“Herr Anthonie Heilman deposed, that being aware that Gutenberg was
about to take Andrew Dritzehen as a third partner into the society for
the manufacture of looking-glasses for the Aix-la-Chapelle market, he
earnestly begged of him to admit therein his brother Andrew, as he
wished to serve him.” After some demur this was agreed to. Witness
supplied his brother with money to the extent of 90 pounds, but at
last said, “What can you want with so much money, seeing that the sum
agreed upon was only 80 florins?--to which Andrew answered, ‘that he
must have money for other purposes; and that two or three days before
the vigil of the Annunciation, he was to pay 80 florins to Gutenberg,
which he, witness, must advance to him.’... Gutenberg afterwards said
to witness, that in acknowledgment of what he had received, they (the
partners) should be upon the same footing in every thing, and that
in future nothing should be concealed from any of them respecting
the _remaining work_.”... “A long time afterwards Gutenberg repeated
this.” After which, a document was drawn up by Gutenberg for the other
partners to sign, which they did after considerable deliberation,
Gutenberg, before their doing so, telling them, “there is as much
stuff in the concern as quite equals your money; so that, in fact,
the knowledge of _the art_ is given you for nothing.” The terms of
the agreement with Gutenberg were, that in this matter they were to
consider themselves beholden to him alone, and not to John Riffe; and
“that in case any one of them should be removed from the partnership
by death, that then it should be well understood--and so it was--that
the matter should be so arranged with his heirs, that, for all things
done or undone, for money advanced by or belonging to the share of such
person, for the value of the stock, the forms, and all other implements
and materials not excepted, they (the surviving partners) should, after
the expiration of five years, pay to his heirs 100 florins. So that he,
Gutenberg, as he observed, gave them a great advantage; for were he
himself to die, after he had once admitted them into the partnership,
his heirs, _notwithstanding the sums previously expended by him_, would
only have to receive 100 florins for his share, like those of any of
the others. All this was done, to the intent that whosoever of them
should die, the surviving partners should not be obliged to make known,
or to shew to his heirs, any thing concerning _the art_; which article
was approved by every one of them.”
This witness also said, “that he well knows that Gutenberg, not long
before Christmas, sent his servant to both the Andrews (Dritzehen and
Heilman) to fetch all the ‘formen,’ that they might be taken out, and
that he should see it done, as he was dissatisfied, and wished to renew
[alter or change] them.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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