Page:Readings in European History Vol 1.djvu/449

I The People in Country and Town 413 In the name of the holy and indivisible Trinity, Amen. The 167. Miin- magistrates, consuls, and the whole community of burghers ste r D ort- and citizens in Munster, Dortmund, Soest, and Lippstadt, soest', and to all who may read this document, greeting : Lippstadt We hereby make known to all men, now and in the future, a uj n ^ to that because of the manifold dangers to which we are con- protect their stantly exposed, of capture, robbery, and many other injuries, erchants we have, by common counsel and consent, decided to unite densed). in a perpetual confederation under the following terms, and we have mutually given and received word and oath : First, that if any man shall take captive one of our citizens or seize his goods without just cause, we will altogether deny to him opportunity to trade in all our cities aforesaid. And if the castellan of any lord shall be the author of an injury that has been done, the afore-mentioned privileges shall be altogether withheld from the lord of that castellan, and from all his soldiers and servants, and all others dwell- ing with him in his castle. . . . If any robber has taken goods from one of our citizens . . . and the injured man shall go to any one of our [feder- ated] cities seeking counsel and aid, in order that justice may be done upon the malefactor, the citizens of that city shall act as they would be obliged to act if executing justice for a similar crime committed against otle of their own fellow-citizens. And if any of our burgesses shall chance to go to any of our cities and fear to go forth because of peril to life and property, the burgesses of that city shall conduct him to a place whence his fellow-citizens can receive him in safety. If a knight shall be denounced to us on reasonable grounds as a violator of faith and honor, we will denounce him in all our cities, and will by mutual consent withhold from him all privileges in our cities until he shall pay the whole debt for which he broke his word. If any one of us shall buy goods taken from any of our confederates by theft or robbery, ... he shall not offer the goods at retail anywhere and shall be held guilty with the thief and robber.