power over his own stiflsampt, withotit being
subject to any other ecclesiastical jurisdiction,
though he is amenable to the civil powers;
In like manner the Bishop of Iceland is independent
of all other bishops.
The next officer in the church is the Stift-
provst of all Iceland, which is somewhat
analogous to a dean in England. The present
Stiftprovst’s name is Magnusen.
The Provsts are inferior officers of the
diocese, who have the care and superintendence
of ecclesiastical affairs in their own
provstie; for the diocese is divided into nineteen
such provsties, and about one hundred
and eighty-four church livings.
The priests receive their income from the
lands that are annexed to each church and
from tythes ; besides which, there are three
hundred and eighteen rix-dollars and seventy-
two skillings allowed per annum for the
amendment of such livings as are very small,
and three hundred more for the augmentation
of pensions to poor clergymens’ widows.
Their salaries are various; a few exceed a
hundred rix-dollars per annum, but the
greater number do not produce an income
of more than thirty or forty rix-dollars,
and some do not exceed twelve, ten, or even
five. It m u s t be remembered, however,
that most of the clergy occupy little farms,
and, this alone makes the condition of the
greater part of them tolerable.
To give a more correct idea of the revenues
of the clergy of Iceland, not only of the
regular salaries' which they receive from the
crown, but also of such pensions as are appropriated
to superannuated and poor priests
and widows, I subjoin the following table of
expenditure; only.premising, that the number
of clergymen is not to be estimated by that
of the livings here mentioned; for, curates
included, I think they amount to between
three and.four hundred.
Rdr. Sk.
1 Osterskaptefields Provstie . . . . 5 Livings 113 20
2 Vesterskaptefields Provstie.. . . 7 Ditto ,, 164 40
3 Rangervalle and Westman--» 13 ^ ”
noe Provstie .........................J
4 Arnaes Provstie. .................. 16 Ditto 436 34
5 Guldbringue and Kiose Provstie 9 Ditto 349 43
£ Borgafiord Provstie................... 6 Ditto 216 28
Carried forward . . . . 2016 45
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