The Sun.
London, England, 1857-12-14 00:00:00

BANK COMMITrEE.

Mr. SPOONEIt claimed the indulgence of the house
while he. endeavoured to do justice to a most
respectable gentleman, an csel and esteemed friend of
his own, who was rather unfairly dealt with last
night by the Chancellor of the Exchequer ; he alluded
to Mr. Twells. The right honourable gentleman read
part of Mr. Twells' evidence before the Committee
on Dinkins, but the way is which he quoted that
evidence was calculated to give a wrong im-
pression of the views hell by hint The Chancellor
of the Exchequer read a long series of leading ques-
tioas—he should rather call them misleading questions
—which hal been put to Mr. T'Nells by himself, and
their anarrer, but he omitted to read over questions and
answers, in connection with them, which changed the
whole character of the evid,qlco, '•He did not read the
questions consecutively, but omitted many it baree•ing
ones, and thus prevented the house from fully under-
atandiog the effect of the whole. The right hoe. gentle-
man began by saying that ho had been led into the error
of supposing that he (Mr. Spooner) was the advocate of
an unlimited issue of invertible paper, but that he had
been made sensible of his error by a statement which he
had made to the house that he held no such vie*e. Ho
said he had been led into the error by the evidence of
Mr. Tweils, whose sentiments he supposed him (Mr.
Spooner) to bold. Now, he
con-
curred in all that Mr. Twells said before the committee,
but not in the construction put upon it by the Char.-
coExchequer.or of the Exchequer. Tile right hoo, gent leinan
asked this question— begged to sly that he "
You recommend the issue of 20,000,003/. of bank notes
not payable in gold on demand, but receivable by the Govern-
ment in payment of taxes.—Yes.'.

But the next question and answer were omitted, viz. :
" Do you understand that those notes would be issued by
the Bank of England or by the Government 7-1 think it is
perfectly immaterial. I should say by the Bank of England,
on account of the completeness of its machinery. In order to
avoid as ranch as poisible violating the feelings of the people
with regard to tha ; to 'which we have been so long accus
lo icd, it would be merely altering the \weds, and inserting,
instead of I promise to pay,' flora,;thino- of the same kind as
is inserted in an Exchequer Bill, payable for receipt of taxes.'
It would of course be sanctioned by Government, but whether
the notes were issued by the Government or by the Bank of
England I think would be vtry imniaterial."
- - •

The views of Mr. 'rwells were that we should have two
:torts of currency—one for O r own island Ansi domestic
purposes, and the other to carry on our foreign trade.
Tae Chancellor of the Exchequer also put the following
question :
" Of curse, it would be necessary to omit the words,
promise to pay,' because these notes would not, in fact, be
promises to pay on demand ?-- Quite so."
But he. omitted to put the next question, which was one
of gre-At importance—
" What do you conceive to be the advantage of an incon-
vertible note of that kind over a convertible note payable
to bearer on demand ? --It would prevent a drain of bullion
when it is required for foreign trade, and it would give us
what is so very essential, a domestic currency which is not
influeneed by aLy foreign transactions whatever. If France
or America wants a quantity et gold it- ought not to inter-
fere with our domestic currency. Our merchants and all

Mr. Twells was a man of great experience and sound
knowledge, and was mixed up with no particular party.
Ile came before the committee to tell them the result
of his observations, and it was not treating fairly a
gentleman now nearly 80 years of age to attack him by
ridicule and joke, sad to take up garbled statements of
the questions put to him and the answers he had given.

In a Congregation holden thiq morning at 10 o'clock,
the following Degrees were conferred :
MASTERS or ARTS.
Charles Daniel Cive, Exeter College
Charles Lee Wiugfiel l (Fellow), All Souls College
David Mapleton, St. John's College
John Turner Hopwood, Ttini'y College
Heroert Eliot Ormerod, St. Mary Hall
Rev. Henry Swan Dadding, Magdalen Hall
BACHELORS OF ARTS.