According to the Gulathing Law bargains were made void in case of _fals_, or cheating, and the cheater was fined 3 marks. “No man shall sell to another that in which there is fraud or deceit. If a man sells sand or dirt instead of meal or butter, with which he covers the sand or dirt, the fine is 3 marks” (Gulath., 40). To use the property of another man without his permission was called _fornœmi_[182] if it was a ship, a horse, or snow-shoes, and it was punished by indemnity to the owner, the special name for which was _áfang_. If he refused to pay the indemnity his act was robbery. The king neither received nor paid _áfang_, as his things could be used by other people, and he could use other people’s things. “No man shall take the ship or horse of a man except with the leave of the owner. If he takes it he shall pay one eyrir and a half. If the owner finds him on the ship or horse and asks áfang it is well if he will pay. If he will not, the fine is doubled, and a _ranbaug_ (robbery-fine) is to be paid to the king” (Gulathing, 92). Spoiling the property of another was called _spellvirki_ (spoiling-deed); if the damage was more than half a mark the owner received damages according to the valuation, and doubtless also according to his rétt. If the spoiler would not pay he was outlawed. “No man shall spoil another man’s things. If he spoils so much that the loss amounts to half a mark it is a _spoiling-deed_, of all which is valued as much as half a mark. If a man cuts off the tail of another’s horse so high that he cuts some of its skin, then it is a spoiling-deed. If a man makes a cut into the side of a ship, fore or aft, worth half a mark, it is a _spoiling-deed_”[183] (Gulathing, 96). ----- Footnote 176: _Baug._ Footnote 177: A place for provisions, still common in Norway. See ‘Land of the Midnight Sun,’ vol. i, p. 419. Footnote 178: Cf. also Frostath. xiv. 12, 13. Footnote 179: Literally a man of turf and tar; _i.e._ equivalent to one who was tarred and feathered. Footnote 180: Cf. also Gulath. 253; Frostath. xii. 12. Footnote 181: An oath. Footnote 182: The law term for plundering another man’s property. Footnote 183: Frostath. Law, x. 46, applies this to other cattle also. CHAPTER XV. HALLS AND BUILDINGS. Vast size and beauty of some buildings—Wood the only material used—Halls—Durability of the wooden structures—Carved doorways—Use of tapestry—Walls adorned with shields—The seats—Positions of the guests—Carved benches—Houses and rooms—Women’s apartments—Open hearths—Use of turf as fuel—Representations of episodes from the sagas. From the Eddas and Sagas we sometimes get a vivid conception of the vast size, beauty, and magnificence of some of the buildings of the Vikings in their home in the North. The only material mentioned in their construction is wood.