The Sun.
London, England, 1860-11-15 00:00:00

THE DRAIN OF BULLION FROM THE
..BAXE OF .E.NG.LAXD.

(From the Times City Article.)
It appears that the contact made by the Bank
of France with the London bullion dealers is for
£1,000,000 instead of £500,000. In addition to
the £300,000 withdrawn, £335,000 was taken yes-
terday, and £365,000 more is expected to follow.
Under these circumstances the applications for
discount at the Bank, which were on Monday of a
very moderate character, have yesterday been extra-
ordinarily large, mainly, it is believed, to provide
against the contingency of a further advance in the
rate being announced at the weekly Court to-mor-
row. The return to be made up this evening will
probably show that the bullion has been reduced
to about £13,200,000, and it must be expected that
next week the figures will, at the best, be down to
£12,800,000. There is nothing, however, in these
prospects to lead to the idea of any very violent
action being necessary. So recently as during four
months of 1856 the rate of discount stood as low
as 41 per cent., while the average stock of bullion
was but£12,350,000, and the reserve on 1yX6,000,000
while the total of the latter shown last Wednesday
was £6,429,370. Yet the circumstances then in
operation were not exceptional as in the present
instance, and, consequently, although it is to be
hoped that the. Bank will follow the market and
accept such rates as the public may seem desirous
to pay, it cannot be regarded as certain that a
fresh movement would not lead to a rather sudden
reaction.

Meanwhile, it must be repeated that, as far as
this country is concerned, there is no reason to com-
plain of what is going on. Apart from the commis-
sions, and premiums, and extra discount business,
arising out of the present borrowings on the part
of Bank of France, we have the satisfaction of ob-
serving that while our banks and capitalists are
reaping higher remuneration for the use of their
money the rise in the value of that article checks
the upward tendency of foreign produce, and espe-
cially of the great staples now most in demand—
corn and cotton. Of course it is an annoyance to
the dealers in those articles to be exposed to the
effects of an unexpected depreciation in prices, but
for the nation at large the result cannot be other-
wise than favourable. Our home manufacturers find
themselves partially interfered with, but, as a general
rule, under a healthy condition of commerce, it is
always raw produce that is most liable to suffer
whenever there is a sudden scarcity of capital.
We may thus look on the current events in the
money market with unconcern. But a problem of
great interest presents itself in connection with
them. To what quarters of the world has all the gold
that has been lost been carried ? Since the autumn
of 1859 the Banks of France and England together
have experienced a drain of £15,000,000. Russia has
not carried it off, for she has been long in severe
straits for want of a reasonable supply. Of Austria
the same may be said with still greater force. The
Bank balances of the United States have improved
but only in a very moderate degree. Meanwhile,
by extracting £3,000,000 of silver from the Moors,
among whom it was ♦irtually buried, Spain may be
supposed to have added to and not diminished the
general stock. Some fair portion of the outflow
has doubtless been directed to Northern Germany,
our largest receipts of grain baying been from
Prussian ports, while a demand for a farther portion
may reasonably be attributed to an increased acti-
vity of coin among the people, especially of Eng-
land, in consequence of the unparalleled extent of
commercial traffic. But these are all inadequate
to explain the largeness of the sum that has
been absorbed. Perhaps they may solve the ques-
tion as to £5,000,000, but there will then remain
£10,000,000 to be traced out. The difficulty, how-
ever, will vanish when we look at the vast military
operations that have been going on in various parts
during the past twelve months. In Syria and China
the outlay must have been immense, and these are
about the two worst countries in the world from
which we can look for a speedy flowing back of
anything that may be expended. At the same time
the French army at Rome has been maintained on
a scale of increasing costliness, and throughout
the whole of Italy and Sicily the movements
of armies have necessitated a constant use of
coin, while among the inhabitants of these
countries they have, doubtless, led to hoarding.
In the midst of all these charges France has parted
with £BOO,OOO to the Viceroy of Egypt, and is every
day augmenting in every quarter the expenses of
her armaments, and also of her diplomatic establish-
ments. . As an illustration of the manner in which
a million at a time,may be swallowed up, the im-
mediate disappearance of the £1,100,000 of silver
brought by one of the West India packets a few
weeks back may be cited. Instantly two-thirds of
the amount were bought by the Governments of
France and England, and sent for the pay the
troops in China. The moral to be deduced is satis-
factory. It is hard even for England, with her
boundless trade and extraordinary credit, to main-
tain the scale of expenditure now being forced upon
her, but for France the financial policy of the Em-
peror must, sooner or later, be ruinous. If the pre-
sent pressure should operate as a first warning in
that direction it will be among the happiest cir-
cumstances that have ever occurred.

THE RIGHT IRON. MR. W ALPOLE, Ikt.P.
ON VOLUNTEERING.

The village of Ealing was enlivened with a
Volunteer demonstration on a somewhat extensive
scale on Tuesday. The demonstation was promoted
mainly by the corps recently organised in Ealing,
known as the 30th Middlesex, and assisted by mem-
bers from the Civil Service, Inns of Court, Weat
Middlesex, and various other corps, under the im-
mediate patronage of the Right Hon. S. H. Wal-
pole, M.P., and many other influential gentlemen,
friends to the cause.
At half-past three all the Volunteers fell in at the
armoury of the 30th Middlesex, and had a general
parade and marching out, headed by the bands of
the Inns of Court and the Ealing corps. In the even-
ing, the first annual dinner of the 30th Middlesex
was celebrated with much eclat, at the Green Man
Inn, at which many prominent friends of the
volunteer movement were present, amongst whom
were the Right Hon. S. H. Walpole (in the chair),
M. de Bourbon (claiming descent from the Bour-
bon family), of the Belgian army, in full dress;
Col. Fitzmaurice, K H., and adjutant of her Ma—
jesty's Yeomanry Guard; Captain Collinson,
and several other officers and reverend gen-
tlemen.
The Right Hon. CHAIRMAN, in proposing the
toast of the evening, was received with loud cheer-
gnresa,t pleasure in
because he sincerelytaking
part
in cheer-
ing.
Hpreesseanidt phreoctet
ig
eeld
be-
lieved. it tended to assist in permanently establish-
ing this great national movement in the country, and
would show that the villagers of Ealing were ready
and able to take part in rallying round our Queen
country.manodment was (Cheers.) But a short year ago this
ye
in its infancy, and a year ago they (the
people of Ealing) met to tend their humble but willing
assistance for the accomplishment of the great ob-
ject—the defence of their common country; and while
.he was aware that many despaired then of the per-
manency of volunteering, he was very sure no rea-
soning person despaired now. (Hear, hear.) The
right hon. gentleman then alluded to the militia,
which he thought had done good service, and yet
that service, great as were its advantages, was as
nothing to this great volunteer movement, which,
notwithstanding the fears of its friends, and the
shrewd prophecies of its enemies that it was ephe-
meral, and would soon pass away and leave not a
trace behind, was rapidly gaining strength from day
to day. (Hear, hear.) He would ask them now if there
were not 150,000 men gathered together in one com-
mon cause, and what was that cause P He saw in
that hall two flags; on one was " Peace," and the
other " Hope"—appropriate mottoes for the occa-
sion—and he would say, as he said last year, that
their cause was for peace, which they all hoped for,
at the same time it was to show their foes abroad
that they could not take away those liberties from
us which we so dearly prized. (Hear, and cheers.)
The great moral effect of the volunteer movement
abroad had been much felt, and would still be felt.
It had unmistakeably shown to the world that
while other nations were forced to obtain freedom
by war, and violence, and bloodshed, we at any rate
could obtain and maintain it peaceably by our own
resources, and by rallying round our Queen and
country, offend nobody and attack nobody; and at
the same time say, we will not be offended nor
attacked. (Loud and prolonged cheering.) He
maintained that one of the prominent features in
the movement was its beneficial mingling of all
classes, the unity of which made them all happy
and prosperous. The right hon. speaker then
called upon all present to drink heartily, " Success
to the Volunteer Movement and the 30th Mid-
dlesex."

This toast and others having been duly honoured,
The Right Hon. CHAIRMAN, in responding for
the manner in which his health had been drunk,
declared that his time and his service were at the
entire disposal of the volunteer interest, which was
a cause, they might depend upon it, would not be
allowed to sleep, and hoped every Englishman
would use himself to the rifle the same as they
did of old to bows and arrows.

SERIOUS ACCIDENT TO A LIVERPOOL MERCHANT.
—Yesterday (Wednesday) Mr. Griffith, of the firm of
Griffith, Son, and Palethorpe, was about to leave the Ex-
el:tinge, and was turning a corner of the street, wIT en he was
accidentally run Over by a brewer's dray. Mr. Griffith re-
ceived such severe injuries that his immediate removal to
the North= Jiospital became Accessary.