THE FAKMEK'SJ MAGAZINE. 



435 



t6 this day the continuance of civil commotions has 

 pi'ovcnted that full development of the mineral riches 

 of Mexico and Peru which their well-known capa- 

 bilities would warrant us to expect. 



Under these circumstances, the discoveries of which 

 we are speaking were made at a critical period, while 

 great indeed have been the results. Let us here take a 

 glance at the produce ofgold and silver since 1848, when 

 California was handed over to the United States by the 

 Mexican Government, and we shall then be able duly 

 to appreciate the value of such additional supplies to 

 the interests of commerce. The following are the ac- 

 counts of bullion and coin imported into the United 

 Kingdom during the twelve years from 1848 to 1859 

 inclusive : — 



Gold £240,740,824 



Silver 115,522,522 



^£356,263,346 



Of this, there has been re-exported in the same period, 

 as follows : — 



Gold , £112,521,890 



Silver 105,340,871 



£217,862,761 



This leaves a balance of ^138,400,585, which is thus 

 accounted for: — 



Coined in gold £59,120,314 



„ silver 3,527,846 



£62,648,060 



Add to this an average stock of bullion held by the 

 Bank of England of £16,750,000, and it will leave a 

 balance unaccounted for, of £59,000,000, which has 

 probably in part been absorbed by artificers in gold 

 and silver, or held by private bankers and others as 

 security. 



This marvellously rapid creation of wealth — for such 

 it is — has been effected chiefly by a class of per- 

 sons who, in ordinary life, have hitherto been excluded 

 from a participation in the gifts of fortune. Such 

 a fact is one of the most eventful circumstances 

 of the age, and has exercised a powerful in- 

 fluence over the social and political condition of the 

 two nations whose territories have been chiefly 

 affected. Leaving, however, America out of the ques- 

 tion, let us next inquire what have been the results in 

 the United Kingdom. With this we have all much 

 more to do, it being evident, from the above figures, 

 that hither the great bulk of the gold and silver pro- 

 duced in the world comes — by one channel or another. 



We have said that, as the raw material of which a me- 

 tallic currency is composed, the permanent possession of 

 large quantities of precious metal is uotin itself a. ma,lter 

 of consequence to us. Credit in England is based upon 

 so solid a foundation, and its value is so well under- 

 stood, that, for all the purposes of trade and commerce, 

 paper money is preferred (especially that of the Bank 

 of England) to specie, in transactions beyond a certain 

 amount in value, as being iar more convenient. To 

 retain, therefore, an amount of bullion in the country 



beyond what the coiiiago or the necessary stability of 

 the banks require, would be useless. The surplus, like 

 any other article of commerce, is consequently disposed 

 of to those nations who, having no mines of their own, 

 are restricted in the possession of a metallic currency. 

 Thus, the Bank of France purchased in 1855 gold and 

 silver to the amount of £27,300,000, at a premium of 

 1 J per cent., or about Is. 2d. per ounce above the Mint 

 price. Indeed, in the nine years from 1848 to 1856 

 inclusive, the French Govei-nment must have been very 

 large purchasers of bullion, having coined to the amount 

 of nearly ^£"1 12,000,000 in gold and silver. We have 

 therefore, by supplying our neighbours with bullion as 

 an article of commerce, disposed of what would have 

 been of no use to us, while we have furnished them 

 with an absolute necessary of commerce, receiving 

 from them adequate equivalents, and taking a profit 

 by the transaction. 



But this is far from being the whole or the chief 

 benefit we derive "from the influx of gold and silver. 

 Its beneficial influence permeates into, and acts upon, 

 every department of industry, by stimulating produc- 

 tion, and thereby creating profitable employment for 

 the population. It is hardly necessary to say that the 

 gold that comes hither must be paid for by consumable 

 articles, and that the large amounts now received 

 will render necessary a great accession of hands to ma- 

 nufacture such commodities, with more ships to carry 

 them, and more sailors to man the ships. The em- 

 ployment of such large numbers of operatives creates a 

 greater demand for the necessaries and conveniences of 

 life ; and an extended consumption of these acts bene- 

 ficially upon agriculture, by extending the market for its 

 produce, and raising the price. Labour also, the main- 

 spring of national wealth, feels the effect, and com- 

 mands a higher rate, in consequence of both the in- 

 crease of employment and the scarcity of hands. Thus 

 wealth, instead of accumulating with a few as 

 formerly, becomes diffused throughout the masses of 

 society. We need but to look at the accounts of the 

 savings' banks — the forty millions invested in those 

 admirable institutions — and to the increased comforts 

 enjoyed by the operatives, to be satisfied as to the way 

 in which the influx of gold has benefited the country. 



With respect to the actual amount of the rise in 

 prices, there are so many disturbing causes in operation 

 to counteract or enhance the effect of an increase of 

 specie, that it is impossible accurately to estimate this. 

 Whatever may be the extent of the diffusion of wealth, 

 commodities of al! kinds will still be subject to the 

 law of demand ,and supply. If the latter is in excess 

 of the former, prices will necessarily fall. We have 

 had an illustration of this in the price of wheat^for the 

 last two years, when, in consequence of two good har- 

 vests, rates have ruled unusually low, notwithstanding 

 the very large importation of gold and silver. On the 

 other hand, butcher's meat and every kind of animal 

 produce have been scarce, and prices have risen to an 

 almost unprecedented maximum. What portion of this 

 advance is attributable to the influx of gold directly, 

 it would be diflacult to ascertain ; but indirectly, by 



