The Sun.
London, England, 1844-04-11 00:00:00

UNCLAIMED DIVIDENbS.

It is most desireable that advantage should be.taken of
the notoriety of all the circumstances attending the late
will forgeries, to review.the system pursued at the Bank
as regards the administration of wilts, the mode of deal-
ing with powers of attorney, and, :above all. in making
known the particulars of unelitimed dividends, so as to
determine whether the public arc as fully protected as
they ought to be in -these matters. It is a very com-
mon persuasion at present,- that measures are about to
be taken by the &ink to reader more difficult of aecers
all information relative to; inelaimed dividends, and
the amou'it of stock standing in the . names of per-
s.ons who have forgotten or ceased to •apply for them ;
but s ome correspondents are of opinion that the contrary
is the course which ought to be pursued, and that
frauds would become far more. difficult if such publicity
were given to both as could not fail to bring the true
parties forward. Of the e. unclaimed dividends" it is
supposed that the greater portion belongs to persons
who have sold out their stock, but have overlooked some
remnants of dividends, conceiving them to go with the
stuck and to belong to the purehaseA. Yet such small
sums would probably afford timely relief to thousands,
while the total addition to the Government fund from
that source is a suns not worth consideration. Others,
through relations dying intestate, never acquire any
knowledge of funded property which belongs to them,
and suffer distress and poi city froni the want of it. Yet
the Bank, which alone can give the in'orznation, in ad-
herence to a systum of over-caution, uniformly refuses
it. A ease, cited by a correspondent, will illustrate the
point more clearly:—
. some years since an pig-deaTer, having dis-
posed of his cargo in England, • invested the proceeds and
his previous savings, amounting to a large sum, in Go-
vernment stock, in the Bank, after which, on his way
home to Ireland, lie was droWned.. His son and daugh-
ter, who were extremely ignorant and indigent, made
their way to London, to inquire into his affairs. From
the strangeness of their appearance and the.stery of their
father's supposed p:operty, they were brought to an in-
terview with the chief clerk at the Bank ; but, being
without any knowledge either of the amount or of the
stock in which it was invested, he was on the point of
dismissing them, when a stockbroker entered the room
on businesS, and, being informed of the nature of their
inquiry, was enabled to put them into the possession of
the property, us he happened, by a most singular coin-
cidence, to be the broker by whom the stock had been
purchased."
Such fortune as this cannot often happen, and but for
this circumstance the whole amount would, without
doubt, have been transferred to the Commissioners for
the National Debt. Many cases resembling it may
easily be imagined, and in all these publicity given, after
a certain lapse of time, which should not be a very long
one, could hardly fail to bring the rightful owners for-
is ard, while it would act as a preventative against fraud,
for precautions may always be taken so to identify the
real owner as to render it impossible for others to obtain
it. Something of the kind would be done by a private
banker, who, if he possessed any clue to the owners of un-
claimed balances or to their representatives, would not
fail to give them inform:l.mi of them. A remarkable
illustration of Bank of England practice occurs in the
well-known case of Emma Slack. Many of the clerks
who keep the books there must have been cognisant of
the fact that she received only one portion of that
which was due to her, for every stockholder has a re-
gularly posted account ; and yet the portion unclaimed
by this person was suffered to accumulate in dividends,
and, at last, following the rule prescribed, capital stock
and arrears of interest together were handed over to the
National Debt Commissioners. In a private merchant
or banker this would be something like dishonesty, and
in the administration of bankrupt estates it is well
known that attempts are constantly made to find out
and bring forward those parties who do not in due
course apply for their dividends. Suppose the clerk
who kept the book at the Bank containing the account
of •Emma Slack had reported to his superiors the cir-
cumstance, which he must have known, that she held
two descriptions of stock, on one of which only she re-
ceived the interest, there could .have been no harm in
conveying to her an intimation of it. Such a course
would at:once have protected her, and prevented the fraud
which has been committed. _

The book of "unclaimed 'dividends," about which so
much is said from time to_ time, is as inadequate to the
purpose as can well be imagined. It is high of price,
difficult of access, and incomplete in its information. A
suggestion has been made that the Bank should publish
in the London Gazelle an account, periodically, of all
stock and dividends unclaimed; but, in addition to that,
there could be no harm in so much of private mercantile
practice finding its way into the greatest banking esta-
blishment in Europe as would lead to some regular in-
quiry, by their own clerks and agents, after individuals
or their representatives who have stocks standing in,
their names. It will be alleged, perhaps, that the im-
mense number of accounts kept will render this next to
impossible; but a new department might be created, to
be supported by a small per centage, which would be
readily paid, on the property so restored to its rightful
owners. Many families would by these means be an-
nually saved from ruin.
But the whole system calls for revision, and this is the
proper time now that the impression is strong upon the
public mind, for making the attempt.— Times.

BRITISH SETTLE.sIENT ON
BORNEO.

Were it for no other reason than that it would
prove au e&ctual check to the commission of piracy,
the establishment of a settlement on Borneo would be
an act of the greatest wisdom on the part of the
British Government. A steamer might be kept
moving backwards and forwards between Singapore
and the Borneo settlement, which would afford
security to the numerous native traders who, at cer-
tain seasons, cover the China and Java seas on their
way to or from Singapore. Besides the above, there
are many other reasons, which render it exceedingly
desirable that we should have a settlement on
Borneo. One of these reasons is, the opportunity
that would be afforded for suppressing the slave-
trade, which, with all its attendant evils, flourishes so
rankly in Borneo, and a very powerful one it ought
to be with a Government which has put itself so pro•
minentiv forward as the assertor of the freedom of
the human race, which has lavished so much treasure
in putting an end to slavery in its own dominions,
and which is every now and then on the point of em-
broiling itself with other Powers, because they will
not lend themselves so heartily as every Government
calling itself Christian ought, to put down the traffic
in slaves by strong means. A large and most inte-
resting field for missionary labour would be opened
up, by the establishment of an English settle-
ment ; and this should not be without its weight,
although hitherto with Protestant Powers this
has has never been an avowed object, either for
colonisation or conquest. A settlement on Borneo
would, besides, be important as a resting-place for
vessels on their way to from China, and as
coal is to be had there, that circumstance in itself
ought to be of the utmost weight. But it is also well
ascertained that the soil and productions of this coun-
try are of so rich and varied a nature that, in a com-
mercial view alone, its occupation would be of the
highest importance ; the inhabitants of Borneo would
consume an immense quantity of British goods were
they to be brought within their reach and offered to
them at reasonable prices. The cheapness of English
manufactured goods, compared with the rate at which
natives can produce similar articles, invariably leads to
the preference of the former. In Province Wellesley
where the natives have ascertained that they can pur-
chase three sarongs of English manufacture for the cost
at which they themselves could produce one, nothing is to
be found but the former, and there is no doubt that the
same result would take place in Borneo. By found-
ing a settlement in Borneo, it thus appears that the
cause of humanity and justice would be served in the
highest degree, a people capable of better things
would be rescued from the most debasing and bruti-
fying superstitions and propensities, and raised in the
scale of humanity and civilisation, and, what may be
of as much importance in these utilitarian times, the
commerce of England would be extended to a very
great amount. Whether the British Government
take the matter in hand, or not, we hope Mr. Brooke
will be enabled to persevere, and that success will
ultimately crown his noble and philanthropic endea-
vours, and should he be enabled to achieve this single-
handed and alone, the greater will be the glory he
will merit.—Singapore Free Press.

THE STONE PIER AT GREENWICII.-011 Tuesday
considerable alarm was excited on the stone pier iirlia,coionn.
con-
sequence of a further 'portion of
givenmonthsway.
since I t
several l beof t
herememberedomint}i
pilesthats trhutael
burst and
tw twelve
pier was greatly dilapidated; in which dangerous state
Latterly some additional
it has ever since remained.
of the tide has
bk
enaome ksiowg-erdeo,pvnlacthede
v,toliFir,ehvoetntthothaeotflioonating barges from
been so strong as to have a
fcohntrary eyeet to that in-
tended, and the upper part o t. e erection has been so
battered as to be forced in, whilst the part under water
has bulged out and sunk, so that competent judges have
expressed their fear of the whole front falling into the
river ; at the same time the walls of the western corner
have also cracked to a considerable extent. Orders
have been issued by the Lord Mayor for the immediate
removal of the barges, which at present afford the only
prospect of safe landing at the pier ; and it appears ex-
tremely likely that notwithstanding the enormous outlay
the present pier will fall into utter ruin. The floating
barges of the Waterman's pier are also to be removed
by order of the Lord Mayor.
DISCOVERY OF HUMAN BONES NEAR THE QUAD-
RANT.---Yesterday afternoon much interest was excited
in the neighbourhood of the Quadrant, Regent-street,
by the discovery of a number of human and other bones,
in an excavation now in progress for the building of a
new sewer. The spot in question is situated at the
junction of Tichborne-street with Sherrard-strect, lead-
ing to Golden-square, directly at the rear of the County
Fire-office, where a large number of labourers have for
the two last days been employed in digging for the in-
tended sewer. When about eight or ten feet deep from
the surface a quantity of lames were dug up, consisting
of thigh, arm, and rib bones of human beings, inter-
mixed with other bones- of animals, including the side
bones of heads, &c. The spot in question is decidedly a
cross road, by which fact the human bones may be ac-
counted to be those of some 'fele de se, interred previous
to the judicious alteration in the law ; but how the car-
case of an animal came to be interred also remains to be
explained. From the inquiries which have been made,
it does not appear that any of the inhabitants remember
the interment of any self-murderer at the spot in question.