_Of the fostering of Sinfiotli, Signy's son, and of the slaying of
Siggeir the Goth-king._
So wrought is the will of King Siggeir, and he weareth Odin's sword
And it lies on his knees in the council and hath no other lord:
And he sendeth earls o'er the sea-flood to take King Volsung's land,
And those scattered and shepherdless sheep must come beneath his hand.
And he holdeth the milk-white Signy as his handmaid and his wife,
And nought but his will she doeth, nor raiseth a word of strife;
So his heart is praising his wisdom, and he deems him of most avail
Of all the lords of the cunning that teacheth how to prevail.
Now Sigmund dwelt long in the wild-wood, abiding in a strong cave deep
hidden in a thicket by the river-side.
And now and again he fell upon the folk of Siggeir as they journeyed,
and slew them, and thus he had war-gear and gold as much as he would.
Also he became a master of masters in the smithying craft, and the
folk who beheld the gleam of his forge by night, deemed that a king
of the Giants was awakened from death to dwell there, and they durst
not wander near the cavern.
So passed the years till on a springtide morning Signy sent forth to
Sigmund a damsel leading her eldest son, a child of ten summers, and
bearing a word of her mouth to bid him foster the child for his
helper, if he should prove worthy and bold-hearted.
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