as what thou hast said this moment."

"Good," said Glumm; "and now the question comes up, how must I behave to
her? But thou canst not aid me herein, for in such matters thou hast
had no experience."

"Out upon thee for a stupid monster!" said the boy; "have I not just
proved that my experience is very deep? I have not, indeed, got the
length thou hast--of wandering about like a poor ghost or a half-witted
fellow, but I have seen enough of such matters to know what common sense
says."

"And, pray, what does common sense say?"

"Why, it says, Act towards the maid like a sane man, and, above all, a
true man. Don't go about the land gnashing thy teeth until everyone
laughs at thee. Don't go staring at her in grim silence as if she were
a wraith; and, more particularly, don't pretend to be fond of other
girls, for thou didst make a pitiful mess of that attempt. In short, be
Glumm without being Gruff, and don't try to be anybody else. Be kind
and straightforward to her, worship her, or, as Kettle Flatnose said the
other day, `kiss the ground she walks on,' if thou art so inclined, but
don't worry her life out. Show that thou art fond of her, and willing
to bide _her_ time. Go on viking cruise, for the proverb says that an
`absent body makes a longing spirit,' and bring her back shiploads of
kirtles and mantles and armlets, and gold and silver ornaments--that's
what common sense says, Glumm, and a great deal more besides, but I fear
much that it is all wasted on thee."

"Heyday!" exclaimed Glumm, "what wisdom do I hear? Assuredly we must
call thee Alric hinn Frode hereafter. One would think thou must have
been born before thine own grandfather."

"Truly that is not so difficult to fancy," retorted Alric. "Even now I
feel like a great-grandfather while I listen to thee. There wants but a
smooth round face and a lisping tongue to make thine appearance suitable
to thy wisdom! But what is this that we have here?"

The boy pointed to a track of some animal in the snow a few yards to one
side of the path.

"A wolf track," said Glumm, turning aside.

"A notably huge one," remarked the boy.

"And quite fresh," said the man.

"Which is proved," rejoined Alric in a slow, solemn voice, "by the fact
that there is no ball of snow beneath the--"

"Hold thy pert tongue," said Glumm in a hoarse whisper, "the brute must
be close to us. Do thou keep in the lower end of this gorge--see,
yonder, where it is narrow.