gold and filver to and from diftant places, must also confider this as a very fingular advantage. Befide which another benefit attends them; for if they are deftroyed by time, or other accidents, the bank will, on oath being made of fuch accident, and fecurity being given, pay the money to the perfon who was in poffeffion of them....

Bank notes differ from all kinds of ftock in these three particulars. 1. They are always of the fame value. 2. They are paid off without being transferred; and, 3. They bear no interest; while stocks are a fhare in a company's funds, bought without any condition of having the principal returned. India bonds indeed (by fome perfons, though erroneously, denominated ftock) are to be excepted, they being made payable at fix months notice, either on the fide of the company or of the poffeffor.

By the word flock was originally meant, a particular fum of money contributed to the eftablishing a fund to enable a company to carry on a certain trade, by means of which the perfon became a partner in that trade, and received a fhare of the profit made thereby in proportion to the money employed. But this term has been extended farther, though improperly, to fignify any fum of money which has been lent to the government, on condition of receiving a certain intereft till the money is repaid, and which makes a part of the national debt. As the fecurity both of the government and of the public companies is efteemed preferable to that of any private perfon, as the stocks are negotiable and may be fold at any time, and as the intereft is always punctually paid when due, fo they are thereby enabled to borrow money on a lower intereft than what might be obtained from lending it to private perfons, where there must be always fome danger of lofing both principal and intereft.

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But as every capital ftock or fund of a company raifed for a particular purpofe, and limited by parliament to a certain, fum, it neceffarily follows, that VOL. VII.

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when that fund is compleated, no ftock can be bought of the company; though fhares already purchased, may be transferred from one perfon to another. This being the cafe, there is frequently a great difproportion between the original value of the fhares, and what is given for them when transferred; for if there are more buyers than fellers, a person who is indifferent about felling will not part with his fhare without a confiderable profit to himself, and on the contrary, if many are difpofed to fell, and few inclined to buy, the value of fuch fhares will naturally fall, in proportion to the impatience of thofe who want to. turn their stock into specie.

These observations may ferve to give our readers fome idea of the nature of that unjustifiable and dishonest practice called ftock-jobbing, the mystery of which confifts in nothing more than this: the perfons concerned in that practice, who are denominated ftock jobbers, make contracts to buy or fell, at a certain diftant time, a certain quantity of fome particular stock, againft which time they endeavour, according as their contract is, either to raife or lower fuch stock, by raising rumours and spreading fictitious stories in order to induce people either to fell out in a hurry, and confequently cheap, if they are to deliver ftock, or to become unwilling to fell, and confequently to make it dearer, if they are to receive ftock.

The perfons who make these contracts are not in general poffeffed of any real ftock, and when the time comes that they are to receive or deliver the quantity they have contracted for, they only pay fuch a fum of money as makes the difference between the price the ftock was at when they made the contract, and the price it happens to be at when the contract is fulfilled, and it is no uncommon thing for perfons not worth 100l. to make contracts for the buying or felling 100,000 l. ftock. In the language of Exchange Alley,

Alley, the buyer in this cafe is called the Bull, and the feller the Bear.

Befide thefe, there are another set of men, who though of a higher rank, may properly enough come under the fame denomination. Thefe are your great monied men, who are dealers in stock and contractors with the government whenever any new money is to be borrowed. These indeed are not fictitious, but real buyers and fellers of stock; but by raising false hopes, or creating groundless fears, by pretending to buy or fell large quantities of ftock on a fudden, by ufing the fore-mentioned fet of men as their inftru ments, and other like practices, are enabled to raise or fall the ftocks one or two per cent. at pleasure..

However, the real value of one stock above another, on account of its being more profitable to the proprietors, or any thing that will really, or only in imagination, affect the credit of a company, or endanger the government, by which that credit is fecured, muft naturally have a confiderable effect on the ftocks. Thus, with refpect to the intereft of the proprietors, a fhare in the stock of a trading company which produces 5 1. or 61. per cent. per ann. muit be more valuable than an annuity with government fecurity, that produces no more than 3 1. or 4 1. per cent. per annum; and confequently fuch ftock muft fell at a higher price than fuch an annuity. Though it must be obferved, that a fhare in the ftock of a trading company producing 5 1. or 6 1. per cent. per annum, will not fetch fo much money at market as a government annuity producing the fame fum, because the security of the company is not reckoned equal to that of the government, and the continuance of their paying fo much per annum, is more precarious, as their dividend is, or ought to be, always in proportion to the profits of their trade.

As the ftocks of the Eaft India, the bank, and ·South-Sea companies, are diftinguished by different

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denominations, and are of a very different nature, we fhall give a fhort hiftory of each of them, together with an account of the different ftocks, each is poffeffed of, beginning with the East India company, as the first established.

Of the East India Company.

There is no trading company in Europe, the DutchEaft India company excepted, which can be put in competition with this. Its was firft established in the latter end of the reign of queen Elizabeth; and its privileges have been enlarged, or confirmed, by almost every monarch fince. Its shares, or fubfcriptions, were originally only 501. fterling; and its capital only 369,891 1, 5 s. but the directors having a confiderable dividend to make in 1676, it was agreed to join the profits to the capital, by which the fhares were doubled, and confequently each became of 1001, value, and the capital 739,782 1. 10 s. to which capital, if 963,6391. the profits of the company to the year 1685, be added, the whole ftock will be found to be 1,703,402 pounds.

However, this company having fustained several loffes by the Dutch, and the fubjects of the great Mogul, was in a declining way at the revolution, when the war with France reduced it fo-low, that it appearing fcarcely poffible to be fupported, a new one was erected. The merchants forming the new Eaft India company, received their charter in 1698, having in confideration of the grant thereof, lent to the government two millions at 8 per cent. per annum, and pushing their trade with vigour, they foon carried on twice the bufinefs that was ever done by the old company. But after the two companies had fubfifted a few years in a separate state, meanswere contrived to unite them, which was effected in 1702, when a new charter was granted them under the title of the United Company of Merchants trading to the East Indies.

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To the two millions advanced by the new company, the united company in the 6th of queen Anne, lent the government 1,200,000l. which made their whole loan amount to 3,200,000l. a further fum was alfo lent by the company in 1730, on a renewal of their charter, the intereft of which is reduced to 3 per cent. and called the India 3 per cent. annuities.

As to India stock, it is of a quite different nature; for as that is not money put out to intereft, but the trading stock of the company, and the proprietors of the fhares, instead of receiving a regular annuity, have a dividend of the profits arifing from the company's trade; which, as it is more valuable, thefe thares generally fell at a price much above the original value.

As to the management of this united company, all perfons without exception, natives and foreigners, men and women, are admitted members of it, and 5001. in the stock of the company, gives the owner a vote in the general court, and 20001. qualifies him to be chosen a director. The directors are 24 in number, including the chairman, and deputy chairman, who may be re-elected for four years fucceffively. The chairman has a falary of 200 l. a year, and each of the directors 150l. The meetings or courts of directors, are to be held at least once a week; but are commonly oftener, being fummoned as occafion requires.

Out of the body of directors are chosen several committees, who have the peculiar infpection of certain branches of the company's bufinefs; as the committee of correfpondence, a committee of buying, a committee of treasury, a house-committee, a committee of warehouses, a committee of hipping, a committee of accompts, a committee of law-fuits, and a committee to prevent the growth of private trade, &c. who have under them a fecretary, cashier, clerks, warehouse-keepers, &c.

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