Now the time passes away till the courts were to go out to try
suits. Both sides then made them ready to go thither, and armed
them. Each side put war-tokens on their helmets.
Then Thorhall Asgrim's son said, "Walk hastily in nothing father
mine, and do everything as lawfully and rightly as ye can, but if
ye fall into any strait let me know as quickly as ye can, and
then I will give you counsel."
Asgrim and the others looked at him, and his face was as though
it were all blood, but great teardrops gushed out of his eyes.
He bade them bring him his spear, that had been a gift to him
from Skarphedinn, and it was the greatest treasure.
Asgrim said as they went away, "Our kinsman Thorhall was not easy
in his mind as we left him behind in the booth, and I know not
what he will be at."
Then Asgrim said again, "Now we will go to Mord Valgard's son,
and think of nought else but the suit, for there is more sport in
Flosi than in very many other men."
Then Asgrim sent a man to Gizur the White, and Hjallti Skeggi's
son, and Gudmund the Powerful. Now they all came together, and
went straight to the court of Eastfirthers. They went to the
court from the south, but Flosi and all the Eastfirthers with him
went to it from the north. There were also the men of Reykdale
and the Axefirthers with Flosi. There, too, was Eyjolf Bolverk's
son. Flosi looked at Eyjolf, and said, "All now goes fairly, and
may be that it will not be far off from thy guess."
"Keep thy peace about it," says Eyjolf, "and then we shall be
sure to gain our point."
Now Mord took witness, and bade all those men who had suits of
outlawry before the court to cast lots who should first plead or
declare his suit, and who next, and who last; he bade them by a
lawful bidding before the court, so that the judges heard it.
Then lots were cast as to the declarations, and he, Mord, drew
the lot to declare his suit first.
Now Mord Valgard's son took witness the second time, and said, "I
take witness to this, that I except all mistakes in words in my
pleading, whether they be too many or wrongly spoken, and I claim
the right to amend all my words until I have put them into proper
lawful shape. I take witness to myself of this."
Again Mord said, "I take witness to this, that I bid Flosi
Thord's son, or any other man who has undertaken the defence made
over to him by Flosi, to listen for him to my oath, and to my
declaration of my suit, and to all the proofs and proceedings
which I am about to bring forward against him; I bid him by a
lawful bidding before the court, so that the judges may hear it
across the court."
Again Mord Valgard's son said, "I take witness to this, that I
take an oath on the book, a lawful oath, and I say it before God,
that I will so plead this suit in the most truthful, and most
just and most lawful way, so far as I know; and that I will bring
forward all my proofs in due form, and utter them faithfully so
long as I am in this suit."
After that he spoke in these words, "I have called Thorodd as my
first witness, and Thorbjorn as my second; I have called them to
bear witness that I gave notice of an assault laid down by law
against Flosi Thord's son, on that spot where he, Flosi Thord's
son, rushed with an assault laid down by law on Helgi Njal's son,
when Flosi Thord's son wounded Helgi Njal's son with a brain, or
a body, or a marrow wound, which proved a death-wound, and from
which Helgi got his death. I said that he ought to be made in
this suit a guilty man, an outlaw, not to be fed, not to be
forwarded, not to be helped or harboured in any need; I said that
all his goods were forfeited half to me and half to the men of
the Quarter who have the right by law to take the goods which he
has forfeited; I gave notice of the suit in the quarter Court
into which the suit ought by law to come; I gave notice of that
lawful notice; I gave notice in the hearing of all men at the
Hill of Laws; I gave notice of this suit to be pleaded now this
summer, and of full outlawry against Flosi Thord's son. I gave
notice of a suit which Thorgeir Thorir's son had handed over to
me; and I had all these words in my notice which I have now used
in this declaration of my suit. I now declare this suit of
outlawry in this shape before the court of the Eastfirthers over
the head of John, as I uttered it when I gave notice of it."
Then Mord spoke again, "I have called Thorodd as my first
witness, and Thorbjorn as my second. I have called them to bear
witness that I gave notice of a suit against Flosi Thord's son
for that he wounded Helgi Njal's son with a brain or a body, or a
marrow wound, which proved a death-wound, and from which Helgi
got his death. I said that he ought to be made in this suit a
guilty man, an outlaw, not to be fed, not to be forwarded, not to
be helped or harboured in any need; I said that all his goods
were forfeited, half to me and half to the men of the Quarter who
have the right by law to take the goods which he has forfeited; I
gave notice of the suit in the Quarter Court into which the suit
ought by law to come; I gave notice of that lawful notice; I gave
notice in the hearing of all men at the Hill of Laws; I gave
notice of this suit to be pleaded now this summer, and of full
outlawry against Flosi Thord's son. I gave notice of a suit
which Thorgeir Thorir's son had handed over to me; and I had all
these words in my notice which I have now used in this
declaration of my suit. I now declare this suit of outlawry in
this shape before the court of the Eastfirthers over the head of
John, as I uttered it when I gave notice of it."
Then Mord's witnesses to the notice came before the court, and
spake so that one uttered their witness, but both confirmed it by
their common consent in this form, "I bear witness that Mord
called Thorodd as his first witness, and me as his second, and my
name is Thorbjorn" -- then he named his father's name -- "Mord
called us two as his witnesses that he gave notice of an assault
laid down by law against Flosi Thord's son when he rushed on
Helgi Njal's son, in that spot where Flosi Thord's son dealt
Helgi Njal's son a brain, or a body, or a marrow wound, that
proved a death-wound, and from which Helgi got his death. He
said that Flosi ought to be made in this suit a guilty man, an
outlaw, not to be fed, not to be forwarded, not to be helped or
harboured by any man; he said that all his goods were forfeited,
half to himself and half to the men of the Quarter who have the
right by law to take the goods which he had forfeited; he gave
notice of the suit in the Quarter Court into which the suit ought
by law to come; he gave notice of that lawful notice; he gave
notice in the hearing of all men at the Hill of Laws; he gave
notice of this suit to be pleaded now this summer, and of full
outlawry against Flosi Thord's son. He gave notice of a suit
which Thorgeir Thorir's son had handed over to him. He used all
those words in his notice which he used in the declaration of his
suit, and which we have used in bearing witness; we have now
borne our witness rightly and lawfully, and we are agreed in
bearing it; we bear this witness in this shape before the
Eastfirthers' Court over the head of John, as Mord uttered it
when he gave his notice."
A second time they bore their witness of the notice before the
court, and put the wounds first and the assault last, and used
all the same words as before, and bore their witness in this
shape before the Eastfirthers' Court just as Mord uttered them
when he gave his notice.
Then Mord's witnesses to the handing over of the suit went before
the court, and one uttered their witness, and both confirmed it
by common consent, and spoke in these words, "That those two,
Mord Valgard's son and Thorgeir Thorir's son, took them to
witness that Thorgeir Thorir's son handed over a suit for
manslaughter to Mord Valgard's son against Flosi Thord's son for
the slaying of Helgi Njal's son; he handed over to him then this
suit, with all the proofs and proceedings which belonged to the
suit, he handed it over to him to plead and to settle, and to
make use of all rights as though he were the rightful next of
kin: Thorgeir handed it over lawfully, and Mord took it lawfully."
They bore witness of the handing over of the suit in this shape
before the Eastfirther's Court over the head of John, just as
Mord or Thorgeir had called them as witnesses to prove.
They made all these witnesses swear on oath ere they bore
witness, and the judges too.
Again Mord Valgard's son took witness. "I take witness to this,"
said he, "that I bid those nine neighbours whom I summoned when I
laid this suit against Flosi Thord's son, to take their seats
west on the river-bank, and I call on the defendant to challenge
this request, I call on him by a lawful bidding before the court
so that the judges may hear."
Again Mord took witness. "I take witness to this, that I bid
Flosi Thord's son, or that other man who has the defence handed
over to him, to challenge the inquest which I have caused, to
take their seats west on the river-bank. I bid thee by a lawful
bidding before the court so that the judges may hear."
Again Mord took witness. "I take witness to this, that now are
all the first steps and proofs brought forward which belong to
the suit. Summons to bear my oath, oath taken, suit declared,
witness borne to the notice, witness borne to the handing over of
the suit, the neighbours on the inquest bidden to take their
seats, and the defendant bidden to challenge the inquest. I take
this witness to these steps and proofs which are now brought
forward, and also to this that I shall not be thought to have
left the suit though I go away from the court to look up proofs,
or on other business."
Now Flosi and his men went thither where the neighbours on the
inquest sate.
Then Flosi said to his men, "The sons of Sigfus must know best
whether these are the rightful neighbours to the spot who are
here summoned."
Kettle of the Mark answered, "Here is that neighbour who held
Mord at the font when he was baptized, but another is his second
cousin by kinship."
Then they reckoned up his kinship, and proved it with an oath.
Then Eyjolf took witness that the inquest should do nothing till
it was challenged.
A second time Eyjolf took witness, "I take witness to this," said
he, "that I challenge both these men out of the inquest, and set
them aside" -- here he named them by name, and their fathers as
well -- "for this sake, that one of them is Mord's second cousin
by kinship, but the other for gossipry (2), for which sake it is
lawful to challenge a neighbour on the inquest; ye two are for a
lawful reason incapable of uttering a finding, for now a lawful
challenge has overtaken you, therefore I challenge and set you
aside by the rightful custom of pleading at the Althing, and by
the law of the land; I challenge you in the cause which Flosi
Thord's son has handed over to me."
Now all the people spoke out, and said that Mord's suit had come
to naught, and all were agreed in this that the defence was
better than the prosecution.
Then Asgrim said to Mord, "The day is not yet their own, though
they think now that they have gained a great step; but now some
one shall go to see Thorhall my son, and know what advice he
gives us."
Then a trusty messenger was sent to Thorhall, and told him as
plainly as he could how far the suit had gone, and how Flosi and
his men thought they had brought the finding of the inquest to a
dead lock.
"I will so make it out," says Thorhall, "that this shall not
cause you to lose the suit; and tell them not to believe it,
though quirks and quibbles be brought against them, for that
wiseacre Eyjolf has now overlooked something. But now thou shalt
go back as quickly as thou canst, and say that Mord Valgard's son
must go before the court, and take witness that their challenge
has come to naught," and then he told him step by step how they
must proceed.
The messenger came and told them Thorhall's advice.
Then Mord Valgard's son went to the court and took witness. "I
take witness to this," said he, "that I make Eyjolf's challenge
void and of none effect; and my ground is, that he challenged
them not for their kinship to the true plaintiff, the next of
kin, but for their kinship to him who pleaded the suit; I take
this witness to myself, and to all those to whom this witness
will be of use."
After that he brought that witness before the court.
Now he went whither the neighbours sate on the inquest, and bade
those to sit down again who had risen up, and said they were
rightly called on to share in the finding of the inquest.
Then all said that Thorhall had done great things, and all
thought the prosecution better than the defence.