Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 20, 1909.djvu/383

 Collecta7iea. 329

opposite Hov church, is a place called Julevoldene. Here, accord- ing to old sayings, the underground folk dwell. A Bob who lived there often went down to the farm of M^le, where he lodged in the threshing barn, and, as they were glad to be friendly with him, he was often treated with RonwiegrodP Once, as a girl was bring- ing the Grod up to the barn, she thought it but her due to eat it herself. This breach of hospitality cost her dear, for the Jiitul took hold of her and danced her nearly to death, whilst he sang,

" Ah ! thou shalt dance, and thou shalt twirl, For thou ate'st my groats, unhappy girl."'

At last the folk became so weary of \h.Qjutiil that they thought they would gladly get rid of him. A Finn came travelling through the valley, and, as this youth had a reputation for being able, as folk said, " to do more than stuff himself," they asked whether he would imprison the Bob "for ever" for a good reward. After thinking it over for some time, he said that he would take on the job if he got a good reward, and a shaggy calfskin to help him to carry out [his plans].

To Ole Male's great surprise, the Finn bored a great hole in the foot of Fjeld Kalken, and put the Bob in the hole, and cast the calfskin after him with these words, — " Thou shalt hence- forward take one hair [from this] every Yule-Eve until the skin is bare, then canst thou be free again." Before the opening the Finn set a door of a much lighter coloured kind of stone than those on the mountain side, which shows clearly to this day.^^

7. Over Yulevolden the high Fjeld Kalken rises. There is an underground passage going through this mountain, straight from Hovedalen to Lilledalen.-" There is supposed to be an iron gate in the passage, with a dog tied to it. Many folk have tried to penetrate [the passage], but few have dared to go so far [as the gate]. It is told how a red-haired dog once went in at Lilledalen, and, after a long time, came out by Maele in Sundalen, but it was hairless on one side.

-^ It shows now as one large white stone on the dark grey mountain. Dr. Feilberg adds that stories of this type are characteristically Scandinavian, and compares Overland, Fra en SvntiJeji Tid (i88S), p. 9; Alden, I Getapulien (1883), p. 95 ; Dybeck, Runa (1849), P- 3i-

^^Lilledal is a small valley running into the Sundal fjord from the south, close to the bottom of Sundal.