Nora K. Chadwick

“ Then said Hjalmar to Odd: "Do you see that all our men are fallen? It is my belief that we shall all be Othin's guests tonight in Valhalla."
—And it is said that that was the only word of fear ever uttered by Hjalmar.
Odd replied: "My advice would be that we should make off to the wood; for we shall never be able to put up a fight, being only two against twelve—and twelve too who have slain the twelve bravest men in Sweden."
Then said Hjalmar: "We will never flee from our foes. Rather will we suffer the worst that their weapons can inflict. I am going to fight against the berserks." ”

“ She spoke to him courteously, and when he asked her her name she said she was called Göndul. Then they talked together. She questioned him about his mighty deeds and he told her everything frankly and asked her whether she knew of any king to match himself in valour and hardihood, renown and prowess. She replied that she knew of one who did not fall short of him—one who had twenty kings subject to him just as Hethin had; and she added that his name was Högni and that he lived in the North, in Denmark.
"I know one thing," said Hethin; "we have got to prove which of us is the more valiant." ”

“ It happened one morning at sunrise that as Hervör was standing on the summit of a tower over the gate of the fortress, she looked southwards towards the forest and saw clouds of dust, arising from a great body of horse, by which the sun was hidden for a long time. Next she saw a gleam beneath the dust, as though she were gazing on a mass of gold—fair shields overlaid with gold, gilded helmets and white corslets.
The motif of a chief or his lady standing on the pinnacle of a tower of the fort and looking out over the surrounding country for an approaching army is a very common one in ballads. ”

“ IV.° They went from the British Isles to Valland, and found the barrow and immediately set to work to break it open. And when six days had elapsed they came upon a trap-door in the barrow. There they beheld a big fiend, black and huge, all clad in glittering gold, and seated on a throne. He was roaring loudly and blowing a fire.
Hromund asked: "Now who will enter the barrow? Whoever does so shall have his choice of three treasures."
Voli replied: "No-one will be anxious to forfeit his life for them. There are sixty men here, and that troll will be the death of them all." ”

“ We will call on the Hunnish people
To arm them with spear and with shield.—
They shall march to the fight
Right royally dight,
And conquer their foes in the field.
Then he added:
We will summon a mighty host, Hlöth,
And shield on shield will clang,
As the warriors arm them from twelve years old,
And the wild colts gallop along.
And the Huns shall mass
Ere the winter pass,
And assemble a countless throng.
That winter, King Humli and Hlöth remained quiet, but the following spring they collected such a large army that the land of the Huns was swept bare of fighting men. ”

“ A short time after, Svanhvit was talking to King Olaf and said:
"Hromund, who brought us the greatest glory, has now been banished from the royal retinue; and in his place you retain two men who care for neither honour nor virtue."
The King replied: "A rumour reached me that he intended to betray you; and the sword shall part your love."
"You have very soon forgotten," said she, "the time when he went alone into the barrow; and no-one else dared.—Voli and Bild will be hanged first." ”

“ Surely no material could be less promising than King Heithrek's Riddles; yet in virtue of what has been forgotten and what has been selected—the telescoping of the riddles and the elaboration of the setting—the ballad spirit has entered in and shaped from the unwieldy mass an artistic whole. ”

“ Hromund then freed himself and seized the sword, and said:
"Now tell me how many men you have slain in single combat with Mistletoe."
"A hundred and forty four," said the ghost, "and I never got a scratch. I tried my skill with King Seming who was in Sweden, and he was of the opinion that it would take a long time to vanquish me."
Hromund said: "You have been a curse on men for a long time, and it will be a good deed to kill you at once."
Then he cut off the ghost's head, and burned him to ashes on the fire; and then he went out of the barrow. ”

“ I am telling you the truth when I say that the vanishing of the watchmen must be laid to the charge of me and Högni, the son of Halfdan. For we and our men have been laid under such powerful and destructive spells that we go on fighting night and day; and this has continued for many generations, while Hild, the daughter of Högni, sits and looks on. It is Othin who has laid this spell upon us; and our only hope of redemption is that a Christian man should give battle to us.—When that occurs, he whom the Christian slays shall not stand up again; and so will each one be freed from his distress. ”

“ In the last section of the story, dealing with the adventures of Angantyr and Hlöth, the sons of Heithrek, there is no longer any reminiscence of the Viking Age or the North of Europe. Here we are away back among the Goths and Huns in the fifth or the latter part of the fourth century.
Throughout this strange concatenation of scenes a connecting link is afforded by the magic flaming sword, which is handed on from generation to generation, and which can never be sheathed without having dealt a death wound. ”

“ Höfund had a funeral feast made for his son Angantyr, and he was lamented by everybody.
Heithrek got little joy of his deed and lived in the woods for a long time, shooting deer and bears for food. And when he came to think over his position, he reflected that there would be but a poor tale to tell if no-one was to know what had become of him; and it occurred to him that he could even yet become a man famous for deeds of prowess like his ancestors before him. So he went home and sought out his mother and begged her to ask his father to give him some sound advice before they parted. ”

“ Hromund was not behindhand then: he struck Helgi on the head with Mistletoe, cleaving helmet and skull down to the shoulders, and breaking a piece out of the sword. Then Hromund took his belt-knife and thrust it into his belly where there was a gaping wound, and forced back the paunch fat which was hanging out. At the same time he stitched up the edges of his belly with a cord, bound his clothes firmly over it, and so continued fighting valiantly. Men fell dead in heaps before him, and he fought on till midnight. ”

“ The ghost replied: "There is no glory in attacking me with a sword when I am unarmed. I would rather try my strength in wrestling with you."
Then Hromund flung down the sword and trusted to his strength. When Thrain saw that, he took down his cauldron which he kept above him. He was by no means pleasant to watch as he blew up his fire, ready to make a meal from the cauldron. The body of the cauldron was full, and there was a big flame beneath its feet. Thrain was wearing a gold-wrought mantle. ”

“ She replied: "If you want to marry me to anyone, then I would rather have a man whose good qualities I know already than one of whom I have only known by hearsay, and nothing but evil at that."
Angantyr said: "I will not bandy words with you; for I can see that you love Hjalmar. But as for you, Hjalmar, come south to Samsø and meet me in single combat. If you do not appear next midsummer you will be a coward in the eyes of all men."
Hjalmar said that he would not fail to come and fight, and the sons of Arngrim went home to their [pg 92] father and told him what had happened. ”

“ Helgi said: "You have bound a girl's garter round your hand, Hromund. Lay aside the shield which you are carrying. It will be impossible to wound you [pg 73] so long as you carry that: I am sure that you are dependent on that girl."
Hromund could not endure these galling words, and flung down his shield. Helgi the Bold had always been victorious, and it was by means of magic that he had gained his success. His mistress' name was Kara—she who was present in the form of a swan. Helgi brandished his sword so high over his head that it chopped off the swan's leg. ”

“ If I die, I wish to have Tyrfing in the barrow with me. Odd likewise shall have his shirt and Hjalmar his weapons!' And they agreed that those who were left alive were to raise a barrow for the others. ”

“ Ormar rode day and night as fast as he could to King Angantyr in Arheimar. The Huns then proceeded to ravage and burn throughout the land.
And when Ormar came into the presence of King Angantyr, he cried:
From the south have I journeyed hither
To bear these tidings to thee:—
The whole of the forest of Myrkvith
Is burnt up utterly;
And the land of the Goths is drenched with blood
As our warriors fall and die.
Then he continued:
All of thy noblest warriors
On the field are lying dead.
King Heithrek's daughter fell by the sword ”

“ The King said: "As you are the most cunning of all dwarfs you must make me a sword, the best you can. The hilt and the grip must be of gold, and it must cut iron as easily as if it were cloth and never [pg 89] rust; and it must bring victory to whoever uses it in battle and single combat." ”

“ In reality, considering through how many stages the ballad material has passed, one is amazed at the vitality of the stories and the amount of original groundwork preserved. A careful comparison of the Völsunga Saga and the Faroese cycle of ballads generally classed together as Sjúrðar Kvæði—which, be it observed, were never written down at all till the nineteenth century—brings out to a degree literally amazing the conservatism of the ballads on the old heroic themes. ”

“ Her name was Kara. At that same moment Helgi the Bold encountered the eight brothers and slew every one of them.
VII. At this point Hromund entered the battle. Helgi the Bold caught sight of him and cried:
"Here comes the man who slew my brother Hröngvith. Now you must beware of that sword of his which he got in the barrow.—You held aloof while I slew your brothers."
"You need not question my courage, Helgi," replied Hromund, "for one or other of us must fall now."
Helgi said: "Mistletoe is such a heavy weapon that you cannot use it. I will lend you another that you can manage." ”

“ They wrestled hard and long till everything round them shook. At last Hromund tripped him and brought him down. It had become very dark by this time.
[pg 69]
Then said the ghost: "By guile you have overcome me and taken my sword. It was that that brought our struggle to this issue. I have lived in my barrow for a long time, brooding over my riches; but it is not wise to trust too much to one's treasures, however good they may seem. Never would I have thought that you, Mistletoe, my good sword, would do me a hurt." ”

“ Let every man bear himself bravely!"
They thereupon landed and fell to fighting. Högni was full of fury, but Hethin was both dexterous with his weapons and mighty in his stroke. It is told for fact that so potent was the evil charm in the spell that even when they had cloven one another to the very shoulders, yet they started up as before and went on fighting. Hild sat in a grove and watched the battle.
This harrowing torment continued to oppress them from the time when they began to fight until Olaf Tryggvason became King of Norway. ”

“ He had a wife and a son called Hethin, who quickly grew into a man remarkable for his strength, stature and ability. While still a youth he went on raiding expeditions and became a sea-king, harrying all round Spain and Greece and all the neighbouring kingdoms; so that he made twenty kings pay him tribute, holding their land and revenue as his vassals. In winter time Hethin used to stay at home in Serkland. It is said that on one occasion he went into a forest with his retinue. He left his men and found himself alone in a glade where he saw a woman, tall and fair, sitting on a throne. ”

“ Högni replied: "Had you asked me for Hild I would have married her to you; and even in spite of your having carried her off by force we might have made up our quarrel. Now, however, since you have been guilty of such an outrage as to put the Queen to [pg 55] death in a most shameful manner, I certainly will not make terms with you. We will try here, on the spot, which of us is the more valiant fighter."
Hethin replied: "It would be best, if nothing less than fighting will satisfy you, that we two should measure our strength alone; for you have no quarrel with any man here save with me. ”

“ Send men to him now, and offer to make it up with him, and to give him so much of your territories as you may agree upon with him; and offer him your daughter too, if we can recover our son. That will be better than that you should part from him in enmity. And even if he already has wide territory, he has not a wife as beautiful as she."
"I had not intended to offer her to anyone," replied the King; "but as you are so wise, you shall decide."
Messengers were sent accordingly to King Heithrek to bring about a reconciliation. ”