ding all went well, the Company of Royal Adventurers would "be
found a Model equally to advance the Trade of England with that of any
other company, even that of the East-Indies[27]."

If this prediction was to be realized it was necessary to have a
greater stock than the first and second subscriptions had provided.
Therefore a public declaration was issued inviting any of the king's
subjects in England to subscribe for shares of not less than four
hundred pounds each, one-half of each share to be paid by December 1,
1663, and the other one-half by March 1, following. The conditions of
subscription provided that seven years after the first date, a
committee from the adventurers should be chosen to make a fair
valuation of the stock of the company. Each shareholder was then to be
allowed to receive the value of his stock in money if he so desired.
Thereafter this action was to be repeated every three years with the
same privileges of withdrawal from the company.[28] Later, as a means
of inducing those with smaller means to subscribe for stock, the
company permitted subscriptions as small as fifty pounds, providing
they were paid within eight days. Whenever any person subscribed more
than four hundred pounds, he was allowed to pay the excess in eight
quarterly payments beginning with the 24th of June, 1663.[29] By
offering these inducements the third subscription amounted to L34,000
divided among about forty-five shareholders.[30]

On the 25th of August of the same year, however, it was necessary to
seek for a fourth subscription which amounted to L29,000,[31] payment
of which could be made in eight quarterly sums if desired. For all
those who would pay the third and fourth subscriptions promptly, a
discount of ten per cent, was offered. By these four subscriptions the
stock of the company appeared on September 4, 1663, to be
L102,000.[32] Of this amount it is probable that about L57,425 had
been paid, which left unpaid subscriptions amounting to L44,775.[33]
In addition to the money obtained by the sale of shares the company
had borrowed about L21,000. With the money obtained from these two
sources approximately twenty-five ships were sent to the coast of
Africa from December, 1662, to September, 1663.[34] From these voyages
there were very unsatisfactory returns, and the company again found
itself in a critical financial condition.

This unfortunate situation was largely the result of opposition, which
its ships and