A LEGEND OF THE HUNS. 17 



" Did 1 not offer 

 To share with thee, brother, 

 Gold, lands and people, 

 As thou desiredst ? 



" Now hast thou nought 

 As guerdon of battle, 

 Neither the red gold 

 Nor the wide lands. 



" Cursed be my fate 

 That I, my brother, 

 Have been thy slayer. 

 Oh, hard was the doom 

 Of the pitiless Nornas." 



After the battle of Dunaheden, thirty thousand of the fugi- 

 tive Huns took refuge in the Hill of Huna (Hunneberg), hence 

 its name, and they fortified themselves there. Afterwards, 

 for a long time, they kept the surrounding country in a state 

 of great disquiet by their predatory excursions. But wearied 

 out at length, the peasants rose as one man, and armed only 

 with clubs (whence the combat was called the " Klubb-fejd," 

 or the battle of clubs), they succeeded in driving the invaders 

 out of their strongholds. 



After this defeat the Huns dispersed, and spread them- 

 selves over the whole country, where they settled quietly 

 down, and in time were merged among the rest of the in- 

 habitants. To this day indeed, the names of many places in 

 Sweden bear testimony to their presence. 



Halleberg, the other hill in question, which is only sepa- 

 rated from Hunneberg by a narrow valley, is said to have 

 derived its name from Hallo, a renowned chieftain of the 

 Huns, who after the " Klubb-fejd," retreated to Billings- 

 berg, where he built and fortified a town, the remains of 



VOL. I. C 



