made hundreds of suits of armour and thousands of swords, and his fame
travelled far, so that all men spoke of his industry. At last he grew
tired of making armour, and hammered a number of gold rings, which he
strung on strips of bark, and as he hammered he thought of Alvilda
his wife, and how the rings would gleam on her arms when once she came
back again.

Now at this time Nidud the Little reigned over Sweden, and was hated
by his people, for he was vain and cowardly and had many other bad
qualities. It came to his ears that away in the forests lived a man
who was very rich, and worked all day long in pure gold. The King was
one of those people who could not bear to see anyone with things which
he did not himself possess, and he began to make plans how to get hold
of Wayland's wealth. At length he called together his chief
counsellors, and said to them: 'I hear a man has come to my kingdom
who is called Wayland, famous in many lands for his skill in
sword-making. I have set men to inquire after him, and I have found
that when first he came here he was poor and of no account, so he must
have grown rich either by magic or else by violence. I command,
therefore, that my stoutest men-at-arms should buckle on their iron
breastplates and ride in the dead of night to Wayland's house, and
seize his goods and his person.'

'King Nidud,' answered one of the courtiers, 'that you should take
himself and his goods is well, but why send a troop of soldiers
against one man? If he is no sorcerer, then a single one of your
soldiers could take him captive; but if, on the other hand, he is a
magician, then a whole army could do nothing with him against his
will.' At this reply the King flew in a rage, and, snatching up a
sword, ran it through his counsellor's body; then, turning to the
rest, told them that they would suffer the same fate if they refused
to submit to his will.

So the men-at-arms put on all their armour, and, mounting their
horses, set forth at sunset to Wayland's house, King Nidud riding at
their head. The door stood wide open, and they entered quietly, in
deadly fear lest Wayland should attack them. But no one was inside,
and they looked about, their eyes dazzled by the gold on the walls.
The King gazed with wonder and delight at the long string of golden
rings, and, slipping the finest off a strip of bark, placed it on his
finger. At that moment steps were heard in the outer court, and the
King hastily desired hi