460 ANNUAL REGISTER, 1810. 



depression of the exchanges, and 

 the great rise in the price of gold, 

 had suggested to tlie directors any 

 suspicion of the currency of the 

 country being excessive. 



Mr. Wliitmorc, the late governor 

 of the Bank, stated to the com- 

 mittee, that> in regulating tlie 

 general amount of the loans and 

 discounts, he did '* not advert to 

 thecircumstanceoftheexchanges; 

 it appearing, upon a reference to 

 the amount of our notes in circula- 

 tion, and tlie course of exchange, 

 that they frequently have no con- 

 nection." He afterwards said, 

 " My opinion is, I do not know 

 whether it is that of the bank, 

 that the amount of our paper 

 circulation has no reference at all 

 to the state of the exchange." 

 And on a subsequent day, Mr. 

 Whitmore stated, that " Tlie 

 present unfavourable state of ex- 

 change has no influence upon the 

 amount of tlieir issues, the bank 

 having acted precisely in the same 

 way as they did before." He 

 was likewise asked, Whether, in 

 regulating tlie amount of their 

 circulation, thebank ever adverted 

 to the difference between the 

 market and mint price of gold ? 

 and having desired to have time to 

 consider that question, Mr. Whit- 

 more, on a subsequent day, an- 

 swered it in the following terms, 

 which suggested these further 

 questions : — 



" In taking into consideration 

 the amount of your notes out in 

 circulation, and in limiting the ex- 

 tent of your discounts to mer- 

 chants, do you advert to the dif- 

 ference,when such exists.between 

 the market and the mint price of 

 gold.' — We do advert to that, 

 inasmuch as we do not discount 

 at any time for those persons who 



we know, or have good reason to 

 suppose, export the gold." 



" Do you not advert to it any 

 farther than by refusing discounts 

 to such persons ? — We do advert 

 to it, inasmuch as whenever any 

 director thinks it bears upon the 

 question of our discounts, and 

 presses to bring forward the dis- 

 cussion." 



" The market price of gold 

 having, in the course of the last 

 year, risen as high as 4/. 10s. or 4/. 

 12s. has that circumstance been 

 taken into consideration, by you, 

 so as to have had any ett'ect in dimi- 

 nishing or enlarging the amount 

 of the outstanding demands? — It 

 has not been taken into considera- 

 tion by me in that view." 



Mr.Pearse, nowgovernorof the 

 bank, agreed with Mr. Whitmore 

 in this account of the practice of 

 the bank, and expressed his full 

 concurrence in the same opinion. 



Mr. Pearse. — " In considering 

 this subject, with reference to the 

 manner in which bank-notes are 

 issued, resulting from the applica- 

 tions made for discounts to supply 

 the necessary want of bank-notes, 

 by which their issue in amount is 

 so controlled that it can never 

 amount to an excess, I cannot see 

 how the amount of bank-notes is- 

 sued can operate upon the price 

 of bullion, or the state of the 

 exchanges, and therefore I am 

 individually of opinion that the 

 price of bullion, or the state of the 

 exchanges, can never be a reason 

 for lessening the amount of bank- 

 notes to be issued, always under- 

 standing the control which I have 

 already described." 



" Is the governor of the bank 

 of the same opinion which has 

 now been expressed by the deputy- 

 governor ?'* 



