INTEREST. 



IntereS at j (<er etn!. being tlie tnoll common rate in 

 Great Britain, may in general be worked as Tpeedily by the 

 above rtiort rule as it can be found by referrinjj to the tablet 

 in common ufe. 



The editor's corrcfpon'dent has never yet met with fo 

 (hort a rule as this, and as y per cent, is the general and legal 

 rate of interefl in this country, it iiiuft be very ufeful to 

 mercantile perfons. 



The explanation of the principle of the firft rule being 

 underftood as above, there can be no difficulty in the lail 

 ri;le, it being derived from it. 



AVhen the interell is at any other rate, take the following 

 rule; 



Multiply the fum by. the number of days; multiply that 

 product by the rate of intereft, then divide by 36500. 

 £.xi^mple. 



What is the interell upon 16 1?./. for 154. days at ^pcrc:nl.1 



6448 

 So&o 



248248 

 4 



36500)992992(27 

 7^000 



3840 



1820 

 If the rate of intereft is not in even pounds, fuch as 2I, 

 3I, or 4^ p!r cent, take the following rule : 



Multiply the fum by the number of days ; multiply the 

 product by double the rate of intereft, then divide by 7 :;ooo. 

 Example : — What is the intereft upon 2746/. for 328 days 

 at 3 i per cent. ? 



274^ 

 328 



900688 

 7 



£. ,. J 



73000)63048*6(86 7 4 



73000)6304816(867. yt. 4?/. Brought over, 



584000 



464816 



43800a 



53^3^07 

 51 1000 



50.5840(4 

 :iy2ooo 



Any calculation made by the fccond rule may be proved 

 "by the third rule, and vice vcrja. Therefore every calcula- 

 tion of intereft at any rate whatever, may be made by eitlier 

 of thofe rules. When an intereft account of confiderable 

 length is required to be made out, it may be done as much 

 fooner by this method than it can be done by any intereft 

 tables whatever, as there are different lines to be caft. 



By the following table of rules, intereft upon any fum for 

 any number of days at the feveral rates of ]^, \, i, i^, 2, !', 

 4, 5, and 10 per cent, per annum, may be caft by two opera- 

 tions only, namely, one multiplication and one divifion. 



Firft, multiply the fum by the number of days, then 

 divide the produft by the number Handing .ngainft the rate 

 of intereft, and the quotient will be the anfwer. 



For intereft at i per cent, divide by 146000 



73000 

 36500 

 29200 

 i825(» 

 14600 

 912; 

 7300 

 3^50 



The above rule may be ftill further (hortened in praaic?, 

 ty cutting off one figure each from the dividend and the 

 divifor, and in that cafe it will not in any inftance make 

 more than one farthing difference. 



Intereft is the compenfation which the borrower pays to 

 the lender, for the profit which he has an opportunity of 

 making by the ufe of the money. Part of that profit na- 

 turally belongs to the borrower, who runs the rift and takes ' 

 the trouble of employing it ; and part to the lender, who 

 affords him the opportunity of making this profit. Intereft 

 has been fometimes confounded with ufury ; and the latter 

 term, the found of which is odious, has been occafionally 

 mifapplied and cftimated on erroneous principles. (See 

 Usury.) Accordingly thofe who are enemies to intereft; 

 in general, making no diftinftion between that and the kind 

 of ufury which is criminal, hold any increafe of money to 

 be indefenfibly ufurious. This they ground, as well on the 

 prohibition of it by the law of Mofes among the Jews, as 

 alfo upon wliat is laid to be laid down by Ariltotle in a paf- 

 fage, (Polit. 1. i. c. 10.) fufpcftedto be fpurious, that money 

 13 naturally barren, and tliat to make it breed money is pre- 

 pollerous, and a perverfion of the end of its inttitution, 

 which was only to ferve the purpofes of exchange, and not 

 of mcreafe. Hence the fchool divines have branded the 

 practice of taking intereft as contrary to the divine law, 



both 



