Account of tin sales made through agents abroad, in Amsterdam since 1704 and in Hamburg since 1705
To the Rt Honble the Earl of Oxford & Earl Mortimer, Lord High Treasurer of great Britain.
May it please yor Lordp
I humbly beg leave to lay before your Lordship a further account of the Tin. Mr Drummond by a Warrant dated Octob. 20th 1704, had 400 Tunns of Tin consigned to him & company at Amsterdam to be disposed of after the best rates not under 44 Gilders per hundred weight of Holland (that is not under 4li 2s 4d per C Averdupois.) for a Commission of two per cent clear of all charges & advanced 22500li upon it at 4 per cent upon notice of its arrival at Amsterdam. And the like quantity was consigned to him Iune 8th 1705 on the same terms. The first parcel was sold in about 15 months, the second (by opening a trade over the Rhene into France) in about 9 or 10. And both parcels produced by sale 6{illeg}1714li clear of interest & all other charges except the duty of 3s per C. Which produce is after the rate of 3li 17s 2d. Part of this money came in sometime after the sales.
Mr Stratford & Mr Free, Feb. 20th 170 had 240 Tunns of Tin consigned to {illeg}Hamborough upon like terms, & upon notice of its arrival at Hamborough advanced 12000li upon it at 4 per cent. Sixteen blocks were lost by an insolvent chapman & the rest produced 18989li. 12s. 4d clear of interest & all other charges except the duty of 3s per C. Which produce is after the rate of 3li. 19s. 1d per C. And part of this money came in last after the sales. These Commissions were given for quickning the sale of her Maties Tin while the Pewterers sold their own Tin to the Merchants at home.
The present Commissions to sell when the time comes, are less advantageous then the former. There is no lowest price set. They interrupt the course of payments. And by the great quantity of Tin lying abroad put a stop damp upon the Markets till the sale begins
A merchatnt may have Tin here for 3li. 19s. per C including the duty, & will scarce reccon the shipping it off & carrying it to Hamborough at above 1s per C. The Duty there & housing it may be 6d more, & the interest of the price till it arrives at Hamborough 3d. Tin therefore stands the Merchant in about 94li. 00s. 09d at Hamborough. And if her Maty should sell it there to the Merchant for ready money at a set price, something must be abated of 4li. 0s. 9d to incline him to buy at Hamborough rather then at London. If 4li per C should be the price, & the charges of an Office for selling it, wch would scarce be less then 1s 6d or 2s per C, be deducted; the Queen would receive but 3li. 18s. 0d or 3li 18s. 6d per C, & this without having any part of the money advanced
If Mr Stratford will give after the rate of 4li. per C, & <482v> within one month after the consignement of every 100 Tuns, for sale, advance the full price of 8000li: the bargain would be manifestly more advantageous then any of the Commissions above mentioned. For besides the duty of 3s per C saved to her Maty, it would revive the market at Hamborough, bring in money by the sales, & diminish the Tin abroad, & her Majty would run no ris of selling upon trust nor stay for any part of the money till debts can be got in. To take 100 Tunns at a time & pay here within a month is better by four or five months interest of the money then to take only 10 or 20 Tunns at a time for ready money at Hamborough. And therefore this bargain would be three or four shillings per C better then to set up an Office for sale at Hamboroughbesides the charges of an Office for selling it there. And as for the Objection of a monopoly, it lies as much against all the Commissions above mentioned. Merchants would not call it by this name, nor hath it the faults of a monopoly. Mr Stratford will not disable other Merchants from sending Tin to that Market if they can get by it, & a high price (wch is the chief fault of a monopoly) would invite them thither. He might be enabled to undersell other Merchants by about 9d in the C (wch would promote the sale) but not to raise the price of the market. Hamborough carries off about 22 Tunns per an & Mr Stratford reccons that he can sell neare 200
2. The Tin sold in Iune Iuly & August comes to about 11000li, & the sales in the Quarter ending at Christmas use to be less then in any other Quarter. I do not expect that the sales between this & Christmas will exceed ten or twelve thousand pounds. They may amount to 8000l eight. I do not hear of {illeg}no Turkey Fleet to go out before Christmas.
1. The Tin in Mr Berangers hands, when his course of payment comes, may be sold to other Merchants by parcels to pay off his debt, and Mr Drummond may probably prove a good Chapman.
All wch is most humbly submitted to yor
Lordps great wisdome
Is. Newton.
3. The Officers of the Mint have been of opinion yt her Majty loses something by sending Tin abroad upon Commissions & particular contracts. But the Tin is already abroad, & whether her Maty shall now be at the charge of setting up new Offices abroad for selling no more then 200 Tunns per aorn in an Office or sell it by contract or commission, is a new Question, & has made me think {illeg}it my duty to state the matter thus fully to your Lordp.
All wch is most humbly submitted &c
Is. Newton
Source
MINT 19/3/482, National Archives, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, UK28 August 1711, c. 1,014 words.