Page:The book of wonder voyages (1919).djvu/134

 And when the old man had entertained them for three nights they bade him farewell. And ere they departed he said unto them: "All of you shall reach your country, save one."

When they had been a long while tossing on the waves of the sea, they saw afar off an island, and as they drew near they heard the noise of smiths smiting iron on the anvil with sledges. The din each man made was as if three or four were smiting at once. As Maelduin and his men came nigh the shore they heard one man asking of the other:

"Are they close at hand?"

"Yea."

"Who are coming here?" asked a third man.

"Little boys in a cockleshell."

Maelduin said, "Let us retreat, but let us not turn the boat, but keep her stern foremost, that they might not perceive we are fleeing."

So they rowed away with the boat stern foremost.

In a little while the man in the forge asked: "Are they in the harbor now?" And the watchman replied that they were at anchor.

Shortly after the forgeman again inquired what they were doing. The lookout man replied, "I think they are running away, as they seem to be further from the port than they were a short time ago." Upon that the smith came out of the forge, holding by the tongs a huge mass of glowing iron, which he threw after the boat.