230 LIFE OF SIR JOHN LUBBOCK oh. 



demand, but for the purpose of stating the argument, 

 the Chancellor of the Exchequer assumes that Jth 

 of the half-sovereign circulation would be replaced by 

 silver, i.e. £5,000,000. £5,000,000 in silver would cost, 

 say, £4,000,000. 



2. The Chancellor further proposes to issue gradually 

 5,000,000 or 6,000,000 one pound notes. This issue 

 would be against securities, and would be managed by 

 the Bank of England in its Issue Department. The 

 £20,000,000 of half-sovereigns would therefore be 

 replaced by £5,000,000 silver, say, 6,000,000 one pound 

 notes, and £9,000,000 sovereigns new coined : and the 

 gold recovered from the recalled half-sovereigns 

 £19,780,000 would be (?) by 9,000,000 sovereigns and 

 £4,000,000 spent in purchase of £5,000,000 silver. The 

 balance, £6,780,000, if invested in securities at £3 per cent 

 would produce about £204,000. 



A sum would thus be provided by means of which 

 the sovereign-circulation, deficient to the extent of half 

 a million, could be restored, and a fund created sufficient 

 to provide : 



(1) for the making and maintenance of £6,000,000 

 notes and 



(2) for the maintenance of the gold coinage for the 

 future. 



To this Sir John replied as follows : — 



Athenaeum Club, Pall Mall, S.W., 

 23rd December 1886. 



My dear Lord Randolph — On my return from 

 Lancashire I have found your letter, which arrived 

 during my absence. Please therefore excuse my delay 

 in replying. 



I should be most happy if I can be of any use to you 

 as regards the circulation, and would come and see you 

 at any time if you would care to talk it over. 



There would, I fear, be considerable reluctance to 

 part with the half-sovereign. The 5 shilling piece has 

 never been popular, and the difference between the 

 sovereign and the half-crown is inconveniently great. 



I think also that many would object to the issue of 

 £l notes, at any rate without a parliamentary enquiry, 

 and it would be difficult to limit the amount. This is a 



