# Beowulf (Wyatt)/Beowulf 03

III.
Swā ðā mǣl-cearemaga Healfdenes 190singala sēað;ne mihte snotor hæleð wēan onwendan;wæs þæt gewin tō swȳð, lāþ ond longsum,þe on ðā lēode becōm, nȳd-wracu nīþ-grim,niht-bealwa mǣst. Þaet fram hām gefrægnHigelāces þegn, 195gōd mid Gēatum,Grendles dǣda; sē wæs mon-cynnesmægenes strengest on þǣm dægeþysses līfes, æþele ond ēacen.Hēt him ȳð-lidan gōdne gegyrwan;cwæð, hē gūð-cyning 200ofer swan-rādesēcean wolde, mǣrne þēoden,þā him wæs manna þearf. Ðone sīð-fæt himsnotere ceorlas lȳt-hwon lōgon,*þēah hē him lēof wǣre; Fol. 134b. hwetton hige-[r]ōfne,hǣl scēawedon. 205Hæfde se gōdaGēata lēoda cempan gecorone,þāra þe hē cēnoste findan mihte;fiftena sum sund-wudu sōhte;secg wīsade, lagu-cræftig mon,land-gemyrcu. ​210Fyrst forð gewāt;flota wæs on ȳðum, bāt under beorge.Beornas gearwe on stefn stigon;strēamas wundon sund wið sande;secgas bǣron on bearm nacanbeorhte frætwe, 215gūð-searo geatolīc;guman ūt scufon, weras on wil-sīð,wudu bundenne. Gewât þā ofer wǣg-holmwinde gefȳsed flota fāmi-healsfugle gelīcost, oð þæt ymb an-tīdōþres dōgores 220wunden-stefnagewaden hæfde, þæt ðā līðendeland gesāwon, brim-clifu blīcan,beorgas stēape, sīde sǣ-næssas;þā wæs sund liden eoletes æt ende.Þanon up hraðe 225Wedera lēodeon wang stigon, sǣ-wudu sǣldon;syrcan hrysedon, gūð-gewǣdo;Gode þancedon, þæs þe him ȳþ-lādeēaðe wurdon. *Þā of wealle geseahweard Scildinga,Fol. 135a. 230sē þe holm-clifuhealdan scolde, beran ofer bolcanbeorhte randas, fyrd-searu fūslicu;hine fyrwyt bræc mōd-gehygdum,hwæt þā men wǣron. Gewāt him þā tō waroðewicge rīdan ​235þegn Hrōðgāres,þrymmum cwehte mægen-wudu mundum,meþel-wordum frægn: “Hwæt syndon gēsearo-hæbbendra byrnum werede,þe þus brontne cēol ofer lagu-strǣtelǣdan cwōmon, 240hider ofer holmas[hringed-stefnan]? Ic wæs ende-sǣta,ǣg-wearde hēold, þē on land Denalāðra nǣnig mid scip-hergesceðþan ne meahte. Nō hēr cūðlīcorcuman ongunnon 245lind-hæbbende;ne gē lēafnes-word gūð-fremmendragearwe ne wisson, māga gemēdu.Nǣfre ic māran geseah eorla ofer eorþan,ðonne is ēower sum, secg on searwum;nis þæt seld-guma 250wǣpnum geweorðad,næfne him his wlite lēoge, ǣnlīc an-sȳn.Nū ic ēower sceal frum-cyn witan,ǣr gē fyr *heonan,Fol. 135b. lēas[e] scēaweras,on land Dena furþur fēran.Nū gē feor-būend, 255mere-līðende,mīn[n]e gehȳrað ān-fealdne geþōht;ofost is sēlest tō gecȳðanne,hwanan ēowre cyme syndon.”
* ↑ 204. MS. defective. Zupitza says: “rofne—only the lower part of the first letter left, which may have been r, þ, f, s, or w.”
* ↑ 207. MS. ‘·XV$^{na}$.’
* ↑ 218. Almost all editors read fāmig-heals, but the MS. form must be of significance for the pronunciation.
* ↑ 219. MS. ‘an tid.’ Grein’s Glossary gives: “ān-tīd f. hora prima?” Cosijn contends for an-tīd = and-tīd or ond-tīd, ‘corresponding time, the same time,’ so that the phrase would mean ‘about the same hour of the second day.’ So Heyne and Socin. Earle thinks “we ought to look rather at the phrase than at the words” (!), and objects to the hyphen. But without it we should expect ‘ymb āne tīd.’
* ↑ 240—1. MS. ‘hider ofer holmas le wæs’ &c., without gap. Thorkelin and Wülcker read Ic for le, but Zupitza says: “le no doubt, not Ic.” Various suggestions have been made for the missing half-line. That in the text is Wülcker’s. Heyne adopts Ettmüller’s ‘helmas bǣron,’ but this is hardly felicitous after holmas. Bugge’s emendation is ingenious: hider ofer holmas?[Hwīle ic on weal]le wæs ende-sǣta.
* ↑ 250. MS. ‘næfre’; Kemble ‘næfne.’
* ↑ 253. MS. ‘leas’; Ettmüller ‘lēase.’
* ↑ 255. MS. ‘mine’; Kemble ‘mīnne.’