The Sun.
London, England, 1839-10-21 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON-, MONDAY, OCTOBER 21, 1839.

these cases, it is .ight that there should be a rthedin
also for the defence ;" we do not, nevertheless, think it
necessary to take up the time of our readers in proving
to them anything so perfectly notoriouslas is the fact,
that if there have been any attack, as doubtless there
has, and this a most violent one, it has been an attack
by the organs of the joint-stock establishments on the
Bank of England. The journals in the interest of these
concerns have been teeming for many dap.. past with
these attacks, and it was but quite 'recently
that anything in the shape of an answer was
offered in behalf of the Bank of England. One
of the letters referred to criticises a statement
made by us the other day with respect to
the impositions attempted to be practised on
the Bank of England by the joint-stock banks, but
we must say the writer comes out of the discussion
with very little credit to himself. The tricks of the
country banks of issue are well understood by the
Bank Directors; and the endeavours which are made to
conceal or palliate them is only an aggravation of their
misconduct. It the country banks of issue choose to
discount securities for their customers, let them by all
means do so, and keep them in their own bill-cases
until they become due. This is a system of banking
that every one is familiar with ; but if the banks in
question think fit to put the said securities again into
circulation, the only reasonable conclusion that we can
come to concerning them is, that they (the banks) are
cramped for means, and that they are unduly interfering
with the functions of the Bank of England, as, when-
ever such paper comes before the Directors of the
latter institution bearing the endorsement of the coun-
try bank of issue, there can be no mistake about the
manoeuvre. One of the correspondents of our Con.
temporary says—.

. _
" When the bank A discounts a 5,000/. bill originally to
B, it gives for it 5,0001. of currency; when it afterwards
sells the same hill to C, it receives from him for the bill
the like sum of 5,000/. currency, thus withdrawing from
circulation the same quantity that had at first been issued.
C again remits the bill to his friend in London in payment
of a debt, and if this friend discount it in London be re-
ceives for it the like sum of 5,000/. Whatever, therefore,
may be the number of hands the bill passes thrcrigh, it
never em represent more of the currency than 5,0001."
Our opponent, who possibly writes in good faith,
does not know what strange results may be pro-
duced by chicanery and collusion. The bank A
may have an understanding with C, a large share-
holder perhaps, and the suspicion of such being the
case is fully justified by the circumstance of the
bank of issue endorsing in his favour the 5,000/. bill
afterwards sent up to London " in payment of a
debt." If the joint-stock banks of issue can do no
business more legitimate than that of buying and
selling bills in the way described, the sooner they close
their doors the better. There are always " kiteflying"
transactions going on, the object of which is to maintain
the value of commodities. This, during a period of ad-
verse exchanges like the
present, it is the province of
the Directors of the Rink of England to put a stop to
rather than encourage by discounting questionable paper;
but that they should do so without creating a great deal
of clamour would he contrary to all experience. Those
whose schemes are the most gross in cases of this kind
are always the noisiest when detected. We must fur-
ther observe that if the Times has no better witnesses
to bring forward in defence of the joint-stock fraternity,
it is wise in him to allow the writers of these letters to
speak for themselves, and to refrain, as he cautiously
dces, from attempting to give any importance to them
beyond that merely of saying " they will serve as spe-
cimens of the feeling against th.l Bank which the late
severe measure has excited."

That our Contemporary should approve of the fol-
lowing revolutionary scheme—a scheme which is worthy
only of a Cobbett or an O'Connell—is scarcely credible,
although he allows it to pass through his columns with-
out a single word of condemnation :
" What some of the leading Joint-stock Banks are said
to meditate by way of retribution is, that such an amount
of Bink of England notes should be collected in the
couary and presented for payment in London, and at the
branches, as will cause the Old Lady' to beg for quarter
or re3ort to an Order in Council ler the issue of 11. notes."
The juint-stock establishments have fully proved how
prone they are to do mischief; but fortunately they have
not the power. The stand made against them by the
" Old Lady" has led to a disclosure of-their' imbecility.
Their threat of presenting notes for gold is pure bom-
bast, and it will be well for the shareholders and the
public if some more of them do not presently fall to
pieces.

Times and Dublin Evening Posi are, we, be-
lieve, genrol ally disposed to go together in their views
of the policy of the Bank of England. We, therefore,
avail ourselves of the sentiments of the latter, as regards
the treatment of the country banks. Our Dublin Con-
temporary observes :

" We should like to see the trade of banking indepen-
dent like all other trades, But we really cannot join in
the cry that has been raised against the Bank of England
on this account (the alleged refusal of the Directors to
cash the securities of other banks of issue ) The bullion
in her coffers is escaping with a rapidity which she has no
means of controlling without placing a limit on her issues.
She Would be obliged to stop in three or four months, if
she did not endeavour to check the downward progress.
She has done every thing in the power of man or woman
to regulate the exchanges. She has borrowed, in effect,
four millions of money from the Bank of France to check
the i,,sue of specie; but all her efforts have proved un-
availing. Giving the Bank of England credit for all man-
ner of improprieties hitherto, we ask, how would her im-
pugners have her to act, with a view of preventing the
calamity of a restriction ? Would they have her discount
with her accustomed liberalty ? If she did her notes
would assuredly be returned upon her in the prom's of a
brief period for the purpose of obtaining gold to buy corn
on the Continent, and flour from America, and she would
find herself some fine morning without a tester in silver."
We have here brought into court a most unwilling
witness, and it will be admitted that his evidence,
though somewhat flipm.,ntly given, is straightforward
and decided. The Du 61in Evening Post is compelled,
in candour and honesty, to part company with his old
ally in the present instance.