as a source of income; for, contrary to
the Imperial decrees, which imposed upon them the duty of having their
money coined in one of the approved mints of the Circle, they coined
actively in their own territory. Sometimes they let their right of
coining for a year's rent, nay, they even disposed of their mints to
other princes as a speculation. These irregular coining places were
called hedge mints, and in them a systematic corruption of money took
place. No inquiry was made as to the right of the coiners; whoever knew
how to manage fire and metal, engaged in this kind of work. There was
little regard for the prescribed fineness of texture, and weight of the
money; it was coined with false stamps, and the head of the ruler, with
the date of a better period, were stamped on light coin; nay, in
regular false coining, the stamps of foreign mints were often
counterfeited. The brightness of the new coin was removed by tartar or
lead water; and all this took place under the protection of the
Sovereign. The disposal of the money thus coined required all the
cunning and circumspection of the agents, and a line of industry was in
this way formed, which we may presume occupied many intermediate hands.
Thundering decrees had been fulminated for seventy years at the
Imperial Diets and Assemblages of the circles, against the hedge mints,
but without success. Indeed, after the introduction of good Imperial
money, they became more numerous and active, for the work paid better.

Such was the state of things even before the year 1618. The sovereigns,
small and great, required more and more money. Then some of the Princes
of the Empire--the Brunswickers, alas! were among the first--began to
outdo the proceedings of the most notorious of the hedge mints; they
caused the coin of the country, both heavy and light, to be struck of a
bad mixture of silver and copper, instead of silver, and soon it was
only copper silvered. At last, as for example at Leipzig, a small
angular coin was issued by the city, no longer of copper, which was of
higher value, but of pure tin. This discovery of making money at little
cost spread like a pestilence. From both of the Circles of Saxony it
spread to those of the Rhine and Southern Germany. Hundreds of new
mints were established. Wherever a ruined tower appeared firm enough
for a forge and bellows, wherever there was abundance of wood for
burning, and a road to bring good money to the mint and carry away bad