And no other bed shall be pressed by thee,
Save only the roots of the linden tree.
When eight long years were gone and spent,
Jesus the Lord to Magdalene went—
Now shall Heaven’s mercy thee restore—
The sun shines over Enen—
Go, Magdalena, and sin no more
Under the linden green.”
Svenska Folk-visor.
Whether the Spirits of the Flood and Fell considered themselves complimented by the homage which had been paid to them, or whether things would have turned out exactly the same had there been no offering at all, is a mystery of mythology which we will not take upon ourselves to determine. Certain it is, that when the next morning was ushered in with a soft westerly breeze and a dull cloudy sky, interspersed with bright transient gleams of joyous sunshine, such as salmon love, the Nyssar got the credit of it all. Not that the Norwegians were at first aware of the extent of their blessings, for the barbarians are all unversed in the mysteries of fly-fishing, but they were not long in finding it out, from the smiling looks and congratulatory expressions of their employers.