England's Treasure by Foreign Trade [19]
some private ends by hurting the publick good; there ought he to be discovered and prevented, unto which performance (in this discourse of treasure) I find my self obliged, and therefore I intend to effect it by shewing the true causes and means whereby these wonders are done, which Malines attributeth to the sole power of the Exchange. But first for order I think it fit to set down the particular feats as they stand in his said books.
The admirable feats to be done by Exchange.
1. To lay their mony with gain in any place of the world where any exchange lyeth. 2. To gain and wax rich, and never meddle with any Princes commodities. 3. To buy any Princes commodity, and never bring penny nor pennyworth into the Realm, but doe that with the Subjects mony. 4. To grow rich and live without adventure at Sea or travaile. 5. To do great feats having credit, and yet to be nought worth. 6. To understand whether in conjecture their mony employed on Exchange, or buying of wares will be more profit. 7. To know certainly what the Merchants gain upon their wares they sell and buy. 8. To live and encrease upon every Princes subjects that continually take up mony by Exchange, and whether they gain or no. 9. To wind out every Princes treasure out of his Realm whose Subjects bring in more wares than they carry out of the Realm. 10. To make the Staple of money run thither where the rich Prince will have it to be brought, and pay for it. 11. To unfurnish the poor Prince of his provision of mony, that keeps his wares upon interest mony, if the enemy will seek it. 12. To furnish their need of mony that tarry the selling of their wares in any Contract untill they make them come to their price. 13. To take up mony to engross any commodity either new come or whereof they have some store to bring the whole trade of that commodity into their own hands to sell both at their pleasure. 14. To hide their carrying away of any Princes mony. 15. To fetch away any Princes fine mony with his own or any other princes base mony. 16. To take up Princes base mony and to turn into his fine money, and to pay the deliverer with his own, and gain too. 17. To take upon credit into their hands for a time all the Merchants mony that will be delivered, and pay them with their own, and gain too. 18. To make the Realm gain of all other Realms whose Subjects live most by their own commodities, and sell yearly the overplus into the world, and both occupie that encrease yearly, and also their old store of treasure upon exchange. 19. To undoe Realms and Princes that look not to their Commonwealth, when the Merchants wealth is such, that the great houses conspire together so to rule the Exchange, that when they will be deliverers, they will receive in another place above the Standard of the Mint of the Princes mony delivered: and when they will be takers, they will pay the same in another place under the Standard of the Mint of the Princes mony taken up. 20. To get ready mony to buy any commodity that is offered cheap. 21. To compass ready mony to get any offered bargain out of another mans hands, and so by outbidding others oftentimes to raise the wares. 22. To get a part and sometimes all his gains that employeth mony taken up by Exchange in wares, and so make others travail for their gain. 23. To keep Princes for having any Customs, Subsidies or Taxes upon their mony, as they employ it not. 24. To value justly any Wares they carry into any Countrey by setting them at that value, as the mony that bought them was then at by Exchange in the Countrey whither they be carried.
If I had a desire to amplifie in the explanation of these wonders, they would afford me matter enough to make a large volume, but my intent is to do it as briefly as possibly I may without obscurity. And before I begin, I cannot chuse but laugh to think how a worthy Lawyer might be dejected in his laudable studies, when he should see more cunning in Lex Mercatoria by a little part of the Merchants profession, then in all the Law-cases of his learned Authors: for this Exchange goes beyond Conjuring;
The admirable feats to be done by Exchange.
1. To lay their mony with gain in any place of the world where any exchange lyeth. 2. To gain and wax rich, and never meddle with any Princes commodities. 3. To buy any Princes commodity, and never bring penny nor pennyworth into the Realm, but doe that with the Subjects mony. 4. To grow rich and live without adventure at Sea or travaile. 5. To do great feats having credit, and yet to be nought worth. 6. To understand whether in conjecture their mony employed on Exchange, or buying of wares will be more profit. 7. To know certainly what the Merchants gain upon their wares they sell and buy. 8. To live and encrease upon every Princes subjects that continually take up mony by Exchange, and whether they gain or no. 9. To wind out every Princes treasure out of his Realm whose Subjects bring in more wares than they carry out of the Realm. 10. To make the Staple of money run thither where the rich Prince will have it to be brought, and pay for it. 11. To unfurnish the poor Prince of his provision of mony, that keeps his wares upon interest mony, if the enemy will seek it. 12. To furnish their need of mony that tarry the selling of their wares in any Contract untill they make them come to their price. 13. To take up mony to engross any commodity either new come or whereof they have some store to bring the whole trade of that commodity into their own hands to sell both at their pleasure. 14. To hide their carrying away of any Princes mony. 15. To fetch away any Princes fine mony with his own or any other princes base mony. 16. To take up Princes base mony and to turn into his fine money, and to pay the deliverer with his own, and gain too. 17. To take upon credit into their hands for a time all the Merchants mony that will be delivered, and pay them with their own, and gain too. 18. To make the Realm gain of all other Realms whose Subjects live most by their own commodities, and sell yearly the overplus into the world, and both occupie that encrease yearly, and also their old store of treasure upon exchange. 19. To undoe Realms and Princes that look not to their Commonwealth, when the Merchants wealth is such, that the great houses conspire together so to rule the Exchange, that when they will be deliverers, they will receive in another place above the Standard of the Mint of the Princes mony delivered: and when they will be takers, they will pay the same in another place under the Standard of the Mint of the Princes mony taken up. 20. To get ready mony to buy any commodity that is offered cheap. 21. To compass ready mony to get any offered bargain out of another mans hands, and so by outbidding others oftentimes to raise the wares. 22. To get a part and sometimes all his gains that employeth mony taken up by Exchange in wares, and so make others travail for their gain. 23. To keep Princes for having any Customs, Subsidies or Taxes upon their mony, as they employ it not. 24. To value justly any Wares they carry into any Countrey by setting them at that value, as the mony that bought them was then at by Exchange in the Countrey whither they be carried.
If I had a desire to amplifie in the explanation of these wonders, they would afford me matter enough to make a large volume, but my intent is to do it as briefly as possibly I may without obscurity. And before I begin, I cannot chuse but laugh to think how a worthy Lawyer might be dejected in his laudable studies, when he should see more cunning in Lex Mercatoria by a little part of the Merchants profession, then in all the Law-cases of his learned Authors: for this Exchange goes beyond Conjuring;