f, the
greatest "goethi" in the countryside.]

CHAP. XXXVIII

The Death of Stigandi. Thorliek leaves Iceland

[Sidenote: Stigandi and the slave woman] Now, to tell of Stigandi, he
became an outlaw and an evil to deal with. Thord was the name of a
man who lived at Hundidale; he was a rich man, but had no manly
greatness. A startling thing happened that summer in Hundidale, in
that the milking stock did not yield much milk, but a woman looked
after the beast there. At last people found out that she grew wealthy
in precious things, and that she would disappear long and often, and
no one knew where she was. Thord brought pressure to bear on her for
confession, and when she got frightened she said a man was wont to
come and meet her, "a big one," she said, "and in my eyes very
handsome." Thord then asked how soon the man would come again to meet
her, and she said she thought it would be soon. After that Thord went
to see Olaf, and told him that Stigandi must be about, not far away
from there, and bade him bestir himself with his men and catch him.
Olaf got ready at once and came to Hundidale, and the bonds-woman was
fetched for Olaf to have talk of her. Olaf asked her where the lair of
Stigandi was. She said she did not know. Olaf offered to pay her money
if she would bring Stigandi within reach of him and his men; and on
this they came to a bargain together. The next day she went out to
herd her cattle, and Stigandi comes that day to meet her. [Sidenote:
The death of Stigandi] She greeted him well, and offers to look
through (the hair of) his head. He laid his head down on her knee, and
soon went to sleep. Then she slunk away from under his head, and went
to meet Olaf and his men, and told them what had happened. Then they
went towards Stigandi, and took counsel between them as to how it
should not fare with him as his brother, that he should cast his
glance on many things from which evil would befall them. They take now
a bag, and draw it over his head. Stigandi woke at that, and made no
struggle, for now there were many men to one. The sack had a slit in
it, and Stigandi could see out through it the slope on the other side;
there the lay of the land was fair, and it was covered with thick
grass. But suddenly something like a whirlwind came on, and turned the
sward topsy-turvy, so that the grass never grew there again. It is now
called Brenna. Then they stoned Stigandi to death, and there he was
buried under a