Argument's sake suppose there is a Balance of Trade and that it is or may be cast up every year with every Nation yet it will not follow that the Balance of the Account must be paid in money For if the Balance be paid by Value it is no matter by what sort of Goods that Value is paid For one sort of Wares are as good as another if the Values be equal An hundred pounds worth of Lead or Iron is as good as an hundred pounds worth of Silver or Gold The general way of Balancing all Accompts in Foreign Trade is by Bills of Exchange For Foreign Exchange is the paying a Sum of Money in one Country to be repaid the same Sum in the Foreign Coin of another Country with allowance of Interest for the time of paying it according to the Agreement which is call'd with single or double Usance In the Infancy of Foreign Trade in England all Foreign Exchange was made in an Office set up on purpose to return Bills of Exchange which Office at first was setled by Act of Parliament and afterwards the Kings granted Patents for the keeping of it The last Patent was granted to the Lord Burleigh then Lord Treasurer in the Reign of Queen Elizabeth Those that kept the Office did generally belong to the Mints and were well acquainted with Bullion and Foreign Coins but with no other Commodities In those days being the beginning of Foreign Trade all sorts of Foreign Coins were in all Trading Countries currant In the Vnited Provinces Foreign Coins were currant till the year 1622 at which time a Placate was set out forbidding all Foreign Coins to pass any otherwise than as Bullion by weight except about half a score sorts of Gold Coins and as many Silver therein expressed In France all Foreign Coins were currant till the year 1614 in the Reign of Lewis XIII In those days all sorts of Money being currant the Money was often sent over in Specie from one Country to another to buy Goods and Balance Accompts And therefore in the Reign of Harry VIII the Money in the Kingdom being grown very scarce there was a great Complaint against the Exchangers for sending away the Money of the Kingdom whereupon he ordered a stop upon the Office of Foreign Exchange and prohibited for some time any Foreign Bills to be either accepted or drawn to prevent the sending away of the Money But since Foreign Trade is grown more dispers'd and enlarg'd almost every Merchant accepts and draws Bills of Exchange And since no money now passes currant but in that Country where it is coin'd it is not usual to send over Money in specie to buy Goods or balance the Accompt For the Merchants that draw and accept Bills of Exchange being general Traders and acquainted with the Value of all sorts of Goods and Money being a Commodity and reckon'd as Bullion in a Foreign Country if there be Effects of the same Value to answer the Bill in any sort of Goods it is the same thing as if Money was sent to answer it And if the Merchant has no effects in the Countrey where the Bill is to be paid yet if he has in any Foreign Countrey to which Bills of Exchange are usually drawn he may answer his Bill and pay the Balance of his accompt without Money by drawing Bills from one place to another where his effects are And therefore when Mr. Lock says That the Balance of the Foreign accompt must be sent over and paid in Money he must suppose that the Nation has no other effects in any other Foreign Countrey but that they are at the self-same time even every where else which never was nor never can be as long as a Nation continues in Trade And also that there must be a stop put to Trade till such an accompt be Balanc'd by the payment of the Money or else a Nation that has any effects in Value might send over Goods to balance the accompt without sending over their Money Besides some Nations have little or no Bullion in their Countrey as Denmark Sueden and the Northern parts of the World And yet the Merchants Accompts are as well Paid and Balanc'd as in any other countrey where there is more plenty of Gold and Silver For as the course of Foreign Trade now is there is no occasion to send over Money to buy Goods or Balance the Account for the Money is paid at the time when the Bill is first drawn So that there is no occasion to send Money over where the Bill is to be accepted and repaid and the buying of Goods or Balancing of the Accompt is done by the Foreign Money of the Countrey which is receiv'd from the person that accepts the Bill Money is never carried out of any Countrey where it is Coin'd except it be to those Countries where the Bullion bears a higher price than what the Money is currant at Or when the Exchange runs so high to any Country as it will be more profit to the Merchant to melt down the money and send it over in Bullion than by Bills of Exchange And in both these Cases it may often fall out that the money may be sent over to a Country and yet no Debt contracted in that Country And therefore the Balancing the Accompt can't be the reason of drawing the money out of a Nation For tho' Spain were not indebted to any Nation yet the Gold and Silver would be brought away For being more plentiful there than in any part of Europe because of the West-Indies that belong to 'em is consequently there of a lower Value And being their chief Staple Commodity having little other Goods of Value if they will Trade with other Nations and have their Commodities they must give their Bullion in Exchange tho' their Laws are Capital that prohibit it And yet every time they Traffick with other Nations there may be no Debts left on either side And the same likewise may be observ'd in the course of Foreign Exchange For the rise and fall of Foreign Exchange is from the difference of the Sums that are to be return'd in the Exchange Just as all sorts of Goods are cheaper or dearer from their plenty or scarcity so the Exchange to any place is either higher or lower according to the greater or lesser quantity of money that is to be return'd by the Exchange Sometimes an hundred pound may be worth five or ten per cent to be return'd and a little while after to the same place may be worth as much to the contrary And if it happens when the Exchange is high that there is as great a conveniency in sending to the same place the Bullion as there is to get a Bill of Exchange the Merchant to save five or ten per cent will send away the money And this may fall out when there is no Debt owing at the place As to instance If a Merchant were to buy Goods at Francfort or Amsterdam at the
Fair or East-India Sale if the Exchange be high aâ— 't is generally at those times he 'll send away Bullion thither rather than Bills iâ— there be any thing to be got by 't tâ— buy Goods in those places and yet hâ— might owe nothing there so that thâ— money is not sent away to Blance the Aâ—compt The Inferences from this Discourse of the Balance of Trade and Foreign Exchange are That a Trading Nation is made Rich by Traffick and the Industry of the Inhabitants And that the Native Stock of a Nation can never be wasted That no sort of Commodities ought to be totally prohibited And that the freer the Trade is the better the Nation will thrive That the Poverty and Riches of a Nation does not depend upon a lesser or greater consumption of Foreign Goods nor on the difference of the Value of those Goods that are consum'd That the Balance of Trade is a Nation that serves rather to puzzle all Debates of Trade than to discover any particular Advantages that a Nation may get by regulating of Trade That the Balance of Trade if there be one is not the cause of sending away the Money out of a Nation But that proceeds from the difference of the Value of Bullion in several Countries and from the Profit that the Merchant makes by sending it away more than by the Bills of Exchange That there is no Occasion to send away Money or Bullion to pay bills of Exchange or Balance Accompts That all sorts of Goods of the Value of the Bill of Exchange or the Balance of the Accompt will answer the Bill and Balance the Accompt as well as Money Of Raising the Value of Money with the Causes of it and the Effects IT has been a Custom in all Ages and amongst all Nations to Raise the Value of their Money and is as Ancient as the Coinage of Money and not a late Invention as some are of Opinion It was a Custom among the Assyrians Hebrews and Grecians as might be made appear if it were necessary But to shew that it was no Modern Invention will sufficiently appear by the Romans Raising the Value of their Coin The As being the Copper Money of the Romans was at first Coin'd of a pound Weight And in the first Punick War in the Dictatorship of Fabius Maximus it weigh'd but two Ounces and all the lesser pieces of it were abated in proportion The As was afterwards reduced to an Ounce and again by Papirius to half an Ounce When the Romans began first to Coin Silver Money the Denarius which was an Ounce of fine Silver and about the Value of our Crown was made current for ten Ases The Half Denarius the Sestertius and the Sextula which was Six in an Ounce were Coin'd to the same proportion Afterwards the Denarius was Coin'd to Seven in an Ounce and after that to the Weight of a Drachma which is Eight in an Ounce And the lesser parts as the Sestertius Sextula c. were abated in proportion Their Gold Money was also from time to time Raised Those Pieces called Solidi Aurei which were at first Coin'd to Forty Eight Pieces in the pound were at several times Rais'd And in the time of Iustinian the Emperor were coin'd to Seventy two Pieces in the Pound The Romans did not only Raise the Value of their Money by Coining of it Lighter but they did also Raise it by putting in an Allay which they did at several times and by several proportions And in the time of Livius Drusus the Allay was so excessive that the mixture was Eight Ounces Copper and Four Ounces fine Silver in a Pound Troy This base Money created a disturbance amongst the People which was the occasion of that saying in Tully's Offices Iactabatur enim illis Temporibus Nummis Vt nemo sciret quid haberet in Pecunia Whereupon Marius Gratidianus being Triumvir Monetae cudendae brought in an Ordinance for the Calling in and Regulating this Money for which he was in great Efteem amongst the People This is sufficient to shew that the Raising the Value of the Money is no late Invention In these Latter Ages all the Kingdoms and States of Europe have from time to time Rais'd the Value of their Money is very plain In France the Ounce of their Standard Silver which is the French Crown was at first divided in Sixty Sous afterwards the Crown was rais'd to Sixty five and of late to Seventy two Sous And the New Crown was from time to time made Lighter that is the Pound Troy which contains Twelve Ounces was at first divided into Twelve Crowns and afterwards into Thirteen Crowns and of late into Fourteen Crowns and almost an half And there are Old Crowns still current in France that have the Stamps upon them which shew how they have been several times Rais'd The Ounce or Dollar of the United Provinces was at first divided into Thirty six Stivers afterwards Rais'd to Forty and since higher tho' they have another way of Raising their Money which is by adding a greater Allay The Ounce or Rix-Dollar of the Emperor which was at first Coin'd at Fifty Crutzers was Raised to Fifty five and after that to Sixty In Spain and Portugal every Merchant knows that has Traded thither that the Values of their Monies have been several times Raised In England from Osbright the Saxon King till Edward the Third the Peny was a Peny weight of fine Silver and the Pound was a Pound Troy Weight of fine Silver He Rais'd the Value of the Money by putting Eighteen peny Weight of Allay into the Pound Troy And Mr. Lownds in his Report containing an Essay for the Amendment of the Silver Coins has given a very exact Account since Edward the Third's Time taken from the Records of the Mint how the Money of England has been from time to time Rais'd By which it appears that the Silver Peny which in the beginning of his Reign weigh'd a Peny-Weight there being then but Twenty pence in an Ounce has been by Degrees in several Kings Reigns Coin'd lesser and lighter and the Ounce has been divided into Twenty five pence Thirty Thirty seven pence halfpeny Forty five pence And in the beginning of Queen Elizabeth's Reign the Crown or Ounce was divided into Sixty pence And in the latter end of her Reign into Sixty two pence The Standard and course of the Mint has continued to this time without any alteration except what was made by an Act in the Reign of King Charles II. which gave away the charge of Coinage being Two shillings in the Pound Troy advantage for an incouragement to those that brought Bullion into the Mint which rais'd the price of Bullion to the Nation instead of raising the Value of the Coin The several States and Princes of Italy have Rais'd their Coins and if it were necessary it might be easily prov'd that there is not one Mint in Europe that has been of any
Silver in it By this Argument in my opinion they seem to be but young Courtiers and make an ill sort of Compliment to His Majesty by giving a greater Value and Respect to the Metal than to the Effigies of the King when they won't allow that the Stamp and Effigies upon the Coin gives a Value to the money and that the King's Authority makes it currant when all the Coins of his Predecessors were no otherwise made the current money of England but by their Proclamation These are the chief Objections against Raising the Value of the Money which I hope I have fully answer'd and shewn That they are only imaginary Mischiefs But if the Money be not Rais'd the Mischiefs will be real and Consequences very fatal to the Nation For if the money be new-coin'd according to the old Standard it will be certainly melted down and carried away as fast as 't is Coin'd notwithstanding all the Laws that can be made to prevent it and the Nation be left without money The Consequence whereof will be That Trade will be at a stand The prices of all Commodities will fall And a general Poverty and Clamour over the whole Nation ensue For Money is the measure of Commerce And for a Nation to be without money is the same thing as if it were without measures and had neither Yards Scales nor Bushels in the Country without some of which no Bargain can be made In those Countries where the Inhabitants do not live upon Trade but a Country-life every man having always Provisions sufâ—icient to sustain life they may shift without money and barter one Commodity for another But in England where the great Body of the People depend upon Trade and that by selling of such Goods the greatest part of which the People are under no great necessity of having but may shift without and have no way of feeding themselves but â—y the profit of such Bargains they cannot â—ive without money and if there were no money would starve because no persons will â—arter for those Goods that they have no abâ—olute occasion for if they want money Besides the want of money in a Nation will bring down the price of all Commoâ—ities for according to the Consumption of â—l Goods and the occasion there is for 'em â—he price will rise When money is wanting men consume less They are better Husâ—ands and make every thing last longer which lessens the consumption of the Native Commodities and makes the price of them â—o fall and if the price of the Native Commodities fall the Rents of the Land will â—â—nk For the Tenants cannot pay the same â—ent when the Corn and Wooll and other Commodities which are the Product of the and fall to half the Value To conclude There is nothing so much the Interest of the Nation as at this time to raise their Money It will increase the speties of the Coin and save the Nation near a Million of Money now they are engag'd in a chargeable War And if there were no other Reason but this which has been the cause that several Prince and States have rais'd their Money and have found great Success by 't it were an Argument sufficient For if all the money should be new-coin'd to thâ— old Standard it would not produce much above haâ— the quantity of the money before it was new-coin'd And there might be several Instances given beside that of the Romans and French where Princes and States have Rais'd their money in time of War oâ— purpose to increase the quantity of it But not on President where by new-coining of it in the timâ— of War the quantity has been made less Besides There is a greater Reason for Raising thâ— money while the War continues in Foreign Part because during the continuance of the Army iâ— Flanders the Exchange to those places will he high because of the constant occasion to remit monâ—â— to those Parts to pay the Army But if the monâ—â— be Rais'd above the price of Bullion the Dutch 〈◊〉 Flemish Merchants that pay the Bills of Exchange 〈◊〉 Flanders with their money with which the Army 〈◊〉 paid will send for their Effects in Bullion or the Nâ—tive Commodities of England because it will 〈◊〉 more profitable to them if the money be Rais'd bâ—â— if it be not Rais'd it will be more profitable to meâ—â— down the money and send it away than Bills of Eâ—change By which in a short time there will be 〈◊〉 money left in the Nation For the Merchant is paid for the remitting tâ— money at the first making of the Bargain and noâ— ever expected to make an advantage by melting doâ—â— the money of the Country and sending it away Fâ—â— if so the Merchant need not pay for the Bill of Eâ—change But he proposes to have his Return made of his Bill by the Goods and Effects of the Country from whence the Bill was sent and that will be much more for the advantage of the Nation for the Stock of the Nation is perpetual There is a new Crop of Corn and Wooll every Year and the Mines are never to be exhausted And the paying of the Foreign Bills with the Native Stock of the Country which is the usual way that all Foreign Bills are paid can never prejudice a Nation Besides If it were not in a time of War the Silver money ought to be Rais'd because the Foreign Princes have Rais'd their money twice since the Silver money has been Rais'd in England And 't is the constant usage of all the Foreign Princes and States in Europe to set a pretty equal Valuation upon their money above the price of Bullion and to Raise their money much about the same time or else the money of the Country where 't is not Rais'd would be melted down by the Merchants and carried to the Mints of those Countries where it is Rais'd and the Bullion yields a greater profit and so in a short time there would be no money left in that Country The truth of which has been sufficiently shewn from the great quantity of Silver money being above Fifteen Millions that has been melted down since the Silver money was Rais'd in England and there will be the same Consequence if the money be now coin'd to the old Standard because the money is of more Value when 't is melted into Bullion than in Coin Some are of opinion that the way to keep the Silver Money in the Nation is to sink the price of the Gold And would have Guineas brought to Two and twenty believing that the Silver Money will be bought up by the Gold and exported By this way of arguing they must agree that Silver is of a greater Value in another Country or else there would be no advantage got by exporting it And if the Gold be set at Two and Twenty or Five and twenty it won't preserve the Silver because every Merchant and Trader may take the Silver Money by the Sale of his Goods and need not buy it with the Gold And if Guineas be sunk to Two and twenty it will be a severe Loss to those People that have taken them at higher Rates And a damage to the Nation by lessning the quantity of the Coin and by low'ring the price of them may cause them to be exported So that there will be neither Gold nor Silver left in the Nation To conclude this Discourse If nothing in it self has a certain Price or Value If Gold and Silver are Commodities of uncertain Values If Money has its Value from the Authority of the Government which makes it currant and fixes the price of each piece of Metal Then the Money will be of as good Value to all intents and purposes when it is coin'd lighter For the Authority being the same the Value will be the same It will buy as much Goods The Landlord will have as much Rent And the Nation will save a Million of Money at a time when they have so great occasion for it Besides the preventing those fatal Consequences that follow the Coining the Money too weighty As The Loss of the Money Decay of Trade The Fall of Rents And a general Poverty and Clamour all over the Nation ERRATA PReface Page 3. line 21. read Reasons Contents ' p. 5. l. 7. r. of their Rent p. 8. l. 6. r. Exchanging p 9. l. 13. r. by the. p. 13. l. 24. r. as now p. 20. l. 21. 22 r. tho' the pound Troy be in both p. 21. l. 14. r. that is by p. 22. l. 5 6. r. Edward the First p. 26. l. 22. r. quantity of Silver p. 27. l. 13. r. That nothing in it self p. 31. l. 20. r. Containing p. 63. 1. 3. r. nummus FINIS
fineness of the Silver in the money Silver can never be of a higher price than the money For an equal Quantity of Silver will always be of the same value to an equal Quantity of Silver That if the value of the money be rais'd the value of all Goods will rise accordingly For Silver being the Measure of Commerce by its Quantity and it is the Quantity of Silver that men contract for in selling their Goods if there be a less Quantity of Silver in a Crown-Piece it will buy a less Quantity of Goods Or if the Crown be rais'd to Six shillings those Goods that us'd to be sold for a Crown will then cost Six shillings That it will be the same in all Foreign Commodities and Foreign Exchange For the Foreign Exchange and Par of money being only from an equal Quantity of Silver in the different Coins of the several Countries if the money be made lighter there must then be a greater number of pieces to make the Par or Foreign Exchange by Foreign money equal or else the Quantity of Silver will not be equal to that in the Foreign Coin So that the Foreign Exchange and Price of all Foreign Goods will rise in proportion to what the value of the money is rais'd That which cost Twenty pounds before will cost five and twenty if the money be raised a fifth because there will be no greater a Quantity of Silver in Five and twenty pounds than there was in Twenty before the money was raised That the raising the value of the money will not prevent the carrying it away because that depends upon the Balance of Trade For if there be more Foreign Goods bought of any Nation and Imported than there are of the Native Commodities Exported the Balance must be paid in money which will always carry it out to pay the Debt till the Balance of that Nation be alter'd which is by Exporting more of the Native Commodities and Importing less of the Foreign That there will be a great loss to all the Creditors and Landlords of England for they letting their Land by the same rule which is by the Quantity of Silver in the money if the money be made lighter by a fifth part they will lose a fifth part by their Rent They 'll receive but Eighty pounds instead of an Hundred because there will be no more Silver in an Hundred than there was before in Eighty That there will be the same loss to the Creditors when they are paid their Bonds Debts and Contracts so that the raising of the money will put a very great Loss and Hardship upon Landlords and Creditors and bring no advantage to the Nation The contrary Propositions in Answer to Mr. LOCK are these THAT there is no Intrinsick Value in Silver or any fixt or certain Estimate that common consent hath placed on it but that it is a Commodity and riseth and falleth as other Commodities do That Money is the Instrument and Measure of Commerce and not Silver That it is the Instrument of Commerce from the Authority of that Government where it is Coined and that by the Stamp and Size of each piece the value is known That Money differs from Vncoined Silver in this That the Authority of the Government gives a fixt and certain value to each piece of Money which is generally beyond the value of the Silver in it That it is Money that men give take and contract with for all other Commodities and by which they estimate the value of all other things having regard more to the stamp and currancy of the Money than to the quantity of fine Silver in each piece That raising the Value of the Money will not raise the Foreign Exchange nor Foreign Commodities That if by the Balance of Trade in a Nation the Money is carried away the only means to prevent it is to raise the Value of the Money That it is the Practice of all the Governments in Europe to raise their Money from time to time as the price of Silver rises That the raising of the Money will not raise the Value of any Commodities That if the Money be rais'd a fifth the Landlord will not lose any part of his Rent nor the Creditor any part of his Debt or Contract That if the Money be not rais'd and kept above the price of Silver it will be melted down and carried away That the Consequence will be That for want of Money Commerce and Trade will be at a stand the Price of the Native Commodities and the Rents of the Lands will fall and that it will cause a general Clamour and Poverty in the Nation To prove the Truth of these Propositions it will be necessary to discourse in general of these several things viz. Of Riches and the Value of Things Of Money and the Par of the several Coins Of the Balance of Trade and Foreign Exchange Of raising the Value of Money with the Causes of it and the Effects A DISCOURSE Concerning Coining the New Money lighter c. Of Riches and the Value of Things ALL the Arguments in Mr. Lock 's Book against the raising the Value of Money are drawn from this single Supposition That there is an Intrinsick Value in Silver which is the Price or Estimate that Common Consent hath placed on it by which it comes to be the Measure of the Value of all other Things which if that should not be true then all his Consequences must be mistaken And to prove that he is so It will be necessary to discourse of RICHES in general and to shew how the Value of Things do arise By Riches is meant all such Things as are of great Value By Value is to be understood the Price of Things that is what any thing is worth to be sold according to the old Maxim Valet quantum vendi potest The Value of all Things arise from their Use. Things of no Use are of no Value as the English Phrase is They are good for nothing There are two general Uses by which all Things have a Value They are either useful to supply the Wants of the Body or the Wants of the Mind Things that have a Value from being necessary to supply the Wants of the Body are all such Things as are useful to support Life such as all sorts of Food and Physick Things that have their Value by being useful to supply the Wants of the Mind are all such Things that satisfy Desire Desire implies Want it is the Appetite of the Mind and as natural as Hunger to the Body such are all those Things that are any ways useful to satisfy the Mind by contributing to the Ease Pleasure or Pomp of Life By supplying these two general Wants all sorts of Things have a Value But the greatest Number of them have their Value from supplying the Wants of the Mind and Things of the greatest Value are used to set orth the Pomp of Life such as all sorts of fine Draperies Gold
agrees this Consequence and in Page 21 allows Gold and Lead and other Metals to be Commodities of uncertain values and therefore cannot be the Measure of another value but it do's not appear to me why he has separated Silver from Gold which in all Discourses us'd to go together or why that should not be a Commodity as well as other Metals which had he pleas'd to have allow'd would have much shorten'd the Debate What Mr. Lock means when he says that the Intrinsick Value of Silver is the Estimate that common consent hath placed on it I do not well understand therefore must be excused if I do not well answer it If he means that the Estimate that Common consent hath placed on Silver that Mankind have agreed to set a certain and fixt Price upon Silver he ought to have given account how and when they made such agreement I must confess I never hear'd of any if there was any such it must be lately For there is no Goldsmith that has been any considerable time at his Trade but has bought the same Sterling Silver for Four Shillings Eight pence Four and Ten pence and Five Shillings per Ounce for which he has given Five and Eight pence Five and Ten pence and Six shillings per Ounce If he means by the Estimate that Common consent hath placed on Silver That all Governments have agreed to make their Silver Monies equal both for Weight and Fineness that too will prove a mistake For the Silver Coins in all Governments in Europe have been at one time or other raised and alter'd and they never did agree in equal Quantities of fine Silver as will be shown in the Discourse of Money and the Par of the several Coins That which I have endeavour'd to prove in this Discourse of Riches and the Value of Things are these Five several Maxims which I have here set together because I shall have occasion to make use of them hereafter viz. 1. That nothing has a Price or Value in it self 2. That the Price or Value of every thing arises from the occasion or use for it 3. That Plenty and Scarcity in respect to their occasion makes things of greater or lesser Value 4. That the Plenty or Scarcity of one Commodity do's not alter the Prices of other Commodities which are not for the same uses 5. That in Trade and Commerce there is no difference in Commodities when their Values are equal that is Twenty shillings worth of Lead or Iron to some Merchants is the same as Twenty shillings in Silver or Gold Of Money and the Par of the several Coins MR. Lock says pag 22. That Money differs from Vncoin'd Silver only in this That the Quantity of Silver in each piece of Money is ascertain'd by the Stamp it bears which is set there to be a Publick Voucher of its Weight and Fineness That it is the Quantity of Silver Mankind give or take or contract for that they estimate the value of other things and satisfy for them and thus by its Quantity Silver becomes the Measure of Commerce The Question betwixt us here will be Whether Money has its sole Value from the Quantity of Silver in each piece of Coin Or whether Money has not some Value from the Authority of the Government where it is Coin'd above the Value of the Silver in each piece For the better answering this Question it will be necessary to discourse in general of Money and the Par of the several Coins Money is a Value given to a piece of Metal by the Stamp of Publick Authority which is commonly greater than the Value of the Metal that bears the Impression The Value of each piece of Money is known by the difference of the Stamp Size and Colour of the piece Money is commonly made of some Metal but it is more for conveniency than of absolute necessity For the Value arising from Publick Authority it may as well be set to any thing else that is as convenient and can be as well preserv'd from being counterfeited For in several Countries Money is not made of Metals as in some parts of Guiney Money is made of Shells And Mr. Lock observes in India Money is by Yards of Wampompeak And in England it was formerly made of Leather and from thence came the Name of a Hide of Land which did as well describe the value of Land now to say ten twenty or a hundred pounds worth of Land In ancient times in the most civiliz'd parts of the world the Money was made of Copper or Brass It was Four hundred eighty four years before the Romans had any Silver Money and Sixty two years after before they had any Money made of Gold And had but very little of either till they had greatly enlarg'd their Empire And from the Spoils of those conquer'd rich Cities Carthage Athens and Alexandria brought a greater plenty of Silver and Gold into their Exchequer And it always continued scarce in Europe till the discovery of the West-Indies There are now in most Countries of Europe three sorts of Money Copper Gold and Silver Money and they are of equal Value according to what they are stamp'd at The Farthings of England the Duyts of Holland the Deniers of France the Reas of Portugal and the Malvedies of Spain c. do buy and pay for all sorts of Commodities as well as the Money that is made of Silver or Gold And the Merchants both in their Bills of Exchange and in their Accompts do as often reckon by the Copper Money as by the Silver Money And the Computation of the Silver Money is often made from the Value of the Copper Money as in Portugal the Merchant does often draw his Bills of Exchange to be paid in Rials of Four hundred Reas or Four hundred and fifty Reas. And so in Spain he draws his Bill to be paid in Rials of Three hundred seventy two Malvedies or more according to the rise of the Exchange And in Holland some Merchants draw their Bills to be paid by Groats which is a base Money as well as others do to be paid by Shillings For the Value of Money arising from the Authority of the Government if the Authority be the same the Value of the Copper Silver or Gold money must be the same in proportion to what they are set at And Copper being a Metal of lesser Value than either Gold or Silver is much better to make small money of because the pieces are thereby made larger and fitter for use and handling There are more Bargains made with Copper Money then either with Silver or Gold For those Commodities that are bought in great parcels are sold by retail in small parcels for common use and for one Bargain made with Silver or Gold Money there are ten made with Copper Money Five or Ten Quarter of Wheat which may cost Five or Ten Pound in Silver Money at one Bargain is divided into Twopeny Peny and Halfpeny Loaves
every body refuses the Money in general for fear the loss should fall upon him that last takes it so that the Money becomes useless having lost the currancy and quality of Money and all the murmur and disorder ensues that usually attends a Nation that want Money to drive their Trade and Commerce Other Instances might be given but this with the common usage of not exceeding Ten or Fifteen per cent when the Money is rais'd may be sufficient to answer Mr. Lock 's Objection That the Governments cannot raise their Money as high as they please nor make themselves as Rich as they please The great Objection that Mr. Lock makes against the raising the Value of Money is That if the Government have a Power to give a Value of Ten per cent to their Money why not Twenty Fifty or as high as they please And then it would be in the Government 's Power at any time to make themselves as rich as they please Such a Power at this time were to be wish'd for when the Nation is engag'd in so chargeable a War But that 's the misfortune that attends us that such a Power can be only wish'd for For tho' Princes and States have a Power to give a Value to their Money yet that Power is limited And when ever they have attempted to exceed those Limits which upon an extraordinary emergency they have sometimes done they have fallen under greater mischiefs by reason the Money has been always counterfeited than the advantages they propos'd to themselves amounted to by doing of it and have always been forc'd to call in such Money and reduce the Value within its usual limits and bounds There are two Causes why Princes and States raise the Value of their money the one is Ordinary and the other Extraordinary The Ordinary and Common Cause of Raising the Value of the Coin is the Rise of Bullion Gold and Silver are Commodities for other Uses besides the making of money as for making of Plate Lace Gilding c. And besides it 's scarcer in some Countries and more plenty in others And the Value of all things arising from their Occasions and Plenty and Scarcity making things cheap and dear when ever the Goldsmiths and the Makers of Plate Lace c. and the Merchants to export it to the Indies or those Countries where 't is more scarce will give more for Bullion to supply such occasions than the Mints can afford to do according to the Value the money is at the Princes and States have been forced from time to time to raise the Value of their Coin to prevent it from being melted down and carried away The knowledge when Bullion is risen above the Value of the money is discover'd by the Mints For the Mints are the common Shops and Market place for the Merchants to carry in their Bullion And when ever they forbear the bringing of it thither it is certain it will yield them a better price in another place For Bullion never continues long in a place unalter'd because it yields no profit while it continues so But if it be carried to the Mint to be Coin'd it becomes useful for Trade and Commerce and saves the charge of borrowing money or else may be put out to Interest And if it be wrought into Plate Lace c. it pays for the fashion and workmanship And if it be transported to the Indies or some Country where it 's dearer it produces profit by the exchange of those Goods that are bought with it When ever any of the Princes and States in Europe Raise the Value of their Coin the rest generally follow It were too long to give particular Instances but if it be examin'd by the Records of the Mints of the Kings of France with those of the Mints of the Kings of England it will appear that they have Rais'd their Money from time to time as the Kings of England have done or rather higher For that since the time of St. Lewis who was co-temporary with Edward the IIId the Sols and Crowns contained then near six times more of fine Silver than the Sols and French Crowns do that are lately Coin'd which is a greater proportion than the Money has Risen in England since Edward the Third's Time being not quite four times lighter The reason is it 's almost a hundred years since the English have Raised the Value of their Silver Coin and in the same time the French have Rais'd theirs twice which would have made the English Money much of the same Rise with giving of allowance to the custom of the English who have always undervalued their Silver Money and overvalued their Gold in respect to their Neighbour Nations and have since twice Rais'd the value of their Gold to wit in King Iames the First 's time who Coin'd a twenty-Shilling-piece of Gold lighter by Two shillings than that which he Coin'd in the beginning of his Reign which rais'd the value of his first Iacobus's to Two and Twenty Shillings And in King Charles the Second's time who Coin'd the Guinea Two shillings lighter han the Broad-Piece So that when the Guinea was currant at Twenty shillings the Broad-Piece went for Two and Twenty There seems to be an absolute necessity for the Princes aud States of Europe to Raise the value of their Money much about the same time or else they cannot preserve it in their Countries notwithstanding any severe Laws to prohibit the Melting and Exporting of it For there being a constant Commerce and Traffick betwixt all the Countries of Europe If one Prince sets a much higher value on his Money than another the Merchants whose business it is to observe where they can get most profit will melt down the Coin of one Countrey and carry it to the Mint of another Countrey where the Money is Rais'd and will yield the greatest price This will appear plain by an Instance here in England For the Kings of England having not Rais'd their Silver Money since the Reign of Queen Elizabeth which is about a hundred years ago and the rest of the Princes and States of Europe having since that time twice rais'd their several Coins to wit in the Reign of King Iames the First and about Four or Five years since That although there has been since that time Coin'd in England with allowance of what was Coin'd in Queen Elizabeth's Reign the Sum of 19429061 l. 19 s. 6 d. as appears by the Records of the Mint yet by the Computation that Mr. Lownds makes there is not above Five Millions Six hundred thousand pounds remaining which in my opinion is more than will be found to be upon the new Coinage of the Money by the calculation he makes from the Worn and Clipp'd Money So that there has been near Fourteen Millions melted down and carried away within this space of time And had it not been for some accidental causes that brought Bullion to the Mint since the Foreign Princes have rais'd
and afterwards bought perhaps by a Hundred persons and paid for by the Copper Money of the Countrey And there are but few Bargains that can be made without the use of some Copper Money to make the Sum even All Sums here in England between Sixpence and Twelvepence are made up with Farthings and Halfpence This shews Mr. Lock 's mistake where he says That 't is by the Quantity of Silver men give or take or contract for that they Estimate the Value of other things and satisfy for them c. For the Baker the Grocer the Coffee-man and all the Retailers sell great quantities of Goods for the Copper Money wherein there is not one grain of Silver and yet they are as well paid and satisfied for their Goods with such Money as the Farmer or Merchant of whom they first bought those Goods are with the Silver Money For the Copper Money may be Coin'd as near to the Value of the Copper as the Silver or Gold Money may be to the Value of the Silver or Gold and the Authority of the Government that makes them all current being the same all sorts of Money must be of an equal Value according to what they are Stamp'd at For the nature of the Metals can make no difference if the Values be equal That being done only by proportioning the quantities of the Metals in each piece of Money to their different Values For instance supposing Copper to be at Twelvepence a pound and Silver to be at Three pound per pound an Ounce of Silver which is Five Shillings is equal to Five pound of Copper And there being Threescore pence in Five Shillings and Threescore Ounces in Five pound an Ounce of Copper being a piece of money about the bigness of a Crown in Silver is equal to the value of a Penny in Silver and an Half-penny being half an Ounce and of the size of Half-acrown is equal to an Half-penny in Silver If it had been the Quantity of Silver that Men take and contract for Men would have made their Bargains by the weight of Silver and not by the tale of money For Silver is as well divided for Traffick by weight as money is divided by number and there would be no occasion for Coining For it is as easy in making of a Bargain when the Question is ask'd What shall I give or what will you take for such and such Commodities to say I will give or take so many Grains Penny-weight Ounces or Pounds of Silver as to say that I 'll give or take so many Pounds Shillings Pence or Half-pence But Silver being a Commodity for other Uses besides the making of money and according to the Plenty or Scarcity to supply those Occasions is dearer or cheaper therefore money was invented which by Publick Authority sets and fixeth a certain value to each piece of money and it is that which men give and take by tale and number of the pieces in exchange for all other Commodities without regarding the weight and quantity of Silver in each piece And if a man should offer to buy Goods in the Market by saying I 'll give so many Grains Ounces or Pounds of Silver he would be presently ask'd What is Silver worth an Ounce and would be no more understood by Mr. Lock 's answer That an Ounce of Silver is worth an Ounce of Silver than if a Country-man in a market being ask'd What is Corn worth a Bushel should say 'T is worth a Bushel of Corn. And yet if Mr. Lock 's definition of money be true That it differs from uncoin'd Silver only in this That the Quantity of Silver in each piece of money is ascertain'd by the Stamp it bears which is set there to be a Publick Voucher of its weight and fineness there can be no other Answer given to know the value of Silver by For if the Stamp to a Crown-piece which is an Ounce of Silver be set only to describe its weight and fineness if any man be ask'd the Question What Silver is worth he can mean no more when he says 'T is worth a Crown an Ounce than that an Ounce of Silver is worth an Ounce of Silver so that by his description of money no man can describe the value of Silver But that Mr. Lock is mistaken in his definition of money will appear more plainly by discoursing of the Par of the several Coins He says That the Par of Monies is certain number of pieces of the Coin of one Country containing an equal Quantity of Silver in another number of pieces of the Coin of another Country This is a general Opinion and therefore it is no wonder to find it here asserted by a Gentleman who I suppose is only acquainted with the Speculation and Theory of Foreign Coins when many Merchants and Traders whose business it has been to know the practick part and the difference of the value of the several Coins are of the same Opinion And yet if it be but consider'd it will be found to be a vulgar Error and that the Par of money is made by computing the Valuation that the several Governments set on their Coins which is not from the equal Quantity of Silver in each piece of money For there is scarce two Mints that agree in the Standards of their Coin The Standard of Spain is Eleven Ounces Four-penny weight fine in a Pound Troy Mexico Eleven Ounces Three-penny weight Ten Grains England Eleven Ounces Two-penny weight France Ten Ounces Ten-penny weight Holland Nine Ounces And the same difference might be observ'd in all the other Mints of Europe Besides The Pound Troy is divided into a number of pieces differing in their weight and that no two Mints divide their money alike That in most pieces of money the very Grains of Silver are divided in some a tenth thirteenth fifteenth twentieth part of a Grain and more and that there is scarce any one piece of money without Fractions of Grains of Silver so that in those very Coins that are nearest in value by computation it will be found altogether impracticable for any Merchant to keep an account of the Par of the several Coins by the quantity of Silver in each piece of money It would puzzle a good Arithmetician to state the difference of the Grains of Silver in those pieces that seem most to agree as to Instance It is no easy matter to number the difference of Grains betwixt those Pieces of Eight that of Mexico and Spain with the Pound Troy being both divided into thirteen pieces and an half It is much more difficult to examine the difference of the grains of silver in such pieces as the Sixpence of England the Riall of Spain the Shilling of Holland with other Coins about that value But if the difference of the Grains with the innumerable Fractions of Grains be examin'd in the Stivers of the Low-Countries the Souz of France the Crutizes of Germany with the Silver Pence of England and
House of Commons voting that they should not exceed Eight and twenty every man presently refus'd to take 'em for more And upon another resolution That they should not exceed Six and twenty and not declaring at what price they should be currant no man since will take them for more than Six and twenty most refuse to take 'em at so much and some refuse the taking of 'em at any price So that Silver would no more pass for Money than Gold unless the price of each piece were fixt by Publick Authority The Argument that has been us'd to shew that 't is impracticable to make up the Rar of the Coins from the quantity of Money in each piece because of the great difference in the Standard the unequal division of the Money and the Infinite number of fractions in the quantity of Silver in every piece is of use to prove that the Par of Monies is from the Valuation that each Government sets upon their Coin Or else there could be no Bargain made upon an equal foot there being such a certain difference in the Quantity of the Silver in the several Coins which could never be remedied unless publick Authority had fixt the Value to their Money by which all those Fractions and Inequalities in the several Coins are even'd And one piece of Money is as good as another in the Countrey where each piece is Coin'd according to the Valuation that is set upon it which is describ'd by the Stamp and Size of the piece tho' they differ greatly in the Quantity of Silver Now if it be true in it self That nothing has a Value or Price That the Value of all things arises from their Use it will be no strange Consequence that Money should have a Value from the great use of it above the price of Bullion or the Metal that bears the Impression And that the Government should have power to set and fix a Value or Price upon their Money as well as the Merchant and Trader upon their Goods and Wares And that 't is as reasonable to allow the Government some Value for their Stamp upon their Money above the price of the Metal as to pay the Goldsmiths for the Fashion of their Plate or the Ingraver or Carver for the Impression on his Medal And why should it seem so strange that a new piece of Coin should have a Value above the price of the Metal which is seldom above Sixpence or Eight pence in Five shillings being not above a Tenth part more than the Value of the Metal when an old piece of Coin grown scarce is seldom less than double the Value and some of them exceed ten twenty and a hundred times the Value of the Metal A Mill'd Crown of Oliver's is now worth Twenty shillings to be sold and an Otbo's Head and some other Roman Coins are worth a hundred times the Value of the Metal that bears the Impression Besides there is a greater reason for the Value of the Money because by the Authority of the Government it is made current and lawful Money and every body is oblig'd to take it and therefore no person can be a loser by taking of it because another person is to take it of him again for the same Value The Stamp upon the Money is the Seal of the Government so that if there was not a Law to make it current and had only the King's Seal or Stamp upon it it ought rather to have a better or at least the same Value as a Bank Note or any Private Person 's Bond or Seal which only shews that the person whose Note or Seal it is is oblig'd to pay or exchange it And it there were no other obligation from the King's Stamp than to show that the King would take it in his Revenue it would give it a sufficient currency tho' there were no Law to make it current It is the currancy of the Coin that all men regard more than the quantity of the Siver in it For the difference of the Fineness of the Silver and the number of the grains in each piece of Silver few persons are acquainted with Not one in a thousand can tell how many grains of fine Silver there are in a Crown Halscrown Shilling or Sixpence Therefore to what purpose should the Stamp be set to be a Voucher to the Weight and Fineness as Mr. Locke affirms which no person inquires after or desires to know 'T is the Currant and Lawful Money of England that men contract for and oblige themselves in their Bonds to pay and if it were the quantity of Silver in the Money that men regarded they certainly would express it in their Bonds and Contracts and have faid Currant and Lawful Money containing so many Ounces and Grains of fine Silver For Money do's wear and grow lighter by often telling over so that if it were true that 't is the quantity of Silver in the Money that men give take and contract for in exchange for all other Commodities they ought to make their Bargains to be paid in Money Coin'd such and such a year and so set the Price of their Goods according to the Date of the year the Money was Coin'd in Or else they will lose more by the difference in the quantity of Silver by the age and wearing of the Money than the profit by the Goods amounts to For 't is very plain that the old Unclipp'd Broad Money of England is worn Ten per Cent. lighter than the new-Mill'd Money So that is the quantity of the Silver in the Money were to be regarded it would make Ten per Cent. difference in the profit of the Bargain And yet no man will deny but that the Broad Unclipp'd Money will buy as many Goods of the same Value as the New-mill'd Money will do And that all Bonds and Contracts are as well paid and satisfied by such old Money as by the new It is the Denomination and Currency of the Money that men regard in Bargaining and not the quantity of Silver For in all parts of Europe men buy and sell by the Denomination of several sorts of Money both of Gold and Silver that were formerly currant but now out of Use and not in being As by several sorts of Dollars Guilder-Pieces Florens Marks Nobles and Groats of England c. For when Princes are forced by the rise of Bullion to raise their Coin and make their Money lighter they often change the Denomination and yet men keep their custom of making their Bargains by the old Weighty Money and pay for their Goods by the New-coin'd lighter Money As to instance in many Countries here in England they buy and sell their Cattel by Groats and Nobles which was the currant Money and way of reckoning till Edward the VIth's days there being till then very little other Silver Money Coin'd but Groats and they were double the weight in proportion to what the Money is now Coin'd at And yet in paying and