Bose SK & Mitra A (1958), West Bengal District Records. Murshidabad. Letters Received 1789-1803

p171

Letter from C. Shakespear (at Calcutta) to C Oldfield (Collector of Murshidabad), dated 21st April 1794

In reply to your letter of the 11th currect, I have the commands of the Governor General in Council to desire you will send to the Moorshedabd mint for recoinage the 11, 12, 15 and old 19 sun rupees if the latter are of short weight to the amount of sicca rupees 48,018 which has been returned to you by the commercial resident at Jungypore – as they were become bullion at the time you wrote your letter and consequently were neither receivable or issuable in any transaction public or private.

To the second query in your address I am to refer you to the regulation you quote of the 24th October 1792 which answers your question in the negative.

The sam erecolution applies to the 3rd point and directs that all 19 sun siccas whether new or old, of full weight, are to be recoined.

In future you will be pleased not to correspond with the Governor General in Council but through the Board of Revenue.

 

p203

From Calcutta and fowarded to Murshidabad, dated 6th March 1795

I am instructed to request that the Board of Revenue will be pleased to call upon the Collector of Moorshedabad to report on the quantity of copper pice he may have in his treasury, which cannot be disposed of without loss, in consequence of the orders of 30th of October, that he should receive pice from the Postmaster at that station upon the terms on which they had been paid to him, or from any other cause.

p223

To Murshidbad from the Board of Revenue, enclosure dated 2nd October 1795

We have had before us your letters of the 7th November and 7th August last, and your secretary’s letters of the 25th August & 1st ultimo, respecting the difficulties which have been experienced in consequence of the existing rules for receiving rupees by weight.

We have resolved that all sicca rupees of the 19th sun which shall not have lost by wear a greater proportion of their full weight than six annas per cent or six sixteenths of a rupee in one hundred rupees, shall be considered as of full weight and received accordingly in all public and private transactions.

You will however, particularly point out to the Collectors, that the above rule is to be considered applicable to loss of weight by wear only, and that where any such rupee shall have lost any part of their full weight by filing, clipping or other artificial means, they are to direct the podars and officers who examine the money before it is weighed off, to reject them.

Rupees of the 19th sun of the description specified in the preceding paragraph and rupees of the 19th sun which may have lost by wear or otherwise a greater proportion of their full weight then six annas per cent, are to be received so long as the rules prescribed by the 35th Regulation of 1793, for receiving rupees of sorts at the public treasuries may remain in force, agreeably to the following rule: for one hundred sicca weight of such light nineteenth sun sicca rupees the payer is to receive credit for one hundred sicca rupees. The light rupees so received at the public treasuries are not to be dispersed therefrom, but are invariably to be sent to the mints to be recoined.

The Mint Master at Calcutta will furnish you on your application for the use of the Collectors with stampt copper weights of fifty sicca rupees each, or such other number of sicca weight as you may require, and against which all receipts in your department, whether consisting of rupees of the 19th sun or rupees of sorts (so long as rupees of the latter description may be receivable at the public treasuries) and all payments in silver, which are invariably to be made in sicca rupees of the 19th sun only, are to be weighed.

The above rules are of course to be applied to the halves and quarters of the 19th sun sicca rupees.

It is our intention that the preceding rules shall be made general, and a regulation for that purpose will be accordingly framed and printed and published in the manner prescribed in the 41 regulation of 1793.

p223

To Murshidbad from the Board of Revenue, enclosure dated 9th October 1795

I am directed by the Board of Revenue to transmit to you for your information and guidance the enclosed copy of a letter from the Governor General in Council

I am likewise directed to acquaint you that the Board desire you will state to them what weights will be required at your treasury for the purpose mentioned in the 5th paragraph of the orders of Government.

p225

To Murshidbad from Calcutta, dated 23rd October 1795

I am directed by the Governor General in Council to desire you will inform the Board of Revenue that orders have been issued to the judges of the zillah and city courts to pay to the Collectors any rupees of sorts not siccas of the 19 sun which may be among the deposits in their respective treasuries; the Governor General in Council desires that the Board will instruct the collectors to send all such rupees immediately to the mint to be recoined.

p226

To Murshidbad from Calcutta, dated 4th December 1795

I am directed to acquaint you that the Board of Revenue having addressed the Governor General in Council respecting the weights required for the different Collectorships, the Mint Master has been directed to prepare ten setts for the use of your office, of the following denominations

1, 2, 4, 8 annas. 1, 5, 10, 25, 50 rupees

Two setts will in the first instance be forwarded to you as soon as they can be prepared, and the remainder as soon afterwards as may be practicable for the use of your mofussil treasuries.

p233

To Murshidbad from Calcutta, enclosure dated 11th December 1795

I am directed to desire you will inform the Board of Revenue that the Governor General in Council desires thay will communicate the following orders to the Collector of Murshidabad. That they will direct him to repay to Lieutant Agg the amount deposited in this treasury sicca rupees 2,017 together with the further sum of sicca rupees 2,731-3-4 being the amount due to the Assay Master on an adjustment of accounts of the Moorshedabad mint to the end of October.

The Governor General in Council having further resolved that the coinage of the Moorshedabad mint be for the present discontinued, he desires that they will order the Collector to discharge the establishment, and to pay the arrears to the date on which he may receive their order; that they will also direct him to pay to lieut Agg the amount of his salary to this date from which time the appointment is considered as abolished.

The Governor General in Council desires they will order the Collector to send to the Mint Master at the Presidency all the coining implements and machinery and stores belonging to the mint with the exception of such as may be necessary for the process of assaying, which latter he is to retain. He is also to be instructed to retain possession of the house rented for the mint, it being the intention of Government to take into consideration the expediency of staioning an Assay Master at Moorshedabad for the purpose of receiving bullion and old and light coin and granting certificates for its produce payable at the public treasuries and for transmitting the coin or bullion to the Calcutta mint.

p234

To Murshidbad from Calcutta, enclosure dated 4th December 1795

I am directed by the Governor General in Council to desire you will lay before the Board of Revenue the accompanying letter from the Mint Master and inform them he has been directed to stamp the weights with the usual mark, denoting the specific weight of each and also to prepare a separte set of weights for each Collectorship to be kept for the purpose of accasionally trying the weights in common use.

The Governor General in Council desires that the Board will inform the Collectors that they are supply themselves with scales.

p441

To Murshidbad from Calcutta, dated 14th August 1799

The Acting Mint Master at Calcutta (F. Mury) acknowledged receipt of the Assay utensils and implements of the late mint at Murshidabad

p468

To Murshidbad from Calcutta, dated 3rd December 1799

I am directed by the Board of Revenue to acquaint you in reply to your letter of the 9th ultimo, that the Governor General in Council has been pleased to confirm the sale of the building, formerly appropriated to the use of the mint at Moorshedabad.

 

 

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