uietly sleeping, though he rides past this place with but one
other man. Such men indeed are richly endowed with the memory of
swine. I think it is past hoping that you will ever have courage
enough to go and seek out Kjartan in his home, if you dare not meet
him now that he rides with but one other man or two; but here you sit
at home and bear yourselves as if you were hopeful men; yea, in sooth
there are too many of you." Ospak said she did not mince matters and
it was hard to gainsay her, and he sprang up forthwith and dressed, as
did also each of the brothers one after the other. Then they got ready
to lay an ambush for Kjartan. Then Gudrun called on Bolli to bestir
him with them. [Sidenote: The ambush laid for Kjartan] Bolli said it
behoved him not for the sake of his kinship with Kjartan, set forth
how lovingly Olaf had brought him up. Gudrun answered, "Therein you
speak the truth, but you will not have the good luck always to do what
pleases all men, and if you cut yourself out of this journey, our
married life must be at an end." And through Gudrun's harping on the
matter Bolli's mind swelled at all the enmity and guilts that lay at
the door of Kjartan, and speedily he donned his weapons, and they grew
a band of nine together. There were the five sons of Osvif--Ospak,
Helgi, Vandrad, Torrad, and Thorolf. Bolli was the sixth and Gudlaug,
the son of Osvif's sister, the hopefullest of men, the seventh. There
were also Odd and Stein, sons of Thorhalla Chatterbox. They rode to
Swinedale and took up their stand beside the gill which is called
Goat-gill.[6] They bound up their horses and sat down. Bolli was
silent all day, and lay up on the top of the gill bank. [Sidenote:
Thorkell of Goat-peaks] Now when Kjartan and his followers were come
south past Narrowsound, where the dale begins to widen out, Kjartan
said that Thorkell and the others had better turn back. Thorkell said
they would ride to the end of the dale. Then when they came south past
the out-dairies called Northdairies Kjartan spake to the brothers and
bade them not to ride any farther. "Thorolf the thief," he said,
"shall not have that matter to laugh at that I dare not ride on my way
with few men." Thorkell Whelp said, "We will yield to you in not
following you any farther; but we should rue it indeed not to be near
if you should stand in need of men to-day." Then Kjartan said, "Never
will Bolli, my kinsman, join hands with plotters against my life. But
if