But there are some points in his proposals which I cannot well answer for; nor do I know whether he would be able to do it himself.  The first is, whether the copper he gives us will be as good as what the crown provided for the English halfpence and farthings; and, secondly, whether he will always continue to give us as good; and, thirdly, when he will think fit to stop his hand, and give us no more; for I should be as sorry to lie at the mercy of Mr. M’Culla, as of Mr. Wood.

There is another difficulty of the last importance.  It is known enough that the Crown is supposed to be neither gainer nor loser by the coinage of any metal; for they subtract, or ought to subtract, no more from the intrinsic value than what will just pay all the charges of the mint; and how much that will amount to, is the question.  By what I could gather from Mr. M’Culla, good copper is worth fourteenpence per pound.  By this computation, if he sells his copper notes for two shillings the pound, and will pay twentypence back, then the expense of coinage for one pound of copper must be sixpence, which is thirty per cent.  The world should be particularly satisfied on this article before he vends his notes; for the discount of thirty per cent. is prodigious, and vastly more than I can conceive it ought to be.  For, if we add to that proportion the sixteen per cent. which he avows to keep for his own profit, there will be a discount of about forty-six per cent.  Or, to reckon, I think, a fairer way:  Whoever buys a pound of Mr. M’Culla’s coin, at two shillings per pound, carries home only the real value of fourteenpence, which is a pound of copper; and thus he is a loser of 41l. 13s. 4d. per cent.[114] But, however, this high discount of thirty per cent. will be no objection against M’Culla’s proposals; because, if the charge of coinage will honestly amount to so much, and we suppose his copper notes may be returned upon him, he will be the greater sufferer of the two; because the buyer can lose but fourpence in the pound, and M’Culla must lose sixpence, which was the charge of the coinage.[115]

Upon the whole, there are some points which must be settled to the general satisfaction, before we can safely take Mr. M’Culla’s copper notes for value received; and how he will give that satisfaction, is not within my knowledge or conjecture.  The first point is, that we shall be always sure of receiving good copper, equal in bulk and fineness to the best English halfpence.

The second point is, to know what allowance he makes to himself, either out of the weight or mixture of his copper, or both, for the charge of his coinage.  As to the weight, the matter is easy by his own scheme; for, as I have said before, he proposes forty-eight to weigh a pound, which he gives you for two shillings, and receives it by the pound at twentypence:  so that, supposing pure copper to be fourteenpence a pound, he makes you pay thirty per cent. for the labour of coining, as I have already observed, besides sixteen per cent. when he sells it.  But if to this he adds any alloy, to debase the metal, although it be not above ten per cent.; then Mr. M’Culla’s promissory notes will, as to the intrinsic value of the metal, be above forty-seven per cent. discount.