Page:Kalevala (Kirby 1907) v1.djvu/106

86

And in loose earth thou wast altered,

And to iron-ore converted.

“Thou wast still devoid of greatness,

Thou wast neither great nor little,

When the elks were trampling o’er thee,

And the reindeer, in the marshes,

When the wolves’ claws trod upon thee,

And the bears’ paws passed above thee.

“Thou wast still devoid of greatness,

Thou wast neither great nor little,

When thou from the marsh wast gathered,

From the ground with care uplifted,

Carried thence into the smithy,

To the forge of Ilmarinen.

“Thou wast still devoid of greatness,

Thou wast neither great nor little,

When as ore thou there wast hissing,

Plunged amid the boiling water,

Or amid the fiery furnace,

When the mighty oath thou sworest,

By the forge and by the anvil,

By the hammer and the mallet,

Where the smith himself was standing,

On the flooring of the smithy.

“Now that thou hast grown to greatness,

Thou hast wrought thyself to frenzy,

And thy mighty oath hast broken,

Like a dog hast soiled thy honour,

For thy kinsman thou hast wounded,

Raised thy mouth against thy kinsman.

“Who hast led thee to this outrage,

To this wickedness incited?

Perhaps thy father or thy mother,

Or the eldest of thy brothers,

Or the youngest of thy sisters,

Or some other near relation?

“Not thy father, not thy mother,

Nor the eldest of thy brothers,

Nor the youngest of thy sisters,

Nor some other near relation.