was
not able to recover himself at once. He held his shield before him and
retreated as Grettir pressed him hard. Then Grettir sprang on to the
crossbenches near the door. Gunnar's hands and the shield were still
inside the door, and Grettir struck down between him and the shield,
cutting off both his hands at the wrist. He fell backwards out of the
door, and Grettir gave him his death-blow. Then the man who was behind
him got on his feet and ran off at once to tell the jarl what had
happened. Sveinn was furious, and called the assembly to meet there and
then in the town. When Thorfinn and Thorsteinn Dromund heard the news,
they called all their followers and friends together and went to the
meeting in force. The jarl was very wroth, and it was no easy matter to
get speech with him. Thorfinn was the first to come before the jarl, and
he said: "I have come to offer an honourable atonement for the man who
has been slain by Grettir. The judgment shall remain with you alone if
you but spare his life."

The jarl replied in great wrath: "It is too late to beg for Grettir's
life, and you have no case that I can see. He has killed three brothers,
one at the feet of the other; men of noble minds who would not weigh
each other against their purses. Now, Thorfinn, it will not avail you
to beg for Grettir; I will not do such a wrong in the land as to accept
atonement for such a crime as this."

Then Bersi the son of Skaldtorfa came up and begged the jarl to accept
blood-money. "Grettir," he said, "is a man of high birth and is my good
friend. I offer you what I possess. May you see, my lord, that it is
better by sparing one man to earn the goodwill of many and to fix the
penalty yourself than to refuse honourable terms and risk whether you
can arrest the man or not."

The jarl replied: "You do right, Bersi; and herein as ever you show your
worth. But I do not mean to break the laws of the land by granting life
to a man who has forfeited it."

Then Thorsteinn Dromund came forward, and he, too, offered blood-money
on behalf of Grettir, adding many fair words thereto.

The jarl asked what moved him to offer blood-money for the man.
Thorsteinn said Grettir was his brother. The jarl said he had not known
that.

"It shows a manly spirit in you," he said, "that you want to help him.
But as I am determined not to accept blood-money in this case, I must
treat the requests of all of you alike. I must have Grettir's life
whatever it