THE CHRONICLE 
country bankers for the ufes before 
mentioned, and partly drawn out 
of their hands by individuals, to be 
hoarded. 
It appears by the evidence of 
Mr. Thornton, that there was, at 
this time, alfo a demand of cafh to 
be fent from the metropolis to 
Scotland. 
But thofe demands for cafh, from 
the diftant parts of the kingdom, 
were not the only caufes of the 
embarraffments of the Bank of 
England at this period. It is flated 
in an account delivered by Mr. Pu- 
get, one of the Directors of the 
Bank of England, and agent for the 
Bank of Ireland, that in the com- 
mencement of the year 1797 there 
was an unufual demand of cafh 
made on the Bank of Englend to be 
fent to Ireland; and that there was 
an expeétation of a loan intended 
to be raifed in Great Britain, for 
the fervice of Ireland, which would 
neceffarily have occafioned the ex- 
portation of a confiderable quan- 
tity of coin from the metropolis to 
the latter kinedom. It is proper to 
add, that the kingdom of Ireland 
appears, for fome weeks previous 
to the iffuing the Order of Councii 
ef the 26th of February, to have 
experienced a great want of cafh, 
fimilar to that which was experi- 
enced in Great Britain. — 
There is a circumftance that 
throws confiderable light on one at 
-leaft of the principal caufes which 
produced this great demand for cafh 
on the bank. It appears by the 
account of the ftate of the cafh at 
the Bank at different periods, as 
laid before the Committee, that the 
greateft drain of cafh which the 
Bank has experienced, fubfequent 
to the year 1783, was in March and 
June 1793, that is, a fhort time af- 
107 
ter the failure of the country banks 
in that year; and in the commence- 
ment of the month of February of 
this year, that is a fhort time after 
the Newcaftle bank ftopped pay- 
ment in cafh, and when the alarms 
before ftated produced great de- 
mands for cafh from different parts 
of the country: So that, in both 
thofe periods, the fame caufe ap- 
pears to have produced an effect 
nearly fimilar, that is, a very un- 
ufual drain of cafh from the Bank. 
The increafed demand for cafh 
muft bear a proportion to the de- 
creafe of any other fort of circula- 
tion that is a fubftitute for it. The 
Committee will prefently fhew to 
what degree the circulation of the 
notes of the Bank of England had 
been diminifhed, immediately pre- 
vious to the 26th February laft. 
With refpe& to the decreafe of 
country bank bills in circulation, 
Mr. Thornton, who appears to have 
collected his evidence from feveral 
parts of the kingdom with great ac- 
curacy, was defired by .the Com- 
mittee to deliver in an account of 
the proportion in which, according 
to his information, country bank 
bills circulated in different parts of 
the kingdom before the failures in 
1793; at a period fubfequent to 
that year; and at the prefent time. 
This account may be feen at large 
in the evidence; but the refult 1s, 
that at the prefent time the circula- 
tion of thefe bills is in one part of 
the kingdom not more than about a 
third; in another, not more than 
half; and in a third, but a fixth of 
what was in circulation before the 
year 1793: and the Committee 
have already endeavoured to fhew, 
in a former part of this fummary, 
to what degree the means of coins 
ing, and, in confequence thereof, 
the 
