Memoirs of a banking-house

8 MEMOIRS OP A BANKING-HOUSE.
at that time kept the Bell Inn at Hilton, and was one of the most
considerable corn-factors in England.*
They had also large dealings in corn with Edmund and George
Schoales of Drogheda, and with Daniel Mussenden of Belfast ;+
and I have known them import cargoes of wheat from Dantzic
and Konigsberg. "When I reflect on the extent of all this cor-
respondence, and the combination of such a variety of intelligence
respecting the prices of corn at all those different places, compared
with the prices in the different parts of Scotland, I cannot but
wonder at the boldness of enterprise which led them to embark in
such a perilous traffic. Some years they made large profits, which
they as often lost in others, owing to the fluctuation of markets
and the bankruptcy of many of those with whom they dealt.
Indeed, I have often thought it not a little singular that a banking-
house, which, of all branches of business, seems peculiarly to
require caution, and which ought, as much as possible, to be kept
clear of every undertaking of hazard or speculation, should have
chosen to embark so largely in the corn-trade, which is perhaps
that most liable to sudden fluctuation, and in which no human
prudence or insurance can guard the adventurers from frequent
loss. Yet in this the Messrs Coutts were not singular. Messrs
Fairholme, whose banking-house had been long eminent, and in
the enjoyment of unsullied credit, were also large dealers in corn.
George Chalmers, whose principal employment was that of a corn-
dealer, also did business as a banker and exchange-dealer.
* It was he who performed the extraordinary ride from Hilton to London,
back to Hilton, and thence to London again, being 225 miles, in 12 hours 17
minutes. He set out at four o'clock in the morning of 29th April 1745, and
came to the Queen's Arms, opposite Shoreditch Church, in 3 hours and 52
minutes ; returned again to Hilton in 4 hours and 12 minutes ; and came back
to London in 4 hours and 13 minutes. He was allowed 15 hours for the task
and as many horses as he pleased, which he had ready waiting him at various
places on the road. He was so little fatigued by this exploit, that he rode next
day as if nothing had happened. The road was lined with spectators to see him
pass and repass, and many thousands, besides his own wager of five hundred
guineas, were depending on the performance. Mr Thomhill, though he kept
an inn, was much respected for his gentleman-like manners, and generally
brought to table by his guests. There is a mezzotinto print of this exploit still
preserved at the Bell Inn at Hilton.
•f* I recollect a singular circumstance respecting Daniel Mussenden, who was
one of the most eminent corn-dealers in the north of Ireland. His business
had been long conducted, under his inspection, by a confidential clerk, who
wrote all his letters, excepting only the signature. At length Ms faculties
became so unpaired, that this clerk not only managed the business and wrote
the letters, but imitated his master's subscription at the bottom of the letters,
and in all his bills, so exactly, that no difference could be detected, although,
as I well recollect, Mr Mussenden's subscription was a very peculiar one.