Pepys, by by Godfrey Kneller, 1689, courtesy of Wikipedia
Originally posted on Tuesday, June 3rd, 2014
The great Restoration diarist Samuel Pepys confided, to his diary, on May 19, 1663, some observations he made at the Royal Mint and its manufacture of coins under the new “milled” method. This method was considered in its day a state secret, making his observations, published long after the fact, all the more interesting.
He dined with some of the officials of the mint after, and records:
At dinner they did discourse very finely to us of the probability that there is a vast deal of money hid in the land, from this:
That in King Cha[r]les’s time time there was near 10 millions of money coyned – besides what was then in being of King James’s and Queen Elizabeths, of which there is a good deal at this day in being.
Next, that there was but 750,000l. coyned of the harp and Cross-mony [i.e., Commonwealth coins, so-called from the English cross and the Irish harp on the reverse], and of this there was 500,000l. brought in upon its being called in, and from very good arguments they find that there cannot be less of it in Ireland and Scotland then 100,000l.; so that there is but 150,000l. missing; and of that, suppose that there should be not above 50,000l. still remaining, either melted down, hid or lost or hoarded up in England, there will then be but 100,000l. left to be thought to have been transported [i.e., taken abroad].
Now, if 750,000l. in twelve yeares time lost but a 100,000l. in danger of being transported, then 10,000,000l. in 35 Years time will have lost but 3,888,880l. and odd pounds. And as there is 650,000l. remaining after 12 years’ time in England, so after 35 years’ time, which was within this two years, there ought in proportion to have been resting 6,111,120l. or thereabouts besides King James and Queen Elizabeth mony.
Now, that most of this must be hid is evident as they reckon, because of the dearth of money immediately upon the calling-in of the State’s money, which was 500,000 that came in; and yet there was not any money to be had in this City – which they say to their own observation and knowledge was so. And therefore, though I can say nothing in it myself, I do not dispute it.
There is contemporary speculation as to the contents of the Treasury Repository at Fort Know and the contents of the vaults of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. (That state of such contents is operationally nearly immaterial to the ability to restore the classical gold standard.)
It would seem that there is something, then and now, about dinner conversations that encourages speculation as to missing or hidden gold.
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