Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1893-01-26

last years concublnes, and rusty with
Dasking by winters fires and yearnful
for the breath Of tho free ocean, or the
yet dearer breath OF adventure, and
thus one day went down to the strand
where my good ship lay hauled up and
tented over against the storm and snow,
to SEQ the work that Skaun the car
penter and Vedrey OF the brushes had
done upon her. And as / walked about
that gallant hulk my blood took new
color and beat quicker measure than
1t had done for long, while the winter
sloth dropped from me and the hunger
OF the rover for quest and danger was
born anew In my heart. A better skeld
never was steered by sea kings son,
l thought Her sides were blue-blue
as last winters Ice In the shadows Of
June--rlght up from the water edge to
the high gunwale, while inside the
Trondhiem forest oak was secured as
white as madens linen. The tail
mast in the center was slim and straight
as an arrow, and on either side were
rowlock holes for sixty oars. A lovely
ship, indeed, and cunning Vedrey had
vanished her until her cinker sides
shone like the back of new caught sal
mon, and had carved and gilded every
oar hole with golden scroll of twisting
serpents, and here and there and every
where had been at work 80 deity that
1t was a days wonder to explore the
workings OF the loving zeal wherewth
he had adorned the vessel from glitter
ing stem to stern. And Skaun had seen
to every peg and slnew that laced her
shapely sides; he had been aft and for
ward; above, below had scraped the
oars and set new seats for rowers, and
caulked afresh each seam with red cow
hair and resln-oh, a lovely ship, in
DEED, and in my pride surely / thought
such one never stood on mortal slips
before. Once more l would venture
cast with fortune, and In q burst of
pleasure and such life as had lain asleep
too long within my heart | vowed then
ana there to start on q foray before
three days were over. And, hot In the
revulsion Of my feelings, set Skaun
and Vedrey running here and there as
they had never run before, and collected
some of the lazy-boned vllleins who had
basked in my porch and snored by my
pine wood fire all through the snow and
frost, and made them work as they had
not worked for many day.
Under our busy hands the beautiful
winter hulk put on her war gear and
blossomed like a summer tree. We
fetched out her sixty great oals, Feet
OF the Seawolf," of ash -four men sat
at EACH and strapped them into their
nD1nfnn rnyulnnly h., 81.
in the landing boats and set the great
rudder aft on the starboard; we put the
black leather tent on board, and under
1t the hudfat sleeping bags to shield me
and my jolly pillagers from the English
rain. We shipped the landing planks-
many were the white feet OF captive
girls we hoped would tread them-and
a hundred stout rollers in case our
longship needed to be beached, Then
we put in the arms chest and filled il to
the brlm with glistening swords and
axes, praying all the time to Odin that
their shine might be dimmed ere we re-
turned; we put the brass kettles on
board, and the provisions and barrels
Of water with little lids. Next we set
up the tall mast that shone in its winter
coat of bears grease and was so red
and straight, and hoisted to the spar
the great square sail, CLOAK of the
Wind" 1t was the great jarl Kand Of
Viskerdal, my foster brother, who gave
me that sheet, and it was colored blue
and white and made Of wooden stuff as
soft as silk. Lastly of all the glisten-
ing dragon head was put upon the PROV,
and the warriors shields, black and
yellow, each overlapping each were set
along the bulwarks, and there flashing
in the sun with a hundred colors, beau !
tiful and complete from stem to stern,
my sea bride sat shining on the ways!
SO we'll had we worked that the dawn |
of the second day from my vow we were
ready, and half the valley came to see
us off. All went well with the launch
ing and in q few minutes after the props |
were knocked away we slid out into the |
ford and floated true and straight, and |
at the same instant my five score fight
ing men set up the hymn to Odin, the
sail was spread, and the long oars be-
gan to dip, swift and strong, into the
merry water that ran ripping by us.
Loudly, loudly prayed from my place
by the high tiller to the three fatal sis
ters who live beneath the ash Yggdrasil
that they would send me this time to the
arms Of my love, and loudly, loudly to
this moment | bewail me that my prayer
was granted.
inn