The Sun.
London, England, 1842-10-12 00:00:00

BANKING HOURS.

The weak side of the case of the City bankers in
their proposing to curtail the hours of business seems
to be this,—that they take too much into consideration
their own convenience or that of their clerks, and
bestow too little thought on the convenience of the
rest of the community. Thus, in the signatures ob-
tained previously to bringing their proposition for-
ward, there appear only those of the bankers, or of
the managers of the Joint-Stock Banks, which,
if they are unanimous, will enable them to dictate
what terms they please to their customers. The
first step to be taken on their part, and for their own
protection, undoubtedly was that of ascertaining
that all the banking establishments of the City would
agree to it, but having done so, and to avoid the
appearance of forcing the measure upon the trading
interest, some signatures of the leading merchants in the
City should have been obtained expressive of their
willing assent to it. This has not,
we believe, as
yet been done, and we know as a fact that some of
the first foreign houses in the City are opposed to it,
and anticipate much inconvenience from its being
brought into operation. It is needless to recur to
arguments already used against its adoption, but it is
notorious that all things have tended of late to im-
pose greater labour and occupation of time upon
commercial men, compared with a
few years back,
under thecombined effect of steam-boats, railroads,
day mails, and cheap postage ; and the time chosen
is, therefore, rather an unfortunate one for the
bankers to claim a remission, especially if that remis-
sion should militate against the convenience of the
public.
The situation of the bankers' clerks generally is
certainly deserving of consideration and sympathy,
but much depends, with them, upon their know-
ledge of, and attention to, their business, so that a
well-ordered house will have made up all their ac-
counts, and adjusted their balances, within an hour,
perhaps, after ceasing to pay over the counter, while
others, through blunders
and confusion arising in
the course of the clay, will keep their clerks up all
night to correct an error in the balance. But
if the proposed change is found to be inconvenient
to the public, then the consideration of the inferior
agents must yield, as it is uniformly made to do in
all such cases. This is the only basis on which
the question can be argued, and the bankers will
only injure themselves if they adopt any other, for
the keen competition among them will soon reak
through the compact they have entered into, and
bring the present rule back into operation, which
would he placing the whole of them in a very humi-
liating position. It is a most dangerous thing to dis-
turb by force the current of business in a great trading
community. We repeat, that at the present moment
therefore, that the arguments
osed by the London bankers
ndghnaincreased.iinnsutt
itnhntea, caci
dtainebgseela
epevreto,op desired rather than any
have more force and validity than those advanced in
its favour.
It should be known, that it is not the intention of
those who have brought the matter forward to make
any alteration in the hours of the clearing-house, but
only to close the payments over the counter at four
o money to be placed to
ac'elcotn. t, tAhastt‘ovitllheberaelcleoiredofeven after five o'clock,
clerks in attendance.
aßnudt
thisso
b longengatshetheearsee,
iatreisannuyt
easy to see whence
the relief for the clerks, for whom so much sympathy
is solicited, is to arise. It resolves itself, at all events,
into a very trivial matter.—Times.

time
M. Perneau,
rdieu, a gentle-
man °atßloNu'elodgnnees--
d ACCIDENTayF,AtThaer.2Bt ti
t i‘NirE.AlfteziaunLlocillopl3ua.
from the town.
souf ro sNitsreloiroi 1
o(hlNiarned,e
dined
residedav tiivillage
efho
oraubssooeumotef tai m
hism i l e
As he did not return at night, was anything
heard of him even next day, messengers were dis-
patched
nor
country
nor
the next. On
; but no tid-
Saturday, a peasant having occasion to go to a well,
situate in an unfrequented place, about a quarter of
in (s
were into y e
cei the v
esurrounding
f him
that
day,
a mile from Ostrohove, discovered a hat floating on
the surface of the water ; and, a ladder having been
procured, he went down into the
well, and there
found the body of the missing gentleman. The
authorities had it conveyed to the hospital, where it
was ascertained that no violence had been offered to
the deceased ; and that his death must have been
accidental. It was elicited afterwards that he left
his friend's house, for the purpose of returning home,
at about nine o'clock; and it is supposed he must
have missed his way, as the evening was dark and wet.
The well (an open one) in whith the awful catastrophe
occurred is about 200 yards from the road leading to
Boulogne, is not near any house, and was seldom
used. The deceased, who was about 70 years of age,
was of remarkably regular and abstemious habits. Ile
had been a partner in the old and respectable firm of
Bourdieu and Sons, West India merchants, and fo-
reign commission agents, of Lime-street.
WATER.—The combination among the water com-
panies to raise their charges for serving the public
with water, has led to a revival of the old project of
bringing a supply of pure water from the Thaine..,
above Barnes, where it may be procured free from the
filth and pollution which enters into the river nearer
the metropolis. The project was supported some
years since by Sir Robert Peel, who stood fOrward in
the llouse of Commons a firm advocate for supplying
the public with one of the great blessings of life—
good and wholesome water. The intention (accord-
ing to report) is to convey the water by pipes or an
aqueduct to Lambeth and Vauxhall.