Wheeling times and advertiser. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1839-1849, 1843-08-31
THE BANK OF ENGLAND-AN IN.
TERESTING SKETCH

TERESTING SKETCH.
Mr. Weeds letters from Europe are A.
mong the best that appear. The STYLE
Is unPretending, yet forcib'e, and the
facts are grouped together in the mos,
agreeable manner Our readers have
doubtless met with various accounts Of
the Bank of England; but we will ven
lure 10 affirm that they have never read
more interesting one than the follow.
Lg comPrised~~ithin similar limits:
1--WE awaited ourselves this morning of
the permission obtained by Mr. wiggin.
10 visit the Bank Of England An Off
cal (Macer or Usher.) with laced dress
coat and three cornered hat, escorted us
leisurely through an institution that is
so potent in controlling and regulating
the money pulsasions Of Euro po. Il is
situated on Thread needle street, but
fronts upon half dozen others. and oc
cuples an irregular area Of eigh; hours
There are no windows through the ex
terror Of the building, light being sup.
Piled by sky lights and open courts with
IN. There is clock, by which bank
time is kept, with dials indIcatiap the
TIME in sixteen different offices, The
Bank with its various offices are open
from nine A. NJ. The bank has lis
printing office; book bndery, engraving
Office, &c. Checks, blank books. DC
are all printed within the bank, as are
the bank notes In the room where the
circulating notes are printed, there are
eight presses, all constantly employed.
and which throw of about 5000 impres.
sions daily.
we saw two presses rolling off five
pound notes, and others upon the vari
Gus denominations up TO a I0OOI, which
Is the largest no ie the bank issues. The
paper is delivered 10 the presses counted
ian hundred sheets al time) and when
worked and returned, another hundred
sheets are given. Pressmen work five
hours, and earn from two 10 three rui
meas week. In the office where re-
deemed notes are examined, cancelled
&c. one hundred ard thirty six clerks
are constantly employed. When we
entered this room our attendant was
sharp y reprimanded for bringing stran
gers there, but on being informed that
II was the Governors ORDER we were
allowed to pass. Forty thousand differ
'ent notes are frequently sent to this Of.
hce, 10 be cancelled. in a day.
The bank, you know, never reissues
note When returned to the counter
Tor payment note is cancelled, filed n
way, to be burnt at the expiration of
ten years. The armory of the bank
contains hundred stand Of muskeIs.
with pistols, cutlOsses, hand grenades
&c. and has night guard thirty eight
strong. In the office where the bank
notes are counted into parcels, tied with
Irvine and placed in pigeon holes, we
found five staid, methodicaI, matter of
fact looking clerks, whom you would
trust Tor their fsces. One Of these old
chaps, with the precision OF Old Owen
AID the gond nature Of tim Linkenwa.
ter took his keys and unlocked the de.
Posltorles Of paper wealth. The RAGS
OF each denomina ton were in separafe
parcels. When VIC came TO the bigb
number, he placed four packages in nv
hand, and remarked, 'you now hold
4,OOO,OOOI sterling in your hand sir =
les, was actually in possession of
twenty. millions Of dollars-a sum much
larger than the whole estate of John ia.
cob Astori But it all returned TO It's ri.
geon hole,and left me far happier man
than those who are encountered with
oVergrown fortunes.
Another Of the old clerks opened the
gold dormltories, where repose an end
lessnumber Of bags, each containing
eight hundred sovrcigns. We were
next and finally conducted TO a subterra.
mean region enriched by gold and silver
bullion. Here bars Of the precious me.
tails we're as Plenlifully heaped as those
Of iron and steel are in the stores Of orr
friends Benedict, Townsend and Corn.
ing. The silver we did not meddle
with, but we handled bars Of gold, each
weighing eight thousand pounds ster.
Ing that were piled in barrog loads Of
seventy thousand pounds sterling each.
Much Of this bullion was recently re.
ceived from China, as an instalueut upon
the sum John Bull makes the Celestials
pay Tor their obstinate refusal TO "take
opium The Bank Of England has
Dow3in paper and specie, nearly thirty
eight millions Of pounds sterling. There
are eight hundred persons in its various
departments, constantly employed with.
in its walls.