ABSTRACT
In 1792 Martinus Schruijders, ‘a former master tailor and resident burgher’ of ‘s-Hertogenbosch, submitted a petition to the municipal authorities in which he asserted that nobody had contributed one penny a week to the guild box longer than he. The guild box was the fund from which the guild paid bene¿ ts to members no longer able to earn a living due to sickness or old age. Schruijders was one of these members: in addition to being very old, he was deaf, blind, and lame. He had been in this state for a long time, since the chart attached indicated that he had been collecting regular bene¿ ts from the guild since 1776. He had received over 500 guilders altogether. This sum, he complained, was over 300 guilders less than the amount to which he was entitled.1 The shortfall was undoubtedly attributable to the longstanding ¿ nancial dif¿ culties of the tailors’ box. Back in 1760, bene¿ ts for the elderly had been discontinued, from 1775 the ill were required to present a statement from a physician to be eligible for bene¿ ts, and in 1784 the bene¿ ts were reduced.2 Schruijders’ situation was an example of social bene¿ ts in the guild system. Guilds tried to maintain collective provisions for their members but constantly encountered the problems inherent in insuring small populations.
