William Lane to Cecil on the Coinage and Other Matters, 18 Jan
| Artifact Summary | |
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| Artifact type | |
| Creator/author | William Lane |
| Date | 1551 |
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Entry
[S.P.D. Edward VI. , Vol. XIII., No. 3. ] 1 The xviij daye of Jenuarij 1550 [i.e. 1551] in london.
For as myche as yow be in place where as mattars consernynge owre commonwelth ar many tymes tawkyd of, and I, in my harte wyschyng a Redresse of thynges that semythe to me a mysse, am so bolde as to uttur to yow my judgmente in these casys foloynge, withowte Redresse where of owr commonwelthe schall Rune hedlonge in to more misere ; and for that I se a presente myscheffe in hand and commy[n]ge I wold hyt warre preventyd with a spedy Remedy.
Item, that of latte and not xij dayse paste I talkyd with Mr yorke off the mynte, who schowyd me that he was in hand to make a newe quyne of fyne sylvar that schowlde be xj ownsys fyne, and quynyd in peces off ijs. the pece, where of fyve peces and a lyttyll more schowld make one ownze ; where of I made the Recnynge that j ownze of sylvar fyne beynge solde to the mynte at vjs. viij d., beynge quined schowld make xjs. to be payde owte agayne or lyttyll more or lesse. I seyde altho the sylvar war fyne yete was hyt to dere and the mony nawghte ; he awnsward that hyt was Rychar than the other mony late made, or now amakynge, and muche other commynycasyonn we had not.
Now, for as myche as yt ys well known that the exchange betwene owre Reme and other forin Remes ys the very Rule that settythe the pryse good chepe or dere off all moste all thy[n]ges where of ys no skarsyte, as well off the comodytys and mercha[n]dys of this Reme as of other forin comodytys browghte hyther, I wyll therfor declare whate presente myscheffe hathe hapnyd synse my commynycasyonn with Yorke, and is in thys vj dayse hytherward. The exchange as well for flandars, france as spayne amonge the mercha[n]tes ys fallyn abowte vij in C by Printed in modernised spelling in Froude, Hist. of England (1870), Vol. V., pp. 283-87. Froude makes a few omissions and verbal alterations.
HIGH PRICES AND THE COINAGE Resonn of the newys of the new quyne commy[n]ge furthe, wyche the pepull wyll more bettar make the Recnynge of and undarstand the valew now in fyne sylvar, than before in the myxture --wyche fall off the exchange commythe off fere of lythenys off owre sylvar quyne, and ys the only cawse that all we the merchantes of y[n]glo[n]d to [sic] Robbe ynglond and cary a waye all the golde in the land in to forin Remes, for that hyt ys to a more profyt than the exchange. And the lyke of thys myscheffe hapnyd here in ynglo[n]d in the monthes of June, Julij, and awguste laste, in the wyche 3 monthes was caryyd owte of ynglond not so lyttyll as a hundarthe thowsand powndes of gold ; and yette dyd there sylvar cume in to the land as faste, and all for the private gayne in quynynge the sylvar styll, and also was caryyd awaye, for that the pownd of gold ys Rychar than the pownd of whyte mony ; wyche myschyffe now presente dothe cawse owr golde to be bowghte uppe at 2s. 6d. and ij s. viij d. the pownd for whyte mony. And where of latte the kynge dyd call the frenche crowne from vij s. to xix grotes, they be now bowghte uppe for vij s. iij d. and vij s. iiij d. to be caryyd awaye, as all other gold ys ; So that schortely we schall be quite off all owre Ryche mony for a base quyne ; and than schall folowe a gretar fall of the exchange, wyche ys the father of all darthe of almoste alle thynges that man occapyythe. Yff we in ynglond schowld quyne vj yeres to cume so myche whyte mony as we have done in vj yeres paste of the valew that nowe goythe, the plentyfulnis off the mony and the bassenys there of togyther schowld brynge owre commonn welthe to that passe that, yff yow schold gyve apore man iijs. a daye for hys daye labor, yete yow showld skante paye hym syche a hyar as he myghte lyve there of, wyche God defend schowld cume to passe ; and the only private gayne in quynynge sylvar ys the cawse of longe contynuans in quiny[n]ge styll ; wyche exsesse off gayne in quinynge, and contynuans of the same, schall bry[n]ge to passe as afore sayd, yff spedy Redresse be not had in that behaffe. And to newe fyne owre base quyne from the delaye cannot be done withowte more charge than may be borne of the kynge or the comons.
Item, that thys sayde fall off the exchange within thys iiij dayse hathe cawsyd and wyll cawse to be bowghte clothes at lvj li. the packe, wyche be fore wold not have byn bowghte for lij li. the packe; so that yow may perseve that the exchange doth ingendar dere clothe, and dere clothe dothe ingendar dere wolle, and dere wolle dothe ingendar many scheppe, and many schepe dothe ingendar myche pastor and dere, and myche pastor ys the dekaye of tyllage, and owte of the dekaye of tyllage spryngythe ij evylls, skarsyte of korne and the pepull unwroghte, and consequentely the darthe off all thynges. The only cawse offthys my wrytynge ys more for the Redresse of thys mattar foloynge than for the other before wryttyn ; yff hyt myght be by yowr good helpe browghte to passe, yow sholde dow swche sarvys to the kynge and owre commonn welthe, as nevar man dyd in my Judgemente Synse I was borne ; and that ys the grandefather off many innormytys, as well off thosse afore wryttyn as other, and that onssebeynge Redressyd we schall the lesse nede to stody Remedy for other evelles, but wyll partely Reforme themm sellffes, wyche ys thys. I have, for thys vj or viij yeres paste, markyd and well parsevyd owr common welthe to be growen in to swche a costelynys and charcheabylnys of lyvynge and exspensys of forin comodytys, a grete parte not nedeful, that the tryall beynge made by the kynges customm, yow schall fynd that we spende and consume with in thys Reme swche sumes and quantytys of forin comodytys that all the wolle, clothe, tyn, lede, lether, and coles, and other mercha[n]dys to be caryyd owte of thys Reme, ys not abyll to contarvayle, paye, or Recompense for the sayde marchandys browghte in to the Reme, note by one quartar parte or lesse. So that hytys to be wondarde at, that we in thys owre Reme showld waste and consume in one yere more in valewe of forin comodytys, than all the Rychenys of owre land and travyll off owre pepull schowld brynge furthe in v quartares off yere or more ; and so longe as the bryngynge in of superflues comodytys do exsede in valewe the Rychenys of owre comodytys and travyll off owr pepull caryyd owte, so long and so muche moste yow nedes grante me that owre Reme ys impowveryschyd, other in mony or other wysse. So that, onsse browghte to passe that the HIGH PRICES AND THE COINAGE comodytys off owre Reme and the travyll of owre pepull solde in forin contres maye exsede in valewe the forin comodytys browghte in, and so muche schall owr commonwelthe be yerely gaynars of them and they nat off us, and we to lyve off them and they nat off us, and owre Reme so myche in Rychyd of there mony or other wyse, and also kepe owre quy[n]e styll. As for exsampull, that man wyche spendythe in a yere more than the stynte off hys landes and travyll of hys body dothe gayne, most nedes dekaye and growe in to dette, as dothe owre hole Reme in thys poynte ; and yette of latte dayse I undarstond that there ys a Restraynte of lede not to be caryyd owte of y[n]glond, wyche who so evar dyd invente studyyd as myche the common welthe as he that inventyd that no coles schowld be caryyd from newcastell in to anny forin partes but in a frenche scheppe, wyche altho hyt be but a cole mattar, ys syche a hynderans to aparte off owre commonn welthe as ys worthey off Redresse. And for as muche as I have spokyn of coles, I wyll saye a lyttyll more. Yff hyt war well consyderyd what warre to be done in the coles of y[n]glond for the benyfyt of owr land, and an ordar there in sette to the moste comodyte of thys Reme, hyt showld be fownd muche more benyfycyall to owre common welthe than hyt ys or now ys takyn for, for hyt myghte well mayntayne in y[n]glond iij of owre decayyd townes or setys, besyde the settynge off worke off ij scheppys dayly more than hyt dothe and the marynars there of where of many tymes we have nede.
If that hyt may be sayde for thys artyckyll aforesayd that we maynot bannysche anny kynde off mercha[n]dys or comodytys of forin partes, for that hyt ys agaynst the entarcowrse or lege betwene us and the howse of burgone or frenche kynge, to that I awnswar that there ys Remedy, wayys and menys I nowe for the kynge to Redresse thys grete innormyty with owte towchynge off anny lege, intarcowrse, or privilegys be twene prynsys ; but for as muche as thys laste enormyte of bryngynge in of superfluus comodytys ys not to be Remedyyd but by good avysemente in parlemente or otherwyse, in the mene tyme and owte of hand for gods sake forward summ Remedes for the other mattar, that we the merchantes cary not awaye all owre Ryche mony, and leve the base mony here styll ; and that onsse the exsesse of the private gayne in quinynge to other menn, supposyd as to the kynge, maye be takyn awaye, and also owre base quyne of whyte mony callyd downe to xvs. the pownd, wyche, altho hyt be not I now, yette wyll hyt do grete sarvys for the tyme, and kepe owre golde here, and also kepe many thy[n]ges at a staye wyche elles wyll cume to a mesere. And altho thys take no place, for dyvars Respectes knowun to the Rulares and nat to me, yette I saye there ys many more Resons here in to be made wyche I omytte, etc Syr, I moste hartely desyar yow not to be offendyd with me for wrytynge thys my pore and sympyll Judgmente in mattares off wayghte apertaynyng to conselares or other wyse men ; for god I take to Recorde, my harte bledythe in my body to se and perseve thus the thynges that be owte of frame, and the misere commynge toward us yff hyt be not preventyd, and myche by us mercha[n]tes by menys off the alterasyonn of owr mony. god kepe yow.
yowres wyllyam lane, merchante of london. To the Ryghte worschypfull Mastar Cycyll, one of the kynges magestes secretarys.
[Endorsed] xviijo February [sic] William Lane of london to my Master.
