Then his wife, loving a life in the country, and weary of the marin harmony of the sea-birds, declared how great joy she found in frequenting the woodlands, in the following strain: 

“The shrill bird vexes me as I tarry by the shore, and with its chattering rouses me when I cannot sleep.  Wherefore the noisy sweep of its boisterous rush takes gentle rest from my sleeping eye, nor doth the loud-chattering sea-mew suffer me to rest in the night, forcing its wearisome tale into my dainty ears; nor when I would lie down doth it suffer me to be refreshed, clamouring with doleful modulation of its ill-boding voice.  Safer and sweeter do I deem the enjoyment of the woods.  How are the fruits of rest plucked less by day or night than by tarrying tossed on the shifting sea?”

At this time one Toste emerged, from the obscure spot of Jutland where he was born, into bloody notoriety.  For by all manner of wanton attacks upon the common people he spread wide the fame of his cruelty, and gained so universal a repute for rancour, that he was branded with the name of the Wicked.  Nor did he even refrain from wrongdoing to foreigners, but, after foully harrying his own land, went on to assault Saxony.  The Saxon general Syfrid, when his men were hard put to it in the battle, entreated peace.  Toste declared that he should have what he asked, but only if he would promise to become his ally in a war against Hadding.  Syfrid demurred, dreading to fulfill the condition, but by sharp menaces Toste induced him to promise what he asked.  For threats can sometimes gain a request which soft-dealing cannot compass.  Hadding was conquered by this man in an affair by land; but in the midst of his flight he came on his enemy’s fleet, and made it unseaworthy by boring the sides; then he got a skiff and steered it out to sea.  Toste thought he was slain, but though he sought long among the indiscriminate heaps of dead, could not find him, and came back to his fleet; when he saw from afar off a light boat tossing on the ocean billows.  Putting out some vessels, he resolved to give it chase, but was brought back by peril of shipwreck, and only just reached the shore.  Then he quickly took some sound craft, and accomplished the journey which he had before begun.  Hadding, seeing he was caught, proceeded to ask his companion whether he was a skilled and practised swimmer; and when the other said he was not, Hadding despairing of flight, deliberately turned the vessel over and held on inside to its hollow, thus making his pursuers think him dead.  Then he attacked Toste, who, careless and unaware, was greedily watching over the remnants of his spoil; cut down his army, forced him to quit his plunder, and avenged his own rout by that of Toste.