feared neither fire nor sword, and the heathen men were sore
afraid at his coming. Then Thangbrand asked if men were willing
to take the faith, but all the heathen met spoke against it.
“Well,” says Thangbrand, “I will give you the means whereby ye
shall prove whether my faith is better. We will hallow two
fires. The heathen men shall hallow one and I the other, but a
third shall be unhallowed; and if the Baresark is afraid of the
one that I hallow, but treads both the others, then ye shall take
the faith.”
“That is well spoken,” says Gest, “and I will agree to this for
myself and my household.”
And when Gest had so spoken, then many more agreed to it.
Then it was said that the Baresark was coming up to the
homestead, and then the fires were made and burnt strong. Then
men took their arms and sprang up on the benches, and so
waited.
The Baresark rushed in with his weapons. He comes into the room,
and treads at once the fire which the heathen men had hallowed,
and so comes to the fire that Thangbrand had hallowed, and dares
not to tread it, but said that he was on fire all over. He hews
with his sword at the bench, but strikes a crossbeam as he
brandished the weapon aloft. Thangbrand smote the arm of the
Baresark with his crucifix, and so mighty a token followed that
the sword fell from the Baresark’s hand.
Then Thangbrand thrusts a sword into his breast, and Gudleif
smote him on the arm and hewed it off. Then many went up and
slew the Baresark.
After that Thangbrand asked if they would take the faith now?
Gest said he had only spoken what he meant to keep to.
Then Thangbrand baptized Gest and all his house and many others.
Then Thangbrand took counsel with Gest whether he should go any
further west among the firths, but Gest set his face against
that, and said they were a hard race of men there, and ill to
deal with, “but if it be foredoomed that this faith shall make
its way, then it will be taken as law at the Althing, and then
all the chiefs out of the districts will be there.”
“I did all that I could at the Thing,” says Thangbrand, “and it
was very uphill work.”
“Still thou hast done most of the work,” says Gest, “though it
may be fated that others shall make Christianity law; but it is
here as the saying runs, `No tree falls at the first stroke.’”
After that Gest gave Thangbrand good gifts, and he fared back
south. Thangbrand fared to the Southlander’s Quarter, and so to
the Eastfirths. He turned in as a guest at Bergthorsknoll, and
Njal gave him good gifts. Thence he rode east to Alftafirth to
meet Hall of the Side. He caused his ship to be mended, and
heathen men called it “Iron-basket.” On board that ship
Thangbrand fared abroad, and Gudleif with him.
100. OF GIZUR THE WHITE AND HJALLTI
