gS BOOK IV. 



the Bergmeistcr and the Jurors, he renders an account of his receipts, 

 whether the money has been contributed by the owners or taken from the 

 Tithe-gatherer ; and of his quarterly expenditure in the same way 

 to them and to the Mining Prefect and to the Mining Clerk, four 

 times a year at the appointed time ; for just as there are four seasons 

 of the year, namely, Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter, so there are 

 fourfold accounts of profits and expenses. In the beginning of the first 

 month of each quarter an account is rendered of the money which the 

 manager has spent on the mine during the previous quarter, then of the 

 profit which he has taken from it during the same period ; for example, 

 the account which is rendered at the beginning of spring is an account of all 

 the profits and expenses of each separate week of winter, which have been 

 entered by the Mining Clerk in the book of accounts. If the manager 

 has spent the money of the proprietors advantageously in the mine and 

 has faithfully looked after it, everyone praises him as a diligent and honest 

 man ; if through ignorance in these matters he has caused loss, he is generally 

 deprived of his office ; if by his carelessness and negligence the owners have 

 suffered loss, the Bergmeister compels him to make good the loss ; and finally, 

 if he has been guilty of fraud or theft, he is punished with fine, prison, or 

 death. Further, it is the business of the manager to see that the foreman 

 of the mine is present at the beginning and end of the shifts, that he digs 

 the ore in an advantageous manner, and makes the required timbering, 

 machines, and drains. The manager also makes the deductions from the 

 pay of the workmen whom the foreman has noted as negligent. Next, 

 if the mine is rich in metal, the manager must see that its ore-house is closed 

 on those days on which no work is performed ; and if it is a rich vein of gold 

 or silver, he sees that the miners promptly transfer the output from the shaft 

 or tunnel into a chest or into the strong room next to the house where the 

 foreman dwells, that no opportunity for theft may be given to dishonest 

 persons. This duty he shares in common with the foreman, but the one 

 which follows is pecuharly his own. When ore is smelted he is present in 

 person, and watches that the smelting is performed carefully and advan- 

 tageously. If from it gold or silver is melted out, when it is melted in the 

 cupellation furnace he enters the weight of it in his books and carries it 

 to the Tithe-gatherer, who similarly writes a note of its weight in his books ; 

 it is then conveyed to the refiner. When it has been brought back, both 

 the Tithe-gatherer and manager again enter its weight in their books. Why 

 again ? Because he looks after the goods of the owners just as if they were 

 his own. Now the laws which relate to mining permit a manager to have 

 charge of more than one mine, but in the case of mines yielding gold or 

 silver, to have charge of only two. If, however, several mines following the 

 head-mine begin to produce metal, he remains in charge of these others until 

 he is freed from the duty of looking after them by the Bergmeister. Last of 

 all, the manager, the Bergmeister, and the two Jurors, in agreement 

 with the owners, settle the remuneration for the labourers. Enough of the 

 duties and occupation of the manager. 



