o be a
following to Heriulf the Old and the Great.

"So there we abided a while moving nought, and Thiodolf stood with Throng-
plough on his shoulder, unhelmed, unbyrnied, as though he trusted to the
kindred for all defence. Nor for their part did the Romans dare to leave
their vantage-ground, when they beheld what grim countenance we made
them.

"Albeit, when we had thrice made as if we would fall on, and yet they
moved not, whereas it trieth a man sorely to stand long before the
foeman, and do nought but endure, and whereas many of our bowmen were
slain or hurt, and the rest too few to make head against the shot-weapons
of the aliens, then at last we began to draw nearer and a little nearer,
not breaking the wedge-array; and at last, just before we were within
shot of the cast-spears of their main battle, loud roared our war-horn:
then indeed we broke the wedge-array, but orderly as we knew how,
spreading out from right and left of the War-duke till we were facing
them in a long line: one minute we abode thus, and then ran forth through
the spear-storm: and even therewith we heard, as it were, the echo of our
own horn, and whoso had time to think betwixt the first of the storm and
the handstrokes of the Romans deemed that now would be coming fresh
kindreds for our helping.

"Not long endured the spear-rain, so swift we were, neither were we in
one throng as betid in Heriulf's Storm, but spread abroad, each trusting
in the other that none thought of the backward way.

"Though we had the ground against us we dashed like fresh men at their
pales, and were under the weapons at once. Then was the battle grim;
they could not thrust us back, nor did we break their array with our
first storm; man hewed at man as if there were no foes in the world but
they two: sword met sword, and sax met sax; it was thrusting and hewing
with point and edge, and no long-shafted weapons were of any avail; there
we fought hand to hand and no man knew by eyesight how the battle went
two yards from where he fought, and each one put all his heart in the
stroke he was then striking, and thought of nothing else.

"Yet at the last we felt that they were faltering and that our work was
easier and our hope higher; then we cried our cries and pressed on
harder, and in that very nick of time there arose close behind us the
roar of the Markmen's horn and the cries of the kindreds answering ours.
Then such of the Romans as were not in the very act o