Page:The Heimskringla; or, Chronicle of the Kings of Norway Vol 2.djvu/89

 KINGS OF NORWAY. 81 speech, Rserek was desired to speak ; and he said, saga vh. " Now is the day come that I foretold when we had our meeting at Hadeland, and ye were all so eager to raise Olaf over our heads ; namely, that as soon as he was the supreme master of the country we would find it hard to hold him by the horns. We have but two things now to do : the one is to go all of us to him, and let him do with us as he likes, which I think is the best thing we can do ; or the other is, to rise against him before he has gone farther through the countrv. Although he has 300 or 400 men, that is not too great a force for us to meet, if we are only all in movement together : but, in general, there is less success and advantage to be gained when several of equal strength are joined together, than when one alone stands at the head of his own force ; therefore it is my advice, that we do not venture to try our luck against Olaf Haraldsson." Thereafter each of the kings spoke according to his own mind, some dissuading from going out against King Olaf, others urging it ; and no determination was come to, as each had his own reasons to produce. Then Gudrod, the valley-king, took up the word, and spoke : — "It appears wonderful to me, that ye make such a long roundabout in coming to a resolu- tion ; and probably ye are frightened for him. We are here five kings, and none of less high birth than Olaf. We gave him the strength to fight with Earl Swend, and with our forces he has brought the coun- try under his power. But if he grudges each of us the little kingdom he had before, and threatens us with tortures, or gives us ill words, then, say I for myself, that I will withdraw myself from the king's slavery ; and I do not call him a man among you who is afraid to cut him off, if he come into our hands here up in Hedemark. And this I can tell you, that we shall never bear our heads in safety while Olaf is VOL. II. G