GENERAL HISTORY. 



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Bank of England to advance the 

 sum of SLx millions towards the 

 supply of the year 1816, Mr. 

 Grenfcll rose to declare his per- 

 manent opinion on the subject. 

 The Chancellor of the Exchequer 

 (he said) bad culpably acquiesced 

 in the extravagant demands of the 

 Bank, and had sacrificed from 2 to 

 300,0001. a year for no other pur- 

 pose than to swell the enormous 

 treasures of this opulent corpo- 

 ration. The ingenuity of the de- 

 fenders of this measure could not 

 controvert the position that the 

 state of the question was this — 

 " You, the public, have for the 

 last eight years, and now have, 

 deposited in the Bank a stationary 

 and permanent sum. of eight mil- 

 lions and a half, out of which you 

 have received, free of interest, an 

 advance of three millions and a 

 half." Was it not absurd to talk 

 of an advance under such a state 

 of account between the Bank and 

 the public ? And now, when six 

 millions were wanted, an interest 

 of '240,0001. was required for the 

 advance ; and this was, by a mis- 

 application of terms, called a 

 loan ! Parliamentary interference 

 had already done much, and would 

 do more on similar occasions. 

 In the present bill a saving of 

 60,0001. a year had been effected, 

 by borrowing at 4 instead of .5 per 

 cent. ; but why had not the pub- 

 lic the benefit of tliis regulation in 

 1806, 1813, and 1814, when the 

 Bank held the same public fur.ds 

 as now ? At some future period 

 the country might derive con- 

 siderable advantage from the un- 

 claimed dividends, to which the 

 attention of pailiainent had been 

 directed by an hnn. friend of his 

 (Mr. Bankes). ^s^otwithstanding 



the way in which the proposition 

 had been received by the Chan- 

 cellor of the Exchequer, he should 

 again press on that right hon. 

 gentleman, should he extend to 

 the Bank the term of restriction 

 on their cash payments, the ex- 

 pediency of stipulating, on the 

 part of the public, for a participa- 

 tion in the enormous profits aris- 

 ing to the Bank from the e:4clu- 

 sive circulation of their paper as 

 the currency of the country. 



In the debate which followed 

 the former, differences of opinion 

 between the favourers and the 

 opponents of the interests of the 

 Bank were displayed. At length, 

 the bill having been read a third 

 time, the Chancellor of the Exche- 

 quer rose to move an amendment 

 to the preamble of the bill, which 

 preamble van thus : " Whei'eas 

 the Bank of England are possess- 

 ed of diNcrs sums of the public 

 money, arising from balances of 

 several public accounts, and are 

 willing to advance," &c. The 

 proposed amendment was to leave 

 out all the words fi-om " Bank of 

 England," to "are willing," In 

 the discussion of this matter it 

 apjjeared that the clause in ques- 

 tion had been proposed by Mr. 

 Grenfell, and at his suggestion 

 had been incorporated in the pre- 

 amble : that jMr. G. had been de- 

 sired by the Chancellor of the Ex- 

 chequer to consult the governor 

 of the Bank on the subject, from 

 whom he received an equivocal 

 answer, and that this being re- 

 garded as an acquiescence, the 

 clause was inserted. 



Mr. MelUsh (the governor of 

 the Bank,) stated that when the 

 hon. gentleman had given him a 

 co!>y of the clause, he had ex- 

 pressed 



