The Sun.
London, England, 1840-10-27 00:00:00

MONEY MARKET and CITY NEWS

(SATURDAY EVENING.)
CFrRONICLE.—The New York Courier or the
10th gives the following review of the Money Market :
—Capital was abundant, and readily obtained on good
securities. The banks have now about twelve millions
of dollars on deposit, and their means are generally
greater than the demand for them. The consequence
is, that the banks have lately taken paper from the
brokers having over ninety days to run at GI per cent.
per annum. Some of the banks have also large ba-
lances against Philadelphia, for which they will not
draw at present, looking forward as they do to a general
resumption of specie payments, which event they feel
the utmost confidence is near at hand, and hope that
\
the New York banks will rise superior to the jealousies
instilled into the directors of some of titose institutions
Iby the miserable course of the late and present Admi-
nistrations. A desire to invest Aapital in State Stocks
continued. Indiana and Illinoismve risen considerably,
. and State Securities have been generally in demand.

Mr. Webster continues to attract immense assem-
blies of the people, and spoke for several hours to a
convention at Richmond, in Virginia, attended, it is
said, by 10,000 persons. His observations were di-
rected with bitter irony against the measures of the
Administration. He dwells at considerable length upon
the value of State Stocks, and enforces the liability of
the different States for their paymcat. He remarks,
that when in Europe the State of Massachusetts had
her bonds in the market, and in the administration
papers of the day, sent regularly to Europe, the sol-
vency of the States was denied, and it was asserted
there were not resources left in any of the States to
discharge the debts which they had contracted. The
consequence was, that none of the European cepa-
talists would touch them. The Administration had
even put forth a pamphlet denying the doctrine that
the State of Virginia had any right to contract
debts, and this was done by a party who profess to
support to the full the doctrine of State rights, and who
avowedly profess a reverential regard to the consti-
tution.
Mr. Webster then observes that he was consulted,
and that he gave his opinion that the States had a
perfect right to act as they bad done. The Learned
Gentleman, no doubt, alludes to the opinion published
in the Chronicle, contained in a letter to the house of
Baring and Co., in which he expressed his decided con-
viction of the perfect legality of the State loans, and
that the citizens of the United States would most rea-
dily acknowledge them. It is now gratifying to find
Mr. Webster advocating the principles of national good
faith with the unanimous support and approbation of
the people of America.
The New York Herald contains the following circu-
lar on the subject of the resumption of specie payments
by the Bank of the United States :
" Bank of North America, Oct. 5, 1840.

" Dear Sir—At a meeting of Directors this day, the
following preamble and resolution were unanimously
adopted :
" Whereas the Bank of the United States has soli-
cited the aid of the other City Banks to enable that in-
stitution to resume -specie payments upon the 15th of
January, and it being understood that, without such
assistance, it will be unable to effect that object.
" Resolved, That the President be requested to ex-
press to the Presidents of the several Banks the sense
entertained by this Board of the necessity of some im-
mediate and united action upon the application ; and
that Messrs. Attwood and Robins be a committee to
represent this Bank in a general conference on this im-
portant subject, which is hereby invited to be held at the
office of the Board of Trade, on Thursday evening next,
at half-past seven o'clock.
JNO. RICHARDSON, President."

BANK OF ENGLAND.

TIMES.—Some very curious facts have been pub-
licly stated in a quarter very likely to know the truth,
bearing upon the position of the Bank of England towards
the great discount brokers of the City, between whom
there has always existed a perfect cordiality from the
time when the latter acquired the importance they at
present possess. Of late, however, symptoms of a less
friendly feeling towards the Bank have been observed
among them, of so marked a kind as not only to become
the subject of observation in the Bank parlour, but to
cause some alarm in the minds of the Directors,
lest this feeling should assume a form in any de-
gree approaching to hostility. The fact is broadly
asserted, and indeed subjected to something like
demonstration, that the great discount brokers
of London, with their connexions, the bankers,
banking companies, and merchants, not of Lon-
don only, but of the whole kingdom, if they should
please to exercise their power, have the Bank
at their mercy. The illustration is so curious that we
quote some passages from the source referred to—the
" Banker's Circular." After adverting to the power of
the great loan-contractors here and elsewhere over the
resources of the Bank of England, when backed by
any great continental State, the writer adverts to some
other operations, the speculations of these '- merchant
bankers" for profit, by which they can bring an influence
little less powerful to bear upon that corporation. He
says—" With them it is an affair of most facile ac-
complishment ; for they have only to draw bills at
usance—generally at three months—upon any city of
Europe, and direct the acceptors to reimburse them-
selves at the maturity of the bills so drawn by another
draught on some other city. Confidence among the
great exchange and loan firms is the sole requisite.
Whatever may be the essential character of bills of
this description, they are not allowed by bankerly
dogmatism to be designated by the offensive appel-
lation of 'accommodation bills ;' on the contrary, they
are held in the highest estimation at the banks
of England, France, and Vienna, and among the bill-
brokers and bankers of London. They merit to he so
regarded essentially, on account of the opulence of the
drawers and acceptors. But the machinery subject to
the command of such parties appears to us altogether
incompatible with the free and efficient action of power
by the Bank of England, becsuse it might at critical
junctures be brought into operation so as to abstract
every sovereign from the Bank of England, without the
Directors having, as far as we can discover, the capa-
bility of preventing such an alarming consequence. The
abstraction of the insignificant amount of some 50,000
sovereigns has, within the last month, filled the Bank
parlour with alarm ; and this must have arisen from a
consciousness in the minds of the Directors of the ex-
tent of the power which such parties can bring to bear
against them.
" The bill-brokering power is a new one, but it is
increasing aad growing into ascendancy. It has al-
ways until the present time acted in co-operation
and acquiescence with the views of the Bank Direc-
tors, and we m-ay say in great measure with irre-
provable subserviency to their wishes. But there has
within the last month been clearly indicated by some
of the bill-brokers a disposition not of perfect sub-
missive allegiance, which naturally creates uneasiness
at the seat of power where allegiance is claimed. The
fact is, that on the first decided intimation given to
them by the Bank of the necessity of restriction, these
bill-brokers became so apprehensive of the troubles of
1839 been about to be repeated, that they at once de-
termined to put themselves full of money and to keep
in that condition ; and we believe that more than one
firm have given 5 per cent. for deposits to be left with
them for a specified conveniently long time, have been
dezircus of increasing the amount of such deposits on
the same terms, and have been simultaneously con-
strained to lend money on the Stock Exchange at 4
per cent. from day to day. We say the power of this
class is progressively increasing. Now, suppose any of
the most distinguished among them, moved by a feeling
of animosity against the Bank, were to act in co-ope-
ration with some one or two of the merchant-bankers
or loan-mongers, were to discount all the paper they
could bring, to the exclusion of accommodation to their
regular customers, the merchants, traders, and joint-
stock banks, what could binder these parties so co-ope-
rating from throwing the Bank of England into diffi-
culty whenever her treasure should become low ? We
know the extreme improbability of such a co operation ;
we merely state a possibility."
These remarks are instructive, and full of meaning,
and will not be thrown away upon the careful watchers
of passing events who abound in the city. The argu-
ment from them, that these circumstances, which de-
monstrate the precarious and exposed position of the
Bank, render it manifest that there is no safety for that
establishment, or for the commercial classes who are
dependent upon its operation, but in a change of sys-
tem, is but an addition to many others by which such a
journal.
The has been constantly enforced in this
The misfortune is, that such changes are work for fair
weather only, of which the best judges of our monetary
affairs can only see the prospect (if at all) at a very
great distance of time. Regard for self-preservation
will induce the Bank Directors to do all that is pos-
sible ; and that, it is evident, is the sole reliance the
public can have at present.

An intelligent correspondent from Paris, writingi on
ofs.
' banking affairs, remarks, that one principle of weai )es
in tEe Bank of England is the perpetual change
Governors ; that in France the Governor is appointed
'
andfaoserfiotirrgecoi;leiss:iyes s perfectly
every change and event is always
b
known and provided for. This, as far
than that. true ; but we want much more
The first public act of the Duke of Victory, as the
head of the new Spanish Regency, confirms the view
, taken yesterday as to the entire indifference of the
1 late change in all that regards public credit. All men-
tion or indirect reference to the subject appears to be
I studiously avoided. At the same time the Ministers,
who arc at present a kind of Regency, take occasion to
I remark that they have transmitted copies of the act
I of renunciation to the representatives of the allied
and friendly nations, which shows that they are
anxious, however firm they may consider their own Go-
vernment, to secure the recognition of foreign Powers.
time like this when tondheolGerndoevrsoumgehritt ht:scumste
forward an
their claims anew, not only to obtain
the recognition
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the n Government—a matter which,
tdhautrgthee Spanish b
of