The Craftsman - 1901 - 12 - December

7/27/2019 The Craftsman - 1901 - 12 - December

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THE CRAFTSMANDECEMBER MDCCCCI

CONTENTSThe Gilds of the Middle Ages.A New Irish Industry.Our Illustrations.Some Definitions.

The art i cl es w & t en by I rene Sagent .

PUBLISHERS ANNOUNCEMENTS

7 SUBSCRIPTIONS : Subscription price $2.00 the year, inadvance, postpaid to any address in the United States orCanada, and to begin with any desired number.

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TCHANGE OF ADDRESS: When a change of addressis desired, both the old and the new address should begiven, and notice of the change should reach this officenot later than the fifteenth of the month, to affect thesucceeding issue. The publishers cannot be responsiblefor copies lost through failure to notify them of suchchanges,

The United Crafts, Publishers, Eastwood,New York.

Coprright. 1901 br Cysteve Stichley

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FOREWORD

T HE editors of The Craftsman proceed to the thirdissue of their maenthusiasm. The kin Eiazine with increased courage andness and appreciation with whichthe Morris and the Ruskin monographs were received,have revealed to them the spirit of a wide public willingto be inspired by the example of earnest minds and greathearts. The subject of the present num-ber, The Gilds of the Middle Ages, is presented in thehope of giving in popular form information regarding oneof the most interestin llzffeatures of a P eriod of active,aggressive municipal e. A period o decentralizationwhen interests were conflicting, and partisanship bitter,p; wp every craft was an art, when the hand thata,,ore_ was hnnnrml mtellv with thp h~nrl that nwnte.II*vL W ~.l, ..ACII CA. *AU&-w ..U. r**vrr,and when the merchant was often a diplomat-sometimeseven a statesman. The writers upon whose state-ments the article is based, are Villari, Lambert and Gross,each of whom is a recognized authority upon some onephase of the subject. The article is offered in the hopethat it may awaken in those who may chance upon it, apersonal desire to aid in restoring the dignity of labor andthe pleasure that formerly accompanied the life of toil,voted to a stud The January issue will be de-of textile fabrics considered from both thehistorical and tIIe economic point of view.The Editors further acknowl-edge the receipt of a valued letter from Mr. H. M. Hynd-man, a friend and the co-laborer of William Morris in thecause of Socialism ; portions of which letter they purposelater to publish in The Craftsman.


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CONCERNING CHOICE IN COLOR.

T E pl easure-el ement i n t he w i se economy of na t ure is a st rong andsubtl e one. Col or w as designed t o afford a heal t hful degree ofexci t ement t o t he vi sion, and so to rel i eve t he t ensi on of t he mi nd f i xedupon t he probl ems of exi stence. OQ i ne color -sense dist i nguishes t heciv i l i zed man from t he savage, t he w el l -devel oped adult from the chi l dand t he feeble-m i nded: t he hi ghly -or ganized reti na al one bei ng sensit i vet o subdiv i ded gradati ons and compl ex harmonies. To il lustrate thi s pointi t w i t 1 onl y be necessary t o recal l t he effect produced upon di ff erent classesof i ndi vi duals by the col or- schemes of Tuvi s de Chavannes. I f has beenobserv ed i n France by competent j udges t hat peasants show no i nt erest i nt he mural paint i ngs of t hi s master, al t hough t he subject s il l ust rat ed arepastorals, miracles, allegories ; all of w hich make st rong appeal to t heimaginat i on. The explanati on of t he fact l i es i n t he absence of pri marycolors and such t ones as el ude t he uneducat ed sense : azur e, w hi ch amongt he Greeks, rank ed as no color : vi ol et , w hi ch i n he color -scale correspondst o t he highest vi ol i n not es i n sound; dark green, w hi ch act s as an opiat et o he senses. I n connect i on w i t h t he last named, i t perhaps is not out ofplace to note t hat a modern I tal i an poet , wi t h t hat sci enti f i c accuracy sooft en born of t he acut e art i st i c percept i on, has referred t o t he di vi negreen si l ence of t he pl ai ns.

I n fol l ow i ng snch t hought s as these i t becomesapparent t hat w e ow e a not nconsi derabl e share of our happiness or of ourdi scomfort t o he objects by w hich w e are surrounded; t hat w e are dis-t urbed by t he aggressi veness of mat eri al t hi ngs, or that w e may imagi net hem as offeri ng us a mi l d and pl easi ng sympat hy.

To ensure t he l at t er effect, t he modern archi t ectput s fort h his best effor t s i n the composit i on, st ructur al and decorati %e, ofrooms t hat are habi t ual l y occupied or fr equent ed by numbers of persons;a case i n point bei ng offered by t he i l l ustrat i on of a di ni ng room, w hi chappears in t he current number of The Craft sman.The room , si t uat ed i n a countr y house by t he sea,repeat s t he green andgray of the scene upon v i ch i t s w i ndow s open. I ti s fi ni shed i n w hi t ew ood, w hi ch suscept i ble t o subtl e st ai ns, here assumesa beaut i ful soft green sol i cit i ng both t he eye and t he t ouch. The walls



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THE CRAFTSMAN vand doors are panel ed w i t h t he green leat her of t he Uni t ed Craf t s, t heunduIat i ng surface of w hi ch r et ai ni ng every ort gi nal mark of t he pel t ,offers a play- ground for l i ght s and shadow s. The fi re-pl ace i s buil t offi el d-stones, and i s fl anked by cupboards, di vi ded l i ke t he doors int oupper and low er compart ment s t he upper bein.q prov i ded w i t h panes ofw at er- green glass ; t he l ow er w i t h l eather used i n t he constr uct i on of t hepanel , and not aft erw ard appli ed as a mere decorat i on. The frieze spaceand t he cei l i ng, whi ch i s di vi ded by open raft ers, are i n gray plast er,upon w hi ch t he t row el mark s haZe been l eft , i n order to ensure a di versi-fied surface. The fl oor i s l ai d i n edge-grai n Georgia pine, and compl et esa %hol e simpl e, uni fi ed and most at t racti ve : al t oget her a room t o requentand t o enfoy duri ng t hat l arge part of t he year w hi ch reaches fr om t hegreenness of spri ng t o he dul l gray of l at e aut umn.



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IN PRAISE OF LABOR AND LIBERTY

The great men of old time understood how to recon-cile manual labor with affairs of state. JOHN LOCKE .Trn~nu~Ll s 4rr +L I, 1 1. 1 ..__.L..A. cIIIK.ILII~ L me is u1e 11aru uanu, LrwllGu coarse,wherein notwithstanding, lies a cunning virtue, indefeasi-bly royal, as of the sceptre of this planet.

THOMAS CARL YLE.

Labor is discovered to be the grand conqueror, en-riching and building up nations more surely than thepruiidest bat&.,WZL IAM ELLERY CHANN ING .

Labor in this country is independent and proud. Ithas not to ask the patronage of capital, but capital solicitsthe-aid of labor. DANIEL WEBSTER.

Liberty is an inalienable natural right; a right neverto be dependent upon anothers will.Extr act lom a aw of t he Fl or ent in eRepubl i c, August 6, 1289.



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THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGESTHEIR PARALLELS ANDANALOGUES

0 UR title is, in its way, a conjurers formula. For atthe mention of these old civic associations, thou htis at once turned away from the modern, work-a- 23yworld. A vista opens into the past, and we see HansSachs, sitting at a cobblers bench in old Nuremberg, ex-ercising his craft with forthright honesty, ouring fromhis lips the while a continuous flood of t Ka song andpoetry which has ever been one of the strongest factors ofGerman brotherhood and unity. Or again, mediaevalFlorence displays in the great square, before the OldTown Hall, a company of the Maor and Minor Arts,each marching under its own standard : a proud, turbu-lent throng, vivid with color, dramatic in gesture, shout-ing for Giano and Dante, the champions of liberty andprogress. Or it may chance that the Low Countries firstpresent themselves to our imagination. In the teeming,industrious towns we hear the looms gossiping in thehigh-gabled houses, or see gathered on change the con-course of those merchants, whose name of Easterlings orSterlings, given them in England, passed into our Iangua eas the synonym of absolute honesty and value. By taeaid of Rembrandts powerful characterization, we canenter into a council of the Cloth Syndics, or mingle inthe ranks of a great fraternity celebratinits patron saint. Or we may picture in me8 the festival ofiaeval splendor,the old mile-long City of London, stretching from theTower to Temple Bar, gay with the pageant of theTwelve Livery Companies, as they participate in theLord Mayors Show. Such glimpses into the past wegather largely from art and romance. But the idea ofwhich these galas were but the superficial expression,possesses a deep social and economic significance which



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2 THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGEShas, unta recently, been ignored by the historian andserious student. Contemstrenuous, violent life Of raneous jealousies and theJo e Middle A es suppressed ormade fra entary the records of the &lorigin is ost in obscurity. But their ds, so that theirrtune work inpromotin % the civic spirit and true sot m: that is theidea of rotherhood and companionship; the constantand joyous occupation which they gave to the middle andlower classes, until idleness became an almost unknowndisease; the great belt of communication with whichth7 circled Europe; their furtherance of wise commercialan industrial schemes and their diffusion of advancedideas commend them especially to the new centur intowhich we are just entering. For they are the d: stantparallels of movements which are agitating the life andthought in which we ourselves are the participants,Within the past two decades,investigations into these companies or fraternities havebeen made by eminent scholars, who have classified thegilds and, from existing data, have sought to re-establishan entire evolutionary series of organizations, beginningin Greek and Roman antiquiYations other than those of In and extending into civili-of-Germanic ori in. Thesescholars have advanced theories historical an 8 sociologicalas to the origin and development of the gild idea, but atthe present point of their labors, they are perhaps nofarther advanced than the ordinary man of thought, whocan readily find the reason and motive for such an impulsein the gregarious nature of man.

The gild-idea belongs then tono particular time, or place. It is found to exert aninfluence in the China of today aiong simiiar lines andsomewhat the same in extent, as in the Mediterraneancities of late Hellenic civilisation and the towns ofmediaeval Europe. It is seen to curb the selfishness andbrutality of oriental life; substituting therefor virtueshard to believe possible in a society existing for the most



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THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGES 9part without religious sanction. So too, in the Europeof four or five centuries ago, the same idea of associationappeased the jealous, warring spirit of peoples just emerg-ing from the torpor of the dark ages and reaching forthuntried powers, with the querulousness of self-distrust.At that time, conditions were most favorable for thediffusion and development of the gild-idea, since it bestflourishes where centralized government is weakest.Therefore, when barbaric influence had destroyed thecult of the world-capital, Rome, then individualismasserted itself, and gilds were multiplied over the northernand western districts of the continent; there to build up,at countless points, what an eminent Englishman hascalled a reli on of industry ; to create a form of secularlife higher & n any other attained before or since.The gild-idea being understoodas the spirit of association uniting individuals for commonprofit and preservation, it becomes evident that althoughthe conception belongs to no one time, or place, it is yetpeculiar to any society at a fixed stage of development:being most valuable when the growing state is threatenedby violence and competition from without; bein leastuseful when the body politic has provided itseK withadministrative powers sufficient to enforce contracts andto protect its poorest members in their rights.is consequently found The gildf ractically the same and equallyflourishing among peop es differing most widely from oneanother. It is found also at periods separated by hun-dreds and even by thousands of years : in the Greek-speaking colonies established by Alexander the Great;in antique Rome, throughout its history, from the age ofthe kings to that of the late emperors; in the Britah ofClaudius time, where t$t emperor recognized by decree,asaski~~$ate and old, a corporation, or craft-gild of; in Constantinople under the Byzantineprinces, as well as in the Turkey of the present Sultan;among the thirteenth-century Chinese, where Marco



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4 THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGESPC& caught glimpses of highly developed burgher-life, aswd as amon the same industrial people of our ownday, who deep y, albeit in a restricted sense, understandthe economic laws governing work and wages, and arekeenly alive to the disturbing effects of labor-savingmachinery ; as is evidenced by the anecdote of the nativeclerk at Swatow, who, when shown a. contrivance thatcrushed more sugar-cane than ten laborers with theirbuffaloes could preangrif :

fHow ashion those men get their chow-pare within the same time, cried out

chow A sentence memorable in its way, since itcondenses a whole volume of economic doctrines.It is more particularly the purecraft-gild with its necessary ally the g&la mercatoria,or commercial league, which comes within the scope ofthe present article; although secular organizations createdby religious impulse can not be here disregarded ; norcan those baleful brotherhoods, like the XJebmgericht, orthe mafia, escape without comment.The gild, whatever may be itsspecific and secondary object, of necessity fosters localism.It is an affair and interest of the neighborhood rather thanof a greater social unit. It therefore struck deep roots intothe life of the Middle Ages ; thriving in the Italian towns,feeding and fanning, throughout the Peninsula, the flameof that home-enthusiasm which the native historians SOpicturesquely calf lo spir i t 0 di campani l e an excessiveand distinctive localism which marked the citizens of eachseparate commune and gathered them, in admiration oftheir own institutions and art, around the tower of theircathedral, or their civic palace. But although jealous,irritable and seekin strife, these citizen-groups were yetrich in the possib!lties, and even in the attainmentswhich constitute the ideal members of a fully ze &tedstate. The spirit of association,-as manifeste in theirgilds, or companies, or confraternities, as they were vari-ously called, according to the special cause or object repre-



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THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGES 5sented by them,-this spirit set up an ideal higher thanpersonal interest and material gain; it taught that themain object of town residence is the cultivation of respectand regard for ones neighbor, not as a hollow dogma ofmorality, but as one of the most ordinary and agreeablehabits of life. So it may be seen that the gild differs fromthe State and the Church-the other two great conceptionsand expressions of the spirit of association-in that it

rately. The gilds, as industrial or commercial organka-tions, reacted against the violence of the Middle Ages,drawing the artisan and the merchant awa from criminalthou hts, and attaining for societyJ s more positivefJres ts in progress and civilization, by enforcing industry,honesty and a strict observance of omise and contract.As the ghest and most at-rtractive develomnent of the gild-idea f2l.s within themediaeval period, it is to that Division of history whichwe must turn for enlightenment upon a subject possessinga vital and pressing modern interest; since it is a dutyawaiting whoever is willing, to aid in freeing the handi-crafts from the arrogant contempt with which they arenow regarded by the ignorant and the careless : a con-



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6 THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGES

&ion paralleling the attitude of Rome toward her artisans,in those later times when slavery had largely supplantedfree labor ; the difference today being that the laborer haschanged masters ; that he is no longer attached, as achattel, to the person of a superior individual, but that heis become the slave of the machine which he operates.Lessons drawn from the stare never without value, and furthermore it w ftpaepleasurable to penetrate, even if but superficially, into aperiod of strong munici

I5I, industrial and social life.

~~_~~~f~~,~~~e~~,~,~~ l..ifii its entirety, if we_I~. CIIY .CWU Iof the gild; 2.lhat u~rrurcurr, WGd with~ii the circles burgher-merchant or craftsman de-rived from this wide-spread system his wealth, his intelli-gence and his executive ability ; so that individually heoften came to equal the man whose importance rested onnoble birth and high deeds of arms ; while collectively,through his gild, or his league, he defied the power ofPrinces, invented economic schemes which directed andixed the currents of history, assured the permanence ofparliaments and the preponderance of his own class in theworlds gravest affairs. The power of the gilds lay asmuch in their close connection with the conduct and de-tails of every-day life, as in their relations to national orcontinental enterprises. They were no mere formal or-ganizations for purposes which began and ended withcommerce and industry. The warm blood of the MiddleAges circulated and pulsed through them. To borrowsome graphic words of description : Their memberssat together at the feast, stood by one anothers honor inthe mart, lived in the same quarter, shared the same pur-chase, marched side by side in the pageant, acted togetherin the play, and fought together in the art of the citywalls committed to their care. The mereL nt lived in hiswarehouse, which was also his factory as well as hisshop. The apprentice sat at his masters table for sevenyears, somewhat after the manner of an adopted son, and



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THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGES 7_on attaining the membership of the gild, he gained arecognized and honorable Y ition in the land.0 inform ourselves specificallyupon the subject of gild power and influence, we have butto consult the history of Florence, with the certainty ofobtaining the same satisfactory result, whether we selectfor our researches the ingenuous narratives of the oldchroniclers like Din0 Corn aand philosophic work p t$$$~$$ga&!;~;~ohowever and by whom it may be presented, the glory ofthe Tuscan capital is seen to rise from the toil of humanbrain and hand ; while it repeatedly suffers eclipse fromthe strife of noble a ainst noble, or when, lured by vanity,or as the victim of alse promises, the popular party uniteswith some faction of the aristocracy.The time best suited for illus-tration is the latter half of the thirteenth century, after thefinal defeat of the Ghibellines, when there came into effecta new constitution bitterly opposed b the nobles, andhaving for its chief articles measures d tive to the organi-zation and conduct of the gilds which became the basis ofFlorentine law. Associations of arts and trades had ex-isted throughout Italy from a very early date, and hadattained a greater development in inland Florence than inthe communes seated on the coasts and more naturallfitted for commerce. Within these associations, the who&life of the peo le became concentrated, durin the timewhen Ghibe e or patricianlzn I:ranny ha 6: excludedthe people from participation in t e government of thecity. Therefore, it now remained for the reformers onlyto embody naturally evolved results in a more regular andlegal form, From- this time forward, the gilds -assumed

-r eat political importance, the nature of which can best benderstood by devoting our attention to that organizationwhich was first and foremost in the race.In the thirteenth century, Italianmanufactures dictated the laws of taste to the world, and



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8 THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGES, B!secured the rapid development of the so-calkd Cdhahtrade, This was the art of dressing forei n cloths-im-ported from Flanders, France and Englan d-and dyeingthem with colors known to Florence alone. In th&finished state, these stuffs were sent to all the Europeanmarkets stamped with the mark of the Calimala Gild;which mark was accepted as a 8 rantee against anyfalsification of material, and as s owa that the exactlength of the pieces had been verified in orence. In thisway, the CaIimala craftsmen and merchants rapidly gaineduniversal trading relations, and interests extending toevery place where luxury was known. Therefore, to thefurtherance of its objects, the Calimala, upon the inaugu-ration of the reforms of 1266, and in common with theother greater gilds, became constituted on the lines of aminiature republic; its organization being similar to thatof the other city companies, and then assuming a finalform, which is described by Vilfari as follows :

Every six months-June andDecember-the heads of warehouses and shops held ameeting, and this Union-exercising much the samefunction in the gild as that of the parliament in the Re-public-chose the electors to be char ed with the nomina-tion of the magistrates. First came our consuls who ad-ministered justice according to the statutes, actedas repre-sentatives of the gild and ruled it with the assistance oftwo councils, one being a stfY ial council with a minimumof twelve members, and e other a general assemblyoften varying in number and sometimes limited to eighteen.With the consent of these councils the consuls were evenempowered to alter the statutes. They carried the bannerof the gild, and, in emergencies, the citizens assembled atarms under their command. Then there was the Cam-arlingo, or chamberlain, holding office for one year, whoadministered the revenue and expenditure of the associa-tion. And as the Republic had a foreign magistrate inthe person of the Pod est a , so th e gild had one also in the



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THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGES 9

person of its notary, likewise appointed for one year. Hewas chosen by the council-general, and was ualified tospeak in both councils as the representative of 2 e consuls.He was often emespecially charg loyed on missions for the gild and was$ to enforce scrupulous observation of thestatutes, with the power of inflictinon all violators of the same, were severe punishmentti ey even the consulsthemselves. All these officials were sworn adherents ofthe Guelph, or popular party.fixed from year to year. The notarys stipend wasThe consuls were bound toaccept office if elected, and they could not be re-electedunder the interval of one year; their salary was first fixedat an insignificant sum of money (ten lire) and the pro-duct of certain fines; but it was afterward reduced toseveral pounds of pepper and saffron, and a few woodenbaskets and spoons. The Camarlingo or chamberlain-he who administered the revenue and expenditure of theassociation-was remunerated even more slightly andmuch in the same way. Three accountants were cLosenevery ear to investi ate the actions of the outgoing con-suls, cL mberlain anii other magistrates. Twelve statu-tory merchants were similarly elected, with authority torevise and improve the statutes of the gild; but all reformssuggested by them were to be approved, first by bothcouncils, and then by the Captain of the People. Theconsuls took part in the councils of the Captain (the headof the popular party) and the Podesta (chief of the patri-cians), and they were pledged to protect the interests ofthe gild and to advocate laws in its favor.

The statutes for the good of thegild, enforced by so many magistrates, prescribed hardind fast rules for the exercise of trade. Very severepun$&ments were inflicted when the merchandise was ofii-&&or quality, defective, or counterfeit. Every piece waslabelled, and any stain or rent unrecorded by this labelentailed the punishment of the merchant concerned.Above all, there was great strictness as to accuracy of



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measure, The officers of the gild frequently inspectedthe cloth, and made a bi-monthIy examination of themeasures used in all the shops, Models of the prescribedmeasures were exhibited to the public at certain fixedpoints of the city. Furthermore, the consuls appointed&Iegates to every counting house, to verify the merchantsbooks and accounts, and they severely punished any de-viation from the established rules. Every gild had a tri-bunal composed either solely of its own members, orjointly with those of another, for the settlement of ail dis-putes connected with the trade, and enforced severe nal-ties on ail who referred such disputes to the or inarycourts of justice, The punishments were usually fines,and persons refusing to pay them, after receiving severalwarnings, were excluded from the gild and practicallyruined. F or from that moment, their merchandise, beingunstamped, was no longer guaranteed by the association,and they themseIves were unable to continue their workin Florence, and not often elsewhere.Outside the State, vice-consulswere deputed to guard the interests of the giId, and oftenambassadors from the body were sent to the courts offoreign governments. From this detailed account com-piled from the records of the Calimala, by the first livingItalian authority upon the subject, we may gain an ideaof the thorough honesty, the perfection of system and thelocal pride characterizing the typical gild. And when weconsider that these same principles were the governingrules of six other bodies, similar to the association of thecloth-dressers, we may venture the statement that thewonderful commercial prosperity, the artistic and indus-trial supremacy, the intellectual acumen of the mediaevalFlorentines were the outcome of the gild s stem. Thecitizens each and aI.I took a continuous an B eager sharein political life, inasmuch as every gild was an inde-pendent self-ruling institution, with separate magistrates,



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laws, statutes and councils. As a consequence of suchvaried political and economic training, the gild-memberswere quick to grasp suddenly sentedwere adroit in diplomacy anR situations ; theyparliamentary ractice ;they were accurate in business methods. Furt Kermore,the effect of decentralization: that is the division of thecitizens into a not inconsiderable number of gilds and thedistribution of the offices of the gild itself among a lar enumber of members was to develo individualism.Ln 8othat almost any one of these mere ts and craftsmen,chosen at random, was capable of governin the Republit, of fulfilling with honor to himself and city, theimost delicate forei missions, and, above all, of com-manding a respec ul hearinnking; since his knowledge oB from poJ= , emperor andthe worl , of men and ofsociety prevented him from falling a dusubtlety, while, at the same time, it rendered Km to court equal toall the requirements of court etiquette. Again, thesegilds, strongly constituted, disciplined, and well armed,were able, as it was practically proven, to assume theprovisional overnment of the Commune, at moments ofcivic disturLn ce. They succeeded, through the prin-ciples of liberty, equality and fraternity inculcated bytheir societies, in destroying every vestige of feudalism inFlorence, and of achieving the highest degree of freedomknown in the Middle Ages. And out of this democracythere ew up a literature and an art differing from thoseof 8: er mediaeval peoples; for while in Germany,France and England, the patricians rose to fame in thefield of culture, the poets and artists of Florence werelargely the offspring of traders or laborers. These menof the gilds contributed largely to the discovery of theprinciples of modern society and civilization, and, againto quote Villari : Toward the end of the MiddleAges, the narrow Tuscan townshi seemed a smallpoint of fire shedding light over J; e whole workl.Exactly six centuries before the outburst of the French



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12 THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGESRevolution, the Florentine Government issued a decree,assuring to theto the soil, a uII and complete liberty ; the document sants, who earlier were serfs attachedbeing, to a degree, a prophecy of the American DecIa-ration of Inde ndence : announcin liberty to be anatural and maI!?enable individual aig t, never dependentupon anothers will ; annulIing every species of bondage,together with aII contracts infringing upon personal free-dom; creating the third estate-thealone modern society couId be pie-by whomevolve$from the chaos offeudalism. Another law, passed with theclearly expressed aim of repressing the wolfish rapacity ofthe nobles (volentes lupinas carnes sahamentis caninisinvolvi), prohibited recourse to any tribunal, or magis-trate, save to the authorities of the Commune, such asthe Captain, the Podesta, or the judges in ordinary. Itthus excluded the cIaims of the poHouse of Anjou-of any individuape, the em ror, theindeed w o shouId7press pretended seigneurial rights. And as we read thisold Iaw among the state archives of Florence, we find init that antique sense of Iiberty, which the Italians, as thenearest of kin to the Remans, received in heritage. Wefind in it too a strong sense of relationship with the rep?ven by the jurists of BoI!&l T a to the Emperor Frederi cl:rbarossa, when he soug t from them justification forhis feudal exactions in Italy : the Ievy of the fourth part ofthe wages of every ItaIian workman, and the taxation ofthe birth of every Italian child. Am I indeed lord ofthe world ? questioned the Emperor. And the juristsreplied : Yes, lord as the law incarnate upon earth ;but not Iord in the sense of ownership.From these documents, there-fore, and from coIIateraI evidence, we are convinced thatthe citizen-spirit Iay at the root of the turbulence of theItalian communes of the Middle Ages, and that althoughfailure and disaster resulted from the strife, yet the basic



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idea was the germ from which have developed our ownmost advanced political and economic principles. Weare convinced also that Florence, the typical ti d-city,occupies an unique place among the factors of civ ation;second indeed to that of Athens in certain phases of purethought and in certain manifestations of supreme art, butfirst in all that makes for healthy intellectuality, for hi hthinking and plain living, for practical honesty and orthe proper understanding of the world-problems of com-merce and industry.

Thus, at the end of the thir-teenth century, when in the north of Europe mediaevalismand all that it implies of splendid art and literature wassmitten with sudden blight, Italy produced the great ideasand the great men that piave her one of the few supremeplaces in history, and F orence the chief seat of the newculture, was subject to the rule of the gilds. Therefore,as these trade associations constituted the chief strengthand nucleus of the ciclosely to investigate s it is both interesting and usefulLir or anization,Taeir number, variously esti-mated, has been fixed by Villari at twenty-one; amongthese, seven being regarded as of great importance, andbeing known under the collective name of The GreaterGilds. They were :1, The udges and Notaries.2. The Dressers of Foreign Cloth (Calimala).3. The Gild of Wool.4. The Gild of Silk, or of Porta Santa Mark,5. The Money Chan ers.6. The Doctors and &L__gists.7. The Skinners andFurriers.From this list it v.4l be seenthat the professions, crafts, and industries were combinedin these companies in a way at least surprising, if notdistasteful to modern ideas. But in the case of thejudges and notaries, it is to be observed that they were



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14 THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGEScont.in&y employed in the service of the ds to whoseadvancement thea; largely contributed ; Pf ering in theirfunctions a pa2 el to the corporation-lawyers of thepresent day+ 1 ogether with the con&, they constitutedthe court, or tribunalof every gild, and gave judgment inau commercial suits which were there tried. Theypm8 red contracts, suggested penalties, drew up, reformedan enforced the statutes. By the extent and variety ofthe demands made upon them, they became one of themost influential of Florentine gilds, and they were reputedasLt best-skilled j; their profession inL ty torId. AtL,e*+:N% ,puvic IuLI~L*Iw,LUerr procori~4ul,GT C&L ch,ker +-t, CUUIAprecedence over the consuls of all the gilds and camedirectly after the chief magistrate of the Republic. Incharacterizing them, a contemporary historian quaintlywrites :the parent stem of the noChristendom, inasmuchprofession have beenBologna is thedoctors of the no&at. The four ds next in ordercommanded the largest portion of a orentine commerceand industry. These were the Cloth Dressers (CaIimala),the Wool and Silk Gilds, and the company of Mon -changers, or, in modern parlance, the Brokers. t; fthese the Wool Gilds merit especial attention, as evidenc-ing the peculiar talents and shrewdness of the peopleamong whom they were developed, for it was by over-coming the most serious obstacles that the industrieswhich they re resented, were made practicable andremunerative, F hese obstacles were in part natural, inrt artificial. The soil of Tuscany, adapted, as welz ow, to the culture of olives, vines and cereals, isdeficient in grazing lands. 5 As a consequence, the woolin these districts was originally small in quantity and



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THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGES 15-r in quality.r Beside, it was the impulse of the Repubc to crush agriculture, as the State was governed byartisans who, after their victory over the feudal lords, hadrisen to prominence. Indeed, this tendency was sostrongly marked that the same Italian scholar whom wehave so often quoted, observes :All laws and decrees of this

priod relating to trade are filled with good sense andoresight, while all concerning agriculture seem dictatedby prejudice and jealousy.Confronted by so serious a problem, the Florentines evaded the difficulty. They couldnot produce fine cloth from inferior wool; nor could they

Procure raw material from distant countries, withoutosing all profits in the cost of transportation. Theytherefore conceived the idea of importing the woolenstuffs of Holland, Brabant and Flanders,-which hadnothin to recommend them save the excellence of theyarn o which they were woven-and of changing them:from ill-dressed and ill-dyed textiles into highly finishedand delicately tinted fabrics. And in this way, the lackof original material was not only supplied, but foreignproducts were made subservient to the interests of Floren-tine trade, The history of the gild allied tothat of the Cloth-dressers (Calimala), is also most sugges-tive and instructive. This association was known as LArte della Lana, or the Gild of Wool, Therein theindustry was developed, equally by private individualsand by judicious decrees of the Commune. It originatedamong a handful of Lombards, who in the eleventh cen-tury, as exiles in North Germany, there learned the veryancient craft of wool-weaving, and returned home aunited body of workmen. A few years later, theydecided to constitute themselves into a religious body,and, being admitted to the priesthood, they no longerworked as craftsmen. But engaging laymen for the



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actual labor, they gave much attention to the improve-ment of the industry and to its development in all districtsin which they founded houses. They so distinguishedthemselves by executive ability that they came to beemployed in the different city republics, as treasurers ofthe public revenue, and, toward the middle of the thir-teenth century, they were invited to establish a branch oftheir order within the limits of the Commune of FIor-ence ; since the government, with its usual economicsagacity, considered the houses of this brotherhoodof weavers in the light of industrial schools. Thismeasure proved to be one of the most successful everadopted for the furtherance of Florentine prosperity. Thewoolen fabrics manufactured in Florence, gradually tookrank above all others in the European market, and theWool Gild which received its impetus through the laborsof the Umiliati (Humble Brotherhood), accumulatedimmense wealth and became ainsomuch that when joined witf? eatthe commerciaf power ;CaIimaIa, or Cloth-dressers, in any economic scheme, it grew so formidablethat the home-government dared not oppose its decisions.According to the statement ofViIIani, the chronicler, the Florentine Wool Gild, beforethe middle of the fourteenth century, supplied a livingto thirty thousand persons, and the chief profits of thetrade were obtained by perfection of manufacture. Thisassociation and the CaIimaIa afterward made a divisionof labor; so that while the latter gild was prohibited bystatute from dyeing any save forei n stuffs, the WoolGild had dyers of its own, who rgrmedassociation. Th a dependentese dyers deposited with the superiorIdY a considerable sum of money, from whichines were deducted in case the fabrics delivered weresoiled or imperfectly dyed; as eve piece of stuff wassubjected to close examination, and X e sIi htest defect incolor, quali ,

Tor measure exposed the &laor n to heavypenalties. his interdependence of crafts extended to



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many classes of workmen, causing the Wool Gild tonumber among its associates all rades of labor, fromcarders of the rough material to t athe most costly textiles. e dyers and finers ofBy this breadth of organiz-ation, the Gild covered every detail of manufacture, and:&e;a$io;; z;ft$;&, ~m~r$in&& Egd bgd2prices th the injury of the others. The Gilds of theDressers and Weavers maintained a European supremacy,until toward the close of the fifteenth century, when theFlemings and the English took measures to prevent theexportation of their wool and their undressed woolenfabrics. Then, the Florentine dstrades fell into decline, but their l!d exercising thesep ce in the economy ofthe Republic was filled by the Silk Gild, which hadslowly risen to the degree of importance formerly occupiedby them. This trade, of very ancientorigin in the East, was carried to Constantinople duringthe reign of the Emperor Justinian, in the sixth Christiancentury. From the Byzantine Empire it was introducedby the Arabs and Mohammedans into Greece and Sicily,and from the latter region into Lombardy and Tuscan ;the city of Lucca, first of the Italian communes, raising tKeculture of the worm and the weaving of silk fabrics to anotable degree of perfection; while, as yet, the Florentineswere pursuing the lucrative wool industry. And there isreason to believe from the silence of Villani, the chronicler,that, up to the middle of the fourteenth century, the SilkGild was of small importance in the Commune. But inthe measure that the wool craft suffered decline, the silkcraft rose, and the intelligent, alert people, possessed alikeof artistic instinct and of technical capability, again carriedtheir manufactures to unrivaled excellence : the gold andsilver brocades, the velvets, satins and taffetas of Florenceholding, during the fifteenthcentury, the first place among



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18 THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGESthese fabrics in the worlds market, The Silk Craft,taking its name from the quarter of the city in which itwas established-the Porta Santa Maria-was one ofthe longest to be preserved in Florence, and its traditionsstill haunt the modern sho%s of the same historic locality.he Gild next in order uponour list is that of the Money-changers, or Brokers.This was an enterprise representing the peculiar talentand energy in which the Florentines stood alone in theperiod of which we are treatin . The merchants of theCommune, as we have seen, L d early established rela-tions with all the markets of the West and the East, inthis way, putting into circulation large quantities of specie.They brought into extensive use, if they did not actuallyinvent, letters of exchancapital, and they were f e for the speedy transmission ofam&r with the greater part ofthe complicated operations of our modern bankers. Theymanaged the state finances upon principles similar tothose in use among modern governments. They dailyassembled under the Arcades of the New Market tospeculate on the rise and fall of values, just as the brokersof Paris or New York gather at the boards of the Bourseor the Stock Exchange. The Florentines gained signaladvantages in all banking operations from the fine qualityof their coinage, which being of gold, twenty carats fine,was in ea erand the 6 demand at the commercial centers of Europerient. With their characteristic shrewdness,they succeeded in becoming the bankers of the popes ;thus obtaining control over the largest floating capital inthe world. A fortunate moment for them occurred atthe opening of the fourteenth century, when the Papal Seewas removed from Rome to Avignon, and again, someseventy years later, when it was restored to Rome; theseevents causing great displacement of capital and thenecessity for large cash remittances, which they effected,as we have before said, through the medium of letters of



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exchange. In these transactions, they displayed suchbrilliant ability that they came to be recognized as thefirst financiers of the times. Henceforward, they wereoften invited to direct the mints and to fix the monetarystandards of various European countries. With themthe kings of England and of France, and the heads of thereatf orders of knighthood negotiated enormous loans ; soringing the names of the Bardi, the Peruzzi and theAlberti into a prominence equal to that of the modernRoth&Ids. Thus the Money-Changers Gild of Flopence controlled in large measure and for a not inconsider-able space of time the fortunes of Europe: furnishing the sinews of war, upholding tottering thrones andarranging the marriages of sovereigns, Scathed byDante, these Florentine lenders or usurers will be held inmemory as long as mediaeval literature shall be prized,and the London financier of today, in dating his commercial pa r from Lombard Street, is forced to recognize thetraces eft by them in the present monetary capital of theworld The fist of the greater dsg ofFlorence is completed with the mention of the TTtzTand Drug ists,H the Skinners and Furriers.although o less commercial importance than those ahead;described, had yet a great influence in promoting Italiantrade in the eastern ports of the Mediterranean; whence,in exchan e for the splendid brocades, velvets and silks,the fine fa rics of the Calimala and Wool Gilds, for wine,oil and pitch, the traders received drugs and spices ; also,many varieties and qualities of furs, which formed someof the choicest articles of luxury known in the Florentinemarket, The eastern trade, which has always suppliedthe principal source of the wealth of European nations,was eagerly coveted by Florence, although it was slowlyand with great difficulty attained : the struggle occupyingthe entire fourteenth century, and showing the rulingpolicy of the Florentines to have been the extension of



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20 THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGEStheir power through the development of commerce andindustry. Th eir wars, if investigated, are found, for themost part, to have had a commercial motive and to haveended with commercial treaties. Their political friend-ships were sagaciously formed, with the same intention,were interrupted, at the sli htest sign of a dangerousrivalry, and often turned to t 5; most bitter and persecut-in hatred, as in the case of the Genoese whom the2 orentines flattered, favored and aided, until such time asthe former had overcome the Pisans who occupied theapproaches to the sea.

In view of these and the otherexamples of Florentine policy before quoted, we find thehistory of the Commune far more logical and consequentthan it would at first appear to be., The turbulence is



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seen to be superficial, concealing beneath its eddies,deeply underlying principles : patient ambition, adroitadaptation of means to end, and above all an enduringobstinacy superior to all obstacles and defeat. The spiritof the typical craftsman, absorbed in his work, bendingevery ener to the accom fishment of a perfect object,taking a vi0 ent pleasure in K,s labor, may be received asthe epitome of the Gild-City. The Commune was butthe multiplication of the individual,We are now to turn from thestory of the Greater Gilds, as revealed in their constitutionand their external policy. It will be instructive from themodern as well as from the historic int of view to notethe attitude of the different classes FFlorentines towardthem. They had enemies from above and below; sincethe Republic comprised three classes of citizens and threeseparate parties. The combined efforts of the craftsmenand traders-of the Greater and Lesser Arts-had con-quered the nobles and cast out feudalism from the Com-mune, but the stronger associations were not dis sed toantK. the weaker a part in the government w E ch thetter had helped to establish. To begin with, here layinjustice which was repaid with jealousy and pettyinjuries, such as always come from the oppressed. TheGreater Gilds were recruited from the so-called popolanigrassi (rich commoners) ; while the men of the Lesserwere artisans of the rougher grades of labor, numberingamong their divisions shoemakers, masons, carpenters,builders, bakers, inn-keepers, and other trades. Thedifference between the two classes of associations was notmerely one of degree, as regarded their prospective wealthand power; but they necessarily pursued radicaiidifferin policies.P The members of the Greater Gilhwere p edged to important foreign schemes-such as warsto assure Florence an unbroken highwa to the sea, orthe maintenance, through diplomacy, of ull communica-tion with the North and the East, in order that rival



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22 THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGEScommonwealths might not unawares gain trade advan-tage over the Republic. To effect these objects the richcraftsmen were willinCommune to unlim.ited to subject themselves and thesacrifice. Their minds beinggiven wholly to importanta consequence, simple in eneral interests, they were, asa eir lives, abstemious in theirhabits, -They pursued their ends much as Napoleonprosecuted his campaigns: with entire litical ruthless~ness and a savage contempt for perso nap0 onsequences.On the contrary, these externalinterests touched but slightly the men of the Lesser Gildswhose membership was drawn from the populace. Itconcerned these last that Florence should be a splendid,luxury-loving city, in order that they might build itspaiaces and supply mails of gratification to artificialwants. The populace, too far removed from the noblesto note the uselessness of extravagance and pomp, weredazzled by external brilliancy ; while the Greater Gilds-men, the superiors of the nobles in intelligence, fortitudeand all that makes for citizenship, maintained a sim-plicity that was early Roman, or rather patriarchal incharacter. They it was who were behind the lawsforbidding luxury in dress, restrictin the number andchoice of foods at banquets, and excluCFplate from private tables. ing gold and silverTheir policy and purpose hadso mastered them that they were willing to cast thereintheir persons, their lives, and their pursuit of happiness.To take advantage of thesedifferences between the popolani grassi and the populacewas the line of action pursued by the nobles. And thisfor class interests. The arguments used by them toconvince their humble adherents, were similar to those ofmodern demagogues. They represented to the mob thatwhereas all the gilds were equally engacommerce, a large number of them ha CFed in trade andno share in thepower; that the greater gildsmen were monopolists bothpolitical and financial ; that in order to ensure happiness,



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THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGES 29public and private, the power of the great craftsmen andmerchants must be brought to nothing.These efforts and arguments,the last of a dying aristocracy, were too feeble to reducedirect and rapid results upon the democracy of phe city.And yet they awakened revolutionary passions in themob, and provoked a class strife whichdivided and which finally caused its fall.kept the RepublicThe Lesser Gilds at lastobtained a share in the government, only to use theirpowz;;&nst thezeater associations. Always ready, they u oosed the spirit of anarchy in allcouncils, tribunals, and public gatherings ; inflaming thedisaffected in order to serve their own ambitious ends,the &edici,brin ng about bloody revolts, and preparin the rule ofBut for the two centuries in w ch Floren-tine affairs were practically concentrated in the hands ofthe popolani grassi, the Commune offered an exampleuntil now unparalleled in history. We may imagine itas an immense commercial house situated in the center ofTuscany and surrounded by others bitterly competingwith it for success. Unaided by international law andequity,-for these principles were unknown in the MiddleAges,-it makes an inveterate fight for existence and forcredit, until, at last, it is forced to succumb to claimspressing from without and within.Neither nations nor individualscan divorce themselves from the spirit of the times inwhich falls their active period of existence. Mediaeval-ism-that is : isolation, exaggerated individualism, sel-fishness-was as yet too strong to permit that permanentsuccess and prosperity should remain on the side of thegilds. Two bitterly opposed systems were at war witheach other in every Italian commune-most of all inFlorence. The Cityatom, the as an abstract idea was the primitiveen-n-cell, as it may be called, of Roman%Xiety. l% e idea became a cult, a religion, and Rome



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24 THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGESwith aJ.I that it implied of majesty, received the name ofEternal. It was the idea of law uniting men in socialism,if the primitive meanintaken at its value. T %of that word : companionship, bee Italians received the idea as arightful heritage, and were always more or less subject toit, Hence their sectional patriotism : lo spirifo dicampanile, ow ing to which each city-republic stru gledto annihilate its neighbors and rivals, and to bu d uplganew at least the semblance of the old glory. But thetraces of the barbarians were everywhere apparent overthe length and breadth of Italy. The early Teutons hadknown nothing of citizen life. They were nomadic byprinciple, and passing from place to place, they willin lyburned their embryo towns. Each count ruled over a sdistrict, according to his personal ideas of justice, often-times with primitive violence. Wide tracts of countrywere inhabited only by serfs who tilled the soil, Every-where there prevailed a tendency among the people tosegregate, to divide into groups. The descendants of theTeutons inherited an exaggerated sense of personality,which made it difficult for them long to submit to a com-mon authority. The factional element which is somarked in the history of the Italian communes is there-fore the manifestation and legacy of the Teutonic prin-ciple : individualism, as opposed to Latin sociability ;while the latter principle was preserved, in large measure,through the scliolae, or associations of craftsmen, which,having their origin in antique Rome, survived throughoutthe Middle A es, continuing the classic tradition, and,when other ai8 failed, protecting the inhabitants of cities,and guarding, as well as they might, the public welfare.The-gilds themseSves finally fell apart, but not beforethey had proven to the world the benefits accruing fromthe spirit of association: leaving behind them the work ofthe cathedral builders as exemplified by the magkfricornadd, or Gild of Como Masons; bequeathing to theannals of commerce and trade a story of perfect integrity,



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26 THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGES -destroyers, or negative forces. The kings and theburghers now divide the inheritance of feudalism : thekin s growing strong through alliance with the wealth,inte gence and energy of the people ; the citizens wekom-ring the kings as the representatives of civilization, peace,and good government. Now, also, are the townsdeveloped, since they represent the spirit of association.At the end of the thirteenth century, Europe is scatteredbroadcast with municipal groups, which bear the seeds ofall modern developments, political, economic, and inteI.Iec-tuaL Among them, we note the powerful free cities ofthe Rhine, the Danube, the Elbe, and the Baltic, the woolcities of East England, the industrial towns of the Nether-lands and the river cities of France.In the last named country, thegild shows i tself o have had a continuous life, from theperiod of the Roman Empire, throu h the Gallic town tothe Middle A es, when it attainement. Gal& li its highest developoman collegia existed in Amiens, Arksand Orleans, and in these towns, as in their similars, thechief gild prepared the way for a more advanced form ofmunicipal government, and took the foremost place in theadministration, Thus, for instance, at Rouen, the 6Xarchants de l eau (river traders) preceded theestablishment of the Commune. In Paris, the Ma&an tsde la seine, for centuries were confused with themunicipality. These gildsmen stood in the same rela-tion to their respective towns as the pupolani grassi to the Commune of Florence, in that they constituted thearistocracy of commerce, Their one steadfast purposewas to increase the wealth, to further the politicalimportance and the artistic glory of their town. Althou hwidely removed from the self-consciousness, and t etheories of modern xxi010 sts, they yet felt that the lifewhich they led within t e walls of their fortress-city,gave the type and measure of their civilization. * Thesenorthern gildsmen, as well in Germany, Flanders and



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28 THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGESation to the most pressing need of the society of the day,whether mutual insurance a ainst theft or fire, facilitationof trade, or, in an imperfecdposes of police. y organized society, for wr-The first five of these principlesare the most important and invariable. They can betraced in the associations of Rome from the early days ofthe monarchy to the later days of the empire in Greece,Asia Minor and in Romanized Gaul. They re-appear inthe mediaeval gilds and are reflected in the modern craftsand trades organizations of Eastern peoples.It would seem therefore that thevery nature of the gild provided first of all for the commongood ; that it made personal affairs subservient to__t_.____ -__ I _____--____-I_ 1 -...-. .f C.-L... ~1scnernes ana movements or general interest ; that itaccomplished for mediaeval Europe the same good resultsthat are effected in modern China through similar associ-ations : the decrease of blood-violence and selfishness, therevention of dishonesty and trickery, the substitution of%rge for petty interests in an imperfectly organizedsociety. But theory runs counter to practice, and it mustbe confessed that the gilds in England and on the con-tinent did not always f&l the mission and serve the endsfor which they were created. Such is ,the criticism ofDr. Gross, the first world-authority uci al organizations. This author, in n English muni- Pr ghe Gild Merchant, writes thus: standard work,

If, in viewing the past, onesvision is not impaired by the rose-hued glasses of senti-mentality, one must perceive that the mediaeval gildsmenwere not always animated by lofty motives of brotherlylove and self abnegation in their behaviour toward theirfellow-men. Indeed, the desire for gain or self-advantage,which, from the outset, was the r&on detre of the GildMerchant and many other gilds, degenerated at timesinto the most reprehensible forms of selfishness. Thegildsman may have been kind and loving toward those of



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THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGES 29his own fraternity, but he was too often harsh andoppressive toward non-gildsmen.These statements made regard-ing the Giids Merchant of English towns are corro-borated by the Statutes of the Realm, in which, duringthe reigns of Edward Third, Richard Second and HenrySeventh the gilds frequently meet with severe condemna-tion. Reference is therein made to their exactionsafter their own sinister mind and pleasure ; to the outrageous hardships which they impose upon thepeople; to unreasonable ordinances passed for their ownesingler profite and to the comen hurte and damage of thepeople?

But even against__* sfrongLl__ flrf3 UR_.._f_ _._Ievidence, me wua lvrercnanr must still De regarded as analmost unalloyed good, although the organization be con-strued in its most restricted sense, and taken to mean aconcession of the exclusive right of trading within a givenborough. In that case even, the gild constituted that de-partment of town administration whose duty it was tomaintain and regulate trade monopoly ; in fact, an earlyearly form of our modern Chamber of Commerce,By this and other resemblancesmore or less superficial, we are led to institute parallelsand comparisons between the mediaeval gilds and themodern trade combinations, Also, to seek lessons fromthe past for the prophecy and guidance of the future; thatis; to bring the elements of the industrial problem intorelief.The first point of interest to benoted is that the Trades Union of to-day can only verypartially recognize its ancestor in the mediaeval gild; thisstatement being made in a general sense and with allow-ance for the country of the older gild supplying the firstmember of the comparison.The trades union is a combina-tion of &tisans or laborers among themselves ; the em-



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90 THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGESplayer of labor being outside the union and entering intoseparate combination with other em Ioyers. On the con-trary, the old English gild up to tKe eighteenth centurywas an association of ab the workers in the craft ; whereasthe old French gild more nearly resembled the modernunion, in that employers were excluded from it, and that ageneral and secret fraternity, or compagnonage of the craftsexisted for the whole country. In England, every craft,from the most to the least important, was completelyorganized in itself, so that the interests opposing it werenot hiredrIaprs and employers, but other crafts and the- .L l : , ui u&S way, : he SK&. 1 pfy&se,tf i at i s cl &ss_arl tag&Zywas excluded from the problem; leaving only theeconomic element, that is : the question of supply and de-mand for the products of the craft, Admittance to thefraternity was made dependent upon a seven years appren-ticeship ; allied trades were restricted to their own depart-ments ; no carpenter being allowed to do the work of ashipwright, no cobbler to make shoes, and no intruderfrom another town to exercise his calling, Restrictinnq to_- _-- -_-_-2% _these otherwise dangerous influences were made by ad-mitting every fraternity of craftsmen to a position in thelarger, political corporation of the town; this public reco -nition entailing public control of the craft; the trade ordp-nances being incorporated into the by-laws of the town,but all the actions of the fraternity being subject to thesupervision of the mayor. Were we to follow the details ofthe organization and workings of the gridhus outlined,we should realize that to restore it, or even to imitate it,would be impossible.world It belongs to another and narrowerIn England, the gild was local,and in nowise connected with similar organizations exist-ing in other towns. The work done by it was accom-plished by handicraft, manufacture was carried on by tra-ditional methods and dependent for its degree of perfection



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THE GILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGES a1upon the individuality of the craftsman. The system wascomplete, productive of honest and refined work, butill-adapted, even hostile to expansion. How different arethe present conditions governing labor, supply and demand 1This is the age of machinery and mechanical device, ofscientific methods of manufacture, of a complicated butuniversal scrstemrailway an of finance, of fluidity of capital, of theand space, the steamship which practically annMate timeLocalism is destroyed, and no financial meth-ods can preva& without the a proval of the entire tradinworld. The isolation in w ch each town stood s: elFsufficient, has been replaced by the conditions of a forcedand more or less complete universal c ation. Toform a union of labor as symmetrical as3z t of the oIdgild system would be for economists a most difficult, if notindeed an impossible task, since such a union would beconditioned by a deand methods of pJree of permanence in the materialsuction : a state of things inconceivablein view of the constant improvements in machinery, dis-cove&s in chemistry and the natural development oftrade, The most important factor ofthe industrial problem-the one most difficult to deal with-relates to the division of labor. The lack of stab&yinthe kinds and methods of work and the ra d increase inthe number of workmen forced to earn ti!eir bread, butapprenticed to no special trade, constrain large classes ofindividuals to devote themselves to some small detail ofmanufacture, some minute subdivision of labor. Therebyskill and rapidity of production are developed in the work-man to a high degree, but as the process, through increas-ing repetition, beiomes mechanical with him, he wscramped In body and mind, and reduced to the leve of aihuman machine. Under the old d system, which also,to a deim ssi le ; the market bein too restricted to demand un-ee, included division of I!?bor, such results wered$ rapid production ant the unhappy consequences



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thereon dependent; the craftsman producing his wares forthe use of his friends and neighbors, rather than for theconsumption of an indefinite market; the life of thecraftsman bein made up of combined work, recreationand pleasure, 8 e combination of which has been lost inmodern times, The remedy for the actuallyexisting conditions can not therefore be found bbackward. It lies rather in the grasp of our l.Llookingand educators. gislatorsThe mass of the people must receive athorough technical, a primawhile it does not preclude general training, which,skx in any one department ofcraftsmanship, yet affords, in emergencies, the basis forthan e of direction and application,% The hours of laborand t e means of recreation must be such as shall allowthe healthy development of all, rather than of one set offaculties ; so that the cramping effect of devotion to oneseries of mechanical acts may be counteracted.Still another phase of the indus-trial problem relates to class representation, which thecraftsmen of the Middle Ages obtained in certain times andplaces, Far back, as we know, in the mediaevafa certain element among the serfs withdrew from t.!eriod,e till-ing of the fields to form the towns and constitute a divisionof society hitherto unknown, as the artisan class of an -uity, being enslaved, can not enter into comparison. 9,ucbfa&when the European nations, as we now know them,Lu.Jed when the kings and the people united forp&ection of rights property and person againstg nobles, then, the Parliament arose; first occurring inembryo form in Sicily and Spain, and gradually assertingitself hughout Europe, with the result that the commonpeople became a political and economic power. Thetowns, the gilds, the universities, commerce and the craftsdeveloped side by side. Codes, constitutions and charterscame into existence, and one sovereign of the period-Ed-ward First-gained for himself the title of the English



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THEZGILDS OF THE MIDDLE AGES 33

Justman. As we have before seen, the English gild obtained a recognized position in the larger corporation ofthe borough, and, on the continent, in many towns, thecrafts became estates, or divisions of the governinsitting by means of class representation in the bodies,E;r ownsChamber. A similar representation is attempted todayin England, France and America, when elections to pubIic office are made of members of the so-&led LaborParty.ut such holders of public trusts are too oftendemagogues in the true sense: leaders of the mob seekingnotoriety and pursuing personal interests, rather than thegood of the high cause which they so grievously misrepresent. The dignified, prudent, self-respecting artisan is afast failing species, that will soon become extinct, unlessthe nations by wise forethought shall prevent so graveand significant a disaster. The impending trial of strengthbetween the immense social forces of Labor and Capitalmust be averted by restoring in the Iife of the craftsmancertain beneficent, nourishing elements which have beenlost in the ssage of the world from mediaeval to moderntimes. Tg gild -spur must be fitted to a new environ-tment.



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A NEW IRISH INDUSTRY.

A N industry promising important results, both artisticand economic, has lately been established in theWestern Highlands of Ireland, And as America will bebenefited by the products of the newly-founded work-shops, it would seem well to popularize information re-garding the region, the craftsmen and the labor.The enterprise has its seat atKilcar, Donegal, and its object is to produce hand-woven,or tufted rusian or Tur a s and carpets, of the kind known as Pepey. The im tusmethods therein emplo ed, an 8

of this industry, thedzam even the name8 iven to thefabrics are due to W Morris, who, it w be remem-bered, revived the art of tapestry-making in England, sometwo or three decades since. The establishment of the in-dustry is due to a firm of noted Scotch manufacturers ofartistic textiles, and the opening of the workshops was anoccasion of rejoicing for the peasantry of the region, whoassembled to hear addresses from the Head of the Com-pany, from the Lord Bishop of Raphore, and others who

are laboring for the success of the undertaking.In order to appreciate the signi-ficance and value of the plan proposed, it is necessary tobecome familiar with the natural characteristics of the dis-trict, as well as with the economic condition of the peoplethereon dependent. From Donegal to Galwa , andeven farther south, there is no richness of soil. T Kere isalso a complete absence of those mineral products, coaland iron, which have made the world so wealthy in mod-ern times. These stubborn facts have Ionsbeen deplored by such as have recognized that evenbeneficent laws for Ireland would be less effectual in doingaway with her poverty and suffering, than the development of active industries, which should provide the means



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A NEW IRISH INDUSTRY 35of life, encourage thrift, and so promote happiness amongher people. But up to the present time, possessed only ofmeagre resources, the peasantry have struggled with bar-ren rocks and bogs, in order to gain the most primitiveand insufficient food and shelter. The great number ofthese unfortunates is proven by the totters huts which thetraveler sees thickly scattered over the hills in all direc-tions; and this fact argues much for the inherent and inde-pendent attractiveness of the region, which seems to holdthe love and faith of its children, much in the way thatSwitzerland retains her population in spite of the advanceof modern ideas and of the everywhere increasing desirefor wealth, comfort and luxury. Furthermore, the naturalcharacteristics of the Donegal-GaIway district render it afitting place for the experiments of the new school ofeconomists, who are also philanthropists: legislators, cler-f;y en, artists, art-critics and novelists, all intent upon re-eving the congestion of the city-tenement, of alluringrecreant farmers back to the soil, and of raising the statusof rural life. It is said by those whose knowl-edge of the Donegal region entitles their opinion to respect,that one stroke of a McCormick machine in Colorado yieldsa greater amount of food material than the Celtic peasant isable to produce with his spade in the round year, Indeed,the hills are so frankly hostile to tillage that the verytourist seekina solely his own pleasure, is startled from hispursuits to as himself if there exist anything which thesepeasants can give in exchange for some slight portion ofthe outside worlds fruitfulness.This question, however seriousand insistent in the past, will soon cease to arise; for thenew industry, furthered by the shaXl wits of the nativepopulation, is expected to furnish forregion a sufficient s poor and barrenof the necessities, together with a fewof the comforts of e. The craft of Turkey carpet-



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56 A NEW IRISH INDUSTRYweaving, upon which these aIlming hopes are founded,does not entail hard labor, and, wherever it is exercised,employs Iarge numbers of young people, both boys andgirls. Its one great principle and demand is hand-produc-tion. Its processes can be~4~4~;;;ri,~d:e or mosaics ofsmaII woolen s uares,are knotted by t1 as WiIIiam borris called them,e fingers into longitudinal warps, whichare stretched between two long parallel beams. The de-sign is placed in front of the weavers, and girls varying innumber from three to twelve, according to the size of thecarpet, select, row by row, the colors indicated. Theworsteds are then tied, bound down by shoots of woolenweft drawn across the entire width, and finaIIy beatenfirm by small iron-toothed hammers, The work is richin variety and interest; permitting, even requiring, indi-viduality and taste. Altogether, the industsuited to mountainous and grazing lands, wx is perfectlyere the foesof prosperity and contentment are isolation, sterility andthe human despair consequent upon the avarice of Nature.In such regions, the industry is greatly promoted byotherwise deplorable conditions, since, as in Donegal, thescheme is then made to include the rearing of sheep whichshall meet all requirements of raw material used in manu-facture. In the case of the West Ireland industry, the de-pendent arts of spinning and weaving have been added tothe principal craft, with the view of Iessenin the cost ofproduction, and also with that of sending fort a distinctiveIrish fabrics, which &II command respect and create ademand in the markets of the world.The economic and financialpossibilities of the enterprise have been thorou hly stud-ied. It is estimated that onein one year the wool of two I!irl employee w consumeiundred, twenty-five sheep;so that when the industry shall demand the labor of onethousand girls-as is expected will be the case within afew years-it will also necessitate the annual consumption



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A NEW IRISH INDUSTRY 37of more than twenty thousand fleeces: therefore, the divi-sion among the local sheepgrowers of fifteen thousandpounds sterling. Again, in the spinning, dyeing andweavinlY of this wool the families of these same farmers,or sma holders, will earn in wages from twenty to thirtythousand pounds ; making a total of perhaps forty thou-sand pounds circulated annually among the inhabitants ofthe Donegal hills. Confining their first effortswholly to the Donegal district, the promoters of the enter-prise are building workshops at Killybegs, capable ofaccommodating four hundred workers ; this number beinavailable within a radius of two miles from the villa e,whica ahaving an ideal harbor, as well as a branch of t e Done-gal Railway, is selected as the central depot for the wool,and also as the point at which spinning and dyeing shallbe done for the entire industry. Branches for weavingonly will be established in a number of villaa es, fromwhich collections of products will be made to t e centraldepot for finishing and shipment. In order to place themore distant and inaccessible villages within the circle ofthe new activity a sim lemeans of which the E device has been invented bygir having learned the craft, maytake the frame-loom to their homes, and weave the rugs,or tapestry panels, either within their dwellings, or as theytend the sheep grazing on the hillsides.Those who have seen theDonegal carpets concur in the opinion that they have adistinct commercial, as well as a high artistic value; thatthey need not appeal to sympathy and sentiment inorder to obtain a recognized and secure place in the worldswork. Nor is it desirable that they should receive atten-tion beyond that which is due them by reason of honestyof material, beautiful color and fine qualities of design.Otherwise, they will quickl fall into the number of thoseenterprises which, sustainedy while by a borrowed senti-mental value, fail utterly when once this support is with-



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36 A NEW IRISH INDUSTRYdrawn from them, through the caprice of a fickle public.But the merit of the Donegal carpets is inherent. Itlies in the difference which distinguishes thoughtful, intel-ligent labor from purely mechanical processes; the Done-gal ca tsmoot y-shaven,3= bearing the same relation to the ordinary!Ywer-loom fabric that the real pictureoccupies toward t e smart colored lithograph. Andit is interesting to note that the promoters of theDonegal industry have been and are now the successfulmanufacturers of many varieties of power-loom carpets ;further, that they have been turned backward to the primi-tive art of weaving b the demand of art-loving patronswho desired fabrics w Kich can not be exactly reproducedto an endless number of specimens. The real article hasthat digniwoven an Y which comes from the human thought in-in rained in the threads and colors : an indefi-nite quality w!L ch never fails to arrest and hold the edu-cated eye. With theand the passage of time, much wSlY rsuit of the industrybe accom fished forthe benefit of both makers and purchasers : Re makerswill progress in technical processes, manual skill andartistic perce tion ; the purchasers, throu h familiaritywith the wor K , will become expert judges o dyes, textureand design, with the conse uence that ugly, crude andcheap fabrics will be expe ed from the market. The!same quali of individual art has maintained thesupremacy o Oriental carpets for generations, or rather forcenturies. It stamped as well the textiles reduced atHammersmith by William Morris, althoug K the latterwere largely deprived of their educative power throughtheir extreme richness and exclusiveness.The workers chosen for theDonegal enterprise show admirable a titude for their task.The girl weavers prove that here itary influences arestrong in them. They have a dexterity of hand and asharpness of vision that are most probably the outcome of



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A NEW IRISH INDUSTRY 39-the lace and homespun industries which have been car-ried on for generations in Ireland, They have moreovertaken up the weaving with a spirit and pleasure thatencourage as well as astonish the promoters of the scheme,Altogether, the work, even as it now stands near its be-ginning, is an object-lesson in economics. It turns toprofit the natural disadvantages of a re ion,them into a source of public wealth. It a a convertingords a means ofhealthful activity to a large number of individuals whootherwise were isolated and idle through no fault of theirown; giving them a sense of sharing in the worlds work,and thereby increasing their self-respect and courage, Itcontributes materially to the progress of art by changinga staple and necessary article of con_stum_pt{on_ rom_ athing of ugliness into a thing of beauty. It is worthy ofimitation and multiplication wherever similar conditions ofsoil, climate, or over-population press hard upon thePeoPlG



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OUR ILLUSTRATIONS

A NUMBER of the illustrations contained in thepresent number of The Craftsman need a wordof comment and explanation.The cover displays a border ofinterIaced lines adapted from a French ecclesiastical manu-script of the thirteenth century. But the design, as hereshown, points to a much earlier origin. It was developedin France and other continental .countries from motivesof the CeItic art which flourished in the eighth and ninthcenturies, notable exam lesBook of KeIIs, and t!

of which are the famouse Runic crosses found in theisland of Iona. The design consists of two elements, thedragon and the knotted rope ; the former of which repre-sents the serpent, dragon, or worm of the NibelungenLied, of late years made so famiIiar by the Waof Siegfried. er operaThe knotted rope is the power w ch over-comes and strangles the beast. This mythological inter-pretation of the symbol, borrowed from the Eddas, wasabandoned by the Christianized people of Europe. The

slaying of the dragon Fafni is often represented on thedoors of early churches, and on wayside stone crosses inNorway, Sweden and England; but in these cases thelegend assumes the form of a Christian lesson, and fi uresthe triumph of the redeemed soul over Satan. Wit% thedevelopment of Northern art, the symbol was lost inornamentation. Fafni, the dragon, is often seen passinginto a maze of beautiful scroII-work, and on the HattonCross in Lancaster, he is solely represented by a twistedknot. This last phase did not alost its force over the minds of tI!pear until the legend hade people ; but as the ani-maI form (dragon or woIf) offered aIIurin~ nossibilities;the artists continued to employ it in QG&&~and-b~&k-making, subjuof symmetrica Yating it into the angles, curves and scroIIsrepetition, until the idea was totalIy lostand nothing remained of the ornament but a mass of con-



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OUR ILLUSTRATIONS 41

trasted curves and finely balanced scrolls. Occasionally,in these desi ns, the human figure replaced the dragon, insome cases &ill g prominent and easily traced, in others,as in various Pre-Norman carvings found in England, be-ing a mere succession of knots disposed vertically, withloops elonstrands at f ated at the top to form the head, and singleottom fringed and frayed to figure, or rather tosuggest the feet.been retained as In our drawing, the animal form hasofferin ahistory of the design tI5 more suggestive phase in then would have resulted from theemployment of the pure CeItic motive. The mediaevaleffect of the border is supplemented by heraldic devicescopied from the records of the Livery Companies of Lon-don; the arms being those of the / oiners and the Cord-wainers, chosen because of their itness to represent theprinciples maintained by The Craftsman and the gild ofwhich it is the organ. These old joiners were the makersof cubbord bedsteads, chairs and settles, which stiIl re-main firm and solid, while generations of showy andveneered suites have had their brief day, and passed totheir reward in the serene heaven of the attic. The cord-wainers derived their name from being originalIy workersin Spanish, or Cordovan leather. They tanned anddressed IFoat skins, or spIit horse hides, and their craft wasone of t e most usual in mediaeval towns. All their processes were conducted with great care, and their finishedgoods, having been approved by Wardens and Searchers,were stamhad passe 8 with a mark, just as was a ship when itthe shipwrights inspection. Thus the oldcrafts and commercial giIds taught a lesson of honesty,thrift and wise forethought, whenever they found oppor-tunity and their memory can not be too often or too greatlyhonored.

The Gstration set o site thefirst page of the account of the gilds of the Mi dle AgesB



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42 OUR ILLUSTRATIONS

is a co y of the so-called Night Watch of Rembrandt.This i-fitting name, borne b one of the worlds master-pieces, indicates that the ric Hpling to overflowin y appareled company, peo-H the picture, is none other than a civicguard filling its of ice, as the representative of peace andorder. The error in name arose from the artists peculiartreatment of light, by which he produced a spotty can-vas; with the high-light concentrated at a sin Iethe shadows enveloping, almost obscuring tE point, ande remainderof the picture. The true subject and inspiration of thework is now known to have been a gild of musketeersmarshalled under their banners, and proceeding by full daylight to a festival in honor of their patron saint. Thepicture is here introduced as an example of that strongspirit of brotherhood which formerly bound together thoseexercising the same art or craft, and led them to a com-munity of interests, pleasures and life.

Midway in the course of theprincipal article, there appears the head of a Florentinecraftsman of the fourteenth century. His rudely chiseledface is seen in profile, and he wears a garment ofmuch historical interest, It is the bardocucullus, or hoodwith attached cape, which was worn by the GalIic peas-ants in the time of Julius Caesar. This curious but prac-tical and comfortable arment developed into the monkscowl, and continued, aL ost in its primitive form, to be thecombined hat and cloak of the country people ; as we maylearn from the costume of Shaksneares clowns and rus-tics. It is also found in variation in the peculiar pointedcapuchon, or hood of the harlequin or fool, Finally, itwas adopted by the lower classes in general, as a garmentaffording a great degree of comfort as a minimum expense.In Florence, this union of the head covering with a gar-ment was most usual among the citizens. At the period



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OUR ILLUSTRATIONS 43of which we write, a long hooded robe was worn by allthose who were entitled to enter the public palace and sitin the councils of the Republic. This arment was madeof crimson cloth, dressed and dyed by ta e Calimala crafts-men, and it is known to students of Italian history under thename of Ztzcco,and also as one which Dante is alwaysrepresented as wearing. Simplicity of dress was one ofthe many characteristics of the Florentines which deserveto be imitated in modern times. Sumptuary laws, severeand exclusive, were enacted through the agency of theGreater Guilds, and Dante deprecates the least departurefrom the austerity of the times of those virtuous citizenswho went clad in leather. Fashions changed but slowlyin an age of the world when, accordin to the statementof a well-known authority, it require8for a book to become popular. a hundred yearsIt is therefore within thelimits of probability to picture the first martyr of Italianunity in our portrait of a fourteenth century Tuscancraftsman. For in the reiH of the Emperor CharlesFifth, toward the middle o the sixteenth century, anartisan of Lucca, Francesco Burlamacchi by name, con-ceived and died for a governmental scheme in all eneraloutlines similar to the one now prevailing in the 5 enin-sula. And to him, late in the nineteenthc entury, theItalian authorities decreed that a monument should beerected in a public square of his native city.

The last illustration to be notedis the tail iece appearing at the end of the article upon themediaev gilds. It is a musical phrase taken from thescore of Wagners Mastersingers of Nuremberg, andknown as the master-singtrs march. When at differ-ent stages of the opera this motive emerges from the seaof Wagnerian harmony, and its pompous, strongly-



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44 OUR ILLUSTRATIONS

marked measures resound throu h the auditorium, thelistener is led to expect the arriva in the flesh of a com-pany of old gildsmen, re-incarnate from those times ofstrong municipal organization, when the workshop occu-ied a place inside that of the school, and a life of manual%bor attracted the most gifted youth.



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THE WORD GILD% ITS DEFINITIONAND ETYMOLOGY

NYA association or corporation, established for thepromotion of common objects, or mutual aid andprotection in common pursuits, and supported (originally)by the contributions of

Documents

The Craftsman - 1901 - 12 - December