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 carry 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 dislike 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 ill 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 disgusted. 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 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 defiled 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 would be observing 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 redress.