68] ANNUAL REGISTER, 1816. 



ment had never been proposed. 

 But it appeared to him it would 

 be an advantage in the event of 

 the resumption of cash payments, 

 as well to the public as the Bank, 

 to guard against any thing like a 

 run upon the latter immediately 

 on its opening. Feeling this, he 

 should certainly in any case have 

 proposed tiiat their notes should 

 be received for a certain time 

 after the resumption of cash pay- 

 ments. Such a measure he should 

 have held to be necessary, to 

 guaid against any traffic on the 

 part of the minor agents of the 

 treasury (though perhajjs this was 

 little to be feared) being carried 

 on of an improper nature, who, 

 without such an enactment, might 

 possibly have demanded payment 

 in gold, for the purpose of mak- 

 ing a profit, by turning it into 

 paper whenever the exchanges 

 might again become unfavoura- 

 ble. He did not know that any 

 incon\"enience would be likely to 

 arise from receiving bank note.s 

 at the Exchequer, tdl the present 

 charter of the Company should 

 e.xpire. If, however, it should be 

 desirable that they should cease 

 to enjoy that privilege, we could 

 put an end to it at any time, by 

 the repayment of the advance. 

 He himself thought there could 

 be no objection to its continu- 

 ance for the remaining sixteen 

 years of the charter ; but if any 

 should, contrary to his expecta- 

 tion, arise, the mode by repay- 

 ment would, he believed, be found 

 easy. If government, at some 

 time, should deem it expedient no 

 longer to assist the circulation of 

 the bank paper, it would be equi- 

 table that the security should 

 exist till the Bank was able to 



bring itself back to its former si- 

 tuation by the recoAery of their 

 loan. To him then, the circum- 

 stances which he had stated fair- 

 ly considered, the ariangement 

 seemed to be as free from objec- 

 tion as any that could be sub- 

 mitted to })arliament, or that 

 could be devised by any minister 

 of finance. It was to govern- 

 ment an important consideration 

 to obtain a loan of 3,000,0001., 

 without resorting to the general 

 money market at a time when ii 

 was most desirable to avoid all 

 pressure upon it, and in the re- 

 duced rate of interest to be paid 

 on the money so advanced, the 

 public gained at least 60,0001. a 

 year, exclusive of the still mure 

 important one of saving all addi- 

 tion to the capital of the debt 

 beyond the money actually ad- 

 vanced. It offered to the Bank 

 security, and sanctioned an ho- 

 nourable extension of their ca- 

 pital, and this was highly bene- 

 ficial to the jn'oprictors. He 

 thought it might further be ob- 

 served, that what it was now 

 proposed to sanction, was no 

 more than tliat which the Bank 

 proprietors had a right to claim 

 at some time or other : the only 

 question therefore was as to the , 

 time, circumstances, and mode in 

 which this should take place. On 

 any of these grounds he did not 

 think any fair objection could be 

 urged to the arrangement, and 

 the present seemed in fact as 

 favourable a moment as could be 

 chosen for granting that which at 

 some future period they were en- 

 titled to claim. 



He should now proceed to the 

 more general statements of the 

 supplies granted for tiie present 



year, 



