Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-10-23 00:00:00

In fact, the foreign demand has completely
fallen off. As yet there is a moderate enquiry
for manufactures for home consumption, but this
also must eventually become limited. In several
parts of the manufacturing districts the owners
of mills have had recourse to short time, so as to
enable them to keep their stocks within a mode-

rate compass.
Now, from all these facts, it is clear that,
unless we have reached the worst point of the
threatened crisis, the trade and commerce of the
country has not been in a more discouraging
cindition for at least ten or eleven years. And,
taking all the circumstances and facts connected
with our presen tposition into account, we fear there
is just cause for apprehension as to the ultimate re-
sults of the m3netary and commercial disasters
which stare us in the face. At a time, then, like the
present. it behoves our rulers to be on the alert.
" In the multitude of Councillor ; there is safety."
It will require all the financial ability which the
present Parliament possesses to stem the torrent
of commercial embarrassments which seen quite
at hand.

It would be impassible, in even mlly articles,
to trace out all the causes which have contri •
buted to bring about the present state of things.
Among them, however, we feel no hesitation
in placing the laws which regulate our monetary
system. That system is of a m)st diversified
character, from the numerous enactments by
which it is regulated and carried on,

The Bank of England is hedged round with a
monetary monopoly, which makes it the " Banker
of all the London Banks." The primary object
of the Act of 1844 was to extinguish the local
circulation of country Banks; and this, we
believe, has been for the most part effected.
Still, we should very much deplore the extinction
of the issues of these Banks, and the substitution
of the notes of the Bank of England. We have,
over and over again, in these columns, urged the
expedient and imperative necessity for a reformed
currency. The arguments by which we sup•
ported the doctrine are being verified every day,
and a better proof of the soundness of the princi-
ples we advocated could not be found than the
steps which the Bank of England has been
obliged to adopt, in order to fulfil the letter and
spirit of that anamolous enactment—the Bank
Charter Act of 1844 ; for, according to the
evidence given by Mr. CHAPNIA.N, of the banking
house of OVEREND and GURNEY, before the Select
Committee on the Bank Acts of 1844 and 1845,
the Act is defective in its want of protection
against panics, against any uncontrollable with-
drawal of the circulating medium, arising from
bad harvests, or against war. This same gentle-
man, too, most unanswerably showed that,
according to our Banking laws, it is quite in the
power of a few speculators to withdraw the circu-
lating medium from the active operations of
business. Although such speculators care nothing
n11"131- v+11.3, 1 11, sp. s h"1,1 .-sr • • Z

• T 1 1_ 1,
and, through that, the value of every thing else
in the Kingdom. Enough has been written to
show that our Banking laws are the main causes
of the present state of our monetary position.

THE Liberal canvass of the Borough progresses
most favourably. In St. Peter's Ward, Mr.
BOWRING'S friends look forward to a signal vic-
tory. We rejoice at this, not because we have
any personal dislike to Mr. HARMOOD BANNER.
We respect that gentleman's character quite as
much as those who are constantly sounding his
praise. That be has strong claims on a conside-
rable number of his firmer constituents we
readily admit ; but we contend that the day has
gone by for rewarding the excellence of pri7ate
character at the expense of the public service
We want men in the Council Chamber of this
great commercial town who have influence, and
whose words are listened to with some attention.
Mr. BANNER has failed to secure these strong
recommendations. He has no weight in the
Corporation. On the Pike question, his votes
were given on the rational side ; but the Rate-
payers had a right to expect a great deal more
than a silent vote from Mr. BANNER on this most
important subject. Mr. BANNER was Chairman
of the Harrington Water Company before the
Corporation took the supply into thei: own hands,
and must, therefore, have been better informed on
the subject than any other man in the Council,
yet Mr. BANNER was silent. He neither
attempted to frighten the crows, or " talk the
wee birds off the bushes ;" and if our Corporate
representatives do not lend us their assistance
when they can do so, what have we to expect in
other important cases ? The business which
must come before the Council within the next
twelve months is of the most unprecedented
magnitude and importance.
All Manchester is laughing at the antics of
our Dock Magnates in Parliament, in the last
Session ; and although our Corporate wiseacres
have successfully turned the laugh against the
Manchester tricksters, they could only accomplish
their design by doing the greatest amount of
injury to the commerce of the port of Liver-
pool. The Town Daes were abandoned for a
consideration of 1,500,0001., to be paid off in
severie years, out of the revenue of the Dock
estate. A further sum of 1,337,000/. is to be paid
to the Birkenhead Dock bondholders by the
Corporation, from the same source. Another
1,500,000/. is to be borrowed to finish the
Birkenhead Docks. This also is to fall on the
Dock estate, and when all these items are added
to the existing dock debt, 6,990,0001., the grand
total will amount to about 11,327,0001. To