Recommend rejection of Robert Ball's tender to handle tin, his price being far too low to cover transport, insurance and other expenses

<556r>

In obedience to your Lordships order signified to us by Mr Lowndes his letter of Jan 29 upon the annexed proposal of Mr Robt Balle merchant, vizt that if your Lordships shall ship off & deliver 200 Tunns of Tin to his factor at Leghorn, upon his factors receipt thereof he will pay for the same three pounds 16s per cwt either here or at Leghorn as your Lordships shall think fit: we have considered the same, & humbly represent that Sir Theodore Ianssen paid 4li 10 per cwt to the late Lord Treasurer for tinn runn into barrs barrelled & shipt off at her Majestys charge & delivered at Genoa & Leghorn,

& yet her Majesty seems to have been a loser by that price. For the charges of running the Tin into barrels barrelling & shipping it off came to 2s. 11d. per cwt & recconments for Freight to Leghorn 4s 6d & 8s for insurance at 10 per cent The whole will be 15s. 5d which added to 3l 16s the price at the Tower makes 4. 11 5 besides the losses by imbezzelments by seamen which one voiage with another amounted to about 2s 6d per cwt We are humbly of opinion therefore that by the proposal above mentioned, her Majesty would be a great loser.