Chapters 1 through 5 Summary

As the story opens with "New Axes in the Forest," Karl Oskar Nilson is working in the forest near his house when he hears the sound of another axe in the forest. This is unusual because there are few near neighbors and the Indians of the region do not cut timber. Karl finds a man named Petrus Olausson nearby working at cutting timber for his house. Karl invites Petrus home with him to meet his wife, Kristina. Karl's house is on the shores of Lake Ki-Chi-Saga though the settlers soon shorten the name to Chisaga. When Karl arrives at the house with Petrus, three of Karl's young children come running to meet him. Petrus seems embarrassed by the fact that one of them, the youngest son named Dan, has on no pants. The older boy, Johan, says that Dan tore a...