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BOOK II.
where he may always be in sight of the workmen and always take care thatnone neglect their duties, or else he should live in the neighbourhood, sothat he may frequently inspect his mining works. Then he may send wordby a messenger to the workmen that he is coming more frequently thanhe really intends to come, and so either by his arrival or by the intimationof it, he so frightens the workmen that none of them perform their dutiesotherwise than diligently. When he inspects the mines he should praise thediligent workmen and occasionally give them rewards, that they and theothers may become more zealous in their duties ; on the other hand, heshould rebuke the idle and discharge some of them from the mines andsubstitute industrious men in their places. Indeed, the owner shouldfrequently remain for days and nights in the mine, which, in truth, is nohabitation for the idle and luxurious ; it is important that the owner whois diligent in increasing his wealth, should frequently himself descend intothe mine, and devote some time to the study of the nature of the veins andstringers, and should observe and consider all the methods of working, bothinside and outside the mine. Nor is this all he ought to do, for sometimeshe should undertake actual labour, not thereby demeaning himself, but inorder to encourage his workmen by his own diligence, and to teachthem their art ; for that mine is well conducted in which not only theforeman, but also the owner himself, gives instruction as to what ought tobe done. A certain barbarian, according to Xenophon, rightly remarkedto the King of Persia that “ the eye of the master feeds the horse ,” 2 for themaster’s watchfulness in all things is of the utmost importance.
When several share together the expenditure on a mine, it is convenientand useful to elect from amongst their own number a mine captain, airdalso a foreman. For, since men often look after their own interests butneglect those of others, they cannot in this case take care of their own withoutat the same time looking after the interests of the others, neither can theyneglect the interests of the others without neglecting their own. But ifno man amongst them be willing or able to undertake and sustain the bur-dens of these offices, it will be to the common interest to place them in thehands of most diligent men. Formerly indeed, these things were lookedafter by the mining prefect 3 , because the owners were kings, as Priam, whoowned the gold mines round Abydos, or as Midas, who was the owner ofthose situated in Mount Bermius, or as Gyges, or as Alyattes, or as Croesus,who was the owner of those mines near a deserted town between Atarneaand Pergamum 4 ; sometimes the mines belonged to a Republic, as, for
2 Xenophon. Oeconomicus xn., 20. “ ' I approve,’ said Ischomachus, ‘ of the bar-
" barian’s answer to the King who found a good horse, and, wishing to fatten it as soon as“ possible, asked a man with a good reputation for horsemanship what would do it ?’ The“ man’s reply was : ‘ Its master’s eye.’ ”
s Praefeclus Metallorum. In Saxony this official was styled the Berghauptmann. Forfurther information see page 94 and note on page 78.
4 This statement is either based upon Apollodorus, whom Agricola does not mentionamong his authorities, or on Strabo, whom he does so include. The former in his work onMythology makes such a statement, for which Strabo (xiv., 5, 28) takes him to task asfollows : “ With this vain intention they collected the stories related by the Scepsian