Rule III.

“AS to all the said Clipt or Diminished Moneys, which shall consist of the Old Crown, holding any Weight less than Eighteen Peny Weight; the Half Crown holding any Weight less than Nine Peny Weight; the Old Shilling holding any Weight less than Three Peny Weight, and Six Tenth Parts of a Peny Weight; and the Old Tester or Six-pence holding any Weight less than One Peny Weight, and Eight Tenth Parts of a Peny Weight, which shall be so brought in to be Melted down and Re-Coined; whereupon the loss above-mentioned is to be Born either by the State or by particular Persons, or Both; It is not certain at present, how much of the said Loss, by the Resolution of the Parliament, shall fall upon the one or the other. Nevertheless, for the Explanation of this Project, and to shew how far it is practicable, one may (as I humbly Conceive) Assume any certain Part of this Loss, to be born by the Public, as if it were Resolved. And Considering that One hundred Pounds by Tale of all these Clipt or Diminished Moneys, if they were in One Heap, would not (by the Estimation which I have made thereof under the Second General Head) hold above Sixteen Pound Weight Troy, or thereabouts, one with another (which the King’s Subjects dealing therein, do also find by daily Experience) I do from thence infer, that if the said Sixteen Pounds Weight Troy (which now Runs for One hundred Pounds by Tale) be brought to the Changer, to be by him Received at Eight Shillings per Ounce; then the said Eight Shillings per Ounce, when it comes to be Paid in the New Money, will Amount to Seventy six Pounds and Sixteen Shillings, which will plainly cast about Half the Loss upon the State and the rest upon the Owner of the Money (who will also find some Recompence in the Raised Value of his Unclipt Moneys, if he has any such.) Therefore let Eight Shillings per Ounce in the New Money be the Assumed or Stated Price, to be Computed by the Changer, for all the real Silver which he shall find to be remaining in these Clipt Moneys; which Method of making good part of the Loss to the Subject by Allowing him a large Price for every Ounce of the real Silver remaining in his Clipt Money, seems to me to be much more secure, and to be (in all respects) a better way, than by Allowing him a Market Price only for the said Silver remaining, and Contributing to his Loss in Proportion to the Deficiency or Silver Clipt off; because in the latter Case it will be in his Power before he brings in his Money to Clip it over again, and Reduce it so low, as that the deficient Weight (if it were to be made good at the Charge of the Publick) might be Twice, Thrice, Four times, Five times, &c. as much as the real Silver brought in by him would amount to. Whereas by this Third Rule, the danger of farther Clipping is perfectly obviated, for no Man will Clip off Silver to Sell at Six Shillings Five Pence an Ounce by the Market Price, when he may carry it to the King’s Change, and there Receive Eight Shillings per Ounce for it.