172 
LETTERS FROM HIGH LATITUDES. 
to us in tlie course of another, relating to events with 
which the first had no connexion. 1 
It seems that Snorre had a beautiful sister, named 
Thured of Froda, with whom a certain gallant gentle¬ 
man—called Bjorn, the son of Astrand—fell head and 
ears in love. Unfortunately, a richer rival appears in 
the field; and though she had given her heart to Bjorn, 
Snorre—who we have already seen was a prudent man 
—insisted upon her giving her hand to his rival. Dis¬ 
gusted by such treatment, Bjorn sails away to the coasts 
of the Baltic, and joins a famous company of sea-rovers, 
called the Jomsburg Vikings. In this worthy society he 
so distinguishes himself by his valour and daring that 
he obtains the title of the Champion of Breidavik. After 
many doughty deeds, done by sea and land, he at last 
returns, loaded with wealth and honours, to his native 
country. 
In the summer-time of the year 999, soon after 
his arrival, was held a great fair at Froda, whither 
all the merchants, “ clad in coloured garments,” con- 
1 From internal evidence it is certain that the chronicle which 
contains these Sagas mnst have been written about the beginning 
of the thirteenth century. 
