A Man.
Ay, pipe away, thou troll abhorr'd!
He has a Guide and Guard on board!
Another.
In a worse storm, with him to steer,
I'd put to sea and never fear.
First Man.
[To Einar.]
What is he?
Einar.
A priest.
Second Man.
What is he, nay—
That's plain: he is a <g>man</g>, I say!
Strong will is in him, and bold deed.
First Man.
That were the very priest we need!
Many Voices.
Ay, ay, the very priest we need!
[They disperse along the slopes.
The Mayor.
[Collecting his books and papers.]
Well, 'tis opposed to all routine
To labour in a strange vocation,
Intrusively to risk one's skin
Without an adequate occasion.—
I do my duty with precision,—
But always in my own Division. [Goes.
[Outside the hut on the Ness. Late afternoon. The fjord is smooth and gleaming. Agnes is sitting