came to a
pine-tree that was even taller than the aspen was. Sampsa struck a blow
with his axe, and at the same time asked the pine-tree if it would
furnish good timber for Wainamoinen's boat. But the pine-tree answered:
'All the ships that have been made from me are useless. I am full of
imperfections, for the ravens live among my branches and bring
ill-luck.'

And Sampsa was obliged to leave the pine-tree and go on until he came to
a tremendous oak-tree, whose trunk was thicker than the height of even
the tallest men. And he asked the oak-tree if it would furnish wood for
Wainamoinen's boat. 'I will gladly furnish the wood,' replied the
oak-tree, 'for I am tall and sound and strong. The warm sun shines upon
me for three months in the summer, and the sacred cuckoo dwells in my
branches and brings good fortune.' So Sampsa quickly felled the oak, and
brought the timber, skilfully hewn, to Wainamoinen.

The wise magician Wainamoinen then began to put his boat together by the
aid of magic spells. The first magic song that he sang joined the
framework together, and the second song fastened the planking into the
ribs, and the third put the rowlocks in place and made the oars. But,
alas! when all this was done, there were still three magic words needed
to complete the stem and stern and bulwarks.

Wainamoinen saw that all his labour was in vain unless he found the
three magic words, for unless the stern and stem were fastened and the
bulwarks built, the boat could never put to sea. He pondered long over
where he might find the lost words, and after a while he concluded that
they might be found in the brains of swallows and the heads of swans and
the plumage of the sea-duck. But though he killed great numbers of these
birds, he could not find the three lost words. Then he thought that he
might find them on the tongues of reindeers or of the squirrels; but
though he killed great numbers of them, and found many words on their
tongues, the three lost words were not there.

Then he said to himself: 'I will seek the lost words in the kingdom of
Manala; there are countless words to be found there in the Deathland.'
So off he went, travelling for three weeks over hill and dale, through
marshes and thickets, until at length he came to the river of Tuoni.
There he called out in a voice like thunder: 'Bring a boat, O daughter
of Tuoni, and ferry me over this black and fatal river.'

Tuoni's daughter, a wee little dwarf, but very wi