The Sun.
London, England, 1847-10-15 00:00:00

all. The number of persons in attendance at the
Bank for dividends was again numerous, and the
amounts paid out yesterday and to-day have been
large, almost beyond any former example in the
same space of time. This will sufficiently account
for the rigour with which the repayment of the
loans is insisted upon, but it will at the same time
produce a greatly increased pressure on commercial
credit.
There has been more than the usual fertility of
rumours respecting the difficulties in which several
leading houses in the City are placed, and although
the names have been bandied about with very little
ceremony, we do not feel ourselves justified in giving
them formal publicity, or even in making such
pointed allusions as might become injurious to any
arrangement in progress to sustain them from
falling.
According to the letters received yesterday from
Liverpool, considerable apprehensions were enter-
tained that the accounts to-day would be disastrous
in the extreme, but it appears that, to a considerable
extent, the danger had been overcharged. One of
the banks, it is stated, however, but one with only a
small extent of business and amount of liabilities, is
embarrassed, but whether it will be compelled to stop
altogether is not known.
CHRONICLE.—Money matters have been in an
unsettled state in the City to-day, owing to the un-
certainty respecting the meeting of the Bank direc-
tors, and the fear which was experienced that an
increase in the rate of discount would be its result.
No change has, however, been announced, and a
temporary improvement in the price of Consols took
place, but which gradually disappeared at the close
of the day. Whatever may be the gravity of our
financial position at this time, and however true it
may be that the pressure under which all classes are
labouring arises from an excessive expenditure of
national wealth, still there can be no question that
the general want of confidence is a cause only second
to it in the importance of its immediate effect upon
the general welfare. The wealth created by credit
has at this moment scarcely existence in the com

mercial world. The transactions of trade are forced
down to their narrowest limits, and in the operation
those houses whose business has been conducted upon
the faith in this wealth, rather than on the fact of its
existence, have had to struggle with the utmost
difficulty to maintain their position. At what amount
of sacrifice these efforts have been made we can only
imagine, unless suspension of payment gives publicity
to their affairs.

There is, however, much popular error respecting
the influence exercised by the failures of mercantile
houses upon trade. The supposition that a stoppage
of a firm whose liabilities amount to any given sum
involves dishonoured paper to that amount is a mis-
take, and one which it is very advisable to remove.
Common report gives the sum total of recent failures
as between ten and twelve millions, and it is a fre-
quent question, " What will become of all that dis-
honoured paper ?" We believe the fact to he that
the acceptances of the firms who have recently failed
scarcely reach 3,000,0001. sterling, and in many cases
the items of that amount were drawn for by the bill
holder here on the foreign countries from whence the
drafts originally came.
When, in 1837, the three large American houses
suspended payment, their acceptances amounted to
a larger sum by some hundreds of thousands
sterling than the aggregate of those dishonoured by
the whole amount of failures which have recently
occurred; and yet the effects of the present crisis
are generally believed to be unparalleled in their seve-
rity. With reference to this particular point, the
state of our exchanges must sooner or later bring the
bullion back to this country, and with its accumula-
tion will come a period of greater ease in all depart-
ments of trade. But the restoration of credit even
in a trifling degree is a matter of almost as great
consequence in this emergency; for its effect would
be to let loose the money which the fears of the
capitalist have rendered as useless to the country as
if it were buried in the gold mines of Peru. This

state of doubt and uncertainty will pass away.
Severe as is the pressure, there is no cause for doubt-
ing either the elasticity or power of the national re-

sources.

That elasticity has proved superior to disasters
greater than those occurring to-day, and with the
foundations of future prosperity in a sound condition
there is but little fear of the ultimate result.

BANK OF MANCHESTER ANNUAL

MEETING.

MANCHESTER, WEDNESDAY.—This morning the
annual meeting of this unfortunate concern was
held in the large room of Heyward's Hotel, for the
purpose of receiving the report of the board of
directors, and of re-electing those directors who re-
tire by rotation. Mr. G-. R. Chappell, chairman of
the board, presided. The meeting was not nume-,
rously attended.
The advertisement calling the meeting having been
read,

The CHAIRMAN called upon Mr. Farrar, one of the
managing directors, to read the annual report.
Mr. FARRAR then read the following report to the'
meeting :
" The accounts submitted to the last general meet-
ing brought down the affairs of the bank to the 30th'
of June, 1846.

" The estimated net assets at that date were
98,2681 10s. 2d.; the liabilities, 40,5781. ls. ld.; and
the apparent surplus, 57,6901. 9s. id.
"The following is a statement of the affairs of the
bank, made up to the 30th of June, 1847 :