The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1856-11-04 00:00:00

LETTER NO. VIII.

TO TUE EDITOR OF THE NORTHERN TIMES.
tunn • —my last letter I endeavoured to prove—yourer ous readers
must jdudge with what success—that it was
eThhle so to amend the Act of 1844, as to approximate to my
ti,e41,61°1 a perfect currency, without annulling the charter of
proank of England, and without entirely getting rid of its
4°l notes. In order that I might not be justly
kteargeable with not making my meaning sufficiently clear and
1110,11.igible, I laid before your readers two sketches—one
Weed the actual position of the Bank of England, for the
positl ending 18th October ; the other showing what its
%IA
the
would have been at the same period, if the Government
6 e Bank had been in a position to have acted upon my
tlgßestions
I d
-1
st emonsir ted i that letter, that, whereas, in one case,
.4e . .
tiabdities of the Bank were TWELVE MILLIONS in
titek of the cash with which it was prepared to meet them ;
etc " other case, the liabilities and the cash nearly balanced
I.4thli"ber• In one case, the cash in hand was equal to 19s
lee e Pound on the liabilities, wi hout realising the private
In the other case, the cash in hand was only
:L.l to about 4s in the pound on the liabilities; therefore, its
;ZtY to
meet them depended entirely on its realising rather
e than three-fourths of its private securities. I asked my
coit ants to analyse my figures, and disprove them if they
p'.„, I asked them carefully to look upon each of the
rni''4reß which I laid before them in these sketches, that they
I.Fut exPl'e the cheat, if, in my "Presentment" of either, I
nagn.-

my own scheme into "a fair

ltoaziori.ty;nlien in reality, it was no sucn two, ,
•
.'"'Y Painted theirs as a barren moor, incapable of
y'',4ling the

t4zal() not, for a moment, supDlse that
leBll money, and the £14,475,000 of treasut,
te
t 1 n-e.), which I proposed to for the pa)
debt dne from the, Government tocreate the Bank, would always
t()uotrvt° Conduct the rapidly increasing commerce of the

the £60,000,000 of

.es (also
rent of

LI, the NPpote that, stimulated as
qthat commerce would be
intro duction of a currency euivalent in amount to

thr,
taxation o

rneY to country --aeriving its value trom its sutil-
neeew • Pay all the taxes imposed upon the people, by the
curve ities of the state I say, I do not suppose that such a
fijt
an ey, with commerce so stimulated, would of itself suffice
and ~.,Na,(l(firlite period, to circulate the wealth it would increase
4)- —ultiPir • or to sustain always, the immensely aug-
lted ,•' . . '
rionstrlai power with which it would arm us as a
.011.

(Z h.t I antnot, therefore, open to the charge of asking for
net.lea 16af" with " baited breath and whispering humble-
ita,i'„trhen I should boldly knock at the door of Parliament
for " the whole loaf," which is the people's inalien, able tight
1444 lam of opinion, that the agency of the Bank of Eng-
th 'bight be altogether dispensed with ; but, I cannot forget
Ili: ,n days long past, it has often rendered good service to
hylt-ountry—and especially during the suspension of specie
it 1,-"t°, when it was invested with the power (a power which
that"" al'usc'd) of providing a paper currency for the nation,
theiren4bled the industrious classes to live by " the sweat of
~ithbrov,—in comparative ease and comfort; and to pay,
ore,oh. (43 difficulty, almost without feeling it, the enormous
r:t of taxation to which they were at that time subjected.
or therefore, willing that it should act as the agent
igh,Le Government—say for a period of ten years—in
114neing the uew currency, and in distributinz it
1,1.."14 the various channels in which it is destined to flow.
Ilan.Ct'it is only reasonable that time should be given to the
adapt ;',.1.1 up its affairs as a national institution, to
deter 1-Ce" to the new state of things, in which no promissory
IlittlidBu,°4!(l circulate as legal tenders, and in which none
1/46 f 1)e Issued (as Promises to pay in except such_ as
°Ps t4IIY represented by the gold held against them. No, I
11,1141-13,14Ying the currency reformers false. lam advocating
`MD, ''e course' but I have suggested a remedy for a present
evil which, if successful—as I am sure it would.
iierh"lucl ender it impossible ever to revert to the antiquated
*sv -' of the bullionists ; but which, if not successful, would
44,118 in Possession of the means whereby we might easily
blighet-b4r steps, if it be within the range of possibility, that we
A,, "Mpelled to do so.
*tor,;.'re ,hedia, as I understand it, is neither a right way nor a
aNll,,Way) but a way between the two. If the projectors of
erP°ol and Manchester railway had been content tlay
"'Zii4fie°4ltoon tram-road, up hill and down dale, instead. of the.
4,111
,:tUt railway—that splendid triumph of. engineering
tilLkiiiTfa"'inh now connects the great seaport with the great
'n:,iin'ing metropolis of Lancashire, then they would have
''tas,sd'LY accused of adopting a via media, a cross, between a
atuised road and a railw-ay.
;Yin 4,,tc.437, °n the other hand, projected, in the first instance,
railway from Liverpool to London, it is probable
Nkt .°4ld have failed in obtaining tho capital required for so
Undertaking and the legislative powers, without
Of
th ,ltich 1‘
could not have been accomplished. They did neither
Ykl rea-ea thinga, but they did the right thing. They projected
ItSk,',ame a line of railway between two towns of sufficient
notif,i,nee to test it great utility, and prove its treat supe-
tt,a,t;:o the old fashioneds highway, as a medium for the
%%„ i4°0 of both goods and passengers. Had they attempted
lil'i:teB'B,e4t,` however -confident they might. ha.vo been of ultimate
N 4 wit,ney would have seared the capitalist and the legisla-
o the vastness of their en4erprise.
rertr, railway property properly constructed is
80 ia. .national money. rightly
.74,1 r
"lY':,°f currency As the Livelpool an" ''
"i4:,,t,lie,Pre.cu'rsor of a in::ll).y.sy(su'ic..inowo'
`'!°l,l in active operation, .
N.
.14 ,zilised countries, so the amend"
adv° " in if carried into
coted my last,
2or °°
Gated
saw-

flee perfection

tteie
-s%
as-- a wondrous revolution n,
ete Would realise, in its fullest extent, my ideal of
44,„Iloo,_"'enoY, capable of sustaining, during the life of our
continually extending fabric of her commerce,
seNtts44°?,ti'm-s,, of my suggestion would furnish us with a
olela would certainly possess, for many long years to
let, en„ the qualities of perfection in money, namely,
-"otTBignifreancy—anyenieney—security, and, though
kftifit ~east, CONVERTIBILITY. All these, except the
14;44tsi”"Icl retain freer for ever. Let the people of this
sjilo w politically free'r than eves "to chose the good
de sthoi:lect the evil"—let them but once taste the good
ti IN 'B°l'4o fruit of such a curroncy as this, and,
vso„l_,
4 the principle involved in its crea-
,
tat had extend itself in every direction until
4,,,lshiehrtftey, not merely to represent all the
Ste 14 the we have to pay, but all the saleable goods which
its Nod
l'at fail to discover) that national money required for
market at any given time. Let us once discover (as
hatistt•hn
te,,,..4aatiti (as not a joint stock company, however wralthy,
~f°,1',41 Bank—a Bank set up by the nation, with the
f,emation'4 nation, and they will, with one voice, demand the
pie %IA; eq the great Monotary interests of the country
thqia4rtotlY of a private company associated for the pur-
-4' 14 •I'ltitlal Probably the Bullionist would call it
f with gain.
Pis th "t nny capital at all ; and such it really would be,.
444 Pot ? management was concerned, as all the money it
14, are into circulation would possess, not an intrinsic, but
tO k„P',esentative value. So much I thought it right to
til,es(4- liss real currency reformers as your correspondent
‘ool:itig k who may think that I may be diverted from
lhr Whi„7 course I have chalked out for myself, by the
%.441 Ite;ousaYour other correspondent, " Via Media," has
INphititr 1, IbY' path.
„f;al'e said nothing of the immense saving which
St it:"ected Government, if it possessed the power of
tsi:'viae-ttotes to the Bank on national securities. It must
Iktyttblt° every one that the interest thereon would cease
teds• litstrlelidlile they were held by the Government. But I
.714',.,41. h-111114d your readers that the annual interest, calcu-
%rt.% 11,7 per cent, on the £75,000,000 of money to be
its„" 41M/eminent, would represent a sum of more than
4•I'ePoi'L'IONS of Pounds—an important item in the
ktste th badget.
she hk 105 t 111141 which the Government would remunerate the
4itettilt cervices as an agent, as to the rate of interest which
,e 14,, th"ld pay to the Government on unsecured advances,
14b" Maxi amount of such advances, alI these
issasiCktters ofniarurmangement between the Government and
,ease,kfort
to
Ni-vesi,44 illustration of the great national advantages I
It it t, 40,41 a real reformation of our monetary code,
,'L15e„4100;4,133Y oext letter, that, under the bullion iystem,
,7,4•4lvhig,l'i° that the poor industrious man can add the
his is is claimed from him by the tax collector to the
1%114 Lodustr or to the price of its products ; and, I
es noY lengthened argument to prove that unless
Pestittt,is°, 17' the whole system of our taxation is a monstrous
N'eflith.ee"%e, otherwise, it must fall upon the industrious
1134 ; Tiziously unequal pressure. All men who have
i1:1,11!%4:43,801.45°}!e°,1_ the subject,
. agree in thinking that—unless
le,!tketeg the l'°_ ir.tunity can. add taxation to price—nothing
„ taka. gardSillp of their case but the total repeal of all
tl)Pkch, ", and the imposition of a property tax, to be
pelejr ro;‘,24_l°,elY on the rich, whose incomes do not depend
:illirt4,l),.'al or physical resources. Here I was about. to
Ne`qt [et somebody peering over my shoulder whispers,
e4Pti °tit YchUr standard of value I fancy I can hear
1,/ ilea2ttl toll . •
401,,en e...ague making the same enquiry of Pitt,when
tpcnt• I,alea.ets-r'n Minister" announced his intention to adopt
A el 4 eof restraining the Bank from paying its notes
%F.% terrible crisis of 1797.
(31 t' there was no difficulty in adjusting the relative
0 l coi:"ltodities during the continuance of that re-
Isheet.theilhti; Bati.k. so there would be none in doing so
chefeh-i6Lcin Which, ' think, might be safely adopted in
-Qien On a future occasion
thestio ettep parliamentary set.. ,
tPt 4**".`Ari' more fully, upon the consideration of the
:keh,e'ent, ts')at is the true measure of value? Suffice it, for
,N 1 4k
she my that as the Pound Sterling may now be
,s-•;ll:4„Pecri:4\icit:inifiatrotfhzraursore,ncy, being divisible into shillings,
in the new order of things, the
,sat become tbe unit of tbe new curren.?y,
N"kt "3' "1 into these minor denominations would pre-
t,t4te R,l, Gus inconvenience arising from the crude notions
4:1,14
tth-Z111033' entertained respecting the real standard of
of k ",v, twenty shillings would make cnepatirtotd.
th.tetkei, cc one shilling •' The shillings and pence—not
114414;11411.cl: 1)11t for gener-al. convenience, and the protection..
54,04'qt11%:1:,,1ch tiryin,st forgesy—would possess the same intrinsic
te. 4 it 9 -cm possess • and, however statesmen may
v sated • , ,
41%4, witn the question, What is a pound ? twenty
Abe the prompt reply of every schoolboy, Yes,