New Book printers' Regulation
of a worthy and most wise Council
of the City of Frankfurt.
We, the Council of this Free City
of the Holy Roman Empire, Frankfurt, / have
hitherto had occasion twice - namely, in 1573 and 1593
- to consider and publish all ordinances and statutes
which, having been called for in various circumstances,
were supposed to lay down what was to be observed by all
the printing-offices of this city. However, in the meanwhile We have
found / that the number of printing-offices here has increased considerably
and markedly, / as a result of which the number of printers and journeymen too
has also gone up since then / and from time to time all kinds of doubtful
tensions and confusions have arisen amongst them / which couldn't always be
resolved properly by our mayors / when they applied the aforesaid Printing
Regulation. We have therefore deemed it necessary
to once again turn our hand to the old Printing Regulation, /
to examine it, / bring it up to date, / clarify various passages and
cases which appear in it, / and make amendments to it. And We want / this new
Regulation of ours to henceforth hold immutably and firmly / in all of our city's
printing-offices, / and that no one should act against it, /
on pain of incurring the fines specified therein, / which in each case
are to be paid immediately by the offenders. For which purpose there shall
always be two superintendents, elected from amongst the book printers themselves,
/ who are to be induced into their obligations by the members of our Council appointed for this task
and will take an oath