Hero Tales and Legends of the Serbians Part 18

King Voukashin [63] of Skadar on Boyana [64] wrote a book [65] and dispatched it to Herzegovina, to the white city of Pirlitor [66]

opposite the mountain Dourmitor. He wrote it secretly, and secretly he dispatched it to the hands of beauteous Vidossava, the lonely consort of Vovode Momtchilo. These were the words in the book:

"Hail Vidossava, Momtchilo's consort! Why dost thou dwell in the midst of ice and snow? When thou lookest up from thy castle walls thou seest Mount Dourmitor adorned with ice and snow, yea, even in summer as in mid-winter; when thou lookest down, lo! thither rushes thy turbulent River Tarra carrying on its waves wood and stones. There are no fords, neither are there bridges to span it; around it are only pine-trees and fragments of rock. Why shouldst thou not give poison to thy husband or betray him unto me? Then mightest thou fly to me on this level sea-coast in my white city on Boyana. I will gladly espouse thee and thou shalt become my queen. Thou shalt spin silk upon a golden spindle, sit upon silk cushions and wear velvet embroidered with gold. And how glorious is this city of Skadar on Boyana! When thou lookest upon the fertile slopes above the walls thou wilt see innumerable fig-trees and olive-trees, and vineyards full of grapes; when thou lookest beneath, behold! the plain will be white with nodding wheat, and green with the verdure of the meadows. Through the meadows green-limpid Boyana is flowing; in its stream are all kinds of fish which thou wilt have served fresh at table when thou dost so desire."

Vidossava's Treachery

When Vidossava had read the book she wrote a reply in fine characters: "My Lord, thou King Voukashin! It is not an easy task to betray Vovode Momtchilo, still less is it easy to poison him. Momtchilo has a sister, by name Yevrossima, who prepares his dishes and partakes of each before him. He has nine brothers and twelve first cousins who pour wine into his golden cup; they always drink before him of each draught. Also, O king! Vovode Momtchilo possesses a steed named Yaboutchilo; it has wings and can fly any distance its master wishes. Nor is this all! My spouse has a sword adorned with diamonds as big as a maiden's eyes; with this, he fears no one but G.o.d. But attend to me, O King Voukashin! Gather a numberless army together; bring thy heroes to the lake, and hide there in the woods. It is Momtchilo's custom to hunt each Sunday morning; he rides out with his nine brothers and his twelve cousins, and attended by forty guards from his castle. On the eve of next Sunday I will burn off Yaboutchilo's wings; the jewelled sword I will dip in salted blood that Momtchilo may not be able to unsheath it: thus thou shalt be able to vanquish him."

When this book reached King Voukashin's hands, his heart rejoiced and he a.s.sembled a large force and marched to Herzegovina. He marched to the lake by Momtchilo's castle, where he hid in the neighbouring woods.

On the eve of Sunday, Momtchilo retired to his bed-chamber to rest upon the silken cushions, when lo! his consort came to him. She did not lay on the cushions, but stood by her spouse and her tears fell upon his head. Feeling the warm tears upon his knightly cheeks, the Vovode looked up and said: "O Vidossava, my faithful consort! What great trouble afflicts thee, that thou shouldst shed tears upon my head?"

And Vidossava answered: "My Lord, thou Vovode Momtchilo! I have no trouble but for thee! I have heard tell of a marvel which I have not seen with my own eyes. It is said that thou hast a wondrous winged steed but I cannot believe the story. It is some evil portent, and I fear thou wilt perish!"

The Winged Horse

Momtchilo was usually cautious, but this time he fell into the trap. "Vidossava, my dear consort," said he, tenderly, "if that be all thy trouble I will easily console thee. Thou shalt see the wings of my steed Tchile: [67] when the first c.o.c.ks crow go down to the new stables, Tchile will then unfold his wings, as thou wilt see."

Saying this, he composed himself once more to slumber. But not so Vidossava. She watched to hear the first rooster's crow, and at the sound she sprang to her feet, lit a lantern and a candle, took some fat of mutton and some tar, and hurried to the stables. And behold! she saw Yaboutchilo unfold a pair of wings which reached down to his hoofs. Vidossava anointed the pinions with the fat and tar and set fire to them with the flame of her candle. What did not burn she bound tightly under the belt of the steed. This done, she, the youthful one, went to the armoury and dipped Momtchilo's favourite sword into salted blood. Then she returned to her consort's chamber.

Momtchilo's Dream

At daybreak Momtchilo awoke and spake thus to Vidossava: "Vidossava, my beloved spouse! I have had this night a strange dream: there appeared suddenly a cloud of fog from the accursed land of Va.s.soye and wrapped itself round Dourmitor. I rode through the cloud with my nine darling brothers and twelve first-cousins, together with my forty guards. In that fog, O my darling Vidossava! we lost sight of each other, never to meet again! G.o.d alone knows what this dream means, but I have a presentiment that some evil will befall us soon!"

Vidossava endeavoured to rea.s.sure her lord. "Do not fear, my darling lord!" she said; "dreams are false, G.o.d is true!"

The Ambuscade

Momtchilo attired himself for hunting and walked out from his white tower to the courtyard, where his nine brothers, twelve cousins, and forty guards awaited him. His spouse led to him his Yaboutchilo; he sprang to the saddle, and without more ado rode with his followers to the hunt. All unsuspecting, they reached the lake, when suddenly a great force surrounded them. Momtchilo grasped his sword, but, alas! he was unable to unsheathe it. Then he exclaimed bitterly: "Hark, my beloved brethren! My consort Vidossava has betrayed me; give me a sword!"

Speedily his brothers obeyed; they gave him the best sword they had. Then Momtchilo said again: "Listen, my beloved brothers: ye shall attack the wings of the army and I will storm it in the centre."

G.o.d adored, what a mighty wonder! 'Would that some from among ye, brethren, [68] could have been there to see: how Vovode Momtchilo wielded his sword and cleared his way through the press of his foes!' Howbeit, more were crushed by Yaboutchilo than by the hero's sword! But, alas! a sad misfortune had befallen him: when he had gained clear of the foe his brothers' nine black steeds followed after him; but their saddles were empty!

When Momtchilo saw this his heroic heart burst from great sorrow for the loss of his nine beloved brothers: his sword-arm dropped limp at his side, and knowing that he could fight no more, he spurred Yaboutchilo, intending that he should unfold his wings and fly to his castle.

But, alas! for the first time his charger did not respond to the spur. Then Momtchilo spake reproachfully thus: "O Yaboutchilo, may wolves devour thee! Many times hast thou flown from here merely in pastime, and now when I am in sore straits thou wilt not fly!"

And the steed answered, neighing: "My Lord, mighty Vovode Momtchilo! Do not curse me, nor try to force me further. To-day I cannot fly! May G.o.d punish thy Vidossava! Last night she burnt the pinions of my two wings. What did not burn she tied tightly under my belt. O my beloved master! thou hadst better escape as thou mayest. I cannot help thee!"

When Momtchilo heard this, tears fell down his heroic visage. He alighted heavily from his well-loved Yaboutchilo; after a last caress he gathered himself together, and in three leaps he found himself before the portals of his castle. And lo! the ma.s.sive gates were closed and locked.

Brother and Sister

Seeing this, Momtchilo called aloud upon his sister: "O Yevrossima, my darling sister! Stretch down to me a roll of linen that I may climb the castle wall and escape ere my pursuers come up with me!"

Yevrossima heard the appeal and answered through copious tears: "Alas, my darling brother, thou Vovode Momtchilo! How can I drop down to thee a length of white linen, seeing that my sister-in-law, thine own faithless Vidossava, hath bound my hair to a beam?"

But sisters have soft hearts for their brothers, [69] and Yevrossima, for the sake of her only brother, jerked her head with such force that she left her hair on the beam; then she seized a length of linen, made one end fast, and threw the other end over the wall from the rampart. Momtchilo seized the linen and quickly climbed almost to the top of the rampart. He was on the point of springing into the fortress when his faithless spouse ran thither swiftly and, with a sharp sword, cut the linen above Momtchilo's hands.

By this time the forces of Voukashin had come up, and Momtchilo was precipitated upon their swords and lances. Seeing the hero fall, the king hastened to the spot, and with a fierce thrust ran him through the heart. So fiercely did he lunge that the end of the sword penetrated the wall.

The Death of Momtchilo

Vovode Momtchilo was a rare hero, and he was able to speak these last words to King Voukashin: "My last request to thee, O King Voukashin, is that thou shouldst not marry my faithless Vidossava, for she will betray thee also. To-day she hath betrayed me to thee; to-morrow she will deal with thee in like manner! Far better would it be to marry my dear sister Yevrossima, the loveliest of maidens. She will always be faithful to thee and will bear thee a hero like unto myself."

This spake Vovode Momtchilo, struggling with pale death: this he said and his soul flew heavenward.

The gates of the castle were now opened, and the faithless Vidossava came out to welcome King Voukashin. After she had greeted him she led the way to her white tower and gave him a seat at her golden table. She offered him fine wines and many lordly dishes. Then she went to the armoury and brought Momtchilo's armour and weapons. But, marvellous to relate! Momtchilo's helmet, which fitted him closely, fell down to King Voukashin's shoulders. One of Momtchilo's top-boots was big enough for King Voukashin's two feet. Momtchilo's golden rings were too large for three of King Voukashin's fingers together. Momtchilo's sabre was one whole yard too long when King Voukashin tried it on his belt!

The Punishment of Vidossava

Seeing all this, King Voukashin exclaimed: "Alas! Woe is me! May G.o.d forgive me! What a faithless monster this youthful Vidossava must be to betray such a hero, whose equal would be vainly sought throughout the whole world! How could I, the wretched one, expect such a woman to be faithful to me?"

So saying, he called loudly to his servants, who took Vidossava and bound her fair limbs to the tails of four horses and drove them from the castle Pirlitor. Thus, dreadful fate! she was torn to pieces alive.

Then the king pillaged Vovode Momtchilo's castle and led away Yevrossima to his palace at Skadar on Boyana. Later, he deserved her love and married her, and she bore unto him Marko and Andrias. Truly Marko inherited the heroism of Vovode Momtchilo, and thus his uncle's prediction was fulfilled.

Historical Note

Primitive as may be the customs ill.u.s.trated in this ballad of the fourteenth century, it is undoubtedly worthy of a place in my collection. It was taken down by Vouk St. Karadgitch from the lips of the Serbian bard, and I cannot sufficiently express my regret for my inability to convey in English the beautiful and audacious similes and the eloquent figures of speech which adorn the original.

The French mediaeval troubadour rarely chose as his theme the faithlessness of women; probably because incidents like the one described in our ballad were either unknown or too common to be considered interesting. But if the Serbian bards did not, excepting in this rare instance, sing of the fickleness and treachery of the weaker s.e.x, it was that Serbian public opinion could not suffer the contemplation of faithlessness on the part of either husband or wife. No doubt the bard, wandering from one monastery to another, found in some chronicle a few facts concerning the marriage of King Voukashin which he elaborated much as did the French troubadour who dealt similarly with the slender historic fact relative to the battle at Ronceval. The public opinion of the epoch is reflected in the barbarous punishment which the bard, moved by his austerity, inflicts upon Vidossava. It is interesting to note that in my researches I have not found one ballad in which faithlessness on the part of a husband occurs.