And that there may be no fraud or connivance, and too great trust be not reposed in the said secretary, every subscriber who brings his quarterage is to put it into a great chest, locked up with eleven locks, every member of the committee to keep a key, so that it cannot be opened but in the presence of them all; and every time a subscriber pays his quarterage, the secretary shall give him a sealed ticket thus [Christmas 96] which shall be allowed as the receipt of quarterage for that quarter.
Note.--The reason why every subscriber shall take a receipt or ticket for his quarterage is because this must be the standing law of the office--that if any subscribers fail to pay their quarterage, they shall never claim after it until double so much be paid, nor not at all that quarter, whatever befalls them.
The secretary should be allowed to have 2d. for every ticket of entry he gives out, and ld. for every receipt he gives for quarterage, to be accounted for as follows:
One-third to himself in lieu of salary, he being to pay three clerks out of it.
One-third to the clerks and other officers among them.
And one-third to defray the incident charge of the office.
Thus calculated. Per annum. 100,000 subscribers paying 1d. each every quarter Pounds s. d. 1,666 3 4 ============= One-third To the secretary per annum and three clerks 555 7 9 Pounds per annum. { To a registrar 100 } { To a clerk 50 } { To four searchers 100 } 550 0 0 One-third { To a physician 100 } { To a surgeon 100 } { To four visitors 100 }
{ To ten committee-men, } { 5s. each sitting, } { twice per week } One-third { is 260 } to incident{ To a clerk of } charges, { committees 50 } such as { To a messenger 40 } 560 15 7 { A house for the office 40 } { A house for the } { hospital 100 } { Contingencies 70 } 15s. 7d. ============== 1,666 3 4
All the charge being thus paid out of such a trifle as ld. per quarter, the next consideration is to examine what the incomes of this subscription may be, and in time what may be the demands upon it.
Pounds s. d. If 100,000 persons subscribe, they pay down at their entering each 6d., which is 2,500 0 0 And the first year's payment is in stock at 1s. per quarter 20,000 0 0 It must be allowed that under three months the subscriptions will not be well complete; so the payment of quarterage shall not begin but from the day after the books are full, or shut up; and from thence one year is to pass before any claim can be made; and the money coming in at separate times, I suppose no improvement upon it for the first year, except of the 2,500 pounds, which, lent to the king on some good fund at 7 pounds per cent. interest, advances the first year 175 0 0 The quarterage of the second year, abating for 1,000 claims 19,800 0 0 And the interest of the first year's money at the end of the second year, lent to the king, as aforesaid, at 7 per cent. interest, is 1,774 10 0 The quarterage of the third year, abating for claims 19,400 0 0 The interest of former cash to the end of the third year 3,284 8 0 ============== Income of three years 66,933 18 0
Note.--Any persons may pay 2s.