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FRITHIOF’S SAGA 53
"Thy confidence to many shun to give,
Full barns we lock; the empty, open leave;
Choose one in whom to trust, more seek not thou;
The world, O Halfdan, knows what three men know!"
After the King rose Thorsten: thus spake he,—
"Odin alone to seek ill fitteth thee;
We ’ve shared each hap, O King, our whole lives through,
And death, I trust, we ’11 share together too.
" Full many a warning Time hath whispered me,
Son Frithiof, which I gladly give to thee;
As on the tombstones high perch Odin’s birds,
So on the lips of age hang wisdom’s words.
" Honor the gods; for every good and harm
Comes from above, like sunshine and like storm.
Deep into hearts they see, and many mourn
In lifelong sorrow for one short hour’s scorn.
"Honor the King! let one man rule with might,
Day hath but one eye, many hath the night.
Let not the better grudge against the best;
The sword must have a hilt to hold it fast.
" High strength is Heaven’s gift, yet little prize
It brings its owner, if he be not wise;
A bear with twelve men’s strength can one man kill,
As shield ’gainst sword, set law against thy will.
"The proud are feared by few, hated by all,
And insolence, O Frithiof, brings a fall.
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