RAILWAY EXPENDITURE AND PEEL'S BILL.

Anglo-Maori Warder, Volume 1, Issue 6, 30 May 1848, Page 3

RAILWAY EXPENDITURE AND PEEL'S BILL.

That hopeful genius, Sir Charles Wood, will, if we mistake not, signally fail in his attempt to fasten on railways the disasters which have well high overwhelmed the commercial world. Our readers are aware that we have never swerved from the opinion which we expressed, when the railway mania was ut its lic-ifjht, viz.. that ia consequence of Peel's Dill having fi\cd the amount of iaiue. if railway expenditure were not limited to the annual surplus savings and capital of the country, it would cmsc a pressure, and that the calls cou'd not be met without withdrawing capital from the funds or other sources, and therefore temporarily depreciating the nominal va.ue of all property, and raising the value of money. It must be evident to every one, that this was the truth. Peel's Dill, by rigidly fixuig the amount of issue, has prevented the filed properly ol' the country, such as the funds, being brought in aid uf rail .ray expenditure end of commerce. If surh had not been the case,—if A. having £\o,ooo Consols, could have borrowed £7,000 on their security, he could have advanced that money to B on Dills of Exchange, or to C on railway shaies, or debentures, but the amount of issue by the Batik bein* fired to the amount of gold in its ccfiers, if any extraordinary demand lor money arose b:;ja'Ul the surplus capital and saviuija of the ccuntry, or the issue was «irainished b\ gold going out oi the country, it is perfectly clear that if J wanted ,£7,GUO on Cons .-!*, he had not the means of obtaining that money but by sc Uing them; and the amount of Bank notes being fixed % or as th 3 case was demonstrated, it is clear that U c purch'isrr of As Conso's would have to withdraw the money from some other source- This was necessarily the result of a filed i-sue; but by the operation of Peel's, Bill, the amount of B<iuk notes rcas aetuiliy diminished, when, to have met tiie extraordinary railway expenditure, sanctioned by Parliament, Sank notes io have increased with an increased expenditure. It is not d-iliculr, th< refore, to un .'eretand with an iae case i t xp;n<hture, and with a diminished amount of Bank notes, the rise Cia bas takcu pl.ice in the value i f money, or the depreciation in the vakc of securities It is perfectly clear, therefore, tliat, by the operation of Peel's Bill, whieh contracted tha amount of Bank notes, as gold was exported for the payment of corn, one or other of the competitors for those Bank notes must go to the wall. Tiie merchant, therefore, who carried on his business with borrowed capital (weich, w« conteud, he was peiiectly justified indoiug, so as his business enabled him legitimately, from its profits, to pay the interest on the capital he employed iu it), found himself tu Idenlyca'lcJ on, for the capital itsdr', or these bilis which represented capital, were invested in all partb of the v.orld. The conse. ' quence was, he was obliged to sscrilice his mer- I cimdise at a ruiuoua less, ci to suspend payment ' altogether. Railway been obliged to call on their SuK.ichoid ri. Thj shaic* liolders, tot able to i recurs iln bank notes, their amount hav ng been iioutcd, have been o'dic.ed to sell their railway proper.v at otie-Lali or two-thirdi t .© price they paid for it. A-id thua the operation of Peel's b 11 has been to biin.; everything down to thi level of the Bank notes its provisions suffered to be iu cs stince. No one will have the hardihood to contend that expenditure has dmitr.Ulcl the b:nk notes, for it is uotorious, that as soon ;>s tha calls are paid, ihey are immeJ ately circulated ti con'ructois of various kinds, audbj them diabur.cd in labour. R always, have not caused bank notes to be withdrawn from circulation ; what then has ! Let us look to the Bank returns, and there we shall find our auswer. The notes issued by the Bank of . England, were, on the 11th Ju e, ISIG, i. 23,325,000; ! on the 23J October, IS 27, 4.21,865.i1j ; maiiins a ( difference of £'C,-109,33i mure B*nk uotwi is-u:d by the Bank in Juue, IdlG, to that there v.cre in October, ISI7. | Tins. is the causa of pnsourc vrhiub has e\«stcd, ! and to this cueuraetance »s. beg to draw the aucnuou | ol the railway members of the liouaj of C'oi^ujo.i If the Government, or any utiici of I'teTs Bid, attempts to uvade this fact by prov.n.? tuat, notwithstanding Bank notes hive decreased to such an alarming extern, the notes actually r« t»/were larger jo October, 1547, than in Juno, Id 10—fus the 23d of October, 181/, they were 4,19 >*nd on the 11th of June, 13!J, J. 19,27 ),Gl'9—we answer, tliit this only proves that a ccr.un anoint ot ciror.bdon b (.etui ly required, i-ut 1 t thj-. :vho att ui|»t to iVukv.tht 1 i 3 .r;un::it ivm.arc Vsc amount o5 t'.o notes ft i :>•/• ■ >it tK» ct.ve p;n. J-. «Mi the 11 ih of -Iu iv, iMn, thvre «;ie 3.15->, and un the 2Jd of OctvWr, 7, .'_1J17,27'; therefore, Uicre vvti*- .v tund ?t r.; ,"K -.'jle tj c m roe or nil.viy cNpendi;urr, i> ore in June, li ; !G, than iu Oetoh.r, ISi". And it i* ti the* decrease of tea:,k nete-. th:it uuch ol the eom. erei;! disaster i> to b-e .ttfib.itcd, and not to Hie ;\'eni'Uur; o*i rail»ri«>». \

Lord Gtpv h.i* been undoing* his New Zealand legislation—that i% undoing the Constitution Statute ol yenr. For Lord Grey'* IcgislnVon is rtpt to consist of two parts, like the magnet positive ant! negv tivc, one pnrt to do, the other to undo : so that to cst.iblish a constitution in New Zealand v.,is an incomplete act until lie had abolished the consiitution. It seems that Grey's work must be very hastily and imperfectly gone about, since ho is so often obliged to undo it. But if he is rash in his sinning, he is at leas' as rash In his penitence ; for the satisfaction of his own mind, he sent the New Zealamlcrs a constitution that would not work; and for the s.itisfac'ion of Governor Grey's mind, he wipes out the *atd constitution I How the colonists will take such capricious treatment, remains to be seen. Already doubts arc current among them, very opposite to the published opinions about Governor Grey: they hold him also to be vaccillaling in conduct.—Spectator.