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exist; though love was despoiled of its pristine simplicity and native sincerity when man was expelled from Paradise: yet it still assumes a more or less amiable appearance, as the moral corraption attendant on the fall has made a fainter or deeper impression on the character of its votaries. Its influence is likewise comparatively favourable or pernicious, according to the merit or unworthiness of the object of its devotion. Thus the most cogent incentive to virtue is the love of that Being in whom all the perfections we can conceive are embodied, and from whom all the excellence we can discover is derived. The love of an estimable fellow-creature is also highly conducive to our own amelioration; for we naturally imitate those we admire, knowing that we must resemble the good if we would obtain their approbation. These few and simple observations will be sufficient to manifest the folly of permitting the affections to be captivated by allurements which the judgment condemns. Personal attractions may be pleasing to the fancy, and intellectual acquirements congenial to the taste of the lover, but moral worth alone can make the wife amiable, and the husband happy and we sigh for the fate of that offspring whose artless innocence is contaminated in infancy by an unamiable mother, and whose cheerful viva. city is clouded in childhood by an unhappy father.

:

WILLIAM HENRY.

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told Cardinal Richelieu that M. Seguier was more worthy of it than him; he thus answered Cardinal Mazarin, when that Minister spoke to him the first time concerning the place of First President, "M. de Nesmond deserves it more than I do; his place will suffice me; I will remain in retirement, and will devote myself to my family and my books." Some months afterwards, M. de Lamoignon was nominated First President. When he went to return his thanks, Cardinal Mazarin said to him, "Sir, if the King could have found in the kingdom a man of more worth than yourself, he would not have given you this place. As for myself, I require nothing more than your friendship, for a place which I have been offered one hundred thousand pistoles for." His nomination was received with universal applause: and the Queen Mother, Anne of Austria, said, that this was the first time in her recollection that she had thanked the King for a private favour as for a public benefit. He regarded science as the personal merit of a magistrate; and often said, that he would much rather see his sons the wisest than the greatest men in the kingdom; adding, that science was in a lawyer the only legitimate means of arriving at the greatest honours of the

state.

MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION.

No. XXXIX.

APRICOTS.

AT Kelat, says a recent traveller, ripe

apricots are dried in the sun, and laid by. In the winter season, when fruit is become scarce, they are steeped for about three hours in fresh water, are presented at table, and form an agree able article of desert.

NEW INVENTED PHILOSOPHICAL INSTRU

MENT.

An instrument has lately been invented by Mr. Alexander Adie, of Dumfries, optician, which answers as a common barometer, and has the advantage of being more portable, and less liable to accident. The moveable column is

oil, enclosing in a tube a portion of nitrogen, which changes its bulk according to the density of the atmo sphere.

An Account of the FUNDED DEBT of Great BRITAIN, as it slood on the 1st of February, 1817 ; and the Annual Amount of the SINKING FOND

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on the 1st August, 1817.

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Total Unredeemed Funded Debt of Great Britain, payable in England 776,264,414 9 03

DEBT PAYABLE IN IRELAND, in English CURRENCY.

3 per Cents.

4 per Cents...

5 per Cen's..

9,965,107 10 11

626,446 3 1 12,745,208 5 3

Life Annuities

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N.B. Of the Irish Debt payable in Ireland, there has been discharged by the Irish Commissioners, leaving the Debt as hereabove stated..

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Deduct cancelled to defray the charge of Treasury Bills raised in 1816

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219.238 19 12

13,560,584 18 111

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This account is carried on to the 1st February, 1817, in order
to correspond with the accounts of former years; but by the
Act 56 Geo. 111. cap. 98, the whole of the National Debts of
Great Britain and Ireland, and the Interest and Sinking Funds
applicable to the reduction thereof, compose, from and after the

an 1817 one Joint Consolidated National Debt. Intercat.

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The total Sum of Capital Redeemed by Life Annuities, Sale of Land-
Tax, and purchases by the Commissioners, is as follows, leaving the Debt
Unredeemed as above.

For Great Britain

Germany

Portugal...

By an Account transmitted from the Commissioners for the Reduction of the National Debt, in the Account standing in their names are included the following Capitals; the Dividends upon which have remained unclaimed for ten years and upwards-See Act 56 Geo. III. cap. 60. 3 per Cents, Consols.

3 per Cents, Reduced

East India Company

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.340.087,225 13 3 1,920,716 3 0 426,721 0 900,523 0

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0

8 per Cents. 1726

From which deduct the debt cancelled

4 per Cents..

343,835,185 16 3

5 per Cents-.

by Land Tax

25,290,994 3 4

Cancelled to defray the charges on

Loans from 1812 to 1815, inclusive 251,738,858 0 0

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...

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Having been purchased in discharge of the following Debts:

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And, in addition to the above, the Sinking Fund has purchased, from the 1st February to 1st August, 1817

9,461,657 0 0

Which will make an addition to the Sinking Fund of 283,8491, 14s. 2d. per annum.

So that the Sinking Fund for the Debt payable in England amounts, on the ist August, 1817, to 13,844,434!, 13s. 1§d. per annum.

....

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16,313 17 0

14,208 fl

7

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3 per Cents. Reduced, purchased with Unclaimed Dividends 327,000 0 0

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Long Annuities..
Imperial, Short Ann....
All which capital sums are subject to the claims of the parties entitled thereto.

By the Act 57 Geo. III. cap. 79, the holders of 3 per Cent. Consols, 4 per
Cents. 5 per Cents. 1797, or Irish 5 per Cents, transferrable at the Bank of
England, who shall transfer to the Commissioners for the Reduction of the
National Debt any of the said Annuities, may receive for every such Trans-
fer an amount of Stock in the Irish Funds, according to the following
scale :-

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For An Abstract of the Net Produce of the Revenue, in the Years and Quarters ended 5th January 1817 and 1818, vide page 44.

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Brook Green,
Hammersmith 3
Yorkshire Stingo I
Walthamstow ..1
Brentford......3
Ham Common..3
Twickenham ..2
Ealing Green ..3
Wandsworth

Isleworth

..3

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Chiswick

26th

West Eud, Hamp

stead

August 5th

Bromley

12th

Mitcham

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.3

.2

.3

Parson's Green..3
Camberwell... 3
Peckham.... .3
Bartholomew...4
Edmonton

....3

Black Horse Fair,

SIR,

THE extensive circulation of your Tvaluable Magazine in the commer

cial world, renders it eminently calcu-
lated for giving publicity to the accom-
panying Plan; and your early insertion
of it (if that meet your approbation)
will be much esteemed. I offer it to you
without comment or remark, reserving
these for a future communication; and
I remain, Sir,

Your's, very obediently,
J. RANDALL.

London, 17th Nov. 1817.

A PLAN FOR EFFECTUALLY PREVENTING
THE PAYMENT OF FORGED DRAFTS ON
BANKERS, &c.

ONE supernumerary clerk in a house of the most extensive business would be sufficient; and only two books would be necessary.

All the checque books should be numbered progressively, and the checques, which they contain, should be numbered progressively also: the checques in each book commencing with No. 1. The margins of the checques, and also the checques themselves, should be numbered; and upon both parts should be inserted the number of the book, placing

near Shoreditch 3 this, above the other thus 500|60

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CONSTANT READER, under the signature of A CITIZEN," in an article on Southwark Bridge, in the last mouth's Magazine, speaks of Staines Bridge falling into the river. If he has seen it, I would ask him if he has not admired its elegant lightness, and ingenious construction, consisting of one "the stream bearch hanging over loved of Liberty."-I would next ask him if he is acquainted with the real cause of its failure if not, I would respectfully inform him, that at one end of it there was a vacancy commonly called a wine-cellar.

Your's, respectfully,

A. PICTOR.

Before a book is issued, the clerk should write his name upon every checque therein :-there may also be inserted upon them any private mark or marks which may be thought requi

site.

No book should be given out without a written order or proper authority, unless it be personally applied for; and all orders should be filed, having the number of the book previously inserted thereon.

All the cheque-books should be deposited with the clerk, who would be responsible for them; and he should keep a register of them, as in Book A.

When a checque-book is issued, the name of the person to whom it is delivered should be written under its number, with the date of its delivery, as in Book B.

The collateral figures in Book B. are the numbers of the checque-books, and the vertical ones are the numbers of the checques in each, all of which may be printed. If a book contain fewer checques, the number can be determined by a horizontal line (as under No. 3)—and if it contain more, the excess can easily be supplied by the pen.

by the house being improperly used. This, however, would vanish in a moment, at the expense of a little trouble.

The clerk should be particular in entering into his book (A) all the checque-books, as they are received by him, and be careful also of noting therein, each book at the time of its delivery; observing that it contain the right number of checques: if this be done, no checque can be obtained in the house surreptitiously, without detection. It is, moreover, very desirable, that all the checques that are printed should be made up into books or destroyed, or otherwise secured; for the facility with which blank ones are obtained is one cause of the evil in question.

The numbers of the checques (in Book B.) should be printed red), that, when they are paid, a dash across them may be more conspicuous. Every one of these numbers should be accounted for. If one be cancelled, a mark (c) may be placed beside it; and if any are destroyed, it may be noted by a circumflex (as under No. 1.). One folio volume, of about seven quires, would contain several thousand checque-books: and if it were numbered down the edge (like an alphabet) at every hundred (or as may be requisite) a reference to any checque may be made in a

moment.

Every checque presented for payment should first be handed to the checque-clerk, who would immediately refer to his book (B); and, finding the drawer's name agree therewith, the number of the checque open, and his own signature correct, he would mark off the number, and pass it for payment. One clerk might thus keep several active persons employed in pay ing at the counter; and it would moreover release them from an unpleasant responsibility: and it would prevent also the necessity (sometimes to the discredit of their customer) of referring to the book of signatures.

All this is very practicable; and it appears to be effective. The only difficuity that I see is, the preventing any checque that has been officially issued

For the checques and their margins being progressively numbered (as before mentioned) would enable a man at any time to inform himself if one were taken out surreptitiously; and bis giving immediate notice to the house would effectually prevent its being paid; because the number would be marked off (in book B); and if checques were spoiled or cancelled in any way, it would be very little trouble to send the checques, or the numbers of them, to the banking house. But if people should be disinclined to do this, or if they refuse to conform to it, why this, notwithstanding, is certain if a checque should be clandestinely taken from that part of their book which is in use, they must know it-and if it be removed far on in the book, or taken from the end of it, the chasm in the numbers (for the highest previous number would be always noticed by the checque-clerk) would excite suspicion, and lead, if necessary, to inquiry-and if the number should be altered, that, as well as the name, must be done so cleverly as to escape detection, before the draft could be paid; ALL of which I conceive to be impossible.

Whether gentlemen will co-operate with a house upon this plan, or not, it would certainly throw upon them a responsibility, in the discharge of which their credit is somewhat involved: and so would give them (what they do not now possess the means of preventing frauds, if they will avail themselves of them. But when men, and men of respectability, know that their co-operation would prevent the possi bility of houses being robbed by forged checques, surely they would not think it onerous, nor let the very little trouble (if trouble it may be called) that would be necessary, restrain themMen of feeling most certainly would not, because it would prevent the dreadful consequences to their fellow

creatures.

Many persons (brokers, &c.) who draw very many checques in a day, cannot always have their eyes on their checquebooks, nor keep them secure from depredation probably-but an attempt at defraud with the name of such a person would be attended with imminent risk ; because the spurious draft must, at all events, have a number upon it, which

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