Hark! the moon is to the day-star calling:
“Morning star! say, where hast thou been wandering;
Tell me where thou hast so long been lingering;
Where hast white days three so wasted,—tell me?”
To the moon, anon, the day-star answer’d:
“I have wander’d, moon! and I have linger’d,
Lingered o’er Belgrad’s white towers, and wondered
At the marvellous things which I have witness’d:
How two brothers have their wealth partitioned,
Jakshich Dmitar and Jakshich Bogdana.
They had thus arranged the shares allotted,
Well their father’s substance had divided:
Dmitar took Wallachia [59a] for his portion,
Took Wallachia and entire Moldavia; [59b]
Banat also, to the river Danube.
Bogdan took the level plains of Sermia,
And the even country of the Sava;
Servia, too, as far as Ujitz’s fortress.
Dmitar took the lower fortress’d cities,
And Neboisha’s tower upon the Danube;
Bogdan took the upper fortress’d cities,
And the church-possessing town, Rujitza.
Then a strife arose about a trifle,—
Such a trifle; but a feud soon follow’d,—
A black courser and a grey-wing’d falcon!
Dmitar claims the steed, as elder brother
Claims the steed, and claims the grey-wing’d falcon.
Bogdan will not yield or horse or falcon.
When the morning of the morrow waken’d,
Dmitar flung him on the sable courser,
Took upon his hand the grey-wing’d falcon,
Went to hunt into the mountain-forest;
And he call’d his wife, fair Angelīa:
“Angelia! thou my faithful lady!
Kill with poison thou my brother Bogdan;
But if thou refuse to kill my brother,
Tarry thou in my white court no longer.”
When the lady heard her lord’s commandments,
Down she sat all sorrowful and gloomy;
To herself she thought, and said in silence,
—“And shall I attempt it?—I, poor cuckoo!
Shall I kill my brother—kill with poison!—
’Twere a monstrous crime before high heaven,
’Twere a sin and shame before my people.
Great and small would point their fingers at me,
Saying,—‘That is the unhappy woman,
That is she who kill’d her husband’s brother!’
But if I refuse to poison Bogdan,
Never will my husband come to bless me!”
Thus she thought, until a thought relieved her;
She descended to the castle’s cavern,
Took the consecrated cup of blessing.
’Twas a cup of beaten gold her father
Had bestow’d upon his daughter’s nuptials;
Full of golden wine she fill’d the vessel,
And she bore it to her brother Bogdan.
Low to earth she bow’d herself before him,
And she kiss’d his hands and garments meekly.
“Lo! I bring to thee this cup, my brother!
This gold cup, with golden wine o’erflowing.
Give me for my cup a horse and falcon.”
Bogdan heard the lady speak complacent,
And most cheerfully gave steed and falcon.
Meanwhile through the day was Dmitar wandering
In the mountain-forest; nought he found there;
But chance brought him at the fall of evening
To a green lake far within the forest,
Where a golden-pinion’d duck was swimming.
Dmitar loosen’d then his grey-winged falcon,
Bade him seize the golden-pinion’d swimmer.
Faster than the hunter’s eye could follow,
Lo! the duck had seized the grey-wing’d falcon,
And against his sides had crush’d his pinion.
Soon as Dmitar Jakshich saw, he stripp’d him—
Stripp’d him swiftly of his hunting garments;
Speedily into the lake he plunged him,
And he bore his falcon from its waters.
Then with pitying voice he ask’d his falcon:
“Hast thou courage yet, my faithful falcon!
Now thy wings are from thy body riven?”
Whispering, said the falcon to his master:
“I without my pinions nought resemble,
But a brother riven from a brother.”
Then the thought pierced through the breast of Dmitar,
That his wife was charged to kill his brother.
Swift he threw him on his mighty courser—
Swift he hurried to Bijōgrad’s [62] fortress,
Praying that his brother had not perished.
He had hardly reach’d the bridge of Chekmel, [63]
When he spurr’d his raven steed so fiercely,
That the impetuous courser’s feet sank under,
And were crushed and broken on the pavement.
In his deep perplexity and trouble,
Dmitar took the saddle off his courser,
Flung it on the courser’s nether haunches,
And he fled alone to Belgrad’s fortress.
First he sought, impatient, for his lady—
“Angelia! thou my bride all faithful!
Tell me, tell me, hast thou kill’d my brother?”
Sweet indeed was Angelia’s answer:
“No! indeed, I have not killed thy brother;
To thy brother have I reconciled thee.”
THE BUILDING OF SKADRA. [64a]
Brothers three combined to build a fortress,
Brothers three, the brothers Mrljavchēvich,
Kral [64b] Vukāshin was the eldest brother;
And the second was Uglēsha-Voivode; [64c]
And the third, the youngest brother, Goiko.
Pull three years they labour’d at the fortress,
Skadra’s fortress on Bojana’s river;
Full three years three hundred workmen labour’d.
Vain th’ attempt to fix the wall’s foundation.
Vainer still to elevate the fortress:
Whatsoe’er at eve had raised the workmen
Did the Vila raze ere dawn of morning.
When the fourth year had begun its labours,
Lo! the Vila from the forest-mountain
Call’d—“Thou King Vukashin! vain thine efforts!—
Vain thine efforts—all thy treasures wasting!
Never, never wilt thou build the fortress,
If thou find not two same-titled beings,
If thou find not Stojan and Stojana: [65]
And these two—these two young twins so loving,
They must be immured in the foundation.
Thus alone will the foundations serve thee:
Thus alone can ye erect your fortress.”
When Vukashin heard the Vila’s language,
Soon he call’d to Dēssimir, his servant:
“Listen, Dessimir, my trusty servant!
Thou hast been my trusty servant ever;
Thou shalt be my son from this day onward.
Fasten thou my coursers to my chariot:
Load it with six lasts of golden treasures:
Travel through the whole wide world, and bring me,
Bring me back those two same-titled beings:
Bring me back that pair of twins so loving:
Bring me hither Stojan and Stojana:
Steal them, if with gold thou canst not buy them.
Bring them here to Scadra or Bojana:
We’ll inter them in the wall’s foundation:
So the wall’s foundations will be strengthened:
So we shall build up our Scadra’s fortress.”