THE WEAI.TH OF NATIONS.

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in France ; though there is a great deal of paper money inEngland, and scarce any in France . In 1751 and in 1752,when Mr. Hume published his Political Discourses, and soonafter the great multiplication of paper money in Scotland ,there was a very sensible rise in the price of provisions,owing, probably, to the badness of the seasons, and not tothe multiplication of paper money.

It would be otherwise, indeed, with a paper money con-sisting in promissory notes, of which the immediate pay-ment depended, in any respect, either upon the good will ofthose who issued them; or upon a condition which the,holder of the notes might not always have it in his power tofulfil ; or of which the payment was not exigible till after acertain number of years, and which in the mean time boreno interest. Such a paper money would, no doubt, fall moreor less below the value of gold and silver, according as thedifficulty or uncertainty of obtaining immediate payment wassupposed to be greater or less ; or according to the greateror less distance of time at which payment was exigible.

Some years ago the different, banking companies of Scot-land were in the practice of inserting into their bank notes,what they called an Optional Clause, by which they pro-mised payment to the bearer, either as soon as the noteshould be presented, or, in the option of the directors, sixmonths after such presentment, together with the legal in-terest for the said six months. The directors of some ofthose banks sometimes took advantage of this optional clause,and sometimes threatened those who demanded gold andsilver in exchange for a considerable number of their notes,that they would take advantage of it, unless sucli demanderswould content themselves with a part of* what they de-manded. The promissory notes of those banking companiesconstituted at that time the far greater part of the currencyof Scotland , which this uncertainty of payment necessarilydegraded below the value of gold and silver money. Dur-ing the continuance of this abuse (which prevailed chiefly in17(52,17(53, and 17(54), while the exchange between London and Carlisle was at par, that between London and Dumfrieswould sometimes be four per cent, against Dumfries, thoughthis town is not thirty miles distant from Carlisle. Rut atCarlisle, bills were paid in gold and silver; whereas at Dum-fries they were paid in Scotch bank notes, and the uncer-tainty of getting those bank notes exchanged for gold aud