Harald　Mund　（Harald　of　the　_Wry…Mouth_）；　who　gave　rise　to　two　Impostors；　pretending　to　be　Sons　of　his；　a　good　while　after　the　poor　Wry…Mouth　itself　and　all　its　troublesome　belongings　were　quietly　underground。　　What　Norway　suffered　during　that　sad　century　may　be　imagined。
  CHAPTER　XIV。
  SVERRIR　AND　DESCENDANTS；　TO　HAKON　THE　OLD。
  The　end　of　it　was；　or　rather　the　first　abatement；　and　_beginnings_　of　the　end；　That；　when　all　this　had　gone　on　ever　worsening　for　some　forty　years　or　so；　one　Sverrir　（A。D。　1177）；　at　the　head　of　an　armed　mob　of　poor　people　called　_Birkebeins_；　came　upon　the　scene。　　A　strange　enough　figure　in　History；　this　Sverrir　and　his　Birkebeins！　　At　first　a　mere　mockery　and　dismal　laughing…stock　to　the　enlightened　Norway　public。　　Nevertheless　by　unheard…of　fighting；　hungering；　exertion；　and　endurance；　Sverrir；　after　ten　years　of　such　a　death…wrestle　against　men　and　things；　got　himself　accepted　as　King；　and　by　wonderful　expenditure　of　ingenuity；　common　cunning；　unctuous　Parliamentary　Eloquence　or　almost　Popular　Preaching；　and　（it　must　be　owned）　general　human　faculty　and　valor　（or　value）　in　the　over…clouded　and　distorted　state；　did　victoriously　continue　such。　　And　founded　a　new　Dynasty　in　Norway；　which　ended　only　with　Norway's　separate　existence；　after　near　three　hundred　years。
  This　Sverrir　called　himself　a　Son　of　Harald　Wry…Mouth；　but　was　in　reality　the　son　of　a　poor　Comb…maker　in　some　little　town　of　Norway；　nothing　heard　of　Sonship　to　Wry…Mouth　till　after　good　success　otherwise。　　His　Birkebeins　（that　is　to　say；　_Birchlegs；_　the　poor　rebellious　wretches　having　taken　to　the　woods；　and　been　obliged；　besides　their　intolerable　scarcity　of　food；　to　thatch　their　bodies　from　the　cold　with　whatever　covering　could　be　got；　and　their　legs　especially　with　birch　bark；　sad　species　of　fleecy　hosiery；　whence　their　nickname）；his　Birkebeins　I　guess　always　to　have　been　a　kind　of　Norse　_Jacquerie_：　　desperate　rising　of　thralls　and　indigent　people；　driven　mad　by　their　unendurable　sufferings　and　famishings；theirs　the　_deepest_　stratum　of　misery；　and　the　densest　and　heaviest；　in　this　the　general　misery　of　Norway；　which　had　lasted　towards　the　third　generation　and　looked　as　if　it　would　last　forever：whereupon　they　had　risen　proclaiming；　in　this　furious　dumb　manner；　unintelligible　except　to　Heaven；　that　the　same　could　not；　nor　would　not；　be　endured　any　longer！　　And；　by　their　Sverrir；　strange　to　say；　they　did　attain　a　kind　of　permanent　success；　and；　from　being　a　dismal　laughing…stock　in　Norway；　came　to　be　important；　and　for　a　time　all…important　there。　Their　opposition　nicknames；　〃_Baglers_　（from　Bagall；　_baculus_；　bishop's　staff；　Bishop　Nicholas　being　chief　Leader）；〃　〃_Gold…legs_；〃　and　the　like　obscure　terms　（for　there　was　still　a　considerable　course　of　counter…fighting　ahead；　and　especially　of　counter…nicknaming）；　I　take　to　have　meant　in　Norse　prefigurement　seven　centuries　ago；　〃bloated　Aristocracy；〃　〃tyrannous…_Bourgeoisie_；〃till；　in　the　next　century；　these　rents　were　closed　again！
  King　Sverrir；　not　himself　bred　to　comb…making；　had；　in　his　fifth　year；　gone　to　an　uncle；　Bishop　in　the　Faroe　Islands；　and　got　some　considerable　education　from　him；　with　a　view　to　Priesthood　on　the　part　of　Sverrir。　　But；　not　liking　that　career；　Sverrir　had　fled　and　smuggled　himself　over　to　the　Birkebeins；　who；　noticing　the　learned　tongue；　and　other　miraculous　qualities　of　the　man；　proposed　to　make　him　Captain　of　them；　and　even　threatened　to　kill　him　if　he　would　not　accept；which　thus　at　the　sword's　point；　as　Sverrir　says；　he　was　obliged　to　do。　　It　was　after　this　that　he　thought　of　becoming　son　of　Wry…Mouth　and　other　higher　things。
  His　Birkebeins　and　he　had　certainly　a　talent　of　campaigning　which　has　hardly　ever　been　equalled。　　They　fought　like　devils　against　any　odds　of　number；　and　before　battle　they　have　been　known　to　march　six　days　together　without　food；　except；　perhaps；　the　inner　barks　of　trees；　and　in　such　clothing　and　shoeing　as　mere　birch　bark：at　one　time；　somewhere　in　the　Dovrefjeld；　there　was　serious　counsel　held　among　them　whether　they　should　not　all；　as　one　man；　leap　down　into　the　frozen　gulfs　and　precipices；　or　at　once　massacre　one　another　wholly；　and　so　finish。　　Of　their　conduct　in　battle；　fiercer　than　that　of　_Baresarks_；　where　was　there　ever　seen　the　parallel？　　In　truth　they　are　a　dim　strange　object　to　one；　in　that　black　time；　wondrously　bringing　light　into　it　withal；　and　proved　to　be；　under　such　unexpected　circumstances；　the　beginning　of　better　days！
  Of　Sverrir's　public　speeches　there　still　exist　authentic　specimens；　wonderful　indeed；　and　much　characteristic　of　such　a　Sverrir。　　A　comb…maker　King；　evidently　meaning　several　good　and　solid　things；　and　effecting　them　too；　athwart　such　an　element　of　Norwegian　chaos…come…again。　　His　descendants　and　successors　were　a　comparatively　respectable　kin。　　The　last　and　greatest　of　them　I　shall　mention　is　Hakon　VII。；　or　Hakon　the　Old；　whose　fame　is　still　lively　among　us；　from　the　Battle　of　Largs　at　least。
  CHAPTER　XV。
  HAKON　THE　OLD　AT　LARGS。
  In　the　Norse　annals　our　famous　Battle　of　Largs　makes　small　figure；　or　almost　none　at　all　among　Hakon's　battles　and　feats。　　They　do　say　indeed；　these　Norse　annalists；　that　the　King　of　Scotland；　Alexander　III。　（who　had　such　a　fate　among　the　crags　about　Kinghorn　in　time　coming）；　was　very　anxious　to　purchase　from　King　Hakon　his　sovereignty　of　the　Western　Isles；　but　that　Hakon　pointedly　refused；　and　at　length；　being　again　importuned　and　bothered　on　the　business；　decided　on　giving　a　refusal　that　could　not　be　mistaken。　　Decided；　namely；　to　go　with　a　big　expedition；　and　look　thoroughly　into　that　wing　of　his　Dominions；　where　no　doubt　much　has　fallen　awry　since　Magnus　Barefoot's　grand　visit　thither；　and　seems　to　be　inviting　the　cupidity　of　bad　neighbors！　〃All　this　we　will　put　right　again；〃　thinks　Hakon；　〃and　gird　it　up　into　a　safe　and　defensive　posture。〃　　Hakon　sailed　accordingly；　with　a　strong　fleet；　adjusting　and　rectifying　among　his　Hebrides　as　he　went　long；　and　landing　withal　on　the　Scotch　coast　to　plunder　and　punish　as　he　thought　fit。　　The　Scots　say　he　had　claimed　of　them　Arran；　Bute；　and　the　Two　Cumbraes　（〃given　my　ancestors　by　Donald　Bain；〃　said　Hakon；　to　the　amazement　of　the　Scots）　〃as　part　of　the　Sudoer〃　（Southern　Isles）：　so　far　from　selling　that　fine　kingdom！and　that　it　was　after　taking　both　Arran　and　Bute　that　he　made　his　descent　at　Largs。
  Of　Largs　there　is　no　mention　whatever　in　Norse　books。　　But　beyond　any　doubt；　such　is　the　other　evidence；　Hakon　did　land　there；　land　and　fight；　not　conquering；　probably　rather　beaten；　and　very　certainly　〃retiring　to　his　ships；〃　as　in　either　case　he　behooved　to　do！　　It　is　further　certain　he　was　dreadfully　maltreated　by　the　weather　on　those　wild　coasts；　and　altogether　credible；　as　the　Scotch　records　bear；　that　he　was　so　at　Largs　very　specially。　　The　Norse　Records　or　Sagas　say　merely；　he　lost　many　of　his　ships　by　the　tempests；　and　many　of　his　men　by　land　fighting　in　various　parts；tacitly　including　Largs；　no　doubt；　which　was　the　last　of　these　misfortunes　to　him。　　〃In　the　battle　here　he　lost　15；000　men；　say　the　Scots；　we　5；000〃！　　Divide　these　numbers　by　ten；　and　the　excellently　brief　and　lucid　Scottish　summary　by　Buchanan　may　be　taken　as　the　approximately　true　and　exact。＇19＇　　Date　of　the　battle　is　A。D。　1263。
  To　this　day；　on　a　little　plain　to　the　south　of　the　village；　now　town；　of　Largs；　in　Ayrshire；　there　are　seen　stone　cairns　and　monumental　heaps；　and；　until　within　a　century　ago；　one　huge；　solitary；　upright　stone；　still　mutely　testifying　to　a　battle　there；altogether　clearly；　to　this　battle　of　King　Hakon's；　who　by　the　Norse　records；　too；　was　in　these　neighborhoods　at　that　same　date；　and　evidently　in　an　aggressive；　high　kind　of　humor。　　For　〃while　his　ships　and　army　were　doubling　the　Mull　of　Cantire；　he　had　his　own　boat　set　on　wheels；　and　therein；　splendidly　enough；　had　himself　drawn　across　the　Promontory　at　a　flatter　part；〃　no　doubt　with　horns　sounding；　banners　waving。　　〃All　to　the　left　of　me　is　mine　and　Norway's；〃　exclaimed　Hakon　in　his　triumphant　boat　progress；　which　such　disasters　soon　followed。
  Hakon　gathered　his　wrecks　together；　and　sorrowfully　made　for　Orkney。　It　is　possible　enough；　as　our　Guide　Books　now　say；　he　may　have　gone　by　Iona；　Mull；　and　the　narrow　seas　inside　of　Skye；　and　that　the　_Kyle…Akin_；　favorably　known　to　sea…bathers　in　that　region；　may　actually　mean　the　Kyle　（narrow　strait）　of　Hakon；　where　Hakon　may　have　dropped　anchor；　and　rested　for　a　little　while　in　smooth　water　and　beautiful　environment；　safe　from　equinoctial　storms。　　But　poor　Hakon's　heart　was　now　broken。　　He　went　to　Orkney；　died　there　in　the　winter；　never　beholding　Norway　more。
  He　it　was　who　got　Iceland；　which　had　been　a　Republic　for　four　centuries；　united　to　his　kingdom　of　Norway：　　a　long　and　intricate　operation；much　presided　over　by　our　Snorro　Sturleson；　so　often　quoted　here；　who　indeed　lost　his　life　（by　assassination　from　his　sons…in…law）　and　out　of　great　wealth　sank　at　once　into　poverty　of　zero；one　midnight　in　his　own　cellar；　in　the　course　of　that　bad　business。　　Hakon　was　a　great　Politician　in　his　time；　and　succeeded　in　many　things　before　he　lost　Largs。　　Snorro's　death　by　murder　had　happened　about　twenty　years　before　Hakon's　by　broken