OF ASGRIM, AND GIZUR, AND KARI.
Now Asgrim Ellidagrim's son talks to Gizur the white, and Kari Solmund's
son, and to Hjallti Skeggi's son, Mord Valgard's son, and Thorgeir
Craggeir, and says--
"There is no need to have any secrets here, for only those men are by
who know all our counsel. Now I will ask you if ye know anything of
their plans, for if you do, it seems to me that we must take fresh
counsel about our own plans."
"Snorri the priest," answers Gizur the white, "sent a man to me, and
bade him tell me that Flosi had gotten great help from the Northlanders;
but that Eyjolf Bolverk's son, his kinsman, had had a gold ring given
him by some one, and made a secret of it, and Snorri said it was his
meaning that Eyjolf Bolverk's son must be meant to defend the suit at
law, and that the ring must have been given him for that."
They were all agreed that it must be so. Then Gizur spoke to them--
"Now has Mord Valgard's son, my son-in-law, undertaken a suit, which all
must think most hard, to prosecute Flosi; and now my wish is that ye
share the other suits amongst you, for now it will soon be time to give
notice of the suits at the Hill of Laws. We shall need also to ask for
more help."
Asgrim said so it should be, "but we will beg thee to go round with us
when we ask for help". Gizur said he would be ready to do that.
After that Gizur picked out all the wisest men of their company to go
with him as his backers. There was Hjallti Skeggi's son, and Asgrim, and
Kari, and Thorgeir Craggeir.
Then Gizur the white said--
"Now will we first go to the booth of Skapti Thorod's son," and they do
so. Gizur the white went first, then Hjallti, then Kari, then Asgrim,
then Thorgeir Craggeir, and then his brothers.
They went into the booth. Skapti sat on the cross-bench on the dais, and
when he saw Gizur the white he rose up to meet him, and greeted him and
all of them well, and bade Gizur to sit down by him, and he does so.
Then Gizur said to Asgrim--
"Now shalt thou first raise the question of help with Skapti, but I will
throw in what I think good."
"We are come hither," said Asgrim, "for this sake, Skapti, to seek help
and aid at thy hand."
"I was thought to be hard to win the last time," said Skapti, "when I
would not take the burden of your trouble on me."
"It is quite another matter now," said Gizur. "Now the feud is for
master Njal and mistress Bergthora, who were burnt in their own house
without a cause, and for Njal's three sons, and many other worthy men,
and thou wilt surely never be willing to yield no help to men, or to
stand by thy kinsmen and connections."
"It was in my mind," answers Skapti, "when Skarphedinn told me that I
had myself borne tar on my own head, and cut up a sod of turf and crept
under it, and when he said that I had been so afraid that Thorolf Lopt's
son of Eyrar bore me abroad in his ship among his meal-sacks, and so
carried me to Iceland, that I would never share in the blood feud for
his death."
"Now there is no need to bear such things in mind," said Gizur the
white, "for he is dead who said that, and thou wilt surely grant me
this, though thou wouldst not do it for other men's sake."
"This quarrel," says Skapti, "is no business of thine, except thou
choosest to be entangled in it along with them."
Then Gizur was very wrath, and said--
"Thou art unlike thy father, though he was thought not to be quite
clean-handed; yet was he ever helpful to men when they needed him most."
"We are unlike in temper," said Skapti. "Ye two, Asgrim and thou, think
that ye have had the lead in mighty deeds; thou, Gizur the white,
because thou overcamest Gunnar of Lithend; but Asgrim, for that he slew
Gauk, his foster-brother."
"Few," said Asgrim, "bring forward the better if they know the worse,
but many would say that I slew not Gauk ere I was driven to it. There is
some excuse for thee for not helping us, but none for heaping reproaches
on us; and I only wish before this Thing is out that thou mayest get
from this suit the greatest disgrace, and that there may be none to make
thy shame good."
Then Gizur and his men stood up all of them, and went out, and so on to
the booth of Snorri the priest.
Snorri sat on the cross-bench in his booth; they went into the booth,
and he knew the men at once, and stood up to meet them, and bade them
all welcome, and made room for them to sit by him.
After that, they asked one another the news of the day.
Then Asgrim spoke to Snorri, and said--
"For that am I and my kinsman Gizur come hither, to ask thee for thy
help."
"Thou speakest of what thou mayest always be forgiven for asking, for
help in the blood-feud after such connections as thou hadst. We, too,
got many wholesome counsels from Njal, though few now bear that in mind;
but as yet I know not of what ye think ye stand most in need."
"We stand most in need," answers Asgrim, "of brisk lads and good
weapons, if we fight them here at the Thing."
"True it is," said Snorri, "that much lies on that, and it is likeliest
that ye will press them home with daring, and that they will defend
themselves so in likewise, and neither of you will allow the other's
right. Then ye will not bear with them and fall on them, and that will
be the only way left; for then they will seek to pay you off with shame
for manscathe, and with dishonour for loss of kin."
It was easy to see that he goaded them on in everything.
Then Gizur the white said--
"Thou speakest well, Snorri, and thou behavest ever most like a chief
when most lies at stake."
"I wish to know," said Asgrim, "in what way thou wilt stand by us if
things turn out as thou sayest."
"I will show thee those marks of friendship," said Snorri, "on which all
your honour will hang, but I will not go with you to the court. But if
ye fight here on the Thing, do not fall on them at all unless ye are all
most steadfast and dauntless, for you have great champions against you.
But if ye are over-matched, ye must let yourselves be driven hither
towards us, for I shall then have drawn up my men in array hereabouts,
and shall be ready to stand by you. But if it falls out otherwise, and
they give way before you, my meaning is that they will try to run for a
stronghold in the 'Great Rift'. But if they come thither, then ye will
never get the better of them. Now I will take that on my hands, to draw
up my men there, and guard the pass to the stronghold, but we will not
follow them whether they turn north or south along the river. And when
you have slain out of their band about as many as I think ye will be
able to pay blood-fines for, and yet keep your priesthoods and abodes,
then I will run up with all my men and part you. Then ye shall promise
to do us I bid you, and stop the battle, if I on my part do what I have
now promised."
Gizur thanked him kindly, and said that what he had said was just what
they all needed, and then they all went out.
"Whither shall we go now?" said Gizur.
"To the Northlanders' booth," said Asgrim.
Then they fared thither.