Page:Kalevala (Kirby 1907) v1.djvu/221

Runo XVIII]

Wrought the maiden what she wished for,

And he wrought a splendid head-dress,

While she made the bathroom ready,

And she put the bath in order.

In her hands he placed the trinkets,

And the maiden thus addressed him:

“Now the bathroom’s filled with vapour,

And the vapour-bath I’ve heated,

And have steeped the bath-whisks nicely,

Choosing out the best among them.

Bathe, O brother, at your pleasure,

Pouring water as you need it,

Wash your head to flaxen colour,

Till your eyes shine out like snowflakes.”

Then the smith, e’en Ilmarinen,

Went to take the bath he needed,

There he bathed himself at pleasure,

And he washed himself to whiteness,

Washed his eyes until they sparkled,

And his temples till they glistened,

And his neck to hen’s-egg whiteness,

And his body all was shining.

From the bath the room he entered,

Changed so much they scarcely knew him,

For his face it shone with beauty,

And his cheeks were cleansed and rosy.

Then he spoke the words which follow:

“Annikki, my little sister,

Bring me now a shirt of linen,

And the best of raiment bring me,

That I robe myself completely,

And may deck me like a bridegroom.”

Annikki, the ever-famous,

Brought him then a shirt of linen,

For his limbs no longer sweating,

For his body all uncovered.

Then she brought well-fitting trousers,

Which his mother had been sewing,

For his hips, no longer sooty,

And his legs were fully covered.