and whowon me in the games by his godlike strength, though[Pg255]your cowardly King Gunther made false claim tome. Here lies Siegfried, the chosen hero of Odinand the true mate of Odin’s warrior maiden. Thereforefor him alone does Brunhilde own her love, andto him alone will she be wed. The Valkyrie yieldsonly to the greatest hero.” Saying this she leapedupon the funeral pyre, and in a moment had perishedbeside Siegfried in the flames.[59]

And what of the ill-fated hoard upon which stillrested Andvari’s curse?

When the shock of the terrible events connectedwith Siegfried’s death was over, and quiet wasonce more restored to Gunther’s palace, Hagencame one day to the king and said:—

“You remember that Siegfried gave all of histreasure to Kriemhild on their wedding day, andalthough the hoard was never brought to Burgundyit still remains in the possession of your sister.Entreat her, therefore, to have it conveyedhere; and, to accomplish your end more easily, tellher that she can honour Siegfried’s memory bydistributing his wealth among the poor. Whenwe get the treasure into our hands, we will see, however,that nothing so foolish is done.”

The weak-willed Gunther, always under the controlof Hagen, accordingly sought Kriemhild andtold her what great things could be done in honour[Pg256]of Siegfried, if only the treasure in the dragon’scave could be placed at her disposal. Kriemhildwas not suspicious of her brother, for she did notknow what part he had played in Siegfried’s death,so she listened readily to his words, and said,—

“It shall be done even as you say, for naught cannow bring me solace in my grief save some way tomake the name of Siegfried dearer to the hearts ofthe people.”

Then she handed Gunther the serpent ring whichSiegfried had given her, and told him where to findthe famous hoard in the cave of Glistenheath.She bade him keep the ring carefully, for Andvarimight again have taken possession of the treasure,though he would yield it to the wearer of the ring.

The king took the ring from Kriemhild, and hastenedwith it to Hagen, who at once set to work tomake preparations for conveying the hoard to Burgundy.In a few days a great number of wagonswere fitted up, and with these a hundred men weredespatched to gather all the treasure and bring itback to the palace. Although most of the men wereHagen’s own followers, he could not trust them to goalone on this important mission, so he placed Siegfried’sring upon his own finger and led the expeditionhimself.

The hoard was found securely stowed away inFafnir’s cave, and not a single piece of gold had[Pg257]been taken since Siegfried rode away after slayingthe dragon. The dwarf Andvari still guarded thetreasure which had once been his; but when Hagenshowed the serpent ring, he allowed the strangerto enter the cave. He would have preferred todeliver the hoard to Siegfried himself, but the possessionof the serpent ring made its wearer the rightfulowner of all the treasure. So Andvari was obligedto admit Hagen’s claim, and assist him in bearingaway the gold.

Some days later, the company which had set outfrom Gunther’s palace empty-handed came backladen with such wealth of gold and precious stonesthat all the riches of Burgundy seemed nothing incomparison. This great hoard was stored safelyin Gunther’s palace, and Kriemhild was very gladto find so much wealth at her disposal.

She became very lavish in her gifts, and eagerto pour out all her riches, if only it brought addedhonour upon Siegfried’s memory. No one who cameto beg alms of her ever went away empty-handed,and the palace was always full of suppliants forher bounty. This extravagant giving went onfor some time, until one day Hagen came to theking and said:—

“If your sister continues to distribute so muchgold among the people, we will soon have themidle and rebellious, and then they will be useless[Pg258]to us in time of warfare. Bid her, therefore, to ceaseher giving.”

But Gunther answered, “I have brought enoughsorrow upon her through my evil deeds, and if thislavish giving can soften her grief, let her continueto dispose of her wealth as it pleases her, eventhough she should exhaust all the treasure that isin the hoard.”

Hagen determined, however, that it must not beso, and seeing that he could get no help from theking, he planned to gain his end by other means.So he made every appearance of approving Kriemhild’slavish gifts, and in time prevailed upon herto give him access to the treasure, that he mighthelp her in disposing of it. Then one dark nighthe gathered together a band of his own followers,and stole all that remained of the hoard. Theycarried it from the palace by a secret passage, andbrought it down to the river, where Hagen sunk itmany fathoms deep. Neither he nor any one elsecould ever regain it, but at least it was out of Kriemhild’shands.

Thus was the hoard of Andvari, with its fatefulcurse, placed forever beyond the reach of men; butthe charm and the mystery which hung around itsvery name still lingered through all the centuriesthat followed, and to-day the sailors upon the riverRhine are still looking for some glimpse of the sunkentreasure.

[Pg259]

The Punishment of Loki

THE curse which the dwarf Andvari had placedupon the hoard, and particularly upon theserpent ring which Loki had wrested fromhim, did not end with the sinking of the treasure inthe river. Both Hagen and Kriemhild had beenwearers of the ring, and evil soon fell upon them asit had upon Fafnir, Regin, Siegfried and Brunhilde.Some years after Siegfried’s death, Kriemhild marriedEtzel, king of the Huns, and was slain by one of hisknights. Before this, however, she herself hadstruck the blow that killed the treacherous and cruelHagen. With the burial of Kriemhild, the ill-fatedring passed forever from the sight of men, and thecurse of Andvari was never again visited upon itsunfortunate possessors.

Any other of the gods than Loki would have regrettedthe greed which made him tear the serpentring from Andvari’s finger, and thus bring misfortuneupon so many innocent people; but Lokidid not care whether human lives were wrecked byhis misdoing any more than he felt one moment’sremorse for having slain the shining Balder.

[Pg260]The gods had never forgiven Loki for this wickeddeed, and they longed very much to drive him out oftheir beautiful city, which had never harboured anyother evil thing. But Loki was Odin’s brother, andthey dared not punish him until the All-Wise Onewas ready to give his consent. Odin knew as wellas they, that the slayer of Balder was not fit to liveamong the gods; but he waited for Loki to commitone more act of cruelty before he drove the offenderout of Asgard. This occasion came, at last, soonerthan Odin expected.

One day all the gods were invited to a feast in thehalls of Æger, the sea-king; and a bounteous supplyof ale was brewed in the great kettle that Thor hadbrought from Hymer’s castle. Thor was not presentat the feast, for he had been obliged to go on a longjourney; but Loki was there, looking sullen andangry. No one spoke to him, and he sat silent andalone, trying to appear indifferent to the hostilelooks that were directed toward him.

The palace of the sea-god was very beautiful,with its walls and ceiling made of mother-of-pearl sodelicately laid that the light filtered softly throughit. On the floor was strewn the finest golden sand,and all the food was placed in opal-tinted sea-shells.The only thing that marred the beauty of the scenewas Loki’s ugly, wicked face.

As the meal progressed and the gods grew merry[Pg261]over their cups, they almost forgot the presence ofthe unwelcome guest; but Loki brooded in angrysilence, waiting for some chance to wreak his ill-willupon the whole company. A servant stopped besidehim to refill his horn with the foaming ale;and one of the gods, as he watched this, said to oldÆger: “Your servants have been well instructed.They are as careful to wait upon Loki as if he werean honoured guest.” When Loki heard these words,he flew into a mad rage; and, seizing a knife thatwas lying on the table, he struck the unoffendingservant dead.

At this wanton cruelty the gods sat speechless;but Odin rose, looking stern and awful in his wrath,and with a relentless voice he bade Loki be gone.“Never dare to tread our sacred halls again, norpollute the pure air of Asgard with your presence,”he cried. So terrible did Odin look that Loki slunkaway out of the hall, and the gods returned againto their feasting. Soon a great noise was heard outsidethe hall, and all the servants came running in,looking very much frightened. Behind them walkedLoki, who came boldly up to the table and daredOdin to send him out before he had spoken the wordshe had come back to say.

Then he began to talk to each one of the gods inturn, telling them of all the foolish or mean or wickedthings they had ever done—ridiculing their[Pg262]mistakes, and laying bare all their faults in such a dishonestway that each small offence seemed an actof monstrous wickedness. Not content with tryingto shame the heroes of Asgard, Loki began to speakslightingly of the goddesses; and attributed to themall the hateful things that his malicious imaginationcould invent. He was just telling some shamefullie about Sif when a rumbling of chariot wheels washeard outside, and in a moment Thor rushed intothe hall brandishing his hammer. He had heardLoki’s last words, and he made straight for theslanderer, intending to crush him with one blow ofMjölner. Loki, however, quickly changed himselfinto a sea-serpent, and slid out of the room beforeThor’s vengeful hammer could descend upon his head.

Taking his own shape, he made his way to themountains of the north, and there he built a hut withfour doors, opening north, east, south and west,so that he could see any one approaching and couldeasily make his escape. The hut was close besidea swift mountain stream, and here Loki spent manydays in fishing—for there was little else to do tobeguile the long hours. Remembering how easy ithad been to catch Andvari after he had obtainedthe help of Ran, Loki made himself a net like theone which he had borrowed from the ocean queen.It took him a long time to weave the net; and oneday, just as it was nearly finished, he saw two figures[Pg263]standing on the brow of the hill. He did not needa nearer view to tell him that the tall forms so clearlyoutlined against the sky were those of Thor andOdin. He knew that they had come to punish him forhis many evil deeds; but he did not intend to becaught without making every possible effort toescape. So he threw the net which he was makinginto the fire, and, hurrying down to the stream, hequickly changed himself into a salmon.

When Odin and Thor reached the hut where theyknew Loki had been in hiding, they found that hehad escaped them. Then Thor by chance stumbledover the logs on the hearth, and, in doing so, he discoveredthe half-burnt net. Picking it up, he criedto Odin: “So this is what our crafty Loki has beendoing to fill his idle hours. There must be somebrook near by.”

“Yes,” replied Odin, “and that is where he hasjust gone. He has changed himself into a fish.”

So the two gods went to the mountain stream,and there they saw a salmon lurking in the depthsof a pool. Odin had already mended the burnt netso that it was serviceable, and he quickly threwit over the fish which was now darting here andthere among the rocks. He did not catch the wilysalmon, however, for it slid into a narrow openingbetween two stones. Then Odin cast again, andthis time the fish gave a great leap over the net[Pg264]and darted up the stream. Determined that thetricky Loki should not outwit them, Odin and Thorfollowed the salmon a long distance until the streamfinally narrowed into a tiny rivulet. The salmonnow gave another leap into the air in a vain effortto escape the enclosing net which Odin threw overit. Then, finding itself caught, with incrediblequickness it began to work its way through themeshes of the net, and would have slid out of thegods’ hands had not Thor suddenly caught it by thetail. Since that time, so the story goes, all salmonhave their tails pointed.

Odin now changed Loki into his proper form, andhe and Thor dragged the wicked god to a cave inthe mountain. Here they bound Loki hand andfoot with iron chains, and fastened these firmly tothe rock. Then Odin placed over his head a venomousserpent which dropped its poison upon the faceof the fettered god, causing him great pain. So,chained and suffering, he lay there in the cave, unpitiedby either gods or men. Only Sigyn, hisfaithful wife, felt any sorrow for his pain, and shesat always beside him to catch the venom in a cupso that it should not fall on the captive’s face.When she was obliged to turn away to empty thecup, the drops of poison fell upon Loki, and he shookand writhed so terribly in his agony that the wholeearth trembled.

Loki and Sigyn

[Pg265]So Loki lay chained in the cave until the daywhen, according to the decree of the Norns, he wasallowed to break his fetters and become the leaderin that terrible battle which ushered in the lastgreat day—Ragnarok, the Twilight of the Gods.

[Pg266]

The Twilight of the Gods

THE gods hoped that when Loki was bound fast,there would be peace in Asgard, and an end tomischief-making on the earth. Odin knew,however, that the time was almost at hand when the endof all things would come; and while gods and men rejoicedin the universal happiness, Odin’s face wasfull of sadness. He had given to the earth and toAsgard a brief respite from trouble by chaining thewicked Loki to the rock, but he felt that the day ofreckoning was near.

The first warning Odin had of the nearness of thatday was when a sudden deadly cold spread over allthe earth, and he knew it was the beginning of thatlong, long winter which had been foretold by thewriting in the runes. So sharp and long-continuedwas the cold that it chilled the hearts of men, andeven crept upward to touch the robes of those whodwelt in the eternal springtime of Asgard. Thoughall the earth shuddered under the winter’s icy hand,people everywhere took comfort in saying, “It willsoon be over and then the warm days will come.”But they waited day after day and week after week[Pg267]until the season came which should have beensummer, but still the snow and frost and chill keptthe world fast bound. Not a flower bloomed nora tree budded nor any green thing appeared abovethe frozen ground. Yet the folk of Midgard stillhoped on, and waited for the summer that nevercame. The terrible winter[60] lasted for three years,and everywhere the dead were numbered by thousands.No food was to be had except what bychance had been stored away, for nothing couldgrow in the land where ice and snow lay alwaysthick upon the ground. Knowing that they hadbut a short time to live, men fought and killed eachother for the mere love of bloodshed, and no one triedto restrain the crime and wickedness that stalkedunmolested through the streets. The gods lookeddown from Asgard at the desolation on the earth,and they sorrowed greatly to see men trying to drowntheir fears or buy forgetfulness in deeds of violenceand brutish pleasure. Only the frost-giants rejoicedover the long destructive winter, for they hadalways wished to see the whole world wrapped infog and cold like their own dreary Jötunheim.They turned their envious eyes toward Asgard, andwaited in grim certainty that the rule of the godswas soon to end.

There was still some warmth in Asgard, for all[Pg268]of the sun’s rays were turned toward the sacredcity; but Odin knew that they had but a short timein which to enjoy this scant comfort. The twogray wolves that were ever pursuing Sol and Maniwere fed, during the long winter, by a frost-giantess;and one dreadful day they rushed after the chariotsof the sun and moon with such unlooked-for swiftnessthat they at last overtook the shining cars anddevoured the charioteers. Soon a thick darknessspread over all the world, and when the last gleamof light faded from the sky, all the evil things thathad lain hidden for fear of the gods, or that wishedto live away from the light,—all these came boldlyforth from caves and dark forests and holes underground,for they knew that their time had come atlast.

Then a terrible rending sound was heard as ifthe very foundations of the earth were being brokenup. There was a rushing noise like the outpouringof all the seas, and a trampling as of a million feet.The Midgard serpent reared its horrid head abovethe waves, and then drew its huge coils from aroundthe earth, creeping slowly from the sea to the land.The Fenris wolf broke his chains, and sprang witha fierce leap to the rock on the mountain where Lokilay bound. With the help of Fenrer, the fetteredgod tore himself free of his chains, and roamed overthe earth with the great wolf at his side, gathering[Pg269]together all the hosts of evil that were eager to waragainst the gods.

From Jötunheim came an army of frost-giantsready to fight with their old enemy in a last greatbattle; and out of Muspelheim marched a troop offire-giants under the leadership of Surter, who carrieda flaming sword. Through a deep cleft in the earthHel crept stealthily out of her silent halls; and behindher trooped thousands and thousands ofdusky shapes that would never have dared to comeup into the light of day. The Midgard serpent,pouring forth poison from his ever-open mouth,spread his great length across the stricken land, andglided on to the plain called Vigrid where Loki hadgathered together a vast and hideous array. A crylike the howling of wolves rose up from the plain,and it beat in the ears of those who were waitingbehind the walls of Asgard. It was a cry full ofhatred and defiance, and when the gods heard it theyknew that the challenge could not go unanswered.Sadly—for each felt it was the end—they preparedthemselves for battle; and, while they madeready, the frost-giants determined to avenge themselvesby taking possession of Asgard. So, beforeHeimdall could sound his horn to warn the gods ofthe approaching enemy, they began to rush acrossthe rainbow bridge that led to the coveted city.They came in such numbers and with such violence[Pg270]that Bifrost broke beneath the heavy tramp of feet,and the frost-giants were obliged to return to theplain Vigrid and wait for the coming battle.

The gods, with Odin at their head, marched bravelyout of Asgard to meet the great host of evil thingswhich had leagued together to destroy them. Thena terrible battle was fought, the like of which hadnever been seen on the earth before, nor ever willbe again. Though the gods fought with the courageof despair, they knew that it was useless to contendwith the fury and strength and numbers that werearrayed against them. One by one the shining heroesof Asgard fell beneath the attacks of the madlyexultant foe, and even the mighty Mjölner waspowerless to avert the doom which had been decreedby fate.

Thor struggled fiercely with the Midgard serpent,and though he killed it at last with his hammer,the terrible coils closed slowly about him and he wasdrowned in the flood of venom that poured out ofthe dying creature’s mouth. Loki slew Heimdall;but not before the gods’ faithful watchman haddealt the leader of the evil hosts a mortal blow.Odin engaged in a deadly combat with the Fenriswolf, and was at last torn to pieces by Fenrer’sterrible teeth and claws. Seeing the greatest ofthe gods so brutally killed, Vidar, Odin’s son, sprangupon the wolf, and with the strength born of[Pg271]madness and despair, struck the great brute dead.Surter, the fire giant, rushed quickly at Freyr, anddestroyed the bright god with his flaming sword.Then he threw fire and flames over all the earth,and soon everything was consumed in the terribleconflagration that followed. Ygdrasil, the Treeof Life, withered up and was caught by the wildlyleaping flames. The great tree burned like a drytwig; and when the last leaf fluttered feebly towardthe encroaching fire, the high walls around Asgardfell with a crash to the ground, and let in the devouringflames. The stars dropped one by one intothe sea, darkness reigned over all the world, and timeitself seemed blotted out forever.

Then silence and the brooding night took possessionof the universe, and this lasted many, manyyears; but in time a new heaven and a new earthemerged from the chaos that followed the destructionof Asgard. The sun shone again in the clearsky, and the moon and the stars once more shed theirsoft light on the earth. The flowers bloomed asgayly as before, and the fields were thick with ripeninggrain. Then, when the earth was ready foranother race of men, a certain man and womanwho had lain all these years asleep in the depths ofa cave, awoke. They looked with delight upon anearth made fresh and new, and to them and to theirchildren it was given as an everlasting possession.

[Pg273]

INDEX AND PRONOUNCING VOCABULARY

ABDEFGHIJKLMNOPRSTUVWY

Æger,also Ægir (ā´gir),58,65,143,260-261.

Æsir (ā´sir),6.

Ag´nar (1),28-36.

Ag´nar (2),201.

Alf,149-150,176-179,186,196.

Andvari (änd´vä rē),140,144-148,186,194,203,213,255-259,260.

An´gerbode,51.

An´se race,6.

An´ses (an´sēs̝),6.

Asas (ä´sas),6.

Asgard (as´gärd),6,9,25,51,66,71,77,80,86,87,120,126,128-130,133,135,184,260,266-271.

Ask (äsk),8.

Audhumbla,2.

Balder (bal´dẽr),16,126-136,259-260.

Balmung (bäl´mŏŏng),182,188,190,195,210,215,217,253.

Bar-isle (bär i´sle),115-116.

Baugi (bow´gē),21-26.

Bergel´emer,also Bergel´emir,3.

Bifrost (bēf´rŏst),7,38,67.

Bil´skirner,also Bil´skirnir,40.

Bor (bōr),3.

Bor´ghild,169-171.

Bragi (brä´ḡē),26,87,88.

Branstock (brän´stock),151.

Breidablik (brā´dȧ blik),126.

Brock,45-50.

Brunhilde (brün hĭl´dẽ),199-203,215-255.

Bure (bū´re),3.

Bur´gundy,206,209,214-215,228-231,253-254.

Dank´wart,218,222.

Day,4,15.

Draupner,also Draupnir (drowp´nir),48.

Drome (drō´me),54.

Dwarfs,7.

Elfheim (elf´hīm) or Elfland,8,31.

Eliudnir (ĕl ĭ ŏŏd´ner),127.

Ellie,also Elli (ĕl´lē),105,107.

Elves,7,42-49.

Emb´la,8.

Etzel (et´sel),259.

Fafnir (faf´nir),139,147-148,183-195,213,215.

Fairies,7.

Fates,9.

Fen´rer,also Fen´rir,52,54.

Fenris wolf,51-57,268-271.

Fensalir (fen sä lẽr´),27.

Fialar (fejäl´ar),18-20.

Fim´bul-winter,267.

Folk´-vang,74.

[Pg274]Freki(frā´kē),11.

Freya,also Freyja (frā´a),30,68,74,76,78.

Freyr (frā´r),30,44,55,109-116,271.

Fric´ka,27.

Frig´ga,27-33,128-130,134.

Galar (gäl´ar),18-20.

Gefjun (gāf´yūn),36.

Geirrod (gār´rod),28-36.

Gerd,also Gerda,109-116.

Geri (ḡā´rē),11.

Gial´ar-horn,38.

Gil´ling,19.

Ginungagap (ḡin´ōōn gä gäp´),1.

Giöll,also Gjöll (ḡī´ōl),134.

Giuki (ḡĭū´kē),207.

Gladsheim (gläts´hīm),6.

Gleipnir (glāp´nēr),56.

Glis´tenheath,195,256.

Gnomes (nōmz),7.

Gold´fax,118,123.

Gram (gräm),182.

Grani (grä´ni),185.

Greyfel (grā´fel),185-186,189,195,196-205,242.

Grimhild (grĭm´hĭlt),206.

Grim´ner,also Grim´nir,30.

Grjotlungard (gryōt´lun gard),121.

Gro´a,124-125.

Gudrun (gōōd´rōōn),206.

Gullinbursti (gōōl in bōōr´stē),48.

Gulltopp (gōōl´top),38.

Gunger (goon´ger),44.

Gunlod (goon´lod),20,24.

Gunnar (gōō´när),206,220.

Gunther (gŏŏn´tẽr),206-259.

Guttorm (gōōt´tôrm),207,248.

Gylfe,36-39.

Gymer,112-114.

Hagen (hä´ḡen),206-259.

Hall of Mists,27.

Heidrun (hī´drōōn),10.

Heimdall (hīm´däl),38,66,119,269-270.

Hel,also Hĕ´la,9,51,52,127,133-136,269.

Helheim (hel´hīm),127-128,133-136.

Helm-Gun´nar,201.

Hermod (hĕr´mod),134-136.

Hindfell (hĭnd´fell),196.

Hiordis,also Hjordis (hē ôr´dis),171-180.

Hjalprek,176.

Hlymdale,220.

Höder,also Hodur (hẽ´dẽr),128,131,134.

Hœnir (hẽ´nēr),8,80-85,137-138,147.

Hogni (hōg´nē),207.

Hraudung (hrow´doong),28.

Hreidmar (hrīd´mar),138.

Hrim´faxe,4,15.

Hrun´gner,117-123.

Hugi (hōō´ḡē),101,107.

Hugin (hōō´ḡēn),11,20.

Hymer,also Hymir (hē´mir),58-65,260.

Hyrroken,also Hyrrokin (hēr´ro ken),132.

Iduna (e dōōn´a),80-90.

Ifing (ē´fing),15.

Isenland (ē´sen land),203,212,219-221.

[Pg275]Jötunheim(yẽ´tŏŏn hīm),4,9,14,16,37,51,75,91,106,108,110-115,117-120,267,269.

Kriemhild (krēm´hilt),206-259.

Kvasir (kvä´sir),18.

Land of Fire,1,5.

Land of Mist,1,72,110.

Leding (lā´ding),53.

Logi (lo´ḡē),102,107.

Loki (lo´kē),8,40-50,68-72,73-79,80-90,91-108,129-131,137-148,259-271.

Lyngi (lin´ḡē),172-177.

Magic Mead,16-26.

Magne (mäg´ne),123.

Mani (mä´nē),5,16,268.

Mid´gard,6,9,267.

Mid´gard Serpent,51,62-63,107,268-271.

Mimer,also Mimir (mē´mēr),10,12-14.

Mjölner,also Mjöllnir,49,65,73-79,97-98,121,262,270.

Modgud,or Madgu´dur,134.

Mokkerkalfe,122.

Mu´nin,11,20.

Muspelheim (mōōs´pel hīm),2,110,269.

Nanna (nän´nä),132.

Nibelungenlied (nē´bē lŏŏng´enlēt),196,208-209.

Niblungs (nēb´lōōng),207,209.

Nidhogg (nēd´hŏg),9.

Niflheim (nĭf´l hīm),1.

Night,4,15.

Njord,31.

Norns,9,129,253,265.

Odin (ō´din),3,8,10-17,20-26,29-39,45,48-50,52,66-69,80-85,88,117-120,126-129,132-134,137-139,151,152,168,171,173,181-182,184-185,189,255,260-271.

Or van´del,124-125.

Ot´ter,138.

Peace-Bough,10.

Ragnarok (räg´nȧ rŏk´),265.

Ran (rän),141-143,148,260.

Ratatosk (rä´ta tusk),10.

Regin (rā´gĭn),139,147-148,149-150,168-169,179-195.

Rerir (rā´rēr),151.

Ring´horn,132.

Rodmar,138.

Serimnir (sā rēm´nēr),200.

Siegfried (sēḡ´frēd),149-150,179-250.

Siegmund (sēg´mund),153-175,178.

Sif,40-44.

Sigi (sē´gē),151-167.

Siggeir (sĭḡ´gār),151-167.

Sig´mund,153.

Signy (sĭg´nē),151.

Sigurd (zē´gŏŏrt),149,179,183,220,248.

Sigyn,also called Siguna (sē´gēn),264.

Sindri,also Sindre (sin´drē),45-48.

Sinfiotli,also Sinfjotli (sin´fyāt lē),160-171.

Skidbladner (skid bläd´nēr),44.

[Pg276]Skinfaxe(skin´fäx),4,15.

Skirner,also Skirnir (skĭr´nēr),55-56,111-116.

Skrymer,also Skrymir (skrē´mēr),107.

Skuld (skŏŏld),9.

Sleipnir (slāp´nēr),12,117-118,127,134.

Sol,5,268.

Surter,also Surturor Surt (sŏŏr´tēr),269,271.

Suttung (soot´tŏŏng),19-26.

Svadilfare,also Svadilfari (svä dilfä´rē),69-71.

Svartalfheim (svär talf´hīm),55.

Tarnkappe (tärn´käp pē),210,217,225,253.

Thialfi (thē äl´fē)or (tē äl´fē),92-93,96-99,100-101,122.

Thiassi (the äs´sē)or (tē as´sē),84-90.

Thok (thŏk)or (tŏk),136.

Thor (thôr´)or (tŏr),41,53-54,58-65,73-79,91-108,117-125,263-265.

Thrym (thrüm),75-79.

Thrymheim (thrüm´hīm),87.

Thunderer,seeThor.

Tree of Life,9,10,271.

Trolls,7.

Tyr (tēr),52,57,58-65.

Urd (ōōrd),9.

Urdar Fountain,9.

Ute (oo´tē),206-207,212-213,218-219,232-233.

Utgard (ŏŏt´gärd),91,95,98.

Utgard-Loke (ŏŏt´gärd lo´kē),98,100-108.

Vafthrudner,also Vafthrudnir,14-17.

Valhalla (văl hăl´la),31,72,119,171,200-201.

Valkyrie (văl kĭr´ĭ),196-203,215,217,222,254.

Var (vär),79.

Ve (vā),3.

Verdande,also Verdandi (vĕrdän´de),9.

Vidar,270.

Vigrid (vēḡ´rēd),16,269-270.

Vikings,176-177.

Vile,also Vili (vē´lē),3.

Vingolf (vĭn´gŏlf),6.

Volsung (King) (vŏl´sŏŏng),151-155.

Volsunga Saga (vēl sŏŏn´ḡä sä´gä),149,153,179,183,185,199,206-207,208,220,248,255.

Volsungs,150,155-168,170,172-175,183,198.

Voltam (vōl´tam),127.

Well of Wisdom,12.

Wo´dan, Wo´tän, Wo´den,seeOdin,3.

Ygdrasil,also Yggdrasill (ĭḡ´drasil),9,10,271.

Ymir (ē´mer),2-4.

THE following pages contain advertisements ofbooks by the same author or on kindred subjects.

BY THE SAME AUTHOR

Stories of Old Greece and Rome

Decorated cloth, 12mo, $1.50 net

“... an excellent combination of mythology andliterature.... Here is a gift that is a tonic for theweak imagination of the modern child.”—The Nation.

“An interesting and valuable book.”—N. Y. Times.

“Illustrated from photographs of famous statues andpaintings, this will be a valuable adjunct to the youngperson’s library.”—The Continent.

“If you have not a volume of these myths of the godsand immortals, here is an excellent one to buy.”—SanJose Herald.

“All that is classic, inspirational, tonic, and vital inGreek and Roman mythology is here repictured in charmingphrase for young and old.”—Journal of Education.

“It opens up a new world to the childish imaginationthat is bound to foster in its wonder much that is beautifuland idealistic.”—Boston Transcript.

“Had we the deciding vote in every Board of Educationwe would adopt a general rule that all childrenshould be made familiar with mythology at an earlyage.... This book by Emilie Kip Baker is an admirableguide and is published in a form that gives it theappearance of a good reading book.”—Literary Digest.

“The book should make a valuable addition to thelibrary of the teacher in mythology in elementary andhigh schools.”—The Classical Journal.

THE MACMILLAN COMPANY
Publishers 64-66 Fifth Avenue New York

NEW BOOKS FOR BOYS AND GIRLS

ANOTHER “DEAL” STORY

The Winds of Deal

By LATTA GRISWOLD

Author of “Deering of Deal” and “Deering at Princeton”

With Illustrations byGeorge Harper

Decorated cloth, 12mo, $1.25 net

That there are few men better qualified to write school stories than LattaGriswold has been amply demonstrated by that author’s previous books. Here,in “The Winds of Deal,” he tells another tale quite as stirring as its predecessors.Deal School, thelocale of his first work, “Deering of Deal,” is again thescene, while Tony Deering himself once more figures in the action, though heis not the character of chief importance. That person is one George Erroll, amost likable chap and a very human creation, too. In the narrative of his adventuresMr. Griswold has splendidly caught the spirit of school life with itsfriendships, its trials, its tribulations as well as its successes.

ROBERTS’S NEW ANIMAL STORIES

Hoof and Claw

By CHARLES G. D. ROBERTS

Author of “Kings in Exile,” “Neighbors Unknown,” etc.

With Illustrations byPaul Bransom

Decorated cloth, 12mo, $1.35 net

“Under the faithful guidance of Mr. Roberts,” the editor of theLondonAthenæum once wrote, “we have ventured among the wild beasts of land andsea; and we hope to do so many times in the future. It is an education notto be missed by those who have the chance, and the chance is every one’s.”“Hoof and Claw” is another of those books for which Mr. Roberts is so justlyfamous, a book much like the one referred to in the preceding sentences. Init are told more than a dozen stories of animals. Mr. Roberts writes with anunderstanding of the nature of the creatures of field and forest that is nothingshort of marvelous, an appreciation of the wild life that has seldom if everfound its equal in literature. Among the titles of the tales in his latest collectionare “The Bear That Thought He Was a Dog,” “The Trail of the VanishingHerds,” “The Cabin Door,” “A Basket of Fish,” “The Fisher in theChutes,” “The Runner of the High Peaks,” and “Up a Tree.”

THE MACMILLAN COMPANY
Publishers 64-66 Fifth Avenue New York

BY LATTA GRISWOLD

Deering at Princeton

Decorated Cloth, Ill., 12mo, $1.35 net

“The book gives a series of graphic pictures of undergraduate life atold Nassau, with a fine young Southerner as the hero.”—San FranciscoChronicle.

“The book is an exceedingly pleasant one, of a good tone withoutbeing in the least priggish.”—N. Y. Herald.

“The story is written carefully and seriously, obviously by one wellacquainted with Princeton customs and anxious to set before the readerthe various influences that mold the college man.”—Chicago Tribune.

“Deering is a good, clean type of American who lands the captaincyof the Orange and Black football team.... A nice, wholesome book.”—N. Y.American.

“... will take rank among the reliable narratives of American collegelife.”—Newark Evening News.

“... an admirable story of its kind, head and shoulders above theaverage.”—Providence Journal.

PUBLISHED BY
THE MACMILLAN COMPANY
64-66 Fifth Avenue, New York

NEW VOLUMES IN THE
MACMILLAN’S JUVENILE LIBRARY

Each volume, cloth, 12mo, 50 cents net

NEW TITLES

With the publication of the above volumes the usefulnessof theJuvenile Library is further extended. It isthe purpose of this series to present books for boys andgirls which have been approved as suitable reading bythose who have made a study of fiction for children.Only those books the influence of which is undoubtedlyof the right kind are included. While this purpose is notlost sight of, neither is the child’s point of view neglected.The stories are without exception of that entertainingcharacter that appeal strongly to the youngsters for whomthey were written.

THE MACMILLAN COMPANY
Publishers 64-66 Fifth Avenue New York

OTHER VOLUMES IN THE MACMILLAN JUVENILE LIBRARY

Each Volume, Cloth, 12mo, 50 cents net

Altsheler. The Horsemen of the Plains

ByJoseph A. Altsheler

“A story of the West, of Indians, of scouts, trappers, fur traders and,in short, of everything that is dear to the imagination of a healthyAmerican boy.”—New York Sun.

Bacon. While Caroline Was Growing

ByJosephine Daskam Bacon

“Only a genuine lover of children, and a keenly sympathetic observerof human nature, could have given us a book like this.”—Boston Herald.

Carroll. Alice’s Adventures and Through theLooking Glass

ByLewis Carroll

“One of the immortal books for children.”

Dix. A Little Captive Lad

ByMarie Beulah Dix

“The human interest is strong and children are sure to like it.”—WashingtonTimes.

Greene. Pickett’s Gap

ByHomer Greene

“The story presents a picture of truth and honor that cannot fail tohave a vivid impression upon the reader.”—Toledo Blade.

This collection of juvenile books contains works of standard quality,on a variety of subjects—history, biography, fiction, science and poetry—carefullychosen to meet the needs and interests of both boys andgirls.

PUBLISHED BY
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64-66 Fifth Avenue, New York

OTHER VOLUMES IN THE MACMILLAN JUVENILE LIBRARY

Each Volume, Cloth, 12mo. 50 cents net. Postage extra.

Mabie. The Book of Christmas

ByH. W. Mabie

“A beautiful collection of Christmas verse and prose in which all theold favorites will be found in an artistic setting.”—The St. Louis Mirror.

Nesbit. The Railway Children

ByE. Nesbit

“A delightful story, revealing the author’s intimate knowledge ofjuvenile ways.”—The Nation.

Whyte. The Story Book Girls

ByChristina Whyte

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Wright. Dream Fox Story Book

ByMabel Osgood Wright

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Wright. Aunt Jimmy’s Will

ByMabel Osgood Wright

“Barbara has written no more delightful book than this. Everychild will love it.”

Lucas. Slowcoach

ByE. V. Lucas

“The record of an English family’s coaching tour in a great old-fashionedwagon. A charming narrative, as quaint and original as itsname.”—Booknews Monthly.

Major. Uncle Tom Andy Bill

ByCharles Major

“A stirring story full of bears, Indians and hidden treasures.”—ClevelandLeader.

Major. The Bears of Blue River

ByCharles Major

“A little boy of pioneer days has many exciting adventures, whichwill please all real boys.”

PUBLISHED BY
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64-66 Fifth Avenue, New York

Transcriber’s Note

Minor punctuation errors have been corrected.

The following changes have been made:

Illustrations have been moved where necessary so that they are not inthe middle of a paragraph.

Alphabetic links have been added to the index by the transcriber for theconvenience of the reader.