NATIONAL RECIISTVR Q UEEN (The following was the method resorted to by Queen Elizabeth, fur stopping the circulation of base coin ; and will, we trust, be acceptable to many of our zeaders.i The summarie of certaine reasons, which have moved Quene Elizabeth to procede in reformations of her base and course monies ; and to reduce them to their values, in sorte, as they may . be turned to fine monies. Appointed to be declared by her Majestic, by order of her proclamation, in her o citie of ondon. First of all h is knower, that the honour and reputation of the singuler wealth, that this realm was wont to have above all other realms, was partly in that it had no current monies but golde and silver; whereas contrary all other countreys, as Almayn, Fraunce, Spain, Flaunders, Scotland, and the rest of Christendom have hadde, and still have cerain base monies now of late dayes, by turning of fine monies into base, muche decayed, and dayly growen into infamie and reproche, and therefore is thought ne cessary to be recovered ; whtrin, Tyke as her Majestie, for her part, rneaneth to be at great charges, so every good Englishe sub 3ectes ought to be content, though at some mai losse at the first. Also, by continuing of the base monies, divers person, both in forrein partes, and within the realm, have counterfaict ed, from tyrne to tyme, no small quantitie, and brought to porte-townes, and uttered the same at the fyrste after the rate of xii pence a teston, and after that for .vi pence, where the same was not in dede worth above . two-pence ; and caried out of the realm, for those base monies, the rich commodities of the same, as wclle, cloth, lead, tiisue, leather, tallowe ; yea and all kiude of victual, at cortie, malt, beer, butter, cheese, and such tyke; so as coun terfaicters and such lylte, have for small summe of monies counterfaicted, caried out six times the value in commodities of the realm. By the means also that these base monies were current, divers subtyll peoplehave chaunged the same for the golde and fine sylver monies of this realm, and have transported and caried out the same golde and sylver, so as although there bath ben coyned both in the later end of the raigne of Kyng Edward, and in the tyme of Quene Mary, and now also sence the queen's majestie's raigne, great quantities of golde and sylver, yet no part thereof is sene commonly currant; but, as it may be thought, some part thereof is carved hence, and some, percase. by the wyser sort of people kepte in store, as it were to be wished that the whole were. Also, by continuance of this sort of base monies, although Almightie God hath gyven now of late yeares pl‘tntifull increase by the earth, for the which he is to be thanked, without any such plages of scarcitie, as in our forefathers tyme bath hene read, when many hundrethes and thousandas of people have dyed for famit.e; yet the prices of all thynges, growing or coin myng from the earth, bath immeasurably and dayly risen ; as all manner of grayne, fruite, cattell, bestiall, victuel, wolle, leather, and such dyke; and no reMetly could be devysed to amend the same, bit to cause that the same base monies shuld .be currant for no more than they were in just value. For every man, of the least understanding, by one means or other, knew that a teston was not worth ,ix-pence, nor the peece of two-pence was worth so much; and therefore no man would gyve gladly that thing which was and ever had ben worth six-pence, for a teston, but would rather require two to-tonc.*: and so a thyng, being worth six-pence, was bought and soil eyther for two testons, or one and a halfe, which was in reckenyng xii or ix pence ; and n w every teston being brought to the just value, it must needs fol low, that one shall buy of another hereafter that for iiii pence halfpeny, wh;,ch was wont to cost vi pence. And. when the teston shall be brought into tint , sylver, then shall all men be as desirous to sell any ware for suche fine monies, as they have of late ben loth and unwyllynge to sell any thyng for the base mo nies; except they might have had twyce as much of the base monies, as they were wont to have of the fine, or ela that for necessitie they . sw_.re dryven to sell the same. By this meanes al , to, now that the base monies are brought to the just value, and that every man shall have fine' monies for them, all poor people that lyved of theyr hand-labour, as well artificers in cities or towneq, as labourers in husbandrye, or men that coke dayetall wages, eyther by land, by sea, or by freshe waters, and all meane gentlemen that lyved hut upon pensions and stipendes, and all souldinurs and servyng-men, that lyved upon solde • and wages, shall have theyr pensions, sti pendes, solder, and wages, now payde in good and fine monies, and therewith she bye more necessaries for theyr sustentacion, then could duet be bought ; who surely havving heretofore after the rate of Us. Yxvis. viiid. v nobles, xls, iv marks, v marks, Iv pounds, v pounds, xx nobles, and so upward, by the yere payde Co chitin in these base monies, could not have so much victuel, • Fr. a soldier's pay, \ , - apparel, weapon, .armure, horses, or such lyke, with the saide stipend, by more than a fourth part, as they shall now' have; because in dede the saide_base monies were of themselves no more worth. By this reformation also, of base monies, shall necessarety folowe a more profitable accoumpte betwixt the monies of this realm and of other countries; and thereby the accoumpte, which, by marchauntes, is called the Eschaunge, shall also arise in estimation of the monies of Engkied, in suche sorte, as in former tymes bath ben ; and the forreine commodities therelay also be bought for easyer pryses, to the benefit of all such as use the same. So as, the matter well considered, the greatest num bre, and especially the poorest, shall have most commoditie hereby : yea, and such others as have moste gayned by excessive prices, shall have also (if they will consider them elves) no small profyte and helpe. And fynally, no manner of person in the whole realm shall have, after one or two monthes, hurt hereby ; except onely the traytnur which bath lived by counterfaicting.— And, therefore, it is to be allowed and imbraced of all people, and every man to thinke, that although at the first he may sup pose that he hath !else mottle in his purse; yet shall he have for the same metal, as much as that was worth, either in ware, or at her Majesties' *lint, in fine monies. And whensoever he shall utter that base monies, which, at the tyme of the procla mation, he hadde ; the next that he shal gette, eyther by his hand-labour, or for his wages, shal be eyther fine monies, or such as he may have as much fine monies in the mint for it.— And, consequently. every man ought to thank Almyglitie God, that he may lyve to see the honour of his countrey thus partely recovered; sylver to come in place of copper, pryses of thynges amende, all people to he more able to lyve of theyr wages, every man's purse, or coffer, made free from the privie thefe l which was the counterfaictorir. And, fynally, the treasure of this realm to be of sylver and golde, as was wotite in our fore fathers' time, and not of brasse and copper ; besydes many othert great commodities that hereof must needs ensue, which, but fur length, might be declared ; and, for, all the same, ro lost , e to any, otherwise, but in opinion at the begynnyng, not much unlyke to them, that being sicke, receive a medicine, and in the takyng, feele some bitterness, but yet, thereby, recover health and strength, and save theyr lives. And, because it is st. tie by experience, that many tymes, when good thynges be devysed and attempted, the devyl sleapeth not to hinder the same, but caused' them eyther to be deftattel, or to be defamed and mistaken ; therefore it is mecte, th:q no 1-min tier of person gyve any credite to such as shall caste abr de mis trust or amendment of the money, or pretend this decree to he greater, or more burdenous than it is• For, truely, this amend ment is so fully purposed by her majestic, as, besyde that, expe rience shal trio it within one month, or vi weekes; within which tymes, necessarie thynges for the mint must be provided. It is sene, that her majestic may refourme these monies accord ing to her proclamation, without any such great fosse as might move her to forbeare it : and, on the other syde, the monies be so justly valued, as, in dede, the base tritons being set at ii farthyng, and her majestie giving at her mint, for every pound of them, xxs. and iii d. in rewarde, shall, thereby, gyve rather more than they shall he worth, beynge melted, than lesse. So that her majestie, who, since she came to this croune, never gayned any thing by any coynage, nor yet ever coyned any man ner of base monies for this realm, will not now determine to 636 THE CURIOUS PROCLAMATION of • ELIZABETH. lesse the honour and fame that she shat, with small lose or gayne, recover, by this noble acte, to benefit her realm and people. And as to the opinion of the burden of the losse, where the base testons be valued but at ii d. farthyng, whereby such as have them shall seme to have the greatest losse, it is to be well and reasonably construed and taken of all men, for that there bath not, by good accoumpte, which bath bene made and well proved, bene above a sixth parte compared to the other base monies of the same sort of testons coyned in the mints of this realm ; and at the coynage of the same base testons, now valued at two-pence farthynge, which was done in the tynie of the wars heretofore, there were set thereto certaine marks, as a lion, a rose, flour-de-lace, or a harp, called the privy marks of such as were then masters of the mint, which also be specified in the proclamation. For the better understanding whereof, here be, in the end of this declaration, set certaine stamps or prints, of every kind of the same base testons, with their saide several marks ; to the intent, that every person, looking and b,-holding the same prints, may the better judge and discerne the same from the other, that be valued at iiii pence halfpenny; although it' the same be well considered, the colour of the saide base tee ton will show the baseness thereof. And, because her majestic meaneth to ease her subjects as much as possible may be, she is pleased to connimund tier officers in her mint, that where there be many counterfaict testons, which were made by counterfaic tours, when the testons were at the value of xii pence a-piece, t This cannot allude to the paper money of the present day. I