Page:The Heimskringla; or, Chronicle of the Kings of Norway Vol 1.djvu/167

 the churches and consecrated ground, chanting, and sprinkling holy water. From the numerous processions going on at this festival, the Ascension Week was called the Gang Dayis, or Ganging Dayis, in old Scotch, — is still called the Gang Week in some parts of England,—was called Gang Dagas in Anglo-Saxon,—and Ascension Day, Gagn Dagr in the Icelandic; and the going in procession, not the Gagn or Gain of Spiritual Victory, has given the name to the Dies Victoria in the northern languages. It appears that there are two festivals which might be called Gagn Dagr in the Romish church, from their being celebrated by processions: one is the Dies Victoriæ Maximus, about the 24th of April; the other procession day is about the 14th of May; and the Laukardakin fyrir Gakndag of the inscription may be the Saturday before either of these procession days. But, to whichsoever it refers, the people who made these marks at that time of the year must have wintered upon the island. By the accounts of all northern voyagers, the sea in Baffin's Bay is not navigable at or near Ascension Week, or any church festival to which Gakn Dagr applies. We must either suppose that these Northmen, without any of our modern outfit of ships for wintering in such high latitudes, did not only winter there, but found the country so endurable as to take possession of it by a formal act indicating an intention to settle in the island; or we must suppose that the cold, within so recent an historical period as 800 years ago, has increased so much in the northern parts of the globe, that countries are now uninhabitable by man which were formerly not so. Both, perhaps, may be taken into account. The capability of enduring cold or heat in extreme degrees may be acquired by individuals or tribes, and the habits and functions of the body become adapted to the temperature. The advance of ice locally in Davis's Straits, and on the east coast of