<504r>

May it please your Lordship

I humbly beg leave to lay before your Lordship a further account of the Tin Mr Drummond by a Warrant dated Octob. 20th 1704, had 400 Tunns of consigned to him & company at Amsterdam to be disposed of after the best rates not under 4412 Guilders per hundred merchant weight of Holland (that is not under 4li 2s 4d per cwt averdupois) for a commission of two per cent clear of all charges & advanced 22500li upon it at 4 per cent paid upon notice of its arrival at Amsterdam. An the like quantity was consigned to him Iune 8th 1705 on the same terms. The first parcel was sold in about 15 months, the second (by openiong a trade over the Rhene into France) in 9 or 10 months. And both parcels produced by the sale 63014li clear of interest & all other charges except the duty of 3s per cwtwt. Which produce is after the rate of 3li 17s 134d per cwtwt. Part of which money came in some time after the sale.

Mr Stratford & Mr Free Feb. 20, 17045 had 250 Tunns of Tin consiged to Hamburgh upon the like terms & upon notice of its arrival at Hamburgh advanced 12000li ipon it at 4 per cent. Sixteen blocks were lost by an unsolvent chapman & the rest produced 19286li 11s 9d clear of interest & all other charges except the duty of 3s per cwtwt: which produce is after the rate of 3.li 19.s 112d per cwt weight. Part of which money came in late.

The present Commissions to sell when the time comes are less advantageous then the former. There is no lowest price set. They interrupt the course of payments. And by the great quantity of Tin lying abroad put a damp upon the markets till the sale begins.

A merchant may have Tin here for 3li 19s per cwt including the Duty, & ship it off for 6d per cwt or less & will scarce reccon the carrying it to Hamborough at above 6d per cwt. The Duty there & housing may be also 6d & the interest of the price till it arrives at Hamburgh 3d more. Tin therefore stands the merchant in about 4li. 0s. 9d at Hamborough. And if her Majesty should sell it there to the Merchant for ready money at a set price, something must be abated of 4l. 0s. 9d to incline him to buy at Hamborough rather then at London. If 4li per cwt should be the price & the charges of an Office for selling it, which would scarce be less then 1s 6d per cwt, be deducted, the Queen will receive but 3li 18s 0d or 3{li} 18{s} 6{d} per & & this without having any part of the money advanced.

If Mr Stratford & partners will give after the rate of 4li per cwt & within one month after the consignement of every 100 Tuns for sale advance the full price of 8000li: the bargain (considering that it will revive the market & diminish the Tin abroad & bring in more money to her Majesty & that her Majesty runs no risque of selling <504v> upon trust nor stay for any part of the money till debts can be got in;) will be much more advantageous then any of the Commissions above mentioned besides the duty of 3s per cwt saved to her Majesty < text from f 504v resumes > And to take 100 Tunns at a time & pay {here} within a month is better by four or five months < insertion from the top of f 504r > interest of the money then to take only 10 or 20 Tunns at a time for ready money at Hamborough:

< text from f 504v resumes > < insertion from the top left of f 504r >

And therefore this bargain would be 3 or 4s per cwt better then to set up an Office for sale.

< text from f 504v resumes >

The Objection of a monopoly lies as much against all the Commissions above mentioned < text from f 504v resumes > it is not made by < insertion from f 504r > the Merchants. < text from f 504v resumes > Mr Stratford will not disable other Merchants from sending Tin to that Market if they can get by it: & a high price (which is the fault of a monopoly) would invite them thither. He will be enabled to undersell other Merchants by about 9d in the cwt (which would promote the sale) but not to raise the price of the market. He reccons that he can sell 200 Tunns per annum, & that market usually takes of about 220.

The Tin sold in Iune Iuly & Augt comes to about 17000li in the quarter ending at Christmas use to be less then in < insertion from f 504r > any < text from f 504v resumes > other Quarter.

The Tin in Mr Berangers hands when his course of payment comes may be sold by parcell to other Merchants to pay off his debt. & Mr Drummond may probably prove a good Chapman.

The Officers of the Mint have been of opinion that her Majesty loses something by sending Tin abroad upon private contracts & commissions but the Tin is already abroad & whether her Majesty shall now be at the charge of setting up new Officers abroad for selling no more then 200 Tuns per annum in an Office, is a new question, which has made me think it my duty to state the matter thus fully to your Lordship.

912. 10d :: 812. 17019d = 81819d per pound weight Hamburgh = 170, 921900d per pound weight averdupois = 17, 4695d per pound weight averdupois = 17, 46, 11295d per cwt

<505r>
Petty charges in shipping off 400Tuns =42li. 18s. 10d.
Carrying it out of the Tower 1s per Tunn 20. 0. 0.
62. 18. 10
Porterage & other charges in shipping of another 400 Tuns for Holland. 66. 18. 2
62. 18. 10
130li. 0. 0

800Tun = 1600cwt = 130li =25200s = 31200d.    1cwt = 2d.

In the Tower the small charges of shipping come to but 2d per cwt but the Merchants allow 6s per cwt

My Lord

I herewith send your Lordship a further Report about the state of the Tin, and also a copy of the Report formerly made by the Officers of the Mint upon a Petition from Cornwall for renewing the contract for Tin at such a price that her Majesty might not be a loser, & for taking off a greater quantity of Tin then before. I am

My Lord

Your Lordships most humble

& most obedient servant

Is. Newton

My Lord

I beg leave to send your Lordship the two annexed papers The one is a further report upon the Tin. The other is a copy of the Report formerly made by the Officers of the Mint upon a Petition from Cornwall. The Petition was for renewing the contract for Tin at such a price that her Majesty might not be a loser & for taking off a greater quantity of tin then before

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