746 



PUBLIC STOCKS. 



iiies. 5 There is also in Paris a caisse des depfits 

 et conMgnutitiiis, where money, in coin or notes is 

 taken by the bank of Prance, and three per cent, 

 interest paid upon it, commencing after it has been 

 in the treasury thirty days. The money deposited 

 may be taken out at any time by restoring the re- 

 ceipt. 



111. Austrian Stock*. Austria has long iiad a 

 arge debt, and, till the French revolution broke 

 out, punctually fulfilled its obligations to its credi- 

 tors. But, during the war of the French revolu- 

 tion, its finances fell into great disorder; and vari- 

 ous measures, adopted to remedy the evil, did not 

 contribute to the public credit. Among these was 

 the immense increase of paper money since 1797; 

 for, till that time, the bank paper of Vienna, which, 

 for a long period, was the common medium of ex- 

 change, remained about on a par with specie, it be- 

 ing exchangeable, at any time, for silver, on pre- 

 sentment. But, this year, the payment of specie 

 was limited, and, the year following, stopped en- 

 tirely; and the paper money so increased, that it 

 soon fell rapidly below the value of silver. The 

 means resorted to as an antidote for the consequent 

 embarrassment were ineffectual. One of the most 

 remarkable was adopted in 1798. It was a forced 

 loan, by which the holders of public stocks were 

 compelled to add thirty per cent, to what they had 

 already paid, on pain of losing the whole; in con- 

 sideration of which they were to receive five per 

 cent, instead of four. As the loan was all made in 

 convention money, it was understood that the in- 

 terest should be paid in the same. But this was 

 extremely difficult for the state, on account of the 

 continual depreciation in the value of the paper 

 currency; and, finally, it seemed to be impossible, 

 when an attempt, made in 1802, to recruit its de- 

 clining strength by lottery loans and other measures, 

 failed. In 1811, therefore, the interest was reduced 

 to half; and, in order to make this half still small- 

 er, the existing paper money was changed for re- 

 demption notes, so called, a note of one guilder be- 

 ing paid for five old paper guilders. It was hoped 

 that these certificates would be esteemed as valu- 

 able as specie. Hence the reduced interest was to 

 be paid in this new paper, and not, as before, in 

 coined money. But these notes never fulfilled the 

 design for which they were created; and a large 

 amount of new paper, under the name of anticipa- 

 tion certificates, was put in circulation, about equal 

 in amount to that which the redemption notes had 

 been intended to supersede, so that, in a short time, 

 both kinds of paper sunk as low as the old bank 

 notes. In this way, the early creditors of the state 

 lost a large part of their interest and capital. In 

 1816, the finances of Austria were put under better 

 management. The new administration devoted 

 their chief attention to two objects: First, to rais- 

 ing the value of the paper money, and, as far as 

 possible, abolishing it; and next to fixing the pub- 

 lic credit on a new basis, by restoring to the old 

 claims a portion of their rights, and by negotiating 

 new loans on a more firm and solid basis. In 18 16, 

 a new bank was furnished with funds in specie, and 

 empowered to issue new notes, which were to be 

 paid to the holders on demand in silver money. 

 This bank, to which was intrusted the whole busi- 

 ness of amending the currency and public credit, 

 commenced its task by giving notice, June 1, that 

 any person might bring in any sum in the old pa- 

 per money, and receive for it five sevenths in new 

 certificates, bearing one per cent, interest in con- 

 vention money, and two sevenths in new bank notes, 

 which every one might exchange at the bank for 

 their value in convention money. Thus a proprie- 



tor, who deposited 7000 guilders in paper money, 

 received for it 5000 gunners in certificates, bearing 

 an interest of fifty guilders in convention money, 

 and 2000 guilders in new bank notes, which he 

 might exchange for convention money at the bank, 

 on demand. But the pressure to procure specie in 

 exchange for the bank notes thus obtained was so 

 great that the supplies and resources of the bank 

 would have soon been exhausted, so that the whole 

 system was abandoned a short time after it was 

 established. Several millions of one per cent, cer- 

 tificates were created by this operation, and some 

 of them are still in circulation. Bank shares, at 

 500 guilders convention money, might be obtained 

 for 2000 guilders in paper money and 200 in con- 

 vention money. The paper money thus obtained 

 was to be destroyed. Both measures, however, on- 

 ly partially effected the desired object, and they 

 were soon abandoned. October 29, therefore, of 

 that year, a measure was brought forward founded 

 on juster views. This gave rise to the metalliquet, 

 so called. A voluntary loan was opened, and the 

 deposits were received partly in public certificates 

 bearing interest and partly in paper money. For 

 an old Austrian certificate of 100 guilders, and the 

 additional sum of 80, 100, 110, 120, 130 guilders 

 in redemption or anticipation notes, according as 

 the old certificate yielded six, five, four and a half, 

 four, three and a half, or three per cent, interest, a 

 new state obligation was given of 100 guilders, 

 bearing interest at five per cent., both payable in 

 specie. A sufficient fund was, at the same time, 

 provided for the punctual discharge of the interest, 

 and for the gradual extinction of the capital by re- 

 purchase. This gave assurance to the proprietors 

 of these certificates that they might sell them, with 

 scarcely any loss, whenever so inclined. These 

 metalliques, therefore, soon obtained extensive cre- 

 dit, and so confirmed the financial strength of the 

 government, that it boldly resolved to establish the 

 public credit on a broader basis. By a patent of 

 Jan. 22, 1817, the sinking fund was organized after 

 the example of the sinking fund of England, and 

 all the funds were united in one for the payment of 

 all public debts; and, by a regulation of March 21, 

 1818, the whole system of debt was reduced to such 

 order that the proprietors of the old certificates be- 

 gan to be encouraged that their rights would be re- 

 stored; and this hope gave the obligations once 

 more a limited circulation. The capital of the old 

 debt, of which the interest was reduced to half in 

 1811, was divided into sections, each of one mil- 

 lion guilders. Five of these were to be restored 

 every year to the enjoyment of full interest, and as 

 many more to be bought in by the sinking fund. 

 This plan has hitherto been very successful. By 

 the gradual liquidation of the redemption and anti- 

 cipation certificates, their amount was diminished, 

 June 30, 1825, to 149,320,813 guilders (a guilder is 

 about one shilling and ninepence half-penny); and, 

 June 30, 1828, the amount in circulation in Austria 

 was only 78^ million guilders. The metalliques have 

 therefore come into the market in all the principal 

 commercial cities of Europe. In the year 1821, the 

 whole amount of the new debt contracted since 1 8 1 5, 

 or the five per cent, metalliques, was estimated at 

 207 ,970,290 guilders,and the proportion of the sink- 

 ing fund to the debt at one fifty-seventh the same 

 ratio which the sinking fund in England b ars to the 

 public debt. The credit of these metalliques has risen 

 very much. They stood, in 1817, at forty-eight, 

 but had risen, in the beginning of 1823, to eighty- 

 six, and even during the war between Turkey and 

 Russia, they were at ninety-five. Besides these me- 

 talliques, the before-mentioned Rothschild lotteries 



