Just as the merchant guild regulated town trade, so the
craft guilds had charge of town industry. No one could engage in any craft
without becoming a member of the guild which controlled it and submitting to
the guild regulations. A man's hours of labor and the prices at which he sold
his goods were fixed for him by the guild. He might not work elsewhere than in
his shop, because of the difficulty of supervising him, nor might he work by
artificial light, lest he turn out badly finished goods. Everything made by him
was carefully inspected to see if it contained shoddy materials or showed poor
workmanship. Failure to meet the test meant a heavy fine or perhaps expulsion
from the guild. Thus the industrial monopoly possessed by the craft guild gave
some protection to both producer and consumer.
ORGANIZATION OF CRAFT GUILDS
Full membership in a guild was reached only by degrees. A
boy started as an apprentice, that is, a learner. He paid a sum of money to his
master and agreed to serve him for a fixed period, usually seven years. The
master, in turn, promised to provide the apprentice with food, lodging, and
clothing, and to teach him all the secrets of the craft. At the end of the
seven years the apprentice had to pass an examination by the guild. If he was
found fit, he then became a journeyman and worked for daily wages. As soon as
he had saved enough money, he might set up as a master in his own shop. A master
was at once workman and employer, laborer and capitalist.
