Of coi: 
tin. 
! g 2 NATURAL HISTORY 
eight for twenty to its owners. The melter having bargained for 
the parcel brought, gives his note to deliver the quantity of white 
tin agreed upon at the enfuing coinage, and at his own conveniency 
(taking care judicioully to mix, correct, and qualify the diderent 
forts of tin which he takes in) melts the tin in a reverberatory furnace, 
with a fire of pit-coal, all which comes from Wales. The great con- 
fumption of wood ufed in charcoal by the former and more ancient 
method h of melting tin by a blowing-houfe ' , fuggeftedat lad the necefiity 
of introducing the pit-coal for this purpole, and among tne ied to the 
noble Sir Bevil Granville of Stow in this County k , who (as I have been 
informed) made feveral experiments for melting of tin therewith 
(though without fuccefs) in order to fave wood, and keep the tin 
from wafting in the blaft. The invention of the reverberatory fur- 
nace, about fifty years fince, has rendered this fire effectual, but 
the pit-coal leaves a fulphureous brittlenefs in the metal which the 
wood-fire does not, the former aftimilating in fome meafure the 
metal to the harfhnefs of ftone, and the latter infufing the tough- 
nefs of wood ; and this is the reafon that tin melted in the olowing- 
houfe by charcoal fells for more at the market (ufually a twelrth 
part more) than that of the furnace, as being the purer metal. When 
the ore is fufliciently melted, it is poured into quadrangular troughs 
or moulds of ftone, containing about three hundred and twenty pounds 
weight of metal l , which, when hardened, is called a block ol tin, 
and carried to the coinage town. 
; Five towns m are appointed in the moft convenient parts of the 
county for the tinners to bring their tin to every quarter of a year. 
In the time of Henry VIII. there were but two coinages in a year, 
viz. at Midfummer and Michaelmas n , but two more were added 
at Chriftmas and Lady-day, for the conveniency of the tinners, 
for which they pay an acknowledgement (called Poft-groats) of 
four-pence for every hundred of white tin then coined. When 
the tin is brought to the coinage-town, the officers appointed by the 
Duke of Cornwall aflay it, by taking off a piece of one oi the under 
corners of the block of about a pound weight, partly by cutting and 
partly by breaking ; and, if well purified, ftamp the face of the 
block with the impreffion of the feal of the Dutchy °, which ftamp 
h At prefent pratHfcd in fome parts of Cornwall 
but only for fmall parcels. 
• Called fo from a fire or blaft perpetually kept 
in vigour by the blowing of a large bellows turned 
by a water wheel. 
k Temp. Car. I. 
1 Formerly they made not thefe blocks fo large, as 
appears by the blocks lately found inSt. Auftel-Moor 
mentioned pa. 163, which do not weigh full 3olb. 
I ” Lilkerd, Loftwythye), Truro, Helfton, and 
Penzance, which laft was added to the four ancient 
Towns, in the time of Charles II. for the conve- 
niency of the Weftern tinners. 
" Leland, Vol. iii. Itin. page 12. 
0 The arms of Condorus laft Earl of Cornwall 
of Britifh blood (temp. W. 1.) were Sab. 15 be- 
zants (5, 4, 3, 2, 1 ) in pale. Or. See Camden, 
page 26. Richard King of the Romans, Earl oi 
Cornwall, fon to King John, threw thefe be- 
zants into a bordure round the bearing of the 
Earls of Poidlou : He bore therefore Argent a 
Lyon Rampant Gul. crowned Or within a bordure 
fable garnifhed by Bezants, (fee Camden, page 
27) and this ftill continues the Dutchy Seal. 
