OF THE JOINT-STOCK & PRIVATE BANKS IN England and Wales. 1851-1852. COMPRISING A STATISTICAL ACCOUNT OF EVERY BANK; LISTS OF ALL THE SHAREHOLDERS AND PRIVATE PARTNERS; AND Complete Digest of Banking Law; WITH ALL THE ACTS OF PARLIAMENT AFFECTING PRIVATE LONDON: RICHARD GROOMBRIDGE AND SONS, 5, PATERNOSTER ROW. AND MAY BE OBTAINED OF ALL BOOKSELLERS. DIRECTORY OF THE JOINT-STOCK AND PRIVATE BANKS IN ENGLAND AND WALES. PART FIRST. INTRODUCTION. THE publication of this Directory has been undertaken at the request of several gentlemen connected with banking pursuits, who represented to the Editor that a work of the kind was much required, and that it would, at least, pay the cost of its production, even although it might not ultimately leave any large amount of profit for the publisher. Arrangements were, therefore, made, with the view of having the work issued several months since, but the difficulties attending its preparation were found to be much greater than had been anticipated. The basis of the publication, so far as respects the lists of Joint-Stock Bank Shareholders, and the description of the several Partners in Private Banks, was the Official Returns published annually by Government. It was thought that by taking these returns and having them carefully copied, a large proportion of the material for the book would be obtained; and that the legal and statistical portions of the work would be those only that would require any important Editorial superintendence. The manner, however, in which the Government Returns are published, rendered the correction of the lists the most tedious operation in preparing the Directory, and has been the cause of protracting its publication for a much longer period than had been anticipated. The Returns of the Shareholders and Partners in Banks are published annually, at the expense of Government, in the local newspapers throughout Great Britain; in the London and in the Dublin Gazettes. Many of the papers print the lists very carefully; but in very many cases the errors in the names and descriptions of the parties are so numerous and glaring, that it was found impossible to rely on them for accuracy; and it became evident that the only way to secure correct returns was to apply to every bank to revise the printer's proofs before the sheet was printed off. The difficulties attending an arrangement of this kind are much greater than any person unacquainted with the machinery of an ordinary printing office would suppose. Each sheet of the work contained the lists of several banks. Each of these banks were required to make a return of the "proofs" sent to them for correction before the sheet could go to press; and much delay has arisen from the loss of proofs, and from their not being returned in due course to the publishers. Some were lost; some not returned; some mislaid; and some kept so long, that the sheet to which they belonged was sent to press without waiting for the return of these proofs. The result has been that, although greater accuracy has been obtained than if the official lists had been copied from the papers in which they appeared, the corrections have delayed very considerably the publication of the Directory. The FIRST PART of the work is now issued. It comprises particulars of all the Banks in England and Wales. The SECOND PART, containing the Returns of the Banks in Scotland and Ireland, is in course of preparation, and will follow the publication of the present part. It was originally intended to include all the banks, and the legal and statistical information, in one volume; the present arrangement, however, is in many respects more convenient. This part comprises : First. A digest of the Acts of Parliament now in force, relating to the constitution and privileges of the BANK of ENGLAND and JOINT-STOCK BANKS. Second. A digest, and an analysis of cases decided on the Acts of Parliament relating to Joint-Stock Banking Co-partnerships in England and Wales. Third. The Acts of Parliament relating to Joint-Stock Banking Co-partnerships in SCOTLAND and IRELAND. Fourth. A digest of the law affecting Joint-Stock Bank Shareholders, including an analysis of the cases decided by the judges with reference to the Winding-up Act, passed in 1848, and especially with reference to the liabilities of Joint-Stock Bank Shareholders, and the duties of the public officers of the companies. Fifth. An alphabetical list of all the Joint-Stock Banks in England and Wales, including an historical notice of their establishment, amount of capital, rate of dividend, reserved funds, amount of shares, names of public officers, managers, branches, circulation, and lists of all the shareholders in each bank. Sixth. The last balance sheets of the several Joint-Stock Banks, showing the net profits on the business for the past year, the rate of dividend, reserved fund, and general financial condition of each bank. Seventh. A list of all the Private Banks in England and Wales, including the place of business, title of the firm, date of establishment of the bank, amount of its circulation and fixed issue, the christian and surnames of all the partners, their profession and residences, and the number of partners in each bank. It will be seen, from this analysis of the Directory, that pains have been taken to render it as complete as possible; and the Editor hopes that it will be found useful by the banking profession, and by all who are interested in banking business. It is a work of reference for many years. During three years all the shareholders of Joint-Stock Banks, whose names appear in this Directory, are responsible parties in the banks; and changes in the private banking firms only occur at long intervals. The present work, therefore, will be a permanent book of reference for some time to come; and it contains a mass of official information, never yet collected together, respecting Joint-Stock and private banking. NOTE. The lists of Joint-Stock Bank Shareholders are printed from the official returns for the last year, 1851. Although the shareholders in every bank are frequently changing, and no list can therefore contain a complete return of all the shareholders in all the banks at any given date, yet the number of those who change are very few compared with the whole body; and, as above noticed, all those comprised in the present volume are liable for the engagements of the banks for three years after their shares are transferred. The lists of the partners in the private banks have been corrected up to March, 1852. London, May, 1852. |