riving snow-storm. As the man was so fussy
and talkative they gave him a nickname and called him Glaum.
"The people in Glaumbaer," he said, "were much exercised about your
going without a hat in this weather, and wanted to know whether you were
any the braver for being proof against the cold. There were two sons of
bondis there, men of great distinction; the shepherd told them to come
out and mind the sheep with him, but they could scarcely get their
clothes on for the cold."
Grettir said: "I saw a young man inside the door putting on his mittens,
and another going between the cow-house and the dung-heap. Neither of
them will frighten me."
Then they went on to Reynines and stayed the night there; then to the
sea-shore to a farm called Reykir where a man, a good farmer, named
Thorvald, lived. Grettir asked him for shelter and told him of his
intention of going to Drangey. The bondi said that men of Skagafjord
would not think his a very friendly visit and drew back. Then Grettir
took the purse of money which his mother had given him and gave it to
the bondi. The man's brows unbent when he saw the money and he told
three of his servants to take them out in the night by the moonlight.
From Reykir is the shortest distance to the island, about one sea-mile.
When they reached the island Grettir thought it looked quite pleasant;
it was all overgrown with grass and had steep cliffs down to the sea
so that no one could get on to it except where the ladders were. If the
upper ladder was pulled up it was impossible for any one to get on to
the island. There was also a large crag full of sea birds in the summer,
and there were eighty sheep in the island belonging to the bondis,
mostly rams and ewes, which were meant for slaughter.
There Grettir quietly settled down. He had been fifteen or sixteen years
an outlaw, so Sturla the son of Thord has recorded.
CHAPTER LXX. THE PEOPLE OF SKAGAFJORD
When Grettir came to Drangey the following chiefs were in Skagafjord:
Hjalti lived at Hof in Hjaltadal, the son of Thord, the son of Hjalti,
the son of Thord Skalp. He was a great chief, very distinguished and
very popular. His brother was named Thorbjorn Angle, a big man, strong
and hardy and rather quarrelsome. Thord their father had married in his
old age, and his then wife was not the mother of these two. She was
very much against her stepsons, especially Thorbjorn, because he was
intractable and headstrong. One day wh
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