70 '

COIN AT THE END OF 1599 -

CHAP. XVIII.

hundred and twelve years from the first dis-covery of America to the end of the sixteenthcentury amounted to one-tenth of the whole quan-tity produced, or about fourteen millions ; and wemay further suppose that one-fifth of the gold andsilver had been abstracted from its primary useas money, and converted into other commoditieseither for use or for ornament. This would amountto about twenty-eight millions. The sum, then,which formed the stock of money current in Europe at the latter end of the sixteenth century wouldbe composed of the stock existing at the time ofthe discovery of America , £ 34,000,000

that produced in the hundredand twelve subsequent years, aftermaking allowance for the loss bynatural wear, . . 138,000,000

172,000,000

deducting from it what had beenconveyed to Asia , and what is sup-posed to have been applied to thepurpose of commodities of all kinds, 42,000,000

■£130,000,000

The stock of gold and silver coin in Europe may then be estimated, at the end of the year1599, to amount to one hundred and thirty mil-lions of our present money.