In the Days of Giants: A Book of Norse TalesBrown, Abbie Farwell
General
In the Days of Giants: A Book of Norse Tales
Brown, Abbie Farwell
Mythology, Norse -- Juvenile literature
When the gods missed the silver voice of Kvasir echoing up from the
world below, they were alarmed, for Kvasir was very dear to them. They
inquired what had become of him, and finally the wily dwarfs answered
that the good poet had been drowned in his own wisdom. But Father Odin,
who had tasted another wise draught from Mimer's well, knew that this
was not the truth, and kept his watchful eye upon the dark doings of
Fialar and Galar.
Not long after this the dwarfs committed another wicked deed. They
invited the giant Gilling to row out to sea with them, and when they
were a long distance from shore, the wicked fellows upset the boat and
drowned the giant, who could not swim. They rowed back to land, and
told the giant's wife how the "accident" had happened. Then there were
giant shrieks and howls enough to deafen all the world, for the poor
giantess was heartbroken, and her grief was a giant grief. Her sobs
annoyed the cruel-hearted dwarfs. So Fialar, pretending to sympathize,
offered to take her where she could look upon the spot where her dear
husband had last been seen. As she passed through the gateway, the
other dwarf, to whom his brother had made a sign, let a huge millstone
fall upon her head. That was the ending of her, poor thing, and of her
sorrow, which had so disturbed the little people, crooked in heart as
in body.
But punishment was in store for them. Suttung, the huge son of Gilling,
learned the story of his parents' death, and presently, in a dreadful
rage, he came roaring to the home of the dwarfs. He seized one of them
in each big fist, and wading far out to sea, set the wretched little
fellows on a rock which at high tide would be covered with water.
"Stay there," he cried, "and drown as my father drowned!" The dwarfs
screamed thereat for mercy so loudly that he had to listen before he
went away.
"Only let us off, Suttung," they begged, "and you shall have the
precious mead made from Kvasir's blood."
Now Suttung was very anxious to own this same mead, so at last he
agreed to the bargain. He carried them back to land, and they gave him
the kettles in which they had mixed the magic fluid. Suttung took them
away to his cave in the mountains, and gave them in charge of his fair
daughter Gunnlöd. All day and all night she watched by the precious
kettles, to see that no one came to steal or taste of the mead; for
Suttung thought of it as his greatest treasure, and no wonder.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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