The Sun.
London, England, 1867-01-24 00:00:00

Mr. Baines, M.P., and Mr. Beecroft, M.P.

On Wednesday last the annual meeting of the
Leeds Chamber of Commerce was held in the
Town-hall, the chair being occupied by Mr.
Darnton Lupton, president of the association.
The two members for the borough, Messrs. Baines
and Beecroft, were present. Avery lengthy and ex-
haustive report of the proceedings of the Chamber
during the past year having been read, the chair-
man called upon several gentlemen to speak upon
special subjects with which they had made them-
selves thoroughly acquainted. Mr. Lister thus re-
marked upon the success which had attended the
efforts of the Chamber to prevent our English ma-
chinery from being subjected to foreign taxation ;
Mr. Ludolf spoke in favour of the establishment of
tribunals of commerce, showing that they could be
worked economically, and that their decisions were
almost always respected in towns where such tribu-
nals were established ; Mr. Wurtzburgh urged that
the late monetary crisis had practically tested the
inefficiency and incompleteness of the Bank Charter
Act ; and Mr. J. Jowitt contended that not only
should the names of shareholders in limited liability
companies be published, but also the exact number
of shares they held in those concerns. Mr. Beecroft,
M.P., confined his remarks altogether to the mone-
tary crisis of last year, saying that in 1866 the
country had been overtaken by a most disastrous
financial panic. Panics of this character appeared
to occur at intervals, but the one of last year recur-
red at a shorter period than the average of such
crises, and the explosion fell upon us with the greater
suddenness. The consequence was that it was at-
tended with results of a more ruinous character than
had been the case for a long period, for it was most
unexampled in intensity and in duration. He consi-
dered that the late crisis certainly presented itself as
a proper subject for investigation, and it was an in-
quiry of the greatest importance in its character. lts
operating causes ought to be ascertained and traced,
so that they might be able, from past experience, to
try if they could not prevent such widespread mis-
chief in future. He would impress upon their com-
mon sense the universal importance of the subject,
and urge upon them the iaecessityofth. orefmosdtirsectrtilcyt
investigation into this important matter;
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some information ought to be obtained about our
public companies—who were their originators, who
were their shareholders, and who were their direc-
tors. The inquiry also affected our circulating
medium, our credit, our banks, and other institu-
tions. He thought the work would be a proper
work to be done by each local Chamber of Com-
merce, but it would be still better if it could be
undertaken by an inferior Chamber of Commerce,
directed and supported by each local Chamber. The
matter ought also to be ventilated in Parliament;
but by whoever the work was done, and when, he
only trusted that it would be thoroughly accom-
plished and impartially conducted. The unfortu-
nate Bank Charter Act might have had a little to
do with the panic, but it was only one of the causes
therein, and ought not to be made the scapegoat to
bear all the blame of the financial disaster of 1866.
(Hear, hear.) Mr. Baines, M.P., after some pre-
fatory observations, said the evidence in favour
of the success of the Tribunals of Commerce in other
countries was so strong that he should certainly feel
inclined to give them a trial in England. At Brad-
ford, the other day, Lord F. Cavendish, M.P., and
Mr. Forster, M.P., had attended the meeting of
the local Chamber of Commerce, and in their