Those were transaction logs if you dont know by now. You probably deleted them because they took up alot of space becuase you never did a full backup which purges the log files.
Fortunately, with EX2k you in most cases you can recover the data from the databases wiht only priv1.edb and priv1.stm. The first thing i would do is chech the state of the database with eseutil /mh . On like the 6th line down it will tell you whether the state of the database is consistant or not. If it is consistant then you can relax a little because with those 2 files you can get your mail back.
The next question is how- Now I am assuming that you dont have a backup.
First of all stop the services if they are still running(?) then copy off priv1.edb and priv1.stm to someplace safe in case you need them later. tYou may be able to restore with the setup.exe /disasterrecovery switch but i wouldnt count on it . the will restore the directory hierarchy and the registry files without affecting AD. if that doesnt work then your probably looking at a rebuild. If that is the case youll need to make sure to name the server,domain,org the same as they are now and install all files to the same path. And then bring it backup to the same service pack level before you try to mount the store.
This is a detailed process and what will work for you will depend on many things so do your homework . Obviously confirm with MS and TAC how they suggest you proceed but. If the database is in a consistant state there is no reason you wont get your data back if you follow correct procedure. If you have bcakups then you are in better shape
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/treeview/default.asp?url=/technet/prodtechnol/exchange/exchange2000/support/e2krecov.asp
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/treeview/default.asp?url=/technet/prodtechnol/exchange/exchange2000/support/dbrecovr.asp
http://www.microsoft.com/exchange/techinfo/reskit/start.asp
