they made fast the stems together[1], the Long Serpent's saga vi. stem and the short Serpent's were made fast together; but when the king saw it he called out to his men, and ordered them to lay the larger ship more in advance, so that its stern should not lie so far behind in the fleet.
Then says Ulf the Red, "If the Long Serpent is to lie as much more ahead of the other ships as she is longer than them, we shall have hard work of it here on the forecastle."
The king replies, "I did not think I had a fore¬ castle man afraid as well as red." [2]
Says Ulf, "Defend thou the quarterdeck as I shall the forecastle."
The king had a bow in his hands, and laid an arrow on the string, and aimed at Ulf.
Ulf said, "Shoot another way, king, where it is more needful: my work is thy gain."
Chapter CXIV.
Of King Olaf.
King Olaf stood on the Serpent's quarterdeck, high Chapter over the others. He had a gilt shield, and a helmet 0fKiny inlaid with gold; over his armour he had a short red coat, and was easy to be distinguished from other men. When King Olaf saw that the scattered forces of the enemy gathered themselves together under the banners of their ships, he asked, "Who is the chief of the force right opposite to us?"
He was answered, that it was King Swend with the Danish army.
The king replies, "We are not afraid of these soft
- ↑ The mode of fighting in sea battles appears, from this and manyother descriptions, to have been for each party to bind together the stems and sterns of their own ships, forming them thus into a compact body as soon as the fleets came within fighting distance, or within spears' throw. They appear to have fought principally from the forecastles; and to have used grappling-irons for dragging a vessel out of the line, or within hoarding distance.
- ↑ There is a rhyme or pun here—Raudan oc Ragan. Afraid—Ragan, is similar in alliterative rhyme to Raudan—Red, the name of Ulf; and Raudan oc Ragan make a line of alliterative verse.
