The Sun.
London, England, 1863-02-07 00:00:00

rim SUN, LONDON, SATURDAY EVENING, FEBRUARY 7, 1863.

of high standing and, it is to be supposed, above
the temptations of greedy and irregular spe-
.

culation, will no doubt insist upon such terms as
will secure the public against such arbitrary acts on
the part of the Government in the future, while at
the same time it must give confidence to the Turkish

Government as to the ultimate success of the under-

taking. The difficulties in the way of the negotia-
tion were on the part of the Government an appre-
.

hension that the terms demanded infringed almost

on the prerogative of the Government, and threat-

-
ened in their action to encroach on the attributes of
the Ministry of Finance, as regards, for instance,

the collection of the revenue ; on the part of the pro-

jectors a determination to resist any clause which
might restrict the free action of the Bank or bring it
under the tutelage of the Government, which, ever
ready to work upon an establishment of this nature
as a means of constant pecuniary assistance in mo-
ments of difficulty, might insist upon excessive, ir-
regular, and unsecured advances, which would im-
peril the safety of the Bank. On both those points
the delegates are firm, and will not ablte or modify
their terms. lam assured that the Government has,
after much discussion, yielded, and that the affair
may be looked upon as terminated. It would be
premature to enter into the general framework of
the proposed Bank in its present incomplete form. I
will in a future letter give you the leading features
of it, which will no doubt interest that large section
of the investing public in England holding Turkish
Securities. At present it is sufficient to say that it
assimilates itself in most part with establishments of
the same nature in Europe with such alterations as
the peculiar requirements of this country call forth.
The nominal capital will be £2,700,000 with power
to issue notes to the extent of double the amouns of
cash in the bank coffers.

The publication of this concession will, no doubt,
revive the discussion on the subject of the grant for
a similar undertaking accorded by the Turkish Go-
vernment in 1858 to Messrs. Gladstone and Rodo-
canachi and the Bank of Switzerland, to which
some importance is added by a recent injunction of
the Court of Chancery restraining the Bank of Eng-
land from paying to the Turkish Government the
caution-money deposited by the concessionaires.
The history of that concession, which the Turks
maintain has been forfeited, is briefly as follows :
It provided that the Turkish Government, through
the medium of the Bank, should withdraw the paper
money which was then in circulation. On the issue
of the convention, however, the concessionaires sub-
mitted an additional article stipulating that the
bank should not begin operations until three months
after the withdrawal of the came. This additional
article was sanctioned at the time by the Govern-
ment; but they subsequently declined to embody
it in the statutes. in the meanwhile, however, the
concessionaires issued their prospectus and got a
certain number of subscribers, but failed to realize
a paid-up capital as stipulated in the concession
within the time allotted for that purpose. Within
that time the Turkish Government professes to have
withdrawn the came, with the exception of about
£600,000, but, finding the prospects of the bank
uncertain, and internal disturbances in the Empire
having intervened, they were compelled to make a
new issue of caime. This was not done, however,

till many months after expiration of the concession,
and the failure of the concessionaires to obtain the
capital. Subsequently the company was dissolved
and the deposits returned to the subscribers. The
question now raised by the concessionaires is that
they are still entitled to the concession, inasmuch
as the Turkish Goverment had not withdrawn
within a certain time the entire amount of paper
money in circulation. A statement of the whole
case has been printed by the Turkish Government
for private circulation, and appended to it is a legal
opinion to the effect that "the Turkish Government
was fully justified in treating the concession of
May, 1858, as annulled, and the caution money for-
feited," which is signed by Sir Fitzroy Kelly, Mr.
Giffard, Q.C., and Mr. Wickens.
The Turkish Government, however, declare that
they will not object to return the caution money on
the delivery into their hands of the disputed con-
vention. The matter stands thus ; but it would be
well if some compromise could be effected by which
the Turkish Government might be safe from public
criticism, and the concessionaires compensated for
any injury which they may be able to establish.
The Servian question, which was settled for the
time being by the conferences held last summer,
threatens to become more serious than ever, and
will again require the intervention of diplomacy.
The Servians have been arming considerably. It
has been established, I believe beyond doubt, that
60,000 muskets from the Russian Government depot
at Toula have been forwarded ; 20,000 of these
reached their destination, and the remaining 40,000
have been intercepted by order of the Turkish Go-
vernment in the Moldo-Wallachian Provinces. Re-
liable information, which I have received from Bel_
grade, represents a great portion of the country as
ripe for revolt. In all probability the conferences
which brought about the arrangement and concluded
the treaty of last year will be resumed here before
long. In Moldo- Wallachia, also, there are signs
of approaching complication. The Roumans, who
were allowed to select their present Hospodar, are
clamouring for a foreign prince.
As I close my letter, I am informed, on undoubted
authority that the Government have acceded to all
the conditions for the bank, and that the concession
will be issued forthwith.