As he spoke, a tall savage, with an unusually grave countenance, stalked
from among his fellows, thrust Powlet and the young man whom Krake had
styled Bluenose aside, and seated himself on the ground in imitation of
the free-and-easy manner of the Norsemen. Suddenly his face lighted up.
He clapped both hands to his chest and breathed hard, then raised his
hands aloft, looked enthusiastically up at the sky, rolled his eyes in a
fearful manner, opened his mouth wide, and gave utterance to a series of
indescribable howls. Checking himself in the midst of one of these, he
suddenly resumed his grave aspect, looked straight at Krake, and said
"Ho!"

That he thought he had hit the mark, and conveyed the meaning of himself
and his friends precisely, was made evident by the other savages, who
nodded their heads emphatically, and exclaimed "Ho!" with earnestness.

"H'm! 'tis easy to say `Ho!'" replied Krake, more perplexed than ever,
"and if `Ho' would be a satisfactory answer, I'd give ye as much as ye
liked of that; but I can't make head or tail of what it is ye would be
at."

"Stay," exclaimed Hake, stepping quickly forward, "I think I know what
they want."

Saying this, he looked earnestly at the grave savage, and ran over one
or two notes of a song.

No words in any language could convey such a powerful meaning as did the
beam of intelligence and delight which overspread the faces of these
sons of the wilderness. The "ho! ho! hos!" and noddings were repeated
with such energy, that Krake advised them to "stop that, lest their
heads should come off altogether!"

"I thought so," said Hake, turning away from them; "they want you to
give them a song, Krake."

"They shall have that, and welcome," cried the jovial Norseman, striking
up the "Danish Kings" at once, with all the fire of his nature.

The natives sat in rapt solemnity, and when the Norsemen joined
laughingly in the chorus, they allowed a faint smile to play for a
moment on their faces, and murmured their satisfaction to each other
when the song was done. But it was evident that they wanted something
more, for they did not seem quite satisfied until one of their number
rose, and going up to Hake touched his lips with his finger.

"Ha! I thought so!" exclaimed Krake in contempt. "It's bad taste ye
have to want a song from _him_ after hearing _me_! But what else could
we expect from ye?"

Hake willingly complied with their wish, and it then became ev