Book XV 867recommend a man of talent. If they submit the details concerning the life
history, including the career, of the person they recommend, the Privy
Council shall closely review them and appoint the person to the post [in the
local government], and the governor will either employ him or dismiss him,
evaluating his performance strictly. If the person recommended for the
government post turns out to be incompetent, the one who recommended
him shall be held responsible.
“1. As for loans to poor people, either of cloth or grain, only the collection
of interest on the principal loan shall be permitted; collecting compound
interest shall be prohibited. Anyone who violates this order shall be deprived
of their principal and interest by the authorities and duly punished.
“1. At the end of the previous dynasty, there was a general custom that
esteemed luxury to such a degree that they used the rare goods produced
from distant regions for banquets or Buddhist ceremonies, and the custom
still remains today. Gold and silver, beads and jades, colorful flowers made
of genuine silk thread, and such items shall all be prohibited.
“1. At the end of the Koryŏ dynasty, the Saddlery Service (Pyŏransaek)
was first established, but it happened to infringe upon the jurisdiction of the
Board of Works, which was contrary to the original purpose of establishing
it. Therefore, it must be abolished.
“1. There must be a law to prohibit the people from slaughtering cows and
horses privately. Hansŏng Magistracy shall be in charge of enforcing the law.
“1. Since fish traps and streams and marshes fall under the jurisdiction of
the Directorate for Fisheries and Natural Resources, they shall not be assigned
to the Royal Cuisine Office (Saongwŏn), and receipts and disbursements
shall be handled by one agency. Mountain meadows and pastures are man-
aged by the Directorate for Palace Maintenance. The Directorate, therefore,
shall prevent individuals from privately occupying those meadows and pas-
tures and shall lower taxes to make the lives of the people comfortable.
“1. The firewood and charcoal levied by the Directorate for Palace Main-
tenance and the Directorate for Shipbuilding and Transportation, and the
straw collected by the Royal Stables Court, are a serious burden on the
people. The offices responsible shall review the volumes of these items and
fix them again to match the exact amounts used so that the previous abuses
no longer occur.
“1. The male and female slaves of the government offices, who are forced
to do corvée service, suffer cold and hunger and have no choice but to run
away. Hereafter, only one out of every two slaves should be required to