Then the King began: “My end is nigh, O sons, wherefore I charge ye, govern the land in harmony; for union is like the lance-ring, without which the strength of the lance is lost. Let force stand guard before the country’s gate; but within its boundaries cherish the holy blossoms of peace. Lift not your swords save against the foe. Let your shields be the safeguard of the peasant’s home. A foolish prince is he who oppresses his own people; for as their strength is, so is his own. The leafy crown of a tree whose sapless trunk is rooted in bare rock soon withers. Four pillars of stone support the dome of heaven; the throne rests only upon one, the law. Woe to the land where violence reigns; for thereby shall both ruler and people perish. “The gods, O Helge, do indeed dwell in temples, but not in them alone. So far as voice can reach, so far as the sun’s golden beams can penetrate, or the thoughts of man can fly, so wide are the halls of their boundless sanctuaries. The blood of sacrificial victims oft deceives; runes, howsoever deeply graven, sometimes prove false; but upon a just and upright heart, O Helge, Odin hath inscribed runes which god and man may trust. As flowers adorn the brazen shield, so doth gentleness become strength. It is not Winter, but balmy Spring, that opens the bud of life. Make to yourself true friends! A friendless chief, be he ever so mighty, is like a tree whose bark has been stripped away by storms; but he who is blessed with true friendship is like the forest giant, shielded from tempests by the companions that surround it. Boast not of thy ancestors’ deeds and honors. What avails the heritage of a mighty bow which thou hast neither the strength nor the skill to bend? The fame of thy sires rests with them in the grave: in its own waves the rushing stream flows onward to the sea!” Then turning to his second son the King continued: “Thou too, O Halfdan, hear my words and treasure them in thy heart. A pleasant wit is the adornment of the wise; but idle chatter befits none, least of all a prince’s son. Honey is sweet; but without hops no mead can be brewed. Put steel into thy sword, Halfdan, and earnestness into thy play! Never yet lived there man who knew too much, however famed for wisdom; but countless is the number of those who know too little. Disregarded at the feast sits the fool who holds the seat of honor by right of birth alone; ’tis to the wise man the guests lend ear, however lowly be his seat. Choose not every man to be thy blood-brother: an empty house stands open to all who pass; the rich man’s door is barred. Entrust thy confidence to but one; what is known to three is known to all the world.” The old King ceased, and Thorsten arose. “To permit thee, King Bele, to wander alone through Odin’s halls, befits not one who hath ever been thy comrade upon earth. Together we have shared life’s changes, and in death methinks we shall not be parted.”