n all knew that this was the _Long Serpent_--a
ship about three hundred and sixty feet long, with a crew of over seven
hundred and fifty men.

At this sight many a man grew silent.

Sigvaldi Jarl, one of Olaf Tryggvasson's commanders, let down the sails
on his ship and rowed up towards the island. Thorkel Dydril on the
_Tranan_ (the "Crane"), and the other ship-steerers (for the commanders
were so called), lowered their sails also and followed him. All waited
for Olaf Tryggvasson. When King Olaf saw that his men had lowered their
sails and were waiting for him, he steered towards them and asked them
why they did not go on. They told him that a host of foes was before
them and that the fleets of the allied kings lay around the point.

Advancing further the King Olaf Tryggvasson and his men saw that the sea
was covered far and wide with the warships of his foes. Thorkel Dydril,
a wise and valiant man, said: "Lord, here is an overwhelming force to
fight against: let us hoist our sails and follow our men out to sea. We
can still do so while our foes prepare themselves for battle, for it is
not looked upon as cowardice by any one for a man to use forethought for
himself and his men." King Olaf Tryggvasson's men now missed the ships
that had sailed ahead.

King Olaf replied loudly: "Tie together the ships and let the men
prepare for battle!" for in those days it was the custom to tie the
ships together. Then the commanders arranged the host.

The _Long Serpent_ was in the middle, with the _Short Serpent_ on one
side and the _Crane_ on the other, and four other ships on each side of
them; but this fleet was but a small one compared with the overwhelming
fleet which their enemies had.

When Olaf saw that they began to tie together the stern of the _Long
Serpent_ and of the _Short Serpent_, he called out loudly, "Bring the
_Long Serpent_ forward; I will not be the hindmost of all my men in this
fleet when the battle begins!"

Then Ulf ("Wolf") the Red, the king's standard bearer, and who was also
his prow-defender, said: "If the _Long Serpent_ shall be put as much
forward as it is larger and longer than other ships, the men in the bows
will have a hard time of it!"

The king cried: "I had the _Serpent_ made longer than other ships so
that it should be put forward more boldly in battle, but I did not know
I had a prow-defender who was faint-hearted!"

Ulf replied: "Turn thou, King, no more back in defending the high dec