"I confess freely," answered Thor, looking up without any false shame on his face, "that I have borne myself but humbly, and it grieves me; for I know that in Giants' Home, henceforward, it will be said I am a man of little worth."

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"By my troth! no," cried the giant, heartily. "Never should you have come into my city if I had known what a mighty man of valor you really are; and now that you are safely out of it, I will, for once, tell the truth to you, Thor. All this time I have been deceiving you by my 10 enchantments. When you met me in the forest, and hurled your Miolnir at my head, I should have been crushed by the weight of your blows had I not skillfully placed a mountain between myself and you, on which the strokes of your hammer fell, and where you cleft three 15 deep ravines, which shall henceforth become verdant valleys. In the same manner I deceived you about the contests in which you engaged last night. When Loki and Logi sat down before the trough, Loki, indeed, ate like hunger itself; but Logi is fire, who, with eager, consum-20 ing tongue, licked up both bones and trough. Thialfi is the swiftest of mortal runners; but the slender lad, Hugi, was my thought; and what speed can ever equal his? So it was in your own trials. When you took such deep draughts from the horn, you little knew what a wonderful 25 feat you were performing. The other end of that horn reached the ocean, and when you come to the shore you

will see how far its waters have fallen away, and how much the deep sea itself has been diminished by your draught. Hereafter, men watching the going out of the tide will call it the ebb, or draught of Thor. Scarcely 5 less wonderful was the prowess you displayed in the second trial. What appeared to you to be a cat, was, in reality, the serpent which encircles the world. When we saw you succeed in moving it, we trembled lest the very foundations of earth and sea should be shaken by your 10 strength. Nor need you be ashamed of having been overthrown by the old woman, for she is old age; and there never has, and never will be, one whom she has not the power to lay low. We must now part, and you had better not come here again, or attempt anything further against 15 my city; for I shall always defend it by fresh enchantments, and you will never be able to do anything against me."

At these words Thor raised Miolnir, and was about to challenge the giant to a fresh trial of strength; but, before he could speak, Skrymir vanished from his sight; and, 20 turning round to look for the city, he found that it, too, had disappeared, and that he was standing alone on a smooth, green, empty plain.

"What a fool I have been," said Thor, aloud, "to allow myself to be deceived by a mountain giant! 25 "Ah," answered a voice from above, "I told you, you would learn to know yourself better by your journey to Giants' Home. It is the great use of traveling."

Thor turned quickly round again, thinking to see Skrymir behind him; but, after looking on every side, he could perceive nothing, but that a high, cloud-capped mountain, which he had noticed on the horizon, appeared to have advanced to the edge of the plain.

-A. AND E. KEARY: The Heroes of Asgard.

draught, that which is drunk at one time; crone, an old woman; mor'ti fied, ashamed; court'e ous ly, politely; troth, faith; di min'ished, made smaller; prow'ess, brave deeds.

1. What three feats did Thor perform? Tell why he was unsuccessful in each. 2. Explain the cause of Loki's failure. Of Thialfi's. 3. What had the strokes of Thor's hammer done? 4. What is the ebb of the tide? Why should men call it the draught of Thor?

Punctuation. In the first line of Lesson 18 there is an apostrophe used. Does it show that a letter is omitted in this case? The apostrophe has another use besides showing the omission of letters.

If you were asked the question, "Whose book is that? you would not say, "That is a book owned by John." You would be more apt to say, "That is John's book."

That is John's book means just the same as That is a book owned by John, and it is a less awkward way of saying it. Notice the apostrophe which is used before the letter s.

Rule. Add an apostrophe and s to singular name-words or nouns to show ownership or possession. "The boy's ball is lost." "James's sled is broken."

Written Exercise. Rewrite the following sentences, using the apostrophe and s to show possession in place cf the phrases which are used.

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1. Rejoice not at the fall of your enemy. 2. Draw near to the heart of nature. 3. Flag of our country, how dear thou art! 4. A cruel man is the enemy of God. 5. The discoveries of Columbus were the greatest the world has ever known.

19

THE DEATH OF BALDUR

UPON a summer's afternoon it happened that Baldur the Bright and Bold, beloved of men and gods, was dreaming in his palace of Broadblink, the most sunlit of palaces.

Now the dream of Baldur was troubled. He knew not 5 whence nor why; but when he awoke he found that a most new and weighty care was within him. It was so heavy that Baldur could scarcely carry it, and yet he pressed it closely to his heart, and said, "Lie there, and do not fall on any one but me." Then he rose up, and 10 walked out from his splendid hall, that he might seek his own mother, Frigga, and tell her what had happened to him. He found her in her crystal hall, calm and kind, waiting to listen, and ready to sympathize; so he walked up to her, his hands pressed closely on his heart, and lay 15 down at her feet, sighing.

"What is the matter, dear Baldur?" asked Frigga, gently.

"I do not know, mother," answered he. "I do not know what the matter is; but I have a shadow in my 20 heart."

"Take it out, then, my son, and let me look at it,' replied Frigga.

"But I fear, mother, that if I do it will cover the whole earth."

Then Frigga laid her hand upon the heart of her son 5 that she might feel the shadow's shape. Her brow became clouded as she felt it; her parted lips grew pale, and she cried out, "Oh! Baldur, my beloved son! the shadow is the shadow of death!"

Then said Baldur, "I will die bravely, my mother." 10 Then Frigga answered, "You shall not die at all; for I will not sleep to-night until everything on earth has sworn to me that it will neither kill nor harm you."

So Frigga called to her everything on earth that had power to hurt or slay. First she called all metals to her; 15 and heavy iron ore came lumbering up the hill into the crystal hall, brass and gold, copper, silver, lead, and steel, and stood before the Queen, who lifted her right hand high in the air, saying, "Swear to me that you will not injure Baldur;" and they all swore, and went. Then 20 she called to her all stones; and huge granite came with crumbling sandstone, and white lime, and the round, smooth stones of the seashore, and Frigga raised her arm, saying, "Swear that you will not injure Baldur;" and they swore, and went. Then Frigga called to her the 25 trees; and widespreading oak trees, with tall ash and somber firs, came rushing up the hill, with long branches,