The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1845-11-11 00:00:00

i PRESENT MONETARY AND COMMERCIAL
POSITION OF GREAT BRITAIN.

The extreme suddenness, with which this kingdom has
been plunged from an extreme of prosperity into a posi-
tion of difficulty and suffering, has not as yet permitted
those embarked deeply in the whirl of commercial activity
or of speculation to consider very attentively, so as to ar-
rive at an accurate knowledge of the country's actual po-
sition. One class of men jump to the conclusion that
over speculation has done it all ; another talk of the hasty
proceedings of the Bank, as having overthrown the rising
fabric of our social prosperity. Others again point to the
operation of a deficient harvest ; the existing uncertainty
as to what is to be done with the Corn-laws, and the step'
to be adopted to obviate or to alleviate the suffering
threatened by the partial loss of the potatoe crops. In
this uncertainty, we rilturally turn our attention to an
endeavour to ascertain what is the opinion of observant
and practical men, who holdini, themselves aloof from the
fever of speculation and inflated prosperity, have leisure
and candour to weigh facts and to give an honest (pinion.
The first of these witnesses from whom we shall quote,
is the circular of an eminent London firm—Messrs.
Trueman and Cook—prepared for the last India mail.
Messrs. Trueman and Cook comment upon the unusual
buoyancy which was experienced in all departments of
trade up to within the last two months, which have been
checked by the great advance of money on the continent,
which, in Hamburgh, has been from three to eight per
cent, arising from deficient harvests, and discouraging
importation of manufactured goods from this country.
An aggravation of the difficulty, thus created, they con-
ceive to have been the large withdrawal of money from
legitimate business for the purposes of speculative invest-
ment. To put a stop to this, they recommend Govern-
ment to assume a firm position ; and particularly advise,
that only the railway bills postponed from last session
should be entertained in the coming session. This course,
they think, would assist in bringing back business to its
proper course; whilst future proceedings, with respect
to new railway schemes, could be regulated by the pro-
ductiveness of the harvest of next year.
In the meantime, the opinions of this firm as to our
prospects is not one of very great gloom, as will be seen
from the concluding paragraphs of their circular:—
" The foreign exchanges are favourable to this country, and.
our stock of gold is large. To Hamburgh shinraents of dollars
and silver, and a small quantity of gold, have been recently
made to the extent of about 400,0501.; but whether the whole
amount of dollars sent has been bought bone fide, or an applica-
tion was originally made to the Bank of England fora quantity of
silver, and subsequently carried out by private individuals, to be
returned in specie, has sot transpired.
"The balance of trade being so entirely in favour of this
country, there is every probability that we shall keep a large
stock of gold, and considerable arrivals of silver are expected
by the next Mexican packets ; and although foreign railroads
may relieve us of some little surplus, the export..tion of iron and
machinery will to a certain extent counterbalance it. Dealers
in money look with some anxiety t• corn for a derangement of
the monetary ystem, but this result is not much to be appre-
hended, as the stocks on the continent are comparatively light
There is, moreover, rather a deficiency of grain, not only in the
west and south, but even in the east of Europe and parts of
Asia. During the last twelve months the countries bordering
the Black Sea, the Sea of Azof, and the Danube, exported through
the Straits of Constantinople 2,25. ,000 quarters of corn, but of
this quantity not more than 250,000 passed the straits of Gibral-
tar, which is directly the reverse of the customa. y course of that
trade, and is evidence of an extraordinary deficiency of food in
the East.

The Bank rate of discount is 3 per cent, but it Is from to I
per cent higher in Lombard-street for long dated paper. At the
Bank branches the rate is 31 per cent., and money generally is
dearer in tl-e country than in London ; a large amount of paper,
consequently, finds its way here for discount.

"The daily clearances are just now enormous. On the 31st
ult., the last settling day on the Stock-Exchange, one of the
leading banking-houses in the city had checks to arrange to the
extent of 2,001,6001., the whole of which was liquidated by the
payment of a balance of 260,0001."

The passage, by-the-bye, which we have placed in
italics, goes far to dissipate the fears entertained as to any
difficulty to be experienced from the transfer of the rail-
way deposits into the hands of the accountant-general.
Another similar document, from which we shall quote,
is the circular of Messrs. Gibson, Ord, and Co., of Man-
chester, dated the sth instant, and principally refers to
the state of the manufacturing interest. Messrs. Gibson
and Co. state that—

"Since the 4th ultimo, the aspect of affairs in the menu-
facttp ing districts, and in the country generally, has undergone
a serious change, not only threatening a stop to the progressive
improve, ent which has been going on for the past two years,
but furnishing, we fear, well-grounded apprehension that our
prosperity must, for a time at least, be on the wane. During
the first 14 days in last month we had a tolerably good demand
in our market, when the announcement of an increased rate of
interest by the Bank of England and a realization of the damage
sustained by our potato crop acted like magic, and produced
such a stagnation to business as we have never before witnessed.
For the past fortnight we have literally no price for our staple
productions, and until the question now being agitated as to
opening of the ports for the free admission of foreign grain is
decided, we must remain in this state of itn.ctivity. That this
step will sooner or later have to be resorted to appears inevitable,
and, although to be regretted as more immediately disturbing
our monetary system, now peculiarly sensitive from the effect
of railway speculation, and the amount to be extracted for the
construction of such undertakings abroad, would do much to
restore confidence in commercial affairs, and produce a calm
in the minds of men generally, from the conviction that such a
step would avert the horrors of famine and pestilence, now vivid
in the minds of no small portion of the community. Our belief
is, that if the ports be opened by an Order in Council, spreading
over several months, the drain of specie will be much less
than is apprehended, by affording o portunity of returns being
made in the production of the country; and this will more par-
ticularly apply to the United States, whence we must look for a
considerable ,mount of our supplies, and where, for the last 18
months, her own manufacturing production has been inadequate
to the wants of her increasing I), pulation, and her imports from
this country only restricted by her inability to make returns."
'• Until the announcement of the increased rate of discount
by the Bank of England, no difficulty was experienced here•
Money was abundant and cheap for all commercial purposes;
and although more stringent measures have since been adopted
by oar banking institutions, for legitimate objects the supply
continues ample. The transfer of the deposits on new railways
to be made to the Accountant-General for a time caused con
siderable uneasiness, but it is now comparatively little thought
of; still we are 01 opinion that it cannot be effected without
produci-g a temporary derangement, for, undoubtedly, a very
large amount of the circulating medium must be absorbed in the
process of collecting and paying over; and we cannot but
anticipate considerable embarrassment during the first two or
three months of the ensuing year, and a gradual increase in the
value of money until that time."

The fact maintained in the last paragraph of the supply
of money for commercial purposes still continuing ample
is encouraging, and leads us to hope that the stagnation
in the goods market, caused by the cessation of the
usual continental demand, owing to deficient crops, will
pass off as soon as we receive, as we are certain to do, an
equivalent demand from those countries which are hap-
pily enabled to afford us the required supply of bread
stuffs. Altogether, we do not think it will be maintained
that these documents hold out the prospect of more than
a temporary check to the healthy prosperity of the
country. They assuredly do not bear out the views of
the ultra alarmists.

A DILEMMA

During the past week, a tavern, situated not a hundred
miles from Ranelagh-street, was visited by two of those
smooth and oily-looking gentlemen, whose garb and un-
mistakeable brogue betoken a Maynooth education, and
an attachment to the order of Jesuits. After indulging
in more than the canonical number of potations, the gen-
tlemen intimated to the worthy host a disposition to sleep
at his house ; and, leave being given, they betook them-
selves to bed. In the morning, one of them departed
early, having paid his bill, whilst hia companion deter-
mined to breakfast; and having fortified his inner man,
his next business was to pay for the meal. This, how-
ever, was found a task too much for the state of his fi-
nances; and the landlord having been summoned, the
state of affairs was explained to him, and, after some de-
mur on his part, it was ultimately agreed that his de-
faulting guest should leave with him a " valuable book"
as security. Previously to fulfilling this part of the con-
tract, the reverend and penniless customer walked to the
door, and after awhile it was discovered that he had bolted.
Indignant at being so treated by " the cloth." Bonifece
gave chase in pursuit ; and after some hunting up bye
streets and alleys, discovered hia truant debtor, and re-
proached him with his perfity, brought him back, and
insisted upon receipt of the promised pledge at least.
With some reluctance the landlord got deposited in his
hands a handsomely bound Popish Breviary, bearing on
its fly leaf the name of the Rev.

COME, BUY an' MERCURY !-Our puffing contempo-
rary, in his last week's impression, throws out the hint
that " a few active men and boys might make a good
thing of it weekly by selling the Mercury." So say
quacks, of every kind, of their commodities. We pre-
sume, from this appeal of our contemporary, that itine-
rant men and boys find galvanic rings, lucifer matches,
and halfpenny ballads quicker of sale, and easier to carry,
than his heavy lucubrations. This objection, however,
the addition of a donkey cart to the staff of " active men
and boys" might in part remove.

EMBEZZLEMENT.—A boy, named John Morris, was
yesterday committed for trial, at the police-court, charged
with having received the money (1) for a load of pota-
toes, sent through him, on Friday, to a gentleman in
Edge hill, and with which he had disappeared. The po-
tatoes were the property of Catherine Lamb, a green-
grocer in Pownall-square market.

THE LATH ELOPEMENT.—We have given in a para-
graph in another column the particulars of the elopement
of Lady Adele Villiers with Captain Ibbetson. It is a
singular fact that the maternal grandmother of Lady
Adele Villiers also eloped with her husband, the late
Earl of Westmoreland, in the spring of 1782. Mr.
Child, the opulent banker, father of the lady, pursued
the fugitives on that occasion, and was on the point of
overtaking their carriage, when Lord Westmoreland,
from the window of his post-chaise, shot one of Mr.
Child's leaders, and in the confusion arising from the
fall of the horse pushed on, and was married to the lady
at Gretna before her father reached that place. Lady
Adela is seventeen years of age, and Captain Ibbetson
six and twenty. The young lady succeeded in re-
moving a great portion of her wardrobe, but she left
her jewels on the bed. The Earl of Jersey has received
a letter from the commander-in-chief, and his Grace
speaks highly of the character of Captain Ibbetson,
which, in some degree, softened the grief of the noble
parents of the lady. Captain Ibbetson is the son of Mr.
Henry Ibbetson, proctor and notary, London. It is
impossible to deny that Lady Adele must have been
possessed of tolerably strong nerves to venture upon
encountering the difficulties and inconvenience of a
position at once so novel and trying as that in which
she appears willingly, and of her own free choice, to have
placed herself. A railway trip of nearly 400 miles across
the country to a young and delicate female is of itself
enough to make the boldest droop, even when not
attended with the excitement consequent on being
one of the principals in a runaway match. Her ladyship
is, however, stated to enjoy very high spirits, and we can
only suppose that their buoyancy sustained her
throughout.