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• Argument
• The Story of Beowulf
• I.: And First of the Kindred of Hrothgar.
• II.: Concerning Hrothgar, and How He Built the House Called Hart. Also Grendel Is Told Of.
• III.: How Grendel Fell Upon Hart and Wasted It.
• IV.: Now Comes Beowulf Ecgtheow’s Son to the Land of the Danes, and the Wall-warden Speaketh With Him.
• V.: Here Beowulf Makes Answer to the Land-warden, Who Showeth Him the Way to the King’s Abode.
• VI.: Beowulf and the Geats Come Into Hart.
• VII.: Beowulf Speaketh With Hrothgar, and Telleth How He Will Meet Grendel.
• VIII.: Hrothgar Answereth Beowulf and Biddeth Him Sit to the Feast.
• IX.: Unferth Contendeth In Words With Beowulf.
• X.: Beowulf Makes an End of His Tale of the Swimming. Wealhtheow, Hrothgar’s Queen, Greets Him; and Hrothgar Delivers to Him the Warding of the Hall.
• XI.: Now Is Beowulf Left In the Hall Alone With His Men.
• XII.: Grendel Cometh Into Hart: of the Strife Betwixt Him and Beowulf.
• XIII.: Beowulf Hath the Victory: Grendel Is Hurt Deadly and Leaveth Hand and Arm In the Hall.
• XIV.: The Danes Rejoice; They Go to Look On the Slot of Grendel, and Come Back to Hart, and On the Way Make Merry With Racing and the Telling of Tales.
• XV.: King Hrothgar and His Thanes Look On the Arm of Grendel. Converse Betwixt Hrothgar and Beowulf Concerning the Battle.
• XVI.: Hrothgar Giveth Gifts to Beowulf.
• XVII.: They Feast In Hart. the Gleeman Sings of Finn and Hengest.
• XVIII.: The Ending of the Tale of Finn.
• XIX.: More Gifts Are Given to Beowulf. the Brising Collar Told Of.
• XX.: Grendel’s Dam Breaks Into Hart and Bears Off Aeschere.
• XXI.: Hrothgar Laments the Slaying of Aeschere, and Tells of Grendel’s Mother and Her Den.
• XXII.: They Follow Grendel’s Dam to Her Lair.
• XXIII.: Beowulf Reacheth the Mere-bottom In a Day’s While, and Contends With Grendel’s Dam.
• XXIV.: Beowulf Slayeth Grendel’s Dam, Smiteth Off Grendel’s Head, and Cometh Back With His Thanes to Hart.
• XXV.: Converse of Hrothgar With Beowulf.
• XXVI.: More Converse of Hrothgar and Beowulf: the Geats Make Them Ready For Departure.
• XXVII.: Beowulf Bids Hrothgar Farewell: the Geats Fare to Ship.
• XXVIII.: Beowulf Comes Back to His Land. of the Tale of Thrytho.
• XXIX.: Beowulf Tells Hygelac of Hrothgar: Also of Freawaru His Daughter.
• XXX.: Beowulf Forebodes Ill From the Wedding of Freawaru: He Tells of Grendel and His Dam.
• XXXI.: Beowulf Gives Hrothgar’s Gifts to Hygelac, and By Him Is Rewarded. of the Death of Hygelac and of Heardred His Son, and How Beowulf Is King of the Geats: the Worm Is First Told Of.
• XXXII.: How the Worm Came to the Howe, and How He Was Robbed of a Cup; and How He Fell On the Folk.
• XXXIII.: The Worm Burns Beowulf’s House, and Beowulf Gets Ready to Go Against Him. Beowulf’s Early Deeds In Battle With the Hetware Told Of.
• XXXIV.: Beowulf Goes Against the Worm. He Tells of Herebeald and HÆthcyn.
• XXXV.: Beowulf Tells of Past Feuds, and Bids Farewell to His Fellows. He Falls On the Worm, and the Battle of Them Begins.
• XXXVI.: Wiglaf Son of Weohstan Goes to the Help of Beowulf: NÆgling, Beowulf’s Sword, Is Broken On the Worm.
• XXXVII.: They Two Slay the Worm. Beowulf Is Wounded Deadly: He Biddeth Wiglaf Bear Out the Treasure.
• XXXVIII.: Beowulf Beholdeth the Treasure and Passeth Away.
• XXXIX.: Wiglaf Casteth Shame On Those Fleers.
• Xl.: Wiglaf Sendeth Tiding to the Host: the Words of the Messenger.
• Xli.: More Words of the Messenger. How He Fears the Swedes When They Wot of Beowulf Dead.
• Xlii.: They Go to Look On the Field of Deed.
• Xliii.: of the Burial of Beowulf.

XIV.

THE DANES REJOICE; THEY GO TO LOOK ON THE SLOT OF GRENDEL, AND COME BACK TO HART, AND ON THE WAY MAKE MERRY WITH RACING AND THE TELLING OF TALES.

• THERE was then on the morning, as I have heard tell it,
• Round the gift-hall a many of men of the warriors:
• Were faring folk-leaders from far and from near
• O’er the wide-away roads the wonder to look on,
• The track of the loathly: his life-sundering nowise
• Was deem’d for a sorrow to any of men there
• Who gaz’d on the track of the gloryless wight;
• How he all a-weary of mood thence awayward,
• Brought to naught in the battle, to the mere of the nicors,
• Now fey and forth-fleeing, his life-steps had flitted.
• There all in the blood was the sea-brim a-welling,
• The dread swing of the waves was washing all mingled
• With hot blood; with the gore of the sword was it welling;
• The death-doom’d had dyed it, sithence he unmerry
• In his fen-hold had laid down the last of his life,
• His soul of the heathen, and hell gat hold on him.
• Thence back again far’d they those fellows of old,
• With many a young one, from their wayfaring merry,
• Full proud from the mere-side on mares there a-riding
• The warriors on white steeds. There then was of Beowulf
• Set forth the might mighty; oft quoth it a many
• That nor northward nor southward beside the twin sea-floods,
• Over all the huge earth’s face now never another,
• Never under the heaven’s breadth, was there a better,
• Nor of wielders of war-shields a worthier of kingship;
• But neither their friendly lord blam’d they one whit,
• Hrothgar the glad, for good of kings was he.
• There whiles the warriors far-famed let leap
• Their fair fallow horses and fare into flyting
• Where unto them the earth-ways for fair-fashion’d seemed,
• Through their choiceness well kenned; and whiles a king’s thane,
• A warrior vaunt-laden, of lays grown bemindful,
• E’en he who all many of tales of the old days
• A multitude minded, found other words also
• Sooth-bounden, and boldly the man thus began
• E’en Beowulf’s wayfare well wisely to stir,
• With good speed to set forth the spells well areded
• And to shift about words. And well of all told he
• That he of Sigemund erst had heard say,
• Of the deeds of his might; and many things uncouth:
• Of the strife of the Wælsing and his wide way-farings,
• Of those that men’s children not well yet they wist,
• The feud and the crimes, save Fitela with him;
• Somewhat of such things yet would he say,
• The eme to the nephew; e’en as they aye were
• In all strife soever fellows full needful;
• And full many had they of the kin of the eotens
• Laid low with the sword. And to Sigemund upsprang
• After his death-day fair doom unlittle
• Sithence that the war-hard the Worm there had quelled,
• The herd of the hoard; he under the hoar stone,
• The bairn of the Atheling, all alone dar’d it,
• That wight deed of deeds; with him Fitela was not.
• But howe’er, his hap was that the sword so throughwaded
• The Worm the all-wondrous, that in the wall stood
• The iron dear-wrought: and the drake died the murder.
• There had the warrior so won by wightness,
• That he of the ring-hoard the use might be having
• All at his own will. The sea-boat he loaded,
• And into the ship’s barm bore the bright fretwork
• Wæls’ son. In the hotness the Worm was tomolten.
• Now he of all wanderers was widely the greatest
• Through the peoples of man-kind, the warder of warriors,
• By mighty deeds; erst then and early he throve.
• Now sithence the warfare of Heremod waned,
• His might and his valour, amidst of the eotens
• To the wielding of foemen straight was he betrayed,
• And speedily sent forth: by the surges of sorrow
• O’er-long was he lam’d, became he to his lieges,
• To all of the athelings, a life-care thenceforward.
• Withal oft bemoaned in times that were older
• The ways of that stout heart many a carle of the wisest,
• Who trow’d in him boldly for booting of bales,
• And had look’d that the king’s bairn should ever be thriving,
• His father’s own lordship should take, hold the folk,
• The hoard and the ward-burg, and realm of the heroes,
• The own land of the Scyldings. To all men was Beowulf,
• The Hygelac’s kinsman to the kindred of menfolk,
• More fair unto friends; but on Heremod crime fell.
• So whiles the men flyting the fallow street there
• With their mares were they meting. There then was the morn-light
• Thrust forth and hasten’d; went many a warrior
• All hardy of heart to the high hall aloft
• The rare wonder to see; and the King’s self withal
• From the bride-bower wended, the warder of ring-hoards,
• All glorious he trod and a mickle troop had he,
• He for choice ways beknown; and his Queen therewithal
• Meted the mead-path with a meyny of maidens.