But yet this Scruple remains unsatisfied,That at least the Bullion,which otherwise would have come unto you,will be in the mean time diverted until the price of Commodities be grown up to the value of their Money as it is raised.But it is manifest,that all other mischiefs set down before would be taken away by this Proposition,as culling,washing,scaling and clipping of Money,for that no benefit could possibly be made by them,and that equality of Exchange formerly propounded would by this means be brought the nearest to perfection of any other;for that the Merchant,first shall understand the true value of his own Money,and cannot make the account of Exchange in a forrein place,but by comparing their Moneys in true weight and fineness with his own;so as he cannot be deceived either by a false reputed value of his own Money,or of the Money which he is to receive by Exchange,and therefore will not make his Exchange to loss,except he be induced thereunto by some other circumstances which have no relation to the Subject of Money.
But having thus far debated of the Commodities and Benefits of this Proposition and prevention of former Inconveniences;It now remains to be inquired what new Inconveniences this Proposition would bring with it.
And first,The alteration would be very strange,and with great difficulty would be received by the People in a matter that is of most general and continual use of all others,in stead of accounting by a pound sterling,angels,shillings,and groats,to come now to accompt by Pound weights,Marks,Ounces,Scruples,and Drachmas;to which the only answer to be made is,That although the Trouble and Difficultie would be very great,yet being once settled,it would be settled for ever,whereas now the Trouble and Inconvenience which the People endure in this matter of Money is often renewed,but never amended.
A second Objection is,The Extream molestation which the People should receive in the practice of it,when as every man should be bound to carry scales in his pocket (as they say they do in China)and upon every little payment be bound to weigh their Money.
To which it may be answered,That there have been antiently Proclamations in England,and very lately in France,to avoid the frequency of washing,clipping and scaling,to oblige the People to weigh their pieces of Silver as well as of Gold,but for the Silver,the People could never be brought unto it;whereas by this Proposition,of Necessity,every man receives Money must be tied to weigh the Silver as well as the Gold,and all these Inconveniences of scaling,washing,culling,and wearing,would be avoided with a small part of that trouble to the People,which the weighing of the several pieces of Silver would put them unto,partly because the least and most ordinary payments would be accommodated by the small pieces coined of a certain weight,and partly because the trouble of smaller payments would be recompenced by the ease of the greater;for by this course a thousand pounds will be as soon weighed as twenty shillings can now be reckoned.
A third Objection may be made against it,That by this Proposition Princes and States would be deprived of the means to make secret benefit of their Moneys,which hath been continually practised,and especially in times of eminent necessity,even to the preservation of Kingdomes.
To this is answered,That the Objection though it be true is yet of no weight,because that profit so made,is first made unjustly,and by the breach of publick Faith,and then it is but a false seeming profit,and always mischievous to the People,and really not good for the receivers of it.And (as it was formerly touched)it may be observed,That after the decay of the Roman Empire,the Reglements of the Mint of that great Monarchy being lost,through the Inundations of barbarous People (as many other excellent Institutions were)the Jews (who by God's Curse were dispers'd into all Nations,and being suffered to acquire no natural possessions,betook themselves to artificial possessions;especially gave themselves to the Study of the nature of this matter of Money as their Patrimony)in most Countries were imployed in the affairs of the Mint:and to them succeeded the Italians,as it may be observed here in England,where for some Ages,after the expulsion of the Jews,there were no Masters of the Mint but Italians of Lucca or Genoa:Now these People being subtil Masters of their Art,and having no natural affection to these Countries where they were imployed,but aiming only to keep their own Mills grinding,did by projects of colourable profit,abuse those States where they were trusted,and keep them in continual alteration of their Coin,which always in the end turned to diminution of the intrinsical value;and therefore,finally this Proposition seemeth to me most strange and remote from common apprehension of all the rest;but,being duly weighed,the least Inconvenient and most likely to produce good effect of any of the others.And thus I have set down all the Remedies,that by enquiry I could learn,to have bin propounded either in England,or in other parts for the Inconveniences grown into this Subject of Money,wherein all the particular Projects that have made the same projects,varied only in form,or in some by circumstances,yet I do believe,that hardly (one)can be quoted,whereof the ground and essence is not here set down and debated.
