488 



DIVISIONS OF PEOPLE INTO CLASSES. 



Thereafter he carried home 

 Faggots the weary day. 



There came to the house 

 The leg-walking ; l 

 Scars were on her soles ; 

 Her arm was sunburnt ; 

 Her nose crooked ; 

 (She) was called Thir. 2 



She sat down 



In the middle of the seat ; 



The son of the house 



Sat at her side ; 



They talked and whispered, 



Made a bed 



Thrall and Thir 



Through the wearisome days. 



They had children, 



Lived and were happy ; 

 * * * 



They laid fences, 

 Enriched the plough-land, 

 Tended swine, 

 Herded goats, 

 Dug peat. 



Description of Freemen. 

 Then Rig went 

 Right on his way ; 

 He came to a hall ; 

 The door was on the latch. 

 He went in ; 

 Fire was on the floor, 3 

 Husband and wife sat there, 

 Busy with their work. 



A man cut there 



A log into a loom-beam, 



(His) beard was trimmed ; 



Hair lay on (his) forehead, 



His shirt was tight ; 



There was a chest on the floor. 



There sat a woman ; 



She twirled a distaff, 



Stretched out her arms, 



Made cloth ; 



There was a sveig 4 on her head, 



A smock on her breast, 



A kerchief on her neck, 



Pin-brooches on her shoulders ; 



Afi and Amma 5 



Owned the house. 



Amma gave birth to a child ; 

 (They) sprinkled it with water, 

 Called it Karl, 



The wife wrapped it in linen ; 

 (It was) red and ruddy, 

 (Its) eyes rolled. 



The Freeman, a Farmer or Bondi. 



He did grow 

 And thrive well ; 

 He broke oxen, 

 Made ploughs ; 

 Timbered houses, 

 Made barns, 

 Made carts, 

 And drove the plough. 



They (the parents) drove home 



The maiden with the hanging keys 



And with the goatskin kirtle ; 



They married her to Karl ; 



She was called Snb'r, 



She sat down under bridal linen. 



(They) lived as man and wife, 



Divided rings (wealth), 



Spread bedclothes, 



And set up a household. 



They had children ; 



They lived together happy. 



Then follows a description of the jarl, who possessed all the 

 qualities given by Odin, from whom many claim descent. 



1 So named probably because accus- 

 tomed to walk much. 

 - Bond-woman. 

 3 In later times we see that the fire- 



place was in the middle of the floor. 



4 Kind of head-dress. 



5 Grandfather and grandmother. 



