Автор литература - Njal's Saga

weepest, but still it is well that thou shouldst weep for a good

husband.”

“What vengeance or help shall I have of thee?” she says.

“I will follow up thy suit,” said Flosi, “to the utmost limit of

the law, or strive for that atonement which good men and true

shall say that we ought to have as full amends.”

“Hauskuld would avenge thee,” she said, “if he had the blood-feud

after thee.”

“Thou lackest not grimness,” answered Flosi, “and what thou

wantest is plain.”

“Arnor Ornolf’s son, of Forswaterwood,” said Hildigunna, “had

done less wrong towards Thord Frey’s priest thy father; and yet

thy brothers Kolbein and Egil slew him at Skaptarfells-Thing.”

Then Hildigunna went back into the hall and unlocked her chest,

and then she took out the cloak, Flosi’s gift, and in it Hauskuld

had been slain, and there she had kept it, blood and all. Then

she went back into the sittingroom with the Cloak; she went up

silently to Flosi. Flosi had just then eaten his full, and the

board was cleared. Hildigunna threw the cloak over Flosi, and

the gore rattled down all over him.

Then she spoke and said, “This cloak, Flosi, thou gavest to

Hauskuld, and now I will give it back to thee; he was slain in

it, and I call God and all good men to witness, that I abjure

thee, by all the might of thy Christ, and by thy manhood and

bravery, to take vengeance for all those wounds which he had on

his dead body, or else to be called every man’s dastard.”

Flosi threw the cloak off him and hurled it into her lap, and

said, “Thou art the greatest hell-hag, and thou wishest that we

should take that course which will be the worst for all of us.

But `women’s counsel is ever cruel.’”

Flosi was so stirred at this, that sometimes he was bloodred in

the face, and sometimes ashy pale as withered grass, and

sometimes blue as death.

Flosi and his men rode away; he rode to Holtford, and there waits

for the sons of Sigfus and other of his men.

Ingialld dwelt at the Springs; he was the brother of Rodny,

Hauskuld Njal’s son’s mother (1). Ingialld had to wife

Thraslauga, the daughter of Egil, the son of Thord Frey’s priest

(2). Flosi sent word to Ingialld to come to him, and Ingialld

went at once, with fourteen men. They were all of his household.

Ingialld was a tall man and a strong, and slow to meddle with

other men’s business, one of the bravest of men, and very

bountiful to his friends.

Flosi greeted him well, and said to him, “Great trouble hath now

come on me and my brothers-in-law, and it is hard to see our way

out of it; I beseech thee not to part from my suit until this

trouble is past and gone.”

“I am come into a strait myself,” said Ingialld, “for the sake of

the ties that there are between me and Njal and his sons, and

other great matters which stand in the way.”

“I thought,” said Flosi, “when I gave away my brother’s daughter

to thee, that thou gavest me thy word to stand by me in every

suit.”

“It is most likely,” says Ingialld, “that I shall do so, but

still I will now, first of all, ride home, and thence to the

Thing.”

ENDNOTES:

(1) They were children of Hauskuld the White, the son of

Ingialld the Strong, the son of Gerfinn the Red, the son of

Solvi, the son of Tborstein Baresarks-bane.

(2) The mother of Egil was Thraslauga, the daughter of Thorstein

Titling; the mother of Thraslauga was Unna, the daughter of

Eyvind Karf.

116. OF FLOSI AND MORD AND THE SONS OF SIGFUS

The sons of Sigfus heard how Flosi was at Holtford, and they rode

thither to meet him, and there were Kettle of the Mark, and Lambi

his brother, Thorkell and Mord, the sons of Sigfus, Sigmund their

brother, and Lambi Sigurd’s son, and Gunnar Lambi’s son, and

Grani Gunnar’s son, and Vebrand Hamond’s son.

Flosi stood up to meet them, and greeted them gladly. So they

went down the river. Flosi had the whole story from them about

the slaying, and there was no difference between them and Kettle

of the Mark’s story.

Flosi spoke to Kettle of the Mark, and said, “This now I ask of

thee; how tightly are your hearts knit as to this suit, thou and

the other sons of Sigfus?”

“My wish is,” said Kettle, “that there should be peace between

us, but yet I have sworn an oath not to part from this suit till

it has been brought somehow to an end; and to lay my life on it.”

“Thou art a good man and true,” said Flosi, “and it is well to

have such men with one.”

Then Grani Gunnar’s son and Lambi Sigurd’s son both spoke

together, and said, “We wish for outlawry and death.”

“It is not given us,” said Flosi, “both to share and choose, we

must take what we can get.”

“I have had it in my heart,” says Grani, “ever since they slew

Thrain by Markfleet, and after that his son Hauskuld, never to be

atoned with them by a lasting peace, for I would willingly stand

by when they were all slain, every man of them.”

“Thou hast stood so near to them,” said Flosi, “that thou

mightest have avenged these things hadst thou had the heart and

manhood. Methinks thou and many others now ask for what ye would

give much money hereafter never to have had a share in. I see

this clearly, that though we slay Njal or his sons, still they

are men of so great worth, and of such good family, that there

will be such a blood feud and hue and cry after them, that we

shall have to fall on our knees before many a man, and beg for

help, ere we get an atonement and find our way out of this

strait. Ye may make up your minds, then, that many will become

poor who before had great goods, but some of vou will lose both

goods and life.”

Mord Valgard’s son rode to meet Flosi, and said he would ride to

the Thing with him with all his men. Flosi took that well, and

raised a matter of a wedding with him, that he should give away

Rannveiga his daughter to Starkad Flosi’s brother’s son, who

dwelt at Staffell. Flosi did this because he thouoht he would so

make sure both of his faithfulness and force.

Mord took the wedding kindly, but handed the matter over to Gizur

the White, and bade him talk about it at the Thing.

Mord had to wife Thorkatla, Gizur the White’s daughter.

They two, Mord and Flosi, rode both together to the Thing, and

talked the whole day, and no man knew aught of their counsel.

117. NJAL AND SKARPHEDINN TALK TOGETHER

Now, we must say how Njal said to Skarphedinn.

“What plan have ye laid down for yourselves, thou and thy

brothers and Kari?”

“Little reck we of dreams in most matters,” said Skarphedinn;

“but if thou must know, we shall ride to Tongue to Asgrim

Ellidagrim’s son, and thence to the Thing; but, what meanest thou

to do about thine own journey, father?”

“I shall ride to the Thing,” says Njal, “for it belongs to my

honour not to be severed from your suit so long as I live. I

ween that many men will have good words to say of me, and so I

shall stand you in good stead, and do you no harm.”

There, too, was Thorhall Asgrim’s son, and Njal’s fosterson. The

sons of Njal laughed at him because he was clad in a coat of

russet, and asked how long he meant to wear that?

“I shall have thrown it off,” he said, “when I have to follow up