d horn yet
ringing in their ears, there drifted a shadow across the days, and, lo!
beside Havelok, with his hand on his shoulder, stood the form of Gunnar
the king for a long moment, bright as any one of us who lived, in the
morning sunlight, and his face was full of joy and of hope and promise
for the time to come. And then he passed, but as he faded from us his
hand was on the hand of Goldberga that clasped her husband's, as though
he would wed them afresh there on the high place of his friend's hall.

Now there went a sigh of wonder among the chiefs, and Havelok looked up
as if he followed the going of one whom he would not lose, and I know
that he saw Gunnar after he was unseen to us.

"Surely," he said, "surely that was my father who was here?"

And Sigurd answered, "With your own call you called him, and he was here."

But now the last lurking doubt was gone, and there was no more delay,
for the chiefs crowded with shouts of joy to the high place, and they
knelt to Havelok and hailed him as king then and there; and so they led
him to the great door of the hall, and the mightiest of them raised him
high on a wide shield before all the freemen who waited on the green
that is round the jarl's house, and they cried, "Skoal to Havelok the king!"

And there was in answer the most stirring shout that a man may hear--
the shout of a host that hail the one for whom they are content to die.

That was the first day of the reign of Havelok the king; and now there
were two kings in the land, and one was loved as few have been loved,
and the other was hated. And one was weak in men, as yet, while the
other was strong.

Now Sigurd bade all those who were present gather in solemn Thing, that
they might make Havelok king indeed; and that was a gathering of all the
best in our quarter of the land, so that all would uphold what they had
done. And when they were gathered in the great hall in due order, the
doors were set wide open, and outside the freemen who followed the
chiefs sat in silence to see what they might and hear.

Then swore Havelok to keep the ancient laws and customs, and to do
even-handed justice to all men, and to be bound by all else that a good
king should hold by. Sometimes these oaths are not kept as well as they
might be, but I was certain that here was one who would keep them.

Thereafter Sigurd brought forth a crown that he had had made hastily by
his craftsmen from two gold arm rings, and they set it