Arthur Gilchrist Brodeur

“ You are husband to my uncle’s sister; you have been faithful and gracious to me; you are such a man as the earth has seldom seen. Call off your spears; let my men go in peace. Why should the blood of Jutes stand between us?”
Finn’s eyes glowed.
“Duty to your uncle’s ghost binds you,” he answered slowly. “Duty to those who have taken my wage binds me. Think you I would leave to your swords those Jutes who have served me? This fight must go on till Dane or Frisian fall. Better that the death of one of us should end it than that a thousand men should perish!”
Hengist nodded. ”

“ Guthlaf asserted, “and such an oath binds no man. The duty to avenge a man’s murdered kin comes before any oath—surely before an oath extorted under the threat of Frisian spears!”
“Moreover, we are Danes, not Frisians!” Oslaf cried in sudden rage. “We stifle in this alien land! Are we never to see our homes again? Must we eat the bread of exile and drink our tears forever? Are we to lay our bones in Frisian soil, where none will mourn for us? Does your honor compel us to live in shame and die in misery? ”

“ In their rear the battle still swayed and clamored, Frisians using every moment of respite, Danes holding stubbornly against numbers that now were even, and wondering as they fought why Hengist did not charge.
Raising his wet sword in a commanding gesture, Finn spoke; his voice boomed through the din like thunder through the chatter of a crowd:
“End this slaughter, Hengist! Why should good men die for us? Man to man, blade to blade, let us settle our own quarrel!” ”

“ Soon Oslaf returned, Sigurd of the clan of the Sword-Danes at his side.
No man was more fearless, more cunning with the sword, than Sigurd; and none of the Danes was held so wise. All that Winter he had served his lord without a murmur, fighting at Hengist’s side under the Frisian banner; never had he, like the others, sought to influence his prince’s mind toward vengeance. No spot rested on Sigurd’s honor; and for his integrity and wisdom Hengist revered him above all men, cherishing his counsel. Now Hengist repeated to him all that Guthlaf and Oslaf had said. ”

“ For the first time Hengist thought of his aging aunt, Finn’s queen. The first outbreak of war, in which Hnaf fell, had cost her the lives of son and brother; now Hengist had slain her husband. Alone in the winter of her years, what joy was left for her? His heart smote him; his grief for his own deed was greater than he could bear.
Finn read his thoughts.
“Grieve not!” he gasped. “You have—borne yourself—like a man! The gods call me—farewell!”
When the old man was dead, Hengist called Oslaf to him, and sent the chief at top speed, on Finn’s horse, to the Jutish hall. ”

“ Sigurd answered with slow deliberation. “Two duties bind each man’s honor: the duty to keep a pledged oath, and the duty to avenge the dead. Of these two, the higher duty is to avenge. The gods will forgive a broken pledge, if there is a compelling cause for breaking it; they never forgive a man who leaves his dead unpaid for. A slain man stifles in his grave, bathed in the burning drops of his own blood, till he is ransomed by the blood of the slayer, or the slayer’s kin.”
Hengist pondered on these things. ”

“ In the midst of his splendor lay Finn the Folk-Ruler on his shield, his sword in his nerveless hand.
North of the mound, on horses levied from the countryside, the Frisian warriors waited in serried ranks. On the south were the Danes, each warrior full-armed, to do honor to the dead. Alone against the sky, Hengist stood by the dead king’s bier, torch in hand. It was the will of both peoples that he, at once the slayer and the nearest male kinsman of the dead, should light the funeral-pyre. ”

“ Ye two, Jutes and Danes, shall lay aside this quarrel forever—do ye hear? When ye have given your pledge, then shall the Jutes draw lots to decide which of them shall bear punishment. For every nine white lots there shall be one black. They who draw the black shall be hanged forthwith. For them who are left, and for all the Danes, there shall be free pardon. Is it understood?”
The Jutes cried out in consternation, and some began to clash their weapons. But the plain was now shaking under the hoofs of five hundred Frisian horsemen, whose mail and spears glittered in the frosty light. ”

“ A man must avenge his own—no other man can avenge for him. By sparing nine-tenths of the Jutes, by continuing to regard and reward them as his servants, Finn had virtually taken on himself the burden of their guilt. By preventing the Danes from renewing the feud, Finn, in the eyes of all Northern folk, had made himself, vicariously, Hnaf’s slayer. And Hengist had pledged his men—Hnaf’s men—to serve Finn. ”

“ He pointed to his uncle, Hnaf.
Now to remind a man who has left his own country to serve a king of another land that he fights for wages is scant courtesy. Wulf, nudging his companion, rose, a black scowl on his face.
“Come, Wigstan!” he commanded. “We are unwelcome here!”
Hnaf hastened forward to appease them, but they paid no heed to his outstretched hand. The Danes had not applauded Hengist’s outburst, for they sensed its danger, and winced at its bad manners. But as the Jutes edged toward the door there was none but Hnaf to bid them stay. ”

“ Guthlaf and Oslaf entered, the fiercest of the Danish warriors. Brothers they were, deeply attached to each other; there had been a third brother, Hunlaf; but he had fallen beneath Wigstan’s knife just before the Jutish assault four months before. He had left a grown son, a strong young man and a brave soldier. This son had a name of his own, but none mentioned it. In their hot desire to avenge their brother, Guthlaf and Oslaf kept the flame of their wrath alive by calling the boy only “Son of Hunlaf,” and all the Danes followed their example. ”

“ The first onslaught of the column rolled up against the Danish spears; but as those in the rear surged up through the entrance, their weight forced the Danes to drop their shafts and flail out with sword and ax. The moment’s loss of time, as they reached for their hand-weapons, cost them several men. But in the forefront were the most skilful warriors, Sigurd the Doorkeeper, famed throughout the North; Auha of the Red Sword; Guthlaf and Oslaf, and Hnaf himself, backed by veterans of a score of stricken fields. ”

“ Danes cried out in rage and grief; the Jutes, incredulous, gaped and muttered.
“My uncle’s murder has been wiped out by the toll our swords have taken of you,” Hengist addressed them. “In token that vengeance has been satisfied, I laid Hnaf’s sword on Finn’s pyre, and the fire has eaten it. Will ye be my men?”
A Jutish officer found his voice.
“To what end, my lord? We dare not stay here—the Frisians would slay us; we can not go to our own land, being, as thou hast said, men without honor. What wouldst thou do with us?” ”

“ The oaken planks—each a handbreadth thick—quivered beneath the onslaught of axes.
Since the posts of the palisade rendered their shafts of no avail against the head of the column, Hengist’s men kept a stinging storm of arrows beating against the Jutish rear and mainguard, at so short a range that the barbs bit through mail and flesh. The column swayed undo: its punishment, but held its ground. Deploying would have saved many lives, but would have weakened their final rush when the time should come; wherefore, in the teeth of Hengist’s volleys, they held their own like men. ”

“ But Finn was the most generous, the most just, the bravest of lords; wherefore their oath to him could not be broken without a treachery almost equal to that of the Jutes. If Hengist owed a sacred duty to Hnaf’s ghost, he owed a sacred duty to the living Finn.
Hnaf, in whose personal service Hengist had been from his fifth year, had always fostered the spirit of honor in his nephew.
“Courage,” he had often said, “all men have in some measure; it is honor and good faith that win the favor of the gods. Keep your word, if you would be esteemed a man!” ”

“ By the time the first Danes streamed to the hall-doors, javelin-men manned the loopholes, and the Jutish spearmen, flinging on their mail, snatching up shields and pikes, were rushing to their stations.
The Danish advantage in numbers was partly offset by the shelter afforded the Jutes by their walls. The fight raged savagely at both doors, and at every loophole which the Danes strove to command with massed spear-points. The Jutes could not sally, but they could hold their ground and take sharp toll of their foes. ”

“ Wigstan, with a dexterity that belied his seeming drunkenness, swerved from the blow, snatched a broad knife from under his mail tunic, and plunged the blade deep in his opponent’s throat.
“Treachery!” roared the Danes, all leaping up. “They bear weapons!”
Their eyes aflame with malice, the two Jutes stood by the open door. The Danes were taken by surprize. No guest was supposed to bear arms in the hall of his host; and these two had said they were weaponless. To show their own good faith, the Danes had hung their arms high on pegs along the walls. ”

“ When the time is ripe, we must find a way to fall on the Jutes alone, before the Frisian host can come to their support. It will be hard; the Jutes will outnumber us nigh six to one. But the gods have chosen the road we must take, and they will guide us along it.”
Sigurd, his eyes lowered, caressed his beard.' At length he looked Hengist full in the face, and spoke that which he had hitherto kept hidden:
“My lord, we shall not be outnumbered. Guthlaf and Oslaf took with them all the gold and precious stuff that Finn has given us since we first came hither. ”

“ With this treasure they will hire, not four-score, but as many men as the gold will buy—at least fifteen hundred, and ships to bear them hither again. They will wait to sail till the weather is smooth; then they will make all haste. When they are almost within sight of Frisian land, they will cruise offshore till night. Under cover of dark they will land, making for that part of the shore which it is our duty to guard. Finn posts a few Frisians with us for safety’s sake; them we must overpower as soon as we hear the muted notes of Guthlaf’s trumpet. ”

“ It is the way of honor. If I slay you, your men are to lay down their arms; all that is yours shall pass into our hands, save only that the lives and liberty of the Frisians shall be spared. The Jutes, dead or alive, shall be ours to deal with. ”

“ Hengist returned.
“Aye, your uncle, brother of my wife!” Finn answered. “Uncle and nephew have slain each other; ye Danes have lost your king, and I—my son! There has been enough bloodshed—shall more evil be done for a hatred without cause? ”

“ They passed no villages; for a hall that has to house many men must stand alone amid the wide fields and pasture lands needed to supply its occupants with food. The cocks were crying their first challenge from distant hamlets when Hengist’s division caught the loom of the Jutish palisade, a deeper shadow against the night, a little down the road. ”

“ As the Jute leaped into the hall, Auha’s ax clove him to the brain. Then, side by side, the two champions waited; nor was there any Jute that lusted to be first to meet them.
At the east door the huge-limbed Hnaf and his fiery nephew held their posts well. Four men fell before them, Wulf himself reeling back under Hnaf’s ax. But Wulf was not slain—the stroke had been turned by his ridged helmet. He came on again. Shield he had none, for his torn hand could not bear to grip the thongs; but he feared no man while he could hold weapon. ”

“ As best he could in the night, Hengist surveyed his new men, striding up and down the ranks, issuing orders. He spoke softly, giving his commands to the chiefs as he came to them; all were bidden to reply in whispers, lest the voices of so many be heard by some lurking Frisian.
But the Frisians were all unsuspecting in their dwellings, save those who guarded the shore; and those posted at this point were disposed of. Quickly Hengist led his host straight inland, till he was well-past all the coast-guard; then they turned off toward the royal road. ”

“ A Frisian herald made known the terms of the bargain between Finn and Hengist. The fight was to be to the death—neither should receive aid. If any man on either side interfered in the duel, the battle should be resumed, and eternal disgrace should stain the name of him who provoked it. That side whose leader fell should, without striking a blow, permit the other to work its will—save that no more lives but Jutish lives should be taken. That which went on in the hall of the Jutes, two miles away, no man could now prevent ”

“ The Jutes seemed to assent; yet they desired now to resume the fight and end it, one way or the other, before Finn should come up with an overwhelming force of Frisians. Knowing themselves guilty, feeling in their hearts that the king’s son’s blood was on their hands as much as on the dead Hnaf’s, they wanted to give their over charged feelings the relief of battle. In fighting they might, perchance, win a death easier than that Finn would inflict on them when he learned the truth. ”

“ Slowly, lashing out with sword and ax, the Danes retreated, Hnaf, Oslaf, and Guthlaf holding the rear. They had lost eight dead, and many of the rest were wounded. But they had broken the Jutish circle, bitten deep into the numbers of their foes, and saved the hall from burning. Step by step they made good their retreat, till all were within but the three chiefs, backed up against the doorway. Now these must turn to surmount the high threshold after their men. ”