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solving his fi nancial problems, as his story illustrates. In his very fi rst preserved letter, sent in
August 1645, he expressed his joy at receiving a note from the town council announcing that
he would be among the council’s benefi ciaries. In the following letter we learn that it was his
father who had addressed the town council with the request to support the studies of his son
and who, shortly before his death, left some money for this purpose:
My farther, blessed forever, entrusted me to your protection and to your patronage and,
as I understood from your letter, my best patrons and tutors, appointed this through his testament.
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Thus, the case of Adamus Kys suggests an example of guardianship with which the town
council was entrusted by the young man’s father. This, however, occurred in 1645, when Kys
was had already been a student at the university for at least three years, as mentioned in his
next letter. Therefore, before that time, the student had been enjoying some sort of fi nancial
support – referred to as stipend – directly from the town council. In his second letter dated November
1645, Kys talked about the numerous debts he has accumulated over three (!) years
and implored the council send him his stipend in order to pay some of these off:
My poor muses sincerely wish to fi nally regain their original freedom from the most annoying
labyrinth of troublesome creditors and to dedicate their efforts, best of my supporters,
to your services and concerns to the best of my ability. The better part of the stipend that you
again sent went to my creditors, but, however, it has not yet satisfi ed the greed of all of them.
[…] Do not imagine, most honoured supporters and patrons, that my muses brought this misery
upon themselves by their lavishness; those who are close to me, being my countrymen or
fellow students, know very well what kind of fate my muses have endured, and in what dire
straits they have been during the three years, being then deprived of a patron and now, o pity,
of a parent […] 23
Kys addressed his third letter, written in 1646, April 12 to the town judge, Johannes Keviczky
and his fourth letter, written one day later, to the town council. He wrote to the town judge
about his debts for a second time, the situation being made even worse by the death of his
brother, and his only hope remained the benevolence of the town judge who he asked to intercede
on his behalf at the town council’s meeting. The letter addressed to the town council has
approximately the same content. After commenting on some news sent him from home in one
of the previous letters, Kys turns to describing his state of affairs in Königsberg followed by an
expression of his hope to be sent the fi nancial support he had previously received. In addition,
the letter contained several recommendations for people to be recruited for different positions
in the town. The fi fth letter was sent two weeks later and was addressed to Nicolaus Soporius,
notary in Košice. Its content does not differ much from that of the previous two: it includes a
description of the diffi cult fi nancial situation caused by debts and the premature death of his
brother, further completed by some recommendations for different positions in the town. The
next two letters are sent in 1647, one in May and another one in October. The former one was
addressed to the town council and was an expression of gratitude for the fi nancial support accorded
to the student in the meantime and the latter one is addressed to Stephanus Zvonorius
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Vestrae clientelae, vestroque patrocinio confi denter me tradidit, et ut ex vestris literis, patroni et tutores mei
optimi, intellexi, testamento legavit, parens meus aeternum beatus.
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Ex animo optant miserae musae meae vel tandem ex molestissimo importunorum creditorum labyrintho in
pristinam libertatem vindicari, et suam qualem operam vestris, maecenates optimi, offi ciis et negotiis pro virili
consecrare. Stipendii iterum transmissi potior pars cessit creditoribus, sed nondum tamen omnium famem sedavit,
nec pro voto eorum expectationi satisfecit. Non existimabitis vero fautores et patroni honoratissimi, musas
meas sua prodigalitate hanc sibi providisse miseriam, novent optime illi, qui et propinquitate et studiorum
communitate mihi fuere coniunctistimi, quam sortem expertae, quamque misere per integrum triennium inter
sacrum et saxa constitutae fuerint, tunc patrono, nunc proh dolor et parente destitutae meae musae […]
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