ore than that. He could not understand that
Orme did not see what was at stake, and yet could not enlighten him
further. The good wife then came springing in.

"She will be happy, and so shall we be," she said. "I have a roomy
heart, too long empty, woe's me. She will soon be singing about the
house, and then we old folks will fall to it. It will be like a nest
of linnets. She will scour our rusty pipes for us. Excellent!"

Thorbeorn was put out that they seemed to think it pure pleasure to
have his daughter on their hands instead of great responsibility and a
call to duty.

"Well," he said, "you have helped me with a serious trouble. I leave
her to you with confidence. Where is she now? For I must be going."

"She is with the girls in the wash-house," said Halldis. "All
chattering together like starlings on a thatch. All talking at once,
and none listening. Do you wish her fetched?"

"No," said Thorbeorn, waving his hand. "She will do better where she
is." He felt the impossibility of saying what he wished. Then he took
his way homewards, and the couple looked at each other.

"A love affair," Halldis said.

"It looks like it," said Orme. "And there will be love affairs. She's
a paragon."

"That remains to be seen," Halldis said. "She's a beauty at least.
But a baby as yet. Wait till she's cut her teeth."

"I hope she won't cut them here," said Orme; but his wife said briskly,
"Better here than there." Halldis could see through Thorbeorn and pity
his barren pride.

Gudrid was happy at Erne Pillar, and soon very much at home. She had
found her voice at once, and now she began to find herself. Her
discoveries were made in the appreciative eyes of her foster-parents,
for that is the first place in which we get our notion of ourselves.
The portrait encouraged her. She became interesting to herself. Then
there were the neighbours, often in and out of the house, but always
under the heedful eyes of the good wife. Then there were the ships.
Last there were the priest, and his little church. All the people at
Erne Pillar had been christened, as had Thorbeorn himself been; but
there was a great difference when you had a priest and a church. The
priest at Erne Pillar was a serious priest. He said Mass every day,
and expected you, or some of you, to be there. Now Thorbeorn,
Christian though he were, had never been to Mass in his life. His
Christianity consisted in turning his back on Frey