ion, bowed awkwardly, and went to fill and relight
his kiln fires.

And then the old priest spoke to me.

"Sir, I was brought here, as you see, to drive away an evil spirit,
which this poor thrall said had appeared to him last night, and from
which he fled. Now all men know that these fens are haunted by fiends,
even as holy Guthlac found in the land of the Gyrwa's, [v] being sorely
troubled by them. But I have seen none, though I dwell in this fen much
as he dwelt, though none so worthy, or maybe worth troubling as he.
Know you what he saw? for I seem to see that your coming has to do with
this--" and the old man smiled a little.

Then I told him how I had come unexpectedly into the firelight, and that
the man had fled, adding that I was nigh worn out, and so, finding a
resting place, slept without heeding him; and then how little Turkil had
called me "Grendel", bidding me "spit fire for him to see".

At that the old man laughed a hearty laugh, looking sidewise to see that
Dudda was at work and unheeding.

"Verily," he said, "it is as I deemed, but with more reason for the
collier to fly than I had thought--for truly mail-clad men are never
seen here, and thy face, my son, is of the grimmest, for all you are so
young. I marvel Turkil feared you not--but children see below the
outward mask of a man's face."

Now as he said that, the old man looked kindly, but searchingly, at me,
and I rebelled against it: but he was so saintly looking that I might
not be angry, so tried to turn it off.

"Turkil the Valiant called me Grendel, Father. Also I think you came out
to exorcise the same by name, for I heard it in the Latin. But that was
a heathen fiend."

The hermit sighed a little and answered me.

"They sing the song of Beowulf and love it, heathen though it be, better
than aught else, and will till one rises up who will turn Holy Writ into
their mother tongue, as Caedmon did for Northumbria. Howbeit, doubtless
those who were fiends in the days of the false gods are fiends yet, and
if Grendel then, so also Grendel now, though he may have many other
names. And knowing that name from their songs, small wonder that the
terror that came from the marsh must needs be he. And, no doubt," went
on the good priest, though with a little twinkle in his eye, "he knew
well enough whom I came to exorcise, even if the name were wrong, had he
indeed been visibly here."

So he spoke: but my mind was wandering away to my own trouble