The Sun.
London, England, 1828-06-04 00:00:00

and sixpences to the amount cf 625. in 1779. In the
same proportion, therefore, bail nor standard advanced in
this respect. If it remailien .•:.ar, no injury might
be found to result from thi- ; but this was
not likely. There had been so great and so complete a
derangement of the currency, through the introduction of
different sorts of paper in the. circulation, that it would
perhaps be impracticable, possibly needless, to tie the Bank
of England down to the old system. In order to form a
just standard, the silver currency should be applied in a
just proportion. A- considerable relaxation would ti.ke
place by adopting the standard in both metals.
Lord HOWICK would vote for the amendment, L.?.
cause this was an time for placing any unnecess..i y
burdens on the country.

Mr. HUDSON GURNEY could not vote for the ap-
pointment, especially after the miserable blunders of the
Committee of 1810, and the still more miserable blunders
of the Committee of 1819, to which most of the evils
under which the country had suffered might fairly be
attributed.

Sir M. W. RIDLEY agreed with the Chancellor of the
Exchequer in thinking the profit on 11. notes not of any
consequence to the country bankers. But they had
heard from the Vice-President of the Board of Trade,
that the great pressure felt in 1825 was chiefly caused by
the country bankers On the contrary, the country bank-
ers had interposed to check the consequences of the panic,
and had acted a most beneficial part when the pressure
coma on the Bank of England. The evil consequences of
their failures were, in truth, greatly exaggerated, as a little
examination would be sufficient to prove. For how did
the matter stand ? There were, in all, 770 country banks
at that period in existence. Out of that 770 balks, 63
had stopped payment, 23 of which had since paid in full,
and 31 were now making arrangements. It was well
known that the country bankers who had failed in
1826, had paid on an average 17s. 6d. in the
pound. That being the case, it was, he thought
too hard to throw upon them the blame of all
the failures which had taken place at the time. He
should feel it his duty to vote for the Committee.
Mr. lIUSKISSON would detain the House but a short
while at that late hour. It had been long his lot to address
them on all the general subjects which the Hon. Baronet
had touched upon with a rapid and lucid view; but he would
not go into discussion on the present occasion, either upon
the depreciation of the currency, or upon the eonduct of the
country banks, or upon the doctrines and blunders, as the
Hon. Baronet had described them,of the Committees of 1810
and 1819. He regretted that he had not had the advantage
that night of hearing the speech of the Chancellor of the
Exchequer. It was, therefore that he wished very shortly
to state the grounds on which he should vote for the pro-
position of his Right Hon. Friend, and most decidedly
against the amendment. He agreed with the Noble Lord
in the general truth, that provided no risk or inconveni-
ence atteided the proceeding, it was desirable to go into
Committee on such subjects ; for the more they were in-
quired into, the more should we increase the stock of our
practical experience, the want of which had led to almost
all the errors we had committed, to the great detriment of
the national prosperity. But he would ask, was there no
risk in unsettling the mind of the public as to what was to
be the future state of the currency?—(Hear, hear.) He
had no hesitation in saying, that many questions must be
brought under the consideration of such a Committee, if
it should be appointed, the discussion of which could not
fail to alarm the country.—(Hear, hear.)—They would
have to inquire into the subject of the restriction. The
Hon. Baronet seemed anxious to avoid a panic, and had
stated the evils that arose from great fluctuations; but
with all his well Jimmied aversion to these calamities, he
was going the direct road to another panic and to other
fluctuations, if his suggestions were adopted by the
House. The first consequence of undertaking such an
inquiry would be, the awakening of a general ex-
pectation that they were about to restrain cash pay-
ments again; the next, that they were about to al-
low an unlimited issue of one pound notes. Then I
would come the speculations and fluctuations which
would naturally arise from such fruitful sources of ex-
travagance and uncertainty ; and thus would return
the whole mass of those alarming evils which every one
concurred in deprecating. If they consented to repeal the
Bill •f 1826, now that it was so near being carried into
complete effect, they would invite back the whole host of
afflictions under which the country had suffered before.—
It was absurd to talk of a paper currency convertible into
gold ; for the moment they introduced paper they would
banish coin, except such coin as was of lower denomination
than the paper. It wasimpossible to retain either the present
or any other amount of gold, except upon that condition ; for
if we returned to the issue of 1/. notes, we could not keep
any coin in circulation which was not less in value than
the pound sterling. The Noble Lord had asked whether,
in the present circumstances of the country; it would not
be a great object to save the annual expense upon 22
millions of gold currency. In the first place, the expense
was comparatively of no importance; awl in the next
place, the provision which the Noble Lord had recom-
mended of a paper circulation, convertible into gold, was a
fallacy, &she had already shown ; for when the paper was
let in, the gold would disappear, and in this way they would
soon be saved the whole expense of a gold circulation. They
might vote the money, they might coin it, but how could
they retain it in the country? The lion. Member for Car-
lisle had talked of fluctuations as the greatest evils strider
which the country had suffered ; but this, instead of being
an argument for going into Committee, was the greatest oh.
jection to such a proceeding. If they allowed the country
banks to go on increasing their own issues, and encouraging
speculation, which would be the consequence, the Bank of
England would again be placed in the same situa-
tion as in 1825, and would then, perhaps, realise,
in its fullest extent, the ruin which it had expe-
rienced but partially on the former occasion. He
would say that it was impossible, consistently with the
interest of the country, to allow the country banks a power
of adding to its circulation as they pleased. Supposing a
rise of price to take place in consequence of a deficient
harvest, the value of money would then be lowered. The
high price of commodities would encourage speculators
to deal in those articles, under an expeetation that the
advance would continue; but then would come a glut,
and then a NI, and then the fluctuations which precede a
panic, and finally the panic itself. But, •in the midst of
all these changes, there was one 'commodity that
would not rise, and that was the money deposited
in the Bank of England ; so that unless they took
some strong measures, the effect of which was panic, they
would not be able to cheek the spirit of specula-
tion which the issue of the country notes bad encouraged.
It was the want of a proper metallic currency that led to
the difficulties of 1825 ; and therefore, as a measure of
precaution, he would support the measure of 1826, instead
of again unsettling the whole of the arrangements which
extended to all the country banks in England. He believed,
that if the fact were ascertained, it would be found that
most of the country bankers would rather see the system
carried into complete effect, than abandoned on the very
eve of its completion. When they knew, as he hoped they
would by the decision of that night, that the arrangements
would he completed, not disturbed, they would adopt a
more settled principle of accommodation and credit, and
pursue that course which was most consistent with the
interests of the country, instead of wandering into those
vague chimeras which must result from a vacillating spirit
in the policy which professed to regulate their proceedings.
(Hear.)
Mr. BRIGHT said a few words in a low tone of voice,
when (as we understood the lion. Member) he suggested
that the question should be adjourned to a future day,
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER observed
that Friday was an inconvenient day, and named Thursday.
This was objected to, and the House divided on the
question whether Thursday should be the day, when there
appeared for the motion 82, against it 17 ; majority 65.
The question was accordingly postponed to Thursday uext.
The other orders were then disposed of, and the House
adjourned at Half-past One o'Clock.