408 Changes of the Moon. — Resir 



■To the Editor of the Mmithly Magazine. 

 SIR, 



YOUR remarks respccliiiff the Spots 

 ill tlic Sun, itnd the improbability 

 of the effects ascribed to lliem, iiave tlie 

 ippearaiice ol truth ; but you do not 

 seem to be quite so correct in your ob- 

 servations oil the changes of the Moon ; 

 in fact, I know not what you mfran by 

 four of thein happening in the month ; 

 I never heard bnt of one cliange in a lu- 

 nar month, namely, at the conjunction, 

 when (to use a vulgar expression) siie 

 changes from old to new ; and, in four 

 diiys before the day on which this takes 

 place, you may, if you think proper, 

 see a manifest alteration iu the weather, 

 *hicli can neither be accounted for by 

 the " doctrine of chances," or any other 

 floctrine but that of " cause and effect" 

 alone. J. AV. 



Octobei- 1. 



%* We insert this letter with a view to 

 encourage discussion on tlie subject ; but 

 feel DO leason to alter the opiiiiuu we ex- 

 pressed at page '288. 



To the Editor oj the Monihhj Magazine. 

 SIR, 



A GREAT deal has lately been said 

 ill several publications respecting 

 the Roman method of writing the con- 

 tracted plural ; and I have no doubt that 

 the doubling of the last letter of the 

 contracted singular, to express the plu- 

 ral, was very prevalent in ancient times, 

 asintheexamplesalready before the pu b- 

 lic.to which wc may add — AA.COSS.An- 

 gustis Coiisulibns; AA.VV.GG. Bini 

 Augusti; AA.VY.CC.CUNS.S.S. Au- 

 gustalibus \ iris Clarissimis Consulibiis 

 supra Scriptis; BB. Bonis; CENSS. 

 CcHsores ; &.c. &c. But the great va- 

 ricty of examples extant, in which the 

 plural is not thus expressed, plainly 

 enough evinces that the custom just al- 

 luded to had not that universality which 

 some have inadvertently asserted. A 

 very hasty examination of Gerrard's 

 Siglarium Romanum, has put me in pos- 

 session of the following examples, with 

 many others, in which the contracted 

 plural is not written with the last letter 

 of the singular repeated — A.BAL.PRI- 

 VAT. A Bahicis Privatis ; AB.EPIST. 

 LAT. Ab EpistolisLathiis; A.C.S.L. 

 A Consulihus Suas Legionis; AD. P. 

 Ad Pedes; AED.VEN. .EdesVenales ; 

 AL.A.I.CON. Ala Prima Conlario- 

 rum ; A.O. Alii Omnes ; A.RAT. A Ra- 

 tiouibns; BRIT. Briianni; BRVN. 

 Brundusioruui ; C. Curules ; CL.CAES. 

 AYG. Caius et Lucius Csesares Augus- 



ictions on Country Banks. [Dec. 1, 



ti (a very remarkable example) ; COH. 

 Cohjeredes; COH. I. BRIT. Cohort 

 Prima Britannorum ; MVNIC. ET IM- 

 COL. Municipes et Incolae; D.TR. 

 Dc Tribiibus ; &c. &:c. 



If the ancients wrote BRIT, repeat- 

 edly for Britanni or Britannoinm, why 

 might not BRIT, stand for Britannia- 

 rum 2 An answer to this query, by one 

 of your numerous correspondents, with 

 other important matter in elucidation of 

 the custom iu question, will be highly 

 gratifying to, 



An Old Correspondent. 



Oct. 19, 1816. 



To the Editor of the Monthly 3Tagazine. 



SIR, 



THE peculiar situation of trade, at 

 the present time, has created a 

 .•spirit of enquiry, which promises at 

 least to develope .some of the causes of a 

 general depression, almost, if not totally, 

 unprecedented in this country. ^Ve 

 naturally direct onr view to tliose evils 

 which come under our more immediate 

 notice, and are better qualified to judge 

 of their baneful tendency than that of 

 others, whose cllects may be more inju» 

 rious upon full investigation; being con« 

 vinced that the want of proper restric- 

 tions upon country-banks has contri- 

 buted in no small degree to produce the 

 universal derangement, I am induced to 

 ofler a few ])lain observations, founded 

 in truth and experience, through th« 

 medium of your respectable work, as 

 the subject has of late excited some de- 

 gree of attention from its close con- 

 nexion with the manufacturing interest. 



I would propo.se — 



1st. That the proprietors of any coun- 

 try-bank should be heavily fined, and ren- 

 dered ineligible to become bankers again, 

 who should be discovered directly or indi- 

 rectly to engage in any other busiuesi 

 whatever. 



2nd. That all notes issued by bankers 

 of one pound and upwards should inva- 

 riably be made payable in London. 



.Sid. That no country bankei"s should 

 be suffered to allow any interest upon mo- 

 ney deposited in their hands. 



Every one cwnversant with trade will 

 see the propriety of the first regulation ; 

 for want of tliis w c find bankers engaged 

 in almost every business that requires a 

 large capital; numbers have been ruined 

 by weighty engagements, to which they 

 have been tempted, 1st. because they 

 have extensive lodgments iu their hands ; 

 2nd. because their credit is generally 

 better than that of other merchants and 

 Iradesnieu ; and 3rd. because they mak« 

 1 their 



