Heroic Ballads of Servia
Translated by George Rapall Noyes & Leonard Bacon
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The opening
THE BUILDING OF SKADAR
ONCE there were three born brothers, a hold that had begun — The three sons of Marnyava. Vukashin the king was one, The second was Voyvoda Uglyesha, and Goyko the third was he; And Skadar on the Boyana were they building busily. With fifteen score of masons three long years labored they, But they could not for the fortress the strong foundations lay, Much less raise up the wall thereof, for what was set upright By the masons in the morning, a vila wrecked at night. The vila called from the mountain in the spring of the fourth year:
“Plague not thyself, Vukashin, and squander not thy gear! King, thou canst not for the fortress the strong foundation lay, Much less raise up the wall thereof, until upon a day Come news of Stoya and S toy an, for like names have the twain; Sister they are and brother. Into the wall amain Shalt thou wall them. And the fortress shall be stablished in the land.”
Vukashin heard. To Desimir he issued his command:
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About this edition
- The words
- George Rapall Noyes & Leonard Bacon's English translation, copied word for word.
- Left out
- The title page and opening pages before chapter 1
- Notes and pages added by translators, editors or publishers
- A preface, foreword or afterword
- Page numbers and running heads from the printed pages, in 7 places
- The half title (“HEROIC BALLADS OF SERVIA”)
- The scanned copy's end leaves and the library's binding slip (University of Toronto Library) (6 blocks)
- A speck read as characters by the OCR (“0”)