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82
BEOWULF.

fremu folces cwēn,  firen ondrysne;[1]
nǣnig þæt dorste  dēor genēþan
swǣsra gesīða,  nefne sīn frēa,[2]
1935þæt hire an dæges[3]  ēagum starede;
ac him wæl-bende  *weotode tealdeFol. 172b.
hand-gewriþene;  hraþe seoþðan wæs
æfter mund-gripe  mēce geþinged,
þæt hit scēaden-mǣl  scȳran mōste,[4]
1940cwealm-bealu cȳðan.  Ne bið swylc cwēnlīc þēaw
idese tō efnanne,  þēah ðe hīo ǣnlicu sȳ,
þætte freoðu-webbe  fēores onsæce[5]
æfter lige-torne  lēofne mannan.
Hūru þæt onhōhsnod[e]  Hemminges[6] mǣg.
1945Ealo-drincende  ōðer sǣdan,
þæt hīo lēod-bealewa  lǣs gefremede,
inwit-nīða,  syððan ǣrest wearð
gyfen gold-hroden  geongum cempan,
æðelum dīore,  syððan hīo Offan flet
1950ofer fealone flōd  be fæder lāre

  1. 1932. Suchier ‘firen-ondrysne.’ We have elision of final e before a vowel in ll. 338 and 442. But perhaps the true explanation of the forms frōfor in l. 698 and firen here will be found in Sievers § 251, N.
  2. 1934. Heyne ‘sin-frea.’ Zupitza transliterates ‘sinfrea’—presumably a misprint for ‘sin-frea’; cf. sin-nihte, l. 161, etc. There is a distinct space between the n and f in the MS.
  3. 1935. Zupitza ‘an-dæges,’ apparently supporting Leo’sān-dæges, “the whole day.” Suchier ‘andǣges’ = andēges, “eye to eye.”
  4. 1939. A most difficult line. Bugge ‘scēaden mǣl’ (so Suchier and Zupitza). Suchier translates (“Beit.” iv. 500 ff.): “damit die Klinge offenbaren möchte, es sei entschieden”; Bugge: “nachdem die Sache entschieden war,” both making scēaden qualify hit. Sievers (“Beit.” x. 313) supports the reading in the text. Heyne ‘sceaðen-mǣl scyran,’ hostile sword decide. The second hand in the MS. begins with mōste.
  5. 1942. Rieger ‘onēce’ (so Suchier).
  6. 1944. MS. ‘on hohsnod hem ninges.’ See “Beiträge” x. 501.