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A27255
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To the honourable the Commons of England assembled in Parliament proposals humbly offered to lay down a method which will totally prevent all robberies upon the highway, raise five hundred thousand pounds per annum to the government, and increase dealings of all kinds ...
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Beeckman, Daniel.
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1695
(1695)
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Wing B1687; ESTC R32952
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4,320
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9
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To the HONOURABLE the Commons of England Assembled in Parliament PROPOSALS Humbly Offered to lay down a Method which will totally prevent all Robberies upon the High-way Raise Five Hundred Thousand Pounds per Annum to the Government and Increase Dealings of all kinds 1. By Erecting Chambers of Accompts in the Kingdom to return money from place to place as Trade shall require 2. By a Computation made of the number of people in England Wales c with the consumption of Goods transferred from place to place throughout the Kingdom 3. The Ways of transmitting moneys from place to place on sight of Bills and ballancing of Accompts 4. By wayes and means to furnish those Chambers of Accompts with Cash sufficient to answer in ready moneys all the Goods that shall be bought and sold throughout the Kingdom 5. By presuming that the Profits arising from the said Chambers will amount to the sum of 500000 l. per Annum Persons paying no more for such returns than has been Customary time out of mind on the like occasions 1. WERE there Four Grand Chambers of Accompts erected in London being the Metropolitan City of the Kingdom to answer all Countys in England Wales c. and those nominated The Principal or Grand Chambers of each County or Division and let them have power to fix a Petty Chamber in most Principal Towns of Trade throughout the Kingdom c. Providing for every Principal or Grand Chamber a different Stamp with Numbers to be kept in every Petty Chamber so fixed as aforesaid placing Clerks in each Chamber of London distinctly for each County And were all Inland Bills strictly forbid and all Gentlemen and Chapmen Carriers and Hagglers Prohibited from Travelling with any Sum or Sums of money more than to Defray their Travelling Charges But so often as occasion offers let each and every Person pay such greater Sums of money into any of the Chambers from whence it may be Remitted to any place as desired with as great Expedition as the General Post can reach it The Party having his money so Remitted paying for the same Three Pence per Pound or something more or less according to the distance of Place from whence it shall be so Remitted 2. IT is supposed by common Computation that there are Six Millions of people in the Kingdom of England Dominion of Wales c. which if so they cannot subsist one with another for less Charge in Meat Drink and Apparel than Seven Pounds per Annum each person which amounts to Forty Two Millions Yearly expended in the way of Trade and Commerce which at Three Pence per Pound Annually paid for such Returns or Transmittances of money as aforesaid amounts to the Sum of Five Hundred Twenty Five Thousand Pounds per Annum besides the large Sums that are expended in a Year for Houshold Goods Plate Jewels c. ☞ Note What is Consumed in the Year must be the Gain of Trade the Returns are infinitely more 3. SUPPOSE a Merchant or any other Trader or Dealer sells his Goods Cattle or Wares in any part of the Kingdom c. receiving his moneys for the same being the Sum of a Thousand pounds more or less he or they paying such sum or sums into the Chamber next adjoyning may have it remitted to any part without running any Hazard the person receiving the same discounting Three Pence per pound more or less according to the distance of place And upon payment of his moneys into the said Chamber he shall Receive a Bill of Return indented the Office or Chamber Filing another of the same Date and a third so agreeing with the two former shall be sent to the place where he intends to receive the same with advice to pay it to the said Party or his Order upon the sight of the Party's Bill so mentioned making such payment in good Currant Coin of England and upon payment thereof to give his Receipt indorsed upon the said Bill for so much Moneys as the said Bill expresses to be due By which means every Petty Chamber may be able to adjust his Accomps with the Grand Chambers of London as often as they shall be required to do the same 4. AS to the Furnishing the said Chambers with Cash sufficient to answer such Ends I presume the moneys Collected for the KING's Taxes The Excise and other moneys already Charged and to be Charged by Act of Parliament with Moneys payable for all manner of Goods or Commodities through the Kingdom in parts remote being paid into the said Chambers in each Town or County as aforesaid in order to be Remitted to other parts of the Kingdom may as I humbly conceive answer the ENDS Proposed with all Objections that shall be made against it only allowing Petty Chapmen who shall Travel the Country for some Miles to lay out moneys in order to buy up Goods as Wooll c. buying two or three Tod in one place and three or four in another where they can meet with them For it is not to be imagined such Chapmen as these shall have their moneys remitted by reason of the great uncertainty in what place they shall buy their Goods But my meaning is That such Persons who bring their Goods to a certain Town or Market selling them for considerable sums and such Persons who shall carry in their moneys to a Market or Fair to Buy with As for Example A Person living at Exeter or any other place hearing of a parcel of Wooll to be sold at Northampton or any other place Cross the Country though far remote The said Party paying the moneys he intends to lay out into the Chamber of the Town aforesaid the Clerk of that Chamber sending up the Advice-Indenture to the proper Clerk of the said County he shall Remit the moneys to the Chamber of the said Town with as much expedition as the Post can make And in like manner may all Gentlemens Rents or moneys for Portions and Purchases be transmitted throughout the Kingdom For if any person shall adventure to Travel with Sums of money after having such conveniencies provided for their so safe and easy ways of Remittances I Judge the Country ought not to be Liable to make good what shall be so lost by Robberies after such Bold and Daring Adventures And they may keep an exact Ballance on all occasions in all places and at all times throughout the Kingdom by which means each Town may have a Bank of money by them which as I conceive will be no small Increase of Riches throughout the Kingdom causing all manufacturies to flourish much more than hither to they have done the failure of which is thought to befor want of Moneys among them which has occasioned many Country people to try their Fortunes in London where money is more plenty which hath much depopulated the Country thereby damnifying very much both Gentlemens Estates and done great injury to all Manufacturies FURTHER There are several principal Towns and places
of Trade as Exeter Norwich Colchester Hull Leeds c. wherein the Goods are bought by the Inhabitants of the said places and there vended which moneys with the Kings Revenues being paid into the Bank of the said places must inevitably be equivolent to the manufactures made in the said Towns and vended else-where For suppose each of those do vend and make great quantities of Woollen manufacturies being the Stable Commodities of the Kingdom the more they make the better being the greater number of People must be imployed therein And we find by experience That by the Wisdom and Providence of GOD Noblemen Gentlemen Shopkeepers Merchants c are so promiscuously intermixed in Towns and Villages among Handicrafts being subservient one to another as different members of one and the same body and supposing there are Twenty or Thirty Thousand Souls in each Town or place These must all be Fed and Cloathed with all things according to their several Ranks and Qualities and by consequence must Trade in Linnen Woollen Silk c and in all Grocery Wares Wine Oyl Tobacco Iron Lead Tin Copper Glass c. and in all sorts of Grain Cattle Fruits Dyes and Druggs without which no place can well subsist Now let the Traders of the said Towns and Villages nigh adjacent pay into the Banks of the said places all the moneys which shall become due in Parts remote for the Goods vended by them The prime cost of all such Goods consumed together with the Money Collected for Excise the Land Tax and Customs being paid into the next Chamber or Bank in or nigh the place must make a sufficient Fund of Money in all the Banks of each County Town or City to answer all Goods and Manufactories that shall come out of the Countries being the prime Cost of materials are allowed for But if any Merchant or Dealer suppose the Manufactures made in the Countries and sent abroad are of greater value than the prime Cost of Goods that are bought and consumed in the Countrys I beg to know how it happens That such Town or County has not gain'd the greatest part of the Kingdoms Wealth which if any person satisfies me in I shall look upon all my pains and serious thoughts about this Project to be vain imaginations and shall desist further to urge it AND so soon as the KING's Money shall be paid into any of the said Chambers in the Country it may be drawn off here from the Chief Chambers in London at the pleasure of the Lords of the Treasury Which will occasion the Paying in of the Kings Revenues into the Exchequer with more Expedition by the Sub-Collectors being the first Charge laid upon the Moneys given His Majesty which will save the Government 100000 l. per Annum so much and more being now paid for Collecting going through so many Hands 5. I Humbly Conceive it may be highly improved in like manner as the Post-Office has been since the first Establishment thereof which will conduce much to the Good of Trade both in City and Country For if A. B. or C. suffer for not having Returns of Money according to expectation or desire certainly the greater part of the Alphabet must sensibly Feel it one way or other But this Method being taken it must by consequence lessen the Interest of money highly advance Lands increase the Income of the General Post-Office I presume by modest Computation it will add a Third part more to the Incomes of the same This I humbly conceive if approved on by His Majesty and the Honourable Houses of Parliament may be worth Five hundred thousand pounds per Annum or more without hurting the Subject paying no more for their Returns of Money than they commonly now do upon occasion of such Returns by Carriers or otherwise Therefore the Terms in my Propositions being so easy and the Service of so great value I hope no Man can rationally Grudge at it obtaining so great a Benefit by it For I clearly conceive both City and Country will Improve and Encourage such an Establishment as shall make Moneys Circulate upon all Occasions to their great advantage AND this being Proposed for the Publick Good I hope it will not be Postpon'd but rather meet with that Encouragement from the Government as may render it Useful for the Matter intended which will not only be a Great Benefit but also a Great Honour to the Kingdom And I hope the Objections that may be raised against my Proposals are so Rationally Answered as with Ease to be understood relating to the Advance of Trade the Improvement of Estates the safe and quick Transmittances of Rents the Benefit accrewing to the Post-Office And in Removing of the Cause it will most Effectually be the preventing of Robberies by High-way Men. By D. B. By C. L. ☞ Note IT is allowed by most men of Deallings that the Consumption of this City within the Weekly Bills of Mortallity is vastly Great The Number of Black Cattle Consumed per Week Computed about Three Thousand Calves Sheep Lambs and Hoggs about Thirty Thousand the value of all sorts of Grain not to be Known besides the vast Quantities of Woollens that are bought from the Countreys From all which 't is plain there may be One Hundred Thousand Pounds saved to the Government by drawing off the Kings Revenues and Taxes as aforesaid which will more than defray the Charge of such an Advantageous Settlement and the Kingdom will become as one intire Trading Body FINIS