An ACCOUNT of the OFFICE for Transferring& Discounting Land-Bills.  
EXperience hath long since shown, That the use of Bills, or Notes of Credit, is absolutely necessary in great Commerce and traffic; because it makes Payments of money easy, quick, and certain, by preventing the trouble and loss of Time in telling it over, and damage from Light and Counterfei●-Mony.  
And because great Losses have happened here in England, from the Insolvency of several Persons that have given out Bills or Notes of Credit; therefore great Thoughts and Industry has of late Years been employed, both by the public and Private Persons, in settling Funds of Credit to prevent Losses; All which Attempts have hitherto proved unsuccessful.  
And yet, upon due Consideration it plainly appears, that both public Funds and Private Mens Estates, without an Act of Parliament, are very capable of being so settled, as to make a certain Fund for Bills of Credit to pass in Payment as well as Ready-Mony. And therefore, the reason that such Attempts have not as yet proved successful, must be solely from the want of Knowledge and Skill in the Managing such Funds of Credit; by reason, perhaps, that some Persons who had great share in the contriving of the Settlements of such Funds, had no part in the Management of them.  
Upon these Considerations, and especially from that of the more than ordinary Occasion for Bills of Credit at this time, since the Quantity of the money is greatly lessened by the new-coinage of it. And, to the intent that so Useful a Design to the public, and of so great an Advantage to the Nobility and Gentry; As the making the Lands of England a Fund for Bills of Credit, might not be lost, from the Discouragement some Attempts of this nature have met with, for want of Success; this Office for Transferring and Discounting Land-Bills was formed, and settled upon the Terms and Conditions herein expressed.  
I. That the Masters and Managers of the Office( to be chosen as is herein expressed) will provide proper Persons to accept the Trust, and to take the Conveyances of all manors, Lands, Rents, Tenements, and Hereditaments, which the Owners thereof shall desire to convey, pursuant to the Settlement of the Office for Transferring and Discounting Land-Bills, which is to this effect: That the Owners of the Lands may draw Bills of Credit on their Estates, as far as Three Fourths of the Value; and that such Conveyances shall be made in Trust, in the first place, for payment of those Persons to whom such Bills are assigned, and afterwards in Trust for the Owners of the Lands. The Conveyances are to be entered in the Books of the Office. The Fee for Conveying and Settling in the Office, is Twenty Shillings per Cent. of the Value of the Estate, and Five Shillings per Cent. for entering the Conveyance in the Books of the Office, and Twelve-pence per Bill.  
II. That the Value of all Estates may be the better known, upon which Bills are to be drawn not exceeding the Value of Three Fourths, the Rates are as followeth, viz. Ground-Rents in Fee, Two and twenty Years Purchase. Lands in Fee, Twenty Years Purchase. Houses in Fee, insured, Seventeen Years Purchase. Leasehold Estates, according to the length of the Term. Ground-Rents of Sixty Years, with a Reversion of the Improvement, Eighteen Years Purchase. And so in proportion for shorter Terms. improved Rents, a term of Sixty Years and upwards, well Tenanted, Fourteen Years Purchase. Fifty and upwards, Thirteen. Forty and upwards, Twelve. Thirty and upwards, Eleven. Twenty and upwards, Ten; with the Allowance of a Years Purchase more or less, according to the Country, Place, Certainty of the Rent, and other circumstances.  
III. That if any Difference should arise betwixt the Master and Managers of the Office, and the Owners of the Lands, about the Title or Value of any Estate, 'tis to be determined by a Council of Seven, to be Yearly chosen by the Owners of the Lands.  
IV. That after any Estate has been entered in the Office Six Months, and the Bills in the interim have been once assigned, that the Value of such Bills may be the better known and approved of; The Bills drawn on such Estates, upon giving a Months Notice to the Office, and paying after the rate of Twenty Shillings per Cent. shall be Discounted and Paid in Ready-Mony, by the Office, without any other Deduction than a Month's Interest, payable on such Bills; so that such Interest be not less than Two-pence per diem.  
V. That the Interest of the Bills is to be paid by the Office every Six Months, according to the Date of the Bill: And therefore every Person, upon Conveying and Entering his Estate in the Office, is to deposit a Years Interest; and also to pay to the Office the Interest every Half-year, Ten Days before it is due.  
VI. That all Bills are made Assignable and Transferrable only in the Books of the Office, wherein the Habitations of the Persons to whom the Bills are assigned are mentioned; There being no other way to prevent Counterfeiting of the Bills; Or to know where to sand for the Bills when any Person desires to call for them in, and discharge his Estate; which the Office undertakes to procure upon a Months Notice, and to deliver to the Parties that have such Bills, money or Bills of the same Value, at the Election of the Parties. And after Notice left at their Abode, the Interest of the said Bills ceases, till they bring them to the Office. The Fee for Assigning of a Bill is One Shilling.  
VII. That the Bills drawn on Estates in Houses, may be of the same Value as Bills drawn on Land; the Houses, before they are conveyed and entered in the Office, are to be insured from Fire: And to that intent there is an Office for Insuring Houses from Fire, wherein several Hundreds of Houses are insured, annexed to the Office for Transferring and Discounting Land-Bills.  
VIII. And that all Bills, after they have been Discounted by the Office, may be of a more certain Value, there is Ten per Cent. of the Stock of the Office, and One per Cent. of the Value of all Estates, conveyed,( which is to be deposited at the time of Conveying and entering the said Estates) Appropriated, and made a Fund or Security to make good all Losses, if any should happen, to such Bills. And to distinguish them from other Bills, a Stamp of the Office is to be set upon them, after they are Discounted.  
And because the Care of Safely Lodging and Disposing of money is not much less troublesone to some Persons, than the Care of Wanting to others; those that lodge their money in the Office, shall have Bills Discounted by the Office assigned them, and their money repaid upon a Months Notice, without paying for their Discounting. And if they Assign those Bills to a third Person, they are to be allowed Ten Shillings per Cent. by the Office.  
IX. That there may never be wanting in the Office a Sufficient Sum of money to Discount the Bills, and to Reimburse the Stock of the Office; the Masters and Managers of the Office are to call for in equally, Ten or more per Cent, of the Value of all the Bills drawn on Estates conveyed and entered in the Office; for which money Bills are to be assigned; and after Six Months, upon a Months Notice, those Bills are to be again Discounted by the Office. And those Persons as shall refuse or neglect to pay such Proportions of their Debt as shall from time to time be called for, or neglect to pay their Interest, when due, the Masters and Managers are to call for the whole Sum due on such Estates: And after Six Months demand, and not paid, the Trustees are to sell the Estates, by the public Sale of the Office.  
X. That it may be the Interest of the Owners of the Lands to assist and promote the Circulation of their Bills, by making their Payments by Bills of the Office; the Owners of the Lands are to be Sharers with the Office, in the Profit of the Discount; that is, for every Hundred Pounds that the Owners of the Lands pay into the Office, they are to have Bills assigned them: And upon Reassigning the said Bills to a third Person, they are to be allowed Ten Shillings per Cent. by the Office.  
XI. That the Owners of the Lands, having a joint Interest with those that are Sharers in the Office, to support the Credit of the Land-Bills, have Power, by the Settlement, to hold General Courts, and make such Rules and Orders for the Advancing the Credit of their Bills, and promoting the Circulation of them, as they shall from time to time think necessary. And also choose Annually among their number Seven Persons, who are the Council of Appeals, and are to determine all Differences betwixt the Owners of the Land, and the Master and Managers of the Office, about the Title or Value of any Estates conveyed and entered in the Office.  
XII. That the Stock of the Office is divided into Five hundred and Twenty Shares, each Share being Fifty Pounds, with a Power, by the Settlement, for the Owners of the Stock to enlarge it when they find Occasion. The ●overnment of the St●ck is by a Master and Ten Managers to be chosen Yearly. But for the better establishing of the Office, the Master is appointed by the Settlement, for the first two Years: And every Person that has 〈…〉 es is to be one of the Managers for that time. And because there is no present Occasion for money, Bills being not to be Discounted by the Office till after Six Months; therefore there is only Five Pounds for each Share to be paid to the cashier, at the Admission into the Office; And the rest is to be paid when the Masters and Managers shall call for it.  
XIII. That there is a public Sale to be appointed, once a Year, or oftener, by the Master and Managers of the Office, for the Selling of Lands and Houses; which will be found to be of great Advantage to the Owners of Lands, who are often forced to Sell their Estates at Undervalue, for want of Customers; And of as great Benefit to the Purchaser, who is too often imposed on in the Value of the Estate. Whereas the Value of Lands entered in the Office will be well known. The Fee for Selling Estates is Ten Shillings per Cent. of the Value the Estate is Sold for. And all Estates conveyed and entered in the Office are to pay Ten Shillings per Cent. whenever they are Clea●'d and discharged of the Office.  
These are the Chief Conditions of the Settlement of the Office for Transferring and Discounting Land-Bills.  
The Advantage to the public by this Office is; That by this Settlement the Lands of England are made a Fund for Bills of Credit; which makes such Bills undeniably certain, and will prevent Losses: For the Person that draws the Bill, the Estate, the Credit of the Office, and the Fund of Insurance, are all engaged for the Payment of the moneys due on the Bills. And had this Design been sooner thought of, it might have prevented the Loss of near Three Millions of money, which have been lost within these Thirty odd Years, being within the time since Goldsmiths Notes have had a Credit.  
The Advantages to the Owners of the Lands are very great: They may have money on their Estates, after the first Charge of entering them in the Office, as far as Three Fourths of the Value at Three per Cent. And if they make all their Payments by Bills in the Office, they may save that Interest. Besides, they may pay off and discharge any part of their Debt, at any time, without Notice: Which Single Conveniency will preserve many a Family from Ruin; for, by those Wholesale Mortgages, the money being all to be paid together, and being too great a Sum to be easily borrowed, the Owners of the Lands are too often foreclosed of the Equity of Redemption, and lose One Fourth Part of the Value of their Estates.  
But by this Settlement of the Office the Lands there conveyed and entered are as good as Ready-Mony; for tho' no Bills are to be Discounted by the Office till after Six Months; That does not lessen the Value of the Bills, because they may be Assigned in the Interim, and will be accepted and taken, if they are of Value, according to the Settlement: And if they are not of such Value, they ought not to be Discounted by the Office. And as to the Charge of One per Cent. for Discounting them, that cannot prejudice the Value of the Bills; for the Interest of the Bills may, for the most part, pay it: But if not, the Bills cannot be reckoned worse than so many Guineas; for they change their Value Two-pence or Three-pence a Guinea once or twice a Year, in the most settled times of Payment, and yet no man refuseth them; because there may be a Loss of One per Cent. by taking them; nor are the Bills the worse because they are not to be Discounted without a Months Notice, because, in all Dealings, Payments within a Month are reckoned as Ready-Mony.  
It is not designed by this Office, to make these Land-Bills better than Ready-Mony; for if it were possible to manage Funds of Credit, which are not money, by Bills with Interest, all Payable on Demand, and to make the Payments in money certain, such Bills were better than Ready-Mony; because of the Interest of the Bills, which Ready money does not produce. But, how can those Payments be made certain, when it is uncertain what will be demanded? Unless the whole money owing lay in a Chest, or the Directors or Managers had Midas's Power, that whatever they touched, they could turn into Gold.  
But such a Power the Masters and Managers of this Office do not expect, and therefore have placed the Belief of the punctual Payments of their Bills upon this Probability: That having always a Month's Notice of what they are to Pay, they may the better provide to comply with their Payments, especially when it is in their Power to call for Ten or more per Cent. of their Bills, whenever the Office wants money; And when it is the joint Interest of the Owners of Lands, as well as of the Office, to support the Credit of their Bills; And so easy for the Owners of the Lands to comply with the Occasions of the Office; because, if they have not money, having Bills, which are real Security, assigned them, they may easily borrow it; and much easier borrow Part, than the Whole▪ which in all other Mortgages they are forced to do whenever the money is called for; and especially since those Bills are again to be Repaid and Discounted by the Office, after Six Months, upon a Months Notice. For these Reasons it is very probable the Office can never want money to Discount their Bills.  
And since by this Account of the Office the Directors and Managers of other Funds may seem to be reflected on, by saying, That the want of Success was for want of Skill in Management; if any Displeasure should from thence arise, to cause some Retaliation: It is hoped that it is out of the Power of Anger or Revenge to lessen the Value of these Land-Bills. And as to the Punctual Payment of them, the Master and Managers will be content to fall under the Severest Censure, whenever any Person comes twice to the Office for his money, after once his Bills are due.   

☞ The Office for Transferring and Discounting Land-Bills, is kept by the Hercules-Pillars in Fleetstreet, near Temple-bar. Together with the Office for Insuring Houses from Fire.