St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1888-09-16
The Original of "Hiawatha"
Found in the Finnish Epic
"Kalevala."
Longfellow Accused of Hav-
ing Stolen the Meter and
Plot Of
His Greatest Work From This
Fifth National Epic Of the
World.
The Literary Sensation Of the
Century Produced by the
Discovery.

New York Letter.
In the early part of the present cen
fury Topelius, Finnish scholar and
practicing physician, made great dis
cOvery. He collected eighty fragments
of the ''Kalevala," the grand poem of
Finland, fifth national epic of the world,
which for unknown ages had been float
ing on the stream of tradition. In 1S49
a brother physician, DR.. Elias Lourot,
published a complete version of the epic,
embracing fifty runes and almost $4,000
lines. Meanwhile it had passed into
other tongues--intO Swedish, French
and German-and become the literary
sensation of the age, Max Muller plac-
ing it side by side with the Ionian
songs, the Mahabharata, the Shahna-
meth and sthe Nibelungen. But to
English readers it remained I'M
known until Lon gfellow produced
his famous Indian Edda, 'Hia-
watha." Then the scholars fell upon
him with the cry of plagiarism and his
publisher became excited. sit will not
do" he said, ito let this thing go on
any longer" "How does the book sell?"
asked Longfellow. "Amazingly-the
sale is already equal to the combined
sales of your other books" "Then,"
said Longfellow, 81 think we ought to
be thankful to these critics. Let them
talk. Seems to me they are giving us
large amount of gratuitouS advertising.
Better let them alone" And let alone
they were; so, at least, the story runs.
prof " ~ pnrtnr of / .afaUattQ anl-
lege, was head and front of the
attacking party, and 10 this day he
continues his assaults. Americans
took but languid interest in the dis
cuSsiOn; they could make no compari-
sons between the two works, as no
English translation of the 'Kalevala"
was then in existence, and it was not
until years afterward QS6S) that Prof.
John A. Porter, of Yale college, pub
lished beautiful rendering of small
portion of it, single episode. This
difficulty no longer exists. The entire
epic has been translated into the best of
English by DR., j. NJ. Crawford. of Gin
cinnati, and published handsomely in
two octave volumes by John B. Alden,
New York.
is LONGFELLOw GUILTY?
One thing Is sure, that the peculiar
meter of the two poems-rhymeles
trOchaic dimeter with Oriental repeti-
tiOn-is the same. On this point the
German poet, Freiligrath, LOngfelIow's
friend, once wrote: II will not say that
'Hiawatha' is written in the old national
meter of Finland; but there can be no
doubt that it is written in modified
Finnish meter. Apart from all internal
evidence, which is of itself sufficient to
put the matter beyond all question, |
may mention that in the summer of 1912,
when Mr.. LOngfellOw was on the Rhine,
we often amused ourselves with the at
tractive meter and the quaint subjects
of the songs of Finland" This matter
of verse, we take it, is now beyond dis
pute; and even cOnceding the ques-
ton of inspiration, the worst that Prof,
Porter of Lafayette, can say against
LOnfellow is, in his own words, that
1.-The Indebtedness of this so-called
purely American epic to the Children
of SOumi' is of such magnitude that it
not only deserved but had right to
acknowledgements"
'rhe national epic of Soumi (Finland),
not only as being the model of ''Hia-
watha," but in length and strength of
structure, in ancient and original flavor,
in the fascination of its folk lore, is in
fnitely the greater poem. 1t comes
down from the mythical age, preserved
by MINISTRIES, laden with the rare and
curious solutions of poetical people of
the problems of nature, the origin of
things, the enigmaS of human tears. And
lit represents" says DR.. Crawford,
mot only poetry, but the entire wisdom
and accumulated experience of a ma
ton" The Kalevsla (the Land of He
roes) relates the ever-varying contests
between the Fins and the ''darksome
Laplanders." The three main person.
ages, WainamOinen, the ancient singer;
Ilmarinen, the eternal fOrgeman, and
Leniminkaimen, the reckless wizard,
are conceived as being of divine origin,
and most all of the acting characters
superhuman. The power of magic
is striking feature of the
poem; Wainamoinen's songs dis
arm his opponents-they quiet the
angry sea, and they give warmth to the
new sun and the new moon which his
brother, Ilmarmen, FORCES from the
magic metals. Birds, beasts, fishes and
serpents, as we'll as the sun and the
moon, are either kind or unkind; drops
of blood find speech; ships and trees
and waters have magic powers.
THE DEADLY PARALLEL COLUMN.
After countless adventures, Wanna
mOinen takes his departure at the birth
of the Christ-child. whom he baptiZeS.
Hiawatha. it will be remembered, after
leading similar life, retireS at the APP
proach of the Jesuit missionary, 1.-The
Black Robe chief, the Paleface," who
came to the people, and
Told them of the Virgin Mary
And her blessed Son, the Savior
Compare the departure of the two
heroes:
wAINAMoINEN. HIAwATHA.
Thus the ancientlOn the shore stood
Wainamoinen, Hiawatha,
In his copper-banded Turned and waved his
vessel, hand at parting;
Left his tribe in Kale- On the clear and lu-
vala, minous water
Sailing DER the rolling Launched his birch
pillows, canoe for sailing;
0"' azure s TaporH 't Sailed into the fiery
Sailing through the sunset,
dusk of evening, Sailed into the purple
Sailing to the fiery vapors,
sunset, Sailed into the dusk
To the higher-landed of evening;
regions, And the people from
To the lower verge OF the margin
heaven. Watched him floating,
Quickly gained thu risking, sinking,
far horizon, Fill the birch canoe
Gained the purple-col seem lifted
ored harbor, High into the sea of
There his bark he splendor.
firmly anchored lI1ll II sank into the
Rested in his boat OF vapors,
copper: Like the new mo oh,
But he left his harp of slowly, slowly
magic, Sinking in the purple
Left his songs and distance.
wisdom sayings,
To the lasting joy OF
Suomi.
Finally, it is possible to scent the rich
flavor of the epic in this episode OF
WainamOinen'S sowing:
Wainamoinen, wise and ancient
Made himself an AK for chOpping,
Then began to clear the forest,
Then began the trees TO level,
Felled the trees of all descriptions,
Only left the birch tree standing,