Variant holograph draft of MINT00087 (Mint 19/1/98-9)

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The Memorialist saithTis said siauggested that the Queens Assaymaster is a cheque upon the Officers{illeg} of the Mint & that Mr Brattle being under the direction of the Officers hath acted partially: whereas on the contrary, the Comptroller is a cheque upon the whole Mint including the Assaymaster & all the three first Officers are a che upon the Assaymaster. For he has no trial piece of his own but performs his Assays by their Trial pieces & in their present & his Assays without their approbation are of no force. In overseeing his Assays the Warden & Comptroller act in behalf of the Queen & her people & the Master acts for himself: & the Assaymaster acts only as a manual Artificer & is to act with skill & sincerity as a good Artificer to ye satisfaction of the Officers of both parties. For its easy for an Assayer to give a turn to the Assay, of a quarter of a grain or an halfpenny weight or above, for or against the Master. And if any such thing be suspected, the Assayer must repeat his Assay till the Officers of the Mint are satisfied of his acting with skill & candour. And if any Importer think himself aggried he hath a remedy prescribed, wch is an appeal not to persons not concerned, but to a trial by the Wardens Trialpiece.

It was right therefore for the Lord H. Treasurer to refer the four Petitioners to a triall before the Officers of the Mint as their proper judges of their qualifications in print of skill.

Now the direction given to Mr Brattle were no other then those given to his brother Her Mats late Assaymaster two years before his death & they have been executed more exactly by the present Mr Brattle then by his brother, & they were to co{illeg} coin by the Trial piece of K. IamesAnd that Trial piece by the Assays of the Mint were {illeg} or fitt & sometimes a fourth part of a grain better then standard T{illeg}. The Pot Assay pieces of the Gold coined {illeg} after the Trial of the Pix 1710 untill those directions were given being melted down together & assayed were found to agreebywith that triall piece were were found to agree with it exactly, the ballance standing at the cock. And all the Gold money coined since that Trial of the Pix being lately tried by thatthe same Trial piece, by the Iury found them equal in fineness the scales standing at the cock. And After the money hath been found right well coined by a Iury, the Master of the Mint hath a legal right to be quiet against all men for what is past. Mr Oadham & his friendsall the Queens subjects for what is past.

To err within the Remedy is no crime. It only creates a debt a reconning between the Queen & the Master. If the Master has got by the recconingerror he must refund his profit to ye Queen: if he has lost, the Queen remitsturns his loss. And if the error be under a quarter of a grain or an halfpenny weight, it is neglected by ancient custome & creates not so much as a arecconing. If the error be by designe the Ma only punishment is that the Master must be at the charge of recoining the mony before delivery. If it be without designe the money is deliverable notwithstanding, provided the error be within{illeg} the remedy. ABut nothing less then a quarter of {illeg}a grain is{illeg}uses to be recconned an error or taken notice of in the received method of assaying. The Iury takes no notice of any thing less.

All the bullion is received by the Masters Triall-piece. And if the Importe{illeg}r shal at any time think himself aggrieved by the Masters assay, he hath a remedy appointed, wch is an appal to ye wardens trial piece. This is his proper remedy & his only remedy against the Master. AndBut if the Importers do not appeal, there is no reason why th{illeg}ose that are not iImporters nor have anything to do wth ye Mint should complabe allowed to complain. provided the money be coined within the remedy. {sic} They may admonish the Importers to appeale but that have not so much as a right to appeal themselves, or to give the Officers of the Mint any molestation. For the coinage is not to be made impracticable more difficultmore impracticable.

When Mr Brattleel & Mr Oadham had a comparative Trial before the Officers of the Mint, they made each {illeg}of them eight assays of Gold in four successive fires, two in <100v> each fire, & as many of silver. Some of Mr Oadhams assays were taken from one & the same piece of gold differed from others a quarter of a grain, & one of them erred two grains wch is three times the rRemedy, & the error was in fineness & therefore not likely to be by mere accident. Whereas all Mr Brattles Gold assays agreed perfectly with one another except one wch differed from the rest only about the twelft part of a grain, wch is but the eighth part of the Remedy. And almost all the coinage is in gold. Mr Brattle was also observed to handle things wth more dexterity & dispatch

At that time Mr Oadham was offered a fuller trial by more assays & did not then desire it, but has since desired another trial. Had acknowledged the fairness of that trial, & that he had since been learning to assay better & was now grown more skilfull then before his request might have been granted with{illeg}out a reflexion upon the Mint: but he pretends to have learnt his skill long ago in his Apprenticeship & has {illeg}appealed from the Report of the Officers, If declining a Trial by an objection against some of the Petitioners, appealing from their Report of the Officers & labouring is a greater objection against Mr Oadham. & now in opposition to it produces a certificate of his skill in assaying signed by Merchants & Goldsmiths. But it doth not appear that his subscribers are men of note for skill in assaying or ever met to see him make a competent number of successive assays whereby they might judge of his skill. They are merchants, shopkeepers & plateworkers & generally trust the assays of the Hall.

The Importers are proper Iudges not of the skill of an Assaymaster but whether they will freely trust him with their bullion. Amongst his subscribers there are only six who have imported gold within these three years, & all of them together have imported only to ye value of about 14 thousand pounds: whereas the Importedrs who have signed a paper for Mr Brattle (as I am credibly informed, for I have not sen it) have imported to the value of 8 or eight or nine hundred thousand pounds within that time. All the Importers trust Mr Brattel freely with their bullion, but Mr Oadhams credit is not yet established among them. And a miscariage in the Assay-Office is would be a disc{illeg}oragement to ye coinage.

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It was very right therefore for the Ld H. Trearer to refer the all the Petitioners to a trial before the Officers of the Mint & it was irregularnot right in Mr Oadham to appeal from their Report to {illeg} make wth prop{illeg} [to a certificate of persons who generally have little or nothing to do with the Mint, nor are men of note for skill in assaying nor ever met to see him make severall successive Assays whereby they might judge of his skill. but have been sol] < insertion from lower down f 101r > to defame them {illeg}& to make an interest against them. The increase of the coin depends upon the credit with of the Officers with Importers & this credit is at present very good & its the interest of the Government to support it.

To say that Mr Brattel being under the direction of the Officers of the Mint hath acted partially, is to object against the very constitution of the Mint. For the Queens Assaymast is & ought to be as much under the direction of the Officers in assaying the money as Mr Brattel is at present. And the directions given < text from f 101r resumes > reflect upon them & endeavour to carry his point by interest. If declining a Trial be an objection against {illeg}a of the Imp Petitioners is an objection against them, {sic} appealing from a Report of the Officers to the proper Iudges is a greater objection agt Mr Oadham.

The directions given to Mr Brattel – – – – against all the Queens subjects for wt is past. The increase of the coin depends upon the credit of the Mint with Importers, & this credit is at present very good, & its the interest of the government to support it against irregular assaults.

Before the late trial of the Pix the Master of the Mint orders preventing for obviating complaints wch might arise, ordered the money for ye Assay to be kept from time to time to be reassayed by the Queens Assaymr so soo as there should be one appointed by her Majty. And now he ordered the like to be done for the future. {illeg} Which is the utmost care that he is able tocan {illeg}take for ye satisfaction of people in this matter & for keeping up the credit of the Mint.

All the Bullion is received by the Masters trial piece. And if the Importer at any time thinks himself injured by the Masters trialpi Assays he hath a remedy appointed by law, wch remedy is an appeal to the Wardens trial piece. But the Importers do not appeal & if they do not complain of the Masters assays, those that are not Importers nor have any thing to do with the Mint should not be allowed to complain.

The M

By the constitution of the Mint the Master & Worker receives & coins all the Bullion of gold & silver by his own trial-piece& is {illeg} & to judginedd of its fineness by his own assays. al{illeg}. The Importer hath at all times an Appeal from the Masters Assays to a trial by ye Wardens trial piece: And the Queen & her subjects have anall her people have an Appeal to ye Trial piece of the Exchequer at theevery trial of the Pix. If any Importer is dissatisfied wth the Masters Assays & will appeale to a trial by the Wardens Trial piece: the Queen & Council or yethe Lord H. Treasurer may appoint any indifferent person or persons skilled in Assaying & the Appellant may appoint another to stand by & see the whole Trial. But if the Importers do not complain, Mr Oadham & his friends have no right to do it. They & all the {illeg} meddlewho are not Importers have no right {illeg} to appeal complain or intermedde {sic} with ye Mint. They & all the Queens subjects will have justice done them at the next trial of the Pix. And in the mean time Mr Oadham & his friends they are not to discourage the {illeg} importation of bullion into her Mats Mint. But if they desire a hearing before the Queen & Council, the Officers of the Mint are ready do not decline it.