as strong as before.

"The third was a pair of iron gloves. When he put these on he could
throw his hammer twice as far.

"There is a story told of how Thor once threw his hammer so far that it
could not return as it had always done. It fell near an immense giant
who seized it and hid it half a mile deep under the rocks. Thor sent the
God of Fire to win it back, but the cruel giant would not give it up
unless Thor would bring Freya, the loveliest of the goddesses, to marry
him. But Freya refused to go and live with a fierce giant.

"Thor wanted his hammer. At last the God of Fire, who had seen this
giant, told Thor to dress himself like Freya and to put on a heavy veil.
He did this and the two gods rode far away, on the rays of the setting
sun, to recover the lost hammer.

"When the giant saw them he took them to his house. At supper time he
wondered how a goddess could eat so much, for Thor devoured eight great
salmon and a whole roasted ox. Then he wondered how she could drink so
much, for Thor drank three hogsheads of honey wine. Then the giant
pulled the heavy veil aside and wondered what made her eyes like
fireballs. The God of Fire explained everything, for Thor would not
speak. Then the hammer was asked for. It was laid in the mock bride's
lap. As soon as Thor had it in his hand he stood up, slew all the giants
and utterly destroyed the wicked town. Then he went back to Fensalir and
told Frigga, his mother, how he had recovered his hammer.

"Frigga was as powerful as Woden or Thor. All things which Woden had
made obeyed her, nor dared harm anything when she forbade them. It may