Papers

"Look," said Samos. He reached to one side of the table, to a flat, black box, of the sort in which papers are sometimes kept. In the box, too, there is an inkwell, at its top, and a place for quilled pens. He opened the box, below the portion containing the inkwell and concave surfaces for pens.

He withdrew from the box several folded papers, letters. He had broken the seal on them.

"These papers, too, were found among the belongings of our fair captive below," said Samos.

"What is their nature?" I asked.

"There are passage papers here," he said, "and a declaration of Cosian citizenship, which is doubtless forged. Too, most importantly, there are letters of introduction here, and the notes for a fortune, to be drawn on various banks in Schendi's Street of Coins."

"To whom are the letters of introduction," I asked, "and to whom are made out the notes?"

"One is to a man named Msaliti," said Samos, "and the other is to Shaba."

"And the notes for the fortunes?" I asked.

"They are made out to Shaba," said Samos.
Explorers of Gor     Book 13     Pages 30 - 31


The praetor placed the coin on his desk, the surface of which was some seven feet high, below the low, solid wooden bar The height of the praetor's desk, he on the high stool behind it, permits him to see a goodly way up and down the wharves. Also, of course, one standing before the desk must look up to see the praetor, which, psychologically, tends to induce a feeling of fear for the power of the law. The wooden bar before the desk's front edge makes it impossible to see what evidence or papers the praetor has at his disposal as he considers your case. Thus, you do not know for certain how much he knows. Similarly, you cannot tell what he writes on your papers.
Explorers of Gor     Book 13     Page 54


"You have both been caught," said the praetor, beginning to fill out some papers. "We have been looking for you both for a long time."
"I am innocent," said the bound man.
"How do you refer to yourself?" asked the praetor. "Turgus," he said.
The praetor entered that name in the papers. He then signed the papers.
Explorers of Gor     Book 13     Page 57


The praetor was now conversing with the fellow, Bem Shandar, from Tabor. Papers were being filled in; these had to do with the claims Bem Shandar was making to recover his stolen money.
Explorers of Gor     Book 13     Page 59


Two men from the desk of the nearest wharf praetor, he handling wharves six through ten, a scribe and a physician, boarded the ship. The scribe carried a folder with him. He would check the papers of Ulafi, the registration of the ship, the arrangements for wharfage and the nature of the cargo.
Explorers of Gor     Book 13     Page 117


The scribe noted the physician's report in his papers and the physician, with a marking stick, initialed the entry.
Explorers of Gor     Book 13     Page 120

She opened the door, and looked down at me. She held some papers, long and yellow, in one hand.

"It is Jason, is it not?" she asked.

"If Mistress pleases," I said.

"It will do," she said. She regarded me. She did not even seem to notice that I was alone in the hall. In this she apparently saw nothing out of the ordinary. "I had forgotten," she said. "You were to be sent to my chamber this evening, were you not?" she asked.

"Yes, Mistress," I said.

"Come in," she said. "Remove your tunic and kneel by the couch. Close the door behind you."

"Yes, Mistress," I said. She was wearing golden sandals and a long, scarlet robe, with a high, ornate collar, fastened by a silver clasp.

I entered the room and shut the door behind me. I removed the silken tunic I had been given and folded it, placing it on the floor. I then knelt, naked and collared, near it, in the vicinity of the couch.

She knelt before a low desk, her back to me, and gave her attention to the papers which she had now placed upon it. She held a marking stick in her right hand.

"I am attending to the details of tomorrow evening's sale," she said.

"Yes, Mistress," I said.

She worked quietly, thoughtfully. Sometimes she would remove one paper from the group, and add another. Occasionally she would make a notation on one of the papers with her marking stick. Several Ehn went by. I did not disturb her. I knew she was working. She was a businesswoman, with demanding and intricate responsibilities. I wondered if any of those papers were pertinent to me.
Fighting Slave of Gor     Book 14     Pages 128 - 129


"When these papers are signed," said the Lady Melpomene, happily, lifting some papers from the table in front of her, "I shall be free of my debts."
Fighting Slave of Gor     Book 14     Page 276

"Before you Lady Melpomene of Vonda," said Philebus, "lie several papers, detailing the consolidation of your debts. These papers are certified by the bank of Bemus in Venna, and are witnessed by the signatures of two citizens of that city. Do you acknowledge that the tallies are correct and that the debts are yours?"

"I do," said the Lady Melpomene.

"I now," said he, "by my purchased rights, charge you with these debts and demand payment."

"And, thanks to my friend, the Lady Florence, she of Vonda," said the Lady Melpomene, "you shall have your payments, and now. The Lady Florence has graciously agreed to lend me the full amount of the due notes and at no interest."

This seemed to me incredibly generous of the Lady Florence. Kenneth, near me, behind the curtain, was smiling.

"I herewith publicly sign," said the Lady Melpomene, "this loan note, made out to the Lady Florence of Vonda, for the full sum of one thousand, four hundred and twenty tarns of gold."

"And I," said the Lady Florence, "herewith publicly sign this draft, marked in the same amount, drawn on the bank of Reginald in Vonda, and properly certified, made out to Philebus of Venna."

She handed the draft to the Lady Melpomene. The Lady Melpomene handed her back the loan note. Philebus of Venna went to the table of the Lady Melpomene and took the draft. He looked at it, and was satisfied, and placed it in his pouch. The loan note was carried by the Lady Florence herself to the prefect and to the Lady Leta and the Lady

Perimene. These, with their signatures, and the prefect with a stamp also, certified and witnessed the loan note. Pamela and Bonnie, incidentally, the two enslaved Gorean beauties in attendance on the tables, did not fetch or carry the documents about. This had been done by Philebus of Venna and the Lady Florence. Slaves, generally, are not permitted to touch legal documents. They are slaves.
Fighting Slave of Gor     Book 14     Pages 278 - 279


Brandon, though a prefect in Vonda, rose to his feet and carried papers to the Lady Leta and the Lady Perimene. They were, after all, free women. They affixed the seal of their witnessing signatures to the documents. He then returned to his place and himself signed the papers.
. . .
I heard the stamp of Brandon strike on the papers before him. He looked up at the Lady Florence, and smiled. "The papers are in perfect order," he said.
Fighting Slave of Gor     Book 14     Page 284

She lit the candle. On the table, too, in a moment, she placed waxed paper, and an envelope of oilcloth. Such things are not uncommon on ships, to protect papers which might be carded in the spray or weather, for example, on a longboat between ships, or between ships and the shore. Sealing wax, too, in a rectangular bar, she placed on the table. She then knelt beside the table. She kept her head down, deferentially, not daring to meet my eyes.

"Head to the floor," I told her.

She obeyed, swiftly.

I replaced the papers in their envelope, from with I had withdrawn them to examine them. I then wrapped the envelope in several thicknesses of waxed paper. Then, with the sealing wax, melted by the candle, drop by drop, then smoothing the drops into rivulets of liquid wax, I seamed shut the waxed paper.
Guardsman of Gor     Book 16     Page 66

"You have many men," I said. "Your expedition must be very expensive. Had it been mounted by several cities I think I would have heard of it. Whence comes the gold for these numerous and manifold fees?"

The officer looked at me, angrily.

"We are sustained by the merchant council of Port Olni," said the woman. "Our papers are in order."
Savages of Gor     Book 17     Page 90

"Papers, papers?" inquired the soldier. "Have you papers?"

"No," I said. I did not think it would be wise to advertise my possession of letters of safety until it should prove impossible to proceed further without them.

He then went to others, making the same inquiry. None of the refugees, of course, carried such papers.

We were in a roadside camp, eleven days from Torcadino. It was not a bad camp. There was shade, and a spring nearby. Peasants came there to sell produce. In a few Ehn Boabissia, Hurtha and I, and Feiqa, would be again on our way. I had purchased passage on a fee cart.

"It is good to see a uniform of Ar," said a man.

"Yes," I said.

"Does one need papers?" the small fellow with the mustache like string was asking the soldier.

The soldier did not respond to him.

"Can one enter Ar without them?" he asked.

But the soldier had then continued on his way.
Mercenaries of Gor     Book 21     Page 227

"Do you have papers?" he asked.

"No," I said.

"Oh," he said, smiling.

"Why?" I asked.

"I assume Ar will not accommodate all the refugees who may seek asylum there," he said. "It is hard to see how she could. Doubtless papers, or letters, might be needed."

"Perhaps," I said.

"Such might be worth their weight in gold," he speculated.
Mercenaries of Gor     Book 21     Page 230

I walked to the side where the pole had been set up. I examined the papers nailed to the pole. They were partly ripped by the wind, and were stained with blood, where the blood had run down the pole.

"What are you doing there?" said a Taurentian.

"What was his crime?" I asked.

"Carrying false papers," he said.
Mercenaries of Gor     Book 21     Pages 251 - 252

"Next," said a Taurentian. "You, there, what is your business in Ar?"

"I am a vintner," said the fellow before me. "I was put out of Torcadino. I have relatives in Ar. It is my intention to seek caste asylum in Ar."

"Have you papers?" asked the Taurentian.

"I have documents certifying my caste standing," he said. He then produced some papers from his pack.

The Taurentian then wrote a notation on the papers and motioned him ahead.
Mercenaries of Gor     Book 21     Page 252


"They will concern themselves, surely, too, with legalities, and such," she said. "For example, those in the black chain who are not criminals, and for whom Ionicus does not have prisoner papers, will presumably be at least temporarily removed from the vicinity. That would mean many of the masters on our chain."
Dancer of Gor     Book 22     Page 339


She only laughed at me, from a fee cart, moving rapidly away, with my purse, waving the redemption papers, signed for freedom, in her hand.
Renegades of Gor     Book 23     Page 172


"Either the wrist or the ankle stocks would serve to keep you in place," I said. However, the wrist stocks may be removed from the bench and serve as its own bond, if one wishes, Similarly it might be opened, if one wished, say, to free the prisoner's hands for feeding or, if she is a free female, perhaps for the signing of papers." A slave, of course, being a domestic animal, cannot sign papers, not in a legal sense, no more than a tarsk or sleen. Her name, if she has one, is only a slave name, put on her for the convenience of a master. As she does not have a name in her own right, so, too, accordingly, she has no signature in her own right.
Vagabonds of Gor     Book 24     Page 254


A hundred pieces of gold, for example, is a great deal of money to be carrying about, particularly standardized tarn disks. Indeed, on Gor it is a fortune. It would not have been absurd if he had had with him not the gold, but only a note, to be drawn on one of the banks, like strongholds, on Brundisium's Street of Coins. Had that been the case I would have attempted to cast doubt on the value of the note. Many of the ruffians probably could not read. Too, they were the sort of men who would be inclined to distrust financial papers, such as letters of credit, drafts, checks, and such.
Vagabonds of Gor     Book 24     Page 467

"It will be only a matter of time," said Marcus, "before weapons will be altogether illegal in the city."

"Except for those authorized to carry them," I said.

"Cosians," he said.

"And such," I said.

"You noticed how he inquired into our employments?" said Marcus.

"Of course," I said.

"Soon," he said, "there will be regulations about such things, and papers, and permits, and ostraka, and such."
Magicians of Gor     Book 25     Page 114

"What have you to say?" he asked, puzzled.

"I will attempt to serve my master to the best of my abilities," she said.

"I can guarantee it," said the praetor's officer. Then he lifted certain papers on his desk. "It is to be done in this fashion," he said to the clerk. "She is to be stripped and branded, and put in a holding collar. She is also to be gagged, for her words, her please, her remonstrations or such, will be of no avail, nor will they be of interest to those of the house of William, in Harfax. Let them not then be disturbed by them. She is then to be placed in an outer robe of concealment, the outer robe only, but also hooded and veiled. Then, hands bound behind her, on a rope, at the tenth Ahn, she is to be brought to this place. Here she will be delivered into the hands not of an agent of the house of William but into the hands of one of that house itself, the youngest and least of that house, who has come to Treve for this purpose, to acquire her, to whom she is to be given as a slave."
Witness of Gor     Book 26     Pages 511 - 512


The tenth sounding of the bar still lingered over the city when a side door in the chamber opened and the court's clerk, with a folder and papers, entered. He spread those upon the table, that which was, as we were situated, to the right of the currently unoccupied desk of the praetor's officer. He had the fellow who had entered but shortly before conferred briefly over these papers. There wee, it seemed, two sets of such papers. They were, it seemed, in order. I did not doubt but what one set was papers of the court, stamped with the sign of the court, and certified with the signature of a praetor's officer, if not the praetor himself. On copies of these papers the fellow who had but recently entered scribbled his signature. He put one copy within his robes. The other set of papers, which had been examined, and in places compared with the first set, was different. It was left open now on the table. In its original form it had been folded and narrow, and tied with a ribbon. The ribbon was blue and yellow.
Witness of Gor     Book 26     Pages 513 - 514


The clerk now folded the papers together, forming the long, narrow packet as before. He then tied the packet shut with the blue-and-yellow ribbon. He then walked across the scarlet circle, past the kneeling slave, and handed the papers to Henry, who took them, and put them within his robes, as he had his copy of the earlier papers, the court papers. These later papers were undoubtedly the slave's slave papers. Somewhere, I had no doubt, there were similar papers on me. The notation on the papers which had been made by the clerk had undoubtedly been the slave's name, presumably with the effective date of the name, as such names may be changed, as the master wishes.
. . .
Not all slave papers are bound in blue and yellow, of course. I had seen copies in the pens which were in plain folders, in envelopes, and such. Indeed, some had been merely clipped together.
Witness of Gor     Book 26     Page 519

"Open! Open!" we heard, from down the corridor. There was a repetition of the pounding on the bars of the gate. "Open! Open!"

"We need time!" said the officer.

"They will not have their way this day," said the pit master.

"And how is that?" asked the officer.

"Their papers are not in order," said the pit master.

"I see," said the officer.
. . .

The majority of the men in black tunics, incidentally, save for two who returned to the surface, to repair the fault of their papers, had remained overnight in the quarters of the pit master. It seemed that, as tenacious and terrible as sleen, they would take their repose on the very trail they followed. Too, I am sure they did not trust the pit master. The officer of Treve had left the quarters of the pit master shortly after the arrival of the strangers, putatively to ensure that new papers would be properly prepared, that there would be no further difficulty in the documents, supposedly of transfer or extradition.
Witness of Gor     Book 26     Page 548 & 550


"Your papers are for transfer, for extradition," said the pit master, "only that."
"They do not specify that the prisoner is to be removed alive, or in his entirety," said the leader.
Witness of Gor     Book 26     Page 558


No ship, no vessel, might ply these waters without papers, bearing the seal of either Tyros or Cos.
Mariners of Gor     Book 30     Page 22

"You have arranged with uncritical scribes, noble fellows of easy virtue," I said, "to invent plausible documentation to substantiate the identity of such an agent empowered by Ar?"

"The papers and seals should be delivered by nightfall," he said.
Warriors of Gor     Book 37     Page 58

At that moment there was a knock on the door.

"That," said Seremides, "will be the papers I ordered, the forged credentials, seemingly bearing the seal of Ar."
Warriors of Gor     Book 37     Page 63

"These credentials," said the taller scribe, bending over the papers strewn on the desk before him, "seem in order."

"They are in order," I said. "Can you not recognize the high seal of Ar?"

I trusted that he had never seen the high seal of Ar.
Warriors of Gor     Book 37     Page 64

"In this way," said the scribe with whom I was conversing, "news may be changed quickly and easily."

"Which may not be so easily accomplished with flyers, posters, circulated papers, parchments, and such," I said.
Warriors of Gor     Book 37     Page 266

On the platform with the four heralds were two scribes, standing, before a table on which reposed, amongst a miscellany of other objects, some papers, a bottle of ink, and a feathered pen.
Warriors of Gor     Book 37     Page 297

"All is in order," said Hemartius, joining me at the side of the platform. "The papers need only the signatures and the Ubarial stamp and seal."
Warriors of Gor     Book 37     Page 298

The crowd began to find its way to the exits. Jurors filed from the orchestra area. Those involved with the court began gathering their papers and taking their leave.
Warriors of Gor     Book 37     Page 326

Hemartius gathered together some papers, ordered them, evened the edges, and placed them in his scribe's kit.
Warriors of Gor     Book 37     Page 333

"Everything is in order," said Hemartius. "All the papers are signed. Everything is stamped and sealed."

"Hold," said Decius Albus. "These papers obviously pertain to a slave, but how do we know they are relevant to the prisoner? Time has elapsed. Recollections can soften and fade, even be usurped by unwitting substitutes, each claiming authenticity. Memories are fallible. Identifications can be error. The noble Tolnar and Venlisius may be mistaken."
Warriors of Gor     Book 37     Page 351