The Statesman.
London, England, 1819-05-13 00:00:00

nant new /eosins of the sovereigns ich
seed in the )esr 1817. The prohibition, in :eel%
adds sooething to Oho difficulty, and m19'1.114.11, .„
the exportation, and may, therefore, be rot unse.l t..
irpesate, in +owe degree, as a seignotage upon ear
coin—bol it is a seiguerage perpetually Isr)ing, sc.
cordiag in the greater •r lesser facilities fee sump
filing which may at different moments elicit, and id.
fording therefore an uncertain, and, in v«iot of fact,
an Inadequate protection.

Ilse mewls also, by which this protection is afford.
ed are highly ohjectimsable.t here being no po•sibility of
distinguishing betimes Wilms produced by the melt.
lag of foreign or of English coin. The only security
'is that of an oath ; and the law, therefore, has a.
other operation than to offer a greet, sal, as ex-
perience p , • soccessfol sereptetioss to perjury.
Etta upon our ancient ')stem of coinage, in obit*
the vales of the metal in coin is equal to that of the
metal in bullion, and the whole @Amore of the coins
age falls open the Public, it may be doubted whe-
ther the prohibition does not incense rather thee dis
minish that esponre; although the latter was pros
Mbly one of the chief °Netts which the law had in
view. As our coin is cow either melted previously
to exportation, or melted is the country he which it
is exported, beaten it is not there known oe current,
when it returns, it returns in the shape of hotline,
end if the Mint is open, sod the price tech as to make
it worh coining, it is carried to the Mint tad coimed
at the public expeoce. Whereas, if our cola were
legally exportable, it would probably return late this
country as coin, whenever the state of the sachems.%
rendered it more profitable remittance than bills or
merchandis. No reentry in Eorope has 'maintained
so large a metallic cerrency es France, without any
prohibition upon the stetting, the export, or the sato
of the coin.

The Committee cannot courier's their Report with.
out adverting to the opinions which have been ex.
pressed sod very folly explained by some of the wit.
stems, that the present regulations of the Mint for
the coinage of silver must of theetseive• occasion e
perpetual drain nf gold from this country, and ?horrify
oppose an insurmountable obstacle tot he resu mpti on of
metallic payment. by the Bank at she ancient stand-
ard of Woe. These opinions have been directly •14

straggly controverted toy other witnesses, The Cern.
miltee more persiculerly refer to the evidence of Mr.
Page and Mr. Fletcher on one side,and Mr. Moshol
on the other; and to a peperreceived Goon Iho Master
of his Majesty@ Mint; bet much important Worse.
lion on this part of the subject may likewise be
collected front the testimony of others, whose sen-
timents and authority upon sorb manners most
of great weight. The Committee being folly sen-
sible, that if the opinings of the two first witnesses
be well founded, any attempt to moose the restric-
tion upon the Bulk must prove ineffectual, unless
Ilse Mint regulations for the coinage of silver
were first 'Pored, according to the principle snow
which opinion appears to be founded, have given this
part of the subject toll consideration ; end they think
it their duty to state, that they sve no ground to ape
prebend that the present Mint regulations respectietc
the silver coinage, so long as such silver coin shall
not be • legal tender beyowd the mount of forty
shillings, and the Mint shall not be open to the Public
for the coinage of that metal, will oppose any Mots-
cis to the successful emotion of the plan, which they
have ventured to recommend.

The House will rind its varies, peril, of the evi.
deuce, and in the Appeudis, a great mass of valuable
I information, illustrating set only these points which
the Committee have dwelt upon lo their iteport, bet
also many other points of imperssacs, to which
they did not think it necessary to advert. They hese
judged it best to confine themselves as much as pos.
Bible to a practical view of the wrestles referred
them by the House, and to rest the proposal which
' they have brought forward upon grounds which might
tecosnmeed it suit:Wetly, if not equally, to person
widely differisig is opinion upon ■any of the ems-
, siderations involved in any discussion epee se eaten.
sis. sod complicated a subject.