The Sun.
London, England, 1858-10-07 00:00:00

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ROYAL PRINCESS'S THEATRE.
Under the Management of Mr. Charles Kean.
N, THIS EVENING will be presented Shakspere's Play of
THE MERCHANT OF VENICE.
Preceded by the Farce of
DYING FOR LOVE.

THEATRE-ROYAL, DRURY-LANE.
Under the Management of Miss L. Tyne and Mr. W.

Harrison.

THIS EVENING, Balfe's ROSE OF CASTILLE : Miss
Louisa Pyne, Miss Susan Pyne. Miss M. Prescott ; Mr. Fer-
dinand Glover, Mr. A. St. Albyn, Mr. George Honey, Mr.
Bartleman, and Mr. W. Harrison.
Conductor—Mr. Alfred Mellon.

To conclude with a Ballet Divertissement : Mdlles. Zilia
Michelet, Pasquale, and Morlacchi.

THEATRE-ROYAL, HAYMARKET.
Lessee, Mr. J. B. Buckstone.
THIS EVENING will be performed WIVES AS THEY
WERE AND MAIDS AS THEY ARE.
After which, THE DAUGHTER OF THE GUADAL-
QUIVER: Perea Nena.
With LEND ME FIVE •SHILLINGS.
And THE KING'S GARDENER.
Commence at 7.

ROYAL LYCEUM THEATRE.
Manager, Mr. Edmund Falconer.
THIS EVENING, the New Comedy of EXTREMES;
or, Ve..4 of the Day. Supported by Messrs. 11. Vandenhoff,
Emery, J. Rogers, and Barrett; Mrs. A. Mellon (late Miss
Woolgar), Mrs. Weston, Miss Kate Saxon.
After which the Ballet of THE RENDEZVOUS, in which
e Lauri Family will appear.
Doors open at half-past 6, to commence at 7. Boic-office
Open from 11 to 5 daily.

ROYAL STRAND THEATRE.
Lessee and Directress, Miss Swanborongh.
THIS EVENING, MY AUNT'S HUSBAND ; Mr. Swan-
borough, Mrs. Selby, Miss Ternan.
After which THE LAST OF THE PIGTAILS ; Messrs.
C. Selby, J. Bland, and J. Clarke, &o.
Followed by THE BONNIE FISH WIFE.
And I'LL WRITE TO THE TIMES.
Commence at 7 o'clock.

ASTLEY'S ROYAL AMPHITHEATRE.
Sole Lessee, Mr. William Cooke.
This Grand Hippodramatic Temple WILL OPEN, at
Prices commensurate with the times, and superbly re-
decorated, on MONDAY, Oct. 11.
Dress Circle, 3s. ; Boxes, 3s. ; Pit, ls. ; Galleries, 6d.
New Act Drop—New Company—And the largest Stud of
beautifully trained Horses in Europe.
To commence with a Drama, called THE COVENANTERS,
dramatised from the Waverley Novels by Mr. T. Townsend.
Grand Illustrations of all Nations by English. American, and
Continental Professors in the Arena nightly.
Box-ofßee now open. No fees.-

CANTERBURY HALL, Westminster-road.—
OPEN EVERY EVENING.—The following Company
of Vocalists are engaged for the performance of Selections
from all the popular OPERAS, MADRIGALS, CHORUSES,
GLEES, DIETS, Arc., viz.:—Miss Russell, Mrs. Badsey,
Miss Brunell, Miss Ray, Madame Bartoletti, Miss Montague,
Mrs. Lawrence, and Mrs. Anderson ; Herr F. Jonghmans,
Mr. Henshaw, S. Jones, J. Barker, W. Melling, Senor Antonio,
E. L Hime, Mr. Badsey, Senor Tiroli, Mr. Cozens, Mr. Bell,
Mr. Barnard, and Mr. St. Albyn. Mr. John G. Forde and E.
W. Mackney. Pianoforte, Mr. Cecil Hicks—Harmonium,
Mr. Courtnay—Director, Herr F. Jonghmans. Commence at
7 precisely. Suppers, Sac., until 12 o'clock.

NOTICE.—The Proprietor begs respectfully to announce
tnat in the present month

A FINE ARTS GALLERY,
now in course of construction, will be thrown open in Con.
flexion with the above Hall.

THE WEATHER.-SUN OFFICE, OCT, 7.

THERI'dOMETER7 IN THE SHADE.

60—highest since noon yesterday.
55—lowest this morning and during the night.
61—this day at noon.

BAROMETER- -`29.38—a fall of more than half-an-inch
since yesterday.
WIND, S.W. by W.; strong breeze, with heavy rain.
Two o'Clock, fine sunshiny weather.

In The Sun of yesterday we extracted an article

from the Times respecting the deplorable calamities
that have fallen on the innocent shareholders of
the Western Bank. Nothing can be more
lamentable than the ruin thus brought on many
provident and careful persons who had invested
the savings of their lives in what they believed,
and had every reason to believe, were unexcep-
tionable securities, in the hope of enjoying pecu-
niary ease in the last years of their lives, and of
leaving means to their families which would ma-
terially assist them during " the battle of life.'
Not only were these fond anticipations defeated,
not only was the entire amount of capital absolutely
and irretrievably lost, but heavy demands remained
to be enforced against these truly unfortunate per-
sons—demands that have, in too many instances,
reduced them to hopeless insolvency. They are far
more to be pitied than the depositors or other credi-
tors of the bank. The latter have already been
paid 10s. in the £1 on the amount of their respec-
tive-claims, and will eventually receive 20s. It is
true that many have been seriously inconvenienced
by the delay in the payment of money on which
they confidently relied for meeting their own
liabilities. But that inconvenience could be
surmounted at a comparatively trifling loss.
Few indeed *Ore reduced to ruin, or had all their
future prospects in life blasted by reason thereof.
But the case of the shareholders, especially of those
who had not in any degree participated in the mis-
management so justly complained of, was far worse.
Every shilling of their property was expended,
and they had also to pay an additional call of £25
per share, or 10s. in the £1 additional. Not quite two-
thirds of the amount that might have been antici-
pated, if every shareholder could respond to the de-
mand, was received.
.The paid-up capital of £5O per
share produced £1,500,000 ; and, consequently,
£25 per share ought to have produced £550,000.
But of this only £440,000 has as yet been obtained.
It is said that £05,000 more may be fairly antici-
pated under this call ; so that, supposing this esti-
mate to be correct, and that half a million is thus
obtained, it shows that £250,000 cannot be ex-
pected, and that parties who had £500,000 invested
in the stock had already become insolvent. These
were chiefly retired tradesmen, widows, and
orphans, and it would be difficult to find parties
more deserving of sympathy and assistance.
But even this does net by any means exhibit
the full extent of the mischief. The £25 per
share was utterly inadequate to provide for all
the demands, which were far more onerous than
had been anticipated. It was found that the de-
ficiency, in place of being little more than £300,000,
was really £1,420,000, so that an additional call of
£lOO per share became indispensable, and with but
little time allowed for the payment. This may be
responded to by some of the really wealthy share-
holders, but we fear that it will be impossible for
those already reduced to poverty to meet it.
It is, in fact, an addition of 200, or, in-
cluding the first contribution, 250 per cent.
to the original loss, or, in other words, each person
who held £lOO stock has paid or must pay £250
in addition ; and this, although they are morally,
although not legally, as innocent as any of the
creditors of the concern, who not only have nothing
more to pay, but have received half the amount of
their original claims. They are, however, to give
up the full pound of flesh—
" The law admits it, and the court awards I"

But admitting to the full extent the terrible
extent of the evil, and the gross mismanagement
by which it has been produced, that still does
not establish the accusations which the Times has
preferred against the Scottish system of banking
and Scotch trading, which we concur with Mr.
BT CHANAN in thinking to have been denounced in
terms of unjustifiable severity. Such mismanage.
ment as occurred in respect of the Western Bank
must have brought any establishment to ruin and
bankruptcy, no matter in what country, or under
what system it was conducted. There were enor:
mous advances to firms who certainly did not justify
the confidence reposed in them. These advances, in
place of " falling like the gentle dew from Heaven

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THE SUN.
THURSDAY. OCTOBER 7, 1858.