628 A. D. 1414. 



1414, May 26"' — The king farmed ihe fole right of drawing bills of 

 exchange for the ufe of perfons going to the papal court, the city of 

 Venice, or other foreign places, for three years, to Louis John, at an 

 annual rent of ;^ 133 : 6 : 8 ; and he bound him down to export no gold 

 or filver on account of his bills. The merchants were, however, allow- 

 ed to draw bills for their merchandize, but upon no other account. But 

 no perfon was permitted to carry money to Bruges or any other place 

 for remittances to the papal court or elfewhere. The leafe of the trade 

 of exchange was afterwards renewed to Roger Salvern and Louis John, 

 and the rent raifcd to £200. [Fcedera, V. ix, p. 130 — Rot. pat. 5 Hen. V, 



VI. I.] 



September 26"" — It is probable that gun-powder was not made in 

 England in the year 1386, as we find a quantity of it efteemed more 

 valuable than all the other articles found onboard two French fhips 

 taken at that time. In 141 2 the ambafTadors of the earl of Alen9on 

 were licenced to export 400 pounds of faltpetre and 100 pounds of ful- 

 phur, along with other military flores, whence we may infer, that pow- 

 der was then made in England : and now we find the exportation of 

 gun-powder firidly prohibited. [Walfingham, p. 323 — Feeder a, V. viii, 

 p. 754; V. ix, p. 160.1 



November — ^The parliament ordained, that goldfmiths (hould take 

 no more than £,2:6:Z for the Troye pound of ftandard filver gilded ; 

 and that they fhould charge only a reafonable price for gilding *. lAds 

 2 Hen. F, Jlat. 2, c. 4.] 



The exemption from the obligation of carrying the ftaple goods to 

 Calais, granted to the commercial ftates of Italy and Spain by the adl of 

 the fecond year of Richard II, was renewed. The parliament alfo con- 

 firmed to the merchants and inhabitants of Berwick their privilege of 

 purchafing wool, hides, and wool-fells, of the growth of Tiviotdale and 

 the adjacent part of Scotland then fubjed to England, and of England 

 as far fouth as the River Cocket, and to fell the fame in Berwick, or to 

 export them. The merchants of Jerfey, Guernfey, Bretagne, and Guy- 

 enne, having made a pradice of buying unfounded tin and fliotten tin 

 in Cornwall, and carrying it to France, the Netherlands, &c. all perfons, 

 except thofe above-cxcepted, were (Iridly ordered to carry all kinds of 

 ilaple goods to Calais. \c. 6.] 



141 5, March, April — King Henry, having determined to afiert his 

 claim upon the crown of France by the fword, fent commiffioners to 

 hire vefiels for him in Holland and Zeland. He alio ordered all the 

 veflTels in England of twenty tuns burthen and upwards to be taken into 



• By tliis aft the goldfmiths were allowed it dcteimiiic, what was a rcafoiuil-lc piice for gild- 



jfl : 1 : 8 for the gold and workmaiifliip. If lliat iiig. Biitltr, llic author of IrhiJibras, who under- 



was' too little to pay for fufficient gildinjr, they flood that matter better tl)aa our anticnt Itgiflat- 



had only to make it flight ; for the law did not, ors, fays, that the worth of any thing is fo much 



like the one now in force, afccrtain tlic qnantity money ae 'twill bring. 

 -of gold to be laid on a given furface. Neither did 



