al
subjects, in order to present his sons Helge and Halfdan to the people as
his chosen successors. The young heirs were very coldly received on this
occasion, for Helge was of a somber and taciturn disposition, and inclined
to the life of a priest, and Halfdan was of a weak, effeminate nature, and
noted for his cowardice. Frithiof, who was present, and stood beside them,
cast them both in the shade, and won many admiring glances from the throng.

"But after them came Frithiof, in mantle blue--
He by a head was taller than th' other two.
He stood between the brethren, as day should light
Between the rosy morning and darksome night."
TEGNER, _Frithiof Saga_ (Spalding's tr.)

After giving his last instructions to his sons, and speaking kindly to
Frithiof, who was his favorite, the old king turned to his lifelong
companion, Thorsten, to take leave of him, but the old warrior declared
that they would not long be parted. Bele then spoke again to his sons, and
bade them erect his howe, or funeral mound, within sight of that of
Thorsten, that their spirits might commune, and not be sundered even in
death.

"'But lay us gently, children, where the blue wave,
Beating harmonious cadence, the shore doth lave;
Its murmuring song is pleasant unto the soul,
And like a lamentation its ceaseless roll.

"'And when the moon's pale luster around us streams,
And midnight dim grows radiant with silver beams,
There will we sit, O Thorsten, upon our graves,
And talk of bygone battles by the dark waves.

"'And now, farewell, my children! Come here no more;
Our road lies to Allfather's far-distant shore,
E'en as the troubled river sweeps to the sea:
By Frey and Thor and Odin blessed may ye be.'"
TEGNER, _Frithiof Saga_ (Spalding's tr.).

[Sidenote: Helge and Halfdan.] These instructions were all piously obeyed
when the aged companions had breathed their last. Then the brothers, Helge
and Halfdan, began to rule their kingdom, while Frithiof, their former
playmate, withdrew to his own place at Framnaes, a very fertile homestead,
lying in a snug valley closed in by the towering mountains and the
ever-changing ocean.

"Three miles extended around the fields of the homestead; on
three sides
Valleys and mountains and hills, but on the fourth side was the
ocean.
Birch-woods crowned the su