The Giant Maiden in Boråseröd Mountain

Long ago, in the mountain of Boråseröd, which rises in the parish of Svarteborg, there lived a giant. Like all his kind, he vanished long ago when Christianity came to the land. Some say he died, but others believe he moved to Dovre in Norway, where the giants fled when the church bells disturbed their ancient peace.

Even today, a hollow in the mountain is called the giant's door, and within the mountain, people believe there are vaults piled high with the giant's gold. No one has ever dared to search for that treasure, and it is just as well, for blessings never follow the wealth of giants.

This giant had a daughter, so beautiful that any man who once saw her could never get her out of his mind. Among the few lucky enough to see her was a young peasant from the estate of Rom, which lay close by the mountain.

One day, as he was out searching for his straying horses, he suddenly came upon the wonderfully beautiful maiden. She was sitting on the mountainside in the sunshine, playing on her harp.

The peasant at once realized who she was, but he was not the kind to be easily frightened. Knowing that her father had great riches, and thinking it was no worse for him than for many others to marry into the giant family, he crept closer through the shrubbery until he was quite near. Then, quick as a thought, he threw his knife between her and the mountain. Since steel charms a troll or any other supernatural being, she was obliged, whether she liked it or not, to follow him to his home.

In the evening, when the giant missed his daughter, he set out to find her, and his search led him to Rom. Through the walls he heard the snores of two people, and when he had lifted the roof off the cottage, he saw his daughter sleeping in the arms of the young man.

"Are you there, you whelp!" he hissed. "Has it come to this?" he added. "So be it, then; but I demand that the wedding shall take place before the next new moon. If you can then give me as much food and drink as I want, all your offspring shall be made rich and powerful. Otherwise, I will have nothing to do with you."

Preparations were hastily made by the young man's parents for the wedding, and neighbors and relatives came from far and near, laden with provisions. Since a great number were expected to attend, it was decided to hold the ceremony in the Church of Tosse. But the day before the wedding, such a great freshet came that it seemed impossible for the bridal carriage to cross the swollen creek between Duigle and Barby. The giant was equal to the emergency. With his wife, he went to Holmasar in Berffendalen and fetched a large slab of stone and four boulders to the creek. The giant carried the slab under his arm, and his wife carried the boulders in her mitten. And so they built the stone bridge that still spans the creek to this day.

When the bridal pair came from the church to the banquet hall, the giant appeared and seated himself at the table with the rest of the guests. Although the bridal couple did everything possible to find him enough to eat, the giant declared, when he left the table, that he was only half satisfied, and therefore only half of the family would become great people. Wishing to give the bride a proper wedding present, he cast a sack of gold and silver upon the floor, which the couple would receive if the son-in-law could carry it up to the loft. Stealthily, the bride gave her husband a drink that made him so strong that he threw the sack onto his back and, to the surprise of all, carried it out of the room. Thus the newlywed pair became owners of an abundant treasure with which to begin their life.

For some time, the young couple lived in plenty and happiness, but soon the husband began to be irritable and abusive. It came to such a pass that he took a whip to his wife. She, nevertheless, continued to be mild and patient as before. But one day, he was about to start on a long journey. When the horse was hitched to the wagon, he noticed that the shoe was gone from one of the hind feet. It would not do to venture on such a journey without first replacing the shoe. Here, however, was a difficulty: he had only one shoe, and that was too large. Whereupon he began again to scold and swear.

The wife said nothing, but quietly took the shoe between her hands and squeezed it together as if it were lead, reducing it to the required size. Her husband looked upon her in astonishment and alarm. At last he spoke to her:

"Why have you, who are so strong, submitted to abuse from me?"

"Because the wife should be submissive to her husband," said the giantess, mildly and pleasantly.

From that hour, the man became the most patient and indulgent husband in the whole region, and never again was a cross word heard from his mouth.

---

And there is still another tale told, about Gloshed's Altar. South of Thorsby Church, among the mountains, lies a shattered rock called Gloshed's Altar, about which an old tradition still lives on the lips of the people, as follows:

A long time ago, a man from the parish of Säfve went upon a Hollandish ship on a whaling cruise. After the vessel had been tossed about the sea for some time, land was one day sighted, and on the land was seen a fire that continued to burn for many days.

It was determined that some of the ship's crew should go ashore, in the hope that shelter might be found, and among those who went ashore was our hero. When the strand was reached, they found there an old man sitting by a fire of logs, trying to warm himself.

"Where did you come from?" asked the old man.

"From Holland!" answered the sailors.

"But where were you born?" he asked our hero.

"In Hisingen, in the parish of Säfve," he answered.

"Are you acquainted in Thorsby?"

"Yes, indeed!"

"Do you know where Ulfve Mountain lies?"

"I have often passed it, as the road from Göteborg to Marstrand over Hisingen and through Thorsby goes past there."

"Do the large stones and hills remain undisturbed?" asked the old man.

"Yes, except one stone, which, if I remember correctly, is toppling over," said the Hisinger.

"That is too bad! But do you know where Gloshed's Altar is, and does it remain sound?"

"Upon that point," said the sailor, "I have no knowledge."

Finally the old man continued: "If you will say to those who now live in Thorsby and Torrebräcka that they shall not destroy the stones and elevations at the foot of Ulfve Mount, and above all, to take care of Gloshed's Altar, you shall have fair winds for the rest of your voyage."

The Hisinger promised to deliver the message when he arrived home, whereupon he asked the old man his name, and how he, living so far from Thorsby, was so well acquainted with matters there.

"I'll tell you," said the old man. "My name is Thore Brock, and I at one time lived there, but was banished. All my relations are buried at Ulfve Mountain, and at Gloshed's Altar we were wont to do homage to our gods and to make our offerings."

Hereupon they separated. When the man from Hisinger returned home, he went about fulfilling his promise, and without knowing how, he soon became one of the principal farmers in the parish.