A BARKING sound the shepherd hears,

A cry as of a dog or fox;

He halts, and searches with his eyes
Among the scattered rocks:
And now at distance can discern
A stirring in a brake of fern;
And instantly a dog is seen
Glancing from that covert green.

The dog is not of mountain breed;
Its motions, too, are wild and shy;
With something, as the shepherd
thinks,

Unusual in its cry:

Nor is there any one in sight

All round, in hollow or on height; Nor shout, nor whistle strikes his ear: What is the creature doing here?

Not free from boding thoughts, a while

The shepherd stood; then makes hi way

Towards the dog, o'er rocks and stones,

As quickly as he may;

Nor far had gone before he found A human skeleton on the ground; The appalled discoverer with a sigh Looks round, to learn the history. From those abrupt and perilous rocks The man had fallen, that place of fear!

At length upon the shepherd's mind
It breaks, and all is clear:

He instantly recalled the name,
And who he was, and whence he came;
Remembered, too, the very day
On which the traveller passed this
way.

But hear a wonder, for whose sake
This lamentable tale I tell!
A lasting monument of words
This wonder merits well.

The dog, which still was hovering nigh,

Repeating the same timid cry, This dog had been through three months' space

A dweller in that savage place.

And bards have sung them well: I of good George Nidiver

Now the tale will tell.

In Californian mountains
A hunter bold was he:
Keen his eye and sure his aim
As any you should see.

A little Indian boy

Followed him everywhere,
Eager to share the hunter's joy,
The hunter's meal to share.

And when the bird or deer
Fell by the hunter's skill,
The boy was always near

To help with right good-will.
One day as through the cleft

Between two mountains steep, Shut in both right and left,

Their questing way they keep,

They see two grizzly bears,
With hunger fierce and fell,
Rush at them unawares

Right down the narrow dell.
The boy turned round with screams,
And ran with terror wild:
One of the pair of savage beasts
Pursued the shrieking child.

He rode and lilted, he rode and sang,

Then met he by chance Sir Thulé Vang;

Sir Thule Vang, with his twelve sons bold,

All cased in iron, the bright and cold. Look out, look out, Svend Vonved.

Svend Vonved took his sword from his side,

He fain would battle with knights so tried;

The proud Sir Thulé he first ran through,

And then, in succession, his sons he slew.

Look out, look out, Svend Vonved.

Svend Vonved binds his sword to his side,

It lists him farther to ride, to ride; He rode along by the grené shaw, The Brute-carl there with surprise he saw.

Look out, look out, Svend Vonved.

A wild swine sat on his shoulders broad,

Upon his bosom a black bear snored; And about his fingers with hair o'erhung,

The squirrel sported and weasel clung.

Look out, look out, Svend Vonved.

"Now, Brute-carl, yield thy booty

to me,

Or I will take it by force from thee. Say, wilt thou quickly thy beasts forego,

Or venture with me to bandy a blow ?"

Look out, look out, Svend Vonved.

"Much rather, much rather, I'll fight with thee,

Than thou my booty should get from

me:

I never was bidden the like to do, Since good King Esmer in fight I slew."

Look out, look out, Svend Vonved.

"And didst thou slay King Esmer fine?

Why, then thou slewest dear father mine;

And soon, full soon, shalt thou pay for him,

With the flesh hackt off from thy every limb!"

Look out, look out, Svend Vonved.

They drew a circle upon the sward; They both were dour, as the rocks are hard;

Forsooth, I tell you, their hearts were steeled,

The one to the other no jot would yield.

Look out, look out, Svend Vonved.

They fought for a day, —they fought for two,

And so on the third they were fain to do;

But ere the fourth day reached the night,

The Brute-carl fell, and was slain outright.

Look out, look out, Svend Vonved. Svend Vonved binds his sword to his side,

Farther and farther he lists to ride; He rode at the foot of a hill so steep, There saw he a herd as he drove the sheep.

Look out, look out, Svend Vonved.

"Now listen, Herd, with the fleecy