Corol. III.
I humbly Propound to the Disquisition of Better Judgments; Whether the New Coin ought not alwayes to be of the same continued Weight, notwithstanding any Variations in the Price of Bullion; and that not the Weight of Coin, but the Aforementioned Interest be Varied from Year to Year according to the Price of Bullion.
The Advantages and Conveniences of what I have Proposed, is, I hope, by this time, somewhat Evident; but before I Reckon ’em up, it may perhaps be Expected that I should Faithfully and Candidly let down all those Objections which have Occurr’d to me whilst I have been Writing these Papers.
The most Material I will: And they are These.
Object. I.
Now, if it be Objected, that Five Pounds per Cent. for want of Silver, in an Hundred Pound is too little, seeing an Hundred Pound Bagg-full is entitled to no more than Twenty Shillings a Year:
I Answer,
That if a Man be contented to put in his Money into any of the New Banks, at 3 l. per Cent. ’tis better worth to lend it at 5 per Cent. per Annum, upon as good Security.
If it be reply’d, That a Man may take it out of a Bank when he will, and his Money is always at Command: I answer, It is much more so when he has it in his own Custody; For, he who shall have Four hundred Crown-pieces by him, can make as much use of it to all Intents and Purposes, but of Melting or Exporting, as if it were of an Intrinsick Value; and then sure he who having Four hundred Pieces of Money by him of a Real Worth, and applicable to any Lawful Use, can make Twenty Shillings a Year Advantage by Keeping ’em; hath much the better of him who hath Four hundred Pieces of other Money by him, of no more Real Value, nor more transferable, and hath no Profit by ’em, whilst they are in his Hands.
And whereas it may be said, No Man can be entitled to the Interest of that 20 l. due to him from the Government, unless he keeps 80 more dead by him, as a Vehicle to convey the Interest of the 20 l. to him. I answer the Government doth not intend to give Encouragement that Men should keep more Money by ’em than they have, or may have Occasion for.
That is a sort of hoarding which we are to prevent.
And therefore this 5 l. per Cent. is not given as an Interest for dead and unemploy’d Money, but to ascertain universally the real Value of it, and to take off all the Objections that are made against a mere extrinsick Value.
But if the Wisdom of the Parliament thinks fit to give 10 l. per Cent. Interest, whereby every 100 l. of new Coin’d Money will be entitled to 40 s. per Annum Interest; then the whole Interest of 500000 l. which the 2500000 l. half of the 5000000 l. wants of intrinsick Value, amounts at 10 l. per Cent. but to 50000 l. per Annum.
Or suppose by Combination ⅗ of the 5000000 l. demand Interest, then will the whole Interest amount to but 60000 l. per Annum, which with all the incident Charges, will be defrayed for little more than a Three-half-penny in the Pound Land-Tax; and for much less than 2 d. in the Pound.
And I am not at all against an Interest of 10 l. per Cent. because beside the present Advantage it gives, it doth ascertain to the People of England, not only a Promise that the Parliament will; but that there is a reason of good Husbandry likewise, why the Parliament should as soon as possible save the Nation that Annual Charge, by the paying of the principal Million that is wanting.
Object. II.
These Ends may as well be pursued by transferable Notes or Bills with Interest.
I answer that they cannot in the least, because here is 4 l. in 5 l. better secur’d than any Notes in the World can pretend to: for every Man hath so much of his Money in his Pocket; and that, for which the Security is given, is divisible into the 5th. part of a Six-pence, which transferable Bills cannot be.
Object. III.
That if this Method will hold, the intrinsick Value of Money may be but half as little as I propose, and the Subject will be always in fear of farther Alterations.
Answ. This I confess would be a very material Objection against Mr. Lound’s Method, but hath no force in ours, because the Government saves nothing by lessening the intrinsick Value; for what it saves at present, it must pay Interest for, and Principal too at the long run; besides, the Government aims at nothing but to rectifie the Coin, and keep it from being imbezil’d.
Object. IV.
The Money of England will be too much for 300 Men to receive in one Day.
Answ. It is but 10000 l. a Man one with another; i. e. but 100 hundred Pound-bags, which may very well be weighed and seal’d up, and entered in a Book in 5 hours time; viz. 20 in an hour; and as for the great Banks and Cashes of England, such as the Royal Bank, East-India Company, and the like, they need not remove their Money at all; but Commissioners may be sworn and sent to their respective Treasuries, taking sufficient Security of the said Treasurers and Cashiers, that none of the said Money shall be remov’d or touch’d in 24 hours.
Object. V.
It will be a great Trouble to carry 100 l. 10 Miles for 20 s.
Answ. It may not be 100 Men’s Case in all the Nation, and no Man is forc’d to carry it; and he who don’t carry it, hath lost nothing but what he might have gained.
For this is all clear Gains to every Man, who as soon as he has received his 20 s. can keep the 20 s. and pay a Debt with the 100 l.
Object. VI.
The want of a less Intrinsick Value, than 20 l. per Cent. will answer all the aforesaid Ends.
Answ. Less will not secure it against Exportation.
Foreigners have a knack at raising the price of Silver to draw over our Money to ’em; and I hear they can afford what they now daily do, viz. To Export, rather than fail, Clipt Money; and the only way to keep our Money at Home, Is to fix, during the War, one considerable part of its Value to the Kingdom; and when those Foreigners who must deal with us, cannot Export our Money, but with great disadvantage, they will be forced to take our Commodities in lieu of it, and be as industrious to make ’em valuable abroad as we are. And as to that Notion that we must not glut the Markets abroad with our Commodities, it is a Vulgar Errour unless we make this distinction, That ’tis dangerous when our English Factories glut the Market; for when Foreigners see the Market full, they combine together to keep down the Price, knowing that we must Sell; but then Foreigners who are better acquainted with their own Markets and Fairs than we are, and can spread a Trade much farther than our Factories can do, when they Export our Commodities and cannot Trade at all with us without exporting ’em; they can shift from one place to another, and open secret Passages of Commerce, not yet found out.
If the Portugueses for instance could not have Money for their Wine, would they (I desire to know) rather leave of Trading with us, than take our Cloth for their Wine. Or if heretofore we had drank no French Wine, but what we had paid for in Tin, would they have found a Vent for our Tin, or ploughed up their own Vineyards?
Object. VII.
This will be forcing Foreigners then, to Export our Commodities.
Answ. Not at all: For if the Ballance of Trade shall continue after all, to our disadvantage, here’s nothing in all this matter that hinders our exporting Bullion.
But if ’tis absolutely necessary to export Bullion to make good the Ballance of Trade, then we should take the more care, not to export more than is absolutely necessary; and whilst we carry on our Trade abroad, not to let this at home be at a stand, but secure Money enough for the Nations In-land Trade, and to pay the Taxes without pretence of impossibility.
Object. VIII.
Five Millions will not be half enough for our In-land Trade.
Answ. And I am clearly of that Opinion; and that Ten Millions is little enough, or else what need had there been, to have Coin’d Fifteen Millions in three Reigns, as the most industrious Mr. Lounds hath delivered to us?
But we are providing for a present necessity and not abundance.
And yet should we Coin five Millions more, in all Ten Millions; less than 2 d. in the Pound Land-Tax, would pay Interest for all, and the Million gained out of it would save 2 s. in the Pound that Year, which is making a very good Bargain for the Government.
But you may vary the Postulata, as I said before, how you please.
Object. IX.
The new Coined Money will appear very small to the Eye.
Answ. Go which way you will, it must be smaller than it was, or of greater value, because Bullion is dearer than when the Mill’d Money was Coin’d, and if the new Coin’d Money were to have an Intrinsick Value, it must necessarily be ⅕ less than it now is, and according to these Proposals it will be but about ⅓.
Supposing Silver at this extraordinary Price, I don’t see how it can possibly be larger than as 8 to 10, and this Proposition is as 8 to 12.
Object. X.
Cotton Post. p. 294.
The Mint is the Pulse of the Common-Wealth, and this would discover us to be in a weak Condition.
Answ. It will discover us doubtless, to be in a borrowing Condition upon good Interest and Security; but that’s the worst of it; whereas if the Mint should only give us an imaginary Valuation, then we are discovered to be in an imaginary Habit of Wealth.
CHAP. IX.
Advantages and Conveniencies most of which may be expected from this Method.
1. The Subject will be assured by the giving intire Satisfaction for Clipt Money, that the Coin of England Minted by Authority, is an inviolable and an unalterable Property which the Parliament will for ever maintain, even in the worst of times; the Consideration of which, will give the real and additional Value of the new Coin’d Money, a Credit throughout the World. And People will be the better able to pay Taxes if they are at no loss by their Clipt Money.
2. The Denomination of the Silver Coin will not hereby be raised above the real value.
3. The Trade and Circulation of Bullion in and out of the Kingdom, will not be at all hinder’d, so that as much Silver and Gold may be yearly transported into Flanders, as the occasions of the War require, without loss of Coinage; and Money which is the Vital warmth of In-land Trade, by which People are enabled to pay Taxes, always preserved among us.
4. The frequent Rises and Falls of Money beyond Sea, will be no longer an effectual trick to cheat us, as it hath hitherto been.
5. If it should after all be exported, it will be 20 l. per Cent. more to the Exporters loss, than if it had a full Intrinsick Value.
6. That 20 l. per Cent. which the Exporters lose, will be gain’d by the Government; because for what is exported, no Interest will be paid, nor no Principal at the end of the War.
7. The Coin’d Silver of the whole Nation, may in times of Peace be reduced to the old Standard, and Intrinsick Value, without recoining or altering the Species.
8. Those who hide and hoard up their Money, to defeat the Intents of a Tax upon it, will be disappointed of their Ends, and become greater Losers than by producing it; whereby Money may be affected by Taxes, which now cannot so easily be done.
9. All the Benefits and Advantages which can be proposed by a raising of the extrinsick and denominated Value of Money, will be hereby secured, and all the Inconveniencies of that Method obviated.
10. All the Advantages which can be proposed to the Publick by Coining after the old Standard, will hereby be effected, at a very inconsiderable present Expence, and no more than one Million at the end of the War.
11. Guineas will hereby fall in their Estimation, by an easie, natural, and gradual Abatement.
12. The Plenty of Money will be much greater, the Intrinsick Value more, and the Certainty of what a Man takes clearer than is at present.
And the real Value of our Coin, as great as ever, to all Intents and Purposes, but of Exporting, Melting-down, and Hiding.
FINIS.