Naturally the tablets do not reveal to us all this, nor the joys and sorrows, the successes and the failures, which those great cities of the ancient East must have contained. But they allow us to guess a great deal. Did the man ever get the money back which he had lent? Did he receive the money for the things he had sold and given credit for? These and other similar questions are always occurring to the student of these documents, which reveal always the grave side of life in that ancient land—never the gay side—even a wedding, being a contract, was a thing much too serious to allow its joyful nature to shine through at any point.
As the documents which best represent the character of the Babylonians are the letters, it has been thought well to begin (as in the case of the chapter upon the earlier Babylonians) with a few specimens of these, and in the forefront the following may be cited as not unworthy of a prominent place—
“Tablet of Nabû-zēr-ibnî to Ugarâ, Balaṭu, Nabû-bêl-šumāti, and Šamaš-udammiq, his brothers.
“Now to Bêl and Nebo for the preservation of the life of my brothers I pray.
“Bêl-epuš, who is along with you, is my brother. Whoever speaks his evil words, as my brothers wish, let him be silent. As for him, from the beginning to the end, brothers of each other are we. As warning to my brothers I send this. Let my brothers do what is right. I should like to see an answer (to this) letter from my brothers.”
Whether we are to substitute “friend” and “friends” for “brother” and “brothers” is uncertain, but is very probable. In any case, the writer would seem to show considerable courage in the course he was taking, as well as confidence in the righteousness of his cause.
The following is apparently the letter of a father in poverty to his more successful son—
“(Letter of) Iddina-âḫâ (to) Rêmūt, his son.
“May (Bêl) and Nebo bespeak peace and life for my son.
“He, my son, knoweth that there is no corn in the house. Let my son cause 2 or 3 gur of corn to be brought by the hands of some one whom thou knowest. Wilt thou not send by the hands of the boatman whom thou indicatedst? As for him, (he is coming?) to me—send a gift, cause it to go forth to (thy) father. To-day I pray Bêl and Nebo for the preservation of the life of my son. Rêmat asks after the peace of Rêmūt, her son.”