The children of Odin - Germanic Mythology

ODIN. THE WANDERER 139
Giant King of Utgard, rise up now and tell Thor of all you prac-
tised upon him when he and Loki came to your City."
Then the stranger at the banquet stood up, and Thor and Loki
saw he was the Giant King in whose haUs they had had the
contests. Skyrmir turned towards them and said
"O Thor and O Loki, I will reveal to you now the deceits I
practised on you both. It was I whom ye met on the moorland
on the day before ye came into Utgard. I gave you my name as
Skyrmir and I did all I might do to prevent your entering om:
City, for the Giants dreaded a contest of strength with Asa
Thor. Now hear me, O Thor. The wallet I gave for you to take
provisions out of was tied with magic knots. No one could undo
them by strength or cleverness. And while you were striving
to undo them I placed a mountain of rock between myself and
you. The hammer blows, which as you thought struck me,
struck the mountain and made great clefts and gaps in it. When
I knew the strength of your tremendous blows I was more and
more in dread of your coming into our City.
"I saw you would have to be deceived by magic. Your lad
Thialfi was the one whom I first deceived. For it was not a
Giant youth who raced against him, but Thought itself. And
even you, Loki, I deceived. For when you tried to make your-
self out the greatest of eaters I pitted against you, not a Giant,
but Fire that devours everything.
"You, Thor, were deceived in aU the contests. After you had
taken the drinking horn in your hands we were all affrighted