Whom do you think I met in town last week, Brother William?” said Uncle Benjamin. 

“That old skinflint Barret. His family had been taking him around buying Christmas presents. He said to me, ‘Why can’t the government abolish Christmas, and make the giving of presents punishable by law?  I came out this morning with a certain amount of money in my pocket, and I find I have spent just half of it. In fact, if you will believe me, I take home just as many shillings as I had pounds, and half as many pounds as I had shillings. It is monstrous!’”

Can you say exactly how much money Barret had spent on those presents?