Page:Curious myths of the Middle Ages (1876).djvu/654

 in, and lay down before the post, and muttered to himself, ‘Away with age, that I may have my desire!’ Then all the court laughed as loud as they well could, but he lay a little while motionless. And, when they were least aware, he dragged at the post, and worked himself headforemost into the post, and it closed upon him as his feet entered. The king ran to it with all his men, but the beam was solid. Then they began to discuss what was to be done.

“Earl Uppi said:—‘It was a Troll, and he has vanished into the earth.’ But next they heard a great noise in the beam. They thought it very strange that the post was at one time bigger than at another. And after this had gone on a while, they saw come out at the end of the beam a man’s feet, then a man as far as to his middle. They saw the beam shrink and expand, and it was like a woman in her pangs; at last the post contracted, and shot Vidförull completely out, and he lay a while as though dead; but when the assistants were least expecting it, he sprang up, rolled up the skin from off his head, stepped up to the king, and saluted him. And they saw that he was no other than a beardless youth, and fair faced.”