638 0.1,2. Anno o£bavo Gu LI ELMi III. A. D. 1696. Anno Regni GU LI EL MI IN. oaavo. T the Parliament begun at /i^£/?w/?j/?£^r the two and twentieth Dzy oi November, Anno Dom. 1695. in the feventh if ear of the Reign of our Sovereign Lord WILL lAAi the Third, by the Grace of God, o{ England, Scotland, France, zn6 Ireland, King, Defender of the Faith, (5c, And from ' thence continued by feveral Prorogations and Adjournments to the twentieth Day oi O£fober 1696, be-
- ing the fecund Seflion of this prefent Parliament.'
CAP. I. An Aft for importing and coining Guineas and Half Guineas. ' ^T 7 HERE AS by an Aft made in the firft Seflion of this prefent Parliament, intituled, An Acifor ' ' ^' ' W taking off the Obligation and Encouragement of coining Guineas for a certain Time therein mentioned, it ■ ^' 'is enafied, That from the fecond Day oi liiarch in the Year of our Lord one thoufand fix hundred nine- 18 Car. I.e. 5. t ty-five, until the firftDay oifanuary then next following, there fhall not be any Obligation of receiving 1 Vc.'i^c.V." ' '"'<' '■'^'5 Majefty's Mint or Mints, to be coined, any Gold whatfoever ; nor fhall the Officers of tlis Ma- 4& 5 w. & M. ' jefty's Mints be obliged to coin any Gold within the Time aforefaid, for any Perfon whatfoever ; and that c. 24. 6 & 7 * the Recompences appoined by the Statute made in the eighteenth Year of the Reign of King Charles w. 3. c. 17, t (-Vig Second, and other fubfequnt Statutes, for Encouragement of Coinage, fhall be applied to the Ufe of '&^SW^"c ' the Silver Mints. And it is alfo thereby further enafted. That from and after the faid Second Day of 10. ss.'o'w! ' March, until the faid firft Day o^ fanuary, it fhall not be lawful for any Perfon or Perfons whatfoever to 3. c. 8. §.26. ' import Guineas or Half Guineas into this Kingdom, upon any Pretence whatfoever, upon Forfeiture of 9& 10 W. 3. ' the faid Guineas or Flalf Guineas. And whereas the Reafon of making the faid A£i v/as .occafioned C.21, 12 & 13 c jjy (-f^g high and unufual Price of Guineas, which might in the JEnd be very prejudicial to the Sub- I -AnnE (Ut I ' jsft- But the faid Price of Guineas being now reduced to or near the Standard, and fundry Perfons e.g. ' ' ' ' being defirous to coin Gold, and alfo to import great Quantities of Guineas and Half Guineas, which 4Anna?, C.22. ' will be very beneficial to the Trade and Commerce of this Kingdom:' For the Encouragement 7 Anna, c. 24. whereof, 1 Geo. I. rtat.2, c. 43, 9 Geo,!, c- 19. 7 & 8 W, 3. c. 13. lelatiiig to the coining of Guineas repealed. IL Be it enacted by the King's moft Excellent Majefty, by and with the Advice and Confent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in Parliament affembled, and by the Authority of the fame. Exception. That the faid A&, and every Claufe, Matter and Thing, therein contained (other than what relates to the Guineas and Recompcnces by the faid Adt appointed to ber.pplied to the Silver Mints, and what concerns the Royal Half Guineas African Company) be and are hereby repealed and utterly made void, to all Intents and Purpofes; and that tobe ficely im- all and every Perfon and Perfons may freely impoit into this Kingdom Guineas and Half Guineas, as they ported. mi^ht or ufually did before the making the laid Aft for prohibiting the fame. Oneormcre IIL And be it further enafted by the Authority aforefaid, That the Mafter and Worker and other Of- Millstobefor fleers of His Majefly's Mint in the Tower of London, fhall, on or before the tenth Dzy of November one the Coinage of thoufand fix hundred ninety-fix, prepare and fet apart one or more Mill or Mills, Prefs or PrefiTes, with -• other Conveniencies, to be in the firft Place employed in the Coinage of Gold, which fhall be brought thither by any Perfon or Perfons, Native or Foreigner, to be received in, coined, and delivered out, in fuch Manner, Courfe, and Order, as by the aforefaid Statute made in the eighteenth Year of King Charles 18 Car. 2. c. 5. the Second is direfted and appointed ; fo that the Courfe in Coinage of Gold and Silver be kept in diflinft Coinage of Gold Accounts, and not interfere one with another, either in receiving into, or delivering out of His Majefty's and Silver to be faid Mint, and that fuch coining and delivering out Gold in a diftinft Courfe, according to the Time of keptin diftmft bringing in the fame, although there be Silver remaining there uncoined, fhall not be interpreted any un- due Preference, to incur any Penalty in Point of Delivery of Money coined ; any thing in the faid Statute of the eighteenth of King Charles the Second, or other Statute, to the contrary thereof notwithftanding. CAP. II. An Adl for the further remedying the ill State of the Coin of the Kingdom. EXP. ' f.TT'HEREAS great Mifchiefs and Inconveniencies have fallen upon this Kingdom, by the frequent
- W counterfeiting, clipping, and other unlawful diminifhing the current Coin of this Kingdom; for
' the remedying whereof for the future, it is thought necefiary that all the hammered Silver Coin of this ' Kingdom fhould berecoined by the Mill and Prefs, which will be lefs fubjeft to thofe pernicious and de-
- ftruftive Methods of clipping and counterfeiting; and that in the mean Time, to put a Stop to the further
' clipping fuch hammered Money, the fame fliould not be current in Payment, otherwife than is hereafter ' mentioned, &'c.' EXP. -' ' By 9 W. 3. c. " Hammered Silver Money brought to the Mints before i July i6gy. to be received at 5 x. ^d. per Ounce. I §. I. no ham- " Hammered Coin to be taken for Taxes on Loans, &c. zt ^ s. S d. an Ounce. After i Decemb. 1696. no c"^0,^'u r " hamn£ed Silver Coin to be current, except by Weight. Broad hammered Money may be received be- •urreot,' " ^'^^^ ^^ Nov. 1696. by Tale for Taxes, &c. Colleftor, i^c. on Oath may pay the fame by Tale till iS - ' " Dcccmb. i()g^:i, Commiffioners, is, to have till oJan. iSq^. to pay (he faid hammered Monies into the " Excbe-
