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[IN THE MARGIN: Of this has been drawn up an Act in forma]

Today tenth November of the year xvi and sixty appeared before me Nicolaes Paets notarius publicus at the Court of Holland, licensed on nomination of the Lords of Justice of the City of Leyden, residing within that city, and as the witnesses to be mentioned, the honourable seigneur -- added in the margin: Jan Maire, -- Frans Hackes, Joris Abrahamsz. van der Marsche, Pieter Leffen, Frans Moyaert, Jacob Voorn, Salomon Wagenaer, Pieter Hackius, Philips de Croij, Pieter Dedier, Hendrick Verbiest, Daniele -- struck out: and Abram -- van Gaesbeeck, thus himself as replacement and promoting his brother Abram van Gaesbeeck, all Booksellers or bookprinters residing within the City of Leyden:

And the respective persons appearing declare that they, with the others, have made, accepted, entered into and consented a certain contract regarding the reprinting, consisting of several conditions, contained in sixteen different articles, as is demonstrated by the printed contract and conditions thereof, whereof one (which by the respective persons appearing has been signed in their hand and with their name on fifteenth of this month November 1660) and, here below has been left with me, notary, to be kept.

Welck voorsz. contract oft accord, ende de respective conditien -- doorgehaald: ende vandien -- mitsgaders 't innehouden vandien zij comparanten respectivelicken -- doorgehaald: bij desen -- alsnoch verclaerden te approberen, lauderen, ende ratificeren bij desen. Belovende zij respective comparanten, haer naer den inhouden van 't voorsz. contract, te sullen reguleren, ende gedragen ende tselve accord oft contract, elck in tsijne getrouwelick naer te komen achtervolgen, ende doen doen, sonder daertegens te doen, oft gedogen gedaen te werden

Which aforesaid contract or agreement, and the respective conditions -- stricken through: and the like -- as well as containing that which the persons appearing respectively declare to approve, laude and ratify. The persons appearing promise to conform and act according to the content of the aforesaid contract, and that agreement or contract, each for himself will faithfully observe, and make done, without violating, or letting it be violated,

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in any way. Under the covenant of the respective persons and goods no one is excempt, under the jurisdiction of all Lords' justices and judges. The persons appearing furthermore consented to have one or more Acts in forma be made and provide by me, notary.

Thus done and taken place on the aforesaid day, month and year within Leyden -- added in the margin: (except Hendrick Verbiest who (recently?) on xvith this month November has signed) -- in the presence of Jacobus Lucasz. and Antonij van Cathagen, requested and called upon as credible witnesses hereto together with me, notary.

Jan Maire
Frans Hackes
Joris Abrahamsz. van der Marsce
Pieter Leffen
Frans Moyaert
Salomon Wagenaer
Daniel en Abram van Gaasbeeck
P.D. Croij
Hendrick Verbiest
Pieter Hackius
Pieter Dedier
Jacob Voorn
Jacobus Lucas
Anthonij van Kathagen 1660

Which I affirm, N. Paets notarius publicus s(ub)s(cripsi) 1660

Appeared before me, aforementioned notary, the undersigned persons who hereby declared to approve and ratify the preceding Act and approval and the contract mentioned therein, promising to observe this on all points under convenant as well as law. For ratification of this signed.

A. v. Hoogenhuys signed this on xixth March 1661. In presence of me, N. Paets s(ub)s(cripsit) 1661.

On xxvth Mey 1661 Adriaen Vlack Sr., bookseller in the Hague, has approved the aforesaid agreement and contract, with the promise to conform to it such as he hereby avows with his signature. Adrian Vlack.

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As daily experience learns, that the Copying, damaging in the highest degree, and also is serving to great disrespect and contempt of the Booktrade in general, as well as of each Bookseller and Bookprinter in particular: So it is that we undersigned, to avert and prevent all this as much as possible, have together entered into, and founded, a certain fixed and indissoluble Contract, on the conditions and means as follows: Namely,

I.
That none of us, as we also promise in all honor and piety by means of this, may in any way copy, or cause to be copied, or be party therein, a book which has been printed by someone from among our Contracting parties, nor also buy or sell any such copied Books, be they copied within or outside these Provinces, directly or indirectly, on penalty with regard to the Copier, or the Printer or Bookseller, of 25 guilders for each page that the copied Book shall be considered to contain, and with regard to the Seller, of the sum of 50 guilders for each Book that he will have sold, the one half for the benefit of he whose book will have been copied, a quarter for our general Body, and the remaining quarter for the Poor; But all of us will be held to prevent and impede the sale of it as much as possible.

II.
Nevertheless with the proviso that all those Books that have been reprinted until today by several of our Contracting parties will stay the same, so that by each and everyone who has printed these Books until today, also thereafter may be printed and sold, unless the Contracting parties will come to understand each other on this in more detail; but none of us may in future print any of these Books, except who have printed these before today, on the same penalty and fine as above.

III.
All Church books, older Authors, Scholasticalia, and the like, which until today have been publicly printed and by each and everyone indiscriminately, will for now, as regards the text, remain public, and may be printed by each of us, in such formats and in such manners as each of us may deem appropriate and necessary: But all new improvements and extensions thereof, such as Commentary, Notes, Summaries, Chapters, and the like, be they new, or laboureously collected from several Authors, will be considered and held to be as a private Print, and therefore it may be copied by none of us, on the same penalty as above.


IV.
If someone of us Contracting parties were to print a book which had been printed by someone outside the United Provinces before; as soon as he will have put it in the Press, he will give Notice thereof to the Clerk, and besides this Notice deliver a printed sheet, and then, but no earlier than that, the aforesaid Book will be held to be a personal Print of our fellow Contracting party, and thereafter may not be printed by any of us as well,

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nor even, if another were to print it, any such books printed thereafter, may be sold by us, also on the same penalty as above.

V.
But the Original Print will be allowed to be freely sold and traded by each one of us, without any opposition or contradiction.

VI.
And if it were to occur that several of the Contracting parties, at the same time or around the same time, would take to the Press one or more of the Books printed outside the aforesaid Provinces, the Contracting party who first will have given notification thereof to the Clerk, and together with it will have send a sheet of his Printing product or initiated Book, is and will remain privileged to all others who also were to have taken that Book to Press, and that Book should be held as his personal Print. And as the Cities and Residences of our Contracting parties are very different, and also some are located remotely from the others, in respect of the aforesaid notification, the remoteness should always be taken into account, and that notification should be held to be done forthwith with the sending of the aforesaid sheet to the mentioned Clerk: which Clerk will also be held, to each of us that is known to him, who also have printed such Book, of which a proof-sheet has been sent to him by another, to inform him at once and without delay, in order that he may cease that, and no further costs incurs; on penalty of, if the aforesaid were to fail in this, or any neglect, to be obligated to compensate all damages and interest that such thereby may have and suffer, and moreover to pay that one the sum of twelve guilders; and nevertheless the aforesaid Clerk will be held to inform the Praeses en Assessori of the fixed time at which he has received the first sheet.

VII.
And insofar as the one, who will have sent the aforesaid proof-sheet to the Clerk, will not proceed with his initiated labour within three months, but has discontinued it within that time, and thereby was delayed another of the contracting parties, he thereby will incur the penalty of the sum of 20 pennies for each of the pages the Book were to have contained, and moreover loose his right to print the Book; Then it will be free to all other contracting parties to print the mentioned Book, and having been printed, would be held to be personal Print, as if it had never been initiated by he, who had first sent the aforesaid proof-sheet to the Clerk; the aforesaid Fine will be payed, will be for the one half to and for the benefit of those among us who have been delayed as above, a quarter for our Board, and the remaining quarter for the Poor.

VIII.
None of us who have any right or property on a Print which Printing will fail, and which Book nevertheless would gladly be submitted to be printed by another of us, will be allowed to fruitlessly delay the Book, but will be held to take it to the Press again within two Years of it becoming in shortage, and continue therewith, or failing that he will loose his right and property thereof, and then may be submitted freely by another of us; which other thereby also will obtain the property of that Print; Then in this case

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will and be privileged, the person of us who first will have send the proof-sheet to the Clerk, as is reported in the above fourth and sixth Article; Nevertheless with the proviso that the first owner, first and priorly should be given notice on the aforesaid failure as well as the re-printing, be it in the presence, or otherwise with knowledge, of the Clerk, before another of us may print the Book: But the aforesaid first Owner, if he not inclined to reprint his own Print, is allowed to set such a price as he deems appropriate on some few copies which he has left, as he then thereby will loose the property of that Print and it will be revoked.

IX.
Each one of the Contracting parties, whose Book or Print has been copied by another not party to this Contract, will be allowed to also print one or more such Prints of that Copier, as he whose Books have been copied as he deems appropriate and necessary, to thus regain and recover his damages as much as possible: and as soon as our fellow contracting party has printed and published the aforesaid Book of the mentioned Copier, none of us may buy or sell any other copies than those that our fellow Contracting party may buy or sell; unless the Contracting Party beforehand may have traded or sold any of the aforesaid Copier's Books; of which he should give notice to the fellow Contracting Party who will also have printed the aforesaid Book: and the Books, as above, sold or traded by that Contracting Party, being sold out, he may not buy in no other such Books of the aforesaid Copier not party to this Contract, and as soon as our fellow Contracting Party has given us notice that he has taken such Book to Press, none of us will be permitted to buy or trade large quantities of that Book, but only that which as is necessary daily. All on the penalty of 50 guilders, the one half for the benefit of our fellow Contracting Party whose book will have been copied, a quarter for our Board, and the remaining quarter for the Poor.

X.
And so that all the aforesaid and following articles will be complied with better and in all parts, as we also promise by our undersigning, thus has been approved and accepted that we yearly, on the first Wednesday in August, each at his own expense, will appear together in Amsterdam, at the place to be devised by the Praeses and Assessori, to orally speak to each other, and also from our Meeting will be elected by majority vote seven Persons, of which one will be Praeses and six Assessori, and of which in the one Year three, and in the other Year four, will withdraw, and the same number will be elected anew; Even as by unanimous, or otherwiseby majority vote of the Meeting, this Contract will be expanded with such articles, or any of them changed in such a manner as will be deemed necessary and useful to the welfare and good of the Booktrade.

XI.
All issues, differences and misunderstandings which may occur between our Contracting Parties, or some of us, concerning this Contract, will have to be decided and determined, none excluded, by the aforesaid Praeses and Assessoren, or the majority of them, to which judgment and ruling we Contracting Parties hereby submit and subject ourselves in all, without doing or have done anything against it, directly nor indirectly, within the law as well as without, renouncing not only all further improvements, but also ir-

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revocably contractually surrendering to voluntarily let sentence on the content thereof and ruling or rulings of the aforesaid Praeses and Assessori by the High Council in Holland, authorizing to that end each of us the first Procurator and Procurators litis for the same Council, where this was being presented, to investigate the aforesaid verdict, and to consent therein respectively, even if it was the wish of one of the Parties alone, without necessitating citation, writ of summons, or further consent; Promising to uphold all that will be done by these Procurators litis, to satisfy the sentence, and to indemn them thereof.

XII.
And in the aforesaid Meeting will also be chosen a Clerk, who will keep good and pertinent records and notes of all, and also, in a Book that will be specifically made therefore, register and note with and together with the Names of each of our Contracting Parties, which Prints are their own, and thereof also, to each of us wishing it, give Copies or extract, in order that thus perfectly can be seen and known, where or with whom those books are procurable.

XIII.
Furthermore, that none of the Contracting Parties will be allowed to sell any Book for net price.

XIV.
And if the Price of a Book printed by someone of the Contracting Parties is deemed to have been set too high, it may be complained of to the aforesaid Praeses and Assessori; which, after hearing the parties and examination of the facts will be allowed to set and moderate this Price in such a manner as they will deem necessary and reasonable, and each of us should conform therewith, without any opposition or contradiction; on penalty, in case of infringement, as will be arbitrated by the aforesaid Praeses and Assessori.

XV.
And each of the Contracting Parties will be held, for each Book that he will print after this, which had never been printed by him before, to pay into the hands of the aforesaid Praeses and Assessori a quarter share of that which the Book costs with him.

XVI.
Finally, that the interpretation of all unclarity or omission which may be argued or encountered in one or more of the aforesaid and to be devised articles, will stand in judgment and ruling of the aforesaid Praeses and Assessori at that time.

Promising We undersigned to faithfully comply with and observe all that is provided, each in his own, without doing, or allow, anything to be done against it in any way, under convenant of our respective persons and goods, none excempted, submitting to all Rights and Judges, Without guile. For the ratification undersigned by the Contracting Parties, fifteenth November of the year xvi and sixty.

Jan Maire
Frans Hackes
Pieter Leffen
Jacob Voorn
Pieter Hackius
Pieter Dedier
Hendrick Verbiest
the 25th of May 1661
Adrian Vlack
Joris Abrahamsz van der Marsce
Frans Moyaert
Philips de Croij
Daniel & Abram van Gaasbeeck
Salomon Wagenaer
the 19th of March 1661 by
A. van Hoogenhuys



Translation by: Miluska Kooij