The Washington times., 1906-12-23

the city but that It practically sup
. ported and controlled everything IN
The immediate vicinity.
They were careful bookkeepers in
NipL ur fourteen ceutUstes before the
birth OF Christ. for the tablets now at
the University Of Pennsylvania plainly
show, not only the nature OF the tax
collected, but the town from which Il
was received In these places the
taxes were either transferred to Nip
pur or used In local civic dIsburse-
fnents-a complicated and unwIeIds
system OF collecting and distributing
revenues, when il is remembered that
the taxes were paid in either grain or
cattle
Many Of the tablets are records OF
business transacted between private
individuals. ana some OF these ase in
tensely interesting as throwing light
oH the life Of this ancient city. For in
stance. one self-sacrihcIng citizen. ac-
cordins TO the chronicle of the tablets.
took the place ia a prison cell Of an
unfortunate priest who had got into
the Cluthches OF the law because OF
his failure TO pay q debt.
a wise ruling revealed by the tablets
is a case IN which the coucomitants are
a farm crop. an OK with q broken les.
and a borrower who subsequently be
came sorrowe-. The man who Dor
rowed the OK obtained II from a farm
er, who stipulated that the animal
should be returned at certain time,
so that the work on his own farm
should not suffer IN consequence Of
his generosity. The borrower had the
misfortune TO break the leg Of the OK.
or the OK broke IL himself while work
ing for the new driver. and in conse-
quence the time Tor the return OF the
animal which was the essence OF the
new arrangement, came and passed
and the owner Of the OK was unable
70 work his farm. The tablet shows
that the borrower WAS compelled 10
make good the crop that would have
been raised by the owner OF the OK
had he not been deprived Of the use Of
mis- animal by the chapter Of accidents
related
For a time il puzzled the translator
Of these tablets 10 know the meaning
OF little iudentaLions, apparently made
with a pointed instrument by the side
OF the columns Of record Of disburse-
ments made. 1t has been decided that
these were the check marks OF the
person who made the payments. In
modern parlanCe, as he handed out the
pay envelope the bookkeeper OF Baby
Ion tcked of the amounts on the tab
let in the way shown In one OF the
photographs by making little holes
alongside the amount - zafne-
The use Of the seal was all import
ant in the transactions OF the business
man o. Nippur. Il was an easy mat
ter To forge a document drawn on one
of the clay tablets, so the method en-
ployed 70 prevent this was TO encass
the tablet in a sealed envelope. OF
these seals DR.. Clay says:
The seal impression IS equivalent To
the modern document. II belongs TO
the man upon whom the obligation
rests or who IS the recipient mentioned
in the tablet or to whom the goods
are delivered. The only way protsc-
ton could be assured was TO encsss
the tablet and for the Obliger to make
impressions with his seal upon the
envelope. The holder of the document
might be able To make changes o. the
case, bat he could not restore the en-
velOpe which contained the seal OF the
obligor.'
was a thumb mark, showing that the
Babylonians were alive 10 the i'm
portance Of the method of identifica-
tion so widely exploited in the present
Gay as an unerrlng means 0f connect
ing the mark with the originator