DIEV ET MON DROIT HONI SOIT QVI MAL Y PENSE  royal blazon surmounted by a crown and flanked by the English lion on one side and the Scottish unicorn on the other  
❧ By the King.  
❧ A Proclamation concerning Tin.  
WHereas for the well ordering of the Tin of this Our Realm of England, diverse and sundry good Customs, Laws, and Ordinances have been heretofore used, made, and established, by the wisdom of former times, amongst which there hath been ever special care and provision, that all the said Tin should be duly brought to certain places of Coinage, and there tried and assayed and peyzed at certain Balances, and by weight used for that purpose, and by a Stamp or Mark ordained for that purpose, sealed and allowed before the same be put to sale within the Land, or offered to be Shipped for Foreign vent. And to that end also Our noble Progenitors have been at charge to erect and maintain certain Coinage houses in several Towns within Our Counties of Devon and Cornwall, lying most commodious for the said Coinage, with Balances and Weights there, and Officers and Ministers attending that service. At which places at certain days of Coinage and post-Coynage appointed, special Officers of the Stannaries do, and have been wont duly to attend, to receive, try, assay, peyze, coin, seal and allow the said Tin, by setting a Mark, Seale, or Stamp upon the same.  
By which means both We and Our Progenitors were secured of the emption or preemption and Coinage duties of the said Tin, being ancient and undoubted hereditary Revenues annexed to Our Crown in right of Our Duchy of Cornwall, and also the Tin had his just and true assay, according to the goodness and richness of it, that neither Our own Subjects nor others might be defrauded in the buying of the same, nor yet the Subject hindered by any unnecessary delay in the lawful Trading and Merchandizing thereof.  
And whereas out of a Princely care to cherish and maintain the Trade and Working of such a worthy and Staple Commodity, of so much honour and profit to this Commonwealth, Our dear Father (of blessed memory) did not long since take order to allow a greater price for the working and making thereof then ever was given before, which We have hither-unto continued.  
And Our said late Father in His life time by sad advice, did settle the Tin business in a more orderly and better course than ever before it was, aswell for the benefit of Us, being then Prince, as for the contentment and satisfaction of Our loving Subjects, the Merchants and Pewterers of London and other places.  
Yet nevertheless We are informed, That by the secret practice and combination of sundry ill minded and covetous owners and workmen of the said Tin and Tin works, a great part of the said Tin hath been heretofore, and daily is bought and sold, received, delivered, and carried away uncoined, aswell in Ships and other Vessels, which under colour of coming to buy Cornish Slate and Stone and such like occasions, upon the coast of Cornwall, do embezzle much uncoined Tin in Blocks, as also by Mariners and Seafaring men, who buy up the Tin in Bars, commonly called, Pocket Tin, of Blowers and Melters of Tin and others, contrary to the ancient Ordinances of Our Stannaries aforesaid, to Our prejudice and wrong in Our said Revenue, and the disgrace of Our said Commodity and abuse of Our Subjects buying the same untried and not assayed.  
In respect whereof, as We might most justly extend the rigour of Our Laws against sundry offenders notoriously faulty in this behalf, both against the Law and Custom of the Realm and of the Stannaries, and against Our late dear Father's Proclamation, which in Our natural inclination to mercy We have forborn; So We cannot in Our Princely care of the Commonwealth and Our own right, but provide for redress and reformation of these great disorders for the time to come; And finding that the Proclamation made by Our dear deceased Father, hath not wrought that good effect that was expected; We therefore do by these presents straitely charge and command, aswell all and singular Our loving Subjects, as all other person and persons whatsoever, that none of them presume, upon any colour, shift, or pretence whatsoever, at any time or times hereafter, to utter, sell, deliver, or put to sale, or to receive, ship, carry, land, or contract for any Black Tin unblown, but such as cause the same to be cast, melted down, and blown and brought to the place of Coinage, before it be sold for use, nor to sell, give, barter, or utter any White Tin, or Cast Tin before it be first Coined and Stamped with Our Seal or Mark appointed for that purpose, as aforesaid, upon pain of forfeiture aswell of the said Tin, and other condign punishment in case of land carriage, as also of confiscation of the Ships, Hoys, Barks, Lighters, and other Vessels wherein any such prohibited Tin shall be shipped or laden for transportation contrary to the intendment of this Our Proclamation, and also upon pain of Our high displeasure, and of such further penalties, forfeitures, and punishments in both cases, as by the Statutes and Ordinances of Our said Stannaries, or any other Law or Statute whatsoever, or by the censure of Our high Court of Star-chamber, for disobeying this Our Royal Commandment and Injunction, or otherwise may be inflicted upon the offenders in this behalf.  
Giving all Our loving Subjects to know, that any toleration or forbearance for the time past shall be so fare from justifying or warranting the like abuses to be continued in time to come, as contrary wise it shall aggravate the fault thereof in respect of Our former clemency.  
And whereas We are given to understand, that there are certain wand'ring Pettie-Chapmen, and Tinkers and others haunting much about the Tin works and places of melting of Tin, who do make it a usual Trade to buy and barter Black Tin by the Bowl, and White Tin uncoined by the pound weight, or other small quantity, and so do carry the same from the said places, to certain private places of receipt, till having gotten by this unlawful means some store together, they vent or spend the said Black Tin before it be blown, and sell the said White Tin before it be Coined, by sea or by land where they find best Chapmen, to the prejudice of Us and Our loving Subjects as aforesaid:  
Our will and pleasure is, and We straitely charge and command all and singular Our justices of Peace, and all the Officers and Ministers of the Stannaries, and others whom it shall or may concern, before whom any such Tinker, Pettie-Chapman, or other person offending shall be brought, diligently to examine and find out, where, and of whom he had the said prohibited Tin White or Black found with him, and where and to whom he meant or intended to sell the same, or hath heretofore sold any other of like sort: And aswell the said Tinkers and Pettie-Chapmen, as all other persons who shall be found privy to the buying or selling, receiving, delivering, or bartering of the said Tin Black or White, as aforesaid, to commit to Our Gaol of the stannary of that County where they shall be taken, and otherwise to punish them according to the Laws, Customs, and Ordinances of Our Stannaries, as the quality and nature of the offence shall by the Laws and Statutes of this Realm deserve, and for contempt of Our Royal Commandment and Proclamation in this behalf.  
And where We have lately granted to some of Our loving Subjects the emption or preemption of Tin, during a term unexpired, and for relief of poor Pewterers of the City of London have provided, That if the said Lessees or Farmers shall be minded to transport any Tin in Bars, they shall employ the said Pewterers of London, or some of them that Our said Farmers shall nominate for the casting of Tin out of Blocks into Bars, at such places as We shall appoint, and in default of such appointment, at such places as Our said Farmers shall appoint: Since which time many have presumed to cast Tin into Bars, both in the Counties of Cornwall and Devon and elsewhere, which is a means that a great part thereof is the more easily conveyed from place to place and vented before the Coinage thereof, and others than Our Farmers have opportunity to transport the same, contrary to Our agreements made with them: We do straitely inhibit all persons that none of them, other than such of the Pewterers of Our City of London as shall be nominated by the Farmers of the emption or preemption of Tin, for the time being, do presume to cast any Tin into Bars, and that none of them cast any Tin into Bars but in the City of London, And that in the same City none be so cast but in such houses and places of melting as shall be designed or allowed of by Our said Farmers, upon the pains to be inflicted upon contemners of Our Commands in Our Court of Star-chamber and otherwise.  
Given at Our Court at Whitehall this two and twentieth day of january, in the ninth year of Our Reign of ENGLAND, SCOTLAND, FRANCE, and IRELAND. 
 God save the King.   

❧ Imprinted at London by Robert Barker, Printer to the Kings most Excellent Majesty: and by the Assigns of john Bill. 1633.