coarse and selfish
mind of Veliant; and he sought how he might drive the lad away from the
smithy in disgrace. "This boy has done what no one else could do," said
he. "He may yet do greater deeds, and set himself up as the master smith
of the world, and then we shall all have to humble ourselves before him
as his underlings and thralls."

And he nursed this thought, and brooded over the hatred which he felt
towards the blameless boy; but he did not dare to harm him, for fear of
their master, Mimer. And Siegfried busied himself at his forge, where
the sparks flew as briskly and as merrily as ever before, and his
bellows roared from early morning till late at evening. Nor did the
foreman's unkindness trouble him for a moment, for he knew that the
master's heart was warm towards him.

Oftentimes, when the day's work was done, Siegfried sat with Mimer by
the glowing light of the furnace-fire, and listened to the sweet tales
which the master told of the deeds of the early days, when the world
was young, and the dwarf-folk and the giants had a name and a place upon
earth. And one night, as they thus sat, the master talked of Odin the
All-Father, and of the gods who dwell with him in Asgard, and of the
puny men-folk whom they protect and befriend, until his words grew full
of bitterness, and his soul of a fierce longing for something he dared
not name. And the lad's heart was stirred with a strange uneasiness, and
he said,--

"Tell me, I pray, dear master, something about my own kin, my father's
fathers,--those mighty kings, who, I have heard said, were the bravest
and best of men."

Then the smith seemed pleased again. And his eyes grew brighter, and
lost their far-away look; and a smile played among the wrinkles of his
swarthy face, as he told a tale of old King Volsung and of the deeds of
the Volsung kings:--

"Long years ago, before the evil days had dawned, King Volsung ruled
over all the land which lies between the sea and the country of the
Goths. The days were golden; and the good Frey dropped peace and plenty
everywhere, and men went in and out and feared no wrong. King Volsung
had a dwelling in the midst of fertile fields and fruitful gardens.
Fairer than any dream was that dwelling. The roof was thatched with
gold, and red turrets and towers rose above. The great feast-hall was
long and high, and its walls were hung with sun-bright shields; and the
door-nails were of silver. In the middle of the hall stood th