AN HVMBLE PETITION AND REMONSTRANCE PRESENTED Unto both the High and Honourable Houses OF PARLIAMENT, CONCERNING The insupportable grievance of the Farthing Tokens.

Printed in the yeare, 1642.

TO The Right Honourable the Lords now assembled in the High Court of PARLIAMENT.
The humble Petition and Remonstrance of us whose names are here subscribed of London, Westminster, Middlesex, Southwark, and other places of the King­dome, in behalfe of themselves and others.

Humbly sheweth,

1 THat about 26. yeares since, King Iames of blessed memory, conceiving that Farthing Tokens would bee usefull to the Subjects, and helpfull to the poore, caused some quantities thereof to be made, and committed the care and trust both for the issuing forth and rechanging of them againe to Iohn Lord Harrington, and afterwards to the Lady Anne his wife.

2. That 1. Caroli the King by his Letters Patents grants unto the Dutchesse of Lenox, and Sir Francis Crane, the office of making Tokens for the terme of 17. yeares, at the rent of one hundred Markes per annum.

3. That 11. Caroli the King grants the office of making the said Farthings to the Lord Matravers and Sir Francis Crane, their executors, administrators, and assignes.

4. That 15. Caroli the King by his Letters Patents grants the office of making the Farthing Tokens to the Lord Matravers alone at the rent of fourescore pounds per annum.

5. That in all the severall Patents their Majesties have de­clared their gracious intents and pleasures was that the said Far­thing Tokens should bee issued forth for the good and ease of the [Page] Subject, and that without any losse or hindrance at all, or any other inconveniency, and therefore appointed the rechange as well as the exchange thereof.

6. That many of your petitioners have still remaining in their hands great quantities of Farthings unrechanged, which were made and issued forth by the authority of the said Dutches of Le­nox and Sir Francis Crane, and since by the authority of the L. Matravers and Sir Francis Crane, which your petitioners can­not get to be rechanged, although they have often desired and en­deavoured the same, and although all the said Patentees have un­dertaken and covenanted with his Majesty to rechange them.

That the allowance of one and twenty shillings in Farthing To­kens for twenty shillings in money, hath beene the chiefest cause of your petitioners great burden, for many covetous persons have u­sually fetched out great quantities of Farthings, some five pounds at a time, some ten pounds, some more, and forced them in payments upon poore labouring people.

That your petitioners have lost by the rechange of Tokens into the Office some of them fifty pounds, some an hundred pounds, some two hundred pounds, and much more do still daily lose, so that your petitioners are greatly oppressed and damnified in their trading.

That your petitioners have heretofore petitioned to his Majesty for releefe, who was graciously inclined to releeve them, and refer­red the consideration of their grievances to the Lords of his most Honourable Privie Councell, and their Lordships com­miserated your petitioners sufferings, neverthelesse they have been no way releeved, whereby they are much impoverished, not able to subsist without redresse, all which in their humble Remonstrance may fully appeare.

Wherefore the petitioners most humbly pray that they may have all their said tokens rechanged, and for ever here­after freed from this great oppression and trouble, and in the meane time the Office prohibited from issuing forth any Tokens, with such other reparations and releefe for their in­supportable losses, as to the great judgement of this Honou­rable Assembly shall be requisite. And they shall pray, &c.

About five hundred hands subscribed to this Petition.

An humble Remonstrance concer­ning the grievance of Farthing tokens.

BLessed King JAMES tendring the good of his Subjects, knowing that the richer they grow, the bet­ter able they would bee to serve him; wisely considered that small monyes would be exceeding help­full to the poore, and for retailing trades, about the eleventh yeare of his Reigne caused a copper coine to be made, and to passe under the deno­mination of a Farthing for the ease and benefit of the Subject.

And the Kings Majesty that now is, hath ever since the death of his Royall Father continued the same, and to the same end, as by their severall Patents and Pro­clamations may appeare.

Neverthelesse it hath beene for a long time, and still is the greatest oppression that ever was upon the Sub­ject; for put all those insupportable projects or mo­nopolies that of late yeares hath beene set on foote into one end of the ballance, and this grievance of Farthing [Page 2] tokens into the other end, and it will out weigh them all, unto the Petitioners and to many thousands more, which for manifestation they doe here humbly pre­sent to the great Judgement of this honourable Assem­bly these considerable things:

  • 1. The Petitioners inconceivable losse.
  • 2. How the same is occasioned.
  • 3. The great benefit the Office makes thereby.
  • 4. The remedie or prevention of this evill for future times.

For the greatnesse of the losse, that it is heavier then all the projects or monopolies, appeares whether con­sidered in the Petitioners yearly losse or totall summe.

The projects for Salt, Sope, Starch, Tobacco, Cards, Pins, Butter, caskes, transporting of Leather, Ship-mo­ny, &c. all which, most of the Petitioners were losers by, yet the losse of all these put together, is not comparable to the Farthings.

For in all these to lose forty shillings a yeare, or twenty shillings a yeare for each man was much, but this oppression of Farthings is to some five pound per annum, to some eight pound, tenne pound, to some twelve pound, fifteen pound per annum, and more, e­nough to bring many thousands of families to breaking and beggery.

And many of these great losers are poore men which never was able to be brought within the list of Sub­sidie or Ship-mony.

And for the totall of the Petitioners losses, it is to some twenty pound, to some forty pound, fifty, to some a hundred pound, a hundred and fifty, to some two hun­dred pound and more, so that many of the Petitioners have lost more by tokens then their whole estate a­mounts unto.

Besides these monopolizing oppressions of Sope, Ship-money, &c. have beene imposed of late yeares, but this of Farthing tokens, hath continued for this twenty seven yeares and more, and many poore retai­ling trades men doe lose as much by them in one year as they are worth.

The second thing to remonstrate, is how this great oppression is occasioned.

The first occasion is, in issuing forth from the Office one and twenty shillings in tokens, for twenty shillings in money, which profit intices rich men to fetch them out, some forty shillings, five pound, some ten pound a weeke constantly, and in greater summes, and forces them in payments upon poore worke men, as if they were hirelings to the Office to ruine the Kingdome

And with these tokens poore people come to buy [Page 4] bread, butter, cheese, coales, and other necessaries, and the Petitioners must either take them or leave off tra­ding, then are forced to bring them weekly to the Of­fice, and lose twelve pence per pound, five pound per centum at the least.

The second occasion is, the altering of the stampe which hath been done five severall times, and at each alteration tokens have beene left upon the Petitioners hands.

And many of the Petitioners have yet great quanti­ties of old tokens unrechanged, some forty shillings, five pound, some tenne pound, fifteene, twenty, thirty, for­ty, fifty pound, & more, which the Office refuse to re­change, although they have beene often required there­unto, and although the patentees have covenanted with his Majesty to rechange them, as by their severall Pa­tents, and the Kings Proclamations may appear.

The third occasion is, the abuse of the Office cau­sing the Petitioners daily attendance before they could get their tokens rechanged.

For all the weeke they take to deliver out tokens, and appointed but three dayes a weeke to rechange, and but six houres in a day, viz. from eight to eleven in the fore noone, and from one till foure in the after noone, and the greatest part of that little time was spent in de­livering out tokens, and the rest in a trifling rechange of a small quantity, whereby the Petitioners have wai­ted day after day, weeke after weeke, to have their [Page 5] tokens rechanged, and in the interim want money to manage their trades, for those with whom they have to deale will not be paid in tokens, besides the Office hath cut and defaced many of those tokens which them­selves have issued forth, pretending them to be naught.

The third thing to remonstrate, is the great profit which the Patentees doe make by Tokens.

The greatnesse of the profit will appeare upon ex­amination of the quantities of the Farthings, issued forth upon each severall stampe, and of the small summes re­ceived in.

For instance, the last stampe of single ringed tokens, it is conceived there was a hundred and twenty thou­sand pounds made and issued forth; and when the stampe was altered, there was not forty thousand pounds received in againe; so that there must be still in the hands of the subject fourescore thousand pounds at the least, which they could never get to be rechanged.

Now the charge of copper and making of the tokens, is not above five shillings per pound, so that the Office gaines fifteene shillings in twenty, which amounts to threescore thousand pounds de claro that they have gotten by one sort of tokens; a farre greater profit then all the Kings Mints of England, Scotland, &c. can make.

For the coinage of fourscore thousand pounds in [Page 6] silver is but eleven hundred and eleven pounds, three shillings foure pence, which properly belongs to the King, out of which he defrayes all the charges of the Mint, except the workmanship, which charges being deducted, the King gaines not de claro five hundred pounds but in fourescore thousand pounds of Tokens, the Office gaines threescore thousand pounds at the least, which shewes that the Office of Farthings is more then a hundred times as good as the Mint, quantity for quantity: & out of all this great profit the King hath but fourescore pounds per annum rent: an inconsiderable summe for so inconceiveable a gaine.

The fourth thing to remonstrate, is the remedy or preven­tion of this evil for future times.

For to lay downe the Office will not be convenient, then all retailing trades will want small monies, and the poore reliefe, therefore it is requisite,

  • 1. That the Office bee setled in the power of the Crowne, and not in any subject.
  • 2. That there bee some neerer proportion betwixt the extrinseck denomination and the intrinseck value.
  • 3. That it may be felony either to import or coun­terfeit them.
  • 4. That no advantage may be allowed upon issuing forth any Tokens, and the Office to receive them in up­on the like termes.

It may be alledged,

Alleg. 1. If the oppression were so great, and of such [Page 7] continuance as is pretended, it would long since have beene complained of.

Ans. The Petitioners have not beene wanting to their great charge to complaine and seeke reliefe, both to King JAMES, and to the Kings Majesty that now is, and they, graciously inclined to releeve them, have severall times referred the same to the Lords of the Councell, and by their Lordships to some Lords Com­mittees, but the Petitioners could never procure any thing to be done therein.

And the Office hath been made acquainted with the Petitioners complaints, and hath given in their answers of defence: the chiefe heads whereof wee doe here humbly present.

First pretence of the Office.

That the issuing forth of one and twenty shillings in Tokens for twenty shillings in money, and the rechange of one and twenty shillings in Tokens for twenty shil­lings in money is warranted by the Kings Patents and Proclamation, so that the Office is no way faulty.

Answ. The King by his severall Patents and Procla­mations doth declare that it is his intent and pleasure that the Farthing Tokens should be an ease and benefit to the Subject, and not otherwise; but it is an insuffe­rable oppression, and so against the Kings minde.

Second pretence.

That to rechange upon the same termes as is delive­red out, is no damage to any.

Ans. It is true, if the same parties that fetch them out did bring them in, but it is otherwise, for the rich fetch them out, and gaine five pounds per cent. and the Petitioners bring them in, and lose five pounds per cent. and never fetch out any.

Third pretence.

That the Petitioners knowing the losse by rechange, proportion the prizes of their wares accordingly, and so are no losers.

Answ. It is not so: for the Petitioners deliver out their commodities either by weight or measure, neither doe they know what money people bring, and when their commodities are cut or weighed out, they must take Tokens, or else lose more by taking the commodi­ty againe, and lose their customers too.

Besides, if the Petitioners should proportion their wares according to the losse by rechange, then the op­pression of the subject would bee the greater, for that would inhance the prizes of provision, which is the beg­gering of a Kingdome.

FINIS.

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