this, that I bring to naught Eyjolf Bolverk’s son’s challenges
for that he has challenged those men out of the inquest who have
a lawful right to be there; every man has a right to sit on an
inquest of neighbours, who owns three hundreds in land or more,
though he may have no dairystock; and he too has the same right
who lives by dairystock worth the same sum, though he leases no
land.”
Then he brought this witness before the court, and then he went
whither the neighbours on the inquest were, and bade them sit
down, and said they were rightfully among the inquest.
Then there was a great shout and cry and then all men said that
Flosi’s and Eyjolf’s cause was much shaken, and now men were of
one mind as to this, that the prosecution was better than the
defence.
Then Flosi said to Eyjolf, “Can this be law?”
Eyjolf said be had not wisdom enough to know that for a surety,
and then they sent a man to Skapti, the Speaker of the Law, to
ask whether it were good law, and he sent them back word that it
was surely good law, though few knew it.
Then this was told to Flosi, and Eyjolf Bolverk’s son asked the
sons of Sigfus as to the other neighbours who were summoned
thither.
They said there were four of them who were wrongly summoned; “for
those sit now at home who were nearer neighbours to the spot.”
Then Eyjolf took witness that he challenged all those four men
out of the inquest, and that he did it with lawful form of
challenge. After that he said to the neighbours, “Ye are bound
to render lawful justice to both sides, and now ye shall go
before the court when ye are called, and take witness that ye
find that bar to uttering your finding; that ye are but five
summoned to utter your finding, but that ye ought to be nine;.
and now Thorhall may prove and carry his point in every suit, if
he can cure this flaw in this suit.”
And now it was plain in everything that Flosi and Eyjolf were
very boastful; and there was a great cry that now the suit for
the burning was quashed, and that again the defence was better
than the prosecution.
Then Asgrim spoke to Mord, “They know not yet of what to boast
ere we have seen my son Thorhall. Njal told me that he had so
taught Thorhall law, that he would turn out the best lawyer in
Iceland whenever it were put to the proof.”
Then a man was sent to Thorhall to tell him how things stood, and
of Flosi’s and Eyjolf’s boasting, and the cry of the people that
the suit for the burning was quashed in Mord’s hands.
“It will be well for them,” says Thorhall, “if they get not
disgrace from this. Thou shalt go and tell Mord to take witness
and swear an oath, that the greater part of the inquest is
rightly summoned, and then he shall bring that witness before the
court, and then he may set the prosecution on its feet again; but
he will have to pay a fine of three marks for every man that he
