UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT LOS ANGELES ^X-''*^ ■^ C » ) Sever ah relating to the FUND Trinted for divers %eafon$^ as may aj^pear* THat the w/it of mm is not in htmfelf: it is nH in man that vfdketh, to dire5l his Hefty Is a Truth that all ( who arc not ftrangcrs to themfclves) muft ackncwic(^ge-, & in fpccial the. Author^ of \\{\% Suhje^', If icbcconfidered, z That he had as iitflc skill in, as inclination to, or nfccd of concerning himfclf in merchantile Affairs: Nor came he into New-England with a thought to meddle therewith.' as is well ' known to many, i That he {hould concern himfelf to pro- mote Trade for others, and that in this Land, a place not de- figned by the firft Planters, for Commerce-^ being better acquain -led with cteleftiai'Dealings^ than the polities oi mundane affairs 3 That he (hould amongft fuch a People clTay to promote aDcfigrienot known in the day thereof (if yet) to) in any part of the worldCalthough Unce in agitation . and then furely ftrange here, where the name of benefit thereby, was hardly heard of, 4 Thath TRACTS RELATING TO THE CURRENCY OF THE MASSACHUSETTS BAY 1682-1720 EDITED BY ANDREW McFARLAND DAVIS, A. M. Member of the Massachusetts Historical Society; American Antiquarian Society; Colonial Society of Massachusetts ; and American Acad- emy of Arts and Sciences. Corresponding Member Cali- fornia Historical Society, and Honorary Mem- ber Old Colony Historical Society, BOSTON AND NEW YORK HOUGHTON, MIFFLIN AND COMPANY (Stl^e flitoetisibe ^xt^^^ Cambridfle 1902 Published October, igos. t INTRODUCTION While prosecuting the examination of authorities which preceded the publication of the two vol- umes entitled " Currency and Banking in the Pro- vince of the Massachusetts Bay," I turned the leaves of between forty and fifty contemporaneous pam- " phlets which were issued by our local press and de- ?- voted to the discussion of the topics suggested by the £ titles of these volumes. The greater part of these tracts were rare, even the most common of them being found only in libraries which have for years []| had a department specially devoted to Americana. > The collections in the immediate vicinity of Boston contain nearly all of them, but if one would see " Severals relating to the Fund," he must go to the \ Watkinson Library at Hartford. If he would see ^ "Some Proposals to benefit the Province," he must ^ visit the Library of the American Antiquarian Soci- V ety at Worcester. One of them, Douglass's " Dis- course concerning the Currencies," has been reprinted by the American Economic Association. Another, " Money the Sinews of Trade," was reproduced by Robert Lewis Kennedy of New York. These facts indicate a desire on the part of students to place upon the shelves of our libraries reprints of the 38916'^ Iv INTRODUCTION more valuable of these tracts. I have indeed been asked, as one who has examined them, which of them ought next to be published ? It would not be diHitult to assign to these publications an order of merit, based upon their literary style and the pre- sent value of their economic opinions, but after all, is that what the student wants ? Is it not just as important that he should study economic heresies as economic truths ? Can he estimate the force of public opinion unless he adopts the current standards upon which that opinion is based ? Can he fairly judge the financial history of Massachusetts in the eighteenth century without giving due weight to the opportunities for knowledge then extant? It seems to me that there can be but one answer to the various questions of this sort which naturally sug- gest themselves in this connection. The historical student needs to know all sides of every question. Influenced by the belief that there was a certain amount of interest in the subject on the part of students in History and Economics, I determined to publish some, at least, of these pamphlets, and as I did not care to attempt any selection based upon an arbitrary measure of their value, I have taken enough of them, in the chronological order of their issue, to make an 8vo volume of convenient size for handling, leaving to the future the determination whether this series shall be continued. Beginning with " Severals relating to the Fund," INTRODUCTION v which contains a proposition for a bank, published in the spring of 1682, the authorship of which is attributed by Trumbull to Rev. John Woodbridge, the series comprehends " A Model for erecting a Bank of Credit with a Discourse," etc., etc., printed in London in 1688, and reprinted in Boston, 1714. This plan formed the basis of Captain John Black- well's proposed bank in 1686. The next pamphlet to this in the series is " A Projection for erecting a Bank of Credit in Boston " in 1714. Following; this comes the attack and defence of this Bank, and after its death a general discussion of the situation with occasional suggestions for rehef. This brings us down to the last pamphlet of the series, " Some Proposals to benefit the Province," 1720. The attempt has been made to follow the pecul- iarities of the typography of the originals, which may have been introduced for purposes of emphasis, such as capitalization and italics. The spelling and the punctuation of the originals have also been preserved. The original pagination is indicated by Arabic numerals in brackets in the text. I have heretofore rehearsed the considerations which induced me to place this publication on the market. I should neglect a plain duty if I failed to add that but for the kind assistance and encourage- ment of my friend Worthington C. Ford I should not at present, at any rate, have come to any defi- nite conclusion on the subject. He, and he alone. ri INTRODUCTION will appreciate how much he has done to help me in this work, aud how much he deserves this public acknowltHlgment. The copies of the pamphlets were obtained at the libraries of the Boston Athenaeum, the Massachu- setts Historical Society, and the Public Library, in Boston ; the American Antiquarian Society in Wor- cester; and the Watkinson Library in Hartford, Connecticut. For permission to reprint the pam- phlets and to photograph the title-pages which are introduced in this volume as illustrations, thanks are due to these societies. ANDREW McFARLAND DAVIS. Cambridge, May 1, 1902. CONTENTS PAGE Sever ALs relating to the Fund (1682) 1 Some Considerations on the Bills of Credit now pass- ing IN New-England (1691) 13 Some Additional Considerations addressed unto the Worshipful Elisha Hutchinson, Esq. (1691) .... 23 A Model for erecting a Bank of Credit (1688) ... 35 A Projection for erecting a Bank of Credit in Boston, New-England, founded on Land Security (1714) . . 69 Objections to the Bank of Credit lately projected AT Boston (1714) 85 A Letter, from One in Boston, to his Friend in the Country (1714) Ill A Vindication of the Bank of Credit projected in Boston (1714) 147 Some Considerations upon the Several Sorts of Banks propos'd as a Medium of Trade (1716) 167 The Present Melancholy Circumstances of the Pro- vince consider'd, and Methods for Redress humbly proposed (1719) 183 An Addition to the Present Melancholy Circumstances OF the Province considered, &c. (1719) 199 The Distressed State of the Town of Boston, &c. con- sidered (1720) 233 A Letter from One in the Country to his Friend in Boston, containing Some Remarks upon a Late Pam- phlet, entituled, The Distressed State of the Town OF Boston, &c. (1720) 247 A Letter from a Gentleman, containing Some Remarks UPON THE Several Answers given unto Mr. Colman's, ENTITULED, The DISTRESSED StATE OF TfiE ToWN OF Boston (1720) 279 viii CONTENTS A ViXniCATION OF THE REMARKS OF OnE IN THE COUNTRY uroN The Distressed State of Boston (1720) . . . 297 Reflections on the Present State of the Province of MAssAciirsETTS-liAY (1720) 323 The Distressed State ok the Town of Boston once more considered (1720) 347 Some Proposals to benefit the Province (1720) . . . 383 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS Facsimiles in full size from the originals PAGE First Page of " Severals relating to the Fund," etc. Frontispiece Showing a memorandum in the handwriting of Rev. Thomas Prince. Photographed by permission of the Watkinson Library, Hartford, Conn. First Page of "Some Considerations on the Bills of Credit," etc 14 Photographed by permission of the Boston Athenaeum. First Page of " Some Additional Considerations," etc. 24 This pamphlet is printed in connection with "Some Consider- ations," etc., the pagination being continuous, this being the eleventh of the joint pamphlet. Photographed by permission of the Boston Athenaeum. Title-Page of " A Model for erecting a Bank of Credit," etc 36 . Photographed by permission of the Massachusetts Historical Society. Title-Page of " A Projection for erecting a Bank of Credit," etc 70 Photographed by permission of the Massachusetts Historical Society. Title-Page of " Objections to the Bank of Credit," etc. 86 Photographed by permission of the Boston Public Library. Title-Page of "A Letter, from one in Boston," etc. . 112 Photographed by permission of the Massachusetts Historical Society. Title-Page of " A Vindication of the Bank of Credit," ETC 148 Photographed by permission of the Massachusetts Historical Society. Title-Page of " Some Considerations upon the Several Sorts of Banks," etc 168 Photographed by permission of the Boston Public Library. First Page of "The Present Melancholy Circum- stances," etc 184 Photographed by permission of the Massachusetts Historical Society. X LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS First Page of "An Addition to the Present Melan- choly Circumstances," etc 200 Photographed by permission of the Massachusetts Historical Society. Title- Pace ok "The Distressed State of the Town of Boston" 234 Photographed by permission of the Massachusetts Historical Society. Tttle-Page of " a Letter from One in the Country," ETC 248 PhotoBxaphed by permission of the Boston Public Library. Title-Page of "A Letter from a Gentleman," etc . 280 Photogr&phed by pennission of the Massachusetts Historical Society. Title-Page of " A Vindication of the Remarks of One IN the Country," etc 298 Photographed by permission of the Boston Public Library, Title-Page of " Reflections on the Present State of the Province," etc 324 Photographed by permission of the Boston Public Library. Title-Page of "The Distressed State of the Tow'n of Boston once more Considered," etc 348 Photographed by permission of the Massachusetts Historical Society. First Page of "Some Proposals to Benefit the Pro- vlnce" 384 Photographed by permission of the American Antiquarian Society. (O Severals relating to the FUND Printed for divers Reasons^ as may appear. THat the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh, to direct his steps, Is a Truth that all (who are not strangers to themselves) must acknowledge ; & in special the Author of this Subject : If it be considered, 1 That he had as little skill in, as inclination to, or need of concerning himself in merchantile Affcdvs : Nor came he into New-England with a thought to meddle therewith : as is well known to many. 2 That he should concern himself to pro- mote Trade for others, and that in this Land, a place not designed by the first Planters, for Com- merce ; being better acquainted with ccelestial Deal- ings, than the polities of mundane affairs 3 That he should amongst such a People essay to promote a Designe not known in the day thereof (if yet) to 1[ ] in any part of the world (al- though since in agitation [ ] and then surely strange here, where the name of [ ] benefit 2 CURRENCY FOR THE thereby, was hardly heard of. 4 That h[ ] [2] notwithstanding the reproaches east upon him, cS: untrnths raised & reported of this Thing, stil appear to justifie & promote the same, and encour- age those who are satisfied thereof, and join with him in this his undertaking. The rise of which was as foUoweth. About the latter end of the year 1649. an inti- mate Friend of the Author^s in London^ Mr. Wil- liam Potter, who was likewise no Trader, Im- parted to him a Designe for the accomodation of Commerce, in the natui-e of a Bank of money ; but to be founded upon personal Credit, by a consider- able number of able Men Ingaging, as the Found thereof, to pass forth Credit ; as a medium to enlarge the Measure of money, that was known to be too little for the Dealings of that Land : Or by deposit- ing of Goods, in the nature of a Lumber of Mer- chandise, to pass out Credit thereon, untill sold. As for a Fund to have Land (the onely secure Deposit) the dubious & intricat Titles thereof, put a stop to any discourse thereabout. And as for a Bank of money, there was in that no certain Security ; wof uU experience proving them subject to a rupture. The Author so resented the Notion of his Friend, (the thing being rational, & tending much to the benefit of all men where set on foot) that it became oft times when they met, the common subject of their discourse, in a rotation of Proposals, Objections, and Solutions : Leaving no stone unturned, that might fit the designe to comport with that Place. MASSACHUSETTS BAY 3 Mr. Potter likewise had about that time printed a Book in folio, relating to his designe; one whereof he bestowed on the Author, who (upon the report that was given him of the Labyrinth New-England was in, for want of a Conveniency to mete their Trade with) gave it with good acceptance, to a Kinsman of his that was a Merchant of this Place ; the prosperity wheref he was [ ]er to, when not likely ever to see It. Whether by [ ] Book, or other accident, any motion thereabout [ ]s unknown. But before any thing was brought to [ ]t seems there was ; an accompt of which shall in [3] its place be given) the Author was called to Ireland, where he had more endeavoured the promotion of this thing, than barely to hint it ; had not his transient Employ prevented. In anno 1664. His lot being here cast, he soon saw that with his eye, that did affect his heart i. e. The Straits many were in ; the Time they consumed, and the Disadvantages they were under, by higling to suit ends : And thereupon imparted to a pubHck- spirited Merchant, with what ease, & safety their Measure might be inlarged : Who likewise being sensible of the need thereof, desired to have in Writ- ing somewhat about the same. Which being done. It was, it seems, imparted to divers, with approba- tion ; and Return made. That somewhat might be done about it in due season : which the author rested satisfied with ; in that there lay not now at his dore, a Thing concealed, that might tend to the welfare of the Country. 4 CURRENCY FOR THE About three years after this (that foregoing being wholly buried) the author accidentally started this Expedient, among divers Country Gentlemen, Yeo- men & others; persons not likely to lend an ear to a thing of this nature. Yet so it happened, that to some one, or more of them, the Notion was of esti- mation : and spread abroad, to the occasioning of several Debates among those who were Considerable, both in Parts & Purse : And stopped not, untill the honoiu-ed Council heard thereof. But before they took notice of it, One of the Magistrates Im- parted the Designe to an experienced Merchant, well Read in the nature of Banks, To have his judge- ment concerning this. Who Returned, that this Bank was so Stated, as left not room for a rational Objection to be made against it In that those Founded on Money, had only their defect, of a pos- sibility to break ; which this Fixed on Land, was not capable of. Soon after this, the Author had notice given, that the Council would send speedily for him, about this Concern : & was advised to write somew^hat about it, for them. Whereupon, he set upon drawing a second Draught, in the dress of a Projyosal. The which, before quite write out, a Messenger was [4] sent to call him to them. To whom he presented his (then crude) conceptions, as follows. To which some clauses, and explana- tions are added : but is the same for substance, with that on File in the Records of the General Court. MASSACHUSETTS BAY 5 A Proposal for erecting a Fund of Land ; hy Authority, or private Persons, in the nature of a Money-Bank ; or Merchandise-Lumber, to pass Credit up)on, hy Book-Entries ; or Bils of Exchange, for great Payments : and Change-bills for rim- ing Cash. Wherein is demonstrated, First, the necessity of having a Bank, to inlarge the Measure of Dealings in this Land, hy shelving the henefit of Money, if enough to mete Trade loith ; & the dis- advantages, when it is otherwise. Money is that One thing, which, as the medium of Trade, (for so Solomon^ s Assertion must neces- sarily, be understood) answer eth All things. For where it is in plenty, no Buyer will be bound to one Person, or Market ; nor purchase Credit at the Grant- or's price ; nor be necessitated to become Servant to the Lender, if he have Money to answer his occa- sions ; nor will run the hazard of Trusting. Hereby also, the frequent complaints that are made, for want of present pay, are silenced & persons freed from a multitude of carking cares. It likewise, mul- tiplies Trading ; increaseth Manufacture, and Pro- visions ; for domestic use, and foreign Returns ; abateth Interest; incitethto the purchasing of Land, and heighteneth its value; forwards the Improve- ment both of real, and personal Estates ; promot- eth the Settleing of new Plantations, and maritim Affairs ; incourageth heartless Idlers, to Work ; redeemeth Time Labour, and Expence, greatly consumed in higling up and down, to suit Pay to G CURRENCY FOR THE content, abrogatetli the mystery of Trucking, by sinking JJarttn-, and reducing all bought, and sold, to the Entrlish Standard ; hindretli wrangling: and vexatious Suits upon Debts contracted for want thereof, to the Scandal of a religious people, as well as the impoverishing of [5] them, and the consum- ing the time of their Magistrates, that might be better spent about studying the necessary advantages of Trade, and forwarding of Manufacture, to the inriching of them. To which end most civilized Nations set some apart to manage, and is the Load- stone that draweth commodities to the Market, that great conveniecy of a people. On the contrary where Coin is scarce,* all things are, dear, & little answereth to content, or free from trouble, and loss. Debts are contracted ; dilatory, and shuffeling payments made ; dexterous Traders retire or (which is worse) deal in Money, the me- dknn of Trade ; young beginners are checked ; good men laid open to temptations, and opportuni- ties given to bad ones, that exact from those who must crave Credit, or cannot make suitable pay. Trade is stinted at home, and forestalled abroad ; Stocks lye dead ; Intrigue accompts, and perplexing Suits made ; Merchants, and Shop-keepers, undersell one another ; and pitifully help themselves, by beat- ing down Craftsmen : who again, through necessity, underwork others of their occupation ; or slight over their work ; adulterate Manufacture, and hasten * This Clause, with some other Objections 6-= Queries, very lately made; shall receiv a full Reply in the next Sheet : if possible. MASSACHUSETTS BAY 7 poverty on all. Nor can ever Trade be ballanced, or the advantage of Fairs be enjoyed, where Money is wanting. Which the Cohler of Agawa7n, before he Canonized Pumpion, was not so Simple but understood full well. Secondly, That Credit 2:)ass^d in Fund, hy Book, & Bills, {as afore) will fully supply the defect of Money. Wherein is related, of how little value Coin, as the Measure of Trade, need he, in it self; what Inconveniences subject to. The worth a Y\m^-Bill, or Payment therein, isof:& not of that Hazard. Although Cash be so usef ull ; yet it is but a ready conveniency. Which hath, through mistake, its esteem, not from the use, (which it ought) but In- trinsic value : which is not essential to a thing, meerly good for Exchange ; and serving barely [6] to procure what One wants, that another abounds with : and again, to fetch for the last, what he standeth in need of, where to be spared. And this (except here were Mines, to transport hullion, for foreign Trade) Bank-bills, or payments therein, will effect, to all Intents, as well as plenty of Coin ; which, as money, doth neither Feed, nor Cloath. Moreover, Treasure, not onely allures an Enemy, and is covetously hoarded up ; & so, like dung in a heap, unprofitable : but is also subject to wear adid- teratincj, {fires, robberies, 7nistakes, & the like con- tingencies; which, payments in this Bank, or bills issued thence, are free from : having a Fund, or 8 CURRENCY FOR THE Deposit in Land ; real, dureable, & of secure value. And for the Change-hUls, they may be so contrived, as to be passed with facility ; and without counter- feitinof. However, so as to prevent ; or find out, any Cheat : if the Rules of them be observed. The other two Sections of the Proijosal, must be pass'd to the 2d. Sheet, iJarj. 9. It being need- ful to make a Digression, to give an account of the publishing this undertaking sooner, than intended. In the year 74. divers well-wishers to the Fund, did think it fit, to have a Narrative of it Printed. In order whereunto, something was done, in the Method before ; %. e. the occasion of the Subject ; and then, the 2^roceedi7igs thereon, to that time : but particu- lar business did interpose. In the year 78. the au- thor was importuned to the same thing : which had been done, but that after-thoughts brought him to consider, that so much having been agitated in Pub- lique, about it ; and the probation it had by the Referrees, and honoured Council, as to the TJieory thereof; the Press would hardly print it into the pr actio part : and that the onely way was to set it on foot. For, as Good Wine needs no hush ; so it was presumed, that if this were but in use, the Flavour thereof would invite enou' to, and continue them at it. Which to accomplish, (having by acci- dent, some respit time this year 1681. and accomo- dated Avith Spirit, Purse, & Hand ; the ingredients that must center, as in one, for any considerable undertaking) He did in Sep'l^Jltember, begin to pass forth Bills, to make an Experiment of that MASSACHUSETTS BAY 9 which had passed the Scrutiny of above 30. years, with approbation ; and had rational Grounds to conclude, that it would work it self up into Credit, with discreet men : because Lifrest will not Lie. In 6 moneths, a considerable number espoused the Designe ; besides those that were concerned, in the years. Seventy on^, & Seventy two. Whereupon, it became as a Galley Jioating iq^on the stream of ojnn- ion, into which He, & He would thrust an oar. And some that favoured not the Designe, did talk to the discountenance of it: and wanting weighty obiections, let fiy broadsides of Pot-gun-pellets, chained with Fallacies & huffoonry, to impede this undertaking. Upon this, several, now engaged, think it not fit to be longer silent : but urge the hastening an account of the Designe; that the Reality, Safety, and Benefit thereof, may appear to all prudent, and unprejudic'd men. And this shall be endeavoured, as time wdll permit ; though not in the mode first intended : Which was, to place all the Rules relating to the Fund, at the end of the Narrative ; and then the Debates that are carried on, concerning Commerce. Which will now fall in mixt and this Sheet be closed with some Rules, most needful to be first known, for the directing those in Company, in their motion. The manner of erecting the Fund, which was MarcJi 30. 71. and the carry- ing it on in private, for many moneths; and the reason of putting a stop to it, when hills were just to be issued forth, together with the Preamble of the Rules, &c. They may come in, in due place 10 CURRENCY FOR THE Payments on Change-bills. Tliat the Acceptor, loho gives Credit to any Change-hlU, First, he assured that the Producer thereof, he the Person named in said hill, or sent hy his Order. Secondly, That he Enter on said hill, 1. the Time. 2. his own Name. 3. the Value he payes. Wliich, if it he the first Charge, then also to write the Sum, in words, ahove the columne : If not, then to cast up the Toted : lohich is to he done at every additional Article, & the hill to he delivered hack again. Thirdly, If he pay the complement of any hill, to take it in. [8] Entries in the Creditors Leger. First, the Acceptor must erect an Accompt in his Leger, thus. The Fund at Boston in N. E. Debitor. Contra, Creditor. Secondly, Enter, 1. the Time, as in the former Ride. 2. thus, To Change-bill of J. E. adding thereto, the number of the bill, & the Sum deliv- ered. And if it be in full of the bill, Then to write underneath the Entry, N. B. This bill taken in. Thirdly, when he hath an Account in the Office, he is to write thus, N. My Accompt in the Fund Leger, fol. — Entries in the Fund-hooks. When the Acceptor hath given Credit to the value of five pounds, or more : He may pass the Fund Debit into the Office, & have Credit in his Account MASSACHUSETTS BAY 11 there, as an Acceptor : giving in an Account, as Mitred in his Leger, with the Change-hills taken up hy him, & underwritten thus, Place to my Credit in Fund,fol. — the Sum of — being for the forego- ing Payments. To H. S. Per J. N. with the Date. Pass-bill Forms. If one ¥\mAov passeth Credit to another, it ought to he hy a Pass-hill, thus. Place of my Credit in Fund, fol. — to Account of D. J. the Sum of — Directed, & Signed, as ahove expressed. If the Drawer desire a Change-hill, for Pocket- Fxjoence, Then thus, Charge my accompt, fol. — Debtor, five pounds, for 2 Change-bill, now received, Number, — Fund-credit, not to be strained; nor passed, but among Fundors. TJiat no Acceptor give, nor Depositor take more Fund-crec?i^, than they see their way how to Re- ceive, or Pay the same again, among those in Com- pany with them : nor Deal in said Credit with any, hut those Ented in the ¥\mArRowl ; which all con- cerned may take a copie of. N. This Ride to he of force hut until persons see it to he their Interest, to accept Fund-^ay : and the Credit thereof pass, vnthout hazard of any prejudicing the same', through willfulness, or ignorance. To return, at length, to the projwsal, left off pag. 6. [ ] 15. Thirdly, 12 CURRENCY FOR THE MASSACHUSETTS BAY [Tlie only copy of tliis pamphlet of which we have any know- ledge is the t)iu' in the Watkinson Library, Hartford, Conn. It was described by the late J. Hanuuond 'rrinnbuU in the Council Report of the American Anticpiarian Society, October, 1884. This report was se})arately published under title of " First Es- says at Banking in New England." Mr. Trumbull recognizes the handwn-iting which can be seen upon the facsimile as that of Thomas Prince. From this memorandum we learn that the date of publication was 1681, and the imprint was that of Samuel Green. It may be inferred that the copy was at some time in the Prince Library. Mr. Trumbull is able from internal evidence to determine the date of publication more specifically as March 1681, 82, and the author as Rev. John Woodbridge of Newbury. The copy is incomplete. Mr. Trumbull says : " It contains, on a single sheet in pot-quarto, the first eight pages of the tract, and is without a separate title-leaf or imprint." I am indebted to the courtesy of the Watkinson Library for the copy of the pamphlet and the facsimile of the first page.] (I) Some Considerations on the BILLS CREDIT Now passing in NEW-ENGLAND. Addressed unto the Worshipful, JOHN PHILIPS "^^= Published for the Information of the INHABITANTS. Mr. Treasurer, I Am told, and am apt to believe it, That the Ex- chequer in Silver Runs very Low ; Nor can / think that the Country in General is much bet- ter furnished. 'Twas an honest and good method you took, to pay by Bonds what you could not by Ready [2] Cash. I therefore cannot a little won- der at the great indiscretion of our Countrymen who Refuse to accept that, which they call Paper-mony, as pay of equal value with the best Spanish Silver. 14 CURRENCY FOR THE What ? is the word Paper a scandal to them ? Is a Bond or Bill-of-Exchange for 1000 1, other than Paper ? and yet is it not as vahiable as so much Silver or Gold, supposing the Security of Payment be suificient? Now what is the Security of your Paper-mony less then the Credit of the lohole Country. If the Countries Debts must be paid (as I believe they must, and I am sure in justice they ought) whatever change of Government shall come, then the Country must make good the Credit, or more Taxes must be still Raised, till the publick Debts be Answered. I say, the Country, and not the Gentlemen who Administer the Government, who are but the Countries Agents in this Affair. All the Inhabitants of the Land, taken as one Body are the Principals, who Reap the Benefits, and must bear the Burdens, and are the Security in their Publick Bonds. What do the Gentlemen get, but their labour for their pains, and perhaps not a little Obloquie into the bargain ? can all their Estates (with all their Gahis, if there were any) bear the charge of Government for the whole land ? no, no, it cannot be supposed. If any murmur at [3] their management as ill, and that they have needlesly drawn the Charges upon us ; pray tell them, as long as they enjoy the Choice of Administrators, they must hear what's past, and right themselves for the future, by chusing better next, if they Know where to find them. So Merchants do with their Factors, and 'tis their only Remedy. You know Sir you and / have had some former 'fl snic L.C O F ■s\^ v .^-Jdrefredunto the' AVbrlhipfuIy' -' ^'-'li.licd for the Information of tbe . INHABITANTS/ ''^ J/ ^■n ■ tol^v- and am ' 2pt to beTicvc if-^v^f ^ '"'?!t the' fc'xdIicqucT in Silver Runsve^ " -• jv Low • Vicsxi- Qz^i I think-thar'tticr-^ / 'fy inGcneral is iV.ncli ^cuerfutniffecd^ ■ - ■ '|;/y Dy i?^/;^/ yy]^ac yoi: couM not bfJ^sa^ ' MASSACHUSETTS BAY 15 Discourse about the Nature of Mony That (as such) it is but a Countei^ or Measure of mens Proprieties, and Instituted mean of permutation. As metal in- deed it is a commodity, Like all other things, that are Merchantable. But as Mony it is no more than what was said. And had it's Original from a gen- eral ignorance of Writing and Arithmetick; But now these Arts being commonly known may well Discharge mony from the conceited Necessity thereof in Humane Traffick. Is not Discount in Accounts current good pay ? Do not Bills Transmit to Re- mote Parts, vast summs without the intervention of Silver ? Are not Taxes paid and received by mutual Credit between the Government and the People, The Government requiring the Country to give them Credit where-with to pay the Countries Debts, and then again receive the same Credit of the Country as good pay ? 'Tis strange that in the mean-[4] while between the Governments paying the People, and the Peo2)les paying the Government : The Governments (or rather the Countries) Bills should not pass be- tween 3Ia7i and Man. 'Tis strange that one Gentle- mans Bills at Port-Royal for divers years, and that among Forreigners ; or another Gentlemans Bills in the Western Parts for as many or more years should gain so much Credit as to be current pay, among the Traders in those places ; yea, that the Bill (as / have heard) of any one Magistrate in the Western Eng- lish Plantation, shall buy any Commodities of any of the Planters ; and yet our peoj^le (in this pure air) be so sottish as to deny Credit to the Govern- 16 CURRENCY FOR THE uieut, when 'tis of their own Chusing : Had the s'nu/h' Gentlemen (above named) a good bottom for their Credit in their Ware-houses, and are not the whole Estates of the Massachusets as good ? Is the Security of one Plantation - Magistrate, better than that of All the Massachusets llei^resentatwes ? can that one Magistrate give force to the Contracts, and cannot All our Government do the same. Certainly Sir were not peoples Heads Idly be- whizled with Conceits that we have no Magistrates, no Government, And by Consequence that we have no Security for any thing, which we call our own (a Conse-\_5]quence they will be Loth to allow, though they cannot help it. If once we are Reduced to Hobs his state of Nature, which (says he) is a state of War, and then the strongest must sake all) I say if such foolish conceits were not Entertained, there would not be the least Scruple in accepting your Bills as Currant Pay. If you should require the Country to pay their Taxes in Silver, that so you might be enabled to bear the charges of the Government by Silver, when such quantity of it as is needful for that purpose cannot be had in the Country, or at least not in any proportion to be procured, unless men (according to the Proverb) should Buy Gold too Dear, and so Ruinously undervalue the fruits of their Labours : and their Lands. This were to require men to Make Bricks without Straw. If you Require the Taxes in Corn at an overvalue, with I know not what Abatements if they bring in JVIASSACHUSETTS BAY 17 Mony ; which is to set up (in my Understanding) a Measure, and a Measure (a thing which Cod allows not) And then if the Government pay the charges of Conveyance from Remoter-parts, and bear all Damasres afterwards, what will it amount to when all Charges and Damages are allowed ; perhaps scarce two shilhngs to the Government, of five shillings from the Country ; and then when [6] will the pub- lick Debts be paid ? or when will be an end of Tax- ing ? Certainly (what-ever were intended by the Proposers of this way of Tax) the Tendency of it is only to render the Government odious by a great noise of Taxes, when little comes thereby ; a great cry of Hog-sheering, when there is no Wool. If neither Silver can be had, nor Corn brought in without loss both to the Government and People, what remains but Accounts, Bills, or such like Paper-pay ? and certainly this necessity may (if / mistake not) bring to the whole Country no small advantage ; for 1. Is there not hereby 40,000 1 Running Cash in the Country more than ever was, if mens folly hinder not its Currency ? yea and more than they are ever like to have, so long as they cannot Keep Silver in the Country, which they will never do while the European Trade continues, and that is like to be as long as we are a people. Silver in New-England is like the water of a swift Running River, always coming, and as fast going away ; one (in its passage) dips a Bucket-full, another a Dish or Cup-full for his occasions; but if the Influx 18 CURRENCY FOR THE of ])lato from the West-Indies be stopt but for a little while, ami the Efjiiix in Returns for England continue will not the Mill-pond be quickly drained, [7] so as neither Bucket nor Cup can dip its fill ? Whereas on the contrary, 2. This our Runnimj Cash is an abiding Cash : for no man will carry it to another Country, where it will not pass ; but rather use it here, where it w411 (or at least) ought : and then only the Growths of the Country will be carried off, and that will be no Damage but rather an Advantage to us. 3. If this be made Currant, the Credit of the Colony will rise to the utmost height of it's ability on all Extraordinary Emergencies; whereas other- wise you may be quickly Distressed ; for if the Soldiers cannot put off their Pay to Supply their necessities, who will hereafter serve the Country in their greatest Dangers, and if the Merchants cannot Buy as well as Sell for Credit, how shall they carry on their Trades? and how shall they'l end upon great occassions if the Countries Bill lie dead on their hands ? surely they'l no more trust the Coun- try, whatever suddain need we should have, unless on the bare-consideration of their own Security. There is indeed a way found out by poor mens Necessities to make the Bills passant : namely by Selling them at Under-rates. Thus the poor Sol- dier is horribly injured, who have adventured their Lives in the publick Service, and the Government made contemptible as not worthy to be trusted. I remember many years since, there was such [8] a MASSACHUSETTS BAY 19 prank plaid in England and Ireland after the War. Some bought up the Soldiers Dehenters at very- low Rates, and then with half Dehenters and half Mony purchased great Estates in Kings and Bishops Lands, (a fine Trade they made of it if it had held) but God shook his Lap at this dishonest and inter- loping gain ; and a great unexpected Revolution made them lose both their Lands and Mony. Thus the woman shook her Dog by the Collar, till she made him Disgorge again all her Puddinge. A better way (in my opinion) to make the Credit passable without Interruption, is 1. To Raise the Rates of those above the com- mon Standard, whom you catch Tardy in Debas- ing the Credit of your bills either by purchasing them with little mony; or selling commodities for them at Excessive dearer Rates. 2. Let all refusers to receive them have forth- with their Taxes demanded in Silver, nor let them have the benefit of paying the7n, who will not also Receive them. And in like manner several such, as shall at any time reproach them as a Grand Cheat. Who is it but the?/, that makes 'em so. 3. What if the General Court Declare by a Law, that if any man tender these Bills for pay- ment of his Debts to be accepted at their full value, which the Country has put upon [9] them ; If any private person will not receive them so, That then the Government will not concern themselves for the recovery of those Debts, till all the Publick Debts are discharged. It is a known Maxim of Law in 20 CURRENCY FOR THE England (and I think in all other Conn try s) that of Debts, The Kings must he first jJCiid. And great reason for it ; for why shall the Government secure others Debts by Law ; and not their own ? now if these refusers stay for their Debts tiU the Country be first serv'd they may stay till they are weary. And if hereafter they resolve to make no more Debts (for fear of this Law) I believe their Trading will be very didl. Whereas (on the Contrary) if they shall accept the Bills, 'tis probable their Debts will come in apace ; their Trading will revive, and the Countries Credit become Currant. To Conclude \Fas est et ah Hoste Doceri] The French (I hear) at Canada pass such Paper mony without the least scruple ; whereby the Government is greatly Fortified, since they can at all times make what they need. Now if we account our selves to Transcend the French in Courage 'T is a shame for us to come so far short of them in Wit and Under- standing. These are my present thoughts, which you may communicate as you see cause ; meanwhile please to accept them as Really intended for the Public good. By A well wisher to New-England & your Humble Servant, &c. [This pamphlet is to be found in the Boston Athenaeum. It is described by the late J. Hammond Trumbull in the Council Report of the American Antiquarian Society, October, 1884, and its authorship is attributed by him to Cotton Mather. It had neither separate title-page nor imprint, but it was issued in connection with another pamphlet entitled " Some Additional MASSACHUSETTS BAY 21 Considerations Addressed unto the Worshipful Elisha Hutchin- son, Esq. By a Gentleman that had not seen the foregoing Let- ter," the pagination of the two being continuous. The imprint of the second, in colophon, is " Boston, Printed by Benjamin Harris, and John Allen : And are to be Sold at the London Cofifee House. 1691." The combined pamplilet is described as a 12mo, 23 pp. The Considerations occupy nine pages. The facsimile of the first page and the copy were obtained through the courtesy of the Boston Athenaeum.] (") Some Additional Considerations Addressed unto the Worshipful ELISHA HUTCHINSON, Esq. By a Gentleman that had not seen the foregoing Letter. Sir, 1. TJ' is manifest, the Country is plunged into X Circumstances that require heavy Taxes to preserve us from ruines, that would be thousands of thousands of Pounds heavier than our most heavy Taxes ; without great Charges it is impossible to pay the just wages of them that have bin in the Pubhck Service ; to defraud whom would not only be an Im'prudence^ which must in a little time leave us without all defence, but also an Injustice that would cry in the Ears of the Lord of Hosts. Be- sides there is a necessity of great Uxj^ences to For- tifie our selves against the Inrodes of Enemies, we at this day have ground to expect, and ought to be prepared for. 2. For any to Grumble at the Raising needful Taxes to defray our publick charges, [12] is a piece of unreasonable and abominable Baseness ; and it is a 'scandal to New-England that ever it should be found among us. What would these Complainers 24 CURRENCY FOR THE Have ? would they have no Puhlick Charges at all det'iayd ? This would be immediately not only to dissolve all Govcrninent but all Society. Or would they have such Publick Charg-es born by voluntary Contribution of the Inhabitants : This would not do the Tenth j^cirt of what must bee done to prevent our perishing ; & besides, it would lay the burden upon those that are the most WiUimj, but not the most able to Provide for the common Safety. More- over, it is to be remembered, that nothing is levied on this People but by their oivn Consent in a Gen- eral Assembly. And they deserve not the name of English-men, that are not more ready, and count it not more easie, to part with a jioimcl in this way, than a penny in the former Arbitrary Mode. Or is it from Covetonsness ? a sin which too much prevails in '^ew-England : The Scripture calls it Idolatry ; and we may also call it the worst ill Hushandry, it witholds that from our necessary defence, that will add to an Enemies triumi^h in our shameful misery ; as Constantinople, who refusing to pay the charge of a Watch on their Walls, were themselves and their wealth made a prey to the Turks. If any plead we [J 3] have no Government, and so have no power to raise mo7iy ; pray, let them call to mind, that all the Subsidies now raised in England are by an Assembly chosen by Corpora- tions no otherwise restored than ours. And is it indeed any thing less than a Treason against the Crown of England, for any to intimate, that we have no Government for, and so, no Protection f n /#/'^ gojns Additional Goniiderations Addreflcd unco the V/oilhipful ,£ LISH^ HVTCHINSQA\ -.Erq, '. .By a Gentleman that bnd net Tec n the :fore£oing Lct:er> I .;i. 1'/^ is manifen-, the Co^intry isi^iungcd I mKo Circe- niltp.r.ces ch?.L rtquirc hetry jr. (.he Ears of wtzLcriof Ht\(ls. Bc- ^!:!''s ihsre J-5 a re-' cl:;:.y cf great Erc^mrs j^fOF^rL!fi^ cur llivcs crarnli: the Inrcdes ff Erc(n;e5, we r-c rhh rir.y have grourrd to •2'^pci^, sad cni?y.L to b: prep.?refi f^r. a. Far finy C3 c7^7/«i''e iic ibc Uaif^rg -ecdfulTaiiicp tc4cwciy our .piit'ick'Chargcs, is IVIASSACHUSETTS BAY 25 from, that Crown ? Or, looks it not very sincerely, for those persons, whose Consciences never troubled them, when Taxes were Treasonably Levied, mth- out any Assembly of the People, now to pretend Conscience for not paying of those which the 7?ody of the People in an Assembly have judg'd necessary to support their Majesties Interest in these Terri- tories. 3. All the Taxes hitherto raised have bin most advantageously Employed. Our Present Rulers, have no personal benefit by them ; They spend their time and care, and are at cost too, for the Common Weal, and would count themselves well paid for all, in the Contentment, of the people. The great com- plaint is. That our ventursome Expedition to Can- ada hath run us into Debt. It should be Considered that the voice of the I'^eoj^le every where called for it. Our Neighbours in the West made us believe they would lay all the mischief that should be done by the French at our doors, if we did [14] not attempt it : such Imjwrtimities with assurances of aid by Land did first engage us and oblige us. Had the West not failed us wee had certainly bin Masters of Canada and then our Expedition had been as much ExtolVd as now it is Despis'd I It was not thing too big for us, for notwithstanding the failure in the West, and the delays of some among our selves, till the Season was too far spent for any Great Tiling to be done ; add also the scantness of our Ammunition, with the smalness of our Army yet the missing of Queheck is hardly accountable 26 CURRENCY FOR THE to rational Satisfaction. Besides, the French had Assaulted us by Land before ever we visited them by Sea ; and that short visit we made them, we are assured has preferr'd our Country from further As- saults of theirs upon us Now is it rational to think that we can ever have a settled peace while Canada is in French hands ; if there should be a Peace between the two crowns, we may fear they may, as they have boasted they will by setting their Dogs (the Indians) upon us to make America too hot for us. Hence also the reducing of it unto the Fng- lish Empire, was a Design wherein was manifest as the desire of our own future Welfare, so of doing the greatest Service to the Crown of England, The Design seemed to be as weU laid, as any that was [J 5] undertaken in these parts of the World; and it had been dangerous to have delayed it unto another year ; for had they not gone with the Fleet to Can- ada, a thousand Boss-Loj^ers had been upon our Country Towns and laid them waste : Prayers and Eojyes for the Good Issue of that Expedition, met not with a total Disappointment ; nor do we yet see the lohole Issue; the business is not over yet. If Heaven hath frowned on us, it calls us to Bewayl our sin, and not Increase it by denying the payment of Debts this way contracted, or spending our fury on any that were active in this Affair. Tliat were to carry it not like Englishmen, much less like Christians, but more like Turks who destroy their best Counsellors for the wisest Counsels, where they do not Succeed, Let men beware they do not pro- MASSACHUSETTS BAY 27 voke God to make these Canady Enemies as fiery Seiyents to stiug Murmurers at and Despisers of Divine Providence. 4. Upon the Difficulties and Necessities which the Country hath been brought into, a better way could not well be thought upon, than the BILLS of CREDIT now passing (or that should be so) among us. Silver we have not enough in the Country to do which must he done, more being usually Ex- ported than is I^nported. And why may we not do as well without it, as other Plantations of Ainerica ? What is the use [16] of Coyned Silver 1 but to furniss a man with Credit, that he may obtain from his Neighbours those Commodities, which he hath occasion for ? The Country in the General Court, have Recognized or Acknowledged, a Debt of so many thousand pounds unto them that have been the Servants of the Publick. The Credit conveyed by these Bills now Circidates from one hand to an- other as mens dealings are, until the Puhlick Taxes call for it. It is then brought in to the Treasurers hands, from which it goes not out again. Now the Conveniences which the Servants of the Publick, have had by them, have honestly paid the Countries Debts ; and what could coyned Silver have done more ? Hence it follows, that for any to Squeese, the first Receivers of these Bills, by forcing them to abate of their just value ; and then for them- selves to bring these Bills to the Publick Treasury, where they are better than ready Silver, is a crying Opresion. When any persons pay their Rates to •28 CURRENCY FOR THE the Constables in these Bills, they do in a manner say Thei/ took no indirect Advantage to get them cheaj)cr than the// are of Credit for. If the Gov- ernment can find ont any that have done otherwise, they onglit to advance the Rates of such people to procure a Reparation to them that have been wronged ; It will speak ill for New-England, that [J 7] poor Soldiers and Seamen should be cheated by any of the Inhabitants, and no liestraint put upon them, no Redress required where it may be done. 5. It is strange to think that New-Englanders, who dwell in such a keen air, should not have sharp- ness enough to perceive the prudence, justice and universal benefit, of paying and saving publick Charges, by these Bills of Credit. When Canada shall be better known to us, we shall find. It is a common thing for the Government at Quebeck to pay their men in such ways, & the Inhabitants there are not so dishonest as to cheat the needy persons to whom the Bills were first given, of half the worth of them ; yea, there are no men of busi" ness through the world, who do not use as well as knoio the way of dealing by Bills of Credit : How many Credible Merchants are there, whose Bills do Pass as ready mony, with hundreds of Peojile with whom they have had no immediate Concernment? And shall not the Government of this Colony, have much Credit with a people that choose all, and make part of it ? Besides, no man that deals but for te7i Pounds, will refuse to grant, that Discount MASSACHUSETTS BAY 29 m Accounts Currant is good Payment. All these Bills enable people to Discount with the Treasurer at last ; therefore it is but fair and just they should have a General Circulation [J 8] 6. The more sensible part of mankind have thought Banks of Credit on many Accounts pre- ferable to silver in their Pockets ; it is so in Venice, Paris, Leghorn & Amsterdam, and other such trading places. We shall find men who have had store of mony, have carried it into Banks, from whence they have taken only Bills of Credit, with which they have managed all their businesses, Bills being less Troublesome & Cumbersome, then Silver would be ; and more Safe. What hapned at Ven- ice is very memorable : That State had occasion for Two Millions of Ducats, accordingly monys were brought into the Bank, and Bills given out for the same value ; such was the usefulness of these Bills that they would not afterwards be parted with for mony ; and the Government was forced unto Con- trivances, to limit the value of them. If we as well understood our interest, these Bills would in a little time be so valuable, that men would Cheerfully give Silver, to purchase them at their full Credit. 'Tis true ours are founded on the acknowledgement which the Country hath made of their being so much in Debt, and their Pesolution of raising what is owing. Now suppose, that Fund, be never so Tottering, it is a sufficient bottom for those few Bills which there hath yet bin order for : besides, these have some advantages which Stampt Silver 30 CURRENCY FOR THE will never have; They are [J 9] so well Contrived, that it is harder to Counterfeit any of them, then to Counterfeit any Coyn in the World. And though they are more Portable then Coyn, yet they will not be Exjmrted out of the Land ; nor will they be hoarded up, but Inspire our whole trade with such a vigor as hitherto hath not been seen. All men must own, that till we can light on something Equivalent to Coyn, that may B,un amongst us in such a quantity as may agree with our AfPayrs, and yet not Bleed away in vast summ's by every Vessel that goes to forreign parts, we shall always have a Consumption upon us, In short, if the way of dealing with these Bills, were more improved and refined, it were easie to propose a certain method by which this poor Country might in one half years time be Enriched above One Hundred Thousand Pound : yea, we might at any time Command halfe that Summe without the Tenth Part of that vexa- tion that now every Country Rate occasions. And let it be considered, whether they who do decry our Bills of Credit, do sufficiently weigh the desperate circumstances of the Country. We are surrounded with Adversaries : if we cannot find store of men to Expose themselves for us at this time, no man in his wits, can think the Country can stand : these Men must have mony to reward and support them in their Services, or [20] they can do no more : but Silver we say we have not ; Credit we may have, and it will do as well, if by this Credit we permit our Friends to Command the same useful things as IHASSACHUSETTS BAY 31 if they liad ready Silver in their hands. If the French should Prevail, some men would part with Thousands and have no Bills of Credit for it ; to make ours passable, is the most probable visible means to prevent it. Hence to do any thing- to render those Bills Contemptible and Unjjassahle, is in Effect to leave the Country without all man- ner of Defence, against any that would prey upon us ; which is a Moral Madness we should upon no Terms render our selves guilty of : Whereas if these Bills of Credit might pass with full Credit among us, we might with Gods Blessing, be able to En- counter greater Difficulties than we have yet met withal. It is not worth while to take notice of the foolish Flout of some, in the Name they put upon these Bills, calling them Paper-mony ; when all know that a Paper signed and sealed may be worth many Pounds of Silver. And why may not Paper- mony be as good as Tohacco-mony , Potato-mony and Sugar-inony ? yea, do not our Brethren at Con- necticut find, Corn-mony will do then- business for them All the Difference is, that some English- People in America know how to make a Bargain with what they Have^ for what they Have not\ which [21] it is time for New-England to Learn. 7. It is time for all people to examine, what is that which clogs the passing of our Bills. It is the debasing of them, so that tioenty shillings in a Bill can scarce find Credit for fourteen or fifteen shil- lings of stamped silver : But wherein is the Origi- nal of this ? Is it in the Merchant or the Trader ? 32 CURRENCY FOR THE surely they Nvho have lent the Country some Thou- sands of Pounds, much of it in ready silver, and all of it without Interest, or other Gains (that an un- thankful Neighbour hood have reported of them and reproached them with) and have taken their whole Repayment in Bills of Credit, they should be will- ing to keep up the Credit of these Bills. Is it in the Husbandman ? one would think they who find it so hard to buy Silver, , should be willing with their Provisions to buy Credit, that may be as good (and in some cases better) to them than ready Cash. It remains then that all should joyn to mend this great error. And why may not Boston begin? whereever were the first fault, it seems, possible now for Boston to Correct the whole. It is supposed the Government will be resolute in Raising what hath been granted by the Country this year, for the Pub- lick Pates. Many Proposals have been made unto the Government, for estabhshing the Credit of our Bills. In my opinion, they need only [22] to do this; Let the Publick Pates be vigerously Raised. These Rates will in one years time fetch back all the Bills into the Treasurery, where they will be can- celled. The people will find it their Advantage then (common sense will teach them) to furnish them- selves with these Bills ; tho' they give ready Silver for them, they will find they thereby save a Shilling in a Pound. If but a competent number of men, who Peal much, would now give your selves the Trouble of Meeting, to Debate, Agree, Conclude, and Engage upon giving adjust Peputation to our MASSACHUSETTS BAY 33 Bills, The whole Country must and will joyn with them in it. And if they will further give them- selves the Trouble of Publishing to the Country, what may Rectifie some common mistakes, and how willing they themselves are to 2^(iy and also to take Bills at a due price, doubtless it would much pro- move the Cure of this Distemper among us. Sir, Toil will candidly accept of these Thoughts, from one who counts and loves New-England as his Country, tho' he was not Born and Bred in it. The Violations of Conscience as well as Policy among us in the Things I have Discoursed of, have made me count it my Duty thus to answer your Desire, of seeing some thoughts upon the Sub- ject [23] we have now had before us. You see how much a Desire of yours is a Command, on, Sir, Your Servant, &c. FINIS Boston, Printed by Benjamin Harris, and John Allen : And are to be Sold at the Loiidon- Coffee- House. 1691. [These "Additional Considerations" fill pages 11-23 in a 12mo pamphlet in the Athenaeum, 23 pages in length, the first 9 pages in which are occupied with " Some Considerations on the Bills of Credit &c." The authorship of " Some Additional Considerations &c." is attributed by the late J. Hammond Trumbull, in the Council Report of the American Antiquarian 34 CURRENCY FOR THE MASSACHUSETTS BAY Society, October, 1884, to Captain Jolui Blackwell. The im- print, at the ciul, is " Boston, Printed by Benjamin Harris, and John AUon : And are to be Sold at the London-Coffee-House. 1691." The facsimile of page 11 was obtained through the courtesy of tlie Boston Athenaeum ; as weU as the copy of pages 11-16 inclusive. The copy of pages 17-23 inclusive was obtained through the courtesy of the Watkinson Library, Hartford.] A MODEL For Erecting a Banfe of Creliit; W ITH A DISCOURSE In Explanation thereof. Adapted to the Use of any Trading Countrey, where there is a Scarcity of MONEYS: More Especially for His Majesties Plantations in AME R I C A. Quo Communius eo Melius. LONDON: Printed in the Year, 1688. Reprinted at BOSTON m New-England^ in the Year, 1714. 36 CURRENCY FOR THE The Preface to the READER. THE difficulties, which the Trade of this Pro- vince labours under, by reason of the Scarcity of Money, having rendred it necessary that some Expedient be found out to supptly that Deficiency : A Scheme of a Bank of Credit founded upon a Land Security, has been accordingly projected; and 10 ill be humbly offered to the Consideration of the General Assembly, at their next Sessio7i. Now, in as much as things of this Nature (tho* recommended in Europe, by long JExperioice of their general Usefulness and Benefit, to the Places where they are Established) yet may be here in hazard of not meeting with that Regard and Encouragement they deserve, for want of a due Information concerning them : And there having been many Years since Printed in London, a Pro- jection of much the same Nature with that pre- pared here ; [thd' not so Beneficial to the Publick, or on so Solid a Foundation,) yet setting forth in a Plain and Familiar way, not only the Nature, but the Feazibleness and Utility of such a Fund of Credit ; it was judg\l Convenient to Re-print the same here, that so all Persons might have an Opportunity of gaining an Insight into it : It being rationally Concluded, That such a Bank being made to appear to be of Necessity to us in our present Circumstances, and of great and general Benefit ; there is no Publick-sp)irited Person but For Hrcding a anfe of CreWt ; t^/fOv I T H A ^^jy . ' D J S C O U R S E In Explanation thereof. Adapted to the Ufc of any Trading Countrey, where there is a Scarcicy ofMON E YS; ■ More Elpccially for His Majeftie,- 'rirminiidr^^ ^ ^ ,-, jn A M E K 1 C A- '■ ' /^ ' ' ^^ "^^^^jCho Ccrr.munius ce Me/ittr. 10 NDO N: Prmted in the Year,- 'r <) B'Sr Heprinced ac BOSTON m New- Jt.fi^^tio- ' th? Year/ 1714,/ MASSACHUSETTS BAY 37 will set to his helping Handy to Promote the Es- tablishment of the same. Gaston, Feb. 26. 171t: [J] A MODEL for Erecting a Bank of Credit Lum- bard and Exchange of Moneys, Founded on Lands, Goods, and Merchandizes : To be undertaken and managed by Persons of good Reputation, Prudence and Estates, in a voluntary Partnershii^, as other Merchantly Affairs : Adapted for the Use of any Countrey, or Trading part, where there is a Scarcity of Moneys; and, in want thereof, they are con- strained to Truck, or Barter by Commodities, &c. wherein is Discoursed, 1. Some things hy way of Premisey touching Banks in General. 2. The Definition of such a Bank. 3. The Constitution. 4. The necessary Rules to he observed. 5. The 2^(^^ticidar Advantages thereof to those that shall voluntarily deal with such a Part- nership. 6. Some of the most material and pertinent Que- ries and Objections thereto, Resolved and An- sioered. 7. The Conclusion by way of Animadversion^ upon the whole : Briefly. 38S16*?' 38 CURRENCY FOR THE Of the First, viz. Some things j^f^f^'^sed for Introduction, touching Banks in general. MOney, whether Gold or Silver, is but a measure of the value of other things ; yet hath, for a long Succession of Ages (espe- cially in the Civilized and Trading part of [2] the World) obtained to be the usual, and best known means of Interchange. This measure and way of Interchange, was origi- nally occasioned by the experimented inconveniences of common Barter ; in which way, unless both the Parties dealing, have Hke occasion, reciprocally, of each others Commodities, the less necessitous Over- reaches the greater, by imposing the price of both, to his own advantage, and the others detriment, which is not equal ; nor can there be Equality where there is no common Standard between them. But, whether the Mines fail, or Men have not been so fore-seeing and industrious to bring in, to most Couutreys, a sufficiency of Money or Bullion, where- with to manage their increasing Trades, or, that Traders for want of other Returns, have been neces- sitated, for Balance of the Surcharge of Goods im- ported, to remit the Coyns of some Countreys into others : Or, for other Causes (not necessary on this occasion to be further inquired into) tis now so hard to come by, in some places, for carrying on of Trade, to answer the vastness of Mens attempts, and aims of increase in Merchandize, as that its found, in many Countreys, insufficient in this Age of the World: MASSACHUSETTS BAY 39 And that hath put divers Persons and Countreys, upon contrivances how to supply that Deficiency, by other Mediums ; some of which have happily pitch'd upon that of Banks, Lumbards, and Exchange of Moneys by Bills, which have thriven with them. [3] The two former of these, viz. Banks and Lumbards, have been set on foot in divers Trading Countreys, by their respective PubHck Undertak- ings, and have succeeded to their abundant Inrich- ing. Perhaps others have thought, that would have occasion'd the overflowing of Moneys amongst them : Especially if they raised the Values of Gold & Silver above the common Standard ; but as they have been mistaken, or their Surfeit of Trade hath obscured the visibility of it ; and protracted more rational Considerations of Redressing, till it hath proved al- most Fatal, to the impoverishing of their Countreys : So the other have really experimented, that their Banks have been, as well with other Countries, as amongst themselves, of greater Value than the Spe- cies of Gold and Silver : And yet, such Places drain away the said Species from the other, who under those mistaken apprehensions have Courted it, as the only real good thing for a Countrey. The Third, viz. that of Exchange of Moneys, hath been for the most part managed by the respective Merchants of all places ; who in their particular Dealings and Correspondences (fore-laying Advan- tages to themselves thereby) have unaccountably controll'd it, and vary it often, in each Annual Revolution. 40 CURRENCY FOR THE 'Tis not to be doubted, but that all Three of these may be accommodated & improved, to the Publiek Advantage of any Countrey : Especially, if managed in Partnership by Private Hands, being persons of known Integrity, Prudence and [4] Es- tates: subjecting the annual Profits accruing thereby to the answering the Injury, damage, or loss, by their undertaking. The best Foundation for such an Attempt, is, that of Real and Personal Estates, instead of the Spe- cies of Gold and Silver. For, as a Bank of Moneys is liable to many casualties and hazards ; so, the hoarding up of Moneys in Banks, necessitates the taking out the more BiUs; which is one Malady this Proposed Bank will cure. We shall therefore, at present, begin with, and principally discourse of the two first of these : viz. The Bank of Credit, as it may be rendred suscepti- ble of the Second, niz. The Lumbard, conjunct : ac- counting both the one and the other to be founded as aforesaid, viz. On lands or Real Estates mort- gaged, and staple durable Goods, and Merchandises deposited: such as any Countreys Products and Manufactures will by Art and Industry produce and furnish. Here might be also discours'd, A Lumbard for the Poor, by some called, Mons Pietatis : But that's fitter to be the Handmaid of the other ; for, 'twill be too poor to encourage an undertaking by it self, or for a beginning : Neither will there be any such necessity thereof, when this Bank is settled ; f oras- MASSACHUSETTS BAY 41 much as this will imploy most of those, who are usually maintained in Idleness, if they will betake themselves to Industry, at such moderate wages as would enable them to live comfortably, without ex- posing their Imployers to like Poverty with them- selves. [5] And besides, this Bank of Credit and Lumbard, when understood, and received in any Countrey with general Approbation, will in due time render that, as also the Third, viz. that of the Ex- change of Moneys by Bills, the more intelHgible, and as useful. Of the second Particular, viz. The definition of such a Bank. A Considerable number of Persons, some of each Rank, Trade, Calling and Condition, especially m the principal Place or Places of Trading m any Coun- trey, Agree voluntarily to Receive as ready Moneys, of and from each other, and any Persons in their ordinary dealings, Bank-biUs of Credit, Signed by several Persons of good Repute, joyned together in a Partnership, given forth on Lands of good Title mortgaged, and staple unperishing Goods and Mer- chandizes, deposited in fitting places to be appointed by the Partnership for that purpose ; to the value of about one half, or two thirds of such respective Mortgages and Deposits : Which said Bills, thro' their experimented usefulness, become diffused by mutual consent ; and passing from one hand to an- other, in a kind of Circulation, and under reputation of so certain a Fund, have at least equal Advantages 42 CURRENCY FOR THE with the Current Money or Coyn of any Countrey, attending them, to all who become satisfied to deal with them. Q. But it may be said by some, This is a [6] very brief Account, and requu-es further Explana- tion. We are yet Sti-angers to the Nature, and requisite Constitution of a Bank of Credit, and what hes on us to do, in order to our being made partakers of any benefits or advantages thereby, to such as shall voluntarily comply therewith ; nor do we see clearly our Security in so doing, nor upon what terms. Pray inform us of these things, so far as we may be safely guided into the way, and unto the end of it. Also, in case this Bank should ter- minate, how we shall be dealt withal, in the closing up of Accompts, so as may be without damage, either to the Bank, or to our Selves. We doubt not but you have as well Considered the End as the Beginning. Tho' if it prove useful, we can see no cause why a thing of so great Advantages as are suggested, should procure any persons Ill-will, or Weariness of it. And we are also satisfied, that an AfPair of this nature, wherein the Persons and Estates of so many shall be involved (as it seems probable will be where it once gets footing) cannot suddenly be knock'd off, but with inconvenience. Answ. The clearing these Doubts you'l find in the particulars following. Therefore now, MASSACHUSETTS BAY 43 Of the third Particular, viz. The Constitution of this Bank. IT is proposed that there be One and Twenty per- sons (or less) in the Partnership of this Bank : whereof Seven to be called Principal Ma-ll'] na- gers : Who, or any Three or more of them may have the power of managing and governing the whole affair, according to the Constitution & Rules thereof ; and Fourteen Deputies to be imployed by them as Accomptants, Surveyors, Appraisers, Store- keepers, &c. All of them to be persons of good & general Reputation, for Integrity, Prudence and Estates : But, forasmuch as, at the first entrance upon such an affair, it may not be needful to ingage so many ; that any Seven of them (more or less) may be conceived sufficient to begin the same ; and manage it, until, by the coming on of Business, it shall be judged necessary & incouraging, to settle the Full, or some greater Number of them. These may aU be ingaged by Articles of Agreement, & Covenants in Partnership, to attend thereon, and be responsible for their doings, according to such Constitution and Rules in that behalf. These are to receive all Proposals from any per- sons touching their having such Credit thereout as they shall desire upon their said Estates of Lands or Goods respectively ; and to contract & agree with them therein, at such Values, & for such Time as they shall judge the Security proposed of either kind will admit, and to draw up, and perfect such 44 CURRENCY FOR THE Bank-bills, Bills of Sale, Mortgages, Grants & De- fezances thereof, as Lands or Goods respectively shall require ; and perfect the Counterparts thereof, to the Mortgagers and Depositors. They are also to cause the said Mortgages & [8] Deposits to be laid up and stored, respectively, in as safe and convenient Rooms, and. Warehouses, &c. as shall be without exception, to j)revent damage of "Weather, Robbery, Fire, Water, or Vermin of any kind, whereby they may be impaired, or dampnified, and all this, under the trust and custody of such numbers of the said Partners, as no opportunity can be taken to impair or lessen the Security, unless they should all agree therein ; which cannot reason- ably be imagined being such as are proposed. But, for the better Security thereof, there may be con- tinual Watching on all such places ; and it will be the Interest of all persons, any way concerned in the affairs & profits of such a Bank, to be careful to prevent, and to give Advertisement of any at- tempt made to the impairing & prejudicing thereof, for that their livelihood and dependences will much consist in their preserving it in the greatest Repute ; which upon the least violation, by those who are ingaged in the management and trust thereof, will be utterly lost, and the Bank fall to the Ground. These Partners aforesaid, must also enter into and oblige themselves by Covenants to, and with other Persons to be called Assessors of the Bank, and Conservators of the Constitution, Rules and Instructions to be observed in the management MASSACHUSETTS BAY 45 thereof, for their dihgence and faithfulness, in the Discharge and Execution of their respective trusts, according to the said Constitution : and inviolably to observe the same, and all the Rules thereof. [9] The said Assessors have also the Oversight and Control] of the whole Affair : To see the same be so managed : and to that end are daily to inspect the Management thereof ; and that the said Rules be duly observed on both parts, viz. as well on the part of the persons deaHug with them, as of the Managers themselves, in every branch of the Bank, that all be done with Justice and Impartiality be- tween them ; to settle differences, in case any hap- pen ; and in the absence of the Managers, may supply that defect, by their Personal transacting the same things, or allowing others as their Deputies. Also, Each of the said Partners must deposit moneys and other Estate in the Bank as a Stock or Fund, of their own ; which be a further Security and Obligation upon them, for tbeir upright dealings ; For thereby every of themselves become Personally Interested, and concerned to be carefid in every thing, that they keep the Rides ; and all Persons concerned in the yearly Profits thereof are liable, according to the Constitution, to answer the dam- ages, as far as their respective shares thereof extend. Of the fourth Particular, viz. The necessary Rules to he observed in this Bank. 1. ^N primis, That the Partners in the Manage- ment of the affairs of the said Bank do sit I 46 CURRENCY FOR THE in some coiiveuieut Place, of the chief Trading Town of each Countrey, from day to day, and [JO] at such hours as the business & occasions thereof shall re- quire ; to receive Proposals from any persons, touch- ing theii' having such Credit as they shall desire ; and for di'a^ving up and perfecting such Bank-bills, Mortgages, Bills of Sale and Defezances thereof, as Lands or Goods respectively shall require : Also for giving Information and Satisfaction concerning the Security, Benefits and Advantages accruing thereby, to such as shall desire to deal with them therein ; and to take Subscriptions for that purjDose. 2. Item, That whatsoever person shall propose to Mortgage or Deposit any staple Goods or Mer- chandizes, Lands, Tenements or Hereditaments of a clear and good Title, to the said Partnership, may have such & so many Bills deHvered to him as shall amount to about the Value or Sum of one half, or two thirds of the said Estates ; or more or less, ac- cording as his Occasions shall requu'e, and the nature of the Depositors security will admit. Paying for the use of the said Bills, after the rate of Four Pounds ^:)er Cent, per Annum, in like Bills, at the end of every Six Months, for so long time as he and they shall agree for the same. * 3. Item, That if at the Expiration of the Term agreed for, the Mortgager or Depositor shall desire the continuance thereof, for such further time as the Partnership shall judge the nature thereof will ad- mit, the same shall be allowed upon the same Terms ; and if any person shall desire to redeem them sooner MASSACHUSETTS BAY 47 than tlie time agreed on, he shall have liberty so to do, paying only for such [ H ] time as they con- tinue deposited or unredeemed. And shaU be allowed to pay in any even Sums (not being under Ten Pounds) in part thereof, if he shall think fit so to do, to lessen his Debt and Charges. 4. Item, That the Redemption thereof be by Bank Bills of Credit, or such other Deposits as the Partnership shall approve of. But if by Moneys in Specie, that there be an Addition of Forty Shillings more in every Hundred Pounds paid in Money, than in the said Bills : For they desire not the in- grossing of Coyn, or streightning mens Occasions thereby. 5. Item, That if it shall happen that any Pay- ments shall be paid in ready Money, such persons as having any of the said Bills in their hands, which they would have Exchanged to answer their occasions for Money, and shall seasonably desire the same, shall be accommodated therewith, upon the delivery up of Bills to such Value. 6. Item, That there be One or more persons allowed by the Partnership, in the nature of Mer- chant-brokers, to Correspond between the persons who have, & who want Moneys, & Bills respectively, to assist their respective Occasions. 7. Item, That if any person shall not Redeem his Pledge, or Pay his Interest at the respective times agreed on (being of Goods or Personal Estate, the continuance whereof may be hazardous) the Partner- ship, giving Notice thereof, may Sell the same at the 48 CURRENCY FOR THE best Rates they can get, either in ready Money, or Bank-bills, rendring the overplus to the Depositor. [J 2] 8. Item, That if any Person be Rob'd of, or lose any Bill or Bills, by accidents of Fire, Water or otherwise ; he may have them renewed, if he forthwith apply to the Partnership, and make a voluntary Oath thereof, before a Magistrate, ex- pressing the Number, Value and Date of each Bill or Bills ; and secui-ing the Partnership against all after demands for the same bills : It appearing by the Bank-books, that such Bill or Bills were issued thereout, and have not been returned. 9. Item, That all Bank Bills of Credit be Signed by two or more of the said Partners, (whereof one to be a principal Manager) who are thereby held, to oblige themselves, and all and every their Partners of the said Bank, to accept the same for so much Currant Moneys as shall be in them respectively mentioned, in Payment, for Redemption or Purchase of any Estate in the said Bank, according to the Rules thereof : and that all such Bills be duly entred, in Books to be kept for that purpose, and the In- dented Goimter-part thereof filed, before the same be issued. 10. Item, That all Goods deposited, be laid up and stored in such safe and convenient Rooms, Ware-houses or Cellars, Yards or Docks respectively ; for preventing damage of Weather, Robbery, Im- bezlement. Fire, Water, or Vermin of any kind, whereby they may be impaired, and be under such custody & continual care, as will probably render MASSACHUSETTS BAY 49 them more safe than in any Persons particular Cus- tody, or Ware-house. 11. Item, That the Charge of Ware-house room [13] be reasonable, with respect to the bulkuiess or value of the Deposit ; and be agreed upon between the Parties to, and inserted in, each Contract. In which respect it will be easier to many, than to hire Ware-houses of their own. 12. Item, That all Persons having any Deposits in Bank-ware-houses, &c., may have liberty, at sea- sonable hours, and in the presence of known Per- sons, to be intrusted for that purpose, to view their Goods, that they be not imbezled, or dampnified, and to provide against the same : Also to shew them to their Chapmen ; and shall be assisted therein by the Romagers or Porters iuiployed by the Partnership. 13. Itein, That in case the Creditors of this Bank shall agree to desire, and accordingly Declare in Writing, That there he a Determinatio7i jjut thei^eto : Or if on any other account whatsoever, the Determi- nation thereof shall be judged necessary, by the Pro- posers and Managers of this Bank, and so declared in Writing (which cannot be without allowance and ascertaining of a reasonable Time betwixt the said Creditors and Partnership for closing up the same, and the Accompts thereof, so as may be without damage to any or either of them :) That, as no Per- son is or shall be compelled to accept Bank-bills of Credit, unless he shall voluntarily agree so to do, and for no longer time, nor otherwise than he shall so consent : So, no man paying his prcemiwn and 50 CURRENCY FOR THE charges aforesaid, for the Credit he hath, shall be eompell'd to Redeem his Pledge, being of Personal Estate, [ J4] sooner than the time contracted for, and the nature of the Deposit shall require : And to the end the Mortgager of Lands, of unquestionable good Title, may not be distressed, to his undoing, in case he should, by reason of such Declaration, be sud- denly call'd upon to Redeem the same, (which may be impossible for him to do in some Years, thro' the scarcity of Moneys,) That all and every Mortgager of Lands, in such case, shall or may have & take Six Years Time, from & after such Declaration afore- said, to be allowed unto him, his Heirs and Assigns, for Redemption of his Lands ; he or they paying after the rate of Six Pounds per Cent, per Annum, in ready Moneys, at the end of every Six Months, for the continuance of the Credit he had thereupon, from such Time as the said Declaration shall be per- fected, until he shall Redeem the same : And that the Partners of this Bank shall or may have and take one full Years time more, from the Expiration of the said Six Years, to be allowed unto them, for Selling the said Lands, or such of them as shall not, within the said Six Years, be Redeemed ; whereby they may be inabled to Receive in, and Exchange all Bank- bills then granted forth, into the now current Coyn or Moneys of this Countrey, or other Moneys, being not of more intrinsique Value than what now passes : Or otherwise satifie for the same by such propor- tions of the said remaining Lands or other Effects, as shall be judged to be of equal Value : Paying to MASSACHUSETTS BAY 51 all the Creditors who shall then have any [15] Bills in their hands, after the same rate of Interest for so long time, after Publishing the said Declaration, as the said Bills shall remain in the said Creditors hands Unoccupied ; with Deduction & Allowance only of the Prcemium contracted for, as aforesaid ; and that such Bank-bills, as before such Declaration made, have been given forth, upon the Real or Personal Securities aforementioned which remain in the Possession of the said Bank, may & shall be esteemed, & pass as current Moneys, of the Value of the present Coyn, in all Receipts & Payments whatsoever, during the said Term. 14. Item, That the foregoing Rules be attended and observed by all & singular Persons concerned therein, and who shall propose to deal with, and accept the Bills of Credit issued by the Managers of the said Bank of Credit, Lumbard & Exchange of Moneys proposed to be erected in any Place, and managed by persons in Partnership, as other Mer- chantly affairs. Of the fifth Particular, viz. The Particular Advantages of such Persons as shall volun- tarily deal with the said Partners, in these affairs; which will appear in several In- stances. First Instance. A Country Chapman hath Lands, suppose worth to be sold for 400 /. and being willing to inlarge 52 CURRENCY FOR THE his Trade & Dealings, or make Improvement on his Lamhy as far as his estate mil inuble him. Or having- brought Goods, which he is indebted, & [J 6] cannot otherwise pay for, he Mortgages his Land to the Partnership for 200 /. more or less; and thereupon receives several Bank-bills of Credit, for 200 I. &c. of several Values from Twenty Shil- Vuifjs, and so upwards, to answer his Occasions. With these he buyes such Goods as he pleases, or pays his Debts for what he formerly bought of the Whole-sale Shop-keeper, or Ware-house-keeper, in such Town or Towns of Trade as shall fall into this way of DeaUng ; and, having Bank-bills to deliver for them, which are of better Value by 40 s. in the 100 /. than Moneys, with this Society, as is herein e^onced ; he buyes much Cheaper than he could upon his own Credit, or with Moneys in Specie. The Shop-keeper goes to the Merchant, who thus agrees, and buyes of him other Goods, with the same or other like Bills ; wherein he reaps the same ad- vantage as he gave his Chapman. The Merchant buyes Corn, Beef, Pork, Fish, Hops, Lumber, Pitch, Tarr, Rozin, Skins, Furs, or any other of the Countreys Products or Manufac- tures, of the Husbandman, Grazier, Artificer, or Maker thereof. The Husbandman, &c. If a Farmer of Lands, pays his Rent, and purchases more young Cattel of his Neighbour, for Breed or Fatting. Or, If an Owner of Land, and hath not sufficient Stock to improve it, he also Mortgages his Laud, and has Credit to furnish himself. Or, MASSACHUSETTS BAY 53 If he hath sufficient Stock, and perhaps more than his present Farm can maintain, he hath his eye upon a Neighbouring Farm, or piece of Land [J 7] that would be Sold ; he Mortgages his own Land in the Bank, and hath Credit to buy the other. If then he wants Stock, he may also Mortgage the Farm or piece of Land last purchased ; and have Credit to inable him fully to Improve and Stock both, Whereby he doubles his Yearly advantages, and if he can then content himself to Hve as fru- gally, & be as industrious as before, he may soon compass to pay off his Debt, & redeem his Land. Or, he may continue the Credit he had, and take out more upon the Additional improvement; and thus increase his Purchases and Estates, as long as such an help is afforded. Second Instance. The like may be done for carrying on the open- ing & working in any Mines, Minerals or Quar- reys of Stone, Lead, Tin, Iron, Copper, &c. thus, viz. The Mine & Lands wherein the same is, may be Mortgaged as aforesaid, to supply the Owner thereof with Bills of Credit, for paying his Work- men, in any Sum of Twenty Shillings, or above. As fast as any of these Metals, &c. are wrought fit for Sale, if a Chapman be wanting, the Metal may be brought into the Bank, and the Owner re- ceive Bank-bills to the value of about two thirds thereof, as aforesaid, to enable him to proceed on his Works : And the Metal lying in Bank is there 54 CURRENCY FOR THE readier for a Market than elsewhere, in his own Private-house or Ware-house, at very reasonable rates for lying there, and may with allowance of the owner, be sold in his absence, by the Merchant- broker before mentioned, at such current rates [18] as he shall set, & he become Creditor for so much to be discompted or paid him, whensoever he shall call for it. Third Instance. A "Weaver of Cloth, Serge, or Linen, &c. is im- ployed in any Work-house erected, or to be erected, to carry on those respective Manufactures : Also other Manufacturers, and Artificers, in Rope-mak- ing, Cables, Rigging, Sails, Anchors, or any other Materials for the Fishing-trade, Merchants, or build- ing of Ships, &c. The Owner of such Work-house, or Materials re- spectively, consents to Mortgage the same, for One or Two Hundred Pounds, more or less, in Bank- bills, as the Work shall require, and the Value of the House or the Materials will admit. With these Bills, the Work-master or Overseer, buyes WooU, Worsted, Yarn, Hemp, Flax, Dying- stuffs, Iron, Timber, Lumber, &c. of the Merchant, Ware-house-keeper, Countrey-man, or other Seller ; and finishes 40, 60, or 100, pieces, &c. more or less of any of the said Commodities ; which when wrought up for a Market ; if he want a Chapman, he brings into the Bank Ware-houses, as aforesaid ; or such Yards, Docks, or other Places, as they shall MASSACHUSETTS BAY 55 appoint or agree : Takes up new Credit upon them, and leaves them there to be Sold, at his own rates, as aforesaid. Or, A considerable parcel of Wooll, Cotton, Yarn, Flax, Hemp, Oyl, Dying-stuffs, or other Goods for his use, are offer' d to Sale ; he may pay one third thereof by his Wrought-up-goods Unsold, and bringing these Commodities into the Bank, [J 9] may receive Bills of Credit for paying the other two thirds ; which he may take out, in parcels, as he brings in any new wrought up Goods, or hath occa- sion to use them for working up more ; and the Bank-ware-houses will be to him as Black-well Hall, &c. in London to the Clothiers, to assist his Sale of them without his trouble : For thither will all Mer- chants have incouragement to come, to seek supplies for Transportation, & find Goods always ready. Other Instances might be multiplied, but by these it appears, 1. That the Manufacturer, &c. loses no time in looking out a Chapman. 2. Is always furnished with Credit to buy his Materials at the best hand. 3. The Merchant never trusts, nor Ware-house keeper : Or, if he do, the plenty of Bills expedits his Chapmans Sale, and consequently his Payments. Whereby, 4. He has incouragement & stock presently to look out for more of the same, or other useful Mer- chandizes. 5. Sends forth the said Metals, Clothes, Stuffs, 66 CURRENCY FOR THE Linen, &c. amongst other Merchandizes of the Pro- duct of his Countrey, or Imported. 6. Makes return of BulHon, Moneys, or other useful Goods, which are presently bought off with Bank-biUs. Or, 7. He may store them up in Bank Ware-houses, and receive present Credit, wherewith to send out again. And, 8. Thereby be inabled (at least) to double, or [20] treble his yearly dealings, and receive propor- tionable advantages. This, 1. Increases & quickens Merchandizing & Trade. 2. Promotes Shipping & Navigation. Which, 3. Increases the Publick Duties, and consequently the Revenues. 4. Imploys the Poor in the Minings & Manufac- tures 'forementioned. 5. They get Moneys by these Imployments. 6. That inables them to buy up all necessaries for Cloathing, Victuals, paying of Debts, &c. 7. This helps the Consumption of, as well their own Commodities, as other imported Goods and Merchandizes : for no Man, that hath wherewith to buy, will go naked or be hungry, &c. 8. This helps to civilize the Ruder sort of Peo- ple ; and incourages others to follow their Example in Industry and Civility. 9. Thus aU sorts of Persons become inabled to live handsomly, & out of Debt ; and that prevents multipHcity of Law-suits, & Troubles to the Govern- ment : but none of these advantages may be ex- MASSACHUSETTS BAY 57 pected, out of the small Pittance of Cash, that now is, ever was, or hkely will be in any Countrey, unless assisted in Trade, & inriched by the help this Bank proposes. And so we pass to the Consideration Of the sixth Particular^ viz. The answering some feio of the most material Pertinent Queries, and Objections touching this Bank, viz. Q. 1. f^^An I have Monyes for Bank-bills, V-^ when I have Occasion f [2 J] Answ. 1. 'Tis not propounded to be a Bank of Moneys (which is Hable to inexpressible & unforeseen hazards) but of Credit to be given forth by Bills ; not on Moneys advanced, as in other Banks ; but (on Lands or Goods, as aforesaid,) to supply such as cannot get Moneys (by reason of its scarcity) with whatsoever may be had for Moneys. Yet, Answ. 2. As oft as any persons Redeem their Lands, or Goods, they must do it in Bank-bills, or with Moneys. If in ready Moneys, the Partnership may exchange Bills therewith, to such as desire it ; as is afore provided by the Rules. Answ. 3. However, this Bank is no occasion of streightning men that would have Moneys ; but leaves them free ; and in this case, the Merchant- brokers of the Bank will be helpful, between those who have and who want Moneys, and Bills respec- tively ; as is likewise aforementioned in the said Rules. But, 58 CURRENCY FOR THE Aiisto. 4. If it be made to appear to you, that others who have Moneys, will be willing to change your Bank-bills into those Species of Gold & Silver, & thank you for ottering them the occasion (tho' the Bank Partnership do it not) you'l have no cause to dechne the other advantages proposed : Especially if you may both be gainers by the Exchange. Now, if I ow'd you 500 /. to be paid in Silver, which I could not do, but should propose to pay you in Gold, at the intrinsique Coyn'd Value, which if you part with again will yield you Five Pound profit, or more : Would you then refuse Gold ? [22~\ Obj. But how will you ajjply this, to make it Credible f Sol. Thus, Whoever hath any Payment to make in Bank, which (in probabihty if such Bank take effect in any Countrey) will be every Man that deals in above Twenty Shillings at a time) will find, that we must pay Forty Shillings more, in every Hun- dred Pounds of ready Money, than in Bank-bills of Credit ; as|:>er the forementioned Rules of the Bank) which is about Five-pence benefit to the Exchanger, in every 20. s. No doubt then of ha\4ng Moneys (by a Httle inquiry of the Merchant-broker) at the Value contained in the Bills, of all such as must redeem their Mortgages, and Deposits. But, Bills, wherever Banks have been erected (tho' Money Banks) have always been of better Value than Moneys in Specie. Whereof three Reasons may be given. (1.) For the ease of Compting and Carriage; MASSACHUSETTS BAY 59 and preventing damage to the Receiver, by Counter- feit, Clip'd, Light or Base Coyn : (Which is obvious to all.) (2.) For safety in Travelling, Laying up, &c. As visible as the other. (3.) For the advantage that is to be made by the Exchange, on the account of such Conveniences. Whereof take two Examples, viz. (1.) The Bank-bills of Holland are ordinarily better than Moneys, by at least Three Pounds per Cent. And, (2.) Those in Venice, by Twenty Pounds per Cent, and Laws made there to keep them from rising [23] higher ; for they were once at 28.^ per Cent. and not without some difficulty Reduced to Twenty ; so that each Bill of 100 I. is now Current at 120./. Obj. But how is that Possible or Credible f Sol. There is this account rendred of it (which has confirmation by many other Instances that might be given, concerning the current Prices of many Commodities, which have not so much of intrinsique value in them,) viz. The State of Venice pro- pounded the Erecting a Bank to consist of Two Millions of Duckets : Accordingly Moneys were brought in, Bills given out for the same Value ; and a stop put to the receiving, or giving out any more of either. The Usefulness of these Bills was suddenly found to be Buch in the practice and imployment of them, upon the three forementioned Accounts, that every Man, at one time or other, found his Affairs re- GO CURRENCY FOR THE quired them : So, that at iBrst, such Bills would not be parted with for Money, under Ten Shillings per Hundred Pounds ; And no sooner was that be- come the Current Rate, but they were successively raised by Ten Shillings at a time, till they came to be in every ones Estimation, 28J ^;er Cent, better than Moneys in Specie ; and so pass'd accordingly. Whereupon, The State of Venice enacted several Laws against their passing so high : which failing to accomplish what was required, at length they conceived it ne- cessary, in order to the bringing down the Price, to propose the giving forth Bills for Three Hundred Thousand Duckets more : By which means they [24] brought it back to Twenty Pounds per Gent. (which pleased the People) and there fixt it, as to its rising higher afterwards, by a severe Law ; since when, it stands so to this Day : And this is no more than what is familiar in the Price of other things, viz. Diamonds, Rubies, Pearls, Horses, Pic- tures, &c. which have their Estimation from the various Pleasures and Fancies of Men, &c. And, if it be demanded, what induced that State to allow it so high ? The Answer is easie, viz. The State of Venice had made use of the Moneys deposited, in their Publick Occasions (where observe the hazard of a Money Bank) and, having promised for Satisfaction of Creditors, to raise the Hke Sum, if they should have occasion for it, reap this advantage, of their Peoples high Opinion of Bills, that, they are thereby MASSACHUSETTS BAY 61 assured, that never, will any Creditor come to ask them 100 /. for a BUI of 100 /. when he may have 120 I. from any other hand. A notable way to pay a vast Debt. But, by means hereof, the Creditor has no other Fund or Security but the States Word : For, there is not one Ducket for them in Bank. Q. 2. My Lands or Goods are already Mort- gaged for Moneys, at a higher Rate of Interest ; and the Mortgagee will not take Bills. Can such a Bank help me f Ans. There may be Persons, of whom you may be informed at the Bank, who will advdse & assist you therein : If there be Moneys in the Countrey to be had. Q. 3. / hane neither Lands nor Goods, hut a Trade, by [25] which I could live comfortably if I had a small Stock ; and I could afford to give a greater Interest, and have Friends that woidd help me too, upon my own Bond : But they have not 3Ioneys. Which way shall I be helpi'd ? Ans. If your Friends have Lands or goods, they may have these Bank-bills of Credit, at Four Pounds per Cent, per Annum, to Lend you at such Rates as you can agree : Whereby they also may be gainers, and have incouragement to help you. Much more might be said upon this Subject, but these seem to be sufficient, for incouraging an attempt : And, the experiments of the things sug- gested will give such clear Demonstrations of the Usefulness, Advantage, Necessity & Security of such Banks, in most places, beyond all others that 62 CURRENCY FOR THE have been hitherto put in practice, as those who are not so prompt to receive things into then* under- stancUnos by the Notions of them, or are prejudiced by mistaken apprehensions about them, & thence raise many impertinent Objections (not worth scrib- ling) may be presumed will follow others Examples, in well-doing, when those are observed to thrive who o-o before therein. We shall therefore, for the Conclusion, which is the last Particular mentioned, to be Dis- coursed, Sum up all, in this general Assertion, viz. THat there will arise many more Convienences & Advantages, by this Bank, to such Countreys where they shall be erected, than have been enumer- ated, in the several foregoing instances; or, well, can be. [26] 1. By this, the Trade & Wealth of any Country is establish'd upon its own Foundation ; and upon a Medium or Balance arising within it self, mz.\ The Lands & Products of such Countrey, & not upon the Importation of Gold or Silver ; or the Scarcity or Plenty of them, or, of any thing else Imported from Foreign Nations, which may be mth-held, prohibited, or enhansed, at the Pleasure of others. 2. The Native Commodities of such Countrys will thus become improved to a sufficiency {at least) for their own Use ; and thereby afford a comfortable Subsistence to many ingenuous & industrious Per- MASSACHUSETTS BAY 63 sons, in such Countrys, who know not how to Sub- sist : Especially such as are Banish'd, or inforced to forsake their Native Countrys, by reason of the heat of Persecution, upon the account of Religion. 3. It will not be in the Power of any, by Extor- tion & Oppression, to make a Prey of the Necessi- tous. 4. The Fishery of such Countrys, as lye conven- ient for it, may be improved : and the Navigation & Shipping increased, for Use or Sale. 5. The Publick Revenues thereof, in consequence of these, will be augmented. 6. The Rents of Lands, yea, the Purchase value thereof, will rise: For, the Plenty of Money, or a valuable Credit equivalent thereunto, & the Lower- ing of Interest, must necessarily have that effect. 7. It will supply the defect or scarcity of Moneys in Specie, until by the sethng of Manufactures, &c. (which this Bank proposes) the Products of such Countrey for Exportation shall come to Balance or Exceed the value of it's Importations ; [27] which afterwards will necessitate the bringing in of Moneys, as fast as the want thereof hath carried it away. For, the true ground of the Plenty or Scar- city of Moneys in any Countrey, is not the high or low Value of the Money (as some erroneously con- ceive) but, that the Value of Goods Imported from other parts hath been greater than that of the Export. The Balance whereof must necessarily be answer'd with Moneys, & for the same Reason, Revers'd, the Export of Goods when bro't to exceed 64 CURRENCY FOR THE the value of the Import, must, as necessarily bring it back again to such proportion as the Export can be raised. And whatsoever other means may be suggested for furnishing of Moneys, must be fruit- less, for, there will abide no more than such propor- tion ; let what Value will be put on Moneys above the Currant Price thereof in other Countrys with whom they shall Trade ; which may be fm-ther Evi- denced, if this hint thereof be not sufficiently intel- Hgible. To which may be added, That the less need there is of Moneys in Specie, by reason of such Currant Credit, the more will be the increase of Money it self ; as is manifest in Holland^ Venice, & all Places where Bank-credit supplies the defect of those Sj^ecies ; least, the Money that remains in such Countreys, will be at greater Hberty for such petty occasions as cannot be so well accommodated by Bills. In Order therefore, & as Praevious to the Entring upon such an AfPair, 'tis requisite that other Queries be Propounded and Resolved, viz. Q. 4. Hoic shall it come to he known whether a sitfficient mtmber of Persons, of all Banks, Trades, [28] and Callings, will deal with this Bank? The reasons of which Inquiry are these, viz. (1.) It will be of use to the undertakers of such Bank to know it, for their incouragement in their entrance upon this affair. And, (2.) To such others as would take the Bills, if they were satisfied they could buy such Goods, &c. as they want, with Bills, at as easie rates, as if they had ready Moneys to give. IMASSACHUSETTS BAY 65 Answ. 1. It will be requisite, that a short Decla- ration be tendred to be Subscribed by some Persons of all Ranks, Trades & CaUings ; signifying that they will accept the said Bank-bills of Credit, in their ordinary future dealings of Buying & Selling, or other Traffiquing affairs, whereupon they are to receive Moneys, for so much ready Moneys as shall be in such Bills mentioned, upon the Terms & ac- cording to the Rides of the Bank : Saving to every man his Specialties, & particular Contracts. Ans. 2. That such as shall so declare themselves, by Subscription (or otherwise) may be put into Alphabetical Lists, and, such as take forth Bills may be informed of the Names of the said respec- tive Persons, their Trades or CaUings, and Places of Habitation. But, Q. 5. It may be further inquired, viz. Wliat if some sorts of Persons requisite for a universal Circulation of Bills, will not, in all cases, ingage to acce2?t Bank-hills : hut some will wholly Refuse them, sclf allows to be good ; which in my Opinion before was not : All that I have to do is to blow off the Cloud of Dust and Smoke, which the Author of the Letter has covered the Bank with ; that when it comes to stand in its native light, we may be the better able to pass a Judgment upon it ; and that I may have the advantage of standing on my own ground, (and be freed from the incumbrance of making good any of his) it will not be improper to 114 CURRENCY FOR THE tell you, how far I can agree with the Author of that Letter, viz. That the People as to their Trade and JJusiness, cannot well carry on their necessary Affairs much longer, without a further Sujyply of Money, or Bills of Credit, page 30. But there is a 7iecessity of sujoplying the People with a further convenient rjuantity of Bills of Credit, page 26. The Question then is, Whether the Publick shall Emit these Bills of Credit ; or whether it had not better be done by a Company of men in the nature of a Private Bank of Credit. I agree with the Author also in this, That I am not against a Banh of Credit in general, were it well founded, well regulated, page 26. I leave out the words (by the Government,) because the Consideration, whether by the Government, or otherwise comes under the foregoing Quaery ; so that the Question here is, Whether or no this Projection for a Bank of [4] Credit he well Founded, ivell Limited, and Regu- lated'^ And here I cannot avoid doing the Gentle- men that Justice to say what some of their Number have informed me, namely that when they first waited on his Excellency with their first Scheme, they were desired to leave the Limitation to the General Court, that it was a proper Compliment to pay them, to desire them to set the Sum, which was one reason why there was no Limitation ; but this by the way. We agree thirdly. That the Projection of a Bank of Credit, very much imports the Preroga- tive of the Crown, the Constitution and Laws of MASSACHUSETTS BAY 115 the Province, the Estates and Liberties of the Peo- ple ; and that not only for the present, hut Suc- ceeding Generations, page 4. For I take it, that the word import when so used, generally means to be of advantage ; however to deal fairly, it shall be the question, Whether it im2)orts to their advan- tage or disadvantage, and which does most of all im2:)ort them, the Puhlick or the Private Bank ? I agree with him also, That it behooves the Govern- ment and General Assembly of the Province, and really concerns every man, that has any Interest in the Country, with great application to enquire into, and seriously consider the Nature and Con- sequences of this Bank or Partnership, page 4. And so Sir, I am sufficiently warranted to make my Enquiry, and endeavour to set things in a true light ; but to find [5] these things wherein we agree so confusedly jumbled together as they are in Mr. Attorneys Letter, that they might appear a sort of dark Arguments against a Bank of Credit, is such a fine Amusement to the Ignorant and Inju- dicious Reader, and such an odd way of reasoning, that we could have expected it from none, but he that had lost his own eyes, or thought every body else was blind. And to be plain, when I heard of such a Letter published in Mr. Attorneys Name, I expected to find the strongest Arguments, and the fairest Pleadings that could be, against the Private Bank of Credit, from a Gentleman of so brig-ht Parts, and so Learned in the Law, as is his general Character : Yet I must assure you, that I had not 116 CURRENCY FOR THE read over the lirst page, before I had altered my mind, and received this settled Idea of the whole Piece ; that I should find nothing in it but Eva- sions, Doublings and Misrepresentations, and some few amusements ; for I was astonished to see so fair (not to say fake) a light given to the Order of the Governour and Council, which being Publick, every one has the opportunity to see and judge of the fal- lacy. He tells us, page 3. That the Projectors were directed to loroceed no further in the Affair, till the next Sessions of the General Assembly; notwithstanding all lohich (I am loth to say in con- temjyt of it) the 2^^i^sons concerned are openly car- rying on their Bank with utmost Vigour and [6] Expedition. How could he Sir, so openly give us this wrong Account of the matter? My News-Letter Printed by Authority, August 23. tells me, that upon Reading, &c. Ordered, That the Projectors or Undertakers of any such Bank, do not 2)roceed to Print the Scheme, or put the same on Puhlick Record, Make or Emit any of their Notes or Bills, until they have laid their Proposals before the General Assembly of this Her Majesties Pro- vince, who are always ready to Encourage and Countenance any Proposcds, &c. /. A. Seer. Which Order, as it was far from forbidding their proceed- ing any further in that Affair ; as to the digesting their thoughts upon it, and filling up theii' Number, i^c. but rather suppos'd they ought to wade through all the difficulties, and bring their Scheme to its perfection, that it might be fit to lay before the IMASSACHUSETTS BAY 117 General Assembly ; so was it, as I have been well informed, in every Article complied with, in Duty to the Government ; and even to this day have neither Printed theii' Scheme, Put it on Publick Record, Made, nor Emitted any of their Notes or Bills ; so that really Sir, what has been done by the Projectors, won't bear so much, as a, notwith- standing, much less, «, loth to say in contemi^t. In- deed, I have heard it whispered, that they have thought the Order very hard, in that they were denied the benefit of the Press, and the benefit of Publick Records, [7] which I shall leave : And now Sir, after so plain, and publickly known, a false Comment, upon the Order of the Governour and Council, and the Actions of the Projectors in the very Entrance of the Letter ; what can be lookt for, but Arguments of the same Kidney thro' the whole : And I Confess when I had Read the Let- ter out, I should verily have thought it had been Calculated to Lull the Government into a pro- found Sleep, if I had not remembred that he said page 5. his design was to Aioaken it ; so easily do we mistake things till we are informed better. But not to give you or my self any further trouble about the design of it, beheving it is not laid so deep, but your penetration without being put to the Wreck will fathom it. I Return to the first Enquiry, since 'tis agreed there is a necessity of a certain number of Bills of Credit, or Notes to be Emitted, as a Medium in Trade, viz. Who shall Emit these Bills'^ Had the Government of the 118 CURRENCY FOR THE Country best take it on themselves ? or would it not be safer to permit particular Persons in Partner- ship to Issue out, and give a Currency to their o^ii Notes, founded on their Lands, under the name of a Bank of Credit ? This is the main Enquiry which now falls under every Bodies Examination, and be- comes the debate of the Town this Winter Season ; and that I may give you my thoughts upon it freely, I say [8] with all due Deference to Government, by all means let the Government Notes, Emitted to pay the Publick Dues, and called in by Taxes granted as a Fund for them, have all possible Honour and Credit amongst us ; and if in their great wisdom they should see meet to make it a Publick Charge, to Emit a certain number of their Notes in Erectingr a Bridge over Charles-River, and make it a Toll Bridge, with suitable Allowances to the Colledge at present ; and suppose that Forty Thousand Pounds were Issued out to make it a substantial and firm Bridge ; and that a Toll upon every thing passing and carried over, should be a Fund to Call them in gradually ; and after that it had cleared it self, it should be taken off from Passengers, and left only for Carts, Horses, &c. And the Colledge have the Income for ever, or any such Publick Charge, as Fortifying the principal Town by Sea, Erecting Stone Fortifications or Garrisons on the Frontiers, or Erecting Light Houses, for the Security of Trade ; and the Ee-settlino^ the Eastern Parts of the Coun- try in a Defensible manner, in giving a Bounty for the encouraging the Sowing, water-rotting, and MASSACHUSETTS BAY 119 well curing of Hemp ; the encouraging them that should make the best pieces of Hollands-Duck : Which two Articles alone, it is thought might so effect the ballance of our Trade, as to bring us in Silver Money; especially if a Reward of Three Pounds [9] p^r Head were given for all Male White Servants, that shall be Imported into this Province, and Bound out from the Age of Ten to Eighteen Years ; the Reward to continue the Term of Twenty Years ; and this would furnish us with Sailors, with Labourers in Husbandry & Fishery, & Soldiers for our Defence, whose Polls in a few years would pay it in : And whereas now they are Sold for a Term of years, for Fifteen and Twenty pounds a Head ; such a certain Reward would in- duce men to bring in such Numbers, that they would be Sold for Five Pounds, as they are in Pensihania, and other Places, where such certain Encouragements have been given. The Debts Con- tracted by these Emissions would be the real Credit of the Country, both Serviceable and Honourable, the Strength, Support, & External Glory of a Coun- try; and whereas the Trade wants a Medium to Circulate it, there would be no necessity of Laying heavy Taxes, & the Funds might be carried for- wards as the Government woidd see cause ; for I believe by this time most men of thought may see, that since Paper Notes are our only Medium, that Day we are out of Debt, we are out of Credit, and must unavoidably sink, unless there should be found out some other way to save us from Ruin. So the 120 CURRENCY FOR THE Question comes the fairer in view, Whether is the better of the Two, a Puhlick or a Private Bank ? [JO] I shall therefore in the next Place, give you those Reasons that are of weight with me against a Publick Bank, and Rescue the Private from the Authors Objections : For these Reasons may not the Publick Bank be Objected against ? May there not be a danger if the PubHck should go on to Emit Bills on Interest, that it will be too great an Inva- sion of the Prerogative of the Crown ; For I am apt to think every body will grant, that the Stamping of Money is a Royalty invested in the Crown ; and I am prone to imagine, that Bills Emitted by Pub- lick Authority to Lend at Interest, will carry with them many signatures of Money ; especially since the Act of this Province makes them a Legal Ten- der, so far as no man may be Imprison'd for Debt that Tenders them; especially if we Consider the difference in the Emission of these Bank Bills, that they are not paid out of the Treasury, as the Notes Obligatory of the Government to those they were Indebted unto, with the Publick Faith, phghted to Call them in by Taxes ; and so tho' they are of the same Ten our, yet the manner of the Emission, with that Law cited, gives them the character of real Money ; for I cannot perswade my self to say with Mr. Attorney, that nothing can be Money properly, but Silver and Gold, because that both Copper & Brass have had the Royal Stamp, and Copper passes in small Payments, as other Money in [H] Great Britain at this day ; and I have also heard, that :massachusetts bay 121 Leather was once the current Coin of Rome : And I am very much inclined to think, if the Crown of England saw cause, they could make Paper Bills, so stamped, as properly Money, as any Money what- soever. Now is there not ground to fear, when the Sovereign has been pleased to indulge us with the Priviledges of Emitting PubHck Notes for the defraying the necessary Charge in the Defence and Support of the Government, and to Confine us to those Occasions in the Taxes and Assessments al- lowed to be made on the Inhabitants ; would it not be looked on as an Incroachment in very deed on the Royal Prerogative for us to exceed, and what the Consequence of that will be, you are a much better Judge than I am ; (and I have been informed that the Gentlemen concerned, have had Letters from their Friends at Home, advising that by no means the Government would be Concerned in such a Fund) but if it should not in all the signatures of Money be a direct Invasion of the Prerogative, on the account of its being really Money, yet would it not be a going beyond our Last ? and a doing what we had no power or warrant for ; for I look upon it a weak & foolish plea, some peoples mouths are filled with, viz. That we ought not to debate about the Power of the Government, that it tends to weaken us, and that there are [12] enough that do that, and the like. I think the way to have our Powers rendred strong & durable, would be to Consider what they are, and use them, and not go to the brink, or one hairs breadth beyond them : And 122 CURRENCY FOR THE truly I fear there is some design in raising all this smother, to blindfold us, and lead us whence we cannot so easily return. I take it that our Charter sets us the bounds of our Power, and tells us how far we may go, and all without that is forbidden ground ; now it is a plain thing, that the Govern- ments Emitting Bills of Publick Credit on Interest, is not to be found, neither granted or warranted by the Charter, the boundaries thereof are Assessments and Taxes, in the necessary defence and su2:)port of the Government, and the protection and j^reser- vation of the Inhabitants there. - - - Mr. Attorney has given it us, page 29. He was so well apprized of this Objection, that he lays out his strength to remove it ; tho' I think he has not been able to make it stir one inch. He tells us, there is nothing in the Charter repugnant to the Governments Issu- ing a further supply of Bills, page 29. It is very true upon the Foot or Fund of Assessments, as they have been hitherto Emitted, for Paying the Debts, and Defraying the necessary Charges of the Pro- vince ; but once for all, the Charter may well be allow' d to be repugnant to all that is not fairly Con- tained in it. He says secondly. That it has [J 3] heen done once and again, on great Occasions, and the Government not blamed for it. The Govern- ment has Emitted their Bills to pay their Debts, but never to Lend at Interest, before his Letter was written, which is the matter in Controversy. The Bills the Merchants Lent to the Treasury, and the Treasury in Return, Lent the Merchants by Order MASSACHUSETTS BAY 123 of Government on that great Emergency, were for the paying Her Majesties Soldiers, and would not have been Emitted, but in such an Extraordinary Case, and upon that bottom, so that it can never be made the president to Lett out Bills at Interest : and then he would perswade us (not himself) that the words the necessary Support of the Government, protection and preservation of the People, will allow it, and so forsooth with an (if) it is &cra, then it comes within the Charter ; and I am verily per- swaded (if) he were of Councel against us, he would with all imaginable Justice declare, as every reason- able man else (especially a Gentleman of the Law) would, that the evident meaning of these words are, the Charges of the Government and the War, even all such Charge as the Inhabitants shall be Assessed and Taxed for, and that they have not the least as- pect upon a Fund for Trade, or the supplying the People with a Medium of Exchange, & there- [14] fore his thrusting the word, Government, and into a Parenthesis, as to their Trade and Business into the Sentence at page 30. is as arrant a piece of Sophistry as can be, akin to his fore-mentioned Arguments, and what I told you at first you must look for ; I readily grant the General Court here must be Judges of their own Power ; and there is no Doubt but that it is possible also they may have been, by this Letter under the Attorney Generals Hand, induced to believe that they have more than really they have. I am informed, that in 3Iay Ses- sions, the Sufferers by the late dreadful Fire applied 124 CURRENCY FOR THE to them for Relief to Lend them Money on their Lands, they did not apprehend it in their prudent Power so to do ; & some of as good Councel as any in this Province, have declared it as their Opinion, that the Country had not the Power to form them- selves into a Puhlick Bank, and Emit Money at Interest, and how the Wisdom of the General Assembly came to be of that side, I cannot say whetlier it is hard or easy to guess. I cannot help reciting the words of the Charter here : We do, &c. Give, Grant, &c. To Make, Ordain, and Establish all manner of Wholesome and Reasonable Orders, Laics, Statutes, and Or- dinances, Directions and Instructions, either with Penalties or withoid, so as the same he not repug- nant or contrary to the Laws of [15] this our Realm q/* England, as they shall judge to be for the Good and Welfare of our said Province or Ter- ritory And for the Welfare, Support, and De- fence of the Government thereof. And a little after this General Clause, comes the Power of Imposing Taxes. To Lnpose and Levy proportionable and reasonable Assessments, Rates and Taxes iqjon the Estates, and Persons, of cdl, and every the Pro- prietors, or Lihabitants of our said Province or Territory, to be Issued and Disposed of by War- rant, under the Hand of the Governour of our said Province, for the time being, with the Advice and Consent of the Council, for our Service in the neces- sary Defence and Support of our Government, of our said Province or Territory, MASSACHUSETTS BAY 125 Upon which, and the Publicks Emitting Bills of Publick Credit upon Interest, we may make a few Remarks, for the Investigating of Truth, so much embarrassed by the Letter. 1. In the first place then, I would Remark, That by the Charter we have a Power to impose reason- able Taxes, to be disposed of by Warrant under the Hand of the Governour, with Consent of the Council, for Defence and Support of the Government, &c. This being our Power and Limitation, no Act of ours can alter the Power of Disposing : for the fol- lowing words according to such Acts, can be under- stood I presume, no otherwise than for the Uses Raised, yet no ways alters the foregoing Clause of the Governoui's and Councils Power of Judging & Disposing of it. 2. That the Clause for Imposing and Levying [16] Taxes coming after the General Power of Mak- ing Laws in the Charter ; can be I tliink understood in no other sense than a Limitation of the foregoing Power, and the path of our Duty, in that of Taxing the People. 3. That the Credit of every Freeholder is as much his Property as his Lands. Suppose a man gives his Obligatory Bill or Note to pay an Hundred Pounds on Demand, or to take again in Payments, tho' he does it to serve a Friend in Distress, yet so passing his Bill in his own Name, becomes the principal Debtor, and the Possessor can look for no other, though the Person takes private Security for himself. 126 CURRENCY FOR THE If the General Court Emit Bills Obligatory upon the Province, whether they are not bound in Justice and Honour to make them good as much as private men ; and whether it is not creating a Debt upon the Province for such Sums as shall be so Emitted, which they must make good to the Possessor, which is a biu-den, and may be called a Tax with a Witness. Now it may well be Qua3ried, How far a Representa- tive Body or Free State has a power over, & a right in the Credit, and the Properties of the Principals they represent ? Whether a free People submit their Estates any further to their Deputies, than to pay the Proportion of the Charge that arises for their mutual support and Defence ? Whether it would not be entring in such a State on the Properties of every particular Person, who is Lord of his Penny, and [J 7] only has a right of Disposing of his own. It is true, that the Representative Body are said to be the Keepers of the Peoples Purse ; but that can be understood by any Freeman I believe in no other sence, than for what it is, or should be a common Charge ; and to state the proportion, if it is question- able, in a free State : May it not be much more so in a depending Government, whose Powers are Lim- ited by Pattents, and are accountable for Usurped Powers ; but some say the Province runs no risque, for they are to have the Profits, which are four & an half per Cent, for all Emitted, which will pay all the Charge of the Government, and the People be set free in their Taxes, and that they may gain a Stock in the Treasury A Golden Bait. As for the MASSACHUSETTS BAY 127 Risque the Province runs in the Principal and In- terest, it is not yet determined ; it is judged by some, and those not the most unthinking, that it is great ; in that the Security taken by the Trustees if it comes to be sued out, would be claimed for the Crown; for in our Charter we have not, as Sir Ferdinando Gorges had in his, the grant of that priviledge of the Forfeitures and Reversions of Lands ; besides the Collusion that may be introduced, by suffering Lands to be forfeited and redeemed at half price ; that as to the Profits and Income which is for His Majesties Service in the Support of the Government, it being a Revenue to the [18] Crown; how natural does it ly instead of a Salary for a Governour to ask at Home, in a Line or two of Instructions for himself and all his Officers, as Lieutenant Governour, Sec- retary, Judges, Attorney General, Captain of the Castle, Surveyor General, &c. which is not I hope the end intended, or the most grateful : Other diffi- culties referring to the Borrower, not 2:)roper to be mentioned may arise ; the Crown will not want Oc- casions of Disposing of their Revenues, which may seem on due reflection to over-ballance the gains proposed : May it not be thought an hazard, if they should go on to Emit greater Sums on such a foun- dation, that the Crown may be invited to take away the Charter, and that for the sake of the Money Emitted as forfeited ? And may not the Confusion be better thought on than expressed on such en event? May not the old Maxim be of use to us here? that in doubtful Cases the negative is the 128 CURRENCY FOR THE safer. I am in duty bound, to suppose -what has been done, was thought necessary by the Govern- ment in their distress ; unto whom I am sensible we owe all possible deference and respect ; and I assure you, none is more ready to pay it than I am ; yet in such a weighty case, truth stands the elearey in view, on a free, modest and rational enquiry : And since the Interest arising from those Bills they say will be for the support of the Government, if they will take the Attorney Gene-[J9]rars Opinion ; he has given it, page 28. That this Government neither can, nor ought to he maintained in any other Method, than by the Charter, and Instructions from the Crown, and I presume this method is neither. And to Conclude this Argimient, we have heard Sir, of Informations in the nature of Quo Warrantors ; and this very Country has felt' the weight of one, and upon the very score of Invading the Prerogative, in the Article of Money, and doing what was said we had no warrant from Charter to do ; and cer- tainly no Lover of this Country can wish them to take such methods as may be tho't to put it in any hazard of a second Quo warranto ; no, none but such as have not scope enough already to get Money, &c. extending Law Suits, to the enriching none but themselves. I assure you Sir, I am the plainer on these Heads, in that I value the Liberties of my Country so dearly, as never to esteem such its best Friends, that are willing to part with them ; and yet does not the disputableness of this Power, if we should go on in such a method, shew that at least we MASSACHUSETTS BAY 129 run the risque of a second ; which if it should take place, would not the country (and with just cause) cry out, Ah ! why did the Government hearken to Mr. Attorney's Letter ? Ah ! Mr. Attorney, why did you so amuse and slily argue them into it ? And by the way, the very notion of a second Quo warranto, confirms what I ground much of this [20] Argument upon, viz. that what is not within the Grant of the Charter, is forbidden to us, and to be avoided. If after all that has been said to the Power and Safety of the Publicks going on to Emit Bills Obligatory on the Country, which is making the Country Prin- cipal Debtor, and to Let 'em out on Land Security, where is the Limitation of the Power? the Gentle- man would do well to explain it; if the paying the Publick Charg-e and its Defence be not the bound- aries and limitation, why may they not Emit Five Hundred Thousand Pounds as a Fund of Trade, & appoint Factors for the Government, that they may have the Profit? the difference seems only to be in the prudence, not in the power ; how safe then is it Living in a Community where the Estates may be charged to answer more than the value upon such Projects, does not such a Power render mens proper- ties in their Estates very precarious ? especially since it is hinted, that the Representatives may be kept by the Charter as long as a Prince lives ; we may open a door wide enough for the getting Estates ; it is but dividing a number of Bills amongst themselves, and call it for the support of the Government, according to that argument, and it is done. We have always 130 CURRENCY FOR THE looked upon it, That an empty Treasury is very much our Security ; This Government thought it so wlien they appointed a Committee to burn the Pub- [21] lick Bills that were returned into the Treasury dur- ing the recess of the General Court ; and prevents many line Schemes of Arbitrary Power; a full Treasury by a stated Revenue has the contrary con- sequences, and may soon involve the poor people into unknown mischiefs. No says the Letter, page 28. The j^rincijyal Profits of that 3Ioney, according to the Scheme agreed on, reported hy the Committee, were so settled and secured, that nothing less than the General Assembly could dis2J0se of either. This is his main Argument against the Objection to the Supply, &c. The Governour and Council has the draught of all Moneys that are Raised by the Government according to the Charter, as I observed before ; and should the Publick Emit a large Sum as is necessary for a Publick Bank, the Income thereof would be inviting, and I doubt not of the ways being presently found to it, for a Law contrary to -the Charter being void of it self, would be no boundary ; and supposing it were not so, is not the Governour an essential part of the Constitution, and is not his Council necessary ? Has he it not then in his power to come to terms for his own allowances? Will there be any room left for Contests about settling Salaries ? Will it not be done to hand ? I beseech you Sir, to Consider when this Pandora's Box shall be once opened, what unforeseen accidents, what irreparable mischiefs, confusion and misery would MASSACHUSETTS BAY 131 [22] this whole People be in? This is true, if we may take what the Author of the Letter says, they intend to give the Government 2\oo Thousand Pounds a year. I cannot tell whether they were to fence out to make such an offer ; if they mean a Governour by Government, it would he an effectual method to Enslave this Country says the Letter. Indeed I never knew that Governour and Govern- ment, were one and the same word ; yet it is Ob- servable, that the Author of the Letter makes them so. If the General Assembly says the Author of the Letter, then they neither can, nor ought, &c. Yet I believe all Government have Liberty to accept of Donations ; but be it so that they cannot, then neither can the Government be supported by the Profits of the Publick Bank, for this is not in the Charter ; and if the Authors Arguments were good, that the Publick could not make use of it, the Gov- ernour as he assures us, will be sole Heu- of it : and then what will the gain of the Country be ? Whilst I retort this Argument, I had almost forgot the Clause in Hudibras, that, no man turns the Case upon his own Concerns. What would become of the Fund, if the Crown should forbid it ? Will not the Confusion be great on the Borrowers? Jus- tinian was of Opinion, that nothing could be a Law that was not just. The Gentleman who should [23] promote such an one, surely would have no thanks from them they represent, when they come to feel the ill effects of it ; but I hope no such thing will take place. Thus Sir, I have given you some of the 132 CURRENCY FOR THE thoughts of the Town, and the Reasons in particular, that sway with me against a PubHck Bank. The Reasons why I prefer a Private Bank, are such as these. 1. That there will be no Invasion of the Preroga- tive ; for every body as well as Mr. Attorney will readily acknowledge that, they are not Money, page 11. And they may have the face and signature of Money, as much as the Bank Bills of England, that is none at all ; for they carry nothing of Authority with them, but are only Notes on the Bank, pass- ing from one to another, for so much value as is expressed in them ; which value being deposited in the Bank, either in Lands or other imperishable Estate as the Original Fund, and the ObHgation of the several Partners, to take 'em in all Payments, excejDt Specialties, under a great penalty, gives Credit to the several Bills or Notes issued from the Bank. 2. Nor will a Private Bank open a door of Arbi- trary Power to invade the Liberties of the People, by a Governours handling at his own pleasure such Sums as he has occasion to make use of, to promote his own ends. 3. Nor is there any infringment of the Liberty of the People, there is no Tax requisite to [24] make good the fall of the Bank, no Publick Warrantee to secure it, but only the Estates of such Gentlemen as are willing of their own accord to Mortgage 'm ; that by the Security given, and their mutual agreement, their Notes should have a Currency, that they might MASSACHUSETTS BAY 133 serve the Countiy, and themselves in promoting the Trade of it ; so that if the Bank be suppressed, it would hazard only their particular Estates. 4. It may be Carried on as other Merchant-like Affairs, by Factors or Trustees, without offence to the Crown, or Government ; This being the head of Argument that bears the Countenance of reasoning in Mr. Attorneys Letter, which I shall Remark : I take it for granted, that it is the Natural Right of English to Trade, and to carry it on in such Meth- ods, as they shall conceive to be most advantageous to them ; and that in order thereto, they have a right to take one anothers Word, Note or Bond, as the Case may require, with due regard had to Justice, and the power of the Legislature, to enlarge and hmit this Trade, as shall be tho't most suitable to the Honour of the Crown, & the Pubhck Weal : It is in the liberty of any m Trade, to enter into a Covenant, to take one anothers Notes, and that they might be better known, they may agree upon some persons to form those Notes under their hands for them; & on their making over such Security as there [25] is required, for their mutual safety, for such Sums as they shall emit or take, and may agree to pay such an Interest as may support the Charge, and Lend of their Credit to others for their benefit, since there is no Statute Law broken, & nothing contrary to the Common Law ; so that the difference between us is not. Whether the Government cannot crush such a Partnership, for no body denies that ? but whether such an Affair may be carried on in 134 CURRENCY FOR THE a CoiQpany, without being Incorporated, without beiiiir a breach on the Prerogative of the Crown ? Thus the Private Bankers in Lumhard- street Emit their Notes, and that on Interest too without being tho't so ; Oiu- Fathers about Twenty eight years ago, entred into a Partnership to Circulate their Notes founded on Land Security, stamped on Paper, as oiu* Province Bills, which gave no offence to the Government then, and that at a time, when the Pre- rooative of the Crown was extended further than ever has been since; What Mr. Attorney says of the Bank of England, that they obtained an Act of Parliament for their Support is true, yet proves nothmg to his purpose ; for altho* a Company can manage their Affairs better, and in a shorter method, for their mutual Security by a Pattent or Charter of Incorporation, and with the greater Security by an Act of Parliament as the Bank of England, by the loan of One Million Two Hundred Tliousand Pounds to the Nati-[26]on obtained, yet it proves nothing that such Companies were any breach on the Prerogative ; the Act of the Sixth of Queen Anne, quoted by the Author of the Letter, viz. Tliat during the Continuance of the Bank 0/ Eng- land, it shall not he lawful for any Body Politick or Corj^oration, or other than the said Company of the Bank, or for other Partners exceeding six in England, to borrow or owe any Sum, or Bills, or Note Payable on demand, or at any time less than six months from the borrowing thereof ; is so far from proving against the Partnership, that MASSACHUSETTS BAY 135 strong Arguments may be drawn from it, of its Law- fulness: As, 1. It appears plain, that the Limitation of the Act is to Encjland, and that during the Continuance of the Bank ; and so is of no force in the Planta- tions of Ireland. 2. That it is lawful now for the number of six. 3. It implies that they might do it, before this Act was made in favour of the Bank of England, and consequently lawful for us, where that Act never was in force, which is what we Contend for. 4. It implies that the Law of England does not look on every number of Partners to be a Corpo- ration purely for their being Partners ; and Mr. Attorney quoting my Lord Cook^s description of a Corporation, and his applying it to the Gentlemen concerned in the Projection, is nothing but an amusement, and deserves no Answer, in that none of the Essentials to such a Body was pretended to by them : for a Pattent from the Crown, which gives the Form and Being to a Corporation, was but hoped for. [27] But what I would Remark with the great- est Complacency, is the applying this Law to us in New-England ; for he tells us, page 12. If the same fact committed in England, by a Number not exceeding six vjoidd be a breach of Laio, much more may we swppose it forbidden, and ynade un- lav^fidfor an hundred to do it here. A nice way of Arguing, that concludes strongly, and deserves thanks for the new Invention : Because Gunning 136 CURRENCY FOR THE upon Boston Neck is forbiddeu by a Law, therefore in every Town of the Country, I am apt to think that any man that is able to carry a Gun, may see the folly of such an Argument : Truly it gives me a merry turn of thought to entertain the Idea, how Mr. Attorney would crow to hear his Antagonist at the Bar plead a desperate Cause with such a mighty dint of argument as this ; 'tis well he did not pro- ceed, to give himself any further trouble to argue with the same velocity and strength, how far the Pro- jection would be a breach on the Constitution of the Bank of England ; for we are not able to stand be- fore the whiz - - - - But did the Author of the Letter, ■who quoted the Law, in very deed believe it possible that it should have any influence so far over the Water? I wonder then how it consisted with his Consciencious regard to it, to advise the Publick to Erect a PubHck Bank of Credit ! for I would put it to his Conscience, whether this Law is not as point blank [28] levelled at the Corj>oration, (which the Government is) in case they should have the thoughts of doing any such thing as private Partners, and whether it is not as possible for the Government to Set up & Establish things contrary to the Laws of England as for private Persons ? and whether the offence would not be as great ; and because I do not know but that the Supream Authority may see cause to crush any Bank set up here, I will add, that there is no reasonable man, nor man of Law, nor man acquainted with the nature of Government dare say, that it will be of equal pernicious consequence, for MASSACHUSETTS BAY 137 private Persons to set up, as for the Publick ; for no act of private Persons can forfeit our Charter ; it must be a Pubhck Act to do that ; all the mischief of the Private's bemg condemned, would be that the Bank would fall, and that the Bankers must make good their Notes ; but if the Pubhck Bank shoidd be set up and Condemned, by that means we should be endanofered in our Charter : And I am afraid there are some men in the world that would gladly lay hold of the first opportunity to deprive us of it - - - - The Tendency of a Publick Bank, as have been proposed, is to Unite the Power of the Country and the Cash together, which all wise people have endeavoured to keep asunder, in order to preserve their Liberties ; it tends to bring all the People into a dependency up-[29]on the Court Interest; and consequently to render them Abject and Servile, which I think no Lover of his Country should pro- mote : As it is proposed at present, it tends no way to help the Landed Interest in the stocking and improving their Lands, but only serves to remove the evil day a little, very little further off, and then runs them into greater distress. On the contrary, the Projection for a Private Fund of Credit, which since I began this Letter, I hear is coming out in Print, that all may judge of it, and no doubt will be acceptable to the Country ; is so well founded and secured, that were they permitted to proceed and Emit their Notes, would furnish us with a Medium of Exchange ; the Landed man might either be Con- cerned in the Foundation, or might borrow Credit 138 CURRENCY FOR THE ^vitllout any fear of a sudden or surprizing demand, to the prejudice of his Affairs, might Stock his Farm, and be able to lessen his Principal, as his Product would enable him ; it would be a certain resort for men to borrow Credit on any Emergency ; it gives the Industrious an opportunity of improving their Lands to greater advantage, which would increase the Export of the Country ; it could hurt none but the envious, who will do no good themselves, and yet are grieved at what their Neighbour does. The Pub-[30]lick Charities are not inconsiderable, that are Established in it ; in a word, without it, we cannot so comfortably enjoy the Outward Blessings that Heaven has indulged us with. With it we may enjoy all the Conveniencies of a Plentiful Cash, without running the risk of being a Prey to an in- vading Foe ; and in that as well as in every other respect would answer our Occasions as the Mines of Peru or Potosi : But I think I hear you in the Country say, they will not pay our Rates, and there- fore will not answer our ends. In answer to which I would say, that the Bills of Credit of the other Provinces do not pay our Rates, yet have a general Currency amongst you ; that the Gentlemen con- cern'd to promote the Projection say, that whilst there is any of the Province Bills stirring, they would change them gratis, when they shoidd grow scarce that the People could not obtain them ; there is no doubt, but that the Government would Order the Treasurer to take what would answer their Occa- sions, that would pay the Souldiers and the other MASSACHUSETTS BAY 139 Officers of the Government, and the other Charges ; then they would not have the occasion to be at the Charge nor Risque of making Bills of Credit if they saw good ; it would revive the Trade of the Pro- vince, and enable them to pay their Debts ; for as things are now, they cannot make Money but with a small part of their produce, they are forced [31] to Truck them away, so that some are not able, and others take the opportunity to defraud the Country Trader, and he of Consequence is not able to pay the Merchant in Boston, to the great Damage of the whole Country, as well as a Discredit to our Trade ; for the badness of the Pay for want of a Medium, obliges the Merchant to make a great Advance on the Sale of his Goods, that they are as dear now as in the heighth of War ; the Country in Course ask dear for their Produce, which occasions a great Loss in Returns, and the Dearness of both affects the Tradesman, and makes him ask dear for his Labour, without which he is not able to Live ; so that as the state of our Commerce is now, every thing tends to drive away the Trade from us to our Neighbours : The Fishery will fail, because they have no Money for it, and all Industry is very much crampt ; in that when men have Laboured, they are obliged to go to a Shop for Goods for their Pay, which often invites, if not necessitates 'em to spend more than they want of English Goods, to the hurt of their Families ; and by that means brings us more in Debt to England ; all which would be remedied by the Establishing the Land Bank: And whereas the Gentlemen are apply- 140 CURRENCY FOR THE iug Home for a Charter from the King to Incorpo- rate theui, that they may be the better enabled to secure the Foundation and the Credit of the Bills : I wish them [32] good success, and doubt not the whole Country, (when they have a clear view of their best Interest) will say, Ame7i And whereas some of you in the Country object, that if such a Com- pany goes forward, they will have all the Lands in the Country : In answer to which Objection, it would be worth while to Consider the Scheme how it is guarded, and it will easily be apprehended that the Charge is groundless ; for the Lands will be taken in at little more than half the value, and whilst the Borrower pays his Interest Money, the Bank will never trouble him ; if he neglects that, he will stand a year longer before he can be Sued for it ; and no man will let his Land go at half the value ; his Neighbour wiU sooner buy it of him than let it go at so low a rate ; but if the Bank recovers it, they must Sell it, for they have not asked leave to purchase Lands ; then there is three years right of Redemp- tion left to the Owner : if the Land sells for more, the Bank returns the Overplus, which I think suffi- ciently takes off the weight of that Objection : Be- sides, as it is proposed by the Publick, there will be but few Borrowers, but what are in distress to put it off the further, because they are sure of being straitened at the expiration of the five years to pay it in ; yet in this Projection, every Partner is obliged [33] to take out a quarter part of what he Subscribes, to bring out a Medium of Exchange : MASSACHUSETTS BAY 141 But I shall tire your patience in enlarging on the pleasant Subject, in which we have a prospect of relief under the present and growing distress : I shall make a few more transient Remarks and Close. The Letter says, page 15. That the several Laws of this Province respecting Money, or the Interest, are broke in upon hy the Projection : It is so far from being so, that it directly has a contrary view ; the Act of the Fifth of William and Mary about the Interest of Money is broke in upon, because we fix the Interest at less than six per Cent, when the pre- amble of the Act says, for as much as the abatement of Interest has always been found beneficial to the Advancement of Trade, and the Improvement of Lands by good Husbandry ; which is the very thing we have consulted. I have with care examined all the Laws of this Province, relating to Money or Bills of Credit, and the several Acts of Parliament quoted in the Letter too many to be recited, and cannot for my life imagine that any Lawyer besides Mr. Attorney could find that they were invaHdated, or in the least broke in upon by this Projection ; and now that any person acting as he apprehended in his Office as Attorney General should insinuate to the Government, and publish to the World in Print, that they have [34] been all broke in upon is very strange and unaccountable : His Insinuation, page 18. That the Bills being but pieces of Paper, have no other value than what the Borrower gives 'em, is a very ungrounded (I am loth to say false) Assertion, in that they are Notes Issued out under the Hands 142 CURRENCY FOR THE of them that are abundantly sufficient to make them good, and who were obliged not only to that, but under a Flftij Pound Penalty to take them in all Payments, and the Borrower being at his liberty, must be bubbled indeed to take them out, if they would not answer his Occasions, in l^'^'-U^ l^- ^^ as- serts, that the Projectors are only obliged to accept of them for the redemption of Pawns and Mort- gages ; and supposes that the Possessor has neither, referring to the Tenour of the Bill : See his own recital of the Bill, page 7. Obliges, &c. to accept the same in all payments, according to Covenant made by us ; (or rather see the true Form or Tenour of the Bill in the Scheme Printed) both which so manifestly contradict his Assertion, and at first sight tended to mislead the Honourable House of Repre- sentatives in Matters of Fact, that it is unaccount- able he should offer it. As for his gross Charge of Contempt of Government, I suppose the Gentlemen will vindicate themselves ; I have heard say, they are sufficiently able, as well as obliged : his breviate of the Scheme, and his Tenour of the Bill being a [35] gross misrepresentation, and his reflections made thereon, consequently ill grounded, I do not trouble you with a Confutation, they fall of them- selves, page 13. He says. That the General As- semhJy are under a necessity of enquiring into the Justice, Legality, the Safety, and PuMick Ad- vantage ; wherein I agree with the Author, and I believe the Gentlemen concerned, would have been glad if it had been duly weighed, and fully consid- MASSACHUSETTS BAY 143 ered before they had been prohibited ; and whereas no man has ever proved it to be, either unjust, ille- gal or unsafe, or not for the Publick Good j and the contrary I think, is sufficiently evident to any disinterested ; the Gentlemen that they might pro- ceed in their AfPair without offence, (since he de- sires that it might be forbidden, until His Majesties Pleasure is known ;) have agreed by a Humble Peti- tion, to lay it before His Majesty, praying for a Charter of Incorporation, to enable them with the more security to Circulate their Notes founded on their Lands : The Author, page 20. and 18. seems Concerned about the Credit of the Bank Notes, and that for two Reasons ; the lowness of the Interest, & the Foundation being Land and not Money, to answer the Notes : As for the Interest which is set at Five per Cent, it is what the Publick has seen reason to set theirs at, and therefore may be sup- posed their reason was good ; the value of Money or Notes ne-[36]ver was founded on the Interest, but what they would purchase of Land or Merchandizes ; the Interest is justly lower'd by the abundant Secu- rity required, which is considered in the nature of a Sum paid in hand by way of fine, as in the Leases of Lands to lower the Annual Rent. As for Land Foundation, the only measure of valuation we have left, and the best (in that Silver has altered four parts in five within this two hundred years, as is affirmed by good Authors) to found our Notes on, in that our Trade will be governed according to our produce either in our own growth, or what by 144 CURRENCY FOR THE our Iiuliistry we Import from others, to Export by way of Returns to Great Britain^ which wholly takes off the common cry by way of amusement against it, that we are extravagant in our Consumptions, and Over-traded, which tho' they may be true in themselves, are nothing promoted by this, in that the Notes cannot be sent off. Mr. Attorney tells us, page 30 that in what he has done, he had no private vieio, or separate Interest, nor any preju- dice to the Gentlemen concerned, among whom he has many partkidar Friends, hid has sincerely aimed at the Publick Good. I believe the Gentle- men concerned do not think he has treated 'em like Friends, who they say never came amongst- them to reason about the Scheme ; but in his Letter has drest them Alamode the Spanish Inquisition, with horrid pictures on their Design, that [37] they might be deHvered over to the Secular Power, to be punished. And as for his design and separate In- terest, being one that improves his Stock by Letting Money at Interest ; if he had not told us so, we should have been apt to have believed the contrary, and may be worthy of a second view and Reflection by him, as well as the Portion of Sacred Writ, so much abused as to be set in the Frontispiece of his Letter, which I shall take the freedom to repeat to his Con- sideration in the very words. That better is a little with Righteousness, than greed Revenues without Right. And now Sir, I have given you a few of the many dark thoughts of the Town, relating to the Letter, and the Publick Bank Projected ; as also MASSACHUSETTS BAY 145 some of tlieir hopes of the Success of the Private. If what has been written may contribute to the set- ting Truth, and the Interest of the Country in a clearer Light in your Parts, it will be a sufficient Reward, and an entire Satisfaction, To your Humble Servant, New-England, F 1. B---t, Anno 1714. [A duodecimo of thirty-seven pages. The pamphlet from which this copy was made, as well as that in the Boston Puhlic Library, contains the following corrections : On page 130 the word " Council " in the seventh line from the bottom is changed to " Consent." On page 131 the last word of the fourth line is " to," and the first word of the next line is " fence." This ex- pression is changed to " not once." On the same page the word " gentleman " in the fifth line from the bottom is altered to " gentlemen." On page 133 the word " men " is written after " English " in the tenth line. The copy of the pamphlet and the facsimile of the title-page were obtained through the courtesy of the Massachusetts Histori- cal Society.] A VINDICATION OF THE BANK O F Credit Projected in Boston from the Aspersions OF Paul Dudley, Esqr, I N A LETTER By him directed to yohn Biirril Esqr. Late Speaker to the House of Representa- tives for the Province of the MassacJm- setts-Bay in New-England. Printed in the Year 17 14. 148 CURRENCY FOR THE [J] A VINDICATION OF THE Bank of Credit, &c. To Joh?i Burril, Esqr. SIR. MR. Attorney General, by his Letter of the Twenty Second of October last past to your Self, as Speaker to the House of Representatives for this Province, having most unaccounta- bly, with an uncommon Freedom, taken upon him to Insult and Arraign a Considerable Company of Gentlemen Merchants, &c. (as he is pleased to stile them) Projectors of the Bank of Credit, and call them to the Bar of that Honourable House, Charge ing them with the many High Crimes and Misde- meanours following. First, That they are openly carrying on their Bank with utmost Vigour and Expedition, in Con- tempt of an Order of Council ; and indeed affirm- ing, that the Government [2] have nothing to do with them in that Affau* : And that they look upon themselves very Well and sufficient to carry it on without making any Application to the General Assembly. Vide page 3, 4. I ^ 11 VINDICATION OF THE BANK O F Credit Projcdcd in Boflon from the Arperfions O F Paul Dudley, Efqr. LE t t e r By him direded to '^fohn Burnt Efqr. L.ate Speaker to the iioufe ot Reprefenta- tives for the Province of the AiaffAclm- fctts-'Say in 1«^e 12. That certainly if the same Fact committed hi England, hy a Numher exceeding six would be a Breach of Law ; much more may we supi^ose it forbidden and made Unlaicfid for an hundred to do it here. Certainly, this is a fine and accurate Mode of Reasoning and Pungent Argument. MASSACHUSETTS BAY 159 Because our Law forbids us Building of Wooden Houses in Boston, therefore we must not Erect one in Lynn, or the Province of Main. As to what he says of the Projection not being founded in Commutative Justice and Common Hon- esty, and that he can't see the Reasonableness and Justice of it, betwixt the Subscribers and Borrow- ers ; and therefore must unavoidably prove a great Snare and Mischief to those that want Money, &c. To make a shew of the Proof thereof, he Argues from his own false Abstract of the Projec- tion, so that he disputing Ex 7ion Concessis ; all he draws from thence, together with his Hypothesis, grounded thereon, must needs fall of it self, & come to nothing. And it is plain, his design was only to amuse the People, but more particularly the House of Representatives: Now since the [14] Projection obliges every Subscriber to Mortgage a Real Estate, of the full value of what he Subscribes for, to make a sufficient Fund for the Credit of their Notes and Bills ; as likewise to Answer all Deficiencies aris- ing by any defect or default of the Projectors in the aforesaid Scheme ; Whereby the Borrowers or Possessors of the Notes or Bills are sure to have Justice done them ; and all concerned with them, in case the Bank should come to an end, even then will the last Possessors of their Bills or Notes have good Security to depend on : Notwithstanding all the Objector hath said, or possibly can say : They still having their Credit and Value from the Intrin- sick Value of the Bank, and not from what his IGO CURRENCY FOR THE Bubbled Borrowers give them, as he groundlesly asserts. He must needs suppose the House to be asleep, and so to need awakening, as ^^az/e 5. when he asserts, ^;«{7e 19. that by the Tenoiu' of the Bills you see, they are only obliged to Accept of them for the Redemption of Pawns and Mortgages : When in his Reciting the Tenour of the Bill, ^j)a^e 7. He owns that we oblige our selves to Accept the same in ALL PAYMENTS according to Cov- enant made by us on Publick Record, &c. Which how directly he Contradicts himself, & endeavours to Mislead the House, we leave you and the World to judge : Nor would the Projectors have the Pro- fits of other Mens E-[J5]states, much less the Estates themselves without a valuable Considera- tion, nor make themselves Masters of any Estates but their own, which they willingly Deposit and Mortgage for a General Benefit, for the Loan and Credit whereof it's as lawful for them to take In- terest, as it is for Mr. Attorney for his Bills of Credit on the Province. The Bank Bills having a better and more certain Security than the Public Loan Bills, and more easily obtained, in Case that late Act should be Repealed : And for that Reason his Arg-ument against the Private Bank is of far greater strength and force against the Pubhck Bank. Mr. Attorney is pleased often to put you in mind, that this Projection breaks in iqjon, and In- validates the Co7istitution of this Provi7ice, page 4. 15. The Act of Parliament of late made Re' MASSACHUSETTS BAY 161 ferring to Money in the Plantations, designing thereby to awaken the Government upon this great occasion, to Exert their proioer Power, and not suffer the Projection to proceed, hut hy some proper Act, and Puhlick Order, to declare against, and forbid it, lest thereby the Constitution of the Gov- ernment of the Province be broke in upon, and endangered : Because we are a Dependent Govern- ment, and must in all things Coniform our selves to the Laws of Great Britain, and Instructions of the Crown, and therefore must expect to give an Ac- count of all our Matters. Now if the suffering of this Private Bank to be [16] Erected, is such an Encroachment upon the Prerogative, and a breach of the Law of England, as to endanger the loss of our Charter, & the Lib- erties and Estates of the People, which to prevent, Mr. Attorney tells you, was the very Consideration that principally determined him at that time so freely to Communicate his Thoughts to your self in that Matter ; with the several other fine flourishes and plausible Insinuations, whereby he would in- duce you to believe that in all this Affair he hath sincerely aimed at the Publick Good, and effectu- ally to prevent any Attempts that might be made against our Liberties and Priviledges, which no doubt he is intirely fond of, & always was vigilant & industrious to maintain and defend. If he has sincerely given you his Opinion respecting the Pri- vate Bank, and the direful effects of it, with what sort of sincerity did he when he says he had the 162 CURRENCY FOR THE Honoui" to be of an Extraordinary Committee Raised for that purpose, give it as his Opinion, that con- sidering the demand as to the Taxes, & the great occasion of the People, as to their Trade, it might be convenient to Make and Issue out a further quantity of the Publick Bills of Credit : And now in his Letter spend so much time, and take such pains, and argue to persuade the General Court to set up a Bank of Credit themselves. Emit their Bills, and take Interest for the same. Is it not as possi- ble for the Government to Erect, [J 7] Set up and Establish things contrary to the Law, as for a Num- ber of Private Persons ; and does not the Law of England which he saith would be broke in upon, by Erecting a Private Bank, much more respect a Corporation than Private Persons ; and which he himself readily grants it doth. Is not this then one effectual way to endanger the Constitution of the Government, the utter Ruin & Loss of the Charter, & the many Liberties we hold & enjoy thereby. For if a Number of private Persons break in upon the Law of England they may be severally punished therefor ; But if a Corporation or Government like Ours, Set up and Enact things contrary to the Law of England, doubtless the way to punish them would be by Loss of their Charter and Priviledges granted thereby. So that upon the whole Matter, whether his Letter was not rather to Lull you asleep if possibly he could, that then he might bring you into the Practice of such things, which hereafter you, and all of us might have sufficient Reason to MASSACHUSETTS BAY 163 lament and be grieved for, but when too late; than in the least measure to awaken the Government that they might be upon their Guard against any Attempts to undermine them. Because having lately seen a Book Printed in London, Anno 1708. Intituled, The Deplorable State of New-England, (^c. In which is a Letter in the Words following. [18] Boston, January 12th, 1703, 4. Dear Kinsman, / Confess I am ashamed almost to think I should he at Home so long, and not let you know of it till now ; Tho^ after all, a New England Cor- respondence is scarce worth your having . . . I Re- fer you to Mr. . . . for a7i Account of every thing, especially about the Government and the Colledge, both which are discoursed of here in Chimney Corners and Private Meetings as confidently as can be. If there should be any occasion you must be sure to stir your self and Friends, and shew your Affection and Respect to my Father, who loves you well, and bid me tell you so. . . . This Country will never be worth Living in for Lawyers and Gentlemen, till the Charter is taken away. My Father and I sometimes talk of the Queens establishing a Court of Chancery in this Coun- try. I have Wrote about it to Mr. Blathwayt : If the Matter shoidd S2icceed, you might get some jylace worth your Return, of which I shoidd be 164 CURRENCY FOR THE very glad. If I can any ways serve you or your Friends, Pray signijie it to Dear Sir, Your Affectionate Friend, and Humble Servant, Paul Dudley. [19] Surely such a particular Favour done this Country, loudly calls ujjon every good Inhabitant within the same, to be always paying his proper thanks : And may it not very justly raise some doubts of his sincerity in seeking the true Interest of this Country ; or at least whether he doth not vastly differ in his Opinion from the most and best of Men among us, concerning what are our good and valuable Liberties and Priviledges. Sir, We take no Pleasure in Rehearsing these things to you, but were necessitated thus to do, lest by the aforesaid Letter in which he asserts, |ja^e 21. that as yet they have not Consulted the Government in the whole Affair ; We might be thought to be in any wise endeavouring to break in upon the Consti- tution of this Government, and consequently the Priviledges and Liberties we enjoy by the Charter, which we highly esteem of, and shall never be want- ing to do what in us lies for the long and well securing thereof. A very considerable part of his Letter being on the praise of Money, Silver and Gold, and his Con- trivance to store the Country with it. Regulating the Trade of the Country, and the Extravagance of MASSACHUSETTS BAY 165 the Inhabitants far beyond their Circumstances in their Purchases, Buildings, Expences, Apparrel, <2fc. being not to the present purpose, we shall not trouble you with an Answer thereto. [20] We doubt not but upon your Reading this our just Defence, you will be sufficiently enabled to make proper Thoughts upon the whole design of that Gentleman, as well as our Projection ; which seeing it hath laboured under so many needless Aspersions, shall take this occasion to Print the same ; that every one that pleases may have the Perusal and Examination thereof : whereby they will perceive his Letter to be Pandora's Box, and not the INNOCENT PROJECTION. Dated at Boston, in New- England, Decemb. 20. 1714. We are, Sir, Your very Humble Servants, Samuel Lynde, To the Contents, except the Letter taken out of a Book. E. Lyde ) John Colman f Elisha Cooke, jun. ] At the Desire, J. Oulton V & in behalf of Timothy Thornton J the Partnership. Oliver Noyes ^ William Pain V Nath. Oliver. I 1G6 CURRE^XY FOR THE MASSACHUSETTS BAY [A duodecimo of twenty pages. The copy of the pamplilet and the facsimile of the title-page were obtained thi-ough the courtesy of the Massachusetts His- torical Society.] SOME CONSIDERATIONS Upon the several sorts of BANKS Propos'd as a Medium of Trade : AND Some Improvements that might be made in this Province, hinted at. \WOAwOAt!^C Printed by T. Fleet and 2\ Crump, at the Desire of some of the Inhabitants of ^ (9 6" r 6> iV: 1716. 168 CURRENCY FOR THE [3] IN a Country of much Trade and Business, and where the Silver (which is the best Medium) is drawn off, the Trade will thereby be greatly dis- advantaged. To supply the Deficiency thereof in this Country, the Publick Bills of Credit have been for some Years a useful Expedient ; but they being become scarce, and daily decreasing, various have been the Projections of setting up a Bank to the value of 200000 /. more or less, as the only 3Ie- dium of Trade. Before the Consideration of the several Projec- tions, it may be of use to consider, that before the War, 26 or 27 Years since, there was a competent Cash to answer the Trade of the Country ; and to enquire what it was that drew it in, and how it comes to pass tis now drawn out ; that so the first may be encouraged, and the other avoided. And tho' the Wrecks and the Privateers did bring in considerable Quantities, yet many are of the Opinion those were but a small Proportion to the running Cash of the Country ; but that the Fishery was then the N. E. Silver Mine, and if Peace con- tinue, may prove the principal Means to draw in Sil- ver again ; and so much the more, if it has all needful Encouragement given by the General Court. For tho' tis true the needless Expence in many respects, as in Silks, fine Cloth, both Linen, and Woollen, as also the Drinking so much Wine & Rum, &c. I! S O M F CONSIDERATION^^] Upon the feveral forr; of BANKS Proposd 35 a Medium of Trade : \ AND 1 "* Some Iniprovcmcm^ thar might be made ill this Province, hinted at. .^-f ^r ^y->. ffy /t^ <^ «fJ^ ^f? \f 'v^ Printed by T. Fleet ?inci T Cmmpy at the Defire of fome t>f rhe Inhabitants oi BOSTQK 171/1. ''' ' "* '' I 111 I n il II I I I . I ... MASSACHUSETTS BAY 169 has been a great means of carrying off the [4] Sil- ver, yet this is a Toppick easier to Speak to, than to redress ; & is a Matter -worthy of the Legislators care. And if the General Court should lend upon good Security, and without Interest, (only paying for the making) great Sums of Bills for inabling Particular Men to carry on any useful and bene- ficial Works, and should give to others sufficient to Encourage them to set up useful and profitable Inventions or Trades, it would be not only some addition to the Running Cash, but also would pre- vent much of our Importation. And Encouragement to our Fishery would much increase our Exporta- tion, whereby in time, the Difficulties we now labour under, would be abated. For till our Exportation exceeds our Importation, if Silver should happen to be brought into this Country, it could not abide here, but of necessity must be again Exported to pay the Debt contracted. But as a needful Expedient, and while other Methods can be taken, (the Country Bills failing, and shortning every Day more and more) several have been the Projections of Banks to supply the Defect. The first proposed, is a Private Bank ; wherein a number of Men, of good Real Estates, entering their Names, and Subscribing for any Sum propor- tionable to the Security they can give in Lands, ^c. take out perhaps half the sum Subscribed for, pay- ing Interest for what they take out ; the rest of the Bills to be let out to such as will hire the same upon good Security ; a part of the whole Interest to be 170 CURRENCY FOR THE to Publiik Uses, the rest to the Bankers ; He [5] that Subscribes most to have most Voices, so that one Man may have 5 Votes in all Matters, with many other Articles. This Bank seems projected more for the Advan- tage of the Bankers, than for the Publick Good : For (not to mention many other Objections) till we can be assured that not only the present Bankers, but also their Posterity, will always seek the Piiblick above their own Private Advantage ; That Assur- ance can there be, that those Gentlemen of 5 Votes a-piece, will not by joyning together, easily sway the Votes to their own Advantage ; as by drawing out of great Sums to Monopolise not only Goods, but Provisions ; with many other ways ruinous to the Puhlick ? The second Projection is; That the Country Emit Bills and let them out upon Interest, and upon good Security, which will bring in a large Revenue towards the support of the Charges of the Government. This has likewise met with Objections ; and till the Throne can be secured from a Prince of Arbi- trary Principles in all times to come, such a Bank will be dangerous : For how easy will it be for such a Prince to divert such a large Revenue to his Use and Pleasure ? If any think otherwise, they may consider the last 5 Reigns, and see if they can assure us, that any more than one of them would not have taken hold of such an Opportunity : For tho' (thanks be to Heaven) we have a King upon the INIASSACHUSETTS BAY 171 Throne, that Studies nothing more than the welfare of his Peo-[6]ple, yet all Men are Mortal, and as Changes have been in our Eandom of England, so no doubt may be again ; and if a Prince of such Principles should ever Ascend the Throne, all the Laws to secure so large a Revenue, would prove but as Spiders Wehs. These two Banks which are level'd to raise a large Income yearly, which must also have many Officers, and a large Pension for their Service, are reciprocally opposed by both; neither of the two Parties, but can see danger in the others obtaining their ends. A third Proposal has been. That the Country should make a competent Sum of Puhlick Bills, and lend them to the several Towns in proportion to theii- Rates, at 5 per Cent for 20 Years, in which time the whole being paid in, the Principal to be to such Town, who may either let it out upon Interest, or purchase Lands with it for the use of the Town. This third Proposal being without the Charge of great Officers and Salaries, and without the risque of had Bills, or Cheats, yet answering the end pro- posed of supplying a Medium of Trade, and having none of the former Objections lying against it, may reasonably be accounted the most eligible, & every way preferable, rather than any of the two former, or than that of framing a new Sp)ecie of Bills founded upon the Mortgaged Lands ; and all the Country's undivided Lands, which so long as any of those Bills were out, would bar the Country from settling one 172 CURRENCY FOR THE Town more ; and (without the Country's Sanction) would involve the People in new Perplexities how to pay then- Specialties for Province Bilh. [7] And it being supposed, that many that are rather for no Bank, yet joyn in some with one side, some with the other, in order to obstruct emiting of any ; as best suiting their particular Interest : In which case a Fourth has been proposed, {viz.) A Private Bank, of a competent Number of Men in Business agreeing together, make Bills, & give Se- curity each to other to answer them ; to let their Books he open for any Man in the Province to Sub- scribe his Siun ; and gi^^ng in Security sufficient, to take out what Bills he Subscribes for, without pay- ing any Interest, only at taking out, to pay for the making, &c. and to be obliged in some Penalty to meet once a Year, and pay off the necessary Charge, &c. till a competent Cash be taken out, and then the Books to be shut up, and no more Bills Emitted, save only to change the defective, &c. Such a Bank might be very Useful as a Medium of Trade, and would soon obtain in this Pro\'ince, to be as good as the Bills of the other Colonies 'Tis certain. Banks of what kind soever, cannot be (in our dechning Circumstances) a compleat Rem- edy, but only may render us more Comfortable in our consuming Condition ; as a Cordial to a Man in a deadly Disease, may be some Support till other Means can be used ; for which Reason 'tis prefer- able to all Banks, that the Government Emit large Sums for promoting what may be Beneficial and of :massachusetts bay 173 a general Good ; (ut siqy.) which -will not only be a Supply of present Cash, but will also lay certain and stable Foundations of increasing the Produce of [8] the Country ; which is the Interest and Wis- dom of all Nations. Such as lending large Sums upon good Security, without Interest for some Term of Years, (only pay- ing for the making) for building a Bridge over Charles River, cutting a Channel at Sandwich for safe and more speedy Passage of Vessels, if those Works upon Mature Consideration shall be found Practicable. And here being both Iron Oar, and a plenty of Wood to work it, and this Country having great occasion for all sorts of Iron Work ; it may be advisable to advance considerably in Bills, either by the way of Loan or Gift, to such as will undertake to set up a Finery, and cause it to Work to Effect ; which would work the Iron better, and in greater Quantities ; and by the help of which. Pots & Kettles might be made here for the use of the Coun- try. To encourage which, the Duty laid in Enrjland upon Hollow Ware, would have no small Influence. True it is, here was a Finery in the beginning of Times at Lynn, which did not pros23er, here not being then a competent Number of People to man- age them, nor yet to take off the Wares when made, tho' at half the Price now sold at. It ought not to be any Discouragement in the Undertaking, now both the quantity of Hands to work at it, as also to expend the Goods when made, are double : the Price they then were at, being also doubled. 174 CURRENCY FOR THE And here being great occasion for JVails, & other small Works, which at present cannot be made at the price for want of a Slitting Mill, to slit the Iron [9] into suitable Rods; (for it is found that 'tis as much Labour to fit the Rods, as to make the Nails when the Rod is prepared) If the Country should give or lend a competent Sum to any that shall pro- cure Workmen to bring such a Mill to work to Effect here, it would inable the Smiths to make a sufficient Supply of Nails for this Country. And if the Soldiers at the Castle had Nailers to instruct them, many of them might be imployed in it, which would be a benefit to such Soldiers in their Health. This one Article of Iron- Works, which might be set upon for a few Hundreds, would soon save the Country some Thousands in a Year. Glass-works might also be improved here, the Materials being all at hand, which in its several parts, as Window-Glass, Beer-Glasses and Bottles, would amount to a very great Sum; and a small Encouragement from the Country, would be suffi- cient to set it up here. The like may be said of Paper making, working upon Horn for Comhs, Ink- Horns, &c. which with Encouragement, would save the Country very Considerable. The improving the sowing of Hemp and Flax, is also a Matter worthy of great Regard ; & is much obstructed by the inability of many to break up Land suitable. In which case, it would be a good Encouragement to lend them without Interest, such a Sum as may inable them yearly to break up and IMASSACHUSETTS BAY 175 Fence in 10 or 20 Acres for that Use. This would be of very great Service to the Country. And tho' the Crown will always have a jealous [10] Eye upon any Increase of the Woollen Manu- factury here ; yet it will rather Encourage the work- ing upon Linen or upon Cotton (as in Ireland) which with suitable Encouragement, is capable of a vast Improvement here, by making Sheeting, Shirt- ing, & Callicoes. This Country being often Kable upon a failure of Crops, to be bro't to Extremity for want of Grain ; and when a time of Plenty comes, there are but few Buyers, whereby 'tis often run down below a reason- able Price: To prevent both which Extreams, the erecting of Store-houses or Graineries, would be of singular Use : And if the Country advance some Thousands for building of Graineries, for safe laying up of Grain, many in a time of Plenty, would lay up their Grain in them ; and taking a Receit for it may with it pay their Debts. (As is practised in Germany) It is easy to conceive, that this would be a very great Benefit to Trade, and that which Hol- land, tho' they have comparatively but little Grain growing, yet hereby are inabled in times of Scarsity, to supply not only themselves, but also the Neigh- bouring Nations. Tho' this Country be large, and much good Land in it, which for want of People, cannot be improved in many Generations ; yet a shame it is to say. This Colony cannot provide themselves necessary Food. The Town of Boston is much increased of late 176 CURRENCY FOR THE Years, by Strangers coming in ; but the Country has not increased answerably : But in stead of that, many are gone, and others following them, so that 'tis supposed, that in the last 12 Years, enough have [U] gone out of this Colony, to Plant 12 good Towns in Connecticut only ; besides what have gone to other Places. The reason of the not impro\4ng the Coimtry more, and also many going out, when here is want of double the Number we have, is a Matter worthy to be well considered. In the first Setling this Country, Land was easy to be attained, and at a low price, which was an In- ducement to multitudes to come over Servants : But now the Land being so generally taken up, few come over that can live elsewhere ; so that Servants now brought, generally prove Run-aways, Thieves, or some way Disorderly : To avoid having of such, mul- titudes have rather chosen to get Slaves, tho' at ex- cessive Price ; which Practice, tho so directly against the Peopling the Country, is encouraged in stead of being remedied, even by the Laws of the Country. For he that is able to purchase a Slave, comes off in the Rates cheaper than his poorer Neighbour that has an Apprentice ; tho' indeed in that hard and unequal Tax of Polemoney, the Masters are made equal. But he that has an Apprentice, must pay more for him, than his richer Neighbour is set at for his Slave ; & the poor Man's Apprentice must Watch & Train, and not only so, but in a time of War, must be Prest from him : All which his richer Neighbour is cleared from, besides his paying less in the Rates ; JMASSACHUSETTS BAY 177 to the encouraging of Slavery, and discouraging of the Poor ; and consequently to the putting a full stop to the Growth of the Country : Slaves being a weaknino' rather than Addition to the Streno^th of a [12] Country. Boston alone is supposed to have 3 or 400 Slaves ; which were there so many Servants in their stead, enough would come out of their time yearly, to people a good Town. These are some of the Hindrances of the Increase of the Country, for Remedy whereof, it is humbly ProjDOsed, That the Country make such Provision, that Servants when out of their time, shall be enti- tuled to 50 or 60 Acres of Land, & a Township appointed for them ; and if others shall joyn with them in settling such Town, they to pay to the Coun- try a moderate Price for Land, &c. such Township not to exceed 4 or 5 Miles Square ; for the extrava- gant Bounds of Townships, is that which has occa- sioned great Quarrels among themselves, and also given a great deal of Trouble to the General Court about placing new Meetinrj-Houses, and the Bounds of Precincts. And such Township (if it may be) to have a Brook or River in it, proper for a Grist-Mill and a Saw-Mill, the Meeting- House to be set in the middle of the Township, and the Houses as near as may be to it. And as soon as such Township is filled up with Inhabitants, then to appoint another. And this would be the greatest Inducement to the coming over of Servants, and the greatest Means of Increasing and Strengthening the Country. To effect which, if those Gentlemen that have 178 CURRENCY FOR THE lugrost vast Tracts of Land, without any design ever to settle them by themselves, Servants or Slaves, should Voluntiirily throw up into the Country's Hands, one half of what they have so Ingrost, in [J 3] order to furnish Conveniences for such Set- tlements, they might be gainers by it in the other half. Or if the Country should put a Rate upon such Tracts of Land as lie convenient to settle Townships upon, in order to make them willing to throw them up to the Country ; such yearly Rate would be more . Justifiable, and more Equal, than to Rate a poor Man 10 s. that has much ado to live ; those Estates being valued worth hundreds of Pounds by the Owners thereof, who keep them only in hopes that as other Places hereafter shall be settled, they may Advance upon the Price, yet Pay no Rates for them : And in the mean time their poor Neighbours must pay perhaps a greater Rate than would be put upon him in the most Arbitrary Kmgdom in Europe Either of these two ways, with what Lands remain yet in the Country's Dispose, would soon furnish Land sufficient to supply Servants as they shall become Free, and supply others that they need not withdraw, &c. But if neither of these two Methods should be approved of. If the Country should Enact, That as often as there shoidd he occasion, a con- venient Township be lookt out and Surveyed, and made sure to them, and such others as shall joyn with them, they after some Tears to pay a quit Rent, in some Prop)ortion to the former Vcdue of MASSACHUSETTS BAY 179 the Land, to the Owners thereof ivhen they shall have made out their Claims ; This would be so far from being a Damage, that it would be a Benefit to such Owners of Lands, by having an Income of that which if the former Methods continue, can hardly ever be settled. ' [J 4] Some that are good Farmers, who observ- ing that the Lands are so generally Ingrost, fear they shall not procure sufficient to settle their Chil- dren upon, have straitned themselves, and perhaps run in debt to buy Land, to the disabling them to improve the Lands they before had. For inabling such to improve then- Lands, if the Country should lend 100 I. without Interest, upon Condition that in ten Years time they break up and Keep subdued 50 Acres of Land ; this would be a great Encour- agement to them, and would much Increase the Produce of the Country. And as to Slaves, as was before demonstrated, they are a great hinderance to the Peopling and Improving the Country : And the Proverb tells us. That the Receiver is as had as the Thief ; and that if there loere no Receivers, there woidd he no Thieves : If those are true Proverhs, then are not we of this Country guilty of that Violence, Treach- ery and Bloodshed, that is daily made use of to obtain them ; we rendring our selves Partakers with them in that Wickedness ? (For 'tis not to be sup- posed, that these do voluntarily abandon themselves to be carried into a Foreign Country, and there to be sold for Slaves) If therefore the Country in ISO CURRENCY FOR THE stead of many Laws they have made obout Negroes^ should Enact, Tliat twenty Years hence there should be no Slave in the Country, it would hurt no Man, but woidd greatly Encourage Sei-^^xnts to come, and necessitate their being brought over, to the great Increase and Strengthning the Country. And now if any shall object to what is said, in order to better the Proposals, for advancing the general Good of the Country ; or shall add more with better Reasons to Enforce what may be said, they would therein do good Service to their Coun- But if they Object with design to hinder the Improvements hinted at from private and secret Views of their own, however they may esteem of themselves, are far from being true Friends to the Country. All wise civiHzed Nations make it a prin- cipal Part of their Care to Encourage the Produce of their several Countries, that so they may stand in need of the less from abroad, [J 5] And it being agreed upon on all hands, that a Medium is want- ing, and the General Court having pitch'd upon the Sum of 100000 /. to be Made and Emitted ; The Question is. Whether it be best for the General Good, to invest all or Part of said Sum in the sev- eral Towns in Proportion ; and with the remainder, or with other Money lent, (for 100000 /. wdll be found too smaU a Sum) free of Interest, to Particu- lar Men, to be for the Advance of Husbandry, and bringing in of Arts and Trades that may be of vast Benefit to the Country [ut sup.) ? MASSACHUSETTS BAY 181 Or whether it be best to let it out to Interest to our Necessitous Neighbours, and thereby raise a large Revenue? For Answer, Can it be thought, that a little Use- Money should be a greater Benefit to the Country, than any or all the various Methods hinted at, or that might be thought of ? One Branch of which, (viz.) that of breaking up of Land, and Improve- ments thereon, or that other Branch of Iron-work, would Yearly save the Country much more than all the Use-Money could amount to, (were it to come clear of all charges.) Or can it be conceived, that a Committee, tho' well chosen, can Inspect the Title and Value of Lands ill all the remote Parts of the Province, bet- ter than the several Towns can act for themselves ? Or will the Sallaries of such Committees be so small, as to be less than if the several Towns have the Management for their own Advantage ? Or can it consist with the Wisdom of a Religious People, even to force those to be Usurers, whose Judgment and Conscience is utterly against it ; and for failure of paying Debt and Interest, to swallow up the Estates of their poor Neighbours ? Is not this what is abhorred by Jews, Turks and Pcqnsts ; [viz.) To eat up their poor Neighbours by Usury ? Have the Laws of any Christian Nation ever ap- proved of it, or any more than barely tollerated it ? 182 CURKENCY FOR THE MASSACHUSETTS BAY And have not nia-[J6]ny of the Celebrated Divines in K)i(jland declar'd it utterly Unlawful? And must this Country run Retrograde to all ? To Conclude ; take the Words of the Law-Book, Title ( Usurii) which was Enacted when there was in the General Court, many wise Religious Men, and such as were of the First Comers ; where after they have exprest, that none shall be adjudged more than Eight Pounds in the Hundred for For- bearance for a Year, adds, P. 153. these Words ; Neither shall this be a Colour or Countenance to allow any Usury among us, contrary to the Law of God. FINIS. [A small octavo of sixteen pages. The copy of the pamphlet and the facsimile of the title-page were obtained through the courtesy of the Boston Public Library.] [J] The Present ;^elanc|)Olj> Circum- stances of the PROVINCE Consider'd, and Methods for Re- dress humbly proposed, in a Letter from one in the Country to one in Boston, Sir, SINCE our last Discourse about the uneasie threatning Circumstances of this Province^ as to Money or a 3fedium of Trade ; I have employed my thoughts somewhat in the matter, and I'll briefly hint some things that have occur' d to my mind. Our Fathers that first settled the Province of the Massachusetts-Bay, brought some Gold and Silver with them ; after a while, some Money was Coined here, as Shillings, Six-Pences, &c. But in process of time, (even long before Silver Money was gener- ally Exported, or carried out of the Province,) the greatest part of the passing Money here, was Span- ish, viz. Pieces of Eight, Half Pieces, Eight Pences, &c. This Money I suppose was chiefly the Peturns made for our Fish, Lumber, Horses, Grain, Beaf PorTc, &c. Exported or carried out of the Country. I think this demonstrates, that in those times what we Exported of our own produce (or the fruits of [2] our own labour), was more than what was Imjjorted from other Places, either for Food, Drink, or 184 CURRENCY FOR THE Cloathing ; therefore to make the Ballance, Money came in, and coiitmued Circulating' among us. In those times the Wealth of this Country was on the growing hand. But of late Years, I'll suppose the Twentii last past, our Silver Money has been gen- erally Exported, so that now there is not a Penny of it passing between Man and Man. Tho' I don't know exactly (nor I believe any one else) how much Money has been Exported this last Twenty Years, yet I'll now suppose it to be Three Hundred Thou- sand Pounds ; and I'll suppose we have now about Two Hundred Thousand Pounds out in Province Bills ; what's out in Province Bills, and to be Col- lected by Tax, the Province owes for, and is so much in Deht ; what's out upon Loan, is owing for hj particidar Persons in the Province, so that the Inhahitants of this Province owe for the whole. Now if the guess I have made be exact, (which I don't pretend to) or pretty near it, then this Pro- vincem what is spent and what is owed for, are about Five Hundred Thousand Pounds sunk in their Estates, in about Twenty Years. If my guess be right in the Silver Exported, and the Province Bills now out, then the Conclusion I've drawn must needs be true. But how comes it that we have sunk so [3] much in our Estates, in so short a time ? If any think it occasioned by the Wars we have had in the last Twenty Years ; I'm humbly of a different Sen- timent ; for we did not hire Foreigners to manage our Wars. This Province did not send away Silver 'f^^tnia r i \ fy'/f-^ic^ J . be Pxcfcht. fiPt;ia.npllO!l> CTrriim^ ^ ftanccsc^-f 'Jt/D V I N C E Co\iiiAq0,r.f'^d, l%rlxods for, Rcdrefsiiurnbiy'^">ro^0^^^^^ in a letter ftom'iine ^ii rlic Cou?itryxhilbngs^ Six-Tcnccs^ &c. But in prot^fs of time, (even lOcg before ^y/'/t'^;* Money was generally Exported^ ot cairied out ofthe Province,) the'grcateft parrot- \.\xQp>iJ]ing ^^oTicy here, was Spamjl^^ viz. P/rr^rj rt0d, OX .ouj:ou'f^ p/vd^/ce ( or the fruits of A ott ]MASSACHUSETTS BAY 185 Money, to hire assistance against Indians or French. My opinion therefore is, that our decay in Wealth is chiefly owing to our Mismanagements, especially our Extravagance. What is Imported into the Province, & Sjjent here, is, or should be Paid for ; else we are dis- honest, which does not become Men, much less Christians, as we are : And if the Fruits and Pro- duce of our own Lahour in this Province, won't make a sufficient Exjoort to jDay for what we receive from Abroad, and Spend here; then the Silver goes to make the Ballance, and pay the remainder. And this is the very Case, the short and long of the Business. Our Silver is gone to pay the over- plus of Imported Goods, above what our own Pro- duct Exported, could pay. Among the Commodities Imimrted, some are really useful for us, which we are not able to raise, or make our selves, some not at all, some not as yet, or not enough of it, as Can- vas, Biggin, Brass, Coj^per, Pewter, Tin- Ware, Glass for Windows, Sugar, Melosses, Cotton- Wool, Paper, Needles, Pins, Scythes, Sickles, Cutlary Ware, &c. I sup-[4]pose our own Produce (if we joyned Prudence and Diligence together) which might be Exported, would be enough to pay for all the Imjjorted Commodities, which are really needful and useful for us. But then many things have been Imported, which have not heen necessary, yet very costly ; such as Silver and Gold Lace, worn on Cloaths and Shoes, Velvet, Bich Silk, Sattin, Silk Stockings^ 186 CURRENCY FOR THE Fine Broad-Cloths, Camlets, rerriwiggs, Fine costly Shoes ami Pattoons, Hlhhons, Rich Lace, SUk-IIankerchiefs, Fine Hatts, Gloves of great price and little worth, China Ware, very Costly- Looking-GlasseSf Cane-Chairs, Costly Beds & Furniture, &e. We in the Country, think that so7ne scores of Thousands of Founds in late Years, have been spent by this Province in these things, and that the Province would have been much better without them. I don't now contend agfainst these thing^s as being Unlawful in themselves ; but for us to send off our Silver Money to buy them, & now not have a Penny to pass between Man & Man for our neces- sary business, I think has not been our Prudence but our great Folly. Possibly some will say, the fault is in the Mid- dling or Poorer sort of People, who buy these things, and go above their Ability, in doing it. The reply is. Possibly it has been great loeakness in the Richer sort to lead in these things, and greater folly in the Poorer to follow them. [5] However, its matter of Fact, that there's much needless Expence in sundry of these things, and tho' some Richer Persons or Families can bear the Cost of these Expences, yet Poorer ones (who too much affect them) can't ; but whether such things are spent by Rich or Poor, its all one to the Pro- vince in general. For what's Imported and spent in the Province must be paid for by Export from it ; and if the Produce of our Labour won't do it, our Silver and Gold must go (or rather is gone) to make it up. IMASSACHUSETTS BAY 187 And as I'm humbly of Opinion, that this Pro- vince had much better have been without, many Scores of Thousands of Pounds of fine costly things Imported & spent here ; so I beHeve other things tho' useful in their time & measure, have been Imported and Spent in greater Quajitities, than has been for our good, Such as Wine, Rum, Brandy, (not to mention Tea, Coffee, Chacolet, which People here formerly did very well without) that there has been much needless Expence in these things, I suppose none will deny. So far and so frequently as any have drunk to excess, the Sin of Drunkenness has been chargeable on them, which they should seriously and penitently consider of ; but I'm now considering the matter, as to the Cost of such Imported Liquors. If several Thousand Pounds Yearly, are needlesly spent in these things, so many Thousands a Tear we are hurt even on this account, that our Export [6] does not (with- out sending off Silver) equal our Import. If out of our own Produce, a Cargo of Staves, Hoops, Horses, &c, has for its return, a Cargo of Wine or Rum, and one Third of it is needlesly expended and wasted here ; if instead of this Third need- lesly spent, the return had been made in Silver, I think this might be caU'd double gain. And since as to the Cost part (besides the Sin of Intemper- ance) we are much hurt by the needless Expence of Imported Liquors ; I conceive that the needless multiplying Taverns and Retailers, tends further to impoverish us. For Persons thus employed think 188 CURRENCY FOR THE to get a Livuicj by their Business, and so are for cJraic'uKj and coidlng as much Liquor as they can, and its to be fear'd, criminally incourage others to buy ; and the more is spent for what's Imj^oi^ted, the more must be Exported in one thing or other to Pay for it. And tho' some may think it a Puh- Uck advantage to mult'qAy Licences for selling of Drink, to draw more Excise Money into the Trea- sury ; yet I conceive it to be a Puhlick hurt, because our Lnport must be answered by our Export ; and yet we have not enough of the latter to do it ; therefore our Silver Money is gone. A needless multiplying of Retailers, whether of Drink or Shop Goods, is no advantage to the Publick. For if the same Goods are bought by Ten Persons one after another, with design to Sell again, [7] before the Person buys them that designs to wear or use them ; each of those Ten Persons aims at Gaiii in passing thro' his hands, and the last buyer and user pays it all ; whereas if he had bought it of the first or second Seller, he might have sav'd the gain which the other Eight or JVine Persons had, and those Persons might have been imploy'd in other Business. For tho' in this case supposed, the Eight or iVwie needless Retailers, get some gain to themselves, and the last buyer and user pays it all, yet the Province, or Publick is not enrich'd one Farthing by their labour. If they had been employ'd in Husbandry, or Handy craft-Busi- ness ; there would probably have been some produce of their labour for the Publick Good ; either Grain, IMASSACHUSETTS BAY 189 Cattle, Hemp, Flax raised, or CloatJi, Shoes, or Utensils made, which might be serviceable to them- selves or others ; but their meei' handing of Goods one to another, no more increases any Wealth in the Province, than Persons at a Fire increase the Water in a Pail, by passing it thro' Twenty or Forty hands. This matter might be considered, as to Petty Shops, especially Hucksters and Forestall- ers of the Market. I would not be thought here to condemn Retailing in general, for doubtless Per- sons may get an honest Liming by it, and those who buy of them may be gainers too, by having the Commodities brought nearer, which prevents the Time and Expence of travelling farther for them. It's therefore only [8] a needless Retailing (whether of Drink or other Commodities) which I look on as hurtful to the Publick, because the Per- sons so employed, really raise or produce no good to the Piihlick, which they might do if labouring in some other and proper business. Needless Retail- ers, with respect to any Publick benefit, are really Idlers ; they help to spend what is Raised or Im- jjorted, but produce neither by their labour. Thus I've liinted by what way and means I conceive our Silver has been Exported, and we are sunk so deep in Debt, viz. by Importing and spend- ing many things which we had better been without ; and by an excessive sj^ending some things Im- ported, which in themselves consider'd, and in their time and measure may be reckoned usefid. Now the Question is. How to redress this griev' 190 CURRENCY FOR THE ance, & extricate our selves from these difficulties. I think this Question is not improper to be thought upon, by any one that wishes well to this Province, as I'm sure I heartily do. My Opinion is, that we can't suddenly or at once get rid of these difficul- ties, which our own Folly and Extravagance have brought us into. Yet I Conjecture, that in a few Years time, by an ordinary course of Providence we might gradually free our selves from them. When a Traveller knows he has missed his way, he often goes back in the same Path, 'till he's sure that he is in the right [9] road again. I think we should take the same method. In the mean time, let us Cultivate Peace, Love, Unity, not be hard on one another for different sentiments, about ways to mend our Cu-cumstances ; let us not foment Parties and Factions, but studiously avoid them, as we love God and our Country, Every City or House divided against it self, shall 7iot stand. Thus watching against Discord, I'll say. Let not Mer- chants Import needless Commodities, or if they do, let us not buy or use them ; nor use more than needs of what is usefid in it self. Let no Wool, Hides, Leather, Grain nor Can- dles be Fxpoi^ted, when at a dear price. Let us grow more Frugal in furnishing & adorning our Houses, in our Cloths, Food and Drink, this we might do (many at least) without hurting our Bodies by Cold, Thirst or Hunger. Let us be diligent and laborious, to raise, produce, make as much as we can for our own support, as to Food, Rai- MASSACHUSETTS BAY 191 menty Tools, Utensils. Let Husbandry, (tilling the ground) be more diligently and generally followed, that Bread and Flesh may be rais'd, and Barley to make Drink, that so the less Iinj)orted Drink might be called for. Let us raise more Sheep & Flax, and make as much of our own Clothing, both Wool- len & Linnen as possibly we can. If People would generally & -purposely chuse, to wear Cloths, (Woollen & Linnen) Stockens, Shoes, Gloves, Halts, of our own Country make ; this would i?i- courage more to [10] Fynjjloy themselves in mak- ing these, & in growing more skilful and exact at it, and would prevent the Import of many Thou- sands a Year, for which (among other unneces- saries) our Silver is gone. Two Bides well ob- served would help us, viz. Let us by diligent labour raise & make as much as we can for our selves, of Food, Baiment, Utensils, &c. and buy no more of Imported Goods than necessity requhes, I say, the observing these Rules would soon turn the Sccdes, and better our Circumstances : I'm humbly of opin- ion, that a Thousand Schemes about Banks and Paper-Money, would not help us like this. If this course were well followed a few Years, we should then live more on our own Produce, than now we do ; we should raise more for Export than now we do ; and our Export in Fish, Oyl, Whalebone, Horses, lumber, &c. would far more than pay for necessary Importations, and therefore the oveiplus would naturally (as it were) return in Silver and Gold, and so we should have such Money as plenty 192 CURRENCY FOR THE as ever. But the longer we continue in our ^;re- sent course of spending so much of Imported Commodities, and raising so little by our own la- hours, so much the deeper we necessarily sink into misery. By this present course we are in, we take off the Manufactures and maintain the Labourers of other parts, even as far as the East Indies, (by the Silks, Muslins, &c. we have from thence) and j)ay for it (so far as 'tis [U] done) not out of our Labour, but our Stock, for our Silver is gone al- ready, & we are deep in debt into bargain. Our iooMsh fondness of Forreign Commodities (^Fash- ions has almost ruin'd us. How many Thousand Pounds within this Two or Three Years have been Expended, in only one particular instance, viz. Camlets and trimming for Riding-Hoods, and in making them ? Has not Three Quarters of this, if not more, been needless ; tho' the labour in making has been paid for here, yet the Im2:>orted Mcderi- als must be paid for by some Export. If we had now Five Hundred Thousand Pounds in Silver Currant among us, I beheve 'twould soon be carried off, if we did not alter our present course, viz. to be less fond of Forreign Commodities, and to be more laborious to raise Necessaries for o\ir selves. We in the Country think, that Plotting heads, Proud hearts, and Idle hands, will never maintain a People ; and that a close following the Wheel within doors, and the Plough without are much better and stronger Politicks. Many complain they scarce know how to live, and I don't wonder at it. JVIASSACHUSETTS BAY 193 for many affect to live higher than they need, or can hear. You in Boston go very fine, we in the Country are smattering at it, and coming to it, by degrees. First by clipping and debasi?ig Silver Honey, then by sending it aioay, and the coming o£ Paper Money in the [12] room of it; I say, hereby Merchants Imported Goods are come to an Extravagant Advance. When we buy European or West-India Goods, we give for some double, for others more than double the Price that was given Fifteen or Twenty Years ago. This necessitates us in the Country, to raise in some prop)ortion the Price of our Grain, Flesh, Wood, Hay, Butter, Cheese, &c. We formerly Sold Butter, Six pence a Pound, that Six Pence would buy Two Pounds of Sugar, and if we now have Nine pence a Pound for Butter, that Nine Pence will buy but One Potmd of Sugar, or thereabouts. So that when we receive so great a Price as we do, yet we find it hard enough to rub along ; and the more so, because Boston dis- temper is got into the Country, that is, We and our Families are fond of many needless Imported Commodities, and must pay the Importers or Mer- chants an Extravagant rate for them. If this rais- ing on one another in Trade, helps some, yet it hurts more. Another thing which very much deserves our consideration is. That Salary Men, 3Iinisters, School- Masters, Judges of the Circuit, President & Tutors at Colledge, Widows and Orphans, &c. are pincht and hurt more than any ; for while they 194 CURRENCY FOR THE pay it may be double or more, both for Imported Goods, and the Produce of the Country, yet their Salaries are not increas'd (if at all) in j^roj^ortion, to what i\\e Merchant and [J 3] Ilushandman raises upon one another, tho' they must buy of both. If Justice and Equity don't say, their Salaries ought to be increas'd, let any one judge. But possibly some will say, if we do our utmost to raise necessaries for our selves, and buy no more than necessity requires of hnported Commod- ities, this course wdll spoil 3Ierchandizing and Trading. I reply, the good of the whole should be preferred to that of a part. Merchandizing and Trading are necessary and j^roftahle for us, if well manag'd ; but mismanagement therein, may hurt a People. Trading has carried off our Money, we have not a Shilling in Silver passing, and we are deep in Debt ; has not this Trading almost ruin'd us ? Is not this, to hiiy and sell and live by the loss ? It is not profitable to the PubHck, to have too many of any jmrtieidar Trade or Calling, for they must either be idle (when they might be im- ploy'd in proper business) or labour for little or nothing, which is unprofitable to themselves, and to the Publick therein. If there be Merchants enough to manage the Export we can raise, and the Import we 7ieed, there's enough ; Sup)ernumeraries are hurtful not serviceable to the Pubhck ; 'twould be better they were imploy'd in other business. Possibly, some think, that the Emitting more Paper Money would bring us out of our [14] diffi- MASSACHUSETTS BAY 195 culties, but I'm humbly of another Opinion. I think some engaged in Trade have observ'd, that since the Emitting the last Hundred Thousand Pounds, the Price of Commodities Imported, and of our own Produce, has been considerably rais\l ; which is not so much from the scarcity of such Com- modities, as from the mean ojmiion Persons have of the 2^assi)ig Money, The last I have heard is, that when Silver Money is Sold (now and then a little as some can get it) it fetches Eleven or Twelve Shil- lings an Ounce in Paper Money ; whereas accord- ing to our Law [Seventeen Penny Weight at Six Shillings) Silver Money is but a very small matter more than Seven Shillings an Ounce, This plainly shows the low value People have for Paper Money. It seems as tho' the more 'tis increas'd the less 'tis valued, I'm prone to think, that if every Family in the Province, had a Thousand Pounds in Paper Money; Twenty Shillings of it, would not then buy so much, as Five Shillings will now. In this Province, People generally desii*e to be Freehold, they don't chuse to be Tenants, and pay Rent. But if we take up Money whether of the Province or 2^<^^t'i'Gular Persons, on our Lands ; we so far become Tenants to the Lenders, and jy^^y Rent to them. And if we can't pay when what's borrowed is regularly call'd for, but a Course of Law recov- ers Land from us ; possibly more Land will be taken, then we should have [15] been walling to have Sold, for half so much more as we have bor- rowed. Possibly some who have taken up Money 196 CURRENCY FOR THE on their Lands, by being uncapable of paying will Jose them ; Frugality and Diligence would have been a greater kindness to such, than their hiring Money was. This (out of true love to my dear Country, where I was born, and hitherto have hv'd, without ill will to any Person or Persons whatsoever,) I've freely given you some hints of my Opinion, about our present uncomfortable Circumstances ; you may consider 'em, and communicate 'em to your Neigh- bours if they'l do any good. If you see meet to return your own thoughts to me in Writing, I should be glad of your Opinion as to the following Queries, viz. If Richer and Abler Persons and Families, would abate considerably of their Rich needless fineries, and costly way of living ; therein giving a leading Example to Inferiors ? If needless Extravagant Expences at Weddings & Funerals were retrench'd ; and no Gloves but of our own make, given at either ; nor Drink at Funerals but of our own produce ; nor Scarves but for Persons of some distinguished ranh'^ If Counsellors, Ministers, Militay Commission Officers, would 'purposely wear Garments, Shoes, Stockings, Gloves, Halts, (as soon as they can get 'em) of our own make ? If considerable encouragement were given [J 6] by the Puhlick for the Raising and Manufacturing of Hemp and Flax, especially that the Poor in Town and Country might be Employed ; and for MASSACHUSETTS BAY 197 Manufacturing of Iron, (whereof there is plenty of Oar in the Land,) especially in Casting Potts, Ket- tles, making Nails of various sorts, &c. ? If Waste Lands within Townships were Tax^d, to make the Owners themselves Lnprove 'em, or Sell 'em to those that would, for the producing more plenty of Grain, Flesh, Butter, Cheese, Wool, &c. Whether these Methods would not be of Publick Service? But as to my own Opinion, 'tis in short what I said before, to raise what we can by our own labour, to supply our selves, and to buy no more than neces- sity requires of Imported Goods, is the most sure way to relieve us. March 6th. 1718, 19. BOSTON: Printed for B. GRAY, and J. EDWARDS, at their Shops on the North and South side of the Town-House, in King-Street. 1719. [16 mo, 16 pp. The copy of the pamphlet and the facsimile of the title-page were obtained through the courtesy of the Mas- sachusetts Historical Society.] [I] An Addition To the Present ;^elanct)Olp Circum- stances of the PROVINCE Con- sidered, &c. j^atCf) 6th. 1718,9. Exhibiting Considerations about l^a- hour^ Commerce^ Money ^ Notes ^ or Bills of Credit, LABOUR is needful in order to our com- fortable Living in the World. Inasmuch as we consist of Material Bodies, as well as Rational Immortal Souls. Our Constitu- tion is such, that Houses to dwell in, Food & Raiment are needful for our Subsistance ; Houses are usually made of Wood, Stone, Brick, Lime, or partly of them all ; JYails, Hinges, Glass for Lights, &c. are also used in making a comfortable Habita- tion ; Now its obvious to every thinking Person, that much Work or Labour (as well as Cost) is needful to^^ df^;repare these Materials, to collect and get them together (some are often Transported very far) and also to joyn and put them together ; Hard Labour is absolutely necessary, in Building a Con- venient Dwelling ; and often also in keeping it in 200 CURRENCY FOR THE good reimir, that thro' the Idleness of the hands the House may not droj) through. [2] Labour^ s as needful to procure Food for our Bodies. As to the Grain, our Bread is made of, whether Wlieat, Rye, Indian Corn, &c. how much Labour is there to Fence & Plow the Ground, Sow or Plant the Seed, tend it, reo/9 or gather it. Thresh, Grind, Bake it before it becomes Bread ? The Flesh we eat, whether Beaf, Pork, Mutton, &c. how much Labour is there to Raise, Tend, Feed Cattle, Hogs, Sheep, before their Flesh becomes proper Food for us ? As to Fish though we are at no pains to raise them, yet we are to catch them, with Hooks, Nets, &c, and often to s/^/iV, salt, dry them before they are fit for our Food, or at least fit to be kept any time without rotting and perishing. So as for Roots, Tur- nips, Parsnijys, Carrets, &c. And as for Orchard Fruits, Ajyjyles, Pears, Peaches, &c. much Wo7'k & Labour must be imployed, to produce such Things as these for the nourishment of oui' Bodies. Labour's also as needful to procure Cloaths ; the greatest part whereof is commonly made of Sheeps Wool, Cotton Wool, Flax, Hemp, Silk (that's first Spun fine by the Wo7ins) Skins of Beasts for Shoes, Gloves, &c. As to Sheep there's Labour to raise, tend, feed them Winter and Summer before their Wool is come to its full growth, and then, how much Labour in washing, shearing, carding, combing, spinning, weaving (or knitting) fulling, 'inaking before we put it on our Bodies to wear ? As to Flax there is Labour in sowing, j^ulling, dew-rotting, or [ I 1 mmB Alt Addition To the Prcfcnt ^e!ancf)0ip Cir- cumftanccsof the PROVINCE Confidcrcd, &e. .-^^ll) 6th. 1 7 1 8,p. ExhibitingConf idcrations about Labour^ Cxjnujiercc, Money^ Notes, or Bill.< of Crtdit. ABOL- R is iifc.liu! in oulor to our f oniforial ''e Living in I he Wovld. Ina^jr.uch .r^ ^\•econfTll:. oUMateri.il Bodies, as \\c\] as T^aiionaUv!' . wgrial f;ovJf. Our Coiiftjturion is fuch ti.ac . . u-,r ■''^"'*^' '11 • H', ? ocJ & 7?^;//;k- . 1 >, Pcrloii, tliat much H'crk cr L^hcjtr (.,3 ucll as CoH\ ' r ntedtul TO fit^prcpmc ihelc ALiUii.ds, to collca »-Kl get them iogcthc;r (feme arc n[\cn Traitjporiai vcw • ;'r.) and alio tt. pvw 4nd put tliciu to^'cthcr • Ha-d L^- "f;'' }f;^iolutdyi^^cc(LiY, '^n JhaUh^r ^ Conv.nrrt ^■-elh^^ and often alfb in keeping it in ,,ud upair: i^p^^' -^^ '^ '^' "^'"''^^ '^" ^^'"'' """y "'^ ■ MASSACHUSETTS BAY 201 water-rotting, breaking, hatchelling, spining, weav- ing, &c. before we use it for Cloathing. These few and brief Hints plainly show, that much Work or Labour is absolutely necessary to our com- fortable Living in the World. The Wise Creator and Governour of all things has fitted and adai^ed Man for Work and Business, besides the rational Endow- ments of his Immortal Soul, he has Feet for walking & Hands for working ; that when the Sun ariseth, he may go forth to his work & labour till the even- ing : lie should work [3] lohile it is day. As God has Jitted Man for Work, so he has rendred his work- ing absolutely needful for his own Sujjj^ort and Comfort ; and has likewise said, Six Days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work : Do your own busi- ness, work with your own hands that ye may have lack of nothing ; if any will not work neither should he eat. These Things being so, I dont see how we can pos- sibly excuse our selves, or have solid peace in our own Breasts, if we indulge our selves in Idleness. If some have such Estates, that the Yearly Incomers enough to maintain them, yet since they have the same Powers and Capacities for Business, and are under the same Supream Law with others, they seem inexcusable if they wrap up their Talent in a Nap- kin, for they should be good Stewards of the AbiH- ties betrusted with them. The greater Estates they have, the more they're indebted to Divine Provi- dence, and should make grateful returns by vertu- ously imploying betrusted Abilities ; yet as they have 202 CURRENCY FOR THE opportunity they may do good to all Men, and be- come more able to give to him that needeth. But Idleness seems to be a double asfo-ravated crime in those, whose honest Incomes can't maintain them. If they can Work and won't, they may well be counted Puhlick Nusances, for in the Victuals they eat and Cloaths they wear, they really live on the Labour of others, yet make them no recompence for it; whether this may be styled oj^oi Injustice or secret Theft, I'll leave to the ingenious to decide. God's Authority and Mens own Necessities, makes Work and Lahour absolutely necessary for them. Therefore Children should be Educated (not only in reHgious Learning but also) to good Business, for they should he trained up in the loay icherein they should go. Idleness should be indulged by none, but Diligence in proper Business, (which by God's Bless- ing makes rich) should be ezemplifyed in all ; the more there is of such Diligence among a People, so much the more 'tis (ordinarily) for their own Support and Comfort. So far as [4] we are thus Industrious we are obedient to God, profitable to our selves, use- ful to our Neighbours, advantagious to Posterity, but Idleness is the reverse of all these. If Sense and Duty and Interest wont, I believe 2?ressi7ig, pinching necessity will make some more industrious than they used to be. Yet to prevent mistakes, I'll say, there is a great variety of Work needful for the good of Humane Persons and Societies; besides Plowing, Hewing or an immediate laborious work- ing with the hands. The studying of Languages, IVIASSACHUSETTS BAY 203 Arts, Sciences, Divinity, Physick, &c. and the emplojdng the skill or knowledge obtained by such Study, may greatly promote the Glory of God, the Persons own benefit, and the good of those he is concerned with. This is true as to Ministers, School-Masters, Physicians, &c. From these Hints about LABOUR, we pass to consider something about COMMERCE, by which I here understand all manner of Exchange in dealing ; whether we Exchange Money for Goods, Victuals, Labour, or Exchange one sort of Goods for another, or Labour either for Labour or Wages. All such Exchange I here comprehend under the name of Commerce, and such Commerce is absolutely neces- sary for the good of Humane Societies. Tho' an House, Food Raiment, are needful for my com- fortable Subsistence, yet I can't be supposed to be equally skilled in making, raising, and providing these various and different necessaries. A Great variety of Arts, Skill, Labour, and a great number of Persons is ss needful ordinarily, to furnish so much as one Person with what is proper, for his Habitation, Food and Raiment. Such is the scanty narrowness of our Capacities, that generally much Use, Habit, Custom is needful to render a Person truly skilful or accurate at any one sort of Business. Common sayings declare, that Use makes 'perfect. Experience is the best School-Master, Studious Diligence in a Particular Calling, generally makes a Person skilful at it ; the more Skilful, so much the faster [5] and better he can Work. The better 204 CURRENCY FOR THE he Works, so much the more profitable to him that buys and pays ; and the faster he Works or the more he does, so much the more profitable 'tis for himself. Every Person therefore should endeavour to be Skilful and Accurate at some suitable and proper Work or Business, that thereby he may be able to manage an honest Commerce with his Neighbours, and may make a just recompence for the various benefits he receives from them. For instance, if a Shoe-maker with the Shoes he makes, honestly pay one for the Leather, another for the Thread he works up, another for the Food his Family eats, another for the Cloaths they wear, &c. herein he manages an honest Com'merce & Exchange with those he is supplyed or benefited by. Or if he Sells his Shoes for an honest price in Money, & with that Money pays particular Persons he deals with, and also Publick dues to Church and State, &c. herein still he manages an honest Commerce. And I think some Commerce of this general Na- ture, must be managed by every one that would live honestly. When do we eat one mouthful of Bread, or put on any Raiment whether Woolen or lAnen, but that several Scores of different Persons have been imployed more remotely or immediately, to raise and prepare the same for our use ? And when the Labour of so many is imployed for my benefit, if my Labour (or the produce of it) be not immediately or remotely an equivalent benefit to them, I am then unjust and dishonest to them ; for why should I be benefitted by their Labour, with- MASSACHUSETTS BAY 205 out making a just return in being some way or other as serviceable to them as they are to me ? If we (being able) do'nt do at least as much good to Mankind, as we receive from them ; then we are Debtors to our Neighbours, and unjust in our Con- duct to them. Inasmuch as we should desire to benefit others, as well as be benefitted by them ; therefore we should not Sell our Labour or the produce of it, for more than 'tis [6] worth, according to the Rules of Jus- tice and Equity : nor should we desire to have our Neighbours Labour, or the produce of it, for less than the just Value of it. Therefore to Sell as high or dear, and Buy as cheap or low, as possibly we can, is no good Rule for Christians to go by : for we should love our Neighbours as our selves, <5f do as we woidd he done hy. Among the many Products of Humane Labours some are looked on as necessary ; others as being chiefly for convenience, ornament or delight. It's as plain that we should prefer Necessaries to what is only for Ornament, or to please the fancy. JRai- ment is necessary for us, tho' this or that particular Mode, Ctd, Fashion or Trimming is not so. Its criminal therefore if thro' Idleness we neglect to provide necessaries for our selves, or Families ; its criminal also, if we employ so much of our Labour or the Produce of it, in getting Things for Orna- ment or Delight, as to pinch or straighten our selves as to Necessaries ; or render us unable to pay our just Debts. On the other hand, it's more noble to 206 CURRENCY FOR THE be employed in serving and supplying the necessi- ties of others, than meerly in pleasing the fancy of any. The Ploio-3Ian that raiseth Grain, is more serviceable to Mankind, than the Painter who draws only to please the Eye. The hungry Man would count fine Pictures but a mean Entertainment. The King himself is served by the Field. The Carpenter who builds a good House to defend us from Wind and Weather, is more serviceable than the curious Carver, who employs his Art to please the Fancy. This condemns not Painting or Carv- ing, but only shows, that what's more substantially serviceable to Mankind, is much preferrable to what is less necessary. Doubtless Nebuchadnezzers Poli- tick's led him to think so, when to weaken the Jev)S, he carried from them not only the Princes & Mighty Men of Valour, but also the Carpenters and Smiths whose Occupation was very necessary & useful to humane Society. [7] Indeed when a People grow numerous, and part are sufficient to raise necessaries for the whole, then tis allowable and laudable, that some should be imployed in Lmocent Arts more for Ornament than Necessity : any innocent business that gets an honest penny, is better than Idleness. If some do nice, curious works in Gold, Silver, Brass, Iron, Linnen, Silk &c. and others whose Estates will bear it pay them for their Labour and buy what they make, this is much better for the Publick, than that any should be idle : This yields the greatest satisfaction to me, as to many unnecessary Niceties MASSACHUSETTS BAY 207 and Curiosities in huilding, adorning furnishing of Houses, in making fine costly Gardens, Cloaths &c. that hereby the Poor are imjiloyed and main- tained, when they could scarce Ji7id work and get a living ; if no business was done amongst mankind, but what is in its own nature necessary to provide Habitations, Food and Raiment : If the Rich thus pay for such needless Curiosities, chiefly to imploy and maintain the Poor, its noble and generous in them, better than if they had given them the Cost thereof for nothing : but if chiefly to gratifie their own pride, its criminal in them. Yet observe, if we are rich and able ; its better to imploy and main- tain the Poor among ourselves, than those in for- reign parts. And we had better give something to those that cant work, and to educate poor Children &c, than to be lavish in buying of needless curiosityes for our-selves. But truly our Country is not yet of that Age, People not so numerous, nor we in such plentiful circumstances, as to require that many (if any) should be imployed in niceties and curiosities. Tho' God has given us a good Land, a very good Coun- trey for those that will be industrious, yet it is a Northern Climate, the winter so long and cold, as to make much diligent Labour necessary to provide Dwelling, Food and Raiment, tho' curiosities are neglected. We should therefore Exercise our-selves, and incourage one another in imploy ments [8] di- rectly tending to supply our necessities, and pro- mote our comfortable subsistance. 208 CURRENCY FOR THE In Commerce to be managed by a private Fam- ily, do's not prudence direct us, that we should sell or part with what we can best spare, and receive by way of exchange for it, what is most needful for us ? If we receive money that answers all things procurable by commerce ; if we can't get that, we should firstly aim at whats most serviceable rather than at curiosities. And I presume the same rules hold good, as to Commerce between one Countrey and another. I suppose this Province doth not raise nigh so much Provisions as is needful to feed our-selves, and supply our Shijyping, we buy much from other places, while so, would it not be an hurt to send any Provisions to a Forreign Market? But out of the produce of our Labour, we may spare great quantities of Fish, Oyl, Whalebone, &c. and for these, what returns should we chiefly de- sire ? Why things that are most serviceable and necessary for us, and not for needless Commodities, sundry of which were glanced at in the Letter March 6th. And I think least of all should we desire so much Rum as is spent here. These Northern Planta- tions on the Continent, are great sufferers by the vast quantities of Rum spent among them. Tho' in some cases it may be useful medicinally, yet I have no reason to think that 'tis proper for any, to make an usual drink of it if the Excise were so raised, that it could not be retailed under Ten Shil- lings a Quart, I believe it would be ten times better for this Province than it is. If the high price JVIASSACHUSETTS BAY 209 might restrain many of the poor labourers, from getting Rum and Flip ; I believe their needy Fami- lies woidd be much better provided for than they are. Don't some say, that when Men drink so much, they drink the blood of their Wives and Children ; that is, they waste the cost which should provide necessaries for their Families. If the Labourers in my Family spend one fort- night [9] (I'll suppose) in a year, to get Hoops or Staves for a West India Market ; and we spend the returns of it in Rum, this would be but a miserable Commerce for my Family. We could have done well enouoh without the Rum, and if that Fort- nights Labour had been spent in raising Grain, there would have been a better supply of Necessa- ries ; if in raising Flax or Hemp, we might be employ'd in the Wmter in dressing it; instead of spending our Time and burning our Skins over our Drams, I'm humbly of the Opinion, that multiplying of Taverns, Licences to Retail Drink, and the Drink- ing so much Rum, have been unspeakably hurtful to this ProAnnce, and if not speedily retrenched will evidently hurt and impoverish us much more. If the needless cost in Rum in a few Years past were computed, would it not amount to as much as the Inhabitants of the Province have taken up upon their Lands ? If that cost in Rum had been spared, might not this Mortgaging their Lands have been in some measure prevented ? If any ingenious Per- son could pretty fully inform the Publick, how much 210 CURRENCY FOR THE Rum is Retailed and Spent in this Province in One Year ; it might possibly give to some a new view of things, and make them more careful to prevent or suppress what threatens us. The Order that I proposed, requires that I should nextly say something about MONEY. And by this I principally mean & intend, Gold or Silver that has some 3Iark or Stamp on it by Fuhlick Authority, she^\'ing it to be Legal and Current Com, whether it passeth by Tale or "Weight. Tho' I conceive what passes by Tale is supposed to have such a Weight as the Law prescribes for it, as Crowns, Shillings, &c. As for such Silver & Gold Money, I think it is Universally esteemed by all Civilized Nations, has been so in all Ages; and is reckoned the best MedAuin of Trade or Exchange^ by all that are much used in Buying and Selling. Money s more durable than Eatables, Drinkables and other Commodities which Person often Ex- change with [10] one another. In Silver d: Gold a great Price or Value may be contained in a small Compass, a small Quantity : a small handful of Money may buy Cart-Loads of some other things that are yet very useful for us. Money also is easy of Transportation, a great Value may be easily Transported by Land or Water. These considera- tions render Money very Commodious and Useful in Trade or Coinmierce. Gold & Silver are reck- on'd to have an intrinsick Value in them, and some- times they are used to make Rings, Jewels, Spoons, Cup)Sy &c. but Money's chiefly useful to Men, as its MASSACHUSETTS BAY 211 the most convenient Medium of Exchange or Com- merce. The Wise Man says, Money answers all things. If a Man has 3Ioney enough, he may buy Food and Raiment, any thing for Necessity or Delight, that's attainable by Commerce. Gener- ally, Men had rather have ready Honey than any thing else, for what they Sell; and Money will more readily Buy what's wanted, than any thing- else will. This proceeds from the Universal Value and Esteem, which Men have for Money. It's true, The love of Money is the root of all Evil ; Covet- eousness is Idolatry ; if we take such Corruptable Things as Silver and Gold for our chief treasure ; if we make Gold our hope, hfine Gold our Confi- dence ; I say, to do this, must needs be criminal, provoking to God and hurtful to our selves ; yet the Universal Esteem Men have for Money (if it be not excessive) seems to be a favour and benefit of God to Mankind ; because thereby it becomes an Uni- versal Medium of Exchange or Commerce. If a Man has Forty different things to buy, and Money enough ; 'twill buy them all as readily or more readily, than if he had Forty sorts of Commodities to part with for them. There 's an Esteem of Money which is lawful not vicious ; when its val- ued as the best Medium of Trade or Exchange. Such an Esteem of it Abraham had, when he of- fered Money to buy a Burying Place ; and Jacob, when he sent Money to Egypt to buy Corn in a time of Famine; and David [H] when he offered Money for a Spot of Ground to build an Altar on. 212 CURRENCY FOR THE 3Ioney being the best, most approved Universal Medium of Exchange ; the more plenty there is of it among a People, the more easily they may manage all theii- Alfaii-s of Trade or Commerce. If a Man can have ready Money for what he doth, or Sells, and his Money will Buy what he has occasion for, this renders the management of his Affairs very easy, to what otherwise 'twould be. A Bartering Trade is very troublesome, tho' sometimes needful for want of Money. It was one of the great Out- ward Blessings of King Solomons Reign, that Money was very plenty among his People. Inasmuch therefore as the Export of this Country, must necessarily exceed what we spend of Imported Commodities, in order to the making Money pass Current among us ; it must needs be wise in us, to Spend as little as need requires of ImjDorted Goods, and to Raise, Make, Produce, as much as we can for our own Supply. The great Wisdom of our British JVation appears in incouraging their own Produce, their own Manufacture ; in incouraging Labour, Industry, Diligence, Usefid Arts and Trades among themselves, that so their own Peo- ple may live by their own Labour. And should not W'C who proceed from them imitate this their laudible Wisdom and Industry'^ Methinks the more we do so, the more we deserve their Praise and Commendation. If it is Wise and advantageous in them to do thus, must they not commend it as Wise and Advantageous in us, to imitate them herein ? The Preamble of our Act, 1716. for Emitting MASSACHUSETTS BAY 213 on Loan an Hundred Thousand Pound Bills of Credit, says, " All the Silver Money which formerly " made Payments in Trade to be easy, is now sent " into Great Britain to make Returns for part of " what is owing there. Since they have all oxn Money already, they must needs rejoyce to see us more In- dustrious and Frugal to maintain our selves, that we mayn't run farther into their [J2] Debt, and have nothing to pay them. Parents are pleased to see their Children Thrive by their Business ; and must it not be pleasing to our Nation, to see us to imi- tate the Wise, Industrious Example they set us, as to Thrive and Prosper also, at least to Support our selves ? Would it not grieve them to see us Proud, Lazy, Extravagant, Spendthrifts, bringing our selves (for want of Wise Industrious Methods) into per- plexing Difficulties ? Yet how faulty are we herein ? We have been so deficient in Farming, and manag- ing our own Manufacture, lived so much above our Abilities, spent so much of Imi^oiHed Commodi- ties ; that our Money's gone, there's Icarce a Penny of it passing for a Twelvemonth. We need inty, and deserve shame, for these our Mismanagements ; let us be Wise and do better. Now Consider, NOTES OR BILLS OF CREDIT. Indeed I have not so great a clearness in my own mind about these things, as possibly some others have : Yet I'll humbly offer, that I take the Nature of such Bills to be to help our Memories, shewing how much is Due to us ; and the securing our In- terest, by Intitling us to so much as the Bill speci- 214 CURRENCY FOR THE fies, from those obliged by it to pay us. A Note or BUI of Credit is not Money, nor supposed (in it self considered) to be Pai/mejit, but rather a Secu- rity that Payment shall be made in such a time. A. obliges himself by a Note under his Hand, to pay Flee Founds to B. in Two Months time ; this Note is neither Money nor Payment, but carries the Na- ture of a Bond or Obligation, to make Payment at the Time mentioned. The present want of Money, seems to be the very reason & Foundation of this Note ; for if he who Binds himself by it, had Five Pounds Money to lay down, what need he Bind himself to Pay it Two Months hence ? Every one had rather have present pay, than be assured by a Note he shall be paid hereafter. If every one could make present Pay, for Work done or Goods Bought ; he would have no occasion to desire Creditor's Pa- tience, or [13] to give a Note to Pay him after such a Time. So that generally speaking, Present want of Money, is the Reason or Foundation of Notes or Bills of Credit. Of such Bills, some are of a more Private, some of a more PubHck nature. I conceive their private ones concern (ordinarily) only those particular Per- sons whose names are mentioned therein. If A. obliges himself by a Note to pay Five pounds to B. in three months from the Date thereof ; this Note is of no benefit but to B. nor can it effect any good for him, till the three months are ended. If a Note mentions the term of time, when payment is to be made ; at the Expiration of that term, the Obliga- MASSACHUSETTS BAY 215 tion should be fulfilled, and payment be deferred no longer. If no particular term be mentioned, but A, is obliged to pay Five Pounds to B. upon Demand, it's then supposed, that very quickly, or whenever B, pleases, he may demand and receive his Five Pounds. Some such thing as this must necessarily be understood, where there's no particular term set for payment ; else the Note would only be a Declara- tion, that A. would always owe for Five Pounds to B. and a thousand of such Notes or Declarations are not worth a Straw : I would thank no man for his JV^ote or Bond, obliging himself always to owe me a Thousand Pounds, for if he always owes it, he never pays it, and so I shall never be the better for it. This may shew too, how weak and groundless a fancy 'tis, that Paper Money (as it's called) or Province Bills, or Bank Bills, if such there were, might be confirmed and establish'd so, as to be of perpetual currency and use like Silver Money. Those who entertain this Notion, may for all me, please themselves with Notes and Bonds, whereby Persons ingage always to owe (consequentially never to pay) them so much Again, A. may give a Note to B. to receive Five Pounds of C. or in other words, may draw a Note upon C. to pay unto B. Five Pounds upon sight of said Note, or [14] in so many Days after. If C. doth protest or refuse this Note, then 'tis of no present immediate use to any one. If C. accepts the Note, he's then oblig'd to 216 CURRENCY FOR THE act as that directs. In this case the Note is of no immediate use or benefit to any but to B. again. If A. gives a JS^ote in General terms to this pur- pose, ' viz. I acknowledge my self Debtor Five * Pounds to the Possessor of the Note, and oblige 'my self to pay said Sum at the end of Three ' Months, from the Date hereof. Dated this *&c. A. Such a Note, persons may receive or refuse at pleasure, none can be obliged to accept it, but the more the Ability and Honesty of A. (who Sub- scribes the Note) is known, so much the more likely 'tis, that the Note will pass with some persons, if they're satisfied 'tis not Counterfeit. These Bills or Notes already mentioned, are of a private Nature ; their whole Credit or Value de- pends on the Ability, and Obligation of some par- ticular person considered as in a private capacity. But then other Notes or Bills of Credit are of a Publick Nature ; there is, the Authority or Govern- ment in a Kingdom or Country, ingages to make them good, to Pay or Discount them. I take our Province Bills (and those of Neighbouring Govern- ments, New- HamjJ shire, Connecticut, &c. to be of this Nature. And tho' these Bills are in common Discourse called Paper Money, yet the Law does not look on them as Money, but calls them Bills of Publich Credit. He therefore that receives one of these Bills, doth not receive Money, nor pay pro- perly so called. He that pays down what he ows, hath not occasion to be credited or trusted ; but MASSACHUSETTS BAY 217 inasmuch as the Province had not ready Money to serve the Pubhck occasions, therefore they emitted these Notes or Bills of Credit, as Security to the Possessor of the Bill for the Sum specified in it. For Instance, the Twenty Shillings Bill. ' This In- ' dented Bill of Twenty [15] Shillings due from the * Province of the Massachusetts-Bay in New-Eng- * land, to the possessor thereof, shall be in value * equal to Money ; and shall be accordingly accepted * by the Treasurer, and Receivers subordinate to him ' in all Publick payments, and for any Stock at any ' time in the Treasury &c. He that possesseth the Bill, do's not possess Twenty ShiUinrjs, for that Sum is due (therefore not paid) to him ; nor do's he possess Money, for the Bill is to be in value equal to Money, therefore the Bill is nothing but a Note or Instrument whereby the Province is obliged to Pay or Discount Twenty Shillings to the Possessor. I use the word pay or discount, because tho' the Bill says. Twenty Shil- lings are due, from the Province to the Possessor, yet it do's not directly say, that the Province shall pay Twenty Shillings to the Possessor ; but only that this Bill shall be accepted as equal to Money by the Treasurer, &c. or if there be any Stock in the Treasury the Possessor may bring his Bill, and have Twenty Shillings worth (as I take the meaning to be) of said Stock. But I don't see it likely, that there should be any Stock in the Treasury besides Bills ; while the Bills are to be received there at Jive per Cent advance, for 218 CURRENCY FOR THE while so, who would pay his Tax in any thing besides Bills ? The Province owes the Possessor Twenty Shil- lings, when the Possessor is taxed one and Twenty Shillings to the Province, and brings this Bill, the Treasurer receives it, and so -the Twenty Shillings due to the Possessor is discounted, yea, his Twenty Shillings pass for Twenty one Shillings, by the five per Cent, advance. So that I humbly conceive, the principal way of Sinking the Bills, will be by calling them in, and discounting with (rather than paying) the Possessor. The Fund or Security for Province Bills, is the Duties of Impost and Excise, and also the Tax to be levied on Polls, and Estates both Real and Per- sonal ; as appears by the Acts for emitting Bills. Anno.Dom. 1702. & 1703. [J 6] Therefore the more of these Bills are received into the Treasury, by Impost, Excise and Rates, so much the less the Province is in Debt ; for this drawing Bills, dis- counts with the Possessors of them. And the shorter the time is for drawing in of Bills the greater will be their value and esteem in the minds of Persons. Every one desires present pay ; if this can't be had, yet the sooner the Debt is paid or discounted, so much the better to the Creditor. Any one had rather have a Note from his Debtor ; to pay him in Three Months, than in three Years. Therefore to defer the paying or dis- counting a Bill of Credit is a certain and effectual way to depreciate or lessen the value of it. In Pri- vate Dealings, if a Person finds that he whom he MASSACHUSETTS BAY 219 Trades with, doth not keep his word, nor pay at the time he obhg'd himself by his Note ; he'll be the more backward to deal with or trust him for the fu- ture : This is too true and plain to need proof. The nature of the thing is the same, as to Publick Bills. It's the promise or ingagement of the Government, that gives the whole value and currency to the Bill, and makes so much due from the Province to the Possessor of it. If therefore the Inofasfement be not complied with at the time set, but payment (or call- ing in or discounting the Bill) be postponed ; does not this lessen the value of the Bill ? and some wise and good Persons even doubt about the fairness of this postponing, however it seems plam, that it do's not commend Publick Ingagements, to the belief or trust of Persons. Do's it not give them an handle to argue ; that if the fulfilling of one Publick promise be post- poned, so it may be with another, and what will pub- lick Faith (or ingagement) signifie after this rate ? Whereas it is the Wisdom, Honour and Safety of any Government to have their Credit strengthen'd, and all their Ingagements readily relied on. If some will say this Postponing is no hurt, for the [17] promise is made to ourselves, and we may defer the accompHshment at pleasure. Reply. But is not the matter otherwise ? The Ingagement in the Bill is made by the Province or Government, not to it, but to the Possessor of the Bill. And gener- ally speaking, none but he to whom the Promise is made; can fairly release or defer the Accomplish- 220 CURRENCY FOR THE ment of it. If ci Person engageth to pay me 20 s. at T\YO Months end, when that term is Expired, he can't fairly deftr Payment, without my leave or Allowance. However, if Postponing the drawing in of Bills, does sink the Credit or Esteem of them, and so raise the Price of Commodities Imported and Produced here ; this hurts many. The Merchant and Hus- bandman seems least hurt, because they can raise on the Commodities they Sell to each other, and so keep a sort of Ballance. But those suffer greatly, who live on Salaries and on the Interest or Incomes of their Estates ; and so do Tradesmen and Day- Lahoiirers. If I'm a Labourer and can have Four Shillings for a Days Work, and a few Years ago I could buy Wheat for Five Shillings a Bushel, but now must give Ten ; this shows, that the Produce of my Labour is not above half the Benefit to me that it was. This is a very great pressure and burden on poor Labourers, and I can't but think it's much owing, to the mean opinion Persons have of Bills of Credit. I think I have heard, as tho' in South- Carolina, Silver Money has been at above 30 s. an Ounce, and that a, pair of Shoes have cost above Forty Shillings there in Bills, when possibly 8 or 9 Shilhngs in Silver would have purchased them. We should take heed in this Province, that we don't stear the same Course with them. Therefore it seems much for the advantage of this People (in my apprehension) to have the Bills of Publick Credit called into the MASSACHUSETTS BAY 221 Treasury, as soon as the Establishment they are on will admit of. To increase such Bills, or continue them out longer than the foot they're on requires, appears to me to be a me-[I8]thod for continuing and increasing our misery. To desire the Emitting more Bills, or Postponing the CoUectmg of outstand- ing ones, is plainly desiring to be m Debt, whenas every wise and honest Man should desire to be out of Debt, & to owe no man any thing hut love. Parents should lay up for their Children, but if the present Generation do not draw in the Publick Bills as soon as fairly may be, they may Intail Debts on their Posterity ; who must (Buy as it were, &) Pay for the Inheritances their Fathers left them, if they would be the full and proper Owners of them. And is it not unkind in Parents, thus to antecipate, and while Living to spend on that which after they are Dead, their Children must Labour and Pay for ? But here's a Difficulty to be considered. Paper Money (as 'tis called) is so scarce already, that it's something troublesome to deal between Man and Man for want of more ; and the more is called in, the greater will the Difficulty be. Reply. Tho' its difficult now and probably will be more so for a while, yet it may be considered, that the pressing Difficulty should make us do all we can to get rid of it ; which (I suppose) can't be done, till the Bills are called in and Burnt. This can't be done at once but gradually. And the lessening their Quantity will certainly increase their Value, so that gradually they'l be esteemed as good as Silver 222 CURRENCY FOR THE Money, tlio' now there's a vast Difference. And T think the Price of Commodities Imported and Pro- duced here, must necessarily /«//, as the Vahie and Esteem of Bills do rise. This seems a likely way too, to make Money gradually pass again among us ; For if the Value of Bills does rise to be Equal with Money in Private Commerce, and Five Shillings in Money will Buy no more than a Five Shilling Bill, then the Possessor will almost as readily part with one as t'other. But now, tho' Quantities of Silver (as I've heard) are Yearly brought into the Country, yet the difference between [J 9] that and Bills being so great as 'tis, the Silver does not pass between Man and Man in common deahng, but is bought up by the Merchants to make Returns to Great Britain. If you ask, Whether An Act to cause Impost & Excise to be paid in Silver, would not oblige Merchants to bring it into the Country, and so gradually make it pass among us? I'll modestly reply, it belongs not to me to decide this Case; yet Two Difficulties seem to attend it. First, Would not this lesson the Value of Bills if the Publick should prefer Silver to them in such a way ? Secondly, Is not this directly contrary to the Tenor of the Bills themselves ? That says, the Bill shall he in Value equal to Money, and shall he accord- ingly accepted hy the Treasurer, &c. and in cdl Puhlick Payments. If to give Currency to the Bill, the Government have made it Equal to Money in all Puhlick Payments ; nay 5 per Cent, better in MASSACHUSETTS BAY 223 such Payments ; then how can it be refused in any PubHck Payment, and Silver be preferred to it, with- out directly contradicting the Pubhck Engagements, which alone has given it all the Value it has ? If therefore we would make no infraction on the Bills, or the Establishment they are on ; I see no way to raise their Value and Esteem among People, but by lessening their Quantity and calling them in as soon as fairly may be. And tho' the doing this may in- crease our Difficidties in some regards, yet it may decrease them in others. I think our over Trading, Living above our Abilities, needlesly spending Im- ported Commodities, and doing too Httle to supply our selves, have evidently, tho' gradually brought these Difiiculties, we should therefore be patient (not fretful and quarrelsome) under them, and be thank- ful to Divine Providence, if we may gradually (tho' with many an hard rub) get rid of them, and not Intail them as a mischief and misery on Posterity. I suppose Money is now as Plenty as ever in the World [20] in General, and daily increases rather than decreases ; its now as much esteemed as ever, as a Medium of Trade. And if we were Prudent and Industrious and Frugal, I don't see but that we might have our share in it (in an ordinary course of Providence) as well as formerly, and as well as other Countries who have no Mines but receive it only by Commerce. Possibly the Ingenious may have many /Schemes and Projections, to bring and keep Money in the Country, but I can think of none so honest and likely, as to make our Export exceed our 224 CURRENCY FOR THE Import, which by Industry and Frugality (with an ordinary blessing) we might easily do. We can't be so ScuKjuine as to think, that other Coimtries will give us Moiii'ij for nothing ; if we have it of them, it must be by way of Exchange for some Produce of our Coimtry, or the Fruit of our Labour. If there- fore we make our Export exceed our Import, it must needs bring and keep 3Ioney here, and I'm humbly of Opinion, that no other method will be effectual to do it. If a Private Family, besides what they spend of their own Produce raise Twenty Pounds worth for a 31arket Yearly, and Yearly Buy Thirty Pounds, then they're Ten Pounds in Debt and behind hand. But if of the Twenty they Sell, they lay out but half, then they're Ten Pounds before hand, they have it ready to serve their occasions. And if the Province in general would do thus with reference to other Countries, would it not bring Money here. I think aU the Province in their va- rious Capacities should endeavour this; and none more (with Submission) than you in Boston. I humbly conceive, your case as loudly calls for pity and some speedy methods of redress, as the Case of any Town in the Province, if not more. Your thriving (humanely speaking) depends on the numer- ousness of your People ; and their being suitably imployed. But don't your numbers of late decrease ? has not the low esteem of Bills so raised the price of necessaries. That Trades-\2\~\'inen 2inA Labourers can scarce subsist. Is not their being put off with half Money, and half Goods, a great damage to MASSACHUSETTS BAY 225 them ? Besides this, if they're Diligent and receive great wages (as the hii-er thinks) yet that wages sufficeth not to payment; Rates, to buy Wood, Food, Cloathing, &c. Have not these difficulties caused many of your Laborious People to move out of your Town ? and if these difficulties continue and grow, wont they drive away more ? And do's not this thining of your Laborious Inhabitants, tend to hurt and weaken you ? If your Members continue to decrease, some of your wealthy Men may rather be called owners of Houses and Shops, than Land- Lords, for they'l scarce have Tenants to hire them, or if they have, the continued high price for neces- saries, will render them unable to pay rent, and possibly make them a Charge to the Town too. If this be not the present Aspect of the present Pos- ture of Affairs, then I'm mistaken in my guess. Therefore I think Wisdom and Interest should move you, to endeavour in your Station as far as fairly may be, to diminish the quantity and thereby raise the value, of Bills of Credit, that so a reducing the price of necessaries may incourage your industri- ous Inhabitants to abide with you, and draw others such unto you. And for you to pitch on some proper methods, to promote Industry, & Manufacture among you, that so your People (by Gods blessing) may live by the fruit of their Labours, to me seems necessary to prevent your farther Diminution, and to prevent your Poor being so numerous, that their Neighbours will scarce be able to Support them, but rather be obliged to Sink with them ; I've heard 226 CURRENCY FOR THE that you in Boston are very charitable, ready to give Alms, and I believe it ; Possibly some think, if good Part of what's thus bestowed, were put into a Stock to imploy the Poor, it might be better for your Town. You lay up Grain in Store to supply your Inhabit- ants, I suppose it prudent to do so, But if your Inhabitants [22] by the produce of their Labour, can't pay for it, it's but a sorrowful Case still. You may think on two things. Would not the settling of a Market help you ? are there not many needless Retailers, who buy up Provisions and Sell them with advance to their poorer Neighbours? Do not the Poor oppress the Poor in this ? Is there no remedy for this ? Would not a well regulated Mar- ket help you greatly ? The Scripture frequently speaks of Markets as usual in former times ; And I suppose the Ancient and Populous Cities who now use them, would by no means be without them. If the Licences to Sell Drink among you, were greatly diminished, would not this help you ? If I'm not greatly mis-inform'd abundance of Cost and Time is needlesly spent among you in Drink, and even by the Poor that can't subsist without Alms. Obj. Retailing Drink i^romotes Trade. Ans. It's the Redundance and Excess of it that I'm against. In this the Seller spends his time, without raising one farthings worth produce for Publick Good, and the buyer spends Time and Cost for what he had better be without. This is double damage to the Publick. If you should now ask, whether a Law to make MASSACHUSETTS BAY 227 Bills equal to Money between Man and Man, and to make them answer Specialties that is Bonds for Sti- ver «&c. would not ease our Difficulties and bring in Silver among us. Reply. I own my self unable to see thro' the Pro- priety of such a Law. For I conceive it not easie if possible for humane Laws to change Mens minds about things ? Tho' the Law allows jive per Cent, advance to Bills in Publick payments ; and made the tender of them for payment {Anno Dom. 1712) sufficient to stop Execution, I say, notwithstanding these Acts in favour of the Bills, yet Men don't esteem them as Money, but will give (as I am told, Twelve Shillings in Bills for an Ounce [23] of Silver, which Ounce by our Law is but a small matter above Seven Shil- lings ; A Law indeed might lay restraints and threaten Penalties, but it can't change Men's minds, to make them think a piece of Paper is a piece of Money, They'll not readily believe such a Transub- stantiation, if Men really think that Silver is more for their profit than Bills, I don't see how a Law to make them equal in Trade, can universally govern their Practice in buying and selling which are volun- tary actions ; For if the Law should threaten a Fine to him, that would ask Twenty Five Shillings in Bills for Twenty Shillings in Silver, yet if a man ask me whether I'll sell such a Commodity I have ; I may surely ask him how much he'll give and in what. And if he offers me Twenty Five Shillings in Bills, I may refuse it if I please, who can obHge me to 228 CURRENCY FOR THE Sell ? When yet if be offered Twenty Shillings in Silver, possibly I might gladly receive it. I readily grant, that a Law to make Bills and Money equal in Trade, might probably make some alteration in practice ; but as to the Expedience of such a Law, I hesitate, and submit it to wiser Judg- ments. As to the other part. viz. To make Bills to answer Specialties, I'm at present not able to see thro' the fairness and honesty of it. English Men are justly Fond of Property as well as Liberty. If I have Land or Goods to sell, I may ask a price I think proper ; If none will give it, I keep what's my own. If any offer to buy, I may ask how much they'll give and in what? if they offer to pay me in Gold, I may refuse it, if I chuse Silver rather, and if we make a plain honest Bar- gain, the buyer is obliged to pay me so much Silver in such a time ; surely I may justly claim it, w^hen the Time's expired, if he neglects to pay and I there- upon sue him, would not any honest Jurors and Judges find and declare for the Plantiff ? In mat- ters of Meum and Tuum as they're called, I think the common rules of Justice and Equity would say ; that [24] none but he to whom the Obligation is made, can fairly release or lessen that Obligation ; If I Sold Land a Year ago, and the Buyer was obliged to pay me so much Silver for it, at the Term of Two Years ; and a Law comes between and says, I shall take Bills instead of Silver, am not I a suf- ferer ? I think Laws are commonly supposed to look MASSACHUSETTS BAY 229 forward, and not backward. The Law in Anno Dom. 1712. which made the offer of Bills for pay- ment sufficient to stop Execution for Debts, con- tracted since Octob. 30. 1705. yet did it on this foot, as appears from the Preamble, viz. That such Debts were Generally understood to be contracted for Bills. And so that Law, justly made an exception for S^je- cialties, and express Contracts in Writing. If you say, But to make Bills answer Specialties, would be an ease to many poor Debtors. Rejjly. But if it's unjust and injurious to Creditors (whether poor or rich) who dare plead for it ? God himself has said, Te shall do no unrighteousness in judgment, thou shalt not respect the person of the Poor ; nor hon- our the person of the mighty. Neither shalt thou Countenance a poor man in his cause. Justice and Equity should be preserved between Debtor and Creditor ; whether they're rich or poor. If you say. What then shall those do who are obliged by their own voluntary Bonds to pay Sil- ver, now there's no Silver passing ? Peply, I would advice such Debtors to beg forbearance in their Creditors, and say to them, (submitting to Provi- dence,) Have patience with me and I'll pay thee all ; and let them honestly and industriously indeavour to do so. And I would advise Creditors to avoid extremities, vigour, not needlesly take their Brother by the Throat ; nor gladly catch at an advantage, to squeeze from a Debtor, twice so much in value, merely because he can't get Money. Whatever ad- vantage we may happen to have by any humane 230 CURRENCY FOR THE Laws, yet considered as Christians we can't be ex- empted from that rule, As ye would that Men should do unto you, do ye also to [25] them like- wise ; we shoidd rather suffer some damage our selves, than bring a very great one on our Neigh- bours. I presume that as Bills decrease in quan- tity they'll increase in value, and gradually before they are all in, be as good as Money. Therefore Industry, Honesty, Frugality in him that's under Bonds, and Patience and Forbearance in him that hath the Obligation (so far as he well can) seems the best way to prevent very great wrong, either to Debtor or Creditor. This advice refers especially to Honest Industrious Debtors, for if a person is in my Debt, and yet lives idly, extravagantly, is in no hkely way to pay what he owes, but rather to spend and waste the Substance of Creditors, then what reason is there I should forbear him ? Why should I suffer my Substance (gotten by honest Industry) to be wasted in gratifying his Pride, Idleness or Extravagance, If thro' his Extravagance he's not able to pay Fifty per Cent, why should I suffer him to go on till he can't pay Twenty Fire ? I pre- sume many are now convinced, that the giving too much and too Ions' Credit has been hurtful both to the Persons trusting and trusted, and 'twill be well if there don't speedily appear many more proofs of this. As I would not advise any Creditor rigorously to take the advantage of his Debtor, so neither would I advise any Friend of mine, if he were rich and MASSACHUSETTS BAY 231 able, to hoard up Bills of Credit meerly to make his Neighbours buy them with Silver at legal weight, to pay their Taxes with. I say I would not advise any Friend of mine to hoard up Bills for this purpose, lest he should get that Displeasure from Heaven which will be more bitter to him than all his gam by it, on Earth, would be sweet. [26] Since we should love our Neighbour as our selves, how can we receive Bills of them at the low Value they're now of ; and yet lay them by on pur- pose to make them Pay us near twice as much for them in a little time ? I desire no such Gain. And if any should hoard up Bills, thinking in a few Years to be paid for them out of the Treasury in Silver, at Legal Weight, they may possibly find themselves mistaken. For they are to be received for any Stock in the Treasm-y, and if the Govern- ment should see meet as Bills grow few and scarce, to take something else besides Silver for Rates, whether Grain, Flax, Hemp, &c. possibly when Persons come to have their Bills paid for, they may be obliged to take such things as shall then be in the Treasury. I humbly conceive therefore, it's most fair, honest and neighbourly to keep the Bills passing in Commerce, till they're gradually called in and burnt, and not to hoard them up from any Private veiws or thii-st after Self-interest. Thus Sir, out of true Love to my Country, whose Welfare I heartily wish and aim at, and without be- ing asked by any one, or designing to flatter or dis- 232 CURRENCY FOR THE MASSACHUSETTS BAY gust any Person or Persons whatsoever, I have once more open'd my Thoughts to you ; I don't otter them with an miposing air, but modestly submit them to Censure. If upon Seaning what's offered, you see reason to fault any Sentiments therein, please to Ascribe it to the want of more Skill, and not want of Good- Will, to promote the Publick Welfare. If you and I differ in Schemes and Projections, yet let us be one in Love and Friendship ; let us by no means raise or cherish Parties or Dimsions (which directly tend to weaken and ruin a People) but bear- ing with different AjDprehensions in each other ; let us be Friendly, Neighboui-ly, Peaceable, Honest, Frugal, Industrious, every [27] one minding our own Business, and indeavouring the Welfare of the whole, this will be most advantagious to the Whole and to all the Parts of it. From your Friend among the Oahes and Pines, April 14. 1719. BOSTON: Printed by S. KNEELAND, for B. GRAY, and J. EDWARDS, at their Shops, on the North and South side of the Town-House, in King-Street. 1719. [No separate title-page. The imprint, " Printed by S. Knee- land, for B. Gray, and J. Edwards, at their Shops, on the North and South side of the Town-House, in King-Street. 1719," is at the end. The copy of the pamphlet and the facsimile of the title-jjage were obtained through the courtesy of the Massachu- setts Historical Society.] THE O F T H E Town of B O S T O N, (^c. CONSIDERED., In a Letter from a Gentleman in the Town, to his Friend in the Countrey. Boston, Printed for Nicholas Boone, at the Sign of the Bible in Corn/nil: Benjamin Gray, ^indjokn Edwards, at their Shops in King-street. 1720. 234 CURRENCY FOR THE [I] Sir, Since you seem so much concerned about the Distresses of the Land, and want to know how Boston fares in this Day of Common Calamity ; I could do no less than gratifie you, by giving- you my Tho'ts, though I know the Theam will be as unpleasant to you to Read, as it is to me to^ Write. Truly Sir, This which was within these Ten years, one of the most Flourishing Towns in America, in the Ojoinion of all Strangers who came among us, will in less than half so many more years be the most miserable Town therein. The Medium of Exchange, the only thing which gives life to Business, Employs the Poor, Feeds the Hungry, and Cloaths the Naked, is so Exhausted ; that m a little time we shall not have Avherewith to Buy our Daily Bread, much less to pay our Debts or Taxes. How happy are you in the Countrey, who have your Milk and Honey of your own, while we depend on the ready Penny from day to day; and there are so few Bills Circulating (for Silver there is not a Penny passing) that People are dis- tressed to a very great degree, to get Bills to pro- cure the Necessaries of Life ; and that not the Poor only, but good substantial House-keepers, who have good real Estates in the Place, such as we call the middling sort, who it must be acknowledged bear 'iH)C£^SJ^®^C£M): THE tCtitftea ^u OF THE ■^^•" To- of B O'S T O ^, i^d CONSIDERED. in a Letter from a Gentleman iii the Town; to his Friend in the Countrey. ~ii'iston^ Printed for Nicholas ^oW/at the Sigii ■jf the Bible in Cornhill : Bcnjitmin (jra.y\di\i6.^ohrt Edwards^ at their Shops in King-^reet, iri2o» MASSACHUSETTS BAY 235 the greatest part of the Burthen ; and by these Taxes support, both the Government, Ministry, and the Poor. We find ah'eady the miserable Eiffects of the want of a Medium in these Instances ; besides a Torrent of other mischiefs breaking in upon us, viz The vast Number of Law Suits occasioned thereby, the Courts are open, and every Term, four or five hundred Writs (and perhaps more) given out against good honest House-keepers, who are as will- mg to pay their Debts as their Creditors would be, and have wherewith to Pay, but can't Raise Money, unless they will Sell their Houses at half Value, which they have been Working- hard for, it may be these Twenty years, and so [2] turn their FamiHes into the Streets ; and this because they are obliged to Work for half, nay, some for two thirds Goods, and their Creditors will take nothing but Money ; and so they are Squeezed and Oppress' d, to Main- tain a few Lawyers, and other Officers of the Courts, who grow Rich on the Ruins of their Neighbours, while great part of the Town can hardly get Bread to satisfie Nature ; Nay, to my astonishment, I am informed, that there a thousand Writs made out to this April Court, in this one County, which is a scandal to the Land, to have it spoken. And then, I am perswaded that the Charges of the Courts in this County is Six Thousf.md Pounds per Annum ; and this pays no Debt, but is a dead Loss to People, and brings them farther in Debt, and makes them the less able to support either Church or State. 236 CURRENCY FOR THE The L:nv wliich was made about Twenty Months [ jce to shorten Credit, happens to be very ill timed ; and could the Government have foreseen the fatal Consequences which daily attend it, I am perswaded they would never have come into it, for tho' long Credit hath hurt us, yet this Remedy is worse thenthe disease. For, it obliges some who are naturally inchned to be favourable to their Neighbours, to be severer then else they would be ; and others who are of a more Cruel disposition, are glad of such an oppurtunity to Oppress them, by turnmg their Book-Debts into Bonds, and Exacting Interest, that the whole Land are turned Usurers, and thus Iniquity is Eventually though not Design- edly Established by a Law ; which was far from the thoughts of them that made it, for if the People complain of the hardship, their Creditors plead the Law for their Justification. Some have been so un- mercifid, I have been Informed, that they have de- manded their Debtors, to anticipate one or two Years Interest on the Condition they would take their own Bond without other Security, such a piece of Oppression surely was never Practiced among Turks or Infidels, and this done by Professors to the scan- dal of the Christian name, forgetting that Precept left them by their compassionate Saviour. Be ye lyierciful, even as your Heavenly Father is merci- ful. I am glad that Act is Temporary : & tho' it was made but for five Years, I fear many People will greatly suffer by [3] it, for besides the Mischiefs already mentioned, I could mention many others. IVIASSACHUSETTS BAY 237 I confess to me the Law seems inconsistent with Justice and Mercy, if I have a right notion of either ; it is to suit the punishment according to the degree of the Crime ; and the Law is always tender of the Criminal, not to Exceed in the Punishment. We are commanded to imt on Bowels of Compas- sio7i toioard our Neiglibour, and while I do so, I fulfil the Law of Righteousness. Will any then say, I am guilty of a Sin, either against God or my Neighbour, in Extending my Compassion and For- bearance to him ? One would think my own Act is a sufficient punishment, by losing the Improvement of what is due to me ; but to make me lose my Debt for not complying \sdth that Law, is to punish me for that which is no Sin ; for the Word of God accounts it a Yertue. I beheve by this Time every body's Belly is full of the Publick Bank which was Projected, and they must be very short sighted surely, who did not fore- see the wretched Consequences which would attend it ; There will be more than Threescore Thousand Pound to Pay, and nothing to pay it with ; for the Bills come in for the Interest ; how then shall the Principal be paid ! This is putting men on impossi- bilities, and in a worse Condition than Israel was in Egypt ; for tho' their Tale of Brick was Exacted, without supplying them with Straw, yet it only obhged them to the more diligence and Industry to gather it themselves. We are told, we must expect no more Bills, and Silver and Gold is become Merchandize, and Bought 238 CURRENCY FOR THE up for the Factors as fast as it comes in, and shipt home to their Principals ; The Governour, Judges, Ministers, Schoolmasters and other Officers must be paid their Salaries, and I wish their Salaries were better then they are, if I could see how posible they should be paid, but I see plainly by and by it will be impossible. The Gentlemen who are against Emitting more Bills, think we have Money enough, and that there are Two Hundred Thousand Pounds out in all the Provinces ; A Wonderful Cash indeed to manajje the Trade of the four Goverments in which are more then Two Hundred Towns, and that [4] going into the Treasury Daily, that in a few Years they will be all sunk, and indeed what Bills are passing, are mostly of the other Provinces, our own Bills are hoarded up, ^ith what Noble design I know not, but it gives Room to suspect the worst. It is the 023inion of many, that within these Twenty Years, near a Million of Gold or Silver hath been exported hence, & I believe they are not much out in their Computation, yet I don't Remember in the best of Times I ever heard any complain that we abounded with Money, & now we are near double in Number and our Trade greatly Increased, and con- sequently it calls for a proportionable Cash to man- age it, yet some Men think, or at least say we have Money enough. When People Complain and say there must be more Bills emitted on one foot or other ; The cry is No ? No more Bills, Silver wiU never come in while MASSACHUSETTS BAY 239 we have any Bills, when they are all in we shal have Silver ; but I observe, the Gentlemen who talk at this Rate are only Usurers, and Men who Live on their Salaries, Officers of the Courts and Lawyers, who never Trade, and therefore we are sure no Sil- ver nor any thing else will come in through their means ; would these few Gentlemen (for there are not many of them) call in their Bonds and enter on Trade, and cast their Bread upon the Waters with their Neighbours to employ the Poor, what fine Voyages they may Project to bring in Gold and Silver I know not, but I confess it is past my shal- low capacity to Project any such, I beheve Men never Traded with greater uncertainties then at this Day, no Man knows where to make an Adventure to see a new Penny for an old one, is the common Cry of the best Merchants in the Place. It is not sinking the Bills of Credit will bring in Silver, No ? I rather think it must be done by going on Manufacturs, and so lessening our Import, &that must not be the work of a Day but of many Years to accomplish it, and those things cannot be gone upon to any degree without Money or Bills, were there more Bills, there are enough would go on such Projects, Iron would soon become cheaper, and Linnens and Woolens of our own make would grow more in use, as the Spiners and [5] Weavers improved in making them, but there is no setting up such Works because there is no Money to Pay the Labouier. That which hath kept this Town alive the last •J40 CURRENCY FOR THE Year is the Number of Ships which have been Built iu it, which Employs great part of the Town, I wish those who Build them, may find their Ac- compts therein, & be Encouraged to go on, it will be a great Mercy to us, & very much help us, but that alone will not do ; There must be something to Pass from Man to Man by w^ay of Exchange, ; it is Vanity to talk that such a Town as this can subsist without Money or some other Medium of Exchange ; You may as soon perswade me that People can live without Breathing, as without something, to pur- chase their daily Food. Now People work for half, & some for two thirds Goods, and so have a little Money coming in, but what will they do when it comes to working for all Goods, Is it possible for Men to Truck for a Pound of Butter, a Pound of Candles, or a Loaf of Bread, or many other things a Family is Daily in need of. No ? it is impossible. If we consider the Poor, we are promised a Bless- ing, and as it is most certainly the duty of every Man, according to his capacity to consider them, in such a distressing time as this; when good Hon- est, Industrius, Modest People, are driven to such streights, as to Sell their Pewter and Brass out of their Houses, which is scarce worse for wearing, to Brasiers, at the price of Old Pewter and Brass to buy them food, as I have been Informed by the Brasiers, who have spoke it with great concern to me. Much more doth Heaven expect it from the Government, who are clothed with Power, to take IVIASSACHUSETTS BAY 241 care they are not Oppressed or distressed ; & in- deed I am sorry to see the Ministers of the Town so silent, when (if ever) it behoves them to improve all their Interest in the Government, that something may be done for the People to help them at such a time, when every man is taking his Neighbour by the Throat ; saying. Pay ine lohat thou owest ? If they will bestir themselves, perhaps it might work some good Effect. When any Gentlemen propose any thing to Re- Heve us, as several have done, one Scheme or other for Emitting Bills on Land Security. I observe the Gentlemen who explode these Projections, never propose any other [6] which makes People say, either they are not able to project any thing better ; or else they really desire nothing may be done, that so they may advance their own Estates, and Families, by getting their Neighbours Lands at half value ; but if any are so wicked, I am perswaded God will send his Blast on Estates so gotten, and the Labour of such People will perish ; but I would hope, that men who profess the Name of Christ, cannot be so forgetful of that Precept he hath left us ; To do hy all men, as ice would he done imto. Most certainly. If men oppose making more Bills, or hoard up them already made, with any such design, they are Breakers of the Tenth Command- ment in the utmost latitude, and come but little short of Ahab's Sin, in the matter of Naboths Vine- yard. In all Places it is observed, that Great Men al- 242 CURRENCY FOR THE wayes have their Followers, who hang on their Skirts ; and some who have no thoughts of their own, make the Rich and Powerful theii- Oracle ; and so it hath been among us ; but these pinching Times I find cool their Courage, and make them change their Note ; and indeed it is time for them so to do, for they feel the Difficulties as much as their Neighbours. His Excellency the Governour saith, He stands ready to come into any thing which may he thought for our Relief, and hath Called on the Gentlemen of his Council, to Project something ; who indeed are more immediately Concerned so to do, as being the Eyes of the People ; but these Worthy Gentle- men are some of them Men out of Trade ; some Country Gentlemen, who Live on their Farms, and others, men of plentiful Fortunes, who do not feel the Straits of the Times, and therefore cannot sym- pathize so feelingly with their Neighbours. They have a daily Supply of Money coming in, either for Interest, Salleries or Rents, which suffices for their Occasions from day to day ; and tho* their Coffers are not so full as at some Times, yet they are not in want, and plagued as others are ; which I wish his Excellency would consider, and not be perswaded by a few Gentlemen, That Silver will come in, till this once flourishing place dwindle away to nothing, to the great dishonour of his Excellency, as well as irreparable Loss and damage ot the Crown. [7] As I said before, our Province Bills are hoarded up and we are told we must have no MASSACHUSETTS BAY 243 more Emitted ; but I believe the Government will find it absolutely necessary to depart from that Resolution ; for if they persist in it, it will most certainly perfect our Ruin ; for as I have already hinted, it is not Sinking the Bills will bring in Sil- ver; but the other things I have mentioned, and others which might be projected, to lessen our Import. Most certainly it was a very wrong step to Crush the Private Bank, and set up this Pulick Bank in its place, for the farther we go on in this way, the worse our Case will be, for as we use to say. Pay Day will come, but when it doth come there will be nothing wherewith to Pay. Whereas the Private Bank would have still been the same, the Intrest Money would have circulated in Trade, and and not have been diminished ; the Stock would neither have increased nor decreased, but remained the same intire Sum which was at first agreed on, without any Ad- dition or Diminution ; and I wish there was not too much of an Invidious Spirit, in the Opposition that Projection meet with from some Gentlemen least their Neighbours should reap a benefit by it as well as themselves. I am of Opinion, that if the Government would come into it, to Encourage such a Bank, and strengthen it by their Authority, and make suitable Laws to support it, that it is the only Remedy which can be proposed to extricate us out of our Difficul- ties, it would not be attended with the fatal Conse- quences which attended the Publick Bank. I can 244 CURRENCY FOR THE think of notliiiig so likely to give us a quick Relief by setiug the Wheels a going ; Man is an Active Projecting Creature, and every Body almost would he Improving his talent, if Money were stiring, but the wisest Projections must lye still, if there be not Money to go on with them. 1 know [8] the Rich will oppose this ; but the Richest Men are not always most beneficial to the Commonwealth, Men of Pro- jecting Brains do most good to their Neighbours, for tho' they often hurt themselves by their Projects, yet others reap the benefit of them, and so the Pub- lick is not hurt but helped by them, and I per- sume none will deny but that this Town hath been more advantaged by some Men now in it of mean Estates, then ever they were by the Richest Men in it. If any should deny it, I'U ven- to affirm and prove it. But if the Government will not come in a project of a Private Bank, I can think of nothing better, then to go on some great & Expensive Work, & Emit Bills to carry it on, as Fortifyng our exposed Setlements, that would Encourage People to sit down, & till the Earth, and raise Hemp and Flax, and so bring down the Prices of Linen and Canvas, as well as Provisions, that we may be able to Export Provisions as in former times to the Islands, wheras we are now beholding to our Neighbours to supply us, this would help to Ballance our Foreign Trade, and consequently in time be a means to bring Silver among us. MASSACHUSETTS BAY 245 If there was a Bridge Built over Charles River, If Fifty Thousand Pounds were expended to make it durable, and so a moderate Toll laid on all Carts, Coaches, Horses, &c. this would help us by imploy- ing the Poor, and the circulation of the Bills would be a great service to every Body : and other things of this nature might be thought on. I hope our good Friends in the Country will con- sider our miserable circumstances, & send such Men to Represent them next May, as may be Spirited [9] for our Relief, not Sheriffs and Lawyers, who are the only Men who are benefited by the straights of their Neighbours, else I fear Ruin and Destruction will come upon us, and truly it behoves you in the Country to consider this Town for your own sakes, shall the Head say to the Members, we have no need of thee, or shall thee Members say to the Head in like manner, as in the Body Natural ; so it is also with the Body Politick in this Respect, our Interests are inseparable, and tho' I confess you can do without Money better then we, yet our want of Money to Buy, will very much lower the Prices of all your Produce, and your Lands will soon fall in Esteem and Value accordingly ; and this the Coast- ers Experience already this Spring : they are obliged to trust out their Provisions, and some to Truck them away for such things as they know not what to do with by reason there is not Money to Buy with. And now least I should for this plain Dealing be accounted an enemy to the Governour or present 246 CURRENCY FOR THE MASSACHUSETTS BAY Ministry. To justify my self I solemly Declare as in the presence of GOD, who knows my sincerity ; that I Esteem & Honour the Governour, and every Gentleman of his Council, with whom I have ac- quaintance, and am prejudiced against no Man ; It is the good & Happiness of my Country that lies upon my Spirits and hath Influenced me hereunto. I have no private sinister aim in pursuit separate from the good of the whole, but am animated only by a sense of the distresses of the Town and Coun- try, or want of a Medium of Exchange. It is a dark Day upon us, I pray GOD to Guide and Lead his Excellency and his Council, and others concerned in the Government, into some Measures for the Relief of the People, that when ever his [JO] Excellency is called from us, he may (as I am per- swaded is his desire) leave us in better cicumstances then he found us, which will endear his Memory to us, when he is gone from us. FINIS [This pamphlet was by John Colman, who afterwards became prominent in connection with the Land-Bank of 1740. 16mo, 10 pp. The copy of the pamphlet and the facsimile of the title-page were obtained through the courtesy of the Massachusetts His- torical Society.] A LETTER FROM One in the Country to his Friend in Boston^ containing some Remarks upon a late Pam- phlet, Entituled, The Distressed State of the Town of Boston, &c. BOSTON: Printed by J. Franklin, for D. Henchman, and sold at his Shop over against the Brick Meeting-House. 1720. 248 CURRENCY FOR THE THE Papers and Pamphlets you lately sent me were a very acceptable Present, for which I return you hearty thanks. We that live more than half a hundred Miles from Boston, are apt to be very fond of knowing what's a doing among you ; tho' some- times after we know it, we find too much reason to lament it. So it hath happened in part to me. The pleasure of a Letter from my Friend, and of learn- ing the Remarkable occurrences of the Town was considerably dampt by the concern which one of the Pamphlets gave me. I mean that Entitled, The Distressed State of the Toimi of Boston. Not that my Personal Interest is any more affected by the Notions in the Pamphlet, than that of almost any ordinary man in the Province. My Interest either doth already, or will very quickly (as you well know) lye chiefly the same way with the Interest of the Author of the Pamphlet, who is (I suppose) one of them that cast their Bread upon the Waters. But my trouble proceeded only from a Sincere Regard to the Publick Welfare, which I apprehend the Gentleman hath utterly mistaken, & even the true Interest of his own Town too ; & yet he hath set f R -^ One Jin the Country to his jj Frier r BoBoHy con-^ ^ t'^'--'' "^^ine Remarks. ■ Tu,;^ Pamphlet, The^ Difireffed State of the Toti^n of Boll:c> noSTpN- . Print D. Henchman, ^ ,. . '. v, <, j,).. .,iiup o. > pgainft the Brick Mtciing-Houie. i7:!c. iiVW'^iii // MASSACHUSETTS BAY 249 his Mistakes (as I take 'em to be) in so plausible a light, as will be very likely to lead many others astray with him ; And should the Government and Country fall into his measures, I am greatly deceived if we should ever see good Days again, so long as such measures should be pursued. Besides, the Gentleman hath represented things in such a smart and mo\ang manner as [2] (I fear) w^ill tend much to stir & irritate men's Passions and revive those Heats and Animosities, which have done us too much mischief already. However, I don't imagine he did this with any design to disturb the publick Peace. I suppose these things lay much upon his Spirits ; and there- fore when he set himself to writing, his heart (unob- served by him) waxed hot within him, and that nat- urally and almost necessarily enlivened and sharpened his expression. As to your desire of my Thoughts upon the sub- ject, the place which I live in is so remote, that I cannot be informed of the certain truth of sev- eral matters of Fact, which might serve much to enlighten and direct me ; but yet I am perswaded from the Reasons of things, that (as I said before) the Gentleman is utterly mistaken in his Notions of the true Interest of his Country. However, I am liable to mistakes as well as he ; I must leave it therefore to you, and with any to whom you shall think good to communicate my thoughts, to judge of the justness of them, and whether my Reasons are sufficient to support them. 250 CURRENCY FOR THE In setting' down my thoughts, I shall take notice, 1. First, Of some ill Uses "which have been made of our Province Bills, and some unhappy Conse- quences of making such evil uses of them. And 2. Secondly, I shall make some Remarks upon the most observable Passages in the Pamphlet it's self. 1. First then, concerning the ill Uses which have been made of our Province Bills, and the unhappy Consequences of such uses. When the Government first issued out our Pro- vince Bills, the Trading Part of the Country found themselves furnished with a New Medium of Ex- change, which would answer the ends of Trade well enough among our selves : Upon this they quickly improved the Advantage put into their hands to im- port foreign Commodities in far greater quantities than the produce of the Country would make Re- turns for ; and therefore they soon began to export the Silver Mony passing among us to make Returns with; which Silver they bought up with the [3] new Medium which the Government had put into their hands. When by this means Silver became a little scarce, they were obliged to give some con- siderable advance in Province Bills to piu-chase it. And this advance became greater still and greater in proportion as Silver grew more and more scarce. Besides, which I think some have remarked, that it received an observable Increase, upon the Postpon- ing the Taxes, and the Emissions of Loan Mony once and again ; so that it was lately at the rate of about MASSACHUSETTS BAY 251 Twelve Shillings an Ounce, and I suppose it con- tinues thereabouts still. Now Silver having for this Reason been reserved for divers Years past to be sold for Exportation, by this means Paper gradually became almost the only Medium of Exchange among our selves : The very Counters which pass among us for Penies had like all to have been swept away : Many of the Traders sometime after the Emission of the Loan Mony (as I remember) buying them at considerable Advance in Province Bills to send away, tho' they pass but for lialf-penee in England-, so vile were the P/'O- vince Bills in the Eyes of the Men, who now cry, they shall be undone if they have not more of them, that they ivould lavish them away at the rate of Twelve Shillings for an Ounce of Silver, and give fourteen Pence (as I think I have been told) some of them did for a dozen Counters, which they kneio would go hut for halfipence apiece abroad ! And I desire to know whether the very Men who turn poor Labourers and Tradesmen off with one half or Two Thirds Goods, can't still find Province Bills enough to p)ur chase Silver at the rate of about Ticelve Shillings an Ounce, whenever they hear of any to be sold ? But this only by the By at present. JVow as the Value of Paper hath gradually sunk in comparison ivith Silver, so the Merchants have advanced upon their Goods in some j^roportion, and so the Price of the Country's produce hath been graducdly rising also ; save that thro' the abundant Blessing of God upon the Husbandry of 262 CURRENCY FOR THE the Land last Year, the plenty of Provisions hath lowered the Price of it for the present; but had it not been for the plenty, the price of it would have [4] been as extravagant and the sale as quick as ever.some thing of the same natui-e may be said of oiu- Oyl, which partly thro' the good Success of our Whale-men last Winter, but more especially by an Accident (which I forbear to mention) is said to be falling too. But as for other things which have not met with some such accidental alteration, as far as I can learn, their price continues as high as ever. That this is a true account of the rising of all Com- modities and Necessaries of Life to the extravasrant o price they have been at for some Years past, is evi- dent, because any man might all along, and may still with Silver Mony, at seventeen i:)eny weight, buy almost any Commodity or Necessary, at i^retty near the same rate he might before our Province Bills were first issued out. I say almost any Com- modity, i^c. and at pretty near the same rate, &c. because I am sensible that in some things, at some times there hath been a difPerence (especially those things that are proper to be exported to other Coun- tries, as Fish, Oyl, &c.) for which there is another manifest Reason to be assigned, and that is this. That the Importation of foreign Commodities was for some Years so vast, that all the Silver our Mer- chants could procure, and the whole Produce of the Country besides, were not sufficient to answer for it. This obliged our Merchants to catch greedily at any thing that woidd serve to make Returns with, MASSACHUSETTS BAY 253 and this gave the Possessors of such things an advantage to raise the j^^ice of them, even above the difference which there was between Pa2:)er and Silver. Thus the Trading part of the Country making an ill use of the advantage which the Emission of Pro- vince Bills gave them, by importing a vast quantity of needless foreign Commodities, have in the first place found themselves necessitated to buy up, and send off all our Silver and Gold to the perplexing and almost ruining the whole Country : and secondly because These and the whole Produce of the Coun- try together were not enough to make Returns with, therefore they have catch'd eagerly at every thing fit to be exported, and by doing so have rais'd the price of such things : And this they have [5] done to their own Confusion, for now the price of such things is so high that there is hardly any thing fit to be exported, that will turn to any account in other Countries ; And so no man knows where to make an Adventure, to see a neio ijeny for an old one : Not because there is not mony enough still to pur- chase all the produce of the Country fit for Expor- tation (for if there were not, and so these things lay upon the Producer's hands, I am sure they would soon be cheap enough) but because we value our Paper mony so little, and prize our Country's pro- duce so high, that every thing costs more pence here among our selves, than it will fetch again abroad in Foreign Countries. Now whether Emitting more Bills be the way to encrease our Value for them, or 254 CURRENCY FOR THE to lower the price of our Country's Produce, I leave the World to Judge. But this Mischief of sen din 2: off our Silver and Gold, and raising the Country's produce to such an extravagant price, is not all, for before the Law for shortning Credit, the Gentlemen concerned in Trade (to clear their Warehouses and Shops of Goods the faster and make room for a new Store, and Enliven Trade) were very fond of Trusting out great quan- tities of Goods, with almost any Body that woidd take them, And I doubt the same humour prevails two much still. Now we simple Country People being mightily pleas'd with fine things far f etcht and dear bought (so long as we could have goods with- out paying ready mony for them) made no scruple, many of us, to take up much more upon trust than "we earnt mony to pay for, hoping that a plentiful Crop of Corn or some other Smile of Providence would enable us to pay for all, one time or other. And since, when we have been dunn'd and worried by our Creditors, we have cry'd out for more mony too. Whereas the truth of the Case is, if there had been a Million of Province Bills Emitted, we could not have paid our Debts, unless Mony had been given us, or w^e had sold or Mortgaged our Lands to procure it, for we have had nothing to spare, which was worth mony, but what we have had and may still have mony for (unless it be Provision just at this time [6] by reason of the present plenty of it) but all we could produce hath not been near enough to dis- charge the vast Debts we had foolishly contracted. MASSACHUSETTS BAY 255 And now what shall be done in such unhappy Ch'cumstances ? Why, say the Traders, Do hut two things and the Wheels will all he set a moving again, and every Body almost will have an opi^or- tunity to improve his Talent. 1. First, Let the Act for Limitation of Credit be repealed. If this be done, Country People will throng our Warehouses and Shops again, and take as much on trust as ever. And then, 2. Secondly, Let a private Bank be established. This all honest well-meaning People will go and Mortgage their Estates to, for mony to pay us for the Goods we have trusted them with ; We shall most of us be Bankers our selves, and by that means (first) we shall have mens Estates mortgaged to us. And then (in the next place) we our selves shall get the very mony again immediately for which those Estates were mortgaged. When we have gotten such a fine sum of mony, we shall snatch at every- thing fit for Exportation more briskly than ever. This will raise the price of such things higher than it hath been yet, and then it will turn to but little Account to send them elsewhere ; and so we shall complain again, that no man knows where to make an Adventure to see a new peny for an old one : Unless (perhaps) those of us that are Bankers, should have our Mouths partly stopt with forfeited Mortgages, and the rest of us should take better Care than we used to do, to trust none but such as have good real Estates, which will pay for all at last. 256 CURRENCY FOR THE I would not be understood to think, that the Au- thor of the Distressed State, &c. and other Gentle- men in Trade, who \nsh. to have the Limitation Act repealed and a private Bank established, do really say, or so much as think within themselves, that all the above mentioned pernicious consequences would follow thereupon. Far be it from me to imagine so vile a thing of them. My opinion is, that they are sensible that such a Repeal and such an EstabUshment would give them some pre-[7]sent Relief, and that they have never look'd thoroughly into the Train of wretched Consequences which will ensue. I have therefore mentioned these things only as Consequences which I apprehend will unavoidably follow from the natural operation of things, upon the Repeal of that Act, and the setting up of a private Bank, whether Men are sensible of it now or not. But I believe the Consequences will appear genuine to every disinterested Person (as soon as ever they are suggested to him) without any Argu- ment to demonstrate them to be so. 2. I proceed now in the second place, to make some Remarks upon the most observable Passages of the PamjDhlet it's self. In doing which I shall have frequent recourse to the Truths already advanced. Boston, which was within these ten Years one of the most flourishing Towns in America, will within half so many more years he the most m,iserable Town, &c. page 1. The flourishing of Boston de- pends upon the flourishing of its Trade. The Dis- tressed State of the Trade of Boston, is not owing MASSACHUSETTS BAY 257 to the want of Province Bills wherewith to purchase the produce of the Country to be exported on Ad- ventures. All the produce of the Country is now bought up, and most of it at an extravagant price too ; and all the Silver and Gold besides ; as fast as it comes in, by our Authors own Acknowledgment, p. 3. The Difficulty is owing therefore to the high price of the Country's produce, that it won't turn to account to send it elsewhere. And this is a mis- chief the Merchants have brought upon themselves by the means abovementioned ; and tlie emitting more Bills of Credit will rather encrease than lessen the evil, because it will occasion the Value of the Bills sinking yet lower, and the produce of the Country rising higher in proportion. But if there were nothing of all this, yet I should not wonder that the Trade of Boston fails now considerably ; and I beHeve it will continue to do so (at least for a time) more and more. For this I think I can give two good reasons. [8] 1. First, Several other Towns in this and the neighbouring Provinces, which during the late French War, depended chiefly upon Supplies from Boston, and traded themselves but little, and some not at all to foreign Parts, are now getting more and more into a foreign Trade, to the supplying in good measure not of themselves only, but of the adjacent Country also. 2. Secondly, The extravagant Price foreign Com- modities have been at for some years past, hath put Country People lately upon making more for them- 258 CURRENCY FOR THE selves and buying less from abroad. And this I hope they ^vill continue to do still more & more ; for which reason I could almost wdsh, that the price of foreign Goods might yet continue as high as ever. The 3Iedium of Exchange is so exhausted^ that in a little time we shall not have loherewitli to hiiy our daily Bread, p. 1. Actions speak louder than Words, and with more truth and certainty. It is a certain Truth, that the greater want men feel of anything, the more they value it, and the more loath they are to part with it. Therefore I beg you. Sir, to inform me whether your Merchants can still find Province Bills to lavish away at the rate of Twelve Shillings an Ounce for Silver, whenever they can hear of any to be sold. If this be the Case (as I doubt it is, for our Author himself confesses, 79. 3. that Silver and Gold is bought up yet, as fast as it comes in) then 'tis certain, the Merchants have Medium enough to carry on the same Trade still, which hath hurt the Country and themselves too all along, by exporting not only all the produce of the Country bought at an extravagant Price, but also all the Silver and Gold they can get besides, in order to bring in a needless excessive quantity of foreign Commodities, or to pay for them which are already brought in. And whilst this Trade is driven, 'tis vain to look for better Times. For while more is imported from other Countries and consumed among us, than our own produce alone can ballance, we must continue growing poorer daily. And while there are so many Province Bills standing out, as MASSACHUSETTS BAY 259 that Merchants can find their Interest [9] in buy- ing Silver with them, most things will unavoidably continue dear, in proportion to the difference the Merchants make between Paper and Silver. And indeed if Province Bills were become so scarce, that the Merchants cou'd not catch at the produce of the Country so eagerly as to hold up the Extravagant Price of it, and so had no occa- sion, nor indeed possibility of sparing them to buy Silver, I don't see that any body would be put to much greater difficulties than they are now. For if it were once come to this, that the Merchants cou'd not find their interest in exchanging Province Bills at any advance for Silver, then our Province Bills would be equally prized, and would purchase as much as Silver at seventeen peny weight, as indeed they ought ; And so the price of all things would fall in proportion. Now if by lowering of the price of other things, Twenty ShilHngs will purchase me as much a while hence as Forty will now, then when such time comes, I shall be able to shift as well with Twenty, as I can now with Forty. So that the growing Scarcity of our Province Bills, seems to be the only means to raise the Value of them, & to lessen the price of the Country's produce. And when once our Bills are valued as high as Silver, then the Sil- ver and Gold, which our Author himself acknow- ledges comes in, will be sure to stay among us ; and not before. Then also the cheapness of things fit to be exported, would soon teach our Merchants 200 CURRENCY FOR THE where to make Adventures to see sometliino: more than a new peny for an old one. JVext comes a complaint of the vast number of Lawsuits, of Writs out against honest IJousekeejjerSf icho can^t raise mony to pay their Debts, unless they will sell their Houses at half value. And this because they are obVufd to loork for half or two thirds Goods. With us in the Country Estates are near as high in Value as ever. No man hath Houses or Lands to sell, but what may have Mony for them if he be reasonable in his Demands. If Estates are sunk near half the value in Boston, I de- sire to be informed, whether Numbers of Tradesmen and Laboiu'-[IO]ers have not removed thence into the country within these few Years? And whether by this means Tenements and Houses have not been emptied of their Inhabitants ? If this be the case, 'tis no wonder their price is fallen ; for who that hath a House to live in himself, would buy one (for ought he knows) to stand empty ? Or who that has no House of his own, would give a great price for one, when enough others stand empty ready to re- ceive him for an easy Rent ? I desire also to be informed what it was that drove these Labourers and Tradesmen out of Boston ? Whether it was not being; turn'd off with half Goods, by them that sav'd their BiUs to buy Silver, that they might send for more Goods, and so pay their Labourers again after the same manner ? If this be so, the case of your Labourers is much to be pitied, and they would consult their own Interest if MASSACHUSETTS BAY 261 more of them would remove into the Country. We want their Labour, and should be glad to give them their Wages. We can't make the improvement of oui- Lands which we desire, for want of Labourers : Labourers think us obliged to them, if they will work for us at almost any rate. The Law which ivas made about Twenty Months since to shorten Credit, hajjpened to he very ill timed &c. I also am of the same Opinion but for a very different reason ; And I will add, not so effec- tual as were to be wished neither, I think not so effectual, because so long a time as two Years was allow' d for trusting ; and so people have not been sufficiently discouraged from running needlessly into Debt. Whereas had the time been limited to but a quarter or half a Year, far the greatest part of the Debts, which our Author complains men are now arrested for, had never been conti'acted. And I think it was ill timed, because it was not made many Years ago : If it had, and had been made so strict as to have utterly prevented trusting- one another in Trade, I am sure the Silver and Gold could never have been swept away, nor any of the Calamities we are now groanmg under been brought upon us. For it is easie to see, that if we had never trusted one another, the worst Husbands \_\V\ of us all could not have spent more than we earnt ; for when we must pay ready Mony for every thing we buy, we can't buy more than we earn Mony to pay for ; unless we borrow Mony at Interest to support our Extravagance j a thing 2G2 CURRENCY FOR THE which but few would have been so fooUsh as to have done. Indeed when Debts are ah-eady con- tracted. Do but set up a Bank to borrow^ of, and we have found from sad experience ah-eady, that men will be ready enough to mortgage their Estates for mony to pay their Debts. But (I say again) where Debts w^ere not before contracted, few men would have been so foolish, as to borrow Mony at Interest to provide needless Fineries and Gew-Gaws for their Families. The Folly of so few could not have affected the Country. Now as none of us could have spent more than we earnt, had we not trusted one another, so doubtless many people in the Coun- try wou'd have been so prudent as not to spend so much. And had some earnt more than they spent, and none been in a capacity to spend more than they earnt, I am sure the Country in general must have been on the thriving hand : It could not have consumed so much in foreign Commodities, as it would have raised of it's own Produce. The Ex- portation therefore would have been greater than the Importation of foreign Commodities ; and so Silver and Gold, instead of being exported at the rate it hath been, would have been continually com- ing in to make the Ballance. And as, if we had never fallen into the way of Trusting, we should never have come into the Diffi- culties we now labour under, so, if we cou'd all agree to leave it quite off, it would immediately be- gin to turn the Scales in our Favour : For when no man can consume more than the yearly product of MASSACHUSETTS BAY 263 his Husbandry, Manufacture, Fishery, &e. will fur- nish him with mony to pay for, if at the same time there be a number of People who wont spend all their yearly produce for foreign Commodities; then it is plain, that the yearly Produce of the Country must be more than the Consumption oe it ; and if the yearly produce of the Country be morf [J2] than it's Consumption, then there will be yearly a Surplusage of the Produce of the Country to be exported. For this overplus (part of our Export) it will be to no purjDose to bring in foreign Commodi- ties, because the Country will not consume such a quantity : Therefore our Merchants must have their Returns for this Surplusage of our Produce in Gold or Silver, Immediately, unless they have Debts to pay first in foreign countries. All this (I think) is as plain and certain as a Mathematical Demonstra- tion, and I challenge any man to confute it. I don't therefore see need of any other Project. Do but wholly leave off trusting, this alone will do the Business, and make all things begin to go well quickly. If you object. That it is impracticable to contrive a Law so as to put an utter end to Trust- ing ; I am perswaded that is a Mistake. I think if I had time to enter upon the Argument, I could easily tell how an effectual Stop might be put to trusting by a Law, in such a natural and necessary way, as that hardly any body would ever come to suffer the Penalty of it ; and then certainly, no body hath any reason to fear it. Upon the whole, it is the duty of Civil Rulers to 264 CURRENCY FOR THE consult the Welfare of the Publick. Our Lecisla- tors saw the Door, at which all oiu- Calamities have broke in upon us, standing wide open : They have pusht it partly to ; and so have in some measure checkt the madness of the People, who without Fear or Wit were running into Debt, to their own Ruin, and the Ruin of them that trusted them, and of the whole Country. And now whether what our Legis- lators did, was inconsistent with Justice and Mercy, let the World judge. I am only sorry that the Door was not close shut and barr'd. If it had been so, we shou'd have felt the comfortable effects of it be- fore now. There would have been no opportunity for the Oppression complained of p. 2. And the Mercy of the Government in hindering inconsid- erate People from doing themselves harm, would have prevented the need of Private Persons extend- ing their compassion and forbearance to them whom they had dealt much more kindly w4th, if they had refused to trust them. [J 3] I shall add one thing more, with reference to the Limitation of Credit, which I dont remember that any of the Writers about our present difficulties have taken any notice of. Nothing is more certain, than that a Trade may be gainful (at least for a time) to Merchants, which yet may prove ruinous to their Country. It is said the Trade with France would ruin England by draining it of its Mony, if the dangerous Importations from France were not discouraged by excessive Duties in England. Eng- land, being a Sovereign State, may secure it's self in MASSACHUSETTS BAY 265 that way ; but we who are a poor dependent Pro- vince, may not discourage some Importations which we may think injurious to us, by incumbering them with heavy Duties. The only way we have to secure our selves, is to put an end to Trusting, or to allow but a very short time for it. For if People may not only law out all the Mony they earn for for- eign Goods, but may also run as much mto Debt as they please besides ; and if they are gotten very much into the way of doing so, then it is very likely that as the Merchants have already carried off all our Silver, so they will m a short time make them- selves Masters of most or our Lands also for Book Debts. Since we have lost our Silver, it concerns us to look well to our Lands. / believe by this time every Body's Belly is full of the Publick Bank, &c. I wish it were so ; but I fear this is not the case. I know no crood that it hath done : But if I am not mistaken, it hath pro- long'd our Miseries, divided the Country into Par- ties, and given many menan Opportunity to involve themselves worse than they were before. Many of the Borrowers of the Loan Mony, and of such as have a mind to borrow, are become so vain as to fancy, that tliat Mony will at last be paid by the Province, or else that it will never be paid at all. And truly I can't tell what might be done of that nature, if Borrowers should generally have the doing of it. However, I hope I shall make it evi- dent, that it is every Man's Interest, who is not a Borrower to consent to neither of these Things. 2G6 CURRENCY FOR THE For the First, I am siu-e it is not just that my Estate should be taxed to help pay a Debt which my Neigh-[i4]bour voluntarily, and it may be need- lessly run himself into. As for the Second, the not paying- these Bills in at all, This every Man that hath any of them in his possession is concerned to look to, whether he knows it or not. And for this reason ; It is not the Gov- ernments saying, This indented Bill of so much, shall be in value equal to Mony, and so turning it into the world, which really gives it it's value (as some perhaps fondly imagine) but because we know that we must all pay Taxes, and these Bills will enable us to pay these Taxes as well or better than any thing else ; therefore it is that we value the Bills yearly emitted, for defraying the Charges of the Government, and if these Taxes had never been postponed, the demand the Bills would have been in for paying Taxes, would have made us esteem them at an hio-her rate than we do now. Again, because we know that there are good real Estates laid in Pawn for all the Bills emitted by way of Loan, and because we know that within a certain Term of Years, if we have any of these Bills in our hands, the borrowers must certainly buy them of us at their full value to redeem their Mortgages : Therefore it is that we accept the Loan Bills, and esteem them as Mony. Now if this be the truth of the Case, then, if ever it should be enacted that these Bills should never be call'd in, they would at once lose all their value, and be worth no more to MASSACHUSETTS BAY 267 them that have them in their keeping, than so many bits of Blank Paper. Or if the calling in of these Bills should be de- ferred beyond the set time, it will make men doubt whether they will ever be call'd in or not, and so their value will sink in proportion to the Jealousie men have about it, which w411 Hkewise be to the Loss of the Possessors of them ; so that it is plainly the Interest of every man in the Province that is not a Borrower, and hath any of these Bills in his keeping, that they should be called in precisely at the time appointed, to redeem the Estates that are laid in Pawn for them. For nothing else but this, when the time is once expired, can make [15] them as good as Mony to those in whose hands they shall be at that time. There loill he more than Threescore Thousand Pounds to 'pay, and nothing to pay it with ; for the Bills come in for the Interest: How then shall the Princi2Kd he Paid f This is p)utting men on impossihilities. This is all a great mistake ; and yet it is a mistake almost every Man I meet with has fallen into, and is concerned about. If any man wou'd clear up the difficulty, and publish it to the World, it would tend much to quiet the Minds of the People, and so do good Service. However, I cannot but wonder a little that those Gentlemen who are not able to solve the difficulty themselves, shou'd imagine the General Assembly cou'd all be so much in the dark as not to see so very obvious and Objection as this, and pro- 2G8 CURRENCY FOR THE vide ao'ainst it. Sir, I have neither Law-book nor Votes of the House by me, and therefore I fear I shall not be able to solve the Difficulty so clearly as otherwise I cou'd. However, I remember that the Act for emitting the 100000 / Loan, expressly provides. That the Profits (that is the Interest) be ap2)lyed for & towards the support of the Government, as the General Court shall from time to time direct. Now the Interest of the Loan Mony is but 5000 I a Year, whereas, the General Court (if I mistake not) hath for some Years past granted at least 10000 / to defray the Charges of the Government ; now this is the whole Interest of the Loan Mony and as much more emitted yearly. If it be objected, that when 10000 I is granted yearly for the support of the Government, there is also at the same time a Tax granted to his Majesty in some Year to come, for calling in these Bills again. I answer, that this will create no difficulty to the Borrowers of the Loan Mony ; because these yearly Emissions for the Support of the Government must continue till the ten Years for the standing out of the Loan Money are expired : And the Taxes granted for calHno- in these Bills, are set at several Years dis- tance (the number of Years I dont now certainly remember,) so that the very last Year of the Loan Mony, there will be Bills enough standing out, [16] to pay not only the Interest, but also the whole Principal. But there is another answer easier to be under- stood than this. Some years ago, the Tax for bring- IVIASSACHUSETTS BAY 269 ing in our Province Bills was Two and Twenty Thousand Pounds a Year. At length the Govern- ment thought fit to ease the People of so great a Burthen, and so reduced the Tax to but Eleven Thousand Pounds a Year, and proposed to bring in the other half by Impost, Excise, &c. After the Emission of the Loan Mony the Tax was again re- duced (to what Simi I don't now remember) and the Interest of the Loan Mony was added to the Impost and Excise, to help make up the Two and Twenty Thousand Pounds, which should have been brought in by the Tax alone. So that every Year that Five Thousand Pounds is paid as Interest of the Loan Mony, at the same time Five Thousand Pounds which wou'd otherwise have been brought in by Tax, is left standing out. And therefore at the Ten Years end, there will be Fifty Thousand Pounds standing out, which had it not been for the Interest of the Loan Mony, would have been paid in by that time by Tax. And this the Borrowers of the Loan Mony will have to pay that part of their Principal with, which hath been drawn in by Interest. I hope this comes fully up to the Difficulty, and is plain enough for any Man that will but set him- self a thinking, to understand ; and will clear the Government of the unjust Imputation of being worse than the Egyptian Taskmasters. We are told we must exj^ect no more Bills, and Silver and Gold is bought up for the Factors as fast as it comes in, and Shipt home, &c. />. 3. And so it always will be, while we have such 270 CURRENCY FOR THE plenty of Bills that the Merchants and Factors can iind Advantaii'e in doinjj so. But I should think it prudence for the men who drive this Trade, not to lisp so much as a word about the miseries of poor People in Boston. I believe other Folks will think of these miseries often enough, and of the true reason of them, without being put in mind, by the Men that cause them. If our own Merchants are not guilty, but they are the Foreign Factors [17] only that drive this Trade, let not our own Merchants join with them in a Cry for more Province Bills, and make the miseries of poor people in Boston a Plea for it ; but let them tell the World the plain Truth, That these poor People are paid in Goods for their Labour, not for loant of Province Bills, hut because Factors save their Province Bills to buy up Silver and Gold, as fast as it comes in, that they may shij? it home to their Principals, and so procure more Goods to p)ay Lcd^ourers and Tradesmen loith : Let them tell the World, that it is by this means that Honest, Industrious Peo2')le in Boston are brought to such Extremities, as to sell their Pewter and Brass to buy Food. The Gentlemen who are against emitting more Bills, think we have Mony enough ; that there are tvno hundred thousand pounds out in all the Pro- vinces. A wonderful Cash to manage the Trade of the four Governments \ &c. p. 3. I am myself at present in no Capacity to conjec- ture the Sum of the Bills standing out in the four Provinces ; but let it be what it will, I think I am MASSACHUSETTS BAY 271 capable of proving, that there are enough of them to carry on a Trade as large, as it is for the Interest of the Provinces to have carried on. And I hope I shall do this with an Argument that every man can understand. There are Province Bills enough to buy up, at a reasonable rate, all that can be spar'd of the Product of the Husbandry, Fishery, &c. of the whole Country. Let them that have any of these things to sell, offer them but at any thing near the rate they used to sell them for some Years ago for Silver, and I am certain they will soon find Buyers, and Mony enough. Nothing will ly upon their hands, except there be something not fit to be exported, which great plenty hath made a Drug of. Now if there be Mony enough to buy, at a reason- able rate, all the Produce of the Country that can be spared, then every man that raises any thing to make Mony with, may turn it into Mony, and lay out all that Mony with Traders for foreign Commodities, if he pleases. So that it is a plain Case, that we have Bills enough still to enable every Man in the Pro- vince (if they were all minded [18] to be so much of Simpletons) to spend all that he can earn in the Year, on Traders for foreign Commodities. And what wou'd the Traders have more ? Must Men spend more than they earn ? Must publick & private Banks be established, that so when People have spent all they have earnt, they may know where to go and borrow more, to lay out for things they have no need of ? And must the Lands of the Country groan under Taxes and Mortgages to uphold these Fooleries? 272 CURRENCY FOR THE All this must be clone forsooth ! Not for fear Trade should not be large enough still, but for fear it should not be so large as it hath been for many Years past, to the impoverishing and almost ruining the Country. I have read but little in the History and the Customs of other Countries : Pray, Sir, in- form me, whether the Governments of other Coun- tries, use, when Traders have fool'd away all their Silver and Gold, to be so very careful to provide another Medium for them to play the Fool with again ? I am apt to guess, that the Care in such Cases hath commonly been, to lay Trade under such Restraints, as that it can't be carried on, but to the Advantage of its Country. Our own Bills are hoarded up, with what noble Design I know not, hut it gives room to suspect the worst, &c. 2^- 4- This Cry I have observed frequently to be made at some convenient Seasons ; but why Mony should be hoarded just at such Times, or why men should hoard Mony now, that have not always made it their Custom to do so, I never could well imagine. It is commonly accounted a true Saying, that Interest will not lye ; therefore I can't think that any let their Mony lye by them unimproved, in hopes of get- ting their Neighbours Lands at half Value; because I see no likelihood that such a thing will ever be effected. When once our Pro\ance Bills are by their Scarcity become equal in value to Silver, If the Gov- ernment will but admit Taxes to be paid, and Mort- gages to be redeemed with Silver, or the produce of MASSACHUSETTS BAY 273 the Country, those that have hoarded up Province Bills, will be glad to break up their Hoards, and get rid of them as fast as they can, lest they should become useless to them. Indeed if any Gentlemen that employ [J 9] a great number of Labourers, do (at some Seasons when it will serve a Turn to have a Clamour raised) turn off their Workmen with two thirds instead of one half Goods, or make them wait a great while for their Mony part, and tell them they can't help it, the Bills are hoarded, when it may be at the same time they are buying Silver with them; (I say if any do so) it is plain there may be advantage in it ; and so there is room to susjject the loorst ; tho' I don't know that any such thing as this hath been practiced. The Gentlemen that cry, no more Bills, are only Usurers, and men who live on Salaries, Officers of the Courts and Lawyers, &c. p. 4. I wHl add all understanding Husbandmen, that I meet with, who have been so good Husbands as not to entangle their Estates. It is not sinking the Bills of credit that toill bring in Silver, &c. If he had said sinking the Credit of the Bills it had been very just. It must be done by going on Manufactures, &c. No great matters will or ever can be done at Manufactures while Labour is so dear ; and Labour will always be dear, while Bills are cheap. Necessity is the Mo- ther of Invention, and will teach men more Projects as well as more Industry and Good Husbandry than the Emission of more bills. I desire to be informed 274 CURRENCY FOR THE what Project, what Manufacture hath been set on foot to any purpose, by the 50 and 100 Thousand Pounds lately emitted ? The mony hath been gen- erally Bori'oioed (as far as I can learn) to fay Dehts contracted hefore, by virtue of long Credit. And if an hundred Thousand Pounds more were emitted it would quickly go the same way. / am sorry to see the Ministers of the Town so Silent &c,p. 5. If any of these Gentlemen can by writing set the true Interest and Duty of the Country (at such a day as this) in a clear light, they will do God and their Country excellent Service : but I hope they will be very cautious what they deliver in the name of God from the Pulpit, about these matters of doubtful Disputation which perplex the Government. [20] The Gentlemen who oppose the Schemes for Emitting more Bills on Land Security never projjose any other, &c. p. 5. No Projects will serve the turn, without Indus- try, Frugality and good Husbandry. Do but leave off Trusting, or shorten Credit as much as possible, and this will make us all Industrious, Frugal, and Prudent, whether we will or not. And I beheve in the way we are now in nothing else will. Most certainly it was a very wrong step to criish the private Batik, &c. I can't but hope that it will still be crush't. And that for the following Reasons. 1. Because such an Emission of Bills will keep their Credit always low, and that will make the pro- MASSACHUSETTS BAY 275 duce of the Country porportionably high, that it wont turn to Account to send it elsewhere, and so our Merchants will always be at the same Loss they are now, where to make Adventures, It will also make Labour always dear, so that we shall never make any great Improvement in Husbandry or Manufactures. And at this rate Silver and Gold will always be one of the best things that we can make Returns with, and therefore wdll be bought up and Shipt off as fast as it comes in, and so we shall never get through our Difficulties. 2. Because we have found by the unhappy Ex- perience of the Pubhck Bank, that if there be but a Bank to run and borrow at, the 111 Husbandry, Vanity and Folly of the People is such ; that in a short time most of the Estates in the Country would become involved ; and I think it much more for the Strength, Safety, and Interest of the Country both Civil and Religious, that the Estates should continue as at present in many mens hands, than that a few Gentlemen should be Landlords, and all the rest of the Country become Tenants. If you ask me why these lU consequences will follow upon a Bank in this Country rather than in England? I answer, because as I observ'd before. We are not a Sovereign State. We may not check an extravagant Importation and Consumption of some foreign Commodities, by heavy Duties. The only way of doing this is, by shortning Credit, so that People may not be able [2 J] to consume more than they earn : And by not suffering a Bank for L'7G CURRENCY FOR THE People to run to, and undo themselves by borrow- ing. 3. I am against a private Bank, because that when the Province Bills which are now out, shall once be drawn in, all the Cash of the Country will then be at the direction of the Bankers. And it is easy to foresee this Consequence, that whatever Pro- ject they may have in their heads, how inconsistent soever it may be with the pubhck Welfare, they wont want means to bring it to pass. Nothing will be restrained from them. Fortifying our exjmsed Settlements looiid en- courage PeopU to Sit down and till the Earth. This would bring down the prices of lAnen, Can- vas, Provisio?is. p. 8. I am incHned to think on the contrary, that one Reason of the great scarcity of Pro\4sions we have been afflicted with of late years, was that so many People have gone into new Plantations, where they have not yet been able to raise their own provisions. It would conduce more to the bringing down Pro\asions, to have the Land already taken up, better Improved by more Labour- ers upon it, than to have new unsubdu'd Lands en- ter'd upon. But if our Author indeed desires, that the price of these things should be brought down, why does he tell us Country People in the next Page that the want of mony will lower the price of all our produce, that he may excite us also to joyn with him in a cry for more Mony ? The falling of our Provisions will enable him to export them to the MASSACHUSETTS BAY 277 Islands as in former times. If there was a Bridge, &c. The Poor who want Imployment, woii'd do better service, to disperse themselves in Country and till the Ground. / hojje our Friends will send men spirited for our Belief to represent them, &c. I hope also Men of a Publick Spirit, and heartily concerned for the Welfare of their Country, will be sent. JVot Sheriffs and Lawyers <&c. I will add, not Men in difficult Circumstances, who have involved themselves by their own Indiscretion. They that can't order their private Affairs with Discretion, will make but poor Managers for the Publick. Besides [22] whatever shall be proposed for the Publick Good, Men in a needy Condition will be sure to consider it in the first place how it will affect themselves, and if it be likely to increase their Straitness and Difficulty a little, (tho' but for a time) they had need be Men of great Integrity to give their Consent to it. Thus, Sir, I have given you my Thoughts "udth a sincere aim at the Good of my Country ; and with- out prejudice or affection to any Man, or Party of men. If you think they may be of Publick Service, you have leave to make them as publick as you please. If they are just, no man hath reason to be angry ; If they are Mistakes, I shall be heartily sorry for it. If the Mistakes are dangerous, I hope the Gentlemen who think them so, will be so just to their Country as to warn it of them. I have written these things in the utmost Hurry imaginable, for fear of losing the Oj^portunity to 278 CURRENCY FOR THE MASSACHUSETTS BAY convey them. If you meet with any thing out of Place, or expressed too sharply or too obscurely, impute it to my great Hast, which wont allow me to correct and alter. / am, &c. April 23, 1720 FINIS. [12mo, 22 pp. This pamphlet is attrihuted by Sabin in his " Dictionary of books relating to America &c " to E. Wiggles- worth. This apparently rests upon the fact that " A vindication of the remarks of one in the Country," etc., presumably by the same author, is put down in a sale catalogue as by " Mr. Wig- glesworth." The name of the compiler of the catalogue is not known. Reasons are given in the note at the end of the next succeed- ing pamphlet, for supposing that the author of this pamphlet was also the author of a communication of similar import printed in the " News-Letter," April 18, 1720. The copy of the pamphlet and the facsimile of the title-page were obtained through the courtesy of the Boston Public Library. Certain defects in this copy were supplied through the courtesy of Mr. Wilberforce Eames of the Lenox Library.] A LETTER From a Gentleman, Containing some Remarks upon the Several Answers given unto Mr. Colmari^s^ Entituled, The Distressed State of the Town ^Boston. BOS TON: Printed by S. K n e e l a n d. for Nicholas Boone, Benjamin Gray, and John Edwards, and Sold at their Shops. 1720. 280 CURRENCY FOR THE [3] SIR, I Have perused your Letter, Intituled, The Dis- tressed State of the Town of Boston, and think the Title doth answer the Matters of Fact therein contained ; which are too obvi- ous to every Man to be deny'd, and therefore I beHeve all Men will be of Opinion that it was high time some body did begin, and shew the Pov- erty and Oppression which is breaking in like a Flood upon us. I have lately Travell'd into divers parts of the Country, and conversed with many Principle Men there, and find them all to be very different in Opinion from those who have pretended to give Answer to yours in the News -Letter, the 18th of April, and since in a Pamphlet dated 23d. of same Month, Intituled, Some Remarks on yours, and indeed I think the Author did well to put in the Word, Some : for those Things which there was most need of clearing up, he hath not thought proper to touch upon, perhaps he saw he was not able to give any satisfactory Answer thereto, and so thought (as any wise Man would) that it would be most prudent to pass them over in silence, and in- deed no Man of common understanding, who com- pares your Letter with the pretended Answers will say, that the Answers any way clear up the Diffi- culties you complain of. So that your Letter stands y- {i^ /^-y'^^/t- - A f La £L X T LL MX From a Gentleman, I Containing-fome Remarks j upon th eSeveral Anfwers ' givei> unto lsAtyC6lman\^^ i Entituled, The T>ijlrej[ed State of the Tmm of Bofton. BOSTON: Printed by S. Kneeland; for NicHOLAG BoonEjBe^'JaminGray/ and John Edwards, and Sold at th. I wish your Friend's 1720. well, and that when they Write again, they may give you a more pertinent Answer. / am Sir, &c. [12ino, 15 pp. Sabin, in his " Dictionary of books relating to America &c," says with reference to this pamplilet : " Said to have been written by Dr. Noyes. " Dr. Oliver Noyes was in the Assembly about this time. He was one of those who signed the " Vindication of the Bank of Credit &c " published in 1714, and is so far identified with the private bank, that he must have agreed with the opinions put forth in this pamphlet. By the opening sentence of the pamphlet it would appear to have been addressed to John Colman. The author had come to Colman's relief in this attempt to reply to two Answers to " The Distressed State of the Town of Boston." The first of these, entitled " Country-Man's Answer, to a Letter Intituled The Distressed State of the Town of Boston Considered,'^ oc- cupied a little over a column in the " News-Letter " of April 18, 1720. The second was " A LETTER FROM One in the 296 CURRENCY FOR THE MASSACHUSETTS BAY Country to his Friend in Boston &c," which appeared in pam- phlet form under date of April 23, 1720. These two Answers are constructed on tlie same general line. A Countryman from his point of view attacks the private bank. The author of this pamphlet evidently regards both Answers as the work of one person. The couplet from the end of the pamplilet is quoted by Sabin. The copy of the tract and the facsimile of the title-page were obtained through the courtesy of the Massachusetts Historical Society.] A Vindication OF The Remarks of One in the Country upon T*he Distressed State of Boston, from some Exceptions made against 'em in a Letter to Mr. Colman. BOSTON: Printed by S. Kneeland, for D. Henchman, and Sold at his Shop over against the Brick Meeting-House. 1 720. 298 CURRENCY FOR THE [3] ^^^ ^i& "^ "S* "S* ^' VS r^ "^ "Ji^ V"^ 'J^ ^J^ ^^^ ^^ "^ ^^ ' ^^ 4^ ^*^ ^^ Sir, SINCE I sent you my Remarks of the 23d of April, I have farther considered the pre- sent State of the Country, and had some new Tho'ts upon it. I was then of Opinion that Emitting more Province Bills, would but En- crease and Prolong our Miseries, and therefore could not choose but be against it. And I am sure still that to Emit more according to any Publick or Private Scheme that hath been yet Projected, will do so. I am sure also that to leave off Trusting as far as it is practicable enough to do it, would in some time effectually set all things to rights again. However I am sensible that in the mean time many People must undergo considerable Straits and Diffi- culties. If therefore any way could be contrived to Emit more Province Bills without running into those Fatal Inconveniences which have attended former Projects of this Nature, or into others as bad, I should re Joyce in it as much as any Man in the Province. And upon some Application of Thought to this Matter, I hope I have hit upon a Project by which an Hundred Thousand Pounds of Bills may he Emitted, in such a maniier as to raise their Credit Equal to Silver, and to bring an Hundred Thousand Pounds of Silver into the Country in a few Tears. When I have ^pVindicatiok' OF' The Remarks of One in 1 the Country uoon Tk ' Vi/Ire/Jecl \^:^^ ^^Eofton, \i from loir ^..^ccpdons I' made againft em in a I Letter to Mr. Coi?narL ^ JP ^ -• Printed by S.Knleland, lor U Henchman, and Sold at his Shop cveragainlt thcBrick Mcetinc-Houfc 1 7 2I i^^ IVIASSACHUSETTS BAY 299 had Opportunity to draw my Tho'ts upon this mat- ter into Form, I intend to submit them to the Pub- Hck Censure. In the mean time I have met with Some Remarks (of the 16th. of May) upon my Re- marks : These I think it may not be amiss to take some Notice of. [4] My Controversy with Mr Cohnan was not so much whither Boston in Fact laboui-'d under great Distresses ; As whither he had not assigned wrong Causes of these Distresses ? Because assigning wrong Causes of Real Evils, is the way to lead into wrong Measures to Remedy them. Whither the Gentleman hath justly represented the Opinion of the Country ; Or whither the Peo- ple are of one mind where he hath Travel'd, and of another where I have Liv'd I suppose time will discover. He says I have done well to add the word SOME to my Remarks. I beheve he speaks as he thinks, for he hath imitated me in well doing in this matter. So hath he imitated the Wisdom also which he speaks of, by passing in silence those things which I suppose he found it hard to answer. But I must confess I am a Man so far short of a Common Un- derstanding that tho' I have carefully reviewed Mr. Colm^arCs Pamphlet, I cannot find what those Im- portant Matters are, which are not toucht upon. I must therefore borrow our Author's Expression in Page 11, / arti sorry to find that he was for gen- eral Terms upon this head and did not care to descend to Particulars. 300 CURRENCY FOR THE I dislike the Personal Reflections in the Post- script as iiuicli as our Author does ; but whither he might not have put in the Word SOME between Justijied hij and Men of every Bank & Order, as properly and with as much Truth as in his Title Page I leave to others to say. To Answer the Ansivers icoidd take up too much time, &c. If the Gentleman hmiself thinks his own Remarks to be no Answers, I suppose he will easily o'et most other Men to be of his mind. But then o why he should trouble the World with his Remarks I can't well imasfine. He saith you have represented Things in a smart and moving manner by lohich I p^erceive he thought the Town felt the truth of ichat you have writ- ten, &c. This also is beyond my Comprehension ! Mr. Col- man writ smartly, therefore what he writ was true and felt [5] by the Town. If there was danger of Mr. Colman's Rhetorick, I think there is not much of this Gentlemans Logick. I suppose he knows that sharp Writing sometimes irritates Men's Pas- sions, and creates Heats and Animosities where there is no just cause for them. As to the ill uses which have been made of our Province Bills, and the unhapjpy Consecpiences re- sulting therefrom, I shall not run into the Argu- ment,it being nothing to theprese?it Case. I think Sir nothing can be more to the present Case, than to let the Country know truly how we came into such a Case : for unless we know what bro't us into MASSACHUSETTS BAY 301 our present Difficulties, I am sure we shall not be like to see our way very clearly out again. But if the Gentleman thinks it a sufficient excuse for not run- ning into an Argument, which perhaps it might not be very easy to clear himself of again, to say that it is nothing to the present Case ; at that rate he might have sav'd himself from much trouble, and others from some exjDence, by only putting an Advertise- ment into the News-Letter and Gazette, That my Remarks were all nothing to the present Case . Tlie Province Bills received their deadly wound the Day they icere first invented &c. I suppose our Author himself remembers when for many Days the Merchants themselves would upon some occa- sions, give Silver for them without receiving any advance, and thank ye too. It was sometime (tho' indeed not very long) before they seem'd to under- stand the Advantage put into their hands to Export the Silver. But how came the Province Bills to receive this deadly wound? Why, Because they were not made a lawfid Tender, Or because there was not a Law made that they should Answer Specialties. If such a Law had been made, it would not have sig- nifyed much towards keeping up the Credit of them. Since the Importation of Foreign Commodities hath been greater than the Produce of the Country would Answer for, there hath been a necessity that Silver should go to help make the [6] Ballance, and while there was a necessity of this. Province Bills must needs have been improved to Buy it up. And this 302 CURRENCY FOR THE •would unavoidiibly have made a difference in a short time between Province Bills and Silver, notwith- standing any Act for making them a Lawful Ten- der. Now if such an Act could not have kept up the Credit of them, I am sure it would soon have been the occasion of much Injustice and Oppres- sion. "What he alludes to about the Canada Expedi- tion, I cannot tell. But I suppose the Poor Men spent their Wages quickly after they got home, and the Gentleman knows that the Credit of our Bills was not then sunk near so low, as it hath been since the Post-poning the Taxes and the Emission of Loan Money. IT IS THE INTEREST OF THE MER- CHANTS TO RUN DOWN THE VALUE OF THE PUBLICK BILLS, IN ORDER TO GET MONEY BY THEM. If this he the Case, then as Things stand at present, nothing will cure this evil Practice but a Scarcity of the BiUs. When once Merchants really find the want of them, they will soon prize them high enough. The GREAT ARGUMENT with me for a Pi'ii'ate Bank is, that it would he in the Hands of A MULTITUDE of Men, whose Interest it woidd he to supijort the Credit of their Bills, ^c. I suppose the Province Bills are in the hands of at least as great a Multitud^e. And I believe that every Man that owns a Province Bill wishes it were as good to him as Silver, and is ready to use any means which he thinks may conduce to make it so. MASSACHUSETTS BAY 303 Whereas it is and always will he the Liter est of every Private Man to under value the Puhlick Bills, hy Selling his Silver to the highest Bidder, &c. This again is quite out of my reach ! One wou'd imagine by this, that every Private Man in the Country hath, and always will have Silver to Sell. If every Man Sells Silver, pray who are the Bidders for it, and who the highest Bidders? The Gentleman says afterwards, that 'perhaj)s I am a Sallary Man. I assure him I am not ; [7] but I don't know but that some will suspect him, from this Passage, to be a Seller of Silver. / am fidly of the Gentlemans mind, that it is impossible either the Town or Country shoidd sub- sist without- some Medium or other. But that Bank Bills acording to any Scheme projected yet, will serve the turn better than Province Bills, I am sure his Great Argument above don't prove. What the Gentleman saith about our Burthening Trade with heavy Duties, I won't my self call Eva- sion, Misrepreseyitaiion & Amusement. Let the Reader call it what he thinks fit. I gave Two Rea- sons for the decline of the Trade of Boston, that so People might know that their Distresses were not owing wholly to the want of Medium. He passes one in silence. As any wise Man would. The other he would fain shift quite away to other Pro- vinces, and lay blame on our own Government. He don't tell us concerning Newbury, Ipsvyich, Cape- Ann, Marblehead, Salem, (not to mention other Places ;) all within our own Province, that none of 304 CURRENCY FOR THE them carried on so large a Foreign Trade during the hite French War as they do now, and that some of them carried on no Foreign Trade at all ; but he would make us believe that by heavy Duties we have driven away Trade to our Neighbours. What are these heavy Duties laid upon ? I suppose he won't say upon English Goods. Perhaps the Tav- erners and Retailers may remember for him, that there is an heavy Excise upon Rum, Brandy, «&;c. But this is nothing to the Importer, but to the Re- tailer of these Things. The Gentlemcm says, I make a great noise about giving Twelve Shillings an Ounce for Silver. P. 6. When I am convinced that I have made more than there is cause for, I shall be very sorry for it. He clonH believe Three Thousand Pounds of Silver per Annum, comes into the Province, &g. I can tell him the Gentleman (of very considerable Trade) that affirms upon his own knowledge that above /. 10000. came in last year from one Place. And there are enough in the Town [8] that can tell him the single Ship which not very long since car- ried I. 10000. at once away ; but Pro\adence frown'd upon the Cargo and sunk it in the Sea. What Mystery there may be in laying Fish in one Pile and Province Bills in another, I cannot tell. But the last Price Currant in the Gazette tells me Fish Merchantable 26. s. per Quintal and rising, and now it is 28 s. this looks as if the Pile of Bills held out pretty well. I my self can tell the Men who paid Thirty Pounds a Ton for Oil last Week, MASSACHUSETTS BAY 305 and are ready to do so again this Week. If Tarr and Turpentine lie a little upon hand, it is only be- cause our Correspondents abroad write us that they won't answer there. In short my Argument in the 17th Page of my former Letter is founded upon the matter of Fact. I believe we have yet Province Bills enow to buy up all the Produce of the Country fit for Exportation, and all the Silver and Gold be- sides, because we have seen it done from Year to Year, and see it still a doing every Day. However the Gentleman is of another Opinion, and must tell me so, tho' he gives no reason for it. Now whither his Opinion without any Reason, or my Reason founded on daily Observation will weigh most, I must leave to others to judge. For my own part I am sensible enough that if there be no more Bills Emitted, and if no way can be found to bring and Keep Silver in the Country again, there will really be a pinching Scarcity of Medium in Time : but as yet I have never met with any good Reason to think but that we have Province Bills enough for any thing but to pay Labourers in Boston, and Debts contracted by virtue of long Credit. The GentleTYian seems much concerned at your touching upon the Law to shorten Credit, &c. I am so because I have proved that the Welfare of the Country depends upon shortening it yet more, and that doing this will remedy divers Evils which nothing else will. I have no inclination to aggravate Mr. Colmans fault, nor to incense the Goverment against his 306 CURRENCY FOR THE Vindicator, and so I shall make no Reflection on what follows next [9] (which it may be some will call Amusement) and several other Passages that look the same way. Not the Plenty of Bills, hut the Scarcity of Returns is the cause of Silver and Gold's being bought u]) and ShipUl off, &c. A Strong Argu- ment this if true, for shortening Credit ; for we see that tho' the Providence of God cut our short Returns, yet Traders if left to their own way will continue to Import as much as ever. By this means the Silver and Gold is gone already, and if Trusting be aUow'd our Lands will go too in a short time. But after all I must tell the Gentleman that if the Merchants had not Province Bills enough to spare, they would not buy Silver and Gold with them. For he and every Body else know well enough that what Men stand in real need of they value, and are loth to part with, and therefore if the Merchants really wanted Province Bills to carry on their Trade so much as he pretends they would never be so Prodigal of them. Again is our Scarcity of Returns Real or only Comparative ? If only Comparative I have told him already how that came to pass in the 2d. and 3d. Pages of my former Letter. There I told him that when the Government first Emitted Province Bills, the Traders quickly improved the Advantage put into their hands to Import Foreign Commodities, in far greater quantities than the Produce of Country wou'd make Returns for, &c. Thus Returns became MASSACHUSETTS BAY 307 Comparatively Scarce, and so Silver and Gold was bought up with the Province Bills, and Shipp'd off, to make Returns with. But this is an Argu- ment, which our Author (like a Wise Man) cared not to run into, and therefore tho't it nothing to the present Case ; I shall not therefore pursue him further with it. Our Author thinks the Scarcity of Returns to be Real, and tells me I don't consider we have lost our Bay Trade. I confess I did not consider it, for I knew we had had several Vessels from the Bay this Year already ; and one of them was in the Harbour but Last Week. But I consider 'd that the Bay Trade was no such mighty Article [10] as he pre- tends. The Spaniards have always in tune of Peace, as well as War, given us all the Disturbance they could in it. The failing of our Newfoundland Trade is owing in a great measure to the failing of the Fishery there of late Years ; upon which account the Number of People is much diminisht, and consequently their Demands for Provisions. But if our Trade thither be lessen'd by this means, yet the failure of the Fishery there, hath brought our Fish to a better Market. Our Author goes on to tell me. That the Rea- son Euroj)ean Goods are so high of late, is, (1.) Because there are not near so many Imported as formerly. (2.) The Scarcity of Returns helps also to keep up their Prizes, &c. The putting these Two Articles so near together hath quite 308 CURRENCY FOR THE niiii'd all the Cause. I doubt Men of hut a com- mon Understanding will be vain enough to im- agine they see an inconsistency. It will be very natural to enquire, if the Importation be so small, how come Returns to be so scarce ? One wou'd think the Produce of the Country might well enough answer a small Importation. What need then of buying Gold and Silver too to help ? In short let the Importation be greater or less, if it be more than the Produce of the Country alone wiU make Returns for, it is too great still for the Wel- fare of the Country ; and while it continues so, all the fine Projects in the World won't bring us to see Good Days again ; for how is it possible if the Country in general spends more than it can pay for? The Gentleman finds fault that I do not tell lohat those convenient Seasons are, at which I say a Cry is made THAT THE BILLS ARE HOARDED, &c. I will tell him now if he needs Information. When Measures have been well con- certed to make a vigorous Effort for a Private or a Publick Bank, then some time before the next Ses- sion of the General Assembly, special care has been taken from time to time to make People sensible of all their Distresses. Tho' some of the Distresses have been such as the Body of the Peo-[n]ple made no Complaint of, nor tlio't any thing about, 'tiU more sensihle Persons put them in mind of them. Among other Artifices usual at such times, People have been told that the Bills are hoarded. If the BiUs are indeed hoarded, I could not im- MASSACHUSETTS BAY 309 agine any Men under so much Temptation to unfaii- Dealing in this matter, as those that employ a great Number of Labourers, for the Reason given in my former Letter, Page 18, 19. However, I am far from charging them with it. I say there plainly, that I don't know that any such Thing hath been practis'd. If our Author hath found another Sett of Men, whom he knows to be guilty, I have no- thing to plead in their Excuse. I shall only observe a Passage which to me (per- haps for want of understanding,) seems to be an in- consistency. He tells us those who advance the Price of Silver and Gold hurt us : and he says very true : but how came our Author to be of this mind? In his Great Argument for a Private Bank, Page 5. He tells us that it is and always will he the Interest of every Private Man to undervalue the Puhlick Bills hy Selling his Silver to the high- est Bidder. If this be the Interest of Every Pri- vate Man, then it is the Interest of the Country in General ; for all the Private Persons contain'd in it, will make up the whole Country ; How then could our Author think Advancing the Price of Silver hurts us ? Now let the Reader say how well it becomes a Gentleman who writes at this Extraordi- nary rate, to wish others to write pertinently, and to charge them with Evasions, Misrepresentations, Amusements & Trifling. In the next Place he makes himself merry with my Project to leave off Trusting. In this place (like a wise Man) I shall forbear running into this 310 CURRENCY FOR THE Argnment, but I doubt I shall be playing the Fool again before I have done my Letter. The Beasona given against a Private Bank I think are not unansioerahle. Iloioever I shall not enter upon that Argument, &c. Wisely done ! Arguments are dangerous Things. When a Man don't know but that they [12] may prove unanswera- ble it is much safest to let them alone. But perhaps the Gentleman may wave this matter for the pre- sent, hoping it will again be driven further, at a Convenient Season, where (it may be) he thinks I shall not be present to defend my Reasons. A Private Bank under the Inspection of the Government ivou^l not he liable to that Objection, viz. That it ivill he in the power of the Bankers, to accomp)lish any of their own Private Designs, &c. I believe any Man that duly considers the power of Money to byass Men's Thot's, and pervert their Actions will be of another mind. I think / did not mis-understand the Proposal of Fortfying, &c. For where People are Settled down already, it soimds pretty odd to me, to talk of Encouraging them to sit down. Therefore I under- stood it of Settling Places as yet Unsettled. But be that as it will ; I heartily desire that what is already Settled (under the direction of the Government) may be well protected. If any great matters could be done at raising Provisions in the Eastern Country, it would be a great Benefit to Boston, for Supj)lies may be brought in from thence, at almost any time in Winter, which cannot be done from Connecticut. MASSACHUSETTS BAY 311 However I hope special Care will be taken that no Settlements be made, without the Allowance and Direction of the Government : for if People may go of their own Heads, and Settle where-ever they claim a Right, the Eastern Frontier will quickly be so Enlarged, that several Thousand Men will not be enough to defend it, in case we should have another Indian War. The Gentleman hath now almost done with me ; However, I shall take notice of a few Things more in him, as I turn him over. In the 10th. Page he reckons up a terrible Catalogue of Evils, that will come upon us, lohen once the Bills are all in. To this I answer. Do but leave off Trusting, as far as it may he left well enough, and Silver will come in, and stay among us, to succeed the Province Bills as they are gradually caU'd in. I shall tell how this may be done presently. [13] In his 11th. Page he says the short Answer in the News-Letter, which did but just hint at things, gives no Instances of the Mischiefs a Priviate Bank would involve us in. I desire the Gentleman to look back to the 6th Page of my former Letter, and read it carefully. Then let him turn to the 20th & 21st Pages, and he will in those Three Pages (I hope) find mischiefs enough instanced in. When he was at those Places, He wisely declined entering upon the Argwnent, yet now He complains that we are all for general Terms upon this Head, and don't care to descend to Particidars. But what cou'd the Gentleman mean, &c. Page 312 CURRENCY FOR THE 12. I suppose he meant that Bridges, Fortifications, &e. are great and exiJenswe Works. See Distressed State, pag. 8. In his 13th. Page, He tells us that Country People say that they canH improve their Lands for want of Money to hire Labourers, &c. I think he tells us elsewhere that he hath lately traveVd in the Coun- try. I also have travel'd in the Country, and liv'd in it too, but never heard this Complaint before. I have often heard in many parts of the Country, from very intelligent Persons, that it was an hard matter to find Labourers : and that Labour was so dear, that it turned to little or no Account to im- prove their Lands, if they must hire Labour. But I never heard before that they could not get Money to hire Labourers -vsath, if they would work at a reason- able rate. The Gentlemen of our General Assembly will be the proper Judges of this matter. I heartily join with the Gentleman in his wishes that all would sincerely study the PubHck Good, and that Men of Wisdom, Fidelity and an Excellent Spirit may be chosen Counsellours ; and that the Govern our and General Assembly may have the Guidance and Blessing of Heaven in their Consulta- tions for our Welfare Something must he done, or the Place will sink and the Trade come to nothing, &g. I question not but the Case of Boston is really very bad, but how comes it to be so ? If the Gentleman can obtain an Act of the General Assembly to crush the Foreign Trade of other Towns [J4] in this Province, which MASSACHUSETTS BAY 313 begins now to grow so big ; and if he can prevail to have Country People discouraged from making their own Cloaths so much as of late they begin to do ; Boston will revive it's Trade, without the help of either Private or Pub lick Bank. But after all I hope and believe the ruin of Boston is not so near, as the Gentleman seems to apprehend. The Trade of Boston is lessen'd for the Reasons just hinted at. And I suppose as the Town in General, so particular Gentlemen in it find their Business contracted con- siderably. Now when Men find their Means to be growing less than they have sometimes been (tho' they may be like to be sufficient still, to live very well upon) yet (I say in such a Case) they are very apt to be in a Fright and to think Poverty and Ruin are coming upon them like an Armed Man. And I be- Heve this is pretty much the present Case of Boston. The Gentleman returns at length once more to me, and with great Sagacit j perceives that all I drive at is, only that by calling in the Bills some Men may have an Oj^portunity to get their Neighbours Lands at half Value, &c. I have told him in my former Letter, page 18. that such a Thing will never be effected. But I shall take this occasion to Explain that matter a little more. If any Men let their Pro- vince Bills lie by them unimproved, in expectation that the Scarcity of them, will in a while raise their Value equal to Silver, I dare not charge them for it, with the Sin of Ahab in the matter of Naboths Vineyard, because the Bills really ought to be in value equal to Silver, as the Inscription of them tells 314 CURRENCY FOR THE us tlu'V shall be ; and every Possessor of them is more or less a siitferer in that in Fact they are not so. But who the Men are that may be like to do thus by any great quantities of the Bills I can't pre- tend to guess. I can truly clear my self, and say that the few I have are imploy'd in Trade. And the Gentlemen in Trade I believe will Generally deny themselves to be hoarders. As for the Gentlemen that Let their Money at Interest, I can see no Policy in their Letting their Bills lie unimproved neither. For by [J 5] Letting them out they increase their number, and so will have more to make an Advan- tage of, if an Opportunity should present. Thus because I could never see whose Interest it was to hoard the Bills, I have taken the Cry about it, to be only a Stratagem to create Discontent and Animosi- ties among the People, and so promote some Politick Designs. But suppose I am mistaken in this, and some Men really do hoard Bills expecting to make an Advan- tage of it, yet they will never get their Neighbours Lands at half Value. A Scarcity of Bills may pos- sibly raise their Value equal to Silver, and no Body will be wrong' d by this, for this is the Value they ought to go at. But if it once comes to this, the Man hath a mind to think hardly of the Govern- ment, who won't believe that it will admit Mort- gages to be redeemed and Taxes to be paid in the Produce of the Country or in Silver. In Silver (I say) for I hope before that Day, it will begin to stay, and to pass from Man to Man in the Country. MASSACHUSETTS BAY 315 I return therefore according to promise to my proposal about the Limitation of Credit, and indeed had it not been for for the sake of Explaining my tho'ts better about that matter, I should hardly have given my self or you the trouble of this Second Letter. I understand that I have been mistaken to intend that no Credit at all shou'd be given, because I have expressed my self in too strong terms in one or two places ; tho' afterwards I speak only of short- ening it as much as possible. I am sensible that some Credit is absolutely neces- sary among Traders. And indeed if it were prac- ticable to make such a difference, it wou'd answer all the Ends, if Credit were forbidden only to the Consumers of Foreign Commodities. For if the Consumers are not Trusted, then none of them can spend more than they can Earn. And if some of them wont spend so much, then all things will fol- low of course (as is argued in the 10, 11, and 12. pages of my former Letter) let the Traders carry on how they will among themselves. But to make such a difference is impracticable, because Traders themselves [16] are generally some of the greatest Consumers, and because a Thousand Shifts would soon be found to Evade the Law, which no precau- tions could sufficiently provide against. As to the Time it might be proper to restrain Credit to, I am assured that some Substantial Traders in the Town (who have as great Payments to make as almost any Men in New England) think it might well enough be Limitted to Six Months, but sup- 316 CURRENCY FOR THE posing it were allow'd to run to Nine, or even to Twelve, and stop there, I believe it would have all the desired Effects. For as the Law wou'd not allow it's running beyond that time, so the general practice wou'd restrain it to something shorter Lim- its. And if it were restrained in the way I shall propose presently, the natural operation of the thing wou'd be such, that Trusting wou'd become daily more and more disused. And the less Trusting shall be practised, the better Cii-culation what Money we have will be put into, and so there will be the less need or temptation to Trust. I don't propose that an Act to shorten Credit shou'd have regard to any thing that is past, but only that it should look forward to such Debts as shall be contracted after the passing such an Act. However, even so I know it will be a very ungratefuProposal to most Gentlemen that have ah-eady entangled their Affairs, or that are going upon vast Undertakings, or that are Ambitious and Resolved to Extend their Trade and Encrease the Importation of Foreign Commodities by all ways possible, whither their Country sinks or swims ; but I earnestly desire that all others, and even such as these, so far as they can forego their present private Interest for the Pub- lick Good, in expectation of prospering together with the Pubhck hereafter, would consider deliber- ately the certainty and safety of the Proposal. For to see the certainty of the good Effects of shortening Credit, please to look again on the 10, 11, 12, & 13. pages of my former Letter. MASSACHUSETTS BAY 317 As to the safety of the Proposal I think no Man can [17] doubt of this: whereas both the PubHck and Private Projects which have hitherto been set on foot (considering the dependent State of this Country) have always been thought by many wise Men, hable to very dangerous Consequences. It were easy to instance in Particulars : but I forbear, partly because it would swell this Letter too much, but principally because I wou'd not put an Argu- ment against us for what hath been done already into any Man's mouth. But how shall Trusting be restrain'd in a natural and easy way ? Why, supposing it be done Effectu- ally it matters not much what safe way it is done in. However till some better way be tho't on I humbly propose that after a Debt hath been contracted so long as the Law shall direct, Ten per Cent. Interest should be allow'd till it be paid. I believe Sir, you start at the Proposal, and think it the most unhappy one I could have hit on. But if you can have patience deliberately and calmly to read and weigh what I have to say upon it, I flatter my self that before you have done, you won't think it a thing so Unreasonable and Formidable, as very likely it will appear to most Men at the first glance. For first, it is no unreasonable Favour to the Trader, who had rather have his Money to improve, than have it lying out, tho' at Ten per Cent Interest. And secondly the intention of such a Law, is not to give Ten per Cent Interest to the Seller, but to 318 CURRENCY FOR THE prevent the Buyer's ruuniiig farther into Debt than he sees any way of getting out again, in a reasonable time. Now why any wise and honest Man should desire to do thus or should think himself wrong'd by being discouraged from it I can't well imagine. Besides 'tis certain no Law is too severe & strict, that does but just attain the Good End for which it was Enacted. Now if it be plain that continuing to Trust one another as we have done for many Years past will unavoidably ruin the Country in a short time (which may easily be demonstrated if it be not sufficiently done already in my former [18] Letter) thence it necessarily follows, that if Ten per Cent. Interest won't put an Effectual stop to this practice, then such a Law wou'd really not be severe enough, but the Interest ought to be encreased (provided no better Remedy can be found) rather than the Coun- try should be ruin'd. But if upon Trial allowing such an Interest for Book Debts be found Effectu- ally to stop Trusting and Running into Debt ; then supposing even Fifty per Cent Interest were allow'd no body would be hurt by it, because every Body would keep clear of the danger of being obliged to pay it. But indeed the natural and necessary Operation of the Thing would be such, that if Ten per Cent Interest were allow'd by Law for Book Debts, it wou'd certainly put an effectual stop to Trusting among aU Wise and Honest Men ; and so none but Knaves and Fools cou'd possibly be in danger by it. And 'tis highly probable that the former of these MASSACHUSETTS BAY 319 wou'd be kept more Honest and the latter be made wiser by the Terror of it. For the Buyer that would he m Debt at the loss of Ten per Cent Interest, rather than borrow at Six per Cent to pay his Debt, such a Buyer (I say) wou'd by his Creditor immediately be tho't a Fool or a Knave, or one that cou'd not obtain Credit enough to be Trusted with Money at Interest, ther- fore the Creditor wou'd never venture to let a Debt He in such a Man's hands but wou'd immediately Demand it of him, and force him to a Payment. On the other hand if the Seller to eneourao^e taking a large quantity of Goods off his hands, should promise the Buyer, to Trust him a Year or two beyond the time fixt by Law, without demand- ing any Interest, yet no wise Man would venture to lie in Debt upon this encouragement. For tho' he may firmly believe his Creditor, to be a Man of his Word, yet since he knows not how soon he may be taken away by Death, therefore he can't be safe after the time prescribed by Law is expired ; because if his Creditor should die suddenly, he hath no security that those who succeed him, won't take the Ad-[I9]vantage which the Law gives them. For it can't be suppos'd that a Creditor who hath his Eyes in his head, will ordinarily venture by an Instrument under his hand, to put it out of his own and his Suc- cessors power, to demand a Debt, whatever neces- sity for it may happen to arise, either from his own or his Debtors Circumstances. Now unless it be put out of the Creditor's power to Demand it ; the 320 CURRENCY FOR THE Debtor can't be secure, that the Advantage of the Law won't be taken. Again the Merchant who Sells large quantities of Goods at once to the ShopKeeper may very conven- iently take the Benefit of the Law, and demand Interest of the Shopkeeper, if he lies in his Debt after the Expiration of the set time. But the Shop- keeper who Retails small parcels of Goods, at sundry times, to many Persons, scattered up and down the Country, and some of them in other Provinces too ; will find so much vexation, perplexity, and imprac- ticableness in Demanding Interest of these Con- sumers for their petty Debts, at sundry times con- tracted ; that being himself so Obnoxious to the Merchant (as is said before) he will certainly never dare to trust any Body, but will sell only for ready Money. Now if the Shopkeeper takes ready Money for all he sells, he can then as well pay the Mer- chant as not ; unless he is so fooHsh as to spend more in his Family than his Advance upon his Goods will answer for. And if he does so, he will soon ruin himself, whither he pays Interest or not. From these Things it seems plain, that if a Law to allow such Interest were Enacted, it would com- pleatly attain its end, to put an effectual stop to Trusting, in such a natural and necessary way, that hardly any Body wou'd ever come to suffer the Penalty of it. And then certainly no Body hath any reason to fear it. " Upon the whole. Extravagant Importing and " spending upon Foreign Commodities hath undone MASSACHUSETTS BAY 321 " us, & wou'd soon impoverish the best Country in " the World. Extravagant Trusting hath made way " for the practice of these Evils. The General " Court cannot take away the inclination of the " People to such Extravagancies ; [20] this is the " work of God. But inasmuch as it is in their "power to shorten Credit, so as to put a stop to " the practice of them, it is in their power to save " this People if they please. I know that the Proposal of shortening Credit still more than it is already, will be very ungrateful to many People : But yet I am so satisfied of the safety of it above other Projects, and the good Effect it would quickly have upon us, that I could not choose but communicate my tho'ts upon this matter, and wish that they may take place. How- ever as is intimated in the beginning of this Letter, I have had some other tho'ts of another nature, which I know wou'd be abundantly more grateful to the Town, and I hope not Unsafe nor Impracti- cable : These I intend in a short time (if nothing unexpected prevents me) to put into Order, and if there be Occasion offer them to the Publick View. I am, dfc. May 24th. 1720. FINIS. 322 CURRENCY FOR THE MASSACHUSETTS BAT [12ino, 20 pp. Tliis pamphlet was wi-itten by the author of " A Letter from One in the Country to his Friend in Boston, containing some Remarks," etc. Sabin apparently was satis- lied that the latter was by E[dward] Wigglesworth. Sabin's " Dictionary " was issued in numbers, beginning with the letter A. The letter V was not reached, but among the au- thor's notes was the title of " A Vindication," etc., and attached to it a slip cut from a sale catalogue attributing this pamphlet to " Mr Wigglesworth." It may be added that the authorship of " Country-Man's Answer, to a Letter Intituled The Distressed State of the Town 0/ Boston Considered,'^ which was published April 18, 1720, in the " News-Letter," was evidently attributed by the controversialists of the day to the writer of this pam- phlet. The method of answering the pamphlet of his adversary para- graph by paragraph, and of putting the quotations in italics, in- stead of using quotation marks, characterizes the " Letter from one in the Country," etc., as well as the "Vindication," etc. The copy of the pamphlet and the facsimile of the title-page were obtained through the courtesy of the Boston Public Li- brary.] Reflections On the Present State OF THE Province of Pia^mW^tU^aH in General, And Town of BOSTON in Particular; Relating to iStUsofCretitt And the Support of TRADE by Them : As the same has been lately represented in several PAMPHLETS. New England: Printed for and Sold by Benjamin Eliot & Daniel HencJiman, at their Shops in Boston. 1720. 324 CURRENCY FOR THE [3] mi"^^ ylSvv [July 2. 1720. SIB. IHave Read the Account you sent me of the State of your Town of Boston, (which in many particulars, agrees to the whole Pro- ^4nce, as well as to your Town, & may indeed be considered as the State of JYeio- England in General.) The late Pamphlets on that Subject discover plainly eno' the distressing Circumstances we are fallen into, tho' I don't perceive they have been at all Successful to reheve us in the great thing complained of, viz. The want of a sufficient Medium to carry on the Trade, of the Town and Country; But on the con- trary, what was suggested in them for that end, has produced a quite different Effect, and occasioned much Contention. It is unhappy, when Persons who are concern'd in one common Distress, can't consult their own Interest, and declare their Minds freely upon it, with- out o'ivinof Offence to one another. And when men suffer themselves to be thus put out of Temper, they are in no good Condition either to give or to take Counsel. The Gentlemen who have Printed their Thoughts on this Occasion, do (as far as I can discern) desire to see their Country in a flourishing Trade, & Pros- Keflections - On the Prefent State- O F T H E Province of ^afTacijllfct^JSa^ in General, And Town of B O S T O N in Particular ; Relating to »ill0oecteirit And the Support of TRADE by Them : As ihe fame has been lately reprefented rn fcveral ?AM?HLE TS- New England : Printed for and Sold by Benjamin Eliot & Ddniel Henchman^ at their Shops in BfHon. 1710. W'W (•'/v ^•y^ 1 MASSACHUSETTS BAY 325 perous ConditioDj as they have seen it formerly ; They differ indeed in their Conjectures about the Measures proper to be taken at this Juncture for this End ; But its much to be Lamented, that Gen- tlemen who desire the good of their Country, can't declare their differing sentiments, about the best Means to promote it, without falling under the Dis- pleasure of those whom they [4] study to serve. This tends to Discourage our best Friends from lending us their Assistance when we want it most. If a man that candidly speaks his Mind, & declares what he Judges fittest to be done, under any Diffi- culty, which he suffers in common with others, must for that reason be treated with Disrespect and Anger, he'l be tempted to conclude its much better for him, to sustain his share of the Calamity, in Silence. As far as I am able to observe, from what has been Published relating to the Relief so much desired, the principal Controversy in this Matter, is, whether the Emitting more Bills of Credit, or the calling in those that are Extant, will best answer that end ? Some are of Opinion that the Emitting of more Bills, either by the Publick, or by Private Under- takers, would be the properest way to revive our Trade, and recover us out of our present Languish- ing Circumstances : Others, on the contrary, are of Opinion, that the Emitting of more Bills in such manner, would cer- tainly Augment our Distress ; and they are there- fore for calling in those that are out, as soon as may be; and Emitting no more. 326 CURRENCY FOR THE And each Party, tenaciously adhearing to their own Sentiments, and firmly believing their own Method the Properest, to Extricate us out of our present Difficulties, are under strong Temptations to look on all that oppose their several Schemes, as Obstructions of the Publick Good, and treat them ac- cordingly. While they themselves also, at the same time, are requited v^ith the same hard Measure. But this Anger is I think Unreasonable, & with- out any just Occasion ; for although these Opinions seem Repugnant, yet if we could be perswaded to consider them (& the reasons by which they are sup- ported) [5] calmly, and be cool in our Reflections upon them, we might probably find a way to Recon- cile them, & shew how they may be understood & improved to that Common Good, which both parties aim at ; & even perswade the Dissenting Gentlemen themselves to be of one mind, in the manner of pro- moting it. This is what I truly desire. Tho' I must confess I should be loth to write my mind so freely on this Subject, if I were not well assured of your Candour. Who ever undertakes the part of a Mediator, where the Contention between the Parties is at all warm, may expect to be encountred with Prejudices from both sides ; But I fear nothing of such a Kind, from a Gentleman of Your Wisdom and Temper. I am satisfied that whatever Favour You have for either of these Opinions, it will not be unacceptable to You, to see that a good Use may be made of of them both ; MASSACHUSETTS BAY 327 And this is what I aim at ; My Design is to avoid entirely, what may appear in the form of Opposition, or tend to overset either of these differing Opinions, and only to consider. Whether there are not certain Principles which both Parties will agree to, and which may well be Improved to unite them firmly in one and the same Measure, for promoting the Pub- lick Interest. And if it should prove that I am mistaken in my Thoughts, or deceived in my Hopes, yet to attempt what is so Desireable, as it can't give any just ground of Offence to any, so I am sure, it will never be taken so by You. I shall therefore observe here a few things, which I take to be beyopd Dispute & serviceable to the end which I propose, and submit them to your bet- ter Judgment. [6] In the first Place It will easily be granted, that Trade or Commerce is necessary to a peoples Prosperity, or Flourishing in the World. This, some of your late Writers, lay much weight on ; from hence they urge the necessity of being pro- vided with a Medium for carrying it on ; And if others seem to speak of Trade as a Disadvantage to us, it must be understood only with respect to some Circumstances which attend ours in particular, as, (for Instance) our carrying it to a degree beyond what we are able to manage ; Which is as I sup- pose, what they mean by our Overtrading ; Or our giving too long a Credit, whereby people that are never like to Pay, are Tempted to run in Debt : Or 328 CURRENCY FOR THE because its Managed mostly by a Credit, which is not Supported as it ought to be ; and is therefore variable, and raised or depressed as Managers hap- pen to meet with Chapmen. But it would be un- fair to understand them as real Enemies to our Commerce. No Country has within it self every thing Useful and conducive to the common Flourishing; and Pros- perity of its Inhabitants. Many things will be wanting, especially in new Settlements (as ours may in many Regards be considered) for the Subsistence and Comfort of Persons, which things must be sup- plyed from other Places ; and that supply must ordinarily be by Trade. And the same holds true, of persons in the same Country, who by the means of Commerce must sup- ply each other, with what one wants and another has : Providence has so Establish'd the State of Mankind, that the World in General, or any par- ticular Country in special, can't Flourish and be Prosperous, without such a mutual Communication of Goods, or Useful Commodities. [7] Again, To the carrying on this necessary Commerce, some proper Medium must be made use of. It is not absolutely Impossible but that it may be done by Barter, or exchanging of one Commodity for another; but since the Invention of Money, that method has been much laid aside ; and Money has been Universally Received & Improved, as the (most suitable) Medium for carrying on of Trade, between MASSACHUSETTS BAY 329 Persons & Countries. This I think is a Point un- controverted. That steady value which the general esteem of Men has put upon Silver, (Intrinsecally considered) and its aptness to be formed (as it has been by Authority,) into suitable pieces, of greater and lesser Quantities, and those of a Determmate Value, easy to be known, has rendred it the most agreeable Medium, by which to rate the Value of all Merchandize, and to be made use of in purchas- ing the same. And 'tis as unquestionable, that The Trade of any Country must be supported by the Produce of it. The only solid Foundation which any Country has to erect a Trade upon, are such Commodities as may be spared from their own Occasions, and exported to supply the Wants of other Places. Whether those Commodities are of the Growth or Produce of such Country, or im- ported from other Countries, at such a cheap rate, that they may be exported again & Sold to Ad- vantage. But generally. The Trade of any Country is sup- ported by its own proper Produce, i. e. By such Effects as are raised, or Manufactures which are wrought therein. And its no less certain, [8] That, Whatever Trade is Managed in any Country to Advantage^ the Export must exceed the Import. When the Produce of any Country is so consider- able that the Exportation of it, exceeds the Value of what Goods are Imported from other Places, and consumed in it, such Country will have that Over- 330 CURRENCY FOR THE plus, or Ballance of its Trade in Cash. When our Grain, Provision, Furr, Lumber, Fish, or any kind of Manufacture, or what we can raise either on the Land, or out of the Water, and can export to other Parts, exceeds in Value all the Goods from other Places, which we have Occasion to Buy and Con- sume, the Ballance of Trade will be so much in Cash to our Advantage. On the contrary. When the Import is more in Value than our Export, the Balance Avill be to our Disadvantage, so much as that exceeds this ; If we want European or any other Goods, in such a Degree, that aU the Produce of our Country, which we can spare, is not Equiva- lent to it, we shall be so much more in Debt, than we can Pay with our Produce ; And this BaUance must be Paid in Money. I may here also Observe, That The Medium of Trade^ does Naturally follow Trade, and is Gained by it. Such Counti-ies as can't Produce the matter of this Medium, viz. Silver, out of their own Bowels, have ordinarily no way to supply themselves with it, but by their own Pro- duce. And when any Country can afford the Com- modities, wanted in other Places, at such a Rate, that those who Improve themselves in Trade, can purchase them with Money and Export them to Advantage, their own Interest wiU put [9] them upon bringing Money into such a Coimtry for that end. And, The Medium of Trade, or Money, thus brought MASSACHUSETTS BAY 331 into a Country, will remain there in a Sufficient Plenty for its ordinary Occasions, so long as the Ballance of their Trade is in their Favour, L e. So long as such Country does not Purchase and Con- sume more forreign Goods, than it Vends of its own. And hence it follows, That The Diligence and Frugality of a People, is Necessary to Preserve the Trade of any Country, in such a State of Advantage to themselves. No Country can hope to be in a Flourishing Condition, when the People of it are not Diligent in their Business, or don't govern themselves as to their Expences, so as not to exceed their Produce or In- come ; for so much as they exceed that, they will be in Debt : and that Debt may in time exceed the value even of their Real Estates, & Reduce them to be worse than nothing. This shews, that the Discourse of those Gentlemen, who are for re- trenching our needless Extravagant Expences, as one necessary part of the Project, to remedy our present Distress, is very reasonable. Nothing can be more Obvious, than that those whose Expences are greater than their Gains must needs in time be Reduced to Penury ; though the best Medium of Trade be never so Plenty among them. We [JO] ought therefore to consider, what our diligent Labour, and good Husbandry will afford us, and be sure to keep within those Bounds, in our Apparel, Buildings, Tables, Funerals, and every Article of Expence. For if by any Methods we spend more 332 CURRENCY FOR THE than wo Gain, we are not like to escape the Distresses of Poverty. It must he considered also, That A Diligent and Frugal People may sometimes be in great want of Money. Their Cii'ciimstances may be such, that their Interest and Preservation may demand on a Sudden, a greater Sum, than they can possibly furnish themselves with at the time. So it sometimes happens in War, when their all may ly at Stake, and they must do their utmost to save themselves. Such a Defence may put them to so great a Charge, that a Sum of Money sufficient to defray it, can't be Collected at the time, tho' their Estates are worth very much more, and they are well able in process of Time to produce a much greater Sum ; And so it may happen on other Occa- sions ; as, for the carrying on of some great and useful Works, or profitable Manufactures, or for purchasing some great Priviledges, which would be of general Benefit to them for Generations to come. And certainly In such Cases as these, it may be very Prudent for such a People to make use of their Credit, i. e. To supply such Urgent Occasions, with their BILLS or BONDS, whereby they oblige themselves to raise and Pay the Simi [H] of Money which they want, in some Convenient thne. This PUBLICK CREDIT, if it be good, {i. e. if there be no doubt but that such a People are well able to raise, & will Honestly Pay the Money, by the time,) will supply the want of Money, and furnish them with what they need as jyiASSACHUSETTS BAY 333 effectually, as the Money it self. It would be the undoubted Interest of particular Persons, to furnish the Publick with Money, or any thing else they have Occasion for, on their Credit thus good and un- doubted. Of this Nature some of our Publick Bills are es- teemed to be, viz. Those that have been Emitted for the Payment of Publick Debts. (And for that reason I suppose some Gentlemen speak of the Bills themselves as a Medium of Trade,) because they supply the Want of Money ; though I think what they intend therein, has been mistaken by many ; as if they meant another Medium, clear and distinct from Money ; Whereas I don't take them to intend, that Money is not, properly speaking, the Medium of Trade. For we still reckon the Value of every thing we Trade in, by Pounds, Shillings, & Pence ; Which Terms are Denominations, or Names of sev- eral Pieces of Money ; and these Names are con- stantly used in Trade to express the worth of any Merchandise ; Money therefore abides the standard, by which the Prices of the Goods we Trade in, are computed and expressed. And when we use our Publick Bills in Payment, it is a Trading for Money still, though that Money is not to be presently Paid, but by a certain time, for which the Bill given in Payment is {or ouglit to he) a good Security. And he that takes the Bill in Payment, is assured, that if he has that Bill at. the time set for the Payment of it, he shall if he please have its Value in Money. Whence its evident that these [12] Publick Bills, are 334 CURRENCY FOR THE really of the same Nature with the Bill or Bond of a Private Person, of such undoubted Credit, that every one would take his Bill for Tioenty, or Forty Sh'iUbuj^, or any other Sum as soon as so much Money. Because that Bill is such a Security for the Money, as he dares rely upon ; and which he is assured will not fail him. But then we must always remember, That When any Necessity or Consideration whatso- ever, puts a Country on making use of their Credit in want of Money, such Credit ought to be very punctually Supported. And to the Support of this Credit, Two things must necessarily be evident to all that shall have any Occasion to depend upon it. As, 1. The ability of such a Country, to answer by the time, all the Bills they have given, if it be de- manded of them. 2. The Integrity and Honesty of such a Country, that as They are well able, so They will certainly be as good as their Word ; and keep time punctually with all that have trusted them, and taken their BUls, in payment. If either of these be Suspected, their Credit wiU Sink ; and if such a Country don't remove all just grounds of such Suspition, their Credit will lower as that Suspition rises, & when it has passed thro' many Degrees of Contempt, will come to nothing. [13] Further, The Supporting of such a Publick Credit, is neither Impracticable, nor a matter of meer Pru- MASSACHUSETTS BAY 335 dence only, or purely Arbitrary, which may be done or neglected at Pleasure, but such Credit can and ought to be Supported. I say it can, because its supposed in this case that such a Country has a Sufficient Estate, & can fulfil aU its Engagements. Now for such a Country to suffer their Credit to be Diminished, or sink, so that perhaps Twenty Shil- lings in their Credit, will be no better in Trade to those that have it, than Fourteen, or Twelve, or Ten Shillings in Money, is not only to deal Falsly, and be worse than their Word, but its also a great wrong to multitudes ; For some persons, must necessarily loose or suffer as much wrong, as the Piiblick Credit becomes worse than Money. Wherefore this Credit ought in Justice to be Supported ; and wilfully to suffer it to Sink, is to be guilty of great Unrighteous- ness, and Injury to many, and particularly to all Publick Ministers and Creditors, as also to Widows & Orphans, whose Interest & Protection ought to be Consulted. To this I may add. That When the Publick Credit, so made use of, is well supported, it can^t be Injurious. For if the Pubhck Bills Emitted are kept up to their full Value during the whole time of their circulation, whoever takes them at the Value of their Denomination, & gives for them, what he would Sell for so much Money, may immediately [14] make the same use of them himself ; And so may every one who successively receives them, till the time of their Circulation is up, and there is Money to answer them, to all that de- sire it. 336 CURRENCY FOR THE Let now the Puhlick Bills of Credit be thus Sup- ported, which They ought to be, and will be, if we can but convince those that have occasion to receive them in Trade, that we are not more in Debt than we are worth, and that we will honestly pay our Debts, and I can see no harm in gratifying the Desire of those Gentlemen, who are for Emitting more Bills, for present Use, if there should by any means happen a scarcity of the Mediiwi of Trade, or Money, among us ; and otherwise, They don't seem to desire it. I will add this one Thing more. If any particular Persons have occasion to take up Money on Use, I don^t see why the Publick in such case may not supply them, by lending the Publick Credit, when Money is not to be had. And if during such Loan, the Puhlick will Support the Credit they lend, so that it may hold its value in Trade, and be as good as Motiey, I don't see but They may justly receive the same Recompence for the loan of this Credit, as they might for lending the like Sum in Money. Those Gentlemen therefore, who declare against Emitting more Bills on Loan ; or ; which is the same Thing, against the Country's lending their Credit, must be understood, only, in Case the Puhlick Credit should remain under its present Dis-[ J 5] advantages, and not be restored to its just Esteem as it may, and in Justice, Ought. For in such Case, Every one may be sensible, that to increase the Number of Bills of Credit, would be a great Mischief, and certainly MASSACHUSETTS BAY 337 increase the Wrong which many suffer by their being ah'eady so greatly disparaged. But if the Publick Credit as often as it is made Use of, either in paying of Debts or in Loan, be Supported, and kept up to its just Value, so that it will in Trade answer the End, and be as Useful as Money, I suppose no Gentlemen would take Offence at a more Extensive Improvement of it ; or think it an Injury for the Country to make such a Loan of their Credit, to any persons that can make a good Use of it. Especially considering that tho' the Per- sons that Borrow it, design to improve it to their own particular Advantage, Yet if they succeed in their design, as its to be hoped They may, it will at last redound to the Publick Advantage ; Upon these Considerations, I think these Gentle- men who have differed so much in their Sentiments, about supplying at this Juncture the want or scarcity of the Medium of Trade, may well be Reconciled. For, Whether we do, or do not, make any further Use of the Publick Credit, certainly it concerns us to hearken to what is so earnestly insisted on by many Gentlemen ; the retrenching Our Expences, that They may not exceed our Gains ; or that our Im- port may not be greater than our Export ; without which we must needs be greatly distressed, & even undone. [J 6] And, Those who are for calhng in all the Bills of Credit emitted, by the time set for it, may without any Danger be gratified. Provided the Pub- 338 CURRENCY FOR THE lick does but supply, what want we may be in of Cash, by Emitting more Bills of Credit. And, Those who think it very necessary at this Juncture, that the Government should still make use of their Credit, both to Pay their Debts, & to serve other Emergencies, may safely be gratifyed. Pro- vided effectual care be taken to support such Credit, the whole time it is made use of. Nay even. Those that Favour a Private Bank or Credit, rather than a Publick one, may for ought I know be gratifyed without Danger, provided it be under such a Publick Regulation, as would satisfy all, that the Bills of such a Private Bank should be upheld in Trade, and be made as useful as Money, during the Convenient time set for their Circulation ; and that when such time is expired, those that have any such Bank Bills in their Possession, may if they please exchange them for Money. This therefore is the chief thing necessary, that whatever Credit there may be Occasion to make use of, it shoidd be supported in such an esteem and Usefulness as it ought to have in Trade, that is to say (at least) equal to Money during the whole time of its Circulation. That this is practicable appears from what has been said already ; against the Justice of it no man can reasonably Object. And were this once done, we should soon see an end of the Conten- tion about Emitting more Bills. For, Then no man would have any just reason to fear. Either, That the Bills would be hoarded up, more than, Cash. MASSACHUSETTS BAY 339 [J 7] Or, That our Credit would be extended too far; Or, That our Bills would be Improved for any longer time, than till our Ordinary Occasions of Trade & Expence, may well enough be Supplyed, with such a Stock of Money, as by our Dihgence & Good Husbandry, we may procure. Because, When such a Stock is attained, there will then be no necessary Occasion for Improving Credit any longer in such a manner. Wherefore those Gentlemen who have differed in their Sentiments, about Emitting more Bills, & calHng in those that are Emitted, would I am per- swaded find themselves well satisfied, in any fair & reasonable Project, to restore & keep in good Credit the Bills Improved in Trade, so that they should be of Value equal to Money ; until such time as we might be furnished with a Sufficiency of Money, to supply our Ordinary Occasions, and to carry on a Trade, within the Compass of our Abilities, i. e. such an one as does not exceed what we are able to spare out of our own produce, for the carrying of it on ; Especially considering that when the Bills of Credit are restored to the Value of Money ; a much less Quantity of them would suffice for these Occasions. And I can't see but They must on both sides find themselves disappointed at last, if there should be no care taken to revive the Credit of Our Bills, but they are suffered to remain under the present dis- advantage, and increasing Discount. lUO CURRENCY FOR THE For, Suppose No more Bills be Emitted, and those that are out, be drawn in as fast as may be, by [J 8] Sueing the Mortgages on which the most of them are Lent, then indeed the Mortgagers may many of them loose their Estates, but They that happen to have the Bills in theii' keeping, may be as far as ever from receiving either Money, or Money's worth, for them. For as there never was any Puhlick Provision made for the drawing in those loan Bills by a Com- mon Rate ; or having Money in the Treasury to Ballance against them ; so neither can those that have them, be sure of having any part of the Mort- gaged Estates in Exchange for them. When the Publick has sued the Mortgages and recovered the Estates, who can tell what they may think good to do ^^-ith them? Some have thought that when the Mortgagers have paid by Interest, the Value of the principal, the principal will be Remitted to them ; and if so, there may then be no Mortgaged Estates, for these Gentlemen to take in Exchange for their Bills ; or (which is the same thing) to purchase with those Bills, if they reserve them for that end. This project of Remission some may think un- reasonable, but it may not seem so to others, who may possibly have a great Influence in the ordering of that Affair. Or if it should, yet they may think it fair to lease those Estates to the Mortgagers with Condition of Redemption in some convenient time ; since it may seem hard in such a case if no time of Redemption be allowed. Or MASSACHUSETTS BAY 341 It may be thought necessary to Sell them for Money only. These are things which may appear here after, in a quite different View, to the Govern- ment, both at Home, & Here, than they do now to us. [J 9] Upon all which accounts it may not be so safe for any Gentlemen . who may reserve such Bills by them, to Flatter themselves, that they shall ever be able to exchange them, for Moneys worth, (or their Value in Money) unless the Credit of them be Restored & Established. If it should be supposed, that when the Mortgaged Estates are Recovered, the Government must then call in by Rate all the outstanding Bills, or Currant Money in stead of them ; and that then there would be Money in the Treasury to Exchange for them. This Supposition is as Uncertain as any of the former. Those that may be then in the Administra- tion, may be of another Mind. There is no Provision of such kind made by any Act of the Government, where by They stand en- gaged so to do ; Which, If it had been design'd at last, would probably have been declared at first. Yea, The Contrary seems to be implied by the Acts for the Loan of Bills ; for it does not appear by those Acts, that Those Bills were to have any Credit, but what the Mortgages gave them ; Which men might rely upon as They saw Good. Its pretty remarkable, that many who please them- selves with this Conceit, that the Government must at last, (if Suing the Mortgages don't bring in the Bills) take this Method, and provide that all the Out- 342 CURRENCY FOR THE stanclinjr Bills should within a convenient time be drawn into the Treasury by Rate, or Money instead of them ; are nevertheless utterly against the same Project, when its proposed as a present method to recover the Credit of our Bills even to the Value of Money. [20] But, How can such Gentlemen who are dis- couraged from making this Attempt now, imagine, that Those who are in the Administration when the Mortgages are Sued out, will be perswaded to do the same thing on a Push, which must needs be much more difficult, and a far greater Burthen on the Peo- ple. If there be any Reason for it, Yet it does not seem so fair for Us to think, that those who come after Us, if they can help it, will put themselves to greater Difficulties to pay the Debts we have con- tracted, than ever We were willing to do our selves. It seems therefore that tho' no more Bills should be Emitted, it is of great Consequence that the Credit of those that are now Extant should be re- stored and maintained during the whole time of their Circulation. On the other Hand, if no Care be taken to revive the Credit of our Bills, what Satisfaction can we take, in the Emission of More ? When it is so mani- fest that the Discount which is come on those that are already emitted, and which has been the Occa- sion of so much Unrighteousness, and great wrong to many, will thereby be increased ! I will make but one Remark more, which shall be Upon the Case of those that have taken up BiUs MASSACHUSETTS BAY 343 on Loan. Which many begin to look upon with Con- cern. Their Estates are Mortgaged ; And if the Bills that are Extant, are (as some tliink) in Hands which reserve them, for some considerable Advan- tage, so that the Mortgagers can by no means pro- cure them, to Redeem their Estates, They will in a little time be forfeited : [2 J] In case of a Mortgage given to a private per- son, it would be look'd on as a Hardship, if the Mort- gagees should take Advantage of the Mortgagors, and reject them out of their Land, as soon as the time set in their Mortgages is expired. Nor is this ordi- narily done. The Mortgagees don't think much (having good Security for their Money) to allow many Years after the time is up, to the Mortgagors, to procure the Money and save their Estates ; and this is thought but a reasonable Favour, provided the Mortgagors duely pay the Interest. Whereas, as soon as the Mortgages made to the PubHck are forfeited, they must its concluded, be Sued out immediately ; this being the way proposed to bring the Bills into the Treasury, and keep them from sinking into the last Contempt. But if our Bills of Credit, were restored to be as good as Money, men would soon unlock their Hoards, & make use of the Bills they keep by them. By which means the Mortgagors might be able to pro- cure what they want to redeem their Estates ; And i£ they should not be able to do it by the time set in the Mortgages, the Publick might, as well as any Private Person, allow them more time for it, and not 344 CURRENCY FOR THE put them to the Extremity of Redeeming their Es- tates now or never. For if during such time, the Credit of our Bills be kept up to a Par with Money, as they may & ought to be, No Person could be In- jured by such a Favour to the Owners of the Mort- gaged Estates, or have the least reason to be troubled at it. To me, therefore, it seems, as if the restoring & upholding our Bills of Credit to their just Value, would be an excellent means to put an End to these Controversies, and give every one Content. Then [22] If a suitable Quantity of Bills, should be Emit- ted, They would be as Useful as Money during the time of their circulation. And if we would be per- swaded to retrench our Expences and live within our Income, We might probably be supplyed with a suf- ficient stock of Money for the carrying on our Trade, Which every one desires. Nor should we be neces- sitated to put the Country or particular Persons to such a streight, as the immediate caUing in aU our outstanding Bills, without emitting more, its feared would do. But, Its to be hoped that by this reviving the Credit of our Bills, We should in a little time, and by easy Degrees, extricate our Selves out of those Difficulties which at present bear so hard upon Us. Whereas if This ben't considered as a necessary and principal Part of the method for our Relief, I can't but think, for the Reasons which I have given You, that other Measures will not be Effectual to attain this desirable End. IHASSACHUSETTS BAY 345 I have thus, SIR, at Your Desire communicated to You my Thoughts, on the Subjects you referred to Me. Whether They may, and in what manner They may be best improved to the PubHck Benefit, I must refer to Your Prudence ; and am, SIR, Tour Humble Servant. [12mo, 22 pp. The copy and the facsimile of the title-page were obtained at the Boston Pubhc Library.] THE of the Town of BOSTON Once more Considered. And Methods for Redress humbly proposed, With Re- marks on the pretended Countryman's Answer to the Book, Entituled, T/ie Distressed State of the Town of Boston, &c. With a Schaeme for a BANK Laid down : And Methods for bringing in SILVER MONEY, Proposed. By yohn Colman^ Boston, Printed for Benjamin Gray, at his Shop in King-street. 348 CURRENCY FOR THE [J] The Distressed State of BOSTON Further Considered. Since the Pubhshing- of my Letter, Enti- tuled, The Distressed State of the Town of Boston : Several pretended Answers have been Published, with Design to amuse the Country, by insinuating, that the State of the Town is not as I have Represented it ; and that I have assigned wrong Causes for our Distresses. But it is a vain thing to endeavour to perswade People contrary to what they daily Experience ; Had the Gentleman who hath given himself the trouble to make Answer, projected something for a Medium of Exchange, to pass among us, which is the only way to Extricate us out of our Difficulties ; he would have merited well of his Country ; but to fault what others do, and propose nothing, {save the empty notions of leaving off Trusting, and allowing Interest on Book Debts ; Things impracticable at any time, but more especially in our present Circumstances) seems to me much below the Character of him, who is ac- counted the Author; the Writer doubtless thinks THE Siftrefleu State .the Town of Once more Confidered. i-A\A Methods for Redr^^^, iMjmbly propofed. With Pvemarks on t\ie pretei^ed Couny try-man's Anfwer tc the\.Bo0^-#ntkuI,edj^/ Ihs Ijifirt^id Statr of (ke 'Tow'ti-j^^-^oSion^ . : With a Schsfms for a • Laid down : And ll^khads fctr' brihgifi^ in ' ; SILVER MONfi^ropaf^ai. . " V- By foh?j Caiman^ ::.ed for BcHJA\rjfy'^'r>iy^ ^t -hiS A.'-'.' MASSACHUSETTS BAY 349 he hath done wonderful things in his Answer, but I beheve I shall soon make it evident, that he hath not in the least answered my Letter ; and demonstrate he talks very ignorantly, and like [2] a man utterly unacquainted with Trade, AND THE STATE of HIS COUNTRY ALSO. He owns himself so short of a common Under- standing, that after a careful Review of my Let- ter, he cannot find the Important Matters he hath omitted answering : I am sorry to find him so dull of Apprehension, that he cannot see the Evils I complain of, and the Remedy I drive at ; What Proposal hath he made, to supply us with a 3fedmm of Exchange ? Without which, it is impossible this Town or Country can Subsist ; What Method hath he thought on, to prevent the vast number of Law-Suits ? Which it is a Scandal to the Land to name. Hath he Projected any way to bring in Silver, as the Paper- Bills sink ! or hath he contrived how to keep what doth Come in, from being Ship'd off again ; Hath he shewn us the Art of Living without a Medium ! Hath he found a way to prevent Mercinary Men's Oppressing their Neighbours, by anticipating, as well as exacting Interest, or by taking their Lands at half Value ! Hath he Contrived, how those who Live on their Salaries, shall be paid without Money ! But hove all. What Contrivance hath he found, to support this poor Town the hard Winter approach- ing ? Can they Subsist from day to day, without the Ready Peny ! These I think to be Matters of Importance, and what any man might have seen to 350 CURRENCY FOR THE be my Design in Writing that Letter ; but be bath passed tbem over in Silence, being so intent I pre- sume, on sinking the few Bills which are yet abroad, and thereby compleating the Ruin of the Land : (to gratifie the ambition of a few) That he could not see these Things, THOUGH OF THE LAST CONSEQUENCE TO US. And that I may not be charged with being Un- charitable, / shall next consider his Proposal of Leaving off Trusting, and allowing Interest on Book Debts, which is [3] the only Remedy he pro- poses to Extricate us out of our Difficulties ; the Proposal is so contrary to the Spirit of Christian- ity, that it fills me with Horror when I think of it. For I find poor People must have neither Money nor Credit, if this Charitable Man might have his Will, unless on the hardest Terms he could invent. Indeed, the Gentleman will allow. They shall be Trusted Six Jlonths {provided they ic ill from that time be content to allow Ten per Cent. Interest. When he knows, that in the Method we are in, there will not be in {seven years at most) a Bill Abroad, to Pay either Principal or Interest ; The Law hath wisely limited Interest to Six per Cent. but that will not content him ; he would be thought wiser than the Law, and therefore is for Ten per Cent. Truly his Brain seems to be addled with these Notions, that he forgets the Scriptures, though (if I am not out of my guess) his Profession is to Study them ; I would advise him to Consult the Divine Oracles, and see whether Usury is so much MASSACHUSETTS BAY 351 encouraged there ; and until he hath proved by Scripture, that Six per Cent, is too Httle, not to think himself mser than THE LEGISLATOR. Again he saith, That making the Bills a lawful Tender^ would not have kept up their Value, and gives this Reason, because our Import is more than the Produce of the Country will Pay for. A very poor Argument truly ! When did we Raise sufficient to Pay for our Import ! Doth not our Import from one place, pay for what we Import from another place ? Is not our whole Dependance on Trade ? Do we not Export one Commodity, and Bring in another ; and then Export that, and Bring in another ? And this keeps the wheel a-going, imploys our Ships, and Men abroad, and our Trades-men at Home also ; Silver was Shipt off as much before we had Province Bills, as since in pro- portion to our Trade ; and ever will, while the [4] Merchant can find it a better Return than Goods ; Is it not so all the World over ? What Place is there, from whence they do not Ship off Money, when it suits their Occasions ? Doth not England Ship off vast Sums to the East- Indies, and other Places? And doth not the scarcity or plenty of Silver there, govern the Price of it, as well as other things ? Doth not England drein all the Planta- tions of Money, though they have Sugar, Indigo, and other Commodities to make Returns with. I am perswaded, if the Bills now abroad, were all Sunk this Day, and there was so much Silver in its place, if the Silver were effectually secured from being 352 CURRENCY FOR THE Exported, it would not be One Peny better than the Paper Bills ; neither would it have the least in- fluence on the price of any Merchandize whatsoever ; for what would the Silver be better than the Paper, if it could not be ship'd off, but remain among us. Nay, it is plain, that the Paper would be better than the Silver, because of the Five ^;er Cent, allowed thereon in Publick Payments; so that it is plain, Silver is no longer Money with us but Merchandize ; and therefore the Bills ought not to be esteemed of less value, because Silver Rises, it being no other than Merchandize ; and sought after by none but those who want to Shij) it off, as they do other Retwnis. And farther. If we had as much Goods Imported from England as formerly, (in proportion to what we are grown to) can the Gentleman im- agine they would sell for Two Hundred per Cent. No, It is a Maxim in Trade, The Want of a Tiling makes the worth of it ; and therefore I say, if we had as full a Supply as formerly. Goods would be at the old Prices, and Silver would have staid with us, notwithstanding we had Province Bills ; Ex- change would have been as usual, and Returns also ; so that you see, it is the Plenty or Scarcity of goods which governs every thing ; and if so, surely it is our Inte-[5]rest to court and encourage Trade ; for it is the Price of JEuro'pean Goods that governs the Exchange, and the Price of Silver, and all other Re- turns ; and this is very plain, for though the Bills grow scarcer, yet Goods of all sorts keep up their Prices : Nay, the scarcity of Bills helps to advance MASSACHUSETTS BAY 353 the Prices of Goods ; for there being not a Medium to pay with, the Seller, if he must take other things in Exchange for his Commodities, will make his Price accordingly ; & then the Shops, when they come to answer the Merchants Notes, are obliged to advance according to the Prices they give ; and by this means the burden is laid on the poor Tradesmen, & there the Hardship CENTERS, AND THEY ARE THE PEOPLE OPPRESSED THEREBY. As I have said before, Money was always Ship'd Home ; and yet all that hath been Ship'd off, would not have Run us into these Difficulties, but that the Scarcity of European Goods have kept up their Prices, and there hath not been sufficient Returns, to pay for what hath been Imported ; and the Springs from whence we used to have our Money, have failed of late, viz. Jamaiea, Citrizo, (2fc. so that there seems to be a complication of Misfortunes attend- ing us, which hath Involved us in these Distresses ; and I can see no hkeliliood of our havino; a Silver Medium, but by having a Paper Medium ; as I shall shew you before I have done. For 1. There is no hopes of having Silver from Jamaica, &c. be- cause of late years they find it more advantageous to bring Cocoa, and other Commodities from the Coast of JVeio Spain, where they Trade, than Money ; and this I experienced, by a Vessel I had on that Coast, not long since. And 2. We must expect none from Old Spain, or Portugal, or the Sireights, while our Fish Merchants can Remit their Money to 354 CURRENCY FOR THE England or Holland, and make Tioo Hundred per Cent, profit on [6] their Goods from thence; or if they will bring Iron dii'ect from JJilboa, may make Three Hundred per Cent. The Treasurer of this Province, lately gave One Hundred and Forty per Cent, for a Bill of Exchange, to pay our Agent ; then surely there is little likelihood of Goods falling, if such an Exchange be given ; for as you Settle the Exchange between England and us, the Price of Europfean Goods, and of Silver, and all other Returns will rise and fall accordingly ; wherefore most certainly the way to make this Place flourish, is to make Trade as easie and free as possible, by having a sufficient Medium to manage it, and by encouraging every body to come to us ; let them bring as much Goods as they will, the more they bring, the Cheaper it will be ; it is reasonable to be- lieve, that if we had of late Imported as much Euro- pean Goods as formerly, in proportion to our Growth, they would have been at the old Prices as in times of Peace ; and then One Hundred Pounds would have gone almost as far in making Returns as Tico doth now ; and the Silver would have staid with us also. And another Reason is, when European Goods were plenty, we Ship'd off great quantities to other Places, and brought other Returns for them ; and this ENCOURAGED OUR NAVIGATION, AND WAS A GREAT ADVANTAGE EVERY WAY. We are pritty much Circumstanced like Holland, we Raise but little ; if it were not for our Trade, MASSACHUSETTS BAY 355 we might Starve ; and it's easie to see the advan- tage of our Trade, by our Neighbours ; who though they Raise for themselves, and supply us also ; yet I presume none will deny, but that this Province hath grown in Riches and Strength faster than any of 'em ; and may do so still, if it be not our own faults J for as we dechne, so they decline also, so that it seems to me, as if Providence had designed [7] this Place for the Head of these Provinces, if we are not wanting to our selves. The State of Hol- land I observe, (who are allowed to see their Interest with respect to Trade as much as any Nation in the World) are for drawing every body to them ; and their Duty's on what ever is Imported, is but a trifle from the Importer, they lay the Duty's on the Consump- tion ; but let Trade go in a manner free •, and the Reason is this, say they, we are sure of getting by every Ship that comes to us ; whether they get by coming to us, is their business to consider, and not ours ; and what I have said is true, with respect to this Country also ; but more especially with respect to this Town, whose Flourishing, or Decay will have a very great influence on the Estates of the whole Country. The Gentleman saith. What I say about hurthen- ing Trade, with heavy Duty's, he will not call evasion ; neither will any man who remembers when Rum was Three Pounds Six Shillings, Eight pence per Hogshead, Duty's, Wine, Fifty Shillings per Pipe, &c. This was it which drove away our Trade to the Neighboring Governments ; for before these 356 CURRENCY FOR THE Duties were laid, Carolina, Virginia Pensilvania, Bhode-Island, Co7inecticut, Piscataqua, &c. as well as our own Sea-ports, had their chief Supply from us ; but these heavy Duties put them on Trade, and they soon found they could supply themselves at better Rates than with us ; and now are got to that heighth, that they oftentimes supply us with the Commodities they 2(sed to buy of us ; hut i^erhaps the Gentleman never heard this before. Again, he seems more positive, than is consistant with Prudence ; He saith, he is sure, that to Emit more Bills, according to any Publick or Private Schceme, ichich hath been yet Projected, icill but increase and prolong our Misery. I confess it is easie to Fore-see what may be the Consequences of Emitting more Bills on the [8] Publick Scheme ; for we may expect the same Causes will be attended with the same Effects, but what may be the advan- tages, or disadvantages of a Private Bank, I am of opinion, no man can foresee, until we have tried the Experiment, and see the conveniences and incon- veniences thereof ; I am of Opinion, that a Private Bank would not have been attended with the incon- veniencies the Publick hath been ; and yet I don't pretend, that Silver would immediately fall in price, if there were a Private Bank ; neither would it rise ; for I see no reason to think that Silver will fall in Price, until Goods from England fall in their Prices ; but it is easie for the Government to make the Bank Bills, as good as the Province Bills ; and they would not be daily Sinking as the Publick Bills are, to the IVIASSACHUSETTS BAY 357 great discouragement of Trade, as well as Distress- ing men in their 2>articular Affairs Again, The Gentleman is sure he saith, that to leave off Trusting^ as far as it is j^racticahle enough to do it, would in some time set all things to Rights ; aud in another place he saith again, he loould have it left off as far as it might he left off well enough; I think I may loell enough put his Sense against my Friends Logiek he finds faults with ; but I hope that Trusting will for the future grow more and more out of fashion with us ; for that long Credit hath hurt us, no body will deny ; But to make Laws to prevent it, or to charge the Debtor Ten per Cent. Interest, if he slips his time, agreed on with his Creditor, is what I presume was never attempted in any place whatsoever : Were Money so plenty, that men received nothing but Money for their Labour ; and were this Truck Trade at an end, and the Trader Sold all for Money, and bought all with Money ; Then I should think it a more proper time to pro- pose such Laws, then now, when more then three Quarters of the Payments are made by Barter and Exchange of one [9] Commodity for another ; and it will be many years before it can be expected to be otherwise. Our Circumstances are such at this Day, that the Traders contrive how they can get others into their Debt, who they think will have Returns to Sell, that so they may secure to themselves the Refusal of the Commodities they Raise, or get out of the Sea, or Import from Foreign Parts, and think they serve 368 CURRENCY FOR THE themselves by paying before-hand ; because thereby they purchase that with Goods, which otherwise thev must pay Money for; Nay, they have this double advantage ; by this means they are sure in an ordinary way, to have the Commodities they shall want ; and get off their Goods many times which would lie on hand, if they had not such ways to Dispose of them ; but these Mysteries in Trade, the Gentleman is unacquainted with. But I suppose we are to abound with Silver by and by ; For the Gentleman tells us, there was Ten Thousand Pound in Silver brought in from one j^lace the last year, and the like Sum Shipt off in one Ship which Foundered. I am sorry a man of his Character should be so weak to impose on the World in a matter wherein he may be so easily De- tected ; I have made Enquiry, and there was not One Thousand Pound aboard that Ship, there might be a little Gold also ; but in all there was not much above One Thousand Pound, and the Te7i Thou- sand Pounds he tells us was brought in, is at best a misrepresentation ; for any one who Reads his Account of that matter, woidd think there was so much Money Imported hither from a Foreign Port ; whereas it was Money brought to Rhode-Island ; and I have reason to believe, it came great part of it from the Pyrates ; and Gentlemen went up from hence and bought up the Money, Hides, and other Goods for Returns. [10] Again, he tells us. There are Bills enough to Buy up all the Produce of the Country, and the Sil- MASSACHUSETTS BAY 359 ver, &c. but I think I have proved the contrary ; but were that true, Is there enough to Buy and Sell with in the Shops, is there enough to pay Labourers and Tradesmen, without forcing them to take Goods, which they know not what to do with, except to put them on their Backs ; for which some people are very angry, and say they go beyond their degree ; whereas the People would not Expend it in such ways, if it were at their own disposal ; and the Mer- chants cannot pay them otherwise than by Shop Notes, because the Shops can't Sell for Money ; and consequently can't pay Money to the Merchants ; and thus is Trade miserably imbarras^d, and the Poor oppressed, for want of a Medium ; I can't but ob- serve, that my Friend owns there is not enough to pay Labourers ; and I must observe also, that he takes no care how they shall be paid. I have heard some lay the Cause of the Distresses of the Town on the People ; and say, Pride and Lazi- ness will bring any People into such Circumstances ; but I think whoever gives that Character of this Town abuse them ; they who say so of them, perhaps never did a days work in their Lives. This Town is as industrious a place as any, if they have Work to do ; if they stand idle, it is because no man hath hired them ; not that I will say, there are no Drones in the Hive. There are Indolent Thoughtless People in all Places, but the Body of the People are willing to be doing, if they can find Employment. But it is well if for want of Business, the People do not get an habit of Idleness, and run into Vices, ivhich 360 CITJRENCY FOR THE when once accustomed to, it is hard breaking them- selves of. Next he tells us, he hath found two inconsistances ; he saith, if the Import be so small, one would [H] thmk the Produce of the Country will be sufficient for Returns ; but I have told him already, that the Import being small, the Goods fetch near double what it used to do ; and that we don't Raise half the Returns we make, but Import it by our Trade ; If we did not by our Trade to the Islands, North and South Carolina, Virginia &c. Import Pitch, Tar, Hides, Tobacco, Rice, Skins, Sugar, Oyl, &c. What should we have to make Returns with? And if we had not occasion for these Returns, lohat ivoidd hecome of our Trade, on ivhich the Welfare of the whole dejjend ? His other Inconsistency is, That it is the Interest of every 2^^ivate man to Sell his Silver to the highest Bidder ; then saith he it is the Interest of the Country in general, because all the private persons contained in it, will make up the whole Country ; a wise Speech I protest, worthy of seven years study at the University ; Well, I'll ven- ture to inform the Gentleman in this mysterious point ; That which is the Interest of every man Col- lectively as a Body, is the Interest of the Country in general, because in that Relation they are the Coun- try ; but nothing is more certain, than that it may be the Interest of Private Men to Buy up Silver, and Ship it off ; and that their doing so, may be hurtful to the Community. And now what is hecome of my Friends Inconsistencies ? AIASSACHUSETTS BAY 361 Again, he tells us, Our Silver and Gold is gone already, and our Lands will go tiext, {if Trusting be allowed) I j^resume he don't mean, that the Fac- tors will Shij) them off for England. So then, after all this mighty Tussel, he is come to me at last ; for that I say, is what People are afraid of ; That the Lands will fall into a few hands, and so we shall have a few Lords, and the Body of the People Beggars. But now I have met with one Clause that I can heartily joyn with him in, and so will all the four [J2] Provinces. He saith. He is of the mind, that it is i7nposslble, that either Town or Country should subsist without some Medium or other. And I'll venture to be as positive as he ; I am sure he is in the Right. As to the Opinion of the Whale-men, where the Gentleman hath lately been, I confess I am igno- rant ; but of this, I am well assured, that it is the opinion of by far the greatest part of the four Pro- vinces, that unless there be more Bills, made on one foot or other, the Country will be ruined ; and to make more on the old Scheme we see will never do ; therefore I hope it will be done by private men, and I make no doubt we shall see the good Effects thereof : Our Answerer indeed tells us, a Private Bank will involve us into greater Mischief than the Publick hath done, but that his is only Ojnn- ion : And I must tell him, that men in Trade, whom I presume have have as much reason to understand these things as himself, are of a quite different opin- ion. 362 CURRENCY FOR THE ( Well, hut now my Friend sensible of his weak- ness, and tells us, he doubts he shall be j^laying the fool again ; and I confess, I am very apt to believe him, for I have seen little else in his whole per- formance ; by what he saith in his twelfth page ; he seems to fear the Government being byassed by the Power of Money as well as the Bankers ; but I have a better opinion of those Worthy Gentlemen, and would hope there is no danger of that ; & that if ever a Bank be Erected, the Government will have a careful and jealous Eye over it, to pre- vent the Bankers doing any thing which may be hurtful to the Publick ; and farther, I am of opin- ion, it always will be in their Power so to do. Well now I find the Gentleman answers a whole Catalogue of Evils which were mentioned to him by this short Sentence (Leave off Trusting) this is his sovereign Remedy to cure all Maladies : Nay, he [J 3] tells us, this Tsill bring Silver amongst us again, but I protest I can't believe him, because I observe, that since we have given less Credit then formerly. Money yet grows scarcer than ever ; and what is worse still. Silver doth so as well as Bills ; whereas he told us, that Silver would come in as the Bills left us, and stay amongst us. But the Gentleman tells us, If People canH Live in the Town, let them go into the Country ; but certainly he spake before he thought, when he made that proposal ; perhaps the Gentleman is in hopes of a good Benefice in the Country in time, {though he is no Salary Man at 2^rese7it he tells us) & MASSACHUSETTS BAY 363 it may suit him -well enough to go there, & be maintained honourably, as I would have all of his Function be ; But it is very hard for Tradesmen, who have Lived all their Days in the Town, and have got Families, to pluck up Stakes, and remove into the Country, to seek their Subsistence in a way they have never been accustomed to ; and know no- thing of ; and again, there are abundance of People in the Town, who make a shift by their Labour, to maintain their Families comfortably ; but lay up lit- tle afore-hand, such People have nothing to carry with them into the Country ; so that they and their Families must be more miserable there, than in the Town : but I think he would have them turn La- hourers (a very hard proposal I confess) a7id saith, they want their Labour in the Country, if they woidd work at a moderate rate, and tells us, they don't vKint Money to pay them ; but I find the peo- ple in the Country generally differ very much fi'om the Gentleman in this matter; and complain they can't get Money to pay Taxes to the Government, and the Ministry ; and say, if there be not some Medium found, their Stocks must go quickly for these Uses ; and their Lands at last. I have heard that some say, it will never be good [14] times until Labourers come to work for a Groat for Six- pence a day ; but I hope it will never be so in JYew- England ; and that the Poor will always live like men, as hitherto, through the good Providence of God they have clone, and not as bad or worse than our Lidians ; as it is in some parts of the World. 364 CURRENCY FOR THE Again, My Friend tells us, There is no danger of People getthuj their Neighbours Lands at half value ; but we have only his bare word for it ; for I am sure, he hath not given us any reason to in- duce us to believe the contrary ; though he answers that matter darkly, I'll set it in so true a light that he that runs may Read it ; suppose Silver should come to Twenty or Thirty Shillings per Ounce, as it is at Carolina ; for it may come to be so scarce, that it can't be purchased at any rate ; for I say, the plenty or scarcity of it, governs the Price of that, as all other things ; then I suppose our good Friends will value Thirty Shillings in Bills, to be worth Six Shillings and Eight Pence ; and Mens Estates will be taken from them at a price accordingly ; and so an Estate which cost a Thousand Pounds, will go for Two Hundred, and this is the Contrivance to keep the Estates in many mens hands ; but the Gentleman may preach it long enough, before he will bring any body to beheve him. Well, now the Gentleman comes to see his Error, and ours, that he hath expressed himself in too strong terms, ahoid shortning Credit; and allows some Credit is necessary among Traders ; and therein he saith no more than the whole World will justifie him in : But yet I see his great aversion to Foreign Commodities clings to him ; and his whole Plea is for a Ready Money Trade ; these things seem wonderfully to affect him ; Though the medium is so Exhausted, that there is scarce one Eighth part of the Trade [15] managed with Money; and IVIASSACHUSETTS BAY 365 what Money is abroad, is daily going into the Trea- sury, and all methods used which can be thought on, to prevent making more ; (yet all his Proposal is to give no Credit, but rather all hands turn Usur- ers) How consistent this is with a Money Trade ; I leave my Answerer to Determine. Again he saith. That man hath a mind to think hard of the Governm^ent, who thinks that tJiey will not {when things come to Extremities) admit Mortgages to he Redeemed, and Taxes to pay in the Produce of the Country, or in Silver, A fine Speech I confess, as if any man were so ignorant to think, that the Mortgagee would Refuse Silver, or that Silver would not answer for Taxes ; May not I call this an amusement, or what will you call it ? Some among us have had the advantage of Selling their Silver, and advancing thereon, until they have Raised it to Twelve Shillings per Ounce ; by this they have advanced their Estates one third part, & now they have no Silver to make an advantage by Selling, they are for turning the Scale ; just now the Bills were too light for the Silver, and therefore they must have Twelve Shillings, for Eight Shillings worth of Silver : And now they would have every thing Regulated by what Silver was at, when it was plenty amongst us : And when the Bills are all in, you must procure 'em Silver at Eight Shillings per Ounce ; nay, it may be at Six Shillings Eight Pence, to Redeem an Estate, because you don't pro- cure 'em Province Bills, according to the Tenor of your Mortgage, when it will be impossible to procure Pro- 366 CURRENCY FOR THE vince Bills to do it ; for admit there were enoiifrh Bills abroad to redeem all the Mortgages to the Pub- hck ; what will become of the Mortgages made to Private jNIen, and of the Bonds abroad from man to man, on Personal Security ; where is a Medium to Discharge them icith? The only [16] Method that the Gentleman hath contrived to Extricate us out of our Difficulties, is to turn Usurers ; but after all he hath said thereon to shew the feazibleness of it, I beheve all Trading Men will think {as he seems to he aware they would) that it is the most imhai^py one he coidd have hit on ; and had he consulted the Prophet Nehemiah, he would have known better, then to have made such a Proposal. But I think I have said enough concerning our Methods in Buying and Selling, to shew the impossibiHty of coming into his Proposals at present : Were Money as plenty as in Solomon's Days, the Government I am perswaded, would never be brought into such a Law ; much less in our present Circumstances. I am sorry the Gen- tleman hath meddled in an Affair, in which he is so ignorant ; and made himself a Tool to a party, some of whom perhaps know as little of Trade as himself : There are some who would be glad of Sil- ver to pass among us again, but will never venture any part of their own Estates to bring any to us. All their Cry is, when the Bills are sunk, we shall have Silver, but don't consider the Difficulties which attend bringing it in ; We have a little comes in now, because it fetches Twelve Shillings per Oimce ; but were it at Eight Shillings per Ounce, you would IMASSACHUSETTS BAY 367 not have a Peny, because Goods would be more advantageous to the Importer. I would advise the Gentleman to stick to Divinity for the future, and have done with the Mysteries of Trade, I find they are too wonderful for him ; and (as he seems to own) past his Comprehension. I like him much better in the Pulpit, there I'll willingly receive his Instructions ; but now he is out of his Sphaere, and so he must Excuse me, if I differ from him in Opinion. [17] Proposals for a Medium of Exchange. I Had Thoughts at the Meeting of the General Court to propose a Method for a Bank, which may answer the Occasions of the Land at present and be a means to bring Silver to pass among us again in time ; for it is my fixt Opinion, it must be the work of time, and that it will be many years before we must expect a Medium of Silver currant with us ; and the Method I would propose, is as fol- io weth. 1. That a suitable Sum be agreed on, and that a Land Bank be Erected, for we have no other Foun- dation to build upon. 2. That no Inhabitant of the Province, who hath an Estate in Lands, be Excluded from being a Part- ner therein ; because the more persons are concerned in it, the better will the Credit of the Bills be, which are issued therefrom ; it being their joynt Interest to encourage and support it ; and those who put in their Lands as Security, to be Intituled to the Profits, 368 CURRENCY FOR THE which is but reasonable, because their Lands are laid under an incumbrance to give the Bank a Being. 3. That no person have out in Bills more than two Thirds of the Value of his Lands, for which he shall pay Six j^er Cent. Interest in Bills. 4. That the whole profits, arising by the Interest, after the necessary Charge is defray'd, be laid out in Silver on the best terms it can be purchased, and remain in the Bank as a Fund, or colateral Security, until the profits amount unto the original Sum Emit- ted ; this will add to the value of the Bills, and as the Profits grow by the Interest, so will the Bills grow in Value ; and by this Project I suppose, in about twenty years, the Profits will amount to the Sum first Emitted ; and the Bank may (if it be tho't best by them who then have the management of AfPairs) In one day Call in all their Notes, and pay everyr one Silver for his Note, at Eight Shillings per Ounce, and there will be the same Sum abroad in Silver, which was abroad in Paper before. [J 8] 5. I would propose, that any person con- cerned in the Bank be paid in Bank Notes, or have Credit in the Books of the Bank be at his Election : This will be a great ease in Trade, as well as safe for those Concerned. For First, it will be an easein Trade, for any man, who hath Credit in the Bank, may draw a Note on the Bank, and his Creditor, will go and receive his Bills, or have so much Transfer'd to his Account, by virtue of his Note, or he may Endorse his Note to a third person, and he to another, and so from MASSACHUSETTS BAY 369 man to man ; by which much time may be saved. And Secondly, by this method he who hath Credit in the Bank runs no Risk of his Bills, either of Fire, Thieves, or any other Casualty ; and though this being a new thing here. People at first perhaps may rather chuse to receive & pay their Bills away them- selves ; yet in a little time the ease and conveniency of it would be so obvious to every man, that there would not be abundance of Notes, or Bills abroad : and this would be a great means to prevent Counter- feits ; and I am of opinion, a short note on stampt paper, part printed, & part written, would be safer than Ingraven Plates ; how easie it is to Counterfeit those Plates, experience hath shewn us ; & certainly the Notes should be fill'd & Sign'd by good Pen- men ; for it is easier to Counterfeit bad Writing than good. As to the method of managing such a Bank, it is time enough to propose that, when the Govern- ment are Consenting to it. These things I have thought on, as a likely method to keep us alive, until Silver became again currant among us, which I fear will not be very suddenly ; for I can see no way to bring in any quantity of Silver ; for while European Goods continue so very high, we can't expect it from Old Spain ; and the Islands who used to fetch it from Mew-Sjmin, find it their Interest to Trade with them for other Com- modities rather than Silver ; so we can't expect much from them. What little comes in, goes away as fast as it comes for Returns to England ; how vain then is is for us to pretend to have Silver to pass among 370 CURRENCY FOR THE us ; and all men agree in this, that there is no liv- ing- without some Medium : Then surely what can be the design of those who oppose every thing of this nature, and propose nothing to Relieve us : We are a dependant Government, and have our bounds set us; our Charter carries with it [J 9] a ne jjIks Ultra : We are to do nothing which may seem to bear hard on the Trade of Great Britain^ else I would propose that some way be contrived to pre- vent the Exportation of what Silver comes in ; tho it be but Httle it, would help us something j but there is no way, but by making severe Laws, & to see them carefully Executed ; and whether it would be allowed us by the Crown so to do, is what we have reason to suspect : How^ever, I'll venture to mention them, and so leave 'em with them, whose Province it is to consider what is most proper to be done at such a time as this is. (1) That a Law be made, that neither Buyer nor Seller, shall give or receive for Silver, more than Eight Shillings per Ounce, on penalty of forfeiture of the Money, and Six Months Imprisonment ; the Money so forfeited, to go to the Informer. And (2) That every Master, Sailor, or Freighter, before any Vessel Sails, be obliged to Swear that they neither have, nor will put an Ounce Aboard their Vessel they Sail in, or Freight on : This I confess w^ould be attended with diffi- culty ; but could it be effected, it would keep your Silver, and raise the Value of your Bills also : for what would the Silver be better than the Bills, if it could not be Sliip'd off. It's plain, that the day MASSACHUSETTS BAY 371 you prevent your silver being bought and Sold as Merchandize, that day will your Paper Bills be equal, if not superior to Silver, according to Act of Parhament : so that Silver being as I said before, only Merchandize, the Value of your Bills ought not to be regulated thereby, any more than by the Price of Oyl, or any other Returns, did Silver pass Currant in payment amongst us, at Eight SMllings per Ounce as formerly, and the Bills would j)ass in Trade but for Fourteen Shillings in the Pound, then I would own the Bills were Fifty j^er Cent. worse than the Silver, and not until then. But it is a vanity I confess to think that a pri- vate Bank would answer, without the Government support & encourage it by suitable Laws, as they have done the Province Bills : and why they should refuse so to do, I must leave : What is the Interest of Private Men, surely is the Interest of the wdiole, in a matter of this nature, it being of a publick nature, tho' in the hands of particular persons : if such a Bank were allowed to go on, the Govern- ment might so steer it by their Laws, that it would never be in the power of the Bankers to do any thing prejudicial to thePuhlich Good.. [20] Most certainly the Country would be greatly inrich'd by it : That I think I can make very plain, & the Riches of a place very much strengthens it, sup- pose these were Tloo Hundred Thousand Pounds Emitted on Land Security, which with what Publick Bills are now out, might I am of opinion, sufficient to manage the Trade at present : The Interest thereof 372 CURRENCY FOR THE would be Twelve Thousand Pounds per Annum, allow One Thousand Pounds per Annum to Offi- cers, and for other Charges in managing it : There remains Eleven Thousand Pounds per Annum.. This is so much gained, and no man hurt by it : for if a man Mortgage his Estate : Surely none will say, he is the poorer for so doing, since he Receives so much thereon, either to pay his Debts, or to im- prove in Trade, and those who want it : for neither of the before mentioned Uses, will yet be fond of being concerned in the Bank because they can let their Bills out to Interest on personal Security, and be Intituled to their Profits in the Bank at the same time : so that the Country will be 200000 1 Richer, if this Projection were set on foot, as soon as the Subscriptions are full. But some will say what signifies the Profits in the Bank, when it is proposed, they should remain there, & not be divided : I answer, it will answer the end of the Person concerned, as well as if divided ; for in a few years, when the Profits are come to be worth dividing : Any man who is minded to part with his Profits, whose occasions oblige him to do may Sell it to his Neighbour, as Bank Stock is sold in London, every day ; and no doubt in a few years the Stock here would be so transferr'd from man to man daily as it is there, and I can see no harm in im- proving a man's Money this way, any more than in any other way : it behoves every man in Buying and Selling, to have a care of Sharpers ; for they may be Cheated other ways, as well as by Stock Jobbing. MASSACHUSETTS BAY 373 But the grand Argument with some men against a Paper Medium is this : They say, Paper hath no intrinsick value in it, and ridicule it, saying, what value is there in a piece of Paper ? But I think that a very weak argument and indeed unfair, to compare Bank Bills, or Province Bills to blank Pa- per : What intrinsick value is there in Silver, or Gold, more than in Iron, Brass, or Tinn, but only the common acceptation of it by men in Trade, as a Medium of Exchange. Is not every thing in this World just as men [21] esteem and value it : If a man give me his Bond, it is as good in my Opinion, as Silver ; and the only reason why it is so, is, be- cause it will pay my Debt, or command wherewith to Pay it : Surely then if a Bank Note will answer for that end, and will purchase for me Food, Phy- sick, and Cloathing, and all necessaries of Life, it answers all the ends, which Silver & Gold can answer for : & then why is there not as much in- trinsick value in one, as in the other : We find by daily experience, that our Bills will answer all he aforesaid ends : and therefore I say it is, and ought to be esteemed as good as Silver : Nay, it is better to us than Silver, because it can't be Ship't off, but will remain with us : Another Objection against a Private Bank is, that the Bankers will Emit so much of this Paper Medium, that we shall be filled with it, and the plenty of it will make it of no value. This Objection I think is already obviated, for if it be under the inspection of the Government, as I have already proposed : They will appoint Visiters, 374 CURRENCY FOR THE to ^vllom the Books must always lie open, so that it will not be in the Power of the Bankers to Emit anything more than what the Government approve of. No doubt but they will (as the Province Bills sink) find it necessary to allow the Bank from time to time, to make as many Bank Bills as they sink of the Province Bills. I have been in the Bank of England & have observed the great Conveniences thereof, & am per- swaded in the time that Bank hath stood : Such a Bank as I have proposed would answer our Occa- sions, as w ell as the Bank of England or the Bank of Holland answers with them : The only Argu- ment which is brought against it, is, That they have Money ; and any man may have Money for his Note on damand: There indeed we differ, they abound with Money, but we have none at all ; Had we a plenty of Silver as formerly, we should have no need of a Bank ; but I am perswaded we shall never have Silver pass among us again as Money, until Trade take such a Turn, that European Goods falls so in prices, that it will not answer to send away Silver, or that we by going on Manufactures, live more independent of them, for that being our main Trade : The plenty or scarcity of their Com- modities, will govern Exchange, and consequently the price of Silver. So that I say, there is no like- lihood of having a Medium of Silver, without hav- ing a Medium of Paper [22] sufficient to manage our Trade, with more life then of late it hath been managed : The question then will be. Whether it MASSACHUSETTS BAY 375 can't be done by the Publick : That I know would be most pleasing to many Gentlemen, and I could heartily fall in with them, if I did not thmk the in- con veniencies & mischiefs attending it, will be greater by far m our Circumstances, than in the hands of private Men, & under the inspection of the Govern- ment. Were we not a Dependent People, I should have quite different tho'ts. Doubtless the Parha- ment of Englund might so Establish a Publick Bank there, as to make it equal, if not superiour to any private Bank ; but then it must be observed, that they are the grand Court of the Empire, and ac- countable to no body : whereas we can do nothing, or at best all that we do is nothing, without the Sanction of the Crown. Thus I have adventured to give my thoughts as to the Causes of our present dark Circumstances, which I have done, with a Sincere aim at the Pub- lick Good ; I Acknowledge my unfitness for such an undertaking ; and wish that some of the Bright Gentlemen of our Land (of which it is not Barren) had saved me the labour, & that some of them would yet bestow a few Hours in thinking what may be for the Reliefe of the Place, and indeed this I think to be the duty of every Man, and would hope that out of the Projections of many, some- thing may be found that may be of service : what I have now written I expect will be Received accord- ing to the dffierent Sentiments & Interests of men ; I am sorry for the growing divisions amongst us, and believe our growing difficulties are in a great 376 CURRENCY FOR THE measure the cause, and wish that a Remedy may be fouud to heal them, I conclude with th wish, That the Blessing of Heaven may attend the General Court in their present Sessions ; in all the arduous affairs which may come before them, and that they may be the happy Instruments in the Hand of the Almighty to Repair our Breaches, that the Blessing of them that are ready to perish may come upon them. Boston 20th July 1720. [Small 8vo, 22 pp. The copy was obtained at the Boston Public Library ; the facsimile of the title-page at the Massachusetts Historical So- ciety. In this pamphlet John Colman again takes a hand in the warfare. It will be noticed that he addresses himself to but a single adversary, concerning whom he says, " Truly his Brain seems to be addled with these Notions, that he forgets the Scriptures, though (if I am not out of my guess) his Pro- fession is to Study them." Elsewhere he advises the writer to " stick to Divinity," and says he likes him much better in the pulpit. So far as this may serve in the identification of the author alluded to, it would apply to Edward Wigglesworth, then a Congregational clergyman, and subsequently the first Hollis Professor of Divinity at Harvard. In the " Vindication " the author says, " The Gentleman says afterwards, that perhaps I am a Sallary Man. I assure him I am not." A settled clergyman would certainly have been considered a " Sallary Man." Colman does not seem to con- sider that this denial precluded him from classifying the author as a clergyman. Wigglesworth was probably not settled any- where when elected Hollis Professor. The pamphlet which served to furnish copy for this reprint originally belonged to some person who felt called upon to MASSACHUSETTS BAY 377 annotate its pages with comments upon the statements which it contains, and with refutations of Colman's arguments. Mr. Worthington C. Ford, to whom I am indebted for this copy, with wise foresight inchided these annotations in his work. It would be an easier task for the reader if I had permitted Mr. Ford's method to stand, and had printed the annotations on the pages containing the matter to which they relate, but it has seemed to me best to reproduce the pamplilets as nearly as pos- sible in the form in which they were published. To accom- plish this, I have relegated to my own notes all intrusive matter worthy of mention, here as weU as elsewhere, including even one or two corrections of the text, the need of which was appar- ent. A comparison of the handwriting of the annotations with that of Edward Wigglesworth, while it shows many features of resemblance, has also some characteristics which make it doubt- ful whether he could have written these notes. The first point at which the annotator felt called upon to intervene was near the bottom of the 4th page of the pamphlet, where Colman asks, " can the Gentleman imagine they would sell for Two Hundred Per Cent." ? The answer given in the margin is : — " If the want be imaginary not real 'twil cause a demand of for- reign goods and this comparative scarcity wil make all things dear. Goods can never be at the old prizes til o' import & export answer as formerly. Neither the maxim below nor any other good maxim can be applyed to an extravagant trade, first ballance your trade & then apply maxims of trade. The next reason of the high price of goods here is the clearness of returns and the reason of that is the great- ness of the import o' way of trade is so contrary to the rest of the world that the maxims dont hold with us, but the lessening the im- port will [ballance] the trade & make the prizes reasonable." At the top of the 5th page, Colman asserts that the price of European goods governs exchange and the price of silver. Whereupon the comment is made : — " Whether the Bills are more or fewer as long as returns are dear goods wil be high prized, the price of goods governs the value of the Bills & always wil doe so as far as they are exchanged for goods." 378 CURRENCY FOR THE Lower down on the same page Colman says, " Money was always Ship'd Home." The reply is: — " The meer Imaginary want of so much European goods has brought them here, w"? has made a scarcity & dearness of returns, carryed of all the Silver & by the dearness of returns Goods are be- come dear. — Silver never wil stay in y° Country while the import is so extravagant." On page 6, near the top, Colman refers to the high rate of exchange recently paid by the Province Treasurer, and asserts that " there is little likelihood of Goods falling, if such an Ex- change be given." This calls forth the following note : — " An Extravagant import will forever cause an extravagant price of European Goods & of Silver wn used as a return & an extrava- gant Exchange of money between us and Europe." Just after this Colman goes on to say that relief is to be found in a " sufficient Medium to manage " trade. " The way to bring trade to its due ballance is to contract it and that must be (while we are disposed to run so into debt) by con- tracting the medium moderately." The intimation is made on the same page in the pamphlet that the price of European goods had gone up because importa- tions had not kept pace with the growth of population. To this charge, that the traders had failed to import goods proportionate to the growth of the province, the annotator curtly says : — " We have done it & more." Colman, still on the 6th page, then goes on to say : " We are pritty much Circumstanced like Holland, we Raise but little." This calls forth the following extended comments : — " We rayse enough. Holland not a 1000th part enough. We are not nor should we be like Holland, nothing but trade. Holland, de- pending altogether on trade makes them Encourage import ; their laying duty on Consumption is the Effect of their frugality. Trade & frugality is in a manner the whole subsistence of Holland but are never so of N. England." Colman then asserts that the province is more prosperous than its neighbors. In reply to this the annotator says : — MASSACHUSETTS BAY 379 " N. York (I suppose as I have heard) consumes no more than their wheat flower bread staves &c will answer for ; therefore they are not involved as we are as to Trade w"."" is more declined here than there." On page 8, Colman argues that the inconveniences which have resulted from the so-called " Public Bank " would have been avoided if a private bank had been established. The comment on this is : — " I hope the G Court will see the advantages of a private bank before &c." Space failed the annotator, but we can easily supply the missing words. He wished the Court to be fully convinced of these advantages before granting a charter. The 17th page of the pamphlet is headed " Proposals for a Medium of Exchange." The comments on this page are of a general character, and are not directed towards special para- graphs in the pamphlet. They are as follows : — '■ 1. All paper Bills whether province or Bank bills are mutable in value, therefore delusive & Injurious. 2. The multiplicity of them Increases O' Trade w""" is too much already for the Country to answer for. 3. A Mediu of intrinsick Value is in all parts of the world (where 'tis not produced Naturally) is gained by Trade and so it ought to be here. And if o' Import be so great that we can't in a way of Trade gain a Silver Mediu at present, we must lessen the import, til we can. If in the mean time many wil sink under their debts. Is it reasonable that the Country sh? find a way to pay pri- vate men's debts." On page 18, the statement is made in the pamphlet that " There is no living without some Medium." To this the an- notator says : — " Their design is by contracting the paper mediti to Lessen the Excessive import w"*" causes the going out & not coming in of Silver, and desire it may be done gradually til o' returns may be Enough to answer & bring in Silver too til we come to this No Inventions can put us into a right State : If y" Trade be such at present that you can't bring Silver from the West Indies reduce it to such a way be degrees that you may doe it. Trade has carryed away the Silver 380 CURRENCY FOR THE Mediu tis just it slid recover it. In the mean time Let the Govern! be as kind & compassionate to the Trading part as is consistent with reason & tlie common safety & those who have involved themselves ah'^ not desire more." It may well be doubted if Colman ever contemplated con- tracting the paper medium. His wish was to supplant the province bills with those of a private bank. To the query on page 19, " What would the Silver be better than the Bills if it could not be Ship'd off ? " the answer is given : " That day you have other returns sufficient to answer for y° import you prevent Silver being a Merchandize or return til then you cant prevent it by any Laws that wil take [effect]." " Most certainly," says Colman, at the top of page 20, " the Country would be greatly inrich'd by it." " Not a jot more," rejoins the annotator, " than by the publicks Letting out money and taking the profits to thems. nor so much." A few lines below, the following statement is made : " So that the Country will be 200000 1. Richer." The annotator curtly interlines, " twil be 200000 I more in debt ; " and at the bottom of the page adds : — " If paper money shd bring Silver twil at the same time lay a foundation for its being exported as a return for the multiplicity or good the paper hath occasioned to be brought in and of w' use to the publick is that." On page 21 Colman argues that a bank note will answer " all the ends, which Silver & Gold can answer for." To this the annotator replies : — " Silver and Gold being valued every where as a Mediu of Ex- change is its intrinsick value. Paper has nothing of it because paper cant be shipt of tis worse than Silver." Again, on the same page, the author says he has himself observed the great conveniences of the Bank of England. To this the annotator responds : — " A paper bank can't be as good as the bank of England or Holland til paper is as good as Silver. Nor wil paper ever bring in Silver so as to keep it here." MASSACHUSETTS BAY 381 The suggestion on page 22 that Colman hopes for something out of the Projections calls forth the rejoinder, " Projections seldom help out of debt," and the statement that the objections to a private bank are less than to one managed by the govern- ment causes the annotator to say : — " It must be remembered that the Govermt by giving a Sanction to a private Bank render tbems. as obnoxious to their Super' at Lome as by Erecting a publick bank, & more as the thing may come out."] [1] SOME Proposals To benefit the Province. MONEY answers all things, that is, Civil Credit', Now if Civil Credit, that is, all things, he in the hands of Authority, who are Wise Men, fear- ing GOD and hating Covetousness, and he at their Ordering & Disjwse, then all under their Authority will Honour, Ohey, and of choice, with delight submit to their Government. Also the Civil Credit of a Province in the hands & at the Disjjose of such Gentlemen, may with Conduct hy their Wisdom & Goodness, he ordered into such Channels as may overflow, and like the River NYLE in ^EGYPT, make all the Land fruit- ful: To Effect which, may our Great and General Assembly he as sjorings to fill tip a Sea of Credit, that is, set up a Province Bank of 2 or 3 hundred [2] Thousand Pounds, more or less, always to be under their own Direction & Maiiagement ; and may they so Order every Channel from thence, as that it may return thro' all its various windings into the 384 CURRENCY FOR THE aforesaid Fund of Credit, Imitating Nature, or rather Providence. As all Waters come fro7n the Sea, and hy Gentle Shoioers make the Earth fruit- ful, so as that by its various Channels it centers there again. Such Wise & Good 3fen in Authority, with ease, pleasure & delight may not only retrieve us from, under the Mallancholly Circumstances of the Pro- vince, hut also bring us into a better and more flourishing condition than ever. And the great want of a Medium of Trade at present calls for, and gives occasion to improve that want, and make it a handle for us at this time to give a speedy supply. That our necessary Trade may not suffer or perish; and in such a manner that the Province may be Enriched thereby, and not only Merchants & Farmers, but also Traders, and all Artificers be sup2:)lyed In order thereunto. It is Projjosed : 1. That a Province Bank be setled. 2. That a Lumber House or Houses be built. 3. That there be proper Offices, Province Bank- Books, &c. 4. Proper Persons be imployed. [3] And that any subject upon Improved Lands, or any sufficient Security may be supplyed with I. 100 more or less, for Twenty-one Years ; and the subject that shall become Debtor to the Province Bank, to pay every Year at the Rate of Six Pounds ^^er Cent. per Aniiimi for what Credit he shall be supply'd with, in Hemp, Flax, Turpetitine, Pitch, Tarr, «--r/i. so M E loporais To benefit the PioyinccJ K ET crifzi:Cf'<:' ell tih',^". ihat ?5, Qvii Credit y Novo ij Civil ('■'■/-''',.'.'y:.\-f,j// r'.i'mgSy be in , ' 'r rf Am'h'oniy^ GOD andhatirgQQvncuJncfsy cr.] he at their Ordering ^-IDiJ^nfc, 'ih^i all tinder their Aw thority v:ill Honmi} .phc}\ c/^d of choice^ mth de- l!^htfubmittorh-ir Years at 5 s per quarter f Paid for 1 Bushel of Hemp-seed Summer following, Plowing and Sowing 9 s.) per Year ) Pulling Hemp, dr'C. For carrying it to & from Watering Two breakers for 1 day 6 s. per Year Four swinglers for 1 day 12 s. j)^^ Year Carting to Market 15 d. per Year [ 1 J A Province Bank Established of All Charges for 21 Years amounting to If 100 I. at 1 per cent, for 20 Years gains 20 > I. then 200000 I. at 1 ;jer Cent, gains ) In 21 Years paid to the Province in Hemp & Flax Workmanship 50 per Cent. Benefit to the Province of 21 Years amounts to 389 DR. I. s. d. 100 00 00 126 00 00 226 00 00 61 13 00 164 07 00 328 14 00 CR. l. s. d. 05 00 00 00 08 00 09 00 00 13 00 00 12 00 00 06 00 00 12 00 00 01 05 00 61 13 00 I. 230000 030000 200000 040000 240000 120000 360000 240000 390 CURRENCY FOR THE That is, it prevents Importation of so much. From the aforesaid Accounts, it is mani- fest that If one Farmer by 100 I. for 21 Years gains ) 164 1.1 s.Q d. then 2000 I 328700 Farmers with 200000 I. may gain ) If Fish clear all Charges, and lodge in the Province Bank 2 Ounces of Bullion per Quintal, & at 21 Years Expiration it be worth 12 s. 6 d. per Ounce as now Sold, then it will advance the Bank in Bullion to the value of \_\\\ Then the Province will be benefited by preventing the Importation of Rigging, the value of I. 360000 The Farmers will be benefited by raising ) Hemp and Flax j 328700 And Bullion lodg'd in the Bank to the value ) of i 240000 Clear of all charge it will benefit the Pro- ") vince in 21 Years | 928700 Some otiier proposals may be made of as great benefit to the Province. Hemp and Flax-seed yields good Linseed Oyl. If complying with these, or some such proposals, Increase the honour, glory, & power of Authority, and benefits the Subjects, and neither hurts nor wrongs any : Why may it not be Effected ? Besides the Gain proposed. Is it not the Glory and Duty of Authority to supply the Province, and uphold the Civil Credit, without which Trade must needs dye, and many inconveniences will Inevitably ensue (of which France is a late Instance) and are we not come to the last pinch ? MASSACHUSETTS BAY 391 Upon the whole then, As it hath been the Wis- dom, Care and Concern of all the Provinces of Europe how to find out the best Me-[12]diums of Civil Credit, for the welfare of their Dominions, and Quieting the Minds of their Subjects ; and shall we do nothing for the Subjects relief, when they are so greatly Distressed ? That great Orator Mr. Jeremiah White, saith, * There is a Debt of pure love, You owe youi' Wis- ^ dom to all Men, to contrive their happiness for * them : You owe your Power to effect it ; the Bees ' out of themselves make a vessel for you, and fill it * with Honey, their Honey-comb : so should you be * out of your own Spirit, moulding a frame of hap- * piness for others, and filling it with all sweetness * you can : Do good to all. Should you be as drones, * feeding upon the fruits of others, but making no * Honey your selves. All which is offered by a true Lover of this Coun- try, to the serious Consideration of all her Friends ; Imitating the poor Widow I cast my Mite into the great Treasure of your Wisdom, expecting it to come forth as Oar refined by the Exquisite Artist into pure Gold. F. M. 392 CUREENCY FOR THE [13] POSTSCRIPT. A Character of a Puhlick Spirit PUblick Spirits are the greatest and noblest Spirits growing up in us, from those generous Seeds, which in our Creation were planted in our Natures, and therefore of our very Essence, as we are Men, which if rightly Cultivated, make all Soci- eties happy. Rome, Greece, &c. flourished by Men of Great and Noble Spirits. But Men who profess themselves Christians, if they be what they profess, that is. Subjects of a Supernatural, Spiritual and Divine Being, born of the Spirit, and thereby made conform to theii- Head J E S US, who took all occasions to do good, and dy'd to save His Enemies ; that Supernatural Spir- itual Divine being in them, so much exalts them above what the first Adam was made the Subject of in Paradice, I say, how should it inflame their Natural Publick Spirits (which they are the Subjects of as Men) to immitate their All-glorious Origine J E S US, and not only equal them that were Gen- tUes, but be bound in Spirit to come up to and excel even Meek Moses; If thou wilt [14] not forgive their Sin, blot me I pr y thee out of thy hook. And the Apostle Paul, I could icish that my self were accursed from Christ, for my Brethren, &c. See how great the Effects are of having CHRIST formed ]VIASSACHUSETTS BAY 393 in us, and making Hiqi our only Pattern. May such desirable & Christ-like Persons be found amongst us, (tho' but Shepherds or Tent-makers) abounding with all pleasant and delightful fruits, Comforting, Refreshing and Freeing, Suffering, broken Spirits, which grown, sigh and are bowed down under Ojjpressing burdens ; how bright and lovely would such Persons be to this Generation, and their Memories to all Posterity, and shine above others after this Life in Eternal Glory for ever? A Character of a Private Spirit. A Private Spirit is a selfish narrow, contracted, little Spirit ; it's the Devil form'd in us : Ye are of your father the Devil ; taking advantage from the Execution of the Divine Sanction, viz. (the loss of the Image of GOD) which Satan was the author of, and is ; our setting up self to be equal with or above GOD, which is Idolatry ; and self, both the Idol & Medium, by which we serve the Devil : we are by him hurried [15] with all our powers to possess Idol-self, with the profits, pleasures and hon- ours of this Life, and therefore substitute Religion, Reason and Nature to ^ect it ; for while we remain in our Apostacy, we can act from no other being, nor to any higher end than self, that is the spring, and all our actions center therein, how Religious soever we be : This Self Idolatry is the Ruining of all So- cieties, and all Men of what Rank or Degree soever, Sacred or Civil, either Wholly or in Part are the Sub- 394 CURRENCY FOR THE MASSACHUSETTS BAY jects thereof; the effects, fruits and evidences of Self, are Tyranny, Oppression, Wrath, &c. with all Moral and Penal evils. And frequently Hypocrit- ical Covetous Men, makes the greatest show of Reli- gion. Our All-glorious Saviour was not Wise and Holy enough for such Men, but by them most vilely and falsely contradicted, accused, persecuted and executed for one of the greatest Sinners, even when the Gentile Judge Justified Him, and wrought by all Means (save force) for His deliverance. Boston : Printed for and Sold by Benj. Eliot, at his Shop below the Town-House. 1720. [A small 8vo pamphlet of fifteen pages, to be found in the Library of the American Antiquarian Society. Through the courtesy of that Society the copy and the facsimile of page 1 were obtained. The pamphlet has no special title-page. The imprint, at the end, is : " Boston : Printed for and Sold by Benj. Eliot, at his Shop below the Town-House. 1720."] EUcirotyped and printed by H. O. Houghton &' Co- Cambridge, Mass., U. S. A, UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT LOS ANGELES THE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY This book is DUE on the last date stamped below Jm 4 1943 wt >: N ^ITD U)-^8^ & »« \iVR\ HHTD ij:,L 'v'r IB mow [MAY 1^1976 "It FEBl 21985 ttjro 10 UHt 71986 PROS — Form L-9 20m-l,'42(8519) UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES UC SOUTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY AA 001 114 192 6 3 1158 01002 54 (5>