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greatest amount of coinage was in 1853, when upwards of 12 millions and a half were coined. The quantity of silver coined is very small in comparison to gold. About 120 millions of money were coined during the first half of the present century. The mint price of gold is 31. 17s. 10 d. per oz. Silver is minted at 5s. 6d. per oz.; copper at 2241. per ton. The market price of silver is about 5s. 2d., and of gold, 4l.

MONEY (Moneta, Lat., from moneo, to put one in mind, by looking at the inscription or figure thereon; also pecunia, Lat., from pecus, sheep or cattle, in the possession of which riches anciently consisted, and of which coined money afterwards became the representative; also nummus vel numus, Lat., any coin or piece of money.)— Money has been well described (by Mill) to be an artificial medium of buying and selling; itself being also an object of commerce like any other commodity, according to its intrinsic value, and not merely as coin. A machine for doing quickly and commodiously that which would otherwise take up much time. Montesquieu defines money as a sign which represents the value of merchandises. Commerce, at first, was no doubt carried on by means of barter; but at length the precious metals, as being the most portable, were used as signs. Money, in the modern acceptation of the word, is of two sorts, metallic or paper. As specie, or metallic money, is the sign of the value of merchandise, paper is the sign of the value of specie. It has been estimated that before the discovery of the Californian and Australian gold-fields there existed about 2000 millions sterling of the precious metals in Europe. It is considered that there are generally in circulation or under discount in this country, bills of exchange and promissory notes to the amount of about 500 millions sterling. A great portion, however, of that amount is accommodation paper. The banknotes (of the different banks in the United Kingdom) in circulation amount to about 38 millions sterling: (see Barter and COIN.)

MORTGAGE (Mort gage, Fr.; mortuus pignus, Lat., a dead gage, pawn or pledge.)-A pawn of lands or tenements or anything immoveable, for money borrowed by one person, who is called the Mortgagor, from another person, who is called the Mortgagee. According to

Glanvill, it is called a "dead gage," because whatever profit it yields, the property redeems not itself and becomes dead, unless the sum borrowed be paid at the time agreed upon. It would appear, from the same author, that the word mortgage was in early times, applied to a feoffment to the creditor and his heirs, to be held by him until his debtor paid him a given sum. The rents were taken by the creditor in lieu of interest, which, under the name of usury, was then regarded as unlawful; interest being first allowed by law by stat. 37 Hen. 8, c. 9. At law the mortgaged premises became the absolute property of the mortgagee if the money were not paid on the day appointed; but in the reign of James 1, the Court of Chancery interfered, and it is now an established doctrine of equity that, unless barred by foreclosure, a mortgagor has still a right (called his equity of redemption) to redeem the mortgage, on payment of all principal, interest and costs due on the mortgage. Special circumstances must be shown to entitle a mortgagor to redeem after the mortgagee has been twenty years in possession.

NATIONAL DEBT. "The money owing by Government," for which it pays interest, and which forms our Government funds. The expenses of maintaining long wars were so great, that it was considered better to raise the sums required by borrowing, and to lay no more taxes on the people than would suffice to pay the annual interest and the general expenses of the Government. At the period of the Revolution in 1688, the debt amounted to 660,0002. At the close of the reign of Queen Anne, it had increased to upwards of 52 millions; in 1763 it was nearly 139 millions. During the seven years' war with America the debt was more than doubled. During the twenty-two years' war with France, 600 millions were added to the debt. The amount at present is nearly 800 millions. The greater portion of the national debts of Europe arose from wars.

NET WEIGHT.-The weight of any commodity without the cask, bag, dross, &c.

NOTARY, or NOTARY PUBLIC (Notarius).-A person who publicly attests deeds or writings, to make them authentic in another country; but their principal business in London and elsewhere is to protest and note foreign

and inland bills of exchange and notes. It is not imperative on the holders of inland bills to have them protested, but they should be noted.

NOTES.-Country bank notes should be negotiated on or before the day after they are received.

NOTING.-The act of a notary (being a note made by him), when a bill is not duly honoured on presentment, and upon which a protest may afterwards be drawn up. OMNIUM.-New Government loans, generally paid in by instalments, and they comprehend various kinds of stock, which, together, are called omnium. When these are disposed of separately, before the instalments are paid, the different kinds are denominated scrip (a contraction for subscription). The omnium fluctuates like other stocks. OPEN ACCOUNT. - An account not completed or balanced.

PAR OF EXCHANGE: (see EXCHANGE.)

PARTNERSHIP,-Is a voluntary contract, "by words, bare consent, or writing, by two or more persons, for joining together their money, goods, labour, or skill, upon an agreement that the gain or loss shall be divided in certain proportions amongst them." The partners collectively constitute what is called the house or firm, and they trade or carry on business under a particular name or style. Dormant or sleeping partners (who embark their money in the concerns of the partnership, but take no active management therein) are liable, in common with the other partners, to the creditors of the firm. The general rule is, that one partner may bind his co-partners in all transactions relating to the partnership: but this does not extend to engagements under seal. Partnership articles rarely extend to all the duties and obligations of partners; other duties, &c., are implied and enforced by the law: (see Green v. Beesly, 2 Bing. N. C. 112; Waugh v. Carver, 1 Smith's L. C.; Brettel v. Williams, 4 Exch. 630; Heath v. Lawson, 4 B. & Ad. 172; Porter v. Taylor, 6 M. & S. 156.) The legal definition of a partnership is a joint tenancy without benefit of survivorship as between the partners themselves, but with survivorship in regard to third persons, who may sue, or be sued by, the survivor.

PERMIT.-A warrant or licence for the passing, removal, or selling of goods, upon which has been paid duty or excise.

POSTING.-Entering into one of a set of mercantile or business books certain items contained in another.

PRIMAGE.—A certain allowance to the captain and sailors of a ship.

PRINCIPAL AND AGENT: (see Agent.)

PROCURATION.-Power given by a merchant or principal to his clerk or agent, to sign the name or signature of the principal or firm.

PRO FORMA.-A term applied to a statement of account (such as "account sales") relative to transactions and matters not fully completed or realized, in order to estimate the result.

PROTEST: (see BILLS OF EXCHANGE AND NOTARY.)

PUBLIC FUNDS: (see FUNDS AND NATIONAL DEBT.)

QUARANTINE.-The time that a ship, suspected of infection, is obliged to keep from intercourse with the port at which it has arrived.

REBATE.-A deduction of so much per cent. on the stipulated price of goods.

RECKONING or COUNTING.-The decimal system, or mode of reckoning by tens, was common to almost all nations. The universality of that scale may be traced to the physiological construction of the human body, every person being "provided with a set of decimal machines in the shape of fingers and toes." The word digits, in its Latin signification, means equally fingers and arithmetical figures. So, in German, zehen, is used alike for tens and for toes. The decimal system was simple and natural; but artificial habits and the requirements of extended commerce, between nations separated by distance and different in customs and manners, gave rise to more complicated systems of computation: (see Eunomus, Dial. III. (notes); Bowring's Decimal System, and Remarks on the History of Accounts, &c., in this work.)

M

REGRATING.-Buying and selling, in the same market, corn or other articles of provision.

RESPONDENTIA.-The borrowing money upon goods to be sold in the course of a voyage, as Bottomry relates to money borrowed on the security of the ship.

REVENUE (Public).—The amount of taxes, &c., paid for the support of the Government, amounting in 1856 to about 72 millions. Nearly an equal amount is expended by the people for beer, spirits and tobacco. The revenues of the European nations are estimated to amount to about 310 millions per annum, upwards of one half of which goes to pay the interest of war debts, and to maintain existing war armaments.

SALVAGE.-An allowance made for saving ships or goods.

SCRIP. A document representing the shares or amount subscribed for, in an undertaking: (see OMNIUM.)

SPECIE (Ital.)-The different species or sorts of coined current money. This word is, however, often used in a sense to include bullion, as bullion is also often used to include specie: (see BULLION.)

STAPLE (Stapulum.)-A mart, or market, formerly appointed by law to be held at the following places, viz. : Westminster, York, Lincoln, Newcastle, Norwich, Canterbury, Chichester, Winchester, Exeter and Bristol, &c. The term, in the foregoing sense, may, more immediately, be said to be derived from the German, stapulen, to gather or heap together. There were staple courts held at those places the chief officer, or judge, of which was the mayor of the staple. The word staple is also applied to the chief produce of a country. The staple goods of England were said to be wool, skins (wool-fels), leather, lead, tin, cloth, butter, cheese, &c., as appears by the statute 14 Rd. 2, c. 1. Staple goods, however, are understood to be such as are not of a perishable nature, including wood, iron, &c.

STERLING.-This was formerly the epithet for silver money current in this country, and (as some say) took its name from the pure coin stamped first in England by the

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