SIEGFRIED WINS THE TREASURE
Now this is what befell the Prince.
In his wanderings he reached the country called Isenland, where the
warlike but beautiful Queen Brunhild reigned. He gazed with wonder at
her castle, so strong it stood on the edge of the sea, guarded by
seven great gates. Her marble palaces also made him marvel, so white
they glittered in the sun.
But most of all he marvelled at this haughty queen, who refused to
marry any knight unless he could vanquish her in every contest to
which she summoned him.
Brunhild from the castle window saw the fair face and the strong limbs
of the hero, and demanded that he should be brought into her presence,
and as a sign of her favour she showed the young Prince her magic
horse Gana.
Yet Siegfried had no wish to conquer the warrior-queen and gain her
hand and her broad dominions for his own. Siegfried thought only of a
wonder-maiden, unknown, unseen as yet, though in his heart he hid an
image of her as he dreamed that she would be.
It is true that Siegfried had no love for the haughty Brunhild. It is
also true that he wished to prove to her that he alone was a match for
all her boldest warriors, and had even power to bewitch her magic
steed, Gana, if so he willed, and steal it from her side.
And so one day a spirit of mischief urged the Prince on to a gay
prank, as also a wayward spirit urged him no longer to brook Queen
Brunhild's haughty mien.
Before he left Isenland, therefore, Siegfried in a merry mood threw to
the ground the seven great gates that guarded the Queen's strong
castle. Then he called to Gana, the magic steed, to follow him into
the world, and this the charger did with right good-will.
Whether Siegfried sent Gana back to Isenland or not I do not know, but
I know that in the days to come Queen Brunhild never forgave the hero
for his daring feat.
When the Prince had left Isenland he rode on and on until he came to a
great mountain. Here near a cave he found two little dwarfish
Nibelungs, surrounded by twelve foolish giants. The two little
Nibelungs were princes, the giants were their counsellors.
Now the King of the Nibelungs had but just died in the dark little
underground town of Nibelheim, and the two tiny princes were the sons
of the dead king.
But they had not come to the mountain-side to mourn for their royal
father. Not so indeed had they come, but to divide the great hoard of
treasure which the King had bequeathed to them at his death.
Already they had begun to quarrel over the treasure, and the twelve
foolish giants looked on, but did not know what to say or do, so they
did nothing, and never spoke at all.
The dwarfs had themselves carried the hoard out of the cave where
usually it was hidden, and they had spread it on the mountain-side.
There it lay, gold as far as the eye could see, and farther. Jewels,
too, were there, more than twelve waggons could carry away in four
days and nights, each going three journeys.
Indeed, however much you took from this marvellous treasure, never did
it seem to grow less.
But more precious even than the gold or the jewels of the hoard was a
wonderful sword which it possessed. It was named Balmung, and had been
tempered by the Nibelungs in their glowing forges underneath the glad
green earth.
Before the magic strength of Balmung's stroke, the strongest warrior
must fall, nor could his armour save him, however close its links had
been welded by some doughty smith.
As Siegfried rode towards the two little dwarfs, they turned and saw
him, with his bright, fair face, and flowing locks.
Nimble as little hares they darted to his side, and begged that he
would come and divide their treasure. He should have the good sword
Balmung as reward, they cried.
Siegfried dismounted, well pleased to do these ugly little men a
kindness.
But alas! ere long the dwarfs began to mock at the hero with their
harsh voices, and to wag their horrid little heads at him, while they
screamed in a fury that he was not dividing the treasure as they
wished.
Then Siegfried grew angry with the tiny princes, and seizing the magic
sword, he cut off their heads. The twelve foolish giants also he slew,
and thus became himself master of the marvellous hoard as well as of
the good sword Balmung.
Seven hundred valiant champions, hearing the blast of the hero's horn,
now gathered together to defend the country from this strange young
warrior. But he vanquished them all, and forced them to promise that
they would henceforth serve no other lord save him alone. And this
they did, being proud of his great might.
Now tidings of the slaughter of the two tiny princes had reached
Nibelheim, and great was the wrath of the little men and little women
who dwelt in the dark town beneath the earth.
Alberich, the mightiest of all the dwarfs, gathered together his army
of little gnomes to avenge the death of the two dwarf princes and
also, for Alberich was a greedy man, to gain for himself the great
hoard.
[Illustration: Seizing the magic sword, he cut off their heads]
When Siegfried saw Alberich at the head of his army of little men he
laughed aloud, and with a light heart he chased them all into the
great cave on the mountain-side.
From off the mighty dwarf, Alberich, he stripped his famous Cloak of
Darkness, which made him who wore it not only invisible, but strong as
twelve strong men. He snatched also from the dwarf's fingers his
wishing rod, which was a Magic Wand. And last of all he made Alberich
and his thousands of tiny warriors take an oath, binding them evermore
to serve him alone. Then hiding the treasure in the cave with the
seven hundred champions whom he had conquered, he left Alberich and
his army of little men to guard it, until he came again. And Alberich
and his dwarfs were faithful to the hero who had shorn them of their
treasure, and served him for evermore.
Siegfried, the magic sword Balmung by his side, the Cloak of Darkness
thrown over his arm, the Magic Wand in his strong right hand, went
over the mountain, across the plains, nor did he tarry until he came
again to the castle built on the banks of the river Rhine in his own
low-lying country of the Netherlands.