Trial of the Pyx. 15 



lasting several hours — and those reports are compared. To 

 the credit of the Mint, it must be said that the jurors' reports 

 have seldom or never disagreed to an illegal extent, certainly 

 they have not since the year 1290, and, consequently, no Mint 

 Master has ever, from such a cause at least, been carried off 

 by a Serjeant-at-Arms. 



The true standards of weight and of fineness of all gold 

 and silver coins issued from the Royal Mint have been already 

 mentioned, bat it must be observed that a certain amount of 

 latitude is allowed by law in both those respects. It has been 

 found practically impossible to manufacture metallic money in 

 large quantities, and with any degree of rapidity, in such a 

 way as to insure the perfect uniformity of each individual 

 coin with the exact and true theoretical standard prescribed. 

 In spite of the most rigid attention in the admixture of the 

 alloy with fine gold or fine silver, there will occur deviations 

 in the ultimate degree of fineness of different parts of the 

 resulting metal. So, again, with regard to weight. However 

 mathematically precise the mechanism necessary for the pro- 

 duction of coin may be in its action, there is sure to arise 

 variations in the weight of the planchets cut out for stamping. 

 This latter result arises mainly from the differing density of 

 the metal operated upon. Legal allowance is made for these 

 inevitable aberrations, from which eveu the trial plates are 

 perhaps not entirely exempt. This allowance is termed in the 

 Mint indenture the " Master's remedy. - " This remedy has 

 varied in extent at certain periods, but at this moment is, so 

 far as gold is concerned, , 2 V of a carat, or twelve grains upon 

 each pound troy, both as respects fineness and weight. The 

 remedy allowed upon silver employed in the coinage is one 

 pennyweight per pound troy, for the standards both of weight 

 and fineness. Beyond these limits it may be said to be im- 

 possible for any Mint coin of gold or silver to escape the Mint 

 walls. The trial of the Pyx is supposed to demonstrate this 

 fact, and to give it the stamp of extra moral, and independent 

 official certainty. 



We may now give some particulars as to the most recent 

 public trial of the Pyx, with the finding of the jury on that 

 occasion. The trial took place on the 19th of January of the 

 past year, and was conducted precisely in the way indicated 

 above. The monies thus examined comprised „ Pyx-pieces, 

 culled as described from the daily productions of gold and 

 silver coin at the Mint between the first day of January, 1861, 

 and the 31st day of December, 1865, both days inclusive. The 

 jury, at the close of their investigation, stated that they 

 found in, and took out of the Pyx- box, gold coins consist- 

 ing of 45,482 sovereigns, or twenty shilling pieces, and 4348 



