The Sun.
London, England, 1833-08-10 00:00:00

In feet, a mere token. No berm then, Would be
done by declaring that a penny-piece sho id pass for five
farthings. By this means the same number of pieces t,
coin might be made to exchange for six aences and fthi
lines, as now did, which silver coin being al•
dee mal., would make a hundred farthings equive
lent to a prince, which, as he had already stated.
would be the tenth part of a pound sterling.
No difficulty could arise to prevent the adoption of thi
arrangement, for the Crown was enabled by its preroga-
tive to declare that such should be the value of the penny.
piece. The plan would he attended with another conve-
nience,'which, to some Gentlemen might appear ridiculous
—he meant the convenience of the poor having a
proper supply of farthings. At present they were often
obliged to give a halfpenny for what, it there w is a propel
proportion of small coin, they would give a small. r portion
of a penny for, a matter of some importance to those
whose income might only he four shillings a-week.
Mr. Alderman THONIPSON said that the statement
made by his Hon. Friend had quite taken him by sur-
prise, so that he could give no answer to the suggesting
he had made, nor, indeed, did he know that he should
have been able to have given one, even had he been aware
of that statement. The period during which consols wen
now closed was about six weeks; hut he did not think that
that period would appear too long when he came to state
the number of transfers which took place at the Bank in
the course of one year, and its other business which
had to arrange. By a paper which he held in his hand.
it appeared, that the number of tranteers at the Bank in
one year was 286,572 and the amount of stock transferred
was 304,218,7911. The number of new accounts opened in
the same period was 34,656. The daily average of transfer
for the year was 1 069. The dividend warrants paid
amounted to 279,7511. ; of which 87,176/. were re-
ceived by persons whose dividends amounted to less
than five pounds half yearly. He was certain that
the House would think that the period taken to arrange
these accounts with the accuracy for which he thou :ht he
might rake credit in behalf of the Bank could not by any
plan be materially reduced.
Mr. CLAY would take the opportunity of asking the
Noble Lord whether it would not be passible to remedy an
inconvenience and injury of which the public had now a
right to complain? The dividends were due on the sth
January and 5 h July, hut in point of fact the public did
not receive them till three or four days after, so that the
Bank, besides its acknowledged emoluments for transact.
ing the public business, had in addition the advantage of
using an enormous sum of money for a number of days.
Clauses 12, 13. and 14. wee.• then put and agreed to.
The SOLICITOR-GENERAL, in bringi❑g up
an additional clause by way of rider, said, it had been
prepared to hut beyond all doubt the right to establish
banks of deposit within the metropolis, and sixry•five
miles round it. The Committee had been repeatedly
informed, that the basis of the contract between the Bank
and the Chancellor of the Exchequer wos the statu quo
—that is, whatever monopoly they were entitled to, they
were still to enjoy, but nothing beyond it. Now, a
question hes been mooted whether the pre-existing
monopolies, entitled them to complain of the esta-
blishment of banks of deposit, within the limits which
I have described, and it appears to me, after a dili-
gent examination into all the caste, that there is no
pretence for saying that the establishment of such
banks is any encroachment on their monopoly.—(Hear.)
A notion to the contrary has prevailed in some quarters,
but, as it seems to me, without the slightest founda-
tion. I have looked into the Act, and I think
that no rational doubt can he entertained on the
subject, and whatever doubt is entertained ought
now to be obviated, because it would be most discredit-
able to Government and the House to pass a law which
is professedly equivocal, and thus leave it to courts of jus-
tice to put a construction on what they allow to be doubtful.
By the Act 6 Wiliam and Mary it was established as a
bank of issue. Now, in that Act there was nothing
whatever to give a monopoly, but in the Bth and 9 h of
William 111., which contains very general words, and
which, taken by themselves without the intention of the
Legislature, and without the context, it might be said
that no private hank now existing in any part of the
kingdom could be tolerated, but it must mean a bank
ejusdem generis—such a bank, that is, as the Bank of
England ; and that construction has been put on it by
all subsequent Ace, for the Grim Anne, c. 62, recites
that corporations had united together, and were acting as
banks of issue, and therefore the enactment is, that
it shall not be lawful fir any other corporation
than the Bank of England to barrow, owe, or take up
any sum or sums of money on paper, note, or
notes payab e on demand or at any less time than six
months from the borrower. Now this shows that the
object was that the monopoly should be confined to
the issue.—(Hear.) Now these words are repeated in
every subsequent Act of Parliament that has been pissed
for the maintenance of the monopoly, and it is upon tie se
words alone that the monopoly rests. The words are
repeated in the 15th of Ge.,. 11. c. 13, s. 35 ; in the 21st
of G o. 111. c. 62, P. 12 ; the 39th and 40th Geo. 111.
ch. 38 ; and in the last Act which was passed for t. e
maintenance of this monopoly. It rests with those whit
say that they are forbidden to establish such Banks r•f
deposit to show that the words of the Act contemplate the
case, the words being merely that they shall not " borrow,
take up, or owe" upon any piper, &e.—(Rear, hear.)
Such are the opinions, Sir, I have entertained upon the
subj-ct, and such are the opinions of eminent men of the
profession to which I have the honour to belong. I
think, therefore, Sir, that the Committee will have no
difficulty in agreeing to this clause, which declarts
what shall be the law. The Learned Gentleman then
read the clause, and said that the Committee would ob-
serve that the words constituting the monopoly of th •
Bank of England were clearly recognised. Under this
declaration, any tank of deposit may be established in the
metropolis, or within 65 milts of it, so that it is not a
bank of issue.

Mr. GISBORNE objected to the clause, on the
ground that it would prevent the agents of country
bankers in town from accepting the bills drawn upon
them.—(Hear.) He hoped, therefore, that the Com-
mittee would not sanction any clause that prevented joint
stock Bankers from catrying on their business in the
same manner as other Bankers reere allowed to do.
Mr. Alderman THOMPSON said it was impossibl •
for him to allow thin clause to pass without making
some observations upon it. According to the
statements of the Learned Solicitor-General, it had been
introduced for the purpose of making that clear which
was admitted to be matter of doubt. He had every possi-
ble respect for the legal opinion of his Learned Friend, but
he must be allowed to state that there were lawyers of great
eminence who entirely disagreed with that Learned
Gentleman, as to the tight of establishing banks
of deposit in London, or within sixty five mil, s
of it, with more than six partnets.—(Hear.) He
had always understood that P dliament legislated
for the purpose of settling disputed questions, and when
conflicting judgments had been given upon points
by Courts of Justice. He had a right to
contend that the interpretation he put upon the law,
which was different from that of the Learned Solicitor-
General, was the right one, because it had never
been questioned in a court of justice. He tocou_lat upon
this, as upon several other occasions, the Noble Lord
ought to have been satisfied with proposing one general
clause, reserving to the Batik those rights which it hai4
hitherto enjoyed under the existing state of the law.—
( Hear, hear, hear.) The Noble Lord had stated,
no doubt with great sincerity, that he had no
intention of defraudin, the Bank of any privileges a high it
at present enjoyed. The introduction, however, of this
clause would have that effect. With respect to the pro
position of the Honourable Member for Derbyshire,
it would amount to this, that the j tint stock banking
comp inks now established in the distant provinces,
would in effect be no more than branches of j tint
stock ecmpanies established in London, and would destroy
that system of private banking which had so long tetisted,
mil which was so essentially no cessary to forward the
great interests of the metropolis. If the session had
not been so near a close, he should certainly have felt
it his duty to have moved for the app .intment of a
Committee upon the petition, which had been pre-
sented from the joint stock bankers, and would in that
Committee have called udon them to state a single
instance in which they had been placed in difficulty on
account of the Bank letusin.t to discount good bills.
--(Heir, hear.) In conclusion, the Honourable Ald. r
man stated it would have been more satisfactory to his
feelings, and more in accordance with prudence, if the
Learned Solicitor General had proposed a general clause
reserving all the rights and privileges which the Bank of
England at present enjoyed.
Lord ALTHORP was not aware of any Thigh legal
authority %those opinion was not that the ti ue inter
pretation of the law was such ae the clause contemplated.
He should feel himself bound to stand by the clause, as
was proposed by the Solicitor Genera,. It was true that 11,
i had n an ff hand way, on being asked a question in th
House, told the Hun. Gent. opposite that he did not Intend
to propose the establ shinent of Banks of D.-posit in Lon
don, consisting of mare than six partners, and that wa-
because he thought that such was then the law ; bu
although he wished the Bank of England to be the
sole bank of issue in the metropolis, he bad no in
tehtion of giving it any addition..l privileges injurious t.
private banks in the metropolis. It appearing then to to