Saga of Olaf Haroldson

151. THOROD'S STORY.

Thorod Snorrason had remained in Norway, according to King Olaf's
commands, when Geller Thorkelson got leave to go to Iceland, as
before related. He remained there (A.D. 1027) with King Olaf,
but was ill pleased that he was not free to travel where he
pleased. Early in winter, King Olaf, when he was in Nidaros,
made it known that he would send people to Jamtaland to collect
the scat; but nobody had any great desire to go on this business,
after the fate of those whom King Olaf had sent before, namely,
Thrand White and others, twelve in number, who lost their lives,
as before related; and the Jamtalanders had ever since been
subject to the Swedish king. Thorod Snorrason now offered to
undertake this journey, for he cared little what became of him if
he could but become his own master again. The king consented,
and Thorod set out with eleven men in company. They came east to
Jamtaland, and went to a man called Thorar, who was lagman, and a
person in high estimation. They met with a hospitable reception;
and when they had been there a while, they explained their
business to Thorar. He replied, that other men and chiefs of the
country had in all respects as much power and right to give an
answer as he had, and for that purpose he would call together a
Thing. It was so done; the message-token was sent out, and a
numerous Thing assembled. Thorar went to the Thing, but the
messengers in the meantime remained at home. At the Thing,
Thorar laid the business before the people, but all were
unanimous that no scat should be paid to the king of Norway; and
some were for hanging the messengers, others for sacrificing them
to the gods. At last it was resolved to hold them fast until the
king of Sweden's sheriffs arrived, and they could treat them as
they pleased with consent of the people; and that, in the
meantime, this decision should be concealed, and the messengers
treated well, and detained under pretext that they must wait
until the scat is collected; and that they should be separated,
and placed two and two, as if for the convenience of boarding
them. Thorod and another remained in Thorar's house. There was
a great Yule feast and ale-drinking, to which each brought his
own liquor; for there were many peasants in the village, who all
drank in company together at Yule. There was another village not
far distant, where Thorar's brother-in-law dwelt, who was a rich
and powerful man, and had a grown-up son. The brothers-in-law
intended to pass the Yule in drinking feasts, half of it at the
house of the one and half with the other; and the feast began at
Thorar's house. The brothers-in-law drank together, and Thorod
and the sons of the peasants by themselves; and it was a drinking
match. In the evening words arose, and comparisons between the
men of Sweden and of Norway, and then between their kings both of
former times and at the present, and of the manslaughters and
robberies that had taken place between the countries. Then said
the peasants sons, "If our king has lost most people, his
sheriffs will make it even with the lives of twelve men when they
come from the south after Yule; and ye little know, ye silly
fools, why ye are kept here." Thorod took notice of these words,
and many made jest about it, and scoffed at them and their king.
When the ale began to talk out of the hearts of the Jamtalanders,
what Thorod had before long suspected became evident. The day
after Thorod and his comrade took all their clothes and weapons,
and laid them ready; and at night, when the people were all
asleep, they fled to the forest. The next morning, when the
Jamtalanders were aware of their flight, men set out after them
with dogs to trace them, and found them in a wood in which they
had concealed themselves. They brought them home to a room in
which there was a deep cellar, into which they were thrown, and
the door locked upon them. They had little meat, and only the
clothes they had on them. In the middle of Yule, Thorar, with
all his freeborn men, went to his brother's-in-law, where he was
to be a guest until the last of Yule. Thorar's slaves were to
keep guard upon the cellar, and they were provided with plenty of
liquor; but as they observed no moderation in drinking, they
became towards evening confused in the head with the ale. As
they were quite drunk, those who had to bring meat to the
prisoners in the cellar said among themselves that they should
want for nothing. Thorod amused the slaves by singing to them.
They said he was a clever man, and gave him a large candle that
was lighted; and the slaves who were in went to call the others
to come in; but they were all so confused with the ale, that in
going out they neither locked the cellar nor the room after them.
Now Thorod and his comrades tore up their skin clothes in strips,
knotted them together, made a noose at one end, and threw up the
rope on the floor of the room. It fastened itself around a
chest, by which they tried to haul themselves up. Thorod lifted
up his comrade until he stood on his shoulders, and from thence
scrambled up through the hatchhole. There was no want of ropes
in the chamber, and he threw a rope down to Thorod; but when he
tried to draw him up, he could not move him from the spot. Then
Thorod told him to cast the rope over a cross-beam that was in
the house, make a loop in it, and place as much wood and stones
in the loop as would outweigh him; and the heavy weight went down
into the cellar, and Thorod was drawn up by it. Now they took as
much clothes as they required in the room; and among other things
they took some reindeer hides, out of which they cut sandals, and
bound them under their feet, with the hoofs of the reindeer feet
trailing behind. But before they set off they set fire to a
large corn barn which was close by, and then ran out into the
pitch-dark night. The barn blazed, and set fire to many other
houses in the village. Thorod and his comrade travelled the
whole night until they came to a lonely wood, where they
concealed themselves when it was daylight. In the morning they
were missed. There was chase made with dogs to trace the
footsteps all round the house; but the hounds always came back to
the house, for they had the smell of the reindeer hoofs, and
followed the scent back on the road that the hoofs had left, and
therefore could not find the right direction. Thorod and his
comrade wandered long about in the desert forest, and came one
evening to a small house, and went in. A man and a woman were
sitting by the fire. The man called himself Thorer, and said it
was his wife who was sitting there, and the hut belonged to them.
The peasant asked them to stop there, at which they were well
pleased. He told them that he had come to this place, because he
had fled from the inhabited district on account of a murder.
Thorod and his comrade were well received, and they all got their
supper at the fireside; and then the benches were cleared for
them, and they lay down to sleep, but the fire was still burning
with a clear light. Thorod saw a man come in from another house,
and never had he seen so stout a man. He was dressed in a
scarlet cloak beset with gold clasps, and was of very handsome
appearance. Thorod heard him scold them for taking guests, when
they had scarcely food for themselves. The housewife said, "Be
not angry, brother; seldom such a thing happens; and rather do
them some good too, for thou hast better opportunity to do so
than we." Thorod heard also the stout man named by the name of
Arnliot Gelline, and observed that the woman of the house was his
sister. Thorod had heard speak of Arnliot as the greatest-of
robbers and malefactors. Thorod and his companion slept the
first part of the night, for they were wearied with walking; but
when a third of the night was still to come, Arnliot awoke them,
told them to get up, and make ready to depart. They arose
immediately, put on their clothes, and some breakfast was given
them; and Arnliot gave each of them also a pair of skees.
Arnliot made himself ready to accompany them, and got upon his
skees, which were both broad and long; but scarcely had he swung
his skee-staff before he was a long way past them. He waited for
them, and said they would make no progress in this way, and told
them to stand upon the edge of his skees beside him. They did
so. Thorod stood nearest to him, and held by Arnliot's belt, and
his comrade held by him. Arnliot strode on as quickly with them
both, as if he was alone and without any weight. The following
day they came, towards night, to a lodge for travellers, struck
fire, and prepared some food; but Arnliot told them to throw away
nothing of their food, neither bones nor crumbs. Arnliot took a
silver plate out of the pocket of his cloak, and ate from it.
When they were done eating, Arnliot gathered up the remains of
their meal, and they prepared to go to sleep. In the other end
of the house there was a loft upon cross-beams, and Arnliot and
the others went up, and laid themselves down to sleep. Arnliot
had a large halberd, of which the upper part was mounted with
gold, and the shaft was so long that with his arm stretched out
he could scarcely touch the top of it; and he was girt with a
sword. They had both their weapons and their clothes up in the
loft beside them. Arnliot, who lay outermost in the loft, told
them to be perfectly quiet. Soon after twelve men came to the
house, who were merchants going with their wares to Jamtaland;
and when they came into the house they made a great disturbance,
were merry, and made a great fire before them; and when they took
their supper they cast away all the bones around them. They then
prepared to go to sleep, and laid themselves down upon the
benches around the fire. When they, had been asleep a short
time, a huge witch came into the house; and when she came in, she
carefully swept together all the bones and whatever was of food
kind into a heap, and threw it into her mouth. Then she gripped
the man who was nearest to her, riving and tearing him asunder,
and threw him upon the fire. The others awoke in dreadful
fright, and sprang up, but she took them, and put them one by one
to death, so that only one remained in life. He ran under the
loft calling for help, and if there was any one on the loft to
help him. Arnliot reached down his hand, seized him by the
shoulder, and drew him up into the loft. The witch-wife had
turned towards the fire, and began to eat the men who were
roasting. Now Arnliot stood up, took his halberd, and struck her
between the shoulders, so that the point came out at her breast.
She writhed with it, gave a dreadful shriek, and sprang up. The
halberd slipped from Arnliot's hands, and she ran out with it.
Arnliot then went in; cleared away the dead corpses out of the
house; set the door and the door-posts up, for she had torn them
down in going out; and they slept the rest of the night. When
the day broke they got up; and first they took their breakfast.
When they had got food, Arnliot said, "Now we must part here. Ye
can proceed upon the new-traced path the merchants have made in
coming here yesterday. In the meantime I will seek after my
halberd, and in reward for my labour I will take so much of the
goods these men had with them as I find useful to me. Thou,
Thorod, must take my salutation to King Olaf; and say to him that
he is the man I am most desirous to see, although my salutation
may appear to him of little worth." Then he took his silver
plate, wiped it dry with a cloth, and said, "Give King Olaf this
plate; salute him, and say it is from me." Then they made
themselves ready for their journey, and parted. Thorod went on
with his comrade and the man of the merchants company who had
escaped. He proceeded until he came to King Olaf in the town
(Nidaros); told the king all that had happened, and presented to
him the silver plate. The king said it was wrong that Arnliot
himself had not come to him; "for it is a pity so brave a hero,
and so distinguished a man, should have given himself up to
misdeeds."

Thorod remained the rest of the winter with the king, and in
summer got leave to return to Iceland; and he and King Olaf
parted the best of friends.