They  have  nothing  to  do  with  the  balance  of  profit  or  lofs  ;
and  it  is  ignorance  to  appeal  to  them  upon  that  account :  for
the  cafe  is,  that  the  greater  the  lofs  is  in  any  one  year,  the
higher  will  this  thing  called  the  balance  of  trade  appear  to
be  according  to  the  cuftom-houfe  books.  For  example*
nearly  the  whole  of  the  Mediterranean  convoy  has  been
tak«n  by  the  French  this  year-,  confequently  thofe  cargoes
■will  not  appear  as  imports  on  the  cuftom-houfe  books,  and
therefore  the  balance  of  trade,  by  which  they  mean  the  pro-
fits of  it,  will  appear  to  be  fo  much  the  greater  as  the  lofs
amounts  to ;  and,  on  the  other  hand,  had  the  lols  not  hap-
pened, the  profits  would  have  appeared  to  have  been  fomuck
the  lefs.  All  the  lofles  happening  at  fca  to  returning  cargoes,
by  accidents,  by  the  elements,  or  by  capture,  make  the  ba-
lanjcc  appear  the  higher  on  the  fide  of  th«  exports  j  and  were

they


(    3»     )

I  come  now  to  fhew  the  feveral  ways  by  which
bank  notes  get  into  circulation.  I  (hall  afterwards
offer  an  eftimate  on  the  total  quantity  or  anwunt
of  bank  notes  exifting  at  this  moment.
The  bank  a6ls  in  three  capacities.  As  a  bank  of
difcount ;  as  a  bank  of  depofit ;  and  as  banker  for
the  government.
