she had
cast it adrift, she flung herself into the sea; and so died.

Thus did Andvari's hoard fulfil the curse that had been set upon all
those who should be concerned with it. But the glittering treasure
itself lies hidden far beneath the waves of the mighty river Rhine,
and only the water-sprites know where it is hid.

CHAPTER XXI

The Boyhood of Frithiof the Bold

_This is the tale the Northmen tell of how Frithiof
the Bold asked for the hand of Ingeborg the Fair._

Once upon a time there lived in Norway a king named Bele, who had
three children. Helge and Halfdan were his sons, and his daughter was
called by the name of Ingeborg.

Now Ingeborg was the fairest of maidens, and had moreover such a fine
wit and understanding that all men said she was the first and best of
the good king's children.

To the west of the settlement in which King Bele lived rose up a great
white temple, hedged around with a lofty wall of wood. This temple was
sacred to Balder the Beautiful; and so much did men honour him in
those days of old, that they made strict laws that within the
enclosure in which his temple stood no man should hold converse with a
woman, nor should any harm be done to man or beast.

On the other side of the inlet on which stood the abode of Bele was a
village ruled by a mighty man of valour named Thorsten. This Thorsten
had a son called Frithiof, who at the time of his birth was bigger and
stronger than all other babes, and grew up not only tall but also bold
and brave of heart; so that men named him Frithiof the Bold.

Now Thorsten was a sea-rover. So he sent his little son to a sturdy
yeoman called Hilding, that he might be brought up by him and taught
all that a Viking ought to know. For the education of a Viking was no
small thing. He might not claim the title till he had lifted the
mighty stone that stood before the door of the king and had borne it
across the pathway. And he had to learn what was meant by the "triple
oath"--that he would not capture woman or child in battle, nor seek
refuge in a tempest, nor wait to bind up his wounds before the fight
was spent.

Now it so happened that, while the children of the king were still
young, their mother died, and the little princess was also placed in
the care of Hilding and his wife. Thus Frithiof and Ingeborg grew up
together, and were more beautiful and brave and clever than all the
other boys and girls of that place.

Thorsten, Frithiof's