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NOTES 123
Pace 9. How worms crawled out of the rotten wood.
After a battle in Gudbrandsdale, a Thing was summoned, in which
Olaf discussed with the defeated chieftain the merits of the old and new
religions. On the third day of this meeting, the peasants brought with
them a great wooden image of their god, “a mickle man-shape all
gleaming with gold and silver.” Olaf’s colloquy with the chieftain is
thus related in the Saga:
“Then Gudbrand-a-Dales stood up and spake: ‘Where is now thy
God, king? I am minded to think now that somewhat low he beareth
his chin-beard ; and it seemeth to me that less now is the swagger of
thee and of the horned one yonder whom thou callest a bishop, and
that sittest there beside thee, than yesterday it was; for that now our
god is come, he who ruleth all things, and looketh on you with keen
eyes, and I see, that now ye are full of fear, and scarce dare to lift up
your eyes. Now, drop your folly, and trow in our god, who hath all
your ways in his hand.’ And thus he closed his speech.
“The king spake to Kolbein the Strong, without the bonders wot-
ting thereof: ‘If so it befall, the while of my speech, that they look
away from their god, then give him that stroke, the most that thou
mayest, with thy club.’
“Then the king stood up and said: ‘Many things hast thou said to
us this morning ; thou deemest it a wonder that thou mayest not see
our god, but we hope he will soon come to us. Thou threatenest us
with thy god, who is blind and deaf, and may neither help himself or
others, and may get him nowhither away from his place, save he be
borne; and now I look for it that he will be but a little way from ill.
Lo! look ye now and gaze eastward, there now fareth our god with a
great light.’
“Then ran up the sun and all the bonders looked towards him. And
in that same nick of time laid on Kolbein so well on their god, that
it burst all asunder, and out of it leapt mice as big as cats, and adders,
and worms. But the bonders were so afeard, that they fled away, some
to their ships, but whenas they ran out their craft, the water rushed
in and filled them, so they might not go a-board them. But they that
ran to the yoke-beasts found them nowhere.” (Chapter 119.)
PaGE 9. Loki.
“One dweller in Asgard is still to be mentioned, and that is the evil
Loki, who disturbs the peace of the gods, and will work their final ruin.
He was born among the Yotuns, but gained the confidence of Odin by
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