The story of Burnt Njal From the Icelandic of the Njals Saga

CHAPTER LXXIII.

OF THE ATONE­MENT.

Then Njal spoke and said--

“Now I can no longer sit still and take no part. Let us go to where the neigh­bours sit on the in­quest.”

They went thith­er and chal­lenged four neigh­bours out of the in­quest, but they called on the five that were left to an­swer the fol­low­ing ques­tion in Gun­nar's favour “whether those name­sakes had gone out with that mind to the place of meet­ing to do Gun­nar a mis­chief if they could?”

But all bore wit­ness at once that so it was.

Then Njal called this a law­ful de­fence to the suit, and said he would bring for­ward proof of it un­less they gave over the suit to ar­bi­tra­tion.

Then many chiefs joined in pray­ing for an atone­ment, and so it was brought about that twelve men should ut­ter an award in the mat­ter.

Then ei­ther side went and hand­selled this set­tle­ment to the oth­er. Af­ter­wards the award was made, and the sum to be paid set­tled, and it was all to be paid down then and there at the Thing.

But be­sides, Gun­nar was to go abroad and Kolskegg with him, and they were to be away three win­ters; but if Gun­nar did not go abroad when he had a chance of a pas­sage, then he was to be slain by the kins­men of those whom he had killed.

Gun­nar made no sign, as though he thought the terms of atone­ment were not good. He asked Njal for that mon­ey which he had hand­ed over to him to keep. Njal had laid the mon­ey out at in­ter­est and paid it down all at once, and it just came to what Gun­nar had to pay for him­self.

Now they ride home. Gun­nar and Njal rode both to­geth­er from the Thing, and then Njal said to Gun­nar--

“Take good care, mess­mate, that thou keep­est to this atone­ment, and bear in mind what we have spo­ken about; for though thy for­mer jour­ney abroad brought thee to great hon­our, this will be a far greater hon­our to thee. Thou wilt come back with great glo­ry, and live to be an old man, and no man here will then tread on thy heel; but if thou dost not fare away, and so break­est thy atone­ment, then thou wilt be slain here in the land, and that is ill know­ing for those who are thy friends.”

Gun­nar said he had no mind to break the atone­ment, and he rides home and told them of the set­tle­ment.

Ran­nveig said it was well that he fared abroad, for then they must find some one else to quar­rel.