Njal's Saga (43 page)

Thorhall said, ‘It will be the same for them as before – they have overlooked something and I will quickly invalidate what they have done, in spite of Eyjolf 's big words about how correct this was.'

He told the messenger in full detail how they should proceed. The messenger returned and told Mord and Asgrim the plan which Thorhall had suggested.

Mord went before the court and named witnesses – ‘to witness that the dismissal made by Eyjolf Bolverksson is invalid, because he dismissed men from the panel who have a legitimate right to be there. Any man who owns three hundreds or more in land has the right to sit on a panel of neighbours, even though he does not live off milch animals; and any man who lives off milch animals has the right to sit on a panel of neighbours, even though he owns no land.'
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He had this testimony presented to the court. Then he went to
where the neighbours were sitting and told the two to sit down and declared them valid members of the panel of neighbours. A great shouting and crying went up, and every one said that the cause of Flosi and Eyjolf had been much shaken, and they agreed that the prosecution was stronger than the defence.

Flosi said to Eyjolf, ‘Is this correct?'

Eyjolf said he had not the wisdom to know this for a fact. Then they sent a man to Skafti the Lawspeaker to ask him whether it was correct. He sent word back that this was indeed the law, though few knew it. This was reported to Flosi and Eyjolf.

Eyjolf then asked the Sigfussons about the other neighbours who had been summoned. They said there were four who had been wrongly summoned – ‘because other men, who live closer to the scene of the action, are sitting at home.'

Eyjolf then named witnesses that he was dismissing all four of these men from the panel, and he spoke the correct language for dismissal.

Then he spoke to the rest of the neighbours: ‘You are duty-bound to apply the law fairly to both sides. Now you must go before the court when you are called and name witnesses that there is an obstacle to your pronouncing a finding, namely that only five of you are correctly summoned, when there ought to be nine. If Thorhall can find a way out of this he can win any case.'

It was apparent in all this that Flosi and Eyjolf were being very boastful. Talk went around that the suit for the burning was quashed and that the defence was now stronger than the prosecution.

Asgrim said to Mord, ‘They can't know that they have anything to boast about until we've seen Thorhall. Njal said that he taught Thorhall the law so well that he would prove to be the greatest lawyer in Iceland if he were put to the test.'

Then a man was sent to Thorhall to tell him how things stood and about Flosi and Eyjolf 's boasting and the talk among everyone that the suit for the burning was quashed.

‘That's fine,' said Thorhall, ‘but they won't gain any honour from this. Go and tell Mord to name witnesses and to swear an oath that the majority of the panel was correctly summoned. He must then
have this testimony presented to the court, and he will thus save the case for the prosecution; he will be sentenced to pay three marks for each man who was wrongly summoned, but that matter may not be prosecuted at this session,' he said. ‘Go back now.'

The messenger went back and repeated every detail of what Thorhall had said.

Mord went before the court and named witnesses and swore an oath that the majority of the neighbours had been correctly summoned. He declared that he had thus saved the case for the prosecution – ‘our enemies will have to build their reputation on something other than that we made a big mistake.'

There was much talk about how well Mord was handling the case, and people said that Flosi and his men were simply using trickery and guile.

Flosi asked Eyjolf whether this was correct, and he said he did not know for sure and that the lawspeaker should resolve the matter. Thorkel Geitisson went on their behalf and told the lawspeaker how things stood and asked whether what Mord had claimed was possibly correct.

Skafti answered, ‘There are more great lawyers around than I thought. I must tell you that this is so correct in every point that no objection can be brought against it. But I thought that only I knew this detail of the law now that Njal is dead, for I was sure that he was the only one to know it.'

Thorkel went back to Flosi and Eyjolf and told them that this was good law.

Mord Valgardsson went before the court and named witnesses – ‘to witness,' he said, ‘that I request that the neighbours whom I called on in the suit which I brought against Flosi Thordarson announce their findings, whether for or against. I make this lawful request in the court, so that the judges can hear it from one end of the court to the other.'

Mord's panel of neighbours went before the court; one of them announced their findings and all of them gave assent, and he spoke: ‘Mord Valgardsson called on nine of us freemen; five of us are standing here now, and four have been dismissed. Testimony has been brought
against the four who should have made this announcement with us. The law requires us now to announce our findings. We were called on to declare whether Flosi Thordarson ran at Helgi Njalsson in a punishable assault at the place where Flosi Thordarson wounded Helgi Njalsson with an internal or brain or marrow wound, which proved to be a fatal wound, and Helgi died of it. He called on us to declare our findings as the law requires and which he wanted brought before the court and which pertain to this case; he called on us lawfully; he called on us so that we could hear him; he called on us in the case turned over to him by Thorgeir Thorisson.

‘Now we have all sworn oaths and made a correct finding and agreed on it: we have found against Flosi and we find him guilty as charged. We nine neighbours give our finding thus stated in the East Quarter Court, in the presence of Jon, as Mord called on us to do. This is the finding of all of us.'

They gave their finding a second time and mentioned the wounds first and the assault second; all the rest of the language was as before. They found against Flosi and found him guilty as charged.

Mord Valgardsson went before the court and named witnesses that the neighbours whom he had called on in the suit which he brought against Flosi Thordarson had announced their findings and found him guilty as charged. He named these witnesses for himself or for those ‘who may need to use or benefit from this testimony.'

Mord named witnesses a second time – ‘I call for witness that I invite Flosi Thordarson, or any man who has taken over his legal defence, to present his defence in the suit which I have brought against him, since all evidence for the prosecution which legally pertains to the suit has now been brought forth – all testimony and the panel's findings presented and witnesses named to the announcement of the findings and to all the matters brought forward. But if anything arises in their lawful defence which I might use in my prosecution, I reserve the right to do so. I make this lawful request before the court, so that the judges can hear it.'

‘It makes me laugh, Eyjolf,' said Flosi, ‘to think how they will wince and scratch their heads when you present your objection.'

Eyjolf Bolverksson went before the court and named witnesses – ‘to witness that here is a legitimate objection in this case – that you prosecuted in the East Quarter Court a suit which should have been prosecuted in the North Quarter Court, because Flosi has declared himself a thingman of Askel the Godi. Here are two witnesses who were present and will testify that Flosi first turned over his godord to his brother Thorgeir and then declared himself a thingman of Askel. I name these two witnesses for myself or for those who may need to use or benefit from this testimony'

Eyjolf named witnesses a second time – ‘I call for witness that I invite Mord, who is prosecuting this suit, or any of the plaintiffs, to listen to my oath and to the presentation of the defence which I shall bring forth and to all the evidence which I shall bring forth; I make this lawful request before the court, so that the judges can hear it.'

Eyjolf named witnesses once more – ‘I call for witness that I swear this oath by the Book, a lawful oath, and I declare before God that I shall defend this suit as truthfully and fairly as I know how and in accordance with the law, and that I will meet all requirements of the law which pertain to me, as long as I am at this Thing.'

Eyjolf spoke: ‘I name these two men as witnesses that I present this legitimate objection, that the suit was prosecuted in a different quarter court from the one where it belonged. I claim that this invalidates their suit. I present the defence, thus stated, to the East Quarter Court'

Then he had all the testimony brought forth which pertained to the defence, and after that he named witnesses to all the evidence pertaining to the defence which had so far been presented.

Eyjolf named witnesses – ‘I call for testimony that I forbid the judges to make a judgement in the suit presented by Mord and his allies, because a legitimate objection has now been presented to the court. I forbid you according to a lawful, incontestable, full and binding right of prohibition, as I am entitled by the rules of the Althing and the law of the land.'

Then he called on the court to judge his defence.

Asgrim and his allies presented the other suits for the burning, and these suits took their course.

To tell now about Asgrim and his allies: they sent a man to Thorhall to tell him how things stood.

‘I was too far away,' said Thorhall, ‘for the case wouldn't have taken this turn if I'd been present. Now I see their tactic: they're going to summon you to the Fifth Court for violation of Althing procedure. They are also going to create a division in the court over the suit for the burning and prevent it from being judged, for their scheme is to shrink from no evil whatsoever. Go back as quickly as you can and say that Mord is to summon both Flosi and Eyjolf for having brought a money payment into the proceedings,
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and that he should demand a sentence of lesser outlawry. Then he must summon them with a second summons for bringing testimony that had nothing to do with the case,
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and in this they violated Althing procedure. Tell them that I say that if two sentences of lesser outlawry are pronounced against the same man, he must then be judged a full outlaw. You must bring your suits first, so that you may prosecute them and have them judged first'

The messenger went away and told Mord and Asgrim. Then they went to the Law Rock. Mord Valgardsson named witnesses – ‘I call for testimony that I summon Flosi Thordarson for having paid money to Eyjolf Bolverksson, here at the Thing, for his help. I declare that he deserves the sentence of lesser outlawry for this charge, not to be helped on his way or given asylum unless the life-ring and sustenance fee are paid at the confiscation court
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– otherwise he is a full outlaw. I declare all his property forfeit, half to me and half to the men in the quarter who have the legal right to his forfeited property. I summon this case before the Fifth Court, where this case should be heard according to law. I summon it now for prosecution and full punishment. I make this legal summons; I make this summons in the hearing of all at the Law Rock.'

With a similar summons he summoned Eyjolf Bolverksson on the charge of accepting the money; he also summoned this case before the Fifth Court.

He summoned Flosi and Eyjolf a second time, on the charge of bringing testimony into the Althing that was not relevant to the parties involved, and for having thus violated Althing procedure. He
demanded a sentence of lesser outlawry against them for this, too. Then they went away to the Law Council; the Fifth Court was in place there.

When Asgrim and Mord had left, the judges were not in agreement on what judgement to give, for some wanted to judge in favour of Flosi, and others in favour of Mord and Asgrim. They had to declare the court divided.
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Flosi and Eyjolf stayed on there while the summoning was going on.

A little later Flosi and Eyjolf were told that they had been summoned at the Law Rock to the Fifth Court, each of them twice.

Eyjolf said, ‘It was bad luck for us to stay on here while they were first with their summoning. Thorhall's cleverness is evident in this – no man is his match for intelligence. Now they'll be able to prosecute their case first in court, and this is a big gain for them. Still, let's go to the Law Rock and start our case against them, even though it won't help us much.'

They went to the Law Rock then, and Eyjolf summoned them for violation of Althing procedure. Then they went to the Fifth Court.

To return to Mord: when he and Asgrim came to the Fifth Court, Mord named witnesses and requested that they listen to his oath-swearing and to the presentation of his suit and to all the evidence for the prosecution which he intended to bring forth against Flosi and Eyjolf. He made a lawful request to the court, so that the judges could hear it from one end of the court to the other.

In the Fifth Court co-swearers had to confirm the oaths, and they also had to swear oaths themselves.

Then Mord named witnesses – ‘I call for witness that I swear a Fifth Court oath – I pray God to help me in this life and the next – that I shall prosecute this suit as truthfully and fairly as I know how and in accordance with the law. I hold Flosi to be guilty of this charge, insofar as there is substance behind it, and I have not brought money into the court to gain help in this suit, and I will not do so. I have not received money and I will not do so, either for a lawful or an unlawful end.'

Mord's two co-swearers went before the court and named witnesses – ‘to witness that we swear this oath on the Book, a lawful oath – we
ask God to help us in this life and in the next – that we pledge our honour that we consider that Mord will do his best to prosecute this suit as truthfully and fairly as he knows how, and that he has not brought money into this court to gain help in this suit, and he will not do so. He has not received money and he will not do so, either for a lawful or an unlawful end.'