MR. MORRIS'S "SIGURD."
[TO THE EDITOR OF THE "SPECTATOR."]
SIR,—It is true that the lines you quote from " Sigurd,"—
" The young king rendeth apart
The old guile by the guile encompassed, the heart made wise by the heart,"
seem difficult of interpretation, but may I venture to suggest a possible explanation ? If Sigurd is a sun-hero, be is also all that the sun symbolises,—the Conqueror, the Deliverer, who over- comes the guileful powers of evil, awakens love and joy, and scatters blessings upon the earth.
Thus he " rendeth apart" the double folds of ancient guile, the thick darkness, and brings to light the wisdom bidden in the heart of the serpent, by eating which, as the poem goes on to re- late, his own heart is made wise. He reveals the knowledge hidden from a darkened world by craft and ancient wrong.
The whole passage is a prophecy, and like most prophecies, vague and mystical, and it is quite possible that I may have failed to apprehend Mr. Morris's exact meaning.—I am, Sir, &c.,
A CONSTANT SUBSCRIBER,
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