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
ostentatious 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 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:
Off 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 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
halfheartedly. 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 weapons and hurried down the hillside.
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 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 opportunity 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.
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.