The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1866-05-22
4
DY TELEGRAPH,
TO THE DAILY PRESS .ddl /.
Tuesday Morning, May 20, 1866. @
-}} 81 SEVEN DAYS -s.
LATER FROM EUROPE.
Arrival Of Steamship Cuba, nj Halifax.
iV'- AsAJ' ila --s 'v4g4ilA ~ !.
FIN.ANChL PANTC.
PREPARATIONS FOR WAR.
Arrival Of Steamship Cuba, a. Halifax
FINANCIAL PANIC
PREPARATIONS FOR WAR.

FINANC-LAL PANIC.
PREPARATIONS FOR WAR
| hf HALIFAX, May 81.
The steamship Cuba, Capt. Anderson, from
| Liverpool P. NJ. of the 18th and Queens
| town 18th inst, for Boston, via Halifax, ar
rived here at $50 this afternoon. The Cub;
has seventy-fve Boston and forty-fVe Halifax
passengers. g--
Steamship North America from Quebec, ar
rived at Liverpool ON the 11th.
The steamship Baltic from New York, or
rived at Southampton on the 10th.
The steamship Hibelmian, from New York
arrived at Liverpool on the 11th, not the
Greenock, as previously reported.
The steamship Persia, from New York. ar
rived at Queenstown on the evening of the
eth inst.
The financial panic eliminated late on the
afternoon Of the 10th, in the suspension OF
Overend, Gurney d Co. Their business was
converted, in August last, into limited liabiI-
ity company, with nominal capital o. five
million pounds sterling, OF which million and
IA half was paid up. Their liabilities are esti
mated at from ten to twelve million pounds
sterling. The breakdown is attributed TO
heavy speculative sales OF shares, which forced
them down from 10 per cent premium to a dis
count Depositors then began 10 get alarmed
and the drain on the 10th was very severe
Application for assistance was made to the
Bank of England, but the governors declined
to grant any on the ground that it would be
vain in a crisis like the present to assist that
establishment unless they We're prepared to
help other applicants as well. 1t was too late
fn nalyp ooll m fbp. cb9rp hOlflprS and fbp
doors OF the establishment were consequently
closed. This failure does not compromise the
Gruney Bank at Norwich. On the following
morning, Friday, 11th, intense excitement per-
vaded the financial circles of London and Liv-
erpool, and other large cities, and business was
almost suspended.
The London Times on the 18th in its city
article, says the Bank of England yesterday
raised its discount from to 8 per cent, and
the charge for special advance to 10 per cent.
The pressure even at these terms was enor-
nous, and it was only on unexceptional bills
that an accommodation could be obtained--
Meanwhile, additional and most serious disas-
ters were hourly announced. The first was
that Of the comparatively small bank, "The
English Joint Stocks" for 9800,C00 sterling.
Then came that of Peto & Bretts, for e4,000,- :
900 sterling; then that OF w. s. Himpton,
railway contractor, for 100000, and finally it
was understood that the Imperial Mercantile
Credit Association, whose paid up capital is
oalf million sterling, and the Consolidated
Discount Company, with paid up capital of
quarter OF million sterling, must, with eX-
tremey heavy commitments, pass into liqui-
dation. During the day the most tintense anx-
iety was manifested to ascertain if any steps
had been taken by the leading merchants and
bankers to represent to the Government the
extent of the crisis, and false notification in
the Stock Exchange to the effect that an extra
issue OF bank notes to the extentof e5,000O00
or $40, 100000 had been authorized caused at
one time a general rebound of prices. Later
in the evening it transpired that the Govern
ment had resolved to suspend the Bank Char
ter act. s-a-4
The assets of Petro & Bretts, even under
the most depressed circumstances, are estimat-
ed at five millions fterling and it is confident
ly assumed that in short time proposition
for the adjustment Of all claims can be sub
mitted. Every one will hope that this may be
the case, for Sir Morton Petro and his partner
rank prominently among those who haze car
ried the fame of English enterprise to all parts
of the globe, while they have commanded the
high personal regard Of all sections of their
country. ae,,Ga aa q ~ IS tl4atao y
There was run upon two or three banks,
but being well met soon subsided. Both in
London and the country, ample preparations
have been made for each contingency. .sse.
Taking into account the depreciation that
has simultaneously occurred IN the English
funds, railway and foreign securities, and the
diminution in the market value of this prop
erty since the beginning of the year, may be
considered to reach one hundred and thirty
millions sterling, to say nothing of the losses
on cotton goods, iron and other articles.
The Times in an editorial, says: If any,
thing can justify a suspension Of the bank
charter'act the panic which swayed the city
to and fro on Friday, may excuse this step, al
though we believed the reign of terror was
approaching its end, and would have speedily
ceased, had no infringement of the bank been
permitted. Even now it is probable the IL
cense allowed to the bank, will not be used-
1t cannot be denied however, that about mid
day yesterday, the tunlult became a riot. The
doors OF the most respectable backing houses
vera beseiged, more perhaps by mob actua-
ted by that strange sympathy which makes
and keeps mob together, than by the credi-
tors of the bank;i and the throngs heaving
and tumbing about Lombard Street, made
that narrow thproughfare impossible. The
excitement on all sides was such as has not
been since the great crisis OF the year 1926
Each, man exaggerated the suspicious of his
neighbor, and until report, at that time un-
founded, was circulated in the afternoon that
the Government had authorized the bank di-
reetors to issue five millions additional in
notes. 1t seemed as if fear and distrust of the
commercial world had suddenly become bound
less. The statement was baseess at the time,
but served to alay panic which had no solid
foundation. Even the announcement of Pc
to's suspension did not revive the panic in its
first intensity, and the statement of other
sLoppages produced little effect. vm
The Times further says; Wefeel persuaded
that had the Government stood firm the panic
would haye subsidized Of itself, and il, as we
expect confidence be speedily restored, we
shall attribute it to natural causes rather than
the interferences OF the executive Govern
ment. .,.,.-rsrrt.- .-.,.,,-,
The Daily News approves the wise and
prompt action of the Government, and says:
During Friday, the Bank of England had eX-
tended its loans and discounts until the
amount exceeded four millions steRling. The
| effect was to reduce the banks reserves by
nearly e3,O00O00. This diminution, and the
the prevailing distrust, justified Government
| intervention. sL o5tfl
The action of the Government was an
nounced in the House Of Commons on Friday
| at midnight, by Mr.. Gladstone, who said he
tation with bankers and others. and who rep
resented to him that the panic in the city was
| without parallel in the financial history o1
! the country. alI
| Mr.. Gladstone said he had addressed letter
to the directors Of the Bank of England to the
effect that if they should find occasion to al
ford relief to the wants of legitimate com
| merce, and make such advances as woutd re
quire an issue of notes beyond the amount al
lowed by the Government, recommended their
! not to hesitate in doing SO, and undertook II
the event of that contingency to make imme
1 diate application to Parliament for an act o
| indemnity. ''','
| The Morning Herald says that at very
large meeting OF Lord Derbys supporters OF
the 18th, it was resolved that no opposition
| should be offered to the second reading of tht
Reform bill for the Redistribution of seats, ant
that the bill be allowed TO so into committee
The cholera continued to prevail among thu
passengers Of the returned steamer Helvetia
AUSTRIA, PRUSSIA AND ITALY.
The question of war for the moment is ov
| ershadOWed by the financial Danic There il