The Press.
London, England, 1854-11-25 00:00:00

1111 E PRESS.

Cents., and the compulsory commutation of the
minor stocks, he stated, in his budget speech of the
18th April, 1853, that he anticipated a saving of
" not less than 100,0001., the final result, he hoped,
" would show a considerably greater saving." " I
" venture," he said, "now to take credit for 100,0001.
" on that account " ( Hansard, vol. 125, p. 1,354).
We have stated we would deal only with his opera-
tion upon the minor stocks. First, then, with regard
to its success. He contemplated a rush for his new
and popular stock—there was a rush—but it was a
rush for money.
The parliamentary paper (48) of 14th February,
1854, informs us that of the 9,564,7401. minor stocks
there had been commuted only 1,493,4381., that there
had been paid in money 6,048,7581., and that there
remained to be paid in April, 1854, 2,020,545/.
The first illustration of the effects of this operation
shall be taken from a case which has happened
within our own observation. A holder of 1,0001.
South Sea Stock, yielding him 301. a year interest,
warily and wisely, was a dissentient from the plan of
commutation. Accordingly, on the sth January,
1854, he received his 1,0001. in money paid out of the
Consolidated Fund. Straightway he went to the
Stock Exchange, and with the same money he pur-
chased 1,0001. Three per Cent. Consols at a fraction
under 03. This, of course, gave him a gain of 701.,
and subjected the country to a loss of 701. 1,0001.
was taken out of the Consolidated Fund to redeem
1,0001. in South Sea Debentures, which Debentures
were replaced by Consols rendering the same interest
and being of the same value for the sum of 930/. !
Well, then, there was paid out of the Ccnsolidated
Fund, in the whole, on the sth January, 1854,
6,048,7581. Every 931. of this would have redeemed
on that day, or at least represented on that day,
1001. of Consols. The gain, therefore, to the holders
of the 6,048,7581. South Sea Stock, and the loss to
the country, was no less a sum than 423,4091., inde-
pendently of the 2,020,5451. remaining to be paid in
April, which we shall notice presently. Mr. GLAD-
STONE, we are aware, in his speech on the Bth May
last, endeavoured to refine this away by stating that
a portion of this six millions was paid out of balances
in the Exchequer, which balances were unproductive.
We shall point out by-and-bye what it has cost the
country to replace these balances. But we are
desirous first of putting the matter in another aspect,
and that the most favourable we can for Mr. GLAD-
STONE. The old charge on the 9,564,7401. at 3 percent.
was 286,9491. The Lords' paper (39) 27th Feb.,1854,
informs us that the new charge on the 1,493,4381. com-
muted for the new stock is 41,2311. 19s. 10d. The
commissioners for the reduction of the national
debt made purchases early in *January, 1854 (when
the six millions was taken out of the Consolidated
Fund), at 921. For convenience we will suppose
the value of Consols to have been 93, or, in other
words, that the interest of money in the funds was
31.45. sd. The annual value of the 6,048,7581. then
taken out of the Consolidated Fund, supposing it to
have been applied in reducing the national debt by
the commissioners in the legitimate way, was about
195,0001. We have stated that we have taken the
matter in the most favourable aspect for Mr. GLAD-
STONE. We have taken the price of Consols at 93;
had we gone further into the year we might have
taken them at 86, or even lower. There remains,
then, the '2,048,758/. which had to be paid on the
sth April. We believe that the arrangement under
which the settlement of this last remnant of " the
Patriarchal Stock" was effected makes the rate of
interest about four per lent.
Our account, then, with Mr. GLADSTONE will stand
thus :