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^^ T H E_ L E A DJE^J3L [No. 371, Saturd...
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TJEL-E KQYAIi KKITXSfcl JBAJSilv. The ex...
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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Continental No T E S. France. A French G...
exhortations , -a » d At , raay be also by the skilful and astute insinuations of Austria , invited [ France a abort time since to . unite with England in order that ,-in a polite and friendly manner , they might give Sardinia to understand that , it-would be . an extremely , aoceptaMe measure on Aiar part if , she would wake an oflicial and public declaration that she tbad uo idea . of infringing or setting aside tbe compacts and treaties by which she is bound with regand to Austria—in virtue of which declaration the chancery at Vienna would have no difficulty in immediately despatching to Piedmonta regular envoy , to renew all the relations and mutual obligations
between the states , ias good neighbours to each other . Louis Napoleon , . however , adds the writer , refused to accede to this proposal , which he thought would imply an injurious doubt of the integrity of tbe Sardinian Ministers , and would thus " concede to Austria the victory in the cause which now stands for discussion before the diplomacy of Europe . " The editor of the Bally JSTews , in his leading columns , " earnestly entreats "' the attention of the reader to this communication , and states that " the writer has access to the best sources ^ of information , and is remarkable for patient observation and sagacious judgment . " Of course , we merely give the statement on our contemporary ' s authority .
The Piedmontese Senate , in its sitting of the 25 th ult ., voted a bill for the fortification of Alexandria by a maj ority of 45 to 8 .
SWITZERLAND . The Federal Council , after hearing the explanation of D ;\ Kern , appears disposed to accept the propositions of arrangement recommended personally by the French and English Ministers . These propositions are to be communicated to the jSTeufchatel Government , which lias accepted them . A Berlin letter in the Cvloyne Gazette , says : —" The Marquis de Moustier , Ambassador of France , has just delivered to the King of Prussia a letter from his sovereign relating to the Xeufchatel question . The solution of this affair on the basis of the arrangement proposed by the Four Powers is considered certain here . "
JKUSSIA . " The Russian Government , " says a telegraphic message from St . Petersburg , " has just decreed that shares in the great Russian liailway-Conipany shall be received at par , like the funds of the state , for all caution money or public deposits . This favour is looked upon as of great value , as the funds which are deposited in this way are very considerable , and the contractors are in tha habit of paying a high premium to procure securities for that purpose . " SPAIN " . The Amioitia , a Dutch galliot , from Cette for Amsterdam , has been foreed to take shelter in the creek of Amelador , near Viuaroz , on the coast of Valencia , having been chased by a brjgantinp , supposed to be a Greek pirate . .
_ . _ ,, A decree in the Gazette appoints the Marquis de Viluma President of the Senate , the Dukes de Veragiiaaad Ahumada , the Marquis de Santa-Cruz , and Don Joaquin Casaus , Vice-Presidents . Viluma is of avowed Absolutist tendencies ; the others are of uo great note .
IJELGIl'M . A communication from the RIarqtiis of Normnnby , English Minister at Florence , id published in the Novel of Brussels . The object of the letter is to deny an assertion published in Unit jourunl that , while at Paris in 1848 , he had been unduly familiar with republicans and insurrectionists , and with the men who conspired against tlie throne of Louis Philippe . DUSMAItK . The Supremo Council of Denmark has adopted , by . 3-1 votes to 20 , the bill relative to the employment of the indemnity for the abolition of the Sound Due . *) . An influential party in Denmark is endeavouring to force the King to abdicate . 11 is Majesty resists , ami , it is said , has declared to the members of the Diplomatic Oorpa that his enemies shall never compel him to lay down his sceptre .
TUJB VXSUlilAN aUUNCllVdJUXiliH . The Moldavian Uov-cnuneut , which ia opposed to the union of the Principalities , Lias arroated some gentlemen who openly advocated that measure . TJ » o friends of the U ^ prieoned JU , ave brought tho case before the jioLico of the for eign Oous . ula in tUo Principalities , in a document which alleges that the Minister of tho Interior grossly insulted lvia victims , culling them " wrotchea" uud | 'brigands of "Unioniata , " and thronteniug to put them in irons . TAie pcraana signing tho document ( who include several of , tho inhabitant *] of Jauay ) invoke the interposition aud protection of the Consult ) ,. in order to put an end to conduct " . wJnch . violates individual liberty , and treats opinion m uednvo . " Ttiey add : — " Tho ( iovernment hi \» tfviueu ^ y jrenpuaced . its hiwsioh oS impartiality , and . tho Moldavian havo everything ( to fewr from tho ay * tam which hiw boou pnternsd u , pou . "
Kumouru , nro current in I ' mU of diwi ^ ieemcntH between tho QouumaaioHere for tno settlement of the Prinoipalltiea . Two approve of tho . guuorai conduct of too Moldavian Government ; two djbupprovoj nnd one romniua neutral . TJio UmouUt Oomunlttoohas uout . two of ita n > oiwbora to Paris , to make ooinpluluta on j , ta own account .
^^ T H E_ L E A Dje^J3l [No. 371, Saturd...
^^ T H E _ L E A DJE ^ J 3 L [ No . 371 , Saturday ,
Tjel-E Kqyaii Kkitxsfcl Jbajsilv. The Ex...
TJEL-E KQYAIi KKITXSfcl JBAJSilv . The examination nf the . auditors took place on Monday , when the £ rst person interrogated by Mr . iLinklater was Mr . Thomas Page . He stated that he audited aoeounts from June 30 , 1 SS 3 , to the same date in 185 G . During th-atiame , ihe had h-ad Mr . Thomas Chandler as a . coadjutor , and rfchat gentleman had acted at an earlier period . " We did not know -who were the debtors to the bank , nor what was the jiature of the securities . I only knew who were debtors to tbe bank after the failure . I objected to sign the accounts after the third audit , because it implied that < all rthe items had been gone into by us , whereas . ours was merely an audit of -abstract . accounts and a . comparison of totals with the ledgers . I spoke to Mr . Chandler about it , and the certificate of audit -was altered " to thefefieet that we had examined the abstract of accounts , and compared them with the general ledger . We merely looked to the totals . It took us about live hours . Our business was done'in the accountant ' a room . We saw none of * he directors . Sometimes Mr . Cameron , the general manager , passed through , but we had no communication with * my one but Mr . Craufurd . The accounts / were audited in the same way from beginning to end . Mr . Craufurd said at first that I was very particular in my inquiries , and that he had given me all necessary information . No alteration was made afterwards . I audited the accounts up to the 30 th-of-June , 1855 , in the following month . The paper produced contains the entries . 1 went from Mr . Craufurd ' s
statement . There is a statement of the assets . One item is : —' London bills , No . 5 , 95 , 934 / . ' Mr . Craufurd represented that as an asset . The title given it was ' . London bills . discounted with security . ' 1 had not the slightest reason ; to believe that that -represented past due bills . In every case , without exception , Mr . Oraufurd represented the -assets as good . I was most astonished when I fouudthat many of them had been bad for years . The last iialf-year ' s accounts contain an item of 1000 / ., owing Joy a Mrs . Goodridge , as far back as 1854 , also 1100 / . due from a Mr . Jordan , in 1851 and 1852 . I had no reason to suppose that those debts had been hopelessly bad for years . There is a sum of 3185 / . due from the late Mr . M'Gregor , which forms part
of the ' Loan account , No . 1 / represented as loans on mortgages of houses and laud , and which now turn out to be nothing of the sort . I could not assume that the chief accountant would deceive an auditor . The accounts of June , 1853 , contain an item of ' suspense account . ' That was represented as floating sums not appropriated to any account , but to be so in the next half-3-ear . There is the same item in the accounts up to June , 1855 , the amount being 3 G , C 10 / . ; next half-year it is 4 G , 27 S / ., and in June , 185 ( 3 , 54 , 049 / . —all at the head office . I had no notion that this embraced 31 , 603 / . sunk in the Welsh works . It was reported to us as a kind ol " floating account , due from customers of tbe bank . I now see from the general ledger that 3 l , ( JCo / , is due on the
Wolsh works . Mr . Page concluded by snying that he w « s content with Mr . Craufurd ' s explanations , but that the lt .-asi suspicion about the bank would have led to a more lengthened inquiry . He believed the auditors had done all that could be expected . From this opinion tho Commissioner strongly dissented . Mr . Thomas Chandler , the other auditor , explained the mode in which the earlier accounts of the bank wuve audited . Although an auditor , he did not know the state of Mr . Cameron ' s account . He ( witness ) borrowed money of the bank . His fees went in payment of his debt . The auditors onJy looked at the total , in the ledger .
Mr . Craufurd , the accountant , and subsequently ge neral manager , was then examined . lie was elected by the directors , but was introduced by Mr . Cameron , and was told on the iirwt day to look to him for instructions ) . " On one occasion , in 1855 , whon ho apolce to a director on tho ailatra of tho bank , Mr . Cameron threatened him with dismissal . Tho accountant wad not servant to tho manager in ewry bank , but bo it was in the l & oyal British Hauls . ( Mensati ' ou . ' ) Ho did not represent all tho debts aud Becuritios ha good , but mud they were mortgages on houses , land , property , & c . Mr . Page , » t his tirst audit , wished to see tho billn and securities ; l » e told Mr . Cameron ao , and that gentleman replied that he had misconceived his duties , ( A la / iy / i . ) Mr . Cameron ' s conaoienoe allowed him uometimeti to dincount tho bills of the director *) , without consulting the
board . Mr . Humphrey Brown wnu 0 . 110 of them . Ilo onco refused to discount H / own ' s billn , on the ground that ho had not paid hid fumiur bill .- ) , and Mr . Cameron ordered him to diacouut them . A gentleman , alter 1 J 10 lat of August , wialiod to buy shuros ; ho aent him away twice , and tho third Ximo lie brought tho im ; noy in bid pocket , lie ( witness ) then told him to put up hid money , and aont . him away . He told tho board of it , aud 0110 genUoman aaid it jvjih n pity to turn money away whilo any liopo existed . Ho'told them he had Ho hope , and it was a deception to take peoiuu ' n money . Ho might have aaid aoinothiny' About ' roguery and deception , ' an ho wuh ratuor warm . Nono of the aououiitH wont to tho ( Jaxvtto were . alined by tho general uiuungor . Ho nropoood tt > take the salary ot » olor . k , and the olhu ' guUleioen useociwtod with him would have done tbu
same , in . order to show a good balance at Christmas if the directors wonld forego their 2000 / . ; b ut the proposi tion was not acceded to . On rthe eve of the failure , there was an : attempt to get assistance from the National Bank of Ireland . He' told the National Bank if thev did not give them money they could not keep open an hour . On one occasion , when Mr . Humphrey Brown asked for an advance ' upon a vessel , he asked hiiu in the board-room if it was free . He replied ' Yes . ' He telegraphed to -Gloucester , and found it was mortgaged The bank had not -made a shilling- of profit . The losses would have been more than suilicient to pay all the dividends . The statement of Mr . Sfcapleton that he ( witness ) -. had . advised the directors to carry on the bank was untrue . Directly he found the concern --was rotten he Advised they should close their doors . Mr . Eadaile was most sanguine . "
The investigation was here adjourned to Wednesday when Mr . Humphrey Brown was examined . " He entered on his duties as a director in February , 1853 . He gave his note of hand for the shares bj- which he qualilied , and he paid for them in no other way . He did not know that the thousand pound promissory note which he gave Mr . Ciimeron for the shares remained . dishonoured to this da 3 . He opened his credit by paying into the bank 18 / . 4 s . ; on the same da }' , he drew two thousand pounds . ( . 1 laugh . ' ) The security was not completed on that day . Security was given in June , 1853 , on the iEllen Lindsay , which cost seven thousand pounds . He never sat on any finance committee , to the best of his recollection , where onv bill was discounted
for him . Before joining as a director , lie iiad not been in the habit of getting bills discounted at the bank , lie could not say whether other persons might not have got his bills discounted there . He was director of K > nly three companies . Those companies were of no use to him , but a serious Joss , lie did not . know that the Waudel Water Works had borrowed money until after he had joined the bank . As to the W-andel Water Works , he believed that the majority of the directors never paid a shilling for their shares . The companies borrowed money very largely from the Uoval British Bank . He remembered there were
great complaints about a loan to the Australian Company . On the 10 th of March , his account was opened ; in a day or two afterwards , he-borrowed three thousand pounds ' . He borrowed four thousand on the 2 nd of May . He was not an old acquaintance of Mr . Cameron . Heiad known him only two or three weeks before he joined the bank . The sum of seven thousand pounds , placed to his credit 011 the lath of June , included tiie four thousand and three thousand . The seven thousand became a loan for six months on security being given . It was understood that the bill of sale on the ship should not be rp-i . ; t . 'rc < l . (/ . "itr // tter . ~ ) On the 12 th of September lie ajiplii-d for liva ' thousand pounds for six months , on securities to bo approved of . Ho did not get the money
at that lime , but it was placed to his civdit . His aci-ouiK , whidi i-omineiiced with a credit of 18 / . Is ., ended with a debit of of 03 , 017 / . 5 s ., with sets-oif . ( liencwed luur / hlcr . ) Security for 5000 / . wad given on the Magdah :: ia . He was told that everything necessary for the loan would be attended to by Mr . Cameron , who was thu principal man . He ( wituess ) was only an unfortunate director , very much in the darK . f Ltiu < ihL & r . ) Mr . Cameron was , in fact , the bank . Mr Brown went on to gi \ : e other particulars of a similar naiuro , mid said thut one of the creditors , Mr . Oliver , had swindled the bank—thoug h that was a strong
exprcwion-ont of 20 , 000 / . " The mortgage on In * . ( Air . Brown ' b ) London . hips was subject to »*» " ¦ " »« mortgage of 10 . JWU / . to u Mr . Walton . " On the 14 th 1- ebruury , lrtiO , tho bakuu-c against bun was about ' 0 000 / He wua then under liabilities to A \ ultoa m iiiVll / ., bolides the insurances of ' 2848 / . and other items ; in all , -1 O , SML Of this paper 113 , 000 / . had been discounted bv tho Lank- at loaht by VV alton . He hud then got live " « hips a « security , of whic 1 he was iii . t mortKugoe . In hi « letter , to Air . i ' add . son a u M . 1 . Ksduiiur « r February M , ltiS 5 , ho proposed the trans 0 of hi , Security from Walton to the bank , and expressed the uimrehtmsiou that 'aome untoward circumstance ai Livo .-i . ool' might oau . so the aouurillurt to . paBS into tUirii hands . 'J'lie Magdalona was not transferred to W alton an a jBocurity . » lie wa « chnrlorud to the Uovcrnuwn , and , to ttvuicl Ihc i » onultio » s « s a member ol I arliuuieiu , ho uoUl tho « hip to ftlr . Walton . He never got a » hUu « fe in cashlie Dover roccivud from Walton any
conaKlcru-, tiou f . H-iho Hhip , nor gave any back ugulu when U wus re-lr < inpi ' cm ) d to him . " Mr . Link Later : " Was it over intended that any mono ; ^ Jllf Kvvai declined to answer . " The »' tS »« tl }' i ; with the . bank rc « u . ltod in hi * rolioviiur thorn ol liabiliim to tho vxtiMit of -. 10 , 000 / . Hi « Hccurities were trans , c-n . iVuiu Wulton t . o him , and from him to tliu hank ; » i » a m had tho thunlui of the Dirocturn for doing U . Y ' "" ¦ wore oaitouUou , an tho l . ust thing that , con d ho ™ ; 1 I « had not iiwuruil the ( JUoucwtor » Ui |)« , » ' "« ' » Uo ^' . sidorud wore at hU own d \ * oml , not with Htam U t , murlffWKu to tho bank ; aud ho always dcall , with 11 . > ' a . 1 , U own . Ho Miovod ho had a light to «« U 01 i . a o thor : o » l » i |» , s witJiout wininunictttion with tlio im 1 ( Xamdwn . ) IX ho u » ld or anortgugod tho dm * , uo
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), May 2, 1857, page 6, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_02051857/page/6/
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