(M240) The scribe was not a priest. There is no evidence whatever that either priests were all scribes, or could all write, or that scribes were necessarily priests. As a matter of fact, the same man may have acted both as scribe and priest. But the offices are distinct and no one man ever bears both titles. That in later times the _amêlu_ RID, whose title can be read _šangû_, usually acts as scribe is due to the peculiar nature of the documents. These concern transactions in which the property of the temple, or of its officials, was in question, and one of the college of priests attached to that temple was charged with the duty of notary where temple interests were concerned. One might as well say that every clerk in the Middle Ages was a priest, because all the deeds of the monastery with which we were dealing were drawn up by Brother A, whose name was entered in some monastery list of the brethren as a priest. Whether the scribes were clerics, and always attached to some temple, in minor orders, is not clear. On the whole, the evidence is against this conclusion. (M241) 3. *Witnesses.*—The word used to designate a witness is _šîbu_, which denotes those who are “gray-headed,” but it is not certain that it can have no other meaning. It may mean those who were “present.” In actual use we can distinguish three classes of persons to whom the term “witness” can be applied. (M242) First we have the elders, the _šîbu_, of a city.(91) Possibly the Kar-sippar, by which some men swore, or in presence of which a contract was drawn up, were these elders of Sippar. They formed the _puḫru_, or “assembly,” in whose presence a man was scourged,(92) from which a prevaricating judge was expelled.(93) They may have been nominated, or at least approved, by the king; for we read of _šîbê šarri_. They were not exclusively men, for we have _šîbê û šîbatu_.(94) The recurrence of the same names, at the same dates, indicates that a body of official witnesses were held in readiness to act on such occasions. Many of them were temple officials, or members of the guild of Shamash votaries. (M243) Sometimes they are associated with the judges in such a way as to show that they were assessors.(95) They included judges sometimes, at any rate “this witness” is attached to a list of names which included a _nâgiru_ of Babylon, a judge, and other high officials.(96) In the time of Nûr-Adadi they sent a case before the king.(97) They actually gave judgment.(98) We may regard them as a jury, especially a grand jury, qualified by their own knowledge to understand the rights of the case and to judge of evidence. The judge gave the sentence.