302

HISTORY OF MALTA.

Annual Receipt, on an average of ten years,from 1779 to 1788.

Maltese Money.

. . Crowns. T. G.

sion, together with the product of the printing-office situated in the grand-master’s palace,amounted to.. . io,557 2 13 .

_ >

English Money.£■ *. d.

1,055 14 6

Article XVI.

Duties paid by the Nobles.

A trifling duty ordained by the statutes to bepaid by every member of the order, at his recep-tion, into the treasury, on condition that thesaid treasury should defray the expences of alllaw-suits relative to first receptions till such time

as the sentence of the rota should be pronounced. 440 8 7 . 44 1 4-1

Article XVII.

Ransom of Slaves.

The order restored to liberty the Turkishslaves in its possession on being paid their ran-som, which produced. ..... 16,617 4 18 . 1,661 14 6

Article XVIII.

Minting , or coining of Money.

The order at one time was allowed the privi-lege of buying up Spanish pistoles, by whichmeans they gained five per cent; but since thegovernment encreased their value to six and ahalf, the treasury no longer thought it worth while

to convert them into Maltese coins*. . . 2,504 2 0 . 250 8 4

Article XIX.

Lottery.

The treasury opened a lottery in 1781, whichwas obliged to be shut up before the tickets were

* The coinage of gold specie was also sometimes very expensive.