The Statesman. — London, England, 1821-04-10 00:00:00

THE STATEiffIAN. might be, perfectly true ; but'that there was no re medy for those evils which resulted tram a &kneel us.'est if the cuirrettre. might , however, easily be proved that we lead brought our standard above that what: it was is the year 1797, and therefore versos 'teed be %crapulous to that degree as to fear any ill councilmen* fret* the adoption of his p positimi. It might be said—" Don't let us ag ro gra• vate the evil; but let es rather leave it where it To this, the fact which he had just alluded to svuoilul be sufficient answer. It ought to be the object of the l e gislatner, in applying a remedy for an alteration . w hich had been so desunctive, to enter, if possible into those principles which pervaded the coin's of parties at the tittle that former contracts had been made. Though ti-is could not be followed up in ail in stances, yet having once touched the standard, he 4141 not know whether it might not he the hest course to pursue, obieryiug, as nearly as could be, what might justly be supposed the real proportion of value be to ern the two standard,. We had gone beyond that ho N ever, the present standard exceeding that of 179/. The House would remember that prior to that year gold and silver jointly' were a legal tender. 'fs,e price of gold was then 31. 17s. Iltld. ani of silver ss. 4 .1. per ounce. Gold still remained at 31. 17s. hut silver within these few days bad fallen a. lo.r as 45. Iftd. That silver gas now at 4s. Ind. which might before th e y ear 1797 ( a lways excepting the operation of a certain order in council which was in its origin only a temporary measure, and not made permanent till . 1797) be taken to the Mint and ex changed{ for coinage at 695. to the pound. This ga ve a di ff erence in the value of about 7 per cent. t might be will to consider what would be the dif I.:reuce between the Bank of England's having in any future case of difficulty one metal as a legal tender, and its flaying two. Why, any person conversant with these things must know that iis suds a case it wonlul add considerably to those difficulties to say to the Bank, " You shall have but one metal —gold for instance." If this were the case, the Bank would proceed with great timidity in all its operations; f; would have to look around through all Europe for and it would be liable to perpetual losses by reason of the rperttlatious of all the stock-jobbers in tie marimt But the house was told that a single metal was the ono, e profitable standard. If they would hake up their minds to have gold currency, they would be entitled to say that it was for the benefit of the country now to take a gold standard ; but when the house looked to what a debtor had a right topap, this p; inciple w mild appear to be wrong; when they found that before the year 1797 he had the right of dis cdiarging his debt in silver, and that that gave him an advantage of some 7/. per rent. they might, at least, with perfect justice, take that amount from the present salue of the standard. If the sovereign, instead of were to base a value of 21s. affixed to it, he 1::onglit it might he done with perfect security, with out injury to the public, and without any breach of the public faith. Ile thought that this al, ne would be ground for going into a committee, in order to as certain whether they had not screwed up the standardl of the currency to a higher scale than at any harmer period. If they looked to the different etchanges of Europe, they would find that the pumnsi sterling had tisrn in the same proportion; they would bud in those lists that it etas higher *ow than at any former time whatever. The Honourable Cd •ditlensaid, after assuring the House tltat lie wool.' he the last person to disturb any mea sc.te of this description if be did not beheve it to he ittcnded with comequences the most fatal, opti c:tried Ly re.ddling his andentltnent. Ml. Arrwowt seconded the amendment in a speech of c.msitlera:.le length, the greater part of was indlis.inctly heard in the gallery. If the L.: 4 5e Averted to the recent operations on gold, they find that in 1315 and Isl.' we ro munenred the I.:.,dortation of bullion that in the change us hit h took place in the circumstances of this country in the years 1517 and ISIS, the whole was again exported ; and that its the succeeding period of distress all this gold once more re-appeared. It was impossible to cm.sider these importations and exportations of Kola as connected with the great changes in the situation of the country. without seeing that they materially infitenced these rhanges. It was absurd to ascribe the present distress to the importation of a certain aumber of quarters of wheat from Ireland, or to an ailinslant harvest. Such an effect had never been known to proceed rum) such cans, s in any country.— (Ilear.)—The redo: tid' of the issues of the Bank since 1319 haul beet, 6,000,0001., and he would put it to the Chancellor of the Exrhequer whether a reduc tion of Bank notes from 29,000,090/. to 23,000,1 1 011/. —that was, a reduction of more than one-fifth of the circulation—adm. t not produce a difference of more 2;1 per I rut. in the value of money and the price of cousmodities,ainstead of 5 per cent., as was con tenle,l by an Won. bent.--(Hear.)—The scale of Frices in every country depended on the quantity of wom:y eirentiting iii that country ; and therefore it was es ident that when the circulation was diminished, ices most be reduced. What were the symptoms that indicated at present an improvement, as alleged by !the right Hon. Gentleman opposite, in the condition of the labouring classes ? Were these indications to be found in the tracts of land that were thrown out id cul tivation, in the circumstance that the manufacturer was unable to employ the usual number of bands, or in the reduction of tht slapping employed in com merce ?—(Hear, hear)—The increased consumption of articles had been talked of as an indication of an improved situation; and in support of this opinion the case of British Spirits had been referred to by a Noble Lord in another place. It happened, however, that the Noble )Lord had given the number of gallons of wash instead of spirits. Ilad not Ibis mistake been mole, it would have appeared that there was a dimi nution of fully one-fifth in the consumption of spirits. It rested with government' to examine this important subject : if ,esietisig distresses -arose out of measures within the control oflailiansent, a dreadful responsi bility rested with Pirliitueut not investigate the question, and prepare. a remedy.—(Hear.)—llls position was this—that the distresses were within the control of Parliatient, that they might be wholly re lieved by a meissitin;of tie dOubtful . tendeney, bat of which the cgunfrit ;hid - hid'receit anperiencei and which, :whether just or unjusi, had bite aduptscl by the present government only four years •ago.. That measure was to give back to the country that standard of value sad amount of circulatioo in which its debts ;i scare incurred. its taxes iteposert, and in which alone theyought to be discharged anti paid. If this prnpo sition wart rejected, the nation must %vait with pa tience the next proem of that experiment (as hail it beau called) uow undertaken, awl which hall Already iisrolved it in surfs unprecedented distress. If it were staccessfel, and a return tet prosperity were obtained, it co uld only be he the destruction of the present ge neration of farmers and trader., and by the successionill of another ietts their Islas r,, less int:mole red, hut sill lalsouting !antler the naiti4a!eri pressare of public bur slots. Such was the most f a coaralsk pos,iirct now al fssrsletl ; more gloomy view, a nd one that perhaps tuil!iit be realized hereafter, was thr ruin of the whole system, the a liattilostment of public faith, and the de struction of public cs e dit. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCIIEQC ER said that, in tepeated discus-ions, be had been reproached with 'Wearing or delaying the retorts to a stastriaril, and of m aintaining an artilieal state of ilsits4s fatal to commercial prosperity. Ile WE S IlOw or!) (nil he could comply, because he had *sever brill any faller A ellatritle) to support the cocient legitimate standard of the country, whirl, however fur a time deserted, had never been totally lust sight of. It was sa id that the cJuntry was & antra upon tu make gout! the eisgsagenseetts of war at the standard of peace ; hut be wished to know what standard lion. Gentlemen would propose . If the standard of 1797; to that we had •returned. After the peace of Amiens the priceof the precious me tals rose ; but it was not un:il the peninsular war that the difference because at all considerable. Whatever were the cause, the s otisespetsce was a wide departure fur a remain number of years from the value of our paper cosrency in the metallic circulation, in which it was accessary to pay the foreign engagements of the country. lie should like to he informed which of the variable and fluctmatiug standards the HAL m one would fix upon. Whatever change he would recon.- useful, no period route be pointed out fur its adoption, without doing the most obvious and glaring injustice as to every engagement contracted before or after thud time. Ile was supported by the resolutions of the House, and by the arguments of the other *We e ks say int: that no engegements were ever made that were not subjcct to the return to rash payments: that was an invariable onolition. After the peninsular war awe its c onsequences, followed the peace; and soon after wards, upon the Hun. Gentleman's own showing . , that very standard was restored at which we were now once more arrives', by a different operation. A art'" tad depression, thong)' slight, sulEsequently took place, owing perhaps to the Wails Irons the Rank, rendered use cetsary by the removal ofthe property tax. If the stand ars) of Isl • were taLess, it would not snake the price of gold inure than -IL Is. or U. 25.; and he would leave the House to decide whether a variation thus protium.' of live or Nis per cent. would give such important relief as to be worth the sacrifice of the faith of Patlisstreent and the stability of public credit. If indeed debts c ontracted at the standard of 3/. I 7s. INA. were pay able at U. Ills. neopsest . ably grievous injustice would be done; but as such was not by any sueans the rase, he, the (Chastrellor of the Exchequer) only wiabiol retain the ground oil which the lisaaticial aefairs of the country sere at present post d. As yet he bad heard no plausible argument fur usidoisstr what bail been already eltose.—(llear, hear.) --The Hon. Member for Taunton (Mr. Darius) had not attempted to pledge Parliament to more than inquiry by a CO iiiii bust the Hon. Gentleman who followed had gone much further, and had stated his project to reduce the standard to what it had been during the war. Flue lion. Member for 'Taunton had sow. rtheless souse other suggestions to snake, though i.e had abandoned the remedy he formerly proposed ; and what remained was a suggestion for sit 'sing do standard as ' mix a silver with a gold cattretsey, by making silver a legal tender to any extent, however unlimited. Tries it was that in this proposal be was justified by the' ancient usage of the country ; but from the date of Sir Isaac Newton's Report, in 1 7" I, when the price of the guinea was fixed at 21s. the silver currency had not its fact beets a legal tootles-. It had been limited still fur ther in 17113; and in I 774 it had been rs.stricted to 251 The circulation of silver Was now plentifill; hut by law its use was principally confined to the subdivision off paper and gold. The lion. Nlember for Taunton bad main tained that a silver as ws II a gold standard would give relief to the extent of 111 per cost. ; but its the first place, he was mistaken in the price fur which lie could now procure silver : thee bores: prier was in. Intl. per ounce: and, in the next place, it was' undeniable that a standard its one metal was more perfect than in two. It was admitted by all writers on this subject than ally metallic standard was im perfect hum the fluctuating nature of the usaterial ; but if two metallic standards mere adopted, of course the imperfection would he doubled. On the whole he saw urither justice nor policy in the proposition. In ordinary transactions a creditor would seldom be able to avail himself of the advantage, while a new opportunity would be afforded to sq eritlators of play ing with the precious metals, and taking advantage ofl their price. It ought to be recoil. tacit that whatever, distress arose from a low price or eonsivisniitiesi; * wits not confined to this country — ( scar, hear ;)—it was felt elsewhere, especially in Am:-rica, where the re duction un flour was grestcr than that we hail expe -1 ricnced upon wheat.—(Hear, bear.) —The same sic 'pression prevailed in the article of colon. At least this condition, therefore, was not owing to the act of Il•!19, but was proolureti. nearly in al parts u f the w orld, by much snore general causes l . One of those causes, perlsaps, was the two successive and productive harvests ; and if they were continued, either the price of g rain would be still further lowered, or the growth would be dinsinishesl. question was, whether the existing degree of ineon venieuce, difficulty, and pressure, had not been fore seen by the Committee of the House on this sub ject, sod whether Parliament ought now to retrace its steps, undo all that had been done, and again embark on the troubled woo es of an uncertain and fluctuating currency. It could not be denied that any hesitation or doubt on the subject was produc tive of difficulty. During the sitting of the Bullion Committee all business was paralized; and was the same state of uncertainty now to be restored, instead of persevering in a course that had been sanctioned by the almost unanimous voice of Parliament. He by au means shared the terrors of the Ho s. Best. with re gard to the revenue ; the returns for the lAst quarter made up the other day skewed that the sources "had been, on the whole, more productive, allowing for the and the cot,.. 1 s oc.o. ton have a e er y ners would be malt tax, than the corresponding quarter of the pre- Rills and other Government seru , iities u - „, ceding year. It was kn o wn that the consumption nf garner ofbringing such large none": l i almost all estriarahle arti , les had increased, and was (for it should he borne in min d I likelf to increase hereafter. He ailuaittetl the error in price of ell.) would be that, the - I , ' \ t., ...lite the nu t ; , ; that eOl.l * ti. a former return : vetch stetril the quantity of wa , ll in- considerable fall, for the time, at i t l d . f l o i r i e v l u. .l " cl u od s li t it he ., stead of the quantity of spirit t hot diet did not of sending over their gold, to pie Cease a: remote a ff ect the nes uracy of subsequent accounts . many Isere trould he ohligt•d to sr .. bUdi prices u ps the e ff ect of rendering ,iiwse E wo l ui, ,l ls : ll _ Upon the whole three was much more reason to Itepe : lie slearcst, one of dr ches.pest tonotrics iii F.,, e t ot Kai :Arem. ste at+ , instead of the that the presence of distress would be alleviated by persevering steadily in the course merited out by par- woillil be a great blessing, ii it were not for the li:intent, Gout by adopting arty new and untried pro-1 mots expenses and the luaus- fixed sa:aries se l,i t •h ell t i l 'i : jeets. Above all he again pre sed upon the house, I country had to pay. that the danger and inconvenience of again agitating `, one of the highest taxed commit-3 in the miestion might be boundless and irremediable . It ; would, to; lie had already °l:set...ea, be a ' Europe , de l el ll 4 7d the system at present a dopted were abandoned, !solemn- I for gold when the preaent measure came into °pm. folence conlil in future be reposed in the most conside-Isioll, ol ano ifivionah, a il rate decisions of the legislature. a 1 e . 4;it p, s F p,i A , said he should teats a'i 11 g o e b a e r e s n , would bles beaused with x i t o i7 u er -• as d t io s: ta ll r io e t i t c e li n i tg i f d i r e l eo a gk e , flo gh , i l e t w u da r i i' In tl' , i ' l e cap laa khra l g ra yh uri e l mee e epu il l iNt r t t.. oppose the notion of lii' hon. friend (Mr. Baring.) in pr e f e rence to paper. :-ouie uscild t ~ .we et glad t is. f ai t The rirritlation, in his opinion, was now about to he for it from curiosity and the ti • I y i placed on a sound Lads, on which it could not be af- others would, from nioti o ( 1 .". t: of the thing ; alui f-'cted he the present or any similar motion. Ile 'amid to p oss ess it ; not avoid expressing his surprise at the great Siff , r• Lion who would be inclined o motives there was, I sPec f ulation, tudeay. " ence which existed hetwren the doctrines of his Hoe. paper fr an of u I rat er th a , would not be regular for him to say that the p i• Friend and the conclusion he 'Mende I to draw lieved these ex i s ted a grea r t ' l a e ri e u i front them. Ile (Mr. Baring) had fully admitted Mat a frequent change in our currency %eolith l ment were a war with the people : bat there was 1 e af lit he a gr eat na tional evil. and yet, at the saute tittle, believed, a large portion of the peop le at n or it io:p a i e e . Lc would, by sending the mi'asure ( fur the resumption liament, and they would take golsl to ans of rash payments to a co mmittee) re- p lunge the coun- ment. They were now convinced that thetoy‘peetll- try in all the uncertainty i n which it was before that , t i s . o li d e tr y that i w d o: y ld s l u to ch t beinteoanasttea,t i I .k e t a l v te ou l r inz a tt i l l e l c t k il w s: 7 l measure had been decided upon. Mr. AIONCK was of opinion that the cause of all Exchequer, as the more vuluerabl point. 11e h a s the distress which existed in the country might be pointed at those inconvenience which, in his opinion, summed up in these two principles--the pressure of would result from the measure before the house; bat excessive taxation, rendered still more heavy by the he could not point out how they were to be remedied. attempt to return fr a false and fictitious, to a sound At a ll eve nts he f e ll satisfied t h e it ,„fi one f the 16,. currency. But however notch we inielit feel that for Member for Taunton (.Ir. )taring) would nut h e a a time, it would be better than to return to that un- remedy. One good effect, and one alone, lie was err- s oloist state of our currency from which we are now mitt of—the difficultisoiressnotfoloisurneptmeerseau g insittuoati emerging. The question n ow was, whether, owing would be a salutary tame the immense debt which had been contracted for the , per or play tricks with so sacred a thing as our ise ton tory, we al Id pay it in a debased or in a sound tallic currency. Mr. RICARDO, in reply to the observations of Li s and metallic curtency. On this aubject, he thought the It of kliniso'rs hall been most reprehensible. Hon. Friend who had just sat down, observed, thatis The I liatirellor of the Exelsequer load induced the , predicting on a former occasion, that the variation be- • to room to a resolution, which ctwete.nhpeabpryrnannind,egaonlsdbewcoaumlde b re e s" on n ly s • ib f l u e e t r or or an ti y re um /intro, 10 years ago, , wh ether of 10, ail, or 50 per cent. on the other corn* certainly lie (Mr. Muncie) considered a disgraceful shwa. It the measure which he recommended bad ben out. Ile had plopioted, and the Ilouse adopted the proposition, that a pound should not be taken fur' adopted. it would have beets unnecessary f ur the )tug less, nor the guinea sold for more than its nominal to tiny an ounce of gold ; and in that (-slat the white value ; and upon this, soon after, an Act was passed, I sariation in the value would have been four or in pet maliog it a misdemeanour to take inure than 21s. f r ,:ent. Advertino to the 'apposed case of Francr,io stanced by his Hon. Friend,he maintained atenosiderale a 2 . liillea ill , •aglil, or lets than 211 s. for a pound cote; length, that that supposed case was i n favo r of hiso p inthe mid at the very saute time it w as as well khown as any The H thing else which was done en 'Change, if ge, that a guinea onour"ble Member for Taun ton had s p oken a the adoption of gold as the standard of our cse in gold continued to he bought in the market for '?pis. rency was modern. The fact was, that it had ben Nut only was tisk the fact, but the Governintott itself adopted in 1796 or 1791. Up to that period both rid • was the principal purchaser of guineas at that price, auden silver were Chancel a legal ten o der. His E Righquert Ileamtaseteik for the ;impose of sending them over to pay our troops Frid the lor f the xchemel to be in a little error on this subject ; for he appeared then on the continent. lie called for a contradiction to suppose that lie•fore that period silver wasa kpl of ski.. it it were not the fact. It was i m possible to tender only up to 231. That tea; certainly the came rli-prose it: and if it were necessary he could bring tatteihet prima of it to the Bar ; for, w ithin the last to ree with respect to the degrad ed Silver then curvet. Bet he was in converssition with a person wh days, o was the Mint was open to any o ne who chose to ettinleyed on that occasi on ; „ that the 1a„,.. to be mined, and if he owed 100,00 W. with thateas makers on that occasion turned out to he the first and he might pay his debt. The price of Silver, boom' , Ilse printipol lawohreakers. He held in his hand with reference tie the price of Gold, was reit sulk as t a calculation of the variation in the prices of corn and i nduce persons to carry Silver to be coined in meter gold, taken at periods of four years at and since the cute to carrying Geld. In 1796, 1797, or 179 d (Le lirst Bank Restriction Act. In 1797 the price of did not exactly recollect which) a change took place is corn was 625. doe quarter. I n 101 l 1 the price had the relative prices of the two metals ; and, under thee risen to 71s. nearly an increase of 15 per cent, and circum stanc es, had the 31itst continued open to rece ive yet the price of gold continued the same. h ie 1 8 01 Silver, fur the mime of bein g coined, there could le , ion rose to 755. hut still there w as no variation in no doubt that Silv er would become the standard of or, the price of gold. In l oom c orn was as high as 795. currency.—Govern nient, however, aware of that fac. and then gold rose for tee first time to IL the ounce• two kinds of Silver eats and not wishing to have Bet the next and gti•atest rise was in 1612. Corn in 1; ttt 1 aria debased, issued an Order in Council, aro th.it )ear was 105 a. the quartet, and the price of guild he beliceed was followed by an Act of Patlianonts Is (t.il.iii2 theav,rag, ai r th , %rho ), % .„, a, fir at „„„„;,, shot the Mint against p ersons carr y ing Silva to be coined, though it still to mined open to persons carry- ~ lie believed it was as high as 51. 10s, per ounce) was in Gold fur that purpose. It the:efore was not setae 5/. ss. 611. the otoice. here then, from this vulva- If to make Gol 1 the standard of our correnec I * l, hoion the Iloti-e would perceive, that though corn be tween the years 1797 and Isl . / rose from tilts. to l i e repeated, that if leis proposition had been adopted, the Bank needed not have purchased gold at all • 1115 s, or about 100 per cent. vet the prier id gohl ne ver inereas , II beyond 27 per rent. if this mooning But he considered the declamation of his Ifoneuralie were trite, nothing ► could lie more fallacious than Friend, that gold at risen at all, as inertly Iln swop the argument of the Honourable Nlember for Portar- lion. When two cutionoilities varied in price nit- lington (Ms. iticeolo) as to the differences between reference to one another, why must it necetharily lo the real pricrsof paper and gold. An li o n. m em b e r I said that one had risen 'c Why nutlet it riot be said wa• rot rect in say; lig that there was only a difference oil that the other had fallen? His Hon. Friend the 31eur .. I or 5 per rent. in the prier of gold as compared with ber fur Taunt" was a great a uthority un such "i t :: He (Mr. Ricardo) viewed one side of the (pies- jccts. paper; but then he only tion, and left out of his consideration altogether the he said, and he would theiefore read extracts from lie depreciation of paper as compared with commodities. evidence of his lion. Friend before the Committee ° 'The Honourable Nlember (Mr. Ricardo), on a former the Batik Restriction Art, t o s how that at that tie` had a great floret for so occasion, bad also left out of lt s view the issues of his lion. Friend preferred gold as the standard °fear runner) banks. Now it could not be denied that, if a currency. The Hon. Heinber here read the utile." ''• in question.) Ills Hon. Friend accused lame ( broac, ‘ % g rest reduction took place in the price of the produce of the laud and other commodities, it must% have an eliectsin in theories. His Hon. Friend, it appeared, hal' o c ` ii diminishing the circulation, because the same quail- theories too, and theoties changed very oftta- 7 ., city could not be absorbed that was before required. lion. Friend oust net therefore pride Itiniself " 6 " This was proved from the reduction in the prices on being a practical man. his Hon. F whii•ls had taken place in the last three years. It former occasions expatiated on the danger of In Lad produced a diminution of the testes from c ountry the principles of our currency, and now, Ww_ banks. In ISIS the stamp duties on country bank letting the question rest, and allowing the e viltoleit notes amounted to 165,1100!. In 1419 they were rid of by dote, and the declared determinatioe if. A only 6 1,000/., and in 1820 they had been reduced to !lament to adhere to the system they bad establimotatu. 51,41110/. There was then a question, whether things he made a proposit:on, the effect of which 0 4 _ 5, riend bsILI would not go back to the prices at which they were disturb the whole subject, and again to agitate.T hr when the restriction conmsetired, and the unsound minds upon it. The Hon. Member, after sole "1" . _ currency, as he would call it, began to be circulated. observations, concluding by s upporting the Inel w ' r . 'they would, if in the interim we hail stood still its Mr. til'ltN EY said that raising the value of e our expenditure ; but had we loom! still? hail we nut reigns to 21s. would lie a tax of 5 per Cent. el l 1.- gone on during that time in a most Levitt: aystem of sterol property. We understood the Hon. iteat• id. . d had 'S t ' expense ? Had we not inrreased our &Id from to argue, that the variations of the staudar i sed 300 to neatly 1.000 millioms, and did we not stoned the distresses of the country. In V i l e i moe i . still eontioue most enormous civil as well as niilitary 11419, when measures of this nature had been • el° establishments ? Had n•e not a vast increase of set- be had declared his convictien that it tt as io , tled salaries and other claims upon the public income ? to recur to a utetallic standard, while the 04811 ' amongst which be would particularly notice the hie boured under such an accumulation of metre and extravagant civil list we had voted. All had in fact been no case of a Hos erome" "" be ~ these were reasons why things conld not return to their paper currency, where it did not tamper Stith I , bawl I ) former standard, with the return to cash payments.— Ine of coin which was passing frons baud to ~. ennientm ter When that measure came to be in fell operation, there lioaattrable Member proceeded in lois or, At be would be be a great demand for gold. The Bank of short time; but from the low tone in which 0. England he was aware was rich enough, and no doubt it was imposeilmle fur us to catch his °lnterest', r Frit e l would be willing to pay gold; hat would that he the Mr. ELLICE agreed with his lion. ...,:. case with the country banks? He said no: he would cribing the difficulties of the country to the c.• , debt. ilialber: sa , 0 say for the country banks that they bad not WWII. io Atkins n e t) i e careens: reel • . tion He art osi gold, to pay the fifteen millions of their notes in eir- deal wltli his Hon. Friend awo • 1 PAL . culati .n. He did not mean to say that they were not the evils occasiosed by the metoomre • . , a solvent ;—fle free it ; for he ha& no doubt they had wished much that we should he placed hi . t rr lo si 7 m , fends. But how were they to get the gold ? They y. He was at a loss 15- - tuation that we were in then ; but the ci " — lii ; would endeavour to get it by the sale of Eichequer of the country were greatly altered. lie kV" '1