The Sun.
London, England, 1840-03-05 00:00:00

THE' SUN, LONDON THURSDAY, MARCH 5, IP4o

LONDON AND WESTMINSTER

BANK.

The sixth annual meeting of the Directors and Pro-
prietors of the London and Westminster Bank took
place at the Company's Offices, Lothbury. The at-
tendance of Proprietors was very nutaerous, the large
room of the Bank being crowded in every part.
At one o'clock the Chair was taken by Joszert
ESDAILE, Esq.
The CHAIRMAN said, in the absence of Mr. P. M.
Stewart, who had tho honour generally of presiding at
their meetings, the duty devolved upon him of
taking the Chair. Gratified as he felt at the
opportunity that was afforded him of addressing so
highly influential a body of Proprietors, he re-
gretted the duty had not devolved upon able hands.
Circumstances, however, having placed him there,
he trusted to the kindness and forbearance of the
meeting, while he made a few observations upon the
affairs of the Company. The Directors would have the
pleasure shortly of submitting to them a statement of
their proceedings for the last year, and as it would
contain a full detail of their transactions it was
unnecessary for him to enter into any lengthened
statement. There was one point, however, in
which he would anticipate the Report, feeling
that it would afford to the Proprietors much gratification
—it was with respect to the dividend which was now
about to be proposed.--( Hear, hear.) The Directors,
having carefully investigated the accounts, and after
making due allowance for bad debts and other contin4en-
cies, felt themselves in a situation to declare a dividend
for the year ending 1839, of 6 per cent. The Pro-
prietors having received in anticipation a dividend of
t2i per cent., there remained to he divided a dividend
of 3i, which would make 6 per cent. for the year.—
(Hear, hear, and cheers.) Such was the gratif7ing
statement that the Directors had now the pleasure of
submitting to the Proprietors. There was one other
circumstance which the Directors considered must be
gratifying, viz., that the feeling of hostility which for
some time existed on the part of the old London banks
had, in a great measure, subsided.—(Loud cheers.)
The difficulties which had occurred from time
to time since the commencement of the establishment,
had now been entirely removed by one and all of the
London bankers. He regretted, however, to state,
that there was one very important point yet to be
gained—their Bank had not yet the power of clearing,
but the Directors looked forward to the time when,
from the growing importance and influence of the Bank
itself, that object would be accomplished. (Hear,
hear.) He would now call upon the Secretary to read
the Report.
The Seca/TART then read the Report, as follows :--•

because he thought the Proprietors had every
reason to be satisfied with the manner in which they had
conducted the affairs of the Bank. He found that, in
the year 1834, their profits were only 3,5461. ; in 1835,
they were 15,0201. ; in 1836, they were 32,0001. ; in
1837, they were 34,900/. ; in 1838, they were 36,0001. ;
and in the year just ended they were 48,0981.—(rhecrs.)
They had a proprietary of 8 or 900 gentlemen, and
a paid up capital of 600,0001., and what was still
more important, they had a connexion with about 150
banks and their branches, and they had besides the build-
ing they were then assembled in, which they ought to
feel much pride in calling their own, and which could
vie with any similar edifice in the metropolis. All these
were gratifying circumstances, and he then felt much
pleasure in moving a resolution expressive of their con-
fidence i❑ these Gentlemen.

The resolution having been seconded, was carried
unanimously.
Mr. SAVAGE moved a vote of thanks to Mr. Gilbart,
their General Manager, and to the Managers of the
different branches, for their zealous and effective services.
Carried unanimously.
Mr. GILBART returned thanks. Their Bank was
the first Joint Stock Bank established in the metro-
polis ; and, of course, they had many obstacles and dif-
ficulties to encounter which others had not.—(Hear,
hear.) Had they been unsuccessful he would be glad
to know when the people of London would have heard
of a second or a tnird bank ?—(Hear, hear.) He be-
lieved much of their succ-cs was owieg to the Directors
having selected, for the n nagement of their affairs,
persons who had had considerable experience in
banking
He
(Mr. Gilbert) had been twenty-
seven connected with the business of banking,
years concerns.
and for thirteen years of that period he had been a
manager. The experience of some of his colleagues
was greater than his own, and, as they grew older, their
experience would increase. He trusted their duties
would be as efficiently discharged in time to come, as
they had been in past years —( Hear, and cheers.)
The CHAIRMAN had the pleasure of announcing to
them that the transfer of shares, which were held very
largely in the country, were getting very much into
London.—Hear, hear.) He also wished to inform
them that they had succeeiled.in letting their old pre-
mises to a substantial tenant.—(Hear.)
Thanks were then voted to the Chairman, and the
meetiAr separated.

to purchase property on the Middlesex side of the, river,
.;to enable them to mike the approaches to the Tunnel,
such steps should be necessary.
The meeting then adjourned.

, AGRICULTURAL REPORT FOR
FEBRUARY.

At length the goods have subsided—at least from
!sight—exposing the surface of thousands of acres
'which had not net the eye since November. Such a
visitati' n cannot be styled '• irrigation ;" for though,
unquestionably, the crop of grass must he heavy in
those water-meadows which now are covered with a
rich vegetable slime ; yet, as much arable land is abso-
lutely sodden with water, a serious impediment to the
labours of husltandry has beer► raised, which does not
usually result from the occasional overfhwing of the
rivers. Some wheats in the lowlands are certainly ob-
literated ; and in the up-country we know that the an-
ticipated sowing of spring Talavera has been too long
protracted, and even abandoned.
We met with, and consulted agricultural authority
upon, a curious report lately made before the Lord
'Mayor upon the approach of famine. A subject of so
grave a character startles even by the most vague men-
dion of it ; but when seriously agitated, it claims the
most earnest attention of the wise. Our friend laughed
at the subject altogether : his breadths of rich wheat
!in full health, his clovers covering acres of the fittest
land, and his stock of turnips unexhausted—all these
gave him promise of local plenty; and it is but just
'to say that lands of high and dry quality are in prime
condition : but there are situations—cold, clayey,
poached with water—which exhibit a far different pic-
ture. In the north-west of Wiltshire, for instance, our
lcorrespondeat tells as (per date Feb. 1 1)—" Many of our
'farmers have declined sowing their usual quantity of
wheat, not being able to get their land in proper cul-
tivation. ‘Vhat wheat is sown looks thin and un-
healthy ; and unless the genial warmth of spring should
'revive it, 1 am fearful the ' fall-sown' wheats will, in
this neighbourhood, be a complete failure." Thus we
perceive that there is some cause of local anxiety on
the ground of one staple crop ; and therefore we do
not scoff at the suggestion to sow a greatly enlarged
breadth of oats, and, abo►e all, of the Tartary oats, for
their yield is enormous.

We conversed a day or two since with a farmer,
whose hind is springy, and ton wet and cold now for
spring Talavera ; he has raised 14 quarters of oats
(when thrashed out) from the very land which, upon an
average, would not produce above 3} quarters of wheat.
Persons in general are not acquainted with tha flour
of oats they associate the idea of oatmeal with it ;
but the fact is, that the latter is a preparation of the
oat by means of heat, for an express purpose ; but
simple grinding at the mills produces a flour which
(night readily pass for that of wheat ; and, though the
trouble to the miller is considerable, and the quality
of the meal inferior yet who would hesitate in cases of
necessity ? Potatoes also are not to be slighted,
:though perhaps too much importance is attached to a
root which contains barely one-seventh of its weight of
!actual farinaceous starch. We will speak more fully
upon the potato at the season of planting.
In the mean time we are quite sure that our agricul-
tural system is very defective ; that it might., under the
guidance of science, be brought to a far more improved
condition ; and that the actual tillers of the land have
by no means kept pace with the progress of the popula-
tion. We require large experimental farms—not one,
but several, situated in various parts of the United King-
dom, wherein the science of rotation might be com-
pletely developed ; and principles, determinate, and
appropriate to each kind of soil and climate, established
upon undeniable evidence of carefully-registered facts.
We believe that England could grow its own corn in
abundance to meet all home claims, and also to ex-
port grain, instead of depending upon importation at a
ruinous expenditure. Let the English Agricultural
Society, with its vast and increasing patronage, look the
state of affairs boldly in the face, and devote its ener-
gies to a great and national undertaking.
We quit generals, awfully impressive as they are, to
inquire a little into present appearances. The lace of
the country is much as it was ; for though the winter
has been mild, and profusely wet, and the temperature
equable to a great degree, yet there has been little
sun, and soddened land rarely favours growth. The
turnips have done admirably, and entire fields of
the August sown (stubble whites) are still to be seen,
well bulbed and verdant. The land turns up nicely,
all things considered, and much spring wheat has been
sown, and the sowing continues. Some lambs have
suffered from the rain, but many are safe. Complaints
are little heard, and prices remain steady. Frost set
in with the north-east wind on the 17th, and though
not at all severe, yet such was the force of the current
during several days, that the sensation of cold was con-
siderable. Ploughing. however, has been in progress ;
and time has been given for the waters to subside from
the low grounds.
We cannot recollect a parallel season ; it is extraor-
dinary, inasmuch us, without any interval longer than '
a week, there have been nearly nine consecutive wet
months. Surely we are at a climax, and, therefore
many reasonably hope that the criterion month of
March, now at band, may afford evidence of a happy
change. Should the spring and summer prose
the land is so amply supplied with water, that abund-
ance may be anticipated, and, moreover, much expe-
rience may. be acquired by those who seek information
from natural facts.

EVIPRISONMENT OF THE SANE

IN MADHOUSES.

(From the last numner of the Medical Gazelle.)
It is now about a twelvemonth since we directed the
attention of our readers to this painful subject.* In
one case detailed on that occasion, a young man was
convicted of madness because he lay in bed till ten in
the morning, and alarmed the neighbourhood ; added to
which Sir J. S. Lillie thought that his disliking to
go to the lunatic asylum at Hanwell wits a strong proof
of insanity. In another, a patient was shut up in the
asylum at Peckham, because, when let out, his tavern
bills were unpleasantly large. In a third, a boy of a
violent and selfish temper, with the additional disad-
vantage of having relatives at once irritable and affec-
tionate, was sent to a mad-house, by way of substitute
for a strict school. All this may be mighty convenient
to " irritable and affectionate" relations, but strikes us
as being anything but just. It is strange to see how
easily certificates are signed, when angry relatives
have predetermined it. No incoherence so slight, no
action so neutral, but is assumed as a proof of insanity.
The other day, a Mr. Robinson, whose sanity was the
subject of investigation, played a game of cribbage, at
the request of his own wife, in order to show an emi•
neat mad-doctor that he could count. The physician
was satisfied with his counting, but alleged,
in his evidence, that had Mr. Robinson not been
mad, he would not have consented to play the game.
In good truth, this method of investigating the state of
a man's mind, with a predetermination to find it un-
sound, reminds us of Goldsmith's account of the way
of ascertaining if a dog is mad. " A crowd gather
row(' a dog suspected of madness, and they begin by
teasing the devoted animal on every sine : if he
attempts to stand upon the defensive, and bite, then he
is unanimously found guilty., for a mad deg always
snaps at everything ; if, on the contrary, he strives to
escape by running away, then he can expect no com-
panion, for mad dogs always run straight forward be-
fore them."-f

In an instance, however, which has just occurred, the
intended lunatic has been more fortunate, and has come
off with flying colours. Mr. Paternoster, it seems,
quarrelled with his relations, and did not always express
his displeasure with the coolness of a sage or an epi-
grammatist. It would be well if a man always recol-
lected that ira furor brevis est, and that, if a couple
of cool medical practitioners happen to witness his
wrath, he ma; find himself deposited within the iron
gates of some asylum before he can recover his com-
posure. Those, on the other hand, who arc requested
to sign certificates should reflect that tempers vary
like temperaments, and that a thin irritab!e man, dried
up in a tropical climate, does not talk like a reviewer.
As Dr. Johnson said, wh•'n he was asked why he did
not write like Addison, " Sir, Addison had his styie,
and I have mine !" Some less tolerant practitioners,
however, signed Mr. Paternoster's certificate, and he
was conveyed to Mr. Finch's asylum, at Kensington ;
but it was so clear that he was not mad, that, when
the Metropolitan Commissioners saw him, they gave
notice to Mr. Paternoster's father, that if he did not
release him they would ! Mr. Paternoster, on being
released, brought an action against Mr. Finch, and all
the other persons concerned in the affair, and it came,
on for trial a week ago. The suit was compromised;
on condition of the defendants paying all Mr. Pater•i
nester's costs, as between attorney and client, and
giving him an annuity of 1501. per annum. This
annuity, we believe, was the original bone of conten-
tion, and Mr. Paternoster's indignation at its being with.
held was interpreted into madness. This ease will be
a useful warning to every one not to sign certificates
on the representation of interested parties ; the law
does not ask us to give testimony as to what we have
heard from others, but what we have seen ourselves.

" Med. Gaz., Feb. 23, 1839.
t Citizen of the World, letter 69.

FOURTH CENTENARY OP PRINTING.—Great
preparations are making throughout Germany to celebrate the
fourth centenary of the discovery of printing. Leipsic, the
central point of the literary world, will celebrate this glorious
event on the 24th, 25th, a.,1 2 Zth of next June, with great
splendour ; and Felix Mendelsshon 13artholdy, is now writing a
new oratorio for the occasion.— Musical Journal.

- ,
:CHILD-DROPPlNG.—Desertion by parents of
their own hapless offspring appears, from all accounts both in
town and country, to be on the increase. The parent of this
unnatural and revolting crime is, doubtless, want—a deficiency
of food often caused by the Corn-laws.
The estate of Phantasie, the property of the
eminent agriculturist, the late George Rennie, Esq., in the
neighbourhood of East Linton, Haddingtoushire, has been
sold within these few days fur 63,750/., or about 90/. per im-
perial acre. The price is not considered by judges to be exor-
bitant. The purchaser is said to bs Mr. Aiitchell, of Parson's
Green.—Scots paper,