The Hartford republican. (Hartford, Ky.) 18??-1926, 1912-02-23
BABYLON BANKING
system Shown
Favored Rule Business Is Bus
mess" Declared Old As
History.


civilization, re-enforced by
the fruits of earlier explorations. show
that business is business" is rule of
life is as old as history.
AS far back as 1000 years before
Christ the Babylonians had made such
progress in commercial aptitude that
special laws had to be framed to deal
with those gentlemen who tried short
cuts to wealth. The young man with
expectations realized in those days with
less regard to the sacredness of the per-
son and the right to live, borrowed. as
does today, from the professional mon
ey lender.
The Babylon!an merchant banked
regularly and issued his brick cheques"
and bills of exchange. and the law stepped
in. even as it does today,to preserve in
violate the rights of property. So keen
were the business instincts of the people
that even the priests were not above
deal in offerings and in real estate. IN
deed, a great part of the commerce of
Babylonian was concentrated in the
temples.
BUSINESS AMONG PRIESTS.
The vast quantities of metals, cereals
and other commodities which either as
gifts to the temples or offerings to the
gods poured in daily We're sold by the
priests, who did not neglect to get their
deed seems to have been an important
qualification for admission to the priest
hood.
Careful accounts of revenue and eX
pendture We're kept, and these show that
investments in loans and the purchase Of
land and other profitable dealings were a
regular part of the fiscal activities of the
priestly establishments.
Perhaps the most interesting of all the
buried records which have come to light
are the contract tablets kept by firm of
bankers and money lenders known as
1.-THE sons of Egibi." established at Baby
Ion before the time of Sennacherib,
probably as early as 1000 b. c., and
which existed for several centuries.
These "brick books" as they have been
called, constitute the chief source of
our knowledge of life in ancient Baby
lon.
The firm of Egibi possessed enormous
ignated the "Rothschilds of the ancient
world" They carried on every sort of
financial transaction. They made loans
to the State. as well as to private per-
sons, and the finances of the court We're
entrusted to them for several genera
tons. They collected the land taxes,
tithes and dues for the use of the pub
lie roads and paid them into the royal
treasury.
CHECKS USED IN TRADING.
They also undertook what we should
now describe as agencies for private
individuals. and in addition to their vast
money lending transactions must also
have engaged in what we now term
bankers" business, for We know that
documents existed in those days corre-
spending to modern checks and bills of
exchange The various transactions of
the firm were noted down on clay tablets
which Were strong in great earthenware
jars for safety,and there they remained
until they were accidentally discovered
some few years ago.
All bear the names of the contracting
parties and witnesses. and most of them
are dated The Egibi firm were not the
only great trading firm in ancient Baby
lonia,as during the excavations at Niffer
there Were discovered the records of an
other firm. known as Aiurasu, which rose
to a position of great wealth and impor-
lance during the fifth century u. c.
The Accountant.