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EISAGO´GEIS

EISAGO´GEIS (εἰσαγωγεῖς), as an Attic law-term, denotes two classes of persons. 1. In a wider sense the name was given to the ordinary magistrates when application was made to them for the purpose of bringing a cause (εἰσάγειν) into the proper court [DIAETETAE; DIKÉ]. The cause itself was tried according to its nature before arbitrators or dicasts respectively; but all the preliminary proceedings, such as receiving the accusation, getting up the case (instruction in the French sense), bringing into court the ἐχῖνος with the evidence taken at the ἀνάκρισις and presiding at the actual trial, all included in the so-called ἡγεμονία δικαστηρίου, were conducted by the magistrate regularly assigned to that class of cases. Various public officers, the strategi, the logistae, &c., had the ἡγεμονία δικαστηρίου in cases specially relating to their own department: in general it belonged to one or another of the archons, or in some cases to the Eleven [HENDEKA, HOI]. Of all these magistrates the thesmothetae seem to have had the widest jurisdiction; yet there were cases which they could not take up (περὶ ὧν οὐκ εἰσὶν εἰσαγωγεῖς), and a charge brought in the wrong court might be met by an ἀντίληξις or παραγραφή (Dem. c. Pantaen. p. 976, § § 33, 34; Att. Process, p. 30 = 45 Lips.). 2. Οἱ εἰσαγωγεῖς was also the name of particular magistrates, probably ten in number, chosen by lot to try (εἰσάγειν, see above) some sorts of ἔμμηνοι δίκαι: the δίκαι προικός, ἐρανικαὶ and ἐμπορικαὶ are specially mentioned (Pollux, 8.93 and 101). In the words οὗτοι δὲ τὰς δίκας εἰσήγαγον τρὸς τοὺς διαιτητάς (100.93) they are confused with the εἰσαγωγεῖς in the more general sense; as also in a gloss of Hesychius: εἰσαγωγή: ἀρχὴ Ἀθήνησιν τῶν τὰ ἐγκλήματα εἰσαγόντων. While no better evidence than this was forthcoming, it was possible, with Meier in the first edition of Att. Process, to doubt the existence of these special εἰσαγωγεῖς (not noticed in L. and S., ed. 7); but it is now proved by inscriptions (C. I. A. 1.37, 38). The former of these inscriptions is a decree of the senate, by which the εἰσαγωγεῖς are entrusted with the conduct of actions to enforce the payment of the tribute by the allies (B.C. 425-4, Stratocles archon): in the latter, ἐπιμεληταὶ are associated with them for the same purpose. [EMMENOI DIKAT.] The name εἰσαγωγεῖς must have been somewhat widely diffused, as it appears at Ephesus in Roman times; see an inscription of the year 83 B.C., published by Wood, Discoveris at Ephesus, 1877, App. 8.1. (Gilbert, Staatsalterth. 1.358; Lipsius, Att. Process,2 p. 94; Thalheim, Rechtsalterth. pp. 97, 137.) [W.S] [W.W]

(Appendix). These magistrates were five in number, δυοῖν φυλαῖν ἕκαστος (100.52), instead of the more usual ten.

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