The Hartlib Papers

Severall Kings of France and other great persons, and among the rest the late Cardinall of Richelieu & Mr. des Noiers one of his chiefest Councellours & a Minister of State in France, have often desired to find out the Invention to coyne the money after the way I doe now present unto this State, and even the said Cardinall & Mr. des Noiers had proposed a great reward to the man that should happen to find it out; This together with the said Mr. des Noiers his Sollicitations, did move Peter Blondeau to make use of his best industry & skill to find out the said Invention; The which after a long study & a vast expense of time & money, did so happyly succeed unto him, with the assistance of God:

The said Cardinall happened to dye about that time, & not long after the late King Lewis the 13^th whereby the said Blondeau was in some measure disappointed of his pretension. yet hee made his adresses unto Cardianll Mazarin, & by him hee offered unto Lewis the 14^th now reigning in France, this his Invention, but the Cardinall though he did relish the businesse, yet being unwilling to make such a great change during the Kings Minority, hee desired the said Blondeau, to put off his motion untill the King should bee in age: and in the meane while ordered a yearly pension unto the said Blondeau, & a Lodging in the Kings Louver, where to this day his family doth abide:

The State of England having in the meane while happiely altered the Goverment, & established[altered] a free state, the said Blondeau his zeale to the Protestant Religion, and his affection to the present Goverment made him resolue to forsake his present advantages and future hopes, to come and present this state with his Invention and having first sent some paterns, which were very well relished by the honourable Counsell of State, who approved of them, & [catchword: gave]

The said Ramage effected indeed somewhat, but farre from what hee undertooke, for hee made some thicke pieces marked upon the brimes, Wherein it is observable that the said pieces soe marked are done two several ways; the one is very auncient & chargable because long adoeing, & which cannot bee done upon the ordianry coyne which is thinne: the other way is that which the said Blondeau hath found out, which is very expeditive & quick, & therefore very little chargeable, & is done as well upon the thinne pieces as upon the thick ones; The said Ramage hath made use of the first way, that is the auncient. But the said Blondeau is the only man that may make use of the second:

As for the Doctor Gourdon, after hee had kept the said Paterns whole three months, hee insisted to have them some what longer, saying some men had promised him they would find out the Invention; but having kept six months longer hee was soe farre from getting the said Invention, that hee returned unto the said Blondeau part of his paterns, without effecting anything:

I have affirmed in my Proposition that my Invention will prevent the counterfeighting moulding, Clipping, or anyway altering the money; which I doe yet offer to maintaine & make good: [catchword: (And]

And whereas some men doe object that assoone as the way I use shalbee made publick, then it may bee counterfeited. To that I answer first that the Invention needs not to bee made publick; but if it bee the pleasure of the State, the Markins wherewith the brims[altered] are marked may bee kept secret among few men, who shalbee sworne to keepe it and not to reveale it to any, Secondly I answer that though they bee made publick, the Markins that are used therin are soe big & heavy being betweene 1 & 2000 pounds weight, & soe difficult [deletion] to bee made, that the great expenses requisite thereunto will dissuade any one to undertake, the rich not being willing, & the poor being unable to lay out soe much money for an uncertaine profit; Besides the hazard of being discovered by the privity of so many men; through whose hands the Markins ought to passe; afore they bee serviceable which affordeth me a 3^rd answer that the Markins imployed therein being soe great as aforesaid, they do require a very large roome, & a great number of men to worke about them; & consequently noe privat man can undertake the same without being instantly discovered; whereas the money that is coyned with the hammer, requireing but an hammer & two stamps, which can easily bee hidden & carried in a man's pocket; it is most easy to counterfeit the same & that secretly: yea any man that can grave can make himselfe with very little cost all what coyne<is> requisite to coyne with the hammer; all which is prevented, as aforesaid by my Invention:

Some doe reply that, that the money coyned with the hammer cannot bee easily counterfeited, because of the noise that ought to bee made in the stamping; which doth not happen in the presse or Mill - I answer that every Gunmaker or Locksmith or any [catchword: other]

other that make use of a vice can with two small stamps coyne the money in the said vice without any noise; by pressing the same at severall times: but if they were put to marke all the peice at one stroake, as in the said Blondeau's Invention, it ought to bee; then it is impossible to doe it without strong and heavie Markins, as aforesaid:

Some doe object that it can bee moulded; But to this I returne noe answer, for it is a thing knowne to all vnderstanding men in the way of moulding, that it is absolutely prevented by my Invention:

To object that it can bee Clipped is no lesse absurd then to say that the sunne is darke, or the fire cold, and therefore I passe over that objection:

Lastly some doe object that it can bee washed; or otherwise altered; To this I answer that I have dilligently inquired & studied with great expenses all the wayes of washing, and made severall experiences of them; I can boldly say I know as much therein as any man and can wash both Gold and Silver severall ways with an extreame dexterity; and therefore I may certainly affirme, that it is impossible to take away never so little from a piece so coyned by washing, but it will take away its luster & polishing, & spoyle the worke, which is most neat & delicate, soe that the grossest man and most unskillfull can easily perceive that itt looks as it had been moulded. Besides that the ingredients that are requisite[altered], & the charge necessary to bring againe together the gold or siluer, will cost more or as much at least, as the profitt of washing may come unto; Therfore I doe conclude that noe body will undertake it.

The money coyned meerly at the Mill can bee made with very small Markins, but that which is propounded by the said Blondeau cannot bee coyned without great many big & heavy Markins./.