Draft of MINT00070 (Mint 19/1/172-3)

<157r>

A Question being moved about a clause in the Gravers Patent, I humbly beg leave to lay \the matter/ before yo^r Lord^p|.| that \All Gravers having a liberty to make Medals where they are not restrained by the Governm^t the Gravers of the Mint for their {sic}/ t|T|he Gravers for their encouragement & for restraining the liberty of making Medals with the effigies of |y^e| {illeg}|K|ing or Queen have be a clause in their Patent been allowed & all others prohibited \{or}/ to make such Medals \with the effigies of the K. or Q./. And this Office of Medal-maker to y^e Crown has been sometimes encouraged by a large salary out of the Civil List, & sometimes granted to strangers & is not part of the constitution of the Mint. For by the standing constitution of the Mint, |[|the Master & Worker imploys not the Graver \to melt & coyn/ but|]| the Moneyers {to} coyne what ever the Graver\Government/ has occasion for whether m|M|oney Medals or Healing pieces, the \metal/ weight allay and form of the m|M|oney & Medals being first appointed by the King or Queen by advice of the Council, & the Graver only makin|es|g the stamps. Now if for saving her Maj^ty & the Council the trouble of giving \particular/ Orders about such Medals as the Government has \no/ occasion for, & for encouraging the Graver \the Gravers of the Mint {illeg}/ to improve themselves \{illeg}/ to be content with less salaries it be {illeg} thought fit to continue this Office or Privilege of Medal-maker to the crown to the Gravers: we are\I am/ humbly of opinion that the Gravers be obliged to set th{is}|ei||r| name or the first letters thereof upon th{is}|ei||r| own\own/ Medals to distinguish them from Medals made by the Queens Mint. H|Th|e|y| may be also {illeg}|r|estrained from dispersing them before a specimen of them has been shewed to your \Lord^p or your Order/ Lord^p {sic}\or \even/ from making medals w^ch relating to state affairs/ or be otherwise limited as her Maj^ty shall think fit. And if it should be thought fit upon any \{emergent}/ occasion, to restrain {then}\when it shall |ever| the Government pleases to have any Medals to prohibit the Graver coined by the Mint/ /to {sic} order the the coynage of a Medal\ I am ready to coyn such Medalls as her Maj^ty shall Order\them by her Maj^ts Warrant//it according to the course of the Mint\ as in the case of coronation Medals & to deliver any number of them/such Medals\ to yo^r Lord^ps Order. But should the Graver's melting & coyning be made a part of the constitution of the Mint the alteration in the constitution would be fundamental & might tend to {confuse.}\confusion/ |& to bring the Mint into dis{illeg} dis{illeg} discredit. & {illeg} & {illeg}| /All w^ch &c\ And I humbly conceive her Maj^ts warrant to be requisite for the safety & credit of the Mint & that its best to have it by advice of the Council according to ancient customs. But w^thout her Maj^ts Warrant for |every| particular \sort of/ coyn I humbly conceive it is not \creditable nor/ safe for the Mint to act, nor proper for me as Master & W^r to {illeg}|c|oyne by any other hands then the Moneyers the Gravers.|]| But to alter the course of the Mint \by making the Gravers privelege a part of the constitution/ or to place in the Mint an arbitrary power of coyning Medals, or to give the Gravers \to any/ Medals \not approved by |t|her Maj^ty Government/ the credit of being coyned by the Mint may be of ill\have {bad}/ consequence|s|.|,| All w^ch {illeg} & \I humbly conceive/ its better that the clause in the Gravers Patent is to Privilege be taken {illeg}|a|way, & the coynage of Medals left to y^e c{illeg}|o|urse of the Mint

The Gravers of the Mint do hereby give notice that their privilege of making Medals for the Queens Effigies{,}\w^th/ |be|is|n||g| no part of the constitution of y^e Mint; & that |[|for distinguishing their Medals from Medals made by the Mint they will for the future set their names or the first letters thereof upon \all/ thei{illeg}|r| own Medals to distinguish them from Medals made by the Queens Mint

<157v>

But should the Course oof the Mint be allowed by making the Gravers P{rivilege} a part of the constitution or

Now {w}

But whether the Coynage or Medals for the future shall be in the Gravers or in y^e Mint is humbly & {is} w^th what restrictions is humbly s{u}