202 Norivay and the Aorwegians 



men, stood by the mast aud shot with his bow. Einar 

 shot an arrow at Earl Erik, which hit the tiller-end 

 just above the earl's head so hard that it entered the 

 wood up to the arrow shaft. The earl looked that 

 way, and asked if they knew who had shot ; and at the 

 same moment another arrow flew between his hand 

 and his side and into the stuffino- of the leader's stool, 

 so that the barb stood far out on the other side. Then 

 said the earl to a man called Fin — but some say he 

 was of Finn (Laplander) race, and was a superior 

 archer : ' Shoot that tall man by the mast.' Fin shot, 

 and the arrow hit the middle of Einar's bow just at 

 the moment that Einar was drawing it, and the bow 

 was split in two parts. 



' What is that/ cried King Olaf, ' that broke with 

 such a noise 1 ' 



' Norway, king, from thy hands,' cried Einar. 



' No ! not quite so much as that,' says the king ; 

 ' take my bow and shoot,' flinging the bow to him. 



Einar took the bow, and drew it over the head of the 

 arrow. ' Too weak, too weak,' said he, ' for the bow of 

 a mighty king ! ' and throwing the bow aside, he took 

 sword and shield and fought valiantly. 



The king stood on the gangway of the Long Serpent 

 and sliot the greater part of the day ; sometimes with 

 the bow, sometimes with the spear, and always throw- 

 ing two spears at once. He looked down over the 

 ship's side, and saw that his men struck briskly with 

 their swords and yet wounded but seldom. Then he 

 called aloud : ' Why do ye strike so gently that ye 

 seldom cut ? ' One among the people answered : ' The 

 swords are blunt and full of notches.' Then the king 



