THAT a Tax of Twelve Pence per Ounce be laid upon all Sterling Silver coin'd in His Majesty's Mints , and proportionably on Gold ; which will keep the pric of Silver and Gold coin'd above the price of the same un-coin'd , and keep the Mony out of the melting Pot , and hinder the Exportation thereof .

That the Silver Mony , viz. Broad , Unclipp'd and Mill'd , shall be current in all Receipts and Payments whatsoever betwixt Man and Man , at the following Rates , viz. the Crown piece at six Shillings and three Pence , Half Crown at three Shillings and three half Pence , Shilling at one Shilling three Pence , and the Sixpence at Sevenpence halfpenny : The two latter are equal parts of a Pound or more , the two former species are equal parts of five Pound or more , and will answer Payments very well , as appears by the following Table :

  l. s . d . 16 pieces of 6 s . 3 d . is 5     12 3 15   8 2 10   4 1 5   2   12 6 1   6 3 320 pieces of 6 s . is 100     160 50     80 25     40 12 10   20 6 5   10 3 2 6 5 1 11 9 32 pieces of 3 s . 1½ d . is 5     24 3 15   16 2 10   8 1 5   4   12 6 2   6 3 640 pieces of 3 s . 1½ d . 100     320 50     160 25     80 12 10   40 6 5   20 3 2 6 10 1 11 9 16 pieces of 1 s . 3 d . is 1     12   15   8   10   4   5   2   2 6 1   1 3 1280 pieces of 1 s . 3 d . is 100     640 50     320 25     160 12 10   80 6 5   40 3 2 6 20 1 11 9 32 pieces of 7½ d . is 1     24   15   16   10   8   5   4   2 6 2   1 3 2560 pieces of 7½ d is 100     1280 50     640 25     320 12 10   160 6 5   80 3 2 6 40 1 11 9

That un-coin'd Silver ( and Gold in proportion ) shall not be Bought or Sold , or Offer'd above five Shillings fivepence per Ounce , and that it be Enacted Treason in any Person offending therein , except wrought Silver or Gold , which may be sold for more , according as the Workmanship shall be valued at by Persons appointed to Regulate the same .

That broad Gold shall be current in Payment , betwixt Man and Man , in proportion to Guinea's .

That all manner of clipp'd Silver do pass in Payments at what they were coin'd for , as also the small Silver Coins of a Penny , Twopence , Threepence and Fourpence .

That the Exportion of Bullion and Spanish pieces of Eight be prohibited , except for the King's Account or the East-India Company , there being Commodities enough in England to bring home what Commodities we stand in need of , without incouraging Foreigners to Import Goods upon us , and make their Returns in Silver and Gold , which a Prohibition will prevent , and bring Foreigners under a necessity of returning their Effects by Exchange or Goods , the former of which will cost them dear , they having the over-ballance of Trade , which will oblige them to take Goods or let their Mony ly dead , and wait till our English Merchants have more Effects in Holland , that shall oblige them to draw at a more reasonable Exchange .

Object . That Silver and Gold un-coin'd will not rest at the propos'd Price limited , it being intrinsically worth as much as the same coin'd .

Answ . Suppose I go to a Goldsmiths Shop , allowing the Coin to be on the same foot it now is , and carry with me 100 Crown pieces , each piece suppose to be intrinsically worth an Ounce of Silver in the Bar or Ingot , and that I would buy 100 Ounces of new wrought Plate with it ; now I would ask , whether this 100 Crowns or 100 Ounces of any Silver whatsoever , of the same Fineness , will purchase this 100 Ounces of wrought Plate ? Don't we pay 6 or 12 d . per Ounce more , according to the Workmanship , for the Fashion ? Which very Answer may be made as to coin'd Silver or Gold ; it cost me so much per Ounce to the King for Coinage , and is per Ounce more valuable to me than uncoin'd .

Object . That raising the Silver and Gold Coins will cause the Dutch to Import it upon us , and by that means raise the Exchange , to the disadvantage and impoverishment of England .

Answ . Admit the Hollanders have in England 80000 l. which they cannot have remitted them by Exchange or in specie under 15 or 20 per Cent . occasion'd by the over-ballance of Trade and the advance of our Mony , then how is it possible the Hollander can be the Gainer ? If his Factor draws he brings more Mony here , if he remits he loses by Exchange 15 per Cent . and if he sends it in specie he loses 20 per Cent . by his Mony , besides the risk of its being seiz'd : Is there no way to be found in Holland to get home this Mony , without being so great a Sufferer by the Exchange ? No , it s impossible ; if in Holland we draw for London , the English Factors will give us but 85 l. for our 100 l. in London ; and if we order it to be sent us in Guinea's or Silver , we must lose 20 per Cent . which plainly shews , the Dutch having the over-ballance of Trade , are Losers by the Exchange , supposing the Mony to be advanced ; which as it now is , I mean when the new Mony is coined , the Hollander will save the said 15 per Cent . by Exchange , in sending it over in Mill'd Mony and Guinea's ; and our Merchants that have Effects in Holland will not return their Mony in specie , by reason the over-ballance of Trade keeps up the Exchange 10 or 15 per Cent . which he shall gain by remitting his Mony for London by Exchange ; but if he sends it in Mony at 5 s . the Crown he can get nothing by it ; so that 't is impossible to expect the return of our Coin from Holland , unless it be raised in the Mint ( and now is the time , it being the major part in the King's Hands ) which will make the return of our Mony by Exchange , or in Coin , proportionable , and we shall thereby be considerable Gainers by the Dutch , as appears by the following Account , stated Debtor and Creditor .

English Effects in Holland 40000 80000 l. After the above Export to Holland 40000 By the Dutch Exchange we gain 8000   English gain by the return of 48000 l. in Mill'd Mony and Gold 9600     17600 17600 l.     97600 l. Dutch Effects in Holland   80000 l. Dutch remit per Exchange 40000 l. at 20 per Cent . Loss , which is in Holland but 32000   Dutch export to Holland 40000 l. in specie , at 20 per Cent . Loss , and make in Holland but 32000     64000 64000 l. Dutch lose by getting their Mony home   16000 l. Ballance which the Dutch make less of the said 80000 l. than the English   17600 l.     97600 l.

Object . Exchange is Govern'd by our Mony , and if our Mony advance in Denomination , Exchange must advance also in Proportion .

Answ . Exchange is not Govern'd by our Mony , but by the over-ballance of Trade , which causeth that Nation so over-ballenc'd , to raise their Exchange , there being greater Remittances then Drafts by Exchange , and all understanding Men are sensible that the more any Commodity is bought up , the more it s in Demand , and consequently shall bear the higher Price , and that Exchange shall not Rise by the advance of our Mony but on the contrary must of necessity Fall . As for Example , Suppose an English Merchant residing in Amsterdam , who would remit 100 l. for London , and say Exchange betwixt Amsterdam and London is at 15 per Cent . this Merchant goes to a Dutch Merchant desiring a 100 l. Bill for London , and what Exchange he would give him : His Answer is 15 per Cent . No , saith the English Merchant , if you will not give me 20 per Cent . I will send it over in English Mony , by which I can make 20 per Cent . For I can Buy the Crown piece for 5 s . 3 d . perhaps under 5 s . So that the Dutch shall not know how to get home their Effects , either by Exchange or Mony , without great Loss ; which puts them on the necessity of buying up our Commodeties , and stop their vast Importations , which is that alone can keep down our Exchange ; and the lower the Exchange is , the greater Incouragment will be found to return our Coin'd Gold and Silver , which must all come home again , if Exchange be not above 20 per Cent . the advance of the Coin making it equivalent to Exchange , at 20 per Cent . Which , I conceive , no Foreigner will be easie under ; I mean to give 20 per Cent . to get home their Mony ; so that our Mony being advanced , and Foreigner not able to save Exchange ( as they certainly will , our Crown piece being continued at 5 s . ) And by that means pour in Goods upon us , and make the Trade of England as profitable as the Spanish Indies to the Spaniard , whilst we have a Mild Crown or Guinea in England .

Object . That supposing the Coin to be advanced , as is said , then the Hollander will Import English Gold and Silver , by which they shall gain 20 per Cent . and Buy up our Goods , send them to Markets abroad , and undersel us with our own Commodeties .

Ans. The Dutch cannot be the Persons that can Import much of our own Coin upon us , having the over-ballance of Trade , and undoubtedly more Mony already in England then they know how to dispose of , which has obliged them to put a stop to the Importation of both Goods and Mony , until they can find a way to get home their Effects , which will cost them Dear either by Exchange or Mony , there being no weighty Mony for their purpose ; now if there be any thing to be got by Gold or Exchange , the English must be the Gainers , having Effects in Holland by which they are double Gainers . First , by their Goods ; and , Secondly , by the Exchange or Guinea's . But further , as to their buying up our Commodities with Guinea's , have not they the same advantage by Importing of Goods , by which they have often got 20 per Cent ? And shall not the Mony which is the Net proceed of these Goods , as well purchase our Commodities to send abroad , and thereby undersel us at Markets abroad ? Now I ask whether of the two is the advantage of England ? The one is Treasure and doth Inrich us , and the other Impoverish us , and carry away our Mony , which the People of England seem fond of , and are angry at the Importation of Guinea's , as if the Dutch was the only Importers of 'em , and that it was a Grievance to the Nation : Are we not upon equal Terms with the Dutch in Exporting our Commodities to Holland and Flanders , by which we are sure to be Gainers , the produce of which we may send home in Guinea's at a certain profit , or purchase Holland Cloth or any other Commodities , and thereby undersel them at Foreign Markets ? Now admit the Exchange betwixt England and Holland to be at par , and that there were no advantage by Mony either of one side or the other , have not then the Hollander the same advantage to Import Goods upon us ? And with the Produce of those Goods , purchase our Commodities , and send them to Foreign Markets cheaper then the English , and we the same of them , by as much as is gained by the Goods , on either side .

Object . That the English , being over-ballanced in Trade by the Dutch , have then no Effects in Holland .

Answ . Can the Trade 'twixt one Country and another be compared with an Account 'twixt a Merchant and a Retailer , who takes 6 or 12 Months Credit ? I think a Merchant that knows any thing can inform us to the contrary ; though I have observed some Persons who have Writ on the Subject of the Coin , would have the Ballence of Trade to be as a Debt 'twixt Man and Man , which I am sure no Man of Sense will allow ; for the Trade 'twixt one Country and another is managed by Persons on Commission or Factorage , who are imploied as Servants , created by Letters , to Buy and Sell Commodities for other Men's Accounts , for which they receive Factorage or Commission for their Trouble , but shall not run any manner of Riskque or Hazard , if the Goods be Cast-away , Burnt , or Stolen , or any other Accident shall happen , they are not to bear it ; which is the general way of Dealing 'twixt one Country and Another . And plainly shows that the over-ballence of Trade can be no Debt ; for if the Dutch have Effects here , or we Effects in Holland , and it be not return'd by Exchange , Goods or Mony , it s the same thing to the Factor he matters not how long it s left in his Hands , all that he regards is to perform the Instructions which is sent him ; that it being no Debt , so theirs no necessity on us to pay it , as some would have it .

Object . That if the Hollander cannot get by the return of their Mony , they shall by the Sale of their Commodities , which they will put a value on according to the Intrinsick value of our Mony , for which they give their Commodities in Exchange .

Answ . An English Man shall Import the same Goods , and as good a Commodity as theirs , which he will sell according to the Denomination of Mony in England , and not according to the Intrinsick value in Holland , which he has no reason to consider in England ( nor the Hollander neither were he to lay out all his Effects in Commodities ) being to make use of his Mony here , and not remit it to Holland at 15 or 20 per Cent Loss . And I do say , that nothing shall be the occasion of raising or falling Commodities , but the scarsity or plenty thereof .

I might have treated largely on this Subject , and a particularized the Foreign Species and our own , more Merchant like , which is my design wholly to wave ; and if any Merchants or others , can reasonably object against this Method proposed , I doubt not but am ably to remove any such Objections . In the interim , I desire a favourable Construction , and believe that I am a true English Man and Lover of my Country , and cannot be easie to see the Nation impoverished by exhausting its Treasure , if my Advice can prevent it .