Two holograph drafts of master's indenture repeating the terms laid out in MINT00651 (Mint 19/2/425)
This Indenture made the day of in the fourth year of the reign of oer Sovereign Lord George by the Grace of God of Great Britaine France & Ireland King, Defender of the Faith &c and in the year of oer Lord 1717 betwee{n} our said Soveraign Lord the Kings most excellent Majesty of the one part, & Sr Isaac Newton Knight, Master & Worker of his said Majestys Mint in the Tower of London of the other part, Witnesseth that our said Soveraign Lord the King hath hereby give & grant unto the said Sr Isaac Newton full power & authority to coyn half pence & farthings of fine British copper which when made red hot will spread thin under the hammer without cracking . & to cutt every pound weight Averdupois of such copper into forty & six half pence or ninety & two farthings & to coine any summ of such moneys not exceeing forty Tunns & that the in any one year excepting at such times as this coynage shall be suspended by Order of the Lords Commissioners of the Treasury now being or the Lord High Treasurer or Lords Commissioners of the Treasury for the time being, .✝ And to receive or take to himself the summs of 3d out of every pund weight so coined for the coinage thereof & to deliver the summs of the moneys so coyned or any part or parts thereof to his Majesties people or any of them by weight at such prizes as the same upon the Assay in weight shall be found to be worth abating a penny in every seven pounds weight of such moneys as a competent allowance & recompence for small errors as may happen in the price or tale. ascertained by the assay. And to procure & receive bars of copper of the fineness above mentioned & of such a size or thickness that the money made out of them may be of the weight above mentioned without erring in the pound weight above the fortith part of the whole weight in excess or defect.) & to pay for the same so much money by the pound weight or by the Lord High Treasurer or Lords Commissioners of the Treasury for the time being, & out of ever{y} pound weight of the moneys so coyned to receive for coyning & putting off the same the Summ of three pence farthing
And his said Majesty doth further give & grant unto the said Sr Isaac Newton full power & authority to receive into the said Mint copper in barrs of the fineness & size above mentioned paying for the same after such rate by pound weight as the Commissioners of his Majestys Treasury now being or the Lord High Treasurer or Commissioners of the Treasury for the time being shall approve of., the one half in money upon the receipt of such copper & the other half in scissel & money together upon the returning back of the scissel or wast, recconing the scissel at the same price by the pound weight with the copper imported, And his said Majesty doth will & command the Governour, Constable, Deputy Governour, & all other Officers & Ministers of the Tower, that the Importer or Importers of such copper in barrs have at all times free ingress & egress through the Gates of the Tower & Franchises thereof into & out of the said Mint without let molestation or arrest for debt or upon any other pretence whatsoever. And the said Sr Isaac Newton doth hereby covenant grant & agree to & with his said Majesty that he will receive such copper in barrs of the allay & size above mentioned & coyn copper money out of the same according to the RUle above mentioned & cause the moneys so coyned to be in weight & fineness & delivered by weight to his Majestys people at the price setled by the assay according to the Rule above mentioned. And his said Majestys doth further ordein & will & appoint pleasure in that all receip{ts} & deliveries with the weight & price, & all Assays by which the price shall be setled be entred in books by a Clerk who shall act in behalf of his said Majesty & his people & may be called the Kings Clerk, & that the said Clerk do see all the Assays performed & the Copper & moneys & Sciffel weighed & & one or more pieces taken out of every parcel of moneys assayed to be kept in a box under his key & the key of the Master & Worker to be tried annually in weight & fineness before whom the Lords Commissioners of the Treas{u}ry for the time being shall appoint, & the said Clerk shall also make a controlment Roll upon oath of the weight & price all the moneys coyned & delivered from time to time by the Moneyers to the Master & Worker & shall be allowed per annum per £wt for his service.
An
1 And the said Master & Worker shall account annually before the Auditor of the Mint for all the said copper moneys coined & be answerable to his Majesty for all the profits thereof above the charges. 3 ✝
< insertion from lower down the page >✝ 2 And the said Auditor shall have all the same power & authority for exami{n}ing & allowing the said Accounts which he hath for examining & allowing the Accounts of the said Master & Worker concerning the coinage of gold & silver. And the said kings Clerk shall examin & signe all Bills of charges for repairs of buildings & Offices & for providing things requisite for selling up this coinage .
Ad his s
And be allowed in his Accounts all summs of money paid for repairs of buildings & for repairing & providing coining tools & other thin{gs} for copper necessary for setting on foot this coinage & & 3 per lwt of wasts provisions necessaries & changes coming arising & growing in & about th{e} assaying weighing & coining & delivering the said copper & copper moneys & entring the receipts & deliv{ies} in books, by his own Clerk or Deputy.
⨳& all summs of money paid for copper imported & three pence farthing per lwt for coining the said moneys & for bearing & sustaining all manner of wasts provisions necessaries & charges coming arising & growing in & abo{ut} the assaying weighing coining & delivering the said copper & cop{p}er moneys & entring the receipts & deliveries thereof in books by his own Clerks.
& all further payments made pursuant to the Warrants of the Lords Commissions of the Treasury now being or of the Lord High Treasurers or Commissioners of the Treasury for the time being shall be allowed to the said Master & Worker in his accounts.
And his said Majesty doth will & command and the Governour Constable Deputy Governour & all other Officers & Ministers of the Tower that all persons importing such copper in barrs or coming for copper money shall have at times free ingress & regress into & out of the said Mint through the Gater of the Tower & Franchices thereof without let arrest or molestation for debt or upon any other pretence or cause whatsoever.
to receive into the said Mint fine British Copper in clean barrs which when heated red hot will spread thin under the hammer & which are sized to a due thickness, & out of the same to coyne half pence & farthings of such a bigness that forty & six half pence or ninety & two farthings may make a pound weight Averdupois [ excepting such small accidental errors as cannot be avoyded, 3 & to have & receive the summ of three pence farthing to be by him taken out of the said moneys for the coynage of every pound weight Averdupois thereof & for the bearing & sustaining all manner of wasts provisions necessaries & charges coming arising & growing in & about the weighing assaying & coining thereof; & entring the receipts & deliveries in books 1 & to pay for the Copper Imported after such rate by the pound weight averdupois as the Lords Commissioners of the Treasury now being or the Lord High Treasurer or Lords Commissioners of the Treasury for the time being shall approve, 2 & to coyne such quantities of such moneys & at such times as the said Commissioners or Lord High Treasurer shall allow,
ANd the said S. Isaac Newton doth covenant grant & agree to & with his said Majesty that he will receive barrs of fine British copper of the assay & size above mentioned giving his Note for the same & that upon the receipt thereof he will pay one half of the price & coin copper coming out of the same according to the Rule above mentioned & upon delivering back the scissel & receiving his Note he will pay the other half of the price in scissel & money together recconing the scissel at the same price by the pound weight with that the copper imported & cause the moneys so coined to be assayed in weight & fineness & a price to be set upon the same according to the assay by weight & at the price so set, deliver the same to such of his Majestys people as shall come to the said Mint for the same abating a penny in every seven pounds weight as a recompence for any small defect which may at any time happen in the tale, which abatement his said Majesty doth hereby allow.
And his said Majesty doth will & appoint that all receipts & deliveries of copper in barrs or scissel with the weight & price & all deliveries of new moneys from the Moneyers to the Master & Worker with the assays in weight & the price stated & setled by the Assays be entred in books by a Clerk who shall act in behalf of his Majesty & may be called the kings Clerk, & that the said Clerk do seel all for his service. And his said Majesty doth further will & ordein that he said Moneyers shall not vend pay or distribute any of the said new coined moneys before the same be duly assayed & delivered to the said Master & Worker.
And the said Master & Worker shall account annually before the Auditor of the Mint for all the said Copper moneys coined & be answerable to his said Majesty for all the profits thereof above the charges. And the said Auditor shall have all the same power & authority for examining & allowing the said Accounts which he hath for examining & allowing the Accounts of the said Master & Worker concerning the coinage of gold & silver. And the said Kings Clerk shall examine & signe all such bills of charges as shall come into the said Account. And all the charges of the said Master & Worker in paying for the copper & coinage as above & in repairing & filling up the buildings & coining tools & providing new coining tools & other things necessary for setting on foot this coinage & in keeping the buildings in repair shall be allowed to the said Master & Worker
