Document: Ordinance fixing the price of good New Netherland beer

The director general and councilors of New Netherland, having considered on the one side the great, excessive and immoderate profit that the brewers demand for their brewed beers, and on the other side the repeated complaints referred by the inhabitants of this province to the brewers, that, upon the imposition or increase of any taxes, they are making their beers increasingly thinner and poorer, and still demand the same price; indeed, more than before when the grain was more expensive and more scarce than it is now, which tends to the great prejudice of the inhabitants, and only to enrich a few. Therefore, the aforesaid director general and councilors do hereby command and order that all brewers within this province, or those who make business of brewing, and transport or sell their beers to others, shall be allowed to sell an assized tun of good New Netherland beer for no more than twenty guilders, or accept any more, for which they shall be bound to brew good beer no worse than has been brewed up until now. Done at Fort Amsterdam in New Netherland, ady ut supra, the 29th of November 1655.[1]

Rights: This translation is provided for education and research purposes, courtesy of the  New York State Library Manuscripts and Special Collections, Mutual Cultural Heritage Project. Rights may be reserved. Responsibility for securing permissions to distribute, publish, reproduce or other use rest with the user. For additional information see our Copyright and Use Statement Source: New York State Archives. New Netherland. Council. Dutch colonial council minutes, 1638-1665. Series A1809. Volume 6.