The Sun.
London, England, 1833-06-29 00:00:00

ieilities,
Of '
England, which eartied .on its. Operation in mileneve blii,
,fader
reit
imilli
secrecy, even public opinion tad nu control. Ti'' dthe 1,„,7- wow
cation of its issues every three months, and then onud,e ,'"Ject wei
average of them, was no control whatever. Tl'itAp. 4riewal of
Government should, in this age, in the year 1835, `'.l, °I the Eze
tinue this monopoly in the hands of a private colcife: It'd, the wl
was a most flagrant, a most crying public injury, , abbe !el'''. B
cism in Government ; such as was no where Glee 'tye , it.°Posed to
found. Nothing could he so monstrous as to give init,gtbe ,"I,e,ara heat
hands of a private company the monopoly nf! ell title ;bu
money of the country—the indispensable means of '1,40 4,.,ut whet
ing on all the trade of the country. Money way the -,0 -1 Hear,
element of our commerce, as necessary to that ps air is,o htetin try bat
to life ; and what would he said if a monopoly .-tf alrast ,'„it he tho
!rioently of
to be given to any body of irresponsible men ? if the
aid ',"°°unts, i
practice of the Btnk was adverse to this theory, he 1I ; tbr 113')g irk
carer
üßsaa nothing oihtteah,di
snoig,euenfondr,mtahonesdttsphueeffironrcyi
ice;inobtuu:tu,troirt
eitnhfacecyct,,oiutwlinewt
rp•ltd, t
iidefiesirateivsl
~ h,
.t'e'e enabli
all theory. It it were at all times equal in value, er)ci 1,1,1 be cow
variable in kind, he should he satisfied ; but it was ilq; ,!"el'ne wo
Bible to look back at the history of the cou:.try for the.ter ;4°Ulation
fifty years, and not be convinced that we had rel 0, .uPl3O,e that
a safe, a sound, nor at all times a sufficient 010)0 ital' eariseque
Could that currency be called safe and sound which k, theßank
been issued by a body which had been it a state of 11°,0 deed the stat
ruptcy, and which was obliged to have recourse t°4i,i ;red it ext
State to make the people take the paper of the betakiel :felled till
thetaestalshment? On more than one occasion, sub,4%.i Ibflued hit
to ank Restriction Act, that estal lishment bed °,k !, be Points
been on the verge of bankruptcy. That it was licit '`i, ti i l'ees'ity of
cient was proved by the events of the last few years, 'c,eai
prices had been reduced 25 per cent., and industrY bid
ilitt session
been paralyzed by the obstacles thrown in its way % so %el-4d be to
would not go into the conduct of the Bank in 1760'e.
4' session.
believe) and 1793, though at both peried. tioere werero ' us'ion reap
vulsions occasioned by the conduct of the Bank. 10 1,1;! i 1
'Token
100 country bankers stopped payment, although t"-ii ' PtiettPoneme
were at that time no one-pound notes in existence• doct to his exa
1797, the nation was on the verge of ruin by the c°9,ot! terd Al
of the Bank, and it was only saved by the Legisl%o, Pth4Pared ti
making the people take the notes of the bankrupt Co Altl the pi
blishment. The Bank of England had made icen'e;;ti 4 Report
profits by its connection with the public, and it ''''„'i,, ,'", not affoi
have been expected that the Bank should have ce°"o!.'eeision, 1
buted something to restore that sound rate of the curretift'l4l:4l:notion
it had departed from. What sacriti, a had it mate t°: il)inion u c
turn from piper to the metallic s'at.l.rd ? He maw o°",e ,i'a• AlemPl
crifices whatever. It had acted with a precipitanci",:o .141, were i
called for—it had acted in silence and seer, cy to secs t` sge4 Gallant
own advantages—and it had inflicted immense evil' 051; '4lO since
country. In 1814, at the period when the treaty of Peto 1144 amount
was signed, and when the Bank was under the ottligat:o.l2klber dui
to resume cash payments in six months, what was it, 401,1alti it wot
duct? When three months had elapsed aber that eventr6%? .17 Per cen
was the amount of bullion in the coffers at the Beat, "4t the ri
That was known by the examination of the Bank D' „k :41 to 1
tors before the Committee of last year, and the oi";f te-thirti r
amount of bullion in its coffers at that period wag (,::::i' ! ! fact
2,000,000/.,while its liabilities amounted to 10,000 ,„: iitl'°eiple of
and its notes in circulation amounted to 28,000,0u)'i lbe state of
Yet that was within three months of the period whl! e current
was bound to resume cash payments. How did it prof Id bst" in ci
Why, it went to the Government, and the Government
i°ol '11"i", bu 1
the Bank it need not trouble itself immediately, thetrdill e great
would be allowed it to make its preparations. HoW °I ril, 41' to keep
make those preparations? They knew, from the evideecioi
~toirtitrium
Mr. Horsley Palmer, that the Bank had no other Oe„cf 71 gradual
obtain ;
of obtaining a supply of gold than to restrict the currf"ei, "e, ted that
and reduce the price of commodities. The Bank Ph' tsr 'o mold he t,
tors avowed that they had restricted their issues to °`"lell' 44, these
gold, because then had no other means of getting it uriaftl 4I lent Get
they chose to give Si. 2s. per ounce for it, and afreld'ol. ZaPosed u
circulate it at 31. 175. 10d. The Bank then had edger twillte ; but
a great change in the currency, had lowered price', if been the ;
had in consequence obtained gold. It had openly 5i feted from
directly avowed that it had reduced prices from 25
.11-ioli Qe° declar
per cent. for the purpose of getting gold, and 0:01, °,Yernrnen
preparations for resuming cash payments. In 10'00 ether. I
nation was prepared for the resumption of cash pie,oft hel
I.l:gisiOri:
th:it'eeinkedbaonfkst
''°
oe.'lleetlehdattor
—we had gone through the preparatory stage of lieli de thought
fering, and a return to cash payments would ,tio; titllee that of
have been most advantageous. But, instead of u°oo b: effect of
that, the Bank obtained a Restriction Act for of, to very son
years longer, whilst at the same time their
fers were filled with gold, of which gold they 1110 Olplained
no small profit. At this time prices were very bleb/ :01 1,e4h5, the
exchanges were against us, gold was going nut o'9o,
Iklue adva
country, and the circulation daily contracting.
bank c
however, the Bank worked up their bullion
11,000,000/. ; but what had taken place in the itttehd! mast be pr
whilst the gold currency was so materially dimoiPl,-,
Did the Bank meet the defalcation as they ought to 00 !ration, a
done, by issuing paper to supply the deficiency ? Ori.. li t'lelace of pr
contrary, they actually contracted the paper circulatiol;:i ° establish
least six millions and a half. So much for the manse and !',4e
which the Bank had regulated the currency of the t:00.0 ili, remained
—(Hear.) After thus starving the circulation, theirafe. tf Do:''' Mer.
sequent relaxation was productive of moat injuriouie-hiA ; Power
of i
and led to those wild and extravagant speculatioc., gr-afill ,luiticts it
so nearly destroyed, and so material), affected the ic-ii) l'iected t
inertial prosperity of this country. Not only diu oti t ()Pinion t
Bank issue a superabundance of notes, but they lent vi°,li4,°,lea he p
in all ways, and to almost all applicants ; and not 001 Y, jii '"uld be r
they do this, but continued this improvident and i'ditei,l,eeret, body;
cious course full twelve months after the exchanre' 10 ;" the revis
against us. The crash of 1825 was certainly attnibiji-o'l 'betted that
to the indefensible conduct of the Bank of I:,ogi i L'lt the Pr,
Taking into consideration the circumstances vd'ichA.J 'i °t in tie
detailed, he should most certainly object to the reli".lttperly sal
of the Bank Charter Monopoly on the terms I'lliso Public opin
and second the motion of the Honourable and Garlic Place;.., any s
'-. Place, -

Member. He was indeed much surprised th t bi.
jesty's Government, who had so long opposed mc•jop
and advocated the principles of free trade, s

"hick
wou
consider(
it'4inCide wi
"tem t.

. .
come forward to support so flagrant a monopoly fY,OI
Liverpool's Government would never have thought ° tal
a thing. Lord Liverpool sal I that he would as stoiif
thought of restoring the Saxon heptarchy as of reeeto
the Bank Charter. The letter signed by that Noble re
and the then Frederick John Robinson expressed the,ej
decided hostility to such a renewal. He procee°,oll
quote the opinions of Lord Liverpool, and adverted ('
pamphlets of the Right Hon. Gentleman oppositeo,
James (Graham) when he advocated the propriety
straying what he termed a fatal connexion betwee cot
Government and a single chartered crdnpany-"41
nexion which facilitated the prodigality of 0 l
Ministel,
invested an irresponsible body with ti e most deote
and important functions of the State.—(Hear.) ei
Right Honourable Gentleman, too, Mr. Ellice, had
tained similar opinions, and had declared that Illej
duct of the Bank of England was direct;y oppe.,4
the commercial interests of the country, and expre7isil
hope that the exclusive charter of the Bank would
again be granted.—(Hear.) He did not see the 0o
Hon. Gentleman now in his seat, but he I,ould be 00
anxious to hear from Right Hon. Gentle,nen Wog,
the reasons fur their vary ertraordinaiy
(Hear.) Lord Brougham, when in that House, 1°- sd
maintained similar opinions. In the debate on Oles
dress in 1826, that Noble Lord deprecated that 10 geed
power should be confided to twenty four men--s r
which exercised the most tremendous influence
merely over the money market, but over the fortufiltlo
every family in the kingdom. All the great men °or"
day—Horner, Tierney, Macintosh, Grenville, and ° BuP
Tories as well as Whigs—and all the great writere,orel
ported the same principle.—(Hear.) Looking there'd
the manner in which the Bank bad hitherto exert-40V
trust confided to them, the so general condeinnatino
their conduct had met with, and the declared °PI,OOOI
not only of his Majesty's Ministers, but men of all
he thought he was perfectly justified in the conclo9o'e
which he had come. They had now a chance of es
from the system which bad so long oppressed the
he would as soon think of reverting to it as restarto tioi,ji
feudal system. Having once got his head from the A"
mouth, he should he.itate long before he v°l°l,4
placed himself in the same perilous position.-"(-
4/
hear.) The Hon. Gentleman, who was htey very
tinctiv heard during the latter part of his adtlre'l' iVQ
eluded by thanking the Committee for the atteotioo
,
had paid him.
Mr. GISBORNE rose amidst loud calls for re 0
thorp. He contended that the present questi°",
merely whether parties who had pecuniary concern-oleo
each other were to be left to regulate those coneeroliodi,
selves, or whether the Legislature should interferehu,
purpose ? The Hon. Gentleman who had $OO,O
dressed them had alluded to an orthodox declatoollo
faith which emanated from Fife House, and sv"
other orthodox confessions of faith, consisted of 39l_inol$,I
—(A laugh.) In one of those articles Lord Liverl; oIJ
Frederick John Robinson declared ti.at such syste°' bee
monopolies, were then out of fashion.--(fle°01Pro:
Lord Liverpool and his colleague had no power', raf
phecy, they could not foresee that the uureforroold
went would become reformed ; how, than, e'Llocb
have been expeced to foresee that a measure 00 %elf a
It
of fashion in an unreformed Parliament was
become so extremely fashionable in the first B 005
House of Commons ?—(Hear.) It was also $ 14,1
whether the House had sufficient data on which to Prnarl
the present time, fir even the Committee in their t"ekt4,,
declared, that the evidence they obtained was not v:041
justify them in coming to any conclusion on thebeilti
Nor was it to be forgotten for how long a titne,trees'or
now called on to legislate, without the power oit
or amending their Ace—(Hear, hear.) But ;,vep
,t
posing that the Committee should decide that Po"