The War of the Jewels (31 page)

Then he went again to Niniel's side, and said: 'It groweth late, Niniel. What wouldst thou do?'

'I know not,' said she. 'For I am adread. But could I overcome my shuddering, I would arise and go, and seek my lord; though I fear that he is dead.'

Then Brandir knew not what to answer; and he said: 'All is strange. Who shall read the signs? But if he lives, would he not go to Ephel Brandir, where he left thee? And the bridge of Nen Girith doth not lie on the only road, or the straightest, thither from the place of battle.'

[$$329-32]

Then Niniel was roused at last, and she stood up, crying:

'Towards tidings I came hither, and yet all tidings I miss! Hath some spell been laid on me that I linger here?' And she began to hasten down the path from the bridge. But Brandir called to her:

'Niniel! Go not alone. I will go with thee. Thou knowest not what thou may find. A healer thou mayest need. But if the dragon lies there, then beware! For the creatures of Morgoth die hard, and are dangerous in death.'

But she heeded him not and went now as though her blood burned her, which before had been cold. And though he followed as he could, because of his lameness she passed away until she was out of his sight. Then Brandir cursed his fate and his weakness, but still he held on.

Night fell and all the woods were still; and the moon rose away beyond Amon Obel, and the glades became pale. And Niniel ran on; but as she came down from the upland towards the river it seemed to her that she remembered the place, and feared it.

Thus Niniel passed the whole of the day at Nen Girith (in this earlier version she and the people with her had come there 'at the first breath of morning', commentary on $323, and Glaurung was slain in the morning); when Brandir perceived that it was cold and cast his cloak about her it was the second evening, whereas in the final story it was the night of Glaurung's death (and no long time can elapse between his death, Brandir's coming to Nen Girith, and Niniel's running down to Cabed-en-Aras). A further important divergence, among many other differences of detail, is that in the earlier all the people fled from Nen Girith, leaving Niniel alone. But from this point the draft manuscript and the final manuscript become closely similar.

$332. In NE (p. 136), as also at the end of the earlier version given in the commentary on $$329 - 32, 'the moon rose beyond Amon Obel'.

The sketch-map in Unfinished Tales (p. 149) is not well oriented: as is seen from revisions made to the second map (and so reproduced on my map to the published Silmarillion), Amon Obel was almost due east of the Crossings of Taiglin.

$333. There are, two points of detail to be mentioned in the text of NE corresponding to this paragraph. The words concerning the track that Brandir took to head off Niniel, 'went steeply down southward to the river' (p. 137), were an editorial change from the reading of the manuscript, which has 'went steeply down westward'. The change was made because it is expressly said here that it was the path that Turambar and his companions had taken earlier: cf. p. 131 'they turned southward by a narrow track'; but Mr Noad's clearly correct suggestion (see p. 157, $325) makes this emendation unnecessary. Secondly, in the words of Glaurung to Niniel at his death (p. 138) 'We meet again ere the end', 'ere the end'

is a simple error for 'ere we end'.

$334. '[She] ran like a hunted deer, and came to Cabed-en-Aras': the name Cabed-en-Aras referred to the actual ravine in the Taiglin, and (as I suggested in Unfinished Tales p. 150, note 27) it may be supposed that the death-leap of Glaurung had carried him a good distance beyond the further cliff, so that Niniel had some way to run to the ravine. The wording of NE is clearer: 'Swiftly she came to the brink of Cabed-en-Aras'.

$335. Cabad Naeramarth: in an earlier form of this passage in NE

(p. 138) the name was Cabad Amarth 'Leap of Doom'. In $$335, 346 Cabad was not corrected.

$$336-7. In Q there was no mention of Brandir's bringing the tidings to the waiting people. This was due to Q's compression, for it appears in the Tale (II.110); and his words in GA (deriving from NE) 'and those tidings are good' echo those in the Tale: 'and that is well; aye very well': in both, those who heard him thought that he was mad.

$$339-42. Q was here exceedingly compressed, saying only: 'he asked for Niniel, but none dared tell him, save Brandir. And Brandir distraught with grief reproached him; wherefore Turin slew him...'

The complex scene in NE and GA goes back in a very general way to the Tale (II.111); there also Turambar calls Tamar (Brandir) 'Club-foot', and it is this (as it appears) that leads him to tell all that he knows, which in turn incites Turambar to murder him, believing him to be lying out of malice.

$$346-7. In the Tale and Q the voice from the sword does not speak of Beleg or of Brandir. In NE as first written Turambar himself named them in his address to the sword: 'From no blood wilt thou shrink. Not from Beleg slain in madness, not from Brandir slain unjustly. That was a wicked deed, thou black sword. Do now a better and take Turin Turambar! Wilt thou slay me swiftly?' And the voice from the blade replied: 'Thy blood will I gladly drink.,For it is of the best, and sweeter will it seem than any that thou hast given me. Swift will I slay thee!' - echoing the words of Gurtholfin in the Tale, II.112; cf. also Q, IV.130.

$349. The sword was not broken in the Tale or in Q. - At the top of the manuscript page my father wrote hastily in pencil: 'Turin should slay himself on Finduilas' tomb' (cf. Unfinished Tales p. 150, note 28).

The conclusion of NE (p. 146) in the manuscript actually reads:

'Thus endeth the tale of the Children of Hurin [added:] as it was told in the Glaer nia [later > Narn i] Chin Hurin, the longest of all the lays of Beleriand.' The conclusion added afterwards to GA is thus almost exactly the same as that in NE, which does not however have the words 'and was made by Men'; with this cf. X.373.

NOTE 1.

Variant forms at the end of the tale of

the Children of Hurin.

There are, first, some rough draft texts that sketch out ideas for the denouement of the tragedy; there can be no doubt that they were all abandon d in favour of the actual ending in NE and GA. One of them, beginning as in NE p. 143 immediately after the slaying of Brandir, reads as follows: now cursing Middle-earth and all the life of Men, now calling upon Niniel. But when at last the madness left him, he walked still in the wild bent and haggard, and pondered all his life in his thought, and ever Niniel's image was before him. And now with opened eye he saw her, remembering his father: there in woman's form was his voice and his face and the bend of his brows, and his hair like to gold, even as Turin had the dark hair and the grey eyes, the [?pale cheek] and [illegible words] of Morwen his mother of the House of Beor. Doubt could not be. But how had it chanced? Where then was Morwen? Had they never reached the H[idden] K[ingdom]? How had they met Glaurung? But no, he dared never seek Morwen.

I believe that this was a soon abandoned idea that Turin could come, through his own reflections, to a recognition that what Brandir had said was true. It was displaced by the story of the coming of Mablung to the Crossings of Taiglin and meeting Turin there.

In two related passages my father entertained the idea that Turin met Morwen before his end. The first is very brief: And as he sat like a beggar-man near the Crossings of Taiglin, an old woman came by bowed on a stick; ragged she was and forlorn and her grey hair blew wild in the wind. But she gave him good-day, saying: 'And good day it is, master, for the sun is warm, and then hunger gnaws less. These are evil days for our likes: for I see by your bearing that, as I and so many, you have seen prouder days. In the summer we can drag on our lives, but who dare look beyond winter?'

'Whither go you, lady?' he said, 'for so methinks you were once wont to be called.'

'Nowhither,' she answered. 'I have long since ceased to seek what I missed. Now I took for naught but what will keep me over night to the next grey dawn. Tell me, whither goes this green road? Do any still dwell in the deep forest? And are they as fell as wanderers' tales tell?'

'What say they?' he asked.

This is followed on the manuscript page by 'now cursing Middle-earth and all the life of Men' &c., leading into a draft of the final version, where Mablung appears at the Crossings.

The second of these passages is longer, but only barely legible and in places altogether illegible. It begins in the same way as that just given, but Morwen's second speech ends at 'I look for naught beyond what will keep me through the cold night to next dawn.' Then Turin speaks:

'I seek not either,' said he. 'For what I had is now lost utterly and is gone from Middle-earth for ever. But what would you seek?'

'What would an old woman seek,' said she, 'out in the wild, but her children, even if all say they be dead. I sought for a son once, but he went long ago. Then I sought for my daughter, but 'tis five years since she was lost in the wild. Five years is a long time for one young and fair - if the Worm did not get her, the Orcs have [illegible], or the [? cold heedless] wild.'

Then suddenly T[urin]'s heart stood still. 'What like was your daughter, lady? Or what maybe was her name?'

The old woman told him that her daughter was tall, with golden hair and blue eyes, fleet-footed, a lover of all things that grow;

'... Yet a little she leaped in her words, as her sire did also. Nienor daughter of Hurin she would have named herself, an you asked her.

But maybe it would mean naught. For the name of Hurin was great

[illegible words] All- the realms [illegible words] are beaten down and mean folk or evil are lords. Yet you are of the older folk, I deem.

I see by thy face that the old name meant somewhat to thee still.'

Turin stared at her as a man that sees a ghost. 'Yea,' said he at last slowly. 'The name of Hurin of Hithlum and Morwen Baragund's daughter was known to me.

Of the remainder I can only read snatches: and Morwen and her daughter went to the Hidden Kingdom

[illegible] they say in Hithlum.' The old woman laughed bitterly.

'And what else did they say? That first Turin went there and was used by the king in his border wars and lost, but came to Nargothrond and that Morwen went to seek him there with tardy aid of Thingol, but [illegible words] by the great drake Glaurung.

[illegible words] Then she wept [illegible words]

This is clearly the beginning of another narrative route whereby Turin might learn the truth, likewise abandoned before it was developed. - A pencilled note shows the entry of the 'Mablung-intervention': Mablung searches and brings tidings to Thingol of Glaurung setting '

forth. This coincides with rumour (among orcs and wanderers) that the Black Sword has reappeared in Brethil. Mablung comes to Brethil (without orders from Thingol?) to warn Turin and bring news of Nienor and Morwen.

Morwen should go back to Thingol and then depart as a beggar in the wild.

Lastly, and very remarkable, there is the following synopsis of the end of the story, written carefully on a slip, apparently over the same or similar text set down very roughly in pencil: Turambar sets out. Asks for two companions. Dorlas volunteers, and speaks scorn of Brandir. Gwerin kinsman of Brandir volunteers.

Brandir is embittered. Turambar bids Niniel stay at home.

When T[urambar] has gone Niniel insists on following. Brandir forbids but she takes no heed. Brandir appears to the Men of Brethil, but they will not obey him - they beg Niniel to remain, but as she will not, they will not restrain her by force. The wives of Dorlas and Gwerin go with her. Brandir follows after them.

The slaying of the Dragon may be told more or less as already done. But when Niniel reaches Nen Girith shuddering again takes her, and she can go no further. The wives also are not willing to go on - for they meet the scouts at Nen Girith and learn how near the Worm is..... [sic]

When Turin draws his sword out of Glaurung's belly, Glaurung's blood burns his sword hand; also Glaurung speaks to him, and says that Niniel is his sister. Turin falls into a swoon of pain and horror.

The Dragon dies. Suddenly Niniel recovers her memory and all her past life is revealed to her. She sits aghast. Brandir sees her anguish, but believes that it is due to belief that Turin has been slain

- the dreadful cries of Glaurung have been heard at Nen Girith.

Niniel gets up to flee, and Brandir thinking that she will really go in search of Turin (while Glaurung is abroad) restrains her, saying Wait!

She turns to him, crying that this was ever his counsel, and to her sorrow she did not take it. But he may give that counsel once too often!

As indeed it proved. For at that moment Turin appears. When the Dragon died his swoon also departed, but the anguish of the venom on his hand remained. He came, therefore, to Nen Girith for help, believing the scouts there. (It is Turin that slays Dorlas on the way?) As Turambar appears, Niniel gives a wail, crying: 'Turin son of Hurin! Too late have we met. The dark days are gone. But night comes after!' 'How know you that name?' 'Brandir told me, and behold! I am Nienor. Therefore we must part.' And with that, ere any could hold her, she leapt over the fall of Nen Girith, and so ended, crying 'Water, water, wash me clean! Wash me of my life!'