the statute of the 9th Geo. IV. was evidently intended to extend that regulation to Ireland which the former statutes had established in England, as the evil to be remedied was the same in both countries.

"The Court, in giving judgment, referred to the statute of William III., the first statute regulating the acceptance of inland bills of exchange, which applied only to England, Wales, and Berwick-on-Tweed; and as none of the subsequent acts of parliament had extended the description of an inland bill so as to include a bill drawn in Ireland upon England, their Lordships were of opinion that the Act of Union could make no alteration in that respect, and consequently this must be considered a foreign bill. The letter, therefore, was a sufficient acceptance, and the plaintiff was entitled to recover-Postea to the plaintiff."

1832. Report by the directors of the Provincial Bank of Ireland to the proprietors, assembled at the seventh yearly general meeting, on Thursday, the 17th day of May, 1832.

"In concluding the report made to the proprietors at the anniversary meeting of last year, the directors announced their intention of increasing the rate of dividend to 5 per cent. on the capital paid up; and ventured at the same time to express their opinion, that the growing prosperity of the bank would enable them not only to maintain that increased rate of dividend, but also to make a greater addition to the reserved fund than had been made in any former year.

"The proprietors will be gratified to learn from the statement about to be submitted to them, that the above expectation has been fully realized, by the results of the business for the year which has since elapsed.

"The harvest of last season was, on the whole, one of the most favourable for Ireland which has occurred for many years. In the best cultivated parts of the country, the crops of grain were early matured, and of an excellent quality, and being brought to market in the finest condition, obtained a ready sale and good prices: while in the mountainous and later districts, the abundance of the produce has, even at prices greatly reduced since the opening of the season, yielded to the farmer a fair remuneration. The potatoe crop also, an object of vital importance to Ireland, was, with scarcely any exception, every where excellent, both in abundance and quality. "The effects of these favourable circumstances upon the general prosperity of the country, have been very apparent to the directors in the increase of deposits at almost every one of the branch banks of this society-a sure indication of the growing wealth of the people; and to the directors, a most gratifying mark of the increasing confidence reposed throughout Ireland, in the stability and resources of the Provincial Bank.

"Of this confidence, moreover, the directors have received additional proofs in the numerous and urgent applications which have been made to them during the last year, by the landed proprietors and traders of various districts in Ireland, for the establishment amongst them of branches of the Provincial Bank. To three of these applications the directors have acceded, and others are still under consideration.

"In August last, at Youghal, and in September, at Enniskillen, regular branch banks were established'; and at Monaghan, after an experiment commenced in January of this year, it was determined to open a regular office in that place also. Thus, three new branch banks have been formed since the last annual meeting of the proprietors, and the business at each of them is proceeding with every prospect of success.

But in a report of this kind, the directors must not omit to state, that during the last year, many very disastrous failures have occurred, chiefly among houses engaged in the corn trade, on both sides of the Irish channel, arising principally from imprudent speculations in foreign grain; and that every bank carrying on business on an extended scale, and dealing with parties connected with that trade, has, in consequence of such failures, been more or less exposed to loss.

"Under such circumstances it was not to be expected that the Provincial Bank should altogether escape. But the directors trust that the proprietors will be satisfied that the interests of the bank have not been materially affected by the failures alluded to, when, after providing for all such losses, as well as for all bad debts incurred since the commencement of the business, it is in their power to submit the account to which the attention of the proprietors is now requested.

"Under this satisfactory condition of the bank's affairs, the directors propose to continue for the ensuing year, the rate of dividend at 5 per cent.; there being every fair prospect, that, by perseverance in the course of management under which the bank has hitherto prospered, the proprietors may calculate on receiving, within a short time, a still more ample return for the capital they have invested in the concern."

September 15. At one o'clock, a general court of proprietors of stock of the Bank of Ireland was held at the said bank, (it being one of the quarterly general courts appointed by charter,) for the purpose of receiving a communication from the court of directors. In the absence of the governor, John George, Esq., deputy-governor, was called to the chair; on taking which, he said, it was with considerable regret he had to announce to the meeting, that indisposition prevented the governor from being present on that occasion. He then submitted the following statement:-" The court of directors are of opinion that the circumstances which have arisen out of the late proceedings in the House of Commons, with relation to the Bank of England, render it desirable to present to the court of proprietors the following communication regarding the affairs of the corporation, which they trust will prove satisfactory, and the court of directors hope that existing circumstances will justify, in this instance, a variation from a principle hitherto acted upon in this court:-That the amount of the surplus fund, that is, the property of the corporation, over and above the capital stock, on the 5th July, 1821, (after the sum of 500,000l. Irish currency, was taken out of the surplus fund, and added to the capital stock,) remained at the sum of 1,104,000l. British currency, and that its amount at the present period is 1,049,5731. That this amount is independent of the value of the bank premises, both in Dublin and at the several country offices. That the variations in the amount of the surplus fund within the above period has not been considerable."

1833. During the month of March, while the bill, usually called "the Irish Coercion Bill," was under the consideration of parliament, a run for gold was made upon all the banks in the South of Ireland, with a view of preventing the passing of that bill. This, like all the preceding runs, was confined to the South of Ireland. No run has ever taken place upon a branch of any bank in the North of Ireland.

During this run the following article was inserted in the Waterford Mail and the Waterford Chronicle.

WATERFORD LITERARY AND SCIENTIFIC INSTITUTION.

On Thursday evening, the third lecture on ancient commerce was delivered by J. W. Gilbart, Esq. After recapitulating the heads of his former lectures on the commerce of ancient Egypt and of ancient Greece, the lecturer stated that the subject of the present lecture was the commerce of Tyre and Carthage. He considered this portion of ancient commerce to be exceedingly instructive, as it taught them the means by which nations both in ancient and modern times have acquired an extensive commerce. These means are, the possession of maritime power-the establishment of manufactures-the planting of colonies-and the accumulation of capital. Under the last division of the subject, the lecturer made the following observations upon banking:

"In all countries where capital has accumulated, there is a class of men who become dealers in capital. They are not themselves engaged in trade, but they furnish merchants and traders with such temporary supplies of capital, as they may occasionally or periodically require. These men are styled bankers. It is their business to economise the national capital-to increase the rapidity of its circulation-and thus to render it more productive. In a district where there is no banker, a merchant or trader must always keep by him a sum of money adequate to meet any sudden demand. But when a bank is established, he need not retain this sum. He may trade to the full amount of his capital, and if he should have occasion for a temporary loan, he may obtain it by way of discount from the bank. Thus the productive capital of this country is increased. The banker is a depository of capital. He is like the fly-wheel of an engine, he either receives or communicates power, as the occasion may require, and thus maintains the firmness and increases the efficiency of the machinery of commerce.

Bankers are not merely lenders of capital-they are dealers in capital. They borrow of those who wish to lend-they lend to those who wish to borrow. The borrowing of capital is effected by the system of deposits. Not merely merchants and traders, but per

sons out of trade; noblemen, gentlemen, farmers, and others, have usually in their possession small sums of money, which they keep by them to meet their occasional expenses.-When a bank is established in their neighbourhood, they lodge the sums of money upon interest with the bankers. Individually they may be of small amount, but collectively they make a considerable sum, which the banker employs in granting facilities to those who are engaged in trade and commerce. Thus, these little rivulets of capital are united and form a powerful stream, which propels the wheels of manufactures, and sets in motion the machinery of industry.

Bankers also employ their own credit as capital. They issue notes, promising to pay the bearer a certain sum on demand. As long as the public are willing to take these notes as gold, they produce the same effects. The banker, who makes advances to the agriculturist, the manufacturer, or the merchant, in his own notes, stimulates as much the productive powers of the country, and provides employment for as many labourers, as if, by means of the philosopher's stone, he had created an equal amount of solid gold. It is this feature of our banking system that has been most frequently assailed. It has been called a system of fictitious credit-a raising the wind-a —a system of bubbles. Call it what you please, we will not quarrel about names; but by whatever name you please to call it, it is a powerful instrument of production. If it be a fictitious system, its effects are not fictitious; for it leads to the feeding, the clothing, and the employing of a numerous population. If it be a raising the wind, it is the wind of commerce, that bears to distant markets the produce of our soil, and wafts to our shores the production of every climate.If it be a system of bubbles, they are bubbles which, like those of steam, move the mighty engines that promote a nation's greatness and a nation's wealth.

"Thus a banker, in three ways increases the productive powers of capital. First-he economizes the capital already in a state of employment. Secondly-by the system of deposits, he gives employment to capital that was previously unproductive. Thirdly-by the issue of his own notes he virtually creates capital by the substitution of credit.

The means which a banker possesses of granting facilities to trade and commerce will be in proportion to the amount of these three sources of capital. If his own capital amount to £100,000, and the deposits in his hands amount to £100,000, and his notes in circulation amount to £100,000, he has then at his command the sum of £300,000 with which he may discount bills for his customers. But if the public say to him, we will take your notes no longer, give us gold," he will issue gold, but he must then reduce his discounts from £300,000 to £200,000. If the depositors also demanded the return of their deposits, he must reduce his discounts from £200,000 to £100,000. His capital will then be reduced to the original sum of £100,000-the sum raised by deposits being

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