| Title: | Copy Objections & Reply On Danish Project For Raising Money, In Scribal Hand ?, In English & Latin |
|---|---|
| Dating: | undated |
| Ref: | 66/13/1A-2B |
[66/13/1A]
<left margin, hand Y: Project for raising money>
OBIECTIONS
Made against the Danish Project, of raising
Monies. Written to Mr. H.
I kindly thanke you for the Copey of the Fruit-bearing Society: The Project in itselfe is not vnreasonable; but that it would not take effect hetherto, I doe not wonder at all, considering not only the perill, which every one is in, that hath Great Men for his Debtors; but alsoe the great hazard, which a man must runne, that will lay out such great summes vpon Interest this way, being forced thereby to deprive his next heir, to whom perhaps he would leave his Estate rather then to any other of, or a great part of it, in case of his earely & sudden death. Besides, if he should remaine alive, & find an occasion to putt out his money's another way, to farre greater advantages, or at least-wise save his Credit therewith, in case of pressing necessitie; yet is his hope qvite cutt off by this meanes; seeing hee must loose the principall altogether, & only content himself with five pro Cent: vntill some of his Fellow-members will please to die before him. Where this is further justly to be considered, that the ground of this whole worke, is much against Christian Charity, because a man can have no other hope of any profit, then from the Death of other men, which will cause but little love amongst the members of one & the same Classis, but rather on the contrary, many evill wishes and longings after the death of their neighbours: So that the more money a man hath putt in, the more evill wishes he shall heape vpon himself. And I beleeve, that the prayers and wishes for the life of their fellow-members, will bee very rare, nay if there should but be a few only remaining of one Classis, and those live together in one Citty, occasion might be administred to the most avaricious amongst them, to seeke the destruction of the others, that so they might enioy the vse & benefit of it all alone for themselves. I make no Question, but the King would be benefited very much by the speedie administration of such considerable Summes, especially, if he should [catchword: therewith]
[66/13/1B]
therewith release & redeeme some morgaged Lands, that in themselves were more worth and of greater vse, then the Interest of the said Summes comes to. But if he should spend the money only with banqveting, feasting, warres, buildings, gifts, & other such vnprofitable wayes, it may chance he would reape no such great benefit by it. For if the whole Companie should not die within 20. yeares space, but there should remaine but one of every Classis, then would he be forced in that time to pay back the whole Principal Summe. And in case the Society should stand vntill the 30th yeare, then were he to pay 8. tunnes of gold more then he receaved: Which may happen very well, in respect that many that are written in it at the 8th yeare of age, may partake thereof vntill the 60th or 70th yeare and more. But it seemes, the Ministers at Court have not weighed it so narrowly, or it may be, the hope of so great summe, hath blinded their eyes, thinking; had they but once the money from the People, it would not need so much extraordinary care afterwards, how the Interest should be payd, there beeing many wicked men at Princes Courts, that know to vtter & to shew many reasons out of their Treasurie of Impudencie, for which a man ought not to pay even his lawfullest debts. And I doe not believe, if one, that had putt in but 100. Rixdollars should survive all the rest of his Classis, that the whole summe of 10000. Rixdollars would be allowed vnto him longer then for one yeare: But it may be, they would soone meete him with this pretence, that he receaved sufficient vse for his 100. Rixdollers allreadie; and therefore might leave the further Benefit thereof very well vnto his Majestie, which perhaps afterwards one of the Grandees would qvickly begg for himself, for his life time. But if the king should chance to die, ere this Society were ended, doe you thinke that the Successor, (:especially if he should find, that the money's received, were not imployed to good vses, for the benefit of his Realme:) would thinke himself obliged to pay the Interest any further? How easily could he breake off the Society qvite, & put off some with this pretence, that they had receaved sufficient vse allreadie, & satisfie others with some other inconsiderable preferments. In which case they, that by reason of the long life of their fellowes, could not have much Benefit, would be mistaken very much: To say nothing of the charges of going to & fro, & other Inconveniences, & vnexpected Accidents, that may fall out in such and the like things, which a man must learne only by his owne Experience. Wherefore I conceave, that this Society would be best for those, that either have so much money, that they doe not valew some [catchword: hundreds]
[66/13/2A]
hundreds or thousand Rixdollars or that they doe not care much, who shall be their Heire, and whether he may receave any thing from him or no? For my part, I should have very much money over, ere I would venture something in this Society, which for one of the reasons aforesaid only, may doe a man much more harme then good./.
RESPONSIO
Ad Objectiones præcedentes.
Video ad pauca capita reduci posse Objectiones illas, qvibus egregium illud, seu Danicum, seu Italum appellare velis Inventum, præsentibus Principis necessitatibus subveniendi, ærariumque ejus etiàm imposterùm locupletandi, oppugnare Tibi visum fuit. Nam vel suspectam habitum iri fidem Principis, Leoninamque illam, jam olim improbatam, societatem existimas; Vel nè infrà modum usura subsistat, homo alioqvin minimè avarus, metuis; Vel alijs, qvibus res angusta domi est, nimiùm caves, ne scilicet spem pretio emere, ac creditorum, imò hæredum ac necessariorum in fraudem, famæque detrimentum, ultrà qvàm facultates permitterent, in societatem hanc conferre velint. Denuo Christianæ Fidei, speique ac Charitati adversari putas, si qvis vel jactum retis emat, hoc est, incerto eventui, cui omnia humana subjacent bona sua committat, vel rationem aliqvam ineat, aut saltem leviculâ cogitatione, nonnunqvàm secum reputet, qvænam ex hereditale aliqvâ legitimâ, olim in se sint redundaturæ opes. Interim tamen, vel eo ipso, qvòd hominem aliqvem bonis ac locupletibus Parentibus prognatum, vel senis alicujus divitis hæredem esse novimus, qvantùmvis tenuis præsens ejus fortuna sit, magno illum plerumque honore habemus, eidemque libenter in spem propinqvam ea subministramus, qvibus & semetipsum tutari, ac alijs, si velit benignum se præbere, publicamque ac privatam rem facere possit. Neque verò Christianis prohibitum esse invenio, bona sua vel præsentia vel futura nosse, eaque mente comprehendere. Expositam autem iri vereris boni cujusque vitam perditorum hominum insidijs. Qvasi usqvam tuti essent, humana saltem ope subnixi, qvibus opes ingentes, cognitique passim thesauri? Qvasi verò non publicæ rei Principisve [catchword: interesset]
[66/13/2B]
interesset, tanto majorem eorum curam gerere, qvibus tanta, aliqvando ærario fiscove inferendæ, pecuniæ vis esset, tantoque exactiorem in eos inqvisitionem instituere, in qvos acceleratorum ijs fatorum, vel levissima suspicio caderet? Credin' verò adeò sublatum iri è melioribus mentibus, omnem humanitatis ac pietatis sensum, ut non eadem pro vitâ ac felicitate proximi vota suscipere, eodem ipsum vultu intueri, eodem affectu complecti velint, cujus successores se aliqvando, (:incerti tamen an crastinam detur tueri lucem:) futuros existiment; Non aliter ac si vera eorum bona in hisce terrenis ac perituris consisterent; qvi Cælestes opes in se ipsis possident, qvi mundana conculcantes, ad æterna anhelant, qvi spinas ac tribulos divitiarum experti, nemini alio molestias illas invident. Benè tamen habet, qvòd Inventum hoc usui, adeoque permagno Principi futurum, tandem confiteris, si rectè atque ordine eo uti norit. Hoc enim erat qvod qværebatur, & absque hoc esset, ne Cræsi qvidem divitiæ rerum suarum satagentem, adjuvare possint. Nam qvas Tu mihi aulicorum vulturum ac prædonum artes narras; in illis qvidem Aulæ Vestræ genium artificiosè depingis. Ego tamen ita statuo. Si Princeps detur prudens, sapiens, justus, magnanimus, recti tenax, fidei intemeratæ, qvalem fama fert novum hoc Magnæ Britanniæ sydus, Eum non tuo tantùm, sed magno Reipublicæ bono, medium illud, de qvo agimus, capessere posse. Neque de alijs levioribus incommodis quæ exinde emergere posse autumas, magnoperè sollicitus sum cùm et sagaci authoris ingenio de plerorumque omnium remedijs, jam ante prospectum sit, & aliarum gentium praxis, jam pridem docuerit, nihil magnæ rei in hoc negotio occurrere, cui non solerti operâ obviari possit./.