In the saga, Bjarki knew that the dragon was harmless, because he had
killed it; and his knowledge of its harmlessness is vital to the latter
part of the dragon story. In the _rímur_, he is informed that the bear
is not so dangerous as one would suppose. But his knowledge of this
circumstance has no bearing on the story whatever; everything would have
proceeded just as it did if he had been without this information. But in
spite of the fact that the bear "was not much used to contending with
men," "the men fled" when it "ran from its lair and shook its baleful
paws." The author is evidently trying to ride two steeds going in
different directions. On the one hand, he has in mind the story of the
bear with which Bjarki's father was identified and which was killed by
the king's men, and the story of the dead propped-up dragon, which was,
of course, not dangerous; on the other hand, he wishes to represent
Hjalti's feat of killing the bear, which, in the _rímur_, the king's men
avoided, as, in the saga, they avoided the dragon, as a notable
achievement.

Finally, "Hrolf and all his men" took part in the hunt; but, as already
stated, when the bear appeared, "the men fled." The statement, "the men
fled;" introduces a feature that is wanting in the account in the
_Hrólfssaga_ of how Bjarki's father, who had been transformed into a
bear by his stepmother, was hunted down and killed. It reminds us of the
situation in the saga where King Hrolf and his men avoid the winged
monster by remaining indoors when it is expected. In the saga, Bjarki,
of course, did not avoid the monster; but whether, in the _rímur_, the
king fled is uncertain. He was, in any event, near enough to Hjalti to
toss Hjalti his sword. Bjarki, however, must have fled; and while that
would be strange under any circumstances, it would be particularly
strange in the present instance, since he knew that the bear "was not
much used to contending with men."