6 7 8 B A 
labourer, who generally pays for many others befides him- 
felf, cannot be lefs than three or four times that fum. 
“ Among!! many other expedients to promote the cir¬ 
culation of aflignats in France, when they bore a large dif- 
jcount, one was, to fix the price of provifions, and every 
article at which the feller fhould be compelled to receive 
thole aflignats in payment, and which was called the law 
of the maximum. So long as the real difcount on the af- 
fignats bore a tolerable proportion to the maximum price 
fixed on the provifions, all went on fmooth and well; but, 
\Gien the dilcount advanced, the provifions difappeared, 
which was the chief caule of the diftrefs and famine which 
prevailed in that country. The fame fate will infallibly 
attend all government paper, or paper of any defcription, 
whether exchequer bills or bank notes, which may be if- 
fued beyond a capacity in the circulation of the country, 
to receive at par. Not even the terror of Robefpierre 
could induce the farmers or graziers to fell corn and meat 
at the nominal price of the aflignats : in a very fliort time, 
notwithftanding the dread of the guillotine, two prices 
were eftablifhed by univerfal pra« 5 !ice, the one for money, 
the other for aflignats ; the interval, however, had been 
dreadful, having produced real diftrefs and famine. Let 
not the policy of this country fall into fimilar miftakes. If 
the government fliall repofe fo much confidence in the bank 
as to continue the prefent indemnity bill during the war, 
it feems reafonable that the bank fliould be retrained and 
limited in the amount for which their notes (hall be iftued, 
as a fecurity to the public with regard to the ability of the 
company afterwards to pay them; and alfo to prevent 
their becoming, either diredtly or indiredlly, the means of 
introducing government paper as the circulating medium 
of the country. But, if they are not thus reftribted, and 
have befides the privilege of making their notes a legal 
tender for themfelves, it feems to follow in point of jnf- 
tice, that, during the continuance of this indulgence, the 
fame privilege (hould be allowed to the community at 
large, by making bank notes a general legal tender. The 
gentlemen in the profeflion of the law are very naturally 
again!! making them a legal tender; which is not fupri- 
iing, fince it is a principle abhorrent to the conflitution of 
the country, and which nothing but abfolute neceflity can 
juftify. The queftion, however, is not, Whether we fliall 
do that which in itfelf is molt defirable and right? for 
fomething ftronger than opinion has already decided the 
point: but, Whether the public are difpofed, from mo¬ 
tives of prudence and forefight, to take the only effectual 
meafures to prevent a return of thofe convulfions to circu¬ 
lation and commercial credit, which may poflibly arife from 
the circumftances already deferibed ? And in this cafe it 
fhould be confidered whether the making bank notes a ge¬ 
neral legal tender, for a time, and limiting the amount, is 
not a better fecurity for the public again!! abufeand dan¬ 
ger, than to fuffer the bank to remain with an exclufive 
proted!ion, and a power to iflue notes without limitation.” 
Upon the whole, it feems peculiarly unjuft, that, by the 
indemnity a£!, the governor and company of the bank of 
England fliould have the privilege of rhaking their own 
notes a legal tender, and of paying them inftead of gold 
to their creditors, and to every individual who receives 
payment at the bank. For, although a perfon is obliged to 
receive thefe notes inftead of money at the bank, yet, as 
they are not made a general legal tender, no one is obliged 
to receive them from him ; fo that with thoufands in his 
pocket his goods may be taken in execution, and himfelf 
committed to gaol, if his creditor does not cliufe to take 
bank notes in payment for the debt. But it is devoutly 
io be hoped that the indemnity bill will very ftiortly be re¬ 
pealed, that the bank of England will again refume its 
payments in (lerling gold, and that the neceflity of making 
paper a legal tender in any cafe will be thus fuperfeded, 
and finally done away. By thus removing the gloomy 
profpeift which now depreffes every friend to his country, 
we may look forward to more aufpicious times, vdienour 
commerce, no longer employed as the inftrument of war, 
N K. 
fliall ferve to extend our friendly and beneficial intercourfe 
with mankind ; and when our credit, eftablifhed on its firm- 
el! foundation, peace, economy, and liberty, (hall fecure to 
Great Britain that dignified refpefct and honour which fliall 
again elevate her to the ftate of being the mod envied na¬ 
tion in the world. 
Banks of Scotland. 
In Scotland there are two public banks, both at Edin¬ 
burgh. The one, called the Bank of Scotland, was efia- 
blifiled by an a£! of parliament in 1695; the other, called 
the Royal Rank, by royal charter in 1727. Within the lad 
thirty years there have alfo been erecfed private banking 
companies in almod every confiderable town, and even in 
fome villages. Hence the bulinefs of the country is al¬ 
mod entirely carried on by paper currency, in the notes of 
thofe different banking companies; with which purchafes 
and payments of all kinds are commonly made. But tho* 
the condud! of all thefe different companies has not been 
unexceptionable, and has accordingly required an a6! of 
parliament to regulate it, the country, notwithftanding, has 
evidently, derived great benefit from their trade. It lias 
been aflerted, that the trade of the city of Glafgow dou¬ 
bled in about fifteen years after the firf! eredtion of the 
banks there ; and that the trade of Scotland has more than 
quadrupled fince the firft erection of the two public banks 
in Edinburgh. Whether the trade, either of Scotland in 
general, or of the city of Glafgow in particular, has really 
increafed in fo great a proportion, during fo fliort a period, 
is a faff! we cannot poflibly afeertain; but, if either of 
them lias increafed in this proportion, it feems to be an 
eft’ed! too great to be accounted for by the foie operation 
of this caufe. That the trade and induftry of Scotland, 
however, have increafed very confiderably during this pe¬ 
riod, and that the banks have contributed a good deal to 
this increafe, cannot be difputed. 
It is chiefly by difeounting bills of exchange, that is, by 
advancing money upon them before they are due, that the 
greater part of banks and bankers itfue their promifibry 
notes. They dedudt always, upon whatever fum they ad¬ 
vance, the legal interef! till the bill (hall become due. The 
payment of the bill, when it becomes due, replaces to the 
bank the value of what had been advanced, together with 
a clear profit of the interef!. The banker, who advances 
to the merchant whofe bill he difeounts, not gold and fil- 
ver, but his own promiflory notes, has the advantage of 
being able to difcount to a greater amount,, by the whole 
value of his promilforv notes which he finds by experience 
are commonly in circulation. He is thereby enabled to 
make his clear gain of interef! on fo much greater a fum. 
The commerce of Scotland, which at prefent is not very 
great, was (fill more inconliderable when the two firf! 
banking companies were eftablifhed ; and thofe companies 
would have had but little trade, bad they confined their 
bulinefs to the difeounting of bills of exchange. They 
invented, therefore, another method of ifluing their pro- 
miffory notes, by granting what they called cafk - accounts ; 
that is, by giving credit to the extent of a certain fum 
(2000I. or 3000I. for example) to any individual who 
could procure two perfons of undoubted credit and good 
landed eftate to become furetv for him, that whatever mo¬ 
ney fliould be advanced to him, within the fum for which 
the credit had been given, fliould be repaid upon demand, 
together with the legal interef!. Credits ef this kind are 
commonly granted by banks and bankers in all commer¬ 
cial parts oi the world. But the eafy terms on which the 
Scots banking companies accept of re-payment are pecu¬ 
liar to them, and have perhaps been the principal caufe, 
both of the great trade of thofe companies, and of the 
benefit which the country lias derived from it. 
Whoever has a credit of this kind witli one of thofe 
companies, and borrows ioool. upon it, for example, may 
repay this fum piece-meal, by 20I. and 30I. at a time, the 
company difeounting a proportionable part of the interef! 
of the great fum from the day on which each of thofe 
fmall 
