The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1855-11-13 00:00:00

THE MONEY QUESTION.

Tins is a subject which, however distasteful to
,hose who view it as dry and. almost • unintelligible,
must force itself upon public attention preparatory to
s discussion by the legislature in the approaching
There are far greater interests dependent
upon a correct understanding of its bearings than
many persons imagine ; and the influences which have
been created by the exceptional circumstance of im-
mense gold discoveries in California and Australia
must not be permitted to perpetuate an error m
legislation, which, but for such influences, would have
proved seriously detrimental. We need not impugn
the motives which actuated Sir ROBERT PEEL, in his

session.

(NOVEMBER 13, 1855,

celebrated Bank Charter Aet ; we may even r
tshematetdheegip.reien,cijpulsetsifioen
dwhichbytheitstwataes
ofofutuded hings wettii:
then existed. We have now,, however, to deo
circumstances of an altered character, and too
ye
for a necessity which -was then unknown.
which by its abundance rendered endurable
restriction, has stimulated an extent of co°
both home and foreign, which has more than 3
all the additional supplies ; and, besides this,„
now carrying on an expensive war, which recei
our metallic resources, without being criPPle;#
restraint upon the issue of notes, unless get
by useless hoards, the more insisted upon r4ll-
- more required to be in circulation.
The question has acquired a degree of
from the fact of the Bank of France augulend
supply of gold, by drawing largely on the res°
England, in order to provide for the exigence!
war, Our own Government has also need °tioi
aid for a similar object ; but we have more toree!
the subject as far as it affects our ccinvleb,
imposes needless restrictions and unjustifiablet i/
upon British merchants. The great chief,fi,
couraging a stock of bullion in the coffers ofro,
of England is as a provision for foreign trot ei
article of export by which a balance agt/
imports over exports may be adjusted. Y
currency only needed for internal traffic,.
would answer all the purpose, and far Dv
gold, except for small, transactions; but the",
will not be content without gold,—thereibreder
becomes necessary ; and it might have
by Sir ROBERT PEEL that he was made7e
provision for our foreign trade, by thus .offers
stock of the precious metals in the ball..cp- worissl,;.
w
pulsory. But, unfortunately, for the lol'co
the system, it defeats its own purpose' jlOO6
the necessity for the export of gold ar.l.4ps;effi
produced, whether by a temporary °I,- cIPI
otherwise, the act comes into operation "-Ac
the required export by compelling the 0, td
retained. The Bank Directors may he ,tioog
all in their power to aid commercial oPe'it,Nt",
lighten the pressure when most severely fe ot0;:
are at once met with the law which (!e„,ci'oS
hindrance at the very time when assislfr-e,,i
needed..- To use a familiar illustration, it is
0111/.;f
a man with money in order to be provicie'ltlri
emergency, and forbidding him under
.40
stances to spend. it. tree
It might be imagined that some peou'-.,,,4
was to be gained by the store of gold triPi- 00`
to be the object of the Bank Charter Art,;:boltir
and this with the sole view of inspiring
bank-notes with confidence in their 1131/11,e;
vertibility into gold. This is, in some re", ,o,ko
sirable object ; but long before, and e'l•tee' 11.".
act was passed, the circulation has rarel4s re,
twenty millions, while the stock of gall'4ooi;r
for all the circulation above fourteen Inlet
surplus of three or four millions beside, °fel.
tingencies or to beep within the verge °fto 'y
public, however, have felt no alarm as 'OO
tavhse
er t is
urbeeihsl
ti
tYarincto
conducted upon principles of common hir';',lolsfi,
necessity of having
therefore, we must look to some other 11%eie,
wore 'oce,
iefosntbsaabnilkmis-hpnomosteeendst,,
baanassdetdnheeliepoßd
anukfeel:y;
grounds, and this can only be found in the I3tit
shall be said of the wisdom of a nleasur',l°ll,jr;
poses a restraint upon export when it is 111,„) pent
and, in order to accomplish this, levies hea.ipe of
upon the mercantile communit in the sPat"
creased rates of discount P Therey is 13: tAff
gained by the law which would not be gal tars
well by the operations of the Dank Direc.';fil
al
left unfettered as to their issues and exteeV
modation ; but, so long as they have #7'/'
e jolt' eat
back upon, they zheltei themselves from
a supply for export., bio
plaints of the commercial interest by felre;
restrictions as an excuse for opPreSSiVe In
•
the
It is a very common belief that gold
ureljthe ee'll 010 convertible commodity available for the Ip
any commodity in any market, and Rao 4.
tg?
at once arrived at, that, therefore, it is ai
to maintain as large a stock of it as possib e.; v 001?,
ference is in some degree correct, but it Iv
the argument. Gold is of little intrinsic eh it I
value is derived from the readiness with
of
tl)`'
be exchanged for other commodities, and itof yes
fore fore merely be considered as a represent3V-the 70.
only so much better than paper that while suer',
is of value where there is confidence in the ber
former is current almost everywhere. er°id,l ","
therefore a necessity not only for the sula'Llictit
our internal transactions, but also for our witile
merce. To restrain its use, however, fot
purpose, with the view of possessing it as a rotiOltic
one of those vain pretences which bespeaXe 01101 i
policy of the Plantagenets than the boasted e 00eio
C°
ment of the nineteenth century. Extended4cto
requires more means for carrying it on, the floc
of trade as Exports or Imports prePoiu thee
naturally cause corresponding fluctuations ill 06
of gold, but to attempt to restrain such fillet,tlPtil
act of Parliament is to fail in the object 'iof
same time to injure the commerce which the
avowedly passed to sustain.
If there were really any cause for res." 3)0,
speculation were carried on beyond the V'we,,,P
prudence, if liabilities were being incurred Vi
reasonable hope of meeting them, the Baal;
have ample means within their power of P joll,ou,
the screw, by refusing accommodation ill toei
channels. But, when it is a notorious fact tins .if
of the kind exists, that commerce was nevero
healthy state, that the demand for gold
from causes totally independent of collli°ve °9ttbe
quirements, and that that demand will 13° g ti tot
by any additional rate of interest so let tA°
necessity for it exists, it is an abuse ofe 011'1'
the consequences of it upon those who br
creating it. et 'f
It may be said that the difficulty ha& heeilot
that there is no longer any fear of scareiti'yolsi
mercial credit is unimpaired, and that the. oolty
fast recovering their former value. All dipog
true, but it is equally so that at no time 4. ofeArli't.
crisis,if it maybe so called, was there any Nv°3l') ere;
or any real ground for suspicion of conartorciresteti'4
~
nor any necessity for alarm beyond this 'nt,
the rapid advances in the rate of dise°lli-ty
brought profit to the Bank at the cos °-
cantile community. If the danger be passet yelp-
ed
are the fruits of it ? for the Bank has not
flounced any decrease of the minimum
count, and if this measure of justice were con
; ire°,l{l
would in no degree lessen the necessitY for oftliPid,
sideration of the "law which affords an pTbed
and an excuse for such causeless panics.
,4est'`:
chants owe a duty to themselves, to force the 4.10re.1,
upon the attention of the legislature, and the
since the progress of the war will render the'
to frequent repetitions of the same difflcultY•

.......
OA 7iift.
AN OPPULENT BE6GAR.—Yesterday, an old - ...co
looking man, who gave his name as James Skills', 00,lie.
before the Police-court with begging on SundoPeo9
taken to bridewell he was searched, when the sum °'
was found concealed in different portions of his tattesih.ey
The money consisted of £8 in gold, £3 15s. 10,,,oiligDr
6s. 3d. in copper-money. He was convicted of beLllee v"
chtoarbgtelyd
somewith rtoobolbsi,nagnda man named sentenced to be imprisoned for a month, the Or 4
board and lodging to be deducted from his horde- t, lied
STREET ROBBERY.—A woman of forbidding Mlle° MI
of 19s. The prosecutor, who admitted he had
Catherine Barrett, was yesterday brought before the $OO4
wantedcourt,bee
~43.04.
rather too much to drink, said that on SaturdaY '.l
weeded
topto
lane. Here he fell in with the prisoner, who affect. r o,ooi
very much interested in his welfare, and having s°.,;eriV
tinted herself into his favour, she eased him of hior,„e roe
cash, amounting to 195., leaving him to invest
.o_:e,
portion of his wealth in tools, or liquor, at his law
was sent to prison for two months, nipuedrpaCsherisis7_l):l;

NO
LIVER.

I'EI3RATI