Memoirs of a banking-house

32 MEMOIRS OF A BANKING-HOUSE.
wrote, in name of our firm, to Mr Hemes. ' We observe what
you say of our writing letters to our friends in favour of the office
in St James's Street. We have constantly recommended their
notes to travellers, as they came in our way, and it does not occur
to us that there are at present any friends who could be useful
with whom we have much influence. But if we had, we are not
very clear how far we ought with propriety to carry our solici-
tations, lest we should be thought to set out on the footing of
rivals to Messrs Coutts in their own branch of business. We
think, after what has passed between us and Messrs Coutts about
the issuing of exchange notes, we are fairly acquitted to the world
and ourselves for endeavouring, by means of an office in St James's
Street, to obtain a more extensive circulation to those notes, and
we can likewise see no harm in accepting any common banking
business which may come to that office in a secondary way in
consequence of issuing exchange notes : but we submit it to you
how far it would be thought ungenerous in us, during the con-
tinuance of our original contract, of which there remain three
years, and after we have risen to a state of independence on the
foundation of the two houses which they transferred to us —
although we pay them a valuable allowance for that transfer —
that we should employ the influence we have acquired to
establish ourselves in their own branch of business, especially
as they would, no doubt, have made it a restriction in our agree-
ment with them at first, had they supposed we would embark in
such an undertaking. If Messrs Coutts take offence at our having an
office in St James's Street on any footing, they may very probably
recall the firm, and, in that case, it will be yielded up to them.
But we are not quite certain how far it would be proper to relin-
quish the firm of ourselves. Perhaps the world would consider
such a step as a declaration of hostilities on our part, and they
might accuse us of ingratitude for thus affecting to throw off all
manner of correspondence or connection with Messrs Coutts, after
we had answered our own purposes by the original agreement we
made with them.'
To this letter, Mr Herries wrote the following answer in the
name of the house at London :
' 21st January 1772.
' We have yours of the 17th, and are sorry to observe that you
seemed to have misunderstood the intention of the hint we gave
you to take an opportunity of mentioning to any of your acquaint-
ance that you are concerned in the new establishment in St James s