The Sun.
London, England, 1841-04-08 00:00:00

EVENING EDITION

MONEY MARKET and CITY NEWS.

FROM THE MORNING PAPERS OF THIS DAY.
TIMES.—A great, sensation was occasioned in the City
to-day at the absence from their house of business of Mr. F.
Wakefield and his son, who carry on business as bankers and
stockbrokers, under the firm of " I'. Wakefield and co."
The house is one of the oldest in the list of London bankers,
although it has been lately but little known in that cwity.
Their absence has given rise to various rumour's, One of Whleh
is that their deficiencies amount to about 70,000/.... Mr.
Wakefield was the treasurer of the managers of the Stock-
Exchange, and the committee of managers sat to-day to•in-
quire into the state of their affairs in connexiotr with him,
when an inspection of their cabs-box showed they had sus-
tained no loss. It should be distinctly understood' that the
committee of managers manage the property of the Stock-
Exchange,. while the general committee manage the business.
It is necessary to make this remark, because a rumour has
gone abroad that the general committee sat on th? affair,
which is not the case, nor would it be a matter for their deli-
beration. •
The English Stoelis have not been firm to-day, and it is •
ught a rasher increased deinan,l for money at yesterday's
rases has principally acted upon the market.

CHRONICLE.—The Market for British Securities hai
been flat to-day, although unattended by any alteration, in
price. There has been considerable excitement on the Stock
Exchange, in consequence of the disappearancd of an old mem-
ber of the house, who acted as treasurer cf the decayed cued,
and also as manager of the house revenues. The, party in
question was also engaged in busint FS as a private banker, but
in a very sma I way, along with his son, in Bread street.
We have been informed that the Committee on. Ranks of
Issue have determined on examining two witnesses only from
Scotland, to give evidence on the system of banking and
currency in that quarter of the kingdom. The banking-
interests in Scotland are split into two sections, we
hear, like the Church both of England and Scot-
land. They are at present suffering from internal
divisions and schism, one party being in favour of
the high note, the other for a low note system.
Under this state of things, we hope the Commit..
tee will deal impartially with both parties ; and if they
have resqlved to adduce two witnesses;only, that they will select
ose from each, so as to give the people of Scotland the benefit
of a full and impartial inquiry. The investigation, to be satis-
factory, must not be liable to the imputation of being " Ong-
sided.' In a matter of such vital importance to the future
well-being of the entire community, the Committee are bound
to elicit the truth, and this, perhaps, they cannot accomplish in
a question attended with so much intricacy and diversity of
opinion, without giving the views of the most experienced men
on both sides. But the Committee have confined themselves,
we understand, to the examination of two witnesses generally
for each separate class of professional interests involved in the
inquiry ; and if this be the case, the Scotch barkers cannot
complain if they should be restricted to the same number, pro-
vided the gentlemen selected shall be acknowledged as their
fair and full representatives. When parties differ among them-
selves, however, it is always difficult to get them to agree in
the choice of delegates, and the Committee may have found it
necessary in this instance to make their own selection.

POST.--The leading subject of conversation among men
of business of all classes was another of those distressing cases
of suspension of payment which have become so frequent of
late. It was ascertained at ass ealy hour of the day that
Messrs. Wakefield and Son, of Broad-street, who have for
many 3 ears past been in the enjoyment of a high degree of po-
pularity as stockbrokers and private bankers, and whose credit
remained unimpaired up to the close of the Stock Exchangt
sterday, had disappeared; parties cal' ing at their office for
the purpose of receiving moneys being referred to their
solicitors. The elder Mr. Wakefield was treaserer of the
Decayed Members' Fund, formerly chairman of the
General Committee of the Stock Exchange, and, we be-
lieve, All an influential member of the body. The firm
were in the confidence of the Equitable Life Assurance :Com-
pany for whom they acted as brokers. Their connection
with that eminent institution was alone sufficient to give them
a superior standing in the line of business in tallith they were
engaged, so that they were freely trusted with the custody of
negotiable securities of all descriptions, the safety of which.
whatever amount was in their hands, is not, we hope, te be
doubted. The hatits of Messrs. Wakefield have been so
uniformly quiet and business-like as to forbid the suspicion of
an improper use having been made of any prepetty of the
sort. The claims upon the house, on Stock Lxch;rige• ac-
count, are said not to be large, the more considerable proper-
-ion being distributed among its private eonrectious. several
of the personal friends of the parties will, it is feared, be, as is
too often the case on the occasion of failures, severely in-
jured. It is rumoured that Messrs. 'Wakefield obtained
yesterday, in common with other bankers, a large
amount of dividend warrants from the Bank of Eng-
land. There has not yet been time to procure payment
of such warrants, but it is taken for granted that no difficulty
would have been found in getting advanses of cash upon ihem.
Messrs.. Wakefield were, we hear, in the position of guarantees
for an official assignee of the Court of 13ankruptcy. The dis-
closures made the other day in the case of Mr. Abbott may
possibly have led to a more rigorous observance on the part of
the Commissioners of the regu!atiens appertaining. to this re-
sponsible class of men, and, assuming that the individual gua-
ranteed has placed ,urns of money to some eats nt belonging to
the creditors in whose behalf lie has befit employed in their
hinds, the embarrassments of Messrs. Wakefield may have
been brought on in a great measure by the necessity which has
existed for the withdrawal of the same at a short notice.
By an Order in Council inserted in last night's Gazette it is
declared, in pursuance of certain Acts of Parliament passed in
the third and fourth years of the reign of her present Majesty,
that the ships of all such foreign Powers as have treaties of
reciprocity with this country, and the cargoes imported or
exported therein, shall be admitted on payment of like rates of
duties and tolls with these charged on British vessels and their
cargoes. This order is one of very considerable importance to
the mercantile and shipping classes, and of some interest to the
public generally. It is thought extraordinary, therefore, that
when the intention of Government was formally made known
on the subject through the columns of the Gazette, the foreign
Powers having treat es of reciprocity with us, and which are to
participate iu the change, could not have been enumerated. It
13 not to be supposed that every merchant carries in his memory
a preid,e knowledge of all the commercial treaties and arrange-
ments entered into between his own and other States. The
niggardliness of our officials in their mode of putting informa-
tion of this nature before the public, although they must neces-
sarily have the requisite materials at their fingers' ends, has
frequently been pointed out to us in terms of well-merited
disgust.
AE

__RALT).—An extraordinary degree of excitement was
occasioned on the Stock Lxchange, as well as in the City ge-
nerally, by the non-aprearanee at the usual hours of business
this mornitw, and subsequent announcement of the failure,
of Mesos. I.Valefield and Son, the very old established
Stockbrokers, carrying on a banking business as well in
Ne.v. Broad-street. This event caused very considerable
surprise, and does no.t appear to have been in the, least
anticipated in any quarter down to the last moment. The
firm was one of ling standing, of high respectability on
the Stock Exchange, and of credit unquestioned Its con-
nections were also of firs'-rate importance and value, as
may ba estimated by the single fact that, among others of note.
the house acted as brokers for a'l the vast stock transactions of
the Equitable Assurance Company, the well-known wealthiest
corporation in the world. What may be the amount ins olved
in this unfortunate insolvency cannot, of course, he yet known
with any sort of certainty ; some reports carry it as high as
19.0,00(7., but ii is believed, in quarters more likely to be cor-
rectly informed, not to exceed 60,000/. Neither the proxi-
mate or more remote causes of the stoppage can be eves
gues4ed at, for, singular to state, it is understood that
they transacted bona fide stock-brokering business for prin-
cipals only, that they were not in the habit of jobbing
or speculating on their own account, and have actu-
ally no account of the sort open row, so that as far
as the Stock Exchange is in question on that head it is sup-
posed they cannot be declared to be defaulters in the usual
way, that is, posted on the black board. It is understood how-
ever, that they were concerned in various trusts in their bank-
ing business, as well as for the Stock Exchange, where the
elder partner of the firm was tiea.urer of the fund for the
relief of decayed members. There are various reports in cir-
culation in respect of large losses incurred under the head of
these trusts, which it is not necessary to advert to, as alter all
they may be cleared up, and the trust moneys lying probably
in deposit with the bankers, with whom, distinct from their
own banking concern, they kept a private account for their
stock business. The answer at their office to all inquiries of
parties interested, was a reference to their solicitors. Alto-
gether
it is very rarely that any event if the kind has produced
so painful an impression as this failure.

SUN.—The disappearance from !ha Market t0,1a5 of a
party who did a large bona fide business in his capacity of
broker, and who bore a highly-respectable chsua-ter, has
had an injurious effect upon the value of the public secu-
rities, which closed a shade lower. Consols tor immediate
transfer ranged from 89f to 89f, closing at 894, and for
the Account et 891 -I. the latest bargains be.ing at 86i
buyers.
India eh
Bonds at 2a. premium to Is. discount, and
the New Thrce.and-a. Half per Cents. at 94 to 98g.
Bank Stock was steady at 169 f cx div., India Stock at
251, and the Reduced Three per Cents. Stock at 86f to
stsj- without the interest.
•
Ihe Foreign Securi ics were all rather lower. Porto-
guese New Rye per Cents. declined from 33i to 33. and.the Three per Cents, from 20i to 19f. Spanish Active
Bonds also receded, not ranging higher than 23 to 221
Colombian Bonds of 1824, were flat at 221, Mexican at
30a to n, and Brazilian at 66f. Danish Bonds realised
78 to Russian 112 fr, and Dutch Two-and-a-Half pee
Cents. 51.
vvreeasttWer.ne site7rion..
'The Railway SharetshewNereewlesl3ll,l3treyasnotu.
Railway brought 23, South-
and the York and North Midland 30f premium ; Braghton
Shares were 4 to 4} discount, and Manchester and Leecle.
2,1 discount.
or the President titeamer,
Nothing transpired up to a late hour respecting t!ther
the verland mail from India
On the latter insurances were made as high as 30 and 35
per cent.