ch he always misuses. His history is a terrible tragedy,
which has been compared to that of OEdipus. He is, in part, the
prototype of Longfellow's "Kwasind." He is the principal hero of the
Esthonian ballads, in which he is called Kalevipoeg, the son of Kaiev
(Kaleva in Finnish), the mythical ancestor of the heroes, who does not
appear in person in the _Kalevala_. The history of the Kalevipoeg will
be found in my work entitled _The Hero of Esthonia_, published by Nimmo
in 1895, in two volumes. However, the Esthonians make him not a slave,
but a king. In the _Kalevala_ we meet with no kings, but only
patriarchs, or chiefs of clans.

The principal heroines of the _Kalevala_ are Ilmatar, the Daughter of
the Air, the Creatrix of the world, in the first Runo, whose counterpart
is Marjatta, the mother of the successor of Vainamoinen, in the last
Runo; Aino, a young Lapp girl beloved of Vainamoinen, whose sad fate
forms one of the most pathetic episodes in the _Kalevala_; Louhi, the
Mistress of Pohjola, or the North Country; and her daughter, afterwards
the wife of Ilmarinen. The character of the daughter of Louhi presents
three phases, which illustrate more than anything else the composite
character of the poem, for it is impossible that any two can have been
drawn by the same hand.

Firstly, we find her as the beautiful and accomplished daughter of the
witch, playing the part of a Medea, without her cruelty.

Secondly, we find her as a timid and shrinking bride, in fact almost a
child-bride.

Thirdly, when married, she appears as a wicked and heartless
peasant-woman of the worst type.

The heroes are all skilled in magic, and to some extent are able to
command or propitiate even the gods. A peculiarity of Finnish magic is
what is called "the word of origin."

To control or banish an evil power, it is sufficient to know and to
repeat to it its proper name, and to relate the history of its creation.

Before concluding the Introduction, it may be well to give a brief
summary of the principal contents of the fifty Runos of the poem.

Runo I. After a preamble by the bard, he proceeds to relate how the
Virgin of the Air descended into the sea, was tossed about by the winds
and waves, modelled the earth, and brought forth the culture-hero
Vainamoinen, who swims to shore.

Runo II. Vainamoinen clears and plants the country, and sows barley.

Runo III. The Laplander Joukahainen presumes to contend with Vainamoinen
in sing