g as ten ships' cables
twisted together; then he carefully baited the hook with the gory head
of the Heaven-breaker ox, and threw it into the water. As the giant had
feared, they were now right over the head of the great Midgard snake.
The huge beast looked upward with his sleepy eyes, and saw the tempting
bait falling slowly through the water; but he did not see the boat, it
was so far above him. Thinking of no harm, he opened his leathern jaws,
and greedily gulped the morsel down; but the strong iron hook stuck fast
in his throat. Maddened by the pain, he began to lash his tail against
the floor of the sea; and he twisted and writhed until the ocean was
covered with foam, and the waves ran mountain-high. But Thor pulled hard
upon the line above, and strove to lift the reptile's head out of the
water; then the snake darted with lightning speed away, pulling the boat
after him so swiftly, that, had not Thor held on to the oar-locks, he
would have been thrown into the sea. Quickly he tightened his magic
girdle of strength around him, and, standing up in the boat, he pulled
with all his might. The snake would not be lifted. But the boat split in
two; and Thor slid into the water, and stood upon the bottom of the sea.
He seized the great snake in his hands, and raised his head clean above
the water. What a scene of frightful turmoil was there then! The earth
shook; the mountains belched forth fire; the lightnings flashed; the
caves howled; and the sky grew black and red. Nobody knows what the end
would have been, had not Hymer reached over, and cut the strong cord.
The slippery snake glided out of Thor's hands, and hid himself in the
deep sea; and every thing became quiet again.

Silently Thor and Hymer sat in the broken boat, and rowed swiftly back
towards land. Thor felt really ashamed of himself, because he had gained
nothing by his venture. And the giant was not at all happy.

When they reached the frozen shore and Hymer's cheerless castle again,
they found Tyr there, anxiously waiting for them. He felt that they were
tarrying too long in this dreary place; and he wished to be back among
his fellows in old AEgir's hall. Hymer felt very cross and ugly because
his boat had been broken; and, when they came into the hall, he said to
Thor,--

"You may think that you are very stout,--you who dared attack the
Midgard snake, and lifted him out of the sea. Yet there are many little
things that you cannot do. For instance, her