Page:Laws of Hammurabi, King of Babylonia.djvu/15

Rh 40. He [captain, soldier or taxpayer] may sell [lease] to a trader or employee of the city his field, garden and house for usage.

41. Anyone fencing in the field, garden and house of an officer, soldier or rentpayer and furnishing the fencing pales therefor shall, upon the return of the officer, soldier or rentpayer, deliver to him the field, garden or house and the fencing so erected, and the fencing shall become and be the property of the officer, soldier or rentpayer and shall not be taken from the land of the owner by the erector thereof.

42. Anyone entering into the possession of a field upon agreement and neglecting to raise grain upon that field shall be held accountable to the owner thereof for a quantity of grain commensurate with that grown in the neighboring fields, upon it being shown that he has failed to comply with the conditions in regard to the cultivation of the land.

43. In event of failure of such a person to cultivate a field he shall be held accountable to the owner thereof for the payment to him of grain commensurate with that grown in the neighboring fields and he shall further be compelled to plow and sow the said field and deliver the field, so planted and sown, back to its owner.

44. In event the person takes possession of a waste field for the purpose of making it arable, but fails to make the field arable, he shall be compelled to cultivate the barren field in the fourth year [after his having taken possession of it], harrow it, seed it and deliver the field to the owner, and shall be compelled to render to the owner for every 10 "gan" [of grain he might have raised had he been diligent] 10 "gur" of grain.

45. In event anyone enters into an agreement [leases] for a field and under that agreement a fixed compensation is paid therefor to the owner, and bad weather intervenes and destroys the [growing] crop, the loss shall be borne by the lessee.

46. In event no definite compensation is fixed for the use of the field, but a proportionate share of the products is agreed upon [for its use], the lessor and the lessee shall divide the grain cultivated upon that field in accordance with their agreement (½ or ⅓).

47. In event the lessee, because of a failure in the first year of his tenancy to receive maintenance [to raise enough grain for his maintenance] from the field, notwithstanding his earnest effort to so do, the owner thereof may not hold him responsible for his share; the field has been tenanted [and an attempt at cultivation made] and at the next harvest the owner shall receive grain in accordance with his agreement.

48. Anyone leasing a field which is devastated by tempest or by a drought is not compelled to account to the owner for his share of grain during that year, the slate is dissolved in water [the obligation is annulled] and an accounting is to be had for that year at the termination of the succeeding one.

49. Any person leasing a tillable field to a business man and borrowing money from him, and at the same time directing the business man to cultivate the field and to plant thereon grain or sesame and to harvest grain raised thereon for his benefit, and the business man or his subtenant raises upon the field grain or sesame, the person so leasing to the business man shall, at the harvest, receive the grain and sesame which are raised upon the field and pay to the business man grain for the money advanced by him, besides interest on such money advanced by the business man, and shall in addition thereto give to the business man such grain as is necessary for the