Draft of MINT00559 (Mint 19/2/537)

<532r>

By the coinage Act & the Indenture & usage of the Mint the Master & Worker received Gold & Silver only in the mass at the just value by weight & assay to be coined. He may also buy Bullion of an uncertain value, but not knowingly to loss, & must account for the profit & loss: but this way of {illeg}buying of bullion is not in use.

When Plate or old moneys are imported in specie to be coined the Importer either causes {illeg}the same to be melted downinto Ingots at his {illeg}own charge before delivery, or delivers ithem to a general Importer who causes ithem {illeg}to be melted into Ingots, & thendeliver the Ingots are delivered toand the Master of the Mint receives the ingots by weight & assay to be coined. Or eif{illeg}the Plate or old moneys be delivered in specie to the Master, alone by weight he either melts them same into Ingots in the presence of persons appointed to see it done, or delivers the same {illeg}by weight to persons appointedpersons appo persons appoitned to receive it {illeg} into their custody be carryed {illeg}it to the melting pot & assayed in their custody by persons appointed & melted & then delivered ithem back to him in Ingots by weight & assay to the coined. For the Master is not to be trusted with silver of uncertain value wthout due checks upon him.

When the present Mraster & Worker was first spoken to {illeg}about receiving the plate, he represented that he was ready to receive it & give receipts for it by weight, & that some person or persons should be appointed to carry it from him by weight to the melting pot, to see it melted & assayed & to deliver back to him by weigh{illeg}t & assay the Ingots produced, & keep an account of the meltings. This was the method used inin coining the Vigo plate. He spoke also of other me

Some days after twhemn the House of Commons voted an Address to her Maty to give directions to the Officers of the Mint to receive Plate &the Master of the Mint was perplexed thereat & told his fellow Officers that nothing more was to be understood by that Address then y{illeg}t her Maty should give directions to the proper Officer or Officers, & accordingly prepared a Warrant for himself alone wth blancks for the names of his fellow Officers tor O to be inserted ofby the Lords Commrs of the Treasury shall think if they thought fit. But the Warden of ye Mint fell into a passion at the blancks & said that he would not go in to the Lords unless the blanks were first filled up & at his desire they were filled up. Then next morning the Master prepared a distinct Warrant for himself as Master to c{illeg}oin the {illeg}plate, but the Warden opposedrejected it.

When the two Million Act passed was published & the Master al{illeg}one (after a stay of some months days for the concurr{illeg}ence of his fellow Officers) acquainted thise Lordp {sic} H. Treasurer with the defect of the Act & in a second memorial laid the state of {illeg}the plate before {illeg}his Ld H. Treasurer his Lordp & in order to a third memorial was informing himself whether 5s pr oz would content the Importers till the Parliamt met, & told the W{illeg}arden that he found that it would: the Warden declared against it unless the Importers would deliver up their receipts upon payment of what the plate produc{illeg}ed & take certificates for the remainder. Which the {illeg}Importers bein{illeg}g averse from, the Master desisted till the Wardenhe heard that <532v> told him that {sic} the Officers of the Mint would be summoned to attend his Lordp, & then the Master stated the case to the Attorney General & brought the Attorneys opinion thereupon to his Lordp with the form of a Warrant for paying 5s per ounce to ye Importers, being fully satisfied that it would have quieted them till the meeting of the Parliamt if the Warden of the Mint would but have been content with an endorsement of the paym{illeg}ents without taking back the Receipts given out for plate.