The Sage of Einar

Chapter 136: Plow start

At midday on the outskirts of the village, the vast majority of the members of the tribe were gathered around a platform.

Which had in front of her three bulls with silver rings. The animals did not seem to be very happy to be in front of the people but they did not dare to move.

Since if they did they would hurt their nose so they honestly stayed in their place, although in their eyes they reflected the hatred they had for humans.

When the Godi Asgot stood in front of everyone, he made them dressed in a white robe and wearing on his head a helmet made from the skull of a white bear.

At that moment the noise of some drums began to be heard so Asgot opened his hands. This caused Einar to climb up on the platform.

Who unlike Asgot was dressed in a white bearskin, on both sides were his wives who had a very similar outfit.

The three of them then stood in front of the crowd, Einar was holding a chicken in his hands, while Helmi had a censer which was leaving a trail of smoke.

Last but not least, Kassia was holding in her hands a half-full jug containing herbal liqueur.

Once all three were in position, Asgot walked over to Einar and handed him a gold dagger that was encrusted with some precious stones.

Einar then took the dagger and with the noise of the drums increasing he approached Kassia where once he arrived he took the hen by the neck and with the golden dagger he slaughtered her on the liquor jug.

Then the blood began to gush out of the hen, slowly filling the jar, when the hen stopped shaking and the jar was full.

Einar took a pen from him and with it he began to mix the contents of the glass, ending up low with his wives towards the field that they had cleaned in the night.

Once they were down, Kassia began to walk through the fields, using her pen to spread the contents of the jar.

Helmi also walked behind her, who, carrying the censer in her hands, left a somewhat mystical atmosphere, for her part Einar.

Just wait for his wives to finish spreading the contents of the jug on the field because he was a man he could not participate.

Because Kassia and Helmi were representing the goddess Freyja, who was in charge of fertility and crops.

So they had to continue the ritual alone because by doing it the whole tribe would be calm because the ritual was a guarantee that the cultivation would not have any problems in the course of its growth.

Kassia and Helmi continued pacing the field for a few minutes and once they reached the end of the field.

Kassia emptied what was left of the jug’s contents on the ground. At that moment they turned around and signaled to Einar.

Who quickly walked to where the bulls were tied up and with the help of Peder untied them to take them to the front of the field.

Seren, seeing that it was time for the bulls to show their strength, made a signal to the guards who were next to him to take the three yokes to where Einar was.

While she would carry with two more artisans, the metal sheets of the aradro which she would place on the yokes so that the bulls would begin to plow the field.

When Einar stood in front of the field with the three bulls, Seren with the help of the warriors and the craftswomen who accompanied her.

He began to place a leather strap on the bulls’ foreheads while on their necks he put a wooden hulk which was connected to two sticks that protruded from the sides of the bulls.

These held the aradro with which they would begin to make the furrows on the ground which would be used for planting.

Everyone who was present was extremely excited as it was the first time they saw that bulls would be used for more than just making piglets.

Although they were also curious about the way in which Einar had managed to tame those beasts with only a small ring in his nose.

When they finished preparing the hoop for the three bulls, Einar like the ropes that were tied to the three rings of the bulls’ noses and began to walk with them to where their wives were.

The bulls quietly followed Einar because if they stayed still, his nose rings would hurt them.

As Einar and the bulls advanced, great furrows were forming the land.

This made the tribesmen quite happy as they knew that with the bulls and the new tools that the herald had made, perhaps it would be possible to open new farmland near the village.

Which he had never achieved since they had already been plowing a single field for too long, so they could not take the liberty of opening new lands.

For if they did, the harvest would be delayed and due to the cold and unforgiving climate of the island, it was possible that all the time and effort invested would be wasted without being able to harvest a single grain.

With the strength of the three cows, in just a few minutes Einar arrived with his wives, whom he hugged, and at that moment everyone knew that the plowing ceremony had concluded.

Unlike other festivals, the plowing ceremony was more than anything, something that had to be done in silence, since the actions that were done were worth a thousand words.

The only people who stayed in place were those who had to start working plowing that field with the help of the bulls and those slaves who were going to start making a canal with which they would carry water from a stream near the field that was being plowed.

The person in charge of supervising the correct plowing of the field would be Seren, so when she arrived with Einar, he gave her the ropes of the three bulls.

“Remember that between every two hours you should let them rest for a while and give them water with some food as well.

As for the poop that they leave on the field, let a slave mix it with the earth as they will also be a fertilizer for the field.

You just have to avoid leaving them directly and uncovered because they are acidic, they can prevent the wheat that will be sown from ending up.

By the way, do not forget to place around the field once the furrows are made into a small channel.

Well, with it we will be able to irrigate the crops in a simpler way. “

Seren nodded and began to withdraw with the bulls, so Einar took advantage and started walking towards Duncan who would be the foreman to take care of the slaves made the small irrigation canal.

“Very well Duncan, come with me, I will show you from which part of the creek they must start digging.”

After saying those words Einar, his wives and Duncan began to walk “It will not be something complicated because for our fortune the stream is upland so it is enough to guide the water correctly.

Due to the time, you will have to use red brick and cement to cover the small channel that will have to be 50 centimeters deep.

So you will have to dig almost 60 centimeters because the partition and the cement coating should remove depth.

Remember that you should start from the bottom up, as Ibssen and Gerd are currently working to make four metal valves with which to regulate the amount of water.

Also, when they reach the halfway point, you will have to divide them into two parts, since from them there will be another two irrigation channels for some nearby fields that should be cleaned during the course of this month.

Due to the importance of this project, you can use the partitions that were planned to be used for the walls and the drainage system. “

Duncan scratched his chin as he looked at the path, which was quite direct and not too far from the field where the water would be supplied.

“Due to the cold and humidity, we have to place bonfires so that the cement dries faster, right?”

Einar nodded. “Like the drainage system, it doesn’t matter if you have to put it on the cement or partitions to get it to dry quickly.

Well, being a water channel it has no aesthetic value, just remember that you must make some holes in the steep steps because these will serve as the foundations so that the structure does not end up giving way due to the constant flow of water.

The structure must also have the shape of a slide, so the cement must be constantly cleaned so that the water can flow without problems.

When you have finished making the entire irrigation canal and only need to make the union with the stream, you will have to let me know so that we can make a small dam and can correctly capture the water.

Although we have arrived, what do you think of this stream, the water comes directly from the interior of the small slope so there is no danger that the water is contaminated.

Not to mention, there are even small fish in it, but it’s a shame they are too small to be fished. “

Duncan sighed and stretched out his hands as he enjoyed the beautiful scenery. “It’s quite beautiful and has an amazing view, though if I may add something.

I think this place would be perfect for a watchtower, as it has a privileged view of the village and nearby areas. “

Einar thought about what Duncan said and realized that because of the location and the terrain, a watchtower would be perfect.

1. Machine for plow 😉