r had thus triumphed the king scanned his dress closely,
and saw that he was rough and hairy; but, above all, he laughed at the
shaggy lower portion of his garb, and chiefly the uncouth aspect of his
breeches; so that he gave him in jest the nickname of Lodbrog. Also he
invited him to feast with his friends, to refresh him after his labours.
Ragnar said that he would first go back to the witnesses whom he had
left behind. He set out and brought them back, splendidly attired for
the coming feast. At last, when the banquet was over, he received
the prize that was appointed for the victory. By her he begot two
nobly-gifted sons, Radbard and Dunwat. These also had brothers--Siward,
Biorn, Agnar, and Iwar.

Meanwhile, the Jutes and Skanians were kindled with an unquenchable fire
of sedition; they disallowed the title of Ragnar, and gave a certain
Harald the sovereign power. Ragnar sent envoys to Norway, and besought
friendly assistance against these men; and Ladgerda, whose early love
still flowed deep and steadfast, hastily sailed off with her husband and
her son. She brought herself to offer a hundred and twenty ships to the
man who had once put her away. And he, thinking himself destitute of all
resources, took to borrowing help from folk of every age, crowded the
strong and the feeble all together, and was not ashamed to insert some
old men and boys among the wedges of the strong. So he first tried to
crush the power of the Skanians in the field which in Latin is called
Laneus (Woolly); here he had a hard fight with the rebels. Here, too,
Iwar, who was in his seventh year, fought splendidly, and showed the
strength of a man in the body of a boy. But Siward, while attacking the
enemy face to face, fell forward upon the ground wounded. When his men
saw this, it made them look round most anxiously for means of flight;
and this brought low not only Siward, but almost the whole army on the
side of Ragnar. But Ragnar by his manly deeds and exhortations comforted
their amazed and sunken spirits, and, just when they were ready to be
conquered, spurred them on to try and conquer.

Ladgerda, who had a matchless spirit though a delicate frame, covered by
her splendid bravery the inclination of the soldiers to waver. For she
made a sally about, and flew round to the rear of the enemy, taking them
unawares, and thus turned the panic of her friends into the camp of the
enemy. At last the lines of HARALD became slack, and HARALD himsel