[1641/8/250]*[print] [email] [cite] [preceding] [following]
Our sovereign lord and estates of parliament, considering that the prices of all merchandise does daily rise to exceedingly great dearths, which is alleged to be occasioned through extraordinary customs and impositions, for remedy whereof, his majesty, with advice and consent of the said estates, does discharge all and sundry whatsoever customs and impositions exacted by the customs officers which are not allowed and approved by the acts of parliament, and especially the late custom of two and a half per cent and late new imposition of £4 upon the tun of wine, and all raising of his majesty's customs directly or indirectly without consent of parliament. And because that the too much troubling of the merchant estate and drawing of masters and mariners from their ordinary charges does much impede the trade, therefore his majesty, with advice and consent foresaid, discharges the taking of merchants', masters' and mariners' oaths in the matter of customs. And to the end that the subject of trade may not be restrained with unnecessary customs, therefore his majesty, with consent foresaid, declares that all goods and merchandise imported from foreign places to this kingdom and out paying inward custom shall be free of all outward custom, accordingly as is used in England and Ireland. Likewise his majesty declares that he consented to the act above-written upon this condition: that commission and warrant be granted to the exchequer to establish the book of rates, accordingly as the prices of merchandise now rule; and his majesty permitted the option to the burghs, whereupon the burghs, having advised, they made choice to be ruled by the book of rates regarding the customs and consented that commission should be granted to the exchequer to establish the book of rates, accordingly as the prices of merchandise now rule. In respect whereof, our sovereign lord and estates of parliament ordain a commission to be drawn up to the exchequer to the effect foresaid, and extracted thereupon for establishing the book of rates according as the prices of merchandise now rule. And therefore our said sovereign lord and estates of parliament ordain the act above-mentioned to stand as a law in manner and to the effect before rehearsed.