ish banking as distinct from Scottish--the
existence of the national bank of Ireland. It enjoyed the exclusive
privilege of issuing and paying notes, except of large amounts and
at longdates, within a circle of sixty-four English miles radius. Its
capital was L6,729,000.; and there was a debt due by government of
L2,630,000, on which three and a half per cent, interest was paid. There
were eight other banks of issue in Ireland--joint-stock banks: those
banks had four thousand shareholders, and many thousand more customers;
to many of whom it was a serious inconvenience that they could not
transact business through the national bank. He proposed, with the
willing concurrence of its directors, to withdraw all the exclusive
privileges of the national bank, except that he would continue to it the
government business, and the present rate of interest on the government
debt, as payment for conducting the official business. He would also
abolish the oaths in that establishment, distinguishing Roman Catholic
office-bearers from Protestants. The bank would also make a weekly
return, like that of the Bank of England. In Scotland, as in Ireland,
there were no private banks of issue: all were joint-stock banks. There
were nineteen banks, to which number they were restricted by the acts
of last session. Three had charters; two were incorporated under act of
parliament; the rest were not incorporated. It would be better to
give them all charters of incorporation; but still he would make that
permissive. He would not abolish the power of issuing notes under five
pounds in amount either in Scotland or Ireland--he would not run the
risk of encountering the opposition which such a proposal would excite;
though he did not know that the use of tire small notes could be
justified by argument. He would not establish any fixed proportion
between the notes under L5, or above; but he would, as in the case of
the English banks, restrict the future issues of the banks to the amount
of the average issues for a ces tain time past; namely, the period
of the 27th of April, 1844, thirteen lunar months. In Ireland it was
necessary to take an extended time, because there had been a greater
increase on the issues within the last three or four months. He would
solve the doubt in Scotland as to the question of law, whether Bank of
England notes were a legal tender or not, by making them _not_ a legal
tender. There was in this country a security against deran