This is the fifth part of an epic poem that itself is based on the first printed version of “The Skillful Huntsman,” published by the Grimm brothers in 1815. To get caught up, get a little back story about the form, as well as a brief primer on why I’m doing this, you can find links to previous versions below.
Part 1 – Part 2 – Part 3 - Part 4
7
The woodsmen assented. They decided to wait
For the Huntsman, who hefted a hook-rake
And fettled the lock. Fast it loosened.
His silence held inside the house;
No dogs were heard. No danger hovered.
Pale gleams painted a gallery
Amassed in the mansion’s master hall.
Axes and arbalests, armets and swords,
Matchlocks and rondelles, mausers and stilettos:
A stock of weapons, strange and wonderous
Near coats of arms and courtly emblems.
He held the hilt of a horn dagger,
But dropped the thought, drawing through the
Mansion’s expanses. More he explored,
Past sitting rooms, a supper hall
And private parlor. He peered across
A study lounge toward the stairs below.
He entered a kitchen, obscured but empty.
Amid the blocks and butcher’s mallets
He pulled and tried each tool displayed,
Then found his favor. Before he returned
To the manor’s gallery, he made again
For a small salon by the side he preferred.
A narrow window near the wall:
Its size and height served the Huntsman’s
Dark ideas. He drew it open.
Again at the gallery, he grabbed the door.
As the dogs lay dreaming, down he crept.
“Woodsmen!” he whispered. “Walk the shadows
In line to your left. I’ve unlocked a window
More suitable, you’ll grant, to serve our goals.
We’ll manage thus: I’ll meet you there
Once I’ve checked the western chambers,
Then call from the window. You’ll climb your way
Inside and soon, we’ll settle our arrangment.”
The group agreed. Again they withdrew.
The Huntsman hurried through halls between,
Then awaited the woodsmen by the window he chose.
The gang approached. Grabbing his prize
From the kitchen, he called them. They climbed in careful turns
Except
As every man drew near
The Huntsman braced and swept
Across from ear to ear
The boning knife he kept.
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