Page:William Petty - Economic Writings (1899) vol 1.djvu/284

186 can never be naturally |73| more than the Land and Watercarriage of Money between the two Kingdoms, and the ensurance of the same upon the way, if the Money be alike in both places.

But Men that have not had the faculty of making these Transmissions with dexterity, have chose rather to give 15. per Cent. Exchange, as aforesaid, than to put themselves upon the hazard of such undertakings, and the mischief of being disappointed.

Now the extraordinary decrease of Gold and Silver, put Men, whose Affairs were much disturbed, thereby upon extraordinary Conceits, and some very absurd ones for Remedy, as namely the raising of Spanish pieces of Eight, called Cobs in Ireland, from 4s. 9d. to 5 or 6 Shillings, which were before about 5d. above the Value of English, that is 4s. 4d. English Money weighed the same with a Cob called 4s. 9d. For these distracted People thought, that calling their Money by a better Name, did encrease its value.

2. They thought that no Man would carry Cobs of 5s. out of Ireland into England, where they were called but 4s. 4d. altho he was necessitated to pay 4s. 4d. in |74| England, and had no other effects to do it with. They thought that