x x in t r o d u c t io n .
the district in which they resided. Their
influence extended to matters relating to
ecclesiastical as welt as to civil affairs. They
were the priests in the sacred places, and
judges in business relating to the law;
although it must be observed, that the interpreration
of the law belonged, in a more
particular manner, to a person of still higher
authority, hereafter to be noticed. The
Præfects were, in the Icelandic, denominated
Godar or Hoffgodar (from H o ff a
temple), and their office was called Godord.
In order to give the greater dignity to their
meetings, they were convened in the sacred
places, and, in like manner as the Repps-
tiorars, may be looked upon as of two kinds,
the ordinary or annual, and the extraordinary,
or those that were appointed only in
cases of emergency. Each of them was distinguished
by some sign or emblem. As the
head of the church, within his own pfæfec-
ture, was part of the office of this magistrate
to appoint the sacrifices and ceremonies that
were to be performed in the temples; to
collect the tribute-money for the expences
attending religious worship and keeping
the sacred buildings in repair; as well as
to impose fines* on those w'ho were found
guilty of profaning the temples or speaking
irreverently of the gods.
When any affair occurred of great importance,
or such as concerned the whole
province, the three Praefects of such province
assembled, and formed the Fiordnugathyng,
or States of the Q•"Wuarter. These were as
often convoked as any danger threatening
the whole province seemed to require, or the
quarrels among the different communities of
the prsefectures rendered necessary.
Superior, however, to all the magistrates
that have now beeen described, was the
Logmann, or Logsogmann, who was elected,
by the choice of the people, sovereign
Judge of the whole Island. He was, as his
title implies, the expounder of the law. He
* In Iceland and Norway all crimes were rated
at a certain number of marks. The mark was
divided into eight parts, each of which was equivalent
to six ells of wadmal; consequently one mark (which
consisted of somewhat more than an ounce of fine
silver) was equal in value to forty-eight ells of this
cloth.