by Nevil Shute
FIRST MANWhat’s all this stuff about Bjarni? We don’t want to go with Bjarni and spend all our time at sea and never get on shore at all. Eric’s our leader.
SEVERAL MENAy. Eric must lead us.
ERICMe?
SECOND MANAy. You can sail the ship all right. We won’t go unless you lead us.
ERICWell now, boys, this wants a bit of thinking over. I’ve got a lot to do next summer.
THORHILDYou had nothing to do last summer except lean on the fence rail and chew a straw, and make eyes at the serving girls. You did enough of that, and you didn’t stop at making eyes, either. You made other things besides.
ERIC(Loftily) You don’t want to pay any attention to her.
THIRD MAN(Craftily) Lady, if Eric led this expedition he couldn’t get any more girls into trouble.
THORHILDThat’s very true. Eric shall lead the expedition to the land that Bjarni saw. (Lifts her mug) Skaal.
ALL THE MENSkaal!
ERIC(Grumbling) I never said I’d go.
THORHILDI did.
[FADE TO:
Farmyard at Brattahlid
(Haki and Haekia are working at a haystack getting hay for animals; it is a winter scene and there is snow on the ground. Tyrker comes up and touches Haki on the shoulder.)
TYRKERYour lord Leif wants you in the hall.
[DISSOLVE TO:
Hall of the Farmhouse
(Leif is seated informally on the dais, on a bed or a heap of furs. Tyrker comes in, followed by Haki. Tyrker goes up on to the dais and stands behind Leif; Haki stands before him on the lower part of the floor.)
LEIFHaki, have you heard the story that Bjarni saw a new country to the south and west from here, where there were tall trees?
HAKIAy, Lord.
LEIFWell, Bjarni didn’t even land! He might quite well have brought us back a cargo of that lumber, and he didn’t! I never heard anything like it!
HAKIWith big trees we could build a new cowhouse.
LEIFThat’s right. We can build proper houses like we saw in Norway if we get the timber for the roofs. We might even have a go at building ships. Next summer we are going in a ship to find the land that Bjarni saw, to get a cargo of that lumber.
HAKILord, how will you ever find that place again? There are no landmarks on the sea.
LEIFWe have bought Bjarni’s ship. The ship will know the way back to the lumber, because it has been there before.
HAKI(In awe) The dragon on the ship will know the way. (Crosses himself)
LEIF(Smiling) Yes, the dragon on the ship will know where the wood is. Now, look here, Haki. I want you and Haekia to come with me. If there are new lands to be found I must send word back to the King, and you can run across the land and tell me what it is like.
HAKIWe can do that, Lord.
LEIFI want you to think about this for a day or so, and talk it over with Haekia. This journey will be difficult and dangerous; I do not even know where we are going. Every one coming with me must come willingly; I will not order any one to come upon a trip like this. Do you understand me?
HAKI(Puzzled) No, Lord.
LEIFWell, I say this. You and Haekia are a pair; I will not take one of you alone. If you two want to stay behind here, you may do so. But if you come with me, and if you do good work, then when we get back you shall be free people. I will set you free, and I will give you land to farm for yourselves, and beasts to start you off. I will do this for you if you come with me, but you must talk to Haekia first.
HAKILord, we would have come with you anyway, but for these gifts we would follow you through hell.
(Tyrker stoops and whispers something to Leif; he nods.)
LEIFThere is another thing. I will not have any unattached girl in the ship; when men are far from their wives they will quarrel over her, and fight. Are you and Haekia lovers? Do you sleep with her?
HAKILord, she does not think about such things yet. Besides, she sleeps with the women.
(Leif throws back his head and laughs uproariously, rocking on his seat. Behind him Tyrker stands, smiling gently. Haki is utterly nonplussed; he does not understand in the least what Leif is laughing about.)
LEIFYou two will be the death of me. So. Before we sail Haekia must be betrothed to you, and I shall be the witness. If anybody takes a fancy to her then he’ll have to face a fight with me, and I shall kill him, according to our laws. In that way I can keep my crew in order.
HAKI(Obediently) Ay, Lord.
LEIFGo and have a talk with Haekia now. Come back to-morrow and tell me whether you two want to come along with me or to stay here as slaves.
[DISSOLVE TO:
The Farmyard
(Haki and Haekia are talking in a sheltered corner by the hayrick.)
HAKIIf we go with him and if we please him with our running, he will make us free, and he will give us our own land to farm, and cows of our own. We should be free people then, like everybody else. (He glances at her; the camera should dwell on her short hair and her white garment.) You would be able to let your hair grow long, and wear dark clothes and ornaments, like other free women.
HAEKIAAll this is very good, Haki. Of course we will go. When is he going to start?
HAKI(Awkwardly) There’s just one thing. If we go, Leif says that you must be betrothed to me, in case the men come after you and fight with each other. (He hesitates.) This is for order in the ship. We can always break the betrothal when we get back here, if you don’t want to marry.
HAEKIA(Smiling) I don’t want to marry anybody yet, Haki. But we are the same people, and we think the same way, and we laugh at the same things. I would rather marry you than anybody else when the time comes.
HAKI(Thoughtfully) Perhaps if we please him Leif will give us land right away on the outskirts of the settlement, where we can live in our own way.
HAEKIA(Earnestly) That would be very, very good.
[DISSOLVE TO:
The Beach
(Bjarni’s ship is being loaded for the voyage. This should be a spring scene; there should be no snow. It is a scene of great activity, with many men carrying the stores and gear on board under the direction of Leif.)
(Haki and Haekia come out of the crowd and stand looking up at the carved dragon on the bow of the ship; this is a very fierce dragon. Haekia crosses herself. In the background, Leif sees them and stops whatever he is doing.)
LEIFYou two Scots, come over here! (They go to him; he stands erect and shouts.) Hold everything a minute, men, and listen to this. A betrothal!
(Around them the work stops; men lay down their burdens and look at Leif curiously. He turns to the Scots.)
— Take her hand, Haki. Do you know what to say?
HAKINo, Lord.
LEIFWell, say this after me, and shout it out so that every one can hear you. ‘I name Leif Ericsson as witness that you, Haekia, betroth yourself to me, Haki, in a lawful betrothal, with handshaking and with no fraud or tricks.’
HAKII name Leif Ericsson as witness that you, Haekia, betroth yourself to me, Haki, in a lawful betrothal, with handshaking, and with no fraud or tricks.
(There is an interested murmur from the crowd.)
LEIFNow listen to me, all of you. This woman belongs to this man, and I am witness to the lawful betrothal. I do this by the order of our King in Norway, who gave me these two slaves. If anybody takes a fancy to the girl, he’ll have to deal with me. Now get on with your work, all the lot of you.
(There is a laugh, and the men resume their work.)
[DISSOLVE TO:
Eric’s Farmyard
(There is a great bustle of preparation for the start of the expedition; there is a succession of men carrying burdens from the house down a track towards the beach.)
(Eric is seen about to mount upon a very small horse or pony to ride down to the beach. A Shetland pony might do; the effect must be a very large man on a very small horse. Thorhild is with him.)
THORHILDGet on now, and get along down to the beach, or they’ll
go without you.
ERIC(Hopefully) Will they?
THORHILDIf you don’t get going I shall tell them all that Eric the Red, the great leader, is afraid to go.
ERICPeace, woman.
THORHILDWell, get on and go. I don’t know what you want to ride for, anyway. Can’t you walk that far? You could if there was a pretty girl down on the beach.
ERICHold your tongue. There is a proper way to do things, and it’s dignified for the leader to ride a horse down to his ship. They do that in Norway.
THORHILDAll right, get on and go.
ERICDid you say something about a pretty girl down there?
THORHILDDozens of them. Now, get on.
(She helps him into the saddle and he rides off down the track, with Thorhild walking beside him.)
[DISSOLVE TO:
The Beach Head
(Eric appears riding his pony on the track, with Thorhild walking beside him.)
(The pony shies at something and pecks a little. Eric slides off onto the ground and lies there moaning. It is a palpably faked accident. People come running up in concern.)
THORHILDWell, what’s the matter now?
ERIC(Sitting on the ground) I’ve broken my ankle.
THORHILDNonsense.
(A crowd gathers round, much concerned. Two very beautiful girls help Eric to his feet; he stands holding one foot off the ground, with an arm round the shoulders of each lovely girl.)
(He stands erect. He is taller than everybody, and in spite of his slightly farcical character and the girls supporting him, there should be dignity in him at this moment.)
ERICHear this, everybody. This is an omen. I have found new lands in my time, but it is quite clear that I am not destined to find any more. I’m getting an old man now, and I must stay at home. I name my son Leif to lead the expedition in my place.
LEIFFather, won’t you come?
ERICYou must go in my place. This accident has been a warning to us all; if I lead you we shall all meet with a disaster. You, Leif, are to lead this expedition in my place.
SEVERAL MENLeif! Leif the Lucky is going to lead us, and we shall do well. Leif the Lucky!
(Eric stands watching the beach, supported by the girls.)
THORHILDYou’ll meet with a disaster all right. Wait till I get you home!
[CUT TO:
The Beach — Later
(The ship is setting off upon her voyage, drawing away from the beach. Leif is at the steering oar, with Tyrker beside him. Haki and Haekia are in the well of the ship. She is manned by about fifteen men; she carries a small boat on board. There is also a fully grown bullock on board, which was taken as a draught animal to pull tree trunks down to the ship.)
(On shore, a little group of people stand waving good-bye, Eric and Bjarni amongst them, and the Priest.)
[DISSOLVE TO:
The Classroom
CALLENDERIt wasn’t much of a send-off for people who were going to make history. But that’s the way things happen. They went out to get lumber to build cowhouses, and they found America. (He turns to the map.) They landed first in Labrador across the Davis Strait — here. They had to go there first because that was the way that Bjarni came to Greenland, and they followed his course back to find the wood.
[DISSOLVE TO:
Labrador Fiord
(The ship is sailing into a Labrador fiord. There are no trees, and the ground is barren, covered with large slabs of stone, partly snow covered. It is a very desolate scene. The ship anchors, and they put a boat over the side.)
[DISSOLVE TO:
Labrador Beach
(The boat pulls in and grounds upon the beach. Leif and Tyrker get out; other men stay in the boat. Leif and Tyrker walk a little way from the boat to the head of the beach and stand looking out over the bleak country.)
LEIFThis is probably the place that Bjarni came to last. I never saw a worse country. It’s no good to us.
TYRKERIce, and snow, and rocks — we’ve got all those at home.
LEIFI don’t see any point in staying here. We’ll get to sea again, and go on down the coast.
TYRKERLord, though this land is useless, yet it ought to have a name.
LEIFAll right. What shall we call it?
TYRKERI don’t know. You think of something. You’re the Chief.
LEIF(Looking round) Well, I don’t know. There’s nothing decent to call it after — the wretched place is all stones. We’d better call it Stoneland.
TYRKERThat’s as good as anything.
LEIFLet’s see, now. Bjarni sailed north along the coast to get to this place, didn’t he?
TYRKERYes. If we sail south for a few days from here, we ought to come to the place where he saw the woods.
LEIFAll right. Let’s get going.
(They get back into the boat, which rows out to the ship. The ship takes the boat on board, weighs anchor, and leaves the fiord.)
(A shot of the ship sailing down a rocky coast. There may be small lumps of ice in the sea, and a grey sky.)
(Up to this point the film has been a picture of a bleak life of hardships, of men struggling to exist and make a living against a background of ice and snow, rough grey seas, and barren, windswept, stony land. But from this point onwards the scenes must grow sunnier and more beautiful as they get further south. There are to be no more rough seas and ice. The whole montage should be designed to show them entering into a softer and more gracious land than any they had known before. This should not be a sudden change but should grow, culminating in the final scenes in the district of Plymouth, Mass., at midsummer.)
[DISSOLVE TO:
The Ship — Dawn Scene
(The light grows slowly, and the ship is seen to be cruising off the wooded coast that Bjarni visited before. Leif and Tyrker are at the steering oar; in the body of the ship every one is looking at the land.)
TYRKERLord, this must be the place that Bjarni saw. We were nearly on the latitude at our noon sight yesterday, and we sailed slowly all the night. I think this is the place, all right.
LEIFI think so, too. We will go in here and beach the ship upon those sands. (Shouts) Out bow oars, men; I’m going to put her up into the wind to lower sail. Stand by the vangs, and heave in on the lee sheet. Get your halliard cleared away, and be ready for it.
(The ship comes up into the wind and the sail is lowered. The rest of the oars are put out, and she begins to row into the beach.)
[DISSOLVE TO:
The Beach
(The ship strands on the beach; men jump out into the shallow water and carry anchors and cables on shore. Leif follows them.)
(A shot of Leif standing with Haki and Haekia on the head of the beach.)
LEIFYou two. Go up onto that hill there quickly. Look carefully what lies beyond it. Then make a sweep round there — (points) — and come back here within two hours. Tell me if you see any signs of men in this place. If you see men, do not go near them; run back quickly here and tell me.
(The Scots set off running.)
(A shot of the Scots standing together on the hilltop, looking out over a thickly wooded country.)
(A shot of the Scots running through a forest glade. Haekia stops for a moment beside a stream to pick a flower, and then runs on.)
[DISSOLVE TO:
Camp on the Beach
(The ship is high and dry, and the Norsemen have made a fire and a rudimentary camp at the head of the beach. The Scots come running into camp, and go to Leif.)
LEIFWell, what did you see?
HAKILord, we have seen no signs of any men in this place. There is much forest here; from the hilltop you can only see the tops of trees, right over to the far horizon. We saw many deer. There is a good stream of fresh water running to the sea beyond that point.
LEIFGood.
HAEKIAWe found flowers, Lord. (She shows them; Leif and Tyrker examine them curiously.)
LEIFI have never seen flowers like these before. So big, and such bright colours!
TYRKERI r
emember seeing flowers as big and bright as these when I was a small boy in Germany. I have never seen them in these northern countries.
HAEKIAThey are lovely. May I keep them, Lord?
LEIFYes, if you want them.
[DISSOLVE TO:
The Camp — Later
(The men have had a meal and are sitting round the fire after it. Leif is standing with Tyrker by his side; he is addressing them.)
LEIFWell, men, we’ve found the timber that we came to get. We could load up now and get away straight back to Greenland. But now we’re here, I think it would be a pity not to sail around a bit and find out what this place is like. It looks to me to be a better country than our own. I know my father will be very much interested in it. Some of us might want to come here someday and make a settlement.
A MANWhat are you going to call this place?
LEIFWell, I don’t know. We don’t know very much about it yet, except that it’s all woods. Suppose we call it Woodland?
MANWoodland. That’s a good name for it.
LEIFWhat do you men say about going on a bit, and seeing what else we can find? It’s early in the summer to go home.
A MANYour father’s order was that we should bring back wood.
LEIFWe can get the wood when we come back past here in a month’s time, on our way home. It was the King’s order that we should seek new lands towards the west and south, and that is what I mean to do, if you will follow me.
A MAN(Laughing) All right. Have it your own way.
[DISSOLVE TO:
The Ship
(The ship is seen sailing past wooded, rocky coasts in fine, calm weather.)
(A shot of the ship on an open sea crossing.)
[DISSOLVE TO:
The Classroom
CALLENDERThey turned the corner of the land at Cape Race, here (indicates on the map), and then cut over to the coast of Nova Scotia, sailing south and west. And each day as they sailed the weather grew finer, and the sea grew calmer, and the sun grew stronger. From Nova Scotia, here, they sailed on, here, across the sea until they hit the tip of Cape Cod, here. And they were very much amazed.
[DISSOLVE TO:
The Ship
(She is off the north tip of Cape Cod and all the crew are staring at the beach, which extends unbroken to the southeast as far as they can see. This beach is quite even and regular and exactly the same in appearance for about forty miles, unbroken by any reef or promontory. It must be almost unique in the world for its regularity. Beyond it the land is low-lying.)
