JET. 22.] AND SCANDINAVIA. 167 



Crown is Governor of Stockholm ; but this has been 

 kept vacant since the death of Gustavus. 



The consequence of the present king's utter want of 

 economy has been that the country is quite drained of 

 money, and from this the greatest inconveniences arise, 

 besides the real loss. They have notes down to 12 

 skellings ; each skelling at par is above one penny 

 sterling, there being 6 rix-dollars to the pound; but 

 when we were there the medium of the exchange 

 might be reckoned 6 rix-dollars 32 skellings to the 

 pound sterling, or a plate equal to one shilling, and 

 a rix-dollar to three shillings. It is perhaps a con- 

 sequence of the fluctuating state of the money that 

 there is the most surprising uncertainty in the prices 

 of articles. There is no sort of level or standard. In 

 the same part of the town you find in different shops 

 the same article different by half the price almost. 

 This remark Mr Hailes made in the most positive 

 manner. There is no such thing as tracing a lost 

 note, for the numbers are not always changed in the 

 new yearly issue. To get specie you must pay a 

 heavy agio, which at that time was about 50 per cent, 

 so much was the paper depreciated. The states of the 

 kingdom are the security for this rix-gelt, and the 

 bank for the banco-gelt, which is of the same value 

 with specie. The king is allowed to issue a certain 

 number of notes ; but as he issues to supply the waste, 

 there is no check upon him in this respect. It was 

 for the purpose of obtaining the diet's sanction to the 

 last issue that the meeting at Gefle was held: the 



