time. They grew very tired climbing the mountains, and wading through the brooks. At last, late in the evening, they saw a large castle in the middle of an immense field. This was the home of the giants. It was so high that you had to bend your head back to see the top of it. It looked like huge rocks of queer shapes. There was a high fence all around it. As Thor could not open the gate, they all had to creep through the bars.

They entered the palace. On two benches around the table, they saw huge men sitting, and at the head of the table sat the largest of them all. Thor and his companions looked so small, when compared with these big giants, that it was a long time before they were noticed at all.

The giant at the head of the table was the leader. His name was Utgard-Loke. After a while, he looked down and saw Thor. "Oh," he said, "who are you, little one, down there?"

When he heard who it was, he said, "I thought Thor was a mighty and strong looking man; but perhaps you are stronger than you look. We will try your strength and skill.'

It was the custom among the giants, that any stranger who came to their castle should show some Now Thor felt happy. He felt sure that, even if he were not as tall as they, he could make them all tremble.

great feat.

Thor said, "I should like to find one who can eat as much and as fast as I can." Utgard-Loke looked around and called a little boy to bring in a dish of meat.

table.

The dish was placed in the middle of the Thor sat on one side, the giant boy on the other. Both ate as fast as they could, and met in the middle. But while Thor had left the bones of his meat, the giant had eaten not only bones, but also the dish. All agreed that Thor had been beaten.

It was Tjalve's turn to try now. He said he was known as a good runner. Utgard-Loke called another small boy who was to race with Tjalve.

Tjalve ran fast, but the giant was far ahead

of him.

They tried again.

But Tjalve was behind. Still a third time they tried, but the giant had

already reached the goal before Tjalve was half way. So Tjalve was beaten.

Thor was to try his skill again. A large horn was brought, and the giants said that Thor should drink it empty in one draught. As hard as he tried, you could not see that anything had been drunk. Three times he drank, and still very little was gone.

else.

Thor grew angry, and wanted to try something Utgard-Loke said, "We think it nothing but play to lift this cat from the ground." Thor stepped up to it, and with all his force he could not raise more than one of its paws. Thor turned pale at

this, but would not give up.

"Let me wrestle with any one of you!" he cried. Utgard-Loke looked around at the men, and said, “None of these would be willing to fight with a little one like you; call my grandmother; try her."

An old, toothless woman entered. Her back was bent, her limbs trembled. She was to wrestle with Thor. But the more Thor tightened his grasp, the firmer she stood. Thor had to give up, and he longed to be at home.

Thor prepared for the Utgard-Loke went with him.

journey home, and Thor hung his head

and would not speak. Then Utgard-Loke said,

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Thor, we do not want you to come to us again. You think that you have not shown strength and skill, but I will tell you the truth.

"The giant you ate with was Fire. Who can eat more or eat faster than it can ?

"The runner Tjalve raced with was Thought. Who is quicker than Thought?

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When you drank, one end of the horn stood in the ocean. You pass it; look and see how much it has sunk. The cat you tried to lift was the Midgard serpent, which lies around the world. Had you lifted it, all of us giants would have been destroyed. "When you wrestled with the old woman, you were fighting Old Age, and even you, Thor, cannot conquer her. And here," he said, pointing to three deep valleys, "these cuts you made when

you struck me on the forehead; for I was the giant you found sleeping under the tree. Do not visit our homes again. It will be better for both of us."

And the giant left Thor.

-Gudrun Thorne-Thomsen.