for the public good, which is the common cant of all projectors in their Bills, from a First Minister of State down to a corn-cutter.  But I stopped him short, as I would have done a better man; because it is too gross a pretence to pass at any time, and especially in this age, where we all know one another so well.  Yet, whoever proposeth any scheme which may prove to be a public benefit, I shall not quarrel if it prove likewise very beneficial to the contriver.  It is certain, that next to the want of silver, our greatest distress in point of coin is the want of small change, which may be some poor relief for the defect of the former, since the Crown will not please to take that work upon them here as they do in England.  One thing in Mr. M’Culla’s book is certainly right, that no law hinders me from giving a payable note upon leather, wood, copper, brass, iron, or any other material (except gold and silver) as well as upon paper.  The question is, whether I can sue him on a copper bond, when there is neither his hand nor seal, nor witnesses to prove it?  To supply this, he hath proposed, that the materials upon which his note is written, shall be in some degree of value equal to the debt.  But that is one principal matter to be enquired into.  His scheme is this: 

He gives you a piece of copper for a halfpenny or penny, stamped with a promissory note to pay you twentypence for every pound of the said copper notes, whenever you shall return them.  Eight and forty of the halfpenny pieces are to weigh a pound, and he sells you that pound coined and stamped for two shillings:  by which he clearly gains a little more than sixteen per cent.; that is to say, twopence in every shilling.  This will certainly arise to a great sum, if he should circulate as large a quantity of his notes, as the kingdom, under the great dearth of silver, may very probably require:  enough indeed to make any Irish tradesman’s fortune; which, however, I should not repine at in the least, if we could be sure of his fair-dealing.

It was obvious for me to raise the common objection, why Mr. M’Culla would not give security to pay the whole sum to any man who returned him his copper notes, as my Lord Dartmouth and Colonel Moor were, by their patents, obliged to do.[113] To which he gave some answers plausible enough.  First, “He conceived that his coins were much nearer to the intrinsic value than any of those coined by patents, the bulk and goodness of the metal fully equalling the best English halfpence made by the crown:  That he apprehended the ill-will of envious and designing people, who, if they found him to have a great vent for his notes, since he wanted the protection of a patent, might make a run upon him, which he could not be able to support:  And lastly, that his copper, (as is already said,) being equal in value and bulk to the English halfpence, he did not apprehend they should ever be returned, unless a combination, proceeding from spite and envy, might be formed against him.”