150 ANNUAL REGISTER, 1804. 



proportionate degree ; and the trade 

 of discounting appeared so lucra- 

 tive, that the number of banking- 

 houses in Ireland speedily augment- 

 ed from, perhaps, twelve, to above 

 seventy. AH these establishments 

 issued notes to a considerable ex- 

 ttnt, and, in the course of three or 

 four years, instead of the amount of 

 five millions in cash and paper, 

 which, before the restriciion in 

 1797, supplied the wants of barter 

 in ireldud, the circulating currency 

 in bank and private paper swelled 

 to the enormous amount of twenty 

 millions during the present year ! 



The silver coinage lirst fell be- 

 fore this inundation. For a great 

 part of the present reign, a scar- 

 city of silver had been felt in Ire- 

 land : but at present, that coin to- 

 tally disappeared. In fact, In a cur- 

 rency so abundant, and the matter 

 of which M as so easy to be procured, 

 a nominal guinea was out of pro- 

 portion below the value of twenty- 

 one shillings of sterling silver. The 

 private bankers stepped in, and in 

 the country parts of Ireland, sup- 

 plied the want of silver by notes of 

 eighteen-pcnce, half-a-crown, seven 

 shillings and sixpence, and nine shil- 

 lings. In Dublin, the alfair fell 

 into the hands of professed coiners, 

 who issued Hat pieces of silver, from 

 four-pence to eight-pence, in intrin- 

 sic value. Upon this depreciation 

 of the currency, exchange rose be- 

 tween England and Ireland, as 

 might be expcftcd, to [the disadvan. 

 tage of the latter, fludluating be- 

 tween fifteen and twenty pounds 

 per centum. The members of par- 

 liament, who resorted to England, 

 and the great Irish propriefors re- 

 siding there, were the first to become 

 sensible of this inconvenience, and 

 t» rais« an outcry against it, al- 



1 



though probably their gain, in <h6 

 advance of rent, Avas more than equi- 

 valent to the loss on remittances. — 

 In Ireland there was little or no re- 

 pining ; absentees were at all times 

 unpo])ular in that country, and the 

 exchangers and bankers had the ad- 

 dress to inform the people, that the 

 high premium on remittance ope- 

 rated as a tax solely upon those who 

 drew their rents out of the country. 

 But on the change of administration, 

 in the present year, Mr. Vitt having 

 committed the Irish exchequer to 

 I\Ir. Forster, that gentleman under- 

 stood too well the importance, in a 

 political point of view, of thi; par- 

 ties whom the high exchange affect- 

 ed. Jle directly applied himself to 

 gratify them in this their favourite 

 object. 



■ it was, therefore, become neces- 

 sary to create, in Ireland, dissatis- 

 faction at the actual state of the 

 currency. Without any previous 

 noti«e, the shillings hitherto current 

 were refused by the servants of the 

 post-office. The alarm spread im- 

 mediately ; an universal stagnation 

 ensued, as to all inferior (raflic. No 

 state of things could be more alarmJ 

 ing ; the labouring poor could not 

 procure bread for the shillings (we 

 will not call them silver) which, a 

 few days back, they had received as 

 current ; the petty traders in pe- 

 rishable commodities could neither 

 venture to keep their articles, nor 

 dispose of them. Military patroles 

 were obliged to be called out, to 

 prevent the tumults apprehended at 

 the shops of bakers, and other small 

 retailers of provision. For two or 

 three Saturdays, successively, the 

 appearance of things continued to 

 create anxiety ; for, on these days, 

 the working people were accustomed 

 to lay ia their weekly stock, and 



receive 



