r on the supposition that the aldermen
had been "smeared in the hand," that is to say, bribed.

There are other trades locked up in a different way. There exist several
of this kind in Nuremberg and thereabouts; as, the awl and punch-makers,
lead-pencil makers, hand-bell makers, gold and silver wire-drawers, and
others. They occupy a particular town or district, and they say, "Here
we are. We possess these trades, and we mean to keep them to ourselves.
We will teach no strangers our craft; we will confine it among our
relatives and townsmen; and in order to prevent the knowledge of it from
spreading any farther, we will allow our workmen to travel only within
the limits of our town or land;" and so they keep their secrets close.

In other trades, the workmen are allowed to engage themselves only to a
privileged employer. That is to say, they dare not execute a private
order, but can receive employment from a master of the craft only. In
Prussia, and some few other lands, each workman can work on his own
account, and can offer his goods for sale in the public market
unhindered, so long as they are the production of his own hands alone;
but should he employ a journeyman, then he pays a tax to Government of
about ten shillings annually, the tax increasing in proportion to the
number of men he may employ.

There are also "endowed" and "unendowed" trades. An endowed guild is one
the members of which pay a certain small sum monthly while in work, and
thus form a fund for the relief of the sick and the assistance of the
travelling members of the trade. There are few trades of the unendowed
kind, for the workmen of such trades have to depend upon the generosity
of their companions in the craft in the hour of need; and it is generally
found more economical to pay a regular sum than to be called on at
uncertain intervals for a donation; moreover, the respectability of the
craft is better maintained.

While we talk of respectability, we may add that it was formerly the
especial care of the heads of each guild, to see that no disreputable
persons became members of the trade; and illegitimate children, and even
the lawful offspring of shepherds, bailiffs, and town servants were
carefully excluded. This practice exists no longer, except in some few
insignificant places; but the law is still very general which says that
no workman can become a master who has not fulfilled every regulation
imposed by his guild; that is to sa