The Sea-King :: :: University of Virginia Library

What sight on earth so goodly
As a merry ship at sea,
When the winds and boisterous waters
Repose in harmony;
When from the heavenly regions
The moon and stars so bright,
Disperse the chilling terrors
And the darkness of the night;
When o'er the world of waters
The good ship makes her way,
And all around without a sound
The dancing meteors play?
There is no sight so welcome
In all the world to me,
As the mighty sleeping ocean
And a merry ship at sea.

XXII.

The breeze was blowing lightly,

And the sea-steeds scarce were prancing,
But the merry ship, with Elfin skip
Went o'er the waters dancing.
Who would have thought that vessel
That harmless stems the flood,
Had wrought such dire destruction
That it might have sailed in blood?
That vessel hath a chieftain
Whose dreaded name will ring,
As long as men will listen,
And as long as scalds will sing.
'Tis the fierce and bloody Ragnar,
That mighty man who springs
From Norway's line of warriors,
And from Denmark's race of kings.

XXIII.

The dreadful son of Sigurd
Skims on before the wind,
The North-land is before him
But his fleet is far behind.

Why is his speed so hasty,
What flies he on to meet,
Why seeketh he the North Countree,
Why lags behind his fleet?
His fleet lies off the Frankish coast,
To watch, but not invade,
For there hath treacherous Harald gone
For succour and for aid.
'Twixt him and mighty Ragnar
The feud is fierce and rise,
He strives to quell the feud in vain—
With the feud will end his life.

XXIV.

In the deadly strife with Harald's sire
Brave Sigurd smote the plain,
And by the sire of Ragnar
Was Harald's father slain.
And since hath wily Harald
By guile and treacherye,
Seized Ragnar's rightful kingdom

And forced him to the sea.
How then can Harald hope to live
Disturbed by no annoy?
How can he strive for wealth and peace,
How can he think of joy?
In vain are all his efforts
For the fierce and deadly strife,
Will be renewed by Ragnar
Till the latest day of life.

XXV.

'Tis hoped the Frankish monarch
Will not the plunder share,
Nor listen unto treachery,
Nor heed a traitor's prayer.
The brave and trusty Soemund
Hath orders there to lay,—
And if the Franks should send their aid,
To stop it on the way.
And there rests trusty Soemund,

The Sea-King's captain he,
While the brave and haughty Raguar
Hath sought the North Countree.
And far across the ocean,—
The mighty surging main,
The Sea-King with his single ship
Will soon return again.

XXVI.

But why thus with one vessel
Does he dance upon the wave,
While the stormy north winds whistle,
While the roaring waters rave?
What takes him from his faithful fleet
Across the faithless sea?
And why before all other lands
Does he seek the North Countree?
Oh! he hath had strange dreams of late,
He sees a maiden fair;
Than Nossa's self more beautiful,

And lighter than the air.
Now Ragnar is a wondrous man,
And brave,—as brave men say,
But this fair maid hath vanquished him,
And ta'en his heart away.

XXVII.

And he with busy efforts
Hath sought, and sought again,
If he might haply find that maid,—
The cause of all his pain.
O'er many a land he's wandered,
And when his toils are o'er,
He finds his last as bootless
As that which went before.
Till from the stormy North-Land
There came a maiden's fame,
And Ragnar's wise seer Arngrim
Hath said she is the same
Who breaks on Ragnar's visions,

So lovely and so fair,
Than Nossa's self more beautiful,
And lighter than the air.

XXVIII.

Now Arngrim is a trusty man,
A wondrous seer they say;
He would not for a world of wealth
Lead the wild Sea-King astray.
So Ragnar takes him at his word,
And now unfurls the sail,
He floats upon the surging flood,
He skips before the gale.
And now his fleet is far behind,
And he is out at sea;
He seeks a stormy distant land,
The North-Land seeketh he.
The Sea-King now hath travelled
Full many a night and day,
Still the broad sea is before him
And the blue sky still is o'er him;
Thor speed him on his way!