d Karlsefin, with a laugh. "He
is a long-suffering man, and very tender to women withal, but he is not
made of butter."

Biarne shook his head. He evidently had not much opinion of Thorward's
resolution when opposed by the will and passion of such a termagant as
Freydissa.

"How much better 'twould have been," said he, "if Thorward had married
her maid--the sweet little fair-haired blue-eyed Bertha."

"Why, Biarne, methinks that _thou_ art somewhat like to try that plan,"
said his friend, looking at him in surprise, for he had spoken with much
enthusiasm.

"Not I, man," returned Biarne, with a smile and a shake of the head.
"It is long since my heart was buried in Iceland. I am doomed to be an
old bachelor now."

They both listened at this point, for the domestic brawl in the small
hut seemed to be waxing furious. Thorward's voice was not heard so
often, but when it did sound there was an unusually stern tone in it,
and Freydissa's became so loud that her words were audible.

"It has been killed, I tell you, Bertha, by sheer carelessness. If you
had fed it properly it would have been as well as the others. _Don't_
say you did your best for it. You didn't. You _know_ you didn't.
You're a smooth-faced vixen. You are. Don't speak. Don't speak back,
I say. Hold your tongue. You killed that kitten by carelessness."

"If you don't hold your tongue, wife," said Thorward, in a loud stern
voice, "I'll kill the cat too."

There was a pause here, as if the threat had taken away Freydissa's
breath.

"Oho! that's the poor little kitten," whispered Karlsefin to Biarne,
referring to one of a litter that had been born at sea, "that was nigh
eaten by one of the dogs. Bertha had no hand in its death. I wonder it
lived so long."

"Kill the cat?" shrieked Freydissa, stamping her foot.

This was instantly followed by an unearthly caterwaul and the sudden
appearance of a dark object in the air, which, issuing from the door of
the hut, flew upwards like a sky-rocket, described a wide curve, and
fell heavily about fifty yards out into the lake. Next moment Freydissa
sprang from the hut and stood with clasped hands on the shore in
speechless horror. Thorward immediately after came forth with a dark
frown on his face, and walked away into the forest. Freydissa stood
like a statue for some minutes, and then, seeing that the cat lay quite
motionless, she turned, and, with a face that was deadly pale,
re-entered the