Holograph draft of MINT00131 (Mint 19/1/334-5) with minor variations

<339r>

The Act of 18 Caroli. II, chap v saith that no moneys leviable & payable by this Act shall be applied or {illeg}|c|onverted to any use or uses whatsoever other then to the defraying the charge or expence of the Mint or Mints & of [that] of the Assaying, melting down wast & coinage of the Gold & Silver into the said Mint or Mints there to be coyned &c. The first is the charge of supporting a standing mint, the second is the further charge of carrying on the coinage in that Mint. And by the next clause of the Act the first is limited to 3000^li per an \to prevent extravagance the other left unlimited {illeg}|b|ecause the/ /coinage is not to be stinted but encouraged\. The words are: And it is hereby further enacted, That there shall not be issued out of the Exchequer of the said moneys, in any one year for y^e fees & salaries of the Officers of the Mint or Mints & towards the providing maintaining & repairing of the Houses Offices & Buildings & other [standing] necessaries for assaying melting down & coyning above the summ of three thousand pounds sterling money, & the overplus of the said moneys so kept or to be kept as aforesaid shall be employed for & t{illeg}|o|wards the [contingent] expence wast & charge of assaying melting down & coynage & buying in of gold & silver to coyne, & not otherwise. Here the charge of salaries & buildings w^th their appurtenances necessary for constituting a Mint (such as \are/ convenient chimneys hearths floors & places for Furnaces & other instruments) are limited to three thousand pounds; & the overplus is for defraying the chargs of arising by the coynage viz^t for \such as {illeg} are/ the charge of stationary ware for the Clerks, ballances & weights for the several offices, Furnaces, cuppels, water silver, Aqua fortis \& charcoal/ for the Assay-Office, refining & allay for bringing the silver & gold to standard, \Flasks/ Furnaces melting & wast in the {Ass} Melting house, Mills Dyes & coining \& in other Offices/. And in this sense the Act has been constantly understood as may appear by the constant old Acc^ts of the Warden & Master.

For in those Acc^ts the salaries upon the establishment of the Indenture w^ch amounted to 2600^li & the{re} charge of repairs \of buildings/ w^ch came to two or three & sometimes almost 400^li, took up allmost all the three thousand pounds & left no room there remained only 400^l for the \providing &/ repairs|i|/ng\ of buildings w^ch \usually/ amounted to two or three hundred & sometimes almost 400^li .|p|^r All other charges were de\ann/ Whence I gather that from time of making the Act these were recconed the charges of supporting the Mint \&/ all other charges were recconed |in|to y^e coinage & incidents.

|[|About 8 \or 9/ years ago I ordered an extraordinary salary of y^e Wardens second Clerk amounting to 40^li per an to be included in the 3000^li. This salary is now extinct. Ten pounds has|v||e| been added to y^e surveyors salary & 15^li taken from the Graver's & ten from y^e Smith's. So that the salaries are now 25{illeg}|8|5^li per ann.|]| And 5^li more may be hereafter added to y^e that of y^e Assaym^rs Clerk But the salaries of the Clerks are too small.|]|

In the 4^th and 5^t year of her M{illeg}|a|^ts reign {illeg}|a|n Act passed for enlarging the sum of 3{5}|0|00 to that of 3500^li & in the Preamble to the Act are these words: And whereas tha|e| said 3000^li has been by experience found not to be sufficient, & the residue of the moneys arising by the said Act Coynage Act is appropriated as in the said Act is mentioned{.} Be it therefore enacted &c. WHere \+/ < insertion from the left margin > + Here the design of y^e. Act is not to charge the 3000 w^th other sorts of incidents\{accounts}/ then those w^ch had been charged\used to be placed/ upon it, but on the contrary to enlarge it for bearing those \sorts of/ charges for w^ch {illeg}|h|ad been placed upon it & for w^ch it had been found by experience not sufficient.|,| And the words & particularly for making room for new salaries to y^e moneyers. < text from f 339r resumes > the words appr{illeg}|o|priated as in the said Act is mentioned, were certainly intended not to alter the sense of the former Act {illeg} or to signify any {illeg} other appropriation then what is mentioned, nor in that Act <339v> nor any thing further then that the re{illeg}|s|idue of the moneys is so far\so far/ restraine{d} from be{illeg} to other services of the Mint \to attending the coinage & the incidents/ {s}|t|hat it cannot be applied to the payment of salaries & repairs of buildings & other necessaries things necessary to the being of a Mint.

|When the|is| {illeg}|A|c{illeg}|t| was made &|c

In the Accounts for the year 1712 the salaries upon the Indenture payable by the Warden amounts unto 1435^li, those payable by the Master unto 1080^li The Gravers Aprentice 35^li. The Smith Assistant to y^e Gravers 40^li. The Monyers 400. The buildings in y^e Wardens Account in one Article 389^li 2^s, in another 11. 13. 6. Total 3290^li. 15. 6. Besides 40^li to y^e Wardens 2^s Clerk now ceased. The charge of furnaces amounting to 64^li 13^s & those of y^e Assay Office & \{refinin{illeg}|g|}/ amounting to 129. 19. 8 arise from the coinage & so are not within the {illeg}|3|500^li, & the same in fees at y^e Excheq^r are deducted from t{illeg}|h|e money before it comes into y^e treasury of y^e Mint T The Article of incidents in the Wardens Acc^t composed of several particular Articles hath never yet been recconed w^thin y^e 3000^li or 3500^li

There is an Article in y^e Indenture of y^e Mint w^ch obliges the M^r to pay unto y^e Warden such summ & summs of money as shall be payable by the said Warden unto y^e Officers of y^e Mint for their salaries & for repairs & such other expences of the Mint as have been heretofore usually paid by the Warden of the Mint for the time being w^ch Article I conceive is still to be interpreted in y^e same sense \& under the same limits/ as formerly & obliges the Master to pay to y^e Warden such charges of repairs as w^th the \usual/ sallaries doe not do not exceed the summ of 3000^li & such further Incidents {illeg}|as| use to be paid & without recconing them into that summ. And now the limit of 3000^li is augmented to 3500^li.|,| & 400^li are added to y^e salaries, the {illeg}|m|aster is to pay to the warden the charges of repairs provided they d{illeg}|o| not together with the {illeg}|s|alaries exceed 30|5|00^li also usual incident charges without restraining by that limit.

In the Accounts for y^e year 1712 the salaries upon y^e Indenture payable by the Warden amount unto\are/ 1435^li, those payable by the Master unto \re to the Officers/ 1080^li thos|at|e paid to the Gr|M|oneyers & Smith unto 400^li, to the Smith 40^li, & to y^e Graver for an Apprentice 35^li. The charges of the buildings in the Wardens account are in one Article 389^l 2^s in another 11. 13. 6. Total 3290. 15. 6. Besides 40^li to the Wardens second Clerk now ceased. T And the Incidents in the Wardens Acc^t not accruing by the coynage do not exceed 150^li. Total 3480. 15. 6.

When this Act was newly made, \a salary of/ 400^li per an were added to the moneyers was added & the salaries of the Clerks were intended to be augmented out of y^e other 100^li, but the some of he buildings being ready to fall. it was thought fit to take care of rebuliding those in the first place. And there ha{illeg}|s| been since laid out about 900 or 100^li upon new buildings besides the ordinary charges of repairs. And the Mills-rooms are ready to fall & will cost siz or {illeg}|e|ight hundred pounds to rebuild them. And \while the salaries of the other Officers have been doubled & tripled/ the Masters salary has not been augmented these 2|1|40 years & {but} 2|1|80^li per an g{illeg}|o|i{illeg}|ng| out of it to y^e Diet, Clerks of \New years gifts {at}/ y^e Treary, & a Dep{illeg}|u|ty & his house half his {illeg}|h|ouse is\& his house is made {illeg}|&| {illeg} to him one half of it being/ taken from him {&} while the salaries of the other Officers have been doubled & trippled.. And if he should be obliged to keep an Assaymaster the salary of 60^li per a{illeg}|n|n w{illeg}|o|uld not suffice t{illeg}|o| mainta{in} him &\with/ a servant to a{t}|ss|ist him.