The Sun.
London, England, 1859-12-14 00:00:00

IVESTERY B.INK OF SCOTLAND.

defences for the -directors Of the Western
Bank of Scotland against the action instituted by
the liquidators are now being put in, and that of
Mr. Douglas, who was for 20 years deputy-gover-
nor of the concern, has been published in full,. and
is stated to be in its general features a sample' of the
whole. The pleas are chiefly' technical, such as
constitute the delight of all law courts, especially
in Scotland, and it will doubtless not be the fault
of the parties engaged if the arguments upon them
do not prove interminable. Any discussion regard.
ing them, however, would be totally uninteresting
to the general public, as wed as inopportune while
the matter is awaiting judgment; and as at the
period when; according to the ordinary rate of pro-
cedure at Edinburgh, a conclusion shall have been
arrived at, the present generation will, perhaps,
have half finished their course and forgotten all
about the Western Bank and its victims, there
seems little prospect of its ever figuring nein as a
matter for profitable comment. The chief point
reliad upon in the present defence seems to be in
the shape of an objection to the competency of the
liquidators to institute the action. Setting this
aside there is nothing to call for notice, except some
remarks interspersed in a long " statement of facts"
by which the pleas are preceded. These ,furnish a
few warnings:for joint-stock proprietors, together
with examples of the views of eminent Glasgow mer-
chants as to the moral liabilities they incur when
they allow their names to be published to the world
as an attraction to families, widows, and orphans
to intrust their savings to the care of a bank.
In the first place it is to bc., observed that great
force is attached to the insignificant pay i•aoeived by
the directors, and which is evidently held to show
that they had no objects of personal gain. Appa-
rently the deputy-governor had no remuneration'
whateren, or at all events only such as was merely
nominal ; and it will be interesting for the advocates
of public parsimony and-cheap labour to learn that
even the six ordinary directors, by whom the whole
active business of this magnificent institution was
carried on, were content to devote theinselves to the
welfare'of their constituents under a clause of the
deed of contract that they should "severally be paid
for their attendance at the rate of not less than ss.
sterling for each meeting." For this modest allow-
ance they undertook to sway the financial destinies
of• Glasgow, and succeeded in bringing disgrace upon
the whole empire, and inflicting a loss of about
£3,000,000 sterling upon those who had trusted them.
Northern economy was never more strongly ex-
emplified ; but it will be a question whether it is.
better for shareholders to adopt the principle of
giving good pay for good service, or of granting re-
muneration on such a scale that in case of disaster
they can be.confrontea with the intimation that, at .
all events, they have been ruined gratis. The next
most serious consideration suggested by the present
statement consists in the additional light it throws
upon the way in which shareholders consent to the
most lax and -corrupt sacrifice of their rights in
signing deeds of settlement without inquiry. The
deputy-governor of the Western Baah of Scotland
claims immunity from all responsibility by boldly
quoting the duties of his high office as they are
defined in the contract under which the concern
was established :—.ll`he governor and deputy-
governor and six extraordinary directors of the
company are hereby expressly exempted from the
necessity of superintending or taking any charge of
the affairs of the company, and it shall not be neces-
sary to convene them to any meeting, ordinary
or extraordinary, of the affairs of the company."
The Governor, therefore, could do no wrong, and
if thousands of people, including retired tradesmen,
clergymen, governesses, or artisans, were led to
part with thir money through any reliance upon
the vigilance of these personages, they have only
themselves to blame. There was the deed of co-
partnery in some strong closet ; they might ha'Ve
seen it on application, and they ought to haVe had
it all by heart. Such are the leading grounds on
which moral absolution is demanded in the present
case, and legal immunity wilt possibly be still more.
easy of attainment. Meanwhile, however, let the
world turn the lesson to use, and avoid all persons
who may offer to work for nothing, and all associa-
tions in which they are at the mercy of deeds of
settlement, even though prepared and submitted by
" honourable men," which they have not time to
read or the ability to understand.—Times.

HEALTH OF LONDON DURING TILE
WEEK.

(From the Report of the Registrar-General.)

The return of deaths in London in the week that
ended last Saturday exhibits a small decrease on the
numbers of the two previous weeks, which a little
exceeded 1,300, while that tow given is 1,289. In
the 10,years 1849.58 the.average number of deaths
in the weeks corresponding with last week was
1,221; but as the deaths now registered occurred in
a population which has increased, they should be
compared with the average raised in proportion to
the increase—namely, with 1,343. , The comparison
shows that the 1,289 deaths of last week were less
by 54 than the number that would have occurred if
the average rate of mortality for the first week of
December kad prevailed.
The births of last week exceeded the deaths in,
• the same time by 549.
The fatal cases of smallpox recorded last week
were 40, of which 29 occurred under 10 years of
age, 1 at 10 years and under 15, 3 at 15 and under
20 years, and 7at 20 and under 40 years. Seven
deaths from the disease occurred in the Smallpox
Hospital. Of 31 deaths from measles, 5 occurred in
the Green sub-district of Bethnal-green. Eighty-
two deaths are referred to scarlatina, and 15 to
diphtheria. From the former disease 9 occurred in
Islington,land 7in Mile-end Old Town. The deaths
from bronchitis were 181, of which two-thirds oc-
curred to persons who were 40 years old and up-
wards. The greatest age recorded in the week's
returns is that of a widow, who died at the age of
93. Twelve persons died.by suicide r 2 infants by
murder, 5 by suffocation, 28(from having been born
prematurely. Four deaths ,were the direct result
of intemperance.
Of bricklayers 3 died in the week,sof bricklayers'
wives 2, ok bricklayers' children 5 ;' of carpenters
8 died, of carpenters' wives 2, of carpenters' chil-
dren 28; of masons 1 died, of masons' wives 1, of
masons' children
,2 ; of painters 9 died, of painters'
wives 3,
.of painters' children 11 ; of plasterers 1
died; of plasterers' children 4.
Last week'the 'births of 920 boys and 918 girls,
in all 1,833 children, were registered in London
In the 10 corresponding weeks of the years 1849-58
the average number was 1,585.

At the—Royal Observatory, Greenwich, the mean
height of the barometer iu the week was 29.923
inches. The daily barometrical reading rose steadily
on the last five days, and was above 3t) inches on
the last three days. The barometry fell to 99.21
inches on Monday, and rose to 30.59 inches on Sa-
turday, being the lowest and highest points respec-
tively in the week. The mean temperature of the
air in the week was 4P3 deg., which is 6.4 deg.
above the average of the same week in 43 years (as
determined by Mr. Glaisher). The thermometer
fell to 26.9 deg. on Sunday, or 5.1 deg. below the
freezing point of water, and rose to 55.5 deg. on the
next day, these being the lowest and the highest
in the week. The entire range in the week was
therefore 28.6 deg. The mean daily range was
12.1 deg. The, temperature fell towards the end
of the week. The mean temperature of the water
of the Thames was 411 deg. The difference be-
tween the mean-dew temperature and air tempe-
rature was 2 4 deg. The mean degree of humidity
of the air was 92. The wind blew from the south-
west in the earlier half of the week ; afterwards
chiefly from the south-east and east. Rain fell to
the amount of 0.41 inches, most of it on Monday.