36 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. IO7 



the battle with the Skrelhngs, but it is added regarding her and her 

 weak-minded husband — the two seem to have been counterparts of 

 Lord and Lady Macbeth — that "no one from that time forward 

 thought them worthy of aught but evil." This supposed voyage has 

 elicited much hostile criticism, and we would fain wish that it might 

 have been a work of the imagination, but unfortunately feminine 

 human nature has shown itself to as ill advantage on more than one 

 historic occasion, and a tragedy of this kind might help to account 

 for the termination of visits to Wineland. Between the Skrellings 

 and this horrible event they may have become associated with ill luck. 

 As in the case of the Saga, the last paragraphs of this narrative 

 are taken up with the return of Karlsefni to Iceland and the story 

 of his descendants. It differs, however, in inserting a visit to Norway 

 where "he sold his wares, and both he and his wife were received 

 with great favor by the most distinguished men of Norway." They 

 then prepared to return to Iceland, but here an item of interest to 

 us is introduced. 



When all his preparations had been made, and his ship lying at the wharf, 

 awaiting favorable winds, there came to him a Southerner, a native of Bremen 

 in the Saxonland, who wished to buy his "house-neat" (a weather-vane, or 

 other ornament at the point of the gable of a house or upon a ship). "I do 

 not wish to sell it." said he. "I will give thee half a 'mork' in gold for it," says 

 the Southerner. This Karlsefni thought a good offer, and accordingly closed 

 the bargain. The Southerner went his way, with the house-neat, and Karlsefni 

 knew not what wood it was, but it was mosur, come from Wineland. 



This is the "mausur" wood of which the Saga speaks. The latter 

 begins its account of Wineland with a reference to this mysteriously 

 valuable wood, generally regarded as maple, and perhaps bird's-eye 

 maple, while the Flat Island Book here ends with an equally dramatic 

 reference to it. 



SUMMARY OF THE EXPEDITIONS 



Before going farther I shall attempt an outline of the probable 

 course of events of which these Wineland sagas profess to treat. 



The Saga of Eric the Red is undoubtedly the more trustworthy of 

 the two narratives, but this trustworthiness applies particularly to its 

 treatment of the voyage of Karlsefni, and we may suspect that the 

 story of Wineland was a much longer one and that many details have 

 been suppressed. The relation of Leif's supposed discovery of Wine- 

 land would give the impression that he reached it after crossing the 

 full breadth of the North Atlantic without coming in sight of any 



