Erling the Bold
Page 16
CHAPTER SIXTEEN.
RELATES TO SUCH ELEMENTARY MATTERS AS THE A B C, AND TOUCHES ONLOVE-MAKING IN THE OLDEN TIME.
After the occurrence of the events just narrated, King Harald'sattention was diverted from the people of Horlingdal and theneighbouring districts by the doings of certain small kings, againstwhom it became necessary that he should launch his whole force. Thesewere King Hunthiof, who ruled over the district of More, and his sonSolve Klofe; also King Nokve, who ruled over Romsdal, and was thebrother of Solve's mother. These men were great warriors. Hearing thatKing Harald was sailing north, they resolved to give him battle.
For this purpose they raised a large force, and went out among theskerries to intercept him.
We do not intend here to go into the details of the fight that followed,or its consequences. It is sufficient for the proper development of ourtale to say that they met at an island in North More named Solskiel,where a pitched battle was fought, and gained by Harald. The two kingswere slain, but Solve Klofe escaped, and afterwards proved a great thornin Harald's side, plundering in North More, killing many of the King'smen, pillaging some places, burning others, and generally making greatravage wherever he went; so that, what with keeping him and similarturbulent characters in check, and establishing law and order in thedistricts of the two kings whom he had slain, King Harald had his handsfully occupied during the remainder of that summer, and was glad to gonorth to spend the winter peacefully in Drontheim.
The families and neighbours, therefore, of those with whom our tale haschiefly to do had rest during that winter. How some of them availedthemselves of this period of repose may be gathered from a few incidentswhich we shall now relate.
In the first place, Erling the Bold spent a large proportion of his timein learning the alphabet! Now this may sound very strange in the earsof many people in modern times, but their surprise will be somewhatabated when we tell them that the art of writing was utterly unknown(though probably not unheard of) in Norway at the end of the ninthcentury, and long after that; so that Erling, although a gentleman ofthe period, and a Sea-king to boot, had not up to the time we write of,learned his A B C!
It is just possible that antiquaries, recalling to mind the fact thatthe art of writing was not introduced among the Norse colonists ofIceland until the eleventh century, may be somewhat surprised to learnthat our hero acquired the art at all! But the fact is, that therealways have been, in all countries, men who were what is popularlytermed "born before their time"--men who were in advance,intellectually, of their age--men who, overleaping the barriers ofprejudice, managed to see deeper into things in general than theirfellows, and to become more or less famous.
Now our hero, Erling the Bold, was one of those who could see beyond histime, and who became almost prophetically wise; that is to say, he wasfond of tracing causes onwards to their probable effects, to theamusement of the humorous, the amazement of the stupid, and thehorrification of the few who, even in those days of turmoil, trembled atthe idea of "change"! Everything, therefore, that came under hisobservation claimed and obtained his earnest attention, and was treatedwith a species of inductive philosophy that would have charmed the heartof Lord Bacon, had he lived in those times. Of course this new wonderof committing thoughts to parchment, which the hermit had revealed tohim, was deeply interesting to Erling, who began to study it forthwith.And we beg leave to tell antiquaries that we have nothing to do with thefact that no record is left of his studies--no scrap of his writing tobe found. We are not responsible for the stupidity or want of sympathyin his generation! Doubtless, in all ages there have been many suchinstances of glorious opportunities neglected by the world--neglected,too, with such contempt, that not even a record of their having occurredhas been made. Perchance some such opportunities are before ourselvesjust now, in regard to our neglect of which the next generation maypossibly have to hold up its hands and turn up its eyes in amazement!But be this as it may, the fact remains that although no record ishanded down of any knowledge of letters at this period in Norway, Erlingthe Bold _did_ nevertheless become acquainted with them to some extent.
Erling began his alphabet after he had passed the mature age of twentyyears, and his teacher was the fair Hilda. It will be remembered thatin one of their meetings the hermit had informed Erling of his havingalready taught the meaning of the strange characters which covered hisparchments to the Norse maiden, and that she had proved herself an aptscholar. Erling said nothing at the time, except that he had a strongdesire to become better acquainted with the writing in question, but hesettled it then and there in his heart that Hilda, and not the hermit,should be his teacher. Accordingly, when the fishings and fightings ofthe summer were over, the young warrior laid by his sword, lines, andtrident, and, seating himself at Hilda's feet, went diligently to work.
The schoolroom was the hermit's hut on the cliff which overlooked thefiord. It was selected of necessity, because the old man guarded hisparchments with tender solicitude, and would by no means allow them togo out of his dwelling, except when carried forth by his own hand. Onthe first occasion of the meeting of the young couple for study,Christian sat down beside them, and was about to expound matters, whenErling interposed with a laugh.
"No, no, Christian, thou must permit Hilda to teach me, because she isan old friend of mine, who all her life has ever been more willing tolearn than to teach. Therefore am I curious to know how she will changeher character."
"Be it so, my son," said the hermit, with a smile, folding his hands onhis knee, and preparing to listen, and, if need be, to correct.
"Be assured, Erling," said Hilda, "that I know very little."
"Enough for me, no doubt," returned the youth.
"For a day or two, perhaps," said the too-literal Hilda; "but after thatChristian will have--"
"After that," interrupted Erling, "it will be time enough to considerthat subject."
Hilda laughed, and asked if he were ready to begin. To which Erlingreplied that he was, and, sitting down opposite to his teacher, bentover the parchment, which for greater convenience she had spread outupon her knee.
"Well," began Hilda, with a slight feeling of that pardonableself-importance which is natural to those who instruct others older thanthemselves, "that is the first letter."
"Which?" asked Erling, gazing up in her face.
"That one there, with the long tail to it. Dost thou see it?"
"Yes," replied the youth.
"How canst thou say so, Erling," remonstrated Hilda, "when thou artlooking all the time straight in my face!"
"But I _do_ see it," returned he, a little confused; "I am looking at it_now_."
"Well," said she, "that is--"
"Thou art looking at it upside down, my son," said the hermit, who hadbeen observing them with an amused expression of countenance.
"Oh, so he is; I never thought of that," cried Hilda, laughing; "thoumust sit beside me, Erling, so that we may see it in the same way."
"This one, now, with the curve _that_ way," she went on, "dost thou seeit?"
"See it!" thought Erling, "of course I see it: the prettiest little handin all the dale!" But he only said--
"How can I see it, Hilda, when the point of thy finger covers it?"
"Oh! well," drawing the finger down a little, "thou seest it now?"
"Yes."
"Well, that is--why! where is Christian?" she exclaimed, looking upsuddenly in great surprise, and pointing to the stool on which thehermit certainly had been sitting a few minutes before, but which wasnow vacant.
"He must have gone out while we were busy with the--the parchment," saidErling, also much surprised.
"He went like a mouse, then," said Hilda, "for I heard him not."
"Nor I," added her companion.
"Very strange," said she.
Now there was nothing particularly strange in the matter. The fact wasthat the old man had just exercised a little of Erling's philosophy inthe way of projecting a ca
use to its result. As we have elsewherehinted, the hermit was not one of those ascetics who, in ignorance ofthe truth, banished themselves out of the world. His banishment had notbeen self-imposed. He had fled before the fierce persecutors. Theymanaged to slay the old man's wife, however, before they made him taketo flight and seek that refuge and freedom of conscience among the PaganNorthmen which were denied him in Christian Europe. In the first tenminutes after the A B C class began he perceived how things stood withthe young people, and, wisely judging that the causes which wereoperating in their hearts would proceed to their issue more pleasantlyin his absence, he quietly got up and went out to cut firewood.
After this the hermit invariably found it necessary to go out and cutfirewood when Erling and Hilda arrived at the school, which they didregularly three times a week.
This, of course, was considered a very natural and proper state ofthings by the two young people, for they were both considerate bynature, and would have been sorry indeed to have interrupted the old manin his regular work.
But Erling soon began to feel that it was absolutely essential for oneof them to be in advance of the other in regard to knowledge, if thework of teaching was to go on; for, while both remained equallyignorant, the fiction could not be kept up with even the semblance ofpropriety. To obviate this difficulty he paid solitary nocturnal visitsto the hut, on which occasions he applied himself so zealously to thestudy of the strange characters that he not only became as expert as histeacher, but left her far behind, and triumphantly rebutted the chargeof stupidity which she had made against him.
At the same time our hero entered a new and captivating region of mentaland spiritual activity when the hermit laid before him the portions ofHoly Scripture which he had copied out before leaving southern lands,and expounded to him the grand, the glorious truths that God hadrevealed to man through Jesus Christ our Lord. And profoundly deep, andstartling even to himself, were the workings of the young Norseman'sactive mind while he sat there, night after night, in the lone hut onthe cliff, poring over the sacred rolls, or holding earnest conversewith the old man about things past, present, and future.