First, The poor labourer would always be paid his wages, and the alewife for her drink, in these halfpence. Secondly, From hence it must follow, that almost all the King's hearthmoney and excise would be paid in the same coin ; and if the halfpence are allowed to become current by royal authority, I see not how they can be refused by the officers of his Majesty's revenue, especially when those who pay the greatest part of these two branches of it, have no other money wherewith to make their payments. Thirdly, It is most probable that a great part of his Majesty's customs, quit-rents, &c. and the postages of all letters, would also be paid in this sort of money; and that, for that very purpose, men would buy it up at a low rate, as they used to do the late King James's brass coin. Fourthly, That all the private men in the army (to say nothing of officers civil and military) would be forced to receive their pay in the same; for what other way would the King have to dispose of the vast quantity of halfpence, which unavoidably must come into his Treasury; and if the poor soldier can get no more for his shillings in halfpence than what he might for a groat in silver (which unavoidably must be the consequence), how will it be possible for him to subsist? Fifthly, If landlords will not receive their rents, or any considerable part of them, in this sort of money (as we may be sure they will not, except some law, not now in being, be made to compel them), this must unavoidably break a multitude of tenants, especially of the poorer sort, who will sell their goods in small quantities, for which they will generally receive no other money but halfpence; and if the poor under-tenants are broke, it will not be easy for the head-tenants, or even the landlords themselves, who depend upon their rents, long to subsist. Lastly, If more than L. 500,000 has not room to circulate in Ireland, (as is generally computed), and one-fifth part of this, or probably much more, be thus debased, the consequence will be, that at least one-fifth part of our good coin, or perhaps a much greater proportion of it, being not to be employed bere, will soon be carried away (and so toties quoties) to some other country, which, being added to the other evils already mentioned, will be a greater diminution to our stock and trade, if not the destruction of both, and, consequently, a very great lessening of his Majesty's revenue.

I will not, upon this occasion, pretend to insist upon it, that the Protestants of Ireland may be entitled to some favour from his Majesty. It is a satisfaction to us, that we have all along been faithful to and zealous for his interest and that of his illustrious house, together with the succession of the crown, as by law established. But what we therein did was our duty, and therefore I shall not plead it as our merit. All I desire is, that we may stand in the common rank of good subjects, to which I hope we have an undoubted title; and when all that I have here said is duly weighed, I may well leave it to the consideration of every sober man, whether it can be for his Majesty's service, or our benefit, that these same halfpence of William Wood should be even connived at being made current amongst us in Ireland. P. S.-One thing will be worth remarking, I had like to have forgot. When the last patent was granted for coining of halfpence here, the sum was confined to L. 20,000, and, by the care of the government, I believe was not much exceeded; and yet, in a short time, the collectors everywhere throughout the kingdom, received so great a part of the hearth money and excise in these halfpence, that being not able otherwise to dispose of them, they were forced to pay a great quantity of them in specie into the commissioners of the revenue, who often complained of them as a burden. And if this was the case when all the copper money in the kingdom made up little more than L. 20,000, what must it be when an addition is made not only of L. 90,000, which is the express allowance of Mr Wood's patent, but also of as much more as he shall think fit to send us? For the coinage being at such a distance from us, it is impossible that the government here can have any effectual check upon him.

A Letter to William Woods, Esq. from his only Friend in Ireland.

To William Woods, Esq. at his Copper-Works at Bristol, or elsewhere.

Sir, I can't tell why it should be so, but I have made it my constant observation, that men of the most profound learning and greatest genius, who, by their elaborate study,

have found out secrets and mysteries, that have proved of the greatest advantage to mankind, have thereby gained more enemies than others with the grossest ignorance and vile qualification; which observation I have found summed up in you, who (except one) has not a friend in this whole kingdom; nay, what is worse, they are one and all your enemies. Know then, Sir, I am that one who dare own myself your friend, and glory in being your admirer,-Miserable! That such an adept should not be adored among men, as the sun, for its glorious rays, is above all the planets. How have our witlings and little snarling scribblers been busy in setting the press at work? But go on Sir,-They blacken their paper, and not you. That which many men have destroyed, great estates, and cracked their brains to find out, (1 mean the grand secret) and have burnt mountains of charcoal in making menstrua and tinctures, to transmute metals into gold, and are still as far from it as the longitude,—you have, without all this cost and trouble, brought to perfection, that out of copper, nay, the basest of copper, can extract pure gold and silver, at above cent. per cent. profit. Monstrous gain! Prodigious art! and all this without the art of chemistry, only by greasing and daubing in a proper place. You shall be stiled the High German Artist.

I think, like lower artists on any new invention, you have got a patent only for fourteen years, but then I consider you are loaded with honour, as intrinsically valuable and weighty as your coin; Ay! and you are the phoenix of your order, for I dare swear you are the only tinker esquire in Great Britain. Had you consulted me or any friend, we would have told you, that you might have been a peer at a cheaper rate; but no matter for that, as the world goes, he that has money enough has birth, and parts, and every qualification; so when you wallow in one, the other will come of course. And then for your preamble, your personal endowment and merits, as well as those of your ancestors, although you was never heard of till now, unless when the parish cess was gathered for nursing of your name perhaps was read in the list, and you know sirnames have occasionally been given, some from colour, as White, Brown, &c. others from place, as having been left in a street, lane, field, or wood. But I think you did well to get the honour of an esquire

first, for, when you come to have greater conferred, a lord without being an esquire, will be something like a knight and no gentleman, so I think you have made a prudent step.

Would you, dear Sir, but take a trip over hither to browbeat those snarling scribblers, who will not dare to open their mouths to your face. I can't but think, when you go in your gilt chariot to the tavern, to remember your cousin-german, and the rest of your friends and abettors on the other side the water, how you will look down on those sorry invidious railers, who will go sneaking thither with small purses of gold in their pockets; when you will be followed with a train of tumbrils, loaded with your coin, one for every bottle of wine, and a waggon with six horses to pay for the supper. Then you will see the scene change, and the loud acclamations of the people, and the shouts of the mob, who will rejoice to lay their hands on you to present you with a fine cravat, for the good of our linen and hempen manufacture.

But let us for a while lay aside all our joys and thoughts of honour and grandeur, and turn our thoughts a little on answering our sorry politicians, who advance such paradoxes to injure you, when envy, only envy, is at the bottom. They cry out the nation will be undone by having too much money imported, and then they would fain draw all his majesty's officers and servants into their quarrel, by saying the revenue will be lessened, and then all salaries must be ill paid. Poor politicians! they don't consider what a patriot you are, for you never began this project out of self-interest, but the good of his majesty's dominions in general, and for this country in particular. As for the latter, it will increase trade amongst us in several particulars, and consequently raise the revenue, for we shall have money enough, and we shall all drink wine;-that or water, for we shall not have a brewing-pan left. It will advance the coopers' trade, which will be employed in making casks to hold your coin; it will advance house-rent, for every monied man, instead of a scriptore, or an iron chest, or strong box, must have a warehouse; it will also employ the poor, for every person must have a man or two to wait on him to carry the common expences of the day. Then, as to the general good, what a noble alliance will it make? When we drink nought but wine sure then France will never quarrel with us. You shewed your great

foresight in making this general friendship; you conterfeited your own coin, not out of any ill design; but, when it was objected to you, you alleged it was done in Holland. Oh, rare subterfuge! this was your policy, to secure them. By giving them a hint what they may do, and what I am sure they will do, and when they can send their trash to a market at so great advantage, I dare swear all that while they will be our humble servants. Then there is Sweden with its copper will truckle to us. I can't but be pleased to think how we shall put the proud Spaniard with his Peru and Mexico out of countenance.

Then, beside all this, I can't but admire your religious goodness, for I find your aim in reformation of manners, which in a great measure has taken effect; for among a great many other societies and bodies that have entered into associations against your coins, our mercenary ladies are resolved not to vend their wares for it. They say they have brass enough already, and, if they keep firm to that resolution we must be chaste in our own defence. Then there are your pick-pockets, who, by diving, can fetch up between their fingers as much, as, with good management, may keep them some days, but when your coin comes in vogue, a backburthen of it will hardly fill their belly, and that is more than they daily acquire by their slight of hand; so they must reform and take up some other trade. Well, I protest I think you deserve to be highly exalted, and though every man does not get his reward in this world, that is no argument against his deserving it; and every good man ought to wish it. When a poor rogue picks a pocket for want, or robs on the road, we all wish him hanged for it, and sooner or later he gets it. Then what must that villain deserve, that, under the colour of law or authority, would plunder a whole nation. I have read, in a very good book, that formerly there was one Alexander, a coppersmith, who did much harm to a good man, who thought it lawful, in his language, to pray the Lord to reward him according to his works; and since you, the coppersmith of this age, have wrought such confusion to this nation, we may, from so good a precedent, in plain English, and I hope the Papists, who say their prayers in Latin, will join with us in one English prayer, which is, The Lord confound you and all your