The Sun.
London, England, 1839-10-28 00:00:00

FREE TRADE IN MONEY.

S
the following is the Petition of Mr. Edward
"21ky, referred to in The Sun of Monday, Oct. 7 :
fhb humble petition of Edward Solly, of Curzon street,
May-fair, Gentleman,
a eweth,—That for some time past the Banking
Commercial interests of this country have been,
and
I still continue, exposed to very great dangers and
n!)B,se 3, arising from the existing Mint and currency re-
Ott :ions.
1 1' eat in the year just past, as well as in the year
82 i, a very considerable exportation of coin, and a
e -ana equent contraction of the currency, or paper mo-
ll% took place, whereby a sudden revolution was occa-
-110,11!d in the money market, and consequently in the
13°4t Lion of all contracts depending on it, as also of trade
gen Tally.
b 'hat these repeated crises in the money market have
eel I the result 'of innovation and defects introduced
'n'o our monetary system by Sir Robert Peel's Bill,
and by subsequent Bills, namely, by the making our
gold coin an article of foreign trade, and without adopt-
ing its relative value to silver in accordance with its
too itetable value in all other countries, and without
any charge for seignorage, thus enabling the foreigner
e xtract from our internal commerce the staff of its
life as by the law constituted, namely, our gold coin,
avQn when, according to the nominal par, the exchanges
ned to be adverse to such exportation.
I Chat by the alteration of the gold coin from the
guinea to the sovereign, the one-pound note (which
previously could only be exchanged for twenty shillings
in silver, being the fractional parts, and therefore,'the le-
gitimate object of the exchange), became the channel
a.new demand for the gold coin, whereby in the year
l 8 5, the pressure on the banks for gold and the gene-
ral panic-was so much increased.
That the demand for gold coin for the home circula-
tion was again furthr2r increased by the total prohibi-
tion of one-pound notes, whereby, at the same time,
the retail trade of the lower classes was deprived of
the t facility in traffic which the one•pound notes afforded,
,Y..
i 11.'111 the richer classes Were still permitted to indulge
Paper money to an unlimited extent.
a ['bat the progressive increasing value of gold corn-
Par ed to silver in the markets of the world, which pre-
as to the Bill permitting the free export of our coin,
Old: not so easily affect our home circulation, bus, since
thl' passing of the Bid made it impossible to retain an
tetee table and sufficient supply of gold coin in the coun-
-I„under the present system.
That while the necessity of an additional supply of
gold ,:oin has been increased by the legal enactments
:111).‘elk have forcibly created a new demand, the respon-
ltitY of increasing the supply does not appear to rest
tany where.
°That further, as the demand for gold coin for ex-
pneertea,
tit' increases, the paper money in circulation is
th,4t,,r"lY withdrawn, in order to avoid the effects of
tibr, -emand, whereby the money market is placed in
„Position
hat, there of a candle
insure consu
toming
the at both endsnd Com-
1, foi e, to Banking a
rcial interests so threatened a greater security, and
'4 order to diminish these recurring fluctuations in the
r°l:°,ttev market, either a return to the old system of pro-
"' oiting the export of our coin with the circulation of
guineas and one-pound silver notes, or as an alterna-
,:rye. the raising the value of the present gold coin to
I'o-and-twenty shillings silver, combined with the issue
"a•pound silver notes, appears to be necessary.
Wherefore your petitioner humbly prays that
.your Honourable House will take the subject
of this his petition into consideration, and
• provide such a remedy as your Honourable
House may think fit.
And your petitioner will ever pray, &c.