He

tain, that unless England should abandon | should be cleared away by time or expla particular parts of her system, this was nation. They came promptly after the the result avowedly in view, and meant to decree itself, while it was not only ambibe accomplished.-But there could be no guous but inoperative, and raised upon an hope of such a result without a previous idle prohibition, and a yet more idle deeffectual relinquishment of the French de- claration, which France had not attemptcrees. A case could not otherwise beed to enforce, and was notoriously incapamade to exist (as the Duke of Cadore was ble of enforcing, a vast scheme of oppres aware) for such an operation of the Ame- sion upon the seas, more destructive of rican law. To pass the law before the all the acknowledged rights of peaceful revocation of the edicts were impossible. states than history can parallel. This reWith the law in his hands, it would have taliation, as it was called, was so rapid, been miraculous ignorance not to know that it was felt before the injury which that it was the exact reverse of this which was said to have provoked it; and yet his paper must propose. He would derive that injury, such as it was, was preceded this knowledge not from that particular by the practical assertion on the part of law only but from the whole tenour and Great Britain, of new and alarming prinspirit of American proceedings, in that ciples of public law, in the notification of painful and anomalous dilemma, in which the blockade of May, 1806, and in the Great Britain and France, agreeing in no- judicial decisions of the year before. To thing else, had recently combined to place uphold the retaliatory orders, every thing the maritime interests of America. was presumed with a surprising facility. would collect from these proceedings, that, Not only was an impotent, unexecuted, while those conflicting Powers continued and equivocal menace presumed to be an to rival each other in their aggression on active scourge of the commerce of neuneutral rights, the government of the United tral nations, but the acquiesense of those States would oppose itself impartially to nations was presumed against the plainest both. The French declaration, then, had evidence of facts. The alacrity with which either no meaning at all, or it meant to all this was done can never be rememberannounce to General Armstrong a positive ed without regret and astonishment; but revocation of the French edicts.-I should our regret and astonishment must enonly fatigue your Lordship by pursuing crease, if after some years have been given farther a point so plain and simple. I to the pernicious innovation which these shall, therefore, merely add to what I have presumptions were to introduce and supalready said on this branch of the subject, port, something like the same alacrity that the strong and unqualified communi- should not be displayed on seizing an cation from General Armstrong to me, honourable opportunity of discharging it mentioned in the commencement of this for ever. It is not unnatural to imagine letter, and corroborated by subsequent that it will be discharged with pleasure communications, (one of which I now lay when it is considered, that, having never before you) may, perhaps, without any been effectual as an instrument of hostility, great effort of courtesy, be allowed to con- it cannot now lay claim to those other re tain" that authentic intelligence" which commendations for which it may have your lordship is in search of. He could heretofore been prized. The Orders in scarcely have been free from doubt, if the Council [of November] have passed, occasion was calculated to suggest it, and, through some important changes; but if he had actually doubted, would hardly they have been steady, as long as it was have spoken to me with the confidence of possible, to the purpose which first imconviction. It only remains to speak of pressed upon them a character not to be the practical effect of the French repeal. mistaken. In their original plan they And here your lordship must suffer me to comprehended not only France and such remind you, that the orders of England allied or dependent Powers as had adopted of 1807 did not wait for the practical ef- the edict of Berlin, but such other nations fect of the Berlin decree, nor linger till as had merely excluded from their ports the obscurity in which the meaning of the commercial flag of England. that decree was supposed to be involved, (To be continued.)

Published by R. BAGSHAW, Brydges-Street, Covent Garden :-Sold also by J. BUDD, Pall-Mall. LONDON:-Printed by T. C. Hansard, Peterborough-Court, Fleet-street.

VOL. XIX. No. 32.]

LONDON, SATURDAY, APRIL 20, 1811.

961]

SUMMARY OF POLITICS. JUBILEE DOLLARS.-In my last Number but one, page 899, the reader will find, that I noticed an intimation, relative to Dollars, which intimation was given, in the House of Commons, by Mr. MANNING, who is, it seems, DEPUTY GOVERNOR of the Bank of England.* The notification of Governor Manning was this: that "the Bank was now in the course of having "a large quantity of Silver Tokens, or "Dollars, stamped, for the purpose of "putting them into circulation at 5s. 6d "each. And, he said, that he gave this "notification in order that those persons, "who might be drawing Dollars out of "circulation" (alias, hoarding them), "in "the hope of their rising in value, might "be ASSURED, that their expectations "in this regard, will be disappointed."

[Price 18

[962

ing more Dollars at the nominal value of
5s. 6d. appeared to me to be so wild, that
I could not believe it to be seriously ene
tertained, unless the Dollars of the new
issue were to be lighter or of baser metal
than the former issue. To gain a little time,'
however, it might be of use. Merely to
gain a little time and to assist in supply-
ing the metropolis with change for a few
weeks, and thus postpone the public com-
plaints 'till after the session of parliament'

was over.

This, I imagine, can be the only object of the Governor and his Associates; and, accordingly, we see it now announced, in a paragraph in all the newspapers; a circular paragraph, such as the dealers in various other valuable wares cause occasionally to be put in the papers; in this manner, we see it an- ' nounced, that 300,000 Dollars are actually gone off to be stamped. The words are these:-"On Monday, 300,000 Dollars "were sent from the Bank to Mr. Bol

The Honourable Governor will be deceived in his expectations, and of that he may be assured; for, the persons who" ton's, at Soho, to be stamped, and the have deemed it prudent to begin to hoard, "same quantity are to be forwarded in a will not be turned from their purpose by "few days. They are expected to be in any thing short of a ready payment of the" circulation in the course of three weeks." Bank notes in gold and silver of the sterling value. This the Governor may be assured of. The day of faith is fast passing away. Men will now believe, as to the Bank of England, only that which they see and touch.- -The project of issu

* I begin to think, that it may be of use to the People to know the names of the persons, who have the management of this concern, and I therefore will here insert the present list of them:

John Pearse, Esq. Governor :
Wm. Manning, Esq. Deputy Governor :
Twenty-Four Directors.

Alexander Baring, Esq.
George Blackman, Esq.
John Bowden, Esq.
Cornelius Buller, Esq.
James Campbell, Esq.
Henry Davidson, Esq.
George Dorrien, Esq.
Thomas Langley, Esq.
Thomas Lewis, Esq.
Beeston Long, Esq.
Eben. Maitland, Esq.
William Mellish, Esq.

Jeremiah Olive, Esq.
John H. Palmer, Esq.
Charles Pole, Esq.
John B. Richards, Esq.
Wm, T. Robarts, Esq.
John Staniforth, Esq.
Henry Smith, Esq.
A. H. Thomson, Esq.
Samuel Thornton, Esq.
Stephen Thornton, Esq.
Robert Wigram, Esq.
John Whitmore, Esq.

Three weeks! So, here is nearly a month gained; and, in all probability, they will not be in circulation so soon as that. In circulation, did I say? I mean issued; for circulate they will not. And, unless they are sent to country towns by the Bank itself, not a Dollar of them will ever leave London, except for the purpose of going to hoards in the country, or of sailing down the Thames. Do Gov. Manning and his compeers imagine, that the people who are now hoarding, will cease to hoard upon the strength of these paragraphs? Have these great men found, that the notification, given by Governor Manning, has produced any such effect?

-In matters of this sort, there is a species of sagacity, in the mass of the people, which is quite incredible to those who do not reflect upon the power of habit and of interest. But, this almost in stinctive sagacity aside, who is so little informed, now-a-days, as not to perceive, that the issue of this sum of Dollars can not, upon any rational principles, put a stop to the practice of hoarding?

It

the Governor and Company of the Bank of England, whom common people never named but with a sort of religious awe. Sad slaves they were, certainly, for their pains, and bitter fruit has their slavish notions, in this respect, entailed upon their children; but, such was the fact. What, then, must be the state of the Bank; how must it feel, when it thinks it necessary, to contradict, in this official and solemn manner, a mere rumour of the day; when this Governor and Company think it necessary to enter the lists with the grinders of paragraphs, who are paid (as appears from a late trial) at about three halfpence a line?Another fact worth notice is the measures resorted to by the Bankers, that is to say, the individual Banking Houses, in London, on account of the scarcity of change, namely, gold and silver under one pound. The inconvenience they experienced was notified to the public in a paragraph in the following words, on the 6th of April." We understand a meeting of Bankers is to be called in "consequence of the scarcity of silver, by "which they are very oppressively and al"most exclusively affected. There is no a house of moderate business, which does "not at present suffer an average loss of "4001. per annum in paying the fractional parts of their customer's draft; to do which, they are compelled to pay a pre"mium of from 2 to 3 per cent. for silver. It is matter of surprise that some mea"sure has not already been adopted, as it "is evident, that in proportion as the " community find it difficult to pay the "fractions of small bills, will the number

paper money in every part of the kingdom; which is infallibly accompanied with an immediate further depreciation of the paper money in general; a still wider disparity between the value of that and the value of real money; and, as sure as man is true to his own interests, as sure as self-preservation is the strongest motive of action, so sure your operation does, in a short time, give new life to the practice of hoarding. If the reader pays due attention to what has been here said, and if he joins me in opinion, he will also join me in a laugh at the remedies of the Scotch Reviewers, whose profundity has carried them so far round the circle, that they at last almost touch the shallowness of their countryman, Sir John Sinclair. I have now to notice, what I ought to have noticed in a former Number, certain facts connected with this subject, which facts it will hereafter be of great consequence to have before us, and, which, even now, it is useful to have before us.In the early part of this month, there was a rumour afloat about great forgeries upon the Bank of England, whereupon, the Bank caused to be published the follow ing advertisement." Bank of England, "April 4, 1811. The Governors and Di"rectors of the Bank of England having " been informed that Lists of supposed "Forged Notes have been industriously "circulated, which may create alarm and "inconvenience to the Public, they think" it right to give this public notice that "such Lists have not been circulated by "their authority.-The Governors and "Directors also observe paragraphs in the "public papers, stating that plates used" of small drafts be increased; and if the "by the Bank for printing Bank-Notes "Bankers continue to pay such drafts, "have been stolen and made use of in "the hoarders of silver will be encouraged in "the fabrication of forged Bank Notes," "the Governors and Directors think it "right thus publicly to state that such "ragraphs in the public papers are totally "unfounded. ROBERT BEST, Sec."-This seems of little consequence, at first sight; but, it is of great consequence, if we consider how strongly indicative it is of a consciousness on the part of these people, that the public had their eye upon them. How is it with me, when every "noise appals me!" exclaims MACBETH. The bare rustling of the leaves, under some circumstances, produce more trepidation, than, under others, is produced by a pistol at the breast.These rumours, these hearsays: Oh! how they would have been despised, twenty years ago, by

pa

"

their present practices, being assured of a "market, whatever be the premium they "choose to exact. It is recommended to "all persons drawing drafts, to draw for " even sums, leaving the odd shillings upon "account, or taking the balance from "their tradesmen; by which means the "Bankers will be eased of part of the "burden, which to them becomes a serious loss, while to others it is trifling."

This paragraph, which was a circular, which appeared in all the London daily papers, and which, I dare say, cost 200 pounds for the insertion, is full of curious matter; but, one fact that it states is worthy of particular notice; namely, that the Bankers "pay for silver coin, a pre"mium of from 2 to 3 per centum,” while