maiden answered: 'Hast thou built the magic vessel, using neither
hand nor foot to touch it?'

'I have built it, and brought it hither,' answered Wainamoinen. 'It is
finely made by magic, and will live in the worst of storms; nothing can
ever sink it.'

But then the maiden said to him: 'I will not wed a husband born in the
sea. Storms would bring us trouble, and the winds rack our hearts. I
cannot go with thee, cannot marry thee, O Wainamoinen.'

[Illustration]

ILMARINEN'S WOOING

Just as Wainamoinen had received his answer, Ilmarinen came hurrying
into the house and into the guest-room. There servants brought him
honey-drink in silver pitchers, but he said: 'I will never taste the
drink of Northland till I see the Rainbow-maiden. With her I will gladly
drink, for I have come hither to seek her hand.' Then Louhi said to him:
'The maiden is not ready to receive thee, and thou may not woo her
before thou hast ploughed the field of hissing serpents. Once the evil
spirit Lempo ploughed it, but it has never been done since.'

Ilmarinen wandered off sadly, but while he was pondering over what he
should do, he saw the lovely maid herself. He went up to her and said:
'Long ago I forged the Sampo for thee, and then thou promised to become
my wife. But now thy mother demands that I first plough the field of
serpents before I win thee.' But the maiden comforted him, and told him
how to plough the field with a plough of gold and silver and copper.

So Ilmarinen went off and built a smithy, and placed in the furnace gold
and silver and copper and iron. And from these he forged a plough, with
ploughshare of gold and beam of silver and copper handles; and for
himself he made boots and gloves and armour of iron; and as he worked he
sang magic spells to give his work power to overcome the serpents. Then
he harnessed to the plough the fire-breathing Hisi-horse, and went into
the field. There were serpents of every sort, creeping and crawling over
one another, and hissing horribly, but Ilmarinen cast a spell over them,
and ploughed the field, so that all the snakes were buried in the
furrows. And then he went to Louhi, and claimed her daughter's hand.

But Louhi refused to let him have her daughter until he should catch the
great bear of Manala, and bring him to her. So he went off to the maid
again, and told her what old Louhi had demanded of him. The lovely
maiden instructed him how to prepare a muzzle for the bear, fo