MISCELLANEOUS.

New Zealand Spectator and Cook's Strait Guardian, Volume I, Issue 44, 9 August 1845, Page 1

MISCELLANEOUS.

Land Bank of Norway. — This bank was' founded on the 14th of June 1816, and has its head office in Dronthiem, with branches in the" principal towns ; and is under the direction of five stockholders, with a council of fifteen repre-; sentatives of the other proprietors. Its capital was originally raised by a forced loan or tax upon all landed property, and the landholders became shareholders according to the amount of their respective payments. In a short time these shares became a valuable stock, and are at a considerable premium. The transactions of this bank are conducted upon a principle totally opposite to that of our Scotch and other banking" establishments. It is there considered as a first principle, that the bank should hold only available securieties, as bills or bonds only at a short date, or payable at a short notice, for its issues or advances. But such a system would have been of little use to a nation of landholders. The National Bank of Norway is therefore a bank for landed property, and discounts mercantile bills and personal securities only as a secondary branch. Its principal business consists in advancing in its own notes, upon first securitiesover land, any sum not exceeding two-thirds of the value of the property, according to a general valuation, which was taken in the year 1812 V and in which the seed-corn, horses, cows, and other particulars ascertaining the value and extent of each farm, are very generally noted. The borrower pays half-yearly to the bank the interest of the sum that may be at his debit at the rate of 4 per cent, yearly of the principal, which is thus liquidated in twenty years, and he has only the interest upon the balance each year remaining against him. The lender (the bank) has a twentieth part of its capital re-, placed each year, and draws 4 per cent, for the use of what remains outstanding. In the event of non-payment of the interest and instalment at the regular period, the bank of course proceeds by a summary sale of the property by public auction, to realize its securi-. ties. A circulation of paper money issued on this basis is evidently next in point of security to that of the precious metals. Its profits may be low, as its whole capital is turned over only once in twenty years, and the benefit may be from the circulation which the notes command, in consequence of the known secu-. rity on which they rest. The accommodation, however, thus afforded to a nation of small pro-, prietors, is of very great value, as the money required to pay off the shares of brothers and sisters in the estate can be obtained, with the certainty that it will not be called up in one sum at any uncertain period. — Laing's Norway. Flour Mills. — Steam, water, or wind flour mills are much wanted in and about Melbourne. To erect one or other of these pieces of machinery would be a profitable speculation. It is true that at the only mill at work in Melbourne flour may be obtained, but settlers have a notion, and^a correct one too, that it is a more profitable affair to have their wheat ground at so much per bushel, than to sell their wheat and purchase flour. But to pay one bushel of wheat for the grinding of only two bushels and a half rather treads too hard upon thefarmers corns,-^ Port Philip Standard,