VINLAND. 



not wait till the high-water reached their ship, and ran out tin 

 the beach where a river -flowed from a lake. When the high- 

 water set their ship afloat they took their boat and rowed to 

 the ship, and towed it up the river into the lake. There they 

 cast anchor, and took their leather- bags (hudfat) ashore, and 

 there built booths. They resolved to stay there over winter, and 

 built large houses. There was no lack of salmon in the river 

 and lake, and they were larger than any they had seen before. 

 The land was so fertile that it seemed to them that no barns 

 would be needed to keep fodder for the cattle during the winter. 

 There was no frost there during the winter, and the grass lost 

 little of its freshness. The length of night and day was more 

 equal than in Greenland or Iceland. The sun set there at 

 eykt l and rose at dagmal 2 on the shortest day. When they 

 had finished building their houses, Leif said to his men : ' I 

 will divide you into two parties, as I wish to explore the land. 

 One half shall stay in the skali (house), and the other explore 

 the country, but not go so far that they cannot get home in the 

 evenings, and not separate from each other. They did this 

 for some time. Leif sometimes went with them, but at other 

 times remained in the skali. He was a large and strong man, 

 of imposing looks, and wise and moderate in everything. 



" One evening it happened that they missed one of their 

 men, Tyrker, the southerner. Leif was much grieved at this, 

 for Tyrker had long been with him, and his foster father had 

 been very fond of Leif in his childhood. He upbraided his men 

 harshly, and made ready to go and search for him with twelve 

 men. A short way from the house Tyrker met them, and was 

 welcomed back. Leif soon saw that his foster father was in 

 high spirits. He had a projecting forehead, unsteady eyes, a 

 tiny face, and was little and wretched, but skilled in all kinds 

 of handicraft. Leif said to him : ' Why art thou so late, foster 

 father, and why hast thou parted from thy followers ? ' He then 

 spoke for a long time in Thyrska, and rolled his eyes in many 

 directions and made wry faces. They did not understand what 

 he said. After a while he spoke in the northern tongue 

 (Norrcena), and said : ' I did not go much farther than you, 

 but I can tell some news. I found a vine and grapes.' ' Is this 

 true, foster-father ? ' Leif asked. ' Certainly it is,' he answered, 

 ' for I was born where there was neither lack of vine nor grapes.' 

 They slept there that night, and in the morning Leif said to 



1 Ei/kt the word is found in the early 

 Christian laws Kristinrett of Thorlak 

 and Ketil, two bishops in Iceland 

 where it is defined as the time of the 

 day when the sun has passed two parts 



of the south-west and the other third 

 is left. 



2 Daipnal, the early meal in Iceland, 

 which is now from 8.30 A.M. to 9.0 A.M. 



