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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.

XXVIII.

BEOWULF COMES BACK TO HIS LAND. OF THE TALE OF THRYTHO.

• CAME a many to flood then all mighty of mood,
• Of the bachelors were they, and ring-nets they bore,
• The limb-sarks belocked. The land-warden noted
• The earls’ aback-faring, as erst he beheld them;
• Then nowise with harm from the nose of the cliff
• The guests there he greeted, but rode unto them-ward,
• And quoth that full welcome to the folk of the Weders
• The bright-coated warriors were wending to ship.
• Then was on the sand there the bark the wide-sided
• With war-weed beladen, the ring-stemm’d as she lay there
• With mares and with treasure; uptower’d the mast
• High over Hrothgar’s wealth of the hoards.
• He then to the boat-warden handsel’d a gold-bounden
• Sword, so that sithence was he on mead-bench
• Worthy’d the more for that very same wealth,
• The heirloom. Sithence in the ship he departed
• To stir the deep water; the Dane-land he left.
• Then was by the mast there one of the sea-rails,
• A sail, with rope made fast; thunder’d the sound-wood.
• Not there the wave-floater did the wind o’er the billows
• Waft off from its ways; the sea-wender fared,
• Floated the foamy-neck’d forth o’er the waves,
• The bounden-stemm’d over the streams of the sea;
• Till the cliffs of the Geats there they gat them to wit,
• The nesses well kenned. Throng’d up the keel then
• Driven hard by the lift, and stood on the land.
• Then speedy at holm was the hythe-warden yare,
• E’en he who a long while after the lief men
• Eager at stream’s side far off had looked.
• To the sand thereon bound he the wide-fathom’d ship
• With anchor-bands fast, lest from them the waves’ might
• The wood that was winsome should drive thence awayward.
• Thereon bade he upbear the athelings’ treasures,
• The fretwork and wrought gold. Not far from them thenceforth
• To seek to the giver of treasures it was,
• E’en Hygelac, Hrethel’s son, where at home wonneth
• Himself and his fellows hard by the sea-wall.
• Brave was the builded house, bold king the lord was,
• High were the walls, Hygd very young,
• Wise and well-thriven, though few of winters
• Under the burg-locks had she abided,
• The daughter of Hæreth; naught was she dastard;
• Nowise niggard of gifts to the folk of the Geats,
• Of wealth of the treasures. But wrath Thrytho bore,
• The folk-queen the fierce, wrought the crime-deed full fearful.
• No one there durst it, the bold one, to dare,
• Of the comrades beloved, save only her lord,
• That on her by day with eyen he stare,
• But if to him death-bonds predestin’d he count on,
• Hand-wreathed; thereafter all rathely it was
• After the hand-grip the sword-blade appointed,
• That the cunning-wrought sword should show forth the deed,
• Make known the murder-bale. Naught is such queenlike
• For a woman to handle, though peerless she be,
• That a weaver of peace the life should waylay,
• For a shame that was lying, of a lief man of men;
• But the kinsman of Hemming, he hinder’d it surely.
• Yet the drinkers of ale otherwise said they;
• That folk-bales, which were lesser, she framed forsooth,
• Lesser enmity-malice, since thence erst she was
• Given gold-deck’d to the young one of champions,
• She the dear of her lineage, since Offa’s floor
• Over the fallow flood by the lore of her father
• She sought in her wayfaring. Well was she sithence
• There on the man-throne mighty with good;
• Her shaping of life well brooked she living;
• High love she held toward the lord of the heroes;
• Of all kindred of men by the hearsay of me
• The best of all was he the twain seas beside,
• Of the measureless kindred; thereof Offa was
• For gifts and for war, the spear-keen of men,
• Full widely beworthy’d, with wisdom he held
• The land of his heritage. Thence awoke Eomær
• For a help unto heroes, the kinsman of Hemming,
• The grandson of Garmund, the crafty in war-strife.