A most mischievous and tricky god was Loki, always on the look-out to play some wicked prank which was sure to bring trouble upon himself or others. It was, indeed, a wonder that the other Asas put up with him so long in Asgard, but then, you see, he was Odin’s brother.
One day, when Loki was looking about him for diversions, he saw asleep in the sunlight Sif, the beautiful wife of Thor the Thunderer.
Now Sif was noted among all the dwellers in Asgard for her glorious hair, which hung down to her heels and was like a thick web of golden silk. When she stood up it covered her like a cloak, and when she lay down it was like a golden coverlet. Thor, her husband, thought it was the most beautiful thing in all the habitation of the gods.
Now mischievous Loki saw her sleeping under the gleaming mass of golden web, and he took a pair of sharp scissors and cut it all off close to her head, so that she looked quite bald and ugly.
When Thor came home and saw what had happened, he was wild with fury, and guessing at once who had done the deed, he stamped off to find Red Loki, vowing that he would break every bone in his body.
Then Loki, when he heard the thunder of Thor’s tramp and saw the lightning flash from his angry eyes, was terrified, and attempted to change himself into another shape, but before he could do so the wrathful god had gripped him by the throat and was shaking the life out of him.
“Let me go!” gasped Loki. “Let me go, and I will bring new hair for Sif ere the daylight’s gone.”
“Go, then,” roared Thor, “but mind, if you break your word you will have not only to reckon with me, but with Odin and Frey as well.”
Then, giving Loki a last shake, he sent him flying over the battlements and down the Rainbow Bridge like a falling star.
Now Loki was terrified at the result of his trick, and dread of the punishment that Odin might have in store for him, when he returned with the hair, began to assail him. So he determined to take back with him two presents, one for his mighty brother, and one for Frey, the god of the Golden Sunshine.
Leaping on to the earth, he quickly made his way through a hillside into the depths of the mountains, never stopping till he had reached the dark and gloomy district of Dwarfland.
For a time Loki could see nothing, though he heard on every side the tapping hammers and heaving bellows of the Little Men.
Presently, however, he distinguished a tiny furnace with its burning flame, and saw by its light a little squat figure, who pulled off his peaked cap and asked the visitor what he wanted.
“I want you to make me three gifts,” said Loki, “one for Odin, and one for Frey, and the third must be golden hair that will grow upon Sif’s head.”
Now the dwarfs were anxious to keep on good terms with the gods, who could protect them against the giants, and so, when they heard Loki’s request, they readily agreed to make the three things. Accordingly, they set to work upon a pile of golden nuggets, and spun from them a mass of the finest gold thread, so smooth and soft that it looked like the loveliest hair. This they gave to Loki, telling him that directly it touched the head of Sif it would become as a natural growth.
“Now give me something for Odin,” said Loki, well pleased.
So the dwarfs set to work again, and presently fashioned the spear called Gungnir, which, however badly it might be aimed, was always sure to go straight to its mark.
Loki gratefully took the spear, and there now only remained the gift for Frey.
The dwarfs thought awhile, and then set to work upon a ship which, when pressed together, would fold up and go into one’s pocket, but which, when allowed to expand, would hold all the gods in Asgard and their horses, would sail through air as well as on water, and would always get a favourable wind directly it hoisted canvas.
Loki was immensely pleased with these gifts, and went away, declaring loudly that his dwarf friends were the cleverest smiths in all the world.
Now it so fell out that his words were heard by another dwarf, named Brock, who came and stood in his way and looked with scorn at the ship and the spear and the golden web which he carried in his hands.
“A clumsy lot of things you have there!” he jeered. “Why, my brother Sindri could make gifts that are far more wonderful than those.”
“My head against yours that he could not!” said Loki, getting angry.
“Done!” chuckled Brock with a leer, and forthwith they made their way to the underground cave where Sindri was at work in his forge.
Now Sindri was quite ready to take up the challenge, but only on condition that Brock would blow the bellows for him. Loki now began to feel uneasy, for he had hoped the dwarf would decline to compete when he heard what were the gifts he had to improve upon. But Sindri only wagged his long beard at them contemptuously, and Loki’s head began to tremble for the result of his wager.
So he determined to try and hinder the work.
Meantime Sindri had thrown a pigskin into the furnace, and had gone outside to find a magic charm, saying as he went:
“Blow, brother, blow with all thy might till I return, and stay not thy hand for an instant.”
Directly Loki heard this he changed himself into a great stinging fly, and lighting on Brock’s hand, he stung him with all his might. But the dwarf never stopped blowing, though he stamped and roared with pain. Then Sindri returned, and going to the furnace drew from it a golden boar of great size, which had the power of flying through the sky and scattering light from his golden bristles as he flew. But Brock did not know all this, and looked somewhat scornfully at the gift, saying, “I thought you could do better than this.”
“Wait a bit,” said Sindri, and with that he threw a lump of gold upon the fire and went out, charging his brother not to stop blowing for an instant. Then in flew Loki again, still disguised as a gadfly, and lighted on Brock’s neck and stung him so that the blood flowed. But though the dwarf yelled with pain he did not cease blowing.
The End, Part One