be heard, and made the following speech: "Here are
now assembled a great many men, so that probably there will never be
opportunity in this poor country of seeing so great a native army;
but it would be desirable if this strength and multitude could be a
protection; for it will all be needed, if this Olaf does not give over
bringing war and strife upon you. From his very earliest youth he has
been accustomed to plunder and kill: for which purposes he drove widely
around through all countries, until he turned at last against this,
where he began to show hostilities against the men who were the best and
most powerful; and even against King Canute, whom all are bound to serve
according to their ability, and in whose scat-lands he set himself down.
He did the same to Olaf the Swedish king. He drove the earls Svein and
Hakon away from their heritages; and was even most tyrannical towards
his own connections, as he drove all the kings out of the Uplands:
although, indeed, it was but just reward for having been false to their
oaths of fealty to King Canute, and having followed this King Olaf in
all the folly he could invent; so their friendship ended according
to their deserts, by this king mutilating some of them, taking their
kingdoms himself, and ruining every man in the country who had an
honourable name. Ye know yourselves how he has treated the lendermen, of
whom many of the worthlest have been murdered, and many obliged to fly
from their country; and how he has roamed far and wide through the land
with robber-bands, burning and plundering houses, and killing people.
Who is the man among us here of any consideration who has not some great
injury from him to avenge? Now he has come hither with a foreign troop,
consisting mostly of forest-men, vagabonds, and such marauders. Do ye
think he will now be more merciful to you, when he is roaming about with
such a bad crew, after committing devastations which all who followed
him dissuaded him from? Therefore it is now my advice, that ye remember
King Canute's words when he told you, if King Olaf attempted to return
to the country ye should defend the liberty King Canute had promised
you, and should oppose and drive away such a vile pack. Now the only
thing to be done is to advance against them, and cast forth these
malefactors to the wolves and eagles, leaving their corpses on the spot
they cover, unless ye drag them aside to out-of-the-way corners in
the woods or rocks. No man