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COINING MONEY. 275
L That his lordship be petitioned to set up a mint for the coining of
money within the province.
II. That the money coined therein be of as good silver as English sterling
money.
III. That every shilling so coined weigh above ninepence in such silver,
and other pieces in proportion.
IV. That the offences of clipping, scaling, or counterfeiting, washing, or
in any way diminishing such coin, be punishable with death and forfeiture of
lands and goods to the Lord Proprietary.
V. That his lordship receive said coin in payment for rents and all
amounts due to him.
This act was transmitted to the Lord Proprietary in England, and upon
its approval by him, he sent a sufficient quantity of coin into the province to
supply its immediate wants. To facilitate its circulation, he invoked the aid
of the assembly, and that body, on the 12th of April, 1662, passed an act
•"to put the coin (struck under the Act of 1661, ch. 4), in circulation."
It enacted that " every householder and freeman in the province, should take
up ten shillings per poll of the said money for every taxable, at 2d per
pound, to be paid upon tender of the said sums of money, proportionably
for every such respective family, &c, for three years, &c."
The passage of this act caused a forced exchange of sixty pounds of
tobacco by every tithable for ten shillings of the new coinage; and, as there
were at least five thousand tithables then in the province, it is estimated that
at least twenty-five hundred pounds sterling of this coin was put in circulation in the province. It is probable that this new currency proved acceptable
to the people, as it must have greatly facilitated exchange, yet it by no means
superseded tobacco as an article of currency. That still continued largely
in use, especially in important transactions; and many of the public dues
were still collected in tobacco and not in coin. What was the amount of this
new currency in circulation at any time after, we have no means of ascertaining ; neither do we know when it began to be disused.1
Ogilby, speaking of Maryland, in his work published in London, in 1671,
■says:
"The general way of traffick and commerce there is chiefly by Barter, or
exchange of one commodity for another; yet there wants not besides English
and other foreign coins some of his Lordship's own coin, as Groats, Sixpences,
and Shillings, which his Lordship, at his own charge, caused to be coined
and dispersed throughout that Province. 'Tis equal in fineness of silver
to English sterling, being of the same standard, but of somewhat less
weight. It hath on the one side his Lordship's coat of arms, stamped
with his motto circumscribed ' Crescite et Multiplicamini,' and on the
other side his Lordship's effigies, circumscribed thus 'Ccecilius, Dominus
Terrm Marioe, &c."%
1 Streeter. 2 Description of the New World, p. 188
| Title | History of Maryland - 1 |
| Creator | Scharf, J. Thomas (John Thomas) |
| Publisher | J. B. Piet |
| Place of Publication | Baltimore |
| Date | 1879 |
| Language | eng |
| Type | Books/Pamphlets |
| Title | 00000302 |
| Type | Books/Pamphlets |
| Transcript | COINING MONEY. 275 L That his lordship be petitioned to set up a mint for the coining of money within the province. II. That the money coined therein be of as good silver as English sterling money. III. That every shilling so coined weigh above ninepence in such silver, and other pieces in proportion. IV. That the offences of clipping, scaling, or counterfeiting, washing, or in any way diminishing such coin, be punishable with death and forfeiture of lands and goods to the Lord Proprietary. V. That his lordship receive said coin in payment for rents and all amounts due to him. This act was transmitted to the Lord Proprietary in England, and upon its approval by him, he sent a sufficient quantity of coin into the province to supply its immediate wants. To facilitate its circulation, he invoked the aid of the assembly, and that body, on the 12th of April, 1662, passed an act •"to put the coin (struck under the Act of 1661, ch. 4), in circulation." It enacted that " every householder and freeman in the province, should take up ten shillings per poll of the said money for every taxable, at 2d per pound, to be paid upon tender of the said sums of money, proportionably for every such respective family, &c, for three years, &c." The passage of this act caused a forced exchange of sixty pounds of tobacco by every tithable for ten shillings of the new coinage; and, as there were at least five thousand tithables then in the province, it is estimated that at least twenty-five hundred pounds sterling of this coin was put in circulation in the province. It is probable that this new currency proved acceptable to the people, as it must have greatly facilitated exchange, yet it by no means superseded tobacco as an article of currency. That still continued largely in use, especially in important transactions; and many of the public dues were still collected in tobacco and not in coin. What was the amount of this new currency in circulation at any time after, we have no means of ascertaining ; neither do we know when it began to be disused.1 Ogilby, speaking of Maryland, in his work published in London, in 1671, ■says: "The general way of traffick and commerce there is chiefly by Barter, or exchange of one commodity for another; yet there wants not besides English and other foreign coins some of his Lordship's own coin, as Groats, Sixpences, and Shillings, which his Lordship, at his own charge, caused to be coined and dispersed throughout that Province. 'Tis equal in fineness of silver to English sterling, being of the same standard, but of somewhat less weight. It hath on the one side his Lordship's coat of arms, stamped with his motto circumscribed ' Crescite et Multiplicamini,' and on the other side his Lordship's effigies, circumscribed thus 'Ccecilius, Dominus Terrm Marioe, &c."% 1 Streeter. 2 Description of the New World, p. 188 |
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