Good God!  Who are this wretch’s advisers?  Who are his supporters, abettors, encouragers, or sharers?  Mr. Wood will oblige me to take fivepence halfpenny of his brass in every payment!  And I will shoot Mr. Wood and his deputies through the head, like highwaymen or housebreakers, if they dare to force one farthing of their coin upon me in the payment of an hundred pounds.  It is no loss of honour to submit to the lion, but who, with the figure of a man, can think with patience of being devoured alive by a rat.  He has laid a tax upon the people of Ireland of seventeen shillings at least in the pound; a tax I say, not only upon lands, but interest-money, goods, manufactures, the hire of handicraftsmen, labourers, and servants.  Shopkeepers look to yourselves.  Wood will oblige and force you to take fivepence halfpenny of his trash in every payment, and many of you receive twenty, thirty, forty payments in a day, or else you can hardly find bread:  And pray consider how much that will amount to in a year:  Twenty times fivepence halfpenny is nine shillings and twopence, which is above an hundred and sixty pounds a year, whereof you will be losers of at least one hundred and forty pounds by taking your payments in his money.  If any of you be content to deal with Mr. Wood on such conditions they may.  But for my own particular, “let his money perish with him.”  If the famous Mr. Hampden rather chose to go to prison, than pay a few shillings to King Charles 1st. without authority of Parliament, I will rather choose to be hanged than have all my substance taxed at seventeen shillings in the pound, at the arbitrary will and pleasure of the venerable Mr. Wood.

The paragraph concludes thus.  “N.B.” (that is to say nota bene, or mark well), “No evidence appeared from Ireland, or elsewhere, to prove the mischiefs complained of, or any abuses whatsoever committed in the execution of the said grant.”

The impudence of this remark exceeds all that went before.  First; the House of Commons in Ireland, which represents the whole people of the kingdom; and secondly the Privy-council, addressed His Majesty against these halfpence.  What could be done more to express the universal sense and opinion of the nation?  If his copper were diamonds, and the kingdom were entirely against it, would not that be sufficient to reject it?  Must a committee of the House of Commons, and our whole Privy-council go over to argue pro and con with Mr. Wood?  To what end did the King give his patent for coining of halfpence in Ireland?  Was it not, because it was represented to his sacred Majesty, that such a coinage would be of advantage to the good of this kingdom, and of all his subjects here?  It is to the patentee’s peril if his representation be false, and the execution of his patent be fraudulent and corrupt.  Is he so wicked and foolish to think that his patent was given him to ruin a million and a half of people,