356) with detailed costings, advice on quantities to be coined, and a proposal for preliminary trial coinage of one or two tons

Author: Isaac Newton

Source: MINT 19/2/347, National Archives, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, UK

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- This document is a version of:
  In response to a verbal order, a detailed account of Newton's proposed method of coining copper from rolled bars, the requisite staff and their respective duties [MINT 19/2/356]

<347r>

In obedience to your Lordships Order that I should propose a scheme for coyning copper money, I humbly represent that the Copper be of such fineness as to endure hammering without cracking when red hot, this assay being easy & certain & The Swedish money & Copper vessles being of about this degree of fineness. And because if copper be made into barrs by casting it will not be fine enough to endure this assay, & if it be made into barrs at the battering mills the workmanship will cost too much: I propose rather following method of coynage.

That fine copper of such a goodness as about two year ago was worth about 95 or 96^£ per Ton in the market & a year ago was worth about 100^£ or 102 £ per Ton & at present is worth about 110^£ per Ton or 12^d per lw^t be bought by the Melter or by other other factor at a price not exceeding the price appointed by the Treasury & delivered to the Melter by such an Assay or Rule as he & the factor can agree upon, & that the Melter melt refine & cast it into cakes in iron pans & roll the cakes red hot to a due size & blanch them & deliver them to the Master and Worker by weight & Assay . And that the Moneyers cut out & coyn the blanks & the Master deliver back the scissel to the Melter by weight & pay for the remainder made into moneys after a certain rate. And that a Tunn of new moneys or any quantity not exceeding a Tunn be well mixed together on a floor & four or five pound weight be taken from four or five several places of the heap & examined by weight tale & assay & the tale of the assays at a medium be taken for the tale of the whole heap & of every parcel thereof by the pound weight, & that a piece out of every pound weight assayed be put into a Pix & that the whole heap be distributed into parcells of 5 or 10 pounds in value in each parcel & put into Barrels to be delivered at that price to those who shall come for them & that all the receipts assays & deliveries be entered in books by two clerks one for the king & the other for the Master & Worker & a controlment Roll be made by the kings Clerk at the end of the year & the Pix be then examined by weight & assay before such person or persons as shall be appointed to report the same to the Lord Treasurer or Commissioners of the Treasury.

1 And because it is impossible to size the money without erring in excess or defect, the error may be limited not to exceed a half penny in the pound weight.

<347v>

If the Melter be allowed 4^d per lw^t for refining melting rolling & blanching the copper & the Master be allowed 1^d per lw^t for his own trouble & hazzards & for paying. the Graver & Smith for the P. & o. & 1 $\frac{3}{4}$ ^d per lw^t for the Moneyers & $\frac{1}{2}$ ^d per lw^t for defraying the charges of weighing, assaying, entring in books, barreling putting off & making a Controllment Roll; & $\frac{1}{4}$ ^d or perhaps $\frac{1}{2}$ more be allowed for repairs of buildings, putting the instruments into repair in the beginning of the coynage, purchasing such new instruments as may be wanting & obviating all other unforeseen accidents the whole charge of a pound weight of copper money will not be less then 19^d supposing that the copper costs 11 $\frac{1}{2}$ ^d, And if 2 a pound w^t be cut into 19 $\frac{1}{2}$ ^d or perhaps 20^d, 1 for obviating {t}he difficulty which may happen by the greater price of the copper, the profit above the charge wll be but small & may be accounted for & applied to the publick.

Six or seven hundred Tunns has been found sufficient to stock the nation of England, & there is scarce above 150 or 200 Tunns wanting of that quantity. I would propose a slow coynage not exceeding 30, or 40 Tunns per an̄ so that the price of copper may not be raised thereby &c. the new money have time to spread & be dispersed without making a clamour.

And before the method of coynage be fully established in writing it may be convenient to coyne a Tunn or two for an Experiment, to make syre that there be no unforeseen difficulties