were only a short time out at sea. They hove into White-river, in
Burgfirth. The tidings spread far and wide of the coming of Kjartan.
[Sidenote: Olaf goes to greet Kjartan] When Olaf, his father, and his
other kinsfolk heard of it they were greatly rejoiced. Olaf rode at
once from the west out of the Dales and south to Burgfirth, and there
was a very joyful meeting between father and son. Olaf asked Kjartan
to go and stay with him, with as many of his men as he liked to bring.
Kjartan took that well, and said that there only of all places in
Iceland he meant to abide. Olaf now rides home to Herdholt, and
Kjartan remained with his ship during the summer. He now heard of the
marriage of Gudrun, but did not trouble himself at all over it; but
that had heretofore been a matter of anxiety to many. Gudmund,
Solmund's son, Kjartan's brother-in-law, and Thurid, his sister, came
to his ship, and Kjartan gave them a cheery welcome. [Sidenote: Hrefna
and the coif] Asgeir Eider-drake came to the ship too to meet his son
Kalf, and journeying with him was Hrefna his daughter, the fairest of
women. Kjartan bade his sister Thurid have such of his wares as she
liked, and the same Kalf said to Hrefna. Kalf now unlocked a great
chest and bade them go and have a look at it. That day a gale sprang
up, and Kjartan and Kalf had to go out to moor their ship, and when
that was done they went home to the booths. Kalf was the first to
enter the booth, where Thurid and Hrefna had turned out most of the
things in the chest. Just then Hrefna snatched up the coif and
unfolded it, and they had much to say as to how precious a thing it
was. Then Hrefna said she would coif herself with it, and Thurid said
she had better, and Hrefna did so. When Kalf saw that he gave her to
understand that she had done amiss, and bade her take it off at her
swiftest. "For that is the one thing that we, Kjartan and I, do not
own in common." And as he said this Kjartan came into the booth. He
had heard their talk, and fell in at once and told them there was
nothing amiss. So Hrefna sat still with the head-dress on. Kjartan
looked at her heedfully and said, "I think the coif becomes you very
well, Hrefna," says he, "and I think it fits the best that both
together, coif and maiden, be mine." Then Hrefna answered, "Most
people take it that you are in no hurry to marry, and also that the
woman you woo, you will be sure to get for wife." Kjartan said it
would not matter much whom he married, but he would not stand being
kept long a waiting wooer by any woman. "Now I see that this gear
suits you well, and it suits well that you become my wife." Hrefna now
took off the head-dress and gave it to Kjartan, who put it away in a
safe place. Gudmund and Thurid asked Kjartan to come north to them for
a friendly stay some time that winter, and Kjartan promised the
journey. Kalf Asgeirson betook himself north with his father. Kjartan
and he now divided their partnership, and that went off altogether in
good-nature and friendship. [Sidenote: Kjartan goes to Herdholt]
Kjartan also rode from his ship westward to the Dales, and they were
twelve of them together. Kjartan now came home to Herdholt, and was
joyfully received by everybody. Kjartan had his goods taken to the
west from the ship during the autumn. The twelve men who rode with
Kjartan stayed at Herdholt all the winter. Olaf and Osvif kept to the
same wont of asking each other to their house, which was that each
should go to the other every other autumn. That autumn the wassail was
to be at Laugar, and Olaf and all the Herdholtings were to go thither.
Gudrun now spoke to Bolli, and said she did not think he had told her
the truth in all things about the coming back of Kjartan. Bolli said
he had told the truth about it as best he knew it. Gudrun spoke little
on this matter, but it could be easily seen that she was very
displeased, and most people would have it that she still was pining
for Kjartan, although she tried to hide it. Now time glides on till
the autumn feast was to be held at Laugar. Olaf got ready and bade
Kjartan come with him. Kjartan said he would stay at home and look
after the household. Olaf bade him not to show that he was angry with
his kinsmen. "Call this to mind, Kjartan, that you have loved no man
so much as your foster-brother Bolli, and it is my wish that you
should come, for things will soon settle themselves between you,
kinsmen, if you meet each other." [Sidenote: They ride to Laugar]
Kjartan did as his father bade him. He took the scarlet clothes that
King Olaf had given him at parting, and dressed himself gaily; he
girded his sword, the king's gift, on; and he had a gilt helm on his
head, and on his side a red shield with the Holy Cross painted on it
in gold; he had in his hand a spear, with the socket inlaid with gold.
All his men were gaily dressed. There were in all between twenty and
thirty men of them. They now rode out of Herdholt and went on till
they came to Laugar. There were a great many men gathered together
already.
CHAP. XLV
Kjartan marries Hrefna, A.D. 1002
Bolli, together with the sons of Osvif, went out to meet Olaf and his
company, and gave them a cheery welcome. Bolli went to Kjartan and
kissed him, and Kjartan took his greeting. After that they were seen
into the house, Bolli was of the merriest towards them, and Olaf
responded to that most heartily, but Kjartan was rather silent. The
feast went off well. [Sidenote: Bolli's gift refused] Now Bolli had
some stud-horses which were looked upon as the best of their kind.
The stallion was great and goodly, and had never failed at fight; it
was light of coat, with red ears and forelock. Three mares went with
it, of the same hue as the stallion. These horses Bolli wished to give
to Kjartan, but Kjartan said he was not a horsey man, and could not
take the gift. Olaf bade him take the horses, "for these are most
noble gifts." Kjartan gave a flat refusal. They parted after this
nowise blithely, and the Herdholtings went home, and all was quiet.
Kjartan was rather gloomy all the winter, and people could have but
little talk of him. Olaf thought this a great misfortune. That winter
after Yule Kjartan got ready to leave home, and there were twelve of
them together, bound for the countrysides of the north. They now rode
on their way till they came to Asbjornness, north in Willowdale, and
there Kjartan was greeted with the greatest blitheness and
cheerfulness. The housing there was of the noblest. Hall, the son of
Gudmund, was about twenty winters old, and took much after the kindred
of the men of Salmon-river-Dale; and it is all men's say, there was no
more valiant-looking a man in all the north land. [Sidenote: The games
at Asbjornness] Hall greeted Kjartan, his uncle, with the greatest
blitheness. Sports are now at once started at Asbjornness, and men
were gathered together from far and near throughout the countrysides,
and people came from the west from Midfirth and from Waterness and
Waterdale all the way and from out of Longdale, and there was a great
gathering together. It was the talk of all folk how strikingly Kjartan
showed above other men. Now the sports were set going, and Hall took
the lead. He asked Kjartan to join in the play, "and I wish, kinsman,
you would show your courtesy in this." Kjartan said, "I have been
training for sports but little of late, for there were other things to
do with King Olaf, but I will not refuse you this for once." So
Kjartan now got ready to play, and the strongest men there were chosen
out to go against him. The game went on all day long, but no man had
either strength or litheness of limb to cope with Kjartan. And in the
evening when the games were ended, Hall stood up and said, "It is the
wish and offer of my father concerning those men who have come from
the farthest hither, that they all stay here over night and take up
the pastime again to-morrow." At this message there was made a good
cheer, and the offer deemed worthy of a great man. Kalf Asgeirson was
there, and he and Kjartan were dearly fond of each other. His sister
Hrefna was there also, and was dressed most showily. There were over a
hundred (_i.e._ over 120) men in the house that night. And the next
day sides were divided for the games again. [Sidenote: Thurid's
advice] Kjartan sat by and looked on at the sports. Thurid, his
sister, went to talk to him, and said, "It is told me, brother, that
you have been rather silent all the winter, and men say it must be
because you are pining after Gudrun, and set forth as a proof thereof
that no fondness now is shown between you and Bolli, such as through
all time there had been between you. Do now the good and befitting
thing, and don't allow yourself to take this to heart, and grudge not
your kinsman a good wife. To me it seems your best counsel to marry,
as you bespoke it last summer, although the match be not altogether
even for you, where Hrefna is, for such a match you cannot find within
this land. Asgeir, her father, is a noble and a high-born man, and he
does not lack wealth wherewith to make this match fairer still;
moreover, another daughter of his is married to a mighty man. You have
also told me yourself that Kalf Asgeirson is the doughtiest of men,
and their way of life is of the stateliest. It is my wish that you go
and talk to Hrefna, and I ween you will find that there great wits and
goodliness go together." Kjartan took this matter up well, and said
she had ably pleaded the case. After this Kjartan and Hrefna are
brought together that they may have their talk by themselves, and they
talked together all day. In the evening Thurid asked Kjartan how he
liked the manner in which Hrefna turned her speech. He was well
pleased about it, and said he thought the woman was in all ways one of
the noblest as far as he could see. The next morning men were sent to
Asgeir to ask him to Asbjornness. [Sidenote: Kjartan marries Hrefna]
And now they had a parley between them on this affair, and Kjartan
wooed Hrefna, Asgeir's daughter. Asgeir took up the matter with a good
will, for he was a wise man, and saw what an honourable offer was
made to them. Kalf, too, urged the matter on very much, saying, "I
will not let anything be spared (towards the dowry)." Hrefna, in her
turn, did not make unwilling answers, but bade her father follow his
own counsel. So now the match was covenanted and settled before
witnesses. Kjartan would hear of nothing but that the wedding should
be held at Herdholt, and Asgeir and Kalf had nothing to say against
it. The wedding was then settled to take place at Herdholt when five
weeks of summer had passed. After that Kjartan rode home with great
gifts. Olaf was delighted at these tidings, for Kjartan was much
merrier than before he left home. Kjartan kept fast through Lent,
following therein the example of no man in this land; and it is said
he was the first man who ever kept fast in this land. Men thought it
so wonderful a thing that Kjartan could live so long without meat,
that people came over long ways to see him. In a like manner Kjartan's
other ways went beyond those of other men. Now Easter passed, and
after that Kjartan and Olaf made ready a great feast. At the appointed
time Asgeir and Kalf came from the north as well as Gudmund and Hall,
and altogether there were sixty men. Olaf and Kjartan had already many
men gathered together there. It was a most brave feast, and for a
whole week the feasting went on. [Sidenote: The coif] Kjartan made
Hrefna a bridal gift of the rich head-dress, and a most famous gift
was that; for no one was there so knowing or so rich as ever to have
seen or possessed such a treasure, for it is the saying of thoughtful
men that eight ounces of gold were woven into the coif. Kjartan was so
merry at the feast that he entertained every one with his talk,
telling of his journey. Men did marvel much how great were the matters
that entered into that tale; for he had served the noblest of
lords--King Olaf Tryggvason. And when the feast was ended Kjartan gave
Gudmund and Hall good gifts, as he did to all the other great men. The
father and son gained great renown from this feast. Kjartan and Hrefna
loved each other very dearly.
CHAP. XLVI
Feast at Herdholt and the Loss of Kjartan's Sword, A.D. 1002
Olaf and Osvif were still friends, though there was some deal of
ill-will between the younger people. That summer Olaf had his feast
half a month before winter. And Osvif was also making ready a feast,
to be held at "Winter-nights," and they each asked the other to their
homes, with as many men as each deemed most honourable to himself. It
was Osvif's turn to go first to the feast at Olaf's, and he came to
Herdholt at the time appointed. In his company were Bolli and Gudrun
and the sons of Osvif. In the morning one of the women on going down
the hall was talking how the ladies would be shown to their seats.
And just as Gudrun had come right against the bedroom wherein Kjartan
was wont to rest, and where even then he was dressing and slipping on
a red kirtle of scarlet, he called out to the woman who had been
speaking about the seating of the women, for no one else was quicker
in giving the answer, "Hrefna shall sit in the high seat and be most
honoured in all things so long as I am alive." [Sidenote: Gudrun sees
the coif] But before this Gudrun had always had the high seat at
Herdholt and everywhere else. Gudrun heard this, and looked at Kjartan
and flushed up, but said nothing. The next day Gudrun was talking to
Hrefna, and said she ought to coif herself with the head-dress, and
show people the most costly treasure that had ever come to Iceland.
Kjartan was near, but not quite close, and heard what Gudrun said, and
he was quicker to answer than Hrefna. "She shall not coif herself with
the headgear at this feast, for I set more store by Hrefna owning the
greatest of treasures than by the guests having it to feast thereon
their eyes at this time." The feast at Olaf's was to last a week. The
next day Gudrun spoke on the sly to Hrefna, and asked her to show her
the head-dress, and Hrefna said she would. The next day they went to
the out-bower where the precious things were kept, and Hrefna opened a
chest and took out the pocket of costly stuff, and took from thence
the coif and showed it to Gudrun. She unfolded the coif and looked at
it a while, but said no word of praise or blame. After that Hrefna
put it back, and they went to their places, and after that all was joy
and amusement. And the day the guests should ride away Kjartan busied
himself much about matters in hand, getting change of horses for those
who had come from afar, and speeding each one on his journey as he
needed. [Sidenote: The loss of Kjartan's sword] Kjartan had not his
sword "King's-gift" with him while he was taken up with these matters,
yet was he seldom wont to let it go out of his hand. After this he
went to his room where the sword had been, and found it now gone. He
then went and told his father of the loss. Olaf said, "We must go
about this most gently. I will get men to spy into each batch of them
as they ride away," and he did so. An the White had to ride with
Osvif's company, and to keep an eye upon men turning aside, or
baiting. They rode up past Lea-shaws, and past the homesteads which
are called Shaws, and stopped at one of the homesteads at Shaws, and
got off their horses. Thorolf, son of Osvif, went out from the
homestead with a few other men. They went out of sight amongst the
brushwood, whilst the others tarried at the Shaws' homestead. An
followed him all the way unto Salmon-river, where it flows out of
Saelingsdale, and said he would turn back there. Thorolf said it would
have done no harm though he had gone nowhere at all. The night before
a little snow had fallen so that footprints could be traced.
[Sidenote: An finds the sword] An rode back to the brushwood, and
followed the footprints of Thorolf to a certain ditch or bog. He
groped down with his hand, and grasped the hilt of a sword. An wished
to have witnesses with him to this, and rode for Thorarin in
Saelingsdale Tongue, and he went with An to take up the sword. After
that An brought the sword back to Kjartan. Kjartan wrapt it in a
cloth, and laid it in a chest. The place was afterwards called
Sword-ditch, where An and Thorarin had found the "King's-gift." This
was all kept quiet. The scabbard was never found again. Kjartan always
treasured the sword less hereafter than heretofore. This affair
Kjartan took much to heart, and would not let the matter rest there.
Olaf said, "Do not let it pain you; true, they have done a nowise
pretty trick, but you have got no harm from it. We shall not let
people have this to laugh at, that we make a quarrel about such a
thing, these being but friends and kinsmen on the other side." And
through these reasonings of Olaf, Kjartan let matters rest in quiet.
After that Olaf got ready to go to the feast at Laugar at "winter
nights," and told Kjartan he must go too. Kjartan was very unwilling
thereto, but promised to go at the bidding of his father. Hrefna was
also to go, but she wished to leave her coif behind. "Goodwife,"
Thorgerd said, "whenever will you take out such a peerless keepsake if
it is to lie down in chests when you go to feasts?" Hrefna said, "Many
folk say that it is not unlikely that I may come to places where I
have fewer people to envy me than at Laugar." Thorgerd said, "I have
no great belief in people who let such things fly here from house to
house." [Sidenote: Hrefna misses the coif] And because Thorgerd urged
it eagerly Hrefna took the coif, and Kjartan did not forbid it when he
saw how the will of his mother went. After that they betake themselves
to the journey and came to Laugar in the evening, and had a goodly
welcome there. Thorgerd and Hrefna handed out their clothes to be
taken care of. But in the morning when the women should dress
themselves Hrefna looked for the coif and it was gone from where she
had put it away. It was looked for far and near, and could not be
found. Gudrun said it was most likely the coif had been left behind at
home, or that she had packed it so carelessly that it had fallen out
on the way. Hrefna now told Kjartan that the coif was lost. He
answered and said it was no easy matter to try to make them take care
of things, and bade her now leave matters quiet; and told his father
what game was up. Olaf said, "My will is still as before, that you
leave alone and let pass by this trouble and I will probe this matter
to the bottom in quiet; for I would do anything that you and Bolli
should not fall out. Best to bind up a whole flesh, kinsman," says he.
Kjartan said, "I know well, father, that you wish the best for
everybody in this affair; yet I know not whether I can put up with
being thus overborne by these folk of Laugar." [Sidenote: Kjartan
complains to Bolli] The day that men were to ride away from the feast
Kjartan raised his voice and said, "I call on you, Cousin Bolli, to
show yourself more willing henceforth than hitherto to do to us as
behoves a good man and true. I shall not set this matter forth in a
whisper, for within the knowledge of many people it is that a loss has
befallen here of a thing which we think has slipped into your own
keep. This harvest, when we gave a feast at Herdholt, my sword was
taken; it came back to me, but not the scabbard. Now again there has
been lost here a keepsake which men will esteem a thing of price. Come
what may, I will have them both back." Bolli answered, "What you put
down to me, Kjartan, is not my fault, and I should have looked for
anything else from you sooner than that you would charge me with
theft." Kjartan says, "I must think that the people who have been
putting their heads together in this affair are so near to you that it
ought to be in your power to make things good if you but would. You
affront us far beyond necessity, and long we have kept peaceful in
face on your enmity. But now it must be made known that matters will
not rest as they are now." Then Gudrun answered his speech and said,
"Now you rake up a fire which it would be better should not smoke.
Now, let it be granted, as you say, that there be some people here who
have put their heads together with a view to the coif disappearing. I
can only think that they have gone and taken what was their own. Think
what you like of what has become of the head-dress, but I cannot say I
dislike it though it should be bestowed in such a way as that Hrefna
should have little chance to improve her apparel with it henceforth."
After that they parted heavy of heart, and the Herdholtings rode
home. That was the end of the feasts, yet everything was to all
appearances quiet. [Sidenote: The end of the coif] Nothing was ever
heard of the head-dress. But many people held the truth to be that
Thorolf had burnt it in fire by the order of Gudrun, his sister. Early
that winter Asgeir Eider-drake died. His sons inherited his estate and
chattels.
CHAP. XLVII
Kjartan goes to Laugar, and of the Bargain for Tongue, A.D. 1003