THE ANCESTRY OF EACH CLASS. 



-187 



In the first stanza of the Voluspa we have seen that all men 

 are called the sons of Heimdall, of which we have an ex- 

 planation in the Kigsmal. Heimdall travels about under the 

 name of Rig, from house to house ; first he goes to Ai and 

 Edda (great-grandfather and great-grandmother), then to Afi. 

 and Amma (grandfather and grandmother), and then to Fadir 

 and Modir (father and mother). 



In the poem we see the ancestry of each class under a sort 

 of developing system how the jarl and hersir are the pro- 



genitors 



of chiefs and kings ; 

 primogeniture and entail ; of 

 except that he existed. 



It is told there went 

 Along the greeii paths 

 A mighty and old 

 And wise As, 

 The strong and nimble 

 Rig the wanderer. 



He went on thereafter 



Along the middle of the path, 



And came to a house ; 



The door was ajar ; 



He went in ; 



Fire was on the floor ; 



Man and wife sat there 



Hoary, at the hearth, 



Ai and Edda, 



With her old-fashioned hood. 



Rig gave them 



Good advice ; 



He sat down 



In the middle seat, 



And on either side 



The man and wife of the house. 



Then Edda took 



A lumpy loaf, 



Heavy and thick, 



Mixed with bran ; 



Then she put more 



On the middle of the trencher 



Broth was in the bowl ; 



She put it on a table. 



There was boiled veal 



The best of dainties. 



and we learn of odctl, or of 

 the hersir we learn 



nothing, 



Rig could give them 



Good advice ; 



He rose from there, 



Went to sleep, 



And lay down 



In the middle of the bed, 



And on either side 



The man and wife of the house. 



There he stayed 



Three nights altogether ; 



Then travelled on 



Along the middle of the path : 



Then passed 



Nine months. 



Edda gave birth to a child, 



They sprinkled it with water. 



Appearance of the Thrall. 

 They called him Thrall. 

 He grew 



And throve well ; 

 There was on (his) hands 

 Wrinkled skin ; 

 Crooked knuckles. 



* * * 



Fingers thick, 

 Face ugly, 

 Back bent, 

 Heels long. 



Thereafter he began 

 To try his strength 

 To bind bast, 

 To make loads 



