Then the snow did Ukko scatter,
And the snowflakes soft were drifted,
Till the heath-stems all were covered,
On the ground the berry-bushes.
Then the smith, e'en Ilmarinen,
In his sledge of iron sat him,430
And he spoke the words which follow,
And in words like these expressed him:
"On my reins attend good fortune,
Jumala my sledge protecting,
That my reins good fortune fail not,
Nor my sledge may break, O Jumala!"
In one hand the reins he gathered,
And the whip he grasped with other,
O'er the horse the whip he brandished,
And he spoke the words which follow:440
"Whitebrow, speed thou quickly onward,
Haste away, O flaxen-maned one."
On the way the horse sprang forward,
On the water's sandy margin,
By the shores of Sound of Sima,
Past the hills with alders covered.
On the shore the sledge went rattling,
On the beach the shingle clattered.
In his eyes the sand was flying,
To his breast splashed up the water.450
Thus he drove one day, a second,
Drove upon the third day likewise,
And at length upon the third day,
Overtook old Väinämöinen,
And he spoke the words which follow,
And in words like these expressed him:
"O thou aged Väinämöinen,
Let us make a friendly compact,
That although we both are seeking,
And we both would woo the maiden,460
Yet by force we will not seize her,
Nor against her will shall wed her."
Said the aged Väinämöinen,
"I will make a friendly compact,
That we will not seize the maiden,
Nor against her will shall wed her.
Let the maiden now be given
To the husband whom she chooses,
That we nurse not long vexation,
Nor a lasting feud be fostered."470
Further on their way they travelled,
On the path that each had chosen;
Sped the boat, the shore re-echoed,
Ran the horse, the earth resounded.
But a short time passed thereafter,
Very short the time elapsing,
Ere the grey-brown dog was barking,
And the house-dog loudly baying,
In the gloomy land of Pohja,
Sariola, for ever cloudy,480
Sooner still the dog was growling,
But with less-continued growling,
By the borders of the cornfield,
'Gainst the ground his tail was wagging.
Then exclaimed the Lord of Pohja,
"Go, my daughter, to discover
Why the grey-brown dog is barking,
And the long-eared dog is baying."
But the daughter made him answer:
"I have not the time, my father,490
I must clean the largest cowshed,
Tend our herd of many cattle,
Grind the corn between the millstones,
Through the sieve must sift the flour,
Grind the corn to finest flour,
And the grinder is but feeble."
Gently barked the castle's Hiisi,
And again the dog was growling,
And again said Pohja's Master:
"Go, old dame, and look about you,500
See why barks the grey-brown house-dog,
Why the castle-dog is growling."