{"collection":"myth-cosmogony","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_1151/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_1151","id":"gutenberg_1151","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/1151","summary":null,"tags":["Category: Classics of Literature","Category: German Literature","Category: Mythology, Legends & Folklore","Category: Poetry","Epic poetry, Germanic","Folklore -- Germany","Kriemhild (Legendary character)","Mythology, Germanic","Nibelungen","Siegfried (Legendary character)"],"text":"THE NIBELUNGENLIED\n\nBy An Unknown Author\n\nTranslated by Daniel B. Shumway\n\n\nOriginally written in Middle High German (M.H.G.), sometime around 1200\nA.D., although this dating is by no means certain. Author unknown.\n\nThe text of this edition is based on that published as \"The\nNibelungenlied\", translated by Daniel B. Shumway (Houghton-Mifflin Co.,\nNew York, 1909).\n\nPREPARER'S NOTE: In order to make this electronic edition easier to use,\nthe preparer has found it necessary to re-arrange the endnotes of Mr.\nShumway's edition, collating them with the chapters themselves and\nsubstituting page references with footnote references. The preparer\ntakes full responsibility for these changes.--DBK.\n\n\n\n\nSELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY:\n\nOTHER TRANSLATIONS--\n\nHatto, A.T. (Trans.): \"Nibelungenlied\" (Penguin Classics, London, 1962).\nProse translation.\n\nRyder, Frank G. (Trans.): \"The Song of the Nibelungs\" (Wayne State\nUniversity Press, Detroit, 1962). Verse translation.\n\nRECOMMENDED READING--\n\nAnonymous: \"Kudrun\", Translated by Marion E. Gibbs & Sidney Johnson\n(Garland Pub., New York, 1992).\n\nAnonymous: \"Volsungasaga\", Translated by William Morris and Eirikr\nMagnusson (Walter Scott Press, London, 1888; Reissued by the Online\nMedieval and Classical Library as E-Text #29, 1997).\n\nSaxo Grammaticus: \"The First Nine Books of the Danish History\",\nTranslated by Oliver Elton (London, 1894; Reissued by the Online\nMedieval and Classical Library as E-Text OMACL #28, 1997).\n\n\n\n\n\nPREFACE\n\nThis work has been undertaken in the belief that a literal translation\nof as famous an epic as the \"Nibelungenlied\" would be acceptable to the\ngeneral reading public whose interest in the story of Siegfried has\nbeen stimulated by Wagner's operas and by the reading of such poems as\nWilliam Morris' \"Sigurd the Volsung\". Prose has been selected as the\nmedium of translation, since it is hardly possible to give an accurate\nrendering and at the same time to meet the demands imposed by rhyme\nand metre; at least, none of the verse translations made thus far have\nsucceeded in doing this. The prose translations, on the other hand,\nmostly err in being too continuous and in condensing too much, so that\nthey retell the story instead of translating it. The present translator\nhas tried to avoid these two extremes. He has endeavored to translate\nliterally and accurately, and to reproduce the spirit of the original,\nas far as a prose translation will permit. To this end the language has\nbeen made as simple and as Saxon in character as possible. An exception\nhas been made, however, in the case of such Romance words as were in use\nin England during the age of the romances of chivalry, and which would\nhelp to land a Romance coloring; these have been frequently employed.\nVery few obsolete words have been used, and these are explained in the\nnotes, but the language has been made to some extent archaic, especially\nin dialogue, in order to give the impression of age. At the request of\nthe publishers the Introduction Sketch has been shorn of the apparatus\nof scholarship and made as popular as a study of the poem and its\nsources would allow. The advanced student who may be interested in\nconsulting authorities will find them given in the introduction to the\nparallel edition in the Riverside Literature Series. A short list of\nEnglish works on the subject had, however, been added.\n\nIn conclusion the translator would like to thank his colleagues, C.G.\nChild and Cornelius Weygandt, for their helpful suggestions in starting\nthe work, and also to acknowledge his indebtedness to the German edition\nof Paul Piper, especially in preparing the notes.\n\n--DANIEL BUSSIER SHUMWAY.\n\nPhiladelphia, February 15, 1909.\n\n\n\n\nINTRODUCTORY SKETCH\n\nThere is probably no poem of German literature that has excited such\nuniversal interest, or that has been so much studied and discussed, as\nthe \"Nibelungenlied\". In its present form it is a product of the age\nof chivalry, but it reaches back to the earliest epochs of German\nantiquity, and embraces not only the pageantry of courtly chivalry,\nbut also traits of ancient Germanic folklore and probably of Teutonic\nmythology. One of its earliest critics fitly called it a German \"Iliad\",\nfor, like this great Greek epic, it goes back to the remotest times and\nunites the monumental fragments of half-forgotten myths and historical\npersonages into a poem that is essentially national in character, and\nthe embodiment of all that is great in the antiquity of the race. Though\nlacking to some extent the dignity of the \"Iliad\", the \"Nibelungenlied\"\nsurpasses the former in the deep tragedy which pervades it, the tragedy\nof fate, the inevitable retribution for crime, the never-dying struggle\nbetween the powers of good and evil, between light and darkness.\n\nThat the poem must have been exceedingly popular during the Middle Ages\nis evinced by the great number of Manuscripts that have come down to us.\nWe possess in all twenty-eight more or less complete MSS., preserved\nin thirty-one fragments, fifteen of which date from the thirteenth and\nfourteenth centuries. Of all these MSS., but nine are so well preserved\nthat, in spite of some minor breaks, they can be considered complete. Of\nthis number three, designated respectively as A, B, C, are looked upon\nas the most important for purposes of textual criticism, and around them\na fierce battle has been waged, which is not even yet settled. (1) It\nis now generally conceded that the longest MS., C, is a later redaction\nwith many additional strophes, but opinions are divided as to whether\nthe priority should be given to A or B, the probabilities being that B\nis the more original, A merely a careless copy of B.\n\nIn spite of the great popularity of the \"Nibelungenlied\", the poem was\nsoon forgotten by the mass of the people. With the decay of courtly\nchivalry and the rise of the prosperous citizen class, whose ideals and\ntastes lay in a different direction, this epic shared the fate of many\nothers of its kind, and was relegated to the dusty shelves of monastery\nor ducal libraries, there to wait till a more cultured age, curious\nas to the literature of its ancestors, should bring it forth from\nits hiding places. However, the figures of the old legend were not\nforgotten, but lived on among the people, and were finally embodied in a\npopular ballad, \"Das Lied vom H\u00fcrnen Seyfrid\", which has been preserved\nin a print of the sixteenth century, although the poem itself is thought\nto go back at least to the thirteenth. The legend was also dramatized by\nHans Sachs, the shoemaker poet of Nuremberg, and related in prose form\nin a chap book which still exists in prints of the eighteenth century.\nThe story and the characters gradually became so vague and distorted,\nthat only a trained eye could detect in the burlesque figures of the\npopular account the heroes of the ancient Germanic Legend.\n\nThe honor of rediscovering the \"Nibelungenlied\" and of restoring it to\nthe world of literature belongs to a young physician by the name of J.H.\nObereit, who found the manuscript C at the castle of Hohenems in the\nTirol on June 29, 1755; but the scientific study of the poem begins with\nKarl Lachmann, one of the keenest philological critics that Germany\nhas ever produced. In 1816 he read before the University of Berlin\nhis epoch-making essay upon the original form of the \"Nibelungenlied\".\nBelieving that the poem was made up of a number of distinct ballads\nor lays, he sought by means of certain criteria to eliminate all parts\nwhich were, as he thought, later interpolations or emendations. As a\nresult of this sifting and discarding process, he reduced the poem\nto what he considered to have been its original form, namely, twenty\nseparate lays, which he thought had come down to us in practically the\nsame form in which they had been sung by various minstrels.\n\nThis view is no longer held in its original form. Though we have every\nreason to believe that ballads of Siegfried the dragon killer, of\nSiegfried and Kriemhild, and of the destruction of the Nibelungs existed\nin Germany, yet these ballads are no longer to be seen in our poem. They\nformed merely the basis or source for some poet who thought to revive\nthe old heroic legends of the German past which were familiar to his\nhearers and to adapt them to the tastes of his time. In all probability\nwe must assume two, three, or even more steps in the genesis of the\npoem. There appear to have been two different sources, one a Low German\naccount, quite simple and brief, the other a tradition of the Lower\nRhine. The legend was perhaps developed by minstrels along the Rhine,\nuntil it was taken and worked up into its present form by some Austrian\npoet. Who this poet was we do not know, but we do know that he was\nperfectly familiar with all the details of courtly etiquette. He seems\nalso to have been acquainted with the courtly epics of Heinrich von\nVeldeke and Hartman von Ouwe, but his poem is free from the tedious and\noften exaggerated descriptions of pomp, dress, and court ceremonies,\nthat mar the beauty of even the best of the courtly epics. Many\npainstaking attempts have been made to discover the identity of the\nwriter of our poem, but even the most plausible of all these theories\nwhich considers Kurenberg, one of the earliest of the \"Minnesingers\",\nto be the author, because of the similarity of the strophic form of our\npoem to that used by him, is not capable of absolute proof, and\nrecent investigations go to show that Kurenberg was indebted to\nthe \"Nibelungen\" strophe for the form of his lyric, and not the\n\"Nibelungenlied\" to him. The \"Nibelungen\" strophe is presumably much\nolder, and, having become popular in Austria through the poem, was\nadopted by Kurenberg for his purposes. As to the date of the poem, in\nits present form it cannot go back further than about 1190, because of\nthe exactness of the rhymes, nor could it have been written later\nthan 1204, because of certain allusions to it in the sixth book of\n\"Parzival\", which we know to have been written at this date. The two\nLow German poems which probably form the basis of our epic may have been\nunited about 1150. It was revised and translated into High German and\ncirculated at South German courts about 1170, and then received its\npresent courtly form about 1190, this last version being the immediate\nsource of our manuscripts.\n\nThe story of Siegfried, his tragic death, and the dire vengeance visited\nupon his slayers, which lies at the basis of our poem, antedates the\nlatter by many centuries, and was known to all nations whose languages\nprove by their resemblance to the German tongue their original identity\nwith the German people. Not only along the banks of the Rhine and the\nDanube and upon the upland plains of Southern Germany, but also along\nthe rocky fjords of Norway, among the Angles and Saxons in their new\nhome across the channel, even in the distant Shetland Islands and on the\nsnow-covered wastes of Iceland, this story was told around the fires at\nnight and sung to the harp in the banqueting halls of kings and nobles,\neach people and each generation telling it in its own fashion and adding\nnew elements of its own invention. This great geographical distribution\nof the legend, and the variety of forms in which it appears, make it\ndifficult to know where we must seek its origin. The northern version is\nin many respects older and simpler in form than the German, but still it\nis probable that Norway was not the home of the saga, but that it took\nits rise in Germany along the banks of the Rhine among the ancient\ntribe of the Franks, as is shown by the many geographical names that are\nreminiscent of the characters of the story, such as a Siegfried \"spring\"\nin the Odenwald, a Hagen \"well\" at Lorsch, a Brunhild \"bed\" near\nFrankfort, and the well-known \"Drachenfels\", or Dragon's Rock, on the\nRhine. It is to Norway, however, that we must go for our knowledge\nof the story, for, singularly enough, with the exception of the\n\"Nibelungenlied\" and the popular ballad, German literature has preserved\nalmost no trace of the legend, and such as exist are too late and too\ncorrupt to be of much use in determining the original features of the\nstory.\n\nJust when the legend emigrated to Skandinavia we do not know, but\ncertainly at an early date, perhaps during the opening years of the\nsixth century. It may have been introduced by German traders, by slaves\ncaptured by the Northmen on their frequent marauding expeditions, or,\nas Mogk believes, may have been taken by the Heruli on their return\nto Norway after their defeat by the Langobardi. By whatever channel,\nhowever, the story reached the North, it became part and parcel of\nSkandinavian folklore, only certain names still pointing to the original\nhome of the legend. In the ninth century, when Harald Harfagr changed\nthe ancient free constitution of the land, many Norwegians emigrated\nto Iceland, taking with them these acquired legends, which were better\npreserved in this remote island because of the peaceful introduction\nof Christianity, than on the Continent, where the Church was more\nantagonistic to the customs and legends of the heathen period.\n\nThe Skandinavian version of the Siegfried legend has been handed down\nto us in five different forms. The first of these is the poetic or\nolder \"Edda\", also called Saemund's \"Edda\", as it was assigned to the\ncelebrated Icelandic scholar Saemundr Sigfusson. The \"Codex Regius\", in\nwhich it is preserved, dates from the middle of the thirteenth century,\nbut is probably a copy of an older manuscript. The songs it contains\nwere written at various times, the oldest probably in the first half of\nthe ninth century, the latest not much before the date of the earliest\nmanuscript. Most of them, however, belong to the Viking period, when\nChristianity was already beginning to influence the Norwegians, that\nis, between the years 800 and 1000. They are partly heroic, partly\nmythological in character, and are written in alliterative strophes\ninterspersed with prose, and have the form of dialogues. Though the\nlegends on which these songs are based were brought from Norway, most of\nthem were probably composed in Iceland. Among these songs, now, we find\na number which deal with the adventures of Siegfried and his tragic end.\n\nThe second source of the Siegfried story is the so-called\n\"Volsungasaga\", a prose paraphrase of the \"Edda\" songs. The MS. dates\nfrom the beginning of the thirteenth century, but the account was\nprobably written a century earlier. The adventures of Siegfried and his\nancestors are here related in great detail and his ancestry traced back\nto Wodan. Although a secondary source, as it is based on the \"Edda\", the\n\"Volsungasaga\" is nevertheless of great importance, since it supplies a\nportion of the \"Codex Regius\" which has been lost, and thus furnishes us\nwith the contents of the missing songs.\n\nThe third source is the prose \"Edda\", sometimes called the \"Snorra\nEdda\", after the famous Icelander Snorri Sturluson (1178-1241), to whom\nit was ascribed. The author was acquainted with both the poetic \"Edda\"\nand the \"Volsungasaga\", and follows these accounts closely. The younger\n\"Edda\" is not really a tale, but a book of poetics; it relates, however,\nthe Siegfried saga briefly. It is considered an original source, since\nit evidently made use of songs that have not come down to us, especially\nin the account of the origin of the treasure, which is here told more\nin detail and with considerable differences. The \"Nornagestsaga\" or\n\"Nornageststhattr\", the story of \"Nornagest\", forms the fourth source of\nthe Siegfried story. It is really a part of the Olaf saga, but contains\nthe story of Sigurd and Gunnar (the Norse forms of Siegfried and\nGunther), which an old man Nornagest relates to King Olaf Tryggvason,\nwho converted the Norwegians to Christianity. The story was written\nabout 1250 to illustrate the transition from heathendom to the Christian\nfaith. It is based on the \"Edda\" and the \"Volsungasaga\", and is\ntherefore of minor importance as a source.\n\nThese four sources represent the early introduction of the Siegfried\nlegend into Skandinavia. A second introduction took place about the\nmiddle of the thirteenth century, at the time of the flourishing of\nthe Hanseatic League, when the story was introduced together with other\npopular German epics. These poems are products of the age of chivalry,\nand are characterized by the romantic and courtly features of this\nmovement. The one which concerns us here, as the fifth source of the\nSiegfried story, is the so-called \"Thidreksaga\", which celebrates\nthe adventures of the famous legendary hero, Dietrich of Berne,\nthe historical Theodorich of Ravenna. In as far as it contains the\nadventures of the Nibelungs, it is also called the \"Niflungasaga\". The\n\"Thidreksaga\" was written about 1250 by a Norwegian who, as he himself\ntells us, heard the story from Germans in the neighborhood of Bremen\nand Munster. Since it is thus based on Saxon traditions, it can be\nconsidered an independent source of the legend, and, in fact, differs\nfrom the earlier Norse versions in many important details. The author\nwas acquainted, however, with the older versions, and sought to\ncompromise between them, but mostly followed his German authorities.\n\nThe story, as given in the older Norse versions, is in most respects\nmore original than in the \"Nibelungenlied\". It relates the history of\nthe treasure of the Nibelungs, tracing it back to a giant by the name of\n\"Hreithmar\", who received it from the god \"Loki\" as a compensation for\nthe killing of the former's son \"Otur\", whom Loki had slain in the form\nof an otter. Loki obtained the ransom from a dwarf named \"Andwari\",\nwho in turn had stolen it from the river gods of the Rhine. Andwari\npronounces a terrible curse upon the treasure and its possessors, and\nthis curse passes from Loki to the Giant Hreithmar, who is murdered when\nasleep by his two sons \"Fafnir\" and \"Regin\". The latter, however, is\ncheated out of the coveted prize by Fafnir, who carries it away to the\n\"Gnita\" heath, where he guards it in the form of a dragon.\n\nThis treasure, with its accompanying curse, next passes into the hands\nof a human being named Sigurd (the Norse form of Siegfried, as we have\nseen), a descendant of the race of the Volsungs, who trace their history\nback to Wodan and are especially favored by him. The full story of\nSiegfried's ancestry is far too long to relate here, and does not\nespecially concern us, as it has little or no influence on the later\ndevelopment of the story. It is sufficient for our purpose to know that\nSiegfried was the son of Siegmund, who was slain in battle before the\nbirth of his son. Sigurd was carefully reared by his mother \"Hjordis\"\nand the wise dwarf Regin, who taught him the knowledge of runes and\nof many languages. (2) At the suggestion of Regin, Sigurd asks for and\nreceives the steed \"Grani\" from the king, and is then urged by his tutor\nto help him obtain the treasure guarded by the latter's brother Fafnir.\nSigurd promises, but first demands a sword. Two, that are given him by\nRegin, prove worthless, and he forges a new one from the pieces of his\nfather's sword, which his mother had preserved. With this he easily\nsplits the anvil and cuts in two a flake of wool, floating down the\nRhine. He first avenges the death of his father, and then sets off with\nRegin to attack the dragon Fafnir. At the advice of the former Sigurd\ndigs a ditch across the dragon's peth and pierces him from below with\nhis sword, as the latter comes down to drink. In dying the dragon warns\nSigurd against the treasure and its curse, and against Regin, who, he\nsays, is planning Sigurd's death, intending to obtain the treasure for\nhimself.\n\nWhen Regin sees the dragon safely dead, he creeps from his place of\nconcealment, drinks of the blood, and, cutting out the heart, begs\nSigurd to roast it for him. While doing so, Sigurd burns his fingers,\nand, putting them in his mouth, understands at once the language of the\nbirds and hears them say that Sigurd himself should eat the heart and\nthen he would be wiser than all other men. They also betray Regin's evil\ndesigns, and counsel the lad to kill his tutor. This Sigurd then does,\ncutting off Regin's head, drinking the blood of both brothers, and\neating Fafnir's heart. (3) On the further advice of the birds Sigurd\nfirst fetches the treasure from the cave, and then journeys to the\nmountain \"Hindarfjall\", where he rescues the sleeping Valkyrie,\n\"Sigrdrifa\" (\"Brynhild\", \"Brunhild\"), who, stung by the sleep thorn\nof Wodan, and clad in full armor, lies asleep within a castle that is\nsurrounded by a wall of flame. With the help of his steed Grani, Sigurd\nsucceeds in penetrating through the fire to the castle. The sleeping\nmaiden awakes when he cuts the armor from her with his sword, for it\nwas as tight as if grown fast to the flesh. She hails her deliverer\nwith great joy, for she had vowed never to marry a man who knew fear. At\nSigurd's request she teaches him many wise precepts, and finally pledges\nher troth to him. He then departs, after promising to be faithful to her\nand to remember her teachings.\n\nOn his journeyings Sigurd soon arrives at the court of \"Giuki\" (the\nNorse form of the German \"Gibicho\", \"Gibich\"), a king whose court lay on\nthe lower Rhine. Giuki has three sons, \"Gunnar\", \"Hogni\", and \"Gutthorm\",\nand a daughter \"Gudrun\", endowed with great beauty. The queen bears\nthe name of Grimhild, and is versed in magic, but possessed of an evil\nheart. (4) Sigurd is received with great honor, for his coming had been\nannounced to Gudrun in dreams, which had in part been interpreted to her\nby Brynhild. The mother, knowing of Sigurd's relations to the latter,\ngives him a potion which produces forgetfulness, so that he no longer\nremembers his betrothed, and accepts the hand of Gudrun, which the king\noffers him at the queen's request. The marriage is celebrated with\ngreat pomp, and Sigurd remains permanently attached to Giuki's court,\nperforming with the others many deeds of valor.\n\nMeanwhile Grimhild urges her son Gunnar to sue for the hand of Brynhild.\nTaking with him Sigurd and a few others, Gunnar visits first Brynhild's\nfather \"Budli\", and then her brother-in-law \"Heimir\", from both of whom\nhe learns that she is free to choose whom she will, but that she will\nmarry no one who has not ridden through the wall of flame. With this\nanswer they proceed to Brynhild's castle, where Gunnar is unable to\npierce the flames, even when seated on Sigurd's steed. Finally Sigurd\nand Gunnar change forms, and Sigurd, disguised as Gunnar, rides through\nthe wall of fire, announces himself to Brynhild as Gunnar, the son of\nGiuki, and reminds her of her promise to marry the one who penetrated\nthe fire. Brynhild consents with great reluctance, for she is busy\ncarrying on a war with a neighboring king. Sigurd then passes three\nnights at her side, placing, however, his sword Gram between them, as\na bar of separation. At parting he draws from her finger the ring, with\nwhich he had originally pledged his troth to her, and replaces it with\nanother, taken from Fafnir's hoard. Soon after this the marriage of\nGunnar and Brynhild is celebrated with great splendor, and all return to\nGiuki's court, where they live happily for some time.\n\nOne day, however, when the ladies go down to the river to take a bath,\nBrynhild will not bathe further down stream than Gudrun, that is, in the\nwater which flows from Gudrun to her, (5) giving as the reason, that her\nfather was mightier and her husband braver, since he had ridden through\nthe fire, while Sigurd had been a menial. Stung at this, Gudrun retorts\nthat not Gunnar but Sigurd had penetrated the flames and had taken from\nher the fateful ring \"Andvaranaut\", which she then shows to her rival in\nproof of her assertion. Brynhild turns deathly pale, but answers not\na word. After a second conversation on the subject had increased the\nhatred of the queens, Brynhild plans vengeance. Pretending to be ill,\nshe takes to her bed, and when Gunnar inquires what ails her, she asks\nhim if he remembers the circumstances of the wooing and that not he but\nSigurd had penetrated the flames. She attempts to take Gunnar's life, as\nshe had pledged her troth to Sigurd, and is thereupon placed in chains\nby Hogni. Seven days she sleeps, and no one dares to wake her. Finally\nSigurd succeeds in making her talk, and she tells him how cruelly she\nhas been deceived, that the better man had been destined for her, but\nthat she had received the poorer one. This Sigurd denies, for Giuki's\nson had killed the king of the Danes and also Budli's brother, a great\nwarrior. Moreover, although he, Sigurd, had ridden through the flames,\nhe had not become her husband. He begs her therefore not to harbor a\ngrudge against Gunnar.\n\nBrynhild remains unconvinced, and plans Sigurd's death, and threatens\nGunnar with the loss of dominion and life, if he will not kill Sigurd.\nAfter some hesitation, Gunnar consents, and, calling Hogni, informs\nhim that he must kill Sigurd, in order to obtain the treasure of the\nRhinegold. Hogni warns him against breaking his oath to Sigurd, when it\noccurs to Gunnar, that his brother Gutthorm had sworn no oath and might\ndo the deed. Both now proceed to excite the latter's greed, and give him\nwolf's and snake meat to eat to make him savage. Twice Gutthorm makes\nthe attempt, as Sigurd lies in bed, but is deterred by the latter's\npenetrating glance. The third time he finds Sigurd asleep, and pierces\nhim with his sword. Sigurd, awakening at the pain, hurls his own sword\nafter his murderer, fairly cutting him in two. He then dies, protesting\nhis innocence and designating Brynhild as the instigator of his murder.\nBrynhild at first laughs aloud at Gudrun's frantic grief, but later her\njoy turns into sorrow, and she determines to share Sigurd's death. In\nvain they try to dissuade her; donning her gold corselet, she pierces\nherself with a sword and begs to be burned on Sigurd's funeral pyre. In\ndying she prophesies the future, telling of Gudrun's marriage to \"Atli\"\nand of the death of the many men which will be caused thereby.\n\nAfter Brynhild's death Gudrun in her sorrow flees to the court of King\n\"Half\" of Denmark, where she remains seven years. Finally Grimhild\nlearns of the place of her daughter's concealment, and tries to bring\nabout a reconciliation with Gunnar and Hogni. They offer her much\ntreasure, if she will marry Atli. At first she refuses and thinks only\nof revenge, but finally she consents and the marriage is celebrated in\nAtli's land. After a time Atli, who is envious of Gunnar's riches, for\nthe latter had taken possession of Sigurd's hoard, invites him to his\ncourt. A man named \"Vingi\", who was sent with the invitation, changes\nthe runes of warning, which Gudrun had given him, so that they, too,\nread as an invitation. The brothers determine to accept the invitation,\nand, though warned by many dreams, they set out for Atli's court, which\nthey reach in due time. Vingi now breaks forth into exultations, that he\nhas lured them into a snare, and is slain by Hogni with a battle axe.\n\nAs they ride to the king's hall, Atli and his sons arm themselves for\nbattle, and demand Sigurd's treasure, which belongs by right to Gudrun.\nGunnar refuses to surrender it, and the fight begins, after some\nexchange of taunting words. Gudrun tries at first to reconcile the\ncombatants, but, failing, arms herself and fights on the side of her\nbrothers. The battle rages furiously with great loss on both sides,\nuntil nearly all of the Nibelungs are killed, when Gunnar and Hogni\nare forced to yield to the power of numbers and are captured and bound.\nGunnar is asked, if he will purchase his life with the treasure. He\nreplies that he first wishes to see Hogni's bleeding heart. At first the\nheart of a slave is cut out and brought to him, but Gunnar recognizes it\nat once as that of a coward. Then they cut out Hogni's heart, who laughs\nat the pain. This Gunnar sees is the right one, and is jubilant, for now\nAtli shall never obtain the treasure, as Gunnar alone knows where it is\nhid. In a rage Atli orders Gunnar to be thrown to the snakes. Though\nhis hands are bound, Gunnar plays so sweetly with his toes on the harp,\nwhich Gudrun has sent him, that all the snakes are lulled to sleep, with\nthe exception of an adder, which stings him to the heart, so that he\ndies.\n\nAtli now walks triumphantly over the dead bodies, and remarks to Gudrun\nthat she alone is to blame for what has happened. She refuses his offers\nof peace and reconciliation, and towards evening kills her two sons\n\"Erp\" and \"Eitil\", and serves them at the banquet, which the king gives\nfor his retainers. When Atli asks for his sons, he is told that he had\ndrunk their blood mixed with wine and had eaten their hearts. That night\nwhen Atli is asleep, Gudrun takes Hogni's son \"Hniflung\", who desires\nto avenge his father, and together they enter Atli's room and thrust a\nsword through his breast. Atli awakes from the pain, only to be told\nby Gudrun that she is his murderess. When he reproaches her with thus\nkilling her husband, she answers that she cared only for Sigurd. Atli\nnow asks for a fitting burial, and on receiving the promise of this,\nexpires. Gudrun carries out her promise, and burns the castle with\nAtli and all his dead retainers. Other Edda songs relate the further\nadventures of Gudrun, but they do not concern us here, as the\n\"Nibelungenlied\" stops with the death of the Nibelungs.\n\nThis in brief is the story of Siegfried, as it has been handed down to\nus in the Skandinavian sources. It is universally acknowledged that\nthis version, though more original than the German tradition, does not\nrepresent the simplest and most original form of the tale; but what the\noriginal form was, has long been and still is a matter of dispute. Two\ndistinctly opposite views are held, the one seeing in the story the\npersonification of the forces of nature, the other, scouting the\npossibility of a mythological interpretation, seeks a purely human\norigin for the tale, namely, a quarrel among relatives for the\npossession of treasure. The former view is the older, and obtained\nalmost exclusively at one time. The latter has been gaining ground of\nrecent years, and is held by many of the younger students of the legend.\nAccording to the mythological view, the maiden slumbering upon the\nlonely heights is the sun, the wall of flames surrounding her the\nmorning red (\"Morgenrote\"). Siegfried is the youthful day who is\ndestined to rouse the sun from her slumber. At the appointed time he\nascends, and before his splendor the morning red disappears. He awakens\nthe maiden; radiantly the sun rises from its couch and joyously greets\nthe world of nature. But light and shade are indissolubly connected; day\nchanges of itself into night. When at evening the sun sinks to rest\nand surrounds herself once more with a wall of flames, the day again\napproaches, but no longer in the youthful form of the morning to arouse\nher from her slumber, but in the sombre shape of Gunther, to rest at her\nside. Day has turned into night; this is the meaning of the change of\nforms. The wall of flame vanishes, day and sun descend into the realm of\ndarkness. Under this aspect the Siegfried story is a day myth; but under\nanother it is a myth of the year. The dragon is the symbol of winter,\nthe dwarfs of darkness. Siegfried denotes the bright summer, his sword\nthe sunbeams. The youthful year grows up in the dark days of winder.\nWhen its time has come, it goes forth triumphantly and destroys\nthe darkness and the cold of winter. Through the symbolization the\nabstractions gain form and become persons; the saga is thus not a mere\nallegory, but a personification of nature's forces. The treasure may\nhave entered the saga through the widespread idea of the dragon as the\nguardian of treasure, or it may represent the beauty of nature which\nunfolds when the season has conquered. In the last act of the saga,\nSiegfried's death, Wilmanns, the best exponent of this view, sees again\na symbolic representation of a process of nature. According to him it\nsignifies the death of the god of the year in winter. In the spring he\nkills the dragon, in the winter he goes weary to his rest and is foully\nslain by the hostile powers of darkness. Later, when this act was\nconnected with the story of Gunther's wooing Brunhild, the real meaning\nwas forgotten, and Siegfried's death was attributed to the grief and\njealousy of the insulted queen.\n\nOpposed now to the mythological interpretation is the other view already\nspoken of, which denies the possibility of mythological features, and\ndoes not seek to trace the legend beyond the heroic stage. The best\nexponent of this view is R. C. Boer, who has made a remarkable attempt\nto resolve the story into its simplest constituents. According to him\nthe nucleus of the legend is an old story of the murder of relatives\n(\"Verwandienmord\"), the original form being perhaps as follows. Attila\n(i.e., the enemy of Hagen under any name) is married to Hagen's sister\nGrimhild or Gudrun. He invites his brother-in-law to his house, attacks\nhim in the hope of obtaining his treasure, and kills him. According\nto this view Hagen was originally the king, but later sinks to a\nsubordinate position through the subsequent connection of the story with\nthe Burgundians. It is of course useless to hunt for the date of such\nan episode in history. Such a murder could have frequently occurred, and\ncan be localized anywhere. Very early we find this Hagen story united\nwith the Siegfried legend. If the latter is mythological, then we have\na heterogeneous combination, a mythical legend grafted on a purely human\none. This Boer thinks unlikely, and presents a number of arguments to\ndisprove the mythical character of the Siegfried story, into which\nwe cannot enter here. He comes, however, to the conclusion, that the\nSiegfried tale is likewise purely human, and consisted originally of the\nmurder of relatives, that is, a repetition of the Hagen title. Siegfried\nis married to Hagen's sister, and is killed by his brother-in-law\nbecause of his treasure. The kernel of the legend is, therefore, the\nenmity between relatives, which exists in two forms, the one in which\nthe son-in-law kills his father-in-law, as in the \"Helgi\" saga, the\nother in which Hagen kills his son-in-law and is killed by him, too, as\nin the \"Hilde\" saga. The German tradition tries to combine the two by\nintroducing the new feature, that Kriemhild causes the death of her\nrelatives, in order to avenge her first husband. Boer is of the opinion\nthat both the Norse and the German versions have forgotten the original\nconnection between the two stories, and that this connection was nothing\nmore nor less than the common motive of the treasure. The same treasure,\nwhich causes Hagen to murder Siegfried, causes his own death in turn\nthrough the greed of Attila. There was originally, according to Boer, no\nquestion of revenge, except the revenge of fate, the retribution which\novertakes the criminal. This feeling for the irony of fate was lost\nwhen the motive, that Hagen kills Siegfried because of his treasure,\nwas replaced by the one that he does it at the request of Brunhild. This\nleads Boer to the conclusion, that Brunhild did not originally belong to\nthe Siegfried story, but to the well-known fairy tale of Sleeping Beauty\n(\"Erlosungsmurchen\"), which occurs in a variety of forms. The type is\nthat of a hero who rescues a maiden from a magic charm, which may take\nthe form of a deep sleep, as in the case of Sleeping Beauty, or of being\nsewed into a garment, as in No. 111 of Grimm's fairy tales. By the union\nof the two stories, i.e., the Hagen-Siegfried saga with the Sleeping\nBeauty tale, Siegfried stands in relation to two women; on the one hand\nhis relation to Sigrdrifa-Brynhild, the maiden whom he rescues on the\nrock, on the other his marriage with Grimhild-Gudrun and his consequent\ndeath. This twofold relation had to be disposed of, and since his\nconnection with Grimhild was decisive for his fate, his relation to\nBrunhild had to be changed. It could not be entirely ignored, for it\nwas too well known, therefore it was given a different interpretation.\nSiegfried still rescues a maiden from the rock, not for himself,\nhowever, but for another. The exchange of forms on the part of\nSiegfried and Gunther is a reminiscence of the older form. It gives the\nimpression, that Siegfried, and yet not Siegfried, won the bride. This\nalteration probably took place when the Burgundians were introduced into\nthe legend. With this introduction an unlocalized saga of unknown heroes\nof ancient times became one of events of world-wide importance; the fall\nof a mighty race was depicted as the result of Siegfried's death. To\nrender this plausible, it was necessary on the one hand to idealize\nthe hero, so that his death should appear as a deed of horror demanding\nfearful vengeance, and on the other, to make the king of the Burgundians\nan active participator in Siegfried's death, for otherwise it would not\nseem natural, that the whole race should be exterminated for a crime\ncommitted by the king's brother or vassal. As the role of Brunhild's\nhusband had become vacant, and as Gunther had no special role, it was\nnatural that it should be given to him. Boer traces very ingeniously\nthe gradual development of this exchange of roles through the various\nsources.\n\nAnother method of explaining away Siegfried's relation to two women is\nto identify them, and this has been done by the Seyfrid ballad. Here the\nhero rescues Kriemhild from the power of the dragon, marries her,\nand then is later killed by her brothers through envy and hatred. As\nBrunhild and Kriemhild are here united in one person, there is no need\nof a wooing for the king, nor of vengeance on the part of Brunhild,\naccordingly the old motive of greed (here envy) reappears.\n\nAs to the fight with the dragon, Boer believes that it did not\noriginally belong to the saga, for in none of the sources except the\npopular ballad is the fight with the dragon connected with the release\nof Brunhild. If the Siegfried-Hagen story is purely human, then the\ndragon cannot have originally belonged to it, but was later introduced,\nbecause of the widespread belief in the dragon as the guardian of\ntreasure, and in order to answer the question as to the provenience of\nthe hoard. This is, however, only one answer to the question. Another,\nwidespread in German legends, is that the treasure comes from the\nNibelungs, that is, from the dwarfs. Many identify the dwarfs and the\ndragon, but this finds no support in the sources, for here the dwarfs\nand Fafnir are never confused. The \"Nibelungenlied\" describes an\nadventure with each, but the treasure is only connected with the dwarfs.\nThe \"Thidreksaga\" knows only the dragon fight but not the dwarfs, as is\nlikewise the case with the Seyfrid ballad. Only in the Norse sources\ndo we find a contamination. The story of Hreithmar and his sons, who\nquarrel about the treasure, resembles that of Schilbung and Nibelung in\nthe \"Nibelungenlied\", and probably has the same source. One of the sons,\nbecause of his guarding the treasure, is identified with the dragon,\nand so we read that Fafnir becomes a dragon, after gaining the treasure.\nOriginally, however, he was not a dragon, but a dwarf. These two\nindependent forms can be geographically localized. The dwarf legend is\nthe more southern; it is told in detail in the \"Nibelungenlied\". The\ndragon legend probably originated in the Cimbrian peninsula, where the\n\"Beowulf\" saga, in which the dragon fight plays such an important part,\nlikewise arose.\n\nThere thus stand sharply opposed to each other two theories, one seeing\nin the Siegfried saga a personification of natural forces, the other\ntracing it back to a purely human story of murder through greed. It may\nbe, that the true form of the original saga lies half way between\nthese two views. The story of the fall of the Nibelungs, that is, their\nkilling at Etzel's court, may go back to the tale of the murder of\nrelatives for money. On the other hand it is hard to believe that the\nSiegfried saga is nothing but a repetition of the Attila motive, for\nthis is too brief a formula to which to reduce the long legend of\nSiegfried, with its many deeds. Even if we discard the mythological\ninterpretation, it is the tale of a daring hero, who is brought up in\nthe woods by a cunning dwarf. He kills a dragon and takes possession of\nhis hoard, then rescues a maiden, imprisoned upon a mountain, as in the\nolder Norse version and the popular ballad, or in a tower, as in the\n\"Thidreksaga\", and surrounded either by a wall of fire, as in the\nNorse, or by a large body of water, as in the \"Nibelungenlied\". After\nbetrothing himself to the maiden, he sets forth in search of further\nadventures, and falls into the power of an evil race, who by their\nmagic arts lure him to them, cause his destruction, and then obtain\nhis treasure and the maiden for themselves. By her very name Sigrdrifa\nbelongs to Siegfried, just as Gunther and Gudrun-Grimhild belong\ntogether, and it seems hardly possible that she should have entered the\nstory later, as Boer would have us believe. After all, it is largely a\nmatter of belief, for it is impossible to prove positively that mythical\nelements did or did not exist in the original.\n\nTo the combined Siegfried-Nibelung story various historical elements\nwere added during the fifth century. At the beginning of this period the\nFranks were located on the left bank of the Rhine from Coblenz downward.\nFurther up the river, that is, to the south, the Burgundians had\nestablished a kingdom in what is now the Rhenish Palatinate, their\ncapital being Worms and their king \"Gundahar\", or \"Gundicarius\", as the\nRomans called him. For twenty years the Burgundians lived on good terms\nwith the surrounding nations. Then, growing bolder, they suddenly\nrose against the Romans in the year 436, but the rebellion was quietly\nsuppressed by the Roman general Aetius. Though defeated, the Burgundians\nwere not subdued, and the very next year they broke their oaths and\nagain sought to throw off the Roman yoke. This time the Romans called to\ntheir aid the hordes of Huns, who had been growing rapidly in power and\nwere already pressing hard upon the German nations from the east. Only\ntoo glad for an excuse, the Huns poured into the land in great numbers\nand practically swept the Burgundian people from the face of the earth.\nAccording to the Roman historians, twenty thousand Burgundians were\nslain in this great battle of the Catalaunian Fields. Naturally this\ncatastrophe, in which a whole German nation fell before the hordes of\ninvading barbarians, produced a profound impression upon the Teutonic\nworld. The King Gundahar, the Gunther of the \"Nibelungenlied\", who also\nfell in the battle, became the central figure of a new legend, namely,\nthe story of the fall of the Burgundians.\n\nAttila is not thought to have taken part in the invasion, still, after\nhis death in 454, his name gradually came to be associated with the\nslaughter of the Burgundians, for a legend operates mainly with types,\nand as Attila was a Hun and throughout the Middle Ages was looked upon\nas the type of a cruel tyrant, greedy for conquest, it was but natural\nfor him to play the r\u00f4le assigned to him in the legend. Quite plausible\nis Boer's explanation of the entrance of Attila into the legend. The\n\"Thidreksaga\" locates him in Seest in Westphalia. Now this province once\nbore the name of \"Hunaland\", and by a natural confusion, because of\nthe similarity of the names, \"Huna\" and \"Huns\", Attila, who is the\nchief representative of Hunnish power, was connected with the legend\nand located at Seest. This would show that the original extension of the\nlegend was slight, as Xanten, the home of Hagen, is but seventy miles\nfrom Seest. The original form would then be that Hagen was slain by a\nking of \"Hunaland\", then because history relates that the Burgundians\nwere slain by the Huns, the similarity of the names led to the\nintroduction of Attila and the identification of the Nibelungs with the\nBurgundians. The fact, too, that the Franks rapidly took possession\nof the district depopulated by the crushing defeat of the Burgundians\nlikewise aided the confusion, and thus the Franks became the natural\nheirs of the legend concerning the death of Gunther, and so we read of\nthe fall of the Nibelungs, a name that is wholly Frankish in character.\nThis identification led also to Attila's being considered the avenger of\nSiegfried's death. Poetic justice, however, demands that the slaughter\nof the Burgundians at the hands of Attila be also avenged. The rumor,\nthat Attila's death was not natural, but that he had been murdered by\nhis wife Ildico (\"Hildiko\"), gave the necessary features to round out\nthe story. As Kriemhild was the sister of the Burgundian kings, it was\nbut natural to explain her killing of Attila, as described in the Norse\nversions, by her desire to avenge her brothers.\n\nIn our \"Nibelungenlied\", however, it is no longer Attila, but Kriemhild,\nwho is the central figure of the tragedy. Etzel, as he is called here,\nhas sunk to the insignificant role of a stage king, a perfectly passive\nobserver of the fight raging around him. This change was brought about\nperhaps by the introduction of Dietrich of Berne, the most imposing\nfigure of all Germanic heroic lore. The necessity of providing him\nwith a role corresponding to his importance, coupled with a growing\nrepugnance on the part of the proud Franks to acknowledge defeat at the\nhands of the Huns, caused the person of Attila to dwindle in importance.\nGradually, too, the role played by Kriemhild was totally changed.\nInstead of being the avenger of her brothers, as depicted in the Norse\nversions, she herself becomes the cause of their destruction. Etzel\nis not only innocent of any desire to harm the Nibelungs, but is even\nignorant of the revenge planned by his wife. This change in her role was\nprobably due to the feeling that it was incumbent upon her to avenge the\nmurder of Siegfried.\n\nOur \"Nibelungenlied\" knows but little of the adventures of Siegfried's\nyouth as depicted in the Norse versions. The theme of the poem is no\nlonger the love of Sigurd, the homeless wanderer, for the majestic\nValkyrie Brunhild, but the love idyll of Siegfried, the son of the king\nof the Netherlands, and the dainty Burgundian princess Kriemhild.\nThe poem has forgotten Siegfried's connection with Brunhild; it knows\nnothing of his penetrating the wall of flames to awake and rescue her,\nnothing of the betrothal of the two. In our poem Siegfried is carefully\nreared at his father's court in the Netherlands, and sets out with great\npomp for the court of the Burgundians. In the Norse version he naturally\nremains at Gunther's court after his marriage, but in our poem he\nreturns to the Netherlands with his bride. This necessitates the\nintroduction of several new scenes to depict his arrival home, the\ninvitation to the feast at Worms, and the reception of the guests on the\npart of the Burgundians.\n\nIn the \"Nibelungenlied\" the athletic sports, as an obstacle to the\nwinning of Brunhild, take the place of the wall of flames of the older\nNorse versions. Siegfried and Gunther no longer change forms, but\nSiegfried dons the \"Tarnkappe\", which renders him invisible, so that\nwhile Gunther makes the motions, Siegfried really does the work, a thing\nwhich is rather difficult to imagine. The quarrel of the two queens is\nlikewise very differently depicted in the \"Nibelungenlied\" from what it\nis in the Norse version. In the latter it takes place while the\nladies are bathing in the river, and is brought on by the arrogance of\nBrunhild, who refuses to stand lower down the stream and bathe in the\nwater flowing from Gudrun to her. In the \"Thidreksaga\" it occurs in the\nseclusion of the ladies' apartments, but in our poem it culminates in\nfront of the cathedral before the assembled court, and requires as its\nbackground all the pomp and splendor of medieval chivalry. With a master\nhand and a wonderful knowledge of female character, the author depicts\nthe gradual progress of the quarrel until it terminates in a magnificent\nscene of wounded pride and malignant hatred. Kriemhild, as usual, plays\nthe more important part, and, while standing up for her rights, tries in\nevery way to conciliate Brunhild and not to hurt her feelings. At\nlast, however, stung by the taunts of the latter, she in turn loses her\npatience, bursts out with the whole story of the twofold deception to\nwhich Brunhild has been subjected, and then triumphantly sweeps into\nthe church, leaving her rival stunned and humiliated by the news she\nhas heard. In the Norse tradition the scene serves merely to enlighten\nBrunhild as to the deception played upon her. In the \"Nibelungenlied\" it\nbecomes the real cause of Siegfried's death, for Brunhild plans to kill\nSiegfried to avenge the public slight done to her. She has no other\nreason, as Siegfried swears that there had been no deception. Brunhild\nappeals to us much less in the \"Nibelungenlied\" than in the Norse\nversion. In the latter she feels herself deeply wronged by Siegfried's\nfaithlessness, and resolves on his death because she will not be the\nwife of two men. In our poem she has no reason for wishing his death\nexcept her wounded pride. In the \"Nibelungenlied\", too, she disappears\nfrom view after Siegfried's death, whereas in the Norse tradition she\nascends his funeral pyre and dies at his side.\n\nThe circumstances of Siegfried's death are likewise totally different\nin the two versions. In the Norse, as we have seen, he is murdered while\nasleep in bed, by Gunnar's younger brother Gutthorm. In our poem he is\nkilled by Hagen, while bending over a spring to drink. This is preceded\nby a scene in which Hagen treacherously induces Kriemhild to mark the\none vulnerable spot on Siegfried's body, on the plea of protecting\nhim. This deepens the tragedy, and renders Kriemhild's misery and\nself-reproaches the greater. After Siegfried's burial his father,\nwho had also come to Worms with his son, vainly endeavors to persuade\nKriemhild to return with him to the Netherlands. Her refusal is\nunnatural in the extreme, for she had reigned there ten years or\nmore with Siegfried, and had left her little son behind, and yet she\nrelinquishes all this and remains with her brothers, whom she knows to\nbe the murderers of her husband. This is evidently a reminiscence of\nan earlier form in which Siegfried was a homeless adventurer, as in the\n\"Thidreksaga\".\n\nThe second half of the tale, the destruction of the Nibelungs,\nis treated of very briefly in the early Norse versions, but the\n\"Nibelungenlied\", which knows so little of Siegfried's youth, has\ndeveloped and enlarged upon the story, until it overshadows the first\npart in length and importance and gives the name to the whole poem.\nThe main difference between the two versions is that in the older\nNorse tradition it is Attila who invites the Nibelungs to his court and\nattacks them in order to gain possession of the treasure, while Gudrun\n(Kriemhild) first tries to reconcile the warring parties, and, not\nsucceeding in this, snatches up a sword and fights on the side of\nher brothers and later kills her husband as an act of revenge. In the\n\"Thidreksaga\" and the \"Nibelungenlied\", however, she is the instigator\nof the fight and the cause of her brothers' death, and finally suffers\ndeath herself at the hands of Master Hildebrand, who is furious that\nsuch noble heroes should fall at a woman's hand. The second part of\nthe poem is grewsome reading at best, with its weltering corpses and\ntorrents of blood. The horror is relieved only by the grim humor of\nHagen and by the charming scene at Rudeger's court, where the young\nprince Giselher is betrothed to Rudeger's daughter. Rudeger is without\ndoubt the most tragic figure of this part. He is bound on the one hand\nby his oath of allegiance to Kriemhild and on the other by ties of\nfriendship to the Burgundians. His agony of mind at the dilemma in which\nKriemhild's command to attack the Burgundians places him is pitiful.\nDivided between love and duty, the conviction that he must fulfill his\nvow, cost what it may, gradually forces itself upon him and he rushes to\nhis death in combat with his dearest friends.\n\nTowering above all others in its gloomy grandeur stands the figure of\nHagen, the real hero of the second half of the poem. Fully aware that\nhe is going to his death, he nevertheless scorns to desert his\ncompanions-in-arms, and awaits the fate in store for him with a stoicism\nthat would do honor to a Spartan. He calmly accepts the consequences of\nhis crime, and to the last mocks and scoffs at Kriemhild, until her fury\nknows no bounds. No character shows so little the refining influences of\nChristianity as does his. In all essential respects he is still the same\nold gigantic Teuton, who meets us in the earliest forms of the legend.\n\nAs to the various minor characters, many of which appear only in the\n\"Nibelungenlied\", space will not permit of their discussion here,\nalthough they will be treated of briefly in the notes. Suffice it to\nsay, that the \"Nibelungenlied\" has introduced a number of effective\nscenes for the purpose of bringing some of them, especially Folker and\nDankwart, into prominence. Among the best of these are, first, the night\nwatch, when Folker first plays the Burgundians to sleep with his violin,\nand then stands guard with Hagen, thus preventing the surprise planned\nby Kriemhild; further, the visit to the church on the following morning,\nwhen the men of both parties clash; and lastly the tournament between\nthe Huns and the Burgundians, which gives the author an excellent chance\nto show the prowess of the various heroes.\n\nLet us pass now to the consideration of the strophic form of the\n\"Nibelungenlied\". The two Danish ballads of \"Grimhild's Revenge\"\n(\"Grimhild's Haevn\"), which are based upon the first combination of\nthe Low German, i.e., Saxon, and the Rhenish traditions, prove that the\nstrophe is considerably older than the preserved redactions of our poem,\nand that it was probably of Saxon origin. The metrical form goes back\nmost probably to the four-accented verse of the poet Otfrid of the ninth\ncentury, although some have thought that Latin hymns, others that the\nFrench epic verse, may have been of influence. The direct derivation\nfrom Otfrid seems, however, the most plausible, as it accounts for the\nimportance of the caesura, which generally marks a pause in the\nsense, as well as in the verse, and also for its masculine ending. The\n\"Nibelungen\" strophe consists of four long lines separated by a caesura\ninto two distinct halves. The first half of each line contains four\naccents, the fourth falling upon the last syllable. This last stress,\nhowever, is not, as a rule as strong as the others, the effect being\nsomewhat like that of a feminine ending. On this account some speak of\nthree accents in the first half line, with a feminine ending. The fourth\nstress is, however, too strong to be thus disregarded, but because of\nits lighter character is best marked with a grave accent. The second\nhalf of each line ends in a masculine rhyme. The first three lines have\neach three stresses in the second half, while the second half of the\nfourth line has four accents to mark the end of the strophe. This\nlonger fourth line is one of the most marked characteristics of the\n\"Nibelungen\" strophe. The rhymes are arranged in the order of \"a\", \"a\",\n\"b\", \"b\", though in a few isolated cases near the end of the poem but\none rhyme is used throughout the strophe.\n\nThe opening lines of the poem may serve to illustrate the strophic form\nand scansion, and at the same time will give the reader an idea of the\nMiddle High German language in which the poem is written:\n\n     Uns ist in alten maeren   wunders vil geseit\n     von heleden lobebaeron,   von grozer arebeit,\n     von froude und hochgeziten,   von weinen und von klagen,\n     von kuener recken striten   muget ir nu wunder hoeren sagen.\n\n     Ez wuochs in Burgonden   ein edel magedin,\n     daz in allen landen   niht schoeners mohte sin,\n     Kriemhild geheizen;   si wart ein scoene wip,\n     darambe muosen degene   vil verliesen den lip.\n\n     Der minneclichen meide   triuten wol gezam,\n     ir muotten kuene recken,   niemen was ir gram,\n     ane ma zen schoene   so was ir edel lip;\n     der iunevrouwen tugende   zierten anderiu wip.\n\n     Ir pflagen drie k\u00fcnege   edel unde rich,\n     Gunther unde Gernot,   die recken lobelich,\n     und Giselher der iunge,   ein uz erwelter degen,\n     diu frouwe was ir swester,   die fu'rsten hetens in ir\n                                        pflegen.\n\n     Die herren waren milte,   von arde hohe erborn,\n     mit kraft unmazen kuene,   die recken uz erkorn,\n     dazen Burgonden   so was ir lant genant,\n     si framden starkiu wunder   sit in Etzelen lant.\n\n     Ze Wormze bidem Rine   si wenden mit ir kraft,\n     in diende von ir landen   stolziu ritterscaft\n     mit lobelichen eren   unz an ir endes zit,\n     sit sturben si inemerliche   von zweier edelen frouwen nit.\n\nSome of the final rhymes with proper names, such as \"Hagene\": \"degene\"\n(str. 84) or \"Hagene\": \"tragene\" (str. 300) appear to be feminine, but\nit is really the final \"e\" that rhymes, and a scansion of the line in\nquestion shows that the three accents are not complete without this\nfinal \"e\". In this respect our poem differs from most of the Middle High\nGerman poems, as this practice of using the final \"e\" in rhyme began to\ndie out in the twelfth century, though occasionally found throughout the\nperiod. The rhymes are, as a rule, quite exact, the few cases of impure\nrhymes being mainly those in which short and long vowels are rhymed\ntogether, e.g. \"mich\": \"rich\" or \"man\": \"han\". Caesural rhymes are\nfrequently met with, and were considered by Lachmann to be the marks of\ninterpolated strophes, a view no longer held. A further peculiarity\nof the \"Nibelungen\" strophe is the frequent omission of the unaccented\nsyllable in the second half of the last line of the strophe between the\nsecond and third stresses. Examples of this will be found in the second,\nthird, and fifth strophes of the passage given above.\n\nThe language of the \"Nibelungenlied\" is the so-called Middle High\nGerman, that is, the High German written and spoken in the period\nbetween 1100 and 1500, the language of the great romances of chivalry\nand of the \"Minnesingers\". More exactly, the poem is written in the\nAustrian dialect of the close of the twelfth century, but contains many\narchaisms, which point to the fact of its having undergone a number of\nrevisions.\n\nIn closing this brief study of the \"Nibelungenlied\", just a word or\ntwo further with reference to the poem, its character, and its place in\nGerman literature. Its theme is the ancient Teutonic ideal of \"Treue\"\n(faithfulness or fidelity), which has found here its most magnificent\nportrayal; faithfulness unto death, the loyalty of the vassal for his\nlord, as depicted in Hagen, the fidelity of the wife for her husband,\nas shown by Kriemhild, carried out with unhesitating consistency to the\nbitter end. This is not the gallantry of medieval chivalry, which colors\nso largely the opening scenes of the poem, but the heroic valor, the\ndeath-despising stoicism of the ancient Germans, before which the\nmasters of the world, the all-conquering Romans, were compelled to bow.\n\nIn so far as the \"Nibelungenlied\" has forgotten most of the history of\nthe youthful Siegfried, and knows nothing of his love for Brunhild, it\nis a torso, but so grand withal, that one hardly regrets the loss of\nthese integral elements of the old saga. As it is a working over of\noriginally separate lays, it is not entirely homogeneous, and contains\nnot a few contradictions. In spite of these faults, however, which a\nclose study reveals, it is nevertheless the grandest product of Middle\nHigh German epic poetry, and deservedly the most popular poem of older\nGerman literature. It lacks, to be sure, the grace of diction found in\nGottfried von Strassburg's \"Tristan und Isolde\", the detailed and often\nmagnificent descriptions of armor and dress to be met with in the epics\nof Hartman von Ouwe; it is wanting in the lofty philosophy of Wolfram\nvon Eschenbach's \"Parzival\", and does not, as this latter, lead the\nreader into the realms of religious doubts and struggles. It is imposing\nthrough its very simplicity, through the grandeur of the story, which\nit does not seek to adorn and decorate. It nowhere pauses to analyze\nmotives nor to give us a picture of inner conflict as modern authors are\nfond of doing. Its characters are impulsive and prompt in action, and\nwhen they have once acted, waste no time in useless regret or remorse.\n\nIt resembles the older \"Spielmannsdichtung\", or minstrel poetry, in the\nterseness and vigor of its language and in the lack of poetic imagery,\nbut it is free from the coarseness and vulgar and grotesque humor of the\nlatter. It approaches the courtly epic in its introduction of the pomp\nof courtly ceremonial, but this veneer of chivalry is very thin, and\nbeneath the outward polish of form the heart beats as passionately and\nwildly as in the days of Herman, the Cheruscan chief. There are perhaps\ngreater poems in literature than the \"Nibelungenlied\", but few so\nmajestic in conception, so sublime in their tragedy, so simple in their\nexecution, and so national in their character, as this great popular\nepic of German literature.\n\n\n  ENDNOTES:\n  (1)  A is a parchment MS. of the second half of the thirteenth\n       century, now found in Munich.  It forms the basis of\n       Lachmann's edition.  It is a parchment MS. of the middle of\n       the thirteenth century, belonging to the monastery of St.\n       Gall.  It has been edited by Bartsch, \"Deutsche Klassiker\n       des Mittelalters\", vol. 3, and by Piper, \"Deutsche National-\n       Literatur\", vol. 6.  C is a parchment MS., of the thirteenth\n       century, now in the ducal library of Donauesehingen.  It is\n       the best written of all the MSS., and has been edited by\n       Zarncke.\n  (2)  The \"Thidreksaga\" differs from the other Norse versions in\n       having \"Sigfrod\", as he is called here, brought up in\n       ignorance of his parents, a trait which was probably\n       borrowed from the widespread \"Genoveva\" story, although\n       thought by some to have been an original feature of our\n       legend.\n  (3)  The \"Thidreksaga\", which has forgotten the enmity of the\n       brothers, and calls Sigurd's tutor \"Mimr\", tells the episode\n       in somewhat different fashion.  The brothers plan to kill\n       Sigurd, and the latter is attacked by the dragon, while\n       burning charcoal in the forest.  After killing the monster\n       with a firebrand, Sigurd bathes himself in the blood and\n       thus become covered with a horny skin, which renders him\n       invulnerable, save in one place between the shoulder blades,\n       which he could not reach.  This bathing in the blood is also\n       related in the Seyfrid ballad and in the \"Nibelungenlied\",\n       with the difference, that the vulnerable spot is caused by a\n       linden leaf falling upon him.\n  (4)  The fact that all but one of these names alliterate, shows\n       that the Norse version is here more original.  Gunnar is the\n       same as Gunther (Gundaharius), Hogni as Hagen; Gutthorm\n       (Godomar) appears in the German version as Gernot.  In this\n       latter the father is called Dancrat, the mother Uote, and\n       the name Grimhild is transferred from the mother to the\n       daughter.\n  (5)  In the prose \"Edda\", in the water which drips from Gudrun's\n       hair.\n\n\n\n\nTHE NIBELUNGENLIED (1)\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE I (2)\n\nFull many a wonder is told us in stories old, of heroes worthy of\npraise, of hardships dire, of joy and feasting, of the fighting of bold\nwarriors, of weeping and of wailing; now ye may hear wonders told.\n\nIn Burgundy there grew so noble a maid that in all the lands none fairer\nmight there be. Kriemhild (3) was she called; a comely woman she became,\nfor whose sake many a knight must needs lose his life. Well worth the\nloving was this winsome maid. Bold knights strove for her, none bare her\nhate. Her peerless body was beautiful beyond degree; the courtly virtues\nof this maid of noble birth would have adorned many another woman too.\n\nThree kings, noble and puissant, did nurture her, Gunther (4) and\nGernot, (5) warriors worthy of praise, and Giselher, (6) the youth, a\nchosen knight. This lady was their sister, the princes had her in their\ncare. The lordings were free in giving, of race high-born, passing bold\nof strength were they, these chosen knights. Their realm hight Burgundy.\nGreat marvels they wrought hereafter in Etzel's (7) land. At Worms (8)\nupon the Rhine they dwelt with all their power. Proud knights from out\ntheir lands served them with honor, until their end was come. Thereafter\nthey died grievously, through the hate of two noble dames.\n\nTheir mother, a mighty queen, was called the Lady Uta, (9) their father,\nDankrat, (10) who left them the heritage after his life was over; a\nmighty man of valor that he was, who won thereto in youth worship full\ngreat. These kings, as I have said, were of high prowess. To them owed\nallegiance the best of warriors, of whom tales were ever told, strong\nand brave, fearless in the sharp strife. Hagen (11) there was of Troneg,\nthereto his brother Dankwart, (12) the doughty; Ortwin of Metz (13);\nGere (14) and Eckewart, (15) the margraves twain; Folker of Alzei, (16)\nendued with fullness of strength. Rumolt (17) was master of the kitchen,\na chosen knight; the lords Sindolt and Hunolt, liegemen of these three\nkings, had rule of the court and of its honors. Thereto had they many\na warrior whose name I cannot tell. Dankwart was marshal; his nephew,\nOrtwin, seneschal unto the king; Sindolt was cupbearer, a chosen knight;\nHunolt served as chamberlain; well they wot how to fill these lofty\nstations. Of the forces of the court and its far-reaching might, of\nthe high worship (18) and of the chivalry these lords did ply with joy\nthroughout their life, of this forsooth none might relate to you the\nend.\n\nIn the midst of these high honors Kriemhild dreamed a dream, of how she\ntrained a falcon, strong, fair, and wild, which, before her very eyes,\ntwo eagles rent to pieces. No greater sorrow might chance to her in all\nthis world. This dream then she told to Uta her mother, who could not\nunfold it to the dutiful maid in better wise than this: \"The falcon\nwhich thou trainest, that is a noble man, but thou must needs lose him\nsoon, unless so be that God preserve him.\"\n\n\"Why speakest thou to me of men, dear brother mine? I would fain ever be\nwithout a warrior's love. So fair will I remain until my death, that I\nshall never gain woe from love of man.\"\n\n\"Now forswear this not too roundly,\" spake the mother in reply. \"If ever\nthou shalt wax glad of heart in this world, that will chance through the\nlove of man. Passing fair wilt thou become, if God grant thee a right\nworthy knight.\"\n\n\"I pray you leave this speech,\" spake she, \"my lady. Full oft hath it\nbeen seen in many a wife, how joy may at last end in sorrow. I shall\navoid them both, then can it ne'er go ill with me.\"\n\nThus in her heart Kriemhild forsware all love. Many a happy day\nthereafter the maiden lived without that she wist any whom she would\ncare to love. In after days she became with worship a valiant here's\nbride. He was the selfsame falcon which she beheld in her dream that her\nmother unfolded to her. How sorely did she avenge this upon her nearest\nkin, who slew him after! Through his dying alone there fell full many a\nmother's son.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Nibelungenlied\", the lay of the Nibelungs.  The ordinary\n        etymology of this name is 'children of the mist'\n        (\"Nebelkinder\", O.N. \"Niflungar\"), and it is thought to have\n        belonged originally to the dwarfs.  Piper, I, 50, interprets\n        it as 'the sons of Nibul'; Boer, II, 198, considers\n        \"Hniflungar\" to be the correct Norse form and interprets it\n        as 'the descendants of Hnaef' (O.E. \"Hnaef\", O.H.G.\n        \"Hnabi\"), whose death is related in the \"Finnsaga\".\n   (2)  \"Adventure\" (M.H.G. \"aventiure\", from O.F. \"aventure\", Lat.\n        \"adventura\").  The word meant originally a happening,\n        especially some great event, then the report of such an\n        event.  Here it is used in the sense of the different cantos\n        or \"fitts\" of the poem, as in the \"Gudrun\" and other M.H.G.\n        epics.  Among the courtly poets it also frequently denotes\n        the source, or is the personification of the muse of poetry.\n   (3)  \"Kriemhild\" is the Upper German form of the Frankish\n        \"Grimhild\".  In the MSS., the name generally appears with a\n        further shifting as \"Chriemhilt\", as if the initial\n        consonant were Germanic \"k\".  On the various forms of the\n        name, which have never yet been satisfactorily explained,\n        see Mullenhoff, ZsfdA. xii, 299, 413; xv, 313; and\n        Bohnenberger, PB. Beit. xxiv, 221-231.\n   (4)  \"Gunther\" is the historical \"Gundahari\", king of the\n        Burgundians in the fifth century.\n   (5)  \"Gernot\" was probably introduced by some minstrel in place\n        of the historical \"Godomar\", who appears in the Norse\n        version as \"Gutthormr\", though the names are not\n        etymologically the same, as \"Godomar\" would be \"Guthmarr\" in\n        Old Norse.\n   (6)  \"Giselher\" is the historical \"Gislaharius\".  Although\n        mentioned by the \"Lex Burgundionum\" as one of the Burgundian\n        kings, he does not appear in the early Norse version, or in\n        other poems dealing with these persons, such as the\n        \"Waltharius\", the \"Rabenschlacht\", the \"Rosengarten\", etc.,\n        and was probably introduced at a late date into the saga.\n        Originally no role was ascribed to him, and not even his\n        death is told.  He probably came from some independent\n        source.\n   (7)  \"Etzel\" is the German form for the historical \"Attila\"\n        (Norse \"Atli\").  A discussion of his connection with the\n        saga will be found in the introduction.\n   (8)  \"Worms\" is the ancient \"Borbetomagus\", which in the first\n        century B.C. was the chief city of the German tribe of the\n        \"Vangioni\".  In the fifth century it was the capital of the\n        Burgundian kingdom, but was destroyed by the Huns.  The\n        Merovingians rebuilt it, and in the seventh century it\n        became a bishopric where Charlemagne at times held his\n        court.  It was later noted as the meeting-place of many\n        imperial diets.  It remained a free city till 1801.  In the\n        \"Thidreksaga\" the name is corrupted into \"Wernize\".\n   (9)  \"Uta\" (M.H.G. \"Uote\").  The name means ancestress, and is\n        frequently used for the mother of heroes.  The modern German\n        form is \"Ute\", but in order to insure its being pronounced\n        with two syllables, the form \"Uta\" was chosen.\n   (10) \"Dankrat\" (M.H.G. \"Dancrat\") appears as the father only in\n        the \"Nibelungenlied\" and poems dependent on it, e.g., the\n        \"Klage\" and \"Biterolf\", elsewhere as \"Gibiche\" (Norse\n        \"Giuki\").\n   (11) \"Hagen of Troneg\".  Troneg is probably a corruption of the\n        name of the Latin colony, \"colonia Trajana\", on the Lower\n        Rhine, which as early as the fifth century was written as\n        \"Troja\", giving rise to the legend that the Franks were\n        descended from the ancient Trojans.  \"Troja\" was then\n        further corrupted to \"Tronje\" and \"Tronege\".  Hagen was\n        therefore originally a Frank and had no connection with the\n        Burgundian kings, as the lack of alliteration also goes to\n        show.  Boer thinks that not Siegfried but Hagen originally\n        lived at Xanten (see note 3 to Adventure II), as this was\n        often called Troja Francorum. When the Hagen story was\n        connected with the Burgundians and Hagen became either their\n        brother or their vassal, his home was transferred to Worms\n        and Siegfried was located at Xanten, as he had no especial\n        localization.  Thus Siegfried is never called Siegfried of\n        Troneg, as is Hagen.  Other attempts to explain Troneg will\n        be found in Piper, I, 48.\n   (12) \"Dankwart\" is not an historical character nor one that\n        belonged to the early form of the legend.  He may have come\n        from another saga, where he played the principal role as\n        Droege (ZsfdA. 48, 499) thinks.  Boer considers him to be\n        Hagen's double, invented to play a part that would naturally\n        fall to Hagen's share, were he not otherwise engaged at the\n        moment.  In our poem he is called \"Dancwart der snelle\", a\n        word that has proved a stumbling-block to translators,\n        because in modern German it means 'speedy', 'swift'.  Its\n        original meaning was, however, 'brave', 'warlike', although\n        the later meaning is already found in M.H.G.  In all such\n        doubtful cases the older meaning has been preferred, unless\n        the context forbids, and the word 'doughty' has been chosen\n        to translate it.\n   (13) \"Ortwin of Metz\" appears also in the \"Eckenlied\",\n        \"Waltharius\", and in \"Biterolf\".  He is most likely a late\n        introduction (but see Piper, I, 44).  Rieger thinks that he\n        belonged to a wealthy family \"De Metis\".  Though the \"i\" is\n        long in the original, and Simrock uses the form \"Ortewein\"\n        in his translation, the spelling with short \"i\" has been\n        chosen, as the lack of accent tends to shorten the vowel in\n        such names.\n   (14) \"Gere\" is likewise a late introduction.  He is perhaps the\n        historical Margrave Gere (965) of East Saxony, whom Otto the\n        Great appointed as a leader against the Slavs.  See O. von\n        Heinemann, \"Markgraf Gero\", Braunschweig, 1860, and Piper, L\n        43.\n   (15) \"Eckewart\" is also a late accession.  He is perhaps the\n        historical margrave of Meissen (1002), the first of the\n        name.  He, too, won fame in battle against the Slavs.\n   (16) \"Folker of Alzei\" (M.H.G. \"Volker von Alzeije\"), the\n        knightly minstrel, is hardly an historical personage, in\n        spite of the fact that Alzey is a well-known town in Rhine\n        Hesse on the Selz, eighteen miles southwest of Mainz.  The\n        town has, to be sure, a violin in its coat of arms, as also\n        the noble family of the same name.  It is most likely,\n        however, that this fact caused Folker to be connected with\n        Alzei.  In the \"Thidreksaga\" Folker did not play the role of\n        minstrel, and it is probable that some minstrel reviser of\n        our poem developed the character and made it the\n        personification of himself.\n   (17) \"Rumolt\", \"Sindolt\", and \"Hunolt\" have no historical basis\n        and merely help to swell the retinue of the Burgundians.\n   (18) \"Worship\".  This word has been frequently used here in its\n        older meaning of 'worth', 'reverence', 'respect', to\n        translate the M.H.G. \"eren\", 'honors'.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE II. Of Siegfried.\n\nIn the Netherlands there grew the child of a noble king (his father had\nfor name Siegmund, (1) his mother Siegelind), (2) in a mighty castle,\nknown far and wide, in the lowlands of the Rhine: Xanten, (3) men called\nit. Of this hero I sing, how fair he grew. Free he was of every blemish.\nStrong and famous he later became, this valiant man. Ho! What great\nworship he won in this world! Siegfried hight this good and doughty\nknight. Full many kingdoms did he put to the test through his warlike\nmood. Through his strength of body he rode into many lands. Ho! What\nbold warriors he after found in the Burgundian land! Mickle wonders\nmight one tell of Siegfried in his prime, in youthful days; what honors\nhe received and how fair of body he. The most stately women held him\nin their love; with the zeal which was his due men trained him. But of\nhimself what virtues he attained! Truly his father's lands were honored,\nthat he was found in all things of such right lordly mind. Now was he\nbecome of the age that he might ride to court. Gladly the people saw\nhim, many a maid wished that his desire might ever bear him hither. Enow\ngazed on him with favor; of this the prince was well aware. Full seldom\nwas the youth allowed to ride without a guard of knights. Siegmund and\nSiegelind bade deck him out in brave attire. The older knights who were\nacquaint with courtly custom, had him in their care. Well therefore\nmight he win both folk and land.\n\nNow he was of the strength that he bare weapons well. Whatever he needed\nthereto, of this he had enow. With purpose he began to woo fair ladies;\nthese bold Siegfried courted well in proper wise. Then bade Siegmund\nhave cried to all his men, that he would hold a feasting with his loving\nkindred. The tidings thereof men brought into the lands of other kings.\nTo the strangers and the home-folk he gave steeds and armor. Wheresoever\nany was found who, because of his birth, should become a knight, these\nnoble youths were summoned to the land for the feasting. Here with the\nyouthful prince they gained the knightly sword. Wonders might one tell\nof this great feast; Siegmund and Siegelind wist well how to gain great\nworship with their gifts, of which their hands dealt out great store.\nWherefore one beheld many strangers riding to their realm. Four hundred\nsword-thanes (4) were to put on knightly garb with Siegfried. Many a\nfair maid was aught but idle with the work, for he was beloved of them\nall. Many precious stones the ladies inlaid on the gold, which together\nwith the edging they would work upon the dress of the proud young\nwarriors, for this must needs be done.\n\nThe host bade make benches for the many valiant men, for the midsummer\nfestival, (5) at which Siegfried should gain the name of knight. Then\nfull many a noble knight and many a high-born squire did hie them to\nthe minster. Right were the elders in that they served the young, as had\nbeen done to them afore. Pastimes they had and hope of much good cheer.\nTo the honor of God a mass was sung; then there rose from the people\nfull great a press, as the youths were made knights in courtly wise,\nwith such great honors as might not ever lightly be again. Then they\nran to where they found saddled many a steed. In Siegmund's court the\nhurtling (6) waxed so fierce that both palace (7) and hall were heard\nto ring; the high-mettled warriors clashed with mighty sound. From young\nand old one heard many a shock, so that the splintering of the shafts\nreechoed to the clouds. Truncheons (8) were seen flying out before\nthe palace from the hand of many a knight. This was done with zeal. At\nlength the host bade cease the tourney and the steeds were led away.\nUpon the turf one saw all to-shivered (9) many a mighty buckler and\ngreat store of precious stones from the bright spangles (10) of the\nshields. Through the hurtling this did hap.\n\nThen the guests of the host betook them to where men bade them sit. With\ngood cheer they refreshed them and with the very best of wine, of which\none bare frill plenty. To the strangers and the home-folk was shown\nworship enow. Though much pastime they had throughout the day, many of\nthe strolling folk forsware all rest. They served for the largess, which\nmen found there richly, whereby Siegmund's whole land was decked with\npraise. Then bade the king enfeoff Siegfried, the youth, with land\nand castles, as he himself had done. Much his hand bestowed upon the\nsword-companions. The journey liked them well, that to this land they\nwere come. The feasting lasted until the seventh day. Siegelind,\nthe noble queen, for the love of her son, dealt out ruddy gold in\ntime-honored wise. Full well she wot how to make him beloved of the\nfolk. Scarce could a poor man be found among the strolling mimes. Steeds\nand raiment were scattered by their hand, as if they were to live not\none more day. I trow that never did serving folk use such great bounty.\nWith worshipful honors the company departed hence. Of the mighty barons\nthe tale doth tell that they desired the youth unto their lord, but of\nthis the stately knight, Sir Siegfried, listed naught. Forasmuch as both\nSiegmund and Siegelind were still alive, the dear child of them twain\nwished not to wear a crown, but fain would he become a lord against all\nthe deeds of force within his lands, whereof the bold and daring knight\nwas sore adread.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Siegmund\" (M.H.G. \"Sigemunt\") was originally the hero of an\n        independent saga.  See \"Volsungasaga\", chaps. 3-8.\n   (2)  \"Siegelind\" (M.H.G. \"Sigelint\") is the correct name of\n        Siegfried's mother, as the alliteration shows.  The Early\n        Norse version has \"Hjordis\", which has come from the \"Helgi\n        saga\".\n   (3)  \"Xanten\" (M.H.G. \"Santen\" from the Latin \"ad sanctos\") is at\n        present a town in the Rhenish Prussian district of\n        Dusseldorf.  It does not now lie on the Rhine, but did in\n        the Middle Ages.\n   (4)  \"Sword-thanes\" (M.H.G. \"swertdegene\") were the young squires\n        who were to be made knights.  It was the custom for a\n        youthful prince to receive the accolade with a number of\n        others.\n   (5)  \"Midsummer festival\".  The M.H.G. \"sunewende\" means\n        literally the 'sun's turning', i.e., the summer solstice.\n        This was one of the great Germanic festivals, which the\n        church later turned into St. John's Eve.  The bonfires still\n        burnt in Germany on this day are survivals of the old\n        heathen custom.\n   (6)  \"Hurtling\" translates here M.H.G. \"buhurt\", a word borrowed\n        from the French to denote a knightly sport in which many\n        knights clashed together.  Hurtling was used in older\n        English in the same significance.\n   (7)  \"Palace\" (M.H.G. \"palas\", Lat. \"palatium\") is a large\n        building standing alone and largely used as a reception\n        hall.\n   (8)  \"Truncheons\" (M.H.G. \"trunz\u00fbne\", O.F. \"tron\u00e7on)\", 'lance\n        splinters', 'fragments of spears'.\n   (9)  \"To-shivered\", 'broken to pieces', in imitation of the older\n        English to-beat, to-break, etc.\n   (10) \"Spangles\" (M.H.G. \"spangen\"), strips of metal radiating\n        from the raised centre of the shield and often set, as here,\n        with precious stones.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE III. How Siegfried Came to Worms.\n\nIt was seldom that sorrow of heart perturbed the prince. He heard tales\ntold of how there lived in Burgundy a comely maid, fashioned wondrous\nfair, from whom he thereafter gained much of joy, but suffering, too.\nHer beauty out of measure was known far and wide. So many a here heard\nof her noble mind, that it alone brought many a guest (1) to Gunther's\nland. But however many were seen wooing for her love, Kriemhild never\nconfessed within her heart that she listed any for a lover. He was\nstill a stranger to her, whose rule she later owned. Then did the son of\nSiegelind aspire to lofty love; the wooing of all others was to his but\nas the wind, for well he wot how to gain a lady fair. In later days the\nnoble Kriemhild became bold Siegfried's bride. Kinsmen and liegemen enow\nadvised him, since he would have hope of constant love, that he woo\none who was his peer. At this bold Siegfried spake: \"Then will I choose\nKriemhild, the fair maid of Burgundy, for her beauty beyond measure.\nThis I know full well, never was emperor so mighty, and he would have a\nwife, that it would not beseem him to love this noble queen.\"\n\nTidings of this reached Siegmund's ear; through the talk of the\ncourtiers he was made ware of the wish of his son. Full loth it was to\nthe king, that his child would woo the glorious maid. Siegelind heard it\ntoo, the wife of the noble king. Greatly she feared for her child, for\nfull well she knew Gunther and his men. Therefore they sought to turn\nthe hero from this venture. Up spake then the daring Siegfried: \"Dear\nfather mine, I would fain ever be without the love of noble dames, if I\nmay not woo her in whom my heart hath great delight; whatsoever any may\naver, it will avail but naught.\"\n\n\"And thou wilt not turn back,\" spake the king, \"then am I in sooth glad\nof thy will and will help thee bring it to pass, as best I may. Yet hath\nthis King Gunther full many a haughty man. If there were none else but\nHagen, the doughty knight, he can use such arrogance that I fear me it\nwill repent us sore, if we woo this high-born maid.\"\n\nThen Siegfried made reply: \"Wherefore need that hinder us? What I may\nnot obtain from them in friendly wise, that my hand and its strength can\ngain. I trow that 1 can wrest from him both folk and land.\"\n\nTo this Prince Siegmund replied: \"Thy speech liketh me not, for if this\ntale were told upon the Rhine, then durst thou never ride unto that\nland. Long time have Gunther and Gernot been known to me. By force may\nnone win the maid, of this have I been well assured; but wilt thou ride\nwith warriors unto this land, and we still have aught of friends, they\nshall be summoned soon.\"\n\n\"It is not to my mind,\" spake again Siegfried, \"that warriors should\nfollow me to the Rhine, as if for battle, that I constrain thereby the\nnoble maid. My single hand can win her well--with eleven (2) comrades\nI will fare to Gunther's land; thereto shalt thou help me, Father\nSiegmund.\" Then to his knights they gave for garments furs both gray and\nvair. (3)\n\nNow his mother Siegelind also heard the tale. She began to make dole for\nher loved child, whom she feared to lose through Gunther's men. Sorely\nthe noble queen gan weep. Lord Siegfried hied him straightway to where\nhe saw her; to his mother he spake in gentle wise: \"Lady, ye must not\nweep for me; naught have I to fear from all his fighting men. I pray\nyou, speed me on my journey to the Burgundian land, that I and my\nwarriors may have array such as proud heroes can wear with honor; for\nthis I will say you gramercy i' faith.\"\n\n\"Since naught will turn thee,\" spake then the Lady Siegelind, \"so will I\nspeed thee on thy journey, mine only child, with the best of weeds that\never knight did wear, thee and thy comrades. Ye shall have enow.\"\n\nSiegfried, the youth, then made low obeisance to the queen. He spake:\n\"None but twelve warriors will I have upon the way. Let raiment be\nmade ready for them, I pray, for I would fain see how it standeth with\nKriemhild.\"\n\nThen sate fair ladies night and day. Few enow of them, I trow, did ease\nthem, till Siegfried's weeds had all been wrought. Nor would he desist\nfrom faring forth. His father bade adorn the knightly garb in which his\nson should ride forth from Siegmund's land. The shining breastplates,\ntoo, were put in trim, also the stanch helmets and their shields both\nfair and broad. Now their journey to the Burgundian land drew near;\nman and wife began to fear lest they never should come home again. The\nheroes bade lade their sumpters with weapons and with harness. Their\nsteeds were fair and their trappings red with gold. No need were there\nto live more proudly than Siegfried and his men. Then he asked for leave\nto journey to the land of Burgundy; this the king and queen sorrowfully\nvouchsafed. Lovingly he comforted them twain. \"For my sake,\" spake he,\n\"must ye not weep, nor have fear for me or for my life.\"\n\nThe warriors, too, were sad and many a maiden wept; I ween, their hearts\ndid tell them rightly that many of their kinsmen would come to death\nbecause of this. Just cause had they for wailing; need enow they had in\nsooth.\n\nUpon the seventh morning, forth upon the river sand at Worms the brave\nwarriors pricked. Their armor was of ruddy gold and their trappings\nfashioned fair. Smoothly trotted the steeds of bold Siegfried's men.\nTheir shields were new; gleaming and broad and fair their helmets, as\nSiegfried, the bold, rode to court in Gunther's land. Never had such\nprincely attire been seen on heroes; their sword-points hung down\nto their spurs. Sharp javelins were borne by these chosen knights.\nSiegfried wielded one full two spans broad, which upon its edges cut\nmost dangerously. In their hands they held gold-colored bridles; their\nmartingales were silken: so they came into the land. Everywhere the folk\nbegan to gape amazed and many of Gunther's men fared forth to meet them.\nHigh-mettled warriors, both knight and squire, betook them to the lords\n(as was but right), and received into the land of their lords these\nguests and took from their hands the black sumpters which bore the\nshields. The steeds, too, they wished to lead away for easement. How\nboldly then brave Siegfried spake: \"Let stand the mounts of me and of\nmy men. We will soon hence again, of this have I great desire. Whosoever\nknoweth rightly where I can find the king, Gunther, the mighty, of\nBurgundian land, let him not keep his peace but tell me.\"\n\nThen up spake one to whom it was rightly known: \"Would ye find the king,\nthat can hap full well. In yon broad hall with his heroes did I but see\nhim. Ye must hither hie you; there ye may find with him many a lordly\nman.\"\n\nTo the king now the word was brought, that full lusty knights were come,\nwho wore white breastplates and princely garb. None knew them in the\nBurgundian land. Much it wondered the king whence came these lordly\nwarriors in such shining array, with such good shields, both new and\nbroad. Loth was it to Gunther, that none could tell him this. Then\nOrtwin of Metz (a bold and mighty man was he) made answer to the king:\n\"Since we know them not, ye should send for mine uncle Hagen, and let\nhim see them. To him are known (4) all kingdoms and foreign lands. If so\nbe he knoweth these lords, he will tell us straightway.\"\n\nThen bade the king that Hagen and his men be brought. One saw him with\nhis warriors striding in lordly wise unto the court.\n\n\"What would the king of me?\" asked Hagen.\n\n\"There be come to my house strange warriors, whelm here none knoweth. If\nye have ever seen them, I pray you, Hagen, tell me now the truth.\"\n\n\"That will I,\" spake then Hagen. He hied him to a window and over the\nguests he let his glances roam. Well liked him their trappings and their\narray, but full strange were they to him in the Burgundian land. He\nspake: \"From wheresoever these warriors be come unto the Rhine, they may\nwell be princes or envoys of kings, for their steeds are fair and\ntheir garments passing good. Whencesoever they bear these, forsooth\nhigh-mettled warriors be they.\"\n\n\"I dare well say,\" so spake Hagen, \"though I never have seen Siegfried,\nyet can I well believe, however this may be, that he is the warrior that\nstrideth yonder in such lordly wise. He bringeth new tidings hither to\nthis land. By this here's hand were slain the bold Nibelungs, Schilbung\nand Nibelung, (5) sons of a mighty king. Since then he hath wrought\ngreat marvels with his huge strength. Once as the hero rode alone\nwithout all aid, he found before a mountain, as I have in sooth been\ntold, by Nibelung's hoard full many a daring man. Strangers they were to\nhim, till he gained knowledge of them there.\n\n\"The hoard of Nibelung was borne entire from out a hollow hill. Now hear\na wondrous tale, of how the liegemen of Nibelung wished to divide it\nthere. This the hero Siegfried saw and much it gan wonder him. So near\nwas he now come to them, that he beheld the heroes, and the knights\nespied him, too. One among them spake: 'Here cometh the mighty\nSiegfried, the hero of Netherland.' Passing strange were the tidings\nthat, he found among the Nibelungs. Schilbung and Nibelung greeted well\nthe knight; with one accord these young and noble lordings bade the\nstately man divide the hoard. Eagerly they asked it, and the lord in\nturn gan vow it to them.\n\n\"He beheld such store of gems, as we have heard said, that a hundred\nwains might not bear the lead; still more was there of ruddy gold from\nthe Nibelung land. All this the hand of the daring Siegfried should\ndivide. As a guerdon they gave him the sword of Nibelung, but they were\nserved full ill by the service which the good knight Siegfried should\nrender them. Nor could he end it for them; angry of mood (6) they grew.\nTwelve bold men of their kith were there, mighty giants these. What\nmight that avail them! Siegfried's hand slew them soon in wrath, and\nseven hundred warriors from the Nibelung land he vanquished with the\ngood sword Balmung. (7) Because of the great fear that, many a young\nwarrior had of the sword and of the valiant man, they made the land and\nits castles subject to his hand. Likewise both the mighty kings he\nslew, but soon he himself was sorely pressed by Alberich. (8) The\nlatter weened to venge straightway his masters, till he then discovered\nSiegfried's mighty strength; for no match for him was the sturdy dwarf.\nLike wild lions they ran to the hill, where from Alberich he won the\nCloak of Darkness. (9) Thus did Siegfried, the terrible, become master\nof the hoard; those who had dared the combat, all lay there slain. Soon\nbade he cart and bear the treasure to the place from whence the men of\nNibelung had borne it forth. He made Alberich, the strong, warden of the\nhoard and bade him swear an oath to serve him as his knave; and fit he\nwas for work of every sort.\"\n\nSo spake Hagen of Troneg: \"This he hath done. Nevermore did warrior win\nsuch mighty strength. I wot yet more of him: it is known to me that the\nhero slew a dragon and bathed him in the blood, so that his skin became\nlike horn. Therefore no weapons will cut him, as hath full oft been\nseen. All the better must we greet this lord, that we may not earn the\nyouthful warrior's hate. So bold is he that we should hold him as a\nfriend, for he hath wrought full many a wonder by his strength.\"\n\nThen spake the mighty king: \"Thou mayst well have right. Behold how\nvaliantly he with his knights doth stand in lust of battle, the daring\nman! Let us go down to meet the warrior.\"\n\n\"That ye may do with honor,\" spake then Hagen; \"he is of noble race, son\nof a mighty king. God wot, methinks, he beareth him in such wise, that\nit can be no little matter for which he hath ridden hither.\"\n\n\"Now be he welcome to us,\" spake then the king of the land. \"He is both\nnoble and brave, as I have heard full well. This shall stand him in good\nstead in the Burgundian land.\" Then went Lord Gunther to where Siegfried\nstood.\n\nThe host and his warriors received the guest in such wise that full\nlittle was there lack of worship. Low bowed the stately man, that they\nhad greeted him so fair. \"It wondereth me,\" spake the king straightway,\n\"whence ye, noble Siegfried, be come unto this land, or what ye seek at\nWorms upon the Rhine.\"\n\nThen the stranger made answer to the king: \"This will I not conceal from\nyou. Tales were told me in my father's land, that here with you were the\nboldest warriors that ever king did gain. This I have often heard, and\nthat I might know it of a truth, therefore am I come. Likewise do I hear\nboasting of your valor, that no bolder king hath ever been seen. This\nthe folk relate much through all these lands. Therefore will I not turn\nback, till it be known to me. I also am a warrior and was to wear a\ncrown. Fain would I bring it to pass that it may be said of me: Rightly\ndoth he rule both folk and land. Of this shall my head and honor be a\npledge. Now be ye so bold, as hath been told me, I reck not be it\nlief or loth to any man, I will gain from you whatso ye have--land and\ncastles shall be subject to my hand.\"\n\nThe king had likewise his men had marvel at the tidings they here heard,\nthat he was willed to take from them their land. The knights waxed\nwroth, as they heard this word. \"How have I earned this,\" spake Gunther,\nthe knight, \"that we should lose by the force of any man that which my\nfather hath rules so long with honor? We should let it ill appear that\nwe, too, are used in knightly ways.\"\n\n\"In no wise will I desist,\" spake again the valiant man. \"Unless it be\nthat through thy strength thy land have peace, I will rule it all. And\nshouldst thou gain, by thy strength, my ancestral lands, they shall\nbe subject to thy sway. Thy lands, and mine as well, shall lie alike;\nwhether of us twain can triumph over the other, him shall both land and\npeople serve.\"\n\nHagen and Gernot, too, straightway gainsaid this. \"We have no wish,\"\nspake Gernot, \"that we should conquer aught of lands, or that any man\nlie dead at hero's hands. We have rich lands, which serve us, as is\nmeet, nor hath any a better claim to them than we.\"\n\nThere stood his kinsmen, grim of mood; among them, too, Ortwin of Metz.\n\"It doth irk me much to hear these words of peace,\" spake he; \"the\nmighty Siegfried hath defied you for no just cause. Had ye and your\nbrothers no meet defense, and even if he led a kingly troop, I trow well\nso to fight that the daring man have good cause to leave this haughty\nmien.\"\n\nAt this the hero of Netherland grew wonderly wroth. He spake: \"Thy hand\nshall not presume against me. I am a mighty king, a king's vassal thou.\nTwelve of thy ilk durst not match me in strife.\"\n\nThen Ortwin of Metz called loudly for swords. Well was he fit to be\nHagen of Troneg's sister's son. It rued the king that he had held his\npeace so long. Then Gernot, the bold and lusty knight, came in between.\nHe spake to Ortwin: \"Now give over thy anger. Lord Siegfried hath done\nus no such wrong, but that we may still part the strife in courteous\nwise. Be advised of me and hold him still as friend; far better will\nthis beseem us.\"\n\nThen spake the doughty Hagen: \"It may well grieve us and all thy knights\nthat he ever rode for battle to the Rhine. He should have given it over;\nmy lordings never would have done such ill to him.\"\n\nTo this Siegfried, the mighty man, made answer: \"Doth this irk you, Sir\nHagen, which I spake, then will I let you see that my hands shall have\ndominion here in the Burgundian land.\"\n\n\"I alone will hinder this,\" answered Gernot, and he forbade his knights\nspeak aught with haughtiness that might cause rue. Siegfried, too, then\nbethought him of the noble maid.\n\n\"How might it beseem us to fight with you?\" spake Gernot anew. \"However\nreally heroes should lie dead because of this, we should have scant\nhonor therefrom and ye but little gain.\"\n\nTo this Siegfried, the son of Siegmund, made reply: \"Why waiteth Hagen,\nand Ortwin, too, that he hasteth not to fight with his kin, of whom he\nhath so many here in Burgundy?\"\n\nAt this all held their peace; such was Gernot's counsel. Then spake\nQueen Uta's son: \"Ye shall be welcome to us with all your war-mates, who\nare come with you. We shall gladly serve you, I and all my kin.\"\n\nThen for the guests they bade pour out King Gunther's wine. The master\nof the land then spake: \"All that we have, if ye desire it in honorable\nwise, shall owe fealty to you; with you shall both life and goods be\nshared.\"\n\nAt this Lord Siegfried grew of somewhat gentler mood. Then they bade\nthat care be taken of the armor of the guests. The best of hostels that\nmen might find were sought for Siegfried's squires; great easement they\ngave them. Thereafter they gladly saw the guest in Burgundy. Many a day\nthey offered him great worship, a thousand fold more than I can tell\nyou. This his prowess wrought; ye may well believe, full scant a one he\nsaw who was his foe.\n\nWhenever the lordings and their liegemen did play at knightly games,\nSiegfried was aye the best, whatever they began. Herein could no one\nmatch him, so mighty was his strength, whether they threw the stone or\nhurled the shaft. When through courtesie the full lusty knights\nmade merry with the ladies, there were they glad to see the hero of\nNetherland, for upon high love his heart was bent. He was aye ready for\nwhatso they undertook, but in his heart he bare a lovely maid, whom he\nhad never seen. She too, who in secret spake full well of him, cherished\nhim alone. Whenever the pages, squires, and knights would play their\ngames within the court, Kriemhild, the noble queen, watched them from\nthe windows, for no other pastime she needed on such days. Had he known\nthat she gazed on him thus, whom he bare within his heart, then had he\nhad pastime enough, I trow, for well I wot that no greater joy in all\nthis world could chance to him.\n\nWhenever he stood by the heroes in the court, as men still are wont to\ndo, for pastime's sake, so winsome was the posture of Siegelind's son,\nthat many a lady loved him for very joy of heart. But he bethought him\nmany a day: \"How shall that hap, that I with mine own eyes may see the\nnoble maid, whom I do love with all my heart and so have done long time.\nSadly must I stand, sith she be still a stranger to me.\"\n\nWhenever the mighty kings fared forth into their land, the warriors all\nmust needs accompany them at hand, and Siegfried, too. This the lady\nrued, and he, too, suffered many pangs for love of her. Thus he dwelt\nwith the lordings, of a truth, full a year in Gunther's land, and in all\nthis time he saw not once the lovely maid, from whom in later days there\nhapped to him much joy and eke much woe.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Guest\" translates here the M.H.G. \"gest\", a word which may\n        mean either 'guest' or 'stranger,' and it is often\n        difficult, as here, to tell to which meaning the preference\n        should be given.\n   (2)  \"Eleven\" translates the M.H.G. \"selbe zwelfte\", which means\n        one of twelve.  The accounts are, however, contradictory, as\n        a few lines below mention is made of twelve companions of\n        Siegfried.\n   (3)  \"Vair\" (O.F. \"vair\", Lat. \"varius\"), 'variegated', like the\n        fur of the squirrel.\n   (4)  \"Known\".  It was a mark of the experienced warrior, that he\n        was acquainted with the customs and dress of various\n        countries and with the names and lineage of all important\n        personages.  Thus in the \"Hildebrandslied\" Hildebrand asks\n        Hadubrand to tell him his father's name, and adds: \"If thou\n        tellest me the one, I shall know the other.\"\n   (5)  \"Schilbung\" and \"Nibelung\", here spoken of as the sons of a\n        mighty king, were originally dwarfs, and, according to some\n        authorities, the original owners of the treasure.  Boer, ix,\n        199, thinks, however, that the name Nibelungs was\n        transferred from Hagen to these dwarfs at a late stage in\n        the formation of the saga.\n   (6)  \"Angry of mood\".  The reason of this anger is apparent from\n        the more detailed account in \"Biterolf\", 7801.  The quarrel\n        arose from the fact that, according to ancient law,\n        Siegfried acquired with the sword the rights of the first\n        born, which the brothers, however, refused to accord to him.\n   (7)  \"Balmung\".  In the older Norse version and in the\n        \"Thidreksaga\" Siegfried's sword bore the name of Gram.\n   (8)  \"Alberich\" is a dwarf king who appears in a number of\n        legends, e.g., in the \"Ortnit saga\" and in \"Biterolf\".\n        Under the Romance form of his name, \"Oberon\", he plays an\n        important role in modern literature.\n   (9)  \"Cloak of Darkness\".  This translates the M.H.G.\n        \"tarnkappe\", a word often retained by translators.  It is\n        formed from O.H.G. tarni, 'secret' (cf. O.E. \"dyrne\"), and\n        \"kappe\" from late Latin \"cappa\", 'cloak'.  It rendered the\n        wearer invisible and gave him the strength of twelve men.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE IV. How He Fought with the Saxons. (1)\n\nNow there came strange tales to Gunther's land, though messengers sent\nthem from afar--tales of unknown warriors, who bare them hate. When they\nheard this word, in sooth it pleased them not. These warriors will\nI name to you: there was Liudeger of Saxon land, a great and lordly\nprince, and then from Denmark Liudegast, the king. For their journey\nthey had gathered many a lordly stranger.\n\nTo Gunther's land were come the messengers his foes had sent. Men asked\nthe strangers for their tidings and bade them hie them soon to court\nunto King Gunther. The king gave them greeting fair; he spake: \"Be\nye welcome. I have not heard who sent you hither, but let that now be\ntold.\" So spake the right good king. But they feared full sore King\nGunther's warlike mood.\n\n\"Will ye, O King, permit that we tell the tales we bring, then we shall\nnot hold our tongue, but name to you the lordings who have sent us\nhither: Liudegast and Liudeger; they would march upon this land. Ye\nhave earned their wrath, indeed we heard that both lords bear you mortal\nhate. They would harry at Worms upon the Rhine and have the aid of\nmany a knight; that may ye know upon our faith. Within twelve weeks the\njourney must befall. And ye have aught of good friends, who will help\nguard your castles and your lands, let this soon be seen. Here shall be\ncarved by them many a helm and shield. Or would ye parley with them, let\nmessengers be sent. Then the numerous bands of your mighty foes will\nnot ride so near you, to give you pain of heart, from which full many a\nlusty knight and a good must die.\"\n\n\"Now bide a time,\" spake the good king, \"till I bethink me better; then\nye shall know my mind. Have I aught of trusty men, I will not withhold\nfrom them these startling tales, but will make complaint thereof unto my\nfriends.\"\n\nTo Gunther, the mighty king, it was loth enow, but in his heart he bare\nthe speech in secret wise. He bade Hagen be fetched and others of his\nmen, and sent eftsoon to court for Gernot. Then came the very best of\nmen that could be found. The king spake: \"Men would seek us here in this\nour land with mighty armies, now make ye wail for that.\"\n\nTo this Gernot, a brave and lusty knight, made answer: \"That will we\nfend indeed with swords. Only the fey (2) will fall. So let them die;\nfor their sake I will not forget my honor. Let these foes of ours be\nwelcome to us.\"\n\nThen spake Hagen of Troneg: \"This thinketh me not good. Liudegast and\nLiudeger bear great arrogance; nor can we summon all our men in such\nshort time. Why tell ye not Siegfried of the thing?\" So spake the\nvaliant knight.\n\nTo the messengers they bade give lodging in the town. Whatever hate they\nbore them, yet Gunther, the mighty, bade purvey them well, as was but\nright, till he discovered of his friends who there was who would lend\nhim aid. Yet in his fears the king was ill at ease. Just then full\nblithe a knight, who wot not what had happed, saw him thus sad and\nprayed King Gunther to tell him of the matter. \"Much it wondereth me,\"\nspake Siegfried, for he it was, \"that ye thus have changed your merry\nwont, which ye have used thus far with us.\"\n\nTo this Gunther, the stately knight, replied: \"It liketh me not to tell\nall folk the grievance which I must bear within my heart in secret wise.\nOnly to trusty friends should one confide his woe of heart.\"\n\nAt this Siegfried's color waxed both pale and red. To the king he spake:\n\"I have denied you naught and will gladly help you turn aside your\nwoes. And ye seek friends, I will be one of them and trow well to deport\nmyself with honor until mine end.\"\n\n\"Now God reward you, Sir Siegfried, your speech thinketh me good, and\nthough your prowess help me not, yet do I rejoice to hear that ye are\nfriend to me, and live I yet a while, I shall repay you well. I will\nlet you hear why I stand thus sad; from the messengers of my foes I\nhave heard that they would visit me with war, a thing which knights have\nnever done to us in all these lands.\"\n\n\"Regard this lightly,\" spake then Siegfried, \"and calm your mood. Do\nas I pray you. Let me gain for you both worship and advantage and do ye\ncommand your knights, that they gather to your aid. Should your mighty\nfoes be helped by thirty thousand (3) men, yet could I withstand them,\nhad I but a thousand; for that rely on me.\"\n\nThen spake King Gunther: \"For this I'll serve you ever.\"\n\n\"So bid me call a thousand of your men, since of mine own I have\nbut twelve, and I will guard your land. Faithfully shall the hand of\nSiegfried serve you. Hagen shall help us and also Ortwin, Dankwart,\nand Sindolt, your trusty men. Folker, the valiant man, shall also ride\nalong; he shall bear the banner, for to none would I liefer grant it.\nLet now the envoys ride home to their masters' lands. Give them to\nunderstand they soon shall see us, that our castles may rest in peace.\"\n\nThen the king bade summon both his kinsmen and his men. The messengers\nof Liudeger betook them to the court. Fain they were that they should\njourney home again. Gunther, the good king, made offrance of rich gifts\nand gave them safe-convoy. At this their spirits mounted high. \"Now say\nunto my foes,\" spake then Gunther, \"that they may well give over their\njourney and stay at home; but if they will seek me here within my lands,\nhardships shall they know, and my friends play me not false.\"\n\nRich gifts men bare then for the envoys; enow of these had Gunther to\nbestow, nor durst the men of Liudeger refuse them. When at last they\ntook their leave, they parted hence in merry mood.\n\nNow when the messengers were come to Denmark and King Liudegast had\nheard how they parted from the Rhine, as was told him, much he rued, in\nsooth, their (4) proud defiance. The envoys said that Gunther had full\nmany a valiant man-at-arms and among them they saw a warrior stand,\nwhose name was Siegfried, a hero from Netherland. Little liked it\nLiudegast when he heard aright this tale. When the men of Denmark\nhad heard these tidings told, they hasted all the more to call their\nfriends; till Sir Liudegast had gathered for his journey full twenty\nthousand knights from among his valiant men. Then King Liudeger, also,\nof Saxon land, sent forth his summons, till they had forty thousand men\nand more, with whom they thought to ride to the Burgundian land.\n\nLikewise at home King Gunther got him men-at-arms among his kin and the\nliegemen of his brothers, and among Hagen's men whom they wished to lead\nthence for battle. Much need of this the heroes had, but warriors soon\nmust suffer death from this. Thus they made them ready for the journey.\nWhen they would hence, Folker, the daring, must bear the flag. In such\nwise they thought to ride from Worms across the Rhine. Hagen of Troneg\nwas master of the troop; with them rode Sindolt and Hunolt, too, who\nwist well how to merit Gunther's gold. Dankwart, Hagen's brother, and\nOrtwin, too, well could they serve with honor in this war.\n\n\"Sir King,\" spake then Siegfried, \"stay ye at home; since that your\nwarriors are willed to follow me, remain ye with the ladies and keep\nyour spirits high. I trow well to guard for you both honor and estate.\nWell will I bring it to pass that those who thought to seek you out at\nWorms upon the Rhine, had better far have stayed at home. We shall ride\nso nigh unto their land that their proud defiance shall be turned to\nfear.\"\n\nFrom the Rhine they rode through Hesse with their warriors towards Saxon\nland, where they later fought. With fire and pillage, too, they harried\nall the countryside, so that the two kings did learn of it in dire\ndistress. Then came they to the border; the warriors marched along.\nSiegfried, the strong, gan ask: \"Who shall now guard here the troop?\"\nForsooth never did men ride more scathfully to the Saxons. They spake:\n\"Let the valiant Dankwart guard the young upon the way, he is a doughty\nknight. Thus shall we lose the less through Liudeger's men. Let him and\nOrtwin guard the rear.\"\n\n\"Then I myself will ride,\" spake Siegfried, the knight, \"and play the\noutlook toward the foe, until I discover aright where these warriors\nbe.\" Quickly the son of fair Siegelind donned his harness. The troop\nhe gave in charge to Hagen, when he would depart, and to Gernot, the\nvaliant man. Thus he rode hence into the Saxon land alone and many a\nhelmet band he cut to pieces on that day. Soon he spied the mighty host\nthat lay encamped upon the plain and far outweighed the forces of his\nmen. Forty thousand or better still there were. Full blithely Siegfried\nsaw this in lofty mood. Meantime a warrior full well arrayed had mounted\nto the outlook 'gainst the foe. Him Sir Siegfried spied, and the bold\nman saw him, too. Each began to watch the other in hostile wise. Who it\nwas, who stood on guard, I'll tell you now; a gleaming shield of gold\nlay by his hand. It was the good King Liudegast, who was guarding here\nhis band. The noble stranger pricked along in lordly wise.\n\nNow had Sir Liudegast espied him with hostile eye. Into the flanks of\ntheir horses they plunged the spurs; with all their might they couched\nthe spears against the shields. At this great fear befell the mighty\nking. After the thrust the horses carried past each other the royal\nknights, as though borne upon the wind. With the bridles they wheeled\nin knightly wise and the two fierce champions encountered with their\nswords. Then smote Sir Siegfried, so that the whole field did ring.\nThrough the hero's hand from out the helmets, as from firebrands, flew\nthe bright red sparks. Each in the other found his match. Sir Liudegast,\ntoo, struck many a savage blow; the might of each broke full upon the\nshields. Thirty of Liudegast's men stood there on guard, but ere they\ncould come to his aid, Siegfried had won the fight, with three groat\nwounds which he dealt the king through his gleaming breastplate, the\nwhich was passing good. The blood from the wounds gushed forth along\nthe edges of the sword, whereat King Liudegast stood in sorry mood. He\nbegged for life and made offrance of his lands and said that his name\nwas Liudegast. Then came his warrior's, who had witnessed what there had\nhapped upon the lookout. As Siegfried would lead his captive thence, he\nwas set upon by thirty of these men. With mighty blows the hero's hand\nguarded his noble prize. The stately knight then wrought worse scathe.\nIn self-defense he did thirty unto death; only one he left alive,\nwho rode full fast to tell the tale of what here had chanced. By his\nreddened helmet one might see the truth. It sorely grieved the men of\nDenmark, when the tale was told them that their king was taken captive.\nMen told it to his brother, who at the news began to rage with monstrous\nwrath, for great woe it brought him.\n\nLiudegast, the warrior, then was led away by Siegfried's might to\nGunther's men and given to Hagen in charge. When that they heard it was\nthe king, full moderate was their dole. The Burgundians now were bidden\nraise their banner. \"Up, men,\" cried Siegfried, \"here shall more be\ndone, ere the day end, and I lose not my life. Full many a stately dame\nin Saxon land shall rue this fight. Ye heroes from the Rhine, give heed\nto me, for I can guide you well to Liudeger's band. So shall ye see\nhelmets carved by the hands of goodly knights; ere we turn again, they\nshall become acquaint with fear.\"\n\nTo their horses Gernot and all his men now hasted, and soon the stalwart\nminstrel, Sir Folker, grasped the battle-flag and rode before the band.\nThen were all the comrades arrayed in lordly wise for strife; nor\nhad they more than a thousand men, and thereto Siegfried's twelve\nmen-at-arms. Now from the road gan rise the dust, as across the land\nthey rode; many a lordly shield was seen to gleam from out their midst.\nThere, too, were come the Saxons with their troops and well-sharpened\nswords, as I since have heard. Sore cut these weapons in the heroes'\nhands, for they would fain guard both their castles and their land\nagainst the strangers. The lordings' marshals led on the troop.\nSiegfried, too, was come with his men-at-arms, whom he had brought from\nNetherland. In the storm of battle many a hand this day grew red with\nblood. Sindolt and Hunolt and Gernot, too, slew many a knight in the\nstrife, ere these rightly knew the boldness of their foes. This many a\nstately dame must needs bewail. Folker and Hagen and Ortwin, too,\ndimmed in the battle the gleam of many a helm with flowing blood, these\nstorm-bold men. By Dankwart, too, great deeds were done.\n\nThe men of Denmark proved well their hands; one heard many a shield\nresounding from the hurtling and from the sharp swords as well, many of\nwhich were wielded there. The battle-bold Saxons did scathe enow, but\nwhen the men of Burgundy pressed to the fight, by them was really a wide\nwound carved. Then down across the saddles the blood was seen to flow.\nThus they fought for honors, these knights both bold and good. Loud rang\nthe sharp weapons in the heroes' hands, as those of Netherland followed\ntheir lording through the sturdy host. Valiantly they forced their way\nin Siegfried's wake, but not a knight from the Rhine was seen to follow.\nThrough the shining helmets one could see flow the bloody stream, drawn\nforth by Siegfried's hand, till at last he found Liudeger before his\nmen-at-arms. Thrice had he pierced the host from end to end. Now was\nHagen come, who helped him achieve in the battle all his mind. Before\nthem many a good knight must needs die this day.\n\nWhen the mighty Liudeger espied Siegfried and saw that he bore high in\nhand the good sword Balmung and did slay so many a man, then waxed the\nlording wroth and fierce enow. A mighty surging and a mighty clang of\nswords arose, as their comrades pressed against each other. The two\nchampions tried their prowess all the more. The troops began to yield;\nfierce grew the hate. To the ruler of the Saxons the tale was told that\nhis brother had been captured; great dole this gave him. Well he knew it\nwas the son of Siegelind who had done the deed. Men blamed Sir Gernot,\nbut later he learned the truth.\n\nSo mighty were the blows of Liudeger that Siegfried's charger reeled\nbeneath the saddle. When the steed recovered, bold Siegfried took on a\nfrightful usance in the fray. In this Hagen helped him well, likewise\nGernot, Dankwart, and Folker, too. Through them lay many dead. Likewise\nSindolt and Hunolt and Ortwin, the knight, laid many low in strife; side\nby side in the fray the noble princes stood. One saw above the helmets\nmany a spear, thrown by here's hand, hurtling through the gleaming\nshields. Blood-red was colored many a lordly buckler; many a man in the\nfierce conflict was unhorsed. At each other ran Siegfried, the brave,\nand Liudeger; shafts were seen to fly and many a keen-edged spear. Then\noff flew the shield-plates, struck by Siegfried's hand; the hero of\nNetherland thought to win the battle from the valiant Saxons, wondrous\nmany of whom one saw. Ho! How many shining armor-rings the daring\nDankwart broke!\n\nThen Sir Liudeger espied a crown painted on the shield in Siegfried's\nhand. Well he knew that it was Siegfried, the mighty man. To his friends\nthe hero loudly called: \"Desist ye from the strife, my men, here I have\nseen the son of Siegmund, Siegfried, the strong, and recognized him\nwell. The foul fiend himself hath sent him hither to the Saxon land.\"\nThe banners bade he lower in the fight. Peace he craved, and this was\nlater granted him, but he must needs go as hostage to Gunther's land.\nThis was wrung from him by valiant Siegfried's hand. With one accord\nthey then gave over the strife and laid aside the many riddled helmets\nand the broad, battered bucklers. Whatever of these was found, bore the\nhue of blood from the Burgundians' hand. They captured whom they would,\nfor this lay in their power. Gernot and Hagen, the full bold warriors,\nbade bear away the wounded; five hundred stately men they led forth\ncaptive to the Rhine. The worsted knights rode back to Denmark, nor had\nthe Saxons fought so well that one could give them aught of praise, and\nthis the heroes rued full sore. The fallen, too, were greatly mourned by\nfriends.\n\nThen they bade place the weapons on sumpters for the Rhine. Siegfried,\nthe warrior, and his heroes had wrought full well, as Gunther's men must\nneeds confess. Sir Gernot now sent messengers homeward to Worms in his\nnative land, and bade tell his kin what great success had happed to him\nand to his men, and how these daring knights had striven well for\nhonor. The squirelings ran and told the tale. Then those who afore had\nsorrowed, were blithe for joy at the pleasing tidings that were come.\nMuch questioning was heard from noble dames, how it had fared with\nthe liegemen of the mighty king. One of the messengers they bade go to\nKriemhild; this happed full secretly (openly she durst not), for she,\ntoo, had amongst them her own true love. When she saw the messenger\ncoming to her bower, fair Kriemhild spake in kindly wise: \"Now tell me\nglad news, I pray. And thou dost so without deceit, I will give thee of\nmy gold and will ever be thy friend. How fared forth from the battle my\nbrother Gernot and others of my kin? Are many of them dead perchance? Or\nwho wrought there the best? This thou must tell me.\"\n\nQuickly then the envoy spake: \"Ne'er a coward did we have, but, to tell\nthe truth, O noble queen, none rode so well to the strife and fray,\nas did the noble stranger from Netherland. Mickle wonders the hand of\nvaliant Siegfried wrought. Whate'er the knights have done in strife,\nDankwart and Hagen and other men of the king, however much they strove\nfor honor, 'tis but as the wind compared with Siegfried, the son of\nSiegmund, the king. They slew full many a hero in the fray, but none\nmight tell you of the wonders which Siegfried wrought, whenever he rode\ninto the fight. Great woe he did the ladies through their kin; upon the\nfield the love of many a dame lay dead. His blows were heard to ring so\nloud upon the helmets, that from the wounds they drew forth the blood\nin streams. In every knightly art he is a worthy knight and a brave.\nWhatever Ortwin of Metz achieved (and he whom he could reach with his\ngood sword, fell sorely wounded, but mostly dead), yet your brother\nwrought the direst woe that could ever chance in battle. One must say of\nthe chosen knights in truth, that these proud Burgundians acquitted\nthem so well that they can well preserve their honor from every taint\nof shame. Through their hands we saw many a saddle bare, while the field\nresounded with the flashing swords. So well rode the warriors from\nthe Rhine, that it were better for their foes had it been avoided. The\nvaliant men of Troneg, also, wrought dire woe, when in great numbers the\narmies met. Bold Hagen's hand did many a one to death; of this full many\nstories might be told here in the Burgundian land. Sindolt and Hunolt,\nGernot's men, Rumolt the brave, have done such deeds that it may well\never rue Liudeger that he made war upon thy kinsmen by the Rhine. The\nvery best fight that happed from first to last, that one has ever seen,\nwas made full lustily by Siegfried's hand. Rich hostages he bringeth to\nGunther's land. He won them by his prowess, this stately man. Of this\nKing Liudegast must bear the loss and eke his brother Liudeger of Saxon\nland. Now listen to my tale, most noble queen: by the hand of Siegfried\nthe twain were caught. Never have men brought so many hostages to this\nland, as now are coming to the Rhine through him. Men are bringing\nto our land five hundred or more unharmed captives; and of the deadly\nwounded, my lady, know, not less than eighty blood-red biers. These men\nwere mostly wounded by bold Siegfried's hand. Those who in haughty\npride sent a challenge to the Rhine, must now needs be the captives of\nGunther, the king, and men are bringing them with joy unto this land.\"\n\nStill higher rose Kriemhild's color when she heard this tale. Her fair\nface blushed a rosy red, that Siegfried, the youth, the stately knight,\nhad fared forth so joyfully from the dangerous strife. These tidings\ncould not have pleased her better. For her kinsmen, too, she rejoiced in\nduty bound. Then spake the lovely maid: \"A fair tale thou hast told me;\ntherefore shalt thou have as guerdon rich attire. Likewise I'll have\nthee brought ten marks of gold.\" (5) Small wonder that such tales are\ngladly told to noble dames.\n\nThey gave him then his guerdon, the garments and the gold. Then many a\nfair maid hied her to the casement and gazed upon the street, where many\nhigh-mettled warriors were seen riding into the Burgundian land. There\ncame the champions, the wounded and the sound. Without shame they heard\nthe greetings of their friends. Merrily the host rode forth to meet his\nguests, for his great sorrow had been turned to joy. Well greeted he\nhis vassals and the strangers, too; for it was only meet that the mighty\nking in courtly wise should thank those who were come back to him,\nbecause in the storm of battle they had won the fight with honor.\nGunther bade his kinsmen tell who had been slain upon the march; but\nsixty had been lost, whom one must mourn, as is the wont with heroes.\nMany a riven shield and battered helm the unharmed warriors brought to\nGunther's land. The men alighted from their steeds before the palace\nof the king. Loud was heard the joyous sound of the merry welcome;\nthen order was given to lodge the warriors in the town. The king bade\nminister well unto his guests, attend the wounded and give them good\neasement. His courtesie was cleverly seen upon his foes. He spake to\nLiudegast: \"Now be ye welcome. Much damage have I ta'en because of you;\nfor this I shall now be repaid, if fortune favor. God reward my kinsmen,\nfor they have given me joy.\"\n\n\"Well may ye thank them,\" answered Liudeger; \"such noble hostages hath\nking never gained afore. For fair treatment we offer great store of\nwealth, that ye may act with mercy towards your foes.\"\n\n\"I will let you both go free,\" spake Gunther, \"but I must have surety\nthat my foes remain here with me, that they do not leave the land\nagainst my will.\" To that Liudeger pledged his hand.\n\nMen brought them to their lodgings and gave them easement. The wounded\nwere bedded well, and for the sound were poured out good mead and wine.\nNever could the comrades have been more merry. Their battered shields\nwere borne away for keeping, and enow there was of bloody saddles which\none bade hide away, that the ladies might not weep. Many a good knight\nreturned aweary from the fray. The king did make his guests great cheer.\nHis lands were full of strangers and of home-folk. He bade ease the\nsorely wounded in kindly wise; their haughty pride was now laid low. Men\noffered to the leeches rich rewards, silver without weight and thereto\nshining gold, if they would heal the heroes from the stress of war. To\nhis guests the king likewise gave great gifts. Those that were minded to\nset out for home, were asked to stay, as one doth to friends. The king\nbethought him how he might requite his men, for they had brought to pass\nhis wish for fame and honor.\n\nThen spake Lord Gernot: \"Let them ride away, but be it made known to\nthem that in six weeks they must come again for a mighty feast. By then\nwill many a one be healed who now lieth sorely wounded.\"\n\nThen Siegfried of Netherland also asked for leave, but when King Gunther\nlearned his wish, lovingly he bade him stay erstwhile. Were it not for\nthe king's sister, this were never done. He was too rich to take reward,\nthough he well deserved it and the king liked him well, as also did the\nkinsmen, who had seen what happed in battle through his strength. For\nthe sake of one fair lady he thought to stay, if perchance he might espy\nher. Later it was done, and according to his wish he met the maid. He\nrode thereafter joyfully to Siegmund's land.\n\nAt all times the host bade practice knighthood, and many a youthful\nknight did this right gladly. Meanwhile he ordered seats prepared upon\nthe sand before the town of Worms for those who were to visit him in the\nBurgundian land. At the time when they should come, fair Kriemhild heard\nit said that the king would hold a feasting for the sake of his dear\nfriends. Then comely women hasted apace with robes and headgear which\nthey were to don. The noble Uta heard tales told of the proud warriors\nwho were to come. Then many rich dresses were taken from the press. To\nplease her children she bade make garments ready, that many ladies and\nmany maids might therewith be decked and many youthful knights of the\nBurgundian land. Also for many of the strangers she bade fashion lordly\nrobes.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Saxons\".  This war with the Saxons does not appear in the\n        poetic \"Edda\", but was probably introduced into the story\n        later to provide the heroes with a suitable activity in the\n        period elapsing between Siegfried's marriage and the journey\n        to Brunhild's land.  (In our poem it is placed before the\n        marriage.)  It reflects the ancient feuds between the Franks\n        on the one hand and the Saxons and Danes on the other.\n        Originally Siegfried probably did not take part in it, but\n        was later introduced and made the leader of the expedition\n        in place of the king, in accordance with the tendency to\n        idealize him and to give him everywhere the most important\n        role.  The two opposing leaders are \"Liudeger\", lord of the\n        Saxons, and \"Liudegast\", king of Denmark.  In \"Biterolf\"\n        Liudeger rules over both Saxons and Danes, and Liudegast is\n        his brother.\n   (2)  \"Fey\".  This Scotch and older English word has been chosen\n        to translate the M.H.G. \"veige\", 'fated', 'doomed', as it is\n        etymologically the same word.  The ancient Germans were\n        fatalists and believed only those would die in battle whom\n        fate had so predestined.\n   (3)  \"Thirty thousand\".  The M.H.G. epics are fond of round\n        numbers and especially of thirty and its multiples.  They\n        will be found to occur very frequently in our poem.  See\n        Lachmann, \"Anmerkungen zu den Nibelungen\", 474 1.\n   (4)  \"Their\".  The original is obscure here; the meaning is,\n        'when he heard with what message they were come, he rued the\n        haughtiness of the Burgundians'.\n   (5)  \"Marks of gold\".  A mark (Lat. \"mares\") was half a pound of\n        gold or silver.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE V. How Siegfried First Saw Kriemhild.\n\nOne saw daily riding to the Rhine those who would fain be at the\nfeasting. Full many of these who for the king's sake were come into the\nland, were given steeds and lordly harness. Seats were prepared for all,\nfor the highest and the best, as we are told, for two and thirty princes\nat the feast. For this, too, the fair ladies vied in their attire.\nGiselher, the youth, was aught but idle; he and Gernot and all their\nmen received the friends and strangers. In truth, they gave the knights\nright courtly greetings. These brought into the land many a saddle\nof golden red, dainty shields and lordly armor to the feasting on the\nRhine. Many a wounded man was seen full merry since. Even those who lay\nabed in stress of wounds, must needs forget the bitterness of death.\nMen ceased to mourn for the weak and sick and joyed in prospect of the\nfestal day, and how well they would fare at the feasting of the king.\nPleasure without stint and overabundance of joy pervaded all the folk\nwhich there were seen. Therefore great rejoicing arose throughout the\nwhole of Gunther's land.\n\nUpon a Whitsun morning five thousand or more brave men, clad in glad\nattire, were seen going forth to the high festal tide. On all sides they\nvied with each other in knightly sports. The host marked well, what he\nalready wet, how from his very heart the hero of Netherland did love his\nsister, albeit he had never seen her, whose comeliness men praised above\nall maids. Then spake the knight Ortwin to the king: \"Would ye have full\nhonor at your feast, so should ye let be seen the charming maids, who\nlive in such high honors here in Burgundy. What were the joy of man,\nwhat else could give him pleasure, but pretty maids and noble dames?\nPray let your sister go forth before the guests.\" To the joy of many a\nhero was this counsel given.\n\n\"This will I gladly do,\" spake then the king, and all who heard it were\nmerry at the thought. Then bade he say to the Lady Uta and her comely\ndaughter, that with their maidens they should come to court. From the\npresses they took fair raiment and whatso of rich attire was laid away.\nOf rings and ribbons, too, enow they had. Thus each stately maiden\ndecked herself with zeal. Full many a youthful knight upon that day was\nof the mind that he was so fair to look upon for ladies, that he would\nnot exchange this chance for the lands of any mighty king. Gladly they\ngazed on those whom till now they had not known. Then bade the mighty\nking full a hundred of his men, who were his kin and hers, escort\nhis sister and serve her thus. These were the court retainers of the\nBurgundian land and carried swords in hand. Soon one saw the noble Uta\ncoming with her child. Full hundred or more fair ladies had she taken\nfor her train, who wore rich robes. Likewise there followed her daughter\nmany a stately maid. When from out a bower men saw them come, there rose\na mighty press of knights who had the hope, if that might be, to gaze\nwith joy upon the noble maid. Now came she forth, the lovely fair, as\ndoth the red of dawn from out the lowering clouds. He then was reft\nof many woes who bore her in his heart so long a time, when he saw the\nlovely maid stand forth so glorious. How shone full many a precious\nstone upon her robes! In lovely wise her rose-red hue appeared. Whatever\none might wish, he could not but confess that never in the world had\nhe beheld a fairer maid. As the radiant moon, whose sheen is thrown so\nbrightly on the clouds, doth stand before the stars, so stood she now\nbefore full many a stately dame. Therefore higher rose the spirits of\nthe comely knights. Richly appareled chamberlains marched on in front,\nwhile the high-mettled warriors forsooth must press where they might\nsee the lovely maid. At this Lord Siegfried felt both joy and dole. To\nhimself he thought: \"How could that chance, that I should love thee?\nThat is a foolish dream. But if I now must lose thee, then were I better\ndead.\" At thought of this his color came and went. There stood the son\nof Siegmund in such dainty grace, as he were limned on parchment by\nskillful master's art. Indeed 'twas said of him that never had so fair a\nknight been seen. The escort of the ladies now bade everywhere give\nway and many a man obeyed. These high-born hearts rejoiced full many a\nwight, as thus so many a noble dame appeared in courtly bearing.\n\nThen spake Lord Gernot of Burgundy: \"Dear brother Gunther, him who\noffered service in such kindly wise, ye should in like manner requite\nbefore these knights; nor shall I ever rue this counsel. Bid Siegfried\nnow approach my sister, that the maid may greet him; this will ever be\nour gain. She who never greeted warrior shall greet him fair, that by\nthis means we now may win the stately knight.\"\n\nThen went the kinsmen of the host to fetch the hero. To the champion\nfrom Netherland they spake: \"You hath the king permitted to go to court;\nhis sister is to greet you. This hath he decreed to do you honor.\"\n\nAt this the lord grew blithe of mood, for in his heart he bare joy\nwithout alloy, that he thus should see fair Uta's child. With lovely\ngrace she greeted Siegfried then, but when she saw the haughty knight\nstand thus before her, her cheeks flamed bright. \"Be welcome, Sir\nSiegfried, most good and noble knight,\" the fair maid spake, and at this\ngreeting his spirits mounted high. Courteously he made obeisance; she\ntook him by the hand. How gallantly he walked by the lady's side! Upon\neach other this lord and lady gazed with kindling eyes. Full secretly\nthis happed. Was perchance a white hand there fervently pressed by\nheart-felt love? That know I not; yet I cannot believe that this was\nleft undone, for soon had she betrayed to him her love. Nevermore in\nsummertide nor in the days of May bare he within his heart such lofty\njoy as now he gained, when hand in hand he walked with her whom he fain\nwould call his love.\n\nThen thought full many a knight: \"Had that but happed to me, to walk\nthus with her hand in hand, as now I see him do, or to lie beside her,\nI'd bear it willingly.\"\n\nNever has warrior better served to gain a queen. From whatever land the\nguests were come, all gazed alike upon this pair alone. She then was\nbidden kiss the stately man, to whom no such delight had ever happened\nin this world.\n\nThen spake the king of Denmark: \"Because of this high greeting many a\nwarrior lieth wounded (this wot I well), through Siegfried's hand. God\ngrant that he may never come again to my kingly lands.\"\n\nOn all sides they bade make way for Kriemhild, as thus to church one saw\nher go with many a valiant knight in courtly wise. Then soon the stately\nknight was parted from her side. Thus went she to the minster, followed\nby many a dame. So full of graces was this queenly maid that many a\ndaring wish must needs be lost. Born she was to be the eyes' delight\nof many a knight. Siegfried scarce could wait till mass was sung. Well\nmight he think his fortune that she did favor him, whom thus he bare in\nheart. Cause enow he had to love the fair.\n\nWhen she came forth from out the minster, they begged the gallant knight\nagain to bear her company, as he had done afore. Then first the lovely\nmaid began to thank him that he had fought so gloriously before so many\nknights. \"Now God requite you, Sir Siegfried,\" spake the comely maid,\n\"that ye have brought to pass with your service, that the warriors do\nlove you with such fealty as I hear them say.\"\n\nThen upon Dame Kriemhild he began to gaze in loving wise. \"I will serve\nthem ever,\" spake then the knight, \"and while life shall last, never\nwill I lay my head to rest till I have done their will; and this I do,\nmy Lady Kriemhild, to win your love.\"\n\nA twelfth-night long, on each and every day, one saw the winsome maid\nbeside the knight, when she should go to court to meet her kin. This\nservice was done from sheer delight. A great rout of joy and pleasure\nwas daily seen in front of Gunther's hall, without and eke within, from\nmany a daring man. Ortwin and Hagen began to do great marvels. Whatever\nany wished to play, these lusty knights were fully ready; thus they\nbecame well known to all the guests and so the whole of Gunther's land\nwas decked with honor. Those who had lain wounded were now seen coming\nforth; they, too, would fain have pastime with the troop and guard\nthemselves with bucklers and hurl the shaft. Enow there were to help\nthem, for there was great store of men.\n\nAt the feasting the host bade purvey them with the best of cheer. He\nkept him free from every form of blame that might befall a king; men\nsaw him move in friendly wise among his guests. He spake: \"Ye worthy\nknights, ere ye go hence, pray take my gifts. I am minded to deserve it\nof you ever. Do not disdain my goods, the which I'll share with you, as\nI have great desire.\"\n\nThen up spake they of Denmark: \"Ere we ride homeward to our land, we\ncrave a lasting peace; we knights have need thereof, for many a one of\nour kinsmen lieth dead at the hands of your men-at-arms.\"\n\nLiudegast, the Saxon chief, was now cured of his wounds and had\nrecovered from the fray, though many dead they left within this land.\nThen King Gunther went to find Sir Siegfried; to the knight he spake:\n\"Now tell me what to do. Our foes would fain ride early and beg for\nlasting peace of me and of my men. Advise me now, Knight Siegfried, what\nthinketh thee good to do? What the lordings offer me will I tell thee;\nwhat of gold five hundred steeds can bear, that would they gladly give\nme, and I set them free again.\"\n\nThen spake the mighty Siegfried: \"That were done but ill. Let them ride\nhence unhindered, but make each of the lordings give surety with his\nhand, that their noble knights henceforth forbear all hostile riding\nhither to your land.\"\n\n\"This counsel will I follow.\" Herewith they parted, and to the king's\nfoes was told that no one craved the gold they proffered. For their\nloved friends at home the battle-weary warriors longed. Many a shield\nfull of treasure was then brought forth which the king dealt out\nunweighed to his many friends, to each five hundred marks of gold, and\nto a few, still more. Gernot, the brave, had counseled Gunther this.\nThen they all took leave, sith they would hence. One saw the guests\ndraw nigh to Kriemhild and also to where Dame Uta sate. Never yet were\nknights dismissed in better wise. Lodgings grew empty as they rode away,\nbut still there stayed at home the king and all his kin and many a noble\nliegeman. Daily they were seen as they went to Lady Kriemhild. The good\nknight Siegfried now would likewise take his leave; he weened not to win\nthat on which his mind was set. The king heard said that he would hence,\nbut Giselher, the youth, quite won him from the journey.\n\n\"Whither would ye ride now, noble Siegfried? Pray tarry with the\nknights, I beg you, with Gunther the king and with his men. Here, too,\nare many comely dames whom we shall gladly let you see.\"\n\nThen spake the mighty Siegfried: \"Let stand the steeds. I listed to ride\nhence, but now will I desist. The shields, too, bear away. To my land I\ncraved to go, in truth, but Giselher with his great love hath turned me\nfrom it.\"\n\nSo the valiant knight stayed on to please his friends, nor could he\nhave fared more gentilly in any land. This happed because he daily saw\nKriemhild, the fair; for the sake of her unmeasured beauty the lording\nstayed. With many a pastime they whiled the hours away, but still her\nlove constrained him and often gave him dole. Because of this same love\nin later days the valiant knight lay pitiful in death.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE VI. How Gunther Fared To Isenland (1) for Brunhild.\n\nNew tidings came across the Rhine. 'Twas said that yonder many a fair\nmaid dwelt. The good king Gunther thought to win him one of these; high\ntherefore rose the warrior's spirits. There lived a queen beyond the\nsea, whose like men knew not anywhere. Peerless was her beauty and great\nher strength. With doughty knights she shot the shaft for love. The\nstone she hurled afar and sprang far after it. He who craved her love\nmust win without fail three games from this high-born dame. When the\nnoble maid had done this passing oft, a stately knight did hear it by\nthe Rhine. He turned his thoughts upon this comely dame, and so heroes\nmust needs later lose their lives.\n\nOne day when the king and his vassals sate and pondered to and fro in\nmany a wise, whom their lord might take to wife, who would be fit to be\ntheir lady and beseem the land, up spake the lord of the Rhinelands: \"I\nwill go down to the sea and hence to Brunhild, however it may go with\nme. For her love I'll risk my life. I will gladly lose it and she become\nnot my wife.\"\n\n\"Against that do I counsel you,\" spake then Siegfried, \"if, as ye say,\nthe queen doth have so fierce a wont, he who wooeth for her love will\npay full dear. Therefore should ye give over the journey.\"\n\nThen spake King Gunther: \"Never was woman born so strong and bold that I\nmight not vanquish her with mine own hand.\"\n\n\"Be still,\" spake Siegfried, \"ye little know her strength.\"\n\n\"So will I advise you,\" spake Hagen then, \"that ye beg Siegfried to\nshare with you this heavy task. This is my rede, sith he doth know so\nwell how matters stand with Brunhild.\"\n\nThe king spake: \"Wilt thou help me, noble Siegfried, to woo this lovely\nmaid? And thou doest what I pray thee and this comely dame become my\nlove, for thy sake will I risk both life and honor.\"\n\nTo this Siegfried, the son of Siegmund, answered: \"I will do it, and\nthou give me thy sister Kriemhild, the noble queen. For my pains I ask\nno other meed.\"\n\n\"I'll pledge that, Siegfried, in thy hand,\" spake then Gunther, \"and if\nfair Brunhild come hither to this land, I'll give thee my sister unto\nwife. Then canst thou live ever merrily with the fair.\"\n\nThis the noble warriors swore oaths to do, and so the greater grew their\nhardships, till they brought the lady to the Rhine. On this account\nthese brave men must later be in passing danger. Siegfried had to take\nwith him hence the cloak which he, the bold hero, had won 'mid dangers\nfrom a dwarf, Alberich he hight. These bold and mighty knights now made\nthem ready for the journey. When Siegfried wore the Cloak of Darkness\nhe had strength enow: the force of full twelve men beside his own. With\ncunning arts he won the royal maid. This cloak was fashioned so, that\nwhatsoever any wrought within it, none saw him. Thus he won Brunhild,\nwhich brought him dole.\n\n\"Now tell me, good Knight Siegfried, before our trip begin, shall we\nnot take warriors with us into Brunhild's land, that we may come with\npassing honors to the sea? Thirty thousand men-at-arms can soon be\ncalled.\"\n\n\"However many men we take,\" quoth Siegfried, \"the queen doth use so\nfierce a wont that they must perish through her haughty pride. I'll give\nthee better counsel, O brave and worthy king. Let us fare as wandering\nknights adown the Rhine, and I will tell thee those that shall be of the\nband. In all four knights, we'll journey to the sea and thus we'll woo\nthe lady, whatever be our fate thereafter. I shall be one of the four\ncomrades, the second thou shalt be. Let Hagen be the third (then have\nwe hope of life), Dankwart then the fourth, the valiant man. A thousand\nothers durst not match us in the fight.\"\n\n\"Gladly would I know,\" spake then the king, \"ere we go hence ('t would\nplease me much), what garments we should wear before Brunhild, which\nwould beseem us there. Pray tell this now to Gunther.\"\n\n\"Weeds of the very best which can be found are worn all times in\nBrunhild's land. We must wear rich clothes before the lady, that we feel\nno shame when men shall hear the tidings told.\"\n\nThe good knight spake: \"Then will I go myself to my dear mother, if\nperchance I can bring it to pass that her fair maids purvey us garments\nwhich we may wear with honor before the high-born maid.\"\n\nHagen of Troneg spake then in lordly wise: \"Wherefore will ye pray your\nmother of such service? Let your sister hear what ye have in mind, and\nshe'll purvey you well for your journey to Brunhild's court.\"\n\nThen sent he word to his sister, that he would fain see her, and Knight\nSiegfried, too, sent word. Ere this happed the fair had clad her passing\nwell. That these brave men were coming, gave her little grief. Now were\nher attendants, too, arrayed in seemly wise. The lordings came, and when\nshe heard the tale, from her seat she rose and walked in courtly wise to\ngreet the noble stranger and her brother, too.\n\n\"Welcome be my brother and his comrade. I'd gladly know,\" so spake the\nmaid, \"what ye lords desire, sith ye be thus come to court. Pray let me\nhear how it standeth with you noble knights.\"\n\nThen spake king Gunther: \"My lady, I'll tell you now. Maugre our lofty\nmood, yet have we mickle care. We would ride a-wooing far into foreign\nlands, and for this journey we have need of costly robes.\"\n\n\"Now sit you down, dear brother,\" spake the royal maid, \"and let me hear\naright who these ladies be whom ye fain would woo in the lands of other\nkings.\"\n\nBy the hand the lady took the chosen knights and with the twain she\nwalked to where she sate afore upon a couch, worked, as well I wot, with\ndainty figures embossed in gold. There might they have fair pastime\nwith the ladies. Friendly glances and kindly looks passed now full oft\nbetween the twain. In his heart he bare her, she was dear to him as\nlife. In after days fair Kriemhild became strong Siegfried's wife.\n\nThen spake the mighty king: \"Dear sister mine, without thy help it may\nnot be. We would go for knightly pastime to Brunhild's land, and have\nneed of princely garb to wear before the dames.\"\n\nThen the noble maiden answered: \"Dear brother mine, I do you now to wit,\nthat whatever need ye have of help of mine, that stand I ready to give.\nShould any deny you aught, 't would please Kriemhild but ill. Most noble\nknights, beseech me not with such concern, but order me with lordly\nair to do whatso ye list. I stand at your bidding and will do it with a\nwill.\" So spake the winsome maid.\n\n\"We would fain, dear sister, wear good attire, and this your noble hand\nshall help to choose. Your maidens then must make it fit us, for there\nbe no help against this journey.\" Then spake the princess: \"Now mark ye\nwhat I say. Silks I have myself; see ye that men do bring us jewels upon\nthe shields and thus we'll work the clothes. Gunther and Siegfried, too,\ngave glad assent.\n\n\"Who are the comrades,\" spake the queen, \"who shall fare with you thus\nclad to court?\"\n\nHe spake: \"I shall be one of four. My liegemen twain, Dankwart and\nHagen, shall go with me to court. Now mark ye well, my lady, what I say.\nEach of us four must have to wear for four whole days three changes\nof apparel and such goodly trappings that without shame we may quit\nBrunhild's land.\"\n\nIn fitting wise the lords took leave and parted hence. Kriemhild, the\nqueen, bade thirty of her maidens who were skillful in such work, come\nforth from out their bowers. Silks of Araby, white as snow, and the\nfair silk of Zazamanc, (2) green as is the clover, they overlaid with\nprecious stones; that gave garments passing fair. Kriemhild herself, the\nhigh-born maiden, cut them out. Whatso they had at hand of well-wrought\nlinings from the skin of foreign fish, but rarely seen of folk, they\ncovered now with silk, as was the wont to wear. (3) Now hear great\nmarvels of these shining weeds. From the kingdom of Morocco and from\nLibya, too, they had great store of the fairest silks which the kith of\nany king did ever win. Kriemhild made it well appear what love she bore\nthe twain. Sith upon the proud journey they had set their minds, they\ndeemed ermine to be well fit. (4) Upon this lay fine silk as black as\ncoal. This would still beseem all doughty knights at high festal tides.\nFrom out a setting of Arabian gold there shone forth many a stone. The\nladies' zeal, it was not small, forsooth; in seven weeks they wrought\nthe robes. Ready, too, were the weapons for the right good knights.\n\nWhen now they all stood dight, (5) there was built for them in haste\nupon the Rhine a sturdy little skiff, that should bear them downward\nto the sea. Weary were the noble maids from all their cares. Then the\nwarriors were told that the brave vestures they should wear were now\nprepared; as they had craved it, so it now was done. Then no\nlonger would they tarry on the Rhine; they sent a message to their\nwar-companions, if perchance they should care to view their new attire,\nto see if it be too long or short. All was found in fitting measure,\nand for this they gave the ladies thanks. All who saw them could not but\naver that never in the world had they seen attire more fair. Therefore\nthey wore it gladly at the court. None wist how to tell of better\nknightly weeds. Nor did they fail to give great thanks. Then the lusty\nknights craved leave to go, and this the lordings did in courtly wise.\nBright eyes grew dim and moist thereat from weeping.\n\nKriemhild spake: \"Dear brother, ye might better tarry here a while and\npay court to other dames, where ye would not so risk your life; then\nwould I say well done. Ye might find nearer home a wife of as high a\nbirth.\"\n\nI ween their hearts did tell them what would hap. All wept alike, no\nmatter what men said. The gold upon their breasts was tarnished by their\ntears, which thick and fast coursed downward from their eyes.\n\nShe spake: \"Sir Siegfried, let this dear brother of mine be commended\nto your fealty and troth, that naught may harm him in Brunhild's land.\"\nThis the full brave knight vowed in Lady Kriemhild's hand.\n\nThe mighty warrior spake: \"If I lose not my life, ye may be free from\nevery care, my lady. I'll bring him to you sound again hither to the\nRhine; that know of a surety.\" The fair maid bowed her thanks.\n\nMen bare their gold-hued shields out to them upon the sands and brought\nthem all their harness. One bade lead up the steeds, for they would\nride away. Much weeping then was done by comely dames. The winsome maids\nstood at the easements. A high wind stirred the ship and sails; the\nproud war fellowship embarked upon the Rhine.\n\nThen spake King Gunther: \"Who shall be the captain of the ship?\"\n\n\"That will I,\" quoth Siegfried, \"I wot well how to steer you on the\nflood. That know, good knights, the right water ways be well known to\nme.\"\n\nSo they parted merrily from out the Burgundian land. Siegfried quickly\ngrasped an oar and from the shore the stalwart man gan push. Bold\nGunther took the helm himself, and thus the worshipful and speedy\nknights set forth from land. With them they took rich food and eke good\nwine, the best that could be found along the Rhine. Their steeds stood\nfair; they had good easement. Their ship rode well; scant harm did hap\nthem. Their stout sheet-rope was tightened by the breeze. Twenty leagues\nthey sailed, or ever came the night, with a good wind, downward toward\nthe sea. These hard toils later brought the high-mettled warriors pain.\n\nUpon the twelfth-day morning, as we hear say, the winds had borne them\nfar away to Isenstein in Brunhild's land. To none save Siegfried was\nthis known; but when King Gunther spied so many castles and broad\nmarches, too, how soon he spake: \"Pray tell me, friend Siegfried, is it\nknown to you whose are these castles and this lordly land?\"\n\nSiegfried answered: \"I know it well. It is the land and folk of Brunhild\nand the fortress Isenstein, as ye heard me say. Fair ladies ye may still\nsee there to-day. Methinketh good to advise you heroes that ye be of\none single mind, and that ye tell the selfsame tale. For if we go to-day\nbefore Brunhild, in much jeopardy must we stand before the queen. When\nwe behold the lovely maiden with her train, then, ye far-famed heroes,\nmust ye tell but this single tale: that Gunther be my master and I his\nman; then what he craveth will come to pass.\" Full ready they were for\nwhatever he bade them vow, nor because of pride did any one abstain.\nThey promised what he would; wherefrom they all fared well, when King\nGunther saw fair Brunhild. (6)\n\n\"Forsooth I vow it less for thy sake than for thy sister's, the comely\nmaid, who is to me as mine own soul and body. Gladly will I bring it to\npass, that she become my wife.\"\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Isenland\" translates here M.H.G. \"Islant\", which has,\n        however, no connection with Iceland in spite of the\n        agreement of the names in German.  \"Isen lant\", the reading\n        of the MSS. BJh, has been chosen, partly to avoid confusion,\n        and partly to indicate its probable derivation from\n        \"Isenstein\", the name of Brunhild's castle.  Boer's\n        interpretation of \"Isen\" as 'ice' finds corroboration in\n        Otfrid's form \"isine steina\" ('ice stones', i.e. crystals)\n        I, 1. 70.  Isenstein would then mean Ice Castle.  In the\n        \"Thidreksaga\" Brunhild's castle is called \"Saegarthr\" ('Sea\n        Garden'), and in a fairy tale (No. 93 of Grimm) \"Stromberg\",\n        referring to the fact that it was surrounded by the sea.\n        Here, too, in our poem it stands directly on the shore.\n   (2)  \"Zazamanc\", a fictitious kingdom mentioned only here and a\n        few times in Parzival, Wolfram probably having obtained the\n        name from this passage.  (See Bartsch, \"Germanistische\n        Studien\", ii, 129.)\n   (3)  \"Wont to wear\".  In the Middle Ages costly furs and\n        fish-skins were used as linings and covered, as here\n        described, with silk or cloth.  By fish such amphibious\n        animals as otter and beaver were often meant.\n   (4)  \"Well fit\".  In this passage \"wert\", the reading of A and D,\n        has been followed, instead of unwert of B and C, as it seems\n        more appropriate to the sense.\n   (5)  \"Dight\", 'arrayed'; used by Milton.\n   (6)  \"Brunhild\".  The following words are evidently a late\n        interpolation, and weaken the ending, but have been\n        translated for the sake of completeness.  They are spoken by\n        Siegfried.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE VII. How Gunther Won Brunhild.\n\nMeanwhile their bark had come so near the castle that the king saw many\na comely maiden standing at the casements. Much it irked King Gunther\nthat he knew them not. He asked his comrade Siegfried: \"Hast thou no\nknowledge of these maidens, who yonder are gazing downward towards us on\nthe flood? Whoever be their lord, they are of lofty mood.\"\n\nAt this Sir Siegfried spake: \"I pray you, spy secretly among the\nhigh-born maids and tell me then whom ye would choose, and ye had the\npower.\"\n\n\"That will I,\" spake Gunther, the bold and valiant knight. \"In yonder\nwindow do I see one stand in snow-white weeds. She is fashioned so fair\nthat mine eyes would choose her for her comeliness. Had I power, she\nshould become my wife.\"\n\n\"Right well thine eyes have chosen for thee. It is the noble Brunhild,\nthe comely maid, for whom thy heart doth strive and eke thy mind and\nmood.\" All her bearing seemed to Gunther good.\n\nWhen bade the queen her high-born maids go from the windows, for it\nbehooved them not to be the mark of strangers' eyes. Each one obeyed.\nWhat next the ladies did, hath been told us since. They decked their\npersons out to meet the unknown knights, a way fair maids have ever\nhad. To the narrow casements they came again, where they had seen the\nknights. Through love of gazing this was done.\n\nBut four there were that were come to land. Through the windows the\nstately women saw how Siegfried led a horse out on the sand, whereby\nKing Gunther felt himself much honored. By the bridle he held the steed,\nso stately, good and fair, and large and strong, until King Gunther had\nsat him in the saddle. Thus Siegfried served him, the which he later\nquite forgot. Such service he had seldom done afore, that he should\nstand at any here's stirrup. Then he led his own steed from the ship.\nAll this the comely dames of noble birth saw through the casements. The\nsteeds and garments, too, of the lusty knights, of snow-white hue, were\nright well matched and all alike; the bucklers, fashioned well, gleamed\nin the hands of the stately men. In lordly wise they rode to Brunhild's\nhall, their saddles set with precious stones, with narrow martingales,\nfrom which hung bells of bright and ruddy gold. So they came to the\nland, as well befit their prowess, with newly sharpened spears, with\nwell-wrought swords, the which hung down to the spurs of these stately\nmen. The swords the bold men bore were sharp and broad. All this\nBrunhild, the high-born maid, espied.\n\nWith the king came Dankwart and Hagen, too. We have heard tales told of\nhow the knights wore costly raiment, raven black of hue. Fair were their\nbucklers, mickle, good and broad. Jewels they wore from the land of\nIndia, the which gleamed gloriously upon their weeds. By the flood they\nleft their skiff without a guard. Thus the brave knights and good\nrode to the castle. Six and eighty towers they saw within, three broad\npalaces, (1) and one hall well wrought of costly marble, green as\ngrass, wherein Brunhild herself sate with her courtiers. The castle was\nunlocked and the gates flung wide. Then ran Brunhild's men to meet them\nand welcomed the strangers into their mistress' land. One bade relieve\nthem of their steeds and shields.\n\nThen spake a chamberlain: \"Pray give us now your swords and your shining\nbreastplates, too.\"\n\n\"That we may not grant you,\" said Hagen of Troneg; \"we ourselves will\nbear them.\"\n\nThen gan Siegfried tell aright the tale. \"The usage of the castle, let\nme say, is such that no guests may here bear arms. Let them now be taken\nhence, then will all be well.\"\n\nUnwillingly Hagen, Gunther's man, obeyed. For the strangers men bade\npour out wine and make their lodgings ready. Many doughty knights were\nseen walking everywhere at court in lordly weeds. Mickle and oft were\nthese heroes gazed upon.\n\nThen the tidings were told to Lady Brunhild, that unknown warriors were\ncome in lordly raiment, sailing on the flood. The fair and worthy maid\ngan ask concerning this. \"Pray let me hear,\" spake the queen, \"who be\nthese unknown knights, who stand so lordly in my castle, and for whose\nsake the heroes have journeyed hither?\"\n\nThen spake one of the courtiers: \"My lady, I can well say that never\nhave I set eyes on any of them, but one like Siegfried doth stand among\nthem. Him ye should give fair greetings; that is my rede, in truth. The\nsecond of their fellowship is so worthy of praise that he were easily\na mighty king over broad and princely lands, and he had the power and\nmight possess them. One doth see him stand by the rest in such right\nlordly wise. The third of the fellowship is so fierce and yet withal\nso fair of body, most noble queen. By the fierce glances he so oft doth\neast, I ween he be grim of thought and mood. The youngest among them\nis worshipful indeed. I see the noble knight stand so charmingly, with\ncourtly bearing, in almost maiden modesty. We might all have cause\nfor fear, had any done him aught. However blithely he doth practice\nchivalry, and howso fair of body he be, yet might he well make many a\ncomely woman weep, should he e'er grow angry. He is so fashioned that in\nall knightly virtues he must be a bold knight and a brave.\"\n\nThen spake the queen: \"Now bring me my attire. If the mighty Siegfried\nbe come unto this land through love of mine, he doth risk his life. I\nfear him not so sore, that I should become his wife.\"\n\nBrunhild, the fair, was soon well clad. Then went there with her many a\ncomely maid, full hundred or more, decked out in gay attire. The stately\ndames would gaze upon the strangers. With them there walked good knights\nfrom Isenland, Brunhild's men-at-arms, five hundred or more, who bore\nswords in hand. This the strangers rued. From their seats then the brave\nand lusty heroes rose. When that the queen spied Siegfried, now hear\nwhat the maid did speak.\n\n\"Be ye welcome, Siegfried, here in this our land! What doth your journey\nmean? That I fain would know.\"\n\n\"Gramercy, my Lady Brunhild, that ye have deigned to greet me, most\ngenerous queen, in the presence of this noble knight who standeth here\nbefore me, for he is my liege lord. This honor I must needs forswear. By\nbirth he's from the Rhine; what more need I to say? For thy sake are we\ncome hither. Fain would he woo thee, however he fare. Methink thee now\nbetimes, my lord will not let thee go. He is hight Gunther and is a\nlordly king. An' he win thy love, he doth crave naught more. Forsooth\nthis knight, so well beseen, did bid me journey hither. I would fain\nhave given it over, could I have said him nay.\"\n\nShe spake: \"Is he thy liege and thou his man, dare he assay the games\nwhich I mete out and gain the mastery, then I'll become his wife; but\nshould I win, 't will cost you all your lives.\"\n\nThen up spake Hagen of Troneg: \"My lady, let us see your mighty games.\nIt must indeed go hard, or ever Gunther, my lord, give you the palm. He\ntroweth well to win so fair a maid.\"\n\n\"He must hurl the stone and after spring and cast the spear with me. Be\nye not too hasty. Ye are like to lose here your honor and your life as\nwell. Bethink you therefore rightly,\" spake the lovely maid.\n\nSiegfried, the bold, went to the king and bade him tell the queen\nall that he had in mind, he should have no fear. \"I'll guard you well\nagainst her with my arts.\"\n\nThen spake King Gunther: \"Most noble queen, now mete out whatso ye list,\nand were it more, that would I all endure for your sweet sake. I'll\ngladly lose my head, and ye become not my wife.\"\n\nWhen the queen heard this speech, she begged them hasten to the games,\nas was but meet. She bade purvey her with good armor for the strife: a\nbreastplate of ruddy gold and a right good shield. A silken surcoat, (2)\ntoo, the maid put on, which sword had never cut in any fray, of silken\ncloth of Libya. Well was it wrought. Bright embroidered edging was seen\nto shine thereon.\n\nMeanwhile the knights were threatened much with battle cries. Dankwart\nand Hagen stood ill at ease; their minds were troubled at the thought of\nhow the king would speed. Thought they: \"Our journey will not bring us\nwarriors aught of good.\"\n\nMeanwhile Siegfried, the stately man, or ever any marked it, had hied\nhim to the ship, where he found his magic cloak concealed. Into it he\nquickly slipped and so was seen of none. He hurried back and there he\nfound a great press of knights, where the queen dealt out her lofty\ngames. Thither he went in secret wise (by his arts it happed), nor was\nhe seen of any that were there. The ring had been marked out, where\nthe games should be, afore many valiant warriors, who were to view them\nthere. More than seven hundred were seen bearing arms, who were to say\nwho won the game.\n\nThen was come Brunhild, armed as though she would battle for all royal\nlands. Above her silken coat she wore many a bar of gold; gloriously her\nlovely color shone beneath the armor. Then came her courtiers, who bare\nalong a shield of ruddy gold with large broad strips as hard as steel,\nbeneath the which the lovely maid would fight. As shield-thong there\nserved a costly band upon which lay jewels green as grass. It shone and\ngleamed against the gold. He must needs be passing bold, to whom the\nmaid would show her love. The shield the maid should bear was three\nspans thick beneath the studs, as we are told. Rich enow it was, of\nsteel and eke of gold, the which four chamberlains could scarcely carry.\n\nWhen the stalwart Hagen saw the shield borne forth, the knight of Troneg\nspake full grim of mood: \"How now, King Gunther? How we shall lose our\nlives! She you would make your love is the devil's bride, in truth.\"\n\nHear now about her weeds; enow of these she had; she wore a surcoat\nof silk of Azagouc, (3) noble and costly. Many a lordly stone shone in\ncontrast to its color on the person of the queen.\n\nThen was brought forth for the lady a spear, sharp, heavy, and large,\nthe which she cast all time, stout and unwieldy, mickle and broad,\nwhich on its edges cut most fearfully. Of the spear's great weight\nhear wonders told. Three and one half weights (4) of iron were wrought\ntherein, the which scarce three of Brunhild's men could bear. The noble\nGunther gan be sore afraid. Within his heart he thought: \"What doth this\nmean? How could the devil from hell himself escape alive? Were I safe\nand sound in Burgundy, long might she live here free of any love of\nmine.\"\n\nThen spake Hagen's brother, the valiant Dankwart: \"The journey to this\ncourt doth rue me sore. We who have ever borne the name of knights, how\nmust we lose our lives! Shall we now perish at the hands of women in\nthese lands? It doth irk me much, that ever I came unto this country.\nHad but my brother Hagen his sword in hand, and I mine, too, then should\nBrunhild's men go softly in their overweening pride. This know for sure,\nthey'd guard against it well. And had I sworn a peace with a thousand\noaths, before I'd see my dear lord die, the comely maid herself should\nlose her life.\"\n\n\"We might leave this land unscathed,\" spake then his brother Hagen, \"had\nwe the harness which we sorely need and our good swords as well; then\nwould the pride of this strong dame become a deal more soft.\"\n\nWhat the warrior spake the noble maid heard well. Over her shoulders she\ngazed with smiling mouth. \"Now sith he thinketh himself so brave,\nbring them forth their coats-of-mail; put in the warriors' hands their\nsharp-edged swords.\"\n\nWhen they received their weapons as the maiden bade, bold Dankwart\nblushed for very joy. \"Now let them play whatso they list,\" spake the\ndoughty man. \"Gunther is unconquered, since now we have our arms.\"\n\nMightily now did Brunhild's strength appear. Into the ring men bare a\nheavy stone, huge and great, mickle and round. Twelve brave and valiant\nmen-at-arms could scarcely bear it. This she threw at all times, when\nshe had shot the spear. The Burgundians' fear now grew amain.\n\n\"Woe is me,\" cried Hagen. \"Whom hath King Gunther chosen for a love?\nCertes she should be the foul fiend's bride in hell.\"\n\nUpon her fair white arm the maid turned back her sleeves; with her hands\nshe grasped the shield and poised the spear on high. Thus the strife\nbegan. Gunther and Siegfried feared Brunhild's hate, and had Siegfried\nnot come to Gunther's aid, she would have bereft the king of life.\nSecretly Siegfried went and touched his hand; with great fear Gunther\nmarked his wiles. \"Who hath touched me?\" thought the valiant man. Then\nhe gazed around on every side, but saw none standing there.\n\n\"'Tis I, Siegfried, the dear friend of thine. Thou must not fear the\nqueen. Give me the shield from off thy hand and let me bear it and mark\naright what thou dost hear me say. Make thou the motions, I will do the\ndeeds.\"\n\nWhen Gunther knew that it was Siegfried, he was overjoyed.\n\nQuoth Siegfried: \"Now hide thou my arts; tell them not to any man; then\ncan the queen win from thee little fame, albeit she doth desire it. See\nhow fearlessly the lady standeth now before thee.\"\n\nThen with might and main the noble maiden hurled the spear at a shield,\nmickle, new, and broad, which the son of Siegelind bore upon his arm.\nThe sparks sprang from the steel, as if the wind did blow. The edge of\nthe mighty spear broke fully through the shield, so that men saw the\nfire flame forth from the armor rings. The stalwart men both staggered\nat the blow; but for the Cloak of Darkness they had lain there dead.\nFrom the mouth of Siegfried, the brave, gushed forth the blood. Quickly\nthe good knight sprang back again and snatched the spear that she had\ndriven through his shield. Stout Siegfried's hand now sent it back\nagain. He thought: \"I will not pierce the comely maid.\" So he reversed\nthe point and cast it at her armor with the butt, that it rang out\nloudly from his mighty hand. The sparks flew from the armor rings, as\nthough driven by the wind. Siegmund's son had made the throw with might.\nWith all her strength she could not stand before the blow. In faith King\nGunther never could have done the deed.\n\nBrunhild, the fair, how quickly up she sprang! \"Gunther, noble knight,\nI cry you mercy for the shot.\" She weened that he had done it with\nhis strength. To her had crept a far more powerful man. Then went she\nquickly, angry was her mood. The noble maid and good raised high the\nstone and hurled it mightily far from her hand. After the cast she\nsprang, that all her armor rang, in truth. The stone had fallen twelve\nfathoms hence, but with her leap the comely maid out-sprang the throw.\nThen went Sir Siegfried to where lay the stone. Gunther poised it, while\nthe hero made the throw. Siegfried was bold, strong, and tall; he threw\nthe stone still further and made a broader jump. Through his fair arts\nhe had strength enow to bear King Gunther with him as he sprang. The\nleap was made, the stone lay on the ground; men saw none other save\nGunther, the knight, alone. Siegfried had banished the fear of King\nGunther's death. Brunhild, the fair, waxed red with wrath. To her\ncourtiers she spake a deal too loud, when she spied the hero safe and\nsound at the border of the ring: \"Come nearer quickly, ye kinsmen and\nliegemen of mine, ye must now be subject to Gunther, the king.\"\n\nThen the brave knights laid aside their arms and paid their homage at\nthe feet of mighty Gunther from the Burgundian land. They weened that he\nhad won the games by his own strength alone. He greeted them in loving\nwise; in sooth he was most rich in virtues.\n\nThen the lovely maiden took him by the hand; full power she granted him\nwithin the land. At this Hagen, the bold and doughty knight, rejoiced\nhim. She bade the noble knight go with her hence to the spacious palace.\nWhen this was done, they gave the warriors with their service better\ncheer. With good grace Hagen and Dankwart now must needs submit. The\ndoughty Siegfried was wise enow and bare away his magic cloak. Then he\nrepaired to where the ladies sate. To the king he spake and shrewdly\ndid he this: \"Why wait ye, good my lord? Why begin ye not the games, of\nwhich the queen doth deal so great a store? Let us soon see how they be\nplayed.\" The crafty man did not as though he wist not a whit thereof.\n\nThen spake the Queen: \"How hath it chanced that ye, Sir Siegfried, have\nseen naught of the games which the hand of Gunther here hath won?\"\n\nTo this Hagen of the Burgundian land made answer. He spake: \"Ye have\nmade us sad of mind, my lady. Siegfried, the good knight, was by the\nship when the lord of the Rhineland won from you the games. He knoweth\nnaught thereof.\"\n\n\"Well is me of this tale,\" spake Siegfried, the knight, \"that your pride\nhath been brought thus low, and that there doth live a wight who hath\nthe power to be your master. Now, O noble maiden, must ye follow us\nhence to the Rhine.\"\n\nThen spake the fair-fashioned maid: \"That may not be. First must my kith\nand liegemen learn of this. Certes, I may not so lightly void my lands;\nmy dearest friends must first be fetched.\"\n\nThen bade she messengers ride on every side. She called her friends,\nher kinsmen, and her men-at-arms and begged them come without delay to\nIsenstein, and bade them all be given lordly and rich apparel. Daily,\nearly and late, they rode in troops to Brunhild's castle.\n\n\"Welaway,\" cried Hagen, \"what have we done! We may ill abide the coming\nof fair Brunhild's men. If now they come into this land in force, then\nhath the noble maid been born to our great rue. The will of the queen is\nunknown to us; what if she be so wroth that we be lost?\"\n\nThen the stalwart Siegfried spake: \"Of that I'll have care. I'll not let\nhap that which ye fear. I'll bring you help hither to this land, from\nchosen knights the which till now ye have not known. Ye must not ask\nabout me; I will fare hence. Meanwhile may God preserve your honor. I'll\nreturn eftsoon and bring you a thousand men, the very best of knights\nthat I have ever known.\"\n\n\"Pray tarry not too long,\" spake then the king; \"of your help we be\njustly glad.\"\n\nHe answered: \"In a few short days I'll come again. Tell ye to Brunhild,\nthat ye've sent me hence.\"\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Palaces\".  See Adventure III, note 7.\n   (2)  \"Surcoat\", which here translates the M.H.G. \"wafenhemde\", is\n        a light garment of cloth or silk worn above the armor.\n   (3)  \"Azagouc\".  See Zazamanc, Adventure VI, note 2.  This\n        strophe is evidently a late interpolation, as it contradicts\n        the description given above.\n   (4)  Weights.  The M.H.G. \"messe\" (Lat. \"massa\") is just as\n        indefinite as the English expression.  It was a mass or lump\n        of any metal, probably determined by the size of the\n        melting-pot.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE VIII. How Siegfried Fared To His Men-At-Arms, the Nibelungs.\n\n(1)\n\nThrough the gate Siegfried hied him in his Cloak of Darkness down to the\nsand, where he found a skiff. Secretly the son of Siegmund embarked and\ndrove it quickly hence, as though the wind did blow it on. None saw the\nsteersman; the bark fared fast, impelled by Siegfried's mighty strength.\nThey weened a seldom strong wind did drive it on. Nay, it was rowed\nby Siegfried, the son of Siegelind, the fair. In the time of a day and\nnight with might and main he reached a land full hundred rests (2) away,\nor more. The people hight Nibelungs, where he owned the mighty hoard.\nThe hero rowed alone to a broad isle, where the lusty knight now beached\nthe boat and made it fast full soon. To a hill he hied him, upon which\nstood a castle, and sought here lodgment, as way-worn travelers do. He\ncame first to a gateway that stood fast locked. In sooth they guarded\nwell their honor, as men still do. The stranger now gan knock upon\nthe door, the which was closely guarded. There within he saw a giant\nstanding, who kept the castle and at whose side lay at all times his\narms. He spake: \"Who is it who doth knock so rudely on the gate?\"\n\nThen bold Siegfried changed his voice and spake: \"I am a knight; do up\nthe door, else will I enrage many a one outside to-day, who would liefer\nlie soft and take his ease.\"\n\nWhen Siegfried thus spake, it irked the warder. Meanwhile the giant had\ndonned his armor and placed his helm upon his head. Quickly the mighty\nman snatched up his shield and opened wide the gate. How fiercely he\nran at Siegfried and asked, how he durst wake so many valiant men? Huge\nblows were dealt out by his hand. Then the lordly stranger gan defend\nhim, but with an iron bar the warder shattered his shield-plates. Then\nwas the hero in dire need. Siegfried gan fear a deal his death, when the\nwarder struck such mighty blows. Enow his master Siegfried loved him for\nthis cause. They strove so sore that all the castle rang and the sound\nwas heard in Nibelung's hall. He overcame the warder and bound him, too.\n\nThe tale was noised abroad in all the Nibelungs' land. Alberich, the\nbold, a savage dwarf, heard the fierce struggle through the mountain.\nHe armed him quick and ran to where he found the noble stranger, as he\nbound the mighty giant. Full wroth was Alberich and strong enow. On his\nbody he bare helmet and rings of mail and in his hand a heavy scourge of\ngold. Swift and hard he ran to where Siegfried stood. Seven heavy knobs\n(3) hung down in front, with which he smote so fiercely the shield upon\nthe bold man's arm, that it brake in parts. The stately stranger came in\ndanger of his life. From his hand he flung the broken shield and thrust\ninto the sheath a sword, the which was long. He would not strike his\nservant dead, but showed his courtly breeding as his knightly virtue\nbade him. He rushed at Alberich and with his powerful hands he seized\nthe gray-haired man by the beard. So roughly he pulled his beard, that\nhe screamed aloud. The tugging of the youthful knight hurt Alberich\nsore.\n\nLoud cried the valiant dwarf: \"Now spare my life. And might I be the\nvassal of any save one knight, to whom I swore an oath that I would own\nhim as my lord, I'd serve you till my death.\" So spake the cunning (4)\nman.\n\nHe then bound Alberich as he had the giant afore. Full sore the strength\nof Siegfried hurt him. The dwarf gan ask: \"How are ye named?\"\n\n\"My name is Siegfried,\" he replied; \"I deemed ye knew me well.\"\n\n\"Well is me of these tidings,\" spake Alberich, the dwarf. \"Now have I\nnoted well the knightly deeds, through which ye be by right the sovran\nof the land. I'll do whatso ye bid, and ye let me live.\"\n\nThen spake Sir Siegfried: \"Go quickly now and bring me the best of\nknights we have, a thousand Nibelungs, that they may see me here.\"\n\nWhy he wanted this, none heard him say. He loosed the bonds of Alberich\nand the giant. Then ran Alberich swift to where he found the knights. In\nfear he waked the Nibelung men. He spake: \"Up now, ye heroes, ye must go\nto Siegfried.\"\n\nFrom their beds they sprang and were ready in a trice. A thousand\ndoughty knights soon stood well clad. They hied them to where they saw\nSir Siegfried stand. Then was done a fair greeting, in part by deeds.\nGreat store of tapers were now lit up; they proffered him mulled wine.\n(5) He gave them thanks that they were come so soon. He spake: \"Ye must\naway with me across the flood.\"\n\nFull ready for this he found the heroes brave and good. Well thirty\nhundred men were come eftsoon, from whom he chose a thousand of the\nbest. Men brought them their helmets and other arms, for he would lead\nthem to Brunhild's land. He spake: \"Ye good knights, this will I tell\nyou, ye must wear full costly garments there at court, for many lovely\ndames shall gaze upon us. Therefore must ye deck yourselves with goodly\nweeds.\"\n\nEarly on a morn they started on their way. What a speedy journey\nSiegfried won! They took with them good steeds and lordly harness, and\nthus they came in knightly wise to Brunhild's land. The fair maids stood\nupon the battlements. Then spake the queen: \"Knoweth any, who they be\nwhom I see sailing yonder far out upon the sea? They have rich sails\ne'en whiter than the snow.\"\n\nQuoth the king of the Rhineland: \"They're men of mine, the which I left\nhard by here on the way. I had them sent for, and now they be come, my\nlady.\" All eyes were fixed upon the lordly strangers.\n\nThen one spied Siegfried standing at his vessel's prow in lordly weeds\nand many other men. The queen spake: \"Sir King, pray tell me, shall I\nreceive the strangers or shall I deny them greetings?\"\n\nHe spake: \"Ye must go to meet them out before the palace, that they may\nwell perceive how fain we be to see them here.\"\n\nThen the queen did as the king advised her. She marked out Siegfried\nwith her greetings from the rest. Men purveyed them lodgings and took\nin charge their trappings. So many strangers were now come to the land,\nthat everywhere they jostled Brunhild's bands. Now would the valiant men\nfare home to Burgundy.\n\nThen spake the queen: \"My favor would I bestow on him who could deal out\nto the king's guests and mine my silver and gold, of which I have such\nstore.\"\n\nTo this Dankwart, King Giselher's liegeman, answered: \"Most noble\nqueen,\" spake the brave knight, \"let me but wield the keys. I trow to\ndeal it out in fitting wise; whatso of blame I gain, let be mine own.\"\nThat he was bountiful, he made appear full well.\n\nWhen now Sir Hagen's brother took the keys in charge, the hero's hand\ndid proffer many a costly gift. He who craved a mark (6) received such\nstore that all the poor might lead a merry life. Full hundred pounds\nhe gave, nor did he stop to count. Enow walked before the hall in rich\nattire, who never had worn afore such lordly dress. Full sore it rued\nthe queen when this she heard. She spake: \"Sir King, I fain would have\nyour aid, lest your chamberlain leave naught of all my store of dress;\nhe squandereth eke my gold. If any would forfend this, I'd be his friend\nfor aye. He giveth such royal gifts, the knight must ween, forsooth,\nthat I have sent for death. I would fain use it longer and trow well\nmyself to waste that which my father left me.\" No queen as yet hath ever\nhad so bounteous a chamberlain.\n\nThen spake Hagen of Troneg: \"My lady, be it told you that the king of\nthe Rhineland hath such great store of gold and robes to give, that we\nhave no need to carry hence aught of Brunhild's weeds.\"\n\n\"Nay, and ye love me,\" spake the queen, \"let me fill twenty traveling\nchests with gold and silk as well, the which my hand shall give, when we\nare come across to Gunther's land.\"\n\nMen filled her chests with precious stones, the while her chamberlains\nstood by. She would not trust the duty to Giselher's men. Gunther and\nHagen began to laugh thereat.\n\nThen spake the queen: \"With whom shall I leave my lands? This my hand\nand yours must first decree.\"\n\nQuoth the noble king: \"Now bid draw near whom ye deem fit and we will\nmake him steward.\"\n\nThe lady spied near by one of her highest kin (it was her mother's\nbrother); to him the maiden spake: \"Now let be commended to your care my\ncastles and my lands, till that King Gunther's hand rule here.\"\n\nThen twenty hundred of her men she chose, who should fare with her hence\nto Burgundy, together with those thousand warriors from the Nibelung\nland. They dressed their journey; one saw them riding forth upon the\nsand. Six and eighty dames they took along and thereto a hundred maids,\ntheir bodies passing fair. No longer now they tarried, for they were\nfain to get them hence. Ho, what great wail was made by those they\nleft at home! In courtly wise she voided thus her land. She kissed her\nnearest kinsmen who were found at court. After a fair leave-taking they\njourneyed to the sea. To her fatherland the lady nevermore returned.\nMany kinds of games were seen upon the way; pastimes they had galore.\nA real sea breeze did help them on their voyage. Thus they fared forth\nfrom the land fully merrily. She would not let her husband court her\non the way; this pleasure was deferred until their wedding-tide in\nthe castle, their home, at Worms, to which in good time she came right\njoyfully with all her knights.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  Adventure VIII.  This whole episode, in which Siegfried\n        fetches men to aid Gunther in case of attempted treachery on\n        Brunhild's part, is of late origin and has no counterpart in\n        the older versions.  It is a further development of\n        Siegfried's fight in which he slew Schilbung and Nibelung\n        and became the ruler of the Nibelung land.  The fight with\n        Alberich is simply a repetition of the one in the former\n        episode.\n   (2)  \"Rest\" (M.H.G. \"rast\"), originally 'repose', then used as a\n        measure of distance, as here.\n   (3)  \"Knobs\", round pieces of metal fastened to the scourge.\n   (4)  \"Cunning\" is to be taken here in the Biblical sense of\n        'knowing'.  The M.H.G. \"listig\" which it here translates,\n        denotes 'skilled' or 'learned' in various arts and is a\n        standing epithet of dwarfs.\n   (5)  \"Mulled wine\" translates M.H.G. \"lutertranc\", a claret\n        mulled with herbs and spice and left to stand until clear.\n   (6)  \"Mark\".  See Adventure V, note 5.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE IX. How Siegfried Was Sent To Worms.\n\nWhen they had thus fared on their way full nine days, Hagen of Troneg\nspake: \"Now mark ye what I say. We wait too long with the tidings for\nWorms upon the Rhine. Our messengers should be e'en now in Burgundy.\"\n\nThen spake King Gunther: \"Ye have told me true, and none be more fitting\nfor this trip than ye, friend Hagen; now ride ye to my land. None can\nacquaint them better with our journey home to court.\"\n\nTo this Hagen made answer: \"I am no fit envoy. Let me play chamberlain,\nI'll stay with the ladies upon the flood and guard their robes, until\nwe bring them to the Burgundian land. Bid Siegfried bear the message, he\nknoweth how to do it well with his mighty strength. If he refuse you the\njourney, then must ye in courtly and gentle wise pray him of the boon\nfor your sister's sake.\"\n\nGunther sent now for the warrior, who came to where he stood. He spake:\n\"Sith we be now nearing my lands at home, it behooveth me to send a\nmessenger to the dear sister of mine and to my mother, too, that we draw\nnear the Rhine. This I pray you, Siegfried; now do my will, that I may\nrequite it to you ever,\" spake the good knight.\n\nSiegfried, the passing bold man, however said him nay, till Gunther\ngan beseech him sore. He spake: \"Ye must ride for my sake and for\nKriemhild's too, the comely maiden, so that the royal maid requite it,\nas well as I.\"\n\nWhen Siegfried heard these words, full ready was the knight. \"Now bid me\nwhat ye will; naught shall be withheld. I will do it gladly for the fair\nmaid's sake. Why should I refuse her whom I bear in heart? Whatso ye\ncommand for love of her, shall all be done.\"\n\n\"Then tell my mother Uta, the queen, that we be of lofty mood upon this\nvoyage. Let my brothers know how we have fared. These tidings must ye\nlet our friends hear, too. Hide naught from my fair sister, give her\nmine and Brunhild's greetings. Greet the retainers, too, and all my men.\nHow well I have ended that for which my heart hath ever striven! And\ntell Ortwin, the dear nephew of mine, that he bid seats be built at\nWorms along the Rhine. Let my other kinsmen know that I am willed to\nhold with Brunhild a mighty wedding feast. And tell my sister, when she\nhath heard that I be come with my guests to the land, that she give fair\ngreeting to my bride. For that I will ever render Kriemhild service.\"\n\nThe good Lord Siegfried soon took leave of Lady Brunhild, as beseemed\nhim well, and of all her train; then rode he to the Rhine. Never might\nthere be a better envoy in this world. He rode with four and twenty\nmen-at-arms to Worms; he came without the king. When that was noised\nabout, the courtiers all were grieved; they feared their master had been\nslain.\n\nThen they dismounted from their steeds, high stood their mood. Giselher,\nthe good young king, came soon to meet them, and Gernot his brother,\ntoo. How quickly then he spake, when he saw not Gunther at Siegfried's\nside: \"Be welcome, Siegfried; pray let me know where ye have left the\nking my brother? The prowess of Brunhild, I ween, hath ta'en him from\nus. Great scathe had her haughty love then brought us.\"\n\n\"Let be this fear. My battle-comrade sendeth greetings to you and to his\nkin. I left him safe and sound. He sent me on ahead, that I might be his\nmessenger with tidings hither to this land. Pray have a care, however\nthat may hap, that I may see the queen and your sister, too, for I must\nlet them hear what message Gunther and Brunhild have sent them. Both are\nin high estate.\"\n\nThen spake Giselher, the youth: \"Now must ye go to her, for ye have\nbrought my much of joy. She is mickle fearful for my brother. I'll\nanswer that the maid will see you gladly.\"\n\nThen spake Sir Siegfried: \"Howsoever I may serve her, that shall be\ngladly done, in faith. Who now will tell the ladies that I would hie me\nthither?\"\n\nGiselher then became the messenger, the stately man. The doughty knight\nspake to his mother and his sister too, when that he saw them both: \"To\nus is come Siegfried, the hero from Netherland; him my brother Gunther\nhath sent hither to the Rhine. He bringeth the news of how it standeth\nwith the king. Pray let him therefore come to court. He'll tell you the\nright tidings straight from Isenland.\"\n\nAs yet the noble ladies were acquaint with fear, but now for their weeds\nthey sprang and dressed them and bade Sir Siegfried come to court. This\nhe did full gladly, for he was fain to see them. Kriemhild, the noble\nmaid, addressed him fair: \"Be welcome, Sir Siegfried, most worshipful\nknight. Where is my brother Gunther, the noble and mighty king? We ween\nthat we have lost him through Brunhild's strength. Woe is me, poor maid,\nthat ever I was born.\"\n\nThen spake the daring knight: \"Now give me an envoy's guerdon, ye\npassing fair ladies, ye do weep without a cause. I do you to wit, I left\nhim safe and sound. They have sent me with the tidings to you both. He\nand his bride do send you kindly greetings and a kinsman's love, O noble\nqueen. Now leave off your weeping, they'll come full soon.\"\n\nIn many a day she had not heard a tale so glad. With her snow-white\nhem she wiped the tears from her pretty eyes and began to thank the\nmessenger for the tidings, which now were come. Thus her great sorrow\nand her weeping were taken away. She bade the messenger be seated; full\nready he was for this. Then spake the winsome maid: \"I should not rue\nit, should I give you as an envoy's meed my gold. For that ye are too\nrich, but I will be your friend in other ways.\"\n\n\"And had I alone,\" spake he, \"thirty lands, yet would I gladly receive\ngifts from your fair hand.\"\n\nThen spake the courtly maid: \"It shall be done.\" She bade her\nchamberlain go fetch the meed for tidings. Four and twenty arm-rings,\nset with goodly gold, she gave him as his meed. So stood the hero's mood\nthat he would not retain them, but gave them straightway to her nearest\nmaidens, he found within the bower. Full kindly her mother offered him\nher service. \"I am to tell you the tale,\" then spake the valiant man,\n\"of what the king doth pray you, when he cometh to the Rhine. If ye\nperform that, my lady, he'll ever hold you in his love. I heard him\ncrave that ye should give fair greetings to his noble guests and grant\nhim the boon, that ye ride to meet him out in front of Worms upon the\nstrand. This ye are right truly admonished by the king to do.\"\n\nThen spake the winsome maid: \"For this am I full ready. In whatsoever\nwise I can serve the king, that will I not refuse; with a kinsman's\nlove it shall be done.\" Her color heightened for very joy. Never was the\nmessenger of any prince received more fair. The lady would have kissed\nhim, had she but dared. How lovingly he parted from the dames!\n\nThe men of Burgundy then did as Siegfried counseled. Sindolt and Hunolt\nand Rumolt, the knight, must needs be busy with the work of putting up\nthe seats outside of Worms upon the strand. The royal stewards, too,\nwere found at work. Ortwin and Gere would not desist, but sent to fetch\ntheir friends on every side, and made known to them the feasting that\nwas to be. The many comely maids arrayed themselves against the feast.\nEverywhere the palace and the walls were decked out for the guests.\nGunther's hall was passing well purveyed for the many strangers. Thus\nbegan full merrily this splendid feast.\n\nFrom every side along the highways of the land pricked now the kinsmen\nof these three kings, who had been called that they might wait upon\nthose who were coming home. Then from the presses great store of costly\nweeds was taken. Soon tidings were brought that men saw Brunhild's\nkinsmen ride along. Great jostling then arose from the press of folk in\nthe Burgundian land. Ho, what bold knights were found on either side!\n\nThen spake fair Kriemhild: \"Ye maids of mine, who would be with me at\nthe greeting, seek out from the guests the very best of robes; then will\npraise and honor be given us by the guests.\" Then came the warriors,\ntoo, and bade the lordly saddles of pure red gold be carried forth,\non which the ladies should ride from Worms down to the Rhine. Better\ntrappings might there never be. Ho, what bright gold did sparkle on\nthe jet-black palfreys! From their bridles there gleamed forth many a\nprecious stone. The golden stepping-blocks were brought and placed on\nshining carpets for the ladies, who were gay of mood. As I have said,\nthe palfreys now stood ready in the courtyard for the noble maids. One\nsaw the steeds wear narrow martingales of the best of silk, of which\ntale might be told. Six and eighty ladies who wore fillets (1) in their\nhair were seen come forth. The fair ones came to Kriemhild wearing\nglittering robes. Then followed many a comely maid in brave attire,\nfifty and four from the Burgundian land. They were eke the best that\nmight anywhere be found. Men saw them walking with their flaxen hair and\nshining ribbons. That which the king desired was done with zeal. They\nwore before the stranger knights rich cloth of silk, the best that\ncould be found, and so many a goodly robe, which well befit their ample\nbeauty. One found there many clothes of sable and ermine fur. Many an\narm and hand was well adorned with bracelets over the silken sleeves,\nwhich they should wear. None might tell the story of this tiring to the\nend. Many a hand played with well-wrought girdles, rich and long, above\ngay colored robes, over costly ferran (2) skirts of silken cloth of\nAraby. In high spirits were these maids of noble birth. Clasps (3) were\nsewed in lovely wise upon the dress of many a comely maid. She had good\ncause to rue it, whose bright color did not shine in contrast to her\nweeds. No kingly race hath now such fair retainers. When now the lovely\nmaids had donned the garments they should wear, there then drew near a\nmickle band of high-mettled champions. Together with their shields they\ncarried many an ashen spear.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Fillets\" were worn only by married women.\n   (2)  \"Ferran\", a gray colored cloth of silk and wool; from O.F.\n        \"ferrandine\".\n   (3)  \"Clasps\" or \"brooches\" were used to fasten the dresses in\n        front.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE X. How Brunhild Was Received At Worms.\n\nAcross the Rhine men saw the king with his guests in many bands pricking\nto the shore. One saw the horse of many a maiden, too, led by the\nbridle. All those who should give them welcome were ready now. When\nthose of Isenland and Siegfried's Nibelung men were come across in\nboats, they hasted to the shore (not idle were their hands), where the\nkindred of the king were seen upon the other bank. Now hear this tale,\ntoo, of the queen, the noble Uta, how she herself rode hither with the\nmaidens from the castle. Then many a knight and maid became acquaint.\nDuke Gere led Kriemhild's palfrey by the bridle till just outside\nthe castle gate. Siegfried, the valiant knight, must needs attend her\nfurther. A fair maid was she! Later the noble dame requited well this\ndeed. Ortwin, the bold, rode by Lady Uta's side, and many knights and\nmaidens rode in pairs. Well may we aver that so many dames were never\nseen together at such stately greeting. Many a splendid joust was\nridden by worshipful knights (not well might it be left undone) afore\nKriemhild, the fair, down to the ships. Then the fair-fashioned ladies\nwere lifted from the palfreys. The king was come across and many a\nworthy guest. Ho, what stout lances brake before the ladies' eyes! One\nheard the clash of many hurtling shields. Ho, what costly bucklers rang\nloudly as they closed! The lovely fair stood by the shore as Gunther and\nhis guests alighted from the boats; he himself led Brunhild by the hand.\nBright gems and gleaming armor shone forth in rivalry. Lady Kriemhild\nwalked with courtly breeding to meet Dame Brunhild and her train.\nWhite hands removed the chaplets, (1) as these twain kissed each other;\nthrough deference this was done.\n\nThen in courteous wise the maiden Kriemhild spake: \"Be ye welcome in\nthese lands of ours, to me and to my mother and to all the loyal kin we\nhave.\"\n\nLow bows were made and the ladies now embraced full oft. Such loving\ngreeting hath one never heard, as the two ladies, Dame Uta and her\ndaughter, gave the bride; upon her sweet mouth they kissed her oft. When\nnow Brunhild's ladies all were come to land, stately knights took many\na comely woman by the hand in loving wise. The fair-fashioned maids were\nseen to stand before the lady Brunhild. Long time elasped or ever the\ngreetings all were done; many a rose-red mouth was kissed, in sooth.\nStill side by side the noble princesses stood, which liked full well\nthe doughty warriors for to see. They who had heard men boast afore that\nsuch beauty had ne'er been seen as these two dames possessed, spied now\nwith all their eyes and must confess the truth. Nor did one see upon\ntheir persons cheats of any kind. Those who wot how to judge of women\nand lovely charms, praised Gunther's bride for beauty; but the wise had\nseen more clear and spake, that one must give Kriemhild the palm before\nBrunhild.\n\nMaids and ladies now drew near each other. Many a comely dame was seen\narrayed full well. Silken tents and many rich pavilions stood hard by,\nthe which quite filled the plain of Worms. The kinsmen of the king came\ncrowding around, when Brunhild and Kriemhild and with them all the dames\nwere bidden go to where shade was found. Thither the knights from the\nBurgundian land escorted them.\n\nNow were the strangers come to horse, and shields were pierced in many\nroyal jousts. From the plain the dust gan rise, as though the whole land\nhad burst forth into flames. There many a knight became well known as\nchampion. Many a maiden saw what there the warriors plied. Methinks,\nSir Siegfried and his knights rode many a turn afore the tents. He led a\nthousand stately Nibelungs.\n\nThen Hagen of Troneg came, as the king had counseled, and parted in\ngentle wise the jousting, that the fair maids be not covered with the\ndust, the which the strangers willingly obeyed. Then spake Sir Gernot:\n\"Let stand the steeds till the air grow cooler, for ye must be full\nready when that the king will ride. Meanwhile let us serve the comely\ndames before the spacious hall.\"\n\nWhen now over all the plain the jousts had ceased, the knights, on\npastime bent, hied them to the ladies under many a high pavilion in the\nhope of lofty joys. There they passed the hours until they were minded\nto ride away.\n\nJust at eventide, when the sun was setting and the air grew chill, no\nlonger they delayed, but man and woman hasted toward the castle. Many a\ncomely maiden was caressed with loving glances. In jousting great store\nof clothes were torn by good knights, by the high-mettled warriors,\nafter the custom of the land, until the king dismounted by the hall.\nValiant heroes helped the ladies, as is their wont. The noble queens\nthen parted; Lady Uta and her daughter went with their train to a\nspacious hall, where great noise of merriment was heard on every side.\n\nThe seats were now made ready, for the king would go to table with his\nguests. At his side men saw fair Brunhild stand, wearing the crown in\nthe king's domain. Royal enow she was in sooth. Good broad tables, with\nfull many benches for the men, were set with vitaille, as we are told.\nLittle they lacked that they should have! At the king's table many a\nlordly guest was seen. The chamberlains of the host bare water forth in\nbasins of ruddy gold. It were but in vain, if any told you that men were\never better served at princes' feasts: I would not believe you that.\n\nBefore the lord of the Rhineland took the water to wash his hands,\nSiegfried did as was but meet, he minded him by his troth of what he had\npromised, or ever he had seen Brunhild at home in Isenland. He spake:\n\"Ye must remember how ye swore me by your hand, that when Lady Brunhild\ncame to this land, ye would give me your sister to wife. Where be now\nthese oaths? I have suffered mickle hardship on our trip.\"\n\nThen spake the king to his guest: \"Rightly have ye minded me. Certes my\nhand shall not be perjured. I'll bring it to pass as best I can.\"\n\nThen they bade Kriemhild go to court before the king. She came with her\nfair maidens to the entrance of the hall. At this Sir Giselher sprang\ndown the steps. \"Now bid these maidens turn again. None save my sister\nalone shall be here by the king.\"\n\nThen they brought Kriemhild to where the king was found. There stood\nnoble knights from many princes' lands; throughout the broad hall one\nbade them stand quite still. By this time Lady Brunhild had stepped\nto the table, too. Then spake King Gunther: \"Sweet sister mine, by thy\ncourtesie redeem my oath. I swore to give thee to a knight, and if he\nbecome thy husband, then hast thou done my will most loyally.\"\n\nQuoth the noble maid: \"Dear brother mine, ye must not thus entreat me.\nCertes I'll be ever so, that whatever ye command, that shall be done.\nI'll gladly pledge my troth to him whom ye, my lord, do give me to\nhusband.\"\n\nSiegfried here grew red at the glance of friendly eyes. The knight then\nproffered his service to Lady Kriemhild. Men bade them take their stand\nat each other's side within the ring and asked if she would take the\nstately man. In maidenly modesty she was a deal abashed, yet such was\nSiegfried's luck and fortune, that she would not refuse him out of hand.\nThe noble king of Netherland vowed to take her, too, to wife. When he\nand the maid had pledged their troths, Siegfried's arm embraced eftsoon\nthe winsome maid. Then the fair queen was kissed before the knights. The\ncourtiers parted, when that had happed; on the bench over against the\nking Siegfried was seen to take his scat with Kriemhild. Thither many\na man accompanied him as servitor; men saw the Nibelungs walk at\nSiegfried's side.\n\nThe king had seated him with Brunhild, the maid, when she espied\nKriemhild (naught had ever irked her so) sitting at Siegfried's side.\nShe began to weep and hot tears coursed down fair cheeks. Quoth the lord\nof the land: \"What aileth you, my lady, that ye let bright eyes grow\ndim? Ye may well rejoice; my castles and my land and many a stately\nvassal own your sway.\"\n\n\"I have good cause to weep,\" spake the comely maid; \"my heart is sore\nbecause of thy sister, whom I see sitting so near thy vassal's side. I\nmust ever weep that she be so demeaned.\"\n\nThen spake the King Gunther: \"Ye would do well to hold your peace. At\nanother time I will tell you the tale of why I gave Siegfried my sister\nunto wife. Certes she may well live ever happily with the knight.\"\n\nShe spake: \"I sorrow ever for her beauty and her courtesie. I fain would\nflee, and I wist whither I might; go, for never will I lie close by\nyour side, unless ye tell me through what cause Kriemhild be Siegfried's\nbride.\"\n\nThen spake the noble king: \"I'll do it you to wit; he hath castles\nand broad domains, as well as I. Know of a truth, he is a mighty king,\ntherefore did I give him the peerless maid to love.\"\n\nBut whatsoever the king might say, she remained full sad of mood.\n\nNow many a good knight hastened from the board. Their hurtling waxed so\npassing hard, that the whole castle rang. But the host was weary of his\nguests. Him-thought that he might lie more soft at his fair lady's side.\nAs yet he had not lost at all the hope that much of joy might hap to him\nthrough her. Lovingly he began to gaze on Lady Brunhild. Men bade the\nguests leave off their knightly games, for the king and his wife would\ngo to bed. Brunhild and Kriemhild then met before the stairway of the\nhall, as yet without the hate of either. Then came their retinue. Noble\nchamberlains delayed not, but brought them lights. The warriors, the\nliegemen of the two kings, then parted on either side and many of the\nknights were seen to walk with Siegfried.\n\nThe lords were now come to the rooms where they should lie. Each of the\ntwain thought to conquer by love his winsome dame. This made them blithe\nof mood. Siegfried's pleasure on that night was passing great. When Lord\nSiegfried lay at Kriemhild's side and with his noble love caressed the\nhigh-born maid so tenderly, she grew as dear to him as life, so that not\nfor a thousand other women would he have given her alone. No more I'll\ntell how Siegfried wooed his wife; hear now the tale of how King Gunther\nlay by Lady Brunhild's side. The stately knight had often lain more\nsoft by other dames. The courtiers now had left, both maid and man. The\nchamber soon was locked; he thought to caress the lovely maid. Forsooth\nthe time was still far off, ere she became his wife. In a smock of snowy\nlinen she went to bed. Then thought the noble knight: \"Now have I here\nall that I have ever craved in all my days.\" By rights she must needs\nplease him through her comeliness. The noble king gan shroud the lights\nand then the bold knight hied him to where the lady lay. He laid him at\nher side, and great was his joy when in his arms he clasped the lovely\nfair. Many loving caresses he might have given, had but the noble dame\nallowed it. She waxed so wroth that he was sore a-troubled; he weened\nthat they were lovers, but he found here hostile hate. She spake: \"Sir\nKnight, pray give this over, which now ye hope. Forsooth this may not\nhap, for I will still remain a maid, until I hear the tale; now mark ye\nthat.\"\n\nThen Gunther grew wroth; he struggled for her love and rumpled all her\nclothes. The high-born maid then seized her girdle, the which was a\nstout band she wore around her waist, and with it she wrought the king\ngreat wrong enow. She bound him hand and foot and bare him to a nail and\nhung him on the wall. She forbade him love, sith he disturbed her sleep.\nOf a truth he came full nigh to death through her great strength.\n\nThen he who had weened to be the master, began to plead. \"Now loose my\nbands, most noble queen. I no longer trow to conquer you, fair lady, and\nfull seldom will I lie so near your side.\"\n\nShe reeked not how he felt, for she lay full soft. There he had to hang\nall night till break of day, until the bright morn shone through the\ncasements. Had he ever had great strength, it was little seen upon him\nnow.\n\n\"Now tell me, Sir Gunther, would that irk you aught,\" the fair maid\nspake, \"and your servants found you bound by a woman's hand?\"\n\nThen spake the noble knight: \"That would serve you ill; nor would it\ngain me honor,\" spake the doughty man. \"By your courtesie, pray let me\nlie now by your side. Sith that my love mislike you so, I will not touch\nyour garment with my hands.\"\n\nThen she loosed him soon and let him rise. To the bed again, to the lady\nhe went and laid him down so far away, that thereafter he full seldom\ntouched her comely weeds. Nor would she have allowed it.\n\nThen their servants came and brought them new attire, of which great\nstore was ready for them against the morn. However merry men made, the\nlord of the land was sad enow, albeit he wore a crown that day. As\nwas the usage which they had and which they kept by right, Gunther and\nBrunhild no longer tarried, but hied them to the minster, where mass was\nsung. Thither, too, Sir Siegfried came and a great press arose among the\ncrowd. In keeping with their royal rank, there was ready for them all\nthat they did need, their crowns and robes as well. Then they were\nconsecrated. When this was done, all four were seen to stand joyful\n'neath their crowns. Many young squires, six hundred or better, were now\ngirt with sword in honor of the kings, as ye must know. Great joy rose\nthen in the Burgundian land; one heard spear-shafts clashing in the\nhands of the sworded knights. There at the windows the fair maids sat;\nthey saw shining afore them the gleam of many a shield. But the king had\nsundered him from his liegemen; whatso others plied, men saw him stand\nfull sad. Unlike stood his and Siegfried's mood. The noble knight and\ngood would fain have known what ailed the king. He hasted to him and gan\nask: \"Pray let me know how ye have fared this night, Sir King.\"\n\nThen spake the king to his guest: \"Shame and disgrace have I won; I have\nbrought a fell devil to my house and home. When I weened to love her,\nshe bound me sore; she bare me to a nail and hung me high upon a wall.\nThere I hung affrighted all night until the day, or ever she unbound me.\nHow softly she lay bedded there! In hope of thy pity do I make plaint to\nthee as friend to friend.\"\n\nThen spake stout Siegfried: \"That rueth me in truth. I'll do you this to\nwit; and ye allow me without distrust, I'll contrive that she lie by you\nso near this night, that she'll nevermore withhold from you her love.\"\n\nAfter all his hardships Gunther liked well this speech. Sir Siegfried\nspake again: \"Thou mayst well be of good cheer. I ween we fared unlike\nlast night. Thy sister Kriemhild is dearer to me than life; the Lady\nBrunhild must become thy wife to-night. I'll come to thy chamber this\nnight, so secretly in my Cloud Cloak, that none may note at all my arts.\nThen let the chamberlains betake them to their lodgings and I'll put out\nthe lights in the pages' hands, whereby thou mayst know that I be within\nand that I'll gladly serve thee. I'll tame for time thy wife, that thou\nmayst have her love to-night, or else I'll lose my life.\"\n\n\"Unless be thou embrace my dear lady,\" spake then the king, \"I shall be\nglad, if thou do to her as thou dost list. I could endure it well, an'\nthou didst take her life. In sooth she is a fearful wife.\"\n\n\"I pledge upon my troth,\" quoth Siegfried, \"that I will not embrace her.\nThe fair sister of thine, she is to me above all maids that I have ever\nseen.\"\n\nGunther believed full well what Siegfried spake.\n\nFrom the knightly sports there came both joy and woe; but men forbade\nthe hurtling and the shouting, since now the ladies were to hie them to\nthe hall. The grooms-in-waiting bade the people stand aside; the court\nwas cleared of steeds and folk. A bishop led each of the ladies, as they\nshould go to table in the presence of the kings. Many a stately warrior\nfollowed to the seats. In fair hope the king sate now full merrily; well\nhe thought on that which Siegfried had vowed to do. This one day thought\nhim as long as thirty days, for all his thoughts were bent upon his\nlady's love. He could scarce abide the time to leave the board. Now men\nlet fair Brunhild and Kriemhild, too, both go to their rest. Ho, what\ndoughty knights were seen to walk before the queens!\n\nThe Lord Siegfried sate in loving wise by his fair wife, in bliss\nwithout alloy. With her snow-white hands she fondled his, till that he\nvanished from before her eyes, she wist not when. When now she no longer\nspied him, as she toyed, the queen spake to his followers: \"Much this\nwondereth me, whither the king be gone. Who hath taken his hands from\nmine?\"\n\nShe spake no other word, but he was gone to where he found many grooms\nof the chamber stand with lights. These he gan snuff out in the pages'\nhands. Thus Gunther knew that it was Siegfried. Well wist he what he\nwould; he bade the maids and ladies now withdraw. When that was done,\nthe mighty king himself made fast the door and nimbly shoved in place\ntwo sturdy bolts. Quickly then he hid the lights behind the hangings of\nthe bed. Stout Siegfried and the maiden now began a play (for this there\nwas no help) which was both lief and loth to Gunther. Siegfried laid him\nclose by the high-born maid. She spake: \"Now, Gunther, let that be, and\nit be lief to you, that ye suffer not hardship as afore.\"\n\nThen the lady hurt bold Siegfried sore. He held his peace and answered\nnot a whit. Gunther heard well, though he could not see his friend a\nbit, that they plied not secret things, for little ease they had upon\nthe bed. Siegfried bare him as though he were Gunther, the mighty king.\nIn his arms he clasped the lovely maid. She cast him from the bed upon\na bench near by, so that his head struck loudly against the stool. Up\nsprang the valiant man with all his might; fain would he try again. When\nhe thought now to subdue her, she hurt him sore. Such defense, I ween,\nmight nevermore be made by any wife.\n\nWhen he would not desist, up sprang the maid. \"Ye shall not rumple thus\nmy shift so white. Ye are a clumsy churl and it shall rue you sore,\nI'll have you to know fall well,\" spake the comely maid. In her arms she\ngrasped the peerless knight; she weened to bind him, as she had done the\nking, that she might have her case upon the bed. The lady avenged full\nsore, that he had rumpled thus her clothes. What availed his mickle\nforce and his giant strength? She showed the knight her masterly\nstrength of limb; she carried him by force (and that must needs be) and\npressed him rudely 'twixt a clothes-press and the wall.\n\n\"Alas,\" so thought the knight, \"if now I lose my life at a maiden's\nhands, then may all wives hereafter bear towards their husbands haughty\nmien, who would never do it else.\"\n\nThe king heard it well and feared him for his liegeman's life. Siegfried\nwas sore ashamed; wrathful he waxed and with surpassing strength he set\nhimself against her and tried it again with Lady Brunhild in fearful\nwise. It thought the king full long, before he conquered her. She\npressed his hands, till from her strength the blood gushed forth from\nout the nails: this irked the hero. Therefore he brought the high-born\nmaiden to the pass that she gave over her unruly will, which she\nasserted there afore. The king heard all, albeit not a word he spake.\nSiegfried pressed her against the bed, so that she shrieked aloud.\nPassing sore his strength did hurt her. She grasped the girdle around\nher waist and would fain have bound him, but his hand prevented it in\nsuch a wise that her limbs and all her body cracked. Thus the strife was\nparted and she became King Gunther's wife.\n\nShe spake: \"Most noble king, pray spare my life. I'll do thee remedy for\nwhatso I have done thee. I'll no longer struggle against thy noble\nlove, for I have learned full well that thou canst make thee master over\nwomen.\"\n\nSiegfried let the maiden be and stepped away, as though he would do off\nhis clothes. From her hand he drew a golden finger ring, without that\nshe wist it, the noble queen. Thereto he took her girdle, a good stout\nband. I know not if he did that for very haughtiness. He gave it to his\nwife and rued it sore in after time.\n\nThen lay Gunther and the fair maid side by side. He played the lover,\nas beseemed him, and thus she must needs give over wrath and shame. From\nhis embrace a little pale she grew. Ho, how her great strength failed\nthrough love! Now was she no stronger than any other wife. He caressed\nher lovely form in lover's wise. Had she tried her strength again, what\nhad that availed? All this had Gunther wrought in her by his love. How\nright lovingly she lay beside him in bridal joy until the dawn of day!\n\nNow was Sir Siegfried gone again to where he was given fair greetings by\na woman fashioned fair. He turned aside the question she had thought to\nput and hid long time from her what he had brought, until she ruled as\nqueen within his land. How little he refused to give her what he should!\n\nOn the morn the host was far cheerier of mood than he had been afore.\nThrough this the joy of many a noble man was great in all his lands,\nwhom he had bidden to his court, and to whom he proffered much of\nservice. The wedding feast now lasted till the fourteenth day, so that\nin all this while the sound never died away of the many joys which there\nthey plied. The cost to the king was rated high. The kinsmen of the\nnoble host gave gifts in his honor to the strolling folk, as the king\ncommanded: vesture and ruddy gold, steeds and silver, too. Those who\nthere craved gifts departed hence full merrily. Siegfried, the lord from\nNetherland, with a thousand of his men, gave quite away the garments\nthey had brought with them to the Rhine and steeds and saddles, too.\nFull well they wot how to live in lordly wise. Those who would home\nagain thought the time too long till the rich gifts had all been made.\nNevermore have guests been better eased. Thus ended the wedding feast;\nGunther, the knight, would have it so.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Chaplet\" (O.F. \"chaplet\", dim. of \"chapel\", M.H.G.\n        \"schapel\" or \"schapelin\") or wreath was the headdress\n        especially of unmarried girls, the hair being worn flowing.\n        It was often of flowers or leaves, but not infrequently of\n        gold and silver.  (See Weinhold, \"Deutsche Frauen im\n        Mittelalter\", i, 387.)\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XI. How Siegfried Journeyed Homeward With His Wife.\n\nWhen now the strangers had all ridden hence, Siegmund's son spake to his\nfellowship: \"We must make us ready, too, to journey to my lands.\"\n\nLief was it to his wife, when the lady heard the tale aright. She spake\nto her husband: \"When shall we ride? I pray thee, make me not haste too\nsore. First must my brothers share their lands with me.\"\n\nIt was loth to Siegfried, when he heard this from Kriemhild. The\nlordings hied them to him and all three spake: \"Now may ye know, Sir\nSiegfried, that our true service be ever at your bidding till our\ndeath.\"\n\nThen he made obeisance to the knights, as it was proffered him in such\nkindly wise. \"We shall share with you,\" spake Giselher, the youth, \"both\nland and castles which we do own and whatever broad realms be subject to\nour power. Of these ye and Kriemhild shall have a goodly share.\"\n\nThe son of Siegmund spake to the princes, as he heard and saw the\nlordings' will: \"God grant that ye be ever happy with your heritage and\nthe folk therein. My dear bride can well forego in truth the share which\nye would give. There where she shall wear a crown, she shall be mightier\nthan any one alive, and live to see the day. For whatsoever else ye do\ncommand, I stand ready to your bidding.\"\n\nThen spake the Lady Kriemhild: \"Though ye forego my heritage, yet is\nit not so light a matter with the Burgundian men-at-arms. A king might\ngladly lead them to his land. Forsooth my brothers' hands must share\nthem with me.\"\n\nThen spake the Lord Gernot: \"Now take whomsoever thou dost wish. Thou\nwilt find here really a one who'll gladly ride with thee. We will\ngive thee a thousand of our thirty hundred warriors; be they thy court\nretainers.\"\n\nKriemhild then gan send for Hagen of Troneg and also for Ortwin, to ask\nif they and their kinsfolk would be Kriemhild's men.\n\nAt this Hagen waxed wonderly wroth. He spake: \"Certes, Gunther may not\ngive us to any in the world. Let others follow as your train. Ye know\nfull well the custom of the men of Troneg: we must in duty bound remain\nhere with the kings at court. We must serve them longer, whom we till\nnow have followed.\"\n\nThey gave that over and made them ready to ride away. Lady Kriemhild\ngained for herself two and thirty maids and five hundred men, a noble\ntrain. The Margrave Eckewart (1) followed Kriemhild hence. They all\ntook leave, both knights and squires and maids and ladies, as was mickle\nright. Anon they parted with a kiss and voided merrily King Gunther's\nland. Their kinsmen bare them company far upon the way and bade them\npitch their quarters for the night, whereso they listed, throughout the\nprinces' land.\n\nThen messengers were sent eftsoon to Siegmund, that he might know,\nand Siegelind, too, that his son would come with Lady Uta's child,\nKriemhild, the fair, from Worms beyond the Rhine. Liefer tidings might\nthey never have. \"Well for me,\" spake then Siegmund, \"that I have\nlived to see fair Kriemhild here as queen. My heritage will be thereby\nenhanced. My son, the noble Siegfried, shall himself be king.\"\n\nThen the Lady Siegelind gave much red velvet, silver, and heavy gold;\nthis was the envoy's meed. The tale well liked her, which then she\nheard. She clad her and her handmaids with care, as did beseem them. Men\ntold who was to come with Siegfried to the land. Anon they bade seats be\nraised, where he should walk crowned before his friends. King Siegmund's\nliegemen then rode forth to meet him. Hath any been ever better greeted\nthan the famous hero in Siegmund's land, I know not. Siegelind, the\nfair, rode forth to meet Kriemhild with many a comely dame (lusty\nknights did follow on behind), a full day's journey, till one espied the\nguests. Home-folk and the strangers had little easement till they were\ncome to a spacious castle, hight Xanten, (2) where they later reigned.\n\nSmilingly Siegelind and Siegmund kissed Kriemhild many times for joy and\nSiegfried, too; their sorrow was taken from them. All their fellowship\nreceived great welcome. One bade now bring the guests to Siegmund's\nhall, and lifted the fair young maids down from the palfreys. Many a\nknight gan serve the comely dames with zeal. However great the feasting\nat the Rhine was known to be, here one gave the heroes much better robes\nthan they had worn in all their days. Of their splender great marvels\nmight be told. When now they sate in lofty honors and had enow of all,\nwhat gold-hued clothes their courtiers wore with precious stones well\nworked thereon! Thus did Siegelind, the noble queen, purvey them well.\n\nThen to his friends Lord Siegmund spake: \"I do all Siegfried's kin\nto wit, that he shall wear my crown before these knights.\" Those of\nNetherland heard full fain the tale. He gave his son the crown, the\ncognizance, (3) and lands, so that he then was master of them all. When\nthat men went to law and Siegfried uttered judgment, that was done in\nsuch a wise that men feared sore fair Kriemhild's husband.\n\nIn these high honors Siegfried lived, of a truth, and judged as king,\ntill the tenth year was come, when his fair lady bare a son. This was\ncome to pass after the wish of the kinsmen of the king. They hastened\nto baptize and name him Gunther for his uncle; nor had he need to be\nashamed of this. Should he grow like to his kinsman, he would fare full\nwell. They brought him up with care, as was but due. In these same times\nthe Lady Siegelind died, and men enow made wail when death bereft them\nof her. Then the child of the noble Uta held withal the power over the\nlands, which well beseemed such high-born dames. (4)\n\nNow also by the Rhine, as we hear tell, at mighty Gunther's court, in\nthe Burgundian land, Brunhild, the fair, had born a son. For the hero's\nsake they named him Siegfried. With what great care they bade attend\nhim! The noble Gunther gave him masters who well wot how to bring him\nup to be a doughty man. Alas, what great loss of kin he later suffered\nthrough misfortune!\n\nMany tales were told all time, of how right worshipfully the lusty\nknights dwelt alway in Siegmund's land. Gunther dealt the same with his\ndistinguished kin. The Nibelung land and Schilbung's knights and the\ngoods of both served Siegfried here (none of his kinsmen ever waxed\nmightier than he). So much the higher rose the mood of the valiant man.\nThe very greatest heard that any hero ever gained, save those who owned\nit aforetime, the bold man had, the which he had won by his own hand\nhard by a hill, and for which he did many a lusty knight to death. He\nhad honors to his heart's desire, and had this not been so, yet one must\nrightly aver of the noble champion, that he was one of the best that\never mounted horse. Men feared his might and justly, too.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Eckewart\", see Adventure I, note 15.\n   (2)  \"Xanten\", see Adventure II, note 3.\n   (3)  \"Cognizance\", 'jurisdiction.'\n   (4)  \"Dames\", i.e., Siegelind and Kriemhild.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XII. How Gunther Bade Siegfried To The Feasting.\n\nNow Gunther's wife thought alway: \"How haughtily doth Lady Kriemhild\nbear her! Is not her husband Siegfried our liegeman? Long time now hath\nhe done us little service.\" This she bare within her heart, but held her\npeace. It irked her sore that they did make themselves such strangers\nand that men from Siegfried's land so seldom served her. Fain would she\nhave known from whence this came. She asked the king if it might hap\nthat she should see Kriemhild again. Secretly she spake what she had in\nmind. The speech like the king but moderately well. \"How might we bring\nthem,\" quoth he, \"hither to our land? That were impossible, they live\ntoo far away; I dare not ask them this.\"\n\nTo this Brunhild replied in full crafty wise: \"However high and mighty\na king's vassal be, yet should he not leave undone whatsoever his lord\ncommand him.\"\n\nKing Gunther smiled when she spake thus. However oft he saw Siegfried,\nyet did he not count it to him as service.\n\nShe spake: \"Dear lord, for my sake help me to have Siegfried and thy\nsister come to this land, that we may see them here. Naught liefer might\never hap to me in truth. Whenso I think on thy sister's courtesie and\nher well-bred mind, how it delighteth me! How we sate together, when I\nfirst became thy wife! She may with honor love bold Siegfried.\"\n\nShe besought so long, till the king did speak: \"Now know that I have\nnever seen more welcome guests. Ye need but beg me gently. I will send\nmy envoys for the twain, that they may come to see us to the Rhine.\"\n\nThen spake the queen: \"Pray tell me then, when ye are willed to send for\nthem, or in what time our dear kinsmen shall come into the land. Give me\nalso to know whom ye will send thither.\"\n\n\"That will I,\" said the prince. \"I will let thirty of my men ride\nthither.\"\n\nHe had these come before him and bade them carry tidings to Siegfried's\nland. To their delight Brunhild did give them full lordly vesture.\n\nThen spake the king: \"Ye knights must say from me all that I bid you to\nmighty Siegfried and the sister of mine; this must ye not conceal: that\nno one in the world doth love them more, and beg them both to come to\nus to the Rhine. For this I and my lady will be ever at your service. At\nthe next Midsummer's Day shall he and his men gaze upon many here, who\nwould fain do them great honor. Give to the king Siegmund my greetings,\nand say that I and my kinsmen be still his friends, and tell my sister,\ntoo, that she fail not to ride to see her kin. Never did feasting beseem\nher better.\"\n\nBrunhild and Uta and whatever ladies were found at court all commended\ntheir service to the lovely dames and the many valiant men in\nSiegfried's land. With the consent of the kinsmen of the king the\nmessengers set forth. They rode as wandering knights; their horses and\ntheir trappings had now been brought them. Then they voided the land,\nfor they had haste of the journey, whither they would fare. The king\nbade guard the messengers well with convoys. In three weeks they came\nriding into the land, to Nibelung's castle, in the marches of Norway,\n(1) whither they were sent. Here they found the knight. The mounts of\nthe messengers were weary from the lengthy way.\n\nBoth Siegfried and Kriemhild were then told that knights were come, who\nwore such clothes as men were wont to wear at Burgundy. She sprang\nfrom a couch on which she lay to rest and bade a maiden hie her to the\nwindow. In the court she saw bold Gere standing, him and the fellowship\nthat had been sent thither. What joyful things she there found against\nher sorrow of heart! She spake to the king: \"Now behold where they\nstand, who walk in the court with the sturdy Gere, whom my brother\nsendeth us adown the Rhine.\"\n\nSpake Then the valiant Siegfried: \"They be welcome to us.\"\n\nAll the courtiers ran to where one saw them. Each of them in turn then\nspake full kindly, as best he could to the envoys. Siegmund, the lord,\nwas right blithe of their coming. Then Gere and his men were lodged and\nmen bade take their steeds in charge. The messengers then went hence\nto where Lord Siegfried sate by Kriemhild. This they did, for they had\nleave to go to court. The host and his lady rose from their seats at\nonce and greeted well Gere of the Burgundian land with his fellowship,\nGunther's liegemen. One bade the mighty Gere go and sit him down.\n\n\"Permit us first to give our message, afore we take our seats; let us\nway-worn strangers stand the while. We be come to tell you tidings which\nGunther and Brunhild, with whom all things stand well, have sent you,\nand also what Lady Uta, your mother, sendeth. Giselher, the youth, and\nSir Gernot, too, and your dearest kin, they have sent us hither and\ncommend their service to you from out the Burgundian land.\"\n\n\"Now God requite them,\" quoth Siegfried; \"I trow them much troth and\ngood, as one should to kinsfolk; their sister doth the same. Ye must\ntell us more, whether our dear friends at home be of good cheer? Since\nwe have been parted from them, hath any done amiss to my lady's kinsmen?\nThat ye must let me know. If so, I'll ever help them bear it in duty\nbound, until their foes must rue my service.\"\n\nThen spake the Margrave Gere, a right good knight: \"They are in every\nvirtue of such right high mood, that they do bid you to a feasting by\nthe Rhine. They would fain see you, as ye may not doubt, and they do beg\nmy lady that she come with you, when the winter hath taken an end. They\nwould see you before the next Midsummer's Day.\"\n\nQuoth the stalwart Siegfried: \"That might hardly hap.\"\n\nThen answered Gere from the Burgundian land: \"Your mother Uta, Gernot,\nand Giselher have charged you, that ye refuse them not. I hear daily\nwail, that ye do live so far away. My Lady Brunhild and all her maids\nbe fain of the tidings, if that might be that they should see you\nagain; this would raise their spirits high.\" These tidings thought fair\nKriemhild good.\n\nGere was of their kin; the host bade him be seated and had wine poured\nout for the guests; no longer did they tarry. Now Siegmund was come\nto where he saw the messengers. The lord said to the Burgundians in\nfriendly wise: \"Be welcome, Sir Knights, ye men of Gunther. Sith now\nSiegfried, my son, hath won Kriemhild to wife, one should see you more\noften here in this our land, if ye would show your kinship.\"\n\nThey answered that they would gladly come, when so he would. Of their\nweariness they were cased with joyous pastime. Men bade the messengers\nbe seated and brought them food, of which Siegfried had them given\ngreat store. They must needs stay there full nine days, till at last\nthe doughty knights made plaint, that they durst not ride again to their\nland.\n\nMeantime king Siegfried had sent to fetch his friends; he asked them\nwhat they counseled, whether or no they should to the Rhine. \"My kinsman\nGunther and his kin have sent to fetch me for a feasting. Now I would\ngo full gladly, but that his land doth lie too far away. They beg\nKriemhild, too, that she journey with me. Now advise, dear friends, in\nwhat manner she shall ride thither. Though I must harry for them through\nthirty lands, yet would Siegfried's arm fain serve them there.\"\n\nThen spake his warriors: \"And ye be minded to journey to the feasting,\nwe will advise what ye must do. Ye should ride to the Rhine with a\nthousand knights, then can ye stand with worship there in Burgundy\nland.\"\n\nUp spake then Lord Siegmund of Netherland: \"Will ye to the feasting, why\nmake ye it not known to me? If ye scorn it not, I will ride thither with\nyou and will take a hundred knights, wherewith to swell your band.\"\n\n\"And will ye ride with us, dear father mine,\" quoth brave Siegfried,\n\"glad shall I be of that. Within a twelfth night I will quit my lands.\"\n\nAll who craved it were given steeds and vesture, too.\n\nSince now the noble king was minded for the journey, men bade the good\nand speedy envoys ride again. He sent word to his wife's kindred on\nthe Rhine, that he would full fain be at their feasting. Siegfried and\nKriemhild, as the tale doth tell, gave the messengers such store of\ngifts that their horses could not bear them to their native land. A\nwealthy man was he. They drove their sturdy sumpters merrily along.\n\nSiegfried and Siegmund arrayed their men. Eckewart, the margrave, that\nvery hour bade seek out ladies' robes, the best that were at hand or\nmight be found throughout all Siegfried's land. Men gan prepare the\nsaddles and the shields. To knights and ladies who should go hence with\nhim was given whatso they would, so that they wanted naught. He brought\nto his kinsfolk many a lordly stranger.\n\nThe messengers pricked fast upon their homeward way. Now was Gere, the\nknight, come to Burgundy and was greeted fair. Then they dismounted from\ntheir steeds and from the nags in front of Gunther's hall. Young and old\ndid hie them, as people do, to ask the tidings. Quoth the good knight:\n\"When I tell them to the king, thou be at hand a hear.\"\n\nWith his fellowship he went to where he found King Gunther. For very joy\nthe king sprang from his seat. Fair Brunhild cried them mercy, that they\nwere come so quick. Gunther spake to the envoys: \"How fareth Siegfried,\nfrom whom so much of gladness hath happed to me?\"\n\nBrave Gere spake: \"He blushed for joy, he and your sister; no truer\ntidings did ever any man send to friends, than the Lord Siegfried and\nhis father, too, have sent to you.\"\n\nThen to the margrave spake the noble queen: \"Now tell me, cometh\nKriemhild to us? Hath the fair still kept the graces which she knew how\nto use?\"\n\n\"She cometh to you surely,\" quoth Gere, the knight.\n\nThen Uta bade the messenger come quickly to her. By her question one\nmight note full well that she was fain to hear if Kriemhild still were\nwell. He told how he had found her and that she would shortly come. Nor\nwere the gifts concealed by them at court, which Siegfried gave them,\ngold and vesture; these they brought for the vassals of the three kings\nto see. For their passing great bounty men gave them thanks.\n\n\"He may lightly give great gifts,\" spake then Hagen; \"he could not\nsquander all his wealth, and he should live for aye. His hand hath\nclosed upon the hoard of the Nibelungs. Ho, let him only come to the\nBurgundian land!\"\n\nAll the courtiers were glad that they should come. Early and late the\nmen of the three kings were busy. Many benches they gan raise for the\nfolk. The valiant Hunolt and the knight Sindolt had little rest. All\ntime they had to oversee the stewards and the butlers and raise many a\nbench. Ortwin helped them, too, at this, and Gunther said them thanks.\nRumolt, the master cook, how well he ruled his underlings! Ho, how many\na broad kettle, pot, and pan they had! They made ready the vitaille for\nthose who were coming to the land.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Norway\".  The interpolated character of the Adventures XI\n        to XIII, which are not found in the earlier versions, is\n        shown by the confusion in the location of Siegfried's court.\n        The poet has forgotten that Xanten is his capital, and\n        locates it in Norway.  No mention is made, however, of the\n        messengers crossing the sea; on the contrary, Kriemhild\n        speaks of their being sent down the Rhine.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XIII. How They Journeyed To The Feasting.\n\nLet us now take leave of all their bustling, and tell how Lady Kriemhild\nand her maidens journeyed from the Nibelung land down toward the Rhine.\nNever did sumpters bear so much lordly raiment. They made ready for\nthe way full many traveling chests. Then Siegfried, the knight, and the\nqueen as well, rode forth with their friends to where they had hope of\njoys. Later it sped them all to their great harm. They left Siegfried's\nlittle child, Kriemhild's son, at home. That must needs be. Great grief\nbefell him through their journey to the court. The bairn never saw his\nfather and his mother more. With them, too, there rode Lord Siegmund.\nHad he known aright how he would fare at the feasting, no whit of it\nwould he have seen. No greater woe might ever hap to him in loving\nfriends.\n\nMessengers were sent ahead, who told the tale. Then with a stately band\nthere rode to meet them many of Uta's kith and Gunther's liegemen. The\nhost gan bestir him for his guests. He went to where Brunhild sate and\nasked: \"How did my sister greet you when ye came to our land? In like\nmanner must ye greet Siegfried's wife.\"\n\n\"That will I gladly,\" quoth she, \"for I have good cause to be her\nfriend.\"\n\nThe mighty king spake further: \"They come to us early on the morrow; if\nye would greet them, set quickly to work, that we abide them not within\nthe castle. At no time have such welcome guests ever come to see me.\"\n\nAt once she bade her maids and ladies hunt out goodly raiment, the best\nthey had, the which her train should wear before the guests. One may\nlightly say, they did this gladly. Gunther's men hasted also for to\nserve them, and around him the host did gather all his knights. Then\nthe queen rode forth in princely wise and mickle greeting of the welcome\nguests was done. With what great joy did they receive them! It thought\nthem as though Lady Kriemhild had not greeted Lady Brunhild so fair in\nthe Burgundian land. Those who had never seen her became acquaint with\nlofty mood.\n\nNow was Siegfried come with his liegemen. One saw the heroes wending\nto and fro upon the plain in unwieldy bands. None might guard him there\nagainst the jostling and the dust.\n\nWhen that the ruler of the land spied Siegfried and Siegmund, how\nlovingly he spake: \"Now be ye full welcome to me and all my friends; we\nshall be of good cheer because of this your journey to our court.\"\n\n\"Now God requite you,\" quoth Siegmund, the honor-seeking man; \"sith my\nson Siegfried won you to kinsman, my heart hath urged that I should go\nto see you.\"\n\nAt this spake Gunther: \"Now hath joy happed to me thereby.\"\n\nSiegfried was received with much great worship as beseemed him; none\nbare him hatred there. Giselher and Gernot helped thereby with great\ncourtesie. I ween, never have guests been greeted in such goodly wise.\n\nThen the wives of the two kings drew near each other. Emptied were many\nsaddles, as fair ladies were lifted down by knightly hands upon the\nsward. How busy were those who gladly served the dames! The lovely women\nnow drew near each other, and many a knight was blithe, that such fair\ngreeting passed between the twain. Then one saw great press of warriors\nstanding by the high-born maids. The lordly meiny (1) grasped each\nother by the hand. Much courteous bowing was seen and loving kisses from\nfair-fashioned dames. This liked well Gunther's and Siegfried's liegemen\nfor to see. They bided now no longer, but rode to town. The host\nbade show his guests full well that all were fain to see them in the\nBurgundian land. Many a royal joust took place before the high-born\nmaids. Hagen of Troneg and Ortwin, too, proved full well their prowess.\nOne durst not leave undone whatso they would command. Much service was\nrendered by them to the welcome guests. Many shields were heard resound\nfrom thrusts and blows before the castle gate. The host and his guests\ntarried long time without, or ever they came within. Forsooth the hours\npassed quickly for them with their sports. Merrily they rode before the\nroyal palace. Many cunning housings (2) of good cloth and well cut\nwere seen hanging on either side from the saddles of the fair-fashioned\ndames.\n\nThen came Gunther's liegemen. Men bade lead the strangers quickly to\ntheir easement. At times one saw Brunhild glance at Lady Kriemhild, who\nwas passing fair enow. Her color against the gold gave back the gleam\nin lovely wise. On every side in Worms one heard the courtiers shout.\nGunther bade Dankwart, his marshal, have them in his care, who then\ngan lodge the retinue in goodly wise. One let them eat within and eke\nwithout. Never were stranger guests better cared for. Men gave them\ngladly all they craved; so rich was the king, that not a wish was there\ndenied. Men served them in friendly wise without all hate. The host now\ntook his seat at table with his guests. One bade Siegfried be seated\nwhere he sate afore. Then many a stately man went with him to the seats.\nTwelve hundred warriors in sooth did sit at his round table. Brunhild\nthought her that a vassal could not be mightier than he; yet she was\nstill so friendly to him that she did not wish his death.\n\nOn an evening when the king was seated at the board, many costly robes\nwere wet with wine, as the butlers hied them to the tables. Full service\nwas given there with mickle zeal. As hath long been the wont at feasts,\nmen bade the ladies and the maids be given fair lodgment. From wherever\nthey were come, the host bare them right good will. One gave them all\nenow with goodly honors.\n\nWhen the night had an end and the day appeared, many a precious stone\nfrom the sumpter chests sparkled on goodly weeds, as they were touched\nby woman's hand. Many a lordly robe was taken forth. Or ever the day had\nfully dawned, many knights and squires came out before the hall. Then\nrose a merry rout before the early mass, which was sung for the king.\nThere young heroes rode so well that the king did cry them mercy. Many\na trumpet rang out passing loud, and the noise of drums and flutes did\ngrow so great that the broad town of Worms reechoed with the sound. The\nhigh-mettled heroes horsed them everywhere. Then there rose in the land\nhigh knightly play from many a doughty champion; one saw a great rout\nof them whose youthful hearts beat high, and many a dapper knight and a\ngood stood armed with shield. At the easements sate the high-born dames\nand many comely maids, decked out in brave attire. They watched the\npastimes of the many valiant men. The host himself gan tilt there with\nhis friends. Thus they passed the time, the which seemed aught but long.\n\nThen from the dome was heard the sound of many bells. The palfreys came,\nthe ladies rode away; but many a bold man followed the noble queens.\nThey alighted on the green before the minster; Brunhild was still\nfriendly to her guests. Wearing crowns, they entered the spacious\nchurch. Later their love was parted, which caused great hate. When they\nhad heard the mass, they rode away again with many honors and were soon\nseen going merrily to table. Their pleasure at the feasting did not flag\nuntil the eleventh day.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Meiny\" (M.E. \"meiny\", O.F. \"mesnee\"), 'courtiers', 'serving\n        folk'.\n   (2)  \"Housings\", 'saddle cloths'.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XIV. How The Queens Reviled Each Other.\n\nOn a day before the vesper tide a great turmoil arose, which many\nknights made in the court, where they plied their knightly sports for\npastime's sake, and a great throng of men and women hasted there to\ngaze. The royal queens had sat them down together and talked of two\nworshipful knights.\n\nThen spake the fair Kriemhild: \"I have a husband who by right should\nrule over all these kingdoms.\"\n\nQuoth Lady Brunhild: \"How might that be? If none other lived but he\nand thou, then might these kingdoms own his sway, but the while Gunther\nliveth, this may never hap.\"\n\nKriemhild replied: \"Now dost thou see, how he standeth, how right\nroyally he walketh before the knights, as the moon doth before the\nstars? Therefore must I needs be merry of mood.\"\n\nSaid Lady Brunhild: \"However stately be thy husband, howso worthy and\nfair, yet must thou grant the palm to Knight Gunther, the noble brother\nof thine. Know of a truth, he must be placed above all kings.\"\n\nThen Kriemhild spake again: \"So doughty is my husband, that I have not\nlauded him without good cause. His worship is great in many things. Dost\nthou believe it, Brunhild, he is easily Gunther's peer.\"\n\n\"Forsooth thou must not take it amiss of me, Kriemhild, for I have not\nspoken thus without good reason. I heard them both aver, when I saw them\nfirst of all, and the king was victor against me in the games, and when\nhe won my love in such knightly wise, that he was liegeman to the king,\nand Siegfried himself declared the same. I hold him therefore as my\nvassal, sith I heard him speak thus himself.\"\n\nThen spake fair Kriemhild: \"Ill had I then sped. How could my noble\nbrothers have so wrought, that I should be a mere vassal's bride?\nTherefore I do beseech thee, Brunhild, in friendly wise, that for my\nsake thou kindly leave off this speech.\"\n\n\"I'll not leave it off,\" quoth the king's wife. \"Why should I give up so\nmany a knight, who with the warrior doth owe us service?\"\n\nKriemhild, the passing fair, waxed wroth out of wit. \"Thou must forego\nthat ho ever do you a vassal's service; he is worthier than my brother\nGunther, the full noble man. Thou must retract what I have heard thee\nsay. Certes, it wondereth me, sith he be thy vassal and thou hast so\nmuch power over us twain, why he hath rendered thee no tribute so long a\ntime. By right I should be spared thy overweening pride.\"\n\n\"Thou bedrest thee too high,\" spake the king's wife. \"I would fain see\nwhether men will hold thee in such high honor as they do me.\"\n\nThe ladies both grew wonderly wroth of mood. Then spake the Lady\nKriemhild: \"This must now hap. Sith thou hast declared my husband for\nthy liegeman, now must the men of the two kings perceive to-day whether\nI durst walk before the queen to church. Thou must see to-day that I am\nnoble and free and that my husband is worthier than thine; nor will I\nmyself be taxed therewith. Thou shalt mark to-day how thy liegewoman\ngoeth to court before the knights of the Burgundian land. I myself\nshall be more worshipful than any queen was known to be, who ever wore a\ncrown.\" Great hate enow rose then betwixt the ladies.\n\nThen Brunhild answered: \"Wilt thou not be a liegewoman of mine, so\nmust thou sunder thee with thy ladies from my train when that we go to\nchurch.\"\n\nTo this Kriemhild replied: \"In faith that shall be done.\"\n\n\"Now array you, my maids,\" spake Siegfried's wife. \"I must be here\nwithout reproach. Let this be seen to-day, and ye do have rich weeds.\nBrunhild shall fain deny what she hath here averted.\"\n\nThey needed not much bidding, but sought rich robes and many a dame and\nmaid attired her well. Then the wife of the noble king went forth with\nher train. Fair Kriemhild, too, was well arrayed and three and forty\nmaidens with her, whom she had brought hither to the Rhine. They wore\nbright vesture wrought in Araby, and thus the fair-fashioned maids\nbetook them to the minster. All Siegfried's men awaited them before the\nhouse. The folk had marvel whence it chanced that the queens were seen\nthus sundered, so that they did not walk together as afore. From this\ndid many a warrior later suffer dire distress. Here before the minster\nstood Gunther's wife, while many a good knight had pastime with the\ncomely dames whom they there espied.\n\nThen came the Lady Kriemhild with a large and noble train. Whatever kind\nof clothes the daughters of noble knights have ever worn, these were but\nthe wind against her retinue. She was so rich in goods, that what the\nwives of thirty kings could not purvey, that Kriemhild did. An' one\nwould wish to, yet he could not aver that men had ever seen such costly\ndresses as at this time her fair-fashioned maidens wore. Kriemhild\nhad not done it, save to anger Brunhild. They met before the spacious\nminster. Through her great hate the mistress of the house in evil wise\nbade Kriemhild stand: \"Forsooth no vassaless should ever walk before the\nqueen.\"\n\nThen spake fair Kriemhild (angry was her mood): \"Couldst thou have held\nthy peace, 'twere well for thee. Thou hast disgraced thee and the fair\nbody of thine. How might a vassal's leman (1) ever be the wife of any\nking?\"\n\n\"Whom callest thou here leman?\" spake the queen.\n\n\"That call I thee,\" quoth Kriemhild. \"Thy fair person was first caressed\nby Siegfried, my dear husband. Certes, it was not my brother who won thy\nmaidhood. Whither could thy wits have wandered? It was an evil trick.\nWherefore didst thou let him love thee, sith he be thy vassal? I hear\nthee make plaint without good cause,\" quoth Kriemhild.\n\n\"I' faith,\" spake then Brunhild, \"Gunther shall hear of this.\"\n\n\"What is that to me?\" said Kriemhild. \"Thy pride hath bewrayed thee.\nWith words thou hast claimed me for thy service. Know, by my troth, it\nwill ever grieve me, for I shall be no more thy faithful friend.\"\n\nThen Brunhild wept. Kriemhild delayed no longer, but entered the minster\nwith her train before the queen. Thus there rose great hatred, from\nwhich bright eyes grew dim and moist.\n\nWhatso men did or sang to God's service there, the time seemed far\ntoo long for Brunhild, for she was sad of heart and mood. Many a brave\nknight and a good must later rue this day. Brunhild with her ladies now\nwent forth and stopped before the minster. Her-thought: \"Kriemhild must\ntell me more of what this word-shrewd woman hath so loudly charged me.\nHath Siegfried made boast of this, 'twill cost his life.\"\n\nNow the noble Kriemhild came with many a valiant liegeman. Lady Brunhild\nspake: \"Stand still a while. Ye have declared me for a leman, that must\nye let be seen. Know, that through thy speech, I have fared full ill.\"\n\nThen spake the Lady Kriemhild: \"Ye should have let me pass. I'll prove\nit by the ring of gold I have upon my hand, and which my lover brought\nme when he first lay at your side.\"\n\nBrunhild had never seen so ill a day. She spake: \"This costly hoop of\ngold was stolen from me, and hath been hid full long a time from me in\nevil wise. I'll find out yet who hath ta'en it from me.\"\n\nBoth ladies now had fallen into grievous wrath.\n\nKriemhild replied: \"I'll not be called a thief. Thou hadst done better\nto have held thy peace, an' thou hold thine honor dear. I'll prove it\nby the girdle which I wear about my waist, that I lie not. Certes, my\nSiegfried became thy lord.\"\n\nShe wore the cord of silk of Nineveh, set with precious stones; in sooth\n'twas fair enow. When Brunhild spied it, she began to weep. Gunther and\nall the Burgundian men must needs now learn of this.\n\nThen spake the queen: \"Bid the prince of the Rhineland come hither. I\nwill let him hear how his sister hath mocked me. She saith here openly\nthat I be Siegfried's wife.\"\n\nThe king came with knights, and when he saw his love a-weeping, how\ngently he spake: \"Pray tell me, dear lady, who hath done you aught?\"\n\nShe answered to the king: \"I must stand unhappy; thy sister would fain\npart me from all mine honors. I make here plaint to thee she doth aver\nthat Siegfried, her husband hath had me as his leman.\"\n\nQuoth King Gunther: \"Then hath she done ill.\"\n\n\"She weareth here my girdle, which I have lost, and my ring of ruddy\ngold. It doth repent me sore that I was ever born, unless be thou\nclearest me of this passing great shame, for that I'll serve thee ever.\"\n\nKing Gunther spake: \"Have him come hither. He must let us hear if\nhe hath made boast of this, or he must make denial, the hero of\nNetherland.\" One bade fetch at once Kriemhild's love.\n\nWhen Siegfried saw the angry dames (he wist not of the tale), how\nquickly then he spake: \"I fain would know why these ladies weep, or for\nwhat cause the king hath had me fetched.\"\n\nThen King Gunther spake: \"It doth rue me sore, forsooth. My Lady\nBrunhild hath told me here a tale, that thou hast boasted thou wast the\nfirst to clasp her lovely body in thine arms; this Lady Kriemhild, thy\nwife, doth say.\"\n\nThen spake Lord Siegfried: \"And she hath told this tale, she shall rue\nit sore, or ever I turn back, and I'll clear me with solemn oaths in\nfront of all thy men, that I have not told her this.\"\n\nQuoth the king of the Rhineland: \"Let that be seen. The oath thou dost\noffer, and let it now be given, shall free thee of all false charges.\"\n\nThey bade the proud Burgundians form a ring. Siegfried, the bold,\nstretched out his hand for the oath; then spake the mighty king: \"Thy\ngreat innocence is so well known to me, that I will free thee of that\nof which my sister doth accuse thee and say, thou hast never done this\nthing.\"\n\nSiegfried replied: \"If it boot my lady aught to have thus saddened\nBrunhild, that will surely cause me boundless grief.\"\n\nThen the lusty knights and good gazed one upon the other. \"One should\nso train women,\" spake again Siegfried, the knight, \"that they leave\nhaughty words unsaid. Forbid it to thy wife, and I'll do the same to\nmine. In truth, I do shame me of her great discourtesie.\"\n\nMany fair ladies were parted by the speech. Brunhild mourned so sore,\nthat it moved King Gunther's men to pity. Then came Hagen of Troneg to\nhis sovran lady. He found her weeping, and asked what grief she had.\nShe told him then the tale. On the spot he vowed that Kriemhild's lord\nshould rue it sore, or he would nevermore be glad. Ortwin and Gernot\njoined their parley and these heroes counseled Siegfried's death.\nGiselher, the son of the noble Uta, came hither too. When he heard the\ntalk, he spake full true: \"Ye trusty knights, wherefore do ye this?\nSiegfried hath not merited forsooth such hate, that he should therefore\nlose his life. Certes, women oft grow angry over little things.\"\n\n\"Shall we then raise cuckolds?\" answered Hagen; \"such good knights would\ngain from that but little honor. Because he hath boasted of my liege\nlady, I will rather die, an' it cost him not his life.\"\n\nThen spake the king himself: \"He hath shown us naught but love and\nhonor, so let him live. What booteth it, if I now should hate the\nknight? He was ever faithful to us and that right willingly.\"\n\nKnight Ortwin of Metz then spake: \"His great prowess shall not in sooth\navail him aught. If my lord permit, I'll do him every evil.\"\n\nSo without cause the heroes had declared a feud against him. In this\nnone followed, save that Hagen counselled all time Knight Gunther the\nthat if Siegfried no longer lived, then many kingly lands would own his\nsway. At this the king grew sad, so they let it rest.\n\nJousting was seen once more. Ho, what stout shafts they splintered\nbefore the minster in the presence of Siegfried's wife, even down to the\nhall! Enow of Gunther's men were now in wrath. The king spake: \"Let be\nthis murderous rage, he is born to our honor and to our joy. Then, too,\nthe wonderly bold man is so fierce of strength, that none durst match\nhim, if he marked it.\"\n\n\"No, not he,\" spake Hagen then, \"Ye may well keep still; I trow to bring\nit to pass in secret, that he rue Brunhild's tears. Certes, Hagen hath\nbroken with him for all time.\"\n\nThen spake King Gunther: \"How might that chance?\"\n\nTo this Hagen made answer: \"I'll let you hear. We'll bid messengers,\nthat be not known to any here, ride into our land, to declare war upon\nus openly. Then do ye say before your guests that ye and your men will\ntake the field. When that is done, he will vow to serve you then and\nfrom this he shall lose his life, an' I learn the tale from the bold\nknight's wife.\"\n\nThe king followed his liegeman Hagen in evil wise. These chosen knights\ngan plan great faithlessness, or ever any one was ware. From two women's\nquarreling full many a hero lost his life.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Leman\" (M.E. \"lemman\", O.E. \"leof mann\", 'lief man', i.e.,\n        'dear one'), 'mistress' in a bad sense.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XV. How Siegfried Was Betrayed.\n\nUpon the fourth morning two and thirty men were seen to ride to court\nand the tale was brought to mighty Gunther that war had been declared.\nThe very direst woes befell fair women from a lie. They gained leave\nto come before the king and say that they were Liudeger's men, whom\nSiegfried's hand had conquered afore and had brought as hostages to\nGunther's land. He greeted then the messengers and bade them go and seat\nthem. One among them spake: \"My lord, pray let us stand till we have\ntold the message we do bear you. This know, ye have of a truth many\na mother's son as foe. Liudegast and Liudeger, whom ye one time gave\ngrievous sores, declare a feud against you and are minded to ride with\nan army to this land.\" The king waxed wroth when he heard This tale.\n\nMen bade lead the perjurers to their lodgings. How might Siegfried, or\nany else against whom they plotted, ware himself against their wiles?\nThis later brought great sorrow to them all. The king walked whispering\nwith his friends; Hagen of Troneg never let him rest. Enow of the king's\nliegemen would fain have parted the strife, but Hagen would not give\nup his plan. On a day Siegfried found them whispering. The hero of\nNetherland gan ask: \"How go the king and his men so sadly? I'll help\navenge it, hath any done you aught.\"\n\nThen spake King Gunther: \"I am rightly sad. Liudegast and Liudeger have\nchallenged me to war; they are minded to ride openly into my land.\"\n\nAt this the bold knight said: \"Siegfried's hand shall hinder that with\nzeal, as beseemeth all your honors. I'll do yet to these knights as I\ndid before; I'll lay waste their lands, or ever I turn again. Be my head\nyour pledge of this. Ye and your warriors shall stay at home and let me\nride to meet them with those I have. I'll let you see how fain I serve\nyou. This know, through me it shall go evil with your foes.\"\n\n\"Well is me of these tidings,\" spake then the king, as though he were\nglad in earnest of this aid. With guile the faithless man bowed low.\n\nQuoth Lord Siegfried: \"Ye shall have small care.\"\n\nThen they made ready for the journey hence with the men-at-arms. This\nwas done for Siegfried and his men to see. He, too, bade those of\nNetherland get them ready. Siegfried's warriors sought out warlike\nweeds. Then the stalwart Siegfried spake: \"My father Siegmund, ye must\nstay here. We shall return in short space hither to the Rhine, and God\ngive us luck. Ye must here make merry with the king.\"\n\nThey tied fast their banners, as though they would away, and there were\nenow of Gunther's men who wist not wherefore this was done. Great rout\nof men was seen at Siegfried's side. They bound their helmets and their\nbreastplates upon the steeds, and many a stout knight made ready to\nquit the land. Then Hagen of Troneg went to find Kriemhild and asked for\nleave; sith they would void the land.\n\n\"Now well is me,\" spake Kriemhild, \"that I have won a husband who dare\nprotect so well my loving kinsfolk, as my Lord Siegfried doth here.\nTherefore,\" spake the queen, \"will I be glad of heart. Dear friend\nHagen, think on that, that I do serve you gladly and never yet did bear\nyou hate. Requite this now to me in my dear husband. Let him not suffer,\nif I have done to Brunhild aught. I since have rued it,\" spake the noble\nwife. \"Moreover, he since hath beaten me black and blue; the brave hero\nand a good hath well avenged that ever I spake what grieved her heart.\"\n\n\"Ye'll be friends once more after some days. Kriemhild, dear lady, pray\ntell me how I may serve you in your husband Siegfried. Liefer will I do\nthis for you than for any else.\"\n\n\"I should be without all fear,\" quoth the noble dame, \"that any one\nwould take his life in the fray, if he would not follow his overweening\nmood; then the bold knight and a good were safe.\"\n\n\"Lady,\" spake then Hagen, \"an' ye do think that men might wound him,\npray let me know with what manner of arts I can prevent this. On foot,\non horse, will I ever be his guard.\"\n\nShe spake: \"Thou art my kinsman and I am thine. I'll commend to thee\ntrustingly the dear lover of mine, that thou mayst guard him well,\nmine own dear husband.\" She made him acquaint with tales which had been\nbetter left unsaid. She spake: \"My husband is brave and strong enow.\nWhen he slew the dragon on the hill, the lusty warrior bathed him of\na truth in the blood, so that since then no weapon ever cut him in\nthe fray. Yet am I in fear, whenever he standeth in the fight and many\njavelins are cast by heroes' hands, that I may lose this dear husband of\nmine. Alas, how oft I suffer sore for Siegfried's sake! Dear kinsman, in\nthe hope that thou wilt hold thy troth with me, I'll tell thee where\nmen may wound the dear lord of mine. I let thee hear this, 'tis done in\nfaith. When the hot blood gushed from the dragon's wounds and the bold\nhero and a good bathed him therein, a broad linden leaf did fall betwixt\nhis shoulder blades. Therefore am I sore afraid that men may cut him\nthere.\"\n\nThen spake Hagen of Troneg: \"Sew a small mark upon his coat, whereby I\nmay know where I must guard him, when we stand in battle.\"\n\nShe weened to save her knight, but 'twas done unto his death. She spake:\n\"With fine silk I'll sew a secret cross upon his vesture. There, knight,\nthy hand must guard my husband, when the strife is on and he standeth in\nthe battle before his foes.\"\n\n\"That will I well, dear my lady,\" Hagen then replied.\n\nThe lady weened that it would boot him aught, but Kriemhild's husband\nwas thereby betrayed. Hagen then took leave; merrily he hied him hence.\nThe king's liegeman was blithe of mood. I ween that nevermore will\nwarrior give such false counsel, as was done by him when Kriemhild\ntrusted in his troth.\n\nNext morning Siegfried with a thousand of his men rode merrily forth. He\nweened he should avenge the grievance of his kinsmen. Hagen rode so\nnear him that he could eye his clothes. When he saw the sign, he sent\nin secret twain of his men, who should tell another tale: that Gunther's\nland should still have peace and that Liudeger had sent them to the\nking. How loth Siegfried now rode home again, or ever he had avenged his\nkinsmen's wrongs! Gunther's men could hardly turn him back. He rode then\nto the king; the host gan thank him. \"Now God requite you of your will,\nfriend Siegfried, that ye do so willingly what I bid you. For this\nI'll ever serve you, as I rightly should. I trust you more than all my\nfriends. Now that we be rid of this foray, I am minded to ride a-hunting\nfor bears and boars to the Vosges forest, as I have done oft-time.\" That\nHagen, the faithless knight, had counseled. \"Let it be told to all my\nguests, that we ride betimes. Those that would hunt with me must make\nthem ready. If any choose to stay at home to court the ladies, that\nliketh me as well.\"\n\nThen spake Sir Siegfried in lordly wise: \"And ye would a-hunting, I'd\nfain go with you. Pray lend me a huntsman and some brach, (1) and I will\nride to the pines.\"\n\n\"Will ye have but one?\" spake the king anon. \"I'll lend you, an' ye\nwill, four men to whom both wood and paths be known where the game is\nwont to go, and who will not let you miss the camp.\"\n\nThen rode the full lusty warrior to his wife, whilst Hagen quickly told\nthe king how he thought to trap the doughty knight. A man should never\nuse such faithlessness.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Brach\", 'hunting dog', cognate with M.H.G. \"bracke\", used\n        here.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XVI. How Siegfried Was Slain.\n\nGunther and Hagen, the passing bold knights, faithlessly let cry\na-hunting in the woods, that with sharp spears they would hunt boars\nand bears and bison. What might be braver? With them rode Siegfried\nin lordly guise; many kinds of victual did they take along. At a cool\nspring he later lost his life, the which Brunhild, King Gunther's wife,\nhad counseled. The bold knight then went to where he found Kriemhild.\nHis costly hunting garb and those of his fellowship were already bound\nupon the sumpters, for they would cross the Rhine. Never could Kriemhild\nhave been more sorrowful. He kissed his love upon her mouth. \"God let\nme see thee, lady, still in health and grant that thine eyes may see me\ntoo. Thou shalt have pastime with thy loving kinsmen. I may not stay at\nhome.\"\n\nThen she thought of the tale she had told to Hagen, though she durst not\nsay a whit. The noble queen began to rue that she was ever born. Lord\nSiegfried's wife wept out of measure. She spake to the knight: \"Let be\nyour hunting. I had an evil dream last night, how two wild boars did\nchase you across the heath; then flowers grew red. I have in truth great\ncause to weep so sore. I be much adread of sundry plans and whether we\nhave not misserved some who might bear us hostile hate. Tarry here, dear\nmy lord, that I counsel by my troth.\"\n\nHe spake: \"Dear love, I'll come back in a few short days. I wot not here\nof people who bear me aught of hate. Each and all of thy kinsmen be my\nfriends, nor have I deserved it other of the knights.\"\n\n\"No, no, Sir Siegfried, in truth I fear thy fall. I had last night an\nevil dream, how two mountains fell upon thee. I saw thee nevermore. It\ndoth cut me to the heart, that thou wilt part from me.\"\n\nIn his arms he clasped his courteous wife and kissed her tenderly. Then\nin a short space he took his leave and parted hence. Alas, she never saw\nhim in health again.\n\nThen they rode from thence into a deep wood for pastime's sake. Many\nbold knights did follow Gunther and his men, but Gernot and Giselher\nstayed at home. Many laden sumpters were sent before them across the\nRhine, the which bare for the hunting fellowship bread and wine, meat\nand fish, and great store of other things, which so mighty a king might\nrightly have. They bade the proud huntsmen and bold halt before a green\nwood over against the courses of the game, upon a passing broad glade\nwhere they should hunt. The king was told that Siegfried, too, was come.\nThe hunting fellowship now took their stand on every side. Then the\nbold knight, the sturdy Siegfried, asked: \"Ye heroes bold and brave, who\nshall lead us to the game within the wood?\"\n\n\"Let us part,\" spake Hagen, \"ere we begin the chase. Thereby my lords\nand I may know who be the best hunter on this woodland journey. Let us\ndivide the folk and hounds and let each turn whithersoever he list. He\nwho doth hunt the best shall have our thanks.\" Short time the huntsmen\nbided by another after that.\n\nThen spake Lord Siegfried: \"I need no dogs save one brach that hath\nbeen trained that he can tell the track of the beasts through the pine\nwoods.\" Quoth Kriemhild's husband: \"We'll find the game.\"\n\nThen an old huntsman took a good sleuth-hound and in a short space\nbrought the lord to where many beasts were found. Whatso rose from its\nlair the comrades hunted as good hunters still are wont to do. Whatever\nthe brach started, bold Siegfried, the hero of Netherland, slew with his\nhand. His horse did run so hard that none escaped him. In the chase he\ngained the prize above them all. Doughty enow he was in all things. The\nbeast which he slew with his hands was the first, a mighty boar; after\nwhich he found full soon a monstrous lion. (1) When the brach started\nthis from its lair, he shot it with his bow, in which he had placed a\nfull sharp arrow. After the shot the lion ran the space of but three\nbounds. The hunting fellowship gave Siegfried thanks. Thereafter he\nspeedily slew a bison and an elk, four strong ure-oxen, (2) and a savage\nshelk. (3) His horse bare him so swiftly that naught escaped him, nor\ncould hart or hind avoid him. Then the sleuth-hound found a mighty boar;\nwhen he began to flee, at once there came the master of the hunt and\nencountered him upon his path. Wrathfully the boar did run against the\nvaliant hero, but Kriemhild's husband slew him with his sword. Another\nhuntsman might not have done this deed so lightly. When he had felled\nhim, they leashed the sleuth-hound; his rich booty was soon well known\nto the Burgundian men.\n\nThen spake his huntsman: \"Sir Siegfried, if might so be, let us leave a\ndeal of the beasts alive. Ye'll empty both our hill and woods to-day.\"\n\nAt this the brave knight and a bold gan smile. Then the calls of men and\nthe baying of hounds were heard on every side; so great was the noise\nthat both hill and pine woods echoed with the sound. The huntsmen had\nlet loose full four and twenty packs. Then passing many beasts must\nneeds lose their lives. Each man weened to bring it to pass that men\nshould give him the prize of the hunt; that might not be, for the\nstalwart Siegfried was already standing by the fire. The chase was over,\nand yet not quite. Those who would to the camp-fire brought with them\nthither hides of many beasts and game in plenty. Ho, how much the king's\nmeiny bare then to the kitchen!\n\nThen bade the king announce to the huntsman that he would dismount. A\nhorn was blown full loud just once, that all might know that one might\nfind the noble prince in camp. Spake then one of Siegfried's huntsmen:\n\"My lord, I heard by the blast of a horn that we must now hie us to the\nquarters; I'll now give answer.\"\n\nThus by many blasts of horns they asked about the hunters. Then spake\nSir Siegfried: \"Now let us leave the pine wood!\" His steed bare him\nsmoothly and with him they hasted hence. With their rout they started\nup a savage beast; a wild bear it was. Quoth then the knight to those\nbehind: \"I'll give our fellowship a little pastime. Let loose the brach.\nForsooth I spy a bear which shall journey with us to the camp. Flee he\nnever so fast, he shall not escape us.\"\n\nThe brach was loosed, the bear sprang hence; Kriemhild's husband would\nfain overtake him. He reached a thicket, where none could follow. The\nmighty beast weened now to escape from the hunter with his life, but the\nproud knight and a good leaped from his steed and began to chase him.\nThe bear was helpless and could not flee away. At once the hero caught\nit and bound it quickly with not a wound, so that it might neither\nscratch nor bite the men. The doughty knight then tied it to his saddle\nand horsed him quickly. Through his overweening mood the bold warrior\nand a good brought it to the camp-fire as a pastime. In what lordly wise\nhe rode to the quarters! Mickle was his boar-spear, strong and broad. A\ndainty sword hung downward to his spurs. The lord bare also a fair horn\nof ruddy gold. Never heard I tale of better hunting weeds. One saw him\nwear a coat of black and silky cloth and a hat of sable: rich enow it\nwas. Ho, what costly bands he wore upon his quiver! A panther's skin was\ndrawn over it for its sweet fragrance' (4) sake. He bare a bow, which\nany but the hero must needs draw back with a windlass, and he would bend\nit. His vesture was befurred with otter skin (5) from head to toe. From\nthe bright fur shone out on both sides of the bold master of the hunt\nmany a bar of gold. Balmung (6) he also bare, a good broad sword, that\nwas so sharp that it never failed when 'twas wielded 'gainst a helmet;\nits edge was good. In high spirits was the lordly huntsman. Sith I must\ntell you all the tale, his costly quiver was full of goodly darts, the\nheads a full hand's breadth, on golden shafts. What he pierced therewith\nmust needs die soon.\n\nThus the noble knight rode hence in hunter's garb. Gunther's men espied\nhim coming and ran out to meet him and took his horse in charge. On his\nsaddle he carried a large bear and a strong. When he had dismounted, he\nloosed the bonds from feet and snout. Those of the pack bayed loudly,\nthat spied the bear. The beast would to the woods; the serving folk had\nfear. Dazed by the din, the bear made for the kitchen. Ho, how he\ndrove the scullions from the fire! Many a kettle was upset and many a\nfirebrand scattered. Ho, what good victual men found lying in the ashes!\nThen the lordings and their liegemen sprang from their scats. The bear\ngrew furious and the king bade loose the pack that lay enleashed. Had\nall sped well, they would have had a merry day. No longer the doughty\nmen delayed, but ran for the bear with bows and pikes. There was such\npress of dogs that none might shoot, but from the people's shouts the\nwhole hill rang. The bear began to flee before the dogs; none could\nfollow him but Kriemhild's husband, who caught and slew him with his\nsword. Then they bore the bear again to the fire. Those that saw it,\naverred he was a mighty man.\n\nMen bade now the proud hunting fellowship seat them at the tables. Upon\na fair mead there sate a goodly company. Ho, what rich viands they\nbare there to the noble huntsmen! The butlers who should bring the wine\ndelayed; else might never heroes have been better served. Had they not\nbeen so falsely minded, then had the knights been free of every blame.\n\nNow the Lord Siegfried spake: \"Me-wondereth, since men do give us such\ngreat store from the kitchen, why the butlers bring us not the\nwine. Unless men purvey the hunters better, I'll be no more your\nhunting-fellow. I have well deserved that they regard me, too.\"\n\nThe king addressed him from his seat with guile: \"We fain would do you\nremedy of what we lack. It is Hagen's fault, who is willed to let us die\nof thirst.\"\n\nThen spake Hagen: \"Dear my lord, I weened that the hunt should be in the\nSpessart (7) wood, therefore sent I thither the wine. Though we may not\ndrink to-day, how well will I avoid this in the future!\"\n\nAt this Lord Siegfried spake: \"Small thanks ye'll get for that. One\nshould have brought me hither seven sumpter loads of mead and mulled\nwine. (8) If that might not be, then men should have placed our benches\nnearer to the Rhine.\"\n\nThen spake Hagen of Troneg: \"Ye noble knights and bold, I wot near by a\ngood cold spring. Let us go thither, that ye wax not wroth.\"\n\nTo the danger of many a knight was this counsel given. The pangs of\nthirst now plagued the warrior Siegfried. He bade the tables be borne\naway the sooner, for he would go to the spring in the mountains. With\nfalse intent the counsel was then given by the knights. They bade the\ngame which Siegfried's hand had slain, be carried home on wains. Whoever\nsaw it gave him great laud. Hagen of Troneg now foully broke his troth\nto Siegfried. When they would hence to the broad linden, he spake: \"It\nhath oft been told me, that none can keep pace with Kriemhild's husband\nwhen he be minded for to race. Ho, if he would only let us see it here!\"\n\nBold Siegfried from Netherland then answered: \"Ye can well test that,\nand ye will run a race with me to the spring. When that is done, we call\ngive the prize to him who winneth.\"\n\n\"So let us try it then,\" quoth Hagen, the knight.\n\nSpake the sturdy Siegfried: \"Then will I lay me down on the green sward\nat your feet.\" (9)\n\nHow lief it was to Gunther, when he heard these words! Then the bold\nknight spake again: \"I'll tell you more. I'll take with me all my\ntrappings, my spear and shield and all my hunting garb.\" Around him he\nquickly girded his quiver and his sword.\n\nThen they drew the clothes from off their limbs; men saw them stand in\ntwo white shifts. Like two wild panthers through the clover they ran,\nbut men spied bold Siegfried first at the spring. In all things he bare\naway the prize from many a man. Quickly he ungirt his sword and laid\naside his quiver and leaned the stout spear against a linden bough.\nThe lordly stranger stood now by the flowing spring. Passing great was\nSiegfried's courtesie. He laid down his shield where the spring gushed\nforth, but the hero drank not, albeit he thirsted sore until the king\nhad drunk, who gave him evil thanks. Cool, clear, and good was the\nspring. Gunther stooped down then to the flowing stream, and when he had\ndrunken straightened up again. Bold Siegfried would fain also have done\nthe same, but now he paid for his courtesie. Hagen bare quite away from\nhim both bow and sword and bounded then to where he found the spear;\nthen he looked for the mark on bold Siegfried's coat. As Lord Siegfried\ndrank above the spring, he pierced him through the cross, so that\nhis heart's blood spurted from the wounds almost on Hagen's clothes.\nNevermore will hero do so foul a deed. Hagen left the spear a-sticking\nin his heart and fled more madly than he ever in the world had run from\nany man.\n\nWhen Lord Siegfried felt the mighty wound, up from the spring he started\nin a rage. From betwixt his shoulder blades a long spear-shaft towered.\nHe weened to find his bow or his sword, and then had Hagen been repaid\nas he deserved. But when the sorely wounded hero found no trace of his\nsword, then had he naught else but his shield. This he snatched from the\nspring and ran at Hagen; nor could King Gunther's man escape him. Albeit\nhe was wounded unto death, yet he smote so mightily that a plenty of\nprecious stones were shaken from the shield. The shield itself burst\nquite apart. Fain would the lordly stranger have avenged him. Now was\nHagen fallen to the ground at his hands, and from the force of the blow\nthe glade rang loudly. Had he had a sword in hand, then had it been\nHagen's death, so sore enraged was the wounded man. Forsooth he had good\ncause thereof. His hue grew pale, he could not stand; his strength of\nbody melted quite away, for in bright colors he bore the signs of death.\nThereafter he was bewailed by fair dames enow.\n\nKriemhild's husband fell now among the flowers. Fast from his wounds his\nblood was seen to gush. He began to rail, as indeed he had great cause,\nat those who had planned this treacherous death. The deadly wounded\nspake: \"Forsooth, ye evil cowards, what avail my services now that ye\nhave slain me? This is my reward that I was always faithful to you.\nAlas, ye have acted ill against your kinsmen. Those of them who are born\nin after days will be disgraced. Ye have avenged your wrath too sore\nupon me. With shame shall ye be parted from all good warriors.\"\n\nThe knights all ran to where he lay slain. For enow of them it was a\nhapless day. He was bewailed by those who had aught of loyalty, and\nthis the brave and lusty knight had well deserved. The king of the\nBurgundians bemoaned his death. Quoth the deadly wounded: \"There is no\nneed that he should weep who hath done the damage; he doth merit mickle\nblame. It had been better left undone.\"\n\nThen spake the fierce Hagen: \"Forsooth I wot not what ye now bewail. All\nour fear and all our woe have now an end. We shall find scant few who\ndare withstand us now. Well is me, that to his rule I have put an end.\"\n\n\"Ye may lightly boast you,\" Siegfried then replied. \"Had I wist your\nmurderous bent, I had well guarded my life against you. None doth rue\nme so sore as Lady Kriemhild, my wife. Now may God have pity that I\never had a son to whom the reproach will be made in after days, that his\nkindred have slain a man with murderous intent. If I might,\" so spake\nSiegfried, \"I should rightly make complaint of this.\" Piteously the\ndeadly wounded spake again: \"Noble king, if ye will keep your troth to\nany in the world, then let my dear love be commended to your grace and\nlet it avail her that she be your sister. For the sake of your princely\ncourtesie protect her faithfully. My father and my men must wait long\ntime for me. Never was woman sorer wounded in a loving friend.\"\n\nThe flowers on every side were wet with blood. With death he struggled,\nbut not for long, sith the sword of death had cut him all too sorely.\nThen the lusty warrior and a brave could speak no more.\n\nWhen the lordings saw that the knight was dead, they laid him on a\nshield of ruddy gold and took counsel how they might conceal that Hagen\nhad done the deed. Enow of them spake: \"Ill hath it gone with us. Ye\nmust all hide it and aver alike that robbers slew Kriemhild's husband as\nhe rode alone a-hunting through the pine wood.\"\n\nThen Hagen of Troneg spake: \"I'll bring him home; I care not if it be\nknown to her, for she hath saddened Brunhild's heart. Little doth it\ntrouble me however much she weep.\"\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Lion.\"  It is hardly necessary to state that lions did not\n        roam at large in the forests of Germany.  They were,\n        however, frequently exhibited in the Middle Ages, and the\n        poet introduced one here to enhance Siegfried's fame as a\n        hunter.\n   (2)  \"Ure-oxen\", the auerochs, or European bison, now practically\n        extinct.\n   (3)  \"Shelk\" (M.H.G. \"schelch\"), probably a species of giant\n        deer.\n   (4)  \"Fragrance\".  It was believed that the odor of the panther\n        attracted the game.  Compare the description of the panther\n        in the older \"Physiologus\", where the odor is said to\n        surpass that of all ointments.\n   (5)  \"Otter\" translates here M.H.G. \"ludem\", whose exact\n        connotation is not known.  Some interpret it to meau the\n        fish otter, others the \"Waldschrat\", a kind of faun.\n   (6)  \"Balmung\", see Adventure III, note 7.\n   (7)  \"Spessart wood\" lies forty to fifty miles east of Worms and\n        is therefore too distant for a day's hunt, but such trifles\n        did not disturb the poet.\n   (8)  \"Mulled wine\", see Adventure VIII, note 5.\n   (9)  \"Feet\".  This was probably done as a handicap.  The time\n        consumed in rising to his feet would give his opponent quite\n        a start.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XVII. How Kriemhild Mourned Her Husband And How He Was Buried.\n\nThen they waited for the night and crossed the Rhine. Never had heroes\nhunted worse. Noble maids bewept the game they slew. Forsooth many good\nwarriors must needs atone for this in after days. Now ye may hear a tale\nof great overweening and dire revenge. Hagen bade carry Siegfried of the\nNibelung land, thus dead, before the bower where Kriemhild lodged. He\nbade place him stealthily against the door, that she might find him when\nshe went forth before the break of day to matins, which Lady Kriemhild\nfull seldom missed through sleep.\n\nMen rang the minster bells according to their custom. Lady Kriemhild,\nthe fair, now waked her many maids and bade them bring a light and her\nvesture, too. Then came a chamberlain and found Siegfried there. He saw\nhim red with blood, his clothes all wet. He wist not it was his lord,\nbut with the light in his hand he hasted to the bower and through this\nLady Kriemhild learned the baneful tale. As she would set out with her\nladies for the minster, the chamberlain spake: \"Pray stay your feet,\nthere doth lie before the chamber a knight, slain unto death.\"\n\nKriemhild gan make passing sore wail, or ever she heard aright that it\nwas her husband. She began to think of Hagen's question, of how he might\nprotect him. Then first she suffered dole; she renounced all pleasure\nat his death. To the earth she sank, not a word she spake, and here they\nfound lying the hapless fair. Passing great grew Kriemhild's woe. After\nher faint, she shrieked, that all the chamber rang. Then her meiny said:\n\"Perchance it is a stranger knight.\"\n\nThe blood gushed from her mouth, from dole of heart; she spake: \"'Tis\nSiegfried, mine own dear husband. Brunhild hath counseled this and Hagen\nhath done the deed.\"\n\nThe lady bade them lead her to where the hero lay. With her white hand\nshe raised his head, and though it was red with blood, she knew him\nsoon. There lay the hero of the Nibelung land in piteous guise. The\ngracious queen cried sadly: \"Oh, woe is me of my sorrow! Thy shield is\nnot carved with swords, thou liest murdered here. Wist I who hath done\nthe deed, I'd ever plot his death.\"\n\nAll her maids made mourn and wailed with their dear lady, for they\ngrieved full sore for their noble lord whom they had lost. Hagen had\ncruelly avenged the wrath of Brunhild.\n\nThen spake the grief-stricken dame: \"Go now and wake with haste all\nSiegfried's men. Tell Siegmund also of my grief, mayhap he'll help me\nbewail brave Siegfried.\"\n\nA messenger ran quickly to where lay Siegfried's warriors from the\nNibelung land, and with his baleful tidings stole their joy. They could\nscarce believe it, till they heard the weeping. Right soon the messenger\ncame to where the king did lie. Siegmund, the lord, was not asleep. I\ntrow his heart did tell him what had happed. Never again might he see\nhis dear son alive.\n\n\"Awake, Sir Siegmund; Kriemhild, my lady, bade me go to fetch you. A\nwrong hath been done her that doth cut her to the heart, more than all\nother ills. Ye must help her mourn, for much it doth concern you.\"\n\nSiegmund sat up; he spake: \"What are fair Kriemhild's ills, of which\nthou tellest me?\"\n\nWeeping the messenger spake: \"I cannot hide them from you; alas, bold\nSiegfried of Netherland is slain.\"\n\nQuoth Siegmund: \"For my sake let be this jesting and such evil tales,\nthat thou shouldst tell any that he be dead, for I might never bewail\nhim fully before my death.\"\n\n\"If ye will believe naught of what ye hear me say, then you may hear\nyourself Kriemhild and all her maids bewailing Siegfried's death.\"\n\nSiegmund then was sore affrighted, as indeed he had great need. He and\na hundred of his men sprang from their beds and grasped with their hands\ntheir long sharp swords. In sorrow they ran toward the sound of wail.\nThen came a thousand men-at-arms, bold Siegfried's men. When they heard\nthe ladies wail so pitifully, some first grew ware that they should\ndress them. Forsooth they lost their wits for very sorrow. Great\nheaviness was buried in their hearts.\n\nThen King Siegmund came to where he found Kriemhild. He spake: \"Alas\nfor the journey hither to this land! Who hath so foully bereft me of my\nchild and you of your husband among such good friends?\"\n\n\"Oh, if I knew him,\" spake the noble wife, \"neither my heart nor soul\nwould ever wish him well. I would plan such ill against him that his kin\nmust ever weep because of me.\"\n\nAround the prince Lord Siegmund threw his arms. So great grew the sorrow\nof his kin, that the palace, the hall, and the town of Worms resounded\nfrom the mighty wail and weeping. None might now comfort Siegfried's\nwife. They stripped off the clothes from his fair body; they washed his\nwounds and laid him on the bier. Woe were his people from their mighty\ngrief. Then spake his warriors from the Nibelung land: \"Our hands be\never ready to avenge him; he liveth in this castle who hath done the\ndeed.\"\n\nAll of Siegfried's men hasted then to arms. These chosen knights came\nwith their shields, eleven hundred men-at-arms, whom Lord Siegmund had\nin his troop. He would fain avenge the death of his son, as indeed he\nhad great need. They wist not to whom they should address their strife,\nunless it be to Gunther and his men, with whom Lord Siegfried had ridden\nto the hunt.\n\nKriemhild saw them armed, which rued her sore. However great her grief\nand how dire her need, yet she did so mightily fear the death of the\nNibelungs at the hands of her brothers' liegemen, that she tried to\nhinder it. In kindly wise she warned them, as kinsmen do to loving kin.\nThe grief-stricken woman spake: \"My Lord Siegmund, what will ye do? Ye\nwot naught aright; forsooth King Gunther hath so many valiant men, ye\nwill all be lost, and ye would encounter these knights.\"\n\nWith their shields uncovered, the men stood eager for the fight. The\nnoble queen both begged and bade that the lusty knights avoid it. When\nthey would not give it over, sorely it grieved her. She spake: \"Lord\nSiegmund, ye must let it be until more fitting time, then I'll avenge my\nhusband with you. An' I receive proof who hath bereft me of him, I'll do\nhim scathe. There be too many haughty warriors by the Rhine, wherefore I\nwill not counsel you to fight. They have full well thirty men to each of\nours. Now God speed them, as they deserve of us. Stay ye here and bear\nwith me my dole. When it beginneth to dawn, help me, ye lusty knights,\nto coffin the dear husband of mine.\"\n\nQuoth the knights: \"That shall be done.\"\n\nNone might tell you all the marvel of knights and ladies, how they were\nheard to wail, so that even in the town men marked the sound of weeping.\nThe noble burghers hasted hither. With the guests they wept, for they,\ntoo, were sore aggrieved. None had told them of any guilt of Siegfried,\nor for what cause the noble warrior lost his life. The wives of the\nworthy burghers wept with the ladies of the court. Men bade smiths haste\nto work a coffin of silver and of gold, mickle and strong, and make it\nfirm with strips of good hard steel. Sad of heart were all the folk.\n\nThe night was gone, men said the day was dawning. Then the noble lady\nbade them bear Lord Siegfried, her loved husband, to the minster.\nWhatever friends he had there were seen weeping as they went. Many bells\nwere ringing as they brought him to the church. On every side one heard\nthe chant of many priests. Then came King Gunther with his men and grim\nHagen also toward the sound of wail. He spake: \"Alas for thy wrongs,\nclear sister, that we may not be free from this great scathe. We must\never lament for Siegfried's death.\"\n\n\"That ye do without cause,\" spake the sorrow-laden wife. \"Were this loth\nto you, it never would have happed. I may well aver, ye thought not on\nme, when I thus was parted from my dear husband. Would to God,\" quoth\nKriemhild, \"that it had happed to me.\"\n\nFirmly they made denial. Kriemhild gan speak: \"Whoso declareth him\nguiltless, let him show that now. He must walk to the bier before all\nthe folk; thereby one may know the truth eftsoon.\"\n\nThis is a great marvel, which oft doth hap; whenever the blood-stained\nmurderer is seen to stand by the dead, the latter's wounds do bleed, (1)\nas indeed happed here, whereby one saw the guilt was Hagen's. The wounds\nbled sore, as they had done at first. Much greater grew the weeping of\nthose who wailed afore.\n\nThen spake King Gunther: \"I'd have you know that robbers slew him; Hagen\ndid not do the deed.\"\n\n\"I know these robbers well,\" quoth she. \"Now may God yet let his friends\navenge it. Certes, Gunther and Hagen, 'twas done by you.\"\n\nSiegfried's knights were now bent on strife. Then Kriemhild spake again:\n\"Now share with me this grief.\"\n\nGernot, her brother, and young Giselher, these twain now came to where\nthey found him dead. They mourned him truly with the others; Kriemhild's\nmen wept inly. Now should mass be sung, so on every side, men, wives,\nand children did hie them to the minster. Even those who might lightly\nbear his loss, wept then for Siegfried. Gernot and Giselher spake:\n\"Sister mine, now comfort thee after this death, as needs must be. We'll\ntry to make it up to thee, the while we live.\"\n\nYet none in the world might give her comfort. His coffin was ready well\ntowards midday. From the bier whereon he lay they raised him. The\nlady would not have that he be buried, so that all the folk had mickle\ntrouble. In a rich cloth of silk they wound the dead. I ween, men found\nnone there that did not weep. Uta, the noble dame, and all her meiny\nmourned bitterly the stately man. When it was noised abroad that men\nsang in the minster and had encoffined him, then rose a great press of\nfolk. What offerings they made for his soul's sake! He had good friends\nenow among these foes. Poor Kriemhild spake to her chamberlains: \"Ye\nmust now be put to trouble for my sake, ye who wished him well and be my\nfriends. For Siegfried's soul shall ye deal out his gold.\"\n\nNo child, however small, that had its wits, but must go to service, or\never he was buried. Better than a hundred masses were sung that day.\nGreat throng was there of Siegfried's friends.\n\nWhen that mass was sung, the folk went hence. Then Lady Kriemhild spake:\n\"Pray let me not hold vigil over the chosen knight this night alone.\nWith him all my joys have come to fall. I will let him lie in state\nthree days and nights, until I sate me with my dear lord. What if God\ndoth bid that death should take me too. Then had ended well the grief of\nme, poor Kriemhild.\"\n\nThe people of the town returned now to their lodgings. She begged the\npriests and monks and all his retinue, that served the knight, to stay.\nThey spent full evil nights and toilsome days; many a man remained\nwithout all food and drink. For those who would partake, it was made\nknown that men would give them to the full. This Sir Siegmund purveyed.\nThen were the Nibelungs made acquaint with mickle toil. During the three\ndays, as we hear tell, those who knew how to sing, were made to bear a\ndeal of work. What offerings men brought them! Those who were very poor,\ngrew rich enow. Whatever of poor men there were, the which had naught,\nthese were bid go to mass with gold from Siegfried's treasure chamber.\nSince he might not live, many thousand marks of gold were given for his\nsoul. She dealt out well-tilled lands, wherever cloisters and pious folk\nwere found. Enow of gold and silver was given to the poor. By her deeds\nshe showed that she did love him fondly.\n\nUpon the third morning at time of mass, the broad churchyard by the\nminster was full of weeping country folk. They served him after death,\nas one should do to loving kin. In the four days, as hath been told,\nfull thirty thousand marks or better still were given to the poor for\nhis soul's sake. Yet his great beauty and his life lay low. When God\nhad been served and the chants were ended, much people fought 'gainst\nmonstrous grief. Men bade bear him from the minster to the grave. Those\nwere seen to weep and wail who missed him most. With loud laments the\npeople followed hence; none was merry, neither wife nor man. They sang\nand read a service before they buried him. Ho, what good priests were\npresent at his burial! Ere Siegfried's wife was come to the grave, her\nfaithful heart was rung with grief, so that they must needs oft sprinkle\nher with water from the spring. Her pain was passing great; a mickle\nwonder it was that she ever lived. Many a lady helped her in her plaint.\n\nThen spake the queen: \"Ye men of Siegfried, by your loyalty must ye\nprove your love to me. Let me receive this little favor after all my\nwoe, that I may see once more his comely head.\"\n\nShe begged so long, with griefs strong will, that they must needs break\nopen the lordly casket. Then men brought the lady to where he lay. With\nher white hand she raised his fair head and kissed the noble knight and\ngood, thus dead. Tears of blood her bright eyes wept from grief. Then\nthere happed a piteous parting. Men bare her hence, she could not walk,\nand soon they found the high-born lady lying senseless. Fain would the\nlovely fair have died of grief.\n\nWhen they had now buried the noble lord, those who were come with him\nfrom the Nibelung land were seen to suffer from unmeasured grief. Men\nfound Siegmund full seldom merry then. There were those that for three\ndays would neither eat nor drink for passing grief. Yet might they not\nso waste away their bodies, but that they recovered from their sorrows,\nas still happeneth oft enow.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Bleed\".  This was not only a popular superstition, but also\n        a legal practice in case of a murder when the criminal had\n        not been discovered, or if any one was suspected.  The\n        suspected person was requested to approach the bier and\n        touch the body, in the belief that the blood would flow\n        afresh if the one touching the body were guilty.  Our\n        passage is the first instance of its mention in German\n        literature.  A similar one occurs in \"Iwein\", 1355-1364.\n        The usage was also known in France and England.  See the\n        instances quoted by Jacob Grimm in his \"Rechtsaltertumer\",\n        930.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XVIII. How Siegmund Journeyed Home Again.\n\nKriemhild's husband's father went to where he found her. Unto the queen\nhe spake: \"We must unto our land; by the Rhine, I ween, we be unwelcome\nguests. Kriemhild, dear lady, now journey with me to my lands. Albeit\ntreachery here in these lands hath bereft us of your noble husband, yet\nshould ye not requite this. I will be friendly to you for my dear son's\nsake, of this shall ye have no doubt. Ye shall have, my lady, all the\npower which Siegfried, the bold knight, gave you aforetime. The land and\nalso the crown shall be subject to you. All Siegfried's men shall serve\nyou gladly.\"\n\nThen the squires were told that they must ride away. A mickle hurrying\nfor steeds was seen, for they were loth to stay with their deadly foes.\nMen bade dames and maidens seek their robes. When that King Siegmund\nwould fain have ridden forth, Kriemhild's mother gan beg her that she\nstay there with her kindred.\n\nThe royal lady answered: \"That might hardly hap. How could I bear the\nsight of him from whom such great wrong hath happed to me, poor wife?\"\n\nThen spake young Giselher: \"Dear sister mine, by thy troth thou shouldst\nstay here with thy mother. Thou dost need no service of them that have\ngrieved thee and saddened thy mood. Live from my goods alone.\"\n\nTo the warrior she spake: \"Certes, it may not hap, for I should die of\ndole whenever I should gaze on Hagen.\"\n\n\"I'll give thee rede for that, dear sister mine. Thou shalt live with\nthy brother Giselher, and of a truth I'll comfort thee of thy husband's\ndeath.\"\n\nThen answered the hapless wife: \"Of that hath Kriemhild need.\"\n\nWhen the youth had made her such kindly offer, then gan Uta and Gernot\nand her faithful kin entreat. They begged her to tarry there, for but\nlittle kith she had among Siegfried's men.\n\n\"They be all strangers to you,\" spake Gernot; \"none that liveth is so\nstrong but that he must come to die. Consider that, dear sister, and\nconsole your mind. Stay with your kinsfolk; ye shall fare well in\ntruth.\"\n\nThen she made vow to Giselher that she would stay. The steeds were\nbrought for Siegfried's men, sith they would ride to the Nibelung land.\nAlso all the trappings of the knights were packed upon the sumpters.\nThen the Lord Siegmund hied him to Kriemhild's side. To the lady he\nspake: \"Siegfried's men are waiting by the steeds. Now must we ride\naway, for I be ill content in Burgundy.\"\n\nThe Lady Kriemhild then replied: \"All that I have of faithful kin advise\nme that I stay here with them; I have no kith in the Nibelung land.\"\n\nLoth it was to Siegmund, when that he found Kriemhild of this mind. He\nspake: \"Let no one tell you that. Before all my kinsmen ye shall wear\nthe crown with such sovran power as ye did aforetime. Ye shall not\nsuffer, because we have lost the knight. Ride also with us home again,\nfor the sake of your little child. Lady, ye should not leave him\norphaned. When your son groweth up, he will comfort your heart.\nMeanwhile many bold heroes and good shall serve you.\"\n\n\"Sir Siegmund,\" quoth she, \"forsooth I like not for to ride. Whatever\nfortune, here must I tarry with my kindred, who help me mourn.\"\n\nThese tales gan now displease the doughty warriors. All spake alike: \"We\nmight well aver that now first hath ill befallen us. If ye would\nstay here with our foes, then have heroes never ridden to court more\nsorrowfully.\"\n\n\"Ye shall journey free of care, commended unto God; ye shall be given\nsafe-conduct to Siegmund's land, I'll bid them guard you well. To the\ncare of you knights shall my dear child be given.\"\n\nWhen they marked that she would not go hence, then wept all of\nSiegmund's men alike. How right sorrowfully Siegmund parted then from\nLady Kriemhild! He became acquaint with grief. \"Woe worth this courtly\nfeasting,\" spake the noble king. \"Through pastime will nevermore hap to\nking or to his kinsmen, what here hath happed to us. Men shall see us\nnevermore in Burgundy.\"\n\nThen Siegfried's men spake openly: \"A journey to this land might still\ntake place, if we discovered aright him who slew our lord. Enow of his\nkinsmen be their deadly foes.\"\n\nHe kissed Kriemhild; how sorrowfully he spake, when he perceived aright\nthat she would stay: \"Now let us ride joyless home unto our land, now\nfirst do I feel all my sorrow.\"\n\nDown to the Rhine from Worms they rode without an escort. They were\nsurely of the mind that they, the bold Nibelungs, could well defend\nthem, should they be encountered in hostile wise. Leave they asked of\nnone, but Gernot and Giselher were seen to go to Siegmund in loving\nwise. These brave and lusty knights convinced him that they mourned his\nloss. Courteously Prince Gernot spake: \"God in heaven knoweth well that\nI be not to blame for Siegfried's death, nor heard I ever that any was\nhis foe. I mourn him justly.\"\n\nGiselher, the youth, gave them then safe-conduct. Sorrowly he led them\nfrom the land home to Netherland. How few kinsman were found joyous\nthen!\n\nHow they now fared at Worms I cannot tell. All time men heard Kriemhild\nmourn, so that none might comfort her heart nor mind, save Giselher\nalone; loyal he was and good. Brunhild, the fair, sate in overweening\npride. How Kriemhild wept, she recked not, nor did she ever show her\nlove or troth. Lady Kriemhild wrought her in after days the bitterest\nwoe of heart.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XIX. How The Nibelung Hoard Was Brought to Worms.\n\nWhen the noble Kriemhild thus was widowed, the Margrave Eckewart with\nhis vassals stayed with her in the land, and served her alway. He also\noften helped his mistress mourn his lord. At Worms, hard by the minster,\nthey built for her a dwelling, broad and passing large, costly and\ngreat, where, with her maids, she since dwelt joyless. She liked for to\ngo to church and did this willingly. Where her love lay buried, thither\nshe went all time in mournful mood (how seldom she gave that over). She\nprayed the good God to have mercy on her soul. With great fidelity she\nbewept the knight full oft. Uta and her meiny comforted her all time,\nbut so sorely wounded was her heart, that it booted naught, whatever\ncomfort men did offer her. She had the greatest longing for her dear\nlove, that ever wife did have for loving husband. One might see thereby\nher passing virtue; until her end she mourned, the while life lasted. In\nafter days brave Siegfried's wife avenged herself with might.\n\nThus she dwelt after her sorrow, after her husband's death, and this is\ntrue, well three and one half years, that she spake no word to Gunther,\nnor did she see her foeman Hagen in all this time.\n\nThen spake Hagen of Troneg: \"If ye could compass it to make your sister\nfriendly, then might come to these lands the gold of Nibelung. Of this\nmight ye win great store, an' the queen would be our friend.\"\n\nThe king made answer: \"Let us try. My brothers bide with her; we will\nbeg them to bring it to pass that she be our friend, if perchance she\nmight gladly see us win the hoard.\"\n\n\"I trow not,\" spake Hagen, \"that it will ever hap.\"\n\nThen he bade Ortwin and the Margrave Gere go to court. When that was\ndone, Gernot and Giselher, the youth, were also brought. They tried\nit with the Lady Kriemhild in friendly wise. Brave Gernot of Burgundy\nspake: \"Lady, ye mourn too long for Siegfried's death. The king will\ngive you proof that he hath not slain him. We hear you mourn all time so\ngreatly.\"\n\nShe spake: \"None chargeth him with this. 'Twas Hagen's hand that struck\nhim, where he could be wounded. When he learned this of me, how could\nI think that he did bear him hate? Else had I guarded against this full\nwell,\" spake the queen, \"so that I had not betrayed his life; then would\nI, poor wife, leave off my weeping. I'll never be a friend of him that\ndid the deed.\" Then Giselher, the full stately man, began implore.\n\nWhen at last she spake: \"I will greet the king,\" men saw him stand\nbefore her with his nearest kin, but Hagen durst not come before her.\nWell he wot his guilt; 'twas he had caused her dole. When now she would\nforego her hate of Gunther, so that he might kiss her, it had befitted\nhim better had she not been wronged by his advice; then might he have\ngone boldly unto Kriemhild. Nevermore was peace between kindred brought\nto pass with so many tears; her loss still gave her woe. All, save the\none man alone, she pardoned. None had slain him, had not Hagen done the\ndeed.\n\nNot long thereafter they brought it to pass that Lady Kriemhild gained\nthe hoard from the Nibelung land and brought it to the Rhine. It was\nher marriage morning gift (1) and was hers by right. Giselher and Gernot\nrode to fetch it. Kriemhild ordered eighty hundred men, that they should\nbring it from where it lay hid, where it was guarded by the knight\nAlberich (2) and his nearest kin. When they saw those from the Rhine\ncoming for the hoard, Alberich, the bold, spake to his friends: \"Naught\nof the treasure dare we withhold from her, sith the noble queen averreth\nit to be her marriage morning gift. Yet should this never be done,\"\nquoth Alberich, \"but that with Siegfried we have foully lost the good\nCloud Cloak, for fair Kriemhild's love did wear it alway. Now, alas,\nit hath fared ill with Siegfried, that the hero bereft us of the Cloud\nCloak and that all this land did have to serve him.\"\n\nThen went the warder to where he found the keys. Before the castle stood\nKriemhild's liegemen and a deal of her kinsfolk. Men bade carry the\ntreasure hence to the sea, down to the boats; one bare it then upon\nthe waves to the mountains on the Rhine. Now may ye hear marvels of the\nhoard, the which twelve huge wains, packed full, were just able to bear\naway from the hill in four days and nights and each must make the trip\nthree times a day. There was naught else but gems and gold, and had men\npaid therewith the wage of all the world, not a mark less had it been\nin worth. Forsooth Hagen did not crave it so without good cause. The\ngreatest prize of all was a wishing-rod (3) of gold. He who knew its\nnature, might well be master over any man in all the world.\n\nMany of Alberich's kinsmen journeyed with Gernot hence. When they\nstored away the hoard in Gunther's land and the queen took charge of\neverything, chambers and towers were filled therewith. Never did men\nhear tales told of such wondrous store of goods. And had it been a\nthousand times as much, if the Lord Siegfried were but alive again,\nKriemhild would fain have stood empty-handed at his side. No more\nfaithful wife did hero ever win. Now that she had the hoard, she brought\nmany unknown warriors to the land. In truth the lady's hand gave in\nsuch wise that men have never seen such bounty more. She used great\ncourtesie; men owned this of the queen. To the rich and the poor she\nbegan to give so greatly that Hagen said, should she live yet a while,\nshe would gain so many a man for her service that they would fare full\nill.\n\nThen spake King Gunther: \"Her life and her goods be hers. How shall I\nhinder that she do with them as she will? Forsooth I hardly compassed\nit, that she became thus much my friend. Let us not reck to whom she\ndeal out her silver and her gold.\"\n\nSpake Hagen to the king: \"No doughty man should leave to any wife aught\nof the heard. With her gifts she'll bring about the day when it well may\nrue the brave Burgundians sore.\"\n\nThen spake King Gunther: \"I swore an oath, that nevermore would I do her\nharm, and will keep it further, for she is my sister.\"\n\nSpake then Hagen: \"Let me be the guilty one.\"\n\nFew of their oaths were kept. From the widow they took the mighty\nstore and Hagen made him master of all the keys. This vexed her brother\nGernot, when he heard the tale aright. Lord Giselher spake: \"Hagen hath\ndone my sister much of harm; I should prevent it. It would cost him his\nlife, were he not my kin.\"\n\nSiegfried's wife shed tears anew. Then spake the Lord Gernot: \"Or ever\nwe be imperiled by the gold, we should have it sunk entirely in the\nRhine, that it belong to none.\"\n\nFull pitifully she went before her brother Giselher. She spake: \"Dear\nbrother, thou shouldst think of me and be the guardian of both my life\nand goods.\"\n\nQuoth he then to the lady: \"That shall be done when we return again, for\nnow we think to ride.\"\n\nThe king and his kindred voided then the land, the very best among them\nthat one might find. Only Hagen alone remained at home, through the\nhatred he bare to Kriemhild, and did so willingly. Before the king was\ncome again, Hagen had taken the treasure quite and sunk it all at\nLoche, (4) in the Rhine. He weened to use it, but that might not be. The\nlordings came again and with them many men. With her maids and ladies\nKriemhild gan bewail her passing loss, for sore it grieved them. Gladly\nwould Giselher have helped in all good faith. All spake alike: \"He hath\ndone wrong.\"\n\nHagen avoided the princes' wrath, until he gained their favor. They\ndid him naught, but Kriemhild might never have borne him greater hate.\nBefore Hagen of Troneg thus hid the treasure, they had sworn with mighty\noaths that it should lie concealed as long as any one of them might\nlive. Later they could not give it to themselves or any other.\n\nKriemhild's mind was heavy with fresh sorrow over her husband's end, and\nbecause they had taken from her all her wealth. Her plaints ceased not\nin all her life, down to her latest day. After Siegfried's death, and\nthis is true, she dwelt with many a grief full thirteen years, that she\ncould not forget the warrior's death. She was true to him, as most folk\nowned.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Marriage morning gift\" was the gift which it was customary\n        for the bridegroom to give the bride on the morning after\n        the bridal night.  On this custom see Weinhold, \"Deutsche\n        Frauen im Mittelalter\", i, p. 402.\n   (2)  \"Alberich\", see Adventure III, note 8.  It is characteristic\n        of the poem that even this dwarf is turned into a knight.\n   (3)  \"Wishing-rod\", a magic device for discovering buried\n        treasure.  Cf. Grimm, \"Deutsche Mythologie,\" ii, 813.\n   (4)  \"Loche\", according to Piper, is the modern \"Locheim\" in the\n        Rhine province.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XX. How King Etzel (1) Sent To Burgundy For Kriemhild.\n\nThat was in a time when Lady Helca (2) died and the king Etzel sought\nanother wife, that his friends advised his marriage to a proud widow in\nthe Burgundian land, hight Lady Kriemhild. Since fair Helca was dead,\nthey spake: \"Would ye gain a noble wife, the highest and the best king\never won, then take this same lady; the stalwart Siegfried was her\nhusband.\"\n\nThen spake the mighty king: \"How might that chance, sith I am heathen\nand be christened not a whit, whereas the lady is a Christian and\ntherefore would not plight her troth? It would be a marvel, and that\never happed.\"\n\nThe doughty warriors answered: \"What if she do it, perchance, for the\nsake of your high name and your mickle goods? One should at least make a\ntrial for the noble dame. Well may ye love the stately fair.\"\n\nThe noble king then spake: \"Which of you be acquaint with the people and\nthe land by the Rhine?\"\n\nUp spake then the good knight Rudeger of Bechelaren: (3) \"I have known\nfrom a child the three noble and lordly kings, Gunther and Gernot, the\nnoble knights and good; the third hight Giselher. Each of them doth use\nthe highest honors and courtesie, as their forebears, too, have always\ndone.\"\n\nThen answered Etzel: \"Friend, I prithee, tell me whether she should wear\nthe crown in this my land. An' she be so fair, as hath been told me, it\nshall never rue my dearest kin.\"\n\n\"She compareth well in beauty with my Lady Helca, the royal queen.\nCertes, there might not be in all this world a king's bride more fair.\nHe may well be of good cheer to whom she plight her troth.\"\n\nHe spake: \"So bring it to pass, Rudeger, as I be dear to thee; and if\never I do lie at Kriemhild's side, I will requite thee for it as best\nI may. Then hast thou done my will in fullest wise. From my treasure\nchambers I will bid thee be given such store of horses, of clothes and\nall thou wilt, that thou and thy fellowship may live full merrily. I'll\nbid full plenty of these things be made ready against thine errand.\"\n\nTo this the lordly margrave Rudeger replied: \"Craved I thy goods, that\nwere not worthy of praise. With mine own goods, which I have from thy\nhands, will I gladly be thy envoy to the Rhine.\"\n\nThen spake the mighty king: \"Now when wilt thou ride for the fair? May\nGod keep thee and my lady in all worship on the journey. May fortune\nhelp me, that she look with favor on my suit.\"\n\nRudeger made answer: \"Ere we void the land, we must first make ready\narms and trappings, that we may stand with honor before princes. I will\nlead to the Rhine five hundred stately men, that wherever in Burgundy I\nand mine be seen, all may say of thee: 'Never did any king send afar so\nmany men in better wise than thou hast done to the Rhine.' If thou, O\nmighty king, wilt not turn back on this account, I'll tell thee that\nher noble love was subject unto Siegfried, Siegmund's son. Him thou hast\nseen here. (4) Men could in right truth ascribe to him great worship.\"\n\nThen spake King Etzel: \"Tho' she was the warrior's wife, yet was the\nnoble prince so peerless that I should not disdain the queen. She liketh\nme well for her passing beauty.\"\n\nThe margrave answered: \"Then I will tell thee that we will start hence\nin four and twenty days. I'll send word to Gotelind, my dear lady, that\nI myself will be the messenger to Kriemhild.\"\n\nRudeger sent word to Bechelaren, at which the margravine grew both\nsorrowful and proud. He told her he should woo for the king a wife.\nLovingly she thought on Helca, the fair. When the margravine heard the\nmessage, a deal she rued it; weeping beseemed her at the thought whether\nshe should gain a lady as afore. When she thought on Helca, it grieved\nher heart full sore.\n\nRudeger should ride in seven days from Hungary; lusty and merry King\nEtzel was at this. There in the town of Vienna men prepared their\nweeds. Then might he no longer delay his journey. At Bechelaren Gotelind\nawaited him; the young margravine, too, Rudeger's child, gladly saw her\nfather and his men. Many fair maids awaited them with joy. Ere the noble\nRudeger rode from the city of Vienna to Bechelaren, all their clothes\nwere placed upon the sumpters. They journeyed in such wise that not a\nwhit was taken from them.\n\nWhen they were come to tho town of Bechelaren, the host full lovingly\nbade lodge his fellowship and ease them well. The noble Gotelind saw\nthe host come gladly, as likewise his dear daughter did, the young\nmargravine. To her his coming could not be liefer. How fain she was to\nsee the heroes from the Hunnish land! With smiling mien the noble maiden\nspake: \"Now be my father and his men full welcome here.\"\n\nThen great thanks were given to the young margravine by many a doughty\nknight in courteous wise. Well wot Gotelind Sir Rudeger's mood. When at\nnight she lay close by his side, what kindly questions the margravine\nput, whither the king of the Huns had sent him. He spake: \"My Lady\nGotelind, I'll gladly make this known to thee. I must woo another\nlady for my lord, sith that the fair Helca hath died. I will ride for\nKriemhild to the Rhine; she shall become a mighty queen here among the\nHuns.\"\n\n\"Would to God,\" spake Gotelind, \"an' that might hap, sith we do hear\nsuch speech of her many honors, that she might perchance replace our\nlady for us in our old age, and that we might be fain to let her wear\nthe crown in Hungary.\"\n\nThen spake the margrave: \"My love, ye must offer to those who are to\nride with me to the Rhine, your goods in loving wise. When heroes travel\nrichly, then are they of lofty mood.\"\n\nShe spake: \"There be none that taketh gladly from my hand, to whom I\nwould not give what well beseemeth him, or ever ye and your men part\nhence.\"\n\nQuoth the margrave: \"That doth like me well.\"\n\nHo, what rich cloths of silk were borne from their treasure chambers!\nWith enow of this the clothing of the noble warriors was busily lined\nfrom the neck down to their spurs. Rudeger had chosen only men that\npleased him well.\n\nOn the seventh morning the host and his warriors rode forth from\nBechelaren. Weapons and clothes a plenty they took with them through the\nBavarian land. Seldom did men assail them on the highways for robbery's\nsake, and within twelve days they reached the Rhine. Then might the\ntidings not be hid; men told it to the king and to his liegemen, that\nstranger guests were come. The host gan say, if any knew them, he should\ntell him so. One saw their sumpters bear right heavy loads. 'Twas seen\nthat they were passing rich.\n\nAnon in the broad town men purveyed them quarters. When that the many\nstrangers had been lodged, these same lords were gazed upon full oft.\nThe people wondered from whence these warriors were come to the Rhine.\nThe host now sent for Hagen, if perchance they might be known to him.\nThen spake the knight of Troneg: \"None of them have I ever seen, but\nwhen we now gaze upon them, I can tell you well from whence they ride\nhither to this land. They must indeed be strangers, an' I know them not\nfull soon.\" (5)\n\nLodgings were now taken for the guests. The envoy and his fellowship\nwere come in passing costly vesture. To the court they rode wearing good\ngarments, cut in full cunning wise. Then spake the doughty Hagen: \"As\nwell as I can tell, for I have not seen the lord long time, they ride as\nif 'twere Rudeger from the Hunnish land, a lordly knight and a brave.\"\n\n\"How can I believe,\" spake at once the king, \"that the lord of\nBechelaren be come to this land?\"\n\nWhen King Gunther had ended his speech, Hagen, the brave, espied the\ngood knight Rudeger. He and his friends all ran to meet them. Then five\nhundred knights were seen dismounting from their steeds. Fair were the\nmen from Hungary greeted; messengers had never worn such lordly clothes.\nThen Hagen of Troneg spake full loudly: \"Now be these knights, the lord\nof Bechelaren and all his men, welcome in God's name.\"\n\nWith worship the speedy knights were greeted. The next of kin to the\nking went to where they stood. Ortwin of Metz spake to Rudeger: \"Never\nhave we seen guests so gladly here at any time. This I can truly say.\"\n\nOn all sides they thanked the warriors for their greeting. With all\ntheir fellowship they hied them to the hall, where they found the\nking and with him many a valiant man. The lords rose from their seats;\nthrough their great chivalry this was done. How right courteously he met\nthe messengers! Gunther and Gernot greeted the stranger and his vassals\nwarmly, as was his due. He took the good knight Rudeger by the hand\nand led him to the seat where he sat himself. Men bade pour out for the\nguests (full gladly this was done) passing good mead and the best of\nwine that one might find in the land along the Rhine. Giselher and Gere\nboth were come; Dankwart and Folker, too, had heard about the strangers.\nMerry they were of mood and greeted before the king the noble knights\nand good.\n\nThen spake Hagen of Troneg to his lord: \"These thy knights should ever\nrequite what the margrave for our sake hath done; for this should the\nhusband of fair Gotelind receive reward.\"\n\nKing Gunther spake: \"I cannot hold my peace; ye must tell me how fare\nEtzel and Helca of the Hunnish land.\"\n\nTo this the margrave now made answer: \"I'll gladly let you know.\" He\nrose from his seat with all his men and spake to the king: \"An' may that\nbe that ye permit me, O prince, so will I not conceal the tidings that I\nbring, but will tell them willingly.\"\n\nQuoth the king: \"The tidings that have been sent us through you, these\nI'll let you tell without the rede of friends. Pray let me and my\nvassals hear them, for I begrudge you no honor that ye here may gain.\"\n\nThen spake the worthy envoy: \"My great master doth commend to you upon\nthe Rhine his faithful service and to all the kinsmen ye may have. This\nmessage is sent in all good faith. The noble king bade complain to you\nhis need. His folk is joyless; my lady, the royal Helca, my master's\nwife, is dead. Through her hath many a high-born maid been orphaned,\ndaughters of noble princes, whom she hath trained. Therefore it standeth\nfull piteously in his land; they have alas none that might befriend them\nfaithfully. The king's grief, I ween, will abate but slowly.\"\n\n\"Now God reward him,\" spake Gunther, \"that he so willingly commendeth\nhis service to me and to my kin. Full gladly have I here heard his\ngreeting, and this both my kindred and my men shall fain requite.\"\n\nThen spake the warrior Gernot of Burgundy: \"The world must ever rue fair\nHelca's death, for her many courtesies, which she well knew how to use.\"\n\nWith this speech Hagen, the passing stately knight, agreed.\n\nThen answered Rudeger, the noble and lordly envoy: \"Sith ye permit me,\nO king, I shall tell you more, the which my dear lord hath hither sent\nyou, sith he doth live so right sorrowfully in longing after Helca. Men\ntold my lord that Kriemhild be without a husband, that Sir Siegfried be\ndead. If this be so, then shall she wear a crown before Etzel's knights,\nwould ye but permit her. This my sovran bade me say.\"\n\nThen spake the mighty king, full courteous was his mood: \"And she care\nto do this, she shall hear my pleasure. This will I make known to you in\nthese three days. Why should I refuse King Etzel before I've learned her\nwish?\"\n\nMeanwhile men bade purvey good easement for the guests. They were served\nso well that Rudeger owned he had good friends there among Gunther's men.\nHagen served him gladly, as Rudeger had done to him of yore. Till the\nthird day Rudeger thus remained. The king sent for his counsel (full\nwisely he acted) to see whether his kinsmen would think it well that\nKriemhild take King Etzel to husband. All together they advised it, save\nHagen alone. He spake to Gunther, the knight: \"Have ye but the right\nwit, ye will take good care that ye never do this, tho' she were fain to\nfollow.\"\n\n\"Why,\" spake then Gunther, \"should I not consent? Whatever pleasure\nhappen to the queen, I should surely grant her this; she is my sister.\nWe ourselves should bring it to pass, if perchance it might bring her\nhonor.\"\n\nThen answered Hagen: \"Give over this speech. Had ye knowledge of Etzel\nas have I, and should she harry him, as I hear you say, then first hath\ndanger happed to you by right.\"\n\n\"Why?\" quoth Gunther. \"I'll take good care that I come not so near\nhim that I must suffer aught of hatred on his part, an' she become his\nwife.\"\n\nSaid Hagen: \"Never will I give you this advice.\"\n\nFor Gernot and Giselher men bade send to learn whether the two lords\nwould think it well that Kriemhild should take the mighty and noble\nking. Hagen still gainsaid, but no one other. Then spake the knight\nGiselher of Burgundy: \"Friend Hagen, ye may still show your fealty. Make\nher to forget the wrongs that ye have done her. Whatever good fortune\nshe may have, this ye should not oppose. Ye have in truth done my sister\nso many an ill,\" continued Giselher, the full lusty knight, \"that she\nhath good cause, if she be angry with you. Never hath one bereft a lady\nof greater joys.\"\n\nQuoth Hagen: \"I'll do you to wit what well I know. If she take Etzel and\nlive long enow, she'll do us still much harm in whatever way she can.\nForsooth full many a stately vassal will own her service.\"\n\nTo this brave Gernot answered: \"It may not happen, that we ever ride to\nEtzel's land before they both be dead. Let us serve her faithfully, that\nmaketh for our honor.\"\n\nAgain Hagen spake: \"None can gainsay me, an' the noble Kriemhild wear\nthe crown of Helca, she will do us harm as best she may. Ye should give\nit over, 'twould beseem you knights far better.\"\n\nWrathfully then spake Giselher, fair Uta's son: \"Let us not all act as\ntraitors. We should be glad of whatever honors may be done her. Whatever\nye may say, Hagen, I shall serve her by my troth.\"\n\nGloomy of mood grew Hagen when he heard these words. Gernot and\nGiselher, the proud knights and good, and Gunther, the mighty, spake at\nlast, if Kriemhild wished it, they would let it hap without all hate.\n\nThen spake Prince Gere: \"I will tell the lady that she look with favor\nupon King Etzel, to whom so many knights owe dread obedience. He can\nwell requite her of all the wrongs that have been done her.\"\n\nThen the doughty warrior hied him to where he saw Kriemhild. Kindly she\nreceived him. How quickly then he spake: \"Ye may well greet me gladly\nand give me a messenger's meed. Fortune is about to part you from all\nyour woes. For the sake of your love, my lady, one of the very best that\never gained a kingdom with great honors, or should wear a crown, hath\nsent envoys hither. Noble knights be wooing; this my brother bade me\ntell you.\"\n\nThen spake the sorrow-laden dame: \"God should forbid you and all my\nkinsmen that ye make a mock of me, poor woman. What could I be to a man\nwho had ever gained heartfelt love from a faithful wife?\"\n\nSorely she gainsaid it, but then came Gernot, her brother, and Giselher,\nthe youth, and lovingly bade her ease her heart. It would do her good in\ntruth, could she but take the king.\n\nNone might persuade the lady that she should marry any man. Then the\nknights begged: \"If ye do naught else, pray let it hap that ye deign to\nsee the messengers.\"\n\n\"I'll not deny,\" spake the noble dame, \"but that I should gladly see\nthe Margrave Rudeger for his passing courtesie. Were he not sent hither,\nwhoever else might be the messenger, never should he become acquainted\nwith me. Pray bid him come to-morrow to my bower. I'll let him hear my\nwill in full and tell it him myself.\" At this her great laments brake\nforth anew.\n\nThe noble Rudeger now craved naught else but that he might see the\nhigh-born queen. He wist himself to be so wise that she could not but\nlet the knight persuade her, if it should ever be. Early on the morrow\nwhen mass was sung, the noble envoys came. A great press arose; of those\nwho should go to court with Rudeger, many a lordly man was seen arrayed.\nFull sad of mood, the high-born Kriemhild bided the noble envoy and\ngood. He found her in the weeds she wore each day, whereas her handmaids\nwore rich clothes enow. She went to meet him to the door and greeted\nfull kindly Etzel's liegeman. Only as one of twelve he went to meet her.\nMen offered him great worship, for never were come more lofty envoys.\nThey bade the lording and his vassals seat them. Before her were seen to\nstand the two Margraves Eckewart and Gere, the noble knights and good.\nNone they saw merry of mood, for the sake of the lady of the house. Many\nfair women were seen to sit before her, but Kriemhild only nursed her\ngrief; her dress upon her breast was wet with scalding tears. This the\nnoble margrave noted well on Kriemhild.\n\nThen spake the high-born messenger: \"Most noble princess, I pray you,\npermit me and my comrades that are come with me, to stand before you and\ntell you the tidings for the sake of which we have ridden hither.\"\n\n\"Now may ye speak whatso ye list,\" spake the queen. \"I am minded to hear\nit gladly; ye be a worthy messenger.\"\n\nThe others noted well her unwilling mood.\n\nThen spake Prince Rudeger of Bechelaren: \"Etzel, a high-born king,\nhath in good faith sent you a friendly greeting, my lady, by messengers\nhither to this land. Many good knights hath he sent hither for your\nlove. Great joy without grief he doth offer you most truly. He is ready\nto give you constant friendship, as he did afore to Lady Helca, who lay\nwithin his heart. Certes, through longing for her virtues he hath full\noften joyless days.\"\n\nThen spake the queen: \"Margrave Rudeger, were there any who knew my\nbitter sorrow, he would not bid me marry any man. Of a truth I lost the\nbest of husbands that ever lady won.\"\n\n\"What may comfort grief,\" the bold knight replied, \"but married joy.\nWhen that any gan gain this and chooseth one who doth beseem him, naught\navaileth so greatly for woe of heart. And ye care to love my noble\nmaster, ye shall have power over twelve mighty crowns. Thereto my lord\nwill give you the lands of thirty princes, all of which his doughty hand\nhath overcome. Ye shall become the mistress over many worthy liegemen,\nwho were subject to my Lady Helca, and over many dames of high and\nprincely race, who owned her sway.\" Thus spake the brave knight and\nbold. \"Thereto my lord will give you (this he bade me say), if ye would\ndeign to wear with him the crown, the very highest power which Helca\never won; this shall ye rule before all Etzel's men.\"\n\nThen spake the queen: \"How might it ever list me to become a hero's\nbride? Death hath given me in the one such dole that I must ever live\njoyless unto mine end.\"\n\nTo this the Huns replied: \"O mighty queen, your life at Etzel's court\nwill be so worshipful that it will ever give you joy, an' it come to\npass, for the mighty king hath many a stately knight. Helca's damosels\nand your maids shall together form one retinue, at sight of which\nwarriors may well be blithe of mood. Be advised, my lady, ye will fare\nwell in truth.\"\n\nWith courtesie she spake: \"Now let be this speech until the morrow\nearly, when ye shall come here again. Then will I give you answer to\nwhat ye have in mind.\"\n\nThe bold knights and good must needs obey.\n\nWhen all were now come to their lodgings, the noble dame bade send for\nGiselher and for her mother, too. To the twain she said, that weeping\ndid beseem her and naught else better.\n\nThen spake her brother Giselher: \"Sister, it hath been told me, and I\ncan well believe it, that King Etzel would make all thy sorrows vanish,\nand thou takest him to be thy husband. Whatever others may advise, this\nthinketh me well done. He is well able to turn thy grief to joy,\" spake\nGiselher again; \"from the Rhone to the Rhine, from the Elbe down to the\nsea, there be no other king as mighty as he. Thou mayst well rejoice,\nan' he make thee his wife.\"\n\nShe spake: \"My dear brother, why dost thou advise me this? Weeping\nand wailing beseem me better far. How should I go to court before his\nknights? Had I ever beauty, of this I am now bereft.\"\n\nTo her dear daughter the Lady Uta spake: \"Whatever thy brothers counsel\nthee, dear child, that do. Obey thy kindred and it will go well with\nthee. I have seen thee now too long in thy great grief.\"\n\nThen she prayed God full oft to grant her such store of goods that she\nmight have gold, silver, and clothes to give, as at her husband's side\nof yore, when that he was still alive and well. Else would she never\nhave again such happy hours. She thought within her mind: \"And shall\nI give my body to a paynim (6) (I am a Christian wife), forever in the\nworld must I bear shame. An' he gave me all the kingdoms in the world\nstill 1 would not do it.\"\n\nThus she let the matter rest. All night until the break of day the lady\nlay upon her bed in thought. Her bright eyes never grew dry, till on the\nmorn she went to matins. Just at the time for mass the kings were come\nand took their sister again in hand. In truth they urged her to wed the\nking of the Hunnish land; little did any of them find the lady merry.\nThen they bade fetch hither Etzel's men, who now would fain have taken\ntheir leave, whatever the end might be, whether they gained or lost\ntheir suit. Rudeger came now to court; his heroes urged him to learn\naright the noble prince's mind. To all it seemed well that this be done\nbetimes, for long was the way back into their land. Men brought Rudeger\nto where Kriemhild was found. Winningly the knight gan beg the noble\nqueen to let him hear what message she would send to Etzel's land. I\nween, he heard from her naught else than no, that she nevermore would\nwed a man. The margrave spake: \"That were ill done. Why would ye let\nsuch beauty wither? Still with honor may ye become the bride of a worthy\nman.\"\n\nNaught booted that they urged, till Rudeger told the noble queen in\nsecret that he would make amends for all that ever happed to her. At\nthis her great sorrow grew a deal more mild. To the queen he spake: \"Let\nbe your weeping. If ye had none among the Huns but me and my faithful\nkin and liegemen, sore must he repent it who had ever done you aught.\"\n\nAt this the lady's mood grew gentler. She spake: \"Then swear me an\noath, that whatever any do to me that ye will be the first to amend my\nwrongs.\"\n\nQuoth the margrave: \"For this, my lady, I am ready.\"\n\nRudeger with all his vassals swore that he would ever serve her\nfaithfully and pledged his hand, that the noble knights from Etzel's\nland would ne'er refuse her aught.\n\nThen the faithful lady thought: \"Sith I, wretched wife, have won so many\nfriends, I'll let the people say whatso they choose. What if my dear\nhusband's death might still be avenged?\" She thought: \"Sith Etzel hath\nso many men-at-arms, I can do whatso I will, an' I command them. He is\nlikewise so rich that I shall have wherewith to give; the baleful Hagen\nhath bereft me of my goods.\"\n\nTo Rudeger she spake: \"Had I not heard that he were a paynim, gladly\nwould I go whithersoever he listed and would take him to my husband.\"\n\nThen spake the margrave: \"Lady, give over this speech. He hath so many\nknights of Christian faith, that ye'll ever be joyful at his court.\nWhat if ye bring it to pass, that he should let himself be christened?\nTherefore may ye fain become King Etzel's wife.\"\n\nThen her brothers spake again: \"Now pledge your troth, dear sister. Ye\nshould now give over your sadness.\"\n\nThey begged her till she sadly vowed before the heroes to become King\nEtzel's bride. She spake: \"I will obey you, I poor queen, and fare to\nthe Huns as soon as ever that may be, whenever I have friends who will\ntake me to his land.\"\n\nOf this fair Kriemhild pledged her hand before the knights.\n\nThen spake the margrave: \"If ye have two liegemen, I have still more.\n'Twill be the best, that with worship we escort you across the Rhine.\nNo longer, lady, shall ye tarry here in Burgundy. I have five hundred\nvassals and kinsmen, too; they shall serve you, lady, and do whatso ye\nbid, both here and there at home. I'll do by you the same whenever ye\ndo mind me of the tale and never feel ashamed. Now bid the housings for\nyour horses be made ready (Rudeger's counsel will never irk you) and\ntell it to your maids, whom ye would take along, for many a chosen\nknight will meet us on the road.\"\n\nShe still had harness with which they rode afore in Siegfried's time, so\nthat she might take with her many maidens now with worship, whenever she\nwould hence. Ho, what good saddles they fetched for the comely dames!\nAlbeit they had aye worn costly robes, many more were now made ready,\nfor much had been told them of the king. They opened up the chests,\nwhich stood afore well locked. For four and one half days they were\naught but idle; from the presses they brought forth the stores that lay\ntherein. Kriemhild now began to open up her treasure rooms, she fain\nwould make all Rudeger's liegemen rich. Of the gold from the Nibelung\nland she still had such store that a hundred horses might not bear it;\nshe weened her hand should deal it out among the Huns.\n\nThis tale Hagen heard told of Kriemhild. He spake: \"Sith Kriemhild will\nnot become my friend, so Siegfried's gold must stay behind. For why\nshould I give to my foes such great store of goods? Well I wot what\nKriemhild will do with this hoard. I can well believe, an' she take it\nwith her, that it will be doled out to call forth hate against me. Nor\nhave they steeds enow to bear it hence. Hagen doth intend to keep it,\npray tell Kriemhild that.\"\n\nWhen that she heard this tale, it irked her sore. It was likewise told\nto all three kings. Fain would they have changed it, but as this did not\nhap, the noble Rudeger spake full blithely: \"Mighty queen, why mourn ye\nfor the gold? King Etzel doth bear you such great love, that when his\neyes do light upon you, such store he'll give you that ye can never\nspend it all; this will I swear to you, my lady.\"\n\nThen spake the queen: \"Most noble Rudeger, never hath king's daughter\ngained such wealth as that, of which Hagen hath bereft me.\"\n\nThen came her brother Gernot to the treasure chamber. By leave of the\nking in the door he thrust the key. Kriemhild's gold was handed forth, a\nthousand marks or more. He bade the strangers take it; much this pleased\nKing Gunther.\n\nThen spake Gotelind's knight from Bechelaren: \"And had my Lady Kriemhild\nall the hoard that was brought from the Nibelung land, little of it\nwould mine or the queen's hand touch. Now bid them keep it, for I will\nnone of it. Forsooth I brought from home such store of mine that we can\nlightly do without this on the road, for we be furnished for the journey\nin full lordly wise.\"\n\nAfore this her maids had filled twelve chests at leisure with the very\nbest of gold that anywhere might be. This they took with them and great\nstore of women's trinkets, which they should wear upon the road. Her\nthought too great the might of Hagen. Of her gold for offerings (7) she\nhad still a thousand marks. For her dear husband's soul she dealt it\nout. This Rudeger thought was done in faithful love. Then spake the\nmournful lady: \"Where be now my friends who for my sake would live in\nexile? Let those who would ride with me to the Hunnish land, take now my\ntreasure and purchase horses and trappings.\"\n\nThen spake the margrave Eckewart to the queen: \"Since the day I first\nbecame your vassal, I have served you faithfully,\" spake the knight,\n\"and aye will do the same by you until mine end. I will take with\nme also five hundred of my men and place them in your service right\nloyally. Naught shall ever part us, save death alone.\"\n\nFor this speech Kriemhild bowed her thanks; forsooth she had full need.\n\nMen now led forth the palfreys; for they would ride away. Then many\ntears were shed by kinsfolk. Royal Uta and many a comely maiden showed\nthat they were sad at Kriemhild's loss. A hundred high-born maids she\ntook with her hence, who were arrayed as well befit them. Then from\nbright eyes the tears fell down, but soon at Etzel's court they lived\nto see much joy. Then came Lord Giselher and Gernot, too, with their\nfellowship, as their courtesie demanded. Fain would they escort their\ndear sister hence; of their knights they took with them full a thousand\nstately men. Then came Ortwin and the doughty Gere; Rumolt, the master\nof the kitchen, must needs be with them, too. They purveyed them night\nquarters as far as the Danube's shore, but Gunther rode no further than\na little from the town. Ere they fared hence from the Rhine, they had\nsent their messengers swiftly on ahead to the Hunnish land, who\nshould tell the king that Rudeger had gained for him to wife the noble\nhigh-born queen.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Etzel\", see Adventure I, note 7.\n   (2)  \"Helca\" (M.H.G. \"Helche\") or \"Herka\", Etzel's wife, is the\n        daughter of king \"Oserich\" or \"Osantrix\", as the\n        \"Thidreksaga\" calls him.  In the latter work (chap. 73-80)\n        we read how Rudeger (Rodingeir) took her by force from her\n        father and brought her to Etzel to be the latter's bride.\n        On her identity with the historical \"Kerka\" of Priscus, see\n        Bleyer, PB. \"Beit.\" xxxi, 542.\n   (3)  \"Rudeger of Bechelaren\", or, as the name reads in the\n        \"Thidreksaga\", \"Rodingeir of Bakalar\", is probably not an\n        historical personage, but the hero of a separate legend.\n        Evidence of this is seen in the fact that he calls himself\n        an exile, though he is Etzel's mightiest vassal, with\n        castles and lands in fief.  He may have been introduced, as\n        Wilmanns (\"Anz.\" xviii 101) thinks, to play a role\n        originally assigned to Dietrich, who is also an exile.\n        Mullenhoff considered him to have been a mythical person.\n        Bechelaren, or Pechlarn, lies at the junction of the Erlach\n        with the Danube.\n   (4)  \"hast seen here\".  \"Biterolf\", 9471, relates that Dietrich\n        had carried Siegfried, when young, by force to Etzel's\n        court.\n   (5)  \"full soon\".  See Adventure III, note 4.\n   (6)  \"Paynim\" (O F. \"paienime\", late Latin \"paganismus\"),\n        'heathen'.\n   (7)  \"gold for offerings\".  This was the gold to be used as\n        offering when masses were sung for Siegfried's soul.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XXI. How Kriemhild Journeyed To The Huns.\n\nLet now the messengers ride. We will do you to wit, how the queen\njourneyed through the lands and where Giselher and Gernot parted from\nher. They had served her as their fealty bade them. Down to Vergen (1)\non the Danube they rode; here they gan crave leave of the queen, for\nthey would ride again to the Rhine. Without tears these faithful kinsmen\nmight not part. Doughty Giselher spake then to his sister: \"Whenever,\nlady, thou shouldst need me, when aught doth trouble thee, let me but\nknow, and I will ride in thy service to Etzel's land.\"\n\nThose who were her kin she kissed upon the mouth. Lovingly they took\ntheir leave of Margrave Rudeger's men. The queen had with her many a\nfair-fashioned maid, full a hundred and four, that wore costly robes\nof rich, gay-colored silks. Many broad shields were borne close by the\nladies on the road, but many a lordly warrior turned then from her.\n\nThey journeyed soon from thence down through Bavarian land. Here the\ntale was told that many unknown strangers had gathered there, where\nstill a cloister standeth and where the Inn floweth into the Danube. In\nthe town of Passau, where lived a bishop, lodgings were soon emptied and\nthe prince's court as well, as they hurried forth to meet the strangers\nin the Bavarian land, where the Bishop Pilgrim (2) found fair Kriemhild.\nThe knights of the land were little loth, when in her train they saw so\nmany comely maids; with their eyes they courted the daughters of noble\nknights. Later good lodgings were given the noble guests.\n\nWith his niece the bishop rode toward Passau. When it was told the\nburghers of the town that Kriemhild was come, their prince's sister's\nchild, well was she greeted by the merchants. The bishop had the hope\nthat they would stay. Then spake Sir Eckewart: \"That may not be. We must\nfare further down to Rudeger's land. Many knights await us, for all wot\nwell the news.\"\n\nWell wist fair Gotelind the tale. She tired her and her noble child with\ncare. Rudeger had sent her word that it thought him good that she should\ncheer the mind of the queen by riding forth, with his vassals to the\nEnns (3) for to meet her. When this message had been given, one saw\non every side the roads alive; on foot and horse they hastened to meet\ntheir guests. Now was the queen come to Efferding. (4) Enow there were\nfrom the Bavarian land who might perchance have done the guests much\nharm, had they robbed upon the roads, as was their wont. That had been\nforestalled by the lordly margrave: he led a thousand knights or more.\n\nNow Gotelind, the wife of Rudeger, was come; with her there rode many a\nnoble knight in lordly vise. When they were come across the Traun, (5)\nupon the plain by Enns, one saw erected huts and tents, where the guests\nshould have their lodgings for the night. Rudeger gave the vitaille to\nhis guests. Fair Gotelind left her lodgings far behind her; along the\nroad there trotted many a shapely palfrey with jingling bridle. Fair\nwas the welcome; right well was Rudeger pleased. Among those who rode to\nmeet them on the way, on either side, in praiseworthy wise, was many a\nknight. They practised chivalry, the which full many a maiden saw. Nor\ndid the service of the knights mislike the queen. When that Rudeger's\nliegemen met the guests, many truncheons (6) were seen to fly on high\nfrom the warriors' hands in knightly custom. As though for a prize they\nrode before the ladies there. This they soon gave over and many warriors\ngreeted each other in friendly wise. Then they escorted fair Gotelind\nfrom thence to where she saw Kriemhild. Scant leisure had they who wot\nhow to serve the ladies.\n\nThe lord of Bechelaren rode now to his wife. Little it irked the noble\nmargravine that he was come so well and sound from the Rhine. In part\nher cares had given way to joy. When she had welcomed him, he bade\nher dismount with the ladies of her train upon the sward. Many a\nnoble knight bestirred him and served the ladies with eager zeal. Then\nKriemhild spied the margravine standing with her meiny. No nearer she\ndrew, but checked the palfrey with the bridle and bade them lift her\nquickly from the saddle. Men saw the bishop with Eckewart lead his\nsister's child to Gotelind. All stood aside at once. Then the exiled\nqueen kissed Gotelind upon the mouth. Full lovingly spake Rudeger's\nwife: \"Now well is me, dear lady, that I have ever seen with mine own\neyes your charming self in these our lands. Naught liefer might hap to\nme in all these times.\"\n\n\"Now God requite you,\" quoth Kriemhild, \"most noble Gotelind. Shall I\nand Botelung's (7) son remain alive and well, it may be lief to you that\nye have seen me here.\"\n\nNeither knew what must needs later hap. Many maidens went to meet each\nother in courtly wise. The warriors, too, were full ready with their\nservice. After the greeting they sat them down upon the clover. With\nmany they became acquaint, who were full strange to them aforetime. As\nit was now high noon, men bade pour out wine for the ladies. The\nnoble meiny no longer tarried, but rode to where they found many broad\npavilions; there ample service stood ready for the guests.\n\nThat night they had repose till early on the morn. Those from Bechelaren\nmade ready for to lodge the worthy guests. So well had Rudeger planned,\nthat little enow they lacked. The embrasures in the walls stood open,\nthe castle at Bechelaren was opened wide. In rode the guests whom men\nwere fain to see; the noble host bade purvey them proper easement. Most\nlovingly Rudeger's daughter with her meiny went to welcome the queen.\nThere, too, stood her mother, the margrave's wife; many a high-born maid\nwas greeted with delight. They took each other by the hand and hied\nthem hence to a broad hall, fashioned full fair, under which the Danube\nflowed along. Towards the breeze they sate and held great pastime. What\nmore they did I cannot tell, save that Kriemhild's men-at-arms were\nheard to grumble that they fared so slowly on their way, for much it\nirked them. Ho, what good knights rode with them hence from Bechelaren!\n\nRudeger offered them much loving service. The queen gave Gotelind's\ndaughter twelve ruddy armlets, and raiment too, as good as any that she\nbrought to Etzel's land. Although the Nibelung gold was taken from her,\nyet she did win the hearts of all that saw her with the little she still\nmight have. Great gifts were given to the courtiers of the host. In\nturn the Lady Gotelind offered the guests from the Rhine worship in such\nfriendly wise, that men found passing few of the strangers that did not\nwear her jewels or her lordly robes.\n\nWhen they had eaten and should depart, faithful service was proffered by\nthe lady of the house to Etzel's bride. The fair young margravine, too,\nwas much caressed. To the queen she spake: \"Whenso it thinketh you\ngood, I know well that my dear father will gladly send me to you to\nthe Hunnish land.\" How well Kriemhild marked that the maiden loved her\ntruly.\n\nThe steeds were harnessed and led before the castle of Bechelaren\nand the noble queen took leave of Rudeger's wife and daughter. With\na greeting many a fair maid parted too. Full seldom did they see each\nother since these days. From Medelick (8) the folk bare in their hands\nmany a rich cup of gold, in which they offered wine to the strangers\non the highway. Thus they made them welcome. A host dwelt there, hight\nAstolt, (9) who showed them the road to the Austrian land, towards\nMautern (10) down the Danube. There the noble queen was later served\nfull well. From his niece the bishop parted lovingly. How he counseled\nher that she should bear her well and that she should purchase honor\nfor herself, as Helca, too, had done! Ho, what great worship she later\ngained among the Huns!\n\nTo the Traisem (11) they escorted hence the guests. Rudeger's men\npurveyed them zealously, until the Huns came riding across the land.\nThen the queen became acquaint with mickle honor. Near the Traisem the\nking of the Hunnish land did have a mighty castle, hight Zeisenmauer,\n(12) known far and wide. Lady Helca dwelt there aforetime and used such\ngreat virtues that it might not lightly ever hap again, unless it be\nthrough Kriemhild. She wist so how to give, that after all her sorrow\nshe had the joy that Etzel's liegemen gave her great worship, of which\nshe later won great store among the heroes. Etzel's rule was known far\nand wide, so that all time one found at his court the boldest warriors\nof whom men ever heard, among Christian or among paynim. They were all\ncome with him. All time there were at his court, what may not so lightly\nhap again, Christian customs and also heathen faith. In whatsoever wise\neach lived, the bounty of the king bestowed on all enow.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Vergen\" is the modern Pforing, below Ingolstadt.  A ferry\n        across the river existed here from ancient times.\n   (2)  \"Pilgrim\", or \"Pilgerin\", as he is variously called, is an\n        historical personage.  He was bishop of Passau from 971 to\n        991.  Without doubt he is a late introduction, according to\n        Boer between 1181 and 1185.  See Boer, ii, 204, and E.L.\n        Dummler, \"Pilgrim von Passau\", Leipzig, 1854.\n   (3)  \"Enns\" (M.H.G. \"Ens\") is one of the tributaries of the\n        Danube, flowing into it about eleven miles southeast of\n        Linz.\n   (4)  \"Efferding\" (M.H.G. \"Everdingen\") is a town on the Danube,\n        about thirteen miles west of Linz.\n   (5)  \"Traun\" (M.H.G. \"Trune\") is a river of Upper Austria,\n        forty-four miles southeast of Linz.\n   (6)  \"Truncheons\", see Adventure II, note 8.\n   (7)  \"Botelung's son\" is Attila, who is so called in our poem, in\n        the \"Klage\", and in \"Biterolf\".  In the earlier Norse\n        version \"Atli\" is the son of \"Budli\".  (On this point see\n        Mullenhoff, \"Zur Geschichte der Nibelungensage\", p. 106, and\n        Zsfd A., x, 161, and Bleyer, PB. Beit. xxxi, 459, where the\n        names are shown to be identical.)\n   (8)  \"Medelick\" is the modern M\u00f6lk, or Melk, a town on the Danube\n        near the influx of the Bilach.  It lies at the foot of a\n        granite cliff on which stands a famous Benedictine abbey.\n   (9)  \"Astolt\" appears only in this passage; nothing else is known\n        of him.\n   (10) \"Mautern\" is situated at the influx of the Flanitz, opposite\n        Stein in Lower Austria.\n   (11) \"Traisem\", Traisen, is a tributary of the Danube in Lower\n        Austria, emptying near Traismauer.\n   (12) \"Zeisenmauer\" (M.H.G. \"Zeizenmure\").  All the MSS. but C and\n        D have this reading.  The latter have \"Treysenmoure\" and\n        \"treisem moure\", which corresponds better to the modern\n        name, as Zeiselmauer lies between Tulln and Vienna.  It is\n        possible, however, that the town on the Traisem was\n        originally called Zeiselmauer, as the road leading from\n        Traismauer to Tulln still bears the name of Zeiselstrasse.\n        See Lachmann, \"Anmerkungen\", 1272, 3, and Piper, ii, 289,\n        note to str. 1333.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XXII. How Etzel Made Kriemhild His Bride.\n\nUntil the fourth day she stayed at Zeisenmauer. The while the dust upon\nthe highway never came to rest, but rose on every side, as if it were\nburning, where King Etzel's liegemen rode through Austria. Then the\nking was told aright how royally Kriemhild fared through the lands; at\nthought of this his sorrows vanished. He hasted to where he found the\nlovely Kriemhild. Men saw ride before King Etzel on the road many bold\nknights of many tongues and many mighty troops of Christians and of\npaynims. When they met the lady, they rode along in lordly wise. Of\nthe Russians and the Greeks there rode there many a man. The right good\nsteeds of the Poles and Wallachians were seen to gallop swiftly, as they\nrode with might and main. Each did show the customs of his land.\nFrom the land of Kiev (1) there rode many a warrior and the savage\nPetschenegers. (2) With the bow they often shot at the birds which flew\nthere; to the very head they drew the arrows on the bows.\n\nBy the Danube there lieth in the Austrian land a town that men call\nTulna. (3) There she became acquaint with many a foreign custom, the\nwhich size had never seen afore. She greeted there enow who later came\nthrough her to grief. Before Etzel there rode a retinue, merry and\nnoble, courtly and lusty, full four and twenty princes, mighty and of\nlofty birth. They would fain behold their lady and craved naught more.\nDuke Ramung (4) of Wallachia, with seven hundred vassals, galloped up\nbefore her; like flying birds men saw them ride. Then came Prince Gibeck\nwith lordly bands. The doughty Hornbog, (5) with full a thousand men,\nwheeled from the king away towards the queen. Loudly they shouted after\nthe custom of their land. Madly too rode the kinsmen of the Huns. Then\ncame brave Hawart (6) of Denmark and the doughty Iring, (7) free of\nguile was he, and Irnfried (8) of Thuringia, a stately man. With twelve\nhundred vassals, whom they had in their band, they greeted Kriemhild,\nso that she had therefrom great worship. Then came Sir Bloedel, (9)\nKing Etzel's brother, from the Hunnish land, with three thousand men.\nIn lordly wise he rode to where he found the queen. Then King Etzel\ncame and Sir Dietrich, too, with all his fellowship. There stood many\nworshipful knights, noble, worthy, and good. At this Dame Kriemhild's\nspirits rose.\n\nThen Sir Rudeger spake to the queen: \"Lady, here will I receive the\nhigh-born king; whomso I bid you kiss, that must ye do. Forsooth ye may\nnot greet alike King Etzel's men.\"\n\nFrom the palfrey they helped the royal queen alight. Etzel, the mighty,\nbode no more, but dismounted from his steed with many a valiant man.\nJoyfully men saw them go towards Kriemhild. Two mighty princes, as we\nare told, walked by the lady and bore her train, when King Etzel went\nto meet her, where she greeted the noble lording with a kiss in gracious\nwise. She raised her veil and from out the gold beamed forth her rosy\nhue. Many a man stood there who vowed that Lady Helca could not have\nbeen more fair than she. Close by stood also Bloedel, the brother of the\nking. Him Rudeger, the mighty margrave, bade her kiss and King Gibeck,\ntoo. There also stood Sir Dietrich. Twelve of the warriors the king's\nbride kissed. She greeted many knights in other ways.\n\nAll the while that Etzel stood at Kriemhild's side, the youthful\nwarriors did as people still are wont to do. One saw them riding many a\nroyal joust. This Christian champions did and paynim, too, according\nto their custom. In what right knightly wise the men of Dietrich made\ntruncheons from the shafts fly through the air, high above the shields,\nfrom the hands of doughty knights! Many a buckler's edge was pierced\nthrough and through by the German strangers. Great crashing of breaking\nshafts was heard. All the warriors from the land were come and the\nking's guests, too, many a noble man.\n\nThen the mighty king betook him hence with Lady Kriemhild. Hard by them\na royal tent was seen to stand; around about the plain was filled with\nbooths, where they should rest them after their toils. Many a comely\nmaid was shown to her place thereunder by the knights, where she then\nsate with the queen on richly covered chairs. The margrave had so well\npurveyed the seats for Kriemhild, that all found them passing good; at\nthis King Etzel grew blithe of mood. What the king there spake, I know\nnot. In his right lay her snow-white hand; thus they sate in lover's\nwise, since Rudeger would not let the king make love to Kriemhild\nsecretly.\n\nThen one bade the tourney cease on every side; in courtly wise the\ngreat rout ended. Etzel's men betook them to the booths; men gave them\nlodgings stretching far away on every side. The day had now an end; they\nlay at ease, till the bright morn was seen to dawn again, then many a\nman betook him to the steeds. Ho, what pastimes they gan ply in honor of\nthe king! Etzel bade the Huns purvey all with fitting honors. Then they\nrode from Tulna to the town of Vienna, where they found many a dame\nadorned. With great worship these greeted King Etzel's bride. There was\nready for them in great plenty whatever they should have. Many a lusty\nhero rejoiced at prospect of the rout.\n\nThe king's wedding feast commenced in merry wise. They began to lodge\nthe guests, but quarters could not be found for all within the town.\nRudeger therefore begged those that were not guests to take lodgings in\nthe country round about. I ween men found all time by Lady Kriemhild,\nSir Dietrich and many another knight. Their rest they had given over\nfor toil, that they might purvey the guests good cheer. Rudeger and his\nfriends had pastime good. The wedding feast fell on a Whitsuntide,\nwhen King Etzel lay by Kriemhild in the town of Vienna. With her first\nhusband, I trow, she did not win so many men for service. Through\npresents she made her known to those who had never seen her. Full many\namong them spake to the guests: \"We weened that Lady Kriemhild had\nnaught of goods, now hath she wrought many wonders with her gifts.\"\n\nThe feasting lasted seventeen days. I trow men can no longer tell of any\nking whose wedding feast was greater. If so be, 'tis hidden from us.\nAll that were present wore brand-new garments. I ween, she never dwelt\nbefore in Netherland with such retinue of knights. Though Siegfried was\nrich in goods, I trow, he never won so many noble men-at-arms, as she\nsaw stand 'fore Etzel. Nor hath any ever given at his own wedding feast\nso many costly mantles, long and wide, nor such good clothes, of which\nall had here great store, given for Kriemhild's sake. Her friends and\nthe strangers, too, were minded to spare no kind of goods. Whatever any\ncraved, this they willingly gave, so that many of the knights through\nbounty stood bereft of clothes. Kriemhild thought of how she dwelt with\nher noble husband by the Rhine; her eyes grew moist, but she hid it full\nwell, that none might see it. Great worship had been done her after\nmany a grief. Whatever bounty any used, 'twas but a wind to that of\nDietrich. What Botelung's son had given him, was squandered quite.\nRudeger's lavish hand did also many wonders. Prince Bloedel of Hungary\nbade empty many traveling chests of their silver and their gold; all\nthis was given away. The king's champions were seen to live right\nmerrily. Werbel and Swemmel, (10) the minstrels of the king, each gained\nat the wedding feast, I ween, full thousand marks, or even better, when\nfair Kriemhild sate crowned at Etzel's side.\n\nOn the eighteenth morning they rode forth from Vienna. Many shields were\npierced in tilting by spears, which the warriors bare in hand. Thus King\nEtzel came down to the Hunnish land. They spent the night at ancient\nHeimburg. (11) No one might know the press of folk, or with what force\nthey rode across the land. Ho, what fair women they found in Etzel's\nnative land! At mighty Misenburg (12) they boarded ship. The water which\nmen saw flowing there was covered with steeds and men, as if it were\nsolid earth. The wayworn ladies had their ease and rest. Many good ships\nwere lashed together, that neither waves nor flood might do them harm.\nUpon them many a goodly tent was spread, as if they still had both land\nand plain.\n\nFrom thence tidings came to Etzelburg, (13) at which both men and\nwives therein were glad. Helca's meiny, that aforetime waited on their\nmistress, passed many a happy day thereafter at Kriemhild's side. There\nmany a noble maid stood waiting, who had great grief through Helca's\ndeath. Kriemhild found still seven royal princesses there, through whom\nall Etzel's land was graced. For the meiny the high-born maiden Herrat\n(14) cared, the daughter of Helca's sister, beseen with many courtly\nvirtues, the betrothed of Dietrich, a royal child, King Nentwin's (15)\ndaughter; much worship she later had. Blithe of heart she was at the\ncoming of the guests; for this, too, mighty treasures were prepared.\nWho might tell the tale of how the king held court? Never had men lived\nbetter among the Huns with any queen.\n\nWhen that the king with his wife rode from the shore, the noble\nKriemhild was told full well who each one was; she greeted them the\nbetter. Ho, how royally she ruled in Helca's stead! She became acquaint\nwith much loyal service. Then the queen dealt out gold and vesture, silk\nand precious stones. Whatever she brought with her across the Rhine to\nHungary must needs be given all away. All the king's kinsmen and all\nhis liegemen then owned her service, so that Lady Helca never ruled so\nmightily as she, whom they now must serve till Kriemhild's death. The\ncourt and all the land lived in such high honors, that all time men\nfound the pastimes which each heart desired, through the favor of the\nking and his good queen.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Kiev\" (M.H.G. \"Kiew\") is now a government in the\n        southwestern part of Russia.  Its capital of the same name,\n        situated on the Dnieper, is the oldest of the better known\n        cities of Russia, and in the latter Middle Ages was an\n        important station of the Hanseatic league.\n   (2)  \"Petschenegers\", a Turkish tribe originally dwelling to the\n        north of the Caspian.  By conquest they acquired a kingdom\n        extending from the Don to Transylvania.  They were feared\n        for their ferociousness and because they continually invaded\n        the surrounding countries, especially Kiev.\n   (3)  \"Tulna\" (M.H.G. \"Tulne\") is the modern Tulln, a walled town\n        of Lower Austria, seventeen miles northwest of Vienna on the\n        Danube.\n   (4)  \"Ramung and Gibeck\" (M.H.G. \"Gibeche\") appear only in our\n        poem, nothing else is known of them.\n   (5)  \"Hornbog\" is frequently mentioned in the \"Thidreksaga\", but\n        nothing otherwise is known of him.\n   (6)  \"Hawart\" is perhaps identical with the Saxon duke Hadugot,\n        who is reputed to have played an important part in the\n        conquest of Thuringia.  He evidently comes from the Low\n        German version.\n   (7)  \"Iring\" is considered by Wilmanns to have been originally an\n        ancient deity, as the Milky Way is called \"Iringe straze\" or\n        \"Iringi\".  He occurs in a legend of the fall of the\n        Thuringian kingdom, where he played such a prominent role\n        that the Milky Way was named after him.  See W. Grimm,\n        \"Heldensage\", p. 394, who thinks, however, that the\n        connection of Iring with the Milky Way is the result of a\n        confusion.\n   (8)  \"Irnfried\" is considered to be Hermanfrid of Thuringia, who\n        was overthrown and killed in A.D. 535 by Theuderich with the\n        aid of the Saxons.  See Felix Dahn, \"Urgeschichte\", iii,\n        73-79.  He, too, comes from the Low German tradition.\n   (9)  \"Bloedel\" is Bleda, the brother of Attila, with whom he\n        reigned conjointly from A.D. 433 to 445.  In our poem the\n        name appears frequently with the diminutive ending, as\n        \"Bloedelin\".\n   (10) \"Werbel and Swemmel\", who doubtless owe their introduction\n        to some minstrel, enjoy special favor and are intrusted with\n        the important mission of inviting the Burgundians to Etzel's\n        court, an honor that would hardly be accorded to persons of\n        their rank.  Swemmel appears mostly in the diminutive form\n        \"Swemmelin\".\n   (11) \"Heimburg\" lies on the Danube near the Hungarian border.\n   (12) \"Misenburg\" is the modern Wieselburg on the Danube,\n        twenty-one miles southeast of Pressburg.\n   (13) \"Etzelburg\" was later identified with the old part of\n        Budapest, called in German \"Ofen\", through the influence of\n        Hungarish legends, but, as G. Heinrich has shown, had no\n        definite localization in the older M.H.G. epics.  See\n        Bleyer, PB. Belt. xxxi 433 and 506.  The name occurs in\n        documents as late as the fifteenth century.\n   (14) \"Herrat\", the daughter of King \"Nentwin\" is frequently\n        mentioned in the \"Thidreksaga\" as Dietrich's betrothed.  She\n        is spoken of as the exiled maid.\n   (15) \"Nentwin\" is not found in any other saga, and nothing else\n        is known of him.  See W. Grimm, \"Heldensage\", 103.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XXIII. How Kriemhild Thought To Avenge Her Wrongs.\n\nWith great worship of a truth they lived together until the seventh\nyear. In this time the queen was delivered of a son, at which King Etzel\ncould not have been more joyful. She would not turn back, until she\nbrought it to pass that Etzel's child was christened after the Christian\nrite. Men named it Ortlieb; (1) at this great joy arose over all of\nEtzel's lands. Whatever courtly breeding Lady Helca had possessed, Dame\nKriemhild practiced this full many a day. Herrat, the exiled maid, who\nin secret grieved full sore for Helca, taught her the customs. Well was\nshe known to the strangers and the home-folk. They vowed that never had\na kingdom had a better or more bounteous queen. This they held for true.\nShe bare this praise among the Huns until the thirteenth year. Now wot\nshe well, that none would thwart her, as royal men-at-arms still do to a\nprince's wife, and that all time she saw twelve kings stand before\nher. Over many a wrong she brooded, that had happed to her at home. She\nthought likewise on the many honors in the Nibelung land, which she\nhad there enjoyed and of which Hagen's hand had quite bereft her at\nSiegfried's death, and if perchance she might not make him suffer for\nhis deed. \"That would hap, if I might but bring him to this land.\" She\ndreamed that Giselher, her brother, walked often with her hand in hand.\nAlway she kissed him in her gentle slumber; later suffering came to\nboth. I ween, the foul fiend did counsel Kriemhild this, that she\nwithdrew her friendship from Giselher, whom for forgiveness' sake she\nhad kissed in the Burgundian land. At this hot tears again gan soil her\nrobe. Early and late it lay within her heart, how without fault of hers\nthey had made her wed a heathen man. Hagen and Gunther had brought her\nto this pass. This wish she seldom gave over in her heart. She thought:\n\"I am so mighty and have such great wealth, that I can do my foes an\ninjury yet. Full ready would I be for this towards Hagen of Troneg. My\nheart doth often yearn for my faithful kin. Might I be with those who\ndid me wrong, my lover's death would be well avenged. Scarce can I abide\nthis,\" spake Etzel's wife.\n\nAll the king's men, Kriemhild's warriors, bare her love in duty bound.\nOf the chamber Eckewart had charge, which won him friends. None might\ngainsay Dame Kriemhild's will. All time she thought: \"I will beg the\nking, that he in kindly wise may grant me to bring my kinsmen to the\nHunnish land.\" None marked the evil purpose of the queen. One night when\nshe lay by the king, and he did hold her in his arms, as he was wont\nto love the noble dame, who was dear to him as life, the high-born lady\nthought her of her foes. To the king she spake: \"Dear my lord, I would\nfain beseech you, by your grace, that ye would show me that ye did love\nmy kinsfolk, if I have earned the favor.\"\n\nThen spake the king (true was his heart): \"I'll give you to know however\nwell the knights may fare, I may well have joy of this, for never have I\nwon better kin through woman's love.\"\n\nAgain the queen spake: \"It hath been well told you, that I have\nhigh-born kin; therefore do I grieve that they so seldom reck to see me\nhere. I hear the folk aver that I be banished.\"\n\nThen spake king Etzel: \"Dear lady mine, and it think you not too far,\nI'll bid hither to my lands, from across the Rhine, whomso ye be fain to\nsee.\"\n\nThe lady joyed her when she heard his will. She spake: \"Would ye show me\nyour faith, my lord, then send envoys to Worms across the Rhine, through\nwhom I may tell my kinsfolk what I have in mind. Thus there will come\nhither to our land many a noble knight and a good.\"\n\nHe answered: \"It shall hap whenso ye bid. Ye might not be more glad to\nsee your kin than I to see the sons of the noble Uta. It doth irk me\nsore, that they have been strangers to us so long a time. If it please\nyou, dear lady mine, I would fain send my minstrels for your kinsmen to\nthe Burgundian land.\"\n\nHe bade the good minstrels be fetched straightway. Quickly they hasted\nto where the king sate by the queen. He told the twain they should be\nenvoys to the Burgundian land and bade full lordly weeds be made ready\nfor them. Clothing was prepared for four and twenty warriors, and the\nmessage was told them by the king, how they should bid Gunther and his\nliegemen hither. Kriemhild, the queen, talked with them apart. Then\nspake the mighty king: \"I'll tell you what to say. I offer to my kin my\nlove and service, that it may please them to ride hither to my land. But\nfew such welcome guests have I known, and if they perchance will fulfill\nmy wish, tell Kriemhild's kinsmen that they must not fall to come this\nsummer to my feast, for much of my joy doth lie upon the kinsmen of my\nwife.\"\n\nThen spake the minstrel, the proud Swemmel: \"When shall your feasting be\nin these lands, that I may tell it yonder to your kin?\"\n\nKing Etzel answered: \"On next midsummer's day.\"\n\n\"We'll do as ye command,\" spake then Werbel.\n\nThe queen bade them be brought secretly unto her bower, where she\nthen talked with the envoys. From this but little joy happed to many a\nknight. To the two messengers she spake: \"Now earn ye mickle goods, in\nthat ye do my pleasure full willingly and give the message which I send\nto my native land. I'll make you rich in goods and give you the lordly\nrobes. And if ye see any of my kin at Worms upon the Rhine, ye must not\ntell them that ye ever saw me sad of heart. Tender my service to the\nheroes brave and good. Beg that they do as the king doth bid and thus\npart me from all my grief. The Huns ween, I be without kith and kin.\nWere I a knight, I'd visit them myself at times. And say to Gernot, too,\nthe noble brother of mine, that none in the world doth love him more.\nBeg him to bring with him to this land our best of friends, that it may\nbe to our honor. Say also to Giselher, that he remember well, I never\ngained grief through fault of his. Therefore would mine eyes fain sue\nhim. For his great loyalty I would gladly have him here. Tell my mother\nalso of the honors which I have, and if Hagen of Troneg be minded to\nstay at home, who then should lead them through the lands? From a child\nhe knoweth the roads to Hungary.\" (2)\n\nThe envoys wist not, why it was done, that they should not let Hagen of\nTroneg stay upon the Rhine. Later it repented them full sore. With him\nmany a knight was doomed to a savage death. Letters and messages had now\nbeen given them. They rode forth rich in goods, and well could lead a\nsumptuous life. Of Etzel and his fair wife they took their leave, their\npersons adorned full well with goodly weeds.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Ortlieb\" is not historical, and in the \"Thidreksaga\"\n        Etzel's son is called Aldrian.  Bleyer, \"Die germanischen\n        Elemente der ungarischen, Hunnensage\", PB. Beit. xxxi, 570,\n        attempt to prove the identity of the names by means of a\n        form \"Arda\", giving on the one hand Hungarian \"Aladar\",\n        \"Aldrian\", on the other German \"Arte\", \"Orte\".\n   (2)  \"Hungary\".  According to the account in \"Waltharius\", Hagen\n        spent his youth as a hostage at Etzel's court.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XXIV. How Werbel And Swemmel Brought The Message.\n\nWhen that Etzel had sent his envoys to the Rhine, these tidings flew\nfrom land to land. Through full speedy messengers he begged and bade to\nhis high feasting. From this many a one met there his death. The envoys\nrode away from the Hunnish land to Burgundy. They were sent thither for\nthree noble kings and for their men, that these should come to Etzel;\ntherefore all gan haste. To Bechelaren they came a-riding, where served\nthem gladly. Rudeger and Gotelind and the child of them twain delayed\nnot to send their service through the envoys to the Rhine. Nor did\nthey let them part hence without gifts, that Etzel's men might fare\nthe better. To Uta and her sons Rudeger sent word that they had no more\nloyal margrave than he. To Brunhild, also, they tendered service and\ngood wishes, constant fealty and a loving mind. When they heard the\nspeech that the envoys would ride, the margravine begged God in heaven\nto keep them well.\n\nBefore the messengers were quite come through Bavarian land, the doughty\nWerbel sought out the good Bishop Pilgrim. What word he sent to his kin\nupon the Rhine, that I know not, but naught but ruddy gold he gave the\nmessengers for love and let them ride.\n\nThen spake the bishop: \"And might I see them here, my sister's sons, I\nshould be blithe of mood, for full seldom can I come to them upon the\nRhine.\"\n\nWhat roads they traveled to the Rhine, I cannot tell. None robbed them\nof their silver and their weeds; men feared their master's wrath. Certes\nthe noble high-born king was a mighty lord.\n\nWithin a twelfth night Werbel and Swemmel came to the Rhine, to the land\nof Worms. To the kings and their liegemen tidings were told that there\ncame strange messengers. Gunther, the lord of the Rhineland, gan ask:\n\"Who will do us to wit, from whence these strangers ride into our land?\"\n\nThis none wist, till Hagen of Troneg saw them, who then spake to\nGunther: \"New tidings be come to us, as I will vouch, for I have seen\nKing Etzel's minstrels here. Them your sister hath sent to the Rhine;\nfor their master's sake we must give them a kindly welcome.\"\n\nAlready they were riding up before the palace; never did a prince's\nminstrels journey in more lordly wise. Straightway the king's meiny\nbade them welcome. Men gave them lodgings and bade take in charge their\ntrappings. Their traveling clothes were rich and so well fashioned that\nwith honor they might come before the king, but they would not wear them\nlonger there at court, and asked if there were any that desired them.\nAt the selfsame moment folk were found who fain would take them, and to\nthese they were sent. Then the strangers donned far better weeds, such\nas well befitted king's messengers for to wear.\n\nThen Etzel's retainers went by leave to where the king was sitting; men\nsaw this gladly. Hagen sprang courteously towards the messengers and\ngreeted them in loving wise. For this the squires did say him thanks.\nThat he might know their tidings, he gan ask how Etzel fared and all his\nmen. Then spake the minstrel: \"Never did the land stand better, nor were\nthe folk more merry; now know that of a truth.\"\n\nTo the host they went; the hall was full. There men received the guests,\nas one must do by right, when kindly greetings be sent to the lands of\nother kings. Werbel found full many warriors there at Gunther's side.\nIn courteous wise the king gan greet them: \"Ye minstrels of the Huns\nand all your fellowship, be ye welcome. Hath the mighty Etzel sent you\nhither to the Burgundian land?\"\n\nTo the king they bowed; then spake Werbel: \"My dear lord, and also\nKriemhild, your sister, do send you loyal service to this land. They\nhave sent us to you knights in all good faith.\"\n\nSpake the mighty prince: \"Merry am I at this tale. How fareth Etzel,\" so\nasked the knight, \"and Kriemhild, my sister, of the Hunnish land?\"\n\nQuoth the minstrel: \"This tale I'll tell you; ye should know that never\nhave folk fared better than the twain and all their followers, their\nkinsmen and their vassals. They joyed them of the journey, as we\ndeparted hence.\"\n\n\"Gramercy for his greetings which he hath sent me, and for those of\nmy sister, sith it standeth so that the king and his men live thus in\nhappiness, for I did ask the news in fear and trembling.\"\n\nThe two young princes were now also come, for they had but just heard\nthe tale. For the sake of his sister Giselher, the youth, was fain to\nsee the envoys. He spake to them in loving wise: \"Ye messengers, be\nvery welcome to us. An' ye would ride more often hither to the Rhine,\nye would find friends here whom ye would be glad to see. Little of harm\nshall hap you in this land.\"\n\n\"We trust you in all honor,\" spake then Swemmel. \"I could not convey to\nyou with all my wits, how lovingly king Etzel and your noble sister, who\nlive in such great worship, have sent their greetings. The queen doth\nmind you of your love and fealty, and that your heart and mind did ever\nhold her dear. But first and foremost we be sent to the king, that ye\nmay deign to ride to Etzel's land. The mighty Etzel enjoined us strictly\nto beg you this and sent the message to you all, that if ye would not\nlet your sister see you, he fain would know what he had done you that\nye be so strange to him and to his lands. An' ye had never known the\nqueen, yet would he fain bring it to pass that consent to come and see\nhim. It would please him well if that might hap.\"\n\nThen spake King Gunther: \"In a sennight I will tell you the tale of what\nI have bethought me with my friends. Meanwhile hie you to your lodgings\nand rest you well.\"\n\nQuoth Werbel again: \"And could that be that we might see my lady, the\nroyal Uta, afore we take our easement?\"\n\nThe noble Giselher spake then full courteously: \"None shall hinder that.\nAn' ye would go before her, ye will do in full my mother's wish, for she\nwill gladly see you for my sister's sake, the Lady Kriemhild; she will\nmake you welcome.\"\n\nGiselher led them to where they found the queen. Gladly she gazed upon\nthe envoys from the Hunnish land. Through her courtesie she gave them\ngentle greeting. The good and courtly messengers then told their tale.\n\"My lady offereth you of a truth,\" so spake Swemmel, \"her love and duty.\nMight that be that she could see you oft, ye may well believe she had no\nbetter joy in all the world.\"\n\nThen spake the queen: \"That may not be. However gladly I would often\nsee the dear daughter of mine, yet doth the wife of the noble king live,\nalas, too far from me. May she and Etzel be ever blessed. Pray let me\nknow before ye leave, when ye would hence again; not in a long time have\nI seen messengers so gladly as I have you.\" The squires vowed that this\nshould hap.\n\nThose from the Hunnish land now rode to their lodgings. Meanwhile the\nmighty king had sent to fetch his friends. The noble Gunther asked his\nliegemen how they liked the speech. Many a one gan say that the king\nwell might ride to Etzel's land. The very best among them advised him\nthis, save Hagen alone; him misliked it sore. Privily he spake to the\nking: \"Ye fight against yourself; ye know full well what we have done.\nWe may well be ever on our guard with Kriemhild, for with mine own hand\nI slew her husband to death. How durst we ride to Etzel's land?\"\n\nThen spake the mighty king: \"My sister gave over her wrath; with a kiss\nshe lovingly forgave what we had done her, or ever she rode away. Unless\nbe that the feud doth stand against you alone.\"\n\nQuoth Hagen: \"Now let the messengers from the Huns beguile you not,\nwhatsoever they say. Would ye visit Kriemhild, easily may ye lose there\nboth life and honor. Full long of vengeance is King Etzel's wife.\"\n\nThen spake Prince Gernot to the council: \"Why should we give it over,\nbecause ye rightly fear death in the Hunnish lands? It were an ill deed\nnot to go to see our sister.\"\n\nThen spake Prince Giselher to the knight: \"Sith ye know you to be\nguilty, friend Hagen, ye should stay at home and guard you well, and let\nthose who dare ride with us to my sister.\"\n\nAt this the knight of Troneg grew wroth of mood. \"I will not that ye\ntake any with you on the way, who durst better ride to court than I.\nSith ye will not turn you, I will well show you that.\"\n\nThen spake the master of the kitchen, Rumolt, the knight: \"Ye can well\nhave the strangers and the home-folk cared for here, after your own\ndesire, for ye have full store of goods. I ween, Hagen hath never given\nyou for a hostage; (1) but if ye will not follow him, Rumolt adviseth\nyou, for I be bound to you in fealty and duty, that for my sake ye abide\nhere and leave King Etzel there with Kriemhild. How might it fare more\ngently with you in all the world? Ye be well able to stand before your\nfoes; so deck your body out with brave attire, drink the best of wine,\nand pay court to stately ladies. Thereto ye be served with the best of\nfood that ever king did gain in the world. And were this not so, yet\nshould ye tarry here for your fair wife's sake, before ye risk your life\nso childishly. Wherefore I do counsel you to stay at home. Your lands be\nrich, and one can redeem his pledges better at home than among the Huns.\nWho knoweth how it standeth there? Ye should stay at home, Sire, that is\nRumolt's counsel.\"\n\n\"We will not stay,\" quoth Gernot. \"Sith my sister and the mighty Etzel\nhave bidden us in such friendly wise, why should we not accept? He that\nliketh not to go may stay at home.\"\n\nTo This Hagen answered: \"Take not my speech amiss, however ye may fare.\nIn all truth I counsel you, would ye guard your lives, then ride to the\nHuns well armed. Sith ye will not turn you, send for your men-at-arms,\nthe best ye have or can find in any part; from among them all I'll\nchoose a thousand doughty knights. Then Kriemhild's evil mood can bring\nyou naught of harm.\"\n\n\"This rede I'll gladly follow,\" spake straightway the king. He then\nbade messengers ride far and wide throughout his lands. Three thousand\nchampions or more they fetched. Little they weened to gain such grievous\nwoe. Full merrily they rode to Gunther's court. Men bade give all that\nwere to ride forth from Burgundy both steeds and trappings. The king\ngained full many a one with willing mood. Then Hagen of Troneg bade his\nbrother Dankwart lead eighty of their warriors to the Rhine. In knightly\nguise they came; these doughty men took with them harness and trappings\ninto Gunther's land. Then came bold Folker, a noble minstrel he,\nwith thirty of his men for the journey to Kriemhild's court. They had\nclothing such as a king might wear. Gunther bade make known, he would to\nthe Hunnish land. I'll do you now to wit who Folker was. He was a noble\nlord, the liege of many doughty knights in Burgundy. A minstrel he was\ncalled, for that he wist how to fiddle. Hagen chose a thousand whom\nhe well knew; oft had he seen what their hands had wrought in press of\nbattle, or in whatever else they did. None might aver aught else of them\nthan doughtiness.\n\nThe tarrying irked Kriemhild's envoys sore, for great was their fear of\ntheir lord. Daily they craved leave to go; this Hagen would not grant\nthrough craftiness. To his master he spake: \"We should well guard\nagainst letting them ride away, until we ourselves fare forth a sennight\nlater to Etzel's land. If any beareth us ill will, the better shall we\nwot it. Nor may Lady Kriemhild then make ready that through any plan of\nhers, men do us harm. An' this be her will, she'll fare full ill, for\nmany a chosen liegeman had we hence.\"\n\nShields and saddles, and all the garments that they would take with them\nto Etzel's land, were now full ready for many a brave man-at-arms. Now\nmen bade Kriemhild's messengers go before King Gunther. When they were\ncome, Gernot spake: \"The king will do as Etzel asked us, we will gladly\ncome to his high feast to see our sister; be no more in doubt of that.\"\n\nThen King Gunther spake: \"Wist ye how to tell us, when this feast shall\nbe, or in what time we should go thither?\"\n\nSwemmel replied: \"Of a truth it shall be on next midsummer's day.\"\n\nThe king gave them leave (this had not happed as yet), if they would\nfain see Lady Brunhild, to go before her with his free will. This Folker\nhindered, which pleased her much. \"Forsooth, my Lady Brunhild is not\nso well of mood, that ye may see her,\" spake the good knight. \"Bide the\nmorrow, and men will let you see her.\" When they weened to gaze upon\nher, it might not hap.\n\nThen the mighty prince, who liked the envoys well, through his own\ncourtesie, bade his gold be carried forth on the broad shields of which\nhe had great store. Rich gifts were also given them by his kinsmen\nGiselher and Gernot, Gere and Ortwin. Well they showed, that they were\ngenerous, too. They offered the messengers such rich gifts, that for\nfear of their lord they durst not take them.\n\nNow spake the envoy Werbel to the king: \"Sir King, let your gifts stay\nhere at home. We may carry none away; our lord forbade that we take\naught of gifts. Then too, there is but little need.\"\n\nThen the ruler of the Rhine waxed wroth, that they should thus refuse\nthe gifts of so mighty a king. At last they were forced to take his gold\nand weeds, the which they later bare to Etzel's land. They would fain\nsee the Lady Uta, or ever they departed hence, so the doughty Giselher\nbrought the minstrels before his mother Uta. The lady sent the message,\nthat whatever honors her daughter had, this gave her joy. Then the queen\nbade give the minstrels of her edgings and her gold, for the sake of\nKing Etzel and Kriemhild whom she loved. Gladly they took the gifts; in\ngood faith 'twas done.\n\nThe messengers had now taken their leave from thence, from wives and\nmen. Merrily they rode away to Swabia. Thither Gernot bade his knights\nescort them, that none might do them harm. When they parted from those\nwho should have them in their care, Etzel's power did guard them on all\ntheir ways, so that none bereft them of either horse or trappings. With\ngreat speed they hasted towards Etzel's land. To all the friends they\nwot of, they made known that in a short time the Burgundians would come\nhither from the Rhine to the Hunnish land. To the Bishop Pilgrim too,\nthe tale was told. As they rode adown the highway before Bechelaren, men\ndelayed not to tell Rudeger and Gotelind, the margrave's wife. Merry she\ngrew that she should see them. Men saw the minstrels hasting with the\ntidings. They found King Etzel in the town of Gran. (2) Greeting after\ngreeting they gave the king, of which full many had been sent him. He\nblushed for very joy.\n\nHappy of mood was the queen, when she heard the tale aright that her\nbrothers should come into the land. She gave the minstrels great gifts\nas meed. This was done for honor's sake. She spake: \"Now tell me, both\nof you, Werbel and Swemmel, which of my kin are minded to be at the\nfeast? Will the best of those we bade come hither to this land? Pray\ntell me what Hagen said when he heard the tale.\"\n\nThe minstrel answered: \"He came on a morning early to the council,\nand but little of fair speech he spake thereby. When they pledged the\njourney hither to the Hunnish lands, that was as words of death to the\nwrathful Hagen. Your brothers, the three kings, will come in lordly\nmood. Whoever else may come, this tale I know not of a surety. The brave\nminstrel Folker vowed to ride along.\"\n\n\"Little do I reck,\" spake the queen, \"whether I ever see Folker here. Of\nHagen I be fond, he is a doughty hero. My spirits stand high that we may\nsee him here.\"\n\nThen the queen went to where she saw the king. How lovingly Dame\nKriemhild spake: \"How like you these tales, dear my lord? What I have\never craved, shall now be brought to pass.\"\n\n\"Thy wish is my joy,\" spake then the king. \"Never have I been so blithe\nof mine own kin, when they should come hither to my lands. Through the\nkindness of thy kinsmen my care hath fled away.\"\n\nKing Etzel's officers bade everywhere palace and hall be purveyed with\nbenches for the guests which were to come. Thereafter the king heard\nfrom them mickle weeping.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Hostage\", i.e., he has never betrayed you to your enemies.\n   (2)  \"Gran\", royal free city of Hungary, on the right bank of the\n        Danube opposite the influx of the Gran, twenty-four miles\n        northwest of Budapest.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XXV. How The Lords All Journeyed To The Huns.\n\nNow let us leave the tale of how they lived at Etzel's court. More\nhigh-mettled warriors never rode in such lordly wise to the land of any\nking; they had whatever they listed, both of weapons and of weeds. The\nruler of the Rhineland clad his men, a thousand and sixty knights, (1)\nas I have heard, and nine thousand footmen, for the courtly feast. Those\nthey left at home bewailed it in after time. The trappings were now\nborne across the court at Worms; then spake an aged bishop from Speyer\nto fair Uta: \"Our friends would journey to the feasting. May God\npreserve their honor there.\"\n\nThe noble Lady Uta then spake to her sons: \"Pray tarry here, good\nknights. Me-dreamed last night of direst woe, how all the fowls in this\nland lay dead.\"\n\n\"Who recketh aught of dreams,\" quoth Hagen, \"he wotteth not how to say\nthe proper words, when 'twould bring him great store of honors. I wish\nthat my lord go to court to take his leave. We must gladly ride to\nEtzel's land. The arms of doughty heroes may serve kings there full\nwell, where we shall behold Kriemhild's feast.\"\n\nHagen counseled the journey, but later it rued him sore. He would have\nadvised against it, but that Gernot encountered him with such rude\nwords. Of Siegfried, Lady Kriemhild's husband, he minded him; he spake:\n\"Because of him Hagen will not make the journey to the court.\"\n\nAt this Hagen of Troneg spake: \"I do it not from fear. Heroes, when\nit please you, begin the work. Certes I will gladly ride with you to\nEtzel's land.\" Later he carved to pieces many a helm and shield.\n\nThe skiffs were now made ready; many a knight stood there. Thither men\nbare whatever clothes they had. Busy they were until the even tide, then\nfull merrily they set forth from home. Tents and pavilions were raised\nupon the green beyond the Rhine. When this had happed, the king bade\nhis fair wife tarry with him. That night she still embraced her stately\nknight. Trumpeting and fluting rose early on the morn, as sign that they\nshould ride. Then to the work they went. Whoso held in his arms his love\ncaressed the fair. Later King Etzel's wife parted them with woe.\n\nFair Uta's sons, they had a liegeman, brave and true. When they would\nhence, he spake to the king in secret wise his mind. Quoth he: \"I must\nbewail that ye make this journey to the court.\" He was hight Rumolt and\nwas a hero of his hands. He spake: \"To whom will ye leave your folk and\nlands? O that none can turn you warriors from your mind! These tidings\nfrom Kriemhild have never thought me good.\"\n\n\"Be the land and my little child, too, commended to thy care; serve well\nthe ladies, that is my wish. Comfort any thou dost see in tears. Certes\nKing Etzel's bride will never do us harm.\"\n\nThe steeds were now ready for the kings and their men. Many a one who\nlived there high of spirit, parted thence with loving kisses. This many\na stately dame must later needs bewail. When the doughty knights were\nseen go toward the steeds, men spied full many ladies standing sadly\nthere. Their hearts did tell them that this long parting boded them\ngreat harm. This doth never ease the heart.\n\nThe doughty Burgundians started on their way. Then in the land a mighty\nturmoil rose; on either side of the mountains there wept both men and\nwives. But however the folk might bear them, the knights jogged merrily\nalong. With them rode the men of Nibelung, a thousand hauberks strong,\nwho had left many comely dames at home whom they never saw again.\nSiegfried's wounds gave Kriemhild pain.\n\nGunther's liegemen now wended their way towards the river Main, up\nthrough Eastern Frankland. (2) Thither Hagen led them, for well he wot\nthe way. Dankwart was their marshal, the hero from Burgundian land. As\nthey rode away from the Eastern Frankland towards Swanfield, (3) men\ncould tell the princes and their kin, the worshipful knights, by their\nlordly bearing. On the twelfth morning the king came to the Danube.\nHagen of Troneg rode foremost of them all, giving to the Nibelungs\nhelpful cheer. On the sandy shore the bold knight dismounted and bound\nhis steed full soon to a tree. The river was swollen, the skiffs hidden\naway. Great fear the Nibelungs had, as to how they might come across,\nfor the stream was much too broad. Full many a lusty knight alighted on\nthe ground.\n\n\"Ill may it lightly hap with thee here,\" quoth Hagen, \"O ruler of the\nRhine. Now mayst thou thyself see the river is swollen, its flood is\nmighty. Certes, I ween, we shall lose here many a worthy knight to-day.\"\n\n\"Why dost thou rebuke me, Hagen?\" spake the lordly king. \"For thine own\nprowess' sake discomfit me no more, but seek us the ford across to the\nother bank, that we may take hence both steeds and trappings.\"\n\n\"Forsooth,\" quoth Hagen, \"I be not so weary of life, that I would drown\nme in these broad waves. Sooner shall men die by my hands in Etzel's\nlands. That will I well. Stay by the water's side, ye proud knights and\ngood, and I will seek the ferryman myself along the stream, who shall\nferry us across to Gelfrat's (4) land.\"\n\nThen the stalwart Hagen seized his good shield. Well was he armed. The\nshield he bare along, his helmet bound upon his head, bright enow it\nwas. Above his breastplate he bare a sword so broad that most fiercely\nit cut on either edge. To and fro he sought the ferryman. He heard the\nsplash of water and began to listen. In a fair spring wise women (5)\nwere bathing for to cool them off. Now Hagen spied them and crept toward\nthem stealthily. When they grew ware of this, they hurried fast to\nescape him; glad enow they were of this. The hero took their clothes,\nbut did them naught else of harm.\n\nThen spake one of the mermaids (Hadburg she was called): \"Sir Knight\nHagen, we'll do you here to wit, an' ye give us our weeds again, bold\nknight, how ye will fare upon this journey to the Hunnish court.\"\n\nLike birds they floated before him on the flood. Therefore him-thought\ntheir senses strong and good; he believed the more what they would tell\nhim. Well they answered what he craved of them. Hadburg spake again: \"Ye\nmay safely ride to Etzel's land. I'll stake my troth at once as pledge,\nthat heroes never rode better to any realm for such great honors. Now\nbelieve that in truth.\"\n\nIn his heart Hagen was joyous at this rede. He gave them back their\nclothes and no longer tarried. As they donned their strange attire, they\ntold him rightly of the journey to Etzel's land. The other mermaid spake\n(Siegelind she hight): \"I will warn thee, Hagen, son of Aldrian. (6) For\nthe sake of her weeds mine aunt hath lied to thee. An' thou comest to\nthe Huns, thou wilt be sore deceived. Time is, that thou shouldst turn\nagain, for ye heroes be bidden, that ye may die in Etzel's land. Whose\nrideth hither, hath taken death by the hand.\"\n\nAnswered Hagen: \"Ye deceive us needlessly. How might it come to pass\nthat we should all die there, through anybody's hate?\"\n\nThen gan they tell him the tale still more knowingly. The same one spake\nagain: \"It must needs be that none of you shall live, save the king's\nchaplain; this we know full well. He will come again safe and sound to\nGunther's land.\"\n\nThen spake bold Hagen, fierce of mood: \"It were not well to tell my\nlords that we should all lose our lives among the Huns. Now show us over\nthe stream, thou wisest of all wives.\"\n\nShe answered: \"Sith ye will not turn you from the journey, up yonder\nwhere an inn doth stand, by the waterside, there is a ferryman and\nelsewhere none.\"\n\nAt once he ceased to ask for further tidings. After the angry warrior\nshe called: \"Pray bide a time, Sir Hagen! Forsooth ye are too much in\nhaste. List further to the tale of how ye may cross to the other bank.\nThe lord of these marches beareth the name of Else. (7) His brother is\nhight Knight Gelfrat, a lord in the Bavarian land. 'Twill go hard with\nyou, an' ye will cross his land. Ye must guard you well and deal full\nwisely with the ferryman. So grim of mood is he that he'll not let you\nlive, unless be that ye have your wits about you with the knight. An'\nye will that he guide you, then give him his meed. He guardeth this land\nand is liegeman unto Gelfrat. And cometh he not betimes, so call across\nthe flood and say, ye hight Amelrich. (8) He was a doughty here that;\nbecause of a feud did void this land. The ferryman will come when he\nheareth this name.\"\n\nHaughty Hagen bowed then to the dames; he spake no more, but held his\npeace. Then by the river he hied him higher up upon the sandy shore,\nto where he found an inn upon the other bank. Loudly he began to call\nacross the flood: \"Now come and fetch me, ferryman,\" quoth the good\nknight, \"and I will give thee as meed an arm ring of ruddy gold. Know,\nthat of this passage I have great need in truth.\"\n\nSo noble was the ferryman that it behooved him not to serve, therefore\nhe full seldom took wage of any wight. His squires, too, were full lofty\nof mood. All this time Hagen still stood alone, this side of the flood.\nHe called with might and main, that all the water rang, for mickle and\ngreat was the hero's strength. \"Now fetch me. I am Amelrich, Else's\nliegeman, that because of a great feud did void these lands.\"\n\nHigh upon his spear (9) he offered him an arm band, bright and fair it\nwas, of ruddy gold, that one should ferry him over to Gelfrat's land.\nThe haughty ferryman, the which was newly wed himself, did take the oar\nin hand. As he would earn Hagen's gold so red, therefore he died the\nsword-grim death at the hands of the knight. The greed for great goods\n(10) doth give an evil end. Speedily the boatman rowed across to the\nsandy bank. When he found no trace of him whose name he heard, wroth he\ngrew in earnest. When he spied Hagen, with fierce rage he spake to the\nhero: \"Ye may perchance hight Amelrich, but ye are not like him whom\nI weened here. By father and by mother he was my brother. Sith ye have\nbewrayed me, ye may stay on this hither shore.\"\n\n\"No, by the mighty God,\" spake then Hagen, \"I am a stranger knight and\nhave warriors in my care. Now take ye kindly my meed to-day and ferry me\nover. I am in truth your friend.\"\n\nThe ferryman replied: \"This may not be. My dear lords have foes,\nwherefore I never ferry strangers to this land. If ye love your life,\nstep out quickly on the sand.\"\n\n\"Now do it not,\" spake Hagen; \"sad is my mind. Take this good gold from\nme as a token of my love and ferry us across: a thousand horse and just\nas many men.\"\n\nThe grim boatman answered: \"'Twill ne'er be done.\" He raised a mighty\nrudder oar, mickle and broad, and struck at Hagen (full wroth he grew\nat this), so that he fell upon his knees in the boat. The lord of Troneg\nhad never met so fierce a ferryman. Still more the boatman would vex the\nhaughty stranger. He smote with an oar, so that it quite to-broke (11)\nover Hagen's head (a man of might was he); from this the ferryman of\nElse took great harm. Hagen, fierce of mood, seized straightway his\nsheath, wherein he found his sword. His head he struck off and cast\nit on the ground. Eftsoon these tidings were made known to the proud\nBurgundians. At the very moment that he slew the boatman, the skiff gan\ndrifting down the stream. Enow that irked him. Weary he grew before he\nbrought it back. King Gunther's liegeman pulled with might and main.\nWith passing swift strokes the stranger turned it, until the sturdy oar\nsnapped in his hand. He would hence to the knights out upon the shore.\nNone other oar he had. Ho, how quickly he bound it with a shield strap,\na narrow band! Towards a wood he floated down the stream, where he found\nhis sovran standing by the shore.\n\nMany a stately man went down to meet him. The doughty knights and good\nreceived him with a kindly greeting. When they beheld in the skiff the\nblood reeking from a gaping wound which he had dealt the ferryman, Hagen\nwas plied enow with questions by the knights. When that King Gunther\nspied the hot blood swirling in the skiff, how quickly he spake:\n\"Wherefore tell ye me not, Hagen, whither the ferryman be come? I ween\nyour prowess hath bereft him of his life.\"\n\nAt this he answered craftily: \"When I found the skiff hard by a willow\ntree, I loosed it with my hand. I have seen no ferryman here to-day, nor\nhath harm happed to any one through fault of mine.\"\n\nThen spake Sir Gernot of Burgundy: \"I must needs fear the death of dear\nfriends to-day. Sith we have no boatmen here at hand, how shall we come\nover? Therefore I must perforce stand sad.\"\n\nLoudly then called Hagen: \"Ye footmen, lay the trappings down upon the\ngrass. I bethink me that once I was the very best of boatmen that one\nmight find along the Rhine. I trow to bring you all safe across to\nGelfrat's land.\"\n\nThey struck the horses, that these might the sooner come across the\nflood; passing well they swam, for the mighty waves bereft them of not\na one. Some few drifted far adown the stream, as did befit their\nweariness. Then the knights bare to the skiff their gold and weeds, sith\nthere was no help for the crossing. Hagen played the steersman, and so\nhe ferried full many mighty warriors over to the sandy shore, into the\nunknown land. First he took across a thousand noble knights, then his\nown men-at-arms. Still there were more to come. Nine thousand footmen he\nferried over to the land. Aught but idle was Hagen's hand that day. When\nhe had carried them all safe across the flood, the doughty knight and\ngood bethought him of the strange tales which the wild mermaids had told\nhim afore. For this cause the king's chaplain near lost his life. He\nfound the priest close by the chapel luggage, leaning with his hand upon\nthe relics. Little might that boot him. When Hagen spied him, ill fared\nit with the hapless priest; he threw him from the skiff in haste. Enow\nof them called out: \"Hold on, Sir Hagen, hold!\"\n\nGiselher, the youth, gan rage, but Hagen let none come between. Then\nspake Sir Gernot of Burgundy: \"What availeth you now, Hagen, the\nchaplain's death? Had another done the deed, 'twould have irked you\nsore. For what cause have ye sworn enmity to the priest?\"\n\nThe clerk (12) now tried to swim with might and main, for he would fain\nsave his life, if perchance any there would help him. That might not be,\nfor the stalwart Hagen was wroth of mood. He thrust him to the bottom,\nthe which thought no one good. When the poor priest saw naught of help,\nhe turned him back again. Sore was he discomfited, but though he could\nnot swim, yet did God's hand help him, so that he came safe and sound\nto the land again. There the poor clerk stood and shook his robe. Hagen\nmarked thereby that naught might avail against the tidings which the\nwild mermaids told him. Him-thought: \"These knights must lose their\nlives.\"\n\nWhen the liegemen of the three kings unloaded the skiff and had borne\nall away which they had upon it, Hagen brake it to pieces and threw it\nin the flood, at which the bold knights and good did marvel much.\n\n\"Wherefore do ye that, brother,\" quoth Dankwart, \"how shall we come\nover, when we ride homeward from the Huns, back to the Rhine?\"\n\nLater Hagen told him that might not be. The hero of Troneg spake: \"I\ndo it in the hope that if we have a coward on this journey, who through\nfaint-heartedness would run away, that in this stream he may die a\nshameful death.\"\n\nThey had with them from Burgundy land a hero of his hands, the which\nwas named Folker. Wisely he spake all his mind. Whatever Hagen did,\nit thought the fiddler good. Their steeds were now ready, the sumpters\nladen well. On the journey they had taken no harm that irked them, save\nthe king's chaplain alone. He must needs wander back on foot to the\nRhine again.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"a thousand and sixty\".  This does not agree with the\n        account in Adventure XXIV, where we read of a thousand of\n        Hagen's men, eighty of Dankwart's, and thirty of Folker's.\n        The nine thousand foot soldiers mentioned here are a later\n        interpolation, as the \"Thidreksaga\" speaks of only a\n        thousand all told.\n   (2)  \"Eastern Frankland\", or East Franconia, is the ancient\n        province of \"Franconia Orientalis\", the region to the east\n        of the Spessart forest, including the towns of Fulda,\n        W\u00fcrzburg and Barnberg.  In _Biterolf_ Dietlieb journeys\n        through Eastern Frankland to the Danube.\n   (3)  \"Swanfield\" (M.H.G. \"Swanevelde\") is the ancient province of\n        \"Sualafeld\" between the Rezat and the Danube.\n   (4)  \"Gelfrat\" is a Bavarian lord and the brother of \"Else\",\n        mentioned below.  Their father's name was also Else.\n   (5)  \"Wise women\", a generic name for all supernatural women of\n        German mythology.  While it is not specifically mentioned,\n        it is probable that the wise women, or mermaids, as they are\n        also called here, were 'swan maidens', which play an\n        important role in many legends and are endowed with the gift\n        of prophecy.  They appear in the form of swans, and the\n        strange attire of the wise women mentioned here refers to\n        the so-called swan clothes which they wore and which enabled\n        Hagen to recognize them as supernatural beings.  On bathing\n        they lay aside this garment, and he who obtains possession\n        of it has them in his power.  This explains their eagerness\n        to give Hagen information, if he will return their garments\n        to them.  For an account of them see Grimm's \"Mythologie\",\n        355.\n   (6)  \"Aldrian\" is not an historical personage; the name is merely\n        a derivative of \"aldiro\", 'the elder', and signifies\n        'ancestor', just as Uta means 'ancestress'.  In the\n        \"Thidreksaga\" Aldrian is the king of the Nibelung land and\n        the father of Gunther, Giselher, and Gernot, whereas Hagen\n        is the son of an elf by the same mother.\n   (7)  Else appears also in \"Biterolf\"; in the \"Thidreksaga\" he is\n        called \"Elsung\", the younger, as his father bore the same\n        name.  See Adventure XXV, note 4.\n   (8)  \"Amelrich\" is the ferryman's brother.\n   (9)  \"Spear\".  It was the custom to offer presents on a spear\n        point, perhaps to prevent the recipient from treacherously\n        using his sword.  Compare the similar description in the\n        \"Hildebrandslied\", 37, where we are told that gifts should\n        be received with the spear.\n   (10) \"Goods\".  In the \"Thidreksaga\" the ferryman desires the ring\n        for his young wife, which explains better the allusion to\n        marriage and the desire for wealth.\n   (11) \"To-broke\", see Adventure II, note 9.\n   (12) \"Clerk\", 'priest'.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XXVI (1) How Gelfrat Was Slain By Dankwart.\n\nNow when all were come upon the shore, the king gan ask: \"Who will show\nus the right roads through this land, that we go not astray?\"\n\nThen the sturdy Folker spake: \"For this I alone will have a care.\"\n\n\"Now hold,\" quoth Hagen, \"both knight and squire. Certes, me-thinketh\nright that we should heed our friends. With full monstrous tales I'll\nmake you acquaint: we shall never come again to the Burgundian land.\nTwo mermaids told me early in the morning that we should not come back\nagain. I will now counsel you what ye do: ye must arm you, ye heroes,\nfor we have mighty foes. Ye must guard you well and ride in warlike\nguise. I thought to catch these mermaids in a lie. They swore that none\nof us would come home safe and sound, save the chaplain alone. Therefore\nwould I fain have drowned him to-day.\"\n\nThese tidings flew from band to band and valiant heroes grew pale from\nwoe, as they began to fear a grewsome death on this journey to Etzel's\ncourt. Forsooth they had great need. When they had crossed at Moering,\n(2) where Else's ferryman had lost his life, Hagen spake again: \"Sith I\nhave gained me foes upon the way, we shall surely be encountered. I slew\nthis same ferryman early on the morn to-day. Well they wot the tale. Now\nlay on boldly, so that it may go hard with Gelfrat and Else, should they\nmatch our fellowship here to-day. I know them to be so bold that 'twill\nnot be left undone. Let the steeds jog on more gently, that none ween we\nbe a-fleeing on the road.\"\n\n\"This counsel I will gladly follow,\" quoth Giselher, the knight; \"but\nwho shall guide the fellowship across the land?\"\n\nThey answered: \"This let Folker do; the valiant minstrel knoweth both\nroad and path.\"\n\nEre the wish was fully spoken, men saw the doughty fiddler standing\nthere well armed. On his head he bound his helmet, of lordly color was\nhis fighting gear. On his spear shaft he tied a token, the which was\nred. Later with the kings he fell into direst need.\n\nTrustworthy tidings of the ferryman's death were now come to Gelfrat's\nears. The mighty Else had also heard the tale. Loth it was to both; they\nsent to fetch their heroes, who soon stood ready. In a passing short\ntime, as I'll let you hear, one saw riding towards them those who\nhad wrought scathe and monstrous wounds in mighty battles. Full seven\nhundred or more were come to Gelfrat. When they began to ride after\ntheir savage foes, their lords did lead them, of a truth. A deal too\nstrong they hasted after the valiant strangers; they would avenge their\nwrath. Therefore many of the lordings' friends were later lost.\n\nHagen of Troneg had well planned it (how might a hero ever guard his\nkinsmen better), that he had in charge the rear guard, with his liegemen\nand his brother Dankwart. This was wisely done.\n\nThe day had passed away; the night was come. For his friends he feared\nboth harm and woe, as beneath their shields they rode through the\nBavarian land. A short time thereafter the heroes were assailed. On\neither side of the highway and in the rear hard by they heard the beat\nof hoofs. Their foes pressed on too hard. Then spake hold Dankwart:\n\"They purpose to attack us here, so hind on your helmets, for that be\nwell to do.\"\n\nThey stayed their journey, as though it must needs he; in the gloom\nthey spied the gleam of shining shields. Hagen would no longer keep his\npeace; he called: \"Who chaseth us upon the highway?\"\n\nTo this Gelfrat must needs give answer. Quoth the margrave of Bavaria:\n\"We seek our foes and have galloped on behind you. I know not who slew\nmy ferryman to-day, but it doth rue me enow, for he was a hero of his\nhands.\"\n\nThen spake Hagen of Troneg: \"And was then the ferryman thine? The fault\nwas mine, he would not ferry us over, so I slew the knight. Forsooth I\nhad great need, for I had sheer gained at his hands my death. As meed I\noffered him gold and trappings, that he ferry me across to thy land, Sir\nKnight. This angered him so greatly that he smote me with a mighty oar.\nAt this I waxed grim enow. I seized my sword and fended him his anger\nwith a grievous wound. Thus the hero met his death. I'll make amends, as\ndoth think thee best.\"\n\n\"Well I wist,\" spake Gelfrat, \"when Gunther and his fellowship rode\nhither, that Hagen of Troneg would do us harm. Now he shall not live;\nthe knight must stand for the ferryman's life.\"\n\nOver the bucklers Gelfrat and Hagen couched their spears for the thrust;\neach would charge the other. Else and Dankwart rode full gloriously;\nthey tested who they were, fierce was the fight. How might heroes ever\nprove each other better? From a mighty thrust Hagen was unhorsed by\nGelfrat's hand. His martingale snapped, he learnt what it was to fall.\nThe crash of shafts resounded from their fellowship. Hagen, who from the\nthrust afore had come to earth, down on the grass, sprang up again. I\ntrow, he was not gentle of mood towards Gelfrat then. Who held their\nsteeds, I know not; both Hagen and Gelfrat had alighted on the sand and\nrushed together. Their fellowship helped thereby and became acquaint\nwith strife. Albeit Hagen sprang at Gelfrat fiercely, the noble margrave\nsmote from his shield a mickle piece, so that the sparks flew wide. Full\nnigh did Gunther's liegeman die therefrom. He began to call to Dankwart:\n\"O help, dear brother! Certes, a hero of his hands hath matched me, he\nwill not spare my life.\"\n\nAt this hold Dankwart spake: \"I'll play the umpire here.\"\n\nThe hero then sprang nearer and with a sharp sword smote Gelfrat such a\nblow that he fell down dead. Else then would fain avenge the knight, but\nhe and his fellowship parted from the fray with scathe. His brother had\nbeen slain, he himself was wounded; full eighty of his knights remained\nwith grim death behind upon the field. Their lord must needs turn in\nflight from Gunther's men.\n\nWhen those from the Bavarian land gave way and fled, one heard the\nsavage blows resound behind them. Those of Troneg chased their foes;\nthey were in passing haste, who had not weened to make amends. Then\nspake Dankwart, the knight, in their pursuit: \"Let us turn soon on this\nroad and let them ride, for they be wet with blood. Haste we to our\nfriends, this I advise you of a truth.\"\n\nWhen they were come again, where the scathe had happed, Hagen of Troneg\nspake: \"Heroes, prove now what doth fail us here, or whom we have lost\nin the strife through Gelfrat's wrath.\"\n\nFour they had lost whom they must needs bewail. But they had been paid\nfor dearly; for them a hundred or better from the Bavarian land were\nslain. From their blood the shields of the men of Troneg were dimmed\nand wet. Through the clouds there partly broke the gleam of the shining\nmoon, as Hagen spake again: \"Let none make known to my dear lords what\nwe have wrought here to-day. Let them rest without care until the morn.\"\n\nWhen those who just had fought were now come again, the fellowship was\nfull weary from the way. \"How long must we still ride?\" asked many a\nman.\n\nThen spake the bold Dankwart: \"We may not find lodgings here, ye must\nall ride until the day be come.\"\n\nThe doughty Folker, who had charge of the fellowship, bade ask the\nmarshal: \"Where may we find a place to-night, where our steeds may rest\nand our dear lords as well?\"\n\nBold Dankwart answered: \"I cannot tell you that, we may not rest till\nit begin to dawn. Wherever then we find a chance, we'll lay us down upon\nthe grass.\"\n\nHow loth it was to some when they heard this tale! They remained\nunmarked with their stains of warm red blood, until the sun shot his\ngleaming light against the morn across the hills. Then the king beheld\nthat they had fought. Wrathfully the hero spake: \"How now, friend Hagen?\nI ween, ye scorned to have me with you when your rings grew wet with\nblood? Who hath done this?\"\n\nQuoth he: \"This Else did, who encountered us by night. We were attacked\nbecause of his ferryman. Then my brother's hand smote Gelfrat down. Else\nsoon escaped us, constrained thereto by mickle need. A hundred of them\nand but four of ours lay dead in the strife.\"\n\nWe cannot tell you where they laid them down to rest. All of the folk\nof the land learned soon that the sons of the noble Uta rode to court.\nLater they were well received at Passau. The uncle of the noble king,\nthe Bishop Pilgrim, was blithe of mood, as his nephews came to his land\nwith so many knights. That he bare them good will, they learned full\nsoon. Well were they greeted, too, by friends along the way, sith men\ncould not lodge them all at Passau. They had to cross the stream to\nwhere they found a field on which they set up pavilions and costly\ntents. All one day they must needs stay there, and a full night too.\nWhat good cheer men gave them! After that they had to ride to Rudeger's\nland, to whom the tidings were brought full soon. When the way-worn\nwarriors had rested them and came nearer to the Hunnish land, they found\na man asleep upon the border, from whom Hagen of Troneg won a sturdy\nsword. The same good knight hight Eckewart (3) in truth; sad of mood he\ngrew, that he lost his weapon through the journey of the knights. They\nfound Rudeger's marches guarded ill.\n\n\"Woe is me of this shame,\" spake Eckewart. \"Certes this journey of the\nBurgundians rueth me full sore. My joy hath fled, sith I lost Knight\nSiegfried. Alas, Sir Rudeger, how I have acted toward thee!\"\n\nWhen Hagen heard the noble warrior's plight, he gave him back his sword\nand six red arm bands. \"These keep, Sir Knight, as a token that thou art\nmy friend. A bold knight thou art, though thou standest alone upon the\nmarches.\"\n\n\"God repay you for your arm bands,\" Eckewart replied. \"Yet your journey\nto the Huns doth rue me sore. Because ye slew Siegfried, men hate you\nhere. I counsel you in truth, that ye guard you well.\"\n\n\"Now may God protect us,\" answered Hagen. \"These knights, the kings and\ntheir liegemen, have forsooth no other care, save for their lodgement,\nwhere we may find quarters in this land to-night. Our steeds be spent by\nthe distant way and our food run out,\" quoth Hagen, the knight. \"We\nfind naught anywhere for sale, and have need of a host, who through his\ncourtesie would give us of his bread to-night.\"\n\nThen Eckewart made answer: \"I'll show you a host so good that full\nseldom have ye been lodged so well in any land, as here may hap you, an'\nye will seek out Rudeger, ye doughty knights. He dwelleth by the highway\nand is the best host that ever owned a house. His heart giveth birth to\ncourtesie, as the sweet May doth to grass and flowers. He is aye merry\nof mood, when he can serve good knights.\"\n\nAt this King Gunther spake: \"Will ye be my messenger and ask whether my\ndear friend Rudeger will for my sake keep us, my kinsmen and our men? I\nwill repay thee this, as best I ever can.\"\n\n\"Gladly will I be the messenger,\" Eckewart replied. With a right good\nwill he gat him on the road and told Rudeger the message he had heard,\nto whom none such pleasing news had come in many a day.\n\nAt Bechelaren men saw a knight pricking fast. Rudeger himself descried\nhim; he spake: \"Upon the road yonder hasteth Eckewart, a liegeman of\nKriemhild.\"\n\nHe weened the foes had done him scathe. Before the gate he went to meet\nthe messenger, who ungirt his sword and laid it from his hand. The\ntales he brought were not hidden from the host and his friends, but were\nstraightway told them. To the margrave he spake: \"Gunther, the lord of\nthe Burgundian land, and Giselher, his brother, and Gernot, too, have\nsent me hither to you. Each of the warriors tendered you his service.\nHagen and Folker, too, eagerly did the same in truth. Still more I'll\ntell you, that the king's marshal sendeth you by me the message, that\nthe good knights have passing need of your lodgement.\"\n\nRudeger answered with a smile: \"Now well is me of these tales, that\nthe high-born kings do reck of my service. It shall not be denied them.\nMerry and blithe will I be, an' they come unto my house.\"\n\n\"Dankwart, the marshal, bade let you know whom ye should lodge in your\nhouse with them: sixty doughty champions, a thousand good knights, and\nnine thousand men-at-arms.\"\n\nMerry of mood grew Rudeger; he spake: \"Now well is me of these guests,\nthat these noble warriors be coming to my house, whom I have served as\nyet full seldom. Now ride ye forth for to meet them, my kinsmen and my\nmen.\"\n\nKnights and squires now hied them to their horses; it thought them\nright, which their lord did bid. All the more they hasted with their\nservice. As yet Lady Gotelind wist it not, who sate within her bower.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Adventure XXVI\".  This adventure is a late interpolation,\n        as it is not found in the \"Thidreksaga\".  Originally the\n        river must be thought of as separating them from Etzel's\n        kingdom.\n   (2)  \"Moering\" (M.H.G. \"Moeringen\") lies between Pforing and\n        Ingolstadt.  In the \"Thidreksaga\" we are told that the\n        mermaids were bathing in a body of water called \"Moere\",\n        whereas in our poem they bathe in a spring.  This may be the\n        original form of the account and the form here contaminated.\n        See Boer, i, 134.\n   (3)  \"Eckewart\", see Adventure I, note 15.  It will be remembered\n        that he accompanied Kriemhild first to the Netherlands, then\n        stayed with her at Worms after Siegfried's death, and\n        finally journeyed with her to Etzel's court.  Originally he\n        must be thought of as guarding the boundary of Etzel's land.\n        Without doubt he originally warned the Burgundians, as in\n        the early Norse versions, where Kriemhild fights on the side\n        of her brothers, but since this duty was given to Dietrich,\n        he has nothing to do but to announce their arrival to\n        Rudeger.  His sleeping here may, however, be thought to\n        indicate that it was too late to warn Gunther and his men.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XXVII. How They Came To Bechelaren.\n\nThen the margrave went to where he found the ladies, his wife with his\ndaughter, and told them straightway the pleasing tidings he had heard,\nthat the brothers of their lady were coming thither to their house.\n\"My dearest love,\" quoth Rudeger, \"ye must receive full well the noble\nhigh-born kings, when they come here to court with their fellowship. Ye\nmust give fair greeting, too, to Hagen, Gunther's man. With them there\ncometh one also, hight Dankwart; the other is named Folker, well beseen\nwith courtesie. Ye and my daughter must kiss these and abide by the\nknights with gentle breeding.\" This the ladies vowed; quite ready they\nwere to do it. From the chests they hunted out the lordly robes in which\nthey would go to meet the warriors. Fair dames were passing busy on\nthat day. Men saw but little of false colors on the ladies' cheeks;\nupon their heads they wore bright bands of gold. Rich chaplets (1) these\nwere, that the winds might not dishevel their comely hair, and this is\ntrue i' faith.\n\nLet us now leave the ladies with these tasks. Much hasting over the\nplain was done by Rudeger's friends, to where one found the lordings,\nwhom men then received well into the margrave's land. When the margrave,\nthe doughty Rudeger, saw them coming toward him, how joyfully he spake:\n\"Be ye welcome, fair sirs, and your liegemen, too. I be fain to see you\nin my land.\" Low obeisance the knights then made, in good faith, without\nall hate. That he bare them all good will, he showed full well. Hagen\nhe gave a special greeting, for him had he known of yore. (2) To Folker\nfrom Burgundy land he did the same. Dankwart he welcomed, too. The bold\nknight spake: \"Sith ye will purvey us knights, who shall have a care for\nour men-at-arms whom we have brought?\"\n\nQuoth the margrave: \"A good night shall ye have and all your fellowship.\nI'll purvey such guard for whatever ye have brought with you, of steeds\nand trappings, that naught shall be lost, that might bring you harm, not\neven a single spur. Ye footmen pitch the tents upon the plain. What ye\nlose I'll pay in full. Take off the bridles, let the horses run.\"\n\nSeldom had host done this for them afore. Therefore the guests made\nmerry. When that was done, the lordings rode away and the footmen laid\nthem everywhere upon the grass. Good ease they had; I ween, they never\nfared so gently on the way. The noble margravine with her fair daughter\nwas come out before the castle. One saw stand by her side the lovely\nladies and many a comely maid. Great store of armlets and princely\nrobes they wore. The precious stones gleamed afar from out their passing\ncostly weeds. Fair indeed were they fashioned.\n\nThen came the guests and alighted there straightway. Ho, what great\ncourtesie one found among the Burgundian men! Six and thirty maids and\nmany other dames, whose persons were wrought as fair as heart could\nwish, went forth to meet them with many a valiant man. Fair greetings\nwere given there by noble dames. The young margravine kissed all three\nkings, as did her mother, too. Close at hand stood Hagen. Her father\nbade her kiss him, but when she gazed upon him, he seemed so fearful\nthat she had fain left it undone. Yet she must needs perform what the\nhost now bade her do. Her color changed first pale then red. Dankwart,\ntoo, she kissed, and then the minstrel. For his great prowess was this\ngreeting given. The young margravine took by the hand Knight Giselher\nof the Burgundian land. The same her mother did to Gunther, the valiant\nman. Full merrily they went hence with the heroes. The host walked at\nGernot's side into a broad hall, where the knights and ladies sate them\ndown. Soon they bade pour out for the guests good wine. Certes, heroes\nmight never be better purveyed than they. Rudeger's daughter was gazed\nupon with loving glances, so fair she was. Forsooth many a good knight\ncaressed her in his mind. And well did she deserve this, so high she was\nof mood. The knights thought what they would, but it might not come to\npass. Back and forth shot the glances at maids and dames. Of them sate\nthere enow. The noble fiddler bare the host good will.\n\nThen they parted after the custom, knights and ladies going to different\nsides. In the broad hall they set up the tables and served the strangers\nin lordly wise. For the sake of the guests the noble margravine went\nto table, but let her daughter stay with the maidens, where she sate by\nright. The guests saw naught of her, which irked them sore, in truth.\n\nWhen they had eaten and drunk on every side, men brought the fair again\ninto the hall; nor were merry speeches left unsaid. Many such spake\nFolker, this brave and lusty knight. Before them all the noble minstrel\nspake: \"Mighty margrave, God hath dealt full graciously with you, for\nhe hath given you a passing comely wife and thereto a life of joy. An'\nI were a prince,\" quoth the minstrel, \"and should wear a crown, I would\nfain have to wife your comely daughter. This my heart doth wish. She is\nlovely for to see, thereto noble and good.\"\n\nThen answered the margrave: \"How might that be, that king should ever\ncrave the dear daughter of mine? My wife and I are exiles; what booteth\nin such ease the maiden's passing comeliness?\"\n\nTo this Gernot, the well-bred man, made answer: \"An' I might have a love\nafter mine own desire, I should be ever glad of such a wife.\"\n\nHagen, too, replied in full kindly wise: \"My lord Giselher must take\na wife. The margravine is of such high kin that I and all his liegemen\nwould gladly serve her, should she wear a crown in Burgundy land.\"\n\nThis speech thought Rudeger passing good, and Gotelind too, indeed\nit joyed their mood. Then the heroes brought to pass that the noble\nGiselher took her to wife, as did well befit a king. Who may part what\nshall be joined together? Men prayed the margravine to go to court, and\nswore to give him the winsome maid. He, too, vowed to wed the lovely\nfair. For the maiden they set castles and land aside, and this the hand\nof the noble king did pledge with an oath, and Lord Gernot, too, that\nthis should hap.\n\nThen spake the margrave: \"Sith I have naught of castles, I will\never serve you with my troth. As much silver and gold will I give my\ndaughter, as an hundred sumpters may barely carry, that it may please\nthe hero's kin in honor.\"\n\nAfter the custom men bade them stand in a ring. Over against her many a\nyouth stood, blithe of mood. In their minds they harbored thoughts,\nas young folk still are wont to do. Men then gan ask the winsome maid\nwhether she would have the knight or no. Loth in part she was, and yet\nshe thought to take the stately man. She shamed her of the question, as\nmany another maid hath done. Her father Rudeger counseled her to answer\nyes, and gladly take him. In a trice young Giselher was at her side, and\nclasped her in his white hands, albeit but little time she might enjoy\nhim.\n\nThen Spake the margrave: \"Ye noble and mighty kings, when ye now ride\nagain (that is the custom) home to Burgundy, I will give you my child,\nthat ye may take her with you.\"\n\nThis then they vowed. Now men must needs give over all the noisy joy.\nThey bade the maiden hie her to her bower, and bade the guests to sleep\nand rest them against the day. Meanwhile men made ready the food; the\nhost purveyed them well.\n\nWhen now they had eaten, they would ride hence to the Hunnish lands.\n\"I'll guard against that well,\" spake the noble host. \"Ye must tarry\nstill, for full seldom have I gained such welcome guests.\"\n\nTo this Dankwart replied: \"Forsooth this may not be. Where would ye find\nthe food, the bread and wine, that ye must have for so many warriors\nanother night?\"\n\nWhen the host heard this, he spake: \"Give o'er this speech. My dear\nlords, ye must not say me nay. Forsooth I'd give you vittaile for a\nfortnight, with all your fellowship that is come hither with you. King\nEtzel hath taken from me as yet full little of my goods.\"\n\nHowever much they demurred, still they must needs tarry there until the\nfourth morning, when such deeds were done by the bounty of the host that\nit was told after. He gave his guests both mounts and robes. No longer\nmight they stay, they must fare forth. Through his bounty bold Rudeger\nwot how to save but little. Naught was denied that any craved, it could\nnot but please them all. Their noble meiny now brought saddled before\nthe gate the many steeds, and to them came forth thee stranger knights.\nIn their hands they bare their shields, for they would ride to Etzel's\nland. Before the noble guests come forth from the hall, the host had\nproffered everywhere his gifts. He wist how to live bountifully, in\nmickle honors. To Giselher he had given his comely daughter; to Gunther,\nthe worshipful knight, who seldom took a gift, he gave a coat of mail,\nwhich the noble and mighty king wore well with honor. Gunther bowed low\nover noble Rudeger's hand. Then to Gernot he gave a weapon good enow,\nthe which he later bare full gloriously in strife. Little did the\nmargrave's wife begrudge him the gift, but through it good Rudeger was\nforced to lose his life. Gotelind offered Hagen a loving gift, as well\nbefit her. He took it, sith the king had taken one, that he should\nnot fare forth from her to the feasting, without her present. Later he\ngainsayed it. \"Of all that I have ever seen,\" quoth Hagen, \"I crave to\nbear naught else save that shield on yonder wall; fain would I take that\nwith me into Etzel's land.\"\n\nWhen the margravine heard Hagen's speech, it minded her of her\ngrief--tears became her well. She thought full dearly on Nudung's (3)\ndeath, whom Wittich had slain; from this she felt the stress of sorrow.\nTo the knight she spake: \"I'll give you the shield. Would to God in\nheaven, that he still lived who bare it once in hand. He met his death\nin battle; for him must I ever weep, which giveth me, poor wife, dire\nwoe.\"\n\nThe noble margravine rose from her seat and with her white hands she\nseized the shield. To Hagen the lady bare it, who took it in his hand.\nThis gift was worthily bestowed upon the knight. A cover of shining silk\nconcealed its colors, for it was set with precious stones. In sooth the\ndaylight never shone on better shield. Had any wished to buy it at its\ncost, 'twere well worth a thousand marks. (4) Hagen bade the shield be\nborne away.\n\nThen Dankwart came to court. To him the margrave's daughter gave great\nstore of rich apparel, the which he later wore among the Huns in passing\nlordly wise. However many gifts were taken by them, naught would have\ncome into the hands of any, save through the kindness of the host,\nwho proffered them so fair. Later they became such foes that they were\nforced to strike him dead.\n\nNow the doughty Folker went courteously with his fiddle and stood before\nGotelind. He played sweet tunes and sang to her his songs. Thus he took\nhis leave and parted from Bechelaren. The margravine bade fetch a chest.\nNow hear the tale of friendly gifts! Twelve rings she took out and\nplaced them on his hand. \"These ye must bear hence to Etzel's land and\nwear them at court for my sake, whithersoever ye turn, that men may tell\nme how ye have served me yonder at the feast.\" What the lady craved, he\nlater carried out full well.\n\nThen spake the host to his guests: \"Ye shall journey all the gentlier,\nfor I myself will guide you and bid guard you well, that none may harm\nyou on the road.\"\n\nThen his sumpters were laden soon. The host was well beseen with five\nhundred men with steeds and vesture. These he took with him full\nmerrily hence to the feasting. Not one of them later ever came alive\nto Bechelaren. With a loving kiss the host parted hence; the same did\nGiselher, as his gentle breeding counseled him. In their arms they\nclasped fair wives. This many a high-born maid must needs bewail in\nlater times. On every side they opened the casements, for the host with\nhis liegemen would now mount their steeds. I ween their hearts did tell\nthem of the bitter woes to come. Then wept many a dame and many a comely\nmaid. They pined for their dear kinsmen, whom nevermore they saw in\nBechelaren. Yet these rode merrily across the sand, down along the\nDanube to the Hunnish land.\n\nThen noble Rudeger, the full lusty knight, spake to the Burgundians:\n\"Certes, the tidings that we be coming to the Huns must not be left\nunsaid, for king Etzel hath never heard aught that pleased him more.\"\n\nSo down through Austria the envoy sped, and to the folk on every side\n'twas told that the heroes were coming from Worms beyond the Rhine.\nNaught could have been liefer to the courtiers of the king. On before\nthe envoys hasted with the tidings, that the Nibelungs were already in\nthe Hunnish land.\n\n\"Thou must greet them well, Kriemhild, lady mine. Thy dear brothers be\ncoming in great state to visit thee.\"\n\nWithin a casement window Lady Kriemhild stood and looked out to see\nher kin, as friend doth for friend. Many a man she spied from her\nfatherland. The king, too, learned the tale and laughed for very\npleasure. \"Now well is me of my joys,\" quoth Kriemhild, \"my kinsmen\nbring with them many a brand-new shield and white coat of mail. He who\nwould have gold, let him bethink him of my sorrows, and I'll ever be his\nfriend.\"\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Chaplets\", see Adventure 10, note 1.\n   (2)  \"Of yore\", see Adventure 23, note 2.\n   (3)  \"Nudung\" was slain, according to the \"Thidreksaga\", chap.\n        335, by \"Vidga\" (here Wittich, M.H.G. \"Witege\", the son of\n        Wielant, the smith, in the battle of Gronsport.  There,\n        chap. 369, he is Gotelind's brother, but in \"Biterolf\" and\n        the \"Rosengarten\" he is her son.\n   (4)  \"Marks\", see Adventure V, note 5.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XXVIII. How The Burgundians Came To Etzel's Castle.\n\nWhen the Burgundians were come to the land, old Hildebrand (1) of Berne\ndid hear the tale, and sore it rued him. He told his lord, who bade him\nwelcome well the lusty knights and brave. The doughty Wolfhart (2) bade\nfetch the steeds; then many a sturdy warrior rode with Dietrich, to\nwhere he thought to meet them on the plain where they had pitched full\nmany a lordly tent. When Hagen of Troneg saw them riding from afar, to\nhis lords he spake in courteous wise: \"Now must ye doughty warriors rise\nfrom your seats and go to meet them, who would greet you here. Yonder\ncometh a fellowship I know full well, they be full speedy knights from\nthe Amelung land, (3) whom the lord of Berne doth lead--high-mettled\nwarriors they. Scorn not the service that they proffer.\"\n\nThen with Dietrich there alighted from the steeds, as was mickle right,\nmany a knight and squire. Towards the strangers they went, to where\nthey found the heroes; in friendly wise they greeted those from the\nBurgundian land. Ye may now hear what Sir Dietrich said to the sons of\nUta, as he saw them coming toward him. Their journey rued him sore; he\nweened that Rudeger wist it, and had told them the tale. \"Be ye welcome,\nfair sirs, Gunther and Giselher, Gernot and Hagen, likewise Folker and\nthe doughty Dankwart. Know ye not that Kriemhild still mourneth sorely\nfor the hero of the Nibelung land?\"\n\n\"Let her weep long time,\" quoth Hagen. \"He hath lain these many years,\ndone to death. Let her love now the Hunnish king. Siegfried cometh not\nagain, he hath long been buried.\"\n\n\"Let us not talk of Siegfried's wounds, but if Kriemhild still live,\nscathe may hap again,\" so spake Sir Dietrich, the lord of Berne. \"Hope\nof the Nibelungs, guard thee well against this.\"\n\n\"Why should I guard me?\" spake the high-born king. \"Etzel sent us envoys\n(why should I question more?) to say that we should ride to visit him,\nhither to this land. My sister Kriemhild sent us many a message, too.\"\n\n\"Let me counsel you,\" quoth Hagen, \"to beg Sir Dietrich and his good\nknights to tell you the tidings further, and to let you know the Lady\nKriemhild's mood.\"\n\nThen the three mighty kings, Gunther and Gernot and Sir Dietrich, too,\nwent and spake apart. \"Pray tell us, good and noble knight of Berne,\nwhat ye do know of the queen's mood?\"\n\nAnswered the lord of Berne: \"What more shall I tell you? Every morning I\nhear King Etzel's wife wail and weep with piteous mind to the mighty God\nof heaven over the stalwart Siegfried's death.\"\n\n\"That which we have heard,\" spake bold Folker, the fiddler, \"cannot be\nturned aside. We must ride to court and abide what may hap to us doughty\nknights among the Huns.\"\n\nThe brave Burgundians now rode to court. In lordly wise they came after\nthe fashion of their land. Many a brave man among the Huns wondered what\nmanner of man Hagen of Troneg be. It was enough that men told tales,\nthat he had slain Kriemhild's husband the mightiest of all heroes. For\nthat cause alone much questioning about Hagen was heard at court. The\nknight was fair of stature, that is full true; broad he was across the\nbreast; his hair was mixed with gray; his legs were long, and fierce his\nglance; lordly gait he had.\n\nThen one bade lodge the Burgundian men, but Gunther's fellowship was\nplaced apart. This the queen advised, who bare him much hate, and\ntherefore men later slew the footmen in their lodgings. Dankwart,\nHagen's brother, he was marshal. The king earnestly commended to him his\nfollowers, that he purvey them well and give them enow to eat; The hero\nof Burgundy bare them all good will. Kriemhild, the fair, went with her\nmaids-in-waiting to where, false of mood, she greeted the Nibelungs.\nGiselher alone she kissed and took by the hand. That Hagen of Troneg\nsaw, and bound his helmet tighter. \"After such a greeting,\" quoth Hagen,\n\"doughty knights may well bethink them. One giveth kings a greeting\ndifferent from their men. We have not made a good journey to this\nfeast.\" (4)\n\nShe spake: \"Be welcome to him that be fain to see you; I greet you not\nfor your kinship. Pray tell me what ye do bring me from Worms beyond the\nRhine, that ye should be so passing welcome to me here?\"\n\n\"Had I known,\" quoth Hagen, \"that knights should bring you gifts, I had\nbethought me better, for I be rich enow to bring you presents hither to\nthis land.\"\n\n\"Now let me hear the tale of where ye have put the Nibelung hoard? It\nwas mine own, as ye well know, and ye should have brought me that to\nEtzel's land.\"\n\n\"I' faith, my Lady Kriemhild, it is many a day sith I have had the care\nof the Nibelung hoard. My lords bade sink it in the Rhine, and there it\nmust verily lie till doomsday.\"\n\nThen spake the queen: \"I thought as much. Ye have brought full little of\nit hither to this land, albeit it was mine own, and I had it whilom in\nmy care. Therefore have I all time so many a mournful day.\"\n\n\"The devil I'll bring you,\" answered Hagen. \"I have enough to carry with\nmy shield and breastplate; my helm is bright, the sword is in my hand,\ntherefore I bring you naught.\"\n\nThen the queen spake to the knights on every side: \"One may not bring\nweapons to the hall. Sir Knights, give them to me, I'll have them taken\nin charge.\"\n\n\"I' faith,\" quoth Hagen, \"never shall that be done. In sooth I crave not\nthe honor, O bounteous princess, that ye should bear my shield and other\narms to the lodgings; ye be a queen. This my father did not teach me, I\nmyself will play the chamberlain.\"\n\n\"Alack for my sorrows,\" spake Lady Kriemhild. \"Why will Hagen and my\nbrother not let their shields be taken in charge? They be warned, and\nwist I, who hath done this, I'd ever plan his death.\"\n\nTo this Sir Dietrich answered in wrath: \"'Tis I, that hath warned the\nnoble and mighty princes and the bold Hagen, the Burgundian liegeman. Go\nto, thou she-devil, thou durst not make me suffer for the deed.\"\n\nSore abashed was King Etzel's wife, for bitterly she feared Sir\nDietrich. At once she left him, not a word she spake, but gazed with\nfurious glance upon her foes. Two warriors then grasped each other\nquickly by the hand, the one was Sir Dietrich, the other Hagen. With\ngentle breeding the lusty hero spake: \"Forsooth I rue your coming to the\nHuns, because of what the queen hath said.\"\n\nQuoth Hagen: \"There will be help for that.\"\n\nThus the two brave men talked together. King Etzel saw this, and\ntherefore he began to query: \"Fain would I know,\" spake the mighty\nking, \"who yonder warrior be, whom Sir Dietrich greeteth there in such\nfriendly wise. He carrieth high his head; whoever be his father, he is\nsure a doughty knight.\"\n\nA liegeman of Kriemhild made answer to the king: \"By birth he is from\nTroneg, his father hight Aldrian; however blithe he bear him here, a\ngrim man is he. I'll let you see full well that I have told no lie.\"\n\n\"How shall I know that he be so fierce?\" replied the king. As yet he\nwist not the many evil tricks that the queen should later play upon her\nkin, so that she let none escape from the Huns alive.\n\n\"Well know I Aldrian, for he was my vassal (5) and here at my court\ngained mickle praise and honor. I dubbed him knight and gave hint of my\ngold. The faithful Helca loved him inly. Therefore I have since known\nHagen every whit. Two stately youths became my hostages, he and Walther\nof Spain. (6) Here they grew to manhood; Hagen I sent home again,\nWalther ran away with Hildegund.\"\n\nHe bethought him of many tales that had happed of yore. He had spied\naright his friend of Troneg, who in his youth had given him yeoman\nservice. Later in his old age he did him many a dear friend to death.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Hildebrand\" is the teacher and armor bearer of Dietrich.\n        He is the hero of the famous \"Hildebrandslied\".\n   (2)  \"Wolfhart\" is Hildebrand's nephew.  In the \"Thidreksaga\" he\n        falls in the battle of Gronsport.\n   (3)  \"Amelung land\" is the name under which Dietrich's land\n        appears.  Theodorich, the king of the East Goths, belonged\n        to the race of the Amali.\n   (4)  \"Feast\".  That Kriemhild kissed only Giselher, who was\n        innocent of Siegfried's death, aroused Hagen's suspicions.\n   (5)  \"Vassal\".  No other account speaks of Aldrian as being at\n        Etzel's court.  He is probably confused here with his son,\n        for Hagen's stay with Etzel in various legends, as also in\n        our poem a few lines further down.\n   (6)  \"Walther of Spain\" is Walther of Aquitania, a legendary\n        personage of whom the O.E. fragment \"Waldere\", the Latin\n        epic \"Waltharius\", a M.H.G. epic, and the \"Thidreksaga\"\n        tell.  He flees with Hildegund, the daughter of the\n        Burgundian King Herrich, from Etzel's court, as related\n        here, but has to fight for his life against overpowering\n        numbers, in the \"Thidreksaga\" against the pursuing Huns, in\n        the other sources against the Burgundians.  In both cases\n        Hagen is among his foes, but takes no part in the fight at\n        first, out of friendship for Walther.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XXIX. How Hagen Would Not Rise For Kriemhild.\n\nThen the two worshipful warriors parted, Hagen of Troneg and\nSir Dietrich. Over his shoulder Gunther's liegeman gazed for a\ncomrade-at-arms, whom he then quickly won. Folker he saw, the cunning\nfiddler, stand by Giselher, and begged him to join him, for well he knew\nhis savage mood. He was in all things a bold knight and a good. Still\nthey let the lordings stand in the court, only these twain alone men saw\nwalk hence far across the court before a spacious palace. These chosen\nwarriors feared the hate of none. They sate them down upon a bench\nbefore the house over against a hall, the which belonged to Kriemhild.\nUpon their bodies shone their lordly weeds. Enow who gazed upon them\nwould than have known the knights; as wild beasts the haughty heroes\nwere stared upon by the Hunnish men. Etzel's wife, too, gazed upon\nthem through a window, at which fair Kriemhild waxed sad again. Of her\nsorrows it minded her and she began to weep. Much it wondered Etzel's\nmen what had so quickly saddened her mood. Quoth she: \"That Hagen hath\ndone, ye heroes brave and good.\"\n\nTo the lady they spake: \"How hath that happed, for but newly we did see\nyou joyful? None there be so bold, an' he hath done you aught, but it\nwill cost him his life, if ye bid us venge you.\"\n\n\"Ever would I requite it, if any avenged my wrongs. I would give him all\nhe craved. Behold me at your feet,\" spake he queen; \"avenge me on Hagen,\nthat he lose his life.\"\n\nThen sixty bold men made them ready eftsoon for Kriemhild's sake. They\nwould hence to slay the bold knight Hagen and the fiddler, too. With\nforethought this was done. When the queen beheld the band so small, grim\nof mood she spake to the knights: \"What ye now would do, ye should give\nover. With so few durst ye never encounter Hagen. And however strong\nand bold Hagen of Troneg be, he who sitteth by his side, Folker, the\nfiddler, is stronger still by far. He is an evil man. Certes, ye may not\nso lightly match these knights.\"\n\nWhen they heard this, four hundred doughty warriors more did make them\nready. The noble queen craved sore to do them harm. Thereby the heroes\nlater fell in mickle danger. When she saw her followers well armed, the\nqueen spake to the doughty knights: \"Now bide a while, ye must stand\nquite still in truth. Wearing my crown, I will go to meet my foes. List\nye to the wrongs that Hagen of Troneg, Gunther's man, hath done me. I\nknow him to be so haughty that he'll not deny a whit. Little I reek what\nhap to him on this account.\"\n\nThen the fiddler, a bold minstrel, spied the noble queen walk down the\nflight of steps that led downward from a house. When bold Folker saw\nthis, to his comrade-at-arms he spake: \"Now behold, friend Hagen, how\nshe walketh yonder, who hath faithlessly bidden us to this land. I have\nnever seen with a queen so many men bearing sword in hand march in such\nwarlike guise. Know ye, friend Hagen, whether she bear you hate? If\nso be, I counsel you to guard the better your life and honor. Certes,\nmethinks this good. They be wroth of mood, as far as I can see, and\nsome be so broad of chest that he who would guard himself should do so\nbetimes. I ween there be those among them who wear bright breastplates.\nWhom they would attack, I cannot say.\"\n\nThen, angry of mood, the brave knight Hagen spake: \"Well I wot that all\nthis be done against me, that they thus bear their gleaming swords in\nhand. For aught of them, I still may ride to the Burgundian land.\nNow tell me, friend Folker, whether ye will stand by me, if perchance\nKriemhild's men would fight me? Pray let me hear that, if so be ye hold\nme dear. I'll aid you evermore with faithful service.\"\n\n\"I'll help you surely,\" spake the minstrel; \"and should I see the king\nwith all his warriors draw near us, not one foot will I yield from fear\nin aiding you, the while I live.\"\n\n\"Now may God in heaven requite you, noble Folker; though they strive\nagainst me, what need I more? Sith ye will help me, as I hear you say,\nlet these warriors come on full-armed.\"\n\n\"Let us rise now from our seats,\" spake the minstrel. \"Let us do her\nhonor as she passeth by, she is a high-born dame, a queen. We shall\nthereby honor ourselves as well.\"\n\n\"For my sake, no,\" quoth Hagen. \"Should I go hence, these knights would\nthink 'twas through fear. Not for one of them will I ever rise from my\nseat. It beseemeth us both better, forsooth, to leave this undone, for\nwhy should I honor one who doth bear me hatred? Nor will I do this, the\nwhile I live; I reck not how King Etzel's wife doth hate me.\"\n\nHaughty Hagen laid across his knees a gleaming sword from whose pommel\na sparkling jasper, greener than grass, did shine. Its hilt was golden,\nits sheath an edging of red. That it was Siegfried's, Kriemhild knew\nfull well. She must needs grow sad when that she knew the sword, for it\nminded her of her wrongs; she began to weep. I ween bold Hagen had done\nit for this cause. Folker, the bold, drew nearer to the bench a fiddle\nbow, strong, mickle, and long, like unto a broad, sharp sword, and there\nthe two lusty knights sate undaunted. These two brave men did think\nthemselves so lordly, that they would not leave their seats through fear\nof any man. The noble queen walked therefore to their very feet and gave\nthem hostile greeting. She spake: \"Now tell me, Hagen, who hath sent for\nyou, that ye durst ride hither to this land, sith ye know full well what\nye have done me? Had ye good wits, ye should have left it undone, by\nrights.\"\n\n\"No one sent for me,\" quoth Hagen. \"Men bade to this land three knights,\nwho hight my lords. I am their liegeman, and full seldom have I stayed\nbehind when they journeyed to any court.\"\n\nQuoth she: \"Now tell me further, why ye did this, through the which ye\nhave earned my hate? Ye slew Siegfried, my dear husband, for which I\nhave cause enow to weep until mine end.\"\n\nQuoth he: \"What booteth more, enow is already said. It is just I, Hagen,\nwho slew Siegfried, a hero of his hands. How sorely did he atone that\nLady Kriemhild railed at comely Brunhild. 'Tis not to be denied, O\nmighty queen, I alone am to blame for this scathful scathe. (1) Let him\navenge it who will, be he wife or man. Unless be I should lie to you, I\nhave dons you much of harm.\"\n\nQuoth she: \"Now hear, ye knights, how he denieth no whit of my wrongs.\nMen of Etzel, I care not what hap to him from this cause.\"\n\nThe proud warriors all gazed at one another. Had any began the fight,\nit would have come about that men must have given the honors to the two\ncomrades, for they had oft wrought wonders in the fray. What the Huns\nhad weened to do must now needs be left undone through fear.\n\nThen spake one of the men-at-arms: \"Why gaze ye thus at me? What I afore\nvowed, I will now give over. I will lose my life for no man's gift.\nForsooth King Etzel's wife would fain lead us into wrong.\"\n\nQuoth another hard by: \"Of the selfsame mind am I. An' any give me\ntowers of good red gold, I would not match this fiddler, for his fearful\nglances, the which I have seen him cast. Hagen, too, I have known from\nhis youthful days, wherefore men can tell me little of this knight.\nI have seen him fight in two and twenty battles, through which woe of\nheart hath happed to many a dame. He and the knight from Spain trod many\na war path, when here at Etzel's court they waged so many wars in honor\nof the king. Much this happed, wherefore one must justly honor Hagen. At\nthat time the warrior was of his years a lad. How gray are they who then\nwere young! Now is he come to wit and is a man full grim. Balmung, (2)\ntoo, he beareth, the which he won in evil wise.\"\n\nTherewith the strife was parted, so that no one fought, which mightily\nrued the queen. The warriors turned them hence; in sooth they feared\ntheir death at the fiddler's hands, and surely they had need of this.\nThen spake the fiddler: \"We have now well seen that we shall find foes\nhere, as we heard tell afore. Let us go to court now to the kings, then\ndare none match our lords in fight. How oft a man doth leave a thing\nundone through fear, the which he would not do, when friend standeth by\nfriend in friendly (3) wise, an' he have good wits. Scathe to many a man\nis lightly warded off by forethought.\"\n\nQuoth Hagen: \"Now will I follow you.\"\n\nThey went to where they found the dapper warriors standing in the court\nin a great press of welcoming knights.\n\nBold Folker gan speak loudly to his lords: \"How long will ye stand and\nlet yourselves be jostled? Ye must go to court and hear from the king of\nwhat mind he be.\"\n\nMen then saw the brave heroes and good pair off. The prince of Berne\ntook by the hand the mighty Gunther of Burgundian land. Irnfried (4)\ntook the brave knight Gernot, while Rudeger was seen to go to court with\nGiselher. But however any paired, Folker and Hagen never parted, save\nin one fray, when their end was come, and this noble ladies must needs\ngreatly bewail in after time. With the kings one saw go to court a\nthousand brave men of their fellowship, thereto sixty champions that\nwere come with them, whom the bold Hagen had taken from his land. Hawart\nand Iring, (5) two chosen men, were seen to walk together near the\nkings. Men saw Dankwart and Wolfhart, a peerless knight, display their\nchivalry before all eyes.\n\nWhen the lord of the Rhine had entered the hall, the mighty Etzel\ndelayed no longer, but sprang from his throne when he saw him\ncome. Never did so fair a greeting hap from any king. \"Be welcome,\nSir Gunther, and Sir Gernot, too, and your brother Giselher. I sent\nyou truly my faithful service to Worms beyond the Rhine. All your\nfellowship, too, I welcome. Now be ye passing welcome, ye two knights,\nFolker, the brave, and Sir Hagen likewise, to me and to my lady, here in\nthis our land. She sent you many a messenger to the Rhine.\"\n\nThen spake Hagen of Troneg: \"I heard much talk of that, and were I not\ncome to the Huns for the sake of my lords, I should have ridden in your\nhonor to this land.\"\n\nThe noble host then took his dear guests by the hand and led them to the\nsettle where he sate himself. Busily they poured out for the guests in\nbroad bowls of gold, mead, morat, (6) and wine and bade those far from\nhome be welcome. Then spake King Etzel: \"Let me tell you this; it might\nnot liefer hap to me in all this world, than through you heroes, that\nye be come to see me. Through this much sadness is also taken from the\nqueen. Me-wondereth greatly what I have done you noble strangers, that\nye never recked to come into my land. My sadness is turned to joy, since\nnow I see you here.\"\n\nTo this Rudeger, a high-mettled knight, made answer: \"Ye may be glad to\nsee them. Good is the fealty which the kinsmen of my lady wot how to use\nso well. They bring also to your house many a stately knight.\"\n\nUpon a midsummer's eve the lords were come to the court of the mighty\nEtzel. Seldom hath there been heard such lofty greeting as when he\nwelcomed the heroes. When now the time to eat was come, the king went\nwith them to the board. Never did host sit fairer with his guests. Men\ngave them meat and drink to the full. All that they craved stood ready\nfor them, for mickle wonders had been told about these knights.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Scathful scathe\" here imitates the M.H.G. \"scaden\n        scedelich\".\n   (2)  \"Balmung\", see Adventure III, note 7.\n   (3)  \"friend... friendly\".  This repetition occurs in the\n        original.\n   (4)  \"Irnfried\", see Adventure XXII, note 8.\n   (5)  \"Hawart\" and \"Iring\", Adventure XXII, notes 6 and 7.\n   (6)  \"Morat\" (M.H.G. \"moraz\") from late Latin \"moratum\", mulberry\n        wine, is a beverage composed of honey flavored with\n        mulberry-juice.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XXX. How They Kept The Watch.\n\nThe day had now an end, and the night drew nigh. Care beset the wayworn\ntravelers, as to when they should go to bed and rest them. This Hagen\nbespake with Etzel, and it was told them soon.\n\nGunther spake to the host: \"God be with you, we would fain go to our\nsleep, pray give us leave. We will come early on the morrow, whensoever\nye bid.\"\n\nEtzel parted then full merrily from his guests. Men pressed the\nstrangers on every side, at which brave Folker spake to the Huns: \"How\ndare ye crowd before the warriors' feet? An' ye will not leave this, ye\nwill fare full ill. I'll smite some man so heavy a fiddle blow, that\nif he have a faithful friend he may well bewail it. Why give ye not way\nbefore us knights? Methinks 'twere well. All pass for knights, but be\nnot of equal mettle.\"\n\nAs the fiddler spake thus in wrath, Hagen, the brave, looked behind him.\nHe spake: \"The bold gleeman doth advise you right, ye men of Kriemhild,\nye should hie you to your lodgings. I ween none of you will do what ye\nare minded, but would ye begin aught, come early on the morrow, and\nlet us wanderers have peace to-night. Certes, I ween that it hath never\nhapped with such good will on the part of heroes.\"\n\nThen the guests were brought into a spacious hall, which they found\npurveyed on every side with costly beds, long and broad, for the\nwarriors. Lady Kriemhild planned the very greatest wrongs against them.\nOne saw there many a cunningly wrought quilt from Arras (1) of shining\nsilken cloth and many a coverlet of Arabian silk, the best that might be\nhad; upon this ran a border that shone in princely wise. Many bed covers\nof ermine and of black sable were seen, beneath which they should have\ntheir ease at night, until the dawn of day. Never hath king lain so\nlordly with his meiny.\n\n\"Alas for these night quarters,\" spake Giselher, the youth, \"and alas\nfor my friends, who be come with us. However kindly my sister greeted\nus, yet I do fear me that through her fault we must soon lie dead.\"\n\n\"Now give over your care,\" quoth Hagen, the knight. \"I'll stand watch\nmyself to-night. I trow to guard us well, until the day doth come.\nTherefore have no fear; after that, let him survive who may.\"\n\nAll bowed low and said him gramercy. Then went they to their beds. A\nshort while after the stately men had laid them down, bold Hagen, the\nhero, began to arm him. Then the fiddler, Knight Folker, spake: \"If it\nscorn you not, Hagen, I would fain hold the watch with you to-night,\nuntil the early morn.\"\n\nThe hero then thanked Folker in loving wise: \"Now God of heaven requite\nyou, dear Folker. In all my cares, I would crave none other than you\nalone, whenever I had need. I shall repay you well, and death hinder me\nnot.\"\n\nBoth then donned their shining armor and either took his shield in hand,\nwalked out of the house and stood before the door. Thus they cared for\nthe guests in faithful wise. The doughty Folker leaned his good shield\nagainst the side of the hall, then turned him back and fetched his\nfiddle and served his friends as well befit the hero. Beneath the door\nof the house he sate him down upon a stone; bolder fiddler was there\nnever. When the tones of the strings rang forth so sweetly, the proud\nwanderers gave Folker thanks. At first the strings twanged so that the\nwhole house resounded; his strength and his skill were both passing\ngreat. Then sweeter and softer he began to play, and thus many a\ncare-worn man he lulled to sleep. When he marked that all had fallen\nasleep, the knight took again his shield and left the room and took\nhis stand before the tower, and there he guarded the wanderers against\nKriemhild's men.\n\n'Twas about the middle of the night (I know not but what it happed a\nlittle earlier), that bold Folker spied the glint of a helmet afar in\nthe darkness. Kriemhild's men would fain have harmed the guests. Then\nthe fiddler spake: \"Sir Hagen, my friend, it behooveth us to bear these\ncares together. Before the house I see armed men stand, and err I not, I\nween, they would encounter us!\"\n\n\"Be silent,\" quoth Hagen, \"let them draw nearer before they be ware\nof us. Then will helmets be dislodged by the swords in the hands of us\ntwain. They will be sent back to Kriemhild in evil plight.\"\n\nOne of the Hunnish warriors (full soon that happed) marked that the door\nwas guarded. How quickly then he spake: \"That which we have in mind may\nnot now come to pass. I see the fiddler stand on guard. On his head he\nweareth a glittering helmet, shining and hard, strong and whole. His\narmor rings flash out like fire. By him standeth Hagen; in sooth the\nguests be guarded well.\"\n\nStraightway they turned again. When Folker saw this, wrathfully he spake\nto his comrade-at-arms: \"Now let me go from the house to the warriors. I\nwould fain put some questions to Lady Kriemhild's men.\"\n\n\"For my sake, no,\" quoth Hagen. \"If ye leave the house, the doughty\nknights are like to bring you in such stress with their swords, that I\nmust aid you even should it be the death of all my kin. As soon as we\nbe come into the fray, twain of them, or four, would in a short time run\ninto the house and would bring such scathe upon the sleepers, that we\nmight never cease to mourn.\"\n\nThen Folker answered: \"Let us bring it to pass that they note that I\nhave seen them, so that Kriemhild's men may not deny that they would\nfain have acted faithlessly.\"\n\nStraightway Folker then called out to them: \"How go ye thus armed, ye\ndoughty knights? Would ye ride to rob, ye men of Kriemhild? Then must ye\nhave the help of me and my comrade-at-arms.\"\n\nTo this none made reply. Angry grew his mood. \"Fy! Ye evil cowards,\"\nspake the good knight, \"would ye have murdered us asleep? That hath been\ndone full seldom to such good heroes.\"\n\nThen the queen was told that her messengers had compassed naught.\nRightly it did vex her, and with wrathful mood she made another plan.\nThrough this brave heroes and good must needs thereafter perish.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Arras\", the capital of Artois in the French Netherlands.\n        In older English \"arras\" is used also for tapestry.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XXXI. (1) How They Went To Church.\n\n\"My coat of mail groweth cold,\" said Folker. \"I ween the night hath run\nits course. By the air I mark that day is near.\"\n\nThen they waked the many knights who still lay sleeping. The light of\ndawn shone into the hall upon the strangers. On all sides Hagen gan wake\nthe warriors, if perchance they would fain go to the minster for\nmass. Men now loudly rang the bells in Christian fashion. Heathens and\nChristians did not sing alike, so that it was seen full well that they\nwere not as one. Gunther's liegemen now would go to church, and all\nalike had risen from their beds. The champions laced them into such\ngoodly garments, that never did hero bring better clothes to the land of\nany king. This vexed Hagen. He spake: \"Heroes, ye should wear here other\nclothes. Certes, ye know full well the tales. Instead of roses, bear\nweapons in your hands; instead of jeweled chaplets, your bright helms\nand good, sith ye know full well the wicked Kriemhild's mood. Let\nme tell you, we must fight to-day, so instead of silken shirts, wear\nhauberks, and instead of rich cloaks, good shields and broad, so that if\nany grow angry with you, ye be full armed. Dear my lords, and all my kin\nand liegemen, go willingly to church and make plaint to the mighty God\nof your fears and need, for know full sure that death draweth nigh us.\nNor must ye forget to confess aught that ye have done and stand full\nzealously before your God. Of this I warn you, noble knights, unless God\nin heaven so will, ye'll never more hear mass.\"\n\nSo the princes and their liegemen went to the minster. In the holy\nchurchyard bold Hagen bade them halt, that they might not be parted.\nHe spake: \"Of a truth none knoweth what will hap to us from the Huns.\nPlace, my friends, your shields before your feet, and if any proffer\nyou cold greeting, repay it with deep and mortal wounds. That is Hagen's\ncounsel, that ye may so be found as doth befit your honor.\"\n\nFolker and Hagen, the twain, then hied them to the spacious minster.\nThis was done that the queen might press upon them in the crowd. Certes,\nshe was passing grim. Then came the lord of the land and his fair wife,\nher body adorned with rich apparel; Doughty warriors, too, were seen to\nwalk beside her. One saw the dust rise high from Kriemhild's band. When\nmighty Etzel spied the kings and their fellowship thus armed, how quick\nhe spake: \"Why do I see my friends thus go with helmets? Upon my troth,\nit grieveth me, and hath any done them aught, I shall gladly make\namends, as doth think them good. Hath any made heavy their hearts or\nmood, I'll show them well, that it doth irk me much. I am ready for\nwhatever they command me.\"\n\nTo this Hagen answered: \"None hath done us aught; it is the custom of my\nlordings that they go armed at all high feasts for full three days. We\nshould tell Etzel, had aught been done us.\"\n\nKriemhild heard full well what Hagen spake. How right hostilely she\ngazed into his eyes! She would not tell the custom of their land, albeit\nshe had known it long in Burgundy. However grim and strong the hate\nshe bare them, yet had any told Etzel the truth, he would have surely\nhindered what later happed. Because of their great haughtiness they\nscorned to tell him. When the great crowd went past with the queen,\nthese twain, Hagen and Folker, would not step back more than two\nhand-breadths, the which irked the Huns. Forsooth they had to jostle\nwith the lusty heroes. This thought King Etzel's chamberlains not good.\nCertes, they would have fain angered the champions, but that they durst\nnot before the noble king. So there was much jostling, but nothing more.\n\nWhen they had worshiped God and would hence again, many a Hunnish\nwarrior horsed him passing soon. At Kriemhild's side stood many a comely\nmaid, and well seven thousand knights rode with the queen. Kriemhild\nwith her ladies sate her down at the easements by the side of the mighty\nEtzel, which was him lief, for they would watch the lusty heroes joust.\nHo, what stranger knights rode before them in the court! Then was come\nthe marshal with the squires. Bold Dankwart had taken to him his lord's\nretainers from the Burgundian land; the steeds of the Nibelungs they\nfound well saddled. When now the kings and their men were come to horse,\nstalwart Folker gan advise that they should ride a joust after the\nfashion of their land. At this the heroes rode in lordly wise; none it\nirked what the knight had counseled. The hurtling and the noise waxed\nloud, as the many men rode into the broad court. Etzel and Kriemhild\nthemselves beheld the scene. To the jousts were come six hundred knights\nof Dietrich's men to match the strangers, for they would have pastime\nwith the Burgundians. Fain would they have done it, had he given them\nleave. Ho, what good champions rode in their train! The tale was told to\nSir Dietrich and he forbade the game with Gunther's men; he feared for\nhis liegemen, and well he might.\n\nWhen those of Berne had departed thence, there came the men of Rudeger\nfrom Bechelaren, five hundred strong, with shields, riding out before\nthe hall. It would have been lief to the margrave, had they left it\nundone. Wisely he rode then to them through the press and said to his\nknights, that they were ware that Gunther's men were evil-minded toward\nthem. If they would leave off the jousting, it would please him much.\nWhen now these lusty heroes parted from them, then came those of\nThuringia, as we are told, and well a thousand brave men from Denmark.\nFrom the tilting one saw many truncheons (2) flying hence. Irnfried and\nHawart now rode into the tourney. Proudly those from the Rhine awaited\nthem and offered the men of Thuringia many a joust. Many a lordly shield\nwas riddled by the thrusts. Thither came then Sir Bloedel with three\nthousand men. Well was he seen of Etzel and Kriemhild, for the knightly\nsports happed just before the twain. The queen saw it gladly, that the\nBurgundians might come to grief. Schrutan (3) and Gibecke, Ramung and\nHornbog, (4) rode into the tourney in Hunnish wise. To the heroes from\nBurgundian land they addressed them. High above the roof of the royal\nhall the spear-shafts whirled. Whatever any there plied, 'twas but a\nfriendly rout. Palace and hall were heard resounding loud through the\nclashing of the shields of Gunther's men. With great honor his meiny\ngained the meed. Their pastime was so mickle and so great, that from\nbeneath the housings of the good steeds, which the heroes rode, there\nflowed the frothy sweat. In haughty wise they encountered with the Huns.\n\nThen spake the fiddler, Folker the minstrel: \"I ween these warriors\ndare not match us. I've aye heard the tale, that they bear us hate, and\nforsooth it might never fortune better for them than now.\" Again Folker\nspake: \"Let our steeds be now led away to their lodgings and let us\njoust again toward eventide, and there be time. Perchance the queen may\naccord to the Burgundians the prize.\"\n\nThen one was seen riding hither so proudly, that none of all the Huns\ncould have done the like. Certes, he must have had a sweetheart on the\nbattlements. As well attired he rode as the bride of any noble knight.\nAt sight of him Folker spake again: \"How could I give this over? This\nladies' darling must have a buffet. None shall prevent me and it shall\ncost him dear. In truth I reck not, if it vex King Etzel's wife.\"\n\n\"For my sake, No,\" spake straightway King Gunther. \"The people will\nblame us, if we encounter them. 'Twill befit us better far, an' we let\nthe Huns begin the strife.\"\n\nKing Etzel was still sitting by the queen.\n\n\"I'll join you in the tourney,\" quoth Hagen then. \"Let the ladies and\nthe knights behold how we can ride. That will be well, for they'll give\nno meed to King Gunther's men.\"\n\nThe doughty Folker rode into the lists again, which soon gave many a\ndame great dole. His spear he thrust through the body of the dapper Hun;\nthis both maid and wife were seen thereafter to bewail. Full hard and\nfast gan Hagen and his liegemen and sixty of his knights ride towards\nthe fiddler, where the play was on. This Etzel and Kriemhild clearly\nsaw. The three kings would not leave their minstrel without guard amidst\nthe foe. Cunningly a thousand heroes rode; with haughty bearing they did\nwhatso they would. When now the wealthy Hun was slain, men heard his kin\ncry out and wail. All the courtiers asked: \"Who hath done this deed?\"\n\n\"That the fiddler did, Folker, the valiant minstrel.\"\n\nThe margrave's kindred from the Hunnish land called straightway for\ntheir swords and shields, and would fain have done Folker to death. Fast\nthe host gan hasten from the windows. Great rout arose from the folk on\nevery side. The kings and their fellowship, the Burgundian men, alighted\nbefore the hall and drove their horses to the rear. Then King Etzel came\nto part the strife. From the hand of a kinsman of the Hun he wrenched\na sturdy weapon and drove them all back again, for full great was his\nwrath. \"Why should my courtesie to these knights go all for naught?\nHad ye slain this minstrel at my court,\" spake King Etzel, \"'twere evil\ndone. I saw full well how he rode, when he thrust through the Hun, that\nit happed through stumbling, without any fault of his. Ye must let my\nguests have peace.\"\n\nThus he became their safe-guard. To the stalls men led away the steeds;\nmany a varlet they had, who served them well with zeal in every service.\nThe host now hied him to his palace with his friends, nor would he let\nany man grow wroth again. Then men set up the tables and bare forth\nwater for the guests. Forsooth the men from the Rhine had there enow of\nstalwart foes. 'Twas long before the lords were seated.\n\nMeanwhile Kriemhild's fears did trouble her passing sore. She spake: \"My\nlord of Berne, I seek thy counsel, help, and favor, for mine affairs do\nstand in anxious wise.\"\n\nThen Hildebrand, a worshipful knight, made answer to her: \"And any slay\nthe Nibelungs for the sake of any hoard, he will do it without my aid.\nIt may well repent him, for they be still unconquered, these doughty and\nlusty knights.\"\n\nThen Spake Sir Dietrich in his courteous wise: \"Let be this wish, O\nmighty queen. Thy kinsmen have done me naught of wrong, that I should\ncrave to match these valiant knights in strife. Thy request honoreth\nthee little, most noble queen, that thou dost plot against the life of\nthy kinsfolk. They came in hope of friendship to this land. Siegfried\nwill not be avenged by Dietrich's hand.\"\n\nWhen she found no whit of faithlessness in the lord of Berne, quickly\nshe promised Bloedel a broad estate, that Nudung (5) owned aforetime.\nLater he was slain by Hagen, so that he quite forgot the gift. She\nspake: \"Thou must help me, Sir Bloedel, forsooth my foes be in this\nhouse, who slew Siegfried, my dear husband. Ever will I serve him, that\nhelpeth me avenge this deed.\"\n\nTo this Bloedel replied: \"My lady, now may ye know that because of Etzel\nI dare not, in sooth, advise to hatred against them, for he is fain to\nsee thy kinsmen at his court. The king would ne'er forget it of me, and\nI did them aught of wrong.\"\n\n\"Not so, Sir Bloedel, for I shall ever be thy friend. Certes, I'll give\nthee silver and gold as guerdon and a comely maid, the wife of Nudung,\nwhose lovely body thou mayst fain caress. I'll give thee his land and\nall his castles, too, so that thou mayst always live in joy, Sir knight,\nif thou dost now win the lands where Nudung dwelt. Faithfully will I\nkeep, whatso I vow to thee to-day.\"\n\nWhen Sir Bloedel heard the guerdon, and that the lady through her beauty\nwould befit him well, he weened to serve the lovely queen in strife.\nBecause of this the champion must needs lose his life. To the queen\nhe spake: \"Betake you again to the hall, and before any be aware,\nI'll begin a fray and Hagen must atone for what he hath done you. I'll\ndeliver to you King Gunther's liegeman bound. Now arm you, my men,\"\nspake Bloedel. \"We must hasten to the lodgings of the foes, for King\nEtzel's wife doth crave of me this service, wherefore we heroes must\nrisk our lives.\"\n\nWhen the queen left Bloedel in lust of battle, she went to table with\nKing Etzel and his men. Evil counsels had she held against the guests.\nSince the strife could be started in no other wise (Kriemhild's ancient\nwrong still lay deep buried in her heart), she bade King Etzel's son\nbe brought to table. How might a woman ever do more ghastly deed for\nvengeance' sake? Four of Etzel's men went hence anon and bare Ortlieb,\n(6) the young prince, to the lordings' table, where Hagen also sat.\nBecause of this the child must needs die through Hagen's mortal hate.\n\nWhen now the mighty king beheld his son, kindly he spake to the kinsmen\nof his wife: \"Now see, my friends, this is the only son of me and of\nyour sister. This may be of profit to you all, for if he take after\nhis kinsmen, he'll become a valiant man, mighty and noble, strong and\nfashioned fair. Twelve lands will I give him, and I live yet a while.\nThus may the hand of young Ortlieb serve you well. I do therefore\nbeseech you, dear friends of mine, that when ye ride again to your\nlands upon the Rhine, ye take with you your sister's son and act full\ngraciously toward the child, and bring him up in honor till he become\na man. Hath any done you aught in all these lands, he'll help you to\navenge it, when he groweth up.\"\n\nThis speech was also heard by Kriemhild, King Etzel's wife.\n\n\"These knights might well trust him,\" quoth Hagen, \"if he grew to be a\nman, but the young prince doth seem so fey, (7) that I shall seldom be\nseen to ride to Ortlieb's court.\"\n\nThe king glanced at Hagen, for much the speech did irk him; and though\nthe gentle prince said not a word, it grieved his heart and made him\nheavy of his mood. Nor was Hagen's mind now bent on pastime. But all the\nlordings and the king were hurt by what Hagen had spoken of the child;\nit vexed them sore, that they were forced to hear it. They wot not the\nthings as yet, which should happen to them through this warrior.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Adventure XXXI\".  This adventure is of late origin, being\n        found only in our poem.  See the introduction.\n   (2)  \"Truncheons\", see Adventure II, note 8.\n   (3)  \"Schrutan\".  This name does not occur elsewhere.  Piper\n        suggests, that perhaps a Scotchman is meant, as \"Skorottan\"\n        appears in the \"Thidreksaga\", chap. 28, as an ancient name\n        of Scotland.\n   (4)  \"Gibecke\", \"Ramung\" and \"Hornbog\", see Adventure XXII, notes\n        4 and 5.\n   (5)  \"Nudung\", see Adventure XXVII, note 3.\n   (6)  \"Ortlieb\".  In the \"Thidreksaga\" Etzel's son is called\n        Aldrian.  There, however, he is killed because he strikes\n        Hagen in the face, here in revenge for the killing of the\n        Burgundian footmen.\n   (7)  \"Fey\", see Adventure V, note 2.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XXXII (1) How Bloedel Was Slain.\n\nFull ready were now Bloedel's warriors. A thousand hauberks strong, they\nhied them to where Dankwart sate at table with the squires. Then the\nvery greatest hate arose among the heroes. When Sir Bloedel drew near\nthe tables, Dankwart, the marshal, greeted him in courteous wise.\n\"Welcome, Sir Bloedel, in our house. In truth me-wondereth at thy\ncoming. What doth it mean?\"\n\n\"Forsooth, thou needst not greet me,\" so spake Bloedel; \"for this coming\nof mine doth mean thine end. Because of Hagen, thy brother, by whom\nSiegfried was slain, thou and many other knights must suffer here among\nthe Huns.\"\n\n\"Not so, Sir Bloedel,\" quoth Dankwart, \"else this journey to your court\nmight rue us sore. I was but a little child when Siegfried lost his\nlife. I know not what blame King Etzel's wife could put on me.\"\n\n\"Of a truth, I wot not how to tell you of these tales; thy kinsmen,\nGunther and Hagen, did the deed. Now ward you, ye wanderers, ye may not\nlive. With your death must ye become Kriemhild's pledge.\"\n\n\"And ye will not turn you,\" quoth Dankwart, \"then do my entreaties rue\nme; they had better far been spared.\"\n\nThe doughty knight and brave sprang up from the table; a sharp weapon,\nmickle and long, he drew and dealt Bloedel so fierce a sword-stroke that\nhis head lay straightway at his feet. \"Let that be thy marriage morning\ngift,\" (2) spake Dankwart, the knight, \"for Nudung's bride, whom thou\nwouldst cherish with thy love. They call betroth her to another man upon\nthe morn. Should he crave the dowry, 'twill be given to him eftsoon.\"\nA faithful Hun had told him that the queen did plan against them such\ngrievous wrongs.\n\nWhen Bloedel's men beheld their lord lie slain, no longer would they\nstand this from the guests. With uplifted swords they rushed, grim of\nmood, upon the youthful squires. Many a one did rue this later. Loudly\nDankwart called to all the fellowship: \"Ye see well, noble squires, how\nmatters stand. Now ward you, wanderers! Forsooth we have great need,\nthough Kriemhild asked us here in right friendly wise.\"\n\nThose that had no sword reached down in front of the benches and lifted\nmany a long footstool by its legs. The Burgundian squires would now\nabide no longer, but with the heavy stools they dealt many bruises\nthrough the helmets. How fiercely the stranger youths did ward them!\nOut of the house they drove at last the men-at-arms, but five hundred\nof them, or better, stayed behind there dead. The fellowship was red and\nwet with blood.\n\nThese grievous tales were told now to Etzel's knights; grim was their\nsorrow, that Bloedel and his men were slain. This Hagen's brother and\nhis squires had done. Before the king had learned it, full two thousand\nHuns or more armed them through hatred and hied them to the squires\n(this must needs be), and of the fellowship they left not one alive.\nThe faithless Huns brought a mickle band before the house. Well the\nstrangers stood their ground, but what booted their doughty prowess?\nDead they all must lie. Then in a few short hours there rose a fearful\ndole. Now ye may hear wonders of a monstrous thing. Nine thousand yeomen\nlay there slain and thereto twelve good knights of Dankwart's men. One\nsaw him stand alone still by the foe. The noise was hushed, the din had\ndied away, when Dankwart, the hero, gazed over his shoulders. He spake:\n\"Woe is me, for the friends whom I have lost! Now must I stand, alas,\nalone among my foes.\"\n\nUpon his single person the sword-strokes fell thick and fast. The wife\nof many a hero must later mourn for this. Higher he raised his shield,\nthe thong he lowered; the rings of many an armor he made to drip with\nblood. \"Woe is me of all this sorrow,\" quoth Aldrian's son. (3) \"Give\nway now, Hunnish warriors, and let me out into the breeze, that the air\nmay cool me, fight-weary man.\"\n\nThen men saw the warrior walk forth in full lordly wise. As the\nstrife-weary man sprang from the house, how many added swords rang on\nhis helmet! Those that had not seen what wonders his hand had wrought\nsprang towards the hero of the Burgundian land. \"Now would to God,\"\nquoth Dankwart, \"that I might find a messenger who could let my brother\nHagen know I stand in such a plight before these knights. He would help\nme hence, or lie dead at my side.\"\n\nThen spake the Hunnish champions: \"Thou must be the messenger thyself,\nwhen we bear thee hence dead before thy brother. For the first time\nGunther's vassal will then become acquaint with grief. Passing great\nscathe hast thou done King Etzel here.\"\n\nQuoth he: \"Now give over these threats and stand further back, or I'll\nwot the armor rings of some with blood. I'll tell the tale at court\nmyself and make plaint to my lords of my great dole.\"\n\nSo sorely he dismayed King Etzel's men that they durst not withstand\nhim with their swords, so they shot such great store of darts into his\nshield that he must needs lay it from his hand for very heaviness. Then\nthey weened to overpower him, sith he no longer bare a shield. Ho, what\ndeep wounds he struck them through their helmets! From this many a brave\nman was forced to reel before him, and bold Dankwart gained thereby\ngreat praise. From either side they sprang upon him, but in truth a many\nof them entered the fray too soon. Before his foes he walked, as doth a\nboar to the woods before the dogs. How might he be more brave? His path\nwas ever wet with reeking blood. Certes, no single champion might ever\nfight better with his foes than he had done. Men now saw Hagen's brother\ngo to court in lordly wise. Sewers (4) and cupbearers heard the ring of\nswords, and full many a one cast from his hand the drink and whatever\nfood he bare to court. Enow strong foes met Dankwart at the stairs.\n\n\"How now, ye sewers,\" spake the weary knight. \"Forsooth ye should serve\nwell the guests and bear to the lords good cheer and let me bring the\ntidings to my dear masters.\"\n\nThose that sprang towards him on the steps to show their prowess, he\ndealt so heavy a sword-stroke, that for fear they must needs stand\nfurther back. His mighty strength wrought mickle wonders.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  Adventure XXXII.  The details of the following scenes differ\n        materially in the various sources.  A comparative study of\n        them will be found in the works of Wilmanns and Boer.\n   (2)  \"Marriage morning gift\" (M.H.G. \"morgengabe\") was given by\n        the bridegroom to the bride on the morning after the\n        wedding.  See Adventure XIX, note 1.\n   (3)  \"Aldrian's son\", i.e., Dankwart.\n   (4)  \"Sewers\" (O.F. \"asseour\", M.L. \"adsessor\" 'one who sets the\n        table'; cf. F. \"asseoir\" 'to set', 'place', Lat. \"ad\n        sedere\"), older English for an upper servant who brought on\n        and removed the dishes from the table.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XXXIII. How The Burgundians Fought The Huns.\n\nWhen brave Dankwart was come within the door, he bade King Etzel's meiny\nstep aside. His garments dripped with blood and in his hand he bare\nunsheathed a mighty sword. Full loud he called out to the knight:\n\"Brother Hagen, ye sit all too long, forsooth. To you and to God in\nheaven do I make plaint of our woe. Our knights and squires all lie dead\nwithin their lodgements.\"\n\nHe called in answer: \"Who hath done this deed?\"\n\n\"That Sir Bloedel hath done with his liegemen, but he hath paid for\nit dearly, as I can tell you, for with mine own hands I struck off his\nhead.\"\n\n\"It is but little scathe,\" quoth Hagen, \"if one can only say of a knight\nthat he hath lost his life at a warrior's hands. Stately dames shall\nmourn him all the less. Now tell me, brother Dankwart, how comes it that\nye be so red of hue? Ye suffer from wounds great dole, I ween. If there\nbe any in the land that hath done you this, 'twill cost his life, and\nthe foul fiend save him not.\"\n\n\"Ye see me safe and sound; my weeds alone are wet with blood. This hath\nhapped from wounds of other men, of whom I have slain so many a one\nto-day that, had I to swear it, I could not tell the tale.\"\n\n\"Brother Dankwart,\" he spake, \"guard us the door and let not a single\nHun go forth. I will hold speech with the warriors, as our need\nconstraineth us, for our meiny lieth dead before them, undeserved.\"\n\n\"If I must be chamberlain,\" quoth the valiant man, \"I well wet how to\nserve such mighty kings and will guard the stairway, as doth become mine\nhonors.\" Naught could have been more loth to Kriemhild's knights.\n\n\"Much it wondereth me,\" spake Hagen, \"what the Hunnish knights be\nwhispering in here. I ween, they'd gladly do without the one that\nstandeth at the door, and who told the courtly tale to us Burgundians.\nLong since I have heard it said of Kriemhild, that she would not leave\nunavenged her dole of heart. Now let us drink to friendship (1) and pay\nfor the royal wine. The young lord of the Huns shall be the first.\"\n\nThen the good knight Hagen smote the child Ortlieb, so that the blood\nspurted up the sword towards his hand and the head fell into the lap of\nthe queen. At this there began a murdering, grim and great, among\nthe knights. Next he dealt the master who taught the child a fierce\nsword-stroke with both his hands, so that his head fell quickly beneath\nthe table to the ground. A piteous meed it was, which he meted out to\nthe master. Hagen then spied a gleeman sitting at King Etzel's board.\nIn his wrath he hied him thither and struck off his right hand upon the\nfiddle. \"Take this as message to the Burgundian land.\"\n\n\"Woe is me of my hand,\" spake the minstrel Werbel. \"Sir Hagen of Troneg,\nwhat had I done to you? I came in good faith to your masters' land. How\ncan I now thrum the tunes, sith I have lost my hand?\"\n\nLittle recked Hagen, played he nevermore. In the hall he dealt out\nfierce deadly wounds to Etzel's warriors, passing many of whom he slew.\nEnow of folk in the house he did to death. The doughty Folker now sprang\nup from the board; loud rang in his hands his fiddle bow. Rudely did\nGunther's minstrel play. Ho, what foes he made him among the valiant\nHuns! The three noble kings, too, sprang up from the table. Gladly would\nthey have parted the fray, or ever greater scathe was done. With all\ntheir wit they could not hinder it, when Folker and Hagen gan rage so\nsore. When that the lord of the Rhine beheld the fray unparted, the\nprince dealt his foes many gaping wounds himself through the shining\narmor rings. That he was a hero of his hands, he gave great proof. Then\nthe sturdy Gernot joined the strife. Certes, he did many a hero of\nthe Huns to death with a sharp sword, the which Rudeger had given him.\nMighty wounds he dealt King Etzel's warriors. Now the young son of Lady\nUta rushed to the fray. Gloriously his sword rang on the helmets of\nEtzel's warriors from the Hunnish land. Full mickle wonders were wrought\nby bold Giselher's hand. But how so doughty they all were, the kings and\ntheir liegemen, yet Folker was seen to stand before them all against\nthe foe; a good hero he. Many a one he made to fall in his blood through\nwounds. Etzel's men did fend them, too, full well, yet one saw the\nstrangers go hewing with their gleaming swords through the royal hall\nand on every side was heard great sound of wail. Those without would now\nfain be with their friends within, but at the entrance towers they found\nsmall gain. Those within had gladly been without the hall, but Dankwart\nlet none go either up or down the steps. Therefore there rose before\nthe towers a mighty press, and helmets rang loudly from the sword-blows.\nBold Dankwart came into great stress thereby; this his brother feared,\nas his loyalty did bid him.\n\nLoudly then Hagen called to Folker: \"See ye yonder, comrade, my brother\nstand before the Hunnish warriors amid a rain of blows? Friend, save my\nbrother, or ever we lose the knight.\"\n\n\"That will I surely,\" quoth the minstrel, and through the palace he went\na-fiddling, his stout sword ringing often in his hand. Great thanks were\ntendered by the warriors from the Rhine. Bold Folker spake to Dankwart:\n\"Great discomfiture have ye suffered to-day, therefore your brother bade\nme hasten to your aid. Will ye stand without, so will I stand within.\"\n\nSturdy Dankwart stood without the door and guarded the staircase against\nwhoever came, wherefore men heard the swords resound in the heroes'\nhands. Folker of Burgundy land performed the same within. Across\nthe press the bold fiddler cried: \"Friend Hagen, the hall is locked;\nforsooth King Etzel's door is bolted well. The hands of two heroes guard\nit, as with a thousand bars.\" When Hagen of Troneg beheld the door so\nwell defended, the famous hero and good slung his shield upon his back\nand gan avenge the wrongs that had been done him there. His foes had now\nno sort of hope to live.\n\nWhen now the lord of Berne, the king of the Amelungs, (2) beheld aright\nthat the mighty Hagen broke so many a helm, upon a bench he sprang and\nspake: \"Hagen poureth out the very worst of drinks.\"\n\nThe host, too, was sore adread, as behooved him now, for his life was\nhardly safe from these his foes. O how many dear friends were snatched\naway before his eyes! He sate full anxious; what booted it him that he\nwas king? Haughty Kriemhild now cried aloud to Dietrich: \"Pray help me\nhence alive, most noble knight, by the virtues of all the princes of the\nAmelung land. If Hagen reach me, I shall grasp death by the hand.\"\n\n\"How shall I help you, noble queen?\" spake Sir Dietrich. \"I fear for\nmyself in sooth. These men of Gunther be so passing wroth that at this\nhour I cannot guard a soul.\"\n\n\"Nay, not so, Sir Dietrich, noble knight and good. Let thy chivalrous\nmood appear to-day and help me hence, or I shall die.\" Passing great\ncause had Kriemhild for this fear.\n\n\"I'll try to see if I may help you, for it is long since that I have\nsoon so many good knights so bitterly enraged. Of a truth I see blood\nspurting through the helmets from the swords.\"\n\nLoudly the chosen knight gan call, so that his voice rang forth as from\na bison's horn, until the broad castle resounded with his force. Sir\nDietrich's strength was passing great in truth.\n\nWhen Gunther heard this man cry out in the heated strife, he began to\nheed. He spake: \"Dietrich's voice hath reached mine ears, I ween our\nchampions have bereft him of some friend to-day. I see him on the table,\nhe doth beckon with his hand. Ye friends and kinsmen from Burgundian\nland, give over the strife. Let's hear and see what here hath fortuned\nto the knight from my men-at-arms.\"\n\nWhen Gunther thus begged and bade in the stress of the fray, they\nsheathed their swords. Passing great was his power, so that none struck\na blow. Soon enow he asked the tidings of the knight of Berne. He spake:\n\"Most noble Dietrich, what hath happed to you through these my friends?\nI am minded to do you remedy and to make amends. If any had done you\naught, 'twould grieve me sore.\"\n\nThen spake Sir Dietrich: \"Naught hath happed to me, but I pray you, let\nme leave this hall and this fierce strife under your safe-guard, with my\nmen. For this favor I will serve you ever.\"\n\n\"How entreat ye now so soon,\" quoth Wolfhart (3) then. \"Forsooth the\nfiddler hath not barred the door so strong, but what we may open it enow\nto let us pass.\"\n\n\"Hold your tongue,\" spake Sir Dietrich; \"the devil a whit have ye ever\ndone.\"\n\nThen: spake King Gunther: \"I will grant your boon. Lead from the hall as\nfew or as many as ye will, save my foes alone; they must remain within.\nRight ill have they treated me in the Hunnish land.\"\n\nWhen Dietrich heard these words, he placed his arm around the high-born\nqueen, whose fear was passing great. On his other side he led King Etzel\nwith him hence; with Dietrich there also went six hundred stately men.\n\nThen spake the noble Margrave Rudeger: \"Shall any other who would gladly\nserve you come from this hall, let us hear the tale, and lasting peace\nshall well befit good friends.\"\n\nTo this Giselher of the Burgundian land replied: \"Peace and friendship\nbe granted you by us, sith ye are constant in your fealty. Ye and all\nyour men, ye may go hence fearlessly with these your friends.\"\n\nWhen Sir Rudeger voided the hall, there followed him, all told, five\nhundred men or more, kinsmen and vassals of the lord of Bechelaren, from\nwhom King Gunther later gained great scathe. Then a Hunnish champion\nspied Etzel walking close by Dietrich. He, too, would take this chance,\nbut the fiddler dealt him such a blow that his head fell soon before\nKing Etzel's feet. When the lord of the land was come outside the house,\nhe turned him about and gazed on Folker. \"Woe is me of these guests.\nThis is a direful need, that all my warriors should lie low in death\nbefore them. Alas for the feasting,\" quoth the noble king. \"Like a\nsavage boar there fighteth one within, hight Folker, who is a gleeman. I\nthank my stars that I escaped this fiend. His glees have an evil sound,\nthe strokes of his how draw blood; forsooth his measures fell many a\nhero dead. I wot not, with what this minstrel twitteth us, for I have\nnever had such baleful guest.\"\n\nThey had permitted whom they would to leave the hall. Then there arose\nwithin a mighty uproar; sorely the guests avenged what there had happed\nthem. Ho, what helmets bold Folker broke! The noble King Gunther turned\nhim toward the sound. \"Hear ye the measures, Hagen, which Folker\nyonder fiddleth with the Huns, when any draweth near the towers? 'Tis a\nblood-red stroke he useth with the bow.\"\n\n\"It rueth me beyond all measure,\" quoth Hagen, \"that in this hall I sate\nme down to rest before the hero did. I was his comrade and he was mine;\nand come we ever home again, we shall still be so, in loyal wise. Now\nbehold, most noble king, Folker is thy friend, he earneth gladly thy\nsilver and thy gold. His fiddle bow doth cut through the hardest steel,\non the helmets he breaketh the bright and shining gauds! (4) Never have\nI seen fiddler stand in such lordly wise as the good knight Folker hath\nstood to-day. His glees resound through shield and helmet. Certes he\nshall ride good steeds and wear lordly raiment.\"\n\nOf all the kinsmen of the Huns within the hall, not one of these\nremained alive. Thus the clash of arms died out, since none strove with\nthem longer. The lusty knights and bold now laid aside their swords.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Friendship\" translates the M.H.G. \"minne trinken\" 'to drink\n        to the memory of a person', an old custom originating with\n        the idea of pouring out a libation to the gods.  Later it\n        assumed the form of drinking to the honor of God, of a\n        saint, or of an absent friend.  See Grimm, \"Mythologie\", p.\n        48.\n   (2)  \"Amelungs\", see Adventure XXVIII, note 3.\n   (3)  \"Wolfhart\", see Adventure XXVIII, note 2.\n   (4)  \"Gauds\", ornaments.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XXXIV. How They Cast Out The Dead.\n\nThe lordings sate them down for weariness. Folker and Hagen came forth\nfrom the hall; upon their shields the haughty warriors leaned. Wise\nwords were spoken by the twain. Then Knight Giselher of Burgundy spake:\n\"Forsooth, dear friends, ye may not ease you yet; ye must bear the\ndead from out the hall. I'll tell you, of a truth, we shall be attacked\nagain. They must no longer lie here beneath our feet. Ere the Huns\nvanquish us by storm, we'll yet how wounds, which shall ease my heart.\nFor this,\" quoth Giselher, \"I have a steadfast mind.\"\n\n\"Well is me of such a lord,\" spake then Hagen. \"This rede which my young\nmaster hath given us to-day would befit no one but a knight. At this,\nBurgundians, ye may all stand glad.\"\n\nThen they followed the rede, and to the door they bare seven thousand\ndead, the which they cast outside. Down they fell before the stairway\nto the hall, and from their kinsmen rose a full piteous wall. Some there\nwere with such slight wounds that, had they been more gently treated,\nthey would have waxed well again; but from the lofty fall, they must\nneeds lie dead. Their friends bewailed this, and forsooth they had good\ncause.\n\nThen spake Folker, the fiddler, a lusty knight: \"Now I mark the truth of\nthis, as hath been told me. The Huns be cravens, like women they wail;\nthey should rather nurse these sorely wounded men.\"\n\nA margrave weened, he spake through kindness. Seeing one of his kinsmen\nlying in the blood, he clasped him in his arms and would have borne\nhim hence, when the bold minstrel shot him above the dead to death. The\nflight began as the others saw this deed, and all fell to cursing this\nselfsame minstrel. He snatched javelin, sharp and hard, the which had\nbeen hurled at him by a Hun, and cast it with might across the court,\nfar over the folk. Thus he forced Etzel's warriors to take lodgement\nfurther from the hall. On every side the people feared his mighty\nprowess.\n\nMany thousand men now stood before the hall. Folker and Hagen gan speak\nto Etzel all their mind, wherefrom these heroes bold and good came\nthereafter into danger. Quoth Hagen: \"'Twould well beseem the people's\nhope, if the lords would fight in the foremost ranks, as doth each of\nmy lordings here. They hew through the helmets, so that the blood doth\nfollow the sword.\"\n\nEtzel was brave; he seized his shield. \"Now fare warily,\" spake Lady\nKriemhild, \"and offer the warriors gold upon your shield. If Hagen doth\nbut reach you there, ye'll be hand in hand with death.\"\n\nThe king was so bold he would not turn him back, the which doth now\nseldom hap from so mighty a lord. By his shield-thong they had to draw\nhim hence. Once again grim Hagen began to mock him. \"It is a distant\nkinship,\" quoth Hagen, the knight, \"that bindeth Etzel and Siegfried. He\nloved Kriemhild, or ever she laid eyes on thee. Most evil king, why dost\nthou plot against me?\"\n\nKriemhild, the wife of the noble king, heard this speech; angry she grew\nthat he durst thus revile her before King Etzel's liegemen. Therefore\nshe again began to plot against the strangers. She spake: \"For him that\nslayeth me Hagen of Troneg and bringeth me his head, I will fill King\nEtzel's shield with ruddy gold, thereto will I give him as guerdon many\ngoodly lands and castles.\"\n\n\"Now I know not for what they wait,\" spake the minstrel. \"Never have I\nseen heroes stand so much like cowards, when one heard proffered such\ngoodly wage. Forsooth King Etzel should never be their friend again.\nMany of those who so basely eat the lording's bread, and now desert him\nin the greatest need, do I see stand here as cravens, and yet would pass\nfor brave. May shame ever be their lot!\"\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XXXV. How Iring Was Slain.\n\nThen cried Margrave Iring of Denmark: \"I have striven for honor now long\ntime, and in the storm of battle have been among the best. Now bring me\nmy harness, for in sooth I will encounter me with Hagen.\"\n\n\"I would not counsel that,\" spake Hagen, \"but bid the Hunnish knights\nstand further back. If twain of you or three leap into the hall, I'll\nsend them back sore wounded down the steps.\"\n\n\"Not for that will I give it over,\" quoth Iring again. \"I've tried\nbefore such daring things; in truth with my good sword I will encounter\nthee alone. What availeth all thy boasting, which thou hast done in\nwords?\"\n\nThen were soon arrayed the good Knight Iring and Irnfried of Thuringia,\na daring youth, and the stalwart Hawart and full a thousand men.\nWhatever Iring ventured, they would all fain give him aid. Then the\nfiddler spied a mighty troop, that strode along well armed with Iring.\nUpon their heads they bare good helmets. At this bold Folker waxed a\ndeal full wroth of mood. \"See ye, friend Hagen, Iring striding yonder,\nwho vowed to match you with his sword alone? How doth lying beseem\na hero? Much that misliketh me. There walk with him full a thousand\nknights or more, well armed.\"\n\n\"Say not that I lie,\" spake Hawart's liegeman. \"Gladly will I perform\nwhat I have vowed, nor will I desist therefrom through any fear. However\nfrightful Hagen be, I will meet him single-handed.\"\n\nOn his knees Iring begged both kinsmen and vassals to let him match the\nknight alone. This they did unwillingly, for well they knew the haughty\nHagen from the Burgundian land. But Iring begged so long that at last\nit happed. When the fellowship beheld his wish and that he strove for\nhonor, they let him go. Then a fierce conflict rose between the twain.\nIring of Denmark, the peerless high-born knight, bare high his spear and\ncovered him with his shield. Swiftly he rushed on Hagen before the hall,\nwhile a great shout arose from all the knights around. With might and\nmain they cast the spears with their hands through the sturdy shields\nupon their shining armor, so that the shafts whirled high in air. Then\nthe two brave men and fierce reached for their swords. Bold Hagen's\nstrength was mickle and great, but Iring smote him, that the whole hall\nrang. Palace and towers resounded from their blows, but the knight could\nnot achieve his wish.\n\nIring now left Hagen stand unharmed, and hied him to the fiddler. He\nweened to fell him by his mighty blows, but the stately knight wist how\nto guard bin, well. Then the fiddler struck a blow, that the plates of\nmail whirled high above the buckler's rim. An evil man he was, for\nto encounter, so Iring let him stand and rushed at Gunther of the\nBurgundian land. Here, too, either was strong enow in strife. The blows\nthat Gunther and Iring dealt each other drew no blood from wounds. This\nthe harness hindered, the which was both strong and good.\n\nHe now let Gunther be, and ran at Gernot, and gan hew sparks of fire\nfrom his armor rings. Then had stalwart Gernot of Burgundy nigh done\nbrave Iring unto death, but that he sprang away from the prince (nimble\nenow he was), and slew eftsoon four noble henchmen of the Burgundians\nfrom Worms across the Rhine. At this Giselher might never have waxed\nmore wroth. \"God wot, Sir Iring,\" spake Giselher, the youth, \"ye must\npay me weregild (1) for those who have fallen dead this hour before\nyou.\"\n\nThen at him he rushed and smote the Dane, so that he could not stir a\nstep, but sank before his hands down in the blood, so that all did ween\nthe good knight would never deal a blow again in strife. But Iring lay\nunwounded here before Sir Giselher. From the crashing of the helmet\nand the ringing of the sword, his wits had grown so weak that the brave\nknight no longer thought of life. Stalwart Giselher had done this with\nhis might. When now the ringing gan leave his head, the which he had\nsuffered from the mighty stroke, he thought: \"I am still alive and\nnowhere wounded. Now first wot I of Giselher's mighty strength.\" On\neither side he heard his foes. Wist they the tale, still more had happed\nhim. Giselher, too, he marked hard by; he bethought him, how he might\nescape his foes. How madly he sprang up from the blood! Well might he\nthank his nimbleness for this. Out of the house he ran to where he again\nfound Hagen, whom he dealt a furious blow with his powerful hand.\n\nHagen thought him: \"Thou art doomed. Unless be that the foul fiend\nprotect thee, thou canst not escape alive.\"\n\nYet Iring wounded Hagen through his crest. This the hero wrought with\nWaska, (2) a passing goodly sword. When Sir Hagen felt the wound, wildly\nhe brandished his weapon in his hand. Soon Hawart's liegeman was forced\nto yield his ground, and Hagen gan pursue him down the stairs. Brave\nIring swung his shield above his head, but had the staircase been the\nlength of three, Hagen would not have let him strike a blow the while.\nHo, what red sparks did play above his helmet!\n\nIring returned scatheless to his liegemen. Then the tidings were brought\nto Kriemhild, of that which he had wrought in strife with Hagen of\nTroneg. For this the queen gan thank him highly. \"Now God requite thee,\nIring, thou peerless hero and good. Thou hast comforted well my heart\nand mind. I see that Hagen's weeds be wet with blood.\" For very joy\nKriemhild herself relieved him of his shield.\n\n\"Be not too lavish of your thanks,\" spake Hagen. \"'Twould well befit a\nknight to try again. A valiant man were he, if he then came back alive.\nLittle shall the wound profit you, which I have at his bands; for that\nye have seen the rings wet with blood from my wound doth urge me to the\ndeath of many a man. Now first am I enraged at Hawart's liegeman. Small\nscathe hath Knight Iring done me yet.\"\n\nMeanwhile Iring of Denmark stood in the breeze; he cooled his harness\nand doffed his casque. All the folk then praised his prowess, at which\nthe margrave was in passing lofty mood. Again Sir Iring spake: \"My\nfriends, this know; arm me now quickly, for I would fain try again, if\nperchance I may not conquer this overweening man.\"\n\nHis shield was hewn to pieces, a better one he gained; full soon the\nchampion was armed again. Through hate he seized a passing heavy spear\nwith which he would encounter Hagen yonder. Meantime the death-grim\nman awaited him in hostile wise. But Knight Hagen would not abide his\ncoming. Hurling the javelin and brandishing his sword, he ran to meet\nhim to the very bottom of the stairs. Forsooth his rage was great.\nLittle booted Iring then his strength; through the shields they smote,\nso that the flames rose high in fiery blasts. Hagen sorely wounded\nHawart's liegeman with his sword through shield and breastplate. Never\nwaxed he well again. When now Knight Iring felt the wound, higher above\nhis helmet bands he raised his shield. Great enow he thought the scathe\nhe here received, but thereafter King Gunther's liegeman did him more of\nharm. Hagen found a spear lying now before his feet. With this he shot\nIring, the Danish hero, so that the shaft stood forth from his head.\nChampion Hagen had given him a bitter end. Iring must needs retreat\nto those of Denmark. Or ever they unbound his helmet and drew the\nspear-shaft from his head, death had already drawn nigh him. At this his\nkinsmen wept, as forsooth they had great need.\n\nThen the queen came and bent above him. She gan bewail the stalwart\nIring and bewept his wounds, indeed her grief was passing sharp. At this\nthe bold and lusty warrior spake before his kinsmen: \"Let be this wail,\nmost royal queen. What availeth your weeping now? Certes, I must lose\nmy life from these wounds I have received. Death will no longer let me\nserve you and Etzel.\" To the men of Thuringia and to those of Denmark he\nspake: \"None of you must take from the queen her shining ruddy gold as\nmeed, for if ye encounter Hagen, ye must gaze on death.\"\n\nPale grew his hue; brave Iring bare the mark of death. Dole enow it\ngave them, for no longer might Hawart's liegeman live. Then the men\nof Denmark must needs renew the fray. Irnfried and Hawart with well a\nthousand champions leaped toward the hall. On every side one heard a\nmonstrous uproar, mighty and strong. Ho, what sturdy javelins were cast\nat the Burgundian men! Bold Irnfried rushed at the minstrel, but gained\ngreat damage at his hands. Through his sturdy helmet the noble fiddler\nsmote the landgrave. Certes, he was grim enow! Then Sir Irnfried dealt\nthe valiant gleeman such a blow that his coat of mail burst open and\nhis breastplate was enveloped with a bright red flame. Yet the landgrave\nfell dead at the minstrel's hands. Hawart and Hagen, too, had come\ntogether. Wonders would he have seen, who beheld the fight. The swords\nfell thick and fast in the heroes' hands. Through the knight from the\nBurgundian land Hawart needs must die. When the Thuringians and the\nDanes espied their lordings dead, there rose before the hall a fearful\nstrife, before they gained the door with mighty hand. Many a helm and\nshield was hacked and cut thereby.\n\n\"Give way,\" spake Folker, \"and let them in, for else what they have in\nmind will not be ended. They must die in here in full short time. With\ndeath they'll gain what the queen would give them.\"\n\nWhen these overweening men were come into the hall, the head of many a\none sank down so low that he needs must die from their furious strokes.\nWell fought the valiant Gernot, and the same did Giselher, the knight. A\nthousand and four were come into the hall and many a whizzing stroke\nof the swords was seen flash forth, but soon all the warriors lay slain\ntherein. Mickle wonders might one tell of the Burgundian men. The hall\ngrew still, as the uproar died away. On every side the dead men's blood\npoured through the openings down to the drain-pipes. This the men from\nthe Rhine had wrought with their passing strength.\n\nThose from the Burgundian land now sate them down to rest and laid aside\ntheir swords and shields. But still the valiant minstrel stood guard\nbefore the hall. He waited, if any would perchance draw near again in\nstrife. Sorely the king made wail, as did the queen. Maids and ladies\nwere distraught with grief. Death, I ween, had conspired against them,\nwherefore many of the warriors perished through the guests.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Weregild\" (O.E. \"wer\", 'a man', \"gild\", 'payment of\n        money'), legal term for compensation paid for a man killed.\n   (2)  \"Waska\".  In \"Biterolf\" it is the name of the sword of\n        Walther of Wasgenstein and is connected with the old German\n        name, \"Wasgenwald\", for the Vosges.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XXXVI. How The Queen Gave Orders To Burn the Hall.\n\n\"Now unbind your helmets,\" spake the good Knight Hagen. \"I and my\ncomrade will guard you well, and should Etzel's men be minded to try\nagain, I'll warn my lords as soon as I ever can.\"\n\nThen many a good knight bared his head. They sate them down upon the\nwounded, who had fallen in the blood, done to death at their hands. Evil\nlooks were cast upon the noble strangers. Before the eventide the king\nand the queen brought it to pass that the Hunnish champions tried\nagain. Men saw full twenty thousand warriors stand before them, who must\nperforce march to the fray. Straightway there rose a mighty storming\ntowards the strangers. Dankwart, Hagen's brother, the doughty knight,\nsprang from his lordings' side to meet the foes without the door.\nAll weened that he were dead, yet forth he stood again unscathed.\nThe furious strife did last till nightfall brought it to a close. As\nbefitted good knights, the strangers warded off King Etzel's liegemen\nthe livelong summer day. Ho, how many a bold knight fell doomed before\nthem! This great slaughter happed upon midsummer's day, when Lady\nKriemhild avenged her sorrow of heart upon her nearest kin and upon many\nanother man, so that King Etzel never again gained joy.\n\nThe day had passed away, but still they had good cause for fear. They\nthought, a short and speedy death were better for them, than to be\nlonger racked with monstrous pain. A truce these proud and lusty knights\nnow craved; they begged that men would bring the king to see them. Forth\nfrom the hall stepped the heroes, bloody of hue, and the three noble\nkings, stained from their armor. They wist not to whom they should make\nplaint of their mighty wounds. Thither both Etzel and Kriemhild went;\nthe land was theirs and so their band waxed large. He spake to the\nstrangers: \"Pray tell me, what ye will of me? Ye ween to gain here\npeace, but that may hardly be. For damage as great as ye have done me,\nin my son and in my many kinsmen, whom ye have slain, peace and pardon\nshall be denied you quite; it shall not boot you aught, an' I remain\nalive.\"\n\nTo this King Gunther answered: \"Dire need constrained us; all my\nmen-at-arms lay dead before thy heroes in the hostel. How did I deserve\nsuch pay? I came to thee in trust, I weened thou wast my friend.\"\n\nYoung Giselher of Burgundy likewise spake: \"Ye men of Etzel, who still\ndo live, what do ye blame me with? What have I done to you, for I rode\nin friendly wise into this land of yours.\"\n\nQuoth they: \"From thy friendliness this castle is filled with grief and\nthe land as well. We should not have taken it ill, in sooth, if thou\nhadst never come from Worms beyond the Rhine. Thou and thy brothers have\nfilled this land with orphans.\"\n\nThen spake Knight Giselher in angry mood: \"And ye will lay aside this\nbitter hate and make your peace with us stranger knights, 'twere best\nfor either side. We have not merited at all what Etzel here doth do us.\"\n\nThen spake the host to his guests: \"Unlike are my wrongs and yours. The\nmickle grievance from the loss and then the shame, which I have taken\nhere, are such that none of you shall e'er go hence alive.\"\n\nAt this mighty Gernot spake to the king: \"May God then bid you act in\nmerciful wise. Slay, if ye will, us homeless knights, but let us first\ndescend to you into the open court. That will make to you for honor.\nLet be done quickly whatever shall hap to us. Ye have still many men\nunscathed, who dare well encounter us and bereave us storm-weary men of\nlife. How long must we warriors undergo these toils?\"\n\nKing Etzel's champions had nigh granted this boon and let them leave the\nhall, but Kriemhild heard it and sorely it misliked her. Therefore the\nwanderers were speedily denied the truce. \"Not so, ye Hunnish men. I\ncounsel you in true fealty, that ye do not what ye have in mind, and let\nthese murderers leave the hall, else must your kinsmen suffer a deadly\nfall. Did none of them still live, save Uta's sons, my noble brothers,\nand they came forth into the breeze and cooled their armor rings, ye\nwould all be lost. Bolder heroes were never born into the world.\"\n\nThen spake young Giselher: \"Fair sister mine, full evil was my trust,\nwhen thou didst invite me from across the Rhine hither to this land, to\nthis dire need. How have I merited death here from the Huns? I was aye\ntrue to thee; never did I do thee wrong, and in the hope that thou wast\nstill my friend, dear sister mine, rode I hither to thy court. It cannot\nbe but that thou grant us mercy.\"\n\n\"I will not grant you mercy, merciless is my mood. Hagen of Troneg hath\ndone me such great wrongs that it may never be amended, the while I\nlive. Ye must all suffer for this deed,\" so spake King Etzel's wife.\n\"And ye will give me Hagen alone as hostage, I will not deny that I will\nlet you live, for ye be my brothers and children of one mother, and will\ncounsel peace with these heroes that be here.\"\n\n\"Now God in heaven forbid,\" spake Gernot; \"were there here a thousand of\nus, the clansmen of thy kin, we'd rather all lie dead, than give thee a\nsingle man as hostage. Never shall this be done.\"\n\n\"We all must die,\" spake then Giselher, \"but none shall hinder that we\nguard us in knightly wise. We be still here, if any list to fight us;\nfor never have I failed a friend in fealty.\"\n\nThen spake bold Dankwart (it had not beseemed him to have held his\npeace): \"Forsooth my brother Hagen standeth not alone. It may yet rue\nthose who here refuse the truce. I'll tell you of a truth, we'll make\nyou ware of this.\"\n\nThen spake the queen: \"Ye full lusty heroes, now go nigher to the stairs\nand avenge my wrongs. For this I will ever serve you, as I should by\nright. I'll pay Hagen well for his overweening pride. Let none at all\nescape from the house, and I will bid the hall be set on fire at all\nfour ends. Thus all my wrongs shall be well avenged.\"\n\nSoon were King Etzel's champions ready still stood without into the hall\nwith blows and shots. Mickle waxed the din, yet the lordings and their\nliegemen would not part. For very fealty they could not leave each\nother. Etzel's queen then bade the hall be set on fire, and thus they\nracked the bodies of the knights with fire and flame. Fanned by the\nbreeze, the whole house burst into flames full soon. I ween, no folk\ndid ever gain such great distress. Enow within cried out: \"Alack this\nplight! We would much rather die in stress of battle. It might move God\nto pity, how we all are lost! The queen now wreaketh monstrously on us\nher wrath.\"\n\nQuoth one of them within: \"We must all lie dead. What avail us now the\ngreetings which the king did send us? Thirst from this great heat giveth\nme such dole, that soon, I ween, my life must ebb away in anguish.\"\n\nThen spake Hagen of Troneg: \"Ye noble knights and good, let him whom\npangs of thirst constrain, drink here this blood. In such great heat,\n'tis better still than wine. We can purvey us at this time none better.\"\n\nOne of the warriors hied him then to where he found a corpse, and knelt\nhim down beside the wound; then he unbound his helmet and began to drink\nthe flowing blood. However little wont to such a drink, him thought it\npassing good: \"Sir Hagen, now God requite you,\" spake the weary man,\n\"that I have drunk so well at your advice; seldom hath better wine been\nproffered me. And I live yet a while, I shall ever be your friend.\"\n\nWhen now the others heard this, it thought them good, and soon there\nwere many more that drank the blood. From this the body of each gained\nmuch of strength; but many a stately dame paid dear for this through\nthe loss of loving kin. Into the hall the fire fell thick and fast upon\nthem, but with their shields they turned it from them to the ground.\nBoth the heat and the smoke did hurt them sore; in sooth, I ween, that\nnevermore will such anguish hap to heroes.\n\nAgain Hagen of Troneg spake: \"Stand by the sides of the hall. Let not\nthe firebrands fall upon your helmet bands, but stamp them with your\nfeet down deeper in the blood. Forsooth it is an evil feast which the\nqueen doth give us here.\"\n\nIn such dire woes the night did wear away at last, and still the brave\nminstrel and his comrade Hagen stood before the hall, a-leaning on their\nshields. More scathe they awaited from those of Etzel's band. Then spake\nthe fiddler: \"Now go we into the hall. Then the Huns will ween, that we\nall be dead from the torture that hath been done us here. They'll yet\nsee us go to meet them in the strife.\"\n\nNow spake Giselher of Burgundy, the youth: \"I trow the day dawneth, a\ncooling wind doth blow. May God in heaven let us live to see a liefer\ntime, for my sister Kriemhild hath given us here an evil feast.\"\n\nAgain one spake: \"I see the day. Sith we cannot hope for better things,\nso arm you, heroes, think on your life. Certes, King Etzel's wife will\ncome to meet us soon again.\"\n\nThe host weened well, that his guests were dead from their toil and the\npangs of fire; but yet within the hall six hundred brave men, as good as\nany knight that king ever gained, were still alive. Those set to guard\nthe strangers had well seen that the guests still lived, despite the\ndamage and the dole that had been done both to the lordings and their\nmen. In the hall one saw them stand full safe and sound. They then told\nKriemhild that many were still alive, but the queen replied: \"It could\nnever be, that any should have lived through such stress of fire. Rather\nwill I believe that all lie dead.\"\n\nThe lordings and their men would still fain have lived, had any listed\nto do them mercy, but they could find none among those of the Hunnish\nland. So with full willing hand they avenged their dying. On this same\nday, towards morning, men proffered them a fierce attack as greeting,\nwhich brought the champions in stress again. Many a stout spear was\nhurled upon them, but the bold and lordly warriors warded them in\nknightly wise. High rose the mood of Etzel's men at the thought that\nthey should earn Queen Kriemhild's gold. Thereto they were minded to\nperform whatso the King did bid them. Many of them because of this\nmust soon needs gaze on death. Of pledges and of gifts one might tell\nwonders. She bade the ruddy gold be carried forth on shields and gave\nit to whomsoever craved it and would take it. Certes, greater wage was\nnevermore given against foes. To the hall a mickle force of well-armed\nwarriors marched.\n\nThen cried bold Folker: \"We're here again, ye see. Never saw I heroes\nmore gladly come to fight than these that have taken the king's gold to\ndo us scathe.\"\n\nThen enow did call: \"Nearer, heroes, nearer, that we may do betimes what\nwe must bring to an end. Here dieth none that is not doomed to die.\"\n\nSoon their shields were seen sticking full of darts that had been\nthrown. What more can I say? Full twelve hundred men tried hard to match\nthem, surging back and forth. The strangers cooled well their mood with\nwounds. None might part the strife, and so blood was seen to flow from\nmortal wounds, many of which were dealt. Each one was heard to wail for\nfriends. All the great king's doughty warriors died, and loving kinsmen\nmourned them passing sore.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XXXVII. How Margrave Rudeger Was Slain.\n\nThe strangers had done full well at dawn. Meanwhile Gotelind's husband\ncame to court. Bitterly faithful Rudeger wept when he saw the grievous\nwounds on either side. \"Woe is me,\" quoth the champion, \"that I was ever\nborn, sith none may stay this mickle grief! However fain I would make\nfor peace, the king will not consent, for he seeth ever more and more\nthe sufferings of his men.\"\n\nThen the good Knight Rudeger sent to Dietrich, if perchance they might\nturn the fate of the high-born kings. The king of Berne sent answer:\n\"Who might now forfend? King Etzel will let none part the strife.\"\n\nThen a Hunnish warrior, that saw Rudeger stand with weeping eyes, and\nmany tears had he shed, spake to the queen: \"Now behold how he doth\nstand, that hath the greatest power at Etzel's court and whom both lands\nand people serve. Why have so many castles been given to Rudeger, of\nwhich he doth hold such store from the king in fief? Not one sturdy\nstroke hath he dealt in all this strife. Methinks, he recketh not how it\nfare here at court, sith he hath his will in full. Men say of him, he be\nbolder than any other wight. Little hath that been seen in these parlous\n(1) days.\"\n\nSad in heart the faithful vassal gazed at him whom he heard thus speak.\nHim-thought: \"Thou shalt pay for this. Thou sayest, I be a craven, and\nhast told thy tale too loud at court.\"\n\nHis fist he clenched, then ran he at him and smote the Hunnish man\nso mightily that he lay dead at his feet full soon. Through this King\nEtzel's woe grew greater.\n\n\"Away, thou arrant coward,\" cried Rudeger, \"forsooth I have enow of\ngrief and pain. How dost thou taunt me, that I fight not here? Certes,\nI have good cause to hate the strangers, and would have done all in my\npower against them, had I not led the warriors hither. Of a truth I was\ntheir safeguard to my master's land. Therefore the hand of me, wretched\nman, may not strive against them.\"\n\nThen spake Etzel, the noble king, to the margrave: \"How have ye helped\nus, most noble Rudeger! We have so many fey (2) in the land, that we\nhave no need of more. Full evil have ye done.\"\n\nAt this the noble knight made answer: \"Forsooth he grieved my mood and\ntwitted me with the honors and the goods, such store of which I have\nreceived from thy hand. This hath cost the liar dear.\"\n\nThe queen, too, was come and had seen what fortuned to the Huns through\nthe hero's wrath. Passing sore she bewailed it; her eyes grew moist as\nshe spake to Rudeger: \"How have we deserved that ye should increase the\nsorrows of the king and me? Hitherto ye have told us, that for our sake\nye would risk both life and honor. I heard full many warriors accord\nto you the palm. Let me mind you of your fealty and that ye swore, when\nthat ye counseled me to Etzel, good knight and true, that ye would serve\nme till one of us should die. Never have I, poor woman, had such great\nneed of this.\"\n\n\"There's no denying that I swore to you, my lady, for your sake I'd\nrisk both life and honor, but I did not swear that I would lose my soul.\n'Twas I that bade the high-born lordings to this feast.\"\n\nQuoth she: \"Bethink thee, Rudeger, of thy great fealty, of thy\nconstancy, and of thine oaths, that thou wouldst ever avenge mine\ninjuries and all my woes.\"\n\nSaid the margrave: \"Seldom have I denied you aught.\"\n\nMighty Etzel, too, began implore; upon their knees they sank before\nthe knight. Men saw the noble margrave stand full sad. Pitifully the\nfaithful warrior spake: \"Woe is me, most wretched man, that I have\nlived to see this day. I must give over all my honors, my fealty, and\nmy courtesie, that God did bid me use. Alas, great God of heaven, that\ndeath will not turn this from me! I shall act basely and full evil,\nwhatever I do or leave undone. But if I give over both, then will all\npeople blame me. Now may he advise me, who hath given me life.\"\n\nStill the king and the queen, too, begged unceasingly. Through this\nwarriors must needs thereafter lose their lives at Rudeger's hands, when\nthe hero also died. Ye may well hear it now, that he deported him full\npitifully. He wist that it would bring him scathe and monstrous woe.\nGladly would he have refused the king and queen. He feared full sore\nthat if he slew but one of the strangers, the world would bear him hate.\n\nThen the brave man addressed him to the king: \"Sir King, take back\nagain all that I have from you, my land with its castles, let not a whit\nremain to me. On foot will I wander into other lands.\"\n\nAt this King Etzel spake: \"Who else should help me then? I'll give thee\nthe land and all its castles, as thine own, that thou mayst avenge me on\nmy foes. Thou shalt be a mighty king at Etzel's side.\"\n\nThen answered Rudeger: \"How shall I do this deed? I bade them to my\nhouse and home; in friendly wise I offered them both food and drink\nand gave them gifts. How may I counsel their death? People will lightly\nween, that I be craven. No service of mine have I refused these noble\nlordings and their men. Now I rue the kinship I have gained with them. I\ngave my daughter to Giselher, the knight; to none in all the world could\nshe have been better given, for courtesie and honor, for fealty and\nwealth. Never have I seen so young a prince of such right courteous\nmind.\"\n\nThen Kriemhild spake again: \"Most noble Rudeger, take pity on our\ngriefs, on mine and on the king's. Bethink thee well, that king did\nnever gain such baneful guests.\"\n\nTo the noble dame the margrave spake: \"Rudeger's life must pay to-day\nfor whatsoever favors ye and my lord have shown me. Therefore must I\ndie; no longer may it be deferred. I know full well, that my castles and\nmy lands will be voided for you to-day through the hand of one of these\nmen. To your mercy I commend my wife and children and the strangers (3)\nwho be at Bechelaren.\"\n\n\"Now God requite thee, Rudeger,\" spake the king, and both he and the\nqueen grew glad. \"Thy people shall be well commended to our care. For\nmine own weal I trust thou too shalt go unscathed.\"\n\nEtzel's bride began to weep. Then body and soul he staked upon the\nventure. He spake: \"I must perform what I have vowed. Alas for my\nfriends, whom I am loth to fight.\"\n\nMen saw him go sadly from the presence of the king. Close at hand he\nfound his warriors standing. He spake: \"Ye must arm you all, my men,\nfor, alas, I must needs encounter the bold Burgundians.\"\n\nThey bade the squires run nimbly to where lay their arms. Whether it\nwere helm or buckler, 'twas all brought forth to them by their meiny.\nLater the proud strangers heard told baleful tales. Rudeger was\nnow armed, and with him five hundred men; thereto he gained twelve\nchampions, who would fain win renown in the stress of battle. They\nwist not that death drew nigh them. Then Rudeger was seen to march with\nhelmet donned. The margrave's men bare keen-edged swords, and their\nbright shields and broad upon their arms. This the fiddler saw; greatly\nhe rued the sight. When young Giselher beheld his lady's father walk\nwith his helm upon his head, how might he know what he meant thereby,\nsave that it portended good? Therefore the noble prince waxed passing\nmerry of mood.\n\n\"Now well is me of such kinsmen,\" spake Knight Giselher, \"whom we have\nwon upon this journey; from my wife we shall reap much profit here. Lief\nit is to me, that this betrothal hath taken place.\"\n\n\"I know not whence ye take your comfort,\" spake then the minstrel; \"when\nhave ye seen so many heroes walk with helmets donned and swords in hand,\nfor the sake of peace? Rudeger doth think to win his castles and his\nlands in fight with us.\"\n\nOr ever the fiddler had ended his speech, men saw the noble Rudeger\nbefore the house. At his feet he placed his trusty shield, and now both\nservice and greeting he must needs refuse his friends. Into the hall\nthe noble margrave called: \"Ye doughty Nibelungs, now guard you well\non every side. Ye were to profit by me, now I shall bring you scathe.\nAforetime we were friends, but of this troth I now would fain be rid.\"\n\nThe hard-pressed men were startled at this tale, for none gained aught\nof joy, that he whom they did love would now fain fight them. From their\nfoes they had already suffered mickle stress of war. \"Now God of heaven\nforbid,\" spake Gunther, the knight, \"that ye should give over your love\nof us and your great fealty, on which we counted of a truth. Better\nthings I trow of you, than that ye should ever do this deed.\"\n\n\"Alas, I cannot give it over, but must fight you, for I have vowed it.\nNow ward you, brave heroes, and ye love your life. King Etzel's wife\nwould not release me from mine oath.\"\n\n\"Ye declare this feud too late,\" spake the high-born king. \"Now may God\nrequite you, most noble Rudeger, for all the love and fealty that ye\nhave shown us, if ye would only act more kindly at the end. I and my\nkinsmen, we ought ever to serve you for the noble gifts ye gave us, when\nye brought us hither faithfully to Etzel's land. Now, noble Rudeger,\nthink on this.\"\n\n\"How gladly would I grant you,\" spake Knight Rudeger, \"that I might\nweigh out my gifts for you with full measure, as willingly as I had\nhoped, if I never should be blamed on that account.\"\n\n\"Turn back, noble Rudeger,\" spake then Gernot, \"for host did never give\nhis guests such loving cheer as ye did us. This shall profit you well,\nand we remain alive.\"\n\n\"Would to God,\" spake Rudeger, \"most noble Gernot, that ye were on the\nRhine and I were dead with passing honor, sith I must now encounter you!\nNever did friends act worse to heroes.\"\n\n\"Now God requite you, Sir Rudeger,\" answered Gernot, \"for your passing\nrich gifts. Your death doth rue me, if such knightly virtues shall be\nlost with you. Here I bear your sword that ye gave me, good knight and\ntrue. It hath never failed me in all this need. Many a knight fell\ndead beneath its edges. It is bright and steady, glorious and good;\nnevermore, I ween, will warrior give so rich a gift. And will ye not\nturn back, but come to meet us, and slay aught of the friends I still\nhave here, with your own sword will I take your life. Then will ye rue\nme, Rudeger, ye and your high-born wife.\"\n\n\"Would to God, Sir Gernot, that this might come to pass, that all your\nwill might here be done, and that your kinsmen escaped unscathed! Then\nboth my daughter and my wife may trust you well, forsooth.\"\n\nThen of the Burgundians there spake fair Uta's son: \"Why do ye so, Sir\nRudeger? Those that be come with us, do all like you well. Ye encounter\nus in evil wise; ye wish to make your fair daughter a widow far too\nsoon. If ye and your warriors match me now with strife, how right\nunkindly do ye let it appear, that I trust you well above all other men\nand therefore won me your daughter to wife.\"\n\n\"Think on your fealty, most noble and high-born king. And God let you\nescape,\" so spake Rudeger, \"let the maiden suffer not for me. For your\nown virtue's sake, vouchsafe her mercy.\"\n\n\"That I should do by right,\" spake the youthful Giselher, \"but if\nmy noble kinsmen here within must die through you, then my steadfast\nfriendship for you and for your daughter must be parted.\"\n\n\"Now may God have mercy on us,\" answered the valiant man. Then they\nraised their shields, as though they would hence to fight the guests in\nKriemhild's hall, but Hagen cried full loud adown the steps. \"Pray tarry\nawhile, most noble Rudeger,\" so spake Hagen; \"I and my lords would fain\nhave further parley, as doth befit our need. What can the death of us\nwanderers avail King Etzel? I stand here in a fearful plight; the shield\nthat Lady Gotelind gave me to bear hath been cut to pieces by the Huns.\nI brought it with friendly purpose into Etzel's land. O that God in\nheaven would grant, that I might bear so good a shield as that thou hast\nin thy hand, most noble Rudeger! Then I should no longer need a hauberk\nin the fray.\"\n\n\"Gladly would I serve thee with my shield, durst I offer it before\nKriemhild. Yet take it, Hagen, and bear it on thine arm. Ho, if thou\ncouldst only wield it in the Burgundian land!\"\n\nWhen he so willingly offered to give the shield, enow of eyes grew\nred with scalding tears. 'T was the last gift that ever Rudeger of\nBechelaren gave to any knight. However fierce Hagen, and however stern\nof mood, the gift did touch him, which the good hero, so near to death,\nhad given. Many a noble knight gan mourn with him.\n\n\"Now God in heaven requite you, most noble Rudeger. Your like will\nnevermore be found, who giveth homeless warriors such lordly gifts. God\ngrant that your courtesie may ever live.\" Again Hagen spake: \"Woe is me\nof these tales, we had so many other griefs to bear. Let complaint be\nmade to heaven, if we must fight with friends.\"\n\nQuoth the margrave: \"Inly doth this grieve me.\"\n\n\"Now God requite you, for the gift, most noble Rudeger. Howso these\nhigh-born warriors deport them toward you, my hand shall never touch you\nin the fight, and ye slew them all from the Burgundian land.\"\n\nCourteously the good Sir Rudeger bowed him low. On every side they wept,\nthat none might soothe this pain of heart. That was a mighty grief. In\nRudeger would die the father of all knightly virtues.\n\nThen Folker, the minstrel, spake from out the hall: \"Sith my comrade\nHagen hath made his peace with you, ye shall have it just as steadfastly\nfrom my hand, for well ye earned it, when we came into this land. Most\nnoble margrave, ye shall be mine envoy, too. The margravine gave me\nthese ruddy arm rings, that I should wear them here at the feasting.\nThese ye may yourself behold, that ye may later be my witness.\"\n\n\"Now God of heaven grant,\" spake Rudeger, \"that the margravine may give\nyou more! I'll gladly tell these tales to my dear love, if I see her in\nhealth again. Of this ye shall not doubt.\"\n\nWhen he had vowed him this, Rudeger raised high his shield. No longer\nhe bided, but with raging mood, like a berserker, he rushed upon the\nguests. Many a furious blow the noble margrave struck. The twain, Folker\nand Hagen, stepped further back, as they had vowed to him afore. Still\nhe found standing by the tower such valiant men, that Rudeger began the\nfight with anxious doubts. With murderous intent Gunther and Gernot let\nhim in, good heroes they! Giselher stood further back, which irked him\nsore, in truth. He voided Rudeger, for still he had hope of life. Then\nthe margrave's men rushed at their foes; in knightly wise one saw them\nfollow their lord. In their hands they bare their keen-edged swords,\nthe which cleft there many a helm and lordly shield. The tired warriors\ndealt the men of Bechelaren many a mighty blow, that cut smooth and deep\nthrough the shining mail, down to the very quick.\n\nRudeger's noble fellowship was now come quite within. Into the fight\nFolker and Hagen sprang anon. They gave no quarter, save to one man\nalone. Through the hands of the twain the blood streamed down from\nthe helmets. How grimly rang the many swords within! The shield plates\nsprang from their fastenings, and the precious stones, cut from the\nshields, fell down into the gore. So grimly they fought, that men will\nnever do the like again. The lord of Bechelaren raged to and fro, as\none who wotteth how to use great prowess in the fray. Passing like to\na worshipful champion and a bold did Rudeger bear him on that day. Here\nstood the warriors, Gunther and Gernot, and smote many a hero dead in\nthe fray. Giselher and Dankwart, the twain, recked so little, that\nthey brought full many a knight to his last day of life. Full well did\nRudeger make appear that he was strong enow, brave and well-armed. Ho,\nwhat knights he slew! This a Burgundian espied; perforce it angered him,\nand thus Sir Rudeger's death drew near.\n\nThe stalwart Gernot accosted the hero; to the margrave he spake: \"It\nappeareth, ye will not leave my men alive, most noble Rudeger. That\nirketh me beyond all measure, no longer can I bear the sight. So may\nyour present work you harm, sith ye have taken from me such store of\nfriends. Pray address you unto me, most noble man and brave, your gift\nshall be paid for as best I can.\"\n\nOr ever the margrave could reach his foe, bright armor rings must needs\ngrow dull with blood. Then at each other sprang these honor-seeking men.\nEither gan guard him against mighty wounds. So sharp were their swords,\nthat naught might avail against them. Then Rudeger, the knight, smote\nGernot a buffet through his helmet, the which was as hard as flint, so\nthat the blood gushed forth. But this the bold knight and good repaid\neftsoon. High in his hand he now poised Rudeger's gift, and though\nwounded unto death, he smote him a stroke through his good and trusty\nshield down to his helmet band. And so fair Gotelind's husband was done\nto death. Certes, so rich a gift was never worse repaid. So fell alike\nboth Gernot and Rudeger, slain in the fray, through each other's hand.\n\nThen first waxed Hagen wroth, when he saw the monstrous scathe. Quoth\nthe hero of Troneg: \"Evil hath it fared with us. In these two men we\nhave taken a loss so great that neither their land nor people will e'er\nrecover from the blow. Rudeger's champions must answer to us homeless\nmen.\"\n\n\"Alas for my brother, who hath here been done to death. What evil tales\nI hear all time! Noble Rudeger, too, must ever rue me. The loss and the\ngrievous wounds are felt on either side.\"\n\nWhen Lord Giselher saw his betrothed's father dead, those within the\nhall were forced to suffer need. Fiercely death sought his fellowship;\nnot one of those of Bechelaren escaped with life. Gunther and Giselher\nand Hagen, too, Dankwart and Folker, the right good knights, went to\nwhere they found the two men lying. Then by these heroes tears of grief\nwere shed.\n\n\"Death doth sorely rob us,\" spake Giselher, the youth. \"Now give over\nyour weeping and go we bite the breeze, that the mailed armor of us\nstorm-weary men may cool. Certes, I ween, that God in heaven vouchsafeth\nus no more to live.\"\n\nThis champion was seen to sit and that to lean against the wall, but all\nagain were idle. Rudeger's heroes lay still in death. The din had died\naway; the hush endured so long, it vexed King Etzel.\n\n\"Alack for such services,\" spake the queen. \"They be not so true, that\nour foes must pay with their life at Rudeger's hands. I trow, he doth\nwish to lead them back to the Burgundian land. What booteth it, King\nEtzel, that we have given him whatso he would? The knight hath done\namiss, he who should avenge us, doth make his peace.\"\n\nTo this Folker, the full dapper knight, made answer: \"This is not true,\nalas, most noble queen. Durst I give the lie to such a high-born dame,\nthen had ye most foully lied against Rudeger. He and his champions be\ncozened in this peace. So eagerly he did what the king commanded,\nthat he and all his fellowship lie here in death. Now look around you,\nKriemhild, to see whom ye may now command. The good Knight Rudeger hath\nserved you to his end. And ye will not believe the tale, we'll let you\nsee.\"\n\nTo their great grief 'twas done; they bare the slain hero to where the\nking might see him. Never had there happed to Etzel's men a grief so\ngreat. When they saw the margrave borne forth dead, no scribe might\nwrite or tell the frantic grief of men and women, which there gan show\nitself from dole of heart. King Etzel's sorrow waxed so great that the\nmighty king did voice his woe of heart, as with a lion's roar. Likewise\ndid his queen. Beyond all measure they bewailed the good Knight\nRudeger's death.\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Parlous\", older English for 'perilous'.\n   (2)  \"Fey\", 'doomed to death', here in the sense of 'already\n        slain'.  See Adventure V, note 2.\n   (3)  \"Strangers\", i.e., those who are sojourning there far from\n        home.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XXXVIII. How All Sir Dietrich's Warriors Were Slain.\n\nOn every side one heard a grief so great, that the palace and the towers\nrang with the wailing. Then a liegeman of Dietrich heard it, too. How\nquickly he gan haste him with the fearful tales! To the lording he\nspake: \"Hear, my lord, Sir Dietrich, however much I've lived to see till\nnow, yet heard I never such a monstrous wail, as now hath reached mine\nears. I ween, King Etzel himself hath come to grief. How else might all\nbe so distressed? One of the twain, the king or Kriemhild, hath sorely\nbeen laid low by the brave strangers in their wrath. Full many a dapper\nwarrior weepeth passing sore.\"\n\nThen spake the Knight of Borne: \"My faithful men, now haste ye not\ntoo fast. Whatever the homeless warriors may have done, they be now in\nmickle need. Let it profit them, that I did offer them my peace.\"\n\nAt this brave Wolfhart spake: \"I will hie me hence and ask for tidings\nof what they have done, and will tell you then, my most dear lord, just\nas I find it, what the wail may be.\"\n\nThen spake Sir Dietrich: \"Where one awaiteth wrath, and rude questions\nthen are put, this doth lightly sadden the lofty mood of warriors. In\ntruth, I will not, Wolfhart, that ye ask these questions of them.\"\n\nThen he told Helfrich (1) to hasten thither speedily, and bade him find\nfrom Etzel's men or from the guests themselves, what there had fortuned,\nfor men had never seen from folks so great a grief. The messenger gan\nask: \"What hath here been done?\"\n\nAt this one among them spake: \"Whatever of joy we had in the Hunnish\nland hath passed away. Here lieth Rudeger, slain by the Burgundians'\nhands; and of those who were come with him, not one hath 'scaped\nalive.\"\n\nSir Helfrich could never have had a greater dole. Sorely weeping, the\nenvoy went to Dietrich. Never was he so loth to tell a tale. \"What\nhave ye found for us?\" quoth Dietrich. \"Why weep ye so sore, Knight\nHelfrich?\"\n\nThen spake the noble champion: \"I have good cause for wail. The\nBurgundians have slain the good Sir Rudeger.\"\n\nAt this the hero of Berne made answer: \"Now God forbid. That were a\nfearful vengeance, over which the foul fiend would gloat. Wherewith hath\nRudeger deserved this at their hands? I know full well, forsooth, he is\nthe strangers' friend.\"\n\nTo this Wolfhart answered: \"And have they done this deed, 'twill cost\nthem all their lives. 'Twould be our shame, should we let this pass, for\nof a truth the hand of the good knight Rudeger hath served us much and\noft.\"\n\nThe lord of the Amelungs bade learn it better. In bitter grief he sate\nhim at a window and begged Hildebrand to hie him to the strangers, that\nhe might find from them what had been done. The storm-brave warrior,\nMaster Hildebrand, (2) bare neither shield nor weapon in his hand. In\ncourtly wise he would hie him to the strangers; for this he was chided\nby his sister's son. Grim Wolfhart spake: \"And ye will go thither so\nbare, ye will never fare without upbraiding; ye must return with shame.\nBut if ye go there armed, each will guard against that well.\"\n\nThen the wise man armed him, through the counsel of youth. Or ever he\nwas ware, all Dietrich's warriors had donned their war-weeds and held\nin their hands their swords. Loth it was to the hero, and he would have\ngladly turned their mind. He asked whither they would go.\n\n\"We will hence with you. Perchance Hagen of Troneg then will dare the\nless to address him to you with scorn, which full well he knoweth how to\nuse.\" When he heard this, the knight vouchsafed them for to go.\n\nSoon brave Folker saw the champions of Berne, the liegemen of Dietrich,\nmarch along, well armed, begirt with swords, while in their hands they\nbare their shields. He told it to his lords from out the Burgundian\nland. The fiddler spake: \"Yonder I see the men of Dietrich march along\nin right hostile wise, armed cap-a-pie. They would encounter us; I ween\n'twill go full ill with us strangers.\"\n\nMeanwhile Sir Hildebrand was come. Before his feet he placed his shield,\nand gan ask Gunther's men: \"Alas, good heroes, what had Rudeger done\nyou? My Lord Dietrich hath sent me hither to you to say, that if the\nhand of any among you hath slain the noble margrave, as we are told, we\ncould never stand such mighty dole.\"\n\nThen spake Hagen of Troneg: \"The tale is true. How gladly could I wish,\nthat the messenger had told you false, for Rudeger's sake, and that he\nstill did live, for whom both man and wife may well ever weep.\"\n\nWhen they heard aright that he was dead, the warriors made wail for\nhim, as their fealty bade them. Over the beards and chins of Dietrich's\nchampions the tears were seen to run. Great grief had happened to them.\n\nSiegstab, (3) the Duke of Berne, then spake: \"Now hath come to an end\nthe cheer, that Rudeger did give us after our days of dole. The joy of\nall wayfaring folk lieth slain by you, sir knights.\"\n\nThen spake the Knight Wolfwin (4) of the Amelungs: \"And I saw mine own\nfather dead to-day, I should not make greater dole, than for his death.\nAlas, who shall now comfort the good margrave's wife?\"\n\nAngry of mood Knight Wolfhart spake: \"Who shall now lead the warriors\nto so many a fight, as the margrave so oft hath done? Alas, most noble\nRudeger, that we should lose thee thus!\"\n\nWolfbrand (5) and Helfrich and Helmnot, too, with all their men bewailed\nhis death. For sighing Hildebrand might no longer ask a whit. He spake:\n\"Sir knights, now do what my lord hath sent you here to do. Give us\nthe corse of Rudeger from out the hall, in whom our joy hath turned to\ngrief, and let us repay to him the great fealty he hath shown to us and\nto many another man. We, too, be exiles, just as Rudeger, the knight.\nWhy do ye let us wait thus? Let us bear him away, that we may yet\nrequite the knight in death. More justly had we done it, when he was\nstill alive.\"\n\nThen spake King Gunther: \"Never was there so good a service as that,\nwhich a friend doth do to a friend after his death. When any doeth that,\nI call it faithful friendship. Ye repay him but rightly, for much love\nhath he ever shown you.\"\n\n\"How long shall we still beseech?\" spake Knight Wolfhart. \"Sith our best\nhope hath been laid low in death by you, and we may no longer have him\nwith us, let us bear him hence to where the warrior may be buried.\"\n\nTo this Folker made answer: \"None will give him to you. Fetch ye him\nfrom the hall where the warrior lieth, fallen in the blood, with mortal\nwounds. 'Twill then be a perfect service, which ye render Rudeger.\"\n\nQuoth brave Wolfhart: \"God wot, sir minstrel, ye have given us great\ndole and should not rouse our ire. But that I durst not for fear of my\nlord, ye should all fare ill. We must perforce abstain, sith he forbade\nus strife.\"\n\nThen spake the fiddler: \"He hath a deal too much fear who doth abstain\nfrom all that one forbiddeth him. That I call not a real hero's mood.\"\nThis speech of his war comrade thought Hagen good.\n\n\"Long not for that,\" answered Wolfhart, \"or I'll play such havoc with\nyour fiddle strings, that ye'll have cause to tell the tale, when ye\nride homeward to the Rhine. I cannot brook in honor your overweening\npride.\"\n\nQuoth the fiddler: \"If ye put out of tune my strings, then must the\ngleam of your helmet grow dim from this hand of mine, however I ride to\nthe Burgundian land.\"\n\nThen would he leap at him, but his uncle Hildebrand grasped him firmly.\n\"I ween, thou wouldst rage in thy silly anger. Then hadst thou lost\nforever the favor of my lord.\"\n\n\"Let go the lion, master, he is so fierce of mood,\" quoth the good\nknight Folker. \"Had he slain the whole world with his one hand, I'll\nsmite him, and he come within my reach, so that he may never sing the\nanswer to my song.\"\n\nAt this the men of Berne waxed passing wroth of mood. Wolfhart, a\ndoughty knight and a good, snatched up his shield. Like a wild lion\nhe ran to meet him, swiftly followed by all his friends. But howsoever\ngreat the strides he took towards the hall, yet did old Hildebrand\novertake him at the steps. He would not let him reach the fray before\nhim. At the hands of the homeless knights they later found the strife\nthey sought. Master Hildebrand then sprang at Hagen. In the hands of\nboth one heard the swords ring out. That both were angry, might be\nplainly seen; from the swords of the twain streamed forth a blast of\nfire-red sparks. Then they were parted in the stress of battle by the\nmen of Berne, as their strength did bid them. At once Hildebrand turned\nhim away from Hagen, but stout Wolfhart addressed him to Folker the\nbold. Such a blow he smote the fiddler upon his good helmet, that the\nsword's edge pierced to the very helmet bands. This the bold gleeman\nrepaid with might; he smote Wolfhart, so that the sparks flew wide. Enow\nof fire they struck from the armor rings, for each bare hatred to the\nother. Then Knight Wolfwin of Berne did part them--an' he be not a hero,\nnever was there one.\n\nWith willing hand Gunther, the champion, greeted the heroes of the\nAmelung land. Lord Giselher made many a gleaming helmet red and wet with\nblood. Dankwart, Hagen's brother, a fierce man was he; whatever he had\ndone before to Etzel's warriors in strife was as a wind to the fury with\nwhich bold Aldrian's son now fought. Ritschart (6) and Gerbart, Helfrich\nand Wichart had spared themselves full seldom in many battle storms;\nthis they now made Gunther's liegemen note full well. Wolfbrand, too,\nwas seen in the strife bearing him in lordly wise. Old Hildebrand fought\nas though he raged. At Wolfhart's hands many good knights, struck by the\nsword, must needs fall dead down into the blood. Thus the bold champions\nand good avenged Knight Rudeger.\n\nThen Lord Siegstab fought as his prowess bade him. Ho, what good helmets\nof his foes this son of Dietrich's sister clove in the strife! Nor\nmight he ever do better in the fray. When sturdy Folker espied that bold\nSiegstab hewed a bloody stream from the hard armor rings, wroth of mood\nthe hero grew. He sprang to meet him, and Siegstab lost his life full\nsoon at the fiddler's hands, for Folker gave him such a sample of his\nart, that he soon lay dead, slain by his sword. This old Hildebrand\navenged, as his might did bid him.\n\n\"Alas for my dear lord,\" spake Master Hildebrand, \"who lieth here dead\nat Folker's hands. Now shall the fiddler no longer live.\"\n\nHow might bold Hildebrand ever be fiercer? Folker he smote, so that\non all sides the clasps flew to the walls of the hall from helmet and\nshield of the doughty gleeman. Thus stout Folker was done to death. At\nthis the men of Dietrich pressed forward to the strife. They smote so\nthat the armor rings whirled far and wide, and high through the air\nthe sword-points wore seen to fly. From the helmets they drew the warm\ngushing stream of blood. When Hagen of Troneg saw Folker dead, that was\nthe greatest sorrow, that he had gained at the feasting in kinsman or\nin liegeman. Alas, how fiercely Hagen gan venge the knight! \"Now old\nHildebrand shall not profit by this deed. My helpmate lieth slain by the\nhero's hand, the best war comrade that I did ever win.\" Higher he raised\nhis helmet, and ran, slashing as he went.\n\nStout Helfrich slew Dankwart. Loth enow it was to Gunther and Giselher,\nwhen they saw him fall in cruel need, but with his own hands he himself\nhad well avenged his death. Meanwhile Wolfhart raged back and forth,\nhewing alway King Gunther's men. For the third time he was come through\nthe hall, and many a warrior fell, struck by his hands.\n\nThen Lord Giselher cried out to Wolfhart: \"Alas, that I have ever gained\nso grim a foe! Noble knight and brave, now address you unto me. I'll\nhelp to make an end; this may be no longer.\"\n\nAt this Wolfhart turned him in strife to Giselher, and each smote other\nmany a gaping wound. He pressed so mightily toward the king, that\nthe blood beneath his feet spurted high above his head. With grim\nand fearful blows the son of fair Uta then greeted the brave knight\nWolfhart. However strong the warrior, he might not save his life. Never\ncould so young a king have been more brave; Wolfhart he smote through\nhis stout hauberk, that his blood streamed down from the wound. Unto\ndeath he wounded Dietrich's liegeman. None save a champion had done such\ndeed. When brave Wolfhart felt the wound, he let fall his shield and\nlifted higher in his hand his mighty sword (sharp enow it was); through\nboth helmet and armor rings the hero smote Giselher. Thus each did other\nfiercely unto death.\n\nNow was none left of Dietrich's men. Old Hildebrand saw Wolfhart fall;\nnever before his death, I ween, did such dole happen to him. The men of\nGunther all lay dead, and those of Dietrich, too. Hildebrand hied him to\nwhere Wolfhart had fallen in the gore, and clasped in his arms the brave\nknight and good. He would fain bear him from the hall, but he was a\ndeal too heavy, and so he must needs let him lie. Then the dying warrior\nlooked upward from the blood in which he lay; well he saw, that his\nuncle would fain help him hence. Though wounded unto death, he spake:\n\"Dear uncle mine, ye may not aid me now. 'Tis well, methinks, that ye\nshould guard you against Hagen. A fierce mood he beareth in his heart.\nAnd if perchance my kinsmen would mourn me after I am dead; pray tell\nthe nearest and the best, that they weep not for me; there is no need of\nthat. At the hands of a king I have met a glorious death and have also\navenged me, so that the wives of the good knights may well bewail it. If\nany ask you of this, ye may boldly say, that full a hundred lie slain by\nmy hand alone.\"\n\nThen Hagen, too, bethought him of the gleeman, whom bold Hildebrand\nhad robbed of life. To the knight he spake: \"Ye'll requite me now my\nsorrows. Through your hatred ye have bereft us of many a lusty knight.\"\n\nHe dealt Hildebrand such a blow, that men heard Balmung ring, the which\nbold Hagen had taken from Siegfried, when he slew the knight. Then the\nold man warded him; in sooth he was brave enow. Dietrich's champion\nstruck with a broad sword, that cut full sore, at the hero of Troneg,\nbut could not wound King Gunther's liegeman. Hagen, however, smote him\nthrough his well-wrought hauberk. When old Hildebrand felt the wound, he\nfeared more scathe at Hagen's hand; his shield he slung across his back\nand thus Sir Dietrich's man escaped from Hagen, though sorely wounded.\n\nNow of all the knights none was alive save the twain, Gunther and\nHagen alone. Dripping with blood old Hildebrand went to where he found\nDietrich, and told him the baleful tale. He saw him sitting sadly, but\nmuch more of dole the prince now gained. He spied Hildebrand in his\nblood-red hauberk, and asked him tidings, as his fears did prompt him.\n\n\"Now tell me, Master Hildebrand, how be ye so wet with your lifeblood?\nPray who hath done you this? I ween, ye have fought with the strangers\nin the hall. I forbade it you so sorely, that ye should justly have\navoided it.\"\n\nThen said he to his lord: \"'Twas Hagen that did it. He dealt me this\nwound in the hall, when I would fain have turned me from the knight. I\nscarce escaped the devil with my life.\"\n\nThen spake the Lord of Berne: \"Rightly hath it happed you, for that ye\nhave broken the peace, which I had sworn them, sith ye did hear me vow\nfriendship to the knights. Were it not mine everlasting shame, ye should\nlose your life.\"\n\n\"My Lord Dietrich, now be ye not so wroth; the damage to my friends and\nme is all too great. Fain would we have carried Rudeger's corse away,\nbut King Gunther's liegemen would not grant it us.\"\n\n\"Woe is me of these sorrows! If Rudeger then be dead, 'twill bring\nme greater dole, than all my woe. Noble Gotelind is the child of my\nfather's sister; alas for the poor orphans, that be now in Bechelaren.\"\n\nRudeger's death now minded him of ruth and dole. Mightily the hero gan\nweep; in sooth he had good cause. \"Alas for this faithful comrade whom I\nhave lost! In truth I shall ever mourn for King Etzel's liegeman. Can ye\ntell me, Master Hildebrand, true tidings, who be the knight, that hath\nslain him there?\"\n\nQuoth he: \"That stout Gernot did, with might and main, but the hero,\ntoo, fell dead at Rudeger's hands.\"\n\nAgain he spake to Hildebrand: \"Pray say to my men, that they arm them\nquickly, for I will hie me hither, and bid them make ready my shining\nbattle weeds. I myself will question the heroes of the Burgundian land.\"\n\nThen spake Master Hildebrand: \"Who then shall join you? Whatso of living\nmen ye have, ye see stand by you. 'Tis I alone; the others, they be\ndead.\"\n\nHe started at this tale; forsooth, he had good cause, for never in his\nlife had he gained so great a grief. He spake: \"And are my men all dead,\nthen hath God forgotten me, poor Dietrich. Once I was a lordly king,\nmighty, high, and rich.\" Again Sir Dietrich spake: \"How could it hap,\nthat all the worshipful heroes died at the hands of the battle-weary,\nwho were themselves hard pressed? Were it not for mine ill-luck, death\nwere still a stranger to them. Sith then mine evil fortune would have it\nso, pray tell me, are any of the strangers still alive?\"\n\nThen spake Master Hildebrand: \"God wet, none other save only Hagen and\nGunther, the high-born king.\"\n\n\"Alas, dear Wolfhart, and I have lost thee too, then may it well rue me,\nthat ever I was born. Siegstab and Wolfwin and Wolfbrand, too! Who then\nshall help me to the Amelung land? Bold Helfrich, hath he, too, been\nslain, and Gerbart and Wichart? How shall I ever mourn for them in\nfitting wise? This day doth forever end my joys. Alas, that none may die\nfor very grief!\"\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Helfrich\" appears also in the \"Thidreksaga\", chap. 330,\n        where we are told that he was the bravest and courtliest of\n        all knights.\n   (2)  \"Master Hildebrand\", see Adventure XXVIII, note 1.\n   (3)  \"Siegstab\" is Dietrich's nephew.  He also appears in the\n        \"Thidreksaga\", but in a different role.\n   (4)  \"Wolfwin\" is mentioned in the \"Klage\", 1541, as Dietrich's\n        nephew.\n   (5)  \"Wolfbrand\" and \"Helmnot\" appear only here.\n   (6)  \"Ritschart\".   With the exception of Helfrich (see Above\n        note 1), these names do not occur elsewhere, though one of\n        the sons of Haimon was called Wichart.\n\n\n\n\nADVENTURE XXXIX. How Gunther And Hagen And Kriemhild Were Slain.\n\nThen Sir Dietrich fetched himself his coat of mail, and Master\nHildebrand helped him arm. The mighty man made wail so sore, that the\nwhole house resounded with his voice. But then he gained again a real\nhero's mood. The good knight was now armed and grim of mind; a stout\nshield he hung upon his arm. Thus he and Master Hildebrand went boldly\nhence.\n\nThen spake Hagen of Troneg: \"Yonder I see Sir Dietrich coming hither; he\nwould fain encounter us, after the great sorrow, that hath here befallen\nhim. To-day we shall see, to whom one must give the palm. However strong\nof body and grim of mood the lord of Berne thinketh him to be, right\nwell dare I match him,\" so spake Hagen, \"an' he will avenge on us that\nwhich hath been done him.\"\n\nDietrich and Hildebrand heard this speech, for Hagen came to where he\nfound the champion stand before the house, leaning against the wall.\nDietrich set his good shield upon the ground, and spake in grievous\ndole: \"Gunther, mighty king, why have ye so acted against me, banished\nman? What have I done to you? I stand alone, bereft of all my comfort.\nYe thought it not enow of bitter need, when ye did kill Knight Rudeger,\nour friend. Now ye have robbed me of all my men. Forsooth I never had\nwrought you heroes sorrow such as this. Think on yourselves and on your\nwrongs. Doth not the death of your kinsmen and all the hardship grieve\nthe minds of you good knights? Alas, what great dole Rudeger's death\ndoth give me! Never in all the world hath more of sorrow happed to any\nman. Ye thought but little on me and on your pain. Whatsoever joy I had,\nthat lieth slain by you. Certes, I never can bewail my kin enow.\"\n\n\"Forsooth we be not so guilty,\" answered Hagen. \"Your warriors came to\nthis hall in a large band, armed with care. Methinks the tale hath not\nbeen told you rightly.\"\n\n\"What else should I believe? Hildebrand told me, that when my knights\nfrom the Amelung land asked that ye should give up Rudeger's corse from\nout the hall, ye did naught but mock the valiant heroes from above the\nsteps.\"\n\nThen spake the king from the Rhine: \"They said, that they would fain\nbear Rudeger hence, and I bade this be denied them to vex King Etzel,\nand not thy men, until then Wolfhart began to rail about it.\"\n\nThen the hero of Berne made answer: \"Fate would have it so. Gunther,\nmost noble king, now through thy courtesie requite me of the wrongs,\nthat have happed to me from thee, and make such amends, brave knight,\nthat I may give thee credit for the deed. Give thyself and thy men to me\nas hostages, and I will guard you, as best I may, that none here do thee\naught among the Huns. Thou shalt find me naught but good and true.\"\n\n\"Now God forbid,\" quoth Hagen, \"that two knights give themselves up\nto thee, that still do stand opposed to thee so doughtily and walk so\nunfettered before their foes.\"\n\n\"Gunther and Hagen, ye should not deny me this,\" spake Dietrich. \"Ye\nhave grieved my heart and mind so sore, that it were but right, and ye\nwould requite me. I give you my hand and troth as pledge, that I will\nride with you, home to your land. I'll lead you in all honor, or else\nlie dead, and for your sakes I will forget my grievous wrongs.\"\n\n\"Crave this no longer,\" answered Hagen. \"'Twere fitting, that the tale\nbe told of us, that two men so brave had given themselves up to you. We\nsee none standing by you, save Hildebrand alone.\"\n\nThen up spake Master Hildebrand: \"God wot, Sir Hagen, the hour will\ncome, when ye will gladly take the peace, if so be any offer to keep it\nwith you. Ye might well content you with the truce my lord doth offer.\"\n\n\"Forsooth I'd take the truce,\" quoth Hagen, \"or ever I'd flee from out\na hall so shamefully as ye did, Master Hildebrand. I weened, ye could\nstand better against a foe.\"\n\nTo this Hildebrand made answer: \"Why twit ye me with that? Who was it\nsate upon a shield hard by the Waskstone, (1) when Walter of Spain slew\nso many of his kin? Ye, too, have faults enow of your own to show.\"\n\nThen spake Sir Dietrich: \"Ill doth it beseem heroes, that they should\nscold like aged beldams. I forbid you, Hildebrand, to speak aught more.\nGrievous wrongs constrain me, homeless warrior. Let's hear, Knight\nHagen, what ye twain did speak, ye doughty men, when ye saw me coming\ntoward you armed? Ye said, that ye alone would fain encounter me in\nstrife.\"\n\n\"Certes, none doth deny,\" Knight Hagen spake, \"that I will essay it here\nwith mighty blows, unless be, that the sword of Nibelung break in my\nhand. Wroth am I, that we twain have here been craved as hostages.\"\n\nWhen Dietrich noted Hagen's raging mood, quickly the doughty knight and\ngood snatched up his shield. How swiftly Hagen sprang toward him from\nthe steps! Loudly the good sword of Nibelung rang on Dietrich's head.\nThen wist Dietrich well, that the bold knight was grim of mood. The\nlord of Berne gan guard him against the fearful blows, for well he knew\nHagen, the stately knight. Balmung he also feared, a weapon stout enow.\nDietrich returned the blows at times in cunning wise, until at last he\nconquered Hagen in the strife. A wound he dealt him, the which was\ndeep and long. Then Lord Dietrich thought him: \"Thou art worn out with\nstrife; little honor shall I have, and thou liest dead before me. I will\ntry, if perchance I can force thee to be my hostage.\"\n\nThis he wrought with danger. His shield he let fall, great was his\nstrength, and clasped Hagen of Troneg in his arms. Thus the brave knight\nwas overcome by Dietrich. Noble Gunther gan wail thereat. Dietrich now\nbound Hagen and led him to where he found the high-born queen; into her\nhand he gave the bravest warrior that ever bare a sword. Then merry enow\nshe grew after her great dole. For very joy King Etzel's wife bowed low\nbefore the knight. \"May thy heart and body be ever blest. Thou hast well\nrequited me of all my woes. For this will I ever serve thee, unless be,\nthat death doth hinder me therefrom.\"\n\nThen spake Lord Dietrich: \"Pray let him live, most noble queen. And if\nthis still may be, how well will I requite you of that which he hath\ndone you! Let him not suffer, because ye see him stand here bound.\"\n\nShe bade Hagen then be led away to duress, where he lay locked in and\nwhere none did see him. Gunther, the high-born king, began to call:\n\"Whither went the knight of Berne? He hath done me wrong.\"\n\nAt this Lord Dietrich went to meet him. Gunther's might was worthy\nof praise; no more he bided, but ran outside the hall, and from the\nclashing of the swords of the twain a mighty din arose. However much and\nlong Lord Dietrich's prowess had been praised, yet Gunther was so sorely\nangered and enraged, for because of the grievous dole, he was his deadly\nfoe, that men still tell it as a wonder, that Sir Dietrich did not fall.\nGreat were both their prowess and their strength. The palace and the\ntowers resounded with the blows, when with the swords they hewed at the\nsturdy helmets. King Gunther was of lordly mood, but the knight of Berne\novercame him, as happed to Hagen afore. The hero's blood was seen to\nooze through the armor rings, drawn forth by a keen-edged sword, the\nwhich Sir Dietrich bare. Though weary, Sir Gunther had guarded him most\nvaliantly. The lord was now bound by Dietrich's hands. Though kings\nshould not endure such bonds, yet Dietrich thought, if he set free the\nking and his liegeman, that all they met must needs fall dead at their\nhands.\n\nDietrich of Berne now took him by the hand and led him bound to where\nhe found Kriemhild. At sight of his sorrow much of her fear took flight.\nShe spake: \"Welcome, Gunther, from the Burgundian land.\"\n\nQuoth he: \"I would bow before you, dear sister mine, if your greetings\nwere but kinder. I know you, queen, to be so wroth of mood that ye do\ngive me and Hagen meagre greetings.\"\n\nUp spake the knight of Berne: \"Most noble queen, never were such good\nknights made hostages, as I have given you in them, exalted lady. For my\nsake, I pray you, spare these homeless men.\"\n\nShe vowed she'd do it gladly. Then Sir Dietrich left the worshipful\nknights with weeping eyes. Later Etzel's wife avenged her grimly; she\ntook the life of both the chosen heroes. To make their duress worse she\nlet them lie apart, so that neither saw the other, till she bare her\nbrother's head to Hagen. Kriemhild's vengeance on both was great enow.\n\nThen the queen went to Hagen. In what right hostile wise she spake to\nthe knight: \"If ye will give me back what ye have taken from me, then ye\nmay still go home alive to Burgundy.\"\n\nGrim Hagen answered: \"Thou dost waste thy words, most noble queen.\nForsooth I have sworn an oath, that I would not show the hoard, the\nwhile and any of my lords still live; so I shall give it to none.\"\n\n\"I'll make an end of this,\" quoth the high-born wife. Then she bade her\nbrother's life be taken. His head they struck off, and by the hair she\nbare it to the knight of Troneg. Loth enow it was to him. When sad of\nmind the warrior gazed upon his master's head, he spake to Kriemhild:\n\"Thou hast brought it to an end after thy will, and it hath happed, as I\nhad thought me. The noble king of Burgundy now lieth dead, and Giselher,\nthe youth, and Sir Gernot, too. None knoweth of the treasure now save\nGod and me, and it shall ever be hid from thee, thou fiend.\"\n\nQuoth she: \"Ye have requited me full ill, so I will keep the sword of\nSiegfried, the which my sweetheart bare, when last I saw him, in whom\ndole of heart hath happed to me through you.\"\n\nFrom the sheath she drew it, nor could he hinder her a whit. She planned\nto rob the knight of life. With her hands she raised it and struck off\nhis head. This King Etzel saw, and sore enow it rued him. \"Alack!\" cried\nthe lording, \"how lieth now dead at a woman's hands the very best of\nknights, that ever came to battle or bare a shield! However much I was\nhis foe, yet it doth grieve me sorely.\"\n\nThen spake old Hildebrand: \"Forsooth it shall not boot her aught, that\nshe durst slay him. Whatso hap to me, and however much it may bring me\nto a dangerous pass, yet will I avenge bold Troneg's death.\"\n\nHildebrand sprang in wrath towards Kriemhild. For fear of him she\nsuffered pain; but what might it avail her, that she shrieked so\nfrightfully? He dealt the queen a grievous sword-blow, the which did\ncut the high-born dame in twain. Now all lay low in death whom fate had\ndoomed. Dietrich and Etzel then began to weep; sorely they mourned\nboth kin and liegemen. Their mickle honors lay there low in death; the\ncourtiers all had grief and drearihead. The king's high feast had ended\nnow in woe, as joy doth ever end in sorrow at the last. I cannot tell\nyou, that which happed thereafter, save that knights and ladies and\nnoble squires were seen to weep for the death of loving kinsmen. The\ntale hath here an end. This is the Nibelungs' fall. (2) (3)\n\n\n   ENDNOTES:\n   (1)  \"Waskstone\", see Adventure XXXV, note 2.\n   (2)  \"Fall\".  The word \"not\", translated here \"fall\", means\n        really 'disaster', but as this word is not in keeping with\n        the style, \"fall\" has been chosen as preferable to 'need',\n        used by some translators.  The MS. C has here \"liet\" instead\n        of \"not\" of A and B.\n   (3)  The \"Nibelungenlied\" is continued by the so-called \"Klage\",\n        a poem written in short rhyming couplets.  As the name\n        indicates, it describes the lamentations of the survivors\n        over the dead.  The praises of each warrior are sung and a\n        messenger dispatched to acquaint Gotelind, Uta, and Brunhild\n        with the sad end of their kinsmen.  It closes with\n        Dietrich's departure from Etzel's court and his return home.\n        Although in one sense a continuation of our poem, the\n        \"Klage\" is an independent work of no great merit, being\n        excessively tedious with its constant repetitions.  A\n        reprint and a full account of it will be found in Piper's\n        edition of our poem, vol. I.","title":"The Nibelungenlied","tradition":"myth-cosmogony","translated_text":null,"word_count":103023}