m
all men, but the thought of how Sigurd had ridden the fire in his
semblance lay heavy upon him. He brooded thereon in bitterness and
envy, and the lie shadowed his life-days so that he had but small joy
in his wife.

And Grimhild, marking his heavy mood, wrought upon him with cunning
words and he gave ear to her. For ever she spake of kings' supplanters
who bear away the praise from their lords after great deeds are done,
and often her talk was of the mighty power that he holdeth who knoweth
the shame of a king. So Gunnar hearkened and ill thoughts grew within
him.

But fair-faced, calm as a God who hath none to call his foes,
Betwixt the Kings and the people the golden Sigurd goes;
No knowledge of man he lacketh, and the lore he gained of old
From the ancient heart of the Serpent and the Wallower on the Gold
Springs fresh in the soul of Sigurd; the heart of Hogni he sees,
And the heart of his brother Gunnar, and he grieveth sore for these.

* * * * *

It was most in these latter days that his fame went far abroad,
The helper, the overcomer, the righteous sundering sword;
The loveliest King of the King-folk, the man of sweetest speech,
Whose ear is dull to no man that his helping shall beseech;
The eye-bright seer of all things, that wasteth every wrong,
The straightener of the crooked, the hammer of the strong:
Lo, such was the Son of Sigmund in the days whereof I tell,
The dread of the doom and the battle; and all children loved him well.

Now Gudrun's scorn of Brynhild waxed greater as she thought on the
knowledge that she held, and it needed but a little that she should
speak out the whole tale.

Such was her mind when it befell her to go with Brynhild to bathe in
the Niblung river. There it chanced that they fell to talk of their
husbands, and Gudrun named Sigurd the best of the world. Thereat
Brynhild, stung by her love for Sigurd and the memory of his broken
troth,--for so she deemed it,--cried out, saying: "Thy lord is but
Gunnar's serving man to do his bidding, but my mate is the King of
King-folk, who rode the Wavering Fire and hath dared very death to
win me."

Then Gudrun held out her hand and a golden gleam shone on her finger,
at the sight whereof Brynhild waxed wan as a dead woman. "Lo," said
Gudrun, "I had Andvari's ring of Sigurd, and indeed thou sayest truly,
that he did Gunnar's bidding, for he took the King's semblance and hid
hi