19. ERLING AND THE PEOPLE OF HISING ISLE.

Frirek Keina and Bjarne the Bad, Onund Simonson and Ornolf Skorpa had

rowed out to sea with some ships, and sailed outside along the land to

the east. Wheresoever they came to the land they plundered, and killed

Erling's friends. Now when Erling heard that Sigurd and Markus were

killed, he gave leave to the lendermen and people of the levy to return

home; but he himself, with his men, set his course eastward across

the Folden fjord, for he heard of Markus's men there. Erling sailed to

Konungahella, where he remained the autumn; and in the first week of

winter Erling went out to the island Hising with his men, and called the

bondes to a Thing. When the Hising people came to the Thing, Erling

laid his law-suit against them for having joined the bands of Sigurd and

Markus, and having raised men against him. Assur was the name of one

of the greatest of the bondes on the island, and he answered Erling on

account of the others. The Thing was long assembled; but at the close

the bondes gave the case into Erling's own power, and he appointed a

meeting in the town within one week, and named fifteen bondes who should

appear there. When they came, he condemned them to pay a penalty of

300 head of cattle; and the bondes returned home ill pleased at this

sentence. Soon after the Gaut river was frozen, and Erling's ships were

fast in the ice; and the bondes kept back the mulct, and lay assembled

for some time. Erling made a Yule feast in the town; but the Hising

people had joint-feasts with each other, and kept under arms during

Yule. The night after the fifth day of Yule Erling went up to Hising,

surrounded Assur's house, and burnt him in it. He killed one hundred

men in all, burnt three houses, and then returned to Konungahella. The

bondes came then, according to agreement, to pay the mulct.

Heimskringla; Or, The Chronicle of the Kings of Norway · 第 987 / 1013 题