USE OF GOLD AND SILVER. CHAP. XXIV. 



in Argiielles that the goldsmiths and silversmiths 

 in Spain amounted to four thousand two hundred 

 persons. Their operations must consequently 

 have drawn, for the purposes of ornaments and 

 utensils, a large share of that gold and silver 

 which came from America in the form of coin. 



After the war of the succession, by which Spain 

 had suffered severely, she appears gradually to 

 have declined in general wealth, and probably in 

 the application of the precious metals to purposes 

 of luxury ; for certainly there was little of luxury 

 to be seen in the houses of even the richer classes 

 of inhabitants towards the close of the century. 

 This may be seen by the report of a council of 

 state held in June, 1794, when Spain was en- 

 gaged in war with the French republic, and from 

 the state of her finances was compelled to con- 

 template some strong measures to obtain pecuniary 

 resources. An account, in what manner taken 

 does not appear, was laid before the council of 

 the whole mass of gold and silver belonging to 

 the churches and other religious establishments, 

 and to private individuals, stating it to amount to 

 eleven million forty thousand pounds sterling 1 . 

 A suggestion was made to these bodies to give up 

 to the state what could be spared from the in- 

 dispensable requisites for the sacred rites and from 

 the necessary uses of private persons ; but the 



1 Argiielles de Hacienda, vol. i. p. 66, and vol. iv. p. 345. 



