ommercial methods and their exponents. Monopolies were fiercely
denounced in the contemporary German tracts and every Diet made some
effort to deal with them. First of all the merchants had to meet not
only the envy and prejudices of the old order, but the positive
teachings of the church. The prohibition of usury, and the doctrine
that every article had a just or natural price, barred the road of the
early entrepreneur. Aquinas believed that no one should be allowed to
make more money than he needed and that profits on {530} commerce
should be scaled down to such a point that they would give only a
reasonable return. This idea was shared by Catholic and Protestant
alike in the first years of the Reformation; it can be found in Geiler
of Kaiserberg and in Luther. In the Reformer's influential tract, _To
the German Nobility_, [Sidenote: 1520] usury and "Fuggerei" are
denounced as the greatest misfortunes of Germany. Ulrich von Hutten
said that of the four classes of robbers, free-booting knights,
lawyers, priests and merchants, the merchants were the worst.

The imperial Diets reflected popular opinion faithfully enough to try
their best to bridle the great companies. The Diet of Treves-Cologne
[Sidenote: 1512] asked that monopolies and artificial enhancement of
the prices of spice, copper and woolen cloth be prohibited. To effect
this acts were passed intended to insure competition. [Sidenote: 1523]
This law against monopolies, however, was not vigorously enforced until
the Imperial Treasurer cited before his tribunal many merchants of
Augsburg accused of violating it. The panic-stricken offenders
feverishly hastened to make interest with the princes and city
magistrates. But their main support was the emperor, who intervened
energetically in their favor. From this time the bankers and great
merchants labored hard at each Diet to place the control of monopolies
in the hands of the monarch. In return for his constant support he was
made a large sharer in the profits of the great houses.

In the struggle with the Diets, at last the capitalists were thoroughly
successful. The Imperial Council of Regency passed an epoch-making
ordinance, [Sidenote: 1525] kept secret for fear of the people,
expressly allowing merchants to sell at the highest prices they could
get and recognizing certain monopolies said to be in the national
interest as against other countries, and justified for the wages they
provided for lab