The saga of Grettir the Strong; a story of the eleventh century. Translated from the Icelandic by George Ainslie Hight

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EDITED BY ERNEST RHYS

ROMANCE

THE SAGA OF GRETTIR
THE STRONG • TRANSLATED
BY GEORGE AINSLIE HIGHT

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SAGA OF
GRETTIR^
THE STRONG

C^A STORY OF
THE ELEVENTH

•

TRANSLATED FROM
THE ICELANDIC
BY GEORGE ^3
AINSLIE HIGHT

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LondonJ-MDentSSonsiy
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INTRODUCTION

IN a recently published work the present translator had
occasion to observe that the Icelanders were, and had
been for a thousand years, the most literary nation in
the world, and that in their own special branch, that of
story-telling, they had no rival except in the Old Testa-
ment. Of their stories from the classical time, " Njala "
— published in Dasent's translation in Everyman's
Library — holds by universal consent the first place.
Next to it the translator would place Grettir's saga, or
" Gretla," as it is affectionately termed by Icelanders.

A reader who approaches the sagas for the first time
is apt to feel a little bewildered. They seem crowded
with people with uncouth names and ridiculous nick-
names, whose occupation is mostly divided between
murdering each other and riding to the Thing. In order
to read them with enjoyment and to appreciate the
consummate literary skill of their composition, it is
necessary to understand what an Icelandic saga is, and
how its form is determined by certain political events
in the North during the ninth, tenth, and eleventh
centuries.

In the earlier part of the ninth century, at the com-
mencement of what is known as the viking period, there
was no Norwegian nation, i.e. no government and no
king, but only a number of petty jarls or chiefs, each
continually at war with his neighbours and earning his
living by robbery and piracy. One of these chiefs,
named Harald, the son of Half dan the Black, afterwards
known as Harald Fairhair, conceived the idea of bringing
all the other chiefs into subjection under himself and
founding a kingdom of Norway. After a long struggle he
was successful, and from the final battle of Hafrsf jord in
872, described in Chapter II. of our saga, his sovereignty

vii

viii Grettir the Strong

was undisputed. Many of the defeated jarls refused
allegiance to the king, having no mind to " beg for that
which they had once possessed in their own right."
To these no choice was left but to sail away to other
lands, especially " west over the sea," i.e. to Scotland,
Orkney, Shetland, and Faroe islands, from which points
of vantage they continued their piratical raids on the
coasts of Norway until at last Harald hunted -them
down in their new homes and drove them, or at least
some of them, to seek refuge elsewhere, still further
north, in the almost uninhabited Iceland, where land
was to be had in plenty, and where each might be a
lord unto himself and his followers, acknowledging no
superior. Thus was the Icelandic community founded, !
and Norway drained of its best blood.

Under such conditions, in the absence of any central
government, it was inevitable that bloodshed and
robbery should be in the regular order of the day.
Within the tribe, the so-called godord, order was main-
tained by the chief, the godi, but towards outsiders the
law was that of the strongest. Feuds arose between
rival families, and one murder was avenged by another.
Yet it would be wrong to describe the state of the
country as lawless. The feeling for legal propriety was
excessively strong among the members of the com-
munity; only there was no authority to make laws
and no police to enforce them when made, so that it
was always in the power of one hot-headed chief to set
the whole country in an uproar. It was this that led
to the institution in 930 of a rough code of laws and
the foundation of the All-Thing, an assembly of the free
men of the land every summer at Thingvellir in the
south-west for the settlement of public questions. From
this time forward the whole life of the Icelander revolved
round the yearly meeting of the All-Thing, which every
bondi was bound to attend with his followers. Thither
he brought his complaints, there he settled his case
with his adversary; there too he met and drank with
his kinsmen and comrades from all parts of the island.
Sentences were passed by the Thing, of fine, outlawry
or banishment, but — and this was its vital weakness —

Introduction ix

it had no power to enforce its decrees, and if any chief
felt himself strong enough he could defy public opinion,
and even overawe the Thing itself. The Lawman, a
sort of legal expert or attorney-general, appointed when
the All-Thing was founded, could only express an opinion,
and notwithstanding the weight which it carried with
the assembly at large, it was liable to be over-ruled by
powerful interests on the other side.

We need not follow the history of the All-Thing, how
its powers were extended from time to time and its pro-
cedure amended. In the year 1000 Christianity was
formally accepted as the religion of the community.
Grettir and his contemporaries were Christians, but
the old poetry of heathenism still clung to the people,
and the " landvaettir," driven to the inaccessible glaciers
and lava-deserts, still brought help and companionship
to the hunted outlaw, or descended to the fertile valleys
as malignant spirits, blighting the lives of the noble.

The diversions of all primitive societies are the same:
" Singen, Sagen und Tanzen." In the long winter
evenings of those northern regions, as men sat drinking
in the hall of godi or chieftain, the one delight was story-
telling. And of what did they tell ? Of what else but
the old days in Norway, how their ancestors had defied
the "tyrant" and fought against him; of how, when
vanquished but not subdued, they sailed away " west
over the sea," and came at last to Iceland; how they
met with old friends in the same plight with themselves
and how they helped each other in their need; of the
lands which they occupied, their exact position and
extent, points so important for the title-deeds of their
posterity. When some new Thorsteinn or Thorgeir was
introduced, his descent from a first settler must be told ;
then people knew who he was. The names of these
first settlers were sacred; Onund Treefoot, Aud the
Deep-Minded, Skallagrim and Thorolf Mostrarskegg
were to the Icelander what Abraham and Isaac, Moses
and Joshua were to the Israelite, and of far deeper
import than then: great-grandsons, the heroes of the
sagas. Grettir made romance, but Onund made history.

Thus do all the greater sagas begin. The first

Grettir the Strong

chapters, to us so dreary, are the germ from which the
whole story grew. The account was continued to the
descendants of the heroic age, and as time went on more
was added.

The Icelandic sagas, then, are biographies of eminent
men, but they are biographies in the grand style, ex-
hibiting the character of the hero as developing itself
in accordance with its social and political environ-
ment, and involving therefore seeming digressions into
connected events which would be superfluous in a
matter-of-fact history. The important thing to remem-
ber is that they are — at least in the first instance, apart
from later accretions — truthful accounts of the events
narrated, so far as they were known to the narrator.
This is the stamp of all art of heroic times; the poet,
always anonymous, only cares to tell that which he
knows, or least believes to be true; he has no interest
in inventing. Fiction has undoubtedly produced great
master-works, but it belongs to a later epoch, when a
highly-wrought civilisation has fostered a craving for
luxury and amusement. Thus our saga is in the main
a truthful account of a man named Grettir, noted for
his bodily strength, scion of a noble family which lived
at Bjarg in the north-west of Iceland, who was born
probably in 996, spent the greater part of his life as an
outlaw and a robber, and died in Drangey in 1031 or
thereabouts. But the story was not written down until
the thirteenth century, and in the versions which we
have not till the fifteenth, by which time the days of
heroic story-telling had long passed away. In the interval
many of the incidents have been added to and em-
bellished, partly through bona fide misunderstandings,
partly to make the story more entertaining. Some of
these later additions are in very dubious taste; I need
only mention the turgid aftermath with the adventures
of Thorsteinn Dromund and Lady Spes — a feeble copy
of the then popular Tristan story, which, however, is
not without value as bringing vividly into view the
enormous gulf which separates a French romance from
an Icelandic saga.

I have said that the character of the hero develops

Introduction xi

itself. The interest of our saga is wholly psychological.
Grettir's character is one of the most complex ever
conceived, and is drawn with an artistic mastery which
laughs to scorn whole libraries of modern psychology.
In this respect Gretla ranks above even Njala. He is
by no means an ideally perfect social character; he is
morose, vindictive, overbearing to an intolerable degree.
But of the crimes for which he is condemned he is
absolutely innocent. The inner refinement and delicacy
which lie beneath that rough exterior will be evident
to the attentive reader. I will only mention one instance
of the saga-teller's art of concealing his art: it occurs
towards the end of Chapter XX., after the berserk
episode. Grettir's behaviour towards his host on
this occasion is, it will be noticed, even more than
usually churlish — almost insolent. The mistress has, in
the effusiveness of her gratitude, made him ruler over
all her household, and he forbids the servants to go out
and meet their master on his return, seeming to take
a malicious pleasure in giving him a fright. Could any-
thing be more touching than when she, the proud wife of
a wealthy and powerful chieftain, in her own house asks
Grettir's permission to go out and meet her own husband ?
He replies in a surly way that she is mistress of her own
ways, but that he is not going. Is this only another
instance of Grettir's boorishness ? Is he only torment-
ing the bondi for his sport? Or is there some deeper
motive behind? Grettir's finest characteristic is his
helpfulness. Again and again in the course of the story
he is the one who with his courage, his strength, his
sincerity, can bring help when all other help has failed.
And who does not feel with that noble heart when con-
quered by the dire calamity which overtook him ? Exiled,
persecuted, driven to the rocky island fastness with the
whole world in arms against him, he could still have
struggled on but for one thing : he fears the dark !

In lands so teeming with natural romance as Iceland
and Norway, it may seem strange that so little notice
is taken of the wonders of landscape and scenery.
Here and there the saga- teller shows what he could do
if he wished, as when telling of Grettir's retreat in the

xii Grettir the Strong

glaciers of Geitland in Chapter LXI., where with a few
magic touches he gives an entrancing glimpse into an
earthly paradise of happiness and rest. But he cares
nothing for this, and drily continues that Grettir found
it dull there and would not stay.

I have no intention of spoiling the reader's pleasure
by commenting any further upon the story, but will
leave it to speak for itself. All is told straightforwardly,
and forms, if we exclude the last chapters, an organic
whole. The only difficulty is in the multitude of people
who come and go. To aid the memory a short index
to each person has been added, while the genealogies
and relationships of the more important personages
are given in tables.

Some features of the custom or etiquette which took
the place of law need explanation. In itself the slaying
of an enemy in open combat, even if he were taken at
a disadvantage, was not considered disgraceful, provided
that the slaying was proclaimed and no attempt made
to keep it secret. Only it brought about a " blood-feud,"
or " suit " as it is also called, which the slain man's
nearest of kin were bound in honour to follow up. This
could be honourably settled in several ways: i. By
the slayer himself being slain by one of the opposing
faction. 2. By the payment of " blood-money," or
" weregild," or " compensation," or " boot," as it is
variously called, to the next of kin. 3. By placing the
suit in the hands of the Thing. Any of these courses
were permissible, but for a man to take no action when
his kinsman was slain was disgraceful. The first course
had the disadvantage of having no finality, but rather
aggravating the feud; the second was offensive to the
proud spirit of many and was often refused; the third
was uncertain, since the issue generally rested with the
party whose interest was the more powerful.

The All-Thing, if free, generally dealt with the case
in the best way it could. The party in default, i.e.
who had the fewest followers, was punished by a fine
suitable to the rank of the man slain, or by outlawry or
banishment for a term or in perpetuity. Any man could
then take his life without raising a feud, or being liable

Introduction xiii

for blood -money, and as the condemned person was
obliged to flee the haunts of men and live where he could,
the terms " outlaw," " exile," " forest-man," " unhal-
lowed " are all synonyms. Ordinarily, such an one
merely emigrated and began a new life in Norway or
elsewhere, where he was not one whit less well received
from the fact of his being an outlaw in his own country.
Grettir did this the first time that he was outlawed
(Chapter XVI.), but the second time (Chapter XL VI.)
he could not do it, for in Norway, the only country
practically available to him, he was already an outlaw.
Consequently, his only possible course was to move about
from place to place in Iceland, living as he could and
paying an occasional visit to friends whom he could trust.

In translating, I have always kept before my mind
the rule " The letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life."
I must crave a lenient judgment in a task where hands
far more skilled than mine have failed. To render the
rollicking, happy-go-lucky style of the sagas into modern
English without becoming slangy is no easy task. My
aim has been to translate in the colloquial language of
my own day, eschewing all affectation of poetic diction
or mediaevalism. So far as possible I have adhered to
the words of the text ; but Icelandic is a highly idiomatic
language, and Icelandic idiom is not English idiom. I
have not hesitated, therefore, in departing from the
verbal idiom in order to preserve the sense.

Some apology I feel is due to the shades of the saga-
tellers for the rather unceremonious way in which I
have treated their verses, of which so many occur in
this saga. I am afraid the truth must be told that
these verses are not poetry at all in any true sense, but
a monstrous distortion of sentences into certain patterns
of versification, excessively puzzling, but not even
ingenious in design. The Icelanders, with all then-
great intellectual gifts, had one great defect: they seem
to have been totally unmusical. No nation with any
sense for music could have conceived such abortions of
rhythmical verse as are found in their court poetry.
This, however, does not apply to such noble poetry as
that of the Voluspa and other songs of the Edda.

xiv Grettir the Strong

It remains for me to add a word of acknowledgment
for the aid which I have received from the admirable
Halle edition of the saga by R. C. Boer, which has been
my guide in every case of difficulty. Even where I
have ventured to differ from the learned editor, his notes
have nearly always been helpful. I have occasionally
consulted, in cases of difficulty, the translation of Messrs.
Magnusson and Morris, and have borrowed a few nick-
names therefrom.

G. A. H.

SAMER, PAS DE CALAIS,
December 1913.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

SAGAS

THE GREATER, OR ISLENDINGA SAGAS: Laxdaela Saga, edited
by Thorkelsson, 1867; by Kalund, 1889; English translation:
M. A. C. Press (Temple Classics), 1896; R. Proctor, 1903. Njall,
called Brennu-Njall, edited by Olafsson, 1772; E. Jonsson and
Gislason, 1843; English translation: G. W. Dasent, 1861. Eyr-
byggjar Saga, edited by T. J6nsson, 1882; Asmundarson, 1895;
English translation: W. Morris and E. Magnusson (Saga Library,
Vol. 2), 1891. Egilssaga, edition without title page, 1782, edited
by T. J6nsson, 1886; Asmundarson, 1892; English translation:
Rev. W. G. Green, 1893. Grettissaga, edited by Magnusson and
Thordarson, 1852-59; Thorkelsson, 1871; Asmundarson, 1900;
English translation: E. Magnusson and W. Morris, 1869 (new edi-
tion, 1900). See also Icelandic Sagas, edited by G. Vigfusson,
translated into English by Sir G. W. Dasent ; Icelandic and English,
4 vols., 1887-94.

OTHER SAGAS: Sturlunga Saga, edited by B. Thorsteinsson
1817; by Dr. G. Vigfusson, 1878; K. Kalund, 1906. Gunnlaugs-
saga, 1775; edited by Von Rygh, 1862; English translation: W
Morris, 1891. Bandamanna Saga, edited by W. Bjorg, 1868;
English translation: J. Coles, 1882. Floamanna Saga, edited by
Asmundarson, 1898 ; Konnakssaga, edited by S. Bugge, 1886;
English translation: W. G. Collingwood and J. Stefansson, 1902.
Volsungasaga, edited by Bugge, 1865; English translation: E.
Magnusson and W. Morris, 1870. Biskupasogur, The Saga of
Bishop Laurence, by Einar Hufledason, edited by Dr. G. Vigfusson,
1858; English translation: O. Elton, 1890. Hrafnkelssaga,
edited by Asmundarson, 1893. Droplaugarsonasaga, edited by
Jdnsson, 1878. F6stbraedra Saga, edited by Rafn, 1837. Forn-
sogur, edited by Mobius and Vigfusson, 1860. Viga Glum Saga,
edited by Thorlaksson, 1880; Asmundarson, 1897; English transla-
tion: Sir Edmund Head, 1866. Reykdaela Saga, edited by F.
J6nsson, 1881; Asmundarson, 1896.

CONTENTS

CHAP. PAGE

I. THE FAMILY AND EARLY WARS OF ONUND

THE SON OF OFEIG . . . . i
II. THE BATTLE OF HAFRSFJORD ... 2

III. MEETING OF DEFEATED CHIEFS IN THE WEST

AND MARRIAGE OF ONUND ... . 4

IV. FIGHT WITH VIKINGS VIGBJOD AND VESTMAR 7
V. VISIT OF ONUND AND THRAND TO EYVIND

IN IRELAND ...... 9

VI. DEATH OF BJORN; DISPUTES OVER HIS PRO-
PERTY IN NORWAY . . . .10

VII. MURDER OF ONDOTT CROW, AND THE VENGE-
ANCE THEREFOR ..... 12

VIII. ONUND AND ASMUND SAIL TO ICELAND . 15
IX. ONUND SETTLES IN KALDBAK ... 15
X. OFEIG GRETTIR is KILLED. VISIT OF ONUND

TO AUD THE DEEP-MINDED ... 17
XI. DEATH OF ONUND. DISPUTES BETWEEN THE

SONS OF ONUND AND OF EIRIK . . 18
XII. BATTLE AT RIFSKER 21

XIII. THORGRIM SETTLES AT BJARG AND MARRIES.

His SON ASMUND VISITS NORWAY AND

MARRIES TWICE ..... 24

XIV. ASMUND'S CHILDREN. GRETTIR'S CHILDHOOD 26
XV. GAMES AT MIDFJORDVATN .... 31

XVI. GRETTIR KILLS SKEGGI AND is OUTLAWED FOR

THREE YEARS ..... 33

XVII. GRETTIR SAILS FOR NORWAY AND is WRECKED

ON HARAMARSEY ..... 37

XVIII. ADVENTURE IN THE HOWE OF KAR THE OLD . 42
XIX. BERSERKS AT HARAMARSEY ... 46

XX. THORFINN'S RETURN. GRETTIR VISITS THE

NORTH ...... 54

XXI. ADVENTURE WITH A BEAR .... 57

XXII. GRETTIR KILLS BJORN AND is SUMMONED

BEFORE JARL SVEINN 61

XV

xvi Grettir the Strong

CHAP. PAGE

XXIII. GRETTIR KILLS HJARRANDI ... 64

XXIV. GRETTIR KILLS GUNNAR. His FRIENDS

RALLY ROUND HIM AND SAVE HIM FROM
THE VENGEANCE OF THE JARL . . 65
XXV. EVENTS IN ICELAND. THORGILS MAKSSON
ATTACKED BY THE FOSTER-BROTHERS AND

SLAIN ^.69

XXVI. THE FEUD WITH THE FOSTER-BROTHERS is
TAKEN UP BY ASMUND AND THORSTEINN
KUGGASON ...... 71

XXVII. SENTENCES ON THE FOSTER-BROTHERS . 72

XXVIII. GRETTIR'S VISITTO AUDUN IN VIDIDAL; OFFERS

HIS SERVICES TO BARDI • • • 75
XXIX. HORSE-FIGHT AT LANGAFIT .... 78

XXX. THORBJORN OXMAIN AND THE FRAY AT

HRUTAFJARDARHALS .... 80

XXXI. GRETTIR'S VAIN ENDEAVOUR TO PROVOKE

BARDI ....... 83

XXXII. THE SPOOK AT THORHALLSSTAD. GLAM THE
SHEPHERD KILLED BY A FIEND. His
GHOST WALKS ..... 86

XXXIII. DOINGS OF GLAM'S GHOST. AWFUL CONDITION

OF VATNSDAL . . . . 91

XXXIV. GRETTIR VISITS HIS UNCLE JOKULL . . 94
XXXV. THE FIGHT WITH GLAM'S GHOST . . . 95

XXXVI. THORBJORN SLOWCOACH AT HOME . . 100
XXXVII. GRETTIR SAILS FOR NORWAY AND KILLS

THORBJORN SLOWCOACH . . . 101
XXXVIII. GRETTIR FETCHES FIRE — THE SONS OF THORIR

ARE BURNT ...... 104

XXXIX. GRETTIR APPEARS BEFORE THE KING AND

FAILS TO UNDERGO THE ORDEAL . . 108

XL. ADVENTURE WITH THE BERSERK SN^EKOLL . no

XLI. THORSTEINN DROMUND'S ARMS . . .112

XLII. DEATH OF ASMUND LONGHAIR . . . 113

XLIII. THE SONS OF THORIR OF SKARD ARE SLAIN BY

ATLI AND GRIM ..... 115

XLIV. SETTLEMENT OF THE FEUD AT THE HUNAVATN

THING 117

XLV. ATLI MURDERED BY THORBJORN OXMAIN . 118
XLVI. SENTENCE OF OUTLAWRY PASSED UPON

GRETTIR AT THE ALL-THING . . . 121

Contents

xvn

CHAP. PAGE

XLVII. GRETTIR RETURNS TO BJARG — SVEINN AND

HIS HORSE SADDLE-HEAD . . . 122
XLVIII. DEATH OF THORBJORN OXMAIN . . . 127
XLIX. GRETTIR VISITS THORSTEINN KUGGASON AND

SNORRI GODI ..... 130

L. GRETTIR WINTERS WITH THORGILS AT REYKJA-
HOLAR IN COMPANY WITH THE FOSTER-
BROTHERS ....... 131

LI. GRETTIR'S CASE OVERBORNE AT THE ALL-
THING 135

LII. GRETTIR is CAPTURED BY FARMERS AND RE-
LEASED BY THORBJORG . . -137
LIII. GRETTIR WINTERS IN LJARSKOGAR WITH

THORSTEINN KUGGASON . . . 142
LIV. ADVENTURE WITH LOPT .... 144
LV. GRETTIR IN THE ARNAVATN HEATH. DEATH

OF GRIM THE FOREST-MAN . . . 146
LVI. TREACHERY AND DEATH OF THORIR RED-
BEARD 148

LVII. ATTACK ON GRETTIR BY THORIR OF GARD WITH
EIGHTY MEN REPULSED WITH THE AID OF
HALLMUND 151

LVIII. GRETTIR VISITS BJORN THE HITDALE WARRIOR
AND TAKES REFUGE IN THE FAGRASKO-

GAFJALL I53

LIX. THE CHASTISEMENT OF GISLI . . . 155

LX. THE BATTLE WITH THE MYRAMEN . . 160
LXI. GRETTIR WINTERS UNDER THE GEITLAND

GLACIER . . . . . . 163

LXII. HALLMUND is KILLED BY A FOREST-MAN

NAMED GRIM 165

LXIII. GRETTIR'S MEETING WITH THORIR ON THE

REYKJA HEATH ..... 168

LXIV. GHOSTS IN BARDARDAL .... 170

LXV. ADVENTURE WITH A TROLL- WOMAN . 173

LXVI. GRETTIR SLAYS A GIANT .... 175

LXVII. VISIT TO GUDMUND THE WEALTHY . . 177

LXVIII. FIGHT WITH THORODD THE SON OF SNORRI . 179
LXIX. GRETTIR'S LAST VISIT TO BJARG AND JOURNEY

WITH ILLUGI TO ORANGEY . . .181
LXX. THE PEOPLE OF SKAGAFJORD . . .184

xviii Grettir the Strong

CHAP. PAGE

LXXI. THE BONDIS CLAIM THEIR PROPERTY IN

DRANGEY . . . . . .186

LXXII. GRETTIR VISITS THE THING AT HEGRANES . 187

LXXIII. VISIT OF THORBJORN ANGLE TO DRANGEY . 192

LXXIV. THE FIRE GOES OUT IN DRANGEY . . 193

LXXV. GRETTIR SWIMS TO THE MAINLAND FOR FIRE . 194

LXXVI. ADVENTURE OF HIRING IN DRANGEY . . 196

LXXVII. GRETTIR'S CASE BEFORE THE ALL-THING . 198

LXXVIII. THORBJORN'S FOSTER-MOTHER . . . 199

LXXIX. THE SPELL TAKES EFFECT .... 203

LXXX. THE SPELL CONTINUES TO WORK . . 205

LXXXI. THORBJORN AGAIN VISITS DRANGEY . . 206
LXXXII. THE LAST BATTLE — DEATH OF GRETTIR AND

ILLUGI ...... 209

LXXXIII. THORBJORN VISITS GRETTIR'S MOTHER AT

BJARG ...... 215

LXXXIV. THORBJORN is EXILED AT THE THING . . 217
LXXXV. THORBJORN GOES TO NORWAY AND CON-
STANTINOPLE ..... 219

LXXXVI. GRETTIR'S DEATH AVENGED BY HIS BROTHER

THORSTEINN DROMUND . . . 220

LXXXVII. THE LADY SPES 223

LXXXVIII. ADVENTURES OF THORSTEINN AND SPES . 225

LXXXIX. THE ORDEAL 231

XC. THORSTEINN AND SPES RETURN TO NORWAY. 234

XCI. ABSOLUTION IN ROME .... 235

XCII. THE END OF THORSTEINN AND SPES . . 237

XCIII. THE TESTIMONY OF STURLA THE LAWMAN . 238

NOTES . . . . . . . 241

CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE .... 248

INDEX OF NAMES ..... 249

GENEALOGIES ...... 257

MAP OF ICELAND

To illustrate Grettir's Saga

GRETTIR THE STRONG

CHAPTER I

THE FAMILY AND EARLY WARS OF ONUND
THE SON OF OFEIG

THERE was a man named Onund, the son of Ofeig
Clumsyfoot, who was the son of Ivar Horsetail.
Onund was the brother of Gudbjorg, the mother of
Gudbrand Knob, the father of Asta, the mother of
King Olaf the Saint. His mother came from the
Upplands, while his father's relations were mostly in
Rogaland and Hordland. He was a great viking
and used to harry away in the West over the sea.
He was accompanied on these expeditions by one
Balki, the son of Blaeing from Sotanes, and by Orm
the Wealthy. Another comrade of theirs was named
Hallvard. They had five ships, all well equipped.
They plundered the Hebrides, reaching the Barra
Isles, where there ruled a king named Kjarval, who
also had five ships. These they attacked; there was
a fierce battle between them, in which Onund 's men
fought with the utmost bravery. After many had
fallen on both sides, the battle ended with the king
taking to flight with a single ship; the rest were
captured by Onund's force, along with much booty.
They stayed there for the winter, and spent the suc-
ceeding three summers harrying the coasts of Ireland
and Scotland, after which they returned to Norway.

2 Grettir the Strong

CHAPTER II

THE BATTLE OF HAFRSFJORD

AT that time Norway was very disturbed. Harald
Shockhead, the son of Halfdan the Black, till then
king of the Upplands, was aiming at the supreme
kingship. He went into the North and fought many
battles there, in which he was always victorious.
Then he marched harrying through the territories to
the South, bringing them into subjection wherever he
came. On reaching Hordland he was opposed by a
motley multitude led by Kjotvi the Wealthy, Thorir
Long-chin, and Soti and King Sulki from South
Rogaland. Geirmund Swarthyskin was then away
in the West, beyond the sea, so he was not present
at the battle, although Hordland belonged to his
dominion.

Onund and his party had arrived that autumn
from the western seas, and when Thorir and Kjotvi
heard of their landing they sent envoys to ask for
their aid, promising to treat them with honour.
They were very anxious for an opportunity of
distinguishing themselves, so they joined Thorir's
forces, and declared that they would be in the thickest
part of the battle. They met King Harald in a fjord
in Rogaland called Hafrsfjord. The forces on each
side were very large, and the battle was one of the
greatest ever fought in Norway. There are many
accounts of it, for one always hears much about those
people of whom the saga is told. Troops had come
in from all the country around and from other
countries as well, besides a multitude of vikings.
Onund brought his ship alongside of that of Thorir
Long-chin in the very middle of the battle. King

Grettir the Strong 3

Harald made for Thorir's ship, knowing him to be
a terrible berserk, and very brave. The fighting
was desperate on either side. Then the king ordered
his berserks, two men named Ulfhednar, forward.
No iron could hurt them, and when they charged
nothing could withstand them. Thorir defended
himself bravely and fell on his ship fighting valiantly.
The whole ship from stem to stern was cleared and
her fastenings were cut, so that she fell out of the
line of battle. Then they attacked Onund's ship,
in the forepart of which he was standing and fighting
manfully. The king's men said: " He bears himself
well in the forecastle. Let us give him something to
remind him of having been in the battle." Onund
was stepping out with one foot on to the bulwark,
and as he was striking they made a thrust at him
with a spear; in parrying it he bent backwards, and
at that moment a man on the forecastle of the king's
ship struck him and took off his leg below the knee,
disabling him at a blow. With him fell the greater
number of his men. They carried him to a ship
belonging to a man named Thrand, a son of Bjorn
and brother of Eyvind the Easterner. He was
fighting against King Harald, and his ship was lying
on the other side of Onund's. Then there was a
general flight. Thrand and the rest of the vikings
escaped any way they could, and sailed away west-
wards. They took with them Onund and Balki and
Hallvard Sugandi. Onund recovered and went about
for the rest of his life with a wooden leg, wherefore he
was called Onund Treefoot as long as he lived.

Grettir the Strong

CHAPTER III

MEETING OF DEFEATED CHIEFS IN THE WEST
AND MARRIAGE OF ONUND

THERE were then in the western parts many dis-
tinguished men who had fled from their homes in
Norway before King Harald, for he declared all who
fought against him outlaws, and seized their property.
As soon as Onund had recovered from his wound,
Thrand went with his party to Geirmund Swarthy-
skin, who was the most eminent of the vikings in the
West. They asked him whether he was not going
to try and regain his kingdom in Hordland, and
offered to join him, hoping by this means to do some-
thing for their own properties, for Onund was very
wealthy and his kindred very powerful. Geirmund
answered that Harald had such a force that there
was little hope of gaining any honour by fighting
when the whole country had joined against him and
been beaten. He had no mind, he said, to become
the king's thrall, and to beg for that which he had
once possessed in his own right. Seeing that he was
no longer in the vigour of his youth he preferred to
find some other occupation. So Onund and his party
returned to the Southern Islands, where they met
many of their friends.

There was a man named Ofeig, nicknamed Grettir.
He was the son of Einar, the son of Olvir the Baby-
man. He was a brother of Oleif the Broad, the
father of Thormod Shaft. Another son of Olvir was
named Steinolf, the father of Una, whom Thorbjorn
the Salmon-man married. A third son of Olvir was
Steinmod, who was the father of Konal, the father of
Alfdis of the Barra Isles. Konal's son was named

Grettir the Strong 5

Steinmod ; he was the father of Halldora, whom Eilif ,
the son of Ketil the One-handed, married.

Ofeig Grettir married Asny, the daughter of Vestar,

the son of Haeing. His sons were Asmund the

Beardless and Asbjorn, and his daughters were named

Aldis, Aesa, and Asvor. Ofeig had fled from the

wrath of King Harald into the West over the sea,

along with his kinsman Thormod Shaft and all their

families. They ravaged far and wide in the western

seas. Thrand and Onund Treefoot were going West

to Ireland to join Thrand's brother, Eyvind the

Easterner, who had command of the Irish defences.

Eyvind's mother was named Hlif ; she was the

daughter of Hrolf, the son of Ingjald, the son of

King Frodi, while Thrand's mother was Helga, the

daughter of Ondott Crow. The father of Eyvind

and Thrand was Bjorn, the son of Hrolf of Am. He

had had to leave Gautland because he had burnt in

his house Sigfast the father-in-law of King Solver.

Then he went to Norway and spent the winter with

Grim the Hersir, a son of Kolbjorn the Sneak, who

wanted to murder him for his money. Thence Bjorn

went to Ondott Crow, who lived in Hvinisfjord in

Agdir. There he was well received, stayed the winter,

and went campaigning with Ondott in the summer

until his wife Hlif died. Eventually Ondott gave

Bjorn his daughter Helga, and Bjorn then no longer

went out to fight. Eyvind had taken over his father's

ships and become a great chief in the western parts.

He married Rafarta, the daughter of the Irish king

Kjarval. Their sons were Helgi the Lean and

Snaebjorn.

When Thrand and Onund came to the Southern
Islands they found there Ofeig Grettir and Thormod
Shaft, with whom they became very friendly, for
each thought the others had risen from the dead,

6 Grettir the Strong

their last meeting having been in Norway when the
war was at its worst. Onund was very silent, and
Thrand, when he noticed it, asked what was on his
mind. Onund answered with a verse:

" No joy is mine since in battle I fought.
Many the sorrows that o'er me lower.
Men hold me for nought; this thought is the worst
of all that oppresses my sorrowing heart."

Thrand said: " Why, you still seem as full of vigour
as ever you were. You may yet settle down and
marry. You shall have my good word and my
interest if you will only tell me whom you fancy."

Onund told him to behave himself; but said there
had once been a time when his chances of making a
profitable marriage had been better.

Thrand said: " Ofeig has a daughter named Aesa;
we might mention it if you like."

Onund said he would like it, and soon afterwards
Ofeig was approached on the subject. He received
the proposal favourably, saying he knew the man
to be of good lineage and to have some wealth in
movable property, though his lands were not worth
much. " But," he said, " I do not think he is very
wise. Why, my daughter is quite a child."

Thrand said that Onund was more vigorous than
many a man whose legs were sounder.

So with the aid of Thrand the terms were settled.
Ofeig was to give his daughter a portion in cash, for
neither would reckon anything for his lands in Nor-
way. Soon afterwards Thrand was betrothed to the
daughter of Thormod Shaft. Both the maids were
to remain plighted for three years.

Then they went on fighting expeditions in the
summer, remaining in the Barra Isles during the
winter.

Grettir the Strong

CHAPTER IV

FIGHT WITH VIKINGS VIGBJOD AND VESTMAR

THERE were two vikings from the Southern Isles,
named Vigbjod and Vestmar; they were abroad both
summer and winter. They had eight ships, and
harried mostly round the coast of Ireland, where they
did many an evil deed until Eyvind undertook the
defence of the coast, when they retired to the Heb-
rides to harry there, and right in to the Scotch firths.
Thrand and Onund went out against them and
learned that they had sailed to an island called Bot.
Onund and Thrand followed them thither with five
ships, and when the vikings sighted them and saw
how many there were, they thought their own force
was sufficient, so they took to their arms and ad-
vanced to the attack. Onund ordered his ships to
take up a position between two rocks where there
was a deep but narrow channel, open to attack from
one side only, and by not more than five ships at once.
Onund was a very wily man. He sent his five ships
forward into the channel so that, as there was plenty
of sea room behind them, they could easily retire by
merely backing their oars. One ship he brought
under an island lying on their beam, and carried a
great stone to a place on the front of the rock where
it could not be seen from the enemy's ships. The
vikings came boldly on, thinking they had caught
them in a trap. Vigbjod asked who they were that
he had hemmed in. Thrand answered that he was a
brother of Eyvind the Easterner, and the man with
him was his comrade, Onund Treefoot. The vikings
laughed and said :

8 Grettir the Strong

" Trolls take the rascal Treefoot
and lay him even with the ground.

Never yet did I see men go to battle who could not
carry themselves."

Onund said that could not be known until it was
tried. Then the ships came together. ^ There was
a great battle in which both sides fought bravely.
When the battle was thick Onund ordered his ships
to back their oars. The vikings seeing it thought
they were taking to flight, and pushed on with all
their might, coming under the rock just at the
moment when the party which had been dispatched
for that purpose arrived. They launched upon the
vikings stones so huge that nothing could hold
against them. A number of the vikings were killed,
and others were so injured that they could fight no
more. Then the vikings tried to escape, but could
not, as their ships were in the narrowest part of the
channel and were impeded both by the current and
by the enemy's ships. Onund's men vigorously
attacked the wing commanded by Vigbjod while
Thrand engaged Vestmar, but effected little. When
the men on Vigbjod's ship had been somewhat
reduced, Onund's men, he himself with them, pre-
pared to board her. On seeing that, Vigbjod spurred
on his men resolutely. He turned against Onund,
most of whose men gave way. Onund was a man of
immense strength and he bade his followers observe
how it fared with them. They shoved a log under
the stump of his leg, so that he stood pretty firm.
The viking dashed forward, reached Onund and
hewed at him with his sword, which cut right through
his shield and into the log beneath his leg, where it
remained fixed. As Vigbjod bent down to pull his
sword clear again, Onund dealt him a blow on his
shoulder, severing his arm and disabling him. When

Grettir the Strong 9

Vestmar saw his comrade fall, he sprang on to the
outermost ship and escaped along with all who could
get on to her. Then they examined the dead. Vig-
bjod had already expired. Onund went up to him
and said:

" Bloody thy wounds. Didst thou see me flee?
' One-leg ' no hurt received from thee.
Braver are many in word than in deed.
Thou, slave, didst fail when it came to the trial."

They took a large quantity of booty and returned to
_±he Barra Isles in the autumn.

CHAPTER V

VISIT OF ONUND AND THRAND TO EYVIND
IN IRELAND

THE following summer they made ready for a voyage
to the West, to Ireland. At the same time Balki and
Hallvard sailed westwards, to Iceland, where they
had heard that good land was available for occupation.
Balki took up some land at Hrutafjord, and had
his abode in two places called Balkastad. Hallvard
occupied Sugandafjord and Skalavik as far as Stigi,
where he lived.

Thrand and Onund went to visit Eyvind the Eas-
terner, who welcomed joyfully his brother Thrand;
but when he heard that Onund had also come, he
became very angry and wanted to fight him. Thrand
asked him not to do so, and said it would ill become
him to quarrel with men from Norway, especially
with such as had given no offence. Eyvind said that
he had given offence before, when he made war on
Kjarval the king, and that he should now pay for it.
The brothers had much to say to each other about the

io Grettir the Strong

matter, till at last Thrand said that he and Onund
should share their fortune together. Then Eyvind
allowed himself to be appeased. They stayed there
a long time in the summer and went with Eyvind on
his expeditions. Eyvind found Onund to be a man
of the greatest valour. In the autumn they went
to the Hebrides, and Eyvind made over to Thrand
all his share in their father Bjorn's patrimony in the
event of Bjorn dying before Thrand. They stayed
in the Hebrides until they married and some years
after.

CHAPTER VI

DEATH OF BJORN; DISPUTES OVER HIS PROPERTY
IN NORWAY

THE next thing that happened was the death of
Thrand 's father Bjorn. When the news of it reached
Grim the Hersir he proceeded against Ondott Crow
and claimed Bjorn's estate. Ondott held Thrand
to be the rightful heir of his father, but Grim con-
tended that Thrand was away in the West. Bjorn,
he said, came from Gautland, and the succession to the
estate of all foreigners passed to the king. Ondott
said that he would hold the property on behalf of
Thrand, who was his daughter's son. Grim then
departed, having effected nothing by his claim.

Thrand, when he heard of his father's death, pre-
pared to leave the Hebrides, and Onund Treefoot
decided to go with him. Ofeig Grettir and Thormod
Shaft went to Iceland with all their belongings, land-
ing at Eyrir in the South. They spent the first
winter with Thorbjorn the Salmon-man, and then
occupied Gnupverjahrepp. Ofeig took the outer

Grettir the Strong 1 1

part lying between the rivers Thvera and Kalfa, and
lived at Ofeigstad near Steinsholt, while Thormod
took the eastern part, living at Skaptaholt. Thor-
mod's daughters were named Thorvor and Thorve;
the former afterwards became the mother of Thorodd
the Godi at Hjalli, Thorve of Thorstein the Godi the
father of Bjarni the Wise.

We now return to Thrand and Onund, who sailed
back from the West to Norway. A strong wind blew
in their favour, so that they arrived at the house of
Ondott Crow before any one knew of their journey.
He welcomed Thrand and told him of the claim which
Grim the Hersir had raised for Bjorn's estate.

" To my thinking, kinsman," he said, " it is better
that the property should go to you than to the king's
thralls. It is a fortunate thing for you that no one
knows of your having come here, for I expect that
Grim will make an attack upon one or the other of us
if he can. I should prefer if you would take over
your property and stay in other countries."

Thrand said that he would do so. He took over
the property and prepared to leave Norway. Before
leaving he asked Onund Treefoot whether he would
not come to Iceland. Onund said he wanted first to
visit some of his relations and friends in the South.

" Then," said Thrand, " we must part. I should
be glad if you would give my kinsmen your support,
for our enemies will certainly try to take revenge
upon them when I am gone. I am going to Iceland,
and I want you to come there too."

Onund said he would come, and they parted with
great friendship. Thrand went to Iceland, where he
met with a welcome from Ofeig and Thormod Shaft.
He took up his dwelling at Thrandarholt to the west
of Thjorsa.

1 2 Grettir the Strong

CHAPTER VII

MURDER OF ONDOTT CROW, AND THE VENGEANCE
THEREFOR

ONUND went to Rogaland in the South and visited
many of his relations and friends. He lived there in
concealment with a man named Kolbeinn. He there
learned that King Harald had taken all his property
and given it into the charge of a man named Harekr,
one of his officials. Onund went by night to Harekr's
house and caught him at home; he was led to execu-
tion. Then Onund took possession of all the loose
property which he found and burnt the building.

That autumn Grim the Hersir murdered Ondott
Crow because he had not succeeded in getting the
property for the king. Ondott's wife Signy carried
off all their loose property that same night to a ship
and escaped with her sons Asmund and Asgrim to her
father Sighvat. A little later she sent her sons to
Hedin, her foster-father in Soknadal, where they re-
mained for a time and then wanted to return to their
mother. They left at last, and at Yule-tide came
to Ingjald the Trusty at Hvin. His wife Gyda per-
suaded him to take them in, and they spent the
winter there. In the spring Onund came to northern
Agdir, having learned of the murder of Ondott. He
met Signy and asked her what assistance they would
have of him. She said they were most anxious to
punish Grim for the death of Ondott. So the sons
were sent for, and when they met Onund Treefoot
they all joined together and had Grim's doings
closely watched.

In the summer there was a beer-brewing at Grim's
for a jarl named Audun, whom he had invited. When

Grettir the Strong 13

Onund and the sons of Ondott heard of it, they
appeared at his house unexpectedly and set fire to it.
Grim the Hersir and about thirty men were burnt in
the house. They captured a quantity of valuables.
Then Onund went into the forest, while the two
brothers took the boat of their foster-father Ingjald,
rowed away and lay in hiding a little way off. Soon
Jarl Audun appeared, on his way to the feast, as had
been arranged, but on arriving he missed his host.
So he collected his men around him and stayed there
a few nights, quite unaware of Onund and his com-
panions. He slept in a loft with two other men.
Onund knew everything that was going on in the
house and sent for the two brothers to come to him.
On their arrival he asked them whether they pre-
ferred to keep watch on the house or to attack the
jarl. They chose to attack. They then battered
the entrance of the loft with beams until the door
gave way. Asmund seized the two men who were
with the jarl and threw them to the ground with such
violence that they were well-nigh killed. Asgrim
rushed at the jarl and demanded of him weregild for
his father, for he had been in league with Grim and
took part in the attack when Ondott was murdered.
The jarl said he had no money about him and asked
for time. Asgrim then placed the point of his spear
against his breast and ordered him to pay up on the
spot. Then the jarl took a necklace from his neck
and gave it to him with three gold rings and a velvet
mantle. Asgrim took the things and bestowed a
name upon the jarl. He called him Audun Nanny-
goat.

When the farmers and people about heard of the
disturbances they all came out to help the jarl.
Onund had a large force with him, and there was a
great battle in which many a good farmer and many

14 Grettir the Strong

a follower of the jarl were slain. The brothers re-
turned to Onund and reported what had occurred
with the jarl. Onund said it was a pity they had not
killed him. It would, he said, have been something
to make up for the losses which he had suffered from
King Harald. They said the disgrace was far worse
for the jarl as it was, and they went off to Sumadal
to Eirik Beery, a Landman there, who took them all
in for the winter. At Yule-tide they had a great
drinking bout with a man named Hallsteinn, nick-
named Stallion. Eirik opened the feast and enter-
tained them generously. Then it was Hallsteinn's
turn, and they began to quarrel. Hallsteinn struck
Eirik with a deer's horn, for which Eirik got no re-
venge, but had to go home with it, to the great annoy-
ance of Ondott's sons. A little later Asgrim went to
Hallsteinn's house and gave him a severe wound.
All the people who were present started up and
attacked Asgrim. He defended himself vigorously
and escaped in the dark, leaving them under the
belief that they had killed him. Onund and Asmund,
on hearing that Asgrim had been killed, were at a loss
what they could do in the matter. Eirik's advice
was that they should betake themselves to Iceland,
for it would never do for them to remain in the land
where the king could get at them. This they deter-
mined to do. Each of them had his own ship and
they made ready for the voyage to Iceland. Hall-
steinn was laid low with his wound and died before
Onund sailed with his party. Kolbeinn, the man
who was mentioned before, went in the ship with
Onund.

Grettir the Strong 15

CHAPTER VIII

ONUND AND ASMUND SAIL TO ICELAND

ONUND and Asmund set sail directly they were ready
and their ships kept together. Onund said:

" Hallvard and I were aforetime deemed
worthy in storm of swords to bear us.
With one foot now I step on the ship
towards Iceland. The poet's day is o'er."

They had a rough passage with cross winds, mostly
from the south, so that they drifted away to the
north. They made Iceland right in the North, at
Langanes, where they regained their reckonings.
The ships were near enough to each other for them
to speak together. Asmund said they had better
make for Eyjafjord, and this was agreed to. They
kept under the land and heavy weather set in from
the south-east. Just as Onund was tacking, the yard
was carried away ; they lowered the sail and were
driven out to sea. Asmund got under the lee of
Hrisej', where he waited until a fair wind set in which
took him up to Eyjafjord. Helgi the Lean gave him
the whole of Kraeklingahlid, and he lived at South-
Glera. A few years later his brother Asgrim came
to Iceland and took up his residence at North-Glera.
His son was Ellidagrim the father of Asgrim.

CHAPTER IX

ONUND SETTLES IN KALDBAK

ONUND TREEFOOT was driven away from the shore
for several days, after which the wind shifted and
blew towards the land. Then they made land again,

1 6 Grettir the Strong

which those of them who had been there before recog-
nised as the western coast of the Skagi peninsula.
They sailed in to Strandafloi, almost to Sudrstrandir.
There came rowing towards them a ten-oared boat
with six men on board, who hailed the sea-going ship
and asked who was their captain. Onund told them
his name and asked whence they came. They said
they were the men of Thorvald from Drangar. Then
Onund asked whether all the land round that coast
was occupied; they answered there was very little
left at Sudrstrandir and none at all in the North. So
Onund asked his men whether they would seek some
land further to the West or take that of which they
had just been told. They said they would first
explore a little further. They sailed in along the
coast of the bay and anchored off a creek near Arnes,
where they put off in a boat to the shore.

Here dwelt a wealthy man named Eirik Snare, who
had taken the land between Ingolfsfjord and Ofcera
in Veidilej^sa. On hearing that Onund had arrived
in those parts, he offered to let him have such portion
as he needed from his own lands, adding that there
was little land which had not already been taken up.
Onund said he would first like to see what there was.

Then they went further into the bay past some
fjords and came to Ofoera, where Eirik said: " Here
is what there is to see. From here down to the lands
of Bjorn is unoccupied." A high range of mountains,
on which snow had fallen, rose from beside the river.
Onund looked at the mountains and spoke a verse :

" My lands and my might have drifted away

as drifts the ship on the ocean.
My friends and my home I have left behind me,
and bartered my acres for Kaldbak."

" Many a man," answered Eirik, " has lost so much
in Norway that it may not be mended. I expect too

Grettir the Strong 17

that nearly all the lands in the main districts have
been taken, so that I will not urge you to leave these
parts and seek elsewhere. I will keep to my word
and let you have whatever lands of my own you may
require."

Onund said he would take advantage of his offer,
and in the end he took some of the Ofoera land and
the three creeks Byrgisvik, Kolbeinsvik, and Kald-
baksvik as far as Kaldbaks Cliff. Afterwards Eirik
gave him Veidileysa with Reykjafjord and the outer
part of Reykjanes on that side. Nothing was settled
about the drift which came to the coast, because
there was so much of it that every one could have
what he wanted. Onund made his home in Kaldbak
and had a large household. His property increased
and he had another house in Reykjafjord. Kolbeinn
lived in Kolbeinsvik and for some years Onund lived
quietly at home.

CHAPTER X

OFEIG GRETTIR IS KILLED. VISIT OF ONUND TO AUD
THE DEEP-MINDED

ONUND was a man of such valour that few, even of
those whose limbs were sound, could measure them-
selves against him. His name, too, was renowned
throughout the whole country on account of his
ancestry. It happened that a dispute arose between
Ofeig Grettir and one Thorbjorn called Jarlakappi,
which ended in Ofeig being killed by Thorbjorn in
Grettisgeil near Haell. The feud was taken up by
Ofeig's sons who assembled a large force of men.
Onund Treefoot was sent for, and in the spring he
rode South to Hvamm, where he stayed with Aud the
Deep-Minded. He had been with her over the sea

1 8 Grettir the Strong

in the West, and she received him with welcome. Her
grandson, Olaf Feilan, was then grown up, and Aud
was very infirm. She consulted Onund concerning her
kinsman Olaf, whom she wished to ask in marriage
Alfdis of the Barra Isles, the cousin pf Onund's wife
Aesa. Onund thought it a very suitable match, and
Olaf rode with him to the South. Then Onund met
friends and kinsmen, who made him their guest.
The matter of the dispute was talked over between
them, and finally laid before the Kjalarnes Thing,
for the All-Thing had not yet been established.
Eventually it was settled by arbitration and heavy
weregilds were imposed for the murder. Thorbjorn
Jarlakappi was exiled. His son was Solmund, the
father of Svidukari. These kinsmen were long abroad
after that. Thrand invited Onund and Olaf with his
party to stay with him, as did Thormod Shaft. The
matter of Olaf's marriage was then pressed, and an
agreement easily arrived at, for Aud's rank and
influence were well known to them. The settlement
was arranged and Onund's party rode home again.
Aud thanked him for his aid in behalf of Olaf, who
married Alfdis of the Barra Isles that autumn. Then
Aud the Deep-Minded died, as is told in the Laxdaela
Saga.

CHAPTER XI

DEATH OF ONUND. DISPUTES BETWEEN THE SONS
OF ONUND AND OF EIRIK

ONUND and Aesa had two sons ; the elder was named
Thorgeir, the younger Ofeig Grettir. Soon after-
wards Aesa died and Onund married a second wife,
Thordis by name, a daughter of Gnupi in Midfjord,
a kinsman of Skeggi of Midfjord. By her Onund

Grettir the Strong 19

had a son named Thorgrim, who grew up quickly to
manhood, tall and strong, wise and a good manager.
Onund continued to live at Kaldbak until his old age.
He died a natural death and lies buried in Trefotshaug.
He was the boldest and most active one-legged man
that ever came to Iceland.

Among Onund's sons Thorgrim was the foremost,
although the others were older. When he was
twenty-five years old his hair was grey, whence they
nick-named him Greyhead. His mother Thordis
married again, taking as her second husband Audun
Skokull. They had a son named Asgeir of Asgeirsa.
Thorgrim Greyhead and his brothers had a large
property, which they managed together without
dividing it up.

Eirik lived, as was mentioned, at Arnes. He had
married Alofa the daughter of Ingolf of Ingolfsfjord,
by whom he had a son named Flosi, a very promising
young man with many friends.

There came to that part of Iceland three brothers,
named Ingolf, Ofeig, and Eyvind, and took the three
fjords which are called by their names, where they
lived. Eyvind had a son named Olaf. He at first
lived at Eyvindsfjord, but went later to Drangar.
He was a most capable man.

So long as their fathers were living no disputes
arose among these men; but when Eirik was dead
it occurred to Flosi that those of Kaldbak had no
legal title to the lands which Eirik had given to
Onund. Out of this serious dissensions arose be-
tween them. Thorgrim and his brothers continued
in possession of the lands as before, but they would
not join in games together. Thorgeir, the eldest
brother, was managing the farm at Reykjafjord, and
often rowed out fishing, as the fjords were full of fish.
The men of Vik now laid their plans. Flosi had a

2o Grettir the Strong

man in Arnes named Thorfinn, and sent him to fetch
Thorgeir's head. This man hid himself in the boat-
shed. One morning when Thorgeir was preparing
to row out with two other men, one of whom was
named Brand, Thorgeir was walking ahead with a
leather skin on his back containing some drink. It
was very dark, and as he passed the boat-house
Thorfinn sprang out upon him and dealt him a blow
with an axe between his shoulders. The axe went
into something and made a squeaking noise. Thor-
finn let go his axe, feeling quite sure that no bandages
would be needed, and being very anxious to escape
as fast as he could. He ran North, and reaching
Arnes before the day had quite broken, said that he
had killed Thorgeir and that Flosi must protect him.
The only thing to be done was to offer some com-
pensation in money. " That," he said, " will be the
best thing for us after such a terrible piece of work."

Flosi said he must first learn more about it, and
that he thought Thorfinn seemed very frightened
after his doughty deed.

We must now tell what had happened to Thorgeir.
He turned round when he was struck, but the blow
had gone into the leather bottle, and he was unhurt.
They could make no search for the man because it
was dark, so they rowed on down the fjord to Kald-
bak, where they told what had happened. People
made great game of the affair and called him Thorgeir
Bottleback, a name which stuck to him ever after.
A verse was made:

" In days gone by men bathed their blades
in the streaming gore of a foeman's wound.
But now a wretch of all honour bereft
reddens his dastard axe in whey."

Grettir the Strong 21

CHAPTER XII

BATTLE AT RIFSKER

AT that time there came over Iceland a famine the
like of which had never been seen before. Nearly
all the fisheries failed, and also the drift wood. So
it continued for many years.

One autumn some traders in a sea-going ship, who
had been driven out of their course, were wrecked at
Vik. Flosi took in four or five of them with their
captain, named Steinn. They all found shelter in
the neighbourhood of Vik and tried to rig up a ship
out of the wreckage, but were not very successful.
The ship was too narrow in the bow and stern and
too broad amidships. In the spring a northerly gale
set in which lasted nearly a week, after which men
began to look for drift.

There was a man living in Reykjanes named Thors-
teinn. He found a whale stranded on the south side
of the promontory at the place now called Rifsker.
It was a large rorqual, and he at once sent word by a
messenger to Flosi in Vik and to the nearest farms.

At Gjogri lived a man named Einar, a tenant of the
Kaldbak men whom they employed to look after the
drift on that side of the fjord. He got to know of
the whale having been stranded and at once rowed
across the fjord in his boat to Byrgisvik, whence he
sent a messenger to Kaldbak. When Thorgrim and
his brother heard the news they got ready to go with
all speed to the spot. There were twelve of them in
a ten-oared boat, and six others, with Ivar and Leif,
sons of Kolbeinn. All the farmers who could get away
went to the whale.

In the meantime Flosi had sent word to his kins-

22 Grettir the Strong

men in the North at Ingolfsfjord and Ofeigsfjord and
to Olaf the son of Eyvind who lived at Drangar. The
first to arrive were Flosi and the men of Vik, who at
once began to cut up the whale, carrying on shore
the flesh as it was cut. At first *there were about
twenty men, but more came thronging in. Then
there came the men of Kaldbak with four ships.
Thorgrim laid claim to the whale and forbade the
men of Vik to cut, distribute, or carry away any por-
tion of it. Flosi called upon him to show proof that
Eirik had in express words given over the drift to
Onund; if not, he said he would prevent them by
force. Thorgrim saw that he was outnumbered and
would not venture on fighting. Then there came a
ship across the fjords, the men rowing with all their
might. They came up; it was Svan of Hoi from
Bjarnafjord with his men, and he at once told Thor-
grim not to let himself be robbed. The two men had
been great friends, and Svan offered Thorgrim his
aid, which the brothers accepted, and they attacked
valiantly. Thorgeir Bottleback was the first to get
on to the whale where Flosi's men were. Thorfinn,
who was spoken of before, was cutting it up, standing
near the head on the place where he had been carving.
" Here I bring you your axe," said Thorgeir. Then
he struck at Thorfinn's neck and cut off his head.
Flosi was up on the beach and saw it. He urged on
his men to give it them back. They fought for a
long time and the Kaldbak people were getting the
best of it. Most of them had no weapons but the
axes with which they were cutting up the whale
and short knives. The men of Vik were driven from
the whale on to the sandbanks. The men from the
East, however, were armed and able to deal wounds.
Their captain Steinn cut off the leg of Kolbeinn's son
Ivar, and Ivar's brother Leif beat one of Steinn's men

Grettir the Strong 23

to death with a rib of the whale. Then they fought
with anything they could get, and men were slain on
both sides. At last Olaf came up with a number of
ships from Drangar and joined Flosi; the men of
Kaldbak were then overpowered by numbers. They
had already loaded their ships, and Svan told them
to get on board. They therefore retired towards
the ships, the men of Vik after them. Svan on
reaching the sea struck at Steinn their captain,
wounding him badly, and then sprang into his own
ship. Thorgrim gave Flosi a severe wound and
escaped. Olaf wounded Ofeig Grettir fatally, but
Thorgeir carried him off and sprang on to his ship
with him. The Kaldbak men rowed into the fjord
and the two parties separated.

The following verse was composed on these doings :

l

" Hard were the blows which were dealt at Rifsker;
no weapons they had but steaks of the whale.
They belaboured each other with rotten blubber.
[\ Unseemly methinks is such warfare for men."

After this they made peace, and the dispute was
laid before the All-Thing. On the side of the Kaldbak
men were Thorodd the Godi, Skeggi of Midfjord, and
many others from the South. Flosi was exiled,
along with several others who had been with him.
He was put to great expense, for he insisted upon
paying all the fines himself. Thorgrim and his
brothers were unable to show that they had paid any
money either for the land or for the drift which Flosi
claimed. The Lawman was Thorkell Mani, and the
question was referred to him. He declared that by
law something must have been paid, though not
necessarily the full value.

" There was a case in point," he said, " between
my grandfather Ingolf and a woman named Steinvor
the Old. He gave her the whole of Rosmhvalanes,

24 Grettir the Strong

and she gave him a dirty cloak for it; the transfer
was afterwards held to be valid. That was a much
more important affair than this. My advice is that
the land be divided in equal portions between the
two ; and henceforward it shall be legally established
that all drift shall be the property of the owner of
the land upon which it has been stranded."

This was agreed to. Thorgrim and his brothers
were to give up Reykjafjord with all on that side,
and were to keep Kamb. For Ofeig a large sum of
money was paid, and Thorfinn was assessed at
nothing at all; Thorgeir received compensation for
the attack made upon his life, and all the parties were
reconciled. Flosi went to Norway with Steinn the
captain and sold his lands in Vik to Geirmund
Hvikatimbr, who lived there thenceforward.

The ship which Steinn 's sailors had built was rather
a tub. She was called Trekyllir — Tree-sack. Flosi
went on his journey in her, but was driven back to
Oxarfjord; his adventures are narrated in the sagas
of Bodmod, of Grimolf, and of Gerpi.

CHAPTER XIII

THORGRIM SETTLES AT BJARG AND MARRIES. HIS SON
ASMUND VISITS NORWAY AND MARRIES TWICE

AFTER these events Thorgrim and his brothers
divided up the property between them. Thorgrim
took the movable property and Thorgeir the lands.
Then Thorgrim went inland to Midfjord and bought
some land at Bjarg with the aid of Skeggi. He
married Thordis, the daughter of Asmund from
Asmund's peak who had land in Thingeyrasveit.
They had a son named Asmund, a great man and
strong, also wise, and notable for his abundance of

Grettir the Strong 25

hair, which turned grey very early. He was called
Longhair.

Thorgeir occupied himself with the management
of his estate and kept all the men of his household
hard at work. Asmund did not want to work, so
that he and his father got on rather badly together.
This continued until Asmund was grown up, when he
asked his father to give him the means to go abroad.
Thorgrim said he should have little enough, but he
gave him some ready cash. So Asmund went away
and soon increased his capital. He sailed to divers
lands, became a great trader and very wealthy. He
was popular and enjoyed good credit, and had many
friends among the leading men of Norway.

One autumn Asmund was in the East on a visit to
a certain magnate named Thorsteinn. His family
came from the Upplands, and he had a sister named
Rannveig who had excellent prospects. Asmund
asked this girl in marriage and obtained her through
the interest of her brother Thorsteinn; he settled
there for a time and was highly thought of. He and
Rannveig had a son named Thorsteinn, who became
a handsome man, strong, and with a powerful voice.
He was very tall and rather sluggish in his move-
ments, wherefore he was nicknamed Dromund. When
young Thorsteinn was half grown up his mother fell
ill and died, and Asmund cared no more for Norway.
Thorsteinn was taken over by his mother's relations
along with his property, while Asmund went on
voyages and became famous.

Asmund came in his ship to Hunavatn, where
Thorkell Krafla was chief of the Vatnsdales. On
hearing of Asmund's arrival Thorkell went to the
ship and invited him to stay, and Asmund went to
visit him in Marstadir in Vatnsdal where he lived.
Thorkell was a son of Thorgrim, the Godi of Karnsa,

26 Grettir the Strong

and a man of great experience. This was soon after
the arrival of Bishop Fridrek and Thorvald the son
of Kodran, who were living at Lcekjamoti when these
events happened, preaching Christianity for the first
time in the North of the island. Thorkell and many
of his men received the prima signatio. Many things
might be told of the dealings between the bishop's
men and the Northerners, which, however, do not
belong to this saga.

There was a girl named Asdis who was being
brought up in Thorkell 's house. She was a daughter
of Bard the son of Jokell, the son of Ingimund the
Old, the son of Thorsteinn, the son of Ketil Raum.
His mother's name was Aldis, whom we have already
heard of as the daughter of Ofeig Grettir. Asdis
was not betrothed as yet, and was a most desirable
match, both on account of her connections and her
wealth. Asmund now became sick of travelling
about and wanted to settle down in Iceland. So he
spoke up and asked for Asdis as his wife. Thorkell
knew all about him and knew that he was a man of
wealth, able to manage his affairs, so the marriage
was arranged. Asmund married Asdis, and became
a close friend of Thorkell. He was a great man
of affairs, learned in the law and very strenuous.
Soon afterwards Thorgrim Greyhead died at Bjarg;
Asmund succeeded to his property and took up his
residence at Bjarg.

CHAPTER XIV

ASMUND'S CHILDREN. GRETTIR'S CHILDHOOD

ASMUND LONGHAIR now set up a large and sumptuous
household in Bjarg, where he maintained a numerous
retinue and became very popular. His children were

Grettir the Strong 27

as follows: The eldest was Atli, an able and accom-
plished man, tactful and easy to deal with; he was
much liked by all. His second son was called
Grettir. He was very hard to manage in his bringing
up. He spoke little and was rough in his manners
and quarrelsome, both in words and deeds. He got
little affection from his father Asmund, but his
mother loved him dearly. Grettir was a handsome
man in appearance, with a face rather broad and
short, red-haired and somewhat freckled; not very
precocious in his youth. There was a daughter
named Thordis, who afterwards married Glum the
son of Ospak, the son of Kjallak from Skridnes.
Another daughter was named Rannveig; she married
Gamli the son of Thorhall of Vindland, and they
dwelt at Melar in Hrutafjord and had a son named
Grim. Glum and Thordis had a son named Ospak
who fell into a dispute with Odd the son of Ofeig,
which is told of in the " Saga of the Banded Men."

Grettir grew up at Bjarg until he was ten years
old, when he began to develop a little. Asmund
told him that he must do some work. Grettir said
that would not suit him very well, but asked what
he was to do.

" You must mind the geese," said Asmund.

" That is wretched work, only fit for an idiot,"
Grettir answered.

" You do that properly," his father said, " and we
shall get on better together."

So Grettir went to mind the geese. There were
fifty of them, and a number of goslings. Before long
he began to find them troublesome, and the goslings
would not come on quickly enough. This put him
out, for he could never control his temper. Soon
afterwards some wanderers found the goslings lying
outside dead, and the geese with their wings broken.

28 Grettir the Strong

This was in the autumn. Asmund was very much
annoyed and asked Grettir whether he had killed
the birds. Grettir grinned and answered :

" Always when winter is coming on
I like to wring the goslings' necks.
If among them there are geese
I treat the creatures all alike."

" You shan't twist any more of their necks," said
Asmund.

" The friend aye warns his friend of ill," answered
Grettir.

" I will give you other work to do."

" He knoweth most who most hath tried. But what
am I to do now? " Grettir asked.

" You shall rub my back when I am sitting by the
fire, as I am in the habit of having it done."

" Warm work for the hands," he answered. " It
is only fit for an idiot."

This for a time was Grettir 's occupation. As the
autumn advanced Asmund wanted more warmth,
and was constantly telling Grettir to rub his back
hard. It was the custom in those days for people
to have large rooms with long fires in them in their
houses, where men sat by the fire in the evenings on
benches, sleeping afterwards at the side away from
the fires. By day the women carded their wool
there.

One evening when Grettir had to scratch Asmund's
back his father said to him: " Now you will have to
put aside your laziness, you good-for-nothing you."

Grettir answered: " 'Tis ill to rouse a hasty temper."

" You are fit for nothing at all," said Asmund.

Grettir saw some wool-combs lying on one of the
benches; he took up one of them and drew it along
Asmund's back. Asmund sprang up and was going
to thrash him with his stick, but he escaped. His

Grettir the Strong 29

mother came up and asked what they were fighting
about. Grettir answered in a verse :

" Oh lady, the giver of treasure, I see,
has dire intent to burn my hands.
With nails uncut I was stroking his back.
Clearly I see the bird of wounds."

His mother was much vexed with Grettir for what he
had done and said he would not grow up very prudent.
The affair did not improve the relations between
Asmund and his son.

Soon after this Asmund spoke to Grettir and told
him to look after his horses. Grettir said that would
be better than back-fire-warming.

" You are to do what I tell you," said Asmund.
" I have a dun mare with a dark stripe down her back
whom I call Keingala. She is very knowing about
the weather and about rain coming. When she
refuses to graze it never fails that a storm will follow.
You are then to keep the horses under shelter in the
stables, and when cold weather sets in keep them to
the north of the ridge. I hope you will perform this
duty better than the two which I gave you before."

Grettir said: " That is cold work, and fit for a man
to do; but it seems to me rash to trust to the mare,
when to my knowledge no one has done so before."

So Grettir took to minding the horses, and went
on until Yule-tide was past, when very cold weather
set in, with snow, so that grazing was difficult. He
was very badly provided with clothes and little
hardened to the weather. He began to feel it very
cold, and Keingala always chose the windiest places
whatever the weather was. She never came to the
meadow early enough to get home before nightfall.
Grettir then thought he would play a trick upon
Keingala to pay her out for her wanderings. One
morning early he came to the stables, opened the

30 Grettir the Strong

door and found Keingala standing in front of the
manger. She had taken the whole of the fodder
which had been given to all the horses for herself.
Grettir jumped upon her back, with a sharp knife
in his hand which he drew across her shoulder and
along her back on both sides. The horse was fat
and fresh ; she shied back very frightened and kicked
out till her hoofs rattled against the walls. Grettir
fell off, but picked himself up and tried to mount her
again. There was a sharp struggle, which ended in
his shaving all the skin on her back down to her
flank. Then he drove the horses out to the meadow.
Keingala would not take a bite except off her back,
and soon after noon she bolted off to the stables.
Grettir locked the door and went home. Asmund
asked him where the horses were; he said he had
looked after them as usual. Asmund said there must
be a storm close at hand if the horses would not stay
out in such weather as there was then.

Grettir said: " Many seem wise who are lacking in
wit."

The night passed and there was no storm. Grettir
drove out the horses, but Keingala could not endure
the pasture. Asmund thought it very strange that
no change came in the weather. On the third morn-
ing he went himself to the horses and on seeing
Keingala he said: " 111 indeed have the horses fared
in this beautiful weather! Thy back will not deceive
me, my Bleikala."

" The likely may happen — also the unlikely," said
Grettir.

Asmund stroked the back of the horse and all her
coat came off on his hand. He could not understand
how she had got into that state and thought Grettir
must have done it. Grettir grinned and said nothing.
Asmund went home and became very abusive. He

Grettir the Strong 31

heard his wife say: " My son's watching of the horses
raust have prospered well."
Then he spoke a verse :

" He has cheated me sorely, and Keingala shorn.
'Tis the pride of a woman that urges her tongue.
Artful he holds my commands in derision.
Consider my verses, oh wife of my heart."

" I do not know," she said, " which seems to me
the more perverse, for you to make him work, or for
him always to get out of it in the same way."

" Now there shall be an end to it," said Asmund.
" He must have something worse than merely making
good the damage."

" Let neither speak of it to the other," said Grettir,
and so it remained.

Asmund had Keingala killed. Many more childish
pranks did Grettir play which are not told in the
saga. He now began to grow very big, but men did
not clearly know what strength he had because he
had never been tried in wrestling. He kept making
verses and ditties which were always a little ironical.
He did not sleep in the common room and was
generally very silent.

CHAPTER XV

GAMES AT MIDFJORDVATN

THERE were then a good many youths growing up
in Midfjord. A certain Skaldtorfa, whose home was
in Torfastadir, had a son named Bessi, an accom-
plished young man and a clever poet. Two brothers
named Kormak and Thorgils lived at Mel and had
with them a youth named Odd, who was dependent

32 Grettir the Strong

upon them, and was nicknamed Odd the Needy-
Skald. Another was named Audun; he grew up in
Audunarstad in Vididal, a pleasant good-natured
youth and the strongest of his age in the Norch.
Kalf the son of Asgeir and his brother Thorvald lived
at Asgeirsa. Grettir's brother Atli was then growing
to a man; he was most gracious in manners and
universally liked.

These youths used to play at ball together at
Midfjord Water. Those from Midfjord and from
Vididal used to meet there, and there came many
from Vestrkop and Vatnsnes with some from Hruta-
fjord. Those who came from afar used to lodge
there. Those who were about equal in ball-throwing
were matched together, and generally they had much
fun in the autumn. Grettir went to the sports when
he was fourteen years old at the request of his brother
Atli. The parties were made up. Grettir was
matched against Audun, the youth already men-
tioned, who was a few years the elder. Audun
struck the ball over Grettir's head so that he could
not reach it, and it bounded far away over the ice.
Grettir lost his temper, thinking he had done it out
of mischief, but he fetched the ball, brought it back
and going up to Audun drove it straight into his fore-
head, so that the skin was broken. Audun then
struck at Grettir with the bat that he was holding,
but Grettir ducked and the blow missed him. Then
they seized each other with their arms and wrestled.
It was evident to the people around that Grettir was
stronger than they had supposed, for Audun was very
strong indeed of body. They struggled long together
until at last Grettir was thrown. Audun then set
his knees on his stomach and dealt unmercifully with
him. Atli and Bessi and a number of the others ran
up and separated them. Grettir said they need not

Grettir the Strong 33

hold him like a mad dog, and added: " The thrall
alone takes instant vengeance, the coward never."

The rest had no mind to let the affair create dis-
cord among them, and the brothers Kalf and Thorvald
tried to reconcile them. Audun and Grettir were
distantly related to each other. The games went on
and there was no further disturbance.

CHAPTER XVI

GRETTIR KILLS SKEGGI AND IS OUTLAWED FOR
THREE YEARS

THORKELL KRAFLA now began to grow very old. He
was a great chieftain and held the Vatnsdal Godord.
He was a close friend of Asmund Longhair, as befitted
the near relations in which they stood to each other.
He had, therefore, been in the habit of riding every
year in the spring to Bjarg to visit his kinsmen there,
and he did so in the spring which followed the events
just related. Asmund and Asdis received him with
both hands. He stayed there three nights and many
a matter did the kinsmen discuss together. Thorkell
asked Asmund what his heart told him about his
sons, and what professions they were likely to follow.
Asmund said that Atli would probably be a great
landowner, very careful and wealthy.

" A useful man, like yourself," said Thorkell. " But
what can you tell me of Grettir? "

" I can only say," he replied, " that he will be a
strong man; but headstrong and quarrelsome. A
heavy trial has he been to me."

"That does not look very promising, kinsman! "
said Thorkell. " But how are we to arrange our journey
to the Thing in the summer? "

c

34 Grettir the Strong

" I am getting difficult to move," he said. " I
would rather stay at home."

" Would you like Atli to go for you? "

" I don't think I can spare him," Asmund said,
" because of the work and the provisioning. Grettir
will not do anything. But he has quite wit enough
to carry out the duties at the Thing on my behalf
under your guidance."

" It shall be as you please," said Thorkell.
, Then Thorkell made himself ready and rode home ;
Asmund dismissed him with presents.

A little later Thorkell journeyed to the Thing with
sixty men. All the men of his godord went with him.
They passed through Bjarg, where Grettir joined
them. They rode South through the heath called
Tvidcegra. There was very little grazing to be had
in the hills, so they rode quickly past them into the
cultivated land. When they reached Fljotstunga
they thought it was time to sleep, so they took the
bits from their horses and turned them loose with
their saddles. They lay there well on into the day,
and when they woke began to look for their horses.
Every horse had gone off in a different direction and
some had been rolling. Grettir could not find his
horse at all. The custom was at that time that men
should find their own provisions at the Thing, and
most of them carried their sacks over their saddles.
When Grettir found his horse its saddle was under
its belly, and the sack of provisions gone. He
searched about but could not find it. Then he saw
a man running very fast and asked him who he was.
He said his name was Skeggi and that he was a man
from Ass in Vatnsdal in the North.

" I am travelling with Thorkell," he said. " I
have been careless and lost my provision-bag."

" Alone in misfortune is worst. I also have lost

Grettir the Strong 35

my stock of provisions ; so we can look for them
together."

Skeggi was well pleased with this proposal, and
so they went about seeking for a time. Suddenly,
when Grettir least expected it, Skeggi started running
with all his might along the moor and picked up the
sack. Grettir saw him bend and asked what it was
that he had picked up.

" My sack," he said.

"Who says so besides yourself? " Grettir asked.
" Let me see it! Many a thing is like another."

Skeggi said no one should take from him what was
his own. Grettir seized hold of the sack and they
both pulled at it for a time, each trying to get his
own way.

" You Midfjord men have strange notions," said
Skegg, " if you think that because a man is not so
wealthy as you are, he is not to dare to hold to his
own before you."

Grettir said it had nothing to do with a man's
degree, and that each should have that which was
his own.

Skeggi replied: " Audun is now too far away to
strangle you as he did at the ball-play."

" That is well," said Grettir; " but however that
may have been you shall not strangle me."

Skeggi then seized his axe and struck at Grettir,
who on seeing it seized the handle of the axe with his
left hand and pulled it forward with such force that
Skeggi at once let go. The next moment it stood in
his brain and he fell dead to the earth. Grettir took
the sack, threw it across his saddle and rode back to
his companions.

Thorkell rode on, knowing nothing of what had
happened. Soon Skeggi was missed in the company,

36 Grettir the Strong

and when Grettir came up they asked him what news
he had of Skeggi. He answeredin a verse :

" Hammer-troll ogress has done him to death.
Thirsting for blood the war-fiend came.
With hard-edged blade she gaped o'er his head,
nor spared she his teeth. I saw it myself."

Then Thorkell's men sprang up and said it was im-
possible that a troll should have taken the man in
full daylight. Thorkell was silent for a moment.
Then he said: " There must be something more in it.
Grettir must have killed him. What was it that
really happened, Grettir? "

Grettir then told him all about their fight. Thor-
kell said: " It is a most unfortunate occurrence, be-
cause Skeggi was entrusted to my service, and was
a man of good family. I will take the matter upon
myself and pay whatever compensation is adjudged.
But a question of banishment does not lie with me.
Now, Grettir, there are two things for you to choose
between. Either you can go on to the Thing with us
and take the chance of what may happen there, or
you can turn back and go home."

Grettir decided to go on to the Thing, and to the
Thing he went. The matter was taken up by the
heirs of the man slain. Thorkell gave his hand to
pay the compensation and Grettir was to be banished
for three years.

On their way back from the Thing all the chiefs
halted at Sledaas before they parted company. It
was then that Grettir lifted a stone lying in the grass,
which is still known as Grettishaf. Many went
afterwards to see this stone and were astounded that
so young a man should have lifted such a mountain.

Grettir rode home to Bjarg and told his father
about his adventures. Asmund was much put out
and said he would be a trouble to everybody.

Grettir the Strong 37

CHAPTER XVII

GRETTIR SAILS FOR NORWAY AND IS WRECKED
ON HARAMARSEY

THERE dwelt at Reydarfell on the banks of the
Hvita a man named Haflidi, a mariner, owning a ship
of his own which was lying in dock in the Hvita river.
He had as his mate a man named Bard who had a
young and pretty wife. Asmund sent a man to
Haflidi asking him to take Grettir and look after him.
Haflidi answered that he had heard that Grettir was
very difficult to get on with, but out of friendship for
Asmund he took him. Grettir, therefore, prepared
to go to sea. His father would not give him any
outfit for his voyage beyond his bare provisions and
a little wadmal. Grettir asked him to give him some
sort of weapon. Asmund answered: " You have
never been obedient to me. Nor do I know what
you would do with a weapon that would be of any
profit. I shall not give you any."

Grettir said: " Work not done needs no reward."
Father and son parted with little love between
them. Many wished him a good voyage, but few a
safe return. His mother went with him along the
road. Before they parted she said : " You have not
been sent off in the way that I should have wished,
my son, or in a way befitting your birth. The most
cruel thing of all, I think, is that you have not a
weapon which you can use. My heart tells me that
you will want one."

Then she took from under her mantle a sword all
ready for use, a valuable possession. She said : " This
was the sword of Jokull, my father's father and of

38 Grettir the Strong

the ancient Vatnsdal men, in whose hands it was
blessed with victory. I give it to "you; use it well."

Grettir thanked her warmly and said it would be
more precious to him than any other possession
though of greater value. Then he went on his way
and Asdis wished him all possible happiness. He
rode South over the heath and did not stop till he
reached his ship. Haflidi received him well and
asked him about his outfit for the voyage. Grettir
spoke a verse :

" Oh trimmer of sails ! my father is wealthy,
but poorly enough he sent me from home.
My mother it was who gave me this sword.
True is the saying: The mother is best."

Haflidi said it was evident that she had most thought
for him.

Directly they were ready and had a wind they got
under way. When they were out of shallow water
they hoisted their sail. Grettir made himself a
corner under the ship's boat, whence he refused to stir
either to bale or to trim the sails or to do any work
in the ship, as it was his duty to do equally with the
other men; nor would he buy himself off. They
sailed to the South, rounded Reykjanes and left the
land behind them, when they met with stormy
weather. The ship was rather leaky and became
very uneasy in the gale; the crew were very much
exhausted. Grettir only let fly satirical verses at
them, which angered them sorely. One day when
it was very stormy and very cold the men called out
to Grettir to get up and work ; they said their claws
were quite frozen. He answered :

" 'Twere well if every finger were froze
on the hands of such a lubberly crew."

They got no work out of him and liked him even
worse than before, and said they would pay him out

Grettir the Strong 39

on his person for his squibs and his mutinous be-
haviour.

" You like better," they said, " to pat the belly of
Bard the mate's wife than to bear a hand in the ship.
But we don't mean to stand it."

The weather grew steadily worse ; they had to bale
night and day, and they threatened Grettir. Haflidi
when he heard them went up to Grettir and said: " I
don't think your relations with the crew are very
good. You are mutinous and make lampoons about
them, and they threaten to pitch you overboard.
This is most improper."

"Why cannot they mind their own business?"
Grettir rejoined. " But I should like one or two to
remain behind with me before I go overboard."

"That is impossible," said Haflidi. "We shall
never get on upon those terms. But I will make
you a proposal about it."

"What is that?"

" The thing which annoys them is that you make
lampoons about them. Now I suggest that you
make a lampoon about me. Then, perhaps, they
will become better disposed towards you."

" About you I will never utter anything but good,"
said he. " I am not going to compare you with the
sailors."

" But you might compose a verse which should at
first appear foul, but on closer view prove to be fair."

" That," he answered, " I am quite equal to."

Haflidi then went to the sailors and said: " You
have much toil ; and it seems that you don't get on
with Grettir."

" His lampoons," they answered, " annoy us more
than anything else."

Then Haflidi, speaking loud, said: " It will be the
worse for him some day."

4O Grettir the Strong

Grettir, when he heard himself being denounced,
spoke a verse :

" Other the words that Haflid spake
when he dined on curds at Reydarfell.
But now two meals a day he takes
in the steed of the bays mid foreland shores."

The sailors were very angry and said he should
not lampoon Haflidi for nothing. Haflidi said:
" Grettir certainly deserves that you should take
him down a little, but I am not going to risk my good
name because of his ill-temper and caprice. This is
not the time to pay him out, when we are all in such
danger. When you get on shore you can remember
it if you like."

"Shall we not endure what you can endure?"
they said. " Why should a lampoon hurt us more
than it does you? "

Haflidi said so it should be, and after that they
cared less about Grettir's lampoons.

The voyage was long and fatiguing. The ship
sprung a leak, and the men began to be worn out.
The mate's young wife was in the habit of stitching
Grettir's sleeves for him, and the men used to banter
him about it. Haflidi went up to Grettir where he
was lying and said :

" Arise from thy den! deep furrows we plough!
Remember the word thou didst speak to the fair.
Thy garment she sewed ; but now she commands
that thou join in the toil while the land is afar."

Grettir got up at once and said :

" I will rise, though the ship be heavily rolling.
The woman is vexed that I sleep in my den.
She will surely be wrath if here I abide
while others are toiling at work that is mine."

Then he hurried aft where they were baling and asked
what they wanted him to do. They said he would

Grettir the Strong 41

do little good. He replied: " A man's help is some-
thing." Haflidi told them not to refuse his help.
" Maybe," he said, " he is thinking of loosening his
hands if he offers his services."

In those days in sea-going ships there were no
scuppers for baling; they only had what is called
bucket or pot-baling, a very troublesome and fatiguing
process. There were two buckets, one of which went
down while the other came up. The men told Grettir
to take the buckets down, and said they would try
what he could do. He said the less tried the better,
and went below and filled his bucket. There were
two men above to empty the buckets as he handed
them. Before long they both gave in from fatigue.
Then four others took their places, but the same thing
happened. Some say that before they were done
eight men were engaged in emptying the buckets for
him. At last the ship was baled dry. After this, the
seamen altered their behaviour towards Grettir, for
they realised the strength which was in him. From
that time on he was ever the forwardest to help
wherever he was required.

They now held an easterly course out to sea. It
was very dark. One night when they least expected
it, they struck a rock and the lower part of the ship
began to fill. The boats were got out and the
women put into them with all the loose property.
There was an island a little way off, whither they
carried as much of their property as they could get
off in the night. When the day broke, they began
to ask where they were. Some of them who had been
about the country before recognised the coast of
Sunnmceri in Norway. There was an island lying a
little off the mainland called Haramarsey, with a
large settlement and a farm belonging to the Landman
on it.

42 Grettir the Strong

CHAPTER XVIII

ADVENTURE IN THE HOWE OF KAR THE OLD

THE name of the Landman who lived in the island
was Thorfinn. He was a son of Kar the Old, who
had lived there for a long time. Thorfinn was a man
of great influence.

When the day broke, the people on the island saw
that there were some sailors there in distress and
reported it to Thorfinn, who at once set about to
launch his large sixteen-oared boat. He put out as
quickly as possible with some thirty men to save the
cargo of the trader, which then sank and was lost,
along with much property. Thorfinn brought all
the men off her to his house, where they stayed for
a week drying their goods. Then they went away
to the South, and are heard of no more in this story.

Grettir stayed behind with Thorfinn, keeping very
quiet and speaking little. Thorfinn gave him his
board, but took little notice of him. Grettir held
rather aloof, and did not accompany him when he
went abroad every day. This annoyed Thorfinn,
but he did not like to refuse Grettir his hospitality;
he was a man who kept open house, enjoyed life and
liked to see other men happy. Grettir liked going
about and visiting the people in the other farms on
the island. There was a man named Audun, who
dwelt at Vindheim. Grettir went to see him daily
and became very intimate with him, sitting there all
day long.

One evening very late when Grettir was preparing
to return home, he saw a great fire shoot up on the
headland below Audun's place, and asked what new

Grettir the Strong 43

thing that might be. Audun said there was no press-
ing need for him to know.

" If they saw such a thing in our country," said
Grettir, " they would say the fire came from some
treasure."

" He who rules that fire," answered the man, " is
one whom it will be better not to inquire about."

" But I want to know," Grettir said.

" On that headland," said Audun, " there is a
howe, wherein lies Kar the Old, the father of Thorfinn.
Once upon a time father and son had a farm-property
on the island; but ever since Kar died his ghost has
been walking and has scared away all the other
farmers, so that now the whole island belongs to
Thorfinn, and no man who is under Thorfinn's pro-
tection suffers any injury."

" You have done right to tell me," said Grettir.
" Expect me here to-morrow morning, and have
tools ready for digging."

" I won't allow you to have anything to do with
it," said Audun, "because T know that it will bring
Thorfinn's wrath down upon you."

Grettir said he would risk that.

The night passed; Grettir appeared early the next
morning, and the bondi, who had got all the tools
for digging ready, went with Grettir to the howe.
Grettir broke open the grave, and worked with all
his might, never stopping until he came to wood, by
which time the day was already spent. He tore
away the woodwork; Audun implored him not to
go down, but Grettir bade him attend to the rope,
saying that he meant to find out what it was that
dwelt there. Then he descended into the howe. It
was very dark and the odour was not pleasant. He
began to explore how it was arranged, and found the
bones of a horse. Then he knocked against a sort

44 Grettir the Strong

of throne in which he was aware of a man seated.
There was much treasure of gold and silver collected
together, and a casket under his feet, full of silver.
Grettir took all the treasure and went back towards
the rope, but on his way he felt himself seized by a
strong hand. He left the treasure to close with his
aggressor and the two engaged in a merciless struggle.
Everything about them was smashed. The howe-
dweller made a ferocious onslaught. Grettir for some
time gave way, but found that no holding back was
possible. They did not spare each other. Soon they
came to the place where the horse's bones were lying,
and here they struggled for long, each in turn being
brought to his knees. At last it ended in the howe-
dweller falling backwards with a horrible crash,
whereupon Audun above bolted from the rope, think-
ing that Grettir was killed. Grettir then drew his
sword Jokulsnaut, cut off the head of the howe-
dweller and laid it between his thighs. Then he went
with the treasure to the rope, but finding Audun gone
he had to swarm up the rope with his hands. First
he tied the treasure to the lower end of the rope, so
that he could haul it up after him. He was very stiff
from his struggle with Kar, but he turned his steps
towards Thorfinn's house, carrying the treasure along
with him. He found them all at supper. Thorfinn
cast a severe glance -at him and asked what he had
found so pressing to do that he could not keep proper
hours like other men.

" Many a trifle happens at eve," he replied.

Then he brought out all the treasure which he had
taken from the howe and laid it on the table. One
thing there was upon which more than anything else
Grettir cast his eyes, a short sword, which he declared
to be finer than any weapon which he had ever seen.
It was the last thing that he showed. Thorfinn

Grettir the Strong 45

opened his eyes when he saw the sword, for it was an
heirloom of his family and had never been out of it.

" Whence came this treasure? " he asked.

Grettir then spake a verse :

" Scatterer of gold! 'twas the lust of wealth
that urged my hand to ravish the grave.
This know; but none hereafter, I ween,
will be fain to ransack Fafnir's lair."

Thorfinn said: " You don't seem to take it very
seriously; no one ever before had any wish to break
open the howe. But since I know that all treasure
which is hidden in the earth or buried in a howe is
in a wrong place I hold you guilty of no misdeed,
especially since you have brought it to me."

Grettir answered :

" The monster is slain! in the dismal tomb
I have captured a sword, dire wounder of men.
Would it were mine ! a treasure so rare
I never would suffer my hand to resign."

" You have spoken well," Thorfinn answered.
" But before I can give you the sword you must dis-
play your prowess in some way. I never got it from
my father whilst he lived."

Grettir said: " No one knows to whom the greatest
profit will fall ere all is done."

Thorfinn took the treasure and kept the sword in
his own custody near his bed. The winter came on
bringing Yule-tide, and nothing more happened that
need be told oi

46 Grettir the Strong

CHAPTER XIX

BERSERKS AT HARAMARSEY

THE following summer jarl Eirik the son of Hakon
was preparing to leave his country and sail to the
West to join his brother-in-law King Knut the Great
in England, leaving the government of Norway in
the hands of Hakon his son, who, being an infant, was
placed under the government and regency of Eirik's
brother, jarl Sveinn. Before leaving Eirik summoned
all his Landmen and the larger bondis to meet him.
Eirik the jarl was an able ruler, and they had much
discussion regarding the laws and their administra-
tion. It was considered a scandal in the land that
pirates and berserks should be able to come into
the country and challenge respectable people to the
holmgang for their money or their women, no were-
gild being paid whichever fell. Many had lost their
money and been put to shame in this way; some
indeed had lost their lives. For this reason jarl Eirik
abolished all holmgang in Norway and declared all
robbers and berserks who disturbed the peace outlaws.
Thorfinn the son of Kar of Haramarsey, being a man
of wise counsel and a close friend of the jarl, was
present at the meeting.

The worst of these ruffians were two brothers
named Thorir Paunch and Ogmund the Bad. They
came from Halogaland and were bigger and stronger
than other men. When angry they used to fall into
the berserk's fury, and nothing escaped that was
before them. They used to carry off men's wives,
keep them for a week or two and then send them
back. Wherever they came they committed rob-

Grettir the Strong 47

beries and other acts of violence. Jarl Eirik had
declared them outlaws throughout Norway. The
man who had been most active in getting them out-
lawed was Thorfinn, and they were determined to pay
him out in full for his hostility.

The jarl's expedition is told of in his saga, and the
government of Norway was left in the hands of jarl
Sveinn, with the regency. Thorfinn returned home
and remained there until about Yule-tide, as has
already been told. Towards Yule-tide he made ready
to go on a journey to his farm called Slysfjord on the
mainland, whither he had invited a number of his
friends. He could not take his wife with him, because
their grown-up daughter was lying sick, so they both
had to stay at home. Grettir and eight of the serving
men remained with them. Thorfinn went with thirty
freedmen to the Yule festival, at which there was
much gladness and merriment.

Yule-eve set in with bright and clear weather.
Grettir, who was generally abroad in the daytime,
was watching the vessels which came along the coast,
some from the North, some from the South, meeting
at the places agreed upon for their drinking-bouts.
The bondi's daughter was then better and could go
out with her mother. So the day passed. At last
Grettir noticed a ship rowing up to the island, not
large, covered with shields amidships and painted
above the water-line. They were rowing briskly
and making for Thorfinn 's boat-houses. They ran
the boat on to the beach and all sprang ashore.
Grettir counted the men; there were twelve in all,
and their aspect did not look peaceful. After haulingp
up their boat out of the water they all made for the
boat-house where Thorfinn's great boat, mentioned
already, was stowed. She always required thirty
men to put her to sea, but the twelve shoved her

48 Grettir the Strong

along the beach at once. Then they brought their
own boat into the boat-house. It was very evident
to Grettir that they did not mean to wait for an in-
vitation, so he went up to them, and greeting them
in a friendly way asked who they were and who
was their captain. The man whom he addressed
answered him at once, saying his name was Thorir,
called Paunch; the others were his brother Ogmund
with their companions. " I think," he added, " that
your master Thorfinn has heard our names mentioned.
But is he at home ? "

" You must be men who have luck," said Grettir,
" you have come most opportunely, if you are the
people I take you for. The bondi has gone from
home with all his freedmen and will not be back
until after Yule. The goodwife is at home with her
daughter, and if I had any grudge to repay, I would
come just as you do, for there is everything here
which you want, ale to drink and other delights."

Thorir was silent while Grettir went on talking.
Then he turned to Ogmund and said: " Has any-
thing not happened as I said it would ? I should not
be sorry to punish Thorfinn for having got us out-
lawed. This man seems ready to tell us everything;
we don't have to drag the words out of his mouth."

" Every one is master of his own words," said
Grettir. " If you will come home with me I will give
you what entertainment I can."

They thanked him and said they would accept his
invitation. When they reached the house Grettir
took Thorir by the hand and led him into the hall.
He was very talkative. The mistress was in the hall
decorating it and putting all in order. On hearing
what Grettir said, she came to the door and asked
who it was that Grettir was welcoming so warmly.

Grettir answered: " It will be advisable, mistress,

Grettir the Strong 49

to be civil to these men who have come. They are
the bondi Thorir Paunch and his followers, and have
come, all twelve of them, to spend Yule-tide here.
It is fortunate for us, for we have had little company
till now."

She said: " I don't call them bondis, nor are they
decent men, but arrant robbers and malefactors. I
would gladly pay a large portion of my property for
them not to have come just at this time. It is an ill
return that you make to Thorfinn for having saved
you from shipwreck and kept you this winter like a
free man, destitute as you were."

" You would do better," said Grettir, " if you first
took off the wet clothes from your guests instead of
casting reproaches upon me. You will have plenty
of time for that."

Then Thorir said: "Don't be angry, mistress!
You shall lose nothing by your husband being away,
for you shall have a man in his place and so shall your
daughter and all the other women."

" That is spoken like a man," said Grettir. " The
women shall be quite contented with what they
get."

Then all the women fled and began to weep, being
overcome by terror. Grettir said to the berserks:
" Give me all the things which you want to lay aside,
your weapons and your wet clothes, for the men will
not obey us while they are frightened."

Thorir said he cared little for the women's whining.
" But," he said, " we mean to treat you in a different
way from the other men of the house. It seems to
me that we may make a comrade of you."

" See to that yourselves," said Grettir. " But I
do not look upon all men alike."

Then they laid aside most of their weapons.
Grettir said: " I think now you had better sit down

D

50 Grettir the Strong

at the table and have some drink. You must be
thirsty after your rowing."

They said they were quite ready for a drink, but
did not know where the cellar was. Grettir asked
whether they would let him arrange for their enter-
tainment, which they willingly agreed to. So Grettir
went and fetched some ale which he gave them to
drink. They were very tired and drank enormously.
He kept them well plied with the strongest ale there
was, and they sat there for a long time whilst he told
them funny stories. There was a tremendous din
amongst them all, and the servants did not dare to
approach them.

Thorir said: " I never yet met with a stranger who
treated me like this man. What reward shall we
give you for all that you have done, Grettir? "

Grettir replied : " I don't expect any reward for my
services at present. But if when you depart we are
still as good friends as we seem to be now, I should
very much like to join your company, and though I
may not be able to do as much work as any of you,
I will not be a hindrance in any doughty under-
taking."

They were delighted, and wanted to swear fellow-
ship with him at once. Grettir said that could not
be, " for," he added, " there is truth in the saying
that Ale is another man, and such a thing should not
be done hastily, so let it remain at what I said; we
are both little in the habit of restraining our-
selves."

They declared that they did not mean to go back.
The night was now coming on and it was getting
very dark. Grettir noticed that they were rather
fuddled, and asked whether they did not think it was
time to go to bed. Thorir said : " So it is ; but I have
to fulfil my promise to the mistress." Grettir then

Grettir the Strong 5 1

went out and called out loud: "Go to bed, women!
Such is the will of Thorir the bondi."

The women execrated him and could be heard
howling like wolves. The berserks then left the room.
Grettir said: "Let us go outside; I will show you
the room in which Thorfinn keeps his clothes."

They were agreeable and all went out to an enor-
mous outhouse, which was very strongly built, and
had a strong lock on the outer door. Adjoining it
was a large and well-built privy, with only a wooden
partition between it and the room of the outhouse,
which was raised above the ground and had to be
reached by steps. The berserks then began skylark-
ing and pushing Grettir about. He fell down the
steps, as if in sport, and in a moment was out of the
house, had pulled the bolt, slammed the door to, and
locked it. Thorir and his mates thought at first that
the door had swung to of itself, and paid little atten-
tion; they had a light with them by which Grettir
had been showing them all Thorfinn's treasures, and
they continued looking at them for some time.

Grettir went off to the homestead, and on reaching
the door cried out very loud, asking where the mis-
tress was. She was silent, being afraid to answer.
He said: " Here is rather good sport to be had. Are
there any arms which are good for anything? "

" There are arms," she said; " but I don't know
for what purpose you want them."

"We will talk about that afterwards; but now
let each do what he can ; it is the last chance."

" Now indeed were God in the dwelling," she said,
" if anything should happen to save us. Over Thor-
finn's bed there hangs the great halberd which be-
longed to Kar the Old; there, too, is a helmet and a
corselet and a good short sword. The weapons will
not fail if your heart holds firm."

52 Grettir the Strong

Grettir took the helmet and spear, girt the sword
about him and went quickly out. The mistress
called to her men and bade them follow their brave
champion. Four of them rushed to their arms, but
the other four durst not go near them.

Meantime the berserks thought that Grettir was a
long time away and began to suspect some treachery.
They rushed to the door and found it locked. They
strained at the woodwork till every timber groaned.
At last they tore down the wooden partition and so
gained the passage where the privy was, and thence
the steps. Then the berserks' fury fell upon them
and they howled like dogs. At that moment Grettir
returned, and taking his halberd in both hands he
thrust it right through Thorir's body just as he was
about to descend the steps. The blade was very long
and broad. Ogmund the Bad was just behind push-
ing him on, so that the spear passed right up to the
hook, came out at his back between the shoulder-
blades and entered the breast of Ogmund. They
both fell dead, pierced by the spear. Then all the
others dashed down as they reached the steps.
Grettir tackled them each in turn, now thrusting
with the spear, now hewing with the sword, while
they defended themselves with logs lying on the
ground or with anything else which they could get.
It was a terrible trial of a man's prowess to deal with
men of their strength, even unarmed.

Grettir slew two of the Halogaland men there in
the enclosure. Four of the serving-men then came
up. They had not been able to agree upon which
arms each should take, but they came out to the
attack directly the berserks were running away;
when these turned against them they fell back on the
house. Six of the ruffians fell, all slain by Grettir's
own hand ; the other six then fled towards the landing

Grettir the Strong 53

place and took refuge in the boat-house, where they
defended themselves with oars. Grettir received a
severe blow from one of them and narrowly escaped
a serious hurt.

The serving-men all went home and told great
stories of their own exploits. The lady wanted to
know what had become of Grettir, but they could not
tell her. Grettir slew two men in the boat-house,
but the other four got away, two in one direction,
two in another. He pursued those who were nearest
to him. The night was very dark. They ran to
Vindheim, the place spoken of before, and took refuge
in a barn, where they fought for a long time until at
last Grettir killed them. By this time he was terribly
stiff and exhausted. The night was far spent; it
was very cold and there were driving snow-storms.
He felt little inclination to go after the two who yet
remained, so he went back home. The goodwife
kindled a light and put it in a window in the loft at
the top of the house, where it served him as a guide,
and he was able to find his way home by the light.
When he came to the door the mistress came to meet
him and bade him welcome.

" You have earned great glory," she said, " and
have saved me and my household from a disgrace
which must have fallen upon us if you had not
delivered us."

" I think I am much the same person as I was last
evening when you spoke so roughly to me," said
Grettir.

" We knew not then the might that was in you,"
she said, " as we know it now. Everything in the
house shall be yours, so far as it is fitting for me to
bestow and right for you to receive. I doubt not
that Thorfinn will reward you in a better way when
he comes home."

54 Grettir the Strong

" There is little that I want as a reward at present,"
said Grettir. " But I accept your offer until your
husband returns. I think now that you will be able
to sleep in peace undisturbed by the berserks."

Grettir drank little before he retired and lay all
night in his armour. In the morning, directly the
day broke, all the men of the island were called to-
gether to go forth and search for the two berserks
who had escaped. They were found at the end of
the day lying under a rock, both dead from cold
and from their wounds ; they were carried away and
buried in a place on the shore beneath the tide, with
some loose stones over them, after which the islanders
returned home, feeling that they could live in peace.
When Grettir came back to the house and met the
mistress he spoke a verse :

" Near the surging sea the twelve lie buried.
I stayed not my hand but slew them alone.
Great lady! what deed that is wrought by a man
shall be sung of as worthy if this be deemed small ? "

She answered: " Certainly you are very unlike any
other man now living." She set him in the high seat
and gave him the best of everything. So it remained
until Thorium returned.

CHAPTER XX
THORFINN'S RETURN. GRETTIR VISITS THE NORTH

WHEN Yule-tide was past, Thorfinn made ready for
his homeward journey and dismissed his many guests
with gifts. He sailed with all his men and landed
near the place where the boat-houses were. They
saw a ship lying on the sand which they at once
recognised as his great boat. Thorfinn had heard

Grettir the Strong 55

nothing of the vikings and told his men to put him
on shore, " for I suspect," he said, " that they are
not friends who have been at work here."

Thorfinn was the first to land, and went straight
to the boat-house, where he saw a craft which he knew
at once to be that of the berserks. He said to his
men: " I suspect that things have taken place here
such that I would give the whole island and every-
thing that is in it for them not to have happened."

They asked how that was.

" Vikings have been here, men whom I know as the
worst in all Norway, namely Thorir Paunch and
Ogmund the Bad. They will not have dealt gently
with us. I mistrust that Icelander."

Then he spoke many things to his men. Grettir
was at home and detained the men from going down
to the shore. He said he did not care if the bondi
got a little fright from what he saw. The goodwife
asked his leave to go down, and he said she was mis-
tress of her own ways, but that he was not going.
So she hurried away to greet Thorfinn and embraced
him joyfully. He was rejoiced to see her and said:
" God be praised that I see you well and my daughter
too. But what has happened to you since I left? "

" It has ended well," she said. " But we were
nigh to suffering a disgrace which could never have
been wiped out, had not your winter-guest aided us."

Thorfinn said: " Let us sit down and you shall tell
me everything."

Then she told him fully all that had happened,
praising highly Grettir's courage and resourcefulness.
Thorfinn was silent while she was speaking, and when
she had finished he said: " True indeed is the word,
Long shall a man be tried. But where is Grettir? "

" He is at home in the hall," she answered.

Then they went up to the house. Thorfinn went

56 Grettir the Strong

to Grettir and turned towards him and thanked him
with the fairest words for his courageous conduct.

" I will say a word to you," he said, " which few
would say to their friend. I would it might happen
that you should need the help of a man, for you to
know whether I count for anything or not ; I cannot
repay what you have done for me as long as you are
not in straits. You shall have in my house whatever
you desire, and shall be in the highest honour in my
household."

Grettir thanked him and said he would have
accepted his offer even if he had made it earlier.

Grettir stayed there the rest of the winter in high
favour with Thorfinn. The fame of his deed spread
through all Norway, especially in those parts where
the berserks had ravaged most mercilessly. In the
spring Thorfinn asked him what he would like to do.
He said he would go North to Vagar while the fair
was on there. Thorfinn said that any money which
he required should be at his service ; Grettir said he
did not want more just then than enough to pay for
his living. Thorfinn said that was his due, and
brought him to a ship, where he gave him the ex-
cellent short sword. Grettir kept it as long as he
lived; it was a most precious possession. Thorfinn
bade him come to him if ever he wanted any help.

Grettir then travelled to Vagar, which was crowded
with people. Many whom he had never set eyes on
before greeted him warmly because of his exploit in
killing the vikings, and several of the leading men
invited him to stay with them, but he preferred to
return to his friend Thorfinn. So he took his passage
in a trading ship belonging to one Thorkell, a man of
some consideration in Salfti in Halogaland. Grettir
went to visit Thorkell in his home, where he received
a hearty welcome and a very pressing invitation to

Grettir the Strong 57

stay there for the winter. Grettir accepted the
invitation and stayed the winter with Thorkell, who
treated him with great honour.

CHAPTER XXI

ADVENTURE WITH A BEAR

THERE was a man named Bjorn who was then on a
visit to Thorkell. He was of a somewhat violent
character, of good family and related in some way
to Thorkell. He was not generally liked, because he
was too much given to talking against the men who
were about Thorkell and drove many away from him.
He and Grettir did not get on at all. Bjorn thought
him of small account compared to himself; Grettir
paid him little deference, and it became an open feud.
Bjorn was a boisterous swaggering man, and many
of the younger men imitated him, loitering about
outside in the evenings.

It happened at the beginning of the winter that a
savage brown bear broke out of its den and raged
about destroying men and cattle. Every one de-
clared that it had been provoked by the noise which
Bjorn and his company made. The beast became
most mischievous, attacking the flocks in the very
face of the men themselves. Thorkell, being the
wealthiest man of that part, suffered most. One day
he called up his men to come with him and search
out the bear's den. They found it in a cliff by the
sea where there was a cave under an overhanging
rock, with a narrow path leading to the entrance.
Below was a sheer precipice down to the beach,
threatening certain death to any one who stumbled.
In this den the bear lay in the daytime, going abroad

58 Grettir the Strong

at night. Fences were of no avail against him, nor
could the dogs do anything, so that all were in the
utmost distress. ThorkelTs kinsman Bjorn declared
that the main thing was gained now that they had
found the den. " Now we shall see," he said, " how
the game will go with me and my namesake." Grettir
pretended not to hear what he said.

In the evenings when the others retired to bed,
Bjorn used generally to go out. One night he went
to the bear's den and found the creature inside,
growling horribly. He lay down in the path, placing
his shield over him, intending to wait until the beast
came out as usual. Bruin, however, got wind of
him and was rather slow in coming out. Bjorn got
very sleepy where he was lying and could not keep
awake ; in the meantime out came the bear from his
den and saw a man lying there. He clawed at him,
dragged off his shield and threw it down the cliff.
Bjorn woke up, not a little startled, took to his heels
and ran off home, narrowly escaping the bear's
clutches. His friends knew all about it, having
watched his movements; on the next morning they
found the shield and made great game of his
adventure.

At Yule-time Thorkell himself went out to the den
with Bjorn, Grettir and others of his men, a party of
eight in all. Grettir had on a fur cape which he put
off when they were attacking the bear. It was
rather difficult to get at him, since they could only
reach him with spear-thrusts, which he parried with
his teeth. Bjorn kept urging them on to tackle him,
but himself did not go near enough to be in any
danger. At last, when no one was looking out, he
took Grettir's fur cloak and threw it in to the bear.
They did not succeed in getting the bear out, and
when night came on turned to go home. Grettir

Grettir the Strong 59

then missed his cloak and saw that the bear had got
it into his grip.

" Who has been playing tricks on me ? " he cried.
" Who threw my cloak into the cave? "

Bjorn answered: " He who did it will not be afraid
to say so."

" Things of that sort do not trouble me much,"
said Grettir.

Then they started on their way home. After they
had gone a little way Grettir's garter broke. Thorkell
told them to wait for him, but Grettir said it was not
necessary. Then Bjorn said: " There is no need to
suppose that Grettir will run away from his cloak.
He wants to have the honour of killing the beast all
alone, and he will say that we eight men went away.
Then he would appear to be what he is said to be.
He has been backward enough all day."

" I don't know how you stand in that matter,"
said Thorkell. " You and he are not equal in valour;
do not make any to-do about him."

Bjorn said that neither he nor Grettir should
choose the words out of his mouth.

There was a hill between them and Grettir, who
had turned back along the footpath. Now he had
no others to reckon with in making the attack. He
drew his sword Jokulsnaut and tied a loop round the
handle which he passed over his wrist, because he
thought that he could carry out his plans better if
his hand were free. He went along the path. When
the bear saw a man coming, he charged savagely, and
struck at him with the paw that was on the side away
from the precipice. Grettir aimed a blow at him
with his sword and cut off his paw just above the
claws. Then the creature tried to strike him with
his sound paw, but to do so he had to drop on the
stump, which was shorter than he expected, and over

60 Grettir the Strong

he fell into Grettir's embraces. Grettir seized the
beast by the ears and held him off so that he could
not bite. He always said that he considered this
holding back the bear the greatest feat of strength
that he ever performed. The beast struggled vio-
lently; the space was very narrow, and they both
fell over the precipice. The bear being the heavier
came down first on the beach ; Grettir fell on the top
of him, and the bear was badly mauled on the side
that was down. Grettir got his sword, ran it into
the heart of the bear and killed him. Then he went
home, after fetching his cloak which was torn to
pieces. He also took with him the bit of the paw
which he had cut off.

Thorkell was sitting and drinking when Grettir
entered. They all laughed at the ragged cloak
which he was wearing. Then he laid the piece of the
paw upon the table. Thorkell said: " Where is my
kinsman Bjorn ? I never saw iron bite like that in
your hands. Now I would like you to show Grettir
some honour to make up for the shame which you
cast upon him."

Bjorn said that could wait, and that it mattered
little to him whether Grettir was pleased or not.
Grettir then spoke a verse :

" Oft returned the watcher at night
trembling home, but sound in limb.
None ever saw me sit in the dusk
at the cave; yet now I am home returned."

" It is true," said Bjorn, " that you have fought
well; and also true that our opinions differ. I sup-
pose you think that your taunts hurt me."

Thorkell said: " I should be glad, Grettir, if you
would not revenge yourself upon Bjorn. I will pay
the full weregild of a man for you to be reconciled."

Bjorn said he might invest his money better than

Grettir the Strong 61

in paying for that; and that it would be better for
him and Grettir to go on bickering since " each oak
has that which it scrapes from the other." Thorkell
said: " But I ask you, Grettir, to do so much for my
sake as not to attack Bjorn while you are both with
me."

" That I promise," said Grettir.

Bjorn said that he would walk without fear of
Grettir wherever they met. Grettir grinned, and
would accept no money on account of Bjorn. They
stayed there the winter.

CHAPTER XXII

GRETTIR KILLS BJORN AND IS SUMMONED BEFORE
JARL SVEINN

IN the spring Grettir went North to Vagar with
ThorkelTs men. They parted with friendship.
Bjorn went West to England in ThorkelTs ship, of
which he was master, staying there for the summer
and transacting the business which Thorkell had
entrusted to him. In the end of the autumn he
returned from the western parts. Grettir stayed in
Vagar till the trading ships left, and then sailed South
with some of the traders, as far as the port of Gartar
at the mouth of the Thrandheim's Fjord, where he
set up the awnings to make a stay. When they were
settled down a ship came up along the coast from the
South, which they at once recognised as one of the
ships from England. She made fast further out off
the coast and her crew landed. Grettir went out
with his companions to visit them. On their meeting
Grettir found Bjorn amongst the company and said:
"It is well that we meet here, for now we can

62 Grettir the Strong

continue our former quarrel. I should like to try
which of us is the better man."

Bjorn said that was all past now, as far as he
was concerned. " But," he said, " if there has been
anything between us I will pay you such compensa-
tion that you shall be satisfied."

Grettir spoke a verse :

" Time was when the bear was slain by my hand ;
my cloak in tatters was torn.
A rascally knave was the cause of it all
but now he shall make me amends."

Bjorn said that weightier matters than this had
been settled by payment. Grettir said that few men
had any reason to act maliciously towards him; he
had accepted no money-atonement, nor would he do
so now; that if he had his way they should not both
go away unhurt, and that if Bjorn refused to fight
he would brand him as a coward. Bjorn saw that
excuses would not avail him, so he took his arms and
went out. They rushed at each other and fought;
soon Bjorn was wounded and then he fell dead to the
ground. On seeing that, his men went on board
their ship, sailed away to the North along the coast
to Thorkell's place and told him what had happened.
He said it had not come sooner than he expected.
Directly afterwards he sailed to the South to Thrand-
heim where he found jarl Sveinn.

Grettir, after slaying Bjorn, went to Mceri to his
friend Thorfinn and told him exactly what had
happened. Thorfinn received him in a most friendly
way. " I am glad," he said, " that you will now
have need of a friend. You must stay with me until
this affair is finished."

Grettir thanked him for his invitation and said he
would accept it.

Jarl Sveinn was staying at Steinker in Thrandheim

Grettir the Strong 63

when he heard of the slaying of Bjorn. With him
was a brother of Bjorn named Hjarrandi, as one of his
bodyguard. On hearing of Bjorn's death he became
very angry and begged the jarl for his support in the
matter, which the jarl promised that he should have.
He sent messengers to Thorfinn to summon both him
and Grettir to appear before him. Immediately on
receiving the jarl's commands they both made ready
and came to Thrandheim. The jarl held a council
on the matter and ordered Hjarrandi to be present.
Hjarrandi said he was not going to weigh his brother
against his purse, and that he must either follow him
or avenge him.

When the case was looked into, it became evident
that Bjorn had given Grettir many provocations.
Thorfinn offered to pay a fine such as the jarl thought
suitable to the position of his kinsman, and dwelt at
length upon Grettir's achievement in killing the
berserks, and how he had delivered the men in the
North from them.

The jarl answered : " Truth do you speak, Thorfinn !
that was indeed a cleansing! It would befit us well
to accept the compensation for your sake. Grettir,
too, is a fine fellow, and noted for his strength and
valour."

Hjarrandi, however, would accept no compensation,
and the meeting came to an end. Thorfinn appointed
one of his kinsmen, Arnbjorn, to accompany Grettir
every day, for he knew that Hjarrandi was plotting
against his life.

64 Grettir the Strong

CHAPTER XXIII

GRETTIR KILLS HJARRANDI

ONE day Grettir and Arnbjorn were walking along
the road for their diversion when they passed a gate,
whence a man rushed out holding an axe aloft with
both hands and struck at Grettir, who was not on his
guard and was moving slowly. Arnbjorn, however,
saw the man coming, seized Grettir and pushed him
aside with such force that he fell on his knee. The
axe struck him in the shoulder-blade and cut down
to below the arm, inflicting a severe wound. Grettir
turned quickly and drew his sword; he saw that it
was Hjarrandi who had attacked him. The axe had
stuck fast in the road, and Hjarrandi was slow in
recovering it. Grettir struck at him and cut off his
arm at the shoulder. Then there came running up
five of Hjarrandi's followers and a battle began with
them. They were soon routed; Grettir and Arnbjorn
killed the five who were with Hjarrandi; one man
escaped and bore the tale to the jarl forthwith. The
jarl was very angry indeed, and summoned the
assembly for the next day. Thorfinn and his party
appeared thereat. The jarl brought a charge of
manslaughter against Grettir, who admitted it and
said that he had been obliged to defend himself. " I
bear the marks of it," he said. " I should have been
killed if Arnbjorn had not defended me."

The jarl said it was a pity he had not been killed,
for this affair would lead to many a man being slain
if he lived.

There had come to the j art's court Bersi the son of
Skaldtorfa, Grettir's comrade and friend. He and

Grettir the Strong 65

Thorfinn stepped before the jarl and begged for
pardon for Grettir. They asked that the jarl should
decide the matter himself as he thought best, only
that Grettir should have his life and the freedom of
the country. The jarl was averse to any terms being
granted to him, but gave way to their entreaties.
He granted immunity to Grettir until the spring, but
not absolutely until Gunnar the brother of Bjorn
and Hjarrandi should be present. Gunnar was a
landed proprietor in Tunsberg.

In the spring the jarl ordered Grettir and Thorfinn
to appear at Tunsberg, where he himself intended to
be while the shipping was assembled. So thither
they went, and found the jarl was already in the
town. There Grettir met his brother Thorsteinn
Dromund, who greeted him joyfully and invited him
to be his guest. He was a landowner in the town.
Grettir told him all about his case, and Thorsteinn
took his view of it, but told him to beware of Gunnar.
So the spring passed.

CHAPTER XXIV

GUNNAR was in the town and was plotting against
Grettir's life. Wherever he went Gunnar dogged his
steps wherever he found a chance of getting near him.
One day Grettir was sitting in a booth and drinking,
because he wanted to keep out of Gunnar's way.
Suddenly there was a bang at the door, so hard that
it broke in pieces, and in rushed four men armed
and attacked Grettir. They were Gunnar with his

£

66 Grettir the Strong

followers. Grettir seized his arms which were hang-
ing above his head and ran into a corner, where he
defended himself, holding his shield before him, and
hewing with his sword. They made li ttle way against
him. One blow he succeeded in delivering upon one of
Gunnar's followers, who needed nothing more. Then
Grettir advanced, driving them before him out of the
booth, and killing another of them. Gunnar would fain
have got away with his men, but on reaching the door
he caught his foot on the doorstep, fell over and was
not able to recover himself at once. He held his
shield before him and retreated as Grettir pressed
him hard. Then Grettir sprang on to the cross-
benches near the door. Gunnar's hands and the
shield were still inside the door, and Grettir struck
down between him and the shield, cutting off both
his hands at the wrist. He fell backwards out of the
door, and Grettir gave him his death-blow. Then the
man who was behind him got on his feet and ran off
at once to tell the jarl what had happened. Sveinn
was furious, and called the assembly to meet there
and then in the town. When Thorfinn and Thor-
steinn Dromund heard the news, they called all their
followers and friends together and went to the meet-
ing in force. The jarl was very wroth, and it was no
easy matter to get speech with him. Thorfinn was
the first to come before the jarl, and he said: " I have
come to offer an honourable atonement for the man
who has been slain by Grettir. The judgment shall
remain with you alone if you but spare his life."

The jarl replied in great wrath: "It is too late to
beg for Grettir's life, and you have no case that I can
see. He has killed three brothers, one at the feet of
the other; men of noble minds who would not weigh
each other against their purses. Now, Thorfinn, it
will not avail you to beg for Grettir; I will not do

Grettir the Strong 67

such a wrong in the land as to accept atonement for
such a crime as this."

Then Bersi the son of Skaldtorfa came up and
begged the jarl to accept blood-money. " Grettir,"
he said, " is a man of high birth and is my good friend.
I offer you what I possess. May you see, my lord,
that it is better by sparing one man to earn the good-
will of many and to fix the penalty yourself than to
refuse honourable terms and risk whether you can
arrest the man or not."

The jarl replied: " You do right, Bersi; and herein
as ever you show your worth. But I do not mean to
break the laws of the land by granting life to a man
who has forfeited it."

Then Thorsteinn Dromund came forward, and he,
too, offered blood-money on behalf of Grettir, adding
many fair words thereto. The jarl asked what moved
him to offer blood-money for the man. Thorsteinn
said Grettir was his brother. The jarl said he had
not known that.

" It shows a manly spirit in you," he said, " that
you want to help him. But as I am determined not
to accept blood-money in this case, I must treat the
requests of all of you alike. I must have Grettir 's
life whatever it cost, directly I can get him."

Then the jarl rose quickly up and refused to hear
any more about atonement. They all went home
with Thorsteinn and made their preparations, where-
upon the jarl ordered all the men of his guard under
arms and went forth with a large force. Before they
came up, Grettir's friends had made ready to defend
the house. Thorfinn, Thorsteinn, Grettir himself,
and Bersi were in the forefront, each with a large
force of followers behind him. The jarl summoned
them to give up Grettir, and not to bring trouble on
themselves. They repeated their former offers, but

68 Grettir the Strong

the jarl would not listen to them. Thorfinn and
Thorsteinn said that more was at stake for the jarl
than the taking of Grettir's life. " One fate shall
fall upon us all," they cried, " and men shall say that
you have given much for the life of one man when
we are all laid low with the ground."

The jarl said he would spare none of them, and they
were on the very verge of a battle when many of the
well-disposed men came up to him and begged him
not to land himself in such a difficulty. He should
bear in mind that these men would work great havoc
among his own followers before they fell. The jarl
thought this counsel was wise and let himself be some-
what appeased. Then the terms of atonement were
settled. Thorfinn and Thorsteinn were ready to pay
so long as Grettir's life was spared. The jarl said:
" You must know that although I agree to this com-
promise, I do not consider it a full amnesty. Only I
have no mind to fight against my own men, although
they appear to hold me of little account in the
matter."

Thorfinn said: " Yours is all the greater honour,
my lord, that you will have the fixing of the penalty
yourself."

The jarl said that Grettir should have leave from
him to depart from the country in peace for Iceland,
directly there was a ship leaving, if so it seemed good
to them. They agreed and paid the money to the
jarl to his satisfaction. They parted with little
friendship. Grettir went with Thorfinn after bidding
an affectionate farewell to his brother Thorsteinn.

Thorfinn earned great honour for the support which
he had given Grettir against such odds as he had to
deal with. Not one of the men who had helped
Grettir was ever received into favour again with the
jarl, excepting Bersi.

Grettir the Strong 69

Grettir then spoke :

" Comrade of Odin, Thorfinn was born
to rescue my life from the fangs of Hel.
No less was Thorsteinn Dromund's aid
when I was doomed to the realm of the dead."

And again :

" The prince's retainers withdrew in fear
when Bersi threatened their hearts to pierce."

Grettir returned with Thorfinn to the North and
stayed with him until he found a ship with some
traders who were bound for Iceland. Thorfinn gave
him many valuable garments and a coloured saddle
with a bridle. They parted with friendship, and
Thorfinn invited him to come and see him if ever he
returned to Norway.

CHAPTER XXV

EVENTS IN ICELAND. THORGILS MAKSSON ATTACKED
BY THE FOSTER-BROTHERS AND SLAIN

ASMUND LONGHAIR was in Bjarg whilst Grettir was
away, and was much respected as a bondi in Midf jord.
Thorkell Krafia had died during Grettir's absence.
Thorvald Asgeirsson dwelt in Ass in Vatnsdal and
was a great chief. He was the father of Dalla
who married Isleif, afterwards bishop in Skalaholt.
Asmund had great support from Thorvald in legal
suits and in other matters.

There grew up in Asmund 's household a youth
named Thorgils Maksson, a near kinsman of his.
Thorgils was a strong man of his body and made
much money under Asmund's guidance ; he dwelt at
Lcekjamot, on a property which Asmund had bought

70 Grettir the Strong

for him. Thorgils was a good manager and went to
Strandir every year, where he obtained whales and
other things. He was a man of great courage, and
went as far as the eastern Almenningar. At that
time the two foster-brothers Thorgeir Havarsson
and Thormod Coalbrow-Skald were very much to
the front; they kept a boat, gathering what they
wanted from the country around, and had not the
reputation of dealing fairly.

One summer Thorgils Maksson found a whale at
the Almenningar and went out at once with his men
to cut it up. When the two foster-brothers heard of
it they went there too, and at first it seemed as if
matters would be settled peaceably. Thorgils pro-
posed that they should share equally that part of the
whale which was yet uncut, but they wanted to have
all the uncut part or else to share the entire whale.
Thorgils positively refused to give up any portion of
what had already been cut. They began to use
threats and at last took to their arms and fought.
Thorgeir and Thorgils fought each of them des-
perately together without either prevailing. After
a long and furious battle Thorgils fell slain by Thor-
geir. In another place Thormod was fighting with
the followers of Thorgils, and he overcame them,
killing three. Those who remained of Thorgils'
party went off after he fell to Midfjord, taking his
body with them and feeling that they had suffered
a great loss. The foster-brothers took possession of
the whole whale. The affair is referred to in the
funeral hymn which Thormod composed upon
Thorgeir.

News of the death of his kinsman was brought to
Asmund Longhair, on whom as nearest of kin the
blood-feud devolved. He went to the spot, called
witnesses to testify to the wounds and brought the

Grettir the Strong 71

case before the All -Thing, which appeared to be the
proper course in this case where the act had been com-
mitted in another quarter. Some time was passed
over this.

CHAPTER XXVI

THE FEUD WITH THE FOSTER-BROTHERS IS TAKEN UP
BY ASMUND AND THORSTEINN KUGGASON

THERE was a man named Thorsteinn; he was the
son of Thorkell Kuggi, the son of Thord Yeller, the
son of Olaf Feilan, the son of Thorsteinn the Red,
the son of Aud the Deep -Minded. Thorsteinn
Kuggason's mother was Thurid, daughter of Asgeirr
Hothead. Asgeirr was the brother of Asmund Long-
hair's father. Thorsteinn Kuggason was equally re-
sponsible in the blood -feud over Thorgils' death
with Asmund Longhair, who now sent for him.
Thorsteinn was a great warrior and very masterful.
He came at once to his kinsman Asmund and they
had a talk together about the suit. Thorsteinn was
for extreme measures. He said that no blood-money
should be accepted ; that with their connections they
were powerful enough to carry through a sentence of
either banishment or death on the slayer. Asmund
said he would support any measures whatever that
he chose to adopt. They rode then North to Thorvald
their kinsman and asked for his support, which he at
once promised them. So the suit was begun against
Thorgeir and Thormod. Thorsteinn then rode home
to his dwelling at Ljarskogar in the Hvamm district.
Skeggi in Hvamm also joined Thorsteinn. He was
a son of Thorarin Fylsenni, a son of Thord the Yeller.
His mother was Fridgerd, a daughter of Thord from
Hofdi. They had a large following at the All-Thing

72 Grettir the Strong

and pressed their suit valiantly. Asmund and Thor-
vald rode from the North with sixty men, halting
several days at Ljarskogar.

CHAPTER XXVII

SENTENCES ON THE FOSTER-BROTHERS

THERE dwelt at Reykjaholar a man named Thorgils,
the son of Ari, the son of Mar, the son of Atli the Red,
the son of Ulf Squint-Eye, the first settler at Reyk-
janes. Thorgils' mother was Thorgerd the daughter
of Alf of Dalir. Alf had another daughter named
Thorelf, who was the mother of Thorgeir the son
of Havar. Thorgeir, therefore, had a very strong
backing through his connections, for Thorgils was
the most powerful chief in the Vestfirding quarter.
He was very open-handed and gave hospitality to
any free-man for as long as he would. There was
consequently always a crowd at Reykjaholar, and he
lived in great grandeur. He was both kindly and
wise. Thorgeir stayed with him in the winter and
went to Strandir in the summer.

After slaying Thorgils the son of Mak, Thorgeir
went to Reykjaholar and told Thorgils Arason what
had happened. Thorgils told him his house was
open to him. " But," he said, " they will press the
matter vigorously, and I am most unwilling to involve
myself in difficulties. I will send a man now to
Thorsteinn and offer him blood-money for the Thor-
gils affair; if he will not accept it I will not adopt any
violent measures."

Thorgeir declared that he would submit to his
wisdom. In the autumn Thorgils sent a messenger
to Thorsteinn Kuggason to try and arrange a settle-

Grettir the Strong 73

ment. Thorsteinn was very disinclined to accept any
money in atonement for the slaying of Thorgils,
although for the others he was willing to follow the
advice of men of counsel. Thorgils on receiving the
report of his messenger called Thorgeir to a con-
sultation with him and asked him what support he
thought was proper. Thorgeir said that if a sen-
tence of banishment were passed upon him he would
go. Thorgils said that his resolve would be put to
the trial.

There came a ship into the Nordra river in Borgar-
fjord, and Thorgils secretly took a passage in her for
the two foster-brothers. The winter now passed, and
Thorgils heard that Thorsteinn and his party had
assembled in great force for the All-Thing and were
then in Ljarskogar. So he put off his departure,
intending that they should arrive from the North
before he came up from the West. So it came to
pass. Thorgils and Thorgeir then rode towards the
South, Thorgeir killing one Boggul-Torfi on the way
at Marskelda and two other men named Skuf and
Bjarni at Hundadal. Thormod sings about this
affair in his Thorgeir's drapa :

" The hero slew the son of Mak;
there was storm of swords and raven's food.
Skuf and Bjarni he also felled;
gladly he bathed his hands in blood."

Thorgils settled for the slaying of Skuf and Bjarni
there and then in Dalar, and was delayed by the
affair longer than he intended. Thorgeir embarked
on the ship and Thorgils went to the Thing, where he
did not arrive before they were proceeding to judg-
ment in Thorgils Maksson's case. Asmund Longhair
then called for the defence. Thorgils appeared
before the court and offered blood-money in atone-
ment on condition of Thorgeir not being sentenced

74 Grettir the Strong

to banishment. He endeavoured to meet the charge
by pleading that finds in the Almenningar were free
to all. The question whether this was a valid defence
or not was referred to the Lawman, who at that
time was Skapti. He upheld Asmund's view on
account of their kinship together. He declared that
this was indeed the law in the case of men equal in
position, but that a bondi had precedence over a
vagrant. Asmund further urged that Thorgils had
offered to share the uncut portion of the whale
with the foster-brothers when they arrived. The
defendants were non-suited on that point. Then
Thorsteinn and his party pressed their suit resolutely
and said they would not be satisfied with any sentence
short of banishment upon Thorgeir. Thorgils saw
that no choice was left to him but either to call up
his men and try to carry his case with violence, the
issue of which would be uncertain, or else to submit
to the sentence demanded by the opposite party, and
since Thorgeir was already on board his ship Thorgils
had no desire to press the case further. Thorgeir
was banished, but Thormod was discharged upon
payment of blood-money. Asmund and Thorsteinn
gained great glory by this case. The men rode home
from the Thing. There were some who said that
Thorgils had not taken much trouble in the case, but
he paid little attention and let them say what they
pleased.

When Thorgeir heard that he was banished, he
said that if he had his way, those who had brought
it about should be repayed in full before it was over.

There was a man named Gaut, called the son of
Sleita, a kinsman of Thorgils Maksson. He was in-
tending to travel in the same ship with Thorgeir,
with whom he was on very bad terms, and frowned
on him. The traders thought it would never do to

Grettir the Strong 75

have them both together in the ship. Thorgeir said
he did not care what Gaut did with his eyebrows.
Nevertheless they decided that Gaut should leave
the ship. He went into the northern districts and
for that time nothing happened, but the affair
brought about a feud between them which broke
out later.

CHAPTER XXVIII

GRETTIR'S VISIT TO AUDUN IN VIDIDAL; OFFERS HIS
SERVICES TO BARDI

IN the course of that summer Grettir Asmundsson
returned to Skagafjord. He had such a reputation
for strength that none of the younger men was sup-
posed to be his equal. He soon came to his home in
Bjarg, and Asmund gave him a fitting welcome. Atli
was then managing the property and the brothers
agreed well together, but Grettir became so over-ween-
ing that he thought nothing was beyond his powers.

Many of the youths with whom Grettir had played
at Midfjordsvatn before he left were now grown up.
Audun, the son of Asgeirr, the son of Audun, was now
living at Audunarstad in Vididal. He was a good bondi
and a kindly man, and was the strongest of all the
men in the northern parts, as well as the most modest.

Grettir had not forgotten how he had seemingly
been worsted by Audun at the ball-play, as related
above, and he was anxious to try which of them had
gained most since. With this object he went at
the beginning of the hay-harvest to Audunarstad.
Grettir put on all his finery and rode with the coloured
and richly ornamented saddle which Thorfinn had
given him, on a splendid horse and in his best armour
to Audun's place, where he arrived early in the day

j6 Grettir the Strong

and knocked at the door. Few of the men were in
the house, and to Grettir's question whether Audun
was at home, they replied that he had gone to the
hill-dairy to bring home some produce. Grettir took
the bridle off. his horse. The hay had not been mown
in the meadow and the horse went for the part where
the grass was thickest. Grettir entered the room
and sat down on the bench, where he fell asleep. Soon
Audun returned home and saw a horse in the meadow
with a coloured saddle on its back. He was bringing
two horses loaded with curds in skins tied at the
mouth — so-called "curd-bags." Audun took the
skins off the horses and was carrying them in his
arms so that he could not see in front of him. Grettir's
leg was stretched out before him and Audun stumbled
over it, falling on the curd-bags which broke at the
neck. Audun sprang up and asked what rascal that
was in his house. Grettir told him his name.

" That was very awkward of you," said Audun.
" But what do you want here ? "

" I want to fight with you."

" First I must look after my dairy produce,"
Audun said.

" You can do that," answered Grettir, " if you have
no one else to do it for you."

Audun bent down, gathered up the skin and threw
it right into Grettir's breast, telling him to take what
he sent him. Grettir was all covered with curds, and
felt more disgusted than at any wound which Audun
could have given him. Then they went for each
other and wrestled pretty smartly. Grettir rushed
at him, but Audun escaped his grasp. He saw, how-
ever, that Grettir had gained upon him. They drove
up and down the room, overthrowing everything
that was near them. Neither of them spared himself,
but Grettir had the advantage, and at last Audun

Grettir the Strong 77

fell, after tearing all the arms from Grettir. They
struggled hard and the din was terrific.

Then there was a loud noise below. Grettir heard
a man ride up to the house, get off his horse and come
quickly inside. He saw a handsome man in a red
jacket wearing a helmet. Hearing the commotion
going on in the room where they were wrestling, he
came in and asked what was in the room. Grettir
told him his name; "but who is it that wants to
know ? " he asked.

" My name is Bardi," answered the stranger.

" Are you Bardi the son of Gudmund from Asb-
jarnarnes? "

" The same," he replied. " But what are you
after?"

Grettir said: " I and Audun are playing here."

" I don't know about your play," said Bardi. " But
you are not alike. You are overbearing and in-
solent, while he is modest and good-natured. Let
him get up at once."

Grettir said: " Many a man seizes the lock for the
door. You would do better to avenge your brother
Hall than to come between me and Audun when we
are contending."

" I am always hearing that," said Bardi, " and I
don't know whether I shall ever obtain my vengeance.
But I want you to leave Audun in peace, for he is a
quiet man."

Grettir said he was willing to do so because of
Bardi's intercession, though he did not like it much.
Bardi asked what they were contending about.
Grettir replied in a verse :

" I know not if for all your pride
he may not try your throat to squeeze.
Thus when within my home I dwelt
did he once belabour me."

78 Grettir the Strong

Bardi said there was certainly some excuse if he
was taking revenge. " Let me now settle it between
you," he said. " Let matters remain as they are
and cease your strife."

So they consented, for they were kinsmen. But
Grettir had little liking for Bardi or his brothers.
They all rode away together. On the way Grettir
said: " I hear, Bardi, that you intend to go South to
Borgarfjord this summer; I propose that I shall go
with you, which I think is more than you deserve."

Bardi was very pleased with this offer, and at once
accepted it most thankfully. Then they parted.
Bardi then turned back and said to Grettir : "I
would like it to be understood that you only come
with me if it meets with Thorarin's approval, since
all the arrangements for the expedition are with
him."

" I thought," said Grettir, " you were competent
to make your arrangements for yourself. I do not
leave my affairs to other people to settle. I shall
take it very ill if you refuse me."

Then each went his own way. Bardi promised to
send Grettir word " if Thorarin wished him to go."
Otherwise he could remain quietly at home. Grettir
then rode to Bjarg and Bardi to his own home.

CHAPTER XXIX

HORSE-FIGHT AT LANGAFIT

THAT summer there was a great horse-fight at Langa-
fit below Reykir, whither a great many people came
together. Atli of Bjarg had a good stallion of
Keingala's race; grey with a dark stripe down his
back. Both father and son valued the horse highly.

Grettir the Strong 79

The two brothers Kormak and Thorgils in Mel had
a very mettlesome brown stallion, and they arranged
to match it against that of Atli from Bjarg. Many
other excellent stallions were brought. Odd the
Needy-Skald, Kormak's kinsman, had the charge of
their horse on the day. He had grown into a strong
man and had a high opinion of himself; he was surly
and reckless. Grettir asked Atli who should have
charge of his stallion.

" That is not so clear to me," said Atli.

" Would you like me to back him? "

" Then you must keep very cool, kinsman," he
said. " We have men to deal with who are rather
overbearing."

" Let them pay for their bluster," he said, " if they
cannot control it."

The stallions were led out and the mares tethered
together in the front on the bank of the river. There
was a large pool just beyond the bank. The horses
fought vigorously and there was excellent sport.
Odd managed his horse pluckily and Grettir gave
way before him, holding the tail of his horse with one
hand and with the other the stick with which he
pricked it on. Odd stood in the front by his horse,
and one could not be sure that he was not pricking
off Atli's horse from his own. Grettir pretended not
to notice it. The horses then came near the river.
Then Odd thrust with his pointed stick at Grettir and
caught him in the shoulder-blade which Grettir was
turning towards him. He struck pretty hard, and
the flesh swelled up, but Grettir was little hurt. At
the same moment the horses reared. Grettir ducked
beneath the flank of his horse and drove his stick into
Odd's side with such violence that three of his ribs
were broken and Odd fell into the pool with his horse
and all the mares that were tethered there by the

8o Grettir the Strong

bank. Some people swam out and rescued them.
There was great excitement about it. Kormak's
men on one side and those of Bjarg on the other
seized their arms, but the men of Hrutfirding and
Vatnsnes came between them and parted them.
They all went home in great wrath, but kept quiet
for a time. Atli said very little, but Grettir rather
swaggered and said that they should meet again if he
had his way.

CHAPTER XXX

THORBJORN OXMAIN AND THE FRAY AT
HRUTAFJARDARHALS

THERE was living in Thoroddsstad in Hrutafjord a
man named Thorbjorn. He was the son of Arnor
Downy-Nose, the son of Thorodd who had settled in
that side of Hrutafjord which lies opposite to Bakki.
Thorbjorn was of all men the strongest, and was called
Oxmain. He had a brother named Thorodd, called
Drapustuf. Their mother was Gerd, daughter of
Bodvar from Bodvarsholar. Thorbjorn was a great
swashbuckler and kept a large troop of followers.
He was noted for being worse at getting servants
than other men, and scarcely paid them any wages.
He was not a man easy to deal with. There was a
kinsman of his, also named Thorbjorn, called Slow-
coach. He was a mariner, and the two namesakes
were in partnership together. He was always at
Thoroddsstad and people did not think he made
Thorbjorn any better. He liked to talk scandal and
spoke offensively of several men.

There was a man named Thorir, a son of Thorkel,
at Bordeyr. He first lived at Melar in Hrutafjord,
and had a daughter named Helga who married

Grettir the Strong 81

Sleitu-Helgi. After the Fagrabrekka affair Thorir
went South to Haukadal and lived in Skard, selling
the property at Melar to Thorhall, the son of Gamli,
the Winelander. Thorhall's son Gamli married Rann-
veig, the daughter of Asmund Longhair, Grettir's
sister. They lived at that time in Melar and had a
good establishment. Thorir of Skard had two sons,
Gunnar and Thorgeir, both promising men, who
took over the property from their father, but were
always with Thorbjorn Oxmain, and became very
overbearing.

In the summer of that year Kormak and Thorgils
rode with a kinsman of theirs named Narfi South to
Nordrardal on some business. Odd the Needy had
then recovered from the hurts which he had received
at the horse-fight and was of the party. While they
were south of the heath Grettir was journeying from
his home at Bjarg with two of Atli's men. They
rode to Burfell and then across the neck to Hruta-
fjord, reaching Melar in the evening, where they spent
three nights. Rannveig and Gamli gave Grettir a
friendly reception and invited him to stay, but he
wanted to return home. Then Grettir learned of
Kormak's company having come from the South, and
that they were staying at Tunga at night. He pre-
pared to leave Melar at once, and Gamli offered to
send some of his men with him. Gamli's brother
Grim, who was very smart and active, and another
rode with Grettir. The party, five in number, came
to Hrutafjardarhals to the west of Burfell, where the
great stone called Grettishaf lies ; he struggled a long
time with that stone, trying to lift it, and delayed his
journey thereby until Kormak's party came up.
Grettir went towards them and both alighted from
their horses. Grettir said it would be more seemly
for free men to set to work with all their might

F

82 Grettir the Strong

instead of fighting with sticks like tramps. Kormak
told them to take up the challenge like men and to
do their best. So they went for each other. Grettir
was in front of his men and told them to see that
nobody got behind him. They fought for a time and
both were hurt.

On the same day Thorbjorn Oxmain had ridden
across the neck to Burfell, and as he returned with
Thorbjorn Slowcoach, Gunnar and Thorgeir, the
sons of Thorir, and Thorodd Drapustuf, he saw the
fight going on. On coming up, Thorbjorn called
upon his men to go between them, but they were
struggling so furiously that nobody could get at them.
Grettir was making a clean sweep of everything
round him. Before him were the sons of Thorir. He
pushed them back and they both fell over. This
made them furious, and the consequence was that
Gunnar gave a blow to one of Atli's men which killed
him. Thorbjorn on seeing that ordered them to
separate, saying that he would give his support to
whichever side obeyed him. By then two of Kor-
mak's men had fallen. Grettir saw that it would
scarcely do if Thorbjorn joined the opposite side, so
he gave up the battle. All those who had fought
were wounded. Grettir was much disgusted at their
being separated, but both parties rode home and
were not reconciled on this occasion.

Thorbjorn Slowcoach made great game of all this,
and the relations between the men of Bjarg and
Thorbjorn Oxmain became strained in consequence,
until at last there was a regular feud, which however
broke out later. No compensation was offered to
Atli for his man, and he went on as if he knew nothing
of it. Grettir stayed at Bjarg till the Tvi-month.
It is not known that he and Kormak ever met again ;
at least it is not mentioned anywhere.

Grettir the Strong 83

CHAPTER XXXI

GRETTIR'S VAIN ENDEAVOUR TO PROVOKE BARDI

BARDI the son of Gudmund and his brothers rode
home to Asbjarnarnes when they left Grettir. They
were the sons of Gudmund the son of Solmund. Sol-
mund's mother was Thorlaug, daughter of Saemund
the Southerner, the foster-brother of Ingimund the
Old. Bardi was a man of great distinction. Soon
he went to see his foster-father Thorarin the Wise,
who welcomed him and asked what help he had been
able to obtain, for Bardi's journey had been arranged
beforehand by them both. Bardi answered that he
had engaged a man whose help he thought worth
more than that of two others. Thorarin was silent
for a moment and then said: " That must be Grettir
the son of Asmund."

" The guess of the wise is truth," said Bardi. " That
is the very man, my foster-father."

Thorarin answered: "It is true that Grettir is
beyond all other men of whom there is now choice
in the country ; nor will he be easily subdued by arms
so long as he is sound. But I have misgivings as to
his luck. It is important for you to see that all your
men on your expedition are not men of an evil star.
It is enough if he do not fare with you. He shall not
come if my counsel is followed."

" I did not expect, my foster-father," said he,
" that you would deny me the man who is bravest
in all that he undertakes. A man in such straits as
I seem to be in cannot provide against everything."

" It will be better for you," he replied, " to let me
provide."

So it came about that as Thorarin desired, word

84 Grettir the Strong

was not sent to Grettir. Bardi went to the South
and the battle of the Heath was fought.

Grettir was at Bjarg when he received the news
that Bardi had started on his expedition. He was
very angry that word had not been sent to him, and
said it should not end there. He found out when
they were expected back from the South, and rode
off to Thoreyjargnup, where he meant to lie in wait
for Bardi and his men as they rode back. He left
the homestead behind and remained at the cliffs. On
that day rode Bardi back from the battle of the Heath
from Tvidcegra; there were six of them in his party,
all sorely wounded. When they came to the home-
stead Bardi said: " There is a man up there on the
cliff, very tall and armed. Whom do you take him
for?"

They could not say who he was. Bardi said: " I
believe it is Grettir the son of Asmund. If it is, he
will be wanting to meet us, for I expect he is little
pleased at not having been with us. It seems to me
that we are not in a very fit condition if he wants to
annoy us. I will send home to Thoreyjargnup for
some men and not allow myself to be put out by his
evil intentions."

They said that was the best thing he could do, and
it was done. Bardi's party rode on ; Grettir watched
where they were going and went there too. They
met and greeted each other. Grettir asked what the
news was, and Bardi told him without hesitation.
Grettir asked who had been with them. Bardi
answered that his brothers and Eyolf his brother-in-
law had been with him.

" You have wiped out your disgrace," said Grettir.
" Now the next thing is for us two here to try which
is the stronger."

" I have more urgent business," said Bardi, " than

Grettir the Strong 85

to fight with you about nothing. I think I may be
excused that now."

" It seems to me that you are afraid, Bardi; that
is the reason why you dare not fight me."

" Call it what you please. If you wish to bully,
find some one else ; that seems to be what you want,
for your insolence passes all bounds."

Grettir thought luck was against him. He hesi-
tated now whether he should attack any of them ; it
seemed rather rash as they were six and he was only
one. Then the men from Thoreyjargnup came up
and joined Bardi's party, so he left them and went
back to his horse. Bardi and his men went on, and
there was no greeting between them when they
parted. We are not told that any strife arose be-
tween Bardi and Grettir after this.

Grettir once said that he would trust himself to
fight with most men if there were not more than three
against him. Even with four he would not give way
without trying, but more he would not attempt,
except in self-defence. Thus he says in a verse :

" Oh skilled in war! When three are before me
I yet will endeavour to fight with them all.
But more than four I dare not encounter
in the clashing of arms, if the choice is with me."

On leaving Bardi, Grettir returned to Bjarg, and
was much aggrieved at finding nothing to try his
strength on. He sought everywhere for something
to fight with.

86 Grettir the Strong

CHAPTER XXXII

THE SPOOK AT THORHALLSSTAD. GLAM THE SHEPHERD
KILLED BY A FIEND. HIS GHOST WALKS

THERE was a man named Thorhall living in Thor-
hallsstad in Forsaeludal, up from Vatnsdal. He was
the son of Grim, the son of Thorhall, the son of Frid-
mund, who was the first settler in Forsaeludal. Thor-
hall's wife was named Gudrun ; they had a son named
Grim and a daughter named Thurid who were just
grown up. Thorhall was fairly wealthy, especially
in live-stock. His property in cattle exceeded that
of any other man. He was not a chief, but an honest
bondi nevertheless. He had great difficulty in getting
a shepherd to suit him because the place was haunted.
He consulted many men of experience as to what he
should do, but nobody gave him any advice which
was of any use. Thorhall had good horses, and
went every summer to the Thing. On one occasion
at the All-Thing he went to the booth of the Lawman
Skapti the son of Thorodd, who was a man of great
knowledge and gave good counsel to those who con-
sulted him. There was a great difference between
Thorodd the father and Skapti the son in one respect.
Thorodd possessed second sight, but was thought by
some not to be straight, whereas Skapti gave to every
man the advice which he thought would avail him,
if he followed it exactly, and so earned the name of
Father-betterer.

So Thorhall went to Skapti's booth, where Skapti,
knowing that he was a man of wealth, received him
graciously, and asked what the news was.

" I want some good counsel from you," said
Thorhall.

Grettir the Strong 87

" I am little fit to give you counsel," he replied;
" but what is it that you need? "

"It is this: I have great difficulty in keeping my
shepherds. Some get injured and others cannot
finish their work. No one will come to me if he
knows what he has to expect."

Skapti answered: " There must be some evil spirit
abroad if men are less willing to tend your flocks
than those of other men. Now since you have come
to me for counsel, I will get you a shepherd. His
name is Glam, and he came from Sylgsdale in Sweden
last summer. He is a big strong man, but not to
everybody's mind."

Thorhall said that did not matter so long as he
looked after the sheep properly. Skapti said there
was not much chance of getting another if this man
with all his strength and boldness should fail. Then
Thorhall departed. This happened towards the end
of the Thing.

Two of ThorhalTs horses were missing, and he went
himself to look for them, which made people think
he was not much of a man. He went up under
Sledaass and south along the hill called Armannsfell.
Then he saw a man coming down from Godaskog
bringing some brushwood with a horse. They met
and Thorhall asked him his name. He said it was
Glam. He was a big man with an extraordinary
expression of countenance, large grey eyes and wolf-
grey hair. Thorhall was a little startled when he
saw him, but soon found out that this was the man
who had been sent to him.

" What work can you do best ? " he asked.

Glam said it would suit him very well to mind
sheep in the winter.

"Will you mind my sheep?" Thorhall asked.
" Skapti has given you over to me."

88 Grettir the Strong

" My service will only be of use to you if I am free
to do as I please," he said. " I am rather cross-
grained when I am not well pleased."

" That will not hurt me," said Thorhall. " I shall
be glad if you will come to me."

" I can do so," he said. " Are there any special
difficulties?"

" The place seems to be haunted."

" I am not afraid of ghosts. It will be the less
dull."

" You will have to risk it," said Thorhall. " It
will be best to meet it with a bold face."

Terms were arranged and Glam was to come in the
autumn. Then they parted. Thorhall found his
horses in the very place where he had just been
looking for them. He rode home and thanked
Skapti for his service.

The summer passed. Thorhall heard nothing of
his shepherd and no one knew anything about him,
but at the appointed time he appeared at Thorhalls-
stad. Thorhall treated him kindly, but all the rest
of the household disliked him, especially the mistress.
He commenced his work as shepherd, which gave him
little trouble. He had a loud hoarse voice. The
beasts all flocked together whenever he shouted at
them. There was a church in the place, but Glam
never went to it. He abstained from mass, had no
religion, and was stubborn and surly. Every one
hated him.

So the time passed till the eve of Yule-tide. Glam
rose early and called for his meal. The mistress said:
" It is not proper for Christian men to eat on this day,
because to-morrow is the first day of Yule and it is
our duty to fast to-day."

" You have many superstitions," he said; " but I
do not see that much comes of them. I do not know

Grettir the Strong 89

that men axe any better off than when there was
nothing of that kind. The ways of men seemed to
me better when they were called heathen. I want
my food and no foolery."

" I am certain," she said, " that it will fare ill with
you to-day if you commit this sin."

Glam told her that she should bring his food, or that
it would be the worse for her. She did not dare to
do otherwise than as he bade her. When he had
eaten he went out, his breath smelling abominably.
It was very dark; there was driving snow, the wind
was howling and it became worse as the day ad-
vanced. The shepherd's voice was heard in the early
part of the day, but less later on. Blizzards set in
and a terrific storm in the evening. People went
to mass and so the time passed. In the evening
Glam did not return. They talked about going out
to look for him, but the storm was so violent and the
night so dark that no one went. The night passed
and still he had not returned; they waited till the
time for mass came. When it was full day some of
the men set forth to search. They found the animals
scattered everywhere in the snow and injured by
the weather; some had strayed into the mountains.
Then they came upon some well-marked tracks up
above in the valley. The stones and earth were torn
up all about as if there had been a violent tussle. On
searching further they came upon Glam lying on the
ground a short distance off. He was dead ; his body
was as black as Hel and swollen to the size of an ox.
They were overcome with horror and their hearts
shuddered within them. Nevertheless they tried to
carry him to the church, but could not get him any
further than the edge of a gully a short way off. So
they left him there and went home to report to the
bondi what had happened. He asked what could

90 Grettir the Strong

have caused Glam's death. They said they had
tracked him to a big place like a hole made by the
bottom of a cask thrown down and dragged along up
below the mountains which were at the top of the
valley, and all along the track were great drops of
blood. They concluded that the evil spirit which
had been about before must have killed Glam, but
that he had inflicted wounds upon it which were
enough, for that spook was never heard of again. On
the second day of the festival they went out again to
bring in Glam's body to the church. They yoked
oxen to him, but directly the downward incline
ceased and they came to level ground, they could not
move him; so they went home again and left him.
On the third day they took a priest with them, but
after searching the whole day they failed to find him.
The priest refused to go again, and when he was not
with them they found Glam. So they gave up the
attempt to bring him to the church and buried him
where he was under a cairn of stones.

It was not long before men became aware that
Glam was not easy in his grave. Many men suffered
severe injuries; some who saw him were struck sense-
less and some lost their wits. Soon after the festival
was over, men began to think they saw him about
their houses. The panic was great and many left
the neighbourhood. Next he began to ride on the
house-tops by night, and nearly broke them to pieces.
Almost night and day he walked, and people would
scarcely venture up the valley, however pressing their
business. The district was in a grievous condition.

Grettir the Strong 91

CHAPTER XXXIII

DOINGS OF GLAM'S GHOST. AWFUL CONDITION OF
VATNSDAL

IN the spring Thorhall procured servants and built a
house on his lands. As the days lengthened out the
apparitions became less, until at midsummer a ship
sailed up the Hunavatn in which was a man named
Thorgaut. He was a foreigner, very tall and power-
ful ; he had the strength of two men. He was travel-
ling on his own account, unattached, and being
without money was looking out for employment.
Thorhall rode to the ship, saw him and asked if he
would take service with him. Thorgaut said he
would indeed, and that there would be no difficulties.

" You must be prepared," said Thorhall, " for
work which would not be fitting for a weak-minded
person, because of the apparitions which have been
there lately. I will not deceive you about it."

" I shall not give myself up as lost for the ghost-
lings," he said. " Before I am scared some others
will not be easy. I shall not change my quarters on
that account."

The terms were easily arranged and Thorgaut was
engaged for the sheep during the winter. When the
summer had passed away he took over charge of them,
and was on good terms with everybody. Glam con-
tinued his rides on the roofs. Thorgaut thought it
very amusing and said the thrall must come nearer
if he wished to frighten him. Thorhall advised him
not to say too much, and said it would be better if
they did not come into conflict.

Thorgaut said: " Surely all the spirit has gone out

92 Grettir the Strong

of you. I shall not fall dead in the twilight for
stories of that sort."

Yule was approaching. On the eve the shepherd
went out with his sheep. The mistress said: " Now
I hope that our former experiences will not be
repeated."

" Have no fear for that, mistress," he said. " There
will be something worth telling of if I come not back."

Then he went out to his sheep. The weather
was rather cold and there was a heavy snowstorm.
Thorgaut usually returned when it was getting dark,
but this time he did not come. The people went to
church as usual, but they thought matters looked
very much as they did on the last occasion. The
bondi wanted them to go out and search for the
shepherd, but the church-goers cried off, and said
they were not going to trust themselves into the
power of trolls in the night; the bondi would not
venture out and there was no search. On Yule day
after their meal they went out to look for the shep-
herd, and first went to Glam's cairn, feeling sure that
the shepherd's disappearance must be due to him.
On approaching the cairn they saw an awful sight;
there was the shepherd, his neck broken, and every
bone in his body torn from its place. They carried
him to the church and no one was molested by
Thorgaut.

Glam became more rampageous than ever. He
was so riotous that at last everybody fled from
Thorhallsstad, excepting the bondi and his wife.

ThorhalTs cowherd had been a long time in his
service and he had become attached to him ; for this
reason and because he was a careful herdsman he did
not want to part with him. The man was very old
and thought it would be very troublesome to have
to leave ; he saw, too, that everything the bondi pos-

Grettir the Strong 93

sessed would be ruined if he did not stay to look after
them. One morning after midwinter the mistress
went to the cow-house to milk the cows as usual. It
was then full day, for no one would venture out of
doors till then, except the cowherd, who went directly
it was light. She heard a great crash in the cow-
house and tremendous bellowing. She rushed in,
shouting that something awful, she knew not what,
was going on in the cowhouse. The bondi went out
and found the cattle all goring each other. It seemed
not canny there, so he went into the shed and there
saw the cowherd lying on his back with his head in
one stall and his feet in the other. He went up and
felt him, but saw at once that he was dead with his
back broken. It had been broken over the flat stone
which separated the two stalls. Evidently it was
not safe to remain any longer on his estate, so he fled
with everything that he could carry away. All the
live-stock which he left behind was killed by Glam.
After that Glam went right up the valley and raided
every farm as far as Tunga, while Thorhall stayed
with his friends during the rest of the winter. No
one could venture up the valley with a horse or a
dog, for it was killed at once. As the spring went on
and the sun rose higher in the sky the spook dimin-
ished somewhat, and Thorhall wanted to return to
his land, but found it not easy to get servants. Never-
theless, he went and took up his abode at Thorhalls-
stad. Directly the autumn set in, everything began
again, and the disturbances increased. The person
most attacked was the bondi 's daughter, who at last
died of it. Many things were tried but without
success. It seemed likely that the whole of Vatnsdal
would be devastated unless help could be found.

94 Grettir the Strong

CHAPTER XXXIV

GRETTIR VISITS HIS UNCLE JOKULL

WE have now to return to Grettir, who was at home in
Bjarg during the autumn which followed his meeting
with Warrior-Bardi at Thoreyjargnup. When the
winter was approaching, he rode North across the
neck to Vididal and stayed at Audunarstad. He and
Audun made friends again ; Grettir gave him a valu-
able battle-axe and they agreed to hold together in
friendship. Audun had long lived there, and had
many connections. He had a son named Egill, who
married Ulfheid the daughter of Eyjolf, the son of
Gudmund; their son Eyjolf, who was killed at the
All-Thing, was the father of Orm the chaplain of
Bishop Thorlak.

Grettir rode to the North to Vatnsdal and went on
a visit to Tunga, where dwelt his mother's brother,
Jokull the son of Bard, a big strong man and ex-
ceedingly haughty. He was a mariner, very can-
tankerous, but a person of much consideration. He
welcomed Grettir, who stayed three nights with him.
Nothing was talked about but Glam's walking, and
Grettir inquired minutely about all the particulars.
Jokull told him that no more was said than had really
happened.

" Why, do you want to go there ? " he asked.

Grettir said that it was so. Jokull told him not
to do it.

" It would be a most hazardous undertaking," he
said. " Your kinsmen incur a great risk with you
as you are. There does not seem to be one of the
younger men who is your equal. It is ill dealing with

Grettir the Strong 95

such a one as Glam. Much better fight with human
men than with goblins of that sort."

Grettir said he had a mind to go to Thorhallsstad
and see how things were. Jokull said: " I see there
is no use in dissuading you. The saying is true that
Luck is one thing, brave deeds another."

" Woe stands before the door of one but enters that
of another," answered Grettir. " I am thinking how
it may fare with you yourself before all is done."

" It may be," said Jokull, " that we both see what
is before us, and yet we may not alter it."

Then they parted, neither of them well pleased
with the other's prophetic saying.

CHAPTER XXXV

THE FIGHT WITH GLAM'S GHOST

GRETTIR rode to Thorhallsstad where he was wel-
comed by the bondi. He asked Grettir whither he
was bound, and Grettir said he wished to spend the
night there if the bondi permitted. Thorhall said he
would indeed be thankful to him for staying there.

" Few," he said, " think it a gain to stay here for
any time. You must have heard tell of the trouble
that is here, and I do not want you to be incon-
venienced on my account. Even if you escape un-
hurt yourself, I know for certain that you will lose
your horse, for no one can keep his beast in safety
who comes here."

Grettir said there were plenty more horses to be
had if anything happened to this one.

Thorhall was delighted at Grettir's wishing to
remain, and received him with both hands. Grettir's
horse was placed securely under lock and key and

96 Grettir the Strong

they both went to bed. The night passed without
Glam showing himself.

" Your being here has already done some good,"
said Thorhall. " Glam has always been in the habit
of riding on the roof or breaking open the doors every
night, as you can see from the marks."

" Then," Grettir said, " either he will not keep
quiet much longer, or he will remain so more than
one night. I will stay another night and see what
happens."

Then they went to Grettir's horse and found it
had not been touched. The bondi thought that all
pointed to the same thing. Grettir stayed a second
night and again the thrall did not appear. The
bondi became hopeful and went to see the horse.
There he found the stable broken open, the horse
dragged outside and every bone in his body broken.
Thorhall told Grettir what had occurred and advised
him to look to himself, for he was a dead man if he
waited for Glam.

Grettir answered: " I must not have less for my
horse than a sight of the thrall."

The bondi said there was no pleasure to be had
from seeing him: " He is not like any man. I count
every hour a gain that you are here."

The day passed, and when the hour came for going
to bed Grettir said he would not take off his clothes,
and lay down on a seat opposite to ThorkelTs sleeping
apartment. He had a rough fur cloak over him
with one end of it fastened under his feet and the
other drawn over his head so that he could see through
the neck-hole. He set his feet against a strong
bench which was in front of him. The frame-work
of the outer door had been all broken away and some
bits of wood had been rigged up roughly in its place.
The partition which had once divided the hall from

Grettir the Strong 97

the entrance passage was all broken, both above the
cross-beam and below, and all the bedding had been
upset. The place was scarcely habitable. There
was a light burning in the hall by night.

When about a third part of the night had passed
Grettir heard a loud noise. Something was tearing
through the house, riding above the hall and kicking
with its heels until the timbers cracked again. This
went on for some time, and then it came down to-
wards the door. The door opened and Grettir saw
the thrall stretching in an enormously big and ugly
head. Glam moved slowly in, and on passing the
door stood upright, reaching to the roof. He came
down the hall holding the cross-beam with his hand
and peering along the hall. The bondi uttered no
sound, having heard quite enough of what had gone
on outside. Grettir lay quite still and did not move.
Glam saw a heap of something in the seat, came
further into the hall and seized the cloak tightly with
his hand. Grettir pressed his foot against the plank
and the cloak held firm. Glam tugged at it again
still more violently, but it did not give way. A third
time he pulled, this time with both hands and with
such force that he pulled Grettir up out of the seat,
and between them the cloak was torn in two. Glam
looked at the bit which he held in his hand and
wondered much who could pull like that against him.
Suddenly Grettir sprang under his arms, seized him
round the waist and squeezed his back with all his
might, intending in that way to bring him down, but
the thrall wrenched his arms till he staggered from
the violence. Then Grettir fell back to another
bench. The benches flew about and everything was
shattered around them. Glam wanted to get out,
but Grettir tried to prevent him by stemming his
foot against anything he could find. Nevertheless

G

98 Grettir the Strong

Glam succeeded in getting him outside the hall. Then
a terrific struggle began, the thrall trying to drag him
out of the house, and Grettir saw that however hard
he was to deal with in the house, he would be worse
outside, so he strove with all his might to keep him
from getting out. Then Glam made a desperate
effort and gripped Grettir tightly towards him,
forcing him to the porch. Grettir saw that he could
not put his foot against it, and with a sudden move-
ment he dashed into the thrall's arms and set both
his feet against a stone which was fastened in the
ground at the door. For that Glam was not prepared,
since he had been tugging to drag Grettir towards him ;
he reeled backwards and tumbled hind-foremost out
of the door, tearing away the lintel with his shoulder
and shattering the roof, the rafters and the frozen
thatch. Head over heels he fell out of the house and
Grettir fell on the top of him. The moon was shining
very brightly outside, with light clouds passing over
it and hiding it now and again. At the moment
when Glam fell the moon shone forth, and Glam
turned his eyes up towards it. Grettir himself has
told us that that sight was the only one which ever
made him tremble. What with fatigue and all else
that he had endured, when he saw the horrible rolling
of Glam's eyes his heart sank so utterly that he had
not strength to draw his sword, but lay there well-
nigh betwixt life and death. Glam possessed more
malignant power than most fiends, and he now spoke
in this wise :

" You have expended much energy, Grettir, in your
contest with me. Nor is that to be wondered at,
though you will have little joy thereof. And now I
tell 'you that you shall possess only half the strength
and firmness of heart that were decreed to you if you
had not striven with me. The might which was

Grettir the Strong 99

yours till now I am not able to take away, but it is
in my power to ordain that never shall you grow
stronger than you are now. Nevertheless your might
is sufficient, as many shall find to their cost. Hitherto
you have earned fame through your deeds, but
henceforward there shall fall upon you exile and
battle; your deeds shall turn to evil and your
guardian-spirit shall forsake you. You will be out-
lawed and your lot shall be to dwell ever alone. And
this I lay upon you, that these eyes of mine shall be
ever before your vision. You will find it hard to
live alone, and at last it shall drag you to death."

When the thrall had spoken the faintness which
had come over Grettir left him. He drew his short
sword, cut off Glam's head and laid it between his
thighs. Then the bondi came out, having put on his
clothes while Glam was speaking, but he did not
venture to come near until he was dead. Thorhall
praised God and thanked Grettir warmly for having
laid this unclean spirit. Then they set to work and
burned Glam to cold cinders, bound the ashes in a
skin and buried them in a place far away from the
haunts of man or beast. Then they went home,
the day having nearly broken. Grettir was very
stiff and lay down to rest. Thorhall sent for some
men from the next farm and let them know how
things had fared. They all realised the importance
of Grettir's deed when they heard of it; all agreed
that in the whole country side for strength and
courage and enterprise there was not the equal of
Grettir the son of Asmund.

Thorhall bade a kindly farewell to Grettir and dis-
missed him with a present of a fine horse and proper
clothes, for all that he had been wearing were torn to
pieces. They parted in friendship. Grettir rode to
Ass in Vatnsdal and was welcomed by Thorvald, who

loo Grettir the Strong

asked him all about his encounter with Glam. Grettir
told him everything and said that never had his
strength been put to trial as it had been in their long
struggle. Thorvald told him to conduct himself dis-
creetly ; if he did so he might prosper, but otherwise
he would surely come to disaster. Grettir said that
his temper had not improved, that he had even less
discretion than before, and was more impatient of
being crossed. In one thing a great change had come
over him; he had become so frightened of the dark
that he dared not go anywhere alone at night. Ap-
paritions of every kind came before him. It has since
passed into an expression, and men speak of " Glam's
eyes " or " Glam visions " when things appear other-
wise than as they are.

Having accomplished his undertaking Grettir rode
back to Bjarg and spent the winter at home.

CHAPTER XXXVI

THORBJORN SLOWCOACH AT HOME

THORBJORN OXMAIN gave a great feast in the autumn
at which many were assembled, whilst Grettir was
in the North in Vatnsdal. Thorbjorn Slowcoach was
there and many things were talked about. The
Hrutafjord people inquired about Grettir 's adven-
ture on the ridge in the summer. Thorbjorn Oxmain
praised Grettir's conduct, and said that Kormak
would have had the worst of it if no one had come to
part them. Then Thorbjorn Slowcoach said: " What
I saw of Grettir's righting was not famous; and he
seemed inclined to shirk when we came up. He was
very ready to leave off, nor did I see him make any
attempt to avenge the death of Atli's man. I do not

Grettir the Strong 101

believe there is much heart in him, except when he
has a sufficient force behind him."

Thorbjorn went on jeering at him in this way.
Many of the others had something to say about it,
and they thought that Grettir would not leave it to
rest if he heard what Thorbjorn was saying. Nothing
more^happened at the festivities ; they all went home,
and there was a good deal of ill-will between them
all that winter, though no one took any action.
Nothing more happened that winter.

CHAPTER XXXVII

GRETTIR SAILS FOR NORWAY AND KILLS THORBJORN
SLOWCOACH

EARLY in the spring, before the meeting of the Thing,
there arrived a ship from Norway. There was much
news to tell, above all of the change of government.
Olaf the son of Harald was now king, having driven
away jarl Sveinn from the country in the spring
which followed the battle of Nesjar. Many note-
worthy things were told of King Olaf. Men said that
he took into favour all men who were skilled in any
way and made them his followers. This pleased
many of the younger men in Iceland and made them
all want to leave home. When Grettir heard of it
he longed to go too, deeming that he merited the
king's favour quite as much as any of the others. A
ship came up to Gasar in Eyjafjord; Grettir engaged
a passage in her and prepared to go abroad. He had
not much outfit as yet.

Asmund was now becoming very infirm and
scarcely left his bed. He and Asdis had a young son
named Illugi, a youth of much promise. Atli had

102 Grettir the Strong

taken over all the management of the farm and the
cattle, and things went much better, for he was both
obliging and provident.

Grettir embarked on his ship. Thorbjorn Slow-
coach had arranged to travel in the same vessel
without knowing that Grettir would be in her.
Some of his friends tried to dissuade him from
travelling in Grettir's company, but he insisted
upon going. He was rather a long time over his
preparations and did not get to Gasar before the
ship was ready to sail. Before he left home Asmund
Longhair was taken ill and was quite confined to his
bed. Thorbjorn Slowcoach arrived on the beach
late in the day, when the men were going on board
and were washing their hands outside near their
booths. When he rode up to the rows of booths
they greeted him and asked what news there was.

" I have nothing to tell," he said, " except that
the valorous Asmund at Bjarg is now dead."

Some of them said that a worthy bondi had left
the world and asked how it happened.

" A poor lot befell his Valour," he replied. " He
was suffocated by the smoke from the hearth, like
a dog. There is no great loss in him, for he was in
his dotage."

" You talk strangely about such a man as he was,"
they said. " Grettir would not be much pleased if
he heard you."

" I can endure Grettir's wrath," he said. " He
must bear his axe higher than he did at Hrutaf jardar-
hals if he wishes to frighten me."

Grettir heard every word that Thorbjorn said,
but took no notice as long as he was speaking. When
he had finished Grettir said:

" I prophesy, Slowcoach, that you will not die of
the smoke from the hearth, and yet perhaps you will

Grettir the Strong 103

not die of old age either. It is strange conduct to
say shameful things of innocent men."

Thorbjorn said: "I have nothing to unsay. I
never thought you would fire up like this on the day
when we got you out of the hands of the men of Mel
who were belabouring you like an ox's head."

Then Grettir spoke a verse :

" Too long is the tongue of the spanner of bows.
Full often he suffers the vengeance due.
Slowcoach ! I tell thee that many a man
has paid for less shameful speech with his life."

Thorbjorn said his life was neither more nor less
in danger than it was before.

" My prophecies are not generally long-lived,"
said Grettir, " nor shall this one be. Defend your-
self if you will; you never will have better occasion
for it than now."

Grettir then struck at him. He tried to parry
the blow with his arm, but it struck him above the
wrist and glanced off on to his neck so that his head
flew off. The sailors declared it was a splendid
stroke, and that such were the men for the king.
No one would grieve, they said, because a man so
quarrelsome and scurrilous as Thorbjorn had been
killed.

Soon after this they got under way and towards
the end of the summer reached the south coast of
Norway, about Hardaland, where they learned that
King Olaf was in the North at Thrandheim. Grettir
took a passage thither with some traders intending
to seek audience of the king.

104 Grettir the Strong

CHAPTER XXXVIII

GRETTIR FETCHES FIRE — THE SONS OF THORIR ARE
BURNT

THERE was a man named Thorir dwelling in Gard in
Adaldal. He was a son of Skeggi Bodolfsson, who
had settled in Kelduhverfi, on lands extending right
up to Keldunes, and had married Helga the daughter
of Thorgeir at Fiskiloek. Thorir was a great chief,
and a mariner. He had two sons whose names
were Thorgeir and Skeggi, both men of promise,
and pretty well grown up at that time. Thorir had
been in Norway in the summer in which Olaf came
East from England, and had won great favour with
the king as well as with Bishop Sigurd. In token
of this it is related that Thorir asked the bishop to
baptize a large sea-going ship which he had built in
the forest, and the bishop did so. Later he came
out to Iceland and had his ship broken up because
he was tired of seafaring. He set up the figures from
her head and stern over his doors, where they long
remained foretelling the weather, one howling for a
south, the other for a north wind.

When Thorir heard that Olaf had become sole
ruler of Norway he thought he might expect favour
from him, so he dispatched his sons to Norway to wait
upon the king, hoping that they would be received
into his service. They reached the south coast late
in the autumn and engaged a rowing vessel to take
them up the coast to the North, intending to go to
the king. They reached a port to the south of Stad,
where they put in for a few days. They were well
provided with food and drink, and did not go out
much because of the bad weather.

Grettir the Strong 105

Grettir also sailed to the North along the coast,
and as the winter was just beginning he often fell in
with dirty weather. When they reached the neigh-
bourhood of Stad the weather became worse, and at
last one evening they were so exhausted with the
snow and frost that they were compelled to put in
and lie under a bank where they found shelter for
their goods and belongings. The men were very
much distressed at not being able to procure any
fire; their safety and their lives seemed almost to
depend upon their getting some. They lay there
in a pitiful condition all the evening, and as night
came on they saw a large fire on the other side of the
channel which they were in. When Grettir 's com-
panions saw the fire they began talking and saying
that he who could get some of it would be a happy
man. They hesitated for some time whether they
should put out, but all agreed that it would be too
dangerous. Then they had a good deal of talk about
whether there was any man living doughty enough
to get the fire. Grettir kept very quiet, but said that
there probably had been men who would not have
let themselves be baulked. The men said that they
were none the better for what had been if there were
none now.

" But won't you venture, Grettir? The people of
Iceland all talk so much about your prowess, and
you know very well what we want."

Grettir said: " It does not seem to me such a great
thing to get the fire, but I do not know whether you
will reward it any better than he requires who
does it."

"Why," they said, "should you take us to be
men of so little honour that we shall not reward you
well?"

" Well," said Grettir, " if you really think it so

106 Grettir the Strong

necessary I will try it ; but my heart tells me that no
good will come to me therefrom."

They said it would not be so, and told him that he
should have their thanks.

Then Grettir threw off his clothes and got ready to
go into the water. He went in a cloak and breeches
of coarse stuff. He tucked up the cloak, tied a
cord of bast round his waist, and took a barrel with
him. Then he jumped overboard, swam across the
channel and reached the land on the other side.
There he saw a house standing and heard sounds of
talking and merriment issuing from it. So he went
towards the house.

We have now to tell of the people who were in the
house. They were the sons of Thorir who have
been mentioned. They had been there some days
waiting for a change of weather and for a wind to
carry them to the North. There were twelve of them
and they were all sitting and drinking. They had
made fast in the inner harbour where there was a
place of shelter set up for men who were travelling
about the country, and they had carried in a quantity
of straw. There was a huge fire on the ground.
Grettir rushed into the house, not knowing who
was there. His cloak had all frozen directly he
landed, and he was a portentous sight to behold;
he looked like a troll. The people inside were much
startled, thinking it was a fiend. They struck at
him with anything they could get, and a tremendous
uproar there was. Grettir pushed them back with
his arms. Some of them struck at him with fire-
brands, and the fire spread all through the house.
He got away with his fire and returned to his com-
panions, who were loud in praise of his skill and daring,
and said there was no one like him. The night
passed and they were happy now that they had fire.

Grettir the Strong 107

On the next morning the weather was fine. They
all woke early and made ready to continue their
journey. It was proposed that they should go and
find out who the people were who had had the fire,
so they cast off and sailed across the channel. They
found no house there, nothing but a heap of ashes
and a good many bones of men amongst them.
Evidently the house with all who were in it had been
burned. They asked whether Grettir had done it,
and declared it was an abominable deed. Grettir said
that what he expected had come to pass, and that
he was ill rewarded for getting the fire for them. He
said it was thankless work to help such miserable
beings as they were. He suffered much annoyance
in consequence, for wherever the traders went they
told that Grettir had burned the men in the house.
Soon it became known that it was the sons of Thorir
of Gard and their followers who had been burned.
The traders refused to have Grettir on board their
ship any longer and drove him away. He was so
abhorred that scarcely any one would do him a
service. His case seemed hopeless, and his only
desire was at any cost to appear before the king.
So he went North to Thrandheim where the king
was, and had heard the whole story before Grettir
came, for many had been busy in slandering him.
Grettir waited several days in the town before he
was able to appear before the king.

io8 Grettir the Strong

CHAPTER XXXIX

GRETTIR APPEARS BEFORE THE KING AND FAILS TO
UNDERGO THE ORDEAL

ONE day when the king was sitting in judgment
Grettir came before him and saluted him respectfully.
The king looked at him and said:

" Are you Grettir the Strong? "

" So I have been called," he replied, " and I have
come here in the hope of obtaining deliverance from
the slanders which are being spread about me, and
to say that I did not do this deed."

The king said: " You are worthy enough; but I
know not what fortune you will have in defending
yourself. It is quite possible that you did not intend
to burn the men in the house."

Grettir said that he was most anxious to prove his
innocence if the king would permit him. Then the
king bade him relate faithfully all that had happened.
Grettir told him everything exactly as it was, and
declared that they were all alive when he escaped
with his fire; he was ready to undergo any ordeal
which the king considered that the law required.

King Olaf said : "I decree that you shall bear iron,
if your fate so wills it."

Grettir was quite content with that, and began his
fast for the ordeal. When the day for the ceremony
arrived the king and the bishop went to the church
together with a multitude of people who came out of
curiosity tosee a man so much talked about as Grettir.
At last Grettir himself was led to the church. When
he entered many looked at him and remarked that
he excelled most men in strength and stature. As

Grettir the Strong 109

he passed down the aisle there started up a very ill-
favoured, overgrown boy and cried to him:

" Wondrous are now the ways in a land where
men should call themselves Christians, when evil-
doers and robbers and thieves walk in peace to purge
themselves. What should a wicked man find better
to do than to preserve his life so long as he may?
Here is now a malefactor convicted of guilt, one
who has burnt innocent men in their houses, and yet
is allowed to undergo purgation. Such a thing is
most unrighteous."

Then he went at Grettir, pointing at him with his
finger, making grimaces and calling him son of a
sea -ogress, with many other bad names. Then
Grettir lost his temper and his self-control. He
raised his hand and gave him a box on the ear so
that he fell senseless, and some thought he was dead.
No one seemed to know whence the boy had come
nor what became of him afterwards, but it was
generally believed that he was some unclean spirit
sent forth for the destruction of Grettir.

There arose an uproar in the church; people told
the king that the man who had come to purge him-
self was fighting with those around him. King
Olaf came forward into the church to see what was
going on, and said:

" You are a man of ill-luck, Grettir. All was
prepared for the ordeal, but it cannot take place
now. It is not possible to contend against your ill-
fortune."

Grettir said: " I expected, oh king, more honour
from you for the sake of my family than I now seem
likely to obtain."

Then he told again the story as he had done
before of what had taken place with the men.
" Gladly," he said, " would I enter your service ;

1 1 o Grettir the Strong

there is many a man with you who is not my better
as a warrior."

" I know," said the king, " that few are your
equals in strength and courage, but your luck is too
bad for you to remain with me. You have my leave
to depart in peace whithersoever you will for the
winter, and then in the summer you may return to
Iceland, where you are destined to lay your bones."

" First I should like to clear myself of the charge
of burning, if I may," said Grettir; " for I did not
do it intentionally."

" Very likely it is so," said the king; " but since
the purgation has come to naught through your im-
patience you cannot clear yourself further than you
have done. Impetuosity always leads to evil. If
ever a man was doomed to misfortune you are."

After that Grettir remained for a time in the town,
but he got nothing more out of Olaf. Then he went
to the South, intending after that to go East to
Tunsberg to find his brother Thorsteinn Dromund.
Nothing is told of his journey till he came to Jadar.

CHAPTER XL

ADVENTURE WITH THE BERSERK SN^KOLL

AT Yule Grettir came to a bondi named Einar, a
man of wealth who had a wife and a marriageable
daughter named Gyrid. She was a beautiful maiden
and was considered an excellent match. Einar
invited Grettir to stay over Yule, and he accepted.

It was no uncommon thing throughout Norway
that robbers and other ruffians came down from the
forest and challenged men to fight for their women,
or carried off their property with violence if there

Grettir the Strong 1 1 1

was not sufficient force in the house to protect them.
One day at Yule-tide there came a whole party of
these miscreants to Einar's house. Their leader
was a great berserk named Snaekoll. He challenged
Einar to hand over his daughter to him or else to
defend her, if he felt himself man enough to do so.
Now the bondi was no longer young, and no fighter.
He felt that he was in a great difficulty, and asked
Grettir privately what help he would give him,
seeing that he was held to be so famous a man.
Grettir advised him to consent only to what was
not dishonourable. The berserk was sitting on his
horse wearing his helmet, the chin-piece of which
was not fastened. He held before him a shield
bound with iron and looked terribly threatening.
He said to the bondi:

" You had better choose quickly: either one
thing or the other. What does that big fellow
standing beside you say? Would he not like to
play with me himself?"

" One of us is as good as the other," said Grettir,
" neither of us is very active."

" All the more afraid will you be to fight with me
if I get angry."

" That will be seen when it is tried," said Grettir.

The berserk thought they were trying to get off
by talking. He began to howl and to bite the rim
of his shield. He held the shield up to his mouth
and scowled over its upper edge like a madman.
Grettir stepped quickly across the ground, and when
he got even with the berserk's horse he kicked the
shield with his foot from below with such force that
it struck his mouth, breaking the upper jaw, and the
lower jaw fell down on to his chest. With the same
movement he seized the viking's helmet with his
left hand and dragged him from his horse, while with

1 1 2 Grettir the Strong

his right hand he raised his axe and cut off the ber-
serk's head. SnaekolTs followers when they saw what
had happened fled, every man of them. Grettir did
not care to pursue them for he saw that there
was no heart in them. The bondi thanked him for
what he had done, as did many other men, for the
quickness and boldness of his deed had impressed
them much. Grettir stayed there for Yule and was
well taken care of till he left, when the bondi dis-
missed him handsomely. Then Grettir went East
to Tunsberg to visit his brother Thorsteinn, who
received him joyfully and asked him about his adven-
tures. Grettir told him how he had killed the ber-
serk, and composed a verse :

" The warrior's shield by my foot propelled
in conflict came with Snaekoll's mouth.
His nether jaw hung down on his chest,
wide gaped his mouth from the iron ring."

" You would be very handy at many things," said
Thorsteinn, " if misfortune did not follow you."
" Men will tell of deeds that are done," said Grettir.

CHAPTER XLI

THORSTEINN DROMUND's ARMS

GRETTIR stayed with Thorsteinn for the rest of the
winter and on into the spring. One morning when
Thorsteinn and Grettir were above in their sleeping-
room Grettir put out his arm from the bed-clothes
and Thorsteinn noticed it when he awoke. Soon
after Grettir woke too, and Thorsteinn said: " I
have been looking at your arms, kinsman, and think
it is not wonderful that your blows fall heavily upon
some. Never have I seen any man's arms that
were like yours."

Grettir the Strong 1 1 3

" You may know," said Grettir, " that I should not
have done the deeds I have if I had not been very
mighty."

" Yet methinks it would be of advantage," said
Thorsteinn, " if your arm were more slender and
your fortune better."

"True," said Grettir, "is the saying that no
man shapes his own fortune. Let me see your arm."

Thorsteinn showed it to him. He was a tall lanky
man. Grettir smiled and said :

" There is no need to look long at that; all your
ribs are run together. I never saw such a pair of
tongs as you carry about! Why, you are scarcely
as strong as a woman! "

" It may be so," said Thorsteinn, " and yet you
may know that these thin arms of mine and no others
will avenge you some day; — if you are avenged."

" Who shall know how it will be when the end
comes? " said Grettir; " but that seems unlikely."

No more is related of their conversation. The
spring came and Grettir took a ship for Iceland in
the summer. The brothers parted with friendship
and never saw one another again.

CHAPTER XLII

DEATH OF ASMUND LONGHAIR

WE have now to return to where we broke off before.
Thorbjorn Oxmain when he heard of the death of
Thorbjorn Slowcoach flew into a violent passion and
said he wished that more men might deal blows in
other people's houses. Asmund Longhair lay sick
for some time in the summer. When he thought
his end was nigh he called his kinsmen round him

1 14 Grettir the Strong

and said his will was that Atli should take over all
the property after his day. " I fear," he said, " that
the wicked will scarce leave you in peace. And I
wish all my kinsmen to support him to the best of
their power. Of Grettir I can say nothing, for his
condition seems to me like a rolling wheel. Strong
though he is, I fear he will have more dealing with
trouble than with kinsmen's support. And Illugi,
though young now, shall become a man of valiant
deeds if he remain unscathed."

When Asmund had settled everything with his
sons according to his wish his sickness grew upon
him. He died soon after and was buried at Bjarg,
where he had had a church built. All felt his loss
deeply.

Atli became a great bondi and kept a large estab-
lishment. He was a great dealer in household provi-
sions. Towards the end of the summer he went
to Snaefellsnes to get dried fish. He drove several
horses with him and rode from home to Melar in
Hrutafjord to his brother-in-law, Gamli. Then Grim,
the son of Thorhall, Gamli's brother, made ready
to accompany him along with another man. They
rode West to Skard in Haukadal and by the road
which leads out to the Ness, where they bought much
fish and carried it away on seven horses; when all
was ready they turned homewards.

Grettir the Strong 1 1 5

CHAPTER XLIII

THE SONS OF THORIR OF SKARD ARE SLAIN BY ATLI
AND GRIM

THORBJORN OXMAIN heard of Atli and Grim having
left home just when Gunnar and Thorgeir, the sons
of Thorir of Skard, were with him. Thorbjorn was
jealous of Atli's popularity and egged on the two
brothers, the sons of Thorir, to lie in wait for him as
he returned from Snaefellsnes. They rode home to
Skard and waited there for Atli returning with his
loads. They could see the party from their house
as they passed Skard, and made ready quickly to
pursue them with their servants. Atli on seeing
them ordered his horses to be unloaded.

" Perhaps," he said, " they want to offer me com-
pensation for my man whom Gunnar slew last summer.
We will not be the first to attack, but if they begin
fighting us we will defend ourselves."

Then they came up and at once sprang off their
horses. Atli greeted them and asked what news
there was, and whether Gunnar desired to offer
him some compensation for his servant. Gunnar
answered:

" You men of Bjarg, you deserve something else
than that I should pay compensation for him with
my goods. Thorbjorn whom Grettir slew is worth
a higher boot than he."

" I have not to answer for that," said Atli, " nor
are you the representative of Thorbjorn."

Gunnar said it would have to be so nevertheless.
" And now," he cried, " let us go for them and profit
by Grettir being away."

There were eight of them, and they set upon

1 1 6 Grettir the Strong

Atli's six. Atli led on his men and drew the sword
Jokulsnaut which Grettir had given him. Thorgeir
cried: " Good men are alike in many things. High
did Grettir bear his sword last summer in Hrutafjar-
darhals."

Atli answered: "He is more accustomed to deeds
of strength than I am."

Then they fought. Gunnar made a resolute attack
on Atli, and fought fiercely. After they had battled
for a time Atli said :

" There is nothing to be gained by each of us
killing the other's followers. The simplest course
would be for us to play together, for I have never
fought with weapons before."

Gunnar, however, would not have it. Atli bade
his servants look to the packs, and he would see
what the others would do. He made such a vigorous
onslaught that Gunnar's men fell back, and he killed
two of them. Then he turned upon Gunnar himself
and struck a blow that severed his shield right across
below the handle, and the sword struck his leg below
the knee. Then with another rapid blow he killed
him.

In the meantime Grim, the son of Thorhall, was
engaging Thorgeir, and a long tussle there was, both
of them being men of great valour. When Thorgeir
saw his brother Gunnar fall he wanted to get away,
but Grim pressed upon him and pursued him until
at last his foot tripped and he fell forward. Then
Grim struck him with an axe between the shoulders,
inflicting a deep wound. To the three followers
who were left they gave quarter. Then they bound
up their wounds, reloaded the packs on to the horses
and went home, giving information of the battle.
Atli stayed at home with a strong guard of men
that autumn. Thorbjorn Oxmain was not at all

Grettir the Strong 1 17

pleased, but could do nothing, because Atli was very
wary. Grim was with him for the winter, and his
brother-in-law Gamli. Another brother-in-law, Glum
the son of Ospak from Eyr in Bitra, was with them
too. They had a goodly array of men settled at
Bjarg, and there was much merriment there during
the winter.

CHAPTER XLIV

SETTLEMENT OF THE FEUD AT THE HUNAVATN THING

THORBJORN OXMAIN took up the suit arising from
the death of Thorir's sons. He prepared his case
against Grim and Atli, and they prepared their
defence on the grounds that the brothers had attacked
them wrongfully and were, therefore, " ohelgir."
The case was brought before the Hunavatn Thing
and both sides appeared in force. Atli had many
connections, and was, therefore, strongly supported.
Then those who were friends of both came forward
and tried to effect a reconciliation; they urged that
Atli was a man of good position and peacefully dis-
posed, though fearless enough when driven into a
strait. Thorbjorn felt that no other honourable
course was open to him but to agree to a reconcilia-
tion. Atli made it a condition that there should be
no sentence of banishment either from the district or
the country. Then men were appointed to arbitrate :
Thorvald Asgeirsson on behalf of Atli, and Solvi the
Proud on behalf of Thorbjorn. This Solvi was a
son of Asbrand, the son of Thorbrand, the son of Harald
Ring who had settled in Vatnsnes, taking land as far
as Ambattara to the West, and to the East up to the
Thvera and across to Bjargaoss and the whole side of

.1 1 8 Grettir the Strong

Bjorg as far as the sea. Solvi was a person of much
display, but a man of sense, and therefore Thorbjorn
chose him as his arbitrator.

The decree of the arbitrators was that half penalties
should be paid for Thorir's sons and half should be
remitted on account of the wrongful attack which
they made and their designs on Atli's life. The
slaying of Atli's man at Hrutafjardarhals should be
set off against the two of theirs who had been killed.
Grim the son of Thorhall was banished from his
district and the penalties were to be paid by Atli.
Atli was satisfied with this award, but Thorbjorn
was not; they parted nominally reconciled, but
Thorbjorn let drop some words to the effect that it
was not over yet if all happened as he desired.

Atli rode home from the Thing after thanking Thor-
vald for his assistance. Grim the son of Thorhall
betook himself to the South to Borgarf jord and dwelt
at Gilsbakki, where he was known as a worthy bondi.

CHAPTER XLV

ATLI MURDERED BY THORBJORN OXMAIN

THERE was dwelling with Thorbjorn Oxmain a man
whose name was Ali, a servant, rather stubborn
and lazy. Thorbjorn told him he must work better
or he would be beaten. Ali said he had no mind
for work and became abusive. Thorbjorn was not
going to endure that, and got him down and handled
him roughly. After that Ali ran away and went to
the North across the neck to Midfjord; he did not
stop till he reached Bjarg. Atli was at home and
asked whither he was going. He said he was seeking
an engagement.

Grettir the Strong 119

" Are you not a servant of Thorbjorn ? " Atli
asked.

" We did not get on with our bargain. I was not
there long, but it seemed to me a bad place while I
was there. Our parting was in such a way that
his song on my throat did not please me. I will
never go back there, whatever becomes of me. And
it is true that there is a great difference between you
two in the way you treat your servants. I would
be glad to take service with you if there is a place
for me."

Atli said: " I have servants enough without
stretching forth my hands for those whom Thorbjorn
has hired. You seem an impatient man and had
better go back to him."

" I am not going there of my own free will," said Ali.

He stayed there for the night, and in the morning
went out to work with Atli's men, and toiled as if
he had hands everywhere. So he continued all the
summer ; Atli took no notice of him, but allowed him
his food, for he was pleased with the man's work.
Soon Thorbjorn learned that Ali was at Bjarg. He
rode thither with two others and called to Atli to come
out and speak with him. Atli went out and greeted
him.

" You want to begin again provoking me to
attack you, Atli," he said. " Why have you taken
away my workman? It is a most improper thing
to do."

Atli replied: "It is not very clear to me that
he is your workman. I do not want to keep him
if you can prove that he belongs to your household;
but I cannot drive him out of my house."

" You must have your way now," said Thorbjorn;
" but I claim the man and protest against his working
for you. I shall come again, and it is not certain

I2O Grettir the Strong

that we shall then part any better friends than we
are now."

Atli rejoined: " I shall stay at home and abide
whatever comes to hand."

Thorbjorn then went off home. When the work-
men came back in the evening Atli told them of his
conversation with Thorbjorn and said to AH that
he must go his own ways, for he was not going to
be drawn into a quarrel for employing him.

Ali said: "True is the ancient saying: The over-
praised are the worst deceivers. I did not think that
you would have turned me off now after I had
worked here till I broke in the summer. I thought
that you would have given me protection. Such is
your way, however you play the beneficent. Now
I shall be beaten before your very eyes if you refuse
to stand by me."

Atli's mind was changed after the man had spoken ;
he no longer wanted to drive him away.

So the time passed until the hay-harvest began.
One day a little before midsummer Thorbjorn Ox-
main rode to Bjarg. He wore a helmet on his head,
a sword was girt at his side, and in his hand was a
spear which had a very broad blade. The weather
was rainy; Atli had sent his men to mow the hay,
and some were in the North at Horn on some work.
Atli was at home with a few men only. Thorbjorn
arrived alone towards midday and rode up to the
door. The door was shut and no one outside.
Thorbjorn knocked at the door and then went to the
back of the house so that he could not be seen from
the door. The people in the house heard some one
knocking and one of the women went out. Thorbjorn
got a glimpse of the woman, but did not let himself
be seen, for he was seeking another person. She
went back into the room and Atli asked her who had

Grettir the Strong 121

come. She said she could see nobody outside. As
they were speaking Thorbjorn struck a violent blow
on the door. Atli said:

" He wants to see me ; perhaps he has some business
with me, for he seems very pressing."

Then he went to the outer door and saw nobody
there. It was raining hard, so he did not go outside,
but stood holding both the door-posts with his hands
and peering round. At that moment Thorbjorn
sidled round to the front of the door and thrust his
spear with both hands into Atli's middle, so that it
pierced him through. Atli said when he received
the thrust: " They use broad spear-blades nowadays."

Then he fell forward on the threshold. The women
who were inside came out and saw that he was dead.
Thorbjorn had then mounted his horse ; he proclaimed
the slaying and rode home. Asdis, the mistress of the
house, sent for men; Atli's body was laid out and
he was buried beside his father. There was much
lamentation over his death, for he was both wise and
beloved. No blood-money was paid for his death,
nor was any demanded, for his representative was
Grettir, if he should ever return to Iceland. The
matter rested there during the summer. Thorbjorn
gained little credit by this deed, but remained quietly
at home.

CHAPTER XLVI

SENTENCE OF OUTLAWRY PASSED UPON GRETTIR AT
THE ALL-THING

IN that same summer before the assembly of the
Thing there came a ship out to Gasar bringing
news of Grettir and of his house-burning adventure.
Thorir of Gard was very angry when he heard of it

122 Grettir the Strong

and bethought himself of vengeance for his sons upon
Grettir. Thorir rode with a large retinue to the
Thing and laid a complaint in respect of the burning,
but men thought nothing could be done as long as
there was no one to answer the charge. Thorir in-
sisted that he would be content with nothing short
of banishment for Grettir from the whole country
after such a crime. Then Skapti the Lawman said:
" It certainly was an evil deed if all really happened
as has been told. But One man's tale is but half a
tale. Most people try and manage not to improve a
story if there is more than one version of it. I hold
that no judgment should be passed for Grettir 's
banishment without further proceedings."

Thorir was a notable person and possessed great
influence in the district; many powerful men were
his friends. He pressed his suit so strongly that
nothing could be done to save Grettir. Thorir had
him proclaimed an outlaw throughout the country,
and was ever afterwards the most bitter of his oppo-
nents, as he often found. Having put a price upon
his head, as it was usual to do with other outlaws,
he rode home. Many said that the decree was carried
more by violence than by law, but it remained in
force. Nothing more happened until after mid-
summer.

CHAPTER XLVII

GRETTIR RETURNS TO BJARG — SVEINN AND HIS HORSE
SADDLE-HEAD

LATER in the summer Grettir the son of Asmund
came back to Iceland landing in the Hvita in Borgar-
fjord. People about the district went down to the
ship and all the news came at once upon Grettir,

Grettir the Strong 123

first that his father was dead, then that his brother
was slain, and third that he was declared outlaw
throughout the land. Then he spoke this verse:

" All fell at once upon the bard,
exile, father dead and brother.
Oh man of battle ! Many an one
who breaks the swords shall smart for this."

It is told that Grettir changed his manner no whit
for these tidings, but was just as merry as before.
He remained on board his ship for a time because he
could not get a horse to suit him.

There was a man named Sveinn who dwelt at
Bakki up from Thingnes. He was a good bondi
and a merry companion; he often composed verses
which it was a delight to listen to. He had a brown
mare, the swiftest of horses, which he called Saddle-
head. Once Grettir left Vellir in the night because
he did not wish the traders to know of it. He got
a black cape and put it over his clothes to conceal
himself. He went up past Thingnes to Bakki, by
which time it was light. Seeing a brown horse in
the meadow he went up and put a bridle on it,
mounted on its back and rode up along the Hvita
river below Baer on to the river Flokadalsa and up
to the road above Kalfanes. The men working at
Bakki were up by then, and told the bondi that a
man was riding his horse. He got up and laughed
and spoke a verse:

" There rode a'man upon Saddle-head's back;
close to the garth the thief has come.
Frey of the Thunder-Sky, dreadful of aspect,
appears from his strength to be busy with mischief."

Then he took a horse and rode after him. Grettir
rode on till he came to the settlement at Kropp^
where he met a man named Halli who said he was

124 Grettir the Strong

going down to the ship at Vellir. Grettir then spoke
a verse :

" Tell, oh tell in the dwellings abroad,
tell thou hast met with Saddle-head.
The handler of dice in sable cowl
sat on his back; hasten, oh Halli! "

Then they parted. Halli went along the road as far
as Kalfanes before he met Sveinn. They greeted
each other hurriedly and Sveinn said:

" Saw you that loafer ride from the dwellings?
Sorely he means my patience to try.
The people about shall deal with him roughly;
blue shall his body be if I meet him."

" You can know from what I tell you," said Halli,
" that I met the man who said he was riding Saddle-
head, and he told me to spread it abroad in the
dwellings and the district. He was a huge man in
a black cloak."

" Well, he seems to think something of himself,"
said the bondi. " I mean to know who he is."

Then he went on after him. Grettir came to
Deildartunga and found a woman outside. He began
to talk to her and spoke a verse :

" Mistress august! Go tell of the jest
that the serpent of earth has past on his way.
The garrulous brewer of Odin's mead
will come to Gilsbakki before he will rest."

The woman learned the verse and Grettir rode on.
Soon after Sveinn rode up ; she was still outside, and
when he came he spoke the verse :

" Who was the man who a moment ago
rode past on a dusky horse in the storm ?
The hound-eyed rascal, practised in mischief.
This day I will follow his steps to the end."

She told him as she had been taught. He considered
the lines and said: " It is not unlikely that this man

Grettir the Strong 125

is no play-fellow for me. But I mean to catch
him."

He then rode along the cultivated country. Each
could see the other's path. The weather was stormy
and wet. Grettir reached Gilsbakki that day, where
Grim the son of Thorhall welcomed him warmly and
begged him to stay, which he did. He let Saddle-
head run loose and told Grim how he had come by
her. Then Sveinn came up, dismounted and saw
his horse. Then he said:

" Who has ridden on my mare?
Who will pay me for her hire ?
Who ever saw such an arrant thief ?
What next will be the cowl-man's game? "

Grettir had then put off his wet clothes, and heard
the ditty. He said:

" Home I rode the mare to Grim's,
a better man than the hovel-dweller !
Nothing will I pay for hire !
Now we may be friends again."

" Just so shall it be," said the bondi. " Your ride
on the horse is fully paid for."

Then they each began repeating verses, and
Grettir said he could not blame him for looking after
his property. The bondi stayed there the night and
they had great jokes about the matter. The verses
they made were called " Saddle-head verses." In
the morning the bondi rode home, parting good
friends with Grettir. Grim told Grettir of many
things that had been done in Midfjord in the North
during his absence, and that no blood-money had been
paid for Atli. Thorbjorn Oxmain's interest, he said,
was so great that there was no certainty of Grettir 's
mother, Asdis, being allowed to remain at Bjarg
if the feud continued.

Grettir stayed but a few nights with Grim, for he

126 Grettir the Strong

did not want it to become known that he was about
to travel North across the Heath. Grim told him
to come back to visit him if he needed protection.
" Yet," he said, " I would gladly avoid the penalty
of being outlawed for harbouring you."

Grettir bade him farewell and said: "It is more
likely that I shall need your good services still more
later on."

Then Grettir rode North over the Tvidcegra Heath
to Bjarg, where he arrived at midnight. All were
asleep except his mother. He went to the back of
the house and entered by a door which was there,
for he knew all the ways about. He entered the
hall and went to his mother's bed, groping his way.
She asked who was there. Grettir told her. She
sat up and turned to him, heaving a weary sigh as
she spoke :

"Welcome, my kinsman! My hoard of sons has
quickly passed away. He is killed who was most
needful to me; you have been declared an outlaw
and a criminal; my third is so young that he can do
nothing."

"It is an ancient saying," said Grettir, " that one
evil is mended by a worse one. There is more in the
heart of man than money can buy; Atli may yet
be avenged. As for me, there will be some who
think they have had enough in their dealings with
me."

She said that was not unlikely. Grettir stayed
there for a time, but few knew of it, and he obtained
news of the movements of the men of the district.
It was not known then that he had come to Midfjord.
He learned that Thorbjorn Oxmain was at home
with few men. This was after the hay-harvest.

Grettir the Strong 127

CHAPTER XLVIII

DEATH OF THORBJORN OXMAIN

ONE fine day Grettir rode to the West across the ridge
to Thoroddsstad, where he arrived about noon and
knocked at the door. Some women came out and
greeted him, not knowing who he was. He asked
for Thorbjorn, and they told him that he was gone
out into the fields to bind hay with his sixteen-year-
old son Arnor. Thorbjorn was a hard worker and
was scarcely ever idle. Grettir on hearing that
bade them farewell and rode off North on the road to
Reykir. There is some marsh-land stretching away
from the ridge with much grass-land, where Thorbjorn
had made a quantity of hay which was just dry.
He was just about to bind it up for bringing in with
the help of his son, while a woman gathered up what
was left. Grettir rode to the field from below,
Thorbjorn and his son being above him; they had
finished one load and were beginning a second.
Thorbjorn had laid down his shield and sword against
the load, and his son had his hand-axe near him.

Thorbjorn saw a man coming and said to his son:
" There is a man riding towards us ; we had better
stop binding the hay and see what he wants."

They did so; Grettir got off his horse. He had a
helmet on his head, a short sword by his side, and a
great spear in his hand without barbs and inlaid
with silver at the socket. He sat down and knocked
out the rivet which fastened the head in order to
prevent Thorbjorn from returning the spear upon
him.

Thorbjorn said: "This is a big man. I see no
man at all in the field if that is not Grettir the son

128 Grettir the Strong

of Asmund. No doubt he thinks that he has suffi-
cient business with us. We will meet him boldly and
show him no signs of fear. We must act with a plan.
I will go on ahead towards him and see how we get
on together, for I will trust myself against any man
if I can meet him alone. Do you go round and get
behind him; take your axe with both hands and
strike him between the shoulders. You need not
fear that he will hurt you, for his back will be turned
towards you."

Neither of them had a helmet. Grettir went along
the marsh and when he was within range launched
his spear at Thorbjorn. The head was not so firm
as he had intended it to be, so it got loose in its flight
and fell off on to the ground. Thorbjorn took his
shield, held it before him, drew his sword and turned
against Grettir directly he recognised him. Grettir
drew his sword, and, turning round a little, saw the
boy behind him ; so he kept continually on the move.
When he saw that the boy was within reach he raised
his sword aloft and struck Arnor's head with the back
of it such a blow that the skull broke and he died.
Then Thorbjorn rushed upon Grettir and struck at
him, but he parried it with the buckler in his left
hand and struck with his sword a blow which severed
Thorbjorn's shield in two and went into his head,
reaching the brain. Thorbjorn fell dead. Grettir
gave him no more wounds; he searched for the
spear-head but could not find it. He got on to his
horse, rode to Reykir and proclaimed the slaying.

The woman who was out in the field with them
witnessed the battle. She ran home terrified and
told the news that Thorbjorn and his son were killed.
The people at home were much taken aback, for no
one was aware of Grettir's arrival. They sent to
the next homestead for men, who came in plenty

Grettir the Strong 129

and carried the body to the church. The blood-
feud then fell to Thorodd Drapustuf, who at once
called out his men.

Grettir rode home to Bjarg and told his mother
what had happened. She was very glad and said he
had now shown his kinship to the Vatnsdal race.
" And yet," she said, " this is the root and the begin-
ning of your outlawry; for certain I know that your
dwelling here will not be for long by reason of
Thorbjorn's kinsmen, and now they may know that
they have the means of annoying you."

Grettir then spoke a verse:

" Atli's death was unatoned;
fully now the debt is paid."

Asdis said it was true : " but I know not what
counsel you now mean to take."

Grettir said he meant now to visit his friends and
kinsmen in the western regions, and that she should
have no unpleasantness on his account. Then he
made ready to go, and parted with much affection
from his mother. First he went to Melar in Hruta-
fjord and recounted to his brother-in-law Gamli all
his adventure with Thorbjorn. Gamli begged him
to betake himself away from Hrutafjord while the
kinsmen of Thorbjorn were abroad with their men,
and said they would support him in the suit about
Atli's slaying to the best of their power. Then Grettir
rode to the West across the Laxardal Heath and did
not stop before he reached Ljarskogar, where he
stayed some time in the autumn with Thorsteinn
Kuggason.

130 Grettir the Strong

CHAPTER XLIX

GRETTIR VISITS THORSTEINN KUGGASON AND SNORRI
GOBI

THORODD DRAPUSTUF now made inquiries who it
was who had killed Thorbjorn and his son. They
went to Reykir, where they were told that Grettir
had proclaimed the slaying. Thorodd then saw how
matters stood and went to Bjarg, where he found
many people and asked whether Grettir was there.
Asdis said that he was gone, and that he would not
hide if he were at home.

" You can be well content to leave things as they
are. The vengeance for Atli was not excessive,
if it be reckoned up. No one asked what I had to
suffer then, and now it were well for it to rest."

Then they rode home, and it seemed as if there
were nothing to be done. The spear which Grettir
had lost was never found until within the memory
of men now living. It was found in the later days
of Sturla the Lawman, the son of Thord, in the
very marsh where Thorbjorn fell, now called Spear-
marsh. This is the proof that he was killed there
and not in Midfitjar, as has been elsewhere asserted.

Thorbjorn's kinsmen learned of Grettir's being in
Ljarskogar and called together their men with the
purpose of going there. Gamli heard of this at Melar
and sent word to Thorsteinn and Grettir of their
approach. Thorsteinn sent Grettir on to Tunga to
Snorri the Godi, with whom he was then at peace,
and advised Grettir to ask for his protection, and if
it were refused to go West to Thorgils the son of Ari
in Reykjaholar, "who will surely take you in for the

Grettir the Strong 131

winter. Stay there in the western fjords until the
affair is settled."

Grettir said he would follow his counsel. He rode
to Tunga where he found Snorri and asked to be
taken in. Snorri answered: " I am now an old
man, and have no mind to harbour outlaws, unless in a
case of necessity. But what has happened that the
old man should have turned you out ? "

Grettir said that Thorsteinn had often shown
him kindness; "but we shall need more than him
alone to do any good."

Snorri said: " I will put in my word on your
behalf, if it will be of any use to you. But you must
seek your quarters elsewhere than with me."

So they parted. Grettir then went West to Reyk-
janes. The men of Hrutafjord came with their fol-
lowers to Samstad, where they heard that Grettir
had left Ljarskogar, and went back home.

CHAPTER L

GRETTIR WINTERS WITH THORGILS AT REYKJAHOLAR
IN COMPANY WITH THE FOSTER-BROTHERS

GRETTIR came to Reykjaholar towards the beginning
of the winter and asked Thorgils to let him stay the
winter with him. Thorgils said he was welcome to
his entertainment, like other free men; "but," he
said, " we do not pay much attention to the prepara-
tion of the food."

Grettir said that would not trouble him.

" There is another little difficulty," Thorgils con-
tinued. " Some men are expected here who are a
little hot-headed, namely, the foster-brothers Thorgeir
and Thormod. I do not know how it will suit you

132 Grettir the Strong

to be together with them. They shall always
have entertainment here whenever they wish for it.
You may stay here if you will, but I will not have
any of you behaving ill to the others."

Grettir said that he would not be the first to raise a
quarrel with any man, more especially since the bondi
had expressed his wish to him.

Soon after the foster-brothers came up. Thorgeir
and Grettir did not take very kindly to one another,
but Thormod behaved with propriety. Thorgils said
to them what he had said to Grettir, and so great
was the deference paid to him that none of them
spoke an improper word to the other, although they
did not always think alike. In this way the first part
of the winter was passed.

Men say that the islands called Olafseyjar, lying in
the fjord about a mile and a half from Reykjanes,
belonged to Thorgils. He had there a valuable ox,
which he had not brought away in the autumn. He
was always saying that he wanted him to be brought
in before Yule. One day the foster-brothers prepared
to go and fetch the ox, but wanted a third man to
help them. Grettir offered to go with them and they
were very glad to have him. So the three set out in
a ten-oared boat. The weather was cold and the
wind from the North ; the boat was lying at Hvals-
hausholm. When they left the wind had freshened
a little; they reached the island and caught the ox.
Grettir asked whether they preferred to ship the
ox or to hold the boat, for there was a high surf
running on the shore. They told him to hold the
boat. He stood by her middle on the side away
from the land, the sea reaching right up to beneath
his shoulders, but he held the boat firmly so that
she could not drift. Thorgeir took the ox by the
stern and Thormod by the head, and so they hove

Grettir the Strong 133

him into the boat. Then they started heading for
the bay, Thormod taking the bow-oars with Thorgeir
amidships and Grettir in the stern. By the time
they reached Hafraklett the wind was very high.
Thorgeir said: " The stern is slackening."

Grettir said: " The stern will not be left behind if
the rowing amidships is all right."

Thorgeir then bent his back to the oars and pulled
so violently that both the rowlocks carried away. He
said:

" Pull on, Grettir, whilst I mend the rowlocks."

Grettir pulled vigorously whilst Thorgeir mended
the rowlocks. But when Thorgeir was about to
take over the oars again they were so damaged that
on Grettir giving them a shake on the gunwale they
broke. Thormod said it would be better to row less
and not to break the ship. Then Grettir took two
spars which were on board, bored two holes in the
gunwale, and rowed so energetically that every
timber creaked. As the boat was well found and the
men in good condition they reached Hvalshausholm.
Grettir asked whether they would go on home with the
ox or whether they would beach the boat. They
preferred to beach the boat, and they did so with all
the water that was in her all frozen. Grettir got
off the ox, which was very stiff in its limbs and very
fat and tired; when they got to Tillingsstad it
could go no more. The foster-brothers went home,
for none of them would help the other at his job.
Thorgils asked after Grettir; they told him how
they had parted, and he sent men out to him. When
they came below Hellisholar they saw a man coming
towards them with an ox on his back ; it was Grettir
carrying the ox. They all admired his great feat,
but Thorgeir became rather jealous of Grettir's
strength.

134 Grettir the Strong

One day soon after Yule Grettir went out alone to
bathe Thorgeir knew of it and said to Thormod:
" Let us go out now and see what Grettir does if I
attack him as he comes out of the water."

" I don't care to do that," Thormod said; " and
I do not think you will get any good from him."

" I mean to go," Thorgeir said.

He went down to the bank, carrying his axe aloft.
Grettir was just coming out of the water, and when
they met Thorgeir said: "Is it true, Grettir, that
you once said you would not run away from any single
person."

" I don't know whether I did," Grettir said; " but
I have scarcely run away from you."

Thorgeir raised his axe. In a moment Grettir
ran at him and brought him over with a heavy fall.
Thorgeir said to Thormod: " Are you going to stand
there while this devil knocks me down ? "

Thormod then got Grettir by the leg and tried
to drag him off Thorgeir but could not. He was
wearing a short sword, and was just about to draw
it when Thorgils came up and told them to behave
themselves and not to fight with Grettir. They did
as he bade and made out that it was all play. They
had no more strife, so far as has been told, and men
thought Thorgils very lucky in having been able to
pacify men of such violent tempers.

When the spring set in they all departed. Grettir
went on to Thorskafjord. When some one asked
him how he liked his entertainment at Reykjaholar
he answered: "Our fare was such that I enjoyed
my food very much — when I could get it." Then
he went West over the heath.

Grettir the Strong 135

CHAPTER LI

GRETTIR'S CASE OVERBORNE AT THE ALL-THING

THORGILS, the son of Ari, rode to the Thing with a
large following. All the magnates were there from
all parts of the country, and he soon met with Skapti
the Lawman and had some talk with him. Skapti
said:

" Is it true, Thorgils, that you have been giving
winter entertainment to three of the most unruly
men in the country, all three of them outlaws, and
that you kept order so well that none of them did
any harm to the other ? "

Thorgils said it was true.

Skapti said : " Well, I think it shows what authority
you possess. But how did their characters appear
to you? Who is the most valorous among them? "

" They are all entirely valiant," he answered,
" but of two of them I will not say that they never
fear; only there is a difference. Thormod fears
God, and is a man of great piety; and Grettir fears
the dark. He will not, if he may follow his own
inclination, venture anywhere after nightfall. But
Thorgeir, my kinsman, he I think cannot fear."

" They must be each of them as you say," said
Skapti, and there their conversation ended.

At the Thing Thorodd Drapustuf laid his com-
plaint in the matter of the slaying of Thorbjorn
Oxmain, for he had failed in the Hunavatn Thing
through the influence of Atli's kinsmen. Here he
thought that there was less likelihood of his case
being overborne. Atli's party sought counsel of
Skapti the Lawman; he said that their defence
appeared to him a good one, and that full blood-

136 Grettir the Strong

money would have to be paid for Atli. Then the
case was brought before the judges, and the opinion
of the majority was that the slaying of Atli was set
off by that of Thorbjorn. Skapti when he heard of
it went to the judges and asked them on what
grounds their decision rested; they said that the two
slain bondis were of equal rank.

Skapti asked: " Which happened first, the out-
lawing of Grettir or the death of Atli ? "

They reckoned up and found that a week had
elapsed between the two events. Grettir was out-
lawed at the All-Thing and Atli was killed just
after it.

" That was what I expected," Skapti said. " You
have overlooked the facts; you have treated as a
party to the suit a man who was an outlaw, a man
who was stopped from appearing either as plaintiff
or defendant. I maintain that Grettir has no stand-
ing in the case, and that it must be brought by the
kinsmen of the deceased who are nearest at law."

Thorodd Drapustuf said: " Who then is to answer
for the slaying of my brother Thorbjorn? "

" See to that yourself," said Skapti. " Grettir's
kinsmen are not liable to pay for his deeds unless
his sentence be removed."

When Thorvald the son of Asgeir learned of
Grettir's status in court having been disallowed,
inquiry was made for Atli's nearest of kin, and these
were found to be Skeggi the son of Gamli at Melar and
Ospak the son of Glum of Eyr in Bitra. Both were
valiant and strenuous men. Thorodd was then
mulcted in blood-money for the slaying of Atli and
had to pay two hundreds of silver.

Then Snorri the Godi spoke:

"Men of Hmtafjord! Are you willing now to
agree to the remission of the fine in consideration of

Grettir the Strong 1 37

Grettir's sentence being commuted? I expect that
as an outlaw he will bite you sorely."

Grettir's kinsmen welcomed this proposal, and
said they did not care about the money if Grettir
could have peace and freedom. Thorodd said he
saw that his case was beset with difficulties, and that
for his part he was willing to accept the proposal.
Snorri said that inquiry must first be made whether
Thorir of Gard would agree to Grettir being freed.
When Thorir heard of it he was furious, and said that
never should Grettir either go or come out of his out-
lawry. So far from consenting to his being amnestied,
he would put a higher price upon his head than was
put upon any other outlaw.

When they knew that he would take it so ill,
nothing more was said about the amnesty. Ospak
and Skeggi took the money that was paid and kept
it, while Thorodd Drapustuf got no compensation
for his brother Thorbjorn. He and Thorir each
offered a reward of three marks of silver for Grettir's
head; this seemed to men to be an innovation, for
never before had more than three marks in all been
offered. Snorri said it was very unwise to make
such efforts to keep a man outlawed who could do
so much mischief, and that many would suffer for it.
Then they parted and men rode home from the
Thing.

CHAPTER LII

GRETTIR IS CAPTURED BY FARMERS AND
RELEASED BY THORBJORG

GRETTIR went over the Thorskafjord Heath to
Langadal, where he let his hands sweep over the
property of the smaller cultivators, taking what he
wanted from every one. From some he got weapons,

138 Grettir the Strong

from others clothes. They gave up their property
very variously, but when he was gone all said that
they had been compelled to do it.

There dwelt on the Vatns fjord one Vermund the
Slender, a brother of Viga-Styr, who had married
Thorbjorg the daughter of Olaf Peacock, the son of
Hoskuld, called Thorbjorg the Fat. At the time
when Grettir was in Langadal Vermund was away
at the Thing. He went across the ridge to Laugabol
where a man named Helgi was living, one of the prin-
cipal bondis. Thence Grettir took a good horse
belonging to the bondi and rode on to Gervidal, where
dwelt a man named Thorkell. He was well provided
but in a small way of business. Grettir took from him
what he wanted, Thorkell daring neither to withhold
anything nor to protest. Thence Grettir went to Eyr
and on to the coast of the fjord, obtaining food and
clothes from every homestead and making himself
generally disagreeable, so that men found it hard to
live while he was about.

Grettir went boldly on, taking little care of himself.
He went on until he came to Vatns fjordardal and
entered a dairy shelter, where he stayed several
nights. There he lay sleeping in the forest, fearing
for nothing. When the shepherds learned of it they
reported in the homesteads that a fiend had come
into the place who they thought would be hard to
deal with. All the farmers came together and a
band of thirty of them concealed themselves in the
forest where Grettir could not know of them. They
set one of the shepherds to watch for an opportunity
of seizing him, without however knowing very clearly
who the man was.

One day when Grettir was lying asleep the farmers
came up to him. They considered how they should
take him with least danger to themselves, and

Grettir the Strong 139

arranged that ten should fall upon him while others
laid bonds round his feet. They threw themselves
on to him, but Grettir struggled so violently that he
threw them all off and came down on his hands and
knees. Then they threw ropes round his feet.
Grettir kicked two of them in the ears and they fell
senseless. One came on after the other; long and
hard he struggled, but at last they succeeded in
getting him down and binding him. Then they
began to ask themselves what they were going to do
with him. They asked Helgi of Laugabol to take
him over and look after him until Vermund returned
from the Thing.

He said: " I have something better to do than to
keep my men guarding him. I have labour enough
with my lands, and he shall not come in my way."

Then they asked Thorkell of Gervidal to take him
and said he had sufficient means. He objected
strongly and said he had no accommodation for him.
"I lie at home with my wife, far from other men.
You shall not bring your basket to me."

"Then you, Thoralf of Eyr," they said; "you
take Grettir and look after him well while the Thing
lasts, or else hand him on to the next farm; only be
answerable for his not escaping. Give him over
bound, just as you receive him."

He said: " I am not going to take Grettir. I have
neither means nor money to keep him, nor was he
captured on my property. So far as I can see much
more trouble than credit is to be got by taking him
or having anything to do with him. He shall not
enter my house."

Each of the bondis was asked, but all refused.
Some witty person wrote a poem about these con-
fabulations and called it " Grettir 's Faring, " adding
many jests of his own for the dilectification of men.

140 Grettir the Strong

After parleying for a long time they all came to an
agreement that they would not throw away their
luck, and set to work to raise a gallows there and
then in the forest upon which Grettir should hang.
Their delight over this proposal was uproarious.

Then they saw three people riding along the valley
from below, one of them in a dyed dress. They
guessed that it must be Thorbjorg the mistress of
Vatnsfjord on her way to the dairy, and so it was.
Thorbjorg was a person of great magnificence, and
tremendously wise. She was the leading personage of
the district and managed everything when Vermund
was away. She came up to where the crowd was
gathered and was lifted from her horse; the bondis
saluted her respectfully. She said:

"What is your meeting about? Who is this
thick-necked man sitting there in bonds? "

Grettir told his name and saluted her.

" What has moved you, Grettir," she said, " to
commit violence upon my Thing-men ? "

" I cannot overlook everything," he said. " I must
be somewhere."

" You are indeed unfortunate," she said, " that a
pack of churls like these should have captured you
and that none of them should have paid for it.
What are you men going to do with him ? "

The bondis said that they were going to hoist him
on to a gallows for his misdeeds.

She said: " It may be that Grettir has deserved it,
but it will bring trouble upon you men of Isafjord if
you take the life of a man so renowned and so highly
connected as Grettir, ill-starred though he be. Now
what will you do for your life, Grettir, if I give it to
you?"

" What do you wish me to do ? "

" You shall swear never to commit any violence

Grettir the Strong 141

here in Isafjord; nor shall you take revenge upon
those who have had a hand in capturing you."

Grettir said it should be as she desired, and he was
released. He said it was the greatest effort of self-
restraint that he ever made that he did not thrash
the men who were there triumphing over him.
Thorbjorg told him to come home with her and gave
him a horse to ride on. So he went to Vatnsfjord and
stayed there well cared for by the mistress until
Vermund returned. She gained great renown from
this deed through the district. Vermund was very
much put out when he got home and asked why
Grettir was there. Thorbjorg told him everything
which had happened with the Isafjord men.

" To what does he owe it that you gave him his
life? " he asked.

" Many reasons there were," she said. " The first
is that you might be the more respected as a chief
for having a wife who would dare to do such a thing.
Next, his kinswoman Hrefna will surely say that I
could not let him be slain ; and thirdly, because he is
in many respects a man of the highest worth."

" You are a wise woman," he said, " in most
things. I thank you for what you have done."

Then he said to Grettir: " You have sold yourself
very cheap, such a man of prowess as you are, to let
yourself be taken by churls. This is what always
happens to those who cannot control themselves."

Grettir then spoke a verse:

" Full was my cup in Isafjord
when the old swine held me at ransom."

" What were they going to do with you when they
took you ? " Vermund asked.

" To Sigar's lot my neck was destined
when noble Thorbjorg came upon them."

142 Grettir the Strong

" Would they have hanged you then if they had
been left to themselves ? "

" My neck would soon have been in the noose,
» had she not wisely saved the bard."

" Did she invite you to her home ? "

" She bade me home with her to fare.
A steed she gave me, life and peace."

" Great will your life be and troublous," said
Vermund; " but now you have learnt to beware of
your foes. I cannot keep you here, for it would
rouse the enmity of many powerful men against me.
Your best way is to seek your kinsmen; there are
not many who will be willing to take you in if they
can do anything else ; nor are you one who will easily
follow the will of another man."

Grettir remained for a time in Vatnsfjord and went
thence to Vestfjord and tried several of the leading
men there, but something always happened to pre-
vent their taking him in.

CHAPTER LIII

GRETTIR WINTERS IN LJARSKOGAR WITH
THORSTEINN KUGGASON

DURING the autumn Grettir returned to the South and
did not stop till he came to his kinsman Thorsteinn
Kuggason in Ljarskogar, who welcomed him. He
accepted Thorsteinn's invitation to stay the winter
with him. Thorsteinn was a man who worked very
hard; he was a smith, and kept a number of men
working for him. Grettir was not one for hard work,
so that their dispositions did not agree very well.
Thorsteinn had had a church built on his lands, with a

Grettir the Strong 143

bridge from his house, made with much ingenuity.
Outside the bridge, on the beam which supported it,
rings were fastened and bells, which could be heard
from Skarfsstadir half a sea-mile distant when any
one walked over the bridge. The building of the
bridge had cost Thorsteinn, who was a great worker
in iron, much labour. Grettir was a first-rate hand
at forging the iron, but was not often inclined to
work at it. He was very quiet during the winter so
that there is not much to relate.

The men of Hrutafjord heard that Grettir was with
Thorsteinn, and gathered their forces in the spring.
Thorsteinn then told Grettir that he must find some
other hiding-place for himself, since he would not
work. Men who did nothing did not suit him.

" Where do you mean me to go to ?" asked Grettir.

Thorsteinn told him to go South to his kinsmen,
but to return to him if he found them of no use.

Grettir did so. He went to Borgarfjord in the
South to visit Grim the son of Thorhall, and stayed
with him till the Thing was over. Grim sent him on
to Skapti the Lawman at Hjalli. He went South
over the lower heaths and did not stop before he
reached Tunga, where he went to Thorhall, the son of
Asgrim the son of Ellidagrim, and paid few visits to
the farms around. Thorhall knew of Grettir through
the relations which had been between their ancestors ;
indeed Grettir's name was well known throughout
the country because of his exploits. Thorhall was a
wise man and treated Grettir well, but did not want
to keep him there for very long.

144 Grettir the Strong

CHAPTER LIV

ADVENTURE WITH LOPT

GRETTIR went from Tunga up the Haukadal valley
northwards to Kjol and was there for some time in
the summer. For men travelling either to the North
or to the South there was no certainty of their not
being stripped of what they had on them, for he was
hard pressed for the means of living.

One day when Grettir was keeping to the North
near Dufunesskeid he saw a man riding South along
the Kjol valley. He was a tall man on horseback,
riding a good horse with a studded bridle, and was
leading another horse loaded with sacks. He had a
slouched hat on his head, so that his face was not
clearly seen. Grettir was very pleased to see his
horse and his property, and went to meet him and
asked him his name. He said it was Lopt, and
added: " I know what your name is; you are Grettir
the Strong, son of Asmund. Whither are you going ?"

" I have not made up my mind yet about that,"
said Grettir. " My present business is to know
whether you will lay off some of the property which
you are travelling with."

" Why should I give you what belongs to me ?
What will you give me for the things ? "

" Have you not heard that I never pay anything?
And yet it seems to most people that I get what I
want."

Lopt said: "Make this offer to those who seem
good to you; I am not going to give my property
away for nothing. Let us each go our own way."
Then he whipped on his horse and was about to ride
away from Grettir.

Grettir the Strong 145

" We shall not part so quickly as that," said
Grettir, and seized the bridle of Lopt's horse in front
of his hands, pulled it from him and held it with both
hands.

" Go your own way," said Lopt ; " you will get
nothing from me as long as I am able to hold it."

" That shall now be tried," said Grettir.

Lopt reached down along the cheek-strap and got
hold of the reins between the end ring and Grettir's
hands, pulling with such force that Grettir let go,
and at last Lopt wrenched the whole bridle away from
him. Grettir looked at his palms and thought that
this man must have strength in his claws rather than
not. Then he looked at him and said: " Where are
you going to now ? "

He answered:

" To the storm-driven den, over ice-clad heights,
I ride to the rock and the rest of the hand."

Grettir said : " There is no certainty to be had from
asking where your dwelling is if you do not speak
more clearly." Then Lopt spake and said:

" I seek not to hide thy ways from thy ken.
'Tis the place which the Borgfirdings Balljokul call."

Then they parted. Grettir saw that he had no
strength against this man. Then he spoke a verse:

" Illugi brave and Atli were far.
Never again may such hap be mine !
The bridle was torn away from my hand.
Her tears will flow when I am afeared."

After this Grettir left Kjol and went South to
Hjalli where he asked Skapti for shelter. Skapti
said: " I am told that you are acting with violence
and are robbing men of their property; that ill
becomes a man so highly connected as you are. It
would be easier to negotiate if you gave up robbing.

K

146 Grettir the Strong

Now as I am called Lawman of this country, it would
not be seemly for me to break the law by harbouring
outlaws. I would like you to betake yourself some-
where where you do not need to commit robbery."

Grettir said he would be very glad to, but that he
could scarcely live alone owing to his fear of the dark.
Skapti said he would have to content himself with
something short of the best: " And trust no one so
fully that what happened to you in the Western
fjords may be repeated. Many have been brought
to death by over-confidence."

Grettir thanked him for his good advice and turned
back to Borgarf jord in the autumn, when he went to
his friend Grim, the son of Thorhall, and told him
what Skapti had said. Grim advised him to go to
the North to Fiskivatn in the Arnavatn Heath, and
he did so.

CHAPTER LV

GRETTIR IN THE ARNAVATN HEATH. DEATH OF
GRIM THE FOREST-MAN

GRETTIR went up to the Arnavatn Heath and built
himself a hut there of which the remains are still to
be seen. He went there because he wanted to do
anything rather than rob, so he got himself a net and
a boat and went out fishing to support himself. It
was a weary time for him in the mountains because
of his fear of the dark. Other outlaws heard of his
having come there and wanted to go and see him,
thinking that he would be a great protection to them.
There was an outlaw from the North named Grim.
This man was bribed by those of Hrutafjord to kill
Grettir. They promised him pardon and money if

Grettir the Strong 147

he succeeded. He went to visit Grettir and asked
for his hospitality.

Grettir said : " I do not see how you will be holpen
by coming to me, and you men of the forest are un-
trustworthy. But it is ill to live alone; I have no
choice. Only he shall be with me who is willing to
work at whatever comes to hand."

Grim said that was just what he wished and pressed
Grettir much, until Grettir let himself be persuaded
and took him in. He stayed there right into the
winter, and watched Grettir closely, but it seemed no
easy matter to attack him, for Grettir was suspicious
and kept his weapons at hand night and day; when
he was awake the man would not venture to approach
him.

One morning Grim came home from fishing and
went into the hut stamping with his feet and wanting
to know whether Grettir was asleep. Grettir lay
still and did not move. There was a short sword
hanging above his head. Grim thought he would
never have a better opportunity. He made a loud
noise to see whether Grettir took any notice, but he
did not, so Grim felt sure that he was asleep. He
crept stealthily to the bed, reached up to the sword,
took it down and raised it to strike. Just at the
moment when he raised it Grettir sprang up on to the
floor, and, seizing the sword with one hand, Grim
with the other, hurled him over so that he fell nearly
senseless. " This is how you have proved yourself
with all your friendly seeming," he said. Then he
got the whole truth out of him and killed him. He
learned from this what it was to take in a forest-man.
So the winter passed. The hardest thing of all to bear
was his fear of the dark.

148 Grettir the Strong

CHAPTER LVI

TREACHERY AND DEATH OF THORIR REDBEARD

THORIR OF GARD now heard where Grettir had taken
up his abode and meant to leave no stone unturned to
get him slain. There was a man named Thorir Red-
beard, a stout man and a great fighter, on which
account he had been declared outlaw throughout the
country. Thorir of Gard sent word to him, and when
they met asked Redbeard to undertake the business
of slaying Grettir. Redbeard said that was no easy
task, as Grettir was very wide awake and very
cautious. Thorir told him to try it, saying: " It
would be a splendid deed for a valiant man like you ;
I will get your outlawing removed and give you
sufficient money as well."

So Redbeard agreed and Thorir told him how he
should go to work to deal with Grettir. Redbeard
then went away into the East in order that Grettir
might not suspect where he came from. Thence he
came to the Arnavatn Heath, where Grettir had then
been for one winter, found Grettir and asked him for
entertainment. He said: "I cannot allow people
to play with me again as the man did who came here
last autumn, pretending to be very friendly; before
he had been here very long he began plotting against
my life. I cannot risk taking in any more forest-men. ' '

" I think you have reason," Thorir said, " to mis-
trust forest-men. It may be you have heard tell of
me as a man of blood and a disturber of peace, but
never did you hear of such a monstrous deed of me
as that I betrayed my host. Ill is the lot of him who
has an ill name; for men think of him but as such;
nor would I have come here if I had had any better

Grettir the Strong 149

choice. All is not lost for us if we stand together.
You might venture so much to begin with as to try
how you like me, and then if you find any unfitness
in me turn me away."

" Well," said Grettir, " I will risk it with you; but
know of a surety that if I suspect you of any treachery
it will be your death."

Thorir agreed. Grettir took him in and found
that in whatever he did he had the strength of two
men. He was ready for anything that Grettir gave
him to do. Nothing did Grettir need to do for him-
self, and he had never lived so comfortably since
he had become an outlaw. Nevertheless he was so
wary that Thorir got no chance. Two years was
Thorir Redbeard with Grettir on the Heath, and at
last he began to weary of it. He thought over what
he could do to take Grettir off his guard.

One night in the spring a heavy gale sprang up
while they were asleep. Grettir awoke and asked
where their boat was. Thorir sprang up, ran to the
boat, broke her all in pieces, and threw the fragments
about so that it looked as if the storm had wrecked
her. Then he returned to the hut and said aloud:
" You have had bad luck, my friend. Our boat is
all broken in pieces and the nets are lying far out in
the lake."

" Get them back then," said Grettir. " It seems
to me to be your doing that the boat is smashed."

" Of all things which I can do," said Thorir,
" swimming is that which suits me least. In almost
anything else I think I can hold my own with any
ordinary man. You know very well that I have been
no burden to you since I came here ; nor would I ask
you to do this if I were able to do it myself."

Grettir then arose, took his arms and went to the
lake. There was a point of land running out into

150 Grettir the Strong

the lake with a large bay on the further side of it.
The water was deep up to the shore. Grettir said:
" Swim out to the nets and let me see what you are
able to do."

" I told you before," Thorir said, " that I cannot
swim. I do not know now where all your boldness
and daring are gone to."

" I could get the nets," he said; "but betray me
not if I trust you."

" Do not think such shameful and monstrous things
of me," said Thorir.

" You will prove yourself what you are," Grettir
said.

Then he threw off his clothes and his weapons and
swam out to the nets. He gathered them together,
returned to the shore and cast them up on to the
bank. Just as he was about to land Thorir quickly
seized his short sword and drew it. He ran towards
Grettir as he stepped on to the bank and aimed a
blow at him. Grettir threw himself down back-
wards into the water and sank like a stone. Thorir
stood by the shore intending to guard it until he
came up. Grettir swam beneath the water, keeping
close to the bank so that Thorir could not see him,
and so reached the bay behind him, where he landed
without letting himself be seen. The first Thorir
knew of it was when Grettir lifted him up over his
head and dashed him down with such violence that
the sword fell out of his hand. Grettir got possession
of it and without speaking a word cut off his head. So
his life ended. After that Grettir refused to take in
any forest-men, and yet he could not live alone.

Grettir the Strong 1 5 1

CHAPTER LVII

ATTACK ON GRETTIR BY THORIR OF CARD WITH EIGHTY
MEN REPULSED WITH THE AID OF HALLMUND

AT the All-Thing Thorir of Gard learned of Thorir
Redbeard having been killed. It was evident that
the matter was not so easy to deal with. He now
determined to ride from the Thing in a westerly
direction through the lower heath, and with the aid
of about eighty men whom he had with him to take
Grettir's life. Grim the son of Thorhall heard of his
plans and sent word to Grettir, bidding him beware
of himself. Grettir therefore continued closely to
watch the movements of men who came and went.

One day he saw a number of men coming in the
direction of his place of dwelling. He went into a
gorge between two rocks, but did not go right away
because he did not see the whole of the troop.
Thorir then came up with his whole party and bade
them go between his head and his body, saying that
the scoundrel had but a poor chance now.

" A filled cup is not yet drunk," answered Grettir.
" You have come far to seek me, and some of you
shall bear the marks of our game before we part."

Thorir urged his men on to attack him. The
gorge was very narrow so that he could easily defend
it from one end, and he wondered much that they
did not get round to his rear to hurt him. Some of
Thorir's men fell and some were wounded, but they
effected nothing. Then Thorir said: " I always
heard that Grettir was distinguished for his courage
and daring, but I never knew that he was so skilled
in magic as I now see he is ; for there fall half as many
again behind his back as before his face, and I see

152 Grettir the Strong

that we have to do with a troll instead of a
man."

So he bade his men retire, and they did so. Grettir
wondered what the explanation could be, but was
terribly exhausted. Thorir and his men withdrew
and rode into the northern parts. Their expedition
was considered very disgraceful. Thorir had left
eighteen men on the ground and had many wounded.

Grettir then went up the gorge and found there a
man of huge stature sitting up against the rock and
sorely wounded. Grettir asked his name, and he
said it was Hallmund, adding: "That you may
recognise me I may remind you that you thought I
gripped the reins rather tightly when I met you in
Kjol last summer. I think I have now made that
good."

" Indeed," said Grettir, " I think you have done
me a manly service ; whenever I can I will repay it."

" Now I wish," said Hallmund, " that you may
come to my home, for it must seem wearisome to you
here on the Heath."

Grettir said he would come willingly, and they both
went together to the foot of the Balljokull, where
Hallmund had a large cave. There they found his
daughter, a fine and well -grown maiden. They
treated Grettir well, and the daughter nursed both the
wounded men to health again. Grettir stayed there
some time that summer. He composed an ode on
Hallmund in which the line occurs:

" Hallmund steps from his mountain hall " ;

further:

" The war-fain sword in Arnavatn
went forth to hew its bloody path.
Heroes inherit Kelduhverfi.
Hallmund the brave came forth from his den."

Grettir the Strong 153

It is said that at that encounter Grettir slew six
men and Hallmund twelve.

As the summer passed Grettir began to long for the
habitations of men, and to see his friends and kinsmen.
Hallmund told him to visit him when he returned to
the South and Grettir promised to do so. He went
westwards to Borgarfjord and thence to Breidafjar-
dardalir and sought counsel of Thorsteinn Kuggason
as to where he should go next. Thorsteinn said that
his enemies were now becoming so numerous that few
would care to take him in; but told him to go to
Myrar and see what he found there. So in the
autumn he went to Myrar.

CHAPTER LVIII

GRETTIR VISITS BJORN THE HITDALE WARRIOR AND
TAKES REFUGE IN THE FAGRASKOGAFJALL

THERE lived in Holm Bjorn the Hitdale Warrior, who
was the son of Arngeir, the son of Bersi the Godless,
the son of Balki, who was the first settler in Hruta-
fjord, as has already been told. Bjorn was a great
chief and a valiant man, always ready to take in
outlaws. He received Grettir well when he came to
Holm on account of the friendship which had existed
between their former kinsmen. Grettir asked if he
would give him shelter, and Bjorn said that he had so
many quarrels throughout the land that men would
be reluctant to take him in for fear of being outlawed
themselves. " But," he said, " I will give you some
help if you will leave the men who are under my
protection in peace, whatever you do to others in
this part."

Grettir promised that he would, and Bjorn con-

154 Grettir the Strong

tinued: " I have thought of something. In the
mountain which stretches away from the Hitara
river there is a good position for defence, and likewise
a good hiding-place if it is skilfully managed. There
is a hole through the mountain from which you can
see down upon the high road that lies immediately
beneath it, and a sandy slope down to the road so
steep that few could get up it if it were defended above
by one doughty man up in the hollow. It may, I think,
be worth your while to consider whether you can
stay there; it is easy to go down from there to the
Myrar to get your supplies, and to reach the sea."

Grettir said he would trust to his foresight if he
would help him a little. Then he went to Fagraskoga-
fjall and made himself a home there. He hung some
grey wadmal in front of the hole, and it looked from
the road below as if one could see through. Then he
began to get in his supplies, but the Myramen thought
they had an unhappy visitor in Grettir.

Thord the son of Kolbeinn wa; an excellent poet
who dwelt in Hitarnes. There was a great feud
between him and Bjorn at that time, and Bjorn
thought it would be more than half useful to him if
Grettir were to busy himself with Thord 's men or
his cattle. Grettir was a great deal with Bjorn and
they had many games of strength. It is related in
Bjorn's saga that they were considered equal in
strength, but the opinion of most people is that
Grettir was the strongest man that had been in the
land since the days when Orm Storolfsson and
Thoralf Skolmsson ceased their trials of strength.
Grettir and Bjorn swam in one course the whole
length of the Hitara from the lake at its head down
to the sea. They brought the stepping-stones into
the river which neither floods nor freezing nor ice-
drifts have since moved from their places. Grettir

Grettir the Strong 155

stayed a year in Fagraskogafjall without any attack
being made upon him, and yet many lost their pro-
perty through his means and got nothing for it,
because his position was strong for defence and he
was always in good friendship with those who were
nearest to him.

CHAPTER LIX

THE CHASTISEMENT OF GISLI

THERE was a man named Gisli; he was the son of
that Thorsteinn whom Snorri the Godi had caused
to be slain. He was a big strong man, very ostenta-
tious in his dress and in his armour, a man with a
high opinion of himself and very boastful. He was
a mariner, and landed at the Hvita river in the
summer after Grettir had spent a winter in the
mountains. Thord the son of Kolbeinn rode to his
ship and was welcomed by Gisli, who offered him of
his wares whatever he cared to have. Thord accepted
his offer and they began to have some talk together.
Gisli asked: "Is it true what I hear that you are in
difficulty how to rid yourself of a forest-man who
is doing you much hurt ? " " We have made no
attempt yet," said Thord, " because a great many
think he is difficult to reach, and have found it so."

" It seems likely that you will have trouble with
Bjorn, unless you drive him away. All the worse
it is that I must be too far away next winter to give
you any help."

"It is better for you to know of him only by
hearsay."

" Don't talk to me about Grettir," said Gisli.
" I have been in much greater straits in my campaigns

156 Grettir the Strong

with King Knut the Mighty and in the western seas,
where I was always considered to have held my own.
Only let me come within reach of him and I will
trust myself and my armour."

Thord answered that he should not do it for
nothing if he killed Grettir: " There is more money
on his head than on that of any other outlaw. First
there were six marks of silver, this summer Thorir of
Gard added three more, and men think that he who
wins it will have had enough trouble."

" Everything will be attempted for money," said
Gisli: "especially with us traders. But we must
keep quiet about what we have been saying, for
Grettir will be more on his guard if he hears that
you have taken me into your counsels. I intend next
winter to be at Olduhrygg; is there any hiding-place
of his on my way there ? He will not be prepared for
this, and I shall not take many men with me to
attack him."

Thord approved of his proposal. He rode home
soon after and kept very quiet about it. And now
was proved what has often been said, that: Oft in
the woods is a listener nigh. Men who were friends of
Bjorn in Hitardal overheard their conversation and
reported it accurately to him. Bjorn told Grettir of
it when they met, and said now he should see how
to encounter him. " It would be no bad joke," he
said, " if you were to injure him in some way without
killing him if you can."

Grettir grinned but said little. Towards the time
of gathering in the cattle Grettir went down to
Flysjuhverfi to get some sheep and got four wethers.
The bondis heard of his having come and went after
him. They came up just at about the moment
when he reached the foot of his mountain and wanted
to drive the sheep away from him. But they would

Grettir the Strong 157

not attack him with weapons. There were six of
them and they stood across his path to bar his way.
He was concerned about his sheep, got angry, seized
three of them and threw them down the hill so that
they lay senseless. The others when they saw it
went at him, but rather half-heartedly. Grettir took
the sheep, fastened them together by the horns,
threw two over each shoulder and carried them off.
Then he went up into his den. The bondis turned
back feeling they had had the worst of it, and were
more discontented with their lot than ever.

Gisli stayed with his ship that autumn until she
was ready to be hauled up. Several things happened
to delay him, so that he was late in getting away and
rode off very little before the winter nights. Then
he rode North and stayed at Hraun on the south
bank of the Hitara. Next morning before he rode
out he said to his servants: " Now we will ride in
red clothes and let the forest-man see that we are
not like the other travellers who beat about here
every day."

There were three of them and they did as he bade.
When they had crossed the river he said: " Here I
am told dwells the forest-man, up in that peak; but
the way is not an easy one. Would it not please him
to come to us and see our array? " They said this
was always his habit.

That morning Grettir had got up early. The
weather was cold, it was freezing and some snow had
fallen, but very little. He saw three men riding
from the South across the Hitara, and the light
shone from their apparel and from their enamelled
shields. It occurred to Grettir who it might be, and
he thought he would relieve them of some of their
accoutrements. He was very curious to meet a man
who went about so ostentatiously. So he took his

158 Grettir the Strong

weapons and hurried down the hill-side. Gisli when
he heard the clattering of the stones said: " A man,
rather tall, is coming down the hill and wants to
meet us. Let us act boldly and we shall have good
sport." His men said that this fellow had great
confidence in himself to run into their hands; but
that he who asked should have. Then they got off
their horses. Grettir came up to them and laid hold
of a bag of clothes which Gisli had behind him on his
saddle, saying:

" I must have this; I often stoop to little things."

Gisli said: " You shall not; do not you know with
whom you have to do ? "

Grettir said: "No; that is not so clear to me.
Nor do I make much difference between one man and
another since I claim so little."

" May be it seems little to you," said Gisli; " but
I would sooner part with thirty hundred ells of
wadmal. It seems that extortion is your way. Go
for him, boys! Let us see what he can do."

They obeyed. Grettir fell back a little and reached
a stone which is still standing by the side of the
way and is called Grettishaf, where he stood at bay.
Gisli urged on his men, and Grettir saw that he was
not quite so valiant as he pretended to be, for he kept
well behind them. Grettir got tired of being hemmed
in, so he made a lunge with his sword and killed one
of Gisli's men, sprang from his stone and assailed
them so vigorously that Gisli fell back all along the
foot of the hill. Then his other man was killed.

Grettir said: " One would scarcely see that you
have achieved much in the world abroad, and you
have shamefully forsaken your comrades."

Gisli answered: " The fire is hottest to him who is
in it ; it is ill dealing with men from Hel."

They had exchanged few more blows when Gisli

Grettir the Strong 159

threw away his arms and bolted right away along
the foot of the mountain. Grettir gave him time to
throw away whatever he liked, and at every oppor-
tunity he threw off something more of his clothes.
Grettir never followed him so closely that there was
not some distance between them. He ran right away
from the mountains, across Kaldardal, round Aslaug's
Cliff, above Kolbeinsstad and out to Borgarhraun.

By that time he had nothing left on him but
his shirt, and was terribly exhausted. Grettir still
followed, keeping now within reach of him. He
pulled off a great branch. Gisli did not stop till he
reached Haffjardara river, which was all swollen and
difficult to ford. Gisli was going right out into the
river when Grettir pressed forward and seized him
and showed him the difference in their strength.

Grettir got him down, sat on the top of him and
asked: " Are you the Gisli who wanted to meet
Grettir?"

" I have found him now," he answered; "but I
know not how I shall part with him. Keep what you
have taken and let me go free."

Grettir said: " You will not understand what I am
going to tell you, so I must give you something to
remember it by." Then he pulled up Gisli 's shirt
over his head and let the rod play on both sides of his
back. Gisli struggled to get away, but Grettir gave
him a sound whipping and then let him go. Gisli
thought that he would sooner not learn anything
from Grettir than have another such flogging, nor
did he do anything more to earn it. Directly he got
his feet under him again he ran off to a large pool and
swam across the river. In the evening he reached
the settlement called Hrossholt, very exhausted.
There he lay for a week, his body covered with blisters,
and afterwards went on to his own place.

1 60 Grettir the Strong

Grettir turned back, gathered up all the things
which Gisli had thrown away and took them home.
Gisli never got them back again; many thought he
had only got what he deserved for his noisy boasting.
Grettir made a verse about their encounter:

" The horse whose fighting teeth are blunted
runs from the field before his foe.
With many an afterthought ran Gisli.
Gone is his fame, his glory lost! "

In the spring after this Gisli prepared to go on
board his ship and forbade in the strongest terms
anything which belonged to him being carried South
by the way of the mountains; for he said that the
Fiend himself was there. Gisli when he went South
to join his ship kept all the way along the coast and
he never met Grettir again. Nobody considered him
worth thinking about, nor do we hear any more of
him in this saga. Grettir's relations with Thord the
son of Kolbeinn became worse than ever, and Thord
tried every means to get Grettir driven away or
killed.

CHAPTER LX

THE BATTLE WITH THE MYRAMEN

WHEN Grettir had been two winters in Fagraskogaf jail
and the third winter had set in, he went South into
Myrar to the farm called Laekjarbug, where he took
six wethers without their owner's permission. Then
he went down to Akrar and drove off two oxen for
slaughter with several sheep, and went up South to
the Hitara. When the bondis heard of his exploits
they sent word to Thord at Hitarnes and asked him
to take the lead in the slaying of Grettir. He was
rather reluctant, but as they had asked him he sent
his son Arnor, afterwards called Jarlsbard, to go with

Grettir the Strong 161

them, and told them not to let Grettir escape. Mes-
sengers were then sent round to all the farms.

There was a man named Bjarni who dwelt in
Jorvi in Flysjuhverfi. He collected men on the other
side of the Hitara ; the intention was that each band
should keep on its own side. Grettir had two men
with him, one named Eyjolf, a stout man, the son of
a bondi in Fagraskogar, and another. The party
came on, about twenty in number, under Thorarin
from Akrar and Thorfinn of Laekj arbug. Grettir tried
to get out across the river, but was met by Arnor and
Bjarni coming from the coast. There was a narrow
point jutting out into the river on Grettir 's side, and
when he saw the men approaching he drove his
animals on to it, for he never would let go anything
of which he had once got possession. The Myramen
prepared to attack in good order and Grettir told his
companions to guard his rear. They could not all
come on at once. There was a hard struggle between
them; Grettir used his short sword with both hands
and they found it not easy to get at him. Some of
the Myramen fell and some were wounded. The men
on the other side of the river were rather slow in
coming up because there was no ford near. Before
they had been fighting very long they fell back.
Thorarin of Akrar was a very old man and not able
to join in the fighting. When the battle was over
there came up his son Thrand, his brother Ingjold s
son Thorgils, Finnbogi the son of Thorgeir, the son of
Thorhadd of Hitardal, and Steinolf the son of Thorleif
of Hraundal. They set on their men and there was
a hard struggle.

Grettir saw that there was no choice left but either
to flee or else to do his utmost and not spare himself
He pressed on hard and nothing could hold against
him, for his foes were so numerous that there was no

L

1 62 Grettir the Strong

chance of escaping except by fighting to the last
before he fell. He tried always to engage those who
seemed most courageous ; first he went for Steinolf of
Hraundal and cleft his skull down to his shoulders;
then he struck at Thorgils the son of Ing j old and
almost cut him in two. Then Thrand tried to spring
forward and avenge his kinsmen, and Grettir hewed at
his right thigh, cutting out all the muscles so that
he could fight no more. Next he gave Finnbogi a
severe wound. Then Thorarin ordered them off.
" The longer you fight," he said, " the worse you will
get from him and the more will he choose out the
men from your company."

They obeyed and fell back. Ten had fallen; five
were wounded to death or crippled, and nearly all
who had been in the battle were hurt. Grettir was
terribly fatigued but little wounded. The Myramen
drew off, having suffered heavy losses, for many a good
man had fallen. Those who were beyond the river
came over slowly and did not arrive till the fight was
over, and when they saw the plight of their men
Amor would not risk himself any further, for which
he was much blamed by his father and by others.
Men thought he was not much of a warrior. The
place where they fought is now called Grettisoddi.

Grettir and his companions were all wounded ; they
took their horses and rode back along the foot of the
mountain. When they reached Fagraskogar Eyjolf
was behind. There was a bondi's daughter there and
she asked for their tidings, which Grettir told her
fully and spoke a verse :

" Goddess of horn-floods! Steinolf's wounds
are such that scarcely may be healed.
Of Thorgils' life is little hope;
his bones are smashed; eight more are dead."

Then Grettir went to his retreat and spent the
winter there.

Grettir the Strong 163

CHAPTER LXI

GRETTIR WINTERS UNDER THE GEITLAND GLACIER

THE next time that Bjorn met Grettir he told him that
this was a very serious affair, and that he would not
be able to stay there in peace much longer. " You
have killed kinsmen and friends of mine, but I will
not depart from my promise to you so long as you
are here."

Grettir said he was sorry to have given him offence,,
but that he had to defend his hands and his life.
Bjorn said it would have to remain SQ. Soon there
came to him some of the men who had lost their
kinsmen through Grettir and petitioned him not to
allow such a ruffian as he was to stay there any
longer and molest them. Bjorn said he would do>
as they desired directly the winter was over.

Thrand the son of Thorarin of Akrar had now
recovered from his wound. He was a man of much
worth, and had married Steinunn the daughter of
Hrut of Kambsnes. Steinolf's father Thorleif of
Hraundal was a great man; from him are sprung
the Hraundal men.

No more meetings are told of between Grettir and
the Myramen while he was in the mountains. Bjorn
continued in friendship with him, but some of Bjorn's
other friends fell away from him because of his allow-
ing Grettir to remain there, for they were annoyed
at getting no compensation for the slaying of their
kinsmen. When the Thing assembled Grettir left
the Myrar district and went to Borgarf jord, where he
visited Grim the son of Thorhall and sought counsel
of him where he should move to next. Grim said he
was not powerful enough to keep him there, so Grettir

164 Grettir the Strong

went off to his friend Hallmund and stayed there till
the end of the summer.

In the autumn Grettir went to Geitland, where he
stayed till bright weather set in. Then he ascended
the Geitlandsjokull and turned his steps South-east
along the glacier, taking with him a kettle and fuel.
It is supposed that he went there by the counsel of
Hallmund, who knew the country far and wide. He
went on till he came to a long and rather narrow
valley in the glacier, shut in on every side by the ice
which overhung the valley. He went about every-
where, and found fair grass-grown banks and brush-
wood. There were hot springs, and it seemed as if
volcanic fires had kept the ice from closing in above
the valley. A little stream flowed down the dale
with smooth banks on either side. Little did the
light of the sun enter there, and the number of sheep
in the valley seemed to him countless. They were
much better and fatter than any which he had ever
seen.

Grettir stayed there and built himself a hut out of
logs which he found about. He caught a sheep to
eat, and it was better for slaughter than two in other
places. There was a ewe there with her lamb; she
had a brown head and excelled all the others in size.
He was anxious to have the lamb, so he caught it and
slaughtered it and got half a measure of suet out of it,
and it was better in every way. When Brownhead
missed her lamb she came up every night to Grettir's
hut and bleated so that he never could get any sleep.
He regretted much having killed the lamb on account
of the disturbance which she caused him. Every
evening when the twilight set in he heard a voice
calling in the valley, and then the sheep used to run
together into a place of shelter. Grettir has told us
that a blending ruled over the valley, a giant named

Grettir the Strong 165

Thorir, under whose protection he remained. Grettir
called the valley after him Thorisdal. He said that
Thorir had daughters with whom he had some play,
and that they were very pleased, because not many
people came there. And when the days of fasting
came Grettir remembered to tell them that fat and
liver should be eaten in Lent. Nothing particular
occurred that winter, and Grettir found it so dull that
he could not stay there any longer. He left the valley
and went to the South through the glacier, reaching
the middle of Skjaldbreid from the North. There
he took up a stone, cut a hole in it and said that if a
man put his eye to the hole he could see into the
gully which flows out of Thorisdal. Then he went
across the country South and reached the eastern
fjords. He spent the summer and the winter on this
journey and visited all the great men, but found them
all against him so that nowhere could he get lodging
or shelter. So he returned to the North and stayed
in various places.

CHAPTER LXII

HALLMUND IS KILLED BY A FOREST-MAN NAMED GRIM

SOON after Grettir had left the Arnavatn Heath
there came a man there named Grim, the son of a
widow at Kropp. He had killed the son of Eid, the son
of Skeggi of Ass, and been outlawed for it. So there
he stayed where Grettir had been before him and got
plenty of fish out of the lake. Hallmund was not at
all pleased at Grim being there instead of Grettir, and
said that he should have little advantage from his
great catches of fish. One morning Grim had caught
a hundred fish, which he brought to the hut and

1 66 Grettir the Strong

arranged outside. The next morning when he went
there every fish was gone. He thought it very
strange, but returned to the lake and caught this time
two hundred. He carried them home and arranged
them; again everything happened as before; in the
morning all were gone, evidently through the same
agency as before. The third day he caught three
hundred, carried them home and kept a watch on his
hut. He looked out through a hole in the door to see
if any one came, and so he remained for a time. When
about one third of the night had passed he heard
some one walking near and stepping rather heavily;
so he immediately took his axe, which was very sharp,
and wanted to know what was the matter. There
came a man with a big basket on his back ; he put it
down and looked round, but saw no one outside. He
rummaged about among the fish and seemed to think
that they would do for him to lay hands upon. He
threw them all into his basket and they quite filled
it. The fishes were so large that Grim thought no
horse would be able to carry more. This man then
took the load and got beneath it. Just as he was
about to rise Grim rushed out and taking his axe in
both hands struck a blow at his neck which went
through the skin. He started in surprise and then
ran off towards the south of the hill with his basket.
Grim went after him to see whether he had got
him. They went south along the foot of the Balljokull
where the man entered a cave. There was a bright
fire in the cave and a woman standing in it, very tall
but shapely. Grim heard her greet her father, calling
him Hallmund. He flung down his load and heaved
a great sigh. She asked why he was covered with
blood. He answered in a verse :

" No man, I see, may trust his might.
His luck and heart will fail at death."

Grettir the Strong 167

Then she pressed him to say what had happened,
and he told her everything.

" Hear now," he said, " what I tell you of my adven-
ture. I will tell it to you in verse, and you shaU
cut it in runes on a staff."

She did so, and he spoke the Hallmundarkvida, in
which the following occurs :

" I was strong when Grettir's bridle I seized
I saw him gazing long at his palms.

Then Thorir came on the Heath with his men.
'Gainst eighty we two had play with our spears.

Grettir's hands knew how to strike;

much deeper the marks that were left by mine.

Arms and heads then flew as they tried
to gain my rear; eighteen of them fell.

The giant-kind and the grim rock-dwellers,
demons and blendings fell before me,
elves and devils have felt my hand."

Many exploits of his did Hallmund recount in the
lay, for he had been in every land.

The daughter said: " That man was not going to
let his catch slip away from him. It was only to be
expected, for you treated him very badly. But who
is going to avenge you ? "

" It is not certain that anybody will, but I think
that Grettir would avenge me if he were able. It
will not be easy to go against this man's luck; he is
destined to great things." Then as the lay continued
his strength began to fail. Hallmund died almost
at the moment when he finished the song. She
grieved much for him and wept sorely. Then Grim
came forward and bade her be comforted. " All,"
he said, " must depart when their fate calls. It was
partly his own fault, for I could not look on and see
myself robbed."

1 68 Grettir the Strong

She said he might speak much about that : " The
unjust man prospers ill."

She was somewhat cheered by the talk with him.
Grim stayed several nights in the cave and learned
the lay; all went well with them. Grim was in the
Arnavatn Heath all the winter after Hallmund's
death. Afterwards Thorkell the son of Eyjolf came
to the heath and fought with him. The meeting
ended by Grim having Thorkell 's life in his power, but
he would not kill him. Thorkell then took him in,
sent him abroad and supplied him with means ; each
was considered to have acted generously towards the
other. Grim became a great traveller and there is a
long saga about him.

CHAPTER LXIII

GRETTIR'S MEETING WITH THORIR ON THE
REYKJA HEATH

WE now return to Grettir, who came from the eastern
fjords, travelling in disguise and hiding his head
because he did not wish to meet Thorir. That
summer he spent in Modrudal Heath and other places.
For a time too he was at Reykja Heath. Thorir
heard of his being at Reykja Heath, gathered his men
and rode thither, determined not to let him escape.
Grettir scarcely knew of their plans before they came
upon him. He was in a hill-dairy a little off the road
with another man, and when they saw the troop they
had to lay their plans quickly. Grettir said they
should make their horses lie down inside the house,
and they did so. Thorir rode forward across the
heath in a northerly direction, missed the place, did
not find Grettir and turned back home. When the

Grettir the Strong 169

troop had ridden round to the West, Grettir said:
" They will not be pleased with their expedition if
they do not meet me. You stay and mind the horses
while I go after them. It would be a good jest if
they did not recognise me."

His companion tried to dissuade him, but he would
go. He changed his dress, put on a wide hat which
came down over his face and took a stick in his hand.
Then he went along the road towards them. They
addressed him and asked whether he had seen any
men riding over the heath.

" I have seen the men whom you are seeking," he
said, " you very nearly came upon them; they were
on your left hand just south of the marshes."

On hearing this they galloped off towards the
marshes, which were so swampy that they could not
get through and had to spend a great part of the day
dragging their horses out. They swore much at the
supposed traveller for playing a practical joke upon
them. Grettir returned speedily home to his com-
panion, and when they met spoke a verse:

" I will not ride to the warrior's arms ;
too great the danger is.
I dare not meet the storm of Vidri;
but homeward turn my steps."

They rode off as fast as they could westwards
towards the homestead in Gard before Thorir could
come there with his company. When they were near
the place they met a man on the road who did not
know them. There was a young woman standing
outside, very much dressed up, and Grettir asked who
she was. The man who had come up said she was
Thcrir's daughter. Then Grettir spoke a verse:

" Maiden, when thy father comes
tell him, little though it please him,
how I rode his dwelling past;
only two who with me rode."

i yo Grettir the Strong

From this the man learnt who it was, and rode to
the house to tell them that Grettir had come round.
When Thorir returned many men thought that he
had been bamboozled by Grettir. He then set spies
to watch Grettir's movements. Grettir took the
precaution of sending his companion to the western
districts with his horse, while he himself went North
into the mountains at the beginning of the winter,
muffling up his face so that no one should recognise
him. Every one thought that Thorir had fared no
better but even worse than at their former encounter.

CHAPTER LXIV

GHOSTS IN BARDARDAL

THERE was dwelling at Eyjardalsa in Bardardal a
priest named Steinn, a good farmer and wealthy.
His son Kjartan was grown up and was now a fine
young man. Thorsteinn the White was a man who
dwelt at Sandhaugar to the south of Eyjardalsa; his
wife Steinvor was young and of a merry disposition.
They had children who at this time were yet young.
Their place was generally thought to be much
haunted by trolls. Two winters before Grettir came
North into those parts, Steinvor the mistress of Sand-
haugar went as usual to spend Yule at Eyjardalsa,
while her husband stayed at home. Men lay down
to sleep in the evening, and in the night they heard
a great noise in the room near the bondi's bed. No
one dared to get up to see what was the matter
because there were so few of them. The mistress of
the house returned home the next morning, but her
husband had disappeared and no one knew what had
become of him. So the next season passed. The
following winter the mistress wanted to go to mass,

Grettir the Strong 171

and told her servant to stay at home; he was very
unwilling but said she should be obeyed. It
happened just as before; this time the servant dis-
appeared. People thought it very strange and found
some drops of blood upon the outer door, so they
supposed that some evil spirit must have carried off
both the men. The story spread all through the
district and came to the ears of Grettir, who being well
accustomed to deal with ghosts and spectres turned
his steps to Bardardal and arrived at Yule-eve at
Sandhaugar. He retained his disguise and called
himself Gest. The lady of the house saw that he
was enormously tall, and the servants were terribly
afraid of him. He asked for hospitality; the mistress
told him that food was ready for him but that he
must see after himself. He said he would, and added :
" I will stay in the house while you go to mass if you
would like it."

She said: " You must be a brave man to venture
to stay in the house."

" I do not care for a monotonous life," he said.

Then she said : " I do not want to remain at home,
but I cannot get across the river."

" I will come with you," said Gest. Then she
made ready to go to mass with her little daughter.
It was thawing outside; the river was flooded and
was covered with ice. She said: " It is impossible
for either man or horse to cross the river."

"There must be fords," said Gest; "do not be
afraid."

" First carry the maiden over," she said; " she is
lighter."

" I don't want to make two journeys of it," said he;
" I will carry you in my arms."

She crossed herself and said: " That is impossible;
what will you do with the girl ? "

172 Grettir the Strong

" I will find a way," he said, taking them both up
and setting the girl on her mother's knee as he bore
them both on his left arm, keeping his right arm free.
So he carried them across. They were too frightened
to cry out. The river came up to his breast, and a
great piece of ice drove against him, which he pushed
off with the hand that was free. Then the stream
became so deep that it broke over his shoulder, but
he waded on vigorously till he reached the other bank
and put them on shore. It was nearly dark by the
time he got home to Sandhaugar and called for some
food. When he had eaten something he told the
servants to go to the other end of the hall. Then he
got some boards and loose logs and laid them across
the hall to make a great barricade so that none of
the servants could get across. No one dared to
oppose him or to object to anything. The entrance
was in the side wall of the hall under the back gable,
and near it was a cross bench upon which Grettir laid
himself, keeping on his clothes, with a light burning
in the room. So he lay till into the night.

The mistress reached Eyjardalsa for mass and
every one wondered how she had crossed the river.
She said she did not know whether it was a man or
a troll who had carried her over. The priest said
it was certainly a man though unlike other men.
" Let us keep silence over it; may be that he means
to help you in your difficulties."

She stayed there the night.

Grettir the Strong 173

CHAPTER LXV

ADVENTURE WITH A TROLL-WOMAN

WE return now to tell of Gest. Towards midnight
he heard a loud noise outside, and very soon there
walked a huge troll-wife into the room. She carried
a trough in one hand and a rather large cutlass in the
other. She looked round the room as she entered,
and on seeing Gest lying there she rushed at him;
he started up and attacked her furiously. They
fought long together; she was the stronger but he
evaded her skilfully. Everything near them and
the panelling of the back wall were broken to pieces.
She dragged him through the hall door out to the
porch, where he resisted vigorously. She wanted to
drag him out of the house, but before that was done
they had broken up all the fittings of the outer door
and borne them away on their shoulders. Then she
strove to get to the river and among the rocks. Gest
was terribly fatigued, but there was no choice but
either to brace himself or be dragged down to the
rocks. All night long they struggled together, and
he thought he had never met with such a monster
for strength. She gripped him so tightly to herself
that he could do nothing with either hand but cling
to her waist. When at last they reached a rock by
the river he swung the monster round and got his
right hand loose. Then he quickly seized the short
sword which he was wearing, drew it and struck at
the troll's right shoulder, cutting off her right arm
and releasing himself. She sprang among the rocks
and disappeared in the waterfall. Gest, very stiff and
tired, lay long by the rock. At daylight he went

174 Grettir the Strong

home and lay down on his bed, blue and swollen all
over.

When the lady of the house came home she found
the place rather in disorder. She went to Gest and
asked him what had happened, and why everything
was broken to pieces. He told her everything just
as it had happened. She thought it a matter of great
moment and asked him who he was. He told her
the truth, said that he wished to see a priest and
asked her to send for one. She did so ; Steinn came
to Sandhaugar and soon learnt that it was Grettir
the son of Asmund who had come there under the
name of Gest. The priest asked him what he thought
had become of the men who had disappeared;
Grettir said he thought that they must have gone
among the rocks. The priest said he could not believe
his word unless he gave some evidence of it. Grettir
said that later it would be known, and the priest
went home. Grettir lay many days in his bed and
the lady did all she could for him; thus Yule-tide
passed. Grettir himself declared that the troll-
woman sprang among the rocks when she was
wounded, but the men of Bardardal say that the day
dawned upon her while they were wrestling; that
when he cut off her arm she broke, and that she is
still standing there on the mountain in the likeness
of a woman. The dwellers in the valley kept Grettir
there in hiding.

One day that winter after Yule Grettir went to
Eyjardalsa and met the priest, to whom he said:
" I see, priest, that you have little belief in what I
say. Now I wish you to come with me to the river
and to see what probability there is in it."

The priest did so. When they reached the falls
they saw a cave up under the rock. The cliff was
there so abrupt that no one could climb it, and nearly

Grettir the Strong 175

ten fathoms down to the water. They had a rope with
them. The priest said: "It is quite impossible for
any one to get down to that."

Grettir answered: "It is certainly possible; and
men of high mettle are those who would feel them-
selves happiest there. I want to see what there is in
the fall. Do you mind the rope."

The priest said he could do so if he chose. He drove
a stake into the ground and laid stones against it.

CHAPTER LXVI

GRETTIR SLAYS A GIANT

GRETTIR now fastened a stone in a loop at the end of
the rope, and lowered it from above into the water.

" Which way do you mean to go ? " asked the priest.

" I don't mean to be bound when I come into the
fall," Grettir said. " So my mind tells me."

Then he prepared to go; he had few clothes on
and only a short sword; no other arms. He jumped
from a rock and got down to the fall. The priest saw
the soles of his feet but after that did not know what
had become of him. Grettir dived beneath the fall.
It was very difficult swimming because of the currents,
and he had to dive to the bottom to get behind the
fall. There was a rock where he came up, and a
great cave under the fall in front of which the water
poured. He went into the cave, where there was a
large fire burning and a horrible great giant most
fearful to behold sitting before it. On Grettir enter-
ing the giant sprang up, seized a pike and struck at
him, for he could both strike and thrust with it. It
had a wooden shaft and was of the kind called
" heptisax." Grettir struck back with his sword and

176 Grettir the Strong

cut through the shaft. Then the giant tried to reach
up backwards to a sword which was hanging in the
cave, and at that moment Grettir struck at him and
cut open his lower breast and stomach so that all his
entrails fell out into the river and floated down the
stream. The priest who was sitting by the rope saw
some debris being carried down all covered with blood
and lost his head, making sure that Grettir was
killed. He left the rope and ran off home, where he
arrived in the evening and told them for certain that
Grettir was dead, and said it was a great misfortune
to them to have lost such a man.

Grettir struck few more blows at the giant before
he was dead. He then entered the cave, kindled a
light and explored. It is not told how much treasure
he found there, but there is supposed to have been
some. He stayed there till late into the night and
found the bones of two men, which he carried away in
a skin. Then he came out of the cave, swam to the
rope and shook it, thinking the priest was there;
finding him gone he had to swarm up the rope and
so reached the top. He went home to Eyjardalsa
and carried the skin with the bones in it into the
vestibule of the church together with the rune-staff,
upon which were most beautifully carved the follow-
ing lines :

" Into the fall of the torrent I went;
dank its maw towards me gaped.
The floods before the ogress' den
Mighty against my shoulder played " ;

and then:

" Hideous the friend of Mella came.
Hard were the blows I dealt upon her.
The shaft of Heptisax was severed.
My sword has pierced the monster's breast."

There too it was told how Grettir had brought the

Grettir the Strong 177

bones from the cave. The priest when he came to
the church on the next morning found the staff and
all that was with it and read the runes. Grettir
had then returned home to Sandhaugar.

CHAPTER LXVII

VISIT TO GUDMUND THE WEALTHY

WHEN the priest met Grettir again he asked him to
say exactly what had happened, and Grettir told
him all about where he had been. He said that the
priest had held the rope very faithlessly, and the
priest admitted that it was true. Men felt no doubt
that these monsters were responsible for the dis-
appearance of the men in the valley, nor was there
any haunting or ghost - walking there afterwards;
Grettir had evidently cleared the land of them. The
bones were buried by the priest in the churchyard.
Grettir stayed the winter in Bardardal, but unknown
to the general public.

Thorir of Gard heard rumours of Grettir being in
Bardardal and set some men on to take his life.
Men thereupon advised him to depart, and he went
into the West to Modruvellir, where he met Gudmund
the Wealthy and asked him for protection. Gud-
mund said it would not be convenient for him to take
him in.

" You must," he said, " find a place to settle in
where you need be in no fear for your life."

Grettir said he did not know where such a place
was.

" There is an island," Gudmund said, " in Skaga-
fjord, called Drangey. It is excellent for defence;

M

178 Grettir the Strong

no one can get up to it without a ladder. If once
you can reach it there is no chance of any one attack-
ing you there with arms or with craft, so long as you
guard the ladder well."

" That shall be tried," said Grettir. " But I anr
in such dread of the dark that even for the sake of
my life I cannot live alone."

" It may be that it is so," said Gudmund ; " but
trust no man so well that you trust not yourself better.
Many are unfit to be trusted."

Grettir thanked him for his excellent advice and
departed from Modruvellir. He went on straight to
Bjarg, where his mother and Illugi greeted him joy-
fully. He stayed there several days and heard of
Thorsteinn Kuggason having been slain in the
autumn before he went to Bardardal. Fate, he
thought, was striking hard against him. Then he
rode South to Holtavorda Heath, intending to revenge
the death of Hallmund if he could meet with Grim.
On reaching Nordrardal he learnt that Grim had left
two or three years before, as has already been related.
Grettir had not received news of it because he had
been in hiding there for two years and a third in
Thorisdal and had met no one to tell him of what had
happened. Then he turned his steps towards the
Breidafjord valleys and waylaid those who passed
over Brattabrekka. He continued to let his hands
sweep over the property of the small farmers during
the height of the summer season.

When the summer was passing away, Steinvor at
Sandhaugar gave birth to a son who was named
Skeggi. He was at first fathered on Kjartan, the son
of Steinn the priest at Eyjardalsa. Skeggi was unlike
all his family in his strength and stature. When
he was fifteen years old he was the strongest man in
the North, and then they put him down to Grettir.

Grettir the Strong 179

There seemed a prospect of his growing into some-
thing quite extraordinary, but he died when he was
seventeen and there is no saga about him.

CHAPTER LXVIII

FIGHT WITH THORODD THE SON OF SNORRI

AFTER the death of Thorsteinn Kuggason, Snorri the
Godi was on bad terms with his son Thorodd and with
Sam the son of Bork the Fat. It is not clearly stated
what they had done to displease him except that they
had refused to undertake some important work which
he had given them to do; what is known is that
Snorri turned off his son Thorodd and told him not
to come back until he had slain some forest-man, and
so it remained. Thorodd then went to Dalir. There
dwelt at Breidabolstad in Sokkolfsdal a certain
widow named Geirlaug; she kept as her shepherd a
grown-up youth who had been outlawed for wounding
some one. Thorodd Snorrason heard of this, rode
to Breidabolstad and asked where the shepherd was.
The woman said he was with the sheep and asked
what Thorodd wanted with him.

" I want to take his life," he said; " he is an out-
law and a forest-man."

She said: " Such a warrior as you has nothing to
gain by killing a miserable creature like him. I will
show you a much doughtier deed, should you have a
mind to try it."

" What is that? " he asked.

" Up there in the mountains," she said, " is Grettir
the son of Asmund; deal with him; that will be
more fitting for you."

Thorodd liked the proposal and said he would do it.

180 Grettir the Strong

Then he put spurs to his horse and rode up along the
valleys. On reaching the hills below the Austra
river he saw a light-coloured horse saddled, with a
big man in armour, and at once directed his steps
towards them. Grettir hailed him and asked who
he was. Thorodd told his name and asked: " Why
do you not rather ask my business than my name ? "

" Because," he said, " it is not likely to be very
weighty. Are you a son of Snorri the Godi? "

" So it is indeed; we shall now try which of us is the
stronger."

" That is easily done," said Grettir, " but have you
not heard that I have not proved a mound of wealth
to most of those who have had to do with me ? "

" I know that; but I mean to risk something on it
now."

Then he drew his sword and went valiantly for
Grettir, who defended himself with his shield but
would not use his weapons against Thorodd. They
fought for a time without his being wounded.
Grettir then said:

"Let us stop this play; you will not gain the
victory in a battle with me."

Thorodd struck at him most furiously. Grettir
was tired of it, so he took hold of him and set him
down next to himself, saying: " I could do what I
liked with you; but I have no fear of your killing
me. I am much more afraid of your grey-headed
father, Snorri the Godi, and of his counsels, which
have brought many a man to his knees. You should
take up tasks which you are able to accomplish; it is
no child's play to fight with me."

When Thorodd saw that there was nothing to be
done he quieted down, and then they parted. He
rode home to Tunga and told his father of his
encounter with Grettir. Snorri smiled and said:

Grettir the Strong 1 8 1

" Many a man has a high opinion of himself ; but the
odds against you were too great. While you were
aiming blows at him he was doing what he pleased
with you. But he was wise not to kill you, for it
would not have been my purpose to leave you
unavenged. I will now rather use my influence on
his side if I ever have to do with his affairs."

Snorri showed his approval of Grettir's action
towards Thorodd, for his counsels were always
friendly to Grettir.

CHAPTER LXIX

GRETTIR'S LAST VISIT TO BJARG AND^JOURNEY WITH
ILLUGI TO DRANGEY

SOON after Thorodd left him Grettir rode North to
Bjarg and remained there in hiding for a time. His
fear of the dark grew so upon him that he dared go
nowhere after dusk. His mother offered to keep him
there, but said she saw that it would not do for him
because of the feuds which he had throughout the
land. Grettir said she should not fall into trouble
through him, " but," he said, " I can no longer live
alone even to save my life."

Illugi his brother was then fifteen years old and
was a most goodly young man. He heard what they
were saying. Grettir told his mother what Gudmund
the Wealthy had advised him to do, and declared he
would try to get to Drangey if he could. Yet, he
said, he could not go there unless he could find some
faithful man to stay with him. Then Illugi said:
" I will go with you, brother. I know not whether
I shall be a support to you, but I will be faithful to
you and will not run from you so long as you stand

1 82 Grettir the Strong

upright. And I shall know the better how it fares
with you if I am with you."

Grettir answered: " You are such an one amongst
men as I most rejoice in. And if my mother be
not against it I would indeed that you should go
with me."

Asdis then said: " It has now come to this, that I
see two difficulties meeting each other. It is hard
for me to lose Illugi, but I know that so much may
be said for Grettir's condition that he will find some
way out. And though it is much for one to bid
farewell to both of you, yet I will consent to it if
Grettir's lot is bettered thereby."

Illugi was pleased at her words, for his heart was
set upon going with Grettir. She gave them plenty
of money to take with them and they made ready for
their journey. Asdis took them along the road, and
before they parted she said: " Go forth now, my sons
twain. Sad will be your death together, nor may
any man escape that which is destined for him. I
shall see neither of you again ; let one fate befall you
both. I know not what safety you seek in Drangey,
but there shall your bones be laid, and many will
begrudge you your living there. Beware of treachery ;
yet shall you be smitten with weapons, for strange are
the dreams which I have had. Guard yourselves
against witchcraft, for few things are stronger than
the ancient spells."

Thus she spoke and wept much. Grettir said:
" Weep not, my mother. It shall be said that you
had sons and not daughters if we are attacked with
arms. Live well, and farewell."

Then they parted. The two travelled North
through the districts and visited their kinsmen while
the autumn passed into winter. Then they turned
their steps to Skagafjord, then North to Vatnsskard

Grettir the Strong 183

on to Reykjaskard below Saemundarhlid to Langholt,
reaching Glaumbaer as the day was waning. Grettir
had slung his hat over his shoulder; so he always
went when out of doors whether the weather was
good or bad. Thence they continued their journey,
and when they had gone a short way they met a
man with a big head, tall and thin and ill clad. He
greeted them and each asked the other's name.
They told theirs and he said his name was Thorbjorn.
He was a vagrant, had no mind to work and swaggered
much. It was the habit of some to make game of
him or fool him. He became very familiar and
told them much gossip about the district and the
people therein. Grettir was much amused. He
asked whether they did not want a man to work for
them and said he would much like to go with them.
So much he got from his talk that they let him join
them. It was very cold and there was a driving
snow-storm. As the man was so fussy and talkative
they gave him a nickname and called him Glaum.

" The people in Glaumbaer," he said, " were much
exercised about your going without a hat in this
weather, and wanted to know whether you were any
the braver for being proof against the cold. There
were two sons of bondis there, men of great distinction ;
the shepherd told them to come out and mind the
sheep with him, but they could scarcely get their
clothes on for the cold."

Grettir said: " I saw a young man inside the door
putting on his mittens, and another going between
the cow-house and the dung-heap. Neither of them
will frighten me."

Then they went on to Reynines and stayed the
night there; then to the sea-shore to a farm called
Reykir where a man, a good farmer, named Thorvald,
lived. Grettir asked him for shelter and told him

1 84 Grettir the Strong

of his intention of going to Drangey. The bondi
said that men of Skagaf jord would not think his a very
friendly visit and drew back. Then Grettir took the
purse of money which his mother had given him and
gave it to the bondi. The man's brows unbent when
he saw the money and he told three of his servants
to take them out in the night by the moonlight.
From Reykir is the shortest distance to the island,
about one sea-mile.

When they reached the island Grettir thought it
looked quite pleasant; it was all overgrown with
grass and had steep cliffs down to the sea so that no
one could get on to it except where the ladders were.
If the upper ladder was pulled up it was impossible
for any one to get on to the island. There was also
a large crag full of sea birds in the summer, and there
were eighty sheep in the island belonging to the
bondis, mostly rams and ewes, which were meant for
slaughter.

There Grettir quietly settled down. He had been
fifteen or sixteen years an outlaw, so Sturla the son
of Thord has recorded.

CHAPTER LXX

THE PEOPLE OF SKAGAFJORD

WHEN Grettir came to Drangey the following chiefs
were in Skagaf jord:

Hjalti lived in Hjaltadal, and was the son of Thord,
the son of Hjalti, the son of Thord Skalp. He was
a great chief, very distinguished and very popular.
His brother was named Thorbjorn Angle, a big man,
strong and hardy and rather quarrelsome. Thord

Grettir the Strong 185

their father had married in his old age, and his then
wife was not the mother of these two. She was very
much against her stepsons, especially Thorbjorn,
because he was intractable and headstrong. One
day when he was playing at " tables," his stepmother
came up and saw that he was playing at " hnettafl,"
which was a great "halatafl." She considered that
very lazy of him and spoke some words to which he
answered hastily. She took up the board and struck
him on the cheek bone with the peg, and it glanced
into his eye which hung down on his cheek. He
started up and handled her mercilessly so that she
was confined to her bed and soon afterwards died;
they say that she was pregnant at the time. After
that he became a regular ruffian. He took over his
property and went first to live in Vidvik.

Halldor the son of Thorgeir, the son of Thord of
Hofdi, lived at Hof in Hofdastrand. He married
Thordis the daughter of Thord, the sister of Hjalti and
Thorbjorn Angle. Halldor was a worthy bondi and
wealthy.

Bjorn was the name of a man who lived at
Haganes in Fljot, a friend of Halldor of Hof, and the
two held together in every dispute.

Tungu-Steinn dwelt at Steinsstadir. He was the
son of Bjorn, the son of Ofeig Thinbeard, the son of
Crow-Heid, to whom Eirik of Guddal gave Tunga
below Skalamyr. He was a man of renown.

Eirik was the son of Holmgang-Starri, the son of
Eirik of Guddal, the son of Hroald, the son of Geir-
mund Straightbeard. He lived at Hof in Guddal.

All these were men of high rank. Two brothers
dwelt at a place called Breida in Slettahlid, both named
Thord. They were very strong men, but peaceable.

All the men now named had a share in Drangey.
It is said that the island was owned by no fewer than

1 86 Grettir the Strong

twenty men, and none of them would part with his
share to the others. The largest share belonged to
the sons of Thord since they were the richest.

CHAPTER LXXI

THE BONDIS CLAIM THEIR PROPERTY IN DRANGEY

MIDWINTER was passed, and the bondis prepared to
bring in their animals from the island for slaughter.
They manned a boat and each had a man of his own
on board, some two.

When they reached the island they saw men on it
moving about. They thought it very strange, but
supposed that some one had been wrecked and had
gone on shore there. So they rowed to where the
ladders were. The people on the shore pulled the
ladders up. This seemed very strange behaviour
and they hailed the men and asked who they were.
Grettir told his name and those of his companions.
The bondis asked who had taken them out to the
island.

Grettir answered: " He brought me out who took
me here, and had hands, and was more my friend than
yours."

The bondis said: " Let us take our animals and
come to the land with us. You shall have freely
whatever you have taken of our property."

Grettir said: " That is a good offer; but each of us
shall have that which he has got. I may tell you
at once that hence I go not, unless I am dead or
dragged away ; nor will I let go that which my hands
have taken."

The bondis said no more, but thought that most
unhappy visitors had come to Drangey. They

Grettir the Strong 187

offered money and made many fair promises, but
Grettir refused them all, and so they had to return
home much disgusted, having accomplished nothing.
They told all the people of the district of the wolves
who had come into the island. This had come upon
them unawares and nothing could be done. They
talked it over that winter but could think of no way
of getting Grettir out of the island.

CHAPTER LXXII

GRETTIR VISITS THE THING AT HEGRANES

THE time passed on until the spring, when men as-
sembled at the Hegranes Thing. They came in great
numbers from all the districts under its jurisdiction,
and stayed there a long time, both palavering and
merry-making, for there were many who loved
merriment in the country round.

When Grettir heard that everybody had gone to
the Thing he laid a plan with his friends, for he was
always on good terms with those who were nearest
to him, and for them he spared nothing which he was
able to get. He said he would go to the land to get
supplies and that Illugi and Glaum should remain
behind. Illugi thought it very imprudent but he let
Grettir have his way. He told them to guard the
ladder well since everything depended upon that.
Then he went to the land and obtained what he
wanted. He kept his disguise wherever he went and
no one knew that he had come. He heard of the
festivities that were going on at the Thing and was
curious to see them, so he put on some old clothes
that were rather shabby and arrived just as they
were going from the Logretta home to their booths.

1 88 Grettir the Strong

Some of the young men were talking about the
weather, said it was good and fair, and that it would
be a good thing to have some games and wrestling;
they thought it a good proposal. So they sat down
in front of their booths. The foremost men in the
games were the sons of Thord. Thorbjorn Angle was
very uppish and was arranging everything himself
for the sports. Every one had to do as he bade, and
he took them each by the shoulders and pushed them
into the field. The wrestling was begun by the less
strong ones in pairs, and there was great sport.
When most of them had wrestled except the strongest,
there was much talk as to who should tackle the two
Thords mentioned above, and there was no one who
would do it. They went round inviting men to
wrestle, but the more they asked the more their
invitation was declined. Thorbjorn Angle looked
round and saw a big man sitting there, but could not
clearly see his face. He seized hold of him and gave
a violent tug, but the man sat still and did not move.

Thorbjorn said: " Nobody has held so firm against
me to-day as you. But who is this fellow ? "

" My name is Gest."

Thorbjorn said : " You will be wanting to play with
us. You are a welcome Guest."

" Things may change quickly," he said. " I
cannot join in your games for I have no knowledge
of them."

Many of them said that they would take it kindly
of him if he, a stranger, would play a little with the
men. He asked what they wanted him to do, and
they asked him to wrestle with some one. He said
he had given up wrestling, though he once used to
take pleasure in it. As he did not directly refuse
they pressed him all the more.

" Well," he said, " if you want to drag me in you

Grettir the Strong 189

must do one thing for me and grant me peace here at
the Thing until I reach my home."

They all shouted and said they would gladly do that.
The man who was foremost in urging that peace
should be given was one Haf the son of Thorarin, the
son of Haf, the son of Thord Knapp, who had settled
in the land between Stifla in Fljot and Tungua. He
lived at Knappstad and was a man of many words.
He spoke in favour of the peace with great authority
and said :

" Hereby do I declare PEACE between all men, in par-
ticular between this man here seated who is named Gest
and all Godord's men, full bondis, all men of war and bearers
of arms, all other men of this district of the Hegranes Thing
whencesoever they have come, both named and unnamed.
I declare PEACE and full Immunity in behoof of this new-
comer to us unknown, Gest yclept, for the practice of games,
wrestling and all kinds of sport, while abiding here, and during
his journey home, whether he sail or whether he travel,
whether by land or whether by sea. He shall have PEACE
in all places, named and unnamed, for such time as he needeth
to reach his home in safety, by our faith confirmed. And I
establish this PEACE on the part of ourselves and of our
kinsmen, our friends and belongings, alike of women and of
men, bondsmen and thralls, youths and adults. Be there
any truce-breaker who shall violate this PEACE and defile
this faith, so be he rejected of God and expelled from the
community of righteous men; be he cast out from Heaven
and from the fellowship of the holy; let him have no part
amongst mankind and become an outcast from society. A
vagabond he shall be and a wolf in places where Christians
pray and where heathen worship, where fire burneth, where
the earth bringeth forth, where the child lispeth the name
of mother, where the mother beareth a son, where men
kindle fire, where the ship saileth, where shields blink, sun
shineth, snow lieth, Finn glideth, fir-tree groweth, falcon
flieth the live-long day and the fair wind bloweth straight
under both her wings, — where Heaven rolleth and earth is
tilled, where the breezes waft mists to the sea, where corn is
sown. Far shall he dwell from church and Christian men,
from the sons of the heathen, from house and cave and from
every home, in the torments of Hel. At PEACE we shall
be, in concord together, each with other in friendly mind,
wherever we meet, on mountain or strand, on ship or on
snow-shoes, on plains or on glaciers, at sea or on horseback.

190 Grettir the Strong

as friends meet in the water, or brothers by the way, each
at PEACE with other, as son with father, or father with son,
in all our dealings.

" Our hands we lay together, all and every to hold well
the PEACE and the words we have spoken in this our faith,
in the presence of God of holy men, of all who hear my words
and here are present."

Many said that a great word had been spoken.
Gest said: " You have declared and spoken well; if
you go not back upon it, I will not delay to show that
of which I am capable."

Then he cast off his hood and after that all his
upper garments. Each looked at the other and woe
spread over their lips; for they knew that it was
Grettir who had come to them, by his excelling all
other men in stature and vigour. All were silent
and Haf looked foolish. The men of the district
went two and two together, each blaming the other,
and most of all blaming him who had declared the
peace. Then Grettir said: " Speak plainly to me and
declare what is in your minds, for I will not sit here
long without my clothes. You have more at stake
than I have, whether you hold the peace or not."

They answered little and sat themselves down.
The sons of Thord and their brother-in-law Halldor
then talked together. Some wished to uphold the
peace and some not. Each nodded to the other.
Then Grettir spoke a verse:

" Many a man is filled with doubt.
A twofold mask has the prover of shields.
The skilful tongue is put to shame.
They doubt if they shall hold the troth."

Then said Tungu-Steinn : " Think you so, Grettir?
which then will the chieftains do ? But true it is that
you excel all men in courage. See you not how they
are putting their noses together? "

Grettir the Strong 191

Grettir then said:

" Together they all their noses laid;
they wagged their beards in close converse.
They talked with each other by two and two.
regretting the peace they afore declared."

Then said Hjalti the son of Thord: " It shall not
be so ; we will hold the peace with you although our
minds have altered. I would not that men should
have the example of our having broken the peace
which we ourselves gave and declared. Grettir shall
depart unhindered whithersoever he will, and shall
have peace till such time as he reach his home from
this journey. And then this truce shall have expired
whatever happen with us." They all thanked him
for his speech, and thought he had acted as a chieftain
should under such circumstances. Thorbjorn Angle
was silent. Then it was proposed that one or the
other of the Thords should close with Grettir, and
he said that they might do as they chose. One of
the two brothers Thord then came forward. Grettir
stood upright before him and Thord went for him
with all his might, but Grettir never moved from his
place. Then Grettir stretched over across his back
and seizing his breeches tripped up his foot and cast
him backwards over his head so that he fell heavily
upon his shoulders. Then the people said that both
the brothers should tackle him together, and they did
so. There arose a mighty tussle, each in turn having
the advantage, although Grettir always had one of
them down. Now one, now the other was brought
to his knees or met with a reverse. So fiercely they
gripped that all of them were bruised and bloody.
Everybody thought it splendid sport, and when they
ceased thanked them for their wrestling. Those that
were sitting near judged that the two together were
no stronger than Grettir alone, although each had the

192 Grettir the Strong

strength of two strong men. They were so equal
that when they strove together neither gained the
advantage. Grettir did not stay long at the Thing.
The bondis asked him to give up the island, but this
he refused to do, and they accomplished nothing.

Grettir returned to Drangey where Illugi rejoiced
much at seeing him again. They stayed there in
peace and Grettir told them of his journeys; so the
summer passed. All thought the men of Skagafjord
had acted most honourably in upholding their peace,
and from this may be seen what trusty men lived in
those days, after all that Grettir had done against
them. The less wealthy ones among the bondis
began to talk amongst themselves and say that there
was little profit in keeping a small share of the island,
and now offered to sell their holdings to the sons of
Thord, but Hjalti said he did not want to buy them.
The bondis stipulated that any one who wanted to
buy a share should either kill Grettir or get him
away. Thorbjorn Angle said that he was ready to
take the lead, and would spare no pains to attack
Grettir if they would pay him for it. Hjalti his
brother resigned to him his share of the island because
Thorbjorn was the more violent and was unpopular.
Several other bondis did the same, so that Thorbjorn
Angle got a large part of the island at a small price,
but he bound himself to get Grettir away.

CHAPTER LXXIII

VISIT OF THORBJORN ANGLE TO DRANGEY

AT the end of the summer Thorbjorn Angle went
with a boat fully manned to Drangey. Grettir and
his party came forward on the cliff and they talked

Grettir the Strong 193

together. Thorbjorn begged Grettir to do so much for
his asking as to quit the island. Grettir said there
was not much hope of that. Thorbjorn said: " It
may be that I can give you some assistance which
will make it worth your while to do this. Many of
the bondis have now given up the shares which they
had in the island to me."

Grettir said: " Now for the very reason that you
have just told me, because you own the greater part
of the island, I am determined never to go hence.
We may now divide the cabbage. It is true that
I thought it irksome to have the whole of Skagafjord
against me, but now neither need spare the other,
since neither is suffocated with the love of his fellows.
You may as well put off your journeys hither, for the
matter is settled so far as I am concerned."

" All abide their time," he said, " and you abide
evil."

" I must risk that," he said. And so they parted.
Thorbjorn returned home again.

CHAPTER LXXIV

THE FIRE GOES OUT IN DRANGEY

GRETTIR had, it is said, been two years in Drangey,
and they had slaughtered nearly all the sheep. One
ram, it is told, they allowed to live; it was grey
below and had large horns. They had much sport
with it, for it was very tame and would stand outside
and follow them wherever they went. It came to
the hut in the evening and rubbed its horns against
the door. They lived very comfortably, having
plenty to eat from the birds on the island and their
eggs, nor had they much trouble in gathering wood

194 Grettir the Strong

for fire. Grettir always employed the man to collect
the drift, and there were often logs cast ashore there
which he brought home for fuel. The brothers had
no need to work beyond going to the cliffs, which they
did whenever they chose. The thrall began to get
very slack at his work; he grumbled much and was
less careful than before. It was his duty to mind the
fire every night, and Grettir bade him be very careful
of it as they had no boat with them. One night it
came to pass that the fire went out. Grettir was
very angry and said it would only be right that Glaum
should have a hiding. The thrall said he had a very
poor life of it to have to lie there in exile and be ill-
treated and beaten if anything went wrong. Grettir
asked Illugi what was to be done, and he said he
could think of nothing else but to wait until a ship
brought them some fire.

Grettir said that would be a very doubtful chance
to wait for. " I will venture it," he said, " and see
whether I can reach the land."

" That is a desperate measure," said Illugi. " We
shall be done for if you miscarry."

" I shall not drown in the channel," he said. " I
shall trust the thrall less in future since he has failed
in a matter of such moment to us."

The shortest passage from the island to the main-
land is one sea-mile.

CHAPTER LXXV

GRETTIR SWIMS TO THE MAINLAND FOR FIRE

GRETTIR then prepared for his swim. He wore
a cloak of coarse material with breeches and had
his fingers webbed. The weather was fine; he left
the island towards the evening. Illugi thought his

Grettir the Strong 195

journey was hopeless. Grettir had the current with
him and it was calm as he swam towards the fjord.
He smote the water bravely and reached Reykjanes
after sunset. He went into the settlement at Reykir,
bathed in the night in a warm spring, and then entered
the hall, where it was very hot and a little smoky from
the fire which had been burning there all day. He
was very tired and slept soundly, lying on right into
the day. When it was a little way on in the morning
the servants rose, and the first to enter the room were
two women, the maid with the bondi's daughter.
Grettir was asleep, and his clothes had all fallen
off on to the floor. They saw a man lying there and
recognised him. The maid said:

" As I wish for salvation, sister, here is Grettir the
son of Asmund come. He really is large about the
upper part of his body, and is lying bare. But he
seems to me unusually small below. It is not at all
in keeping with the rest of him."

The bondi's daughter said: " How can you let your
tongue run on so? You are more than half a fool!
Hold your tongue! "

" I really cannot be silent, my dear sister," said the
maid; " I would not have believed it if any one had
told me."

Then she went up to him to look more closely, and
kept running back to the bondi's daughter and laugh-
ing. Grettir heard what she said, sprang up and
chased her down the room. When he had caught
her he spoke a verse :

Soon afterwards Grettir went to the bondi Thor-
wald, told him his difficulty and asked him to take

196 Grettir the Strong

him out to the island again, which he did, lending him
a ship and taking him over. Grettir thanked him
for his courtesy. When it became known that
Grettir had swum a sea-mile, every one thought his
courage extraordinary both on sea and on land. The
men of Skagafjord blamed Thorbjorn Angle much
for not having ridded Drangey of Grettir, and all
wanted their shares back again. That did not suit
him and he asked them to have patience.

CHAPTER LXXVI

ADVENTURE OF HIRING IN DRANGEY

THAT summer a ship came to Gonguskardsos, on
board of which was a man named Haering. He was
a young man and very active; he could climb any
cliff. He went to visit Thorbjorn Angle and stayed
there into the autumn. He pressed Thorbjorn much
to take him to Drangey, that he might see whether
the cliff was so high that he could not get up there.
Thorbjorn said it should not be for nothing if he
succeeded in getting up on to the island and either
killing or wounding Grettir; he made it appear
attractive as a task for Haering to undertake.

One day they went to Drangey and he put the
Easterner ashore in a certain place, telling him not
to let himself be seen if he got to the top. Then they
set up the ladder and began a conversation with
Grettir's people. Thorbjorn asked him whether he
would not leave the island. He said there was
nothing on which he was so determined.

" You have played much with us," said Thorbjorn,
" and we do not seem likely to have our revenge, but
you have not much fear for yourself."

Grettir the Strong 197

Thus they disputed for long, but came to no
agreement.

We have now to tell of Haering. He climbed all
about on the cliffs and got to the top in a place which
no other man ever reached before or since. On
reaching the top he saw the two brothers standing
with their backs turned to him. He hoped in a short
time to win money and glory from both. They had
no inkling of his being there, and thought that nobody
could get up except where the ladders were. Grettir
was occupied with Thorbjorn's men, and there was
no lack of derisive words on both sides. Then Illugi
looked round and saw a man coming towards them,
already quite close. He said: " Here is a man
coming towards us with his axe in the air; he has a
rather hostile appearance." " You deal with him,"
said Grettir, " while I look after the ladder." Illugi
then advanced against the Easterner, who on seeing
him turned and ran about all over the island. Illugi
chased him to the furthest end of the island; on
reaching the edge he leaped down and broke every
bone in his body; thus his life ended. The place
where he perished was afterwards called Haering's
leap. Illugi returned and Grettir asked him how he
had parted with his man.

" He would not trust me to manage for him,"
he said. " He broke his neck over the cliff. The
bondis may pray for him as for a dead man."

When Angle heard that he told his men to shove
off. " I have now been twice to meet Grettir," he
said. " I may come a third time, and if then I return
no wiser than I am now, it is likely that they may stay
in Drangey, so far as I am concerned. But methinks
Grettir will not be there so long in the future as he has
been in the past."

They then returned home, and this journey seemed

198 Grettir the Strong

even worse than the one before. Grettir stayed in
Drangey and saw no more of Thorbjorn that winter.
Skapti the Lawman died during the winter, whereby
Grettir suffered a great loss, for he had promised to
press for a removal of his sentence when he bad been
twenty years an outlaw, and the events just related
were in the nineteenth year. In the spring died
Snorri the Godi, and much more happened during
this winter season which does not belong to our saga.

CHAPTER LXXVII
GRETTIR'S CASE BEFORE THE ALL-THING

THAT summer at the All-Thing Grettir's friends spoke
much about his outlawry, and some held that his term
was fulfilled when he had completed any portion of
the twentieth year. This was disputed by the oppo-
site party, who declared that he had committed many
acts deserving of outlawry since, and that, therefore,
his sentence ought to be all the longer. A new Law-
man had been appointed, Steinn the son of Thorgest,
the son of Steinn the Far-traveller, the son of Thorir
Autumn-mist. The mother of Steinn the Lawman
was Arnora, the daughter of Thord the Yeller. He
was a wise man, and was asked for his opinion. He
told them to make a search to find out whether this
was the twentieth year of his outlawry, and they did
so. Then Thorir of Gard went to work to put every
possible difficulty in the way, and found out that
Grettir had spent one year of the time in Iceland,
during which he must be held to have been free of
his outlawry. Consequently it had only lasted
nineteen years.
The Lawman declared that no man could be out-

Grettir the Strong 199

lawed for longer than twenty years in all, even though
he committed an outlaw's acts during that time.
But before that he would allow no man to be freed.

Thus the endeavour to remove his sentence broke
down for the moment, but there seemed a certainty
of his being freed in the following summer. The men
of Skagafjord were little pleased at the prospect of
Grettir being freed, and they told Thorbjorn Angle that
he must do one of the two, resign his holding in the
island or kill Grettir. He was in great straits, for he
saw no way of killing Grettir, and yet he wanted to
keep the island. He tried everything he could think
f of to get the better of Grettir by force or by fraud or
in any other way that he could.

CHAPTER LXXVIII
THORBJOR'N'S FOSTER-MOTHER

THORBJORN ANGLE had a foster-mother named
Thurid. She was very old and of little use to man-
kind, but she had been very skilled in witchcraft and
magic when she was young and the people were
heathen. Now she seemed to have lost it all. Still,
although the land was Christian, many sparks of
heathendom remained. It was not forbidden by the
law of the land to sacrifice or perform other heathen
rites in private; only the one who performed them
openly was sentenced to the minor exile. Now it
happened to many as it is said: The hand turns to
its wonted, skill, and that which we have learned in
youth is always most familiar to us. So Thorbjorn
Angle, baffled in all his plans, turned for help to the
quarter where it would have been least looked for by

2oo Grettir the Strong

most people, namely, to his foster-mother, and asked
her what she could do for him.

She replied, " Now it seems to me to have come to
this, as the saying is : Many go to the goat-house to get
wool. What would I less than to seem as one above
the other men of the country, and then to be as nothing
when it comes to the trial? I see not that it fares
worse with me than with you, even though I scarce
rise from my bed. If you will have my counsel then
I must have my way in all that is done."

He consented, and said that she had long given him
counsel for his good. The " double month " of the
summer was now approaching. One fine day the
old woman said to Angle: " The weather is now calm
and bright; I will that you go to Drangey and pick
a quarrel with Grettir. I will go with you and learn
what caution is in his words. I shall have some
surety when I see how far they are prospering, and
then I will speak over them such words as I please."

Angle said: "Let us not go to Drangey. It is
always worse in my mind when I leave that place
than when I arrive."

The woman said: " I will not help you if you will
not let me do as I like."

" Far be that from me, my foster-mother. I have
said that I will go there a third time, that something
may come of it for us."

" You may venture it," she said, " much labour
will you have before Grettir is laid in the earth ; often
your lot will be doubtful and hard will it go with you
before it is finished. And yet you are so bound that
somehow you must get yourself out of it."

Then Thorbjorn Angle had a ten -oared boat
manned and went on board with eleven men. The
woman was with them and they rowed out to Drangey.
When the brothers saw them coming they came for-

Grettir the Strong 201

ward to the ladder and began once more to talk about
their case. Thorbjorn said he had come once more
to hear their answer whether Grettir would leave the
place. He said he would treat the destruction of his
property and Grettir's stay there as a light thing,
provided they parted in peace. Grettir said he had
no intention of coming to any terms about his going
away. " I have often told you," he said, " that there
is no use in talking to me about it. You may do
whatever you please ; I mean to stay here and abide
what happens."

Thorbjorn saw that his end would not be gained
this time, and said: " I knew very well with what men
of Hel I had to do. It is most likely that some days
will pass before I come here again."

" It would not hurt me if you never came at all,"
said Grettir.

The woman was lying in the stern sheets covered
up with clothes. Then she began to stir and said:

" These men are brave and unfortunate; there is
much difference between you; you offer them good
and they refuse everything. There are few more
certain tokens of evil than not to know how to accept
the good. Now I say this of you, Grettir, that you
be deprived of health, of all good luck and fortune,
of all protection and counsel, ever the more the longer
you live. I wish that your days may be less happy
in the future than they have been in the past."

When Grettir heard that he started violently and
said: " What fiend is that in the ship with them ? "

Illugi said: " I think that must be the old woman,
Thorb j orn 's foster-mother. ' '

" Curse the hag! " he said. " I could have thought
of nothing worse! Nothing that was ever said
startled me more than her words, and I know that
some evil will befall me from her and her spells She

2O2 Grettir the Strong

shall have something to remind her of her visit
here."

Then he took up an enormous stone and threw
it down into the boat. It fell into the heap of
clothes. Thorbjorn had not thought that any man
could throw so far. A loud scream was heard, for
the stone had struck her thigh and broken it.

Illugi said: " I wish you had not done that."

" Do not blame me for it," said Grettir. " I fear
it has been just too little. One old woman would not
have been too great a price for us two."

" What will she pay for us ? It will be little enough
for both."

Thorbjorn then returned home ; no greeting passed
between them when he left. He spoke to the old
woman and said: " It has happened as I expected.
Little credit has the journey to the island brought you.
You have been injured for the rest of your life, and
we have no more honour than we had before; we
have to endure sackless one insult after another."

She answered: " This is the beginning of their de-
struction; I say that from this time onwards they
will go downwards. I care not whether I live or not,
if I do not have vengeance for the injury they have
done me."

" You seem to be in high spirits, foster-mother,"
he said. Then they arrived home. The woman
lay in bed for nearly a month before her leg was set
and she was able to walk again. Men laughed much
over the journey of Thorbjorn and the old woman.
Little luck had come from the meetings with Grettir,
first at the peace declaration at the Thing, next when
Haering was killed, and now the third time when the
woman's thigh was broken, while nothing had been
done on their side. Thorbjorn Angle suffered much
from their talk.

Grettir the Strong 203

CHAPTER LXXIX

THE SPELL TAKES EFFECT

THE autumn passed and but three weeks remained
till the winter. The old woman asked to be driven
to the sea-shore. Thorbjorn asked what she was
going to do.

" A small thing only," she said, " yet maybe the
signal of greater things to come."

They did as she asked them. When they reached
the shore she hobbled on by the sea as if directed to a
spot where lay a great stump of a tree as large as a
man could bear on his shoulder. She looked at it
and bade them turn it over before her; the other
side looked as if it had been burned and smoothed.
She had a small flat surface cut on its smooth side;
then she took a knife, cut runes upon it, reddened
them with her blood and muttered some spells over
it. After that she walked backwards against the
sun round it, and spoke many potent words. Then
she made them push the tree into the sea, and said it
should go to Drangey and that Grettir should suffer
hurt from it. Then she went back to Vidvik. Thor-
bjorn said he did not know what would come of it.
The woman said he would know more clearly some
day. The wind was towards the land up the fjord,
but the woman's stump drifted against the wind,
and not more slowly than would have been expected.

Grettir was sitting in Drangey with his companions
very comfortably, as has been told. On the day
following that on which the old woman had cast her
spells upon the tree they went down from the hill to
look for firewood. When they got to the western

204 Grettir the Strong

side of the island they found a great stump stranded
there.

" Here is a fine log for fuel," cried Illugi, " let us
carry it home." Grettir gave it a kick with his foot
and said: " An ill tree and ill sent. We must find
other wood for the fire."

He pushed it out into the sea and told Illugi to
beware of carrying it home, for it was sent for their
destruction. Then they returned to their hut and
said nothing about the tree to the thrall. The next
day they found the tree again, nearer to the ladder
than on the day before. Grettir put it back into the
sea and said he would never carry it home. That
night passed and dirty weather set in with rain, so
that they did not care to go out and told Glaum to
fetch fuel. He grumbled very much and declared it
was cruel to make him plague himself to death in every
kind of weather. He descended the ladder and found
there the woman's log. He thought himself lucky,
laboured home with it to the hut and threw it down
with a great noise which Grettir heard.

" Glaum has got something; I must go out and
see what it is," he said, and went out, taking his
wood-cutting axe with him.

" Let your cutting up of it be no worse than my
carrying of it home! " said Glaum.

Grettir was irritated with the thrall; he used his
axe with both hands and did not notice what tree it
was. Directly the axe touched the tree it turned
flat and glanced off into Grettir's right leg. It
entered above his right knee and pierced to the bone,
making a severe wound. Grettir turned to the tree
and said: "He who meant me evil has prevailed;
it will not end with this. This is the very log which I
twice rejected. Two disasters have you now brought
about, Glaum; first you let our fire go out, and now

Grettir the Strong 205

you have brought in this tree of ill-fortune. A
third mistake will be the death of you and of us all."

Illugi then bound the wound. It bled little;
Grettir slept well that night and three days passed
without its paining him. When they opened the
bandages the flesh had grown together and the wound
was almost healed. Illugi said: " I do not think
that you will suffer very long with this wound."

" That would be well," said Grettir; " it has hap-
pened strangely however it ends ; but my mind tells
me otherwise."

CHAPTER LXXX

THE SPELL CONTINUES TO WORK

ONE evening they all went to bed, and about mid-
night Grettir began to toss about. Illugi asked him
why he was so restless. Grettir said his leg was hurt-
ing him and he thought there must be some change
in its appearance. They fetched a light, unbound
the wound and found it swollen and blue as coal. It
had opened again and was much worse than at first.
He had much pain after that and could not keep
quiet, nor would any sleep come to his eyes.

Grettir said: " We must be prepared for it. This
illness of mine is not for nothing; there is witchcraft
in it. The old woman has meant to punish me for the
stone which I threw at her." Illugi said: " I told
you that no good would come of that old woman."

" It will be all the same in the end," said Grettir,
and spoke a verse:

" Often when men have threatened my life
I have known to defend it against the foe;
but now 'tis a woman has done me to death.
Truly the spells of the wicked are mighty.

206 Grettir the Strong

" Now we must be on the watch; Thorbjorn Angle
will not leave it to end here. You, Glaum, must in
future guard the ladder every day and pull it up in
the evening. Do this trustily, for much depends
thereon. If you betray us your end will be a short
one."

Glaum promised most faithfully. The weather
now became severe. A north-easterly wind set in and
it was very cold. Every evening Grettir asked if the
ladder was drawn in.

"Are we now to look for men?" said Glaum.
•" Is any man so anxious to take your life that he will
lose his own for it ? This weather is much worse than
impossible. Your warlike mood seems to have left
you utterly if you think that everything is coming to
kill you."

" You will always bear yourself worse than either of
us," said Grettir, " whatever happens. But now you
must mind the ladder however unwilling you may be."

They drove him out every morning, much to his
disgust. The pain of the wound increased, and the
whole leg was swollen; the thigh began to fester
both above and below the wound, which spread all
round, and Grettir thought he was likely to die.
Illugi sat with him night and day, paying no heed to
anything else. They were now in the second week
of his illness.

CHAPTER LXXXI

THORBJORN AGAIN VISITS ORANGEY

THORBJORN ANGLE was now at home in Vidvik,
much put out at not having been able to overcome
Grettir. When about a week had passed from the
•day when the old woman had bewitched the log,

Grettir the Strong 207

she came to speak with Thorbjorn and asked whether
he did not mean to visit Grettir. He said there was
nothing about which he was more determined.

" But do you wish to meet him, foster-mother? "
he asked.

" I have no intention of meeting him," she said;
" I have sent him my greeting, which I expect he has
received. But I advise you to set off at once and
go quickly to see him, otherwise it will not be your
fate to overcome him."

He replied: " I have made so many inglorious
journeys there that I am not going again. This
weather is reason enough; it would not be possible,
however pressing it were."

" You are indeed without counsel if you see not
through these wiles. Now, I will advise you. First
go and collect men; ride to your brother-in-law
Halldor in Hof and get help from him. Is it too
wild a thing to suppose that I may have to do with
this breeze that is now playing? "

Thorbjorn thought it might be that the woman
saw further than he supposed, so he sent through the
country for men. Answer came very quickly that
none of those who had given up their shares would
do anything to help him. They said that both the
island and the Grettir affair were Thorbjorn's.
Tungu-Steinn gave him two men, Hjalti his brother
three, Eirik in Goddal sent him one. Of his own he
had six. These twelve rode out from Vidvik to Hof,
where Halldor invited them to stay and asked their
news. Thorbjorn told him everything fully. Hall-
dor asked who had done it all; he said his foster-
mother had urged him much.

" That will lead to no good. She is a sorceress,
and sorcery is now forbidden."

" I cannot overlook everything," said Thorbjorn;

208 Grettir the Strong

" I am determined that it shall now be brought to an
end somehow. But how shall I go to work to get on
to the island?"

" It seems to me," said Halldor, " that you are
relying upon something, but I know not whether it
is anything good. If you want to accomplish any-
thing go out to my friend Bjorn in Haganes in Fljot.
He has a good boat ; ask him from me to lend it to
you, and then you will be able to sail on to Drangey.
It seems to me that if you find Grettir well and hearty
your journey will have been in vain. One thing
know for certain : do not slay him in open fight, for
there are enough men to avenge him. Do not slay
Illugi if you can help it. I fear that my counsel may
not appear altogether Christian."

Halldor then gave him six men; one was named
Kar, another Thorleif, the third Brand. The names
of the others are not mentioned.

These eighteen men then went to Fljot, reached
Haganes, and gave Halldor's message to Bjorn. He
said it was his duty to do it for Halldor's sake, but
that he was under no obligation to Thorbjorn. He
said it was an insane journey to make, and tried hard
to dissuade them. They answered that they could
not turn back, so they went down to the sea and
launched the boat, which was ready with all her gear
in the boat-house. Then they made ready to sail.
All those who were standing on the shore thought it
impossible to cross. They hoisted the sail and the
boat was soon under way, far out in the fjord. When
they got right out to sea the weather quieted and
was no longer too heavy. In the evening as it was
getting dark they reached Drangey.

Grettir the Strong 209

CHAPTER LXXXII

THE LAST BATTLE — DEATH OF GRETTIR AND ILLUGI

IT has now to be told how Grettir became so ill that
he could not stand on his feet. Illiigi sat with him
and Glaum had to hold watch. He still continued to
object, and said they might think their lives were
going to fall out of them, but there was no reason for
it. He went out, but most unwillingly. When he
came to the ladder he said to himself that there was
no need to draw it up. He felt very sleepy, lay down
and slept all day, and did not wake until Thorbjorn
reached the island. They saw then that the ladder
was not drawn up. Thorbjorn said: " The situation
has changed from what it used to be; there are no
men moving about, and the ladder is in its place. It
may be that more will come of our journey than we
expected at first. Now let us go to the hut and not
let our courage slacken. If they are well we may
know for certain that there will be need for each to
do his very best."

They went up the ladder, looked round and saw
close to the ascent a man lying and snoring aloud.
Thorbjorn recognised Glaum, went up to the rascal
and told him to wake up, striking his ear with the
hilt of his sword and saying: " Truly he is in a bad
case whose life is entrusted to your keeping."

Glaum looked up and said: " They are going on
as usual. Do you think my freedom such a great
thing while I am lying here in the cold ? "

Angle said: "Have you lost your wits? Don't
you see that your enemies are upon you and about to
kill you all ? "

o

2io Grettir the Strong

Glaum said nothing, but on recognising the men
cried out as loud as he could.

" Do one thing or the other," said Angle ; " either
be silent this moment and tell me all about your
household, or be killed."

Glaum was as silent as if he had been dipped in
water.

Thorbjorn said: "Are the brothers in the hut?
Why are they not about ? "

" That would not be so easy," said Glaum, " for
Grettir is sick and nigh to death and Illugi is sitting
with him."

Thorbjorn asked about his condition, and what
had happened. Then Glaum told him all about
Grettir's wound.

Angle laughed and said : " True is the ancient saying
that Old friends are the last to break away, and also
this, that It is ill to have a thrall for your friend — such
a one as you, Glaum ! You have shamefully betrayed
your liege lord, though there was little good in him."

Then the others cast reproaches at him for his
villainy; they beat him almost helpless and left
him lying there. Then they went on to the hut and
knocked violently at the door.

Illugi said: " Greybelly1 is knocking at the door,
brother."

" He is knocking rather loud," said Grettir; " most
unmercifully." Then the door broke in pieces.
Illugi rushed to his arms and defended the door so
that they could not get in. They assailed it long,
but could get nothing in but the points of their spears,
all of which Illugi severed from their shafts. Seeing
that they could do nothing, they sprang on to the
roof and began to break it in. Then Grettir got on
to his feet, seized a spear and thrust it between the
1 The tame ram, see ch. Ixxiv.

Grettir the Strong 2 1 1

rafters. It struck Kar, Halldor's man from Hof, and
went right through him. Angle told them to go to
work warily and be careful of themselves. " We
shall only overcome them," he said, " if we act with
caution."

Then they laid open the end of one of the timbers
and bore upon it until it broke. Grettir was unable
to rise from his knees, but he seized the sword Kars-
naut at the moment when they all sprang in from
the roof, and a mighty fray began. Grettir struck
with his sword at Vikar, a man of Hjalti the son of
Thord, reaching his left shoulder as he sprang from
the roof. It passed across his shoulder, out under
his right arm, and cut him right in two. His body
fell in two parts on the top of Grettir and prevented
him from recovering his sword as quickly as he wished,
so that Thorbjorn Angle was able to wound him
severely between the shoulders. Grettir said: "Bare
is his back who has no brother! "

Illugi threw his shield before Grettir and defended
him so valiantly that all men praised his prowess.

Grettir said to Angle: " Who showed you the way
to the island? "

" Christ showed us the way," he said.

"I guess," said Grettir, "that it was the wicked
old woman, your foster-mother, who showed you;
hers were the counsels that you relied upon."

" It shall now be all the same to you," said Angle,
"upon whom I relied."

They returned to the attack; Illugi defended
himself and Grettir courageously, but Grettir was
unfit for fighting, partly from his wounds, partly
from his illness. Angle then ordered them to bear
Illugi down with their shields, saying he had never
met with his like amongst older men than he. They
did so, and pressed upon him with a wall of armour

212 Grettir the Strong

against which resistance was impossible. They took
him prisoner and kept him. He had wounded
most of those who were attacking him and killed
three. Then they went for Grettir, who had fallen
forward on his face. There was no resistance in him
for he was already dead from his wounded leg; his
thigh was all mortified up to the rectum. Many
more wounds they gave him, but little or no blood
flowed.

When they thought he was quite dead Angle took
hold of his sword, saying he had borne it long enough,
but Grettir's fingers were so tightly locked around the
hilt that he could not loosen them. Many tried before
they gave it up, eight of them in turn, but all failed.
Angle then said: " Why should we spare a forest-
man? Lay- his hand upon the log."

They did so, and he hewed off the hand at the
wrist. Then the fingers straightened and were
loosed from the hilt. Angle took his sword in both
hands and hewed at Grettir's head. So mighty was
the blow that the sword could not hold against it,
and a piece was broken out of the edge. When asked
why he spoilt a good weapon, he replied: " It will
be more easily known if there be any question."

They said this was unnecessary, as the man was
dead before. " I will do more," he said, and struck
two or three blows at Grettir's neck before he took
off his head. Then he said:

" Now I know for certain that Grettir is dead; a
great man of war have we laid even with the earth.
We will take his head with us, for I have no wish to
lose the money which was put upon it. There shall
not be any doubt that it was I who slew Grettir."

They said he might do as he pleased, but they
felt much disgusted, and thought his conduct con-
temptible.

Grettir the Strong 213

Then Angle said to Illugi : " It is a great pity that a
man so valiant as you should have committed such a
folly as to cast in your lot with this outlaw and follow
his evil ways, at last to die unatoned."

Illugi answered: "When the All -Thing is over
next summer you shall know who are outlawed.
Neither you nor the woman, your foster-mother, shall
judge this case, for it is your spells and sorcery that
have killed Grettir, though you bore your iron
weapons against him when he was at the door of
death. Many a base deed did you do over and above
your witchcraft."

Angle said: " You speak bravely, but it shall not
be so. I will show how I value you by sparing your
life if you will swear by your honour to take no
vengeance upon any person who has been with us on
this occasion."

" I might have thought of it," he said, " if Grettir
had been able to defend himself or if you had killed
him in honourable battle. But now you need not
hope that I will try to save my life by becoming a
poltroon like you. I tell you at once that if I live
no man shall be more burdensome to you than I.
Long will it be before I forget how you have dealt
with Grettir; far sooner will I choose to die."

Then Thorbjorn consulted with his companions
whether they should allow Illugi to live. They said
he should decide their doings himself, as he was the
leader of the expedition. Angle said he was not
going to have a man threatening his head who would
not promise to hold faith. When Illugi knew that
they intended to slay him he laughed and said:
" Now you have resolved upon that which was nearest
to my heart."

When the day broke they led him to the eastern
side of the island and there slew him. All praised

214 Grettir the Strong

his courage, and said there was no man of his years
who was like him. They buried both the brothers
in the island, but took Grettir's head with all weapons
and clothes which had any value away with them.
His good sword Angle would not allow to come
amongst the spoils for division, but bore it long
himself. They took Glaum with them, still com-
plaining and resisting. The weather had calmed
down in the night, and in the morning they rowed to
the mainland. Angle sailed for the most convenient
place, and sent the ship on to Bjorn. When they
came near to Osland, Glaum became so obstreperous
that they refused to carry him any further and slew
him there where he was, crying as loud as he could
until he was killed. Angle went home to Vidvik and
considered that on this journey he had been successful.
They laid Grettir's head in salt and put it for the
winter hi the out-house called Grettisbur in Vidvik.
Angle was much blamed for this affair when men
came to know that Grettir had been overcome by
sorcery. He remained quietly at home till after
Yule. Then he went to seek Thorir in Gard and told
him of the slayings, adding that he considered that
he had a right to the money which had been put on
Grettir's head.

Thorir said that he would not deny that he had
brought about Grettir's sentence. " I have often
suffered wrong from him; but I would not to take
his life have become an evil-doer as you have done.
I will not pay the money to you, for you seem to me
as one who will be doomed to death for magic and
witchcraft."

Angle said: " I think it is much more avarice and
meanness on your part than any scruples about the
way in which Grettir was killed."

Thorir said there was an easy way of settling it

Grettir the Strong 215

between them ; they need only wait for the All-Thing
and accept what seemed right to the Lawman.
They then parted with nothing but ill-feeling between
Thorir and Thorbjorn Angle.

CHAPTER LXXXIII

THORBJORN VISITS GRETTIR's MOTHER AT BJARG

THE kinsmen of Grettir and Illugi were deeply grieved
when they heard of their death. They held that
Angle had done a dastardly deed in slaying a man at
the point of death, and they also accused him of
practising sorcery. They applied to the most learned
men, and Angle's case was ill-spoken of.

Four weeks after the beginning of summer he rode
Westwards to Midfjord. When Asdis heard of his
being in the neighbourhood she gathered her men
around her. She had many friends, Gamli and Glum,
Skeggi, called Short-hand, and Ospak, who was
mentioned before. So much beloved was she that
the whole of Midfjord rose to help her, even those who
had once been Grettir's enemies. Chief among these
was Thorodd Drapustuf, who was joined by most of
the Hrutafjord men.

Angle reached Bjarg with a following of twenty
men, bringing Grettir's head with him. All those
who had promised their support had not yet come in.
Angle's party entered the room with the head and
set it on the floor. The mistress of the house was
there and several others ; no greeting passed between
them. Angle spoke a verse:

" Grettir's head I bring thee here.
Weep for the red-haired hero, lady.
On the floor it lies; 'twere rotten by this,
but I laid it in salt. Great glory is mine."

2 1 6 Grettir the Strong

She sat silent while he spoke his verse; then she
said:

" The swine would have fled like sheep from the fox
if Grettir had stood there hearty and strong.
Shame on the deeds that were done in the North !
Little the glory you gain from my lay."

Many said it was small wonder that she had brave
sons, so brave was she herself before the insults
which she had received. Ospak was outside and
was talking with those of Angle's men who had not
gone in. He asked about the fray, and they all
praised Illugi for the defence that he had made.
They also told of Grettir's firm grip on his sword
after he was dead, and the men thought it marvellous.
Then a number of men were seen riding from the
West ; they were the friends of Asdis with Gamli and
Skeggi, who had come from Melar.

Angle had intended to have an execution against
Illugi and to claim all his property, but when all
these men came up he saw that it would not do.
Ospak and Gamli were very forward hi wanting to
fight with Angle, but the wiser heads told them to get
the advice of their kinsmen Thorvald and other chiefs,
and said that the more men of knowledge occupied
themselves with the affair the worse it would be for
Angle. Through their intervention Angle got away
and took with him Grettir's head, which he intended
to produce at the All-Thing. He rode home thinking
that matters were going badly for him, for nearly
all the chiefs in the land were either relations or
connections of Grettir and Illugi.

That summer Skeggi Short-hand married the
daughter of Thorodd Drapustuf, who then took part
in the case on the side of Grettir's kinsmen.

Grettir the Strong 217

CHAPTER LXXXIV

THORBJORN IS EXILED AT THE THING

MEN now rode to the Thing. Angle's party was
smaller than he had expected, because the matter
had come to be badly spoken of. Halldor asked
whether they were to take Grettir's head with them
to the All-Thing. Angle said he meant to take it.

" That is an ill-advised thing to do," said Halldor;
" there are quite enough men against you as it is,
without your doing such a thing as that to re-awaken
their grief."

They were then on the road, and meant to ride
South by Sand, so Angle let him take the head and
bury it in a sand-hill, which is now called Grettis-
Thuf.

The Thing was very full. Angle brought forward
his case, making the most of his own deeds. He told
them how he had killed the forest-man on whose head
the highest price had been laid, and he claimed the
money. Thorir replied as before. Then the Law-
man was asked for his opinion. He said that he
wished to hear whether any counter-charge was
made, by which Angle should forfeit the outlaw
money; if not, the money offered for Grettir's head
must be paid. Then Thorvald the son of Asgeir
asked Short-hand to bring the case before the court,
and he declared a first summons against Thorbjorn
Angle for witchcraft and sorcery through which
Grettir had met with his death, and a second for
having killed a man who was half dead, crimes which
he said were punishable with outlawry.

There was a great division of parties, but those who
supported Thorbjorn were few. It went very unex-

2i8 Grettir the Strong

pectedly for him, for Thorvald and his son-in-law
Isleif held that to do a man to death by sorcery was
a crime worthy of death. Finally, by the counsel of
wise men sentence was passed that Thorbjorn was to
leave Iceland that summer and not to return during
the lifetime of any of the men concerned in the case
on the side of Illugi and Grettir. It was enacted as
a law that all sorcerers should be outlawed.

When Thorbjorn saw what his fate was going to
be he got away from the Thing, for Grettir 's friends
were making preparations to attack him. None of
the money that was set upon Grettir's head did he
get ; Steinn the Lawman would not allow it because
of his dishonourable conduct; nor was any blood-
money paid for the men who had fallen on his side
in Drangey; they were set off against Illugi, an
arrangement, however, with which Illugi's kinsmen
were not at all pleased.

Men rode home from the Thing, and all the feuds
which had arisen on Grettir's account were now at an
end. Skeggi the son of Gamli, son-in-law of Thorodd
Drapustuf and sister's son of Grettir, went North to
Skagaf jord with the assistance of Thorvald Asgeirsson
and of his son-in-law Isleif, who afterwards became
bishop of Skalaholt. After obtaining the consent of
the whole community he took ship and went to
Drangey, where he found the bodies of Grettir and
Illugi and brought them to Reykir in Reykjastrand
and buried them in the church. Testimony of
Grettir lying there is in the fact that in the days of
the Sturlings, when the church at Reykir was moved
to another place, Grettir's bones were dug up, and
were found to be enormously big and strong. Illugi
was buried later on the north side of the church,
and Grettir's head was buried in the church at his
home in Bjarg.

Grettir the Strong 219

Asdis remained in Bjarg and was so beloved that
no one molested her any more than they did while
Grettir was an outlaw. The property at Bjarg
passed after her death to Skeggi Short-hand, who
became a great man. His son was Gamli, the father
of Skeggi of Skarfsstad and of Alfdis the mother of
Odd the Monk, from whom many are descended.

CHAPTER LXXXV

THORBJORN GOES TO NORWAY AND CONSTANTINOPLE

THORBJORN ANGLE embarked at Gasar with as much
of his own property as he was able to get. His lands
went to his brother Hjalti, including Drangey, which
Angle gave him. Hjalti became a great chief later on,
but is not mentioned again in our story.

Angle went to Norway and still made himself very
important. He was supposed to have done a great
deed of valour in slaying Grettir, and many who did
not know how it really happened honoured him accord-
ingly; but there were some to whom Grettir's fame
was known. He only told so much of the story as
tended to his own glory, but whatever was less credit-
able to him he omitted. In the autumn his account
reached Tunsberg and came to the ears of Thorsteinn
Dromund, who kept very quiet, for he had been told
that Angle was a very doughty man and valiant. He
remembered the talk which he had had with Grettir
in days long past about his arms, and obtained
news of Angle's movements. They were both in
Norway that winter, but Thorbjorn was in the North
and Thorsteinn in Tunsberg, so that they did not see
each other. Angle knew, however, that Grettir had a
brother in Norway, and did not feel very secure in a

22O Grettir the Strong

strange country; so he asked advice as to what he
had better do. In those days many of the Norsemen
used to go to Mikligard * to take service. Thorbjorn
thought it would suit him very well to go there and
earn wealth and glory instead of staying in the
northern parts where there were relations of Grettir.
So he made ready to leave Norway, embarked, and
did not stop until he reached Constantinople, and
obtained service there.

CHAPTER LXXXVI

GRETTIR'S DEATH AVENGED BY HIS BROTHER THOR-
STEINN DROMUND

THORSTEINN DROMUND was a wealthy man and
highly thought of. On hearing of Angle's departure
to Constantinople he handed over his property to his
kinsmen and followed him, dogging his movements
as he went, without Angle knowing. He reached
Constantinople very soon after Angle, intending at
all costs to kill him. Neither knew of the other.

Both wanted to be received into the Varangian
Guards, and their offer was well received directly it
was known that they were Norsemen. At that time
Michael Catalactus was king over Constantinople.
Thorsteinn Dromund watched for an opportunity of
meeting Angle where he might recognise him, but
failed amidst the crowd, so he kept on the watch,
caring little for his own well-being and ever thinking
how much he had lost.

The next thing that happened was that the Varan-
gians were ordered on field service for the defence of
the country. The custom and the law were that
1 Constantinople.

Grettir the Strong 221

before they marched a review was held for the inspec-
tion of their weapons; this was done on the present
occasion. On the day appointed for the review all
the Varangians and all who were marching with
them had to appear and show their arms. Thorsteinn
and Angle both presented themselves. Thorbjorn
was the first to show his weapons and he presented
the sword Grettisnaut. As he showed it all mar-
velled and declared that it was indeed a noble weapon,
but said it was a bad fault that a piece was out of the
middle of the edge, and they asked how that had come
about. Angle said that was a tale worth telling.

" The first thing I must tell you," he said, " is that
out in Iceland I slew a hero named Grettir the Strong.
He was a tremendous warrior and so valorous that
no one could succeed in killing him until I came.
But as I was destined to be his slayer, I overcame
him, although he was many times stronger than I
am. I cut off his head with this sword and broke a
piece out of the edge."

Those who stood by said he must have had a hard
skull, and they showed the sword round. From this
Thorsteinn came to know which was Angle, and
asked to be shown the sword with the others. Angle
willingly showed it to him, for they were all praising
his strength and courage, and he, having no notion
of its being Thorsteinn or any relation of Grettir,
thought he would do likewise. Dromund took the
sword, at once raised it aloft and struck a blow at
Angle. It came into his head with such force that
it penetrated to his jaw and Thorbjorn fell dead to
the ground. Thereupon all the men became silent.
The officer of the place put Thorsteinn under arrest
and asked him why he had committed such a breach
of discipline in the sanctity of the Assembly. Thor-
steinn said he was a brother of Grettir the Strong

222 Grettir the Strong

and that he had never been able to obtain his
vengeance till that moment. Then many of them
stood up for him and said there was much excuse for
a man who had come such a long way to avenge his
brother. The elders of the town thought that this
might be true, but as there was no one present to
bear out his word they fell back upon their own law,
which declared that any man who slew another
should lose nothing else than his life.

Judgment was quickly passed upon Thorsteinn,
and it was rather hard. He was to sit in a dark
chamber in a dungeon and there await his death
unless some one came to pay a ransom for him.
When he reached the dungeon he found a man who
had been there a long time and was all but dead from
misery. It was both foul and cold. Thorsteinn
asked him: " How do you find your life ? "

"Most evil," he replied; "no one will help me,
for I have no kinsmen to pay a ransom."

" There are many ways out of a difficulty," said
Thorsteinn, "let us be happy and do something to
cheer ourselves."

The man said he had no joy in anything.

" We will try it," said Thorsteinn.

Then he began to sing songs. He was such a singer
that it would be hard to find his like, and he spared
nothing. The dungeon was close to the public road
and Thorsteinn sang so loud that it resounded from
the walls; the man who before was half dead had
much joy therefrom. In this way he sang every
evening.

Grettir the Strong 223

CHAPTER LXXXVII

THE LADY SPES

THERE was a very distinguished lady in that town,
the owner of a large establishment, very rich and
highly born. Her name was Spes. Her husband's
name was Sigurd; he too was wealthy, but of lower
birth than she was. She had been married to him
for his money. There was not much love between
them, and the marriage was thought an unhappy one.
She was very proud, and had much dignity.

One evening when Thorsteinn was diverting him-
self she happened to pass along the street near the
dungeon and heard singing so sweet that she declared
she had never heard the like. She was walking with
several retainers, and told them to go in and find out
who it was that had such a magnificent voice. They
called out and asked who was there* in such close
confinement. Thorsteinn told his name. Spes said:

" Are you as good at other things as you are at
singing?"

He said there was not much in that.

" What have you done," she asked, " that they
should torture you here to death? "

He said he had killed a man and avenged his
brother; "but I have no witness to prove it," he
said; " so I have been put here unless some one
comes to release me, of which there seems little
hope, since I have no relations here."

" A great loss would it be if you were killed," she
said. " Was your brother then a man of such renown,
he whom you avenged? "

Thorsteinn said he was half as good a man again
as himself.

224 Grettir the Strong

She asked what token there was of that. Then
Thorsteinn spoke this verse :

" Goddess of rings! No eight could meet him,
or gain the sword from his vanquished hand.
Brave was Grettir; his foemen doughty
severed the hand of the ruler of ships."

Those who understood the song declared that it told
of great nobility. When she heard that she asked :

" Will you receive your life at my hands if the
choice is offered you? "

" Indeed I will," he said, " if this companion of
mine sitting here is released along with me. If not,
we must both remain sitting here together."

She answered: " I think you are more worth
paying for than he is."

" However that may be," he said, " either we
both of us come out from here together or neither
of us comes out."

So she went to the Varangians' quarters and asked
for the release of Thorsteinn, offering money. They
agreed. With her interest and her wealth she
brought it about that both of them were released.
Directly Thorsteinn came out of the dungeon he
went to pay his respects to the lady Spes. She wel-
comed him and kept him there secretly. From time
to time he went campaigning with the Varangians,
and was distinguished for his courage in all their
engagements.

Grettir the Strong 225

CHAPTER LXXXVIII

ADVENTURES OF THORSTEINN AND SPES

AT that time Harald the son of Sigurd was in Constan-
tinople, and Thorsteinn became friendly with him.
Thorsteinn was now a very great personage, for
Spes kept him well supplied with money, and they
became very much attached to one another. She
was a great admirer of his skill. Her expenses were
very great because she tried to keep up many friends.
Her husband noticed a great change in her character
and her behaviour, and especially that she had
become very extravagant. Treasures of gold and
other property which were in her keeping disappeared.
One day her husband Sigurd spoke with her and said
that he was much surprised at her conduct. " You
pay no attention to our affairs," he said, " and
squander money in many ways. You seem as if you
were in a dream, and never wish to be where I am.
I am certain that something is going on."

She replied : " I told you as I told my kinsmen
when we married that I meant to be my own mistress
in all matters which concern myself; that is why I
do not spare your money. Or is there anything
more than this that you wish to speak about with
me? Do you accuse me of anything shameful? "

He said : " I am not without my suspicions that
you are keeping some man whom you prefer to me."

" I do not know," she said, " that there would be
very much in that ; and yet of a surety there is no
truth in what you say. I will not speak with you
alone if you bring such improper accusations against
me."

He dropped the subject for the time. She and

p

226 Grettir the Strong

Thorsteinn continued to carry on as before, and
were not very heedful of the talk of evil-minded
people ; they relied upon her wits and her popularity.
They were often sitting together and diverting them-
selves.

One evening when they were sitting in an upper
room in which her treasures were kept she asked
Thorsteinn to sing something, and thinking that her
husband was as usual sitting at drink she fastened
the door. When he had sung for a time there was a
banging at the door, and some one called to them to
open it. It was her husband with a number of his
followers. The lady had opened a large chest to
show Thorsteinn the treasures. When she knew
who was outside she refused to open the door, and
said to Thorsteinn: "Quickly! jump into the chest
and keep very quiet."

He did so. She locked the chest and sat upon it.
Her husband then entered, having forced his way in.
She said:

" What are you coming here for with all this
uproar ? Are there robbers after you ? "

He said: " Now it is well that you yourself give
proof of what you are. Where is the man who was
letting his voice run on so grandly? No doubt you
think his voice is better than mine."

" No man is a fool if he keeps silence," she said;
" that applies to you. You think yourself very
cunning, and would like to fasten your lies on to me,
as in this case. Well, if you have spoken the truth,
find the man. He will not escape through the walls
or the roof."

He searched all through the room and found
nothing.

"Why don't you take him," she said, " if you are
so certain?"

Grettir the Strong 227

He was silent and knew not how he could have
been deceived. He asked his men whether they
had not heard what he heard, but when they saw
that the lady was displeased there was nothing to
be got out of them; they said that one was often
mistaken about sounds. He then went away, not
doubting that he knew the truth, though he could not
find the man. After that he ceased for some tune
to pry into his wife's concerns.

On another occasion, much later, Thorsteinn and
Spes were sitting in a tiring-room where dresses were
kept which belonged to them, both made up and in
the piece. She showed many of the cloths to Thor-
steinn and spread them out. When they were least
expecting it her husband came up with a troop of
men and broke into the room. While they were
forcing their way in she covered Thorsteinn up with
a bundle of clothes and leaned against the heap
when they entered.

" Do you again deny," he said, " that there was a
man here with you ? There are those present here
now who saw you both."

She told him not to be so violent. " You will not
fail to catch him now," she said. " Only leave me in
peace and do not push me about."

They searched the room, but rinding nothing had
to give it up.

" It is always good to have better proofs than people
suppose. It was only to be expected that you would
not find what was not there. Now, my husband, will
you admit your folly and free me from this slanderous
accusation ? "

"By no means will I free you," he said, "for I
know that what I have accused you of is true, and
it will cost you an effort to free yourself of the
charge."

228 Grettir the Strong

She said she was quite ready to do that, and there-
with they parted.

After this Thorsteinn remained entirely with the
Varangians. Men say that he acted by the advice
of Harald the son of Sigurd, and it is thought that
they would not have got out of it as they did if they
had not made use of him and his wits.

After a time Sigurd gave out that he was about to
go abroad on some business. His wife did not try
to dissuade him. When he was gone Thorsteinn
came to Spes and they were always together. Her
house was built on the very edge of the sea and there
were some of the rooms under which the sea flowed.

Here it was that Spes and Thorsteinn always sat.
There was a small trap-door in the floor, known to
no one but these two, and it was kept open in case of
its being wanted in a hurry.

Sigurd, it must be told, did not go away, but con-
cealed himself so as to be able to watch his wife's
•doings. One evening when they were sitting uncon-
cernedly in the room over the sea and enjoying
themselves, in came her husband with a party of
men, taking them by surprise. He had taken some
of the men to the window of the room that they might
see whether it was not as he had said. They all said
that he had spoken truly, and that it must have been
so too on the former occasions. Then they rushed
into the room.

On hearing the noise Spes said to Thorsteinn:
" You must go down here whatever it costs. Give
me some sign that you have got away from the house."

He promised that he would, and descended through
the floor. The lady closed the trap-door with her
foot, and it fell back into its place so that no one could
see any mark of the floor having been touched.
Sigurd entered the room with his men, searched, and

Grettir the Strong 229

of course found nothing. The room was uninhabited
and there was no furniture in it, but only the bare
floor and a bed, on which the lady was sitting and
twirling her fingers. She paid little attention to
them and seemed as if their business did not concern
her. Sigurd thought it altogether ridiculous and
asked his followers if they had not seen the man:
They declared that they had seen him most assuredly.

The lady said: " Now we may say as the proverb
has it : All good things are in threes. This is your case,
Sigurd. Three times you have disturbed me, if I
remember rightly ; and now are you any the wiser than
you were in the beginning ? "

" This time I am not alone to tell the story," he
said. " For all that you will have to clear yourself,
for on no terms will I allow your shameful deeds to
go unpunished."

" It seems," she said, " that you require the very
thing which I would myself propose. It will please
me well to show the falsehood of this accusation,
which has been so thoroughly aired that I shall be
disgraced if I cannot refute it."

" At the same time," he said, " you will have to
deny that you have expended my money and my
property."

She replied : " At the time when I clear myself I will
refute all the matters which you brought against me,
and you may consider how it will all end. I mean
to go at once, to-morrow morning, before the bishop
that he may grant me full compurgation from this
charge."

Her husband was satisfied with this and went
away with his men.

In the meantime Thorsteinn had swum away from
the house and landed at a convenient place, where he
got a firebrand and held it aloft so that it could be

230 Grettir the Strong

seen from the lady's house. She stayed long outside
in the evening and the night, for she was anxious
to know whether Thorsteinn had reached the land.
When she saw the light she knew that he had landed,
for that was the signal which they had agreed upon.

The next morning Spes proposed to her husband
that they should speak with the bishop on their
matter. This he was quite ready to do, so they
went before the bishop and Sigurd repeated his
accusation. The bishop asked whether she had
ever been accused of misbehaviour before, but no-
body had heard of such a thing. Then he asked
upon what evidence this charge was brought against
her, and Sigurd produced the men who had seen her
sitting in a room with the door locked and a man
with her. Her husband said that this was ground
enough for supposing that the man meant to
seduce her.

The bishop said that she might very well purge
herself from this accusation if she so desired. She
replied that she desired it very much. " I hope,"
she said, " that I shall have many women to swear
for me on this charge."

The form of the oath which she was to swear was
then communicated to her and the day for the corn-
purgation fixed. She returned home and was quite
happy. She and Thorsteinn met and laid their plans.

Grettir the Strong 231

CHAPTER LXXXIX

THE ORDEAL

THE day now arrived when Spes was to make oath.
She invited all her friends and relations, and appeared
in the finest clothes that she possessed, with many a
fine lady in her train. It was raining heavily and
the roads were flooded; on the way to the church
there was a swamp to be passed. When Spes came
with her company to the swamp there was a great
crowd on the high road, and a multitude of poor
people asking for alms, for all who knew her thought
it a duty to give her a greeting and wish her well
because of the kindnesses which they had often
received from her. Amongst these poor people there
was a beggar very large of stature and with a long
beard. The women halted at the swamp; being
people of high rank they did not like to cross the
dirty slough. The big beggar, seeing that Spes was
better dressed than the other ladies, said to her:
" Good lady, have the condescension to allow me
to cany you over the swamp. It is the duty of us
gaberlunzies to serve you in whatever way we can."

" How can you carry me," she said, " when you
can scarcely carry yourself? "

" Nevertheless, it would be a great condescension.
I cannot offer you more than I have, and you will
prosper the better in other things for having had
no pride with a poor man."

" Know then for a surety," she said, " that if you
carry me not properly the skin shall be flayed from
your back."

" Gladly will I venture upon that," he said, and
waded out into the stream. She pretended to dis-

232 Grettir the Strong

like very much being carried by him; nevertheless,
she got upon his back. He staggered along very
slowly, using two crutches, and when they reached
the middle he was reeling in every direction. She
told him to pull himself together. " If you drop me
here," she said, " it shall be the worst journey that
you ever made."

The poor wretch gathered up all his strength and
still went on. By dint of a valiant effort he had all
but reached the shore when he struck his foot against
something and fell forwards, projecting her on to the
bank while he himself fell into the mire up to his
armpits. There as he lay he put out his hands, not
on her clothes, but on her legs. She sprang up
cursing and said she always suffered fll from low
vagabonds. " It would only be right that you should
have a good beating," she said, " were I not ashamed
to beat such a miserable creature as you are."

He said: " Unequal is the lot of man. I thought
to earn some benefit and to receive alms from you,
and you only give me abuse and insult without any
reward." And he pretended to be very much dis-
gusted. Many felt pity for him, but she said he was
a very cunning rascal. When they all began to beg
for him she took out her purse, wherein was many a
golden penny. She shook out the money, saying:
" Take that, fellow! It would not be right that you
should go unpaid for all my scoldings. You are
now paid for what you have done."

He gathered up the money and thanked her for her
liberality. Spes then went to the church, which was
full of people. Sigurd proceeded with energy and
told her to clear herself of the charge which he had
brought against her.

" I pay no heed to your accusation," she said;
" but I want to know what man it was whom you

Grettir the Strong 233

pretend to have seen in the room with me, because
there is always some proper man near me; there is
nothing to be ashamed of in that. But this I will
swear, that to no man have I given money and that
by no man has my body been denied excepting by
my husband and by that beggar, who put his muddy
hands upon my leg to-day when I was carried over
the ditch."

Many then were satisfied and declared that her
oath was perfectly good and that she was in no way
disgraced by a man having touched her unwittingly.
She said she had to tell the story just as it happened,
and then she swore the oath in the words appointed
for her. Many said that she should observe the
saying that Nothing should be omitted from an oath.
But she replied that wise men would hold that there
was no cause for suspicion. Then her relations began
to talk with her and said that it was a great insult
to a woman of high birth that such lies should be
told about her and go unpunished, for they said it
was an offence punishable with death if a woman
were proved to have been unfaithful to her husband.
So Spes asked the bishop to divorce her from Sigurd,
saying that she would not endure the lies which he
had told. Her kinsmen supported her, and with
their help her request was granted. Sigurd got
little of the property and had to leave the country.
So it happened as usual that the weaker had to bow,
nor could he accomplish anything although the right
was on his side. Spes took all the money and was
held in high esteem, but when men came to consider
her oath they thought it was not altogether above
suspicion, and they concluded that very skilful men
had composed the Latin formula for her. They
ferreted out that the beggar who carried her was
Thorsteinn Dromund. But Sigurd got no redressv

234 Grettir the Strong

CHAPTER XC

THORSTEINN AND SPES RETURN TO NORWAY

WHILE the affair was being talked about Thorsteinn
Dromund remained with the Varangians, where he
was held in such high estimation that his prowess
was considered to be beyond that of nearly every
man who had come to them. Especially Harald
the son of Sigurd did him honour, and claimed kin-
ship with him; it was supposed to have been by his
advice that Thorsteinn had acted.

Soon after Sigurd was driven from the country
Thorsteinn proposed marriage to Spes; she was
quite agreeable, but referred it to her kinsmen.
There were family meetings and all agreed that she
herself ought to decide. Matters were settled between
them; their union was most prosperous and they
had plenty of money. Thorsteinn was considered
lucky to have got out of his difficulties in such a
way. After they had lived together for two years
in Constantinople, Thorsteinn told her that he would
like to visit his property once more in Norway.
She said he should do as he pleased, and he then sold
his property so as to have some ready money. They
left the country with a good company of followers
and sailed all the way to Norway. Thorsteinn 's
kinsmen welcomed them both, and soon saw that
Spes was both generous and noble; accordingly she
quickly became very popular. They had three
children, and remained on their property very well
contented with their condition.

The king of Norway was at that time Magnus the
Good. Thorsteinn soon went to meet him, and was

Grettir the Strong 235

well received because of the fame which he had
earned through having avenged Grettir the Strong.
Scarcely an example was known of a man from
Iceland having been avenged in Constantinople,
excepting Grettir the son of Asmund. It is said that
Thorsteinn entered his bodyguard. Thorsteinn re-
mained nine years in Norway, both he and his wife
being in high honour. After that King Harald the
son of Sigurd returned from Constantinople, and
King Magnus gave him the half of Norway. Both
kings were together in Norway for a time. After
Magnus's death some who had been his friends were
less contented, for he was beloved of all, but Harald
was not easy to get on with, since he was hard and
severe. Thorsteinn Dromund then began to grow
old, but was still very vigorous. Sixteen winters had
now passed since the death of Grettir.

CHAPTER XCI

ABSOLUTION IN ROME

THERE were many who urged Thorsteinn to visit
King Harald and become his man, but he would not.
Spes said to him : "I would not, Thorsteinn, that
you go to Harald, for a larger debt remains unpaid
to another King, whereto we must now turn our
thoughts. Our youth is now passed; we are both
becoming old, and we have lived more after our desires
than after Christian doctrine or regard for righteous-
ness. Now I know that neither kinsmen nor wealth
may pay this debt if we pay it not ourselves. I would
therefore that we now change our way of life and
leave the country to betake ourselves to Pafagard.1
1 Rome.

236 Grettir the Strong

I have hope that so I shall be absolved from my
sin."

Thorsteinn answered : " The matter of which you
speak is as well known to me as it is to you. It is
right that you should rule now, and most seemly,
since you allowed me to rule when our matter was
much less hopeful. And so shall it be now in all
that you say."

This resolve of theirs took men by surprise. Thor-
steinn was then two years past of sixty-five, but still
vigorous in all that he undertook. He summoned
all his kinsmen and connections to him and told
them his plans. The wiser men approved of his
resolve, while holding his departure a great mis-
fortune for themselves. Thorsteinn said there was
no certainty of his return. He said:

" I wish now to thank you all for the care of my
goods which you took while I was absent. Now I
ask you to take over my children along with my
property, and to bring them up in your own ways;
for I am now come to such an age that even if I live
there is much doubt about whether I shall return.
Manage all that I leave behind as if I should never
return to Norway."

The men answered that matters would be more
easily managed if his wife remained to look after
them.

She answered : " I left my own country and came
from Mikligard with Thorsteinn, I bade farewell to
my kinsmen and my possessions, because I wished
that one fate should befall us both. And now it has
seemed pleasant to me here, but no desire have I to
remain in Norway or in these Northern lands after
he has departed. There has always been good-will
between us and no dissension. Now we must both
depart together; for we ourselves know best about

Grettir the Strong 237

many things which have happened since we first
met."

When they had thus dealt with their own condi-
tion, Thorsteinn appointed certain impartial men to
divide his property in two parts. Thorsteinn's kins-
men took over the half which was to go to the children,
and brought them up with their father's relations.
They became in time men of the utmost valour, and
a large posterity in the Vik is sprung from them.
Thorsteinn and Spes divided their share, giving some
to the church for the good of their souls and keeping
some for themselves. So they set off for Rome,
bearing the good wishes of many with them.

CHAPTER XCII

THE END OF THORSTEINN AND SPES

THEY travelled then the whole way to Rome, and
appeared before him who was appointed to hear
confessions. They related truly all that had hap-
pened, all the cunning tricks wherewith they had
achieved their union. They submitted with humility
to the penances laid upon them, and by reason of
their having voluntarily turned their hearts to desire
absolution from their sins, without any pressure from
the elders of the church, their penance was lightened
so far as it was possible, and they were gently ad-
monished to arrange their lives with wisdom for the
well-being of their souls, and, after receiving absolu-
tion in full, to live henceforward in purity. They
were declared to have acted wisely and well.

Then the lady Spes said : " Now, I think it has
gone well with us; nor have we suffered only mis-

238 Grettir the Strong

fortune together. It may be that foolish men will
follow the example of our former lives. Let us now
end in such way that we may be an example to the
good. We will come to an agreement with some
men skilled in building to erect for each of us a stone
retreat, thus may we atone for all the offences which
we have committed against God."

So Thorsteinn advanced money to stone-masons
and such other persons as might be needed, that they
might not be without the means of subsistence. When
these works were completed and all matters were
settled, a fitting time was chosen for them to part
company with each other, each to live alone, in order
more surely to partake of the eternal life in another
world. They remained each in their own retreat,
living as long as it pleased God to spare them, and
thus ending their lives.

Most men consider Thorsteinn Dromund and Spes
to have been most fortunate in escaping from the
difficulties which they had fallen into. None of
their children or posterity are mentioned as having
come to Iceland.

CHAPTER XCIII

THE TESTIMONY OF STURLA THE LAWMAN

STURLA the Lawman has declared that no outlaw
was ever so distinguished as Grettir the Strong. For
this he assigns three reasons. First, that he was the
cleverest, inasmuch as he was the longest time an
outlaw of any man without ever being captured, so
long as he was sound in health. Secondly, that he
was the strongest man in the land of his age, and

Grettir the Strong 239

better able than any other to deal with spectres and
goblins. Thirdly, that his death was avenged in Con-
stantinople, a thing which had never happened to any
other Icelander.

Further, he says that Thorsteinn Dromund was
a man who had great luck in the latter part of his life.

Here endeth the story of Grettir the son of Asmund..

NOTES

The numbers at the beginning of paragraphs refer to the
pages.

1. The saga opens in Norway during the struggle for
supremacy of Harald Fairhair or Shockhead (?86o-933). The
localities named in the first chapter, Rogaland and Hordland,
are on the west coast in the region of the modern Stavanger
and Hardangerfjord.

2. The story of Harald Fairhair and his reduction of the
viking chiefs of Norway may be read in Carlyle's Early Kings
of Norway. The battle of Hafrsfjord, 872, was his final
victory over them, and marks the foundation of the Nor-
wegian monarchy.

3. Berserk. — A reckless and savage warrior, generally sup-
posed to be endowed with supernatural qualities.

4. Grettir. — The " Gnasher." The Baby-man: a nickname
which the Landnamabok explains as having been given to
him because he would not allow his viking followers to spit
babies on their spears.

7. Bot.— The island of Bute.

9. Balki and Hallvard. — The two comrades of Onund
Treefoot mentioned in the beginning.

9. when he had made war on Kjarval the king (of Ireland)
(v. ch. i.). — Eyvind had married Kjarval's daughter.

10. The story now returns to Norway, where Thrand's
father Bjorn had remained behind while Thrand was in the
Hebrides and Ireland. Grim the Hersir was the man who
had tried to murder Bjorn (v. ch. iii.), and a feud consequently
existed between the two men. A hersir is a local chief in
Norway, rather similar to the Icelandic godi, but under the
authority of the king and acting as his official. Thrand,
it will be remembered, had fought against the king at Hafrs-
fjord, but Bjorn had not. On the latter's death Grim the
Hersir claims his estate on behalf of the king on the ground
that he was an alien, while his son and heir, Thrand, had
forfeited his property in Norway by fighting against the king.

12. Agdir, Soknadal, Hvin. — These places are all in the
same neighbourhood in the very south of Norway.

241 Q

242 Grettir the Strong

14. Landman. — Almost the same as a hersir, a local official
and nobleman; defined by Snorri as equivalent to the
English " baron."

14. deer's horn. — i.e., a drinking vessel.

15. Krceklitigahlid. — Is named after the Kraeklings, *.«..
" sons of the Crow," sc. Ondott Crow. Helgi the Lean was a
son of Ey vind the Easterner and therefore great-grandson of
Ondott. For his relationship to Asmund see the genealogical
table No. 2. It should also be noted that Helgi through
his mother was a grandson of the King of Ireland.

17. in the main districts. — i.e., in the southern and western
parts of Iceland.

1 7. drift. — As no timber grew in Iceland, the inhabitants
were dependent upon the logs which were carried by currents
in the Arctic Ocean and cast in great quantities on the shores,
along with other things of value, e.g., whales.

18. Svidukari. — " Scorched Kari." This is the famous
Kari of the Njalssaga, whose miraculous escape from the
burning homestead is so vividly described, and who lived
to avenge his kinsmen.

21. rorqual. — Whale flesh was esteemed a delicacy by the
Icelanders, and this was a time of famine.

22. the men from the East. — The Norwegians mentioned in
the beginning of the chapter as having been taken in by Flosi.

23. Olaf. — The son of Eyvind (v. ch. xi.).

23. Rifsker. — The rock of ribs, named after the fray from
the weapons (whale-ribs) which were used.

24. It was a common practice of the All-Thing when dealing
with a fray in which men had fallen, to assess the value of the
lives of the slain, setting off those of one side against those of
the other, and striking a balance.

25. It will be observed that the narrator passes very
rapidly over several generations in chapters xi. to xiii.
Onund Treefoot must have come to Iceland not very long
after the battle of Hafrsfjord (872). Asmund, the father of
our hero, Grettir, was his grandson. We are now in the
period of the first Christian mission. Bishop Fridrek came
to Iceland in 981 with Thorvald Kodransson, but their mission
was a failure. Thorvald found himself deficient in Christian
patience in dealing with the Icelanders. He retired to
Jerusalem and was afterwards adored as a saint.

26. prima signatio. — An informal marking with the cross
as a preliminary to a later baptism.

Notes 243

27. Vindland. — Or perhaps, Wineland, America, since a
man of that name is known to have sailed to America with
Thorfinn Karlsefni.

28. Grettir answers his father mockingly in proverbs.

30. We are, I conjecture, to understand not that Grettir
flayed off the skin of the mare, but that he shaved off her
hair, and it was vanity, not pain, that made her unruly.

31. Apparently he thinks that his wife put Grettir up to
the mischief.

31. The fact that so many of the people in this saga are
described as poets will create less surprise when it is remem-
bered in what high estimation the art of poetry has always
been held in Iceland. At the present day the translator is
informed there is not a parish in the island which has not its
poet.

33. the near relations in which they stood. — Thorkell Kraila
was foster-father of Asmund's wife Asdis.

33. with both hands. — I cannot resist retaining the pic-
turesque Icelandic phrase. It means, of course, " gave him
a joyful welcome."

36. gave his hand. — The mark of formally sealing a bargain.

37. wadmal. — Homespun cloth from the Icelandic sheep,
was the common currency of exchange among traders, and is
here therefore almost equivalent to " cash."

40. — The latter portion of the verse has hitherto baffled all
the attempts of scholars to arrive at an intelligible interpreta-
tion. " The steed of the bays mid foreland shores " is a
kenning for a ship, and the lines have been supposed to denote,
when subjected to the " closer view " required, that Haflidi
dines twice a day off vikings, i.e., fights them twice a day.

41. The island now called Harhamso lies at the entrance of
the Romsdal Fjord on the west coast of Norway.

44. Cutting off the head and laying it between the thighs
of a dead body was effective in laying its ghost.

46. bondi. — A landed proprietor or farm-owner. I use
this form, which is the original Icelandic, in preference to
Carlyle's " bonder " as being less liable to be misunderstood.

46. The expedition here referred to was Knut's invasion of
England in 1015.

46. holmgang. — Literally, " going to an island " ; the regular
name for a duel in Iceland and Norway.

50. swear fellowship. — i.e., " blood brotherhood," the
most sacred of oaths, absolutely inviolable. It will be noted
that Grettir declines to take it.

Q2

244 Grettir the Strong

51. We must suppose a door to the room which he bolted
and also an outer door to the whole building, the latter being
provided with a strong lock. It was upon the security of the
outer door that everything depended ; the bolting of the inner
door was only a temporary measure. Eventually the ber-
serks demolished the partition between the room and the
privy, but still found themselves imprisoned.

56. Vagar was a place in the Lofoden Islands far away in
the North, beyond the Arctic circle, famed for its fair or
market. Salfti is about sixty miles further south.

58. my namesake. — Bjorn means " bear " in Icelandic.

64. Bersi. — This is Grettir's old playfellow mentioned in
ch xv., where he is called Bessi.

70. The Almenningar are the two coasts of Cape Horn in
the extreme north-west of the island, where the shore was
common property, i.e., it was free to all to collect drift and
other produce of the sea.

78. The story of Bardi's vengeance for the murder of his
brother Hall is told in the Heidarviga Saga. The object of
Bardi's expedition to Borgarfjord is to exact vengeance for
his brother Hall. He is now abroad beating up followers.
The aid of such a warrior as Grettir is therefore invaluable to
him. Grettir's motive in offering his services is no doubt
mere love of adventure; he likes to go where there is some
fighting to be expected. Thorarin the Wise is Bardi's foster-
father and acts as a sort of legal adviser to him.

79. Kormak, Thorgils and Odd. — Cf. ch. xv.

79. Horse-fighting was the popular sport of the Icelanders.
The way in which it was conducted will be best gathered
from the text.

82. The affair will be understood if we suppose that they
began in a sort of rough play in which both sides lost their
tempers, until at last on Gunnar and Thorgeir being thrown
it became a bloody fight. This was probably Grettir's inten-
tion from the first.

82. Tvi-month. — August 27 to September 25.

84. The famous Battle of the Heath between the families
of Northern Iceland and the men of Borgarfjord is the subject
of a special saga. It is variously dated from 1014 to 1021.
The result seems to have been indecisive. The Tvidaegra
Heath on which the battle was fought will be found on the
map.

100. Grettir's adventure on the ridge. — Cf. ch. xxx.

Notes 245

101. Battle of Nesjar. — This fixes the date ; the battle took
place on Palm Sunday, 1015, and was won over jarl Sveinn
by Olaf the Saint, who thereupon ascended the throne.
Grettir's age was then nineteen.

102. washing their hands. — This seems to have been a cere-
mony observed before starting on a voyage.

103. men of Mel. — Kormak and his party. Cf. ch. xxx.

105. Stad. — On the west coast of Norway, the present
Stadtland.

1 1 6. giving information of the battle. — It was a point of
honour when a man had slain another that he should give
information at the nearest homestead, i.e., proclaim the
slaying. If this formality was omitted the offence was much
more serious.

117. ohelgir. — Literally, "unhallowed"; the legal term for
the condition of one who has placed himself beyond the pale
of the law through disgraceful conduct.

119. his song on my throat. — He means that he had been
nearly throttled.

129. the Vatnsdal race. — Ingimund the Old, the founder
of the family, was the great-grandfather of Asdis. The first
two lines of the verse which follows are a play upon the
name of Thorbjorn Oxmain and untranslatable.

130. Sturla the Lawman. — Born 1214, died 1284.

135. Hunavatn Thing. — These local Things, held in the
spring and autumn, must be distinguished from the far more
important All-Thing held at Thingvellir in the summer.

136. A " hundred of silver" is 20 ounces, or 2\ marks.
One ounce of silver is reckoned as equivalent to 6 ells of
wadmal. (Cf. Vigfusson, Diet, s.v.)

136. The issue here raised is no legal quibble. The argu-
ment is that if you make a man an outlaw you cannot treat
him as if he were within the law by making him a party to a
suit. This saga and Njala are of great interest to the student
of primitive law as illustrating the rough-and-ready methods
of a people gifted with a strong sense of justice and the highest
legal acumen, but as yet without any codified legal proce-
dure, or any general sanction. Skapti after winning his point
deftly turns it to account in order to regain for the community
one of its most valuable members; he shows convincingly
what the community will have to suffer from having outlawed
a man of Grettir's calibre. But he fails, overborne by parti-
sanship and force.

140. a dyed dress. — A mark of superior rank or wealth.

246 Grettir the Strong

141. his kinswoman Href na. — For her kinship with Grettir
through Asgeir Hothead, v. genealogical table No. 3. She
was married to Thorbjorg's brother.

141. Sigar's lot. — The gallows.

145. "the rock" =Hall; "the rest of the hand"=mund. —
The line is a play on the name Hallmund, under which Lopt
appears later.

151. to go between his head and his body. — i.e., cut off his
head.

157. the winter nights. — The usual phrase for the three days
which begin the winter in the Icelandic calendar, towards
the end of October.

157. Hraun. — Stadarhraun on the Hitara; v. the map.

161. The account of the battle is a little difficult to follow.
Grettir is on the southern or left bank of the Hitara with
two followers. Of his enemies Bjarni and Arnor are on the
northern bank; on the southern are Thorarin and Thorfinn,
two old men who do not join in the fight, but lead the others
on; the others are Thrand (disabled, but recovers), Thorgils
^killed), Finnbogi (wounded), Steinolf (killed), with their fol-
lowers. The Myramen, the most famous of whom is Egill
Skallagrimsson, and to whom Bjorn belonged through his
mother, were one of the most powerful clans in Iceland.
Their descendants are still living — one is amongst us in
England.

164. a blending. — Literally, a " mixling," a semi-troll; i.e.,
a cross between a troll and a human being.

165. fat and liver in Lent. — He was hoaxing them.

1 68. Grim's adventure with Thorkell is related in the
Laxdaela Saga, ch. Iviii.

174. the day dawned upon her. — i.e., she was turned to stone.

183. Glaum. — Noisy merriment.

184. one sea-mile. — Apparently equivalent to about four
English miles.

184. It is evident from the context that the ladders were
permanently kept on the island by its owners, and that there
were two, one from the sea to a ledge on the rock, the other
(" the upper ladder ") from the ledge to the top.

185. The technical terms of the game of " tables " are
untranslatable, because we know nothing of the game.

198. The term must be reckoned from Grettir's first sen-
tence in i on, in the end of chapter xvi. Why twenty
years are so insisted upon is not quite clear, since there was

Notes 247

no mention of any definite term in his sentence. Other
matters are equally puzzling to our more logical modern
minds. In fact, the whole proceedings at the All-Thing turn
upon a legal quibble which was convincing because it was
siipported by force. The saga-writer has with infinite skill
shown us how all Grettir's powerful connections, Atli, Thor-
steinn Kuggason — all lovers of legal justice, Skapti, Snorri —
have been slain or have died, and he is left alone and friend-
less, his young brother by his side, with all the great clans of
the North united against him, at last to be done to death
through the machinations of lawyers and by witchcraft, for
a crime which he never committed.

199. It may at first sight seem strange that the Skagafjord
men should be dissatisfied at the prospect of Grettir being
got rid of, but it will be seen that if he leaves peaceably
they will have been outwitted by Thorbjorn, who has bought
their shares at a price far below their value on consideration
of his turning out Grettir. It needs little imagination to
see that all these mysterious transactions with the land are
nothing but a plot among the bondis to get the detested Angle
killed.

200. The double month. — V. note to p. 82.

212. It will be more easily known. — The incident is evi-
dently taken from the Tristan Saga, and must be an interpola-
tion. Angle means that the sword-splinter shall be evidence
that he was the slayer of Grettir; the others object that
Grettir was already dead when Angle struck him.

220. The Varangian Guards. — The famous Scandinavian
bodyguard of the Eastern emperor, regarding which Gibbon
writes: " Contemporary writers have recorded the introduc-
tion, name, and character of the Varangians : each day they
rose in confidence and esteem ; the whole body was assembled
at Constantinople to perform the duty of guards. . . . They
preserved, till the last age of the empire, the inheritance of
spotless loyalty, and the use of the Danish or English tongue.
With their broad and double - edged battle - axes on their
shoulders they attended the Greek emperor to the temple, the
senate, and the hippodrome ; he slept and feasted under their
trusty guard ; and the keys of the palace, the treasury, and
the capital, were held by the firm and faithful hands of the
Varangians." Their commander at this time (Michael IV.
the Paphlagonian, 1034-1041), Harald the son of Sigurd,
with whom the saga-teller shows such anxiety to bring his
hero into relation, is well known to Englishmen. He is no
other than that Harold Hardrada who won " seven feet of
English soil, or somewhat more," at the battle of Stamford
Bridge.

CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE

From Boer. As all the historical chronology of this period
is uncertain, with the exception of a few fixed points, the
dates in the following table must be understood as mainly
conjectural. They are only intended to enable the reader
to follow the story.

A.D.

996. Grettir born (ch. xv.).
1010. Games at Midfjordvatn (ch. xv.).

ion. Grettir kills Skeggi, is exiled and comes to Thorfinn in
Haramarsey (chs. xvi., xvii.).

1012. Travels in the North of Norway; winters with Thor-

kell (ch. xx.).

1013. Kills Bjorn and Hjarrandi (chs. xxii., xxiii.).

1014. Kills Gunnar, etc. Returns to Iceland (ch. xxiv.).

Episodes with Audun, Bardi, Odd Needy-Skald,
Glam (chs. xxviii.-xxxv.).

1015. Kills Thorbjorn Slowcoach (ch. xxxvi.). Goes to

Norway. Burning of the sons of Thorir of Gard
(ch. xxxviii.).

1016. Death of Asmund Longhair and of Atli. Grettir out-

lawed a second time (chs. xlii.-xlvi.).

1017. Proceedings at the All-Thing for his amnesty overborne

(ch. li.). Adventure with bondis of Vatnsfjardardal
(ch. lii.).

1018-21. Residence in Arnarvatn Heath (chs. liv.-lvii.).
1022-24. In Hitardal and Fagraskogafjall (ch. Iviii.).
1028. Retires to Drangey (ch. Ixix.).
1031. Grettir killed in Drangey (ch. Ixxxii.).

248

INDEX OF NAMES

The numbers at the end of paragraphs refer to the chapters.
Gen.=Genealogical Tables.

Aldis, d. of Ofeig Grettir, 3.

Alfdis of the Barra Isles, 3, 10.

Ali, servant of Thorbjorn Oxmain, who leaves him and goes
to Atli, 45.

A rnbjorn, kinsman of Thorfinn of Haramarsey, 22, 23.

Arnor, s. of Thorbjorn Oxmain, 48.

A rnor Jarlsbard, s. of Thord of Myrar, 60.

Asdis, d. of Bard, s. of Jokull, and foster-daughter of Thorkell
Krafla. Second wife of Asmund Longhair and mother
of Grettir. Through her grandfather, Ofeig Grettir II.,
she was descended from Onund Treefoot; passim, v.
Gen. i and 4.

Asgeir Hothead of Asgeirsa in Vididal. Through his mother
he was connected with the Treefoot family, and he was
the father of several personages in the saga. v. Gen. 3.

As grim, s. of Ondott Crow. Left for dead in Norway by his
brother Asmund, but follows him later to Iceland where
he becomes the father of a noble family, 7, 8. v. Gen. 2.

Asmund Longhair, s. of Thorgrim Greyhead and Grettir's
father; resident at Bjarg on the Midfjord River; m.
(i) Rannveig; (2) Asdis; passim.

Asny, w. of Ofeig Grettir I.

Atli, s. of Asmund Longhair and elder brother of Grettir.
Inherits his father's estate; passim.

Aud the Deep-Minded, a woman of great magnificence and
one of the first settlers in Iceland. Occurs in many of
the sagas; in the Laxdaela Saga is a full account of her
death; m. Olaf the White, 10.

Audun, jarl; nicknamed "Nanny-goat" in derision when
chastised by the sons of Ondott Crow, 7.

Audun Skokul, m. Treefoot's widow, Thordis, n, 28.

Audun, s. of Asgeir Hothead of Vididal. A very attractive

» personality, an old playfellow and distant kinsman of

? Grettir, who more than once tries to fasten a quarrel upon

Kj^£ him, but ends by making a friend of him, 15, 28, 34.

f Gen. 3.

Audun of Vindheim in Norway. A man whom Grettir used
to visit when staying in Haramarsey, and who accom-
panied him to the howe of Kar the Old, 18.

249

250 Grettir the Strong

Balki, the s. of Biasing, a fighting comrade of Onund Treefoot,

settled in Hrutafjord. Great-grandfather of Bjorn the

Hitdale warrior, i, 2, 5, 58.
Bard, s. of Jokull. Father of Asdis, 13.
Bard, mate on Haflidi's ship, 17.
Bardi, s. of Gudmund of Asbjarnarnes. The distinguished

hero of the Heidarviga Saga, 28, 31, 34.
Bersi, or Bessi, son of Skald-Torfa. A playmate of Grettir's.

Intercedes for Grettir with jarl Sveinn, 15, 24.
Bjorn of Gautland in Norway. Father of Eyvind the

Easterner, and Thrand the Much-Travelled, the latter

by Helga, d. of Ondott Crow, 2, 3, 5, 6.
Bjorn, a swaggering friend of Thorkell in Salfti (Norway).

Grettir kills him, and falls into trouble with jarl Sveinn,

21, 22.
Bjorn, the Hitdale warrior; a most notable hero of the family

of the Myramen, with a saga of his own. Protects

Grettir to the best of his ability, 58-61.
Bjorn of Haganes, one of the Skagafirding chiefs. Lends, very

reluctantly, his boat to Thorbjorn Angle in his last

attack upon Grettir in Drangey, 70, 81.

Egill, s. of Audun of Vididal, 34.

Eid, s. of Skeggi, 62.

Einar, a tenant of the men of Kaldbak, 12.

Einar, a bondi in Norway; attacked by berserks and saved

by Grettir, 40.

Eirik Beery, a Landman in Surnadal in Norway, 7.
Eirik Snare, a settler in Iceland who assists Onund Treefoot

on his landing, 9, n, 12.
Eirik, jarl, son of Hakon; joint regent of Norway with his

brother Sveinn (1000-1015), 19.

Eirik of Hof, one of the Skagafirding chiefs, 70, 81.
Eyjolf, brother-in-law of Bardi, 31.
Eyjolf, one of Grettir's two companions in his fight with the

Myramen, 60.
Eyvind the Easterner, s. of Bjorn by his first wife; m. to

Rafarta, d. of Kjarval, King of Ireland, and commanding

the Irish coast-defences.
Eyvind of Eyvindarfjord, n. Gen. 2.

Finnbogi, one of the Myramen troop, 60.

Flosi, s. of Eirik Snare; leader in the attack on Onund's

sons at Rifsker, and outlawed by the Thing, n, 12.
Fridrek, bishop, 13.

Gamli. s. of Thorhall of Vindland, m. to Grettir's sister Rann-
veig; resident at Melar. Unflagging in his helpfulness
towards Grettir and his family, keeping Grettir informed

Index of Names 251

of the movements of his enemies, supporting his mother

Asdis in her distress and, through his son Skeggi, caring

for Grettir's bones after his death, 30, 42, 43, 48, 49, 57,

83, 84.

Gamli, s. of Skeggi, grandson of the preceding, 84.
Gaut, s. of Sleita, 27.
Geirlaug, a widow in Breidabolstad, 68.
Geirmund Swarthyskin, one of the chiefs driven from Norway

by Harald Fairhair, 2, 3.
Gisli, s. of Thorstein; a boastful mariner chastised by

Grettir, 59.
Glam, a thrall, who later appears as ghost, terrifying the whole

district of Vatnsdal until overcome by Grettir, 32-35.
Glaum = Thorbjorn ; a thrall who follows Grettir to Drangey,

69-82.
Glum, s. of Ospak, m. Grettir's sister Thordis, 14, 43,

5i. 83-

Grettir the Strong, s. of Asmund Longhair and Asdis, etc.
Grim, a hersir in Norway, at feud with Bjorn of Gautland and

Ondott Crow; at last burnt in his house, 3, 6, 7.
Grim, s. of Asgrim, called Ellidagrim, 8, 53.
Grim, s. of Thorhall and brother of Gamli. Helpful to Grettir

on many occasions. For his share in the slaying of

Gunnar and Thorgeir he is forced to leave his home in

Hrutafjord and go south to Gilsbakki, where Grettir

visits him, 30, 42-47, 53, 54, 57, 61.

Grim, a forest-man; fails in an attempt to kill Grettir, 55.
Grim, a forest-man who kills Hallmund, 62, 67.
Gudmund the Wealthy, the most powerful chief in the North,

resident at Modruvellir. He occurs in many of the sagas,

always playing a decisive part. Advises Grettir to go

to Drangey, 67.

Gudrun, wife of Thorhall of Forsa^ludal, 32.
Gunnar, a brother of Bjorn of Salfti, killed by Grettir, 23, 24.
Gunnar, s. of Thorir of Skard and hanger-on of Thorbjorn

Oxmain; killed by Atli, 30, 43.
Gyrid, d. of Einar of Norway, 40.

Haring, a youth who scales the Drangey cliff and perishes, 76.

Haftidi, a mariner who takes Grettir to Norway.

Hafr of Knappstad. A very loquacious person at the He-

granes Thing, 72.

Hakon, jarl, s. of Eirik; ruler of Norway, but an infant, 19.
Hall, s. of Gudmund and brother of Bardi, 28.
Halldor, s. of Thorgeir; one of the Skagafirding chiefs, 70, 72,

81,84.

Halli of Kroppi, 47.
Hallmund, otherwise Lopt. A mysterious person, evidently

in league with the landvaettir, or himself one of those

252 Grettir the Strong

beings. Becomes friendly with Grettir and assists him
in many ways, 54, 57, 61, 62, 67.

Hallsteinn Stallion, 7.

Hallvard Sugandi, a fighting comrade of Onund Treefoot,
i, 2, 5.

Harold Shockhead, first King of Norway, 2, 3, 7.

Harold, s. of Sigurd; commander of the Varangian guard in
Constantinople. Afterwards King of Norway and
known as Harald Hardrede (1046-1066), 88, 90, 91.

Hfarrandi, brother of Bjorn and one of jarl Sveinn's body-
guard, 22, 23.

Hlif, d. of Hrolf and mother of Eyvind the Easterner, 3.

Hrefna, d. of Asgeir Hothead, m. Kjartan, s. of Olaf Peacock
and brother of Thorbjorg, 52. Gen. 3.

Illugi, Grettir's brother, 37, 42, 54, 67-84.

Ingjald the Trusty, 7.

Ingolf, grandfather of Thorkell the Lawman, 12.

Isleif, bishop of Skalaholt, 25, 84.

Ivar, s. of Kolbeinn, 12.

Jokull, s. of Bard, uncle of Grettir, 34.

Kalf, s. of Asgeir, 15.

Kar the Old, a corpse, 18, 19.

Kar, a retainer of Halldor of Skagafjord, 81, 82.

Kari, s. of Solmund, 10.

Kjartan, s. of Steinn the Priest, 64, 67.

Kjarval, King of Ireland, i, 3, 5.

Kjotvi the Wealthy, 2.

Knut=Can\ite, King of England, 19, 59.

Kolbeinn, 7, 9.

Kormak of Mel, 15, 29, 30, 36.

Leif, s. of Kolbeinn, 12.
Lo/>* = Hallmund (q.v.).

Magnus the Good, King of Norway, 90.
Michael Catalactus, Emperor of the East, 86.

Narfi, a kinsman of Kormak and Thorgils, 30.

Odd the Needy-Skald, 15, 29, 30.

Ofeig Grettir, the Elder, 3, 6, 10.

Of eig Grettir, the Younger, n, 12,

Ofeig, brother of Ingolf and Eyvind, n.

Ogmund the Bad, a berserk, 19, 20.

Olaf the Saint, King of Norway, I, 37-39.

Olaf Feilan, 10.

Index of Names 253

Olaf, s. of Eyvind, n, 12.

Ondott Crow, a notable Norwegian warrior, 3, 6, 7.

Onund Treefoot, settled at Kaldbak, i-i i.

Orm the Wealthy, a comrade of Onund Treefoot, i.

Orm, s. of Storolf, 58.

Ospak, s. of Glum, 14, 51, 83.

Rafarta, d. of Kjarval, King of Ireland, 3.
Rannveig, first wife of Asmund Longhair, 13.
Rannveig, d. of Asmund Longhair, m. Gamli, 14, 30.

Sam, s. of Bork the Fat, 68.

Sighvat, father of Signy, the wife of Ondott Crow, 7.

Sigurd, bishop, 38.

Sigurd, husband of Spes, 87-90.

Skapti, the Lawman (from 1004 to 1030), 27, 32, 46, 51, 53,

54. 76.

Skeggi of Midfjord, 11-13.
Skeggi, a follower of Thorkell Krafla, 16.
Skeggi, s. of Thorarin, 26.
Skeggi, s. of Thorir of Card, 38.
Skeggi Short-hand, s. of Gamli of Melar ; seconds his father in

his loyalty to Grettir on many occasions; brings Grettir's

dead body from Drangey and gives it Christian burial in

Reykir, 51, 83, 84.
Skeggi, a child born of Steinvor in Sandhaugar, of doubtful

paternity, 67.

Skuf, a man killed by Thorgeir Havarsson, 27.
Sncskollr, a ruffian, 40.
Snorri the Godi, a famous personage who figures in most of

the greater sagas, noted for his knowledge of law and the

subtlety of his proceedings (b. 963, d. 1031). Till 1008

he lived at Helgafell, after that at Tunga in Saelingsdal.

He supports Grettir generally on every occasion where

he can be of service, 49, 51, 59, 68, 76.
Solvi the Proud, 44.
Spes, a lady of Constantinople, carries on an intrigue with

Thorsteinn Dromund, 87-92.
Steinn the Easterner, a viking who supports Flosi in the fray

at Rifsker, 12.

Steinn, s. of Thorgest; Lawman (1031-1033).
Steinn, a priest in Bardardal, 64, 65, 67.
Steinn of Tunga, 70, 72, 81.
Steinolf, one of the Myramen, 60, 6 1 .
Steinvor the Old, 12.

Steinvor, wife of Thorsteinn of Sandhaugar, 64, 67.
Sturla, s. of Thord; Lawman (d. 1284), 49, 69, 93.
Svan of Hoi, joins Thorgrim in the Rifsker fray, 12.

254 Grettir the Strong

Sveinn, s. of Hakon, jarl; joint regent of Norway, 19, 22,

24. 37-
Sveinn of Bakki, 47.

Thoralf, one of the farmers of Vatnsfjardardal.

Thoralf, s. of Skolm, 58.

Thorarin the Wise, 28, 31.

Thorarin of Akrar, one of the Myramen, 60, 61.

Thorbjorg the Fat, d. of Olaf Peacock and wife of Vermund

the Slender, 52.

Thorbjorn the Salmon-man, 3, 6.
Thorbjorn Jarlakappi, 10.
Thorbjorn Oxmain, resident at Thorbjornstad on the Hruta-

fjord; a bitter enemy of Grettir's family; slays Atli, and

is himself slain by Grettir, 30, 36, 42-5 1 .
Thorbjorn Slowcoach, a kinsman of the last, the Thersites

of the saga. Slain at last by Grettir, 30, 36, 37, 42, 43.
Thorbjorn, a thrall, Glaum (q.v.}.
Thorbjorn, called Angle; a chief of Skagafjord, and leader in

the attacks on Grettir in Drangey, 70-88.
Thord the Yeller, s. of Olaf Feilan, 26, 77.
Thord, s. of Kolbeinn of Hitarnes ; at feud with Bjorn the

Hitdale warrior, 58-60.

Thord, two brothers of the same name, 70, 72.
Thordis, Onund Treefoot's second wife, n.
Thordis, wife of Thorgrim and mother of Asmund Longhair, 13.
Thordis, d. of Asmund Longhair and wife of Glum, 14.
Thorfinn, a servant of Flosi, s. of Eirik, n, 12.
Thorfinn of Haramarsey. A wealthy bondi who hospitably

entertains Grettir in Norway, and nobly requites Grettir's

service in defending his household from the berserks,

18-24, 28.

Thorfinn of Laekjarbug; one of the Myramen, 60.
Thorgaut, a shepherd, 33.

Thorgeir, called Bottleback, son of Onund Treefoot, 11-13.
Thorgeir, s. of Havar. One of the foster-brothers; kills

Thorgils, s. of Mak, and is outlawed, 25-27, 50, 51.
Thorgeir, s. of Thorir of Skard, 30, 43.
Thorgeir, s. of Thorir of Card ; perishes in the fire near Stad

in Norway, 38.
Thorgils of Mel, 15, 29, 30.
Thorgils, s. of Mak. Foster-son of Asmund Longhair, killed

by Thorgeir, 25-27.
Thorgils, s. of Ari ; a chieftain noted for his somewhat

ostentatious hospitality, 27, 49-51.
Thorgils, s. of Ingjold; one of the Myramen, 60.
Thorgrim Greyhead, s. of Onund Treefoot, 11-13.
Thorhall, s. of Grim, of Thorhallsstad in Forsaeludal. Owner

of the property devastated by Glam, 32-35.

Index of Names 255

Thorhall, s. of Asgrim, of Tunga on the Hvita, 53.

Thorir Longchin, one of the chieftains who fought against
Harald Fairhair in the battle of Hafrsfjord, 2.

Thorir Paunch, a berserk, 19, 20.

Thorir of Skard, father of Gunnar and Thorgeir, 30.

Thorir of Card; Grettir's bitterest enemy, father of Thor-
geir and Skeggi, who were burned in Norway, 38, 46, 51,
56, 57, 59, 62, 63, 67, 77, 82, 84.

Thorir Redbeard, an outlaw engaged by Thorir of Gard to
kill Grettir, 56, 57.

Thorir, a giant, 6r.

Thorkell Mani, Lawman (970-984), 12.

Thorkell Krafla, the notable chief in Vatnsdal, foster-father
of Asdis, Grettir's mother, and a close friend of Asmund
Longhair, 13, 16, 25.

Thorkell of Salfti in Norway, 20-22.

Thorkell Kuggi, s. of Thord the Yeller, 26.

Thorkell of Gervidal, one of the farmers of Vatnsfjardar-
dal, 52.

Thorkell, s. of Eyjolf, the enemy of Grim the forest-man,
afterwards reconciled to him, 62.

Thorlak, bishop, 34.

Thorleif, a retainer of Halldor, 8 1 .

Thormod Shaft, s. of Oleif the Broad, 3, 6, 10. Gen. 4.

Thormod Coalbrow-Skald, one of the two foster-brothers,
25-27, 50, 51.

Thorodd, the Godi, 12, 32.

Thorodd Drapustuf, brother of Thorbjorn Oxmain, even-
tually reconciled with Grettir's kinsmen, and gives his
daughter in marriage to Skeggi Short-hand, 30, 48, 49,

Si, 83- 84.

Thorodd, s. of Snorri the Godi, 68, 69.

Thorsteinn of Reykjanes, 12.

Thorsteinn of Vik in Norway; brother of Asmund's wife,
Rannveig, 13.

Thorsteinn Dromund, elder half-brother of Grettir, resident
in Tunsberg in Norway. Shows him hospitality on
several occasions and avenges his death ; hero of the in-
trigue with the Lady Spes, 13, 23, 24, 39-41, 85-92. Gen. i.

Thorsteinn Kuggason, connected through his mother Thurid,
sister of Audun of Vididal, with Grettir's family. Sup-
ports Asmund energetically in the case against Thorgeir
Havarsson; resident in Ljarskogar in Hvammsfjord.
Shelters and befriends Grettir on several occasions, 26,
27, 48, 49, 53, 57, 67, 68. Gen. 3.

Thorsteinn the White of Sandhaugar, 64.

Thorvald of Drangar (father of Eirik the Red), 9.

Thorvald, s. of Kodran; one of the early missionaries, who
came to Iceland with Bishop Fridrek in 981, 13.

256 Grettir the Strong

Thorvald of Asgeirsa, s. of Asgeir Hothead; a steadfast sup-
porter of Grettir's family, 15, 25, 26, 35, 44, 51, 83, 84.
Gen. 3.

Thorvald of Reykir in Skagafjord, 69, 75.

Thrand, s. of Bjorn; comrade of Onund Treefoot, 2-6, 10.

Thrand, s. of Thorarin; one of the Myramen, 60, 61.

Thurid, d. of Asgeir Hothead ; mother of Thorsteinn Kugga-
son, 26.

Thurid, d. of Thorhall of Thorhallsstad, 32.

Thurid, foster-mother of Thorbjorn Angle, a witch, 78, 79, 8 1.

Torfi, called Skald-Torn, 15.
called Boggul-Torfi, 27.

Ulfhednar, name of two berserks belonging to Harald Fair-
hair, 2.

Vermund the Slender, s. of Thorgrim the Godi and brother of
the famous warrior Viga-Styrr. Married to Thorbjorg
the Fat, 52.

Vikar, a servant of Hjalti, s. of Thord, 82.

No. i.

GENEALOGIES

ONUND TREEFOOT
Settled at Kaldbak and married :

i. Asa, d. of Ofeig Grettir I.

2. Thordis

Thorgeir Ofeig Grettir II. Thorgrim Greyhead (Bjarg]

Bottleback |

Asmund Longhair
married:

i. Rannveig
Thorsteinn Dromund

2. Asdis, grandd. of Ofeig
Grettir II.

Atli GRETTIR Thordis =Glum Rannveig =Gamli Illugi

(Eyr) (Melar)

No. 2.

ONDOTT CROW =SIGNY

I I

King of Ireland
Helgi the Lean

[2\ Helga
1

Asmund

Asgrim
Elh'dagrim
Asgrim

isterner
)f Kjarval,

Thrand

Thorhall

257

258

Grettir the Strong

No. 3. AUD THE DEEP- MINDED =OLAF THE WHITE

Audun Skokull =Thordis
Treefoot's widow

As'geir Hothead

Thorsteinn the Red
Olaf Feilan
Thord the Yeller

Hrefna Thurid =Thorkell Kuggi

Thorsteinn Kuggasoa

No. 4.

OLVI THE BABY-MAN

I

Einar

Ofeig Grettir I. =Asny Olaf Breid

Aesa =Onund Treefoot Thonnod Shaft
Ofeig Grettir II.

Aldis =Bard, s. of Jokull

Asdis =Asmund Longhair
(cf. No. i)

Steinmod

I
Konal

Alfdis of the
Barra Isles

Jokull (Tunga)

NOTE. — By the marriage of Onund Treefoot's widow Thordis to
Audun Skokull, Grettir's family (No. i) became connected with
the powerful clan descended from Aud the Deep-Minded (No. 3),
to which, among others, Snorri the Godi belonged.

He was connected with No. 4 through the Vatnsdal race,
descended from Ingimund the Old and Jokull, to which his mother,
Asdis, belonged.

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Grettis saga

The saga of Grettir
the Strong.