The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1912-08-15
BANK OF ENGLAND
TRAGIC and Romantic Episodes In
Its Historic Career.
DEADLY BATTLE WITH A MOB.

financial O86f ~FNH&l RF
the Duchess Of Marlborough
No other banking institution has 50
romantic q history as that pertaining
to the Bank of England the -0ld Lady
Of Threadneedle Street"
One of the bloody episodes 10 the his
tory of the bank ID that embraced In
the story Of Charles Walter Godfrey.
one Of its early partners in the bank
Il appears that Godfrey while crossing
the channel in the midst Of a terrific
storm and laden with 10000 In drafts
for the aid of King william. who was
lust then besieging Namur against the
forces of Louis XIV. insisted upon bis
right to deliver the warrant for the
money into the hands or the king, then
In the trenches under hot Gre As he
handed the document to the king. say.
Ing, in response to Williams growl Of
remonstrance, "Am |. then, more ex.
posed to danger than your majestyT"
cannon ball swept away bis head.
Not so very many years ago there
stood over the massive fireplace IN the
directors room of the bank three rusty
specimens of the old "Brown Bess," TO-
gether with q number Of roughly
shaped bullets. In these relics was EN-.
bodied a picture Of the November night
In l7S0 when the mob Of Gordon riot
ers marched down from Newgate, set.
ting DIRE TO every Catholic chapel on
the way and advancing with force of
5000 upon the bank itself.
The clerks, armed with muskets,
were unprovided with shot Before
them lay rows Of leaden inkstands,
suggesting the possibilities Of a new
use. In less than half an hour the Ink.
stands had been melted and turned
into bullets The muskets were load
ed. At every window of the bank
stood two marksmen. their guns train.
ID on the mob below. Yet the rioters
came on until they were within ten
yards of the bank gates. Then sharp
and clear above the frightful din rose
the order to tire. and from the win
lows poured a deadly volley. When
the smoke finally cleared away $50
lay dead or dying in the open space
COW covered by the esplanade OF the
Royal Exchange. The attacking army
wavered. stopped. broke line and ned.
and the Gordon riots were at an end.
During the flrst part of the reign of
George II. It was the practice of all
banks to give a receipt In payment of
q deposit, the receipts being passed
from hand to hand and serving the
,ame purpose as the check Of today.
At that time Childs' bank. a private
concern, which had the backing OF a
great part of the English nobility. ex-
hiblted such signs Of future greatness
that the Bank of England became
greatly alarmed. especially In view OF
the fact that the .oid Lady's" notes
were at discount of 10 per cent. So
little by little. through their agents.
the managers Of the Bank of England
bought up every receipt bearing the
Childs signature. allowing the collec.
lions to accumulate each year until the
time should be ripe. during shortage
Of gold, to present the receipts In one
great mass for payment IL was deem
ed certainty that Chllds' would not
be able to meet the demand and would
thus be ruined.
The principal figure In the drama
that ensued was no other than the IA
nous Sarah Jennings. 10 whom Childs
bank found its stanchest supporter
One night there came Wild changing
at the bell of the great gate OF the
town of Blenheim-a changing that soon
awakened every one In the town a
white faced, travel stained man stag
gered into the ducai ball. begging an
audience with her grace. When the
In her dressing gown. appear
ed, demanding to know the reason for
this unseemly visitation, the man ex'
plained that the Bank Of England held
the Childs' receipts In the amount OF
eG20. 900. that those receipts would be
presented for payment at noon follow
Ing, that there was not at Childs'
gold to meet them. that un.
less the demand could be atisfed with
In eight hours Childs' was ruined and
that there was but one person In the
worid-her gracs-to whom they might
turn.
Whereupon the redoubtable duchess
sat down and wrote out check. which
she handed to the agent 1t was an
order on the Bank of England for the
payment OF 1900 he was instruct
I'd to take this check to the Bank OF
England and to say that II 1t hesitated
for a single instant In paying It the
duchess would proclaim It as a de-
faulter.
At IL O'Clock that day there appear
ID at the Childs counter an agent Of
the Bank of England bearing big bag
tui of receipts aud bIandly suggesting
payment At the same mo
nent the Childs' agent was tn Thread
needle street receiving cash on the
check of the duchess.
The cashiers at Childs naturally took
their own time in scrutinizing the re-
.eipta. spending fully half an hour over
he first batch alone They were at the
md of the first hundred when their
arrived Then they quick.
sned the procedure a little. and within
.en minutes the Bank OF England had
been paid in its own coin. The net
result was that ChiIds was many thou.
lands of pounds richer.-Harpers
We never see the target man aims