THE DIFFERENT LAW-COURTS. 537 



should be exalted far above existing laws, and from it every 

 change in these laws ought to emanate for the future. 



King Hakon yielded up to the country the proprietary 

 right which his father had usurped. New legal relations were 

 then entered into between king and people ; these seem to 

 have been called landsrett (law of the land), which could not 

 be changed without the consent of both king and people. 



The log, or law proper, dealing with the relations existing 

 between man and man, was regarded as having originated 

 from the people alone, and therefore was their private pro- 

 perty. But royalty being acknowledged as a necessary part 

 of the state, and as such amenable to the log, was on that 

 account given a voice in its changes or revisions. 



In the first place, the legislative power of the country was 

 transferred from the Fylkistliings to the Lawthings, and was 

 placed in the hands of representative men (nefndarmemi) l 

 instead of in the hands of all the loendr of the fylki. Thus 

 the Lawthings became the only legislative power in the 

 country, each one legislating for its separate district. Then 

 the various earlier laws were consolidated into one law for 

 every district. 



By this important change royalty appears in a highly 

 influential aspect ; however, as is clearly shown, only in con- 

 sequence of a special power given it for the time being, and 

 not as a right established for all time. 



The highest power was not in the Althing, but in the 

 ^idgretta (law-court), composed of two kinds of members 

 those who were self-named, or godis by right (they were 

 thirty-nine), and those who were elected (twelve for the 

 northern quarter, and nine for each of the others) ; but these 

 godis took three men from each quarter which had only nine 

 godis, and so the number was increased to forty-eight, to 

 which number was added the logmadr (lawman). The number 

 of judges or godis of the Logretta at the Gulathing seems to 

 have been thirty-six. 



The elected members were appointed thus. Every one of 



1 Nefnd also = a body of men or arbi- 

 trators to give judgment iu a case. In 

 the old Swedish law it was composed of 



twelve members (see Schlyter). It is 

 not found in the Icelandic laws, but the 

 (Jiird is its equivalent. 



