DREI VOLKSWIRTHSCHAFTL. DENKSCHRIFTEN A. D. ZEIT HEINRICHS VIII. 61 



it was in, as moche as Godd hath not otherwise ordenyd it, therfor the 

 king and his lordes hath nede to mynyster right ordre of comon weale, 

 or elles they muste nedys distroy their owne weale by the very ordenaunce 

 of God, for they are upholden and borne upon the body. Yf they wil 

 be riebe , they muste firste see all comon people have richis , that out 

 therof must rise their richis and all the people be out of nede. A riebe 

 welthy body of a realme makith a riebe welthy king being the hedd 

 therof, and a pore fehle weke body of a realme muste nedys make a 

 pore fehle weeke king. Our sovereign lorde the king ofEnglonde cannot 

 gather habundaunce of golde and silver out of the handes of comon 

 people in the body of his realme without they have it. 



Therfor his grace muste firste percyve and knowe, what plenty of 

 golde and silver is in the realme, and that golde and silver may be 

 brought out of other realme and contreys into Englonde as moche yerly, 

 as the king thinkith to gather out of the handes of the comon people, 

 or elles muste nedis make scarsite of money in so moche, as no gold 

 nor silver growith in Englonde, but that shuld be brought out of other 

 contreys into Englond for the rieh commodities growing therin, which 

 Godd yerly gevith to all the common people to worke for the welth of 

 the body of the realme. 



The holl welth of the body of the realme risith out of the labours 

 and workes of the common people. Therfor to make due serche: who 

 distroyith the labours and workes of common people muste nedes distroy 

 their lyvinge in as moche, as Godd ordenyd not erthyly men to ete but 

 yf they worke, as Paule saith : he that will not worke that he ete not^^, 

 never ordenyd erthly men to ete but he labour and worke, lyke as the 

 firste erthly man was put into the Image of the lorde Gode, as it is 

 wretyn, that he shuld worke, before God gave hym to ete his giftes of 

 grace, in example that he and all men shuld worke in that image of 

 our Lorde, that saith in Eccles. XXIIII^): who worketh in me shal not 



1) Thessal II, 3. 10. 



2) Gemeint ist Ecclesiastes 2, 24 — 26. 



