style="font-size:15px;"> "I do not think it too much," says Gunnar, and went home to his booth.
Njal's sons came home, and Skarphedinn asked whence that great sum of money came, which his father held in his hand.
Njal said, "I tell you of your foster-father's Thord's slaying, and we two, Gunnar and I, have now made peace in the matter, and he has paid an atonement for him as for two men."
"Who slew him?" says Skarphedinn.
"Sigmund and Skiolld, but Thrain was standing near too," says
Njal.
"They thought they had need of much strength," says Skarphedinn, and sang a song —
"Bold in deeds of derring-do,
Burdeners of ocean's steeds,
Strength enough it seems they needed
All to slay a single man;
When shall we our hands uplift?
We who brandish burnished steel —
Famous men erst reddened weapons,
When? if now we quiet sit?"
"Yes! when shall the day come when we shall lift our hands?"
"That will not be long off," says Njal, "and then thou shalt not be baulked; but still, methinks, I set great store on your not breaking this peace that I have made."
"Then we will not break it," says Skarphedinn, "but if anything arises between us, then we will bear in mind the old feud."
"Then I will ask you to spare no one," says Njal.
44. SIGMUND MOCKS NJAL AND HIS SONS
Now men ride home from the Thing; and when Gunnar came home, he said to Sigmund, "Thou art a more unlucky man than I thought, and turnest thy good gifts to thine own ill. But still I have made peace for thee with Njal and his sons; and now, take care that thou dost not let another fly come into thy mouth. Thou art not at all after my mind, thou goest about with jibes and jeers, with scorn and mocking; but that is not my turn of mind. That is why thou gettest on so well with Hallgerda, because ye two have your minds more alike."
Gunnar scolded him a long time, and he answered him well, and said he would follow his counsel more for the time to come than he had followed it hitherto. Gunnar told him then they might get on together. Gunnar and Njal kept up their friendship though the rest of their people saw little of one another. It happened once that some gangrel women came to Lithend from Bergthorsknoll; they were great gossips and rather spiteful tongued. Hallgerda had a bower, and sate often in it, and there sate with her her daughter Thorgerda, and there too were Thrain and Sigmund, and a crowd of women. Gunnar was not there, nor Kolskegg. These gangrel women went into the bower, and Hallgerda greeted them, and made room for them; then she asked them for news, but they had none to tell. Hallgerda asked where they had been overnight; they said at Bergthorsknoll.
"What was Njal doing?" she says.
"He was hard at work sitting still," they said.
"What were Njal's sons doing?" she says; "they think themselves men at any rate."
"Tall men they are in growth," they say, "but as yet they are all untried; Skarphedinn whetted an axe, Grim fitted a spearhead to the shaft, Helgi riveted a hilt on a sword, Hauskuld strengthened the handle of a shield."
"They must be bent on some great deed," says Hallgerda.
"We do not know that," they say.
"What were Njal's house-carles doing?" she asks.
"We don't know what some of them were doing, but one was carting dung up the hill-side."
"What good was there in doing that?" she asks.
"He said it made the swathe better there than anywhere else," they reply. "Witless now is Njal," says Hallgerda, "though he knows how to give counsel on everything."
"How so?" they ask.
"I will only bring forward what is true to prove it," says she; "why doesn't he make them cart dung over his beard that he may be like other men? Let us call him `the Beardless Carle': but his sons we will call `Dung-beardlings'; and now do pray give some stave about them, Sigmund, and let us get some good by thy gift of song."
"I am quite ready to do that," says he, and sang these verses:
"Lady proud with hawk in hand,
Prithee why should dungbeard boys,
Reft of reason, dare to hammer
Handle fast on battle shield?
For these lads of loathly feature —
Lady scattering swanbath's beams25 —
Shalt not shun this ditty shameful
Which I shape upon them now.
"He the beardless carle shall listen
While I lash him with abuse,
Loon at whom our stomachs sicken,
Soon shall bear these words of scorn;
Far too nice for such base fellows
Is the name my bounty gives,
Een my muse her help refuses,
Making mirth of dungbeard boys.
"Here I find a nickname fitting
For those noisome dungbeard boys, —
Loath am I to break my bargain
Linked with such a noble man —
Knit we all our taunts together —
Known to me is mind of man —
Call we now with outburst common,
Him, that churl, the beardless carle."
"Thou art a jewel indeed," says Hallgerda; "how yielding thou art to what I ask!"
Just then Gunnar came in. He had been standing outside the door of the bower, and heard all the words that had passed. They were in a great fright when they saw him come in, and then all held their peace, but before there had been bursts of laughter.
Gunnar was very wroth, and said to Sigmund, "Thou art a foolish man, and one that cannot keep to good advice, and thou revilest Njal's sons, and Njal himself who is most worth of all; and this thou doest in spite of what thou hast already done. Mind, this will be thy death. But if any man repeats these words that thou hast spoken, or these verses that thou hast made, that man shall be sent away at once, and have my wrath beside."
But they were all so sore afraid of him, that no one dared to repeat those words. After that he went away, but the gangrel women talked among themselves, and said that they would get a reward from Bergthora if they told her all this.
They went then away afterwards down thither, and took Bergthora aside and told her the whole story of their own free will.
Bergthora spoke and said, when men sate down to the board, "Gifts have been given to all of you, father and sons, and ye will be no true men unless ye repay them somehow."
"What gifts are these?" asks Skarphedinn.
"You, my sons," says Bergthora, "have got one gift between you all. Ye are nicknamed `Dungbeardlings,' but
"Swanbath's beams" – periphrasis for gold.
