Page:The Finding of Wineland the Good.djvu/81

 divided their party, and succeeded in seizing all of the men but one, who escaped with his canoe. They killed the eight men, and then ascended the headland again, and looked about them, and discovered within the firth certain hillocks, which they concluded must be habitations. They were then so overpowered with sleep that they could not keep awake, and all fell into a [heavy] slumber, from which they were awakened by the sound of a cry uttered above them ; and the words of the cry were these: 'Awake, Thorvald, thou and all they company, if thou wouldst save thy life; and board thy ship with all thy men, and sail with all speed from the land!' A countless number of skin-canoes then advanced toward them from the inner part of the firth, whereupon Thorvald exclaimed: 'We must put out the war-boards (68), on both sides of the ship, and defend ourselves to the best of our ability, but offer little attack.' This they did, and the Skrellings, after they had shot at them for a time, fled precipitately, each as best he could. Thorvald then inquired of his men, whether any of them had been wounded, and they informed him that no one of them had received a wound. 'I have been wounded in my arm-pit ,' says he; 'an arrow flew in between the gunwale and the shield, below my arm. Here is the shaft, and it will bring me to my end !' I counsel you now to retrace your way with the utmost speed. But me ye shall convey to that headland which seemed to me to offer so pleasant a dwelling-place; thus it may be fulfilled, that the truth spring to my lips, when I expressed the wish to abide there for a time. Ye shall bury me there, and place a cross at my head, and another at my feet, and call it Crossness for ever after.' At that time Christianity had obtained in Greenland; Eric the Red died, however, before [the introduction of] Christianity.

Thorvald died, and when they had carried out his injunctions, they took their departure, and rejoined their companions, and they told each other of the experiences which had befallen them. They remained there during the winter, and gathered grapes and wood with which to freight the ship. In the following spring they returned to Greenland, and arrived with their ship in Ericsfirth, where they were able to recount great tidings to Leif.