Star.
London, England, 1826-02-18 00:00:00

speculation, . _ by the *motto _ country hank gdpei •
In fact, the quantity of paper in circulation was at"
more than what was required by the necessities of cum'
coerce; it did not incretse the quantity of market
saleable commodities; it had bees egged against
paper, that, as a medium currency, it
swas unstable and
insecure, inatnsuch as it was particularly espined to
sudden 'depreciation ; but, whde A out pound note war
convertible into a sovereign, and 'while , a sovereign
contained 12.3 grains of gold. surely the paper note,aird
'gold coin were the tease thing ; tild ft t,) speaulat49%li
!it ivEuldhave eiisted concurrently .with ,4_ 1/01d cur=
rency, as soon as with, a paper clrchlition convertible
into gbld. The excess of paper was. calmed by she
, .
rise la ' the puce of commodities; byte. what uses
'the came or-that rise? He did not bol4titir 40
ascribe it to the five millions thrown
,unto the
market by the Commissioners of the Sinking Fund.—
'That sum tended to redirce the present rue 01. interest ;
' the reduction of interest raised the prices of merchandise
'brought more money into circulation, and fostered-the
'spirit of commercial scheming. Bat their Lordships
*sight be surprised at such an unusual effect of the
Sloping Fund. - It was, it a novel feature in the
financial system of the county ; he meancitt effeets on
the market. They were not so obvious during chewer,
for while; through its aid, Minittcp were saving 15
millions with one hand, they were expending SO mil-
lions with the other; its influence dating peace was,
therefore, unperceived by the public, up to the present
time; but now it bad made itself known to them by
encouraging a system of commercial speculation which
ended in spreading ruin over the country. Its original
institution had produced the same effects. In 1716 it
lowered the rate of itnireit,and gave rise to that notorious
scheme, the Soutit Sea Company,wbich brought so much
discreet to the speculators of that day. The Noble Lord
1110 saidspecularion spread by means of country banks.
Niiti; diptigh*thaf 14.,b1e Lord had declared last Session
that the. tiovernmeit . Would grant no relief by any
advance of money to be distress arising frOgo rash
speculations, yet did be at that time ascrilpe that•dis-
tress to an excess of the country hankers paper•?-.-
Did he-then declare as intention to suspend one and
five pound country bank notes? No. He described. the
distress to a rage for Joint Stock Companies, anikatave
no warning then to the country bankers of hii present,
act ot hostility against them, nor did the Noble and
LearnetLord -on the Woolsack, Who at that time-roost
creditably adds face against such speeelationt,,,eveit
that Noble end LearnedlLud did not ascribe them to
stis excess of country bank use?. 'lf -the le Loyd.
at the head of his .Majeitr.if;leYerninent d rite
ipcommercial state c 3 the eSitstrY alone' Ufa siosald
come round to tI * former condition. As to What bad
been said of the probable amount of the lite failures,
and the limitation or 'the' general sum of them to two
Millions, he (Lord Lauderdale) would contend, that
the 1011601 arising from those sp culations would be
found to exceed in amount all twiner losses, and that
they were solelj'attribitable to the Noble Lord's me*.
sures readve to the Sinking Fund, and not to the
issues of country banks, or the institution ofJu:st Stock
Companies. And here it was worth remit, king,that those
muchabused c .mnies bad been patronised by many of
that Noble Lord'spafriends, by massy Members of both
Houses, and several (Meets of his Majesty's &teem-
ment ; indeed, he himself (Lord Lauderdale) bad been
requested to give his name to them in Scotland ; hot as
he did not approve of the principles of them, he declined
becoming a decoy duck_ to catch the pubic when he
had no with to become a shareholder. When he re-
membered chit fact, he could scarcely believe 'the
Noble Lord to be sincere-in his condemnation of Joint
Stock Companies, or in his impetation to those asso-
ciations of all the evils which affected the present gate
of public credit. Did the Government exercise their
Authority in discountenancing those official speculators?
No such thing. it was plain, then, ti ey did not think
Joint Stock Companies the cause of the existing
distress. How then could the Noble Lord expect
their Lordships to pass the proposed measure ?
The Noble Lord had stated the whole amount of the
gold coin at present. current was siateen millions;
namely, six millions circulat;ng within the kingdom;
seven millions exported legally,- and three millions
illegally ; by what items the Noble Lord made out the
general sum, he (Lord L) did not much care ; it was
not very important; but of this he was sure, that.* did
not require mote than one million of gold to support
five millions of paper in one pound notes; and that the
Noble Lord, by calling in the present amount of one
pound notes, would create a demand for five millions
of currency, and how he could get that sum to supply
the vacuum which would be caused by the Bill before
the House, was a subject of astonishment to him (Lord
. Lauderdale). Could the Noble Lord fancy that be
*add persuade country gentlemen to subscribe their
money for the formation of Joint Stock Companies
at. the risk of their entire fortune? if be could,
the event would confound him (Lord Lauderdale).
The greatest bankruptcy in 1772, was that of a Joint
Stock Company, Dowels and Co.'s. The acting put-
out were in such distress, that they were obliged to
come to London and borrow*toney, by way of annuity.
The Noble Lord would maintain that there wail much
danger to the poorer classes from Joint Stock Com-
panies, as under the present system of banking. It be
was right in his supposition, that the present distress
arose from the great mass of capital generating it dis-
position to scheming, the Noble Lord would like to
know how *remedy was to be provided by the calling
in alone pound notes, and establishing of Joint Stock
Company Banks. Of one thing he bad not the
shadow of a doubt, that if die pretest 'Remotes were
carried, and the country stood at all 411 AbillOs 4
MOlll4l be in-an unpararled state of asisere4d. &rem.
—There was one subject to which be soda not 10 P al-
luding, though it halises overlooked by the Noble
Lord opposite inbittpeerl that evealie--namely, the
present -*ate of the-Mint regulations. rhece . was a
4eigaorage on our silver; Government would not allow

• _• 4 4 •
Pon tike stkhject at 04 40, ,gaitiorkerietts,4 Roura,_, eft te
Slued' wiai tinnier ,wtashi ttivis• safIKI *iii=
out. Re lesplotild the )(oh* 4,4 not tb AO iutlA the
discussion thit night, particularli" as Oki ildbie
ILord's ammo* was founded oh an errootous opinitki
of the commercial distress of the tonistryotad
causes of that distr'ess. The diteassicco instead, oi
Mitigating the evil, wOtiVd tont lendiwaggia*Ate ;Wl=
It was necessary that ParliiAtilet.thpilrdftWeptuifibi
nature of the etil before they-mad Pnr,0444.404Y
"st remedy; td it: The N011014:artill0 lakititissosof
the existing distress to a disitpalsonKtchtillittS.9l44l-
lations, and a conseclueht Om. aspkof paper •
C 17
eflay
•
Re (Lord Lauderdale) dittted film the. Illoble:Lpod
on chit point. Was it possilske tbil; A recliklion isf, the
price of land, of stock, and: of all public settles/4;os;
could have been effected by a spirit of etimorieicisi
speculation, of by the amoOtt of coqntry hank p'pci