The Norse discoverers of America : $b the Wineland sagas translated & discussed — John Shaqi
The Norse discoverers of America : $b the Wineland sagas translated & discussedGathorne-Hardy, G. M. (Geoffrey Malcolm)
History
The Norse discoverers of America : $b the Wineland sagas translated & discussed
Gathorne-Hardy, G. M. (Geoffrey Malcolm)
America -- Discovery and exploration -- Norse
Now talk began again about the journey to Wineland, for the voyage
thither seemed both lucrative and honourable. The same summer that
Karlsefni returned from Wineland there came a ship from Norway to
Greenland, commanded by two brothers, Helgi and Finnbogi, and they
stayed that winter in Greenland. These brothers were of an Icelandic
stock from Eastfjord. Now the story goes that Freydis, Eric’s
daughter, made a journey from her home at Garda, and went to see the
brothers, Helgi and Finnbogi, and invited them to go to Wineland with
their ship, and divide with her all the profit they might make out of
it. They consented. From them she went and interviewed her brother
Leif, whom she asked to give her the houses which he had had built in
Wineland; but he gave her the same answer as before, that he would
lend the houses but not give them.[53] So it was arranged between the
brothers[54] and Freydis that each should take thirty fighting men on
board, besides women. But Freydis broke these terms at once, and took
five extra men, whom she hid, so that the brothers knew nothing of it
before they reached Wineland.
Now they put out to sea, having arranged to sail together as far as
practicable, and as it turned out there was not much difference between
them, but the brothers were slightly the first to arrive, and took
their belongings up to Leif’s camp. But when Freydis arrived her ship
was unloaded, and her things taken up to the camp. Then Freydis said,
‘Why have you brought your property in here?’ ‘Because we imagined’,
said they, ‘that the whole arrangement between us was going to be
kept.’ ‘Leif lent me the houses,’ said she, ‘but not you.’ Then Helgi
said, ‘We brothers are no match for you in wickedness’: so they carried
out their goods, and made themselves a camp, which they placed further
from the sea by the shore of a lake, and they thoroughly settled in,
while Freydis had wood cut for her ship.
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