THE HEROES OF DOVREFELD. FROM THE OLD DANISH.
George Borrow translation
On Dovrefeld, [6] in Norway, Were once together seen The twelve heroic brothers Of Ingeborg, the queen:
And they were all magicians, Possest of mighty art, Who freely read the Runic, And knew the rhyme by heart. [7]
The first could turn the lightning, And quench its ruddy gleam: The second, with a whisper, Could still the running stream:
The third beneath the water Could dive like any fish: The fourth could get provision By striking on his dish:
The fifth upon the gold harp So pleasantly could play, That all the men who heard him Began to dance away:
The sixth, he had a bugle, And when he blew a blast, The stoutest of his foemen Would fly before him fast:
The seventh, unimpeded, Through solid hills could roam: The eighth could walk the ocean, When billows were in foam:
The ninth could draw, by magic, The fishes from the deep: The tenth was never weary, Nor overcome by sleep:
The eleventh bound the dragon Which crept among the grass; And all he wish’d to happen Was sure to come to pass:
The twelfth, who was reputed The wisest of the band, Knew what was going forward In every foreign land.
And now, forsooth, I tell ye, Who listen to my strain, That such a set of brothers Will ne’er be seen again.