said, “There’s not much to choose, though, between you two. Thou
hast hangnails on every finger, and Njal is beardless.”
“That’s true,” says Bergthora, “yet neither of us finds fault
with the other for it; but Thorwald, thy husband, was not
beardless, and yet thou plottedst his death.”
Then Hallgerda said, “It stands me in little stead to have the
bravest man in Iceland if thou dost not avenge this, Gunnar!”
He sprang up and strode across away from the board, and said,
“Home I will go, and it were more seemly that thou shouldest
wrangle with those of thine own household, and not under other
men’s roofs; but as for NjaI, I am his debtor for much honour,
and never will I be egged on by thee like a fool.”
After that they set off home.
“Mind this Bergthora,” said Hallgerda, “that we shall meet
again.”
Bergthora said she should not be better off for that. Gunnar
said nothing at all, but went home to Lithend, and was there at
home all the winter. And now the summer was running on towards
the Great Thing.
36. KOL SLEW SWART
Gunnar rode away to the Thing, but before he rode from home he
said to Hallgerda, “Be good now while I am away, and show none of
thine ill temper in anything with which my friends have to do.”
“The trolls take thy friends,” says Hallgerda.
So Gunnar rode to the Thing, and saw it was not good to come to
words with her. Njal rode to the Thing too, and all his sons
with him.
Now it must be told of what tidings happened at home. Njal and
Gunnar owned a wood in common at Redslip; they had not shared the
wood, but each was wont to hew in it as he needed, and neither
said a word to the other about that. Hallgerda’s grieve’s (1)
name was Kol; he had been with her long, and was one of the worst
of men. There was a man named Swart; he was Njal’s and
Bergthora’s housecarle; they were very fond of him. Now
Bergthora told him that he must go up into Redslip and hew wood;
but she said, “I will get men to draw home the wood.”
He said he would do the work she set him to win; and so he went
up into Redslip, and was to be there a week.
Some gangrel men came to Lithend from the east across Markfleet,
and said that Swart had been in Redslip, and hewn wood, and done
a deal of work.
“So,” says Hallgerda, “Bergthora must mean to rob me in many
things, but I’ll take care that he does not hew again.”
Rannveig, Gunnar’s mother, heard that, and said, “There have been
good housewives before now, though they never set their hearts on
manslaughter.”
Now the night wore away, and early next morning Hallgerda came to
speak to Kol, and said, “I have thought of some work for thee;”
and with that she put weapons into his hands, and went on to say
— “Fare thou to Redslip; there wilt thou find Swart.”
