The Sagas of the Icelanders (47 page)

43
There was a Norwegian named Bjorn who owned a ship which was ready for sea. Thorkel Scratcher went abroad with him. They arrived in the Orkney Islands. At that time Sigurd was earl in the islands. Bjorn was known to the earl and asked him to offer hospitality to Thorkel and himself, and said that he was a man of good family, very worthy, and far superior to Icelandic men. The earl said that he would offer them hospitality and asked about Thorkel’s kinsfolk; Thorkel told him who he was but the earl paid little attention. The earl then made them welcome. Thorkel seemed stubborn in the eyes of the earl’s men; he never left his place unless the earl went somewhere. He was very faithful to him.

Once, in the spring, the earl’s men set off from the hall for the games, but the earl remained behind with a few men and said, ‘You are more single-minded than most other men, Thorkel, in that you do not go off to the games; now what was it that you said to me about your kinsfolk?’

Thorkel spoke of his family, and the earl took this in and said, ‘You must be related to me, but you are very slow in letting this be known.’

The earl’s respect for him grew, and during the following summer he went raiding and asked Thorkel whether he wanted to go with him. He replied that he would like to go with him if this was the earl’s wish.

They raided far and wide that summer. Once, when they made an attack in Scotland and returned to their ships, the earl asked how many men were missing. This was then looked into and Thorkel alone was missing; he had been on the earl’s ship. The earl’s men said that such a lazy lout was no loss. The earl asked them to go at once and look for him; and so they did. They found Thorkel by an oak tree in a forest clearing; two men were attacking him and four others lay dead by him. When the earl’s men arrived, Thorkel’s attackers fled. The earl asked what had delayed him.

Thorkel said, ‘I have heard you say that men should run from ship to shore; but never that one should run back to the ships in such a way that each man abandons the next.’

The earl replied, ‘You speak the truth, kinsman, and henceforth this is how things will be; anyone running away from the standard on land will have no share of the spoils.’

The earl asked whether the men who lay dead beside him were natives or his own men.

Thorkel said that they were natives.

He said that he had gone past a castle, ‘and at the place where I was passing some stones fell from the walls, and inside there I found a sizeable store of treasure; and the men in the castle saw this and attacked me and our fight finished up in the way that you can see’.

Then, in front of his men, the earl commended Thorkel’s bravery. He then asked how much treasure there was. Thorkel said that it was worth twenty marks of silver. The earl said that Thorkel and no one else should
have it all. Thorkel said that the earl should have it all, including his own share. The earl then said that they should both have it, and this treasure was not shared out.

The earl held Thorkel in much esteem because of that exploit. He was with the earl for two winters, and then Thorkel felt a longing to go to Iceland and told the earl this.

He replied, ‘I believe that you will be a source of honour to your kinsfolk.’

He became one of the earl’s men, and the earl gave him a gold-inlaid axe and fine clothing and said that he should remain his friend. The earl gave him a trading ship along with whatever cargo he might choose. The earl sent a gold ring weighing half a mark to Thorgrim to pay for Nereid’s freedom. As a gesture of kinship he sent to Nereid a complete and splendid woman’s outfit. Thorkel then set sail and his journey went well. He brought his ship into Hunavatnsos. Thorgrim the Godi of Karnsa rode to the ship and greeted his son warmly and invited him to stay with him, and Thorkel accepted. Thorgrim granted Nereid her freedom just as the earl had requested. A little later Thorgrim fell sick and died and, in accordance with the law, his legitimate sons inherited his estate.

Thororm was the brother of Klakka-Orm, father of Thorgrim, who was the father of Thorkel. Thororm went to meet Thorkel and invited him to his homestead; and he accepted the invitation. Thorkel was an agreeable and good-humoured man.

44
There was a man called Thorgils who lived at Svinavatn; he had a wife and they had four sons, of whom two are mentioned by name – Thorvald and Orm. The brother of Thorgils had a son named Glaedir; his mother was the sister of Gudmund the Powerful of Modruvellir. Glaedir was a flamboyant individual, a chatterbox, a dimwit and a great blusterer. Father and son, Thorgils and Thorvald, went to Klakka-Orm to ask for the hand of Sigrid, his daughter. This was well received, and the wedding feast was fixed for the Winter Nights in Forsaeludal. There were few men at home and much work to do, both searching for sheep and pigs on the mountain, and in taking care of many another task. Thorkel offered to go up the mountain with the workmen. Orm said that he would like him to. They then set off, and made slow progress because the beasts were shy. No one searched more energetically than Thorkel. The swine seemed especially difficult to deal with. Thorkel was tireless in his efforts, and always volunteered for those tasks which other people thought were the worst.

When they were getting the food ready, Thorkel said, ‘Would it not be a good idea for us to have some piglet to eat?’

Thorkel took one and prepared it for the table. They were all agreed that Thorkel was a help to them in everything. They returned home.

There was a man named Avaldi who was with Klakka-Orm; he was the son of Ingjald. He ran the farm and Hild his wife worked indoors; she was the daughter of Eyvind the Proud.

Shortly before the wedding was to take place, Glaedir came from the East Fjords and heard all the news and the plans.

Glaedir also said that he heard other news – ‘and that is the mountain journey of Thorkel Scratcher – how he was chosen for herding the swine’.

He said that this was right and proper for a slave-woman’s son, and said that he had killed a piglet which had only the previous night drunk from the teat, and had lain beside the boar – ‘because he felt cold like any other bitch’.

Thorgils said, ‘That is a foolish joke which you have made; Thorkel is said to have behaved in the most proper way, both there and elsewhere.’

‘It seems to me that this has turned out shamefully for him,’ said Glaedir.

Men arrived for the wedding.

Then Thorkel said to Orm, his foster-father, ‘I will offer hospitality to people and be on hand for any work or arrangements.’

Orm said that he would gladly accept this offer. Thorkel organized the feast splendidly. Orm and his men sat on the upper high seat, and Thorgils and his followers sat opposite on the lower high seat. Thorkel saw to the guests attentively and dealt with them with due deference. The Svinadal folk laughed at him a good deal and said that the slave’s son was now grand enough. Thorkel said that it would be more courteous to reward such hospitality with good humour and a cheery word rather than with ridicule or abuse.

Glaedir said that he had done many great deeds, ‘and well may you boast mightily of the fact; it was but a short time ago that you killed the piglet which had sucked the teat for only one night – that is just your kind of job’.

Thorkel answered, ‘My great deeds are few, Glaedir, and yet they amount to more than yours; you have no right to talk like that.’

Glaedir laughed at Thorkel in front of Thorvald and said that he was the dabbest of hands at food preparation. Thorvald said that Glaedir spoke unwisely. And in the evening men went to bed.

In the morning Thorkel went into an outside shed and sharpened the axe
Jarlsnaut (Earl’s Gift) and then went to the porch. Glaedir was there taking a bath. At that moment men walked past him with a meat trough.

Then Glaedir said to Thorkel, ‘You must have been at your farmwork this morning, and we will now enjoy your pig; and make sure that we are the ones who get the fattest bits; that is suitable work for the slave-woman’s son.’

‘Would it not be right to chop at the head first,’ said Thorkel, ‘and choose the pieces for yourself? I have never known you to be so greedy that you find it difficult to stuff yourself full.’

They were to ride home from the feast that day. Thorgils asked whether breakfast was ready. Thorkel said that it would be ready when it was cooked, and that this would not take long. He went out by the workmen’s entrance and in by another door and took up his axe which stood by the door. And when Glaedir walked out, Thorkel followed after him and hacked at his head, and Glaedir met his death straight away.

Thorkel ran to the northerly door, because people were blocking the one to the south. There was food everywhere in the house. Thorgils had plenty of men with him, and they rushed all over the house, determined that Thorkel should not escape and intending to lay hands on him. Thorkel jumped among the benches. There was a narrow passageway through the house, and there were lockable bed-closets, and from any one of these a man could jump into the passageway. Thorkel looked towards where women sat donning their head-dresses, and ran to where Hild was. She asked him why he was in such a hurry. Thorkel told her what had happened. She told him to go into the passage right by where she was, and so he made his escape.

Thorgils said, ‘Let’s head for where the women are because it seemed to me that the man ran in that direction.’

Hild picked up an axe and said that none of them would take it from her. Thorgils believed that Thorkel must still be there, and told his men to carry a protective wad of clothing against the women. This was done, but Thorkel was not found.

Thorgils now saw that all this had been no more than a trick and delaying device, and he and his men then went outside, and when they did so they thought that they glimpsed a man down by the river. Thorgils ordered his men to search there, and this was done, but he was not found. Thorkel knew that there was a cave by the river which is now called Krofluhellir (Scratcher’s Cave), and he hid there.

Thororm and Klakka-Orm looked for a settlement. Thorgils would not
accept compensation, and they could not weaken his resolve; he and his men declared that there must be blood revenge for the killing of Glaedir. Thororm led the bridegroom’s men away from the farm, all the time seeking a settlement but not finding one, and they parted on these terms.

Over the winter Thorkel was variously at Karnsa with his brothers or with other kinsmen, because everyone wanted to offer him some help and liked the idea that he would grow to manhood in the district, so that no outsiders would settle there and lord it over them. Then the Vatnsdal people went to seek help for him from Thordis the Prophetess, who lived at Spakonufell. She was a worthy woman and wise in many ways. They asked her for protection and help in Thorkel’s case, and said that a great deal depended on her coming up with some plan. She said that she would.

Thorgils went to meet Gudmund the Powerful and said that he above all was duty bound to take up the case on behalf of his kinsman, ‘but I will back you up’.

Gudmund said, ‘This case does not seem to me to be that easy, because I think that Thorkel will grow to be a great man, with many a kinsman supporting him, and I have been told that what Thorkel did was not without provocation. You prepare the case now and I will take it on this summer at the assembly.’

During the spring Thorgils prepared the case for the Althing. The Vatnsdal people were thick on the ground, and so were their opponents. Thorgils rode to the Thing with a large troop of men. Thorkel also rode there with his kinsmen. Thordis the Prophetess rode with them, and had a booth for herself and her men. Gudmund then took up the case. The Vatnsdal men offered settlement terms, but Gudmund and his men would accept nothing short of outlawry.

Thororm met with Thordis and discussed the matter with her, because she was very wise and could see into the future and was thus chosen to act in major cases.

She then said, ‘Thorkel must come here to my booth and we will see what happens.’

Thorkel did so.

Thordis said to Thororm, ‘Go and offer terms to Gudmund, and suggest that I arbitrate the case.’

Thorkel gave Thordis two hundred of silver. Thororm suggested that Thordis should decide the case, but Gudmund refused and said that he had no wish to accept monetary compensation.

Thordis said, ‘I cannot say that I am obliged to Gudmund.’

She then said to Thorkel, ‘Go now in my black cloak and carry in your hand the staff which is called Hognud; would you dare to go among Gudmund’s men dressed in this way?’

He said that at her bidding he would dare to do this. She said, ‘Let us risk it, then. You will go to Gudmund and strike him three times on his left cheek with the staff; it does not seem to me that you are due for an early death, and I think that this may work.’

Thorkel came among Gudmund’s men and no one saw him. He approached Gudmund and was able to bring about what he had been told to do.

Now the prosecution of the suit was held up, and the case was delayed.

Thorgils said, ‘Why is the case not proceeding?’

Gudmund said that it would soon proceed, but it did not, and the delay was such that the case became null and void for prosecution.

Thordis met the Vatnsdal men and told them to go to the court and offer money as compensation for the man, ‘and it may be that they will accept it, and thus bring the case to a close’.

This they did; they went to the court, met Gudmund, and offered terms and monetary compensation.

Gudmund answered, ‘I do not know what you are willing to offer but I place much store on the fact that in this case the person who was killed had by his own words made himself no longer inviolable.’

They said that they wished to make the offer for his sake, and they asked him to stipulate the amount.

When he realized how the case stood, and that it could not be prosecuted in law, then he accepted self-judgement from Thororm – he could stipulate whatever sum he wished, but banishment abroad and outlawry in the region were excluded. They agreed with a handshake to drop the case. Then Thordis sent Thorkel to Gudmund a second time to have the staff strike his right cheek; and he saw to this. Then Gudmund recovered his memory and thought it strange that it had ever left him.

Gudmund stipulated a hundred of silver for the killing of Glaedir, and the counter-charge collapsed and Thororm and Thordis paid over all the money, and, fully reconciled, they parted company. Thorkel went home to Spakonufell with Thordis.

Thorgils said to Gudmund, ‘Why did you change your mind so suddenly about the case today?’

Gudmund replied, ‘Because I could not think of a single word to say, and therefore I dried up; but it may be that I was pulling on a rope against a strong man.’

They then went home from the assembly.