Page:Craik History of British Commerce Vol 1.djvu/273

Rh the silver coin recovered the whole of its ancient fineness by the alloy in the pound being: reduced to eighteen pennyweights, a proportion which has ever since been retained. The number of shillings struck out of the pound of silver, however, was not lessened; on the contrary, after having continued to be 60, as in the preceding reign, till 1601, it was then increased to 62, as it remained ever after till 1816, when it was farther increased to 66, which it still is. The debased money of her father and brother was also recalled and melted in the beginning of Elizabeth's reign; so much of it as was received at the Mint is computed to have passed current for above 638,000l., its real value being only about 244,000l. The gold coins of Elizabeth are sovereigns and half sovereigns, crowns and half crowns, angels, half angels, and quarter angels, nobles and double nobles. Of the sovereigns there are some remarkable as having milled edges, being the first English money so distinguished. There are also milled shillings, sixpences, and other silver coins belonging to almost every year of this reign. Besides the common silver money, Elizabeth coined what were called portcullis crowns or dollars, being imitations of the Spanish dollar or piece of eight, and of the value of 4s. 6d., for the use of the East India Company. These pieces are now very scarce. It appears also that, a short time before her death, she had intended to coin farthings and other coins of small value of copper, a metal which had not yet been made use of for money in this country.

The depreciation of the Scottish money, which had already proceeded so far before the commencement of the present period, was carried during its course farther and farther in each successive reign. The debasement of the metal of the Scottish coinage, however, never approached the point to which that of the English was carried by Henry VIII. and Edward VI. As in England, the ancient standard of fineness had been eighteen pennyweights of alloy in the pound of silver; in 1529, the sixteenth year of James V., the proportion of alloy was