Chapter 26

BEOWULF spake, bairn of Ecgtheow:—

“Lo, we seafarers say our will,

far-come men, that we fain would seek

Hygelac now. We here have found

hosts to our heart: thou hast harbored us well.

If ever on earth I am able to win me

more of thy love, O lord of men,

aught anew, than I now have done,

for work of war I am willing still!

If it come to me ever across the seas

that neighbor foemen annoy and fright thee, —

as they that hate thee erewhile have used, —

thousands then of thanes I shall bring,

heroes to help thee. Of Hygelac I know,

ward² of his folk, that, though few his years,

the lord of the Geats will give me aid

by word and by work, that well I may serve thee,

wielding³ the war-wood to win thy triumph

and lending thee might when thou lackest men.

If thy Hrethric should come to court of Geats,

a sovran’s son, he will surely there

find his friends. A far-off land

each man should visit who vaunts him brave.”

Him then answering, Hrothgar spake:—

“These words of thine the wisest God

sent to thy soul! No sager⁴ counsel

from so young in years e’er yet have I heard.

Thou art strong of main and in mind art wary⁵,

art wise in words! I ween indeed

if ever it hap⁶ that Hrethel’s heir

by spear be seized, by sword-grim battle,

by illness or iron, thine elder and lord,

people’s leader, — and life be thine, —

no seemlier man will the Sea-Geats find

at all to choose for their chief and king,

for hoard-guard of heroes, if hold thou wilt⁸

thy kinsman’s kingdom! Thy keen mind pleases me

the longer the better, Beowulf loved!

Thou hast brought it about that both our peoples,

sons of the Geat and Spear-Dane folk,

shall have mutual⁹ peace, and from murderous strife¹⁰,

such as once they waged, from war refrain.

Long as I rule this realm so wide,

let our hoards¹¹ be common, let heroes with gold

each other greet o’er the gannet’s-bath,

and the ringed-prow bear o’er rolling waves

tokens of love. I trow my landfolk

towards friend and foe¹ are firmly joined,

and honor they keep in the olden way.”

To him in the hall, then, Healfdene’s son

gave treasures twelve, and the trust-of-earls

bade him fare with the gifts to his folk beloved,

hale to his home, and in haste return.

Then kissed the king of kin⁷ renowned¹²,

Scyldings’ chieftain, that choicest thane,

and fell on his neck. Fast flowed the tears

of the hoary-headed. Heavy with winters,

he had chances twain, but he clung to this, 73 —

that each should look on the other again,

and hear him in hall. Was this hero so dear to him.

his breast’s wild billows he banned in vain;

safe in his soul a secret longing¹³,

locked in his mind, for that loved man

burned in his blood. Then Beowulf strode,

glad of his gold-gifts, the grass-plot o’er,

warrior¹⁴ blithe¹⁵. The wave-roamer bode¹⁶

riding at anchor, its owner awaiting.

As they hastened onward¹⁷, Hrothgar’s gift

they lauded¹⁸ at length. — ’Twas a lord unpeered,

every way blameless, till age had broken

— it spareth no mortal — his splendid might.

1 foe   

n.敌人，仇敌

参考例句：

• He knew that Karl could be an implacable foe.他明白卡尔可能会成为他的死敌。
• A friend is a friend;a foe is a foe;one must be clearly distinguished from the other.敌是敌，友是友，必须分清界限。

2 ward   

n.守卫，监护，病房，行政区，由监护人或法院保护的人（尤指儿童）；vt.守护，躲开

参考例句：

• The hospital has a medical ward and a surgical ward.这家医院有内科病房和外科病房。
• During the evening picnic,I'll carry a torch to ward off the bugs.傍晚野餐时，我要点根火把，抵挡蚊虫。

3 wielding   

手持着使用（武器、工具等）( wield的现在分词 )； 具有； 运用（权力）； 施加（影响）

参考例句：

• The rebels were wielding sticks of dynamite. 叛乱分子舞动着棒状炸药。
• He is wielding a knife. 他在挥舞着一把刀。

4 sager   

adj.贤明的，貌似聪明的( sage的比较级 )

参考例句：

• Well, I want those yellow gators that Sager wore a few weeks ago. 好了，我想那些人认为是塞奇几个星期前穿的。 来自互联网

5 wary   

adj.谨慎的，机警的，小心的

参考例句：

• He is wary of telling secrets to others.他谨防向他人泄露秘密。
• Paula frowned,suddenly wary.宝拉皱了皱眉头，突然警惕起来。

6 hap   

n.运气；v.偶然发生

参考例句：

• Some have the hap,some stick in the gap.有的人走运, 有的人倒霉。
• May your son be blessed by hap and happiness.愿你儿子走运幸福。

7 kin   

n.家族，亲属，血缘关系；adj.亲属关系的，同类的

参考例句：

• He comes of good kin.他出身好。
• She has gone to live with her husband's kin.她住到丈夫的亲戚家里去了。

8 wilt   

v.(使)植物凋谢或枯萎；(指人)疲倦，衰弱

参考例句：

• Golden roses do not wilt and will never need to be watered.金色的玫瑰不枯萎绝也不需要浇水。
• Several sleepless nights made him wilt.数个不眠之夜使他憔悴。

9 mutual   

adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的

参考例句：

• We must pull together for mutual interest.我们必须为相互的利益而通力合作。
• Mutual interests tied us together.相互的利害关系把我们联系在一起。

10 strife   

n.争吵，冲突，倾轧，竞争

参考例句：

• We do not intend to be drawn into the internal strife.我们不想卷入内乱之中。
• Money is a major cause of strife in many marriages.金钱是造成很多婚姻不和的一个主要原因。

11 hoards   

n.（钱财、食物或其他珍贵物品的）储藏，积存( hoard的名词复数 )v.积蓄并储藏（某物）( hoard的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• She hoards her money - she never spends it. 她积蓄钱，但从来不花钱。 来自辞典例句
• A squirrel hoards nuts for the winter. 松鼠为过冬贮藏坚果。 来自辞典例句

12 renowned   

adj.著名的，有名望的，声誉鹊起的

参考例句：

• He is one of the world's renowned writers.他是世界上知名的作家之一。
• She is renowned for her advocacy of human rights.她以提倡人权而闻名。

13 longing   

n.（for）渴望

参考例句：

• Hearing the tune again sent waves of longing through her.再次听到那首曲子使她胸中充满了渴望。
• His heart burned with longing for revenge.他心中燃烧着急欲复仇的怒火。

14 warrior   

n.勇士，武士，斗士

参考例句：

• The young man is a bold warrior.这个年轻人是个很英勇的武士。
• A true warrior values glory and honor above life.一个真正的勇士珍视荣誉胜过生命。

15 blithe   

adj.快乐的，无忧无虑的

参考例句：

• Tonight,however,she was even in a blithe mood than usual.但是，今天晚上她比往常还要高兴。
• He showed a blithe indifference to her feelings.他显得毫不顾及她的感情。

16 bode   

v.预示

参考例句：

• These figures do not bode well for the company's future.这些数字显示出公司的前景不妙。
• His careful habits bode well for his future.他那认真的习惯预示著他会有好的前途。

17 onward   

adj.向前的，前进的；adv.向前，前进，在先

参考例句：

• The Yellow River surges onward like ten thousand horses galloping.黄河以万马奔腾之势滚滚向前。
• He followed in the steps of forerunners and marched onward.他跟随着先辈的足迹前进。

18 lauded   

v.称赞，赞美( laud的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• They lauded the former president as a hero. 他们颂扬前总统为英雄。 来自辞典例句
• The nervy feats of the mountaineers were lauded. 登山者有勇气的壮举受到赞美。 来自辞典例句