The Virginia Gazette

On the 21st of April last, there was a Grand Meeting of the Guild at Dublin, where above a Hundred and Fifty eminent Merchants were present: The Occasion of their Meeting was to draw up a Petition, to his Grace the Lord Lieutenant and Council, against lowering their Gold.
Gold Coin ; among other Reasons, for the following, viz.

That by lessening the Exchange it would enable the Absentees to live at London, with greater Advantage than they can do at present.

Among the rest, the Rev. and worthy Dr. Swift, Dean of St. Patrick's, appeared as a Member of the Guild, and as he has always behav'd with a proper Zeal and Concern, when he thought the Interest of his Country at Stake, he made a Speech upon this Occasion; Part of which was to the following Purport, viz.

Gentlemen,

I Beg you will consider, and very well weigh in your Hearts what I am going to say, and what I have often said before in other Companies. There are several Persons among whom the Power of this Kingdom is divided ; first, the Lord Lieutenant, Lords Justices, and Council : next to these my Lords the Bishops ; there is likewise my Lord High Chancellor, and my Lords the Judges of the Land, with other eminent Persons in the Law, who have Employments and great Salaries annexed: to these must be added the Commissioners of the Revenue, with all their under Officers ; and lastly, their Honours of the Army, of all Degrees.

Now, Gentlemen, I beg you again to consider. that not one of these Persons above-named can suffer the Loss of one Farthing by all the Miseries under which the Kingdom groans at present. For, first, until the Kingdom be entirely ruined, the Lord Lieutenant, and Lords Justices must have their Salaries : My Lords the Bishops, whose Lands are set at a fourth Part Value, will be sure of their Rents and their Fines : My Lords the Judges, and those of other Employments in the Courts. must likewise have their Salaries : The Gentlemen of the Revenue will pay themselves; and, as to the Officers of the Army, the Consequences of not paying them is obvious enough. Nay, so far will those Persons I have already mentioned be from suffering, that, on the contrary, their Revenues being no ways lessened by the Fall of Money, and the Prices of all Commodities considerably sunk thereby, they must be great Gainers: Therefore, Gentlemen, I do entreat you, that as long as you live, you will look upon all Persons who are for lowering the Gold, or any other Coin, as no Friends to this poor Kingdom, but such who find their private Account in what will be most detrimental to Ireland. And as the Absentees are in the strongest Views our greatest Enemies, first, by consuming above one Half of the Rents of this Nation abroad ; and secondly, by turning the Weight, by their Absence, so much on the Popish Side, by weakening the Protestant Interest ; Can there be a greater Folly than to support them in their Luxury and Vanity abroad, while Hundreds of Thousands are starving at Home for want of Employment?

On the Tuesday thereafter the Lord Mayor, Aldermen and Sheriffs of Dublin, waited on his Grace the Lord Lieutenant with the said Petition, which his Grace was pleased to receive in a very gracious Manner. On the 9th of last Month a great Number of the Merchants of Dublin met again at the Tholsel, to consider of Means for preventing the Lowering of their Coin, and afterwards went in a Body, accompanied by their two Representatives in Parliament, and the Rev. Dr. Swift, to wait on his Grace the Lord Lieutenant, to whom the Dean made a Speech, and in the strongest and most pathetick Manner Set forth the ill Consequences that would ensue to that Kingdom, if the current Value of their Coin Should be reduced ; and the next Day the Affair was taken into Consideration before the Council, when the City of Dublin were heard by their Counsel, viz. E. Stannard, Esq; their Recorder, and Anthony Malone, Esq; in Support of their said Petition, who gave so many, and such strong Reasons against lowering their Coin; that, if there ever was any such Design, 'tis to be hoped, it will be laid aside ; for it is certain, that, in our present Circumstances, it would be most ridiculous to lower the current Value of our Gold and Silver Coin, either in Great-Britain or Ireland: Such a Measure would, indeed, tend greatly to the Advantage of our Placemen, Pensioners,