Chapter II: Part 2

Answered Lemminkainen's mother,
And she spoke the words which follow:
"No, I know not where to hide you,
Where to hide you or to send you.
As a pine upon the mountain,
Juniper in distant places,
There might still misfortune find thee,
Evil fate might rise against thee.
Often is the mountain pine-tree
Cut to pieces into torches, 200
And the juniper on heathland,
Into posts is often cloven.

"As a birch-tree in the valley,
Or an alder in the greenwood,
There might still misfortune find thee,
Evil fate might rise against thee.
Often is the valley birch-tree
Chopped to pieces into faggots,
Often is the alder-thicket
Cut away to make a clearing. 210

"As a berry on the mountain,
Or upon the heath a cranberry,
Or upon the plain a strawberry,
Or in other spots a bilberry,
There might still misfortune find thee,
Evil fate might rise against thee,
For the girls might come to pluck thee,
Tin-adorned ones might uproot thee.

"In the lake as pike when hiding,
Powan in slow-flowing river, 220
There misfortune still might find thee,
And at last destruction reach thee.
If there came a youthful fisher,
He might cast his net in water,
And the young in net might take thee,
And the old with net might capture.

"Didst thou roam as wolf in forest,
Or a bear in rugged country,
There might still misfortune find thee,
Evil fate might rise against thee; 230
If a sooty tramp was passing,
He perchance might spear the growler,
Or the wolves bring to destruction,
And the forest bears might slaughter."

Then the lively Lemminkainen
Answered in the words which follow:
"I myself know evil places,
Worst of all do I esteem them,
There where any death might seize me,
And at last destruction reach me. 240
O my mother who hast reared me,
Mother who thy milk hast given,
Whither would'st thou bid me hide me,
Whither should I now conceal me?
Death's wide jaws are just before me,
At my beard destruction's standing,
Every day for me it waiteth,
Till my ruin is accomplished."

Then said Lemminkainen's mother,
And she spoke the words which follow: 250
"I can tell the best of places,
Tell you one the best of any,
Where to hide yourself completely,
And your crime conceal for ever,
For I know a little country,
Know a very little refuge,
Wasted not, and safe from battle,
And untrodden by the swordsmen.
Swear me now by oaths eternal,
Binding, free from all deception, 260
In the course of sixty summers,
Nevermore to go to battle,
Neither for the love of silver,
Nor perchance if gold was needed."

Then said lively Lemminkainen,
"Now I swear by oaths the strongest,
Never in the first of summers,
Nor in any other summer,
Mix myself in mighty battles,
In the clashing of the sword-blades. 270
Wounds are still upon my shoulders,
In my breast deep wounds still rankle,
From my former battle-pleasures,
In the midst of all the tumult,
In the midst of mighty battles,
Where the heroes all contended."

Then did Lemminkainen's mother
Answer in the words which follow:
"Take the boat your father left you,
And betake yourself to hiding. 280
Traverse nine lakes in succession,
Half the tenth one must thou traverse,
To an island on its surface,
Where the cliffs arise from water.
There in former times your father
Hid, and kept himself in safety,
In the furious fights of summer,
In the hardest years of battle.
There you'll find a pleasant dwelling,
And a charming place to linger. 290
Hide thyself a year, a second,
In the third year come thou homeward,
To your father's well-known homestead,
To the dwelling of your parents."

RUNO XXIX.--LEMMINKAINEN'S ADVENTURES ON THE ISLAND

_Argument_

Lemminkainen sails across the lakes in his boat and comes safely to the island (1-180). There he lives pleasantly among the girls and women till the return of the men from warfare, who conspire against him (181-290). Lemminkainen flies from the island, much to the grief both of the girls and himself (291-402). His boat is wrecked in a violent storm, but he escapes by swimming to land, makes a new boat, and arrives safely on the shores of his own country (403-452). He finds his old house burned, and the whole surroundings laid waste, when he begins to weep and lament, especially for the loss of his mother (453-514). His mother, however, is still alive, having taken refuge in a thick forest where Lemminkainen finds her to his great joy (515-546). She relates how the army of Pohjola came and burned down the house. Lemminkainen promises to build a finer house after he has revenged himself upon the people of Pohjola, and describes his pleasant life in the island of refuge (547-602).

Lemminkainen, youth so lively,
He the handsome Kaukomieli,
Took provisions in his satchel,
In his wallet summer-butter,
Butter for a year to last him,
For another, pork sufficient,
Then he travelled off to hide him,
Started in the greatest hurry,
And he said the words which follow:
"Now I go, and I'm escaping, 10
For the space of three whole summers,
And for five years in succession.
Be the land to snakes abandoned,
Let the lynxes snarl in greenwood,
In the fields the reindeer wander,
In the brakes the geese conceal them.

"Fare thee well, my dearest mother,
If the people come from Pohja,
From Pimentola the army,
And about my head they ask you, 20
Say that I have fled before them,
And have taken my departure,
And I have laid waste my clearing,
That which I had reaped so lately."

Then he pushed his boat in water,
On the waves he launched his vessel,
From the rollers steel he launched it,
From the haven lined with copper.
On the mast the sails he hoisted,
And he spread the sails of linen, 30
At the stern himself he seated,
And prepared him for his journey,
Sitting by his birchwood rudder,
With the stern-oar deftly steering.

Then he spoke the words which follow,
And in words like these expressed him:
"Wind, inflate the sails above me,
Wind of spring drive on the vessel,
Drive with speed the wooden vessel,
Onward drive the boat of pinewood 40
Forward to the nameless island,
And the nameless promontory."

So the wind the bark drove onward,
O'er the foaming lake 'twas driven,
O'er the bright expanse of water,
Speeding o'er the open water,
Rocking while two moons were changing,
Till a third was near its ending.

At the cape were maidens sitting,
There upon the blue lake's margin 50
They were gazing, and were casting
Glances o'er the azure billows.
One was waiting for her brother,
And another for her father,
But the others all were waiting,
Waiting each one for a lover.

In the distance spied they Kauko,
Sooner still the boat of Kauko,
Like a little cloud in distance,
Just between the sky and water. 60

And the island-maids reflected,
Said the maidens of the island:
"What's this strange thing in the water,
What this wonder on the billows?
If a boat of our relations,
Sailing vessel of our island,
Hasten then, and speed thee homeward,
To the harbour of the island,
That we hear the tidings quickly,
Hear the news from foreign countries, 70
If there's peace among the shore-folks,
Or if war is waged among them."

Still the wind the sail inflated,
And the billows drove the vessel.
Then the lively Lemminkainen
Guided to the isle the vessel,
To the island's end he drove it,
Where it ends in jutting headland.

And he said on his arrival,
To the cape as he was coming, 80
"Is there room upon this island,
On the surface of the island,
Where the boat may land upon it,
And to dry land I may bring it?"

Said the girls upon the island,
And the island-maidens answered:
"There is room upon this island,
On the surface of the island,
Where the boat may land upon it,
And to dry land you may bring it. 90
There are harbours for the vessel,
On the beach sufficient rollers,
To receive a hundred vessels,
Though the boats should come by thousands."

Then the lively Lemminkainen
On the land drew up his vessel,
On the wooden rollers laid it,
And he spoke the words which follow:
"Is there room upon this island,
On the surface of the island, 100
Where a little man may hide him,
And a weak man may take refuge
From the din of furious battle,
And the clash of steely sword-blades?"

Said the girls upon the island,
And the island-maidens answered:
"There is room upon this island,
On the surface of the island,
Where a little man may hide him,
And a weak man may conceal him. 110
Here are very many castles,
Stately castles to reside in,
Though there came a hundred heroes,
And a thousand men of valour."

Said the lively Lemminkainen,
And he spoke the words which follow:
"Is there room upon this island,
On the surface of the island,
Where there stands a birch-tree forest,
And a stretch of other country, 120
Where I perhaps may make a clearing,
Work upon my goodly clearing?"

Said the girls upon the island,
And the island-maidens answered:
"There is not upon this island,
On the surface of the island,
Not the space your back could rest on,
Land not of a bushel's measure,
Where you perhaps might make a clearing,
Work upon your goodly clearing. 130
All the land is now divided,
And the fields in plots are measured,
And allotted are the fallows,
Grassland managed by the commune."

Said the lively Lemminkainen,
Asked the handsome Kaukomieli,
"Is there room upon this island,
On the surface of the island,
Space where I my songs may carol,
Space where I may sing my ballads? 140
Words within my mouth are melting,
And between my gums are sprouting."

Said the girls upon the island,
And the island-maidens answered:
"There is room upon this island,
On the surface of the island,
Space where you may sing your ballads,
And intone your splendid verses,
While you sport amid the greenwood,
While you dance among the meadows." 150

Then the lively Lemminkainen
Hastened to commence his singing.
In the court sang mountain-ashtrees,
In the farmyard oaks grew upward.
On the oaks were equal branches,
And on every branch an acorn,
Golden globes within the acorns,
And upon the globes were cuckoos.
When the cuckoos all were calling,
From their mouths was gold distilling, 160
From their beaks was copper flowing,
Likewise silver pouring onward
To the hills all golden-shining,
And among the silver mountains.

Once again sang Lemminkainen,
Once again he sang and chanted,
Gravel sang to pearls of beauty,
All the stones to gleaming lustre,
All the stones to glowing redness,
And the flowers to golden glory. 170

Then again sang Lemminkainen;
In the yard a well created,
O'er the well a golden cover,
And on this a golden bucket,
That the lads might drink the water,
And their sisters wash their faces.
Ponds he sang upon the meadows,
In the ponds blue ducks were floating,
Temples golden, heads of silver,
And their claws were all of copper. 180

Then the island-maidens wondered,
And the girls were all astounded
At the songs of Lemminkainen,
And the craft of that great hero.

Said the lively Lemminkainen,
Spoke the handsome Kaukomieli,
"I have sung a song most splendid,
But perchance might sing a better,
If beneath a roof I sang it,
At the end of the deal table. 190
If a house you cannot give me,
There to rest upon the planking,
I will hum my tunes in forest,
Toss my songs among the bushes."

Said the maidens of the island,
Answered after full reflection:
"There are houses you may enter,
Handsome halls that you may dwell in,
Safe from cold to sing your verses,
In the open speak your magic." 200

Then the lively Lemminkainen,
Entered in a house directly,
Where he sang a row of pint-pots,
At the end of the long table.
All the pots with ale were brimming,
And the cans with mead the finest,
Filled as full as one could fill them,
Dishes filled to overflowing.
In the pots was beer in plenty,
And the mead in covered tankards, 210
Butter too, in great abundance,
Pork was likewise there in plenty,
For the feast of Lemminkainen,
And for Kaukomieli's pleasure.

Kauko was of finest manners,
Nor to eat was he accustomed,
Only with a knife of silver,
Fitted with a golden handle.

So he sang a knife of silver,
And a golden-hafted knife-blade, 220
And he ate till he was sated,
Drank the ale in full contentment.

Then the lively Lemminkainen,
Roamed about through every village,
For the island-maidens' pleasure,
To delight the braidless damsels,
And where'er his head was turning,
There he found a mouth for kissing,
Wheresoe'er his hand was outstretched,
There he found a hand to clasp it. 230

And at night he went to rest him,
Hiding in the darkest corner;
There was not a single village
Where he did not find ten homesteads,
There was not a single homestead
Where he did not find ten daughters,
There was none among the daughters,
None among the mother's children,
By whose side he did not stretch him,
On whose arm he did not rest him. 240

Thus a thousand brides he found there,
Rested by a hundred widows;
Two in half-a-score remained not,
Three in a completed hundred,
Whom he left untouched as maidens,
Or as widows unmolested.

Thus the lively Lemminkainen
Lived a life of great enjoyment,
For the course of three whole summers
In the island's pleasant hamlets, 250
To the island-maidens' rapture,
The content of all the widows;
One alone he did not trouble,
'Twas a poor and aged maiden,
At the furthest promontory,
In the tenth among the hamlets.

As he pondered on his journey,
And resolved to wend him homeward,
Came the poor and aged maiden,
And she spoke the words which follow: 260
"Handsome hero, wretched Kauko,
If you will not think upon me,
Then I wish that as you travel,
May your boat on rocks be stranded."

Rose he not before the cockcrow,
Nor before the hen's child rose he,
From his sporting with the maiden,
Laughing with the wretched woman.

Then upon a day it happened,
And upon a certain evening, 270
He resolved to rise and wander,
Waiting not for morn or cockcrow.

Long before the time he rose up,
Sooner than the time intended,
And he went around to wander,
And to wander through the village,
For his sporting with the damsels,
To amuse the wretched women.

As alone by night he wandered,
Through the villages he sauntered 280
To the isle's extremest headland,
To the tenth among the hamlets,
He beheld not any homestead
Where three rooms he did not notice,
There was not a room among them
Where he did not see three heroes,
And he saw not any hero,
With a sword-blade left unwhetted,
Sharpened thus to bring destruction
On the head of Lemminkainen. 290

Then the lively Lemminkainen
Spoke aloud the words which follow:
"Woe to me, the day is dawning,
And the pleasant sun is rising
O'er a youth, of all most wretched,
O'er the neck of me unhappy!
Lempo may perchance a hero
With his shirt protect and cover,
Perhaps will cover with his mantle,
Cast it round him for protection 300
Though a hundred men attacked him,
And a thousand pressed upon him."

Unembraced he left the maidens,
And he left them unmolested,
And he turned him to his vessel,
Luckless to his boat he hurried,
But he found it burned to ashes,
Utterly consumed to ashes.

Mischief now he saw approaching,
O'er his head ill days were brooding, 310
So began to build a vessel,
And a new boat to construct him.

Wood was failing to the craftsman,
Boards with which a boat to fashion,
But he found of wood a little,
Begged some wretched bits of boarding,
Five small splinters of a spindle,
And six fragments of a bobbin.

So from these a boat he fashioned,
And a new boat he constructed, 320
By his magic art he made it,
With his secret knowledge made it,
Hammered once, one side he fashioned,
Hammered twice, called up the other,
Hammered then a third time only,
And the boat was quite completed.
Then he pushed the boat in water,
On the waves he launched the vessel,
And he spoke the words which follow,
And expressed himself in thiswise: 330
"Float like bladder on the water,
On the waves like water-lily.
Eagle, give me now three feathers,
Eagle, three, and two from raven,
For the wretched boat's protection,
For the wretched vessel's bulwarks."

Then he stepped upon the planking,
At the stern he took his station,
Head bowed down, in deep depression,
And his cap awry adjusted, 340
Since by night he dare not tarry,
Nor by day could linger longer,
For the island-maidens' pleasure,
Sporting with unbraided damsels.

Spoke the lively Lemminkainen,
Said the handsome Kaukomieli:
"Now the youth must take departure,
And must travel from these dwellings,
Joyless leave behind these damsels,
Dance no longer with the fair ones. 350
Surely when I have departed,
And have left this land behind me,
Never will rejoice these damsels,
Nor unbraided girls be jesting,
In their homes so full of sadness,
In the courtyards now so dreary."

Wept the island girls already,
Damsels at the cape lamented:
"Wherefore goest thou, Lemminkainen,
And departest, hero-bridegroom? 360
Dost thou go for maidens' coyness,
Or for scarcity of women?"

Spoke the lively Lemminkainen,
Said the handsome Kaukomieli,
"'Tis not for the maidens' coyness,
Nor the scarcity of women.
I have had a hundred women,
And embraced a thousand maidens;
Thus departeth Lemminkainen,
Quits you thus your hero-bridegroom, 370
Since the great desire has seized me,
Longing for my native country,
Longing for my own land's strawberries,
For the slopes where grow the raspberries,
For the maidens on the headland,
And the poultry of my farmyard."

Then the lively Lemminkainen
Pushed into the waves the vessel,
Blew the wind, and then it blustered,
Rising waves drove on the vessel 380
O'er the blue lake's shining surface,
And across the open water.

On the beach there stood the sad ones,
On the shingles the unhappy,
And the island girls were weeping,
And the golden maids lamenting.
Wept for long the island-maidens,
Damsels on the cape lamented,
Long as they could see the masthead,
And the ironwork was gleaming, 390
But they wept not for the masthead,
Nor bewailed the iron fittings,
By the mast they wept the steersman,
He who wrought the iron fittings.

Lemminkainen too was weeping,
Long he wept, and long was saddened,
Long as he could see the island,
Or the outline of its mountains;
But he wept not for the island,
Nor lamented for the mountains, 400
But he wept the island-damsels,
For the mountain geese lamented.

Then the lively Lemminkainen
O'er the blue lake took his journey,
And he voyaged one day, a second,
And at length upon the third day
Rose a furious wind against him,
And the whole horizon thundered.
Rose a great wind from the north-west,
And a strong wind from the north-east, 410
Struck one side and then the other,
Thus the vessel overturning.

Then the lively Lemminkainen
Plunged his hands into the water,
Rowing forward with his fingers,
While his feet he used for steering.

Thus he swam by night and daytime
And with greatest skill he steered him,
And a little cloud perceived he,
In the west a cloud projecting, 420
Which to solid land was changing,
And became a promontory.

On the cape he found a homestead,
Where he found the mistress baking,
And her daughters dough were kneading.
"O thou very gracious mistress,
If you but perceived my hunger,
Thought upon my sad condition,
You would hurry to the storehouse,
To the alehouse like a snowstorm, 430
And a can of ale would fetch me,
And a strip of pork would fetch me,
In the pan would broil it for me,
And would pour some butter on it,
That the weary man might eat it,
And the fainting hero drink it.
Nights and days have I been swimming
Out upon the broad lake's billows,
With the wind as my protector,
At the mercy of the lake-waves." 440

Thereupon the gracious mistress
Hastened to the mountain storehouse,
Sliced some butter in the storehouse,
And a slice of pork provided,
In the pan thereafter broiled it,
That the hungry man might eat it.
Then she fetched of ale a canful,
For the fainting hero's drinking,
And she gave him a new vessel,
And a boat completely finished, 450
Which to other lands should take him,
And convey him to his birthplace.

Then the lively Lemminkainen
Started on his homeward journey,
Saw the lands and saw the beaches,
Here the islands, there the channels,
Saw the ancient landing-stages,
Saw the former dwelling-places,
And he saw the pine-clad mountains,
All the hills with fir-trees covered, 460
But he found no more his homestead,
And the walls he found not standing;
Where the house before was standing,
Rustled now a cherry-thicket,
On the mound were pine-trees growing,
Juniper beside the well-spring.

Spoke the lively Lemminkainen,
Said the handsome Kaukomieli,
"I have roamed among these forests,
O'er the stones, and plunged in river, 470
And have played about the meadows,
And have wandered through the cornfields.
Who has spoiled my well-known homestead,
And destroyed my charming dwelling?
They have burned the house to ashes,
And the wind's dispersed the ashes."

Thereupon he fell to weeping,
And he wept one day, a second,
But he wept not for the homestead,
Nor lamented for the storehouse, 480
But he wept the house's treasure,
Dearer to him than the storehouse.

Then he saw a bird was flying,
And a golden eagle hovering,
And he then began to ask it:
"O my dearest golden eagle,
Can you not perchance inform me,
What has happened to my mother,
To the fair one who has borne me,
To my dear and much-loved mother?" 490

Nothing knew the eagle of her,
Nor the stupid bird could tell him,
Only knew that she had perished;
Said a raven she had fallen,
And had died beneath the sword-blades,
'Neath the battle-axes fallen.

Answered lively Lemminkainen,
Said the handsome Kaukomieli:
"O my fair one who hast borne me,
O my dear and much-loved mother! 500
Hast thou perished, who hast borne me,
Hast thou gone, O tender mother?
Now thy flesh in earth has rotted,
Fir-trees o'er thy head are growing,
Juniper upon thy ankles,
On thy finger-tips are willows.

"Thus my wretched doom has found me,
And an ill reward has reached me,
That my sword I dared to measure,
And I dared to raise my weapons 510
There in Pohjola's great castle,
In the fields of Pimentola.
But my own race now has perished,
Perished now is she who bore me."

Then he looked, and turned on all sides,
And he saw a trace of footsteps,
Where the grass was lightly trampled,
And the heath was slightly broken.
Then he went the way they led him,
And he found a little pathway; 520
To the forest led the pathway,
And he went in that direction.

Thus he walked a verst, a second,
Hurried through a stretch of country,
And in darkest shades of forest,
In the most concealed recesses,
There he saw a hidden bath-house,
Saw a little cottage hidden,
In a cleft two rocks protected,
In a nook between three fir-trees; 530
There he saw his tender mother,
There beheld the aged woman.

Then the lively Lemminkainen,
Felt rejoiced beyond all measure,
And he spoke the words which follow,
And in words like these expressed him:
"O my very dearest mother,
O my mother who hast nursed me,
Thou art living still, O mother,
Watchful still, my aged mother! 540
Yet I thought that thou had'st perished,
And wast lost to me for ever,
Perished underneath the sword-blades,
Or beneath the spears had'st fallen,
And I wept my pretty eyes out,
And my handsome cheeks were ruined."

Then said Lemminkainen's mother,
"True it is that I am living,
But was forced to fly my dwelling,
And to seek a place of hiding 550
In this dark and gloomy forest,
In the most concealed recesses,
When came Pohjola to battle,
Murderous hosts from distant countries,
Seeking but for thee, unhappy,
And our home they laid in ruins,
And they burned the house to ashes,
And they wasted all the holding."

Said the lively Lemminkainen:
"O my mother who hast borne me, 560
Do not give thyself to sadness,
Be not sad, and be not troubled.
We will now erect fresh buildings,
Better buildings than the others,
And will wage a war with Pohja,
Overthrowing Lempo's people."

Then did Lemminkainen's mother
Answer in the words which follow:
"Long hast thou, my son, been absent,
Long, my Kauko, hast been living 570
In a distant foreign country,
Always in the doors of strangers,
On a nameless promontory,
And upon an unknown island."

Answered lively Lemminkainen,
Said the handsome Kaukomieli:
"There to dwell was very pleasant,
Charming was it there to wander.
There the trees are crimson-shining,
Red the trees, and blue the country, 580
And the pine-boughs shine like silver,
And the flowers of heath all golden,
And the mountains are of honey,
And the rocks are made of hens' eggs,
Flows the mead from withered pine-trees,
Milk flows from the barren fir-trees,
Butter flows from corner-fences,
From the posts the ale is flowing.

"There to dwell was very pleasant,
Lovely was it to reside there; 590
Afterwards 'twas bad to live there,
And unfit for me to live there.
They were anxious for the maidens,
And suspicious of the women,
Lest the miserable wenches,
And the fat and wicked creatures,
Might by me be badly treated,
Visited too much at night-time.
But I hid me from the maidens,
And the women's daughters guarded 600
Just as hides the wolf from porkers,
Or the hawks from village poultry."

RUNO XXX.--LEMMINKAINEN AND TIERA

_Argument_

Lemminkainen goes to ask his former comrade-in-arms, Tiera, to join him in an expedition against Pohjola (1-122). The Mistress of Pohjola sends the Frost against them, who freezes the boat in the sea, and almost freezes the heroes themselves in the boat, but that Lemminkainen restrains it by powerful charms and invocations (123-316). Lemminkainen and his companion walk across the ice to the shore, wander about in the waste for a long time in a miserable plight, and at last make their way home (317-500).

Ahti, youth for ever youthful,
Lemminkainen young and lively,
Very early in the morning,
In the very earliest morning,
Sauntered downward to the boathouse,
To the landing-stage he wandered.

There a wooden boat was weeping,
Boat with iron rowlocks grieving;
"Here am I, for sailing ready,
But, O wretched one, rejected. 10
Ahti rows not forth to battle,
For the space of sixty summers,
Neither for the lust of silver,
Or if need of gold should drive him."

Then the lively Lemminkainen
Struck his glove upon the vessel,
With his coloured glove he struck it,
And he said the words which follow:
"Care thou not, O deck of pinewood,
Nor lament, O timber-sided. 20
Thou once more shalt go to battle,
And shalt mingle in the combat,
Shalt again be filled with warriors,
Ere to-morrow shall be ended."

Then he went to seek his mother,
And he said the words which follow:
"Do not weep for me, O mother,
Nor lament, thou aged woman,
If I once again must wander,
And again must go to battle; 30
For my mind resolve has taken,
And a plan my brain has seized on,
To destroy the folk of Pohja,
And revenge me on the scoundrels."

To restrain him sought his mother,
And the aged woman warned him:
"Do not go, my son, my dearest,
Thus 'gainst Pohjola to combat!
There perchance might death o'ercome thee,
And destruction fall upon thee." 40

Little troubled Lemminkainen,
But he thought on his departure,
And he started on his journey,
And he spoke the words which follow:
"Can I find another hero,
Find a man, and find a swordsman,
Who will join in Ahti's battle,
And with all his strength will aid me?

"Well is Tiera known unto me,
Well with Kuura I'm acquainted, 50
He will be a second hero,
He's a hero and a swordsman,
He will join in Ahti's battle,
And with all his strength will aid me."

Through the villages he wandered,
Found his way to Tiera's homestead,
And he said on his arrival,
Spoke the object of his coming:
"O my Tiera, faithful comrade,
Of my friends most loved and dearest, 60
Thinkest thou on days departed,
On the life we lived aforetime,
When we wandered forth together,
To the fields of mighty battles?
There was not a single village
Where ten houses were not numbered,
There was none among the houses,
Where ten heroes were not living,
There was none among the heroes,
Not a man, however valiant, 70
None who did not fall before us,
By us twain who was not slaughtered."

At the window worked the father,
And a spear-shaft he was carving;
By the threshold stood the mother,
Busy as she churned the butter;
At the door the ruddy brothers,
And they wrought a sledge's framework;
At the bridge-end stood the sisters,
And the clothes they there were wringing. 80

From the window spoke the father,
And the mother from the threshold,
From the door the ruddy brothers,
From the bridge-end spoke the sisters,
"Tiera cannot go to battle,
Nor may strike with spear in warfare.
Other duties call for Tiera,
He has made a lifelong compact,
For a young wife has he taken
As the mistress of his household, 90
But untouched is she at present,
Uncaressed is still her bosom."

By the stove was Tiera resting,
By the stove-side Kuura rested,
At the stove one foot he booted,
And the other at the stove-bench,
At the gate his belt he tightened,
In the open girt it round him;
Then did Tiera grasp his spear-shaft,
Not the largest of the largest, 100
Nor the smallest of the smallest,
But a spear of mid dimensions.
On the blade a steed was standing,
On the side a foal was trotting,
At the joint a wolf was howling,
At the haft a bear was growling.

Thus his spear did Tiera brandish,
And he brandished it to whirring,
Hurled it then to fathom-deepness
In the stiff clay of the cornfield, 110
In a bare spot of the meadow,
In a flat spot free from hillocks.

Then his spear was placed by Tiera
With the other spears of Ahti,
And he went and made him ready
Swift to join in Ahti's battle.

Then did Ahti Saarelainen
Push his boat into the water,
Like a snake in grass when creeping,
Even like a living serpent, 120
And he sailed away to north-west,
On the lake that borders Pohja.

Then did Pohjola's old Mistress
Call the wicked Frost to aid her,
On the lake that borders Pohja,
On the deep and open water,
And she said the words which follow,
Thus she spoke and thus commanded:
"O my Frost, my boy so little,
O thou foster-child I nurtured! 130
Go thou forth where I shall bid thee,
Where I bid thee, and I send thee.
Freeze the boat of that great scoundrel,
Boat of lively Lemminkainen,
On the lake's extended surface,
On the deep and open water,
Freeze thou too the master in it,
Freeze thou in the boat the rascal,
That he nevermore escape thee,
In the course of all his lifetime, 140
If myself I do not loose him,
If myself I do not free him."

Then the Frost, that wicked fellow,
And a youth the most malicious,
Went upon the lake to freeze it,
And upon the waves he brooded.
Forth he went, as he was ordered,
And upon the land he wandered,
Bit the leaves from off the branches,
Grass from off the flowerless meadows. 150

Then he came upon his journey
To the lake that borders Pohja,
To the endless waste of water,
And upon the first night only
Froze the bays and froze the lakelets,
Hurried forward on the seashore,
But the lake was still unfrozen,
And the waves were still unstiffened.
If a small finch swam the water,
On the waves a water-wagtail, 160
Still its claws remained unfrozen,
And its little head unstiffened.

On the second night, however,
He began to work more strongly,
Growing insolent extremely,
And he now grew most terrific,
Then the ice on ice he loaded,
And the great Frost still was freezing,
And with ice he clothed the mountains,
Scattered snow to height of spear-shaft, 170
Froze the boat upon the water,
Ahti's vessel on the billows;
Then he would have frozen Ahti,
And in ice his feet would fasten,
And he seized upon his fingers,
And beneath his toes attacked him.
Angry then was Lemminkainen,
Very angry and indignant,
Pushed the Frost into the fire,
Pushed him in an iron furnace. 180

With his hands the Frost then seized he,
Grasped him in his fists securely,
And he spoke the words which follow,
And in words like these expressed him:
"Pakkanen, Puhuri's offspring,
Thou, the son of cold of winter,
Do not make my fingers frozen,
Nor my little toes thus stiffen.
Let my ears remain unhandled,
Do not freeze my head upon me. 190

"There's enough that may be frozen,
Much is left you for your freezing,
Though the skins of men you freeze not,
Nor the forms of mother's children.
Be the plains and marshes frozen,
Freeze the stones to frozen coldness,
Freeze the willows near the water,
Grasp the aspen till it murmurs,
Peel the bark from off the birch-tree,
And the pine-trees break to pieces, 200
But the men you shall not trouble,
Nor the hair of mother's children.

"If this is not yet sufficient,
Other things remain for freezing.
Thou may'st freeze the stones when heated,
And the slabs of stone when glowing,
Thou may'st freeze the iron mountains,
And the rocks of steely hardness,
And the mighty river Vuoksi,
Or the Imatra terrific, 210
Stop the course of raging whirlpool,
Foaming in its utmost fury.

"Shall I tell you of your lineage,
And shall I make known your honours?
Surely do I know thy lineage,
All I know of thine uprearing;
For the Frost was born 'mid willows,
Nurtured in the sharpest weather,
Near to Pohjola's great homestead,
Near the hall of Pimentola, 220
Sprung from father, ever crime-stained,
And from a most wicked mother.

"Who was it the Frost who suckled,
Bathed him in the glowing weather?
Milkless wholly was his mother,
And his mother wholly breastless.

"Adders 'twas the Frost who suckled,
Adders suckled, serpents fed him,
Suckled with their pointless nipples,
Suckled with their dried-up udders, 230
And the Northwind rocked his cradle,
And to rest the cold air soothed him,
In the wretched willow-thicket,
In the midst of quaking marshes.

"And the boy was reared up vicious,
Led an evil life destructive,
But as yet no name was given,
To a boy so wholly worthless;
When at length a name was given,
Frost it was they called the scoundrel. 240

"Then he wandered by the hedges,
Always dancing in the bushes,
Wading through the swamps in summer
On the broadest of the marshes,
Roaring through the pines in winter,
Crying out among the fir-trees,
Crashing through the woods of birch-trees,
Sweeping through the alder-thickets,
Freezing all the trees and grasses,
Making level all the meadows. 250
From the trees he bit the foliage,
From the heather bit the blossoms,
Cracked the bark from off the pine-trees,
And the twigs from off the fir-trees.

"Now that thou hast grown to greatness,
And attained thy fullest stature,
Dar'st thou me with cold to threaten,
And to seize my ears attemptest,
To attack my feet beneath me,
And my finger-tips attacking? 260

"But I shall not let you freeze me.
Not to miserably freeze me,
Fire I'll thrust into my stockings,
In my boots thrust burning firebrands,
In the seams thrust burning embers,
Fire will thrust beneath my shoestrings,
That the Frost may never freeze me,
Nor the sharpest weather harm me.

"Thither will I now condemn thee,
To the furthest bounds of Pohja, 270
To the place from whence thou camest,
To the home from whence thou camest.
Freeze upon the fire the kettles,
And the coals upon the hearthstone,
In the dough the hands of women,
And the boy in young wife's bosom,
In the ewes the milk congeal thou,
And in mares let foals be frozen.

"If to this thou pay'st no heeding,
Then indeed will I condemn thee 280
To the midst of coals of Hiisi,
Even to the hearth of Lempo,
Thrust thee there into the furnace,
Lay thee down upon the anvil,
Unprotected from the hammer,
From the pounding of the hammer,
That the hammer beat thee helpless,
And the hammer beat thee sorely.

"If this will not overcome thee,
And my spells are insufficient, 290
Still I know another station,
Know a fitting station for thee.
I will lead thy mouth to summer,
And thy tongue to home of summer,
Whence thou never canst release thee,
In the course of all thy lifetime,
If I do not give thee freedom,
And I should myself release thee."

Then the Frost, the son of Northwind,
Felt that he was near destruction, 300
Whereupon he prayed for mercy,
And he spoke the words which follow:
"Let us understand each other,
Nor the one the other injure,
In the course of all our lifetime,
While the golden moon is shining.

"Should'st thou hear that I would freeze you,
Or again should misbehave me,
Thrust me then into the furnace,
Sink me in the blazing fire, 310
In the smith's coals do thou sink me,
Under Ilmarinen's anvil,
Or my mouth to summer turn thou,
And my tongue to home of summer,
Never more release to hope for,
In the course of all my lifetime."

Then the lively Lemminkainen
Left his vessel in the ice-floes,
Left his captured ship of battle,
And proceeded on his journey; 320
Tiera too, the other hero,
Followed in his comrade's footsteps.

O'er the level ice they wandered,
'Neath their feet the smooth ice crunching,
And they walked one day, a second,
And at length upon the third day,
Then they saw a cape of hunger,
And afar a wretched village.

'Neath the cape there stood a castle,
And they spoke the words which follow: 330
"Is there meat within the castle,
Is there fish within the household,
For the worn and weary heroes,
And the men who faint with hunger?"
Meat was none within the castle,
Nor was fish within the household.

Spoke the lively Lemminkainen,
Said the handsome Kaukomieli:
"Fire consume this wretched castle,
Water sweep away such castles!" 340

He himself pursued his journey,
Pushing onward through the forest,
On a path with houses nowhere,
On a pathway that he knew not.

Then the lively Lemminkainen,
He the handsome Kaukomieli,
Shore the wool from stones in passing,
From the rocks the hair he gathered,
And he wove it into stockings,
Into mittens quickly wrought it, 350
In the mighty cold's dominion,
Where the Frost was freezing all things.

On he went to seek a pathway,
Searching for the right direction.
Through the wood the pathway led him,
Led him in the right direction.

Spoke the lively Lemminkainen,
Said the handsome Kaukomieli,
"O my dearest brother Tiera,
Now at length we're coming somewhere, 360
Now that days and months we've wandered,
In the open air for ever."

Then did Tiera make him answer,
And he spoke the words which follow:
"We unhappy sought for vengeance,
Recklessly we sought for vengeance,
Rushing forth to mighty conflict
In the gloomy land of Pohja,
There our lives to bring in danger,
Rushing to our own destruction, 370
In this miserable country,
On a pathway that we knew not.

"Never is it known unto us,
Never known and never guessed at,
What the pathway is that leads us,
Or the road that may conduct us
To our death at edge of forest,
Or on heath to meet destruction,
Here in the abode of ravens,
In the fields by crows frequented. 380

"And the ravens here are flocking,
And the evil birds are croaking,
And the flesh the birds are tearing,
And with blood the crows are sated,
And the ravens' beaks are moistened
In the wounds of us, the wretched,
To the rocks our bones they carry,
And upon the stones they cast them.

"Ah, my hapless mother knows not,
Never she, with pain who bore me, 390
Where her flesh may now be carried,
And her blood may now be flowing,
Whether in the furious battle,
In the equal strife of foemen,
Or upon a lake's broad surface,
On the far-extending billows,
Or on hills with pine-cones loaded,
Wandering 'mid the fallen branches.

"And my mother can know nothing
Of her son, the most unhappy, 400
Only know that he has perished,
Only know that he has fallen;
And my mother thus will weep me,
Thus lament, the aged woman:

"'Thus my hapless son has perished,
And the wretched one has fallen;
He has sown the seed of Tuoni,
Harrows now in Kalma's country.
Perhaps the son I love so dearly,
Perhaps my son, O me unhappy, 410
Leaves his bows untouched for ever,
Leaves his handsome bows to stiffen.
Now the birds may live securely,
In the leaves the grouse may flutter,
Bears may live their lives of rapine,
In the fields the reindeer roll them.'"

Answered lively Lemminkainen,
Said the handsome Kaukomieli:
"Thus it is, unhappy mother,
Thou unhappy, who hast borne me! 420
Thou a flight of doves hast nurtured,
Quite a flock of swans hast nurtured,
Rose the wind, and all were scattered,
Lempo came, and he dispersed them,
One in one place, one in other,
And a third in yet another.

"I remember times aforetime,
And the better days remember,
How like flowers we gathered round thee,
In one homeland, just like berries. 430
Many gazed upon our figures,
And admired our forms so handsome,
Otherwise than in the present,
In this time so full of evil.
Once the wind was our acquaintance,
And the sun was gazing on us:
Now the clouds are gathering round us,
And the rain has overwhelmed us.
But we let not trouble vex us,
Even in our greatest sorrow, 440
Though the girls were living happy,
And the braidless maids were jesting,
And the women all were laughing,
And the brides were sweet as honey,
Tearless, spite of all vexation,
And unshaken when in trouble.

"But we are not here enchanted,
Not bewitched, and not enchanted,
Here upon the paths to perish,
Sinking down upon our journey, 450
In our youth to sadly perish,
In our bloom to meet destruction.

"Let those whom the sorcerers harassed
And bewitched with eyes of evil,
Let them make their journey homeward,
And regain their native country.
Be the sorcerers' selves enchanted,
And with songs bewitched their children;
Let their race for ever perish,
And their race be brought to ruin. 460

"Ne'er in former times my father,
Never has my aged father
Yielded to a sorcerer's orders,
Or the wiles of Lapland's children.
Thus my father spoke aforetime,
And I now repeat his sayings:
'Guard me, O thou kind Creator,
Guard me, Jumala most gracious,
Aid me with thy hand of mercy,
With thy mighty power protect me, 470
From the plots of men of evil,
And the thoughts of aged women,
And the curses of the bearded,
And the curses of the beardless.
Grant us now thy aid eternal,
Be our ever-faithful guardian,
That no child be taken from us,
And no mother's child shall wander
From the path of the Creator,
Which by Jumala was fashioned.'" 480

Then the lively Lemminkainen,
He the handsome Kaukomieli,
From his care constructed horses,
Coursers black composed from trouble,
Reins from evil days he fashioned,
Saddles from his secret sorrows,
Then his horse's back he mounted,
On his white-front courser mounted,
And he rode upon his journey,
At his side his faithful Tiera, 490
And along the shores he journeyed,
On the sandy shores proceeded,
Till he reached his tender mother,
Reached the very aged woman.

Now will I abandon Kauko,
Long from out my song will leave him;
But he showed the way to Tiera,
Sent him on his homeward journey.
Now my song aside will wander,
While I turn to other matters. 500

RUNO XXXI.--UNTAMO AND KULLERVO

_Argument_

Untamo wages war against his brother Kalervo, overthrows Kalervo and his army, sparing only a single pregnant woman of the whole clan. She is carried away to Untamo's people, and gives birth to her son Kullervo (1-82). Kullervo resolves in his cradle to take revenge on Untamo, and Untamo attempts several times to put him to death, but without success (83-202). When Kullervo grows up, he spoils all his work, and therefore Untamo sells him as a slave to Ilmarinen (203-374).

'Twas a mother reared her chickens,
Large the flock of swans she nurtured;
By the hedge she placed the chickens,
Sent the swans into the river,
And an eagle came and scared them,
And a hawk that came dispersed them,
And a flying bird dispersed them.
One he carried to Carelia,
Into Russia bore the second,
In its home he left the third one. 10

Whom the bird to Russia carried
Soon grew up into a merchant;
Whom he carried to Carelia,
Kalervo was called by others,
While the third at home remaining,
Bore the name of Untamoinen,
For his father's lifelong anguish,
And his mother's deep affliction.

Untamoinen laid his netting
Down in Kalervo's fish-waters: 20
Kalervoinen saw the netting,
In his bag he put the fishes.
Untamo of hasty temper
Then became both vexed and angry,
And his fingers turned to battle,
With his open palms he urged it,
Making strife for fishes' entrails,
And for perch-fry made a quarrel.

Thus they fought and thus contended,
Neither overcame the other, 30
And though one might smite the other,
He himself again was smitten.

At another time it happened,
On the next and third day after,
Kalervoinen oats was sowing,
Back of Untamoinen's dwelling.

Sheep of Untamo most reckless
Browsed the oats of Kalervoinen,
Whereupon his dog ferocious
Tore the sheep of Untamoinen. 40

Untamo began to threaten
Kalervo, his very brother;
Kalervo's race vowed to slaughter,
Smite the great, and smite the little,
And to fall on all the people,
And their houses burn to ashes.

Men with swords in belt he mustered,
Weapons for their hands provided,
Little boys with spears in girdle,
Handsome youths who shouldered axes, 50
And he marched to furious battle,
Thus to fight his very brother.

Kalervoinen's son's fair consort
Then was sitting near the window,
And she looked from out the window,
And she spoke the words which follow:
"Is it smoke I see arising,
Or a gloomy cloud that rises,
On the borders of the cornfields,
Just beyond the new-made pathway?" 60

But no dark cloud there was rising,
Nor was smoke ascending thickly,
But 'twas Untamo's assemblage
Marching onward to the battle.

On came Untamo's assemblage,
In their belts their swords were hanging,
Kalervo's folk overwhelming,
And his mighty race they slaughtered,
And they burned his house to ashes,
Like a level field they made it. 70

Left of Kalervo's folk only
But one girl, and she was pregnant;
Then did Untamo's assemblage
Lead her homeward on their journey,
That she there might sweep the chamber,
And the floor might sweep from litter.

But a little time passed over,
When a little boy was born her,
From a most unhappy mother,
So by what name should they call him? 80
Kullervo his mother called him,
Untamo, the Battle-hero.

Then the little boy they swaddled,
And the orphan child they rested
In the cradle made for rocking,
That it might be rocked to lull him.

So they rocked the child in cradle,
Rocked it till his hair was tossing,
Rocked him for one day, a second,
Rocked him on the third day likewise, 90
When the boy began his kicking,
And he kicked and pushed about him,
Tore his swaddling clothes to pieces,
Freed himself from all his clothing,
Then he broke the lime-wood cradle,
All his rags he tore from off him.

And it seemed that he would prosper,
And become a man of mettle.
Untamola thought already
That when he was grown to manhood, 100
He would grow both wise and mighty,
And become a famous hero,
As a servant worth a hundred,
Equal to a thousand servants.
Thus he grew for two and three months,
But already in the third month,
When a boy no more than knee-high,
He began to speak in thiswise:
"Presently when I am bigger,
And my body shall be stronger, 110
I'll avenge my father's slaughter,
And my mother's tears atone for."

This was heard by Untamoinen,
And he spoke the words which follow:
"He will bring my race to ruin,
Kalervo reborn is in him."
Thereupon the heroes pondered
And the old crones all considered
How to bring the boy to ruin,
So that death might come upon him. 120

Then they put him in a barrel,
In a barrel did they thrust him,
And they pushed it to the water,
Pushed it out upon the billows.

Then they went to look about them,
After two nights, after three nights,
If the boy had sunk in water,
Or had perished in the barrel.

In the waves he was not sunken,
Nor had perished in the barrel, 130
He had 'scaped from out the barrel,
And upon the waves was sitting,
In his hand a rod of copper,
At the end a line all silken,
And for lake-fish he was fishing,
As he floated on the water.
There was water in the lakelet,
Which perchance might fill two ladles,
Or if more exactly measured,
Partly was a third filled also. 140

Untamo again reflected,
"How can we o'ercome the infant,
That destruction come upon him,
And that death may overtake him?"

Then he bade his servants gather
First a large supply of birch-trees,
Pine-trees with their hundred needles,
Trees from which the pitch was oozing,
For the burning of the infant,
And for Kullervo's destruction. 150

So they gathered and collected
First a large supply of birch-trees,
Pine-trees with their hundred needles,
Trees from which the pitch was oozing,
And of bark a thousand sledgefuls,
Ash-trees, long a hundred fathoms.
Fire beneath the wood they kindled,
And the pyre began to crackle,
And the boy they cast upon it,
'Mid the glowing fire they cast him. 160
Burned the fire a day, a second,
Burning likewise on the third day,
When they went to look about them.
Knee-deep sat the boy in ashes,
In the embers to his elbows.
In his hand he held the coal-rake,
And was stirring up the fire,
And he raked the coals together.
Not a hair was singed upon him,
Not a lock was even tangled. 170

Then did Untamo grow angry.
"Where then can I place the infant,
That we bring him to destruction,
And that death may overtake him?"
So upon a tree they hanged him,
Strung him up upon an oak-tree.

Two nights and a third passed over,
And upon the dawn thereafter,
Untamo again reflected:
"Time it is to look around us, 180
Whether Kullervo has fallen,
Or is dead upon the gallows."

Then he sent a servant forward,
Back he came, and thus reported:
"Kullervo not yet has perished,
Nor has died upon the gallows.
Pictures on the tree he's carving,
In his hands he holds a graver.
All the tree is filled with pictures,
All the oak-tree filled with carvings; 190
Here are men, and here are sword-blades,
And the spears are leaning by them."

Where should Untamo seek aidance,
'Gainst this boy, the most unhappy?
Whatsoever deaths he planned him,
Or he planned for his destruction,
In the jaws of death he fell not,
Nor could he be brought to ruin.

And at length he grew full weary
Of his efforts to destroy him, 200
So he reared up Kullervoinen
As a slave beneath his orders.

Thereupon said Untamoinen,
And he spoke the words which follow:
"If you live as it is fitting,
Always acting as is proper,
In my house I will retain you,
And the work of servants give you.
I will pay you wages for it,
As I think that you deserve it, 210
For your waist a pretty girdle,
Or upon your ear a buffet."

So when Kullervo was taller,
And had grown about a span-length,
Then he found some work to give him,
That he should prepare to labour.
'Twas to rock a little infant,
Rock a child with little fingers.
"Watch with every care the infant,
Give it food, and eat some also, 220
Wash his napkins in the river,
Wash his little clothes and cleanse them."

So he watched one day, a second,
Broke his hands, and gouged his eyes out,
And at length upon the third day,
Let the infant die of sickness,
Cast the napkins in the river,
And he burned the baby's cradle.