868 t h e a n n a l s o f k i n g t’a e j o
carry out corvée labor, so that they may not lose the foundation of their
livelihood; and when a slave dies, the original owner of the slave should not
be required to supply a substitute for the dead slave. When a slave reaches
the age of sixty, he should be released from labor duty, and one among ten
slaves should be made a leader to watch over the group of slaves. If there is
any slave who escapes, the leader shall be held responsible.
“1. Form and content shall not be mixed to create confusion. Except the
memorials submitted to the king or the king’s father, both official and pri-
vate documents shall not be allowed to have a front cover with a title. The
supplies submitted to the Long Prosperity Warehouse (Changhŭnggo)^22
shall also be readjusted in their amount after reviewing their various uses.
“1. Government offices must not be allowed to seize without payment the
fruit and bamboo cultivated by the common people, and each government
office shall establish its own orchard to supply the necessary fruit.
“1. The old retired ministers over seventy years of age shall be exempted
from attending morning audiences and joining the ranks of officials, except
for on the New Year or the king’s birthday, so that the measure can show my
respect for them.
“1. The iron smelted in the provinces shall all be handed over to the
Directorate for Armaments—except the items that are originally fixed for
monthly use—so that there can be no reckless waste.
“1. Since weapons are nothing but ominous instruments, presenting them
on New Year’s Day or the king’s birthday shall be strictly prohibited.
“1. The amount of the tribute goods paid by counties and districts to
various bureaus of the government in the capital shall be fixed again based
upon the production in the local areas. When the tribute goods are not
locally produced, the districts and counties concerned can be exempted
from paying them.
“1. The financial accounts of public warehouses and palace bureaus shall
all be entrusted to the State Finance Commission so that the latter can take
charge of these.
“1. It is unavoidable to dismiss supernumerary officials. The Privy
Council shall discuss and look into the matter seriously until it finds a prac-
tical solution.
“1. If there are things that are left out in this decree, the Privy Council shall
continue to discuss and investigate them so that they can be implemented.”- It was an agency that handled the supplies such as mats and oilpaper umbrellas.