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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.

XXVII.

BEOWULF BIDS HROTHGAR FAREWELL: THE GEATS FARE TO SHIP.

• OUT then spake Beowulf, Ecgtheow’s bairn:
• As now we sea-farers have will to be saying,
• We from afar come, that now are we fainest
• Of seeking to Hygelac. Here well erst were we
• Serv’d as our wills would, and well thine avail was.
• If I on the earth then, be it e’en but a little,
• Of the love of thy mood may yet more be anearning,
• O lord of the men-folk, than heretofore might I,
• Of the works of the battle yare then soon shall I be.
• If I should be learning, I over the flood’s run,
• That the sitters about thee beset thee with dread,
• Even thee hating as otherwhile did they;
• Then thousands to theeward of thanes shall I bring
• For the helping of heroes. Of Hygelac wot I,
• The lord of the Geat-folk, though he be but a youngling,
• That shepherd of folk, that me will he further
• By words and by works, that well may I ward thee,
• And unto thine helping the spear-holt may bear,
• A main-staying mighty, whenas men thou art needing.
• And if therewith Hrethric in the courts of the Geat-house,
• The King’s bairn, take hosting, then may he a many
• Of friends find him soothly: far countries shall be
• Better sought to by him who for himself is doughty.
• Out then spake Hrothgar in answer to himward:
• Thy word-saying soothly the Lord of all wisdom
• Hath sent into thy mind; never heard I more sagely
• In a life that so young was a man word be laying;
• Strong of might and main art thou and sage of thy mood,
• Wise the words of thy framing. Tell I this for a weening,
• If it so come to pass that the spear yet shall take,
• Or the battle all sword-grim, the son of that Hrethel,
• Or sickness or iron thine Alderman have,
• Thy shepherd of folk, and thou fast to life hold thee,
• Then no better than thee may the Sea-Geats be having
• To choose for themselves, no one of the kings,
• Hoard-warden of heroes, if then thou wilt hold
• Thy kinsman’s own kingdom. Me liketh thy mood-heart,
• The longer the better, O Beowulf the lief;
• In such wise hast thou fared, that unto the folks now,
• The folk of the Geats and the Gar-Danes withal,
• In common shall peace be, and strife rest appeased
• And the hatreds the doleful which erst they have dreed;
• Shall become, whiles I wield it, this wide realm of ours,
• Treasures common to either folk: many a one other
• With good things shall greet o’er the bath of the gannet;
• And the ring’d bark withal over sea shall be bringing
• The gifts and love-tokens. The twain folks I know
• Toward foeman toward friend fast-fashion’d together,
• In every way blameless as in the old wise.
• Then the refuge of warriors, he gave him withal,
• Gave Healfdene’s son of treasures yet twelve;
• And he bade him with those gifts to go his own people
• To seek in all soundness, and swiftly come back.
• Then kissed the king, he of noble kin gotten,
• The lord of the Scyldings, that best of the thanes,
• By the halse then he took him; from him fell the tears
• From the blended of hoar hair. Of both things was there hoping
• To the old, the old wise one; yet most of the other,
• To wit, that they sithence each each might be seeing,
• The high-heart in council. To him so lief was he
• That he his breast-welling might nowise forbear,
• But there in his bosom, bound fast in his heart-bonds,
• After that dear man a longing dim-hidden
• Burn’d against blood-tie. So Beowulf thence-forth,
• The gold-proud of warriors, trod the mould grassy,
• Exulting in gold-store. The sea-ganger bided
• Its owning-lord whereas at anchor it rode.
• Then was there in going the gift of King Hrothgar
• Oft highly accounted; yea, that was a king
• In every wise blameless, till eld took from him eftsoon
• The joyance of might, as it oft scathes a many.