10 Ann. c. 19. the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and feventeen, by or out of fuch duties, weekly payments and other provisions as are therein mentioned, was fettled and established to be a general yearly fund, for and towards the answering and paying fuch feveral and respective annuities and payments as were thereby charged or chargeable thereupon, in fuch manner as is therein mentioned: and whereas (amongst other payments which were provided for by the fame act) certain annuities, after the rate of five pounds per centum per annum, amounting in the whole to four hundred Seventy fix thousand seven hundred Seventeen pounds seventeen shillings and eight pence per annum, were purfuant to that act charged upon the faid general yearly fund, as well in lieu and discharge af feveral lottery-orders, made forth by feveral acts of parliament of the ninth and tenth years of the reign of her late Majesty Queen Anne, (of blessed memory) as also of certain orders or an- 9 Ann. c. 6. nual payments, which had been charged upon the hereditary excise, & which annuities, amounting to four hundred Seventy fix thousand feven hundred Seventeen pounds seventeen shillings and eight pence per annum, fo charged on the faid general yearly fund by the faid act of the third year of your Majesty's reign, were thereby made likewise payable by the cashier of the governor and company of the bank of England for the time being, and the proprietors thereof, by virtue of the fame act, were entitled in respect thereof, to a capital fum, amounting in the whole to nine millions five hundred thirty four thousand three hundred fifty seven pounds thirteen shillings and eleven pence three farthings, which was also transferrable at the bank of England, or deviseable as in the fame aft was directed: and whereas fince the making of the faid alt of the third year of your Majesty's reign, as much of the faid ca- 3 Geo. 1.C.7 pital stock of nine millions five hundred thirty four thousand three bundred fifty seven pounds thirteen shillings and eleven pence three farthings, as amounted to eight millions three hundred twenty nine thoufand five hundred seventy one pounds ten shillings and seven pence, and as many of the said annuities attending the fame as amounted to four hundred and fixteen thousand four hundred Seventy eight pounds eleven shillings and fixpence per annum, have been fubfcribed into the capital stock and fund of the South-Sea company, and as much of the faid capital ftock of nine millions five hundred thirty four thousand three hundred fifty seven pounds thirteen shillings and eleven pence three farthings, as amounts to one million two hundred and four thoufand Seven hundred eighty fix pounds three shillings and four pence three farthings, and as many of the faid annuities attending the fame as amount to fixty thousand two hundred thirty nine pounds fix fhillings and two pence per annum, do ftill remain transferrable at the bank, and payable by the faid cashier of the governor and company of the bank of England for the time being; which annuities, amounting to fixty thousand two hundred thirty nine pounds fix fhillings and two pence per annum, are nevertheless subject to a proviso contained in the faid act of the third year of your Majesty's reign, whereby it is provided and enacted, That at any time upon notice to be given or left at the publick office of the governor and company of the bank of Eng- 3 Geo. 1. c. 7 land, at any of the quarterly feast-days therein mentioned, for payment of the faid annuities, and upon repayment by parliament of their respective B4 respective principal fums, for which the faid annuities should be payable by the faid casbier of the bank of England for the time being, and whereupon the faid refpective annuities were to be computed by that att, to fuch respective perfons and corporations as should be entitled to the fame annuities, and also upon full payment and fatisfaction of all arrears of the fame annuities, (if any such should be then due) then, and not till then, the fame annuities should cease and determine: and whereas the honourable Spencer Compton, efquire, speaker of the honourable bouse of commons, did, on the twenty fifth day of December one thousand Jeven hundred and twenty two, pursuant to an order of the faid house, grounded upon a certain clause contained in the faid 3 Geo. z. C. 7. act of the third year of your Majesty's reign, give or leave notice in writing at the publick office of the said governor and company of the bank of England, for redeeming all fuch of the annuities payable by the act last mentioned, after the rate of five pounds per centum per annum, as have not been fubfcribed into the capital stock of the faid South-Sea company: now we your Majesty's faid dutiful and loyal fubjects, the commons of Great Britain in parliament assembled, being resolved to redeem the said annuities, amounting to fixty thousand two hundred thirty nine pounds fix fhillings and two pence per annum, so remaining payable at the faid rate of five. pounds per centum per annum, by the said cashier of the governor and company of the bank of England, by paying to the said cashier of the governor and company of the bank of England, the faid principal or capital sum of one million two hundred and four thousand seven hundred eighty fix pounds three shillings and four pence three farthings (for payment whereof provifion is herein after made by this act) to and for the use of fuch person and persons, body and bodies politick and corporate, as at the time of fuch payment made to the said cashier, shall be entitled to the fame, according to such interests as they respectively shall then have therein, and by payment of all arrears of the fame annuities due at or before the last preceding half-yearly feaft-day (if any such shall be due) and upon payment of fuch arrears as shall be computed by the day upon the same annuities, from the end of fuch preceding half-yearly feast-day until the time of fuch payment of the principal to the said cashier as aforefaid, and being defirous thereby in some measure to cafe the present burthen of the publick debts and incumbrances, do further humbly befeech your Majesty, that it may be enacted, and be it enacted by the authority aforesaid, That out of such monies as are or shall be in the receipt of the exchequer, of the furplusses, excesses and overplus monies, commonly called the finking fund, arisen or to arife for the year ended at the feaft of Saint Michael the archangel in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and twenty two, or for any time preceding the fame feast-day (fuch payments as have been directed to be made at or before the fame feaft-day, by authority of parliament, out of the said surplusses, excesses and overplus monies, always excepted and foreprized) there shall be issued and paid the fum of two hundred and four thousand seven hundred eighty fix pounds 204,786 1. 35. 4 d. three farthings, out of the finking fand for the year 1722, &c. applied to payment of 4 d. three far pounds three shillings and four pence three farthings, in part of the part of IV. And to the end and intent that sufficient monies may be more, Which bills are to bear an interest of 2 d. per cent. per diem, &c. and be 1,000,0001. 1 &c. New bills to be made forth in lieu of bills filled up or defaced, &c. Treasury may cause bills not exceeding 5000l. to be made forth, and placed as cash in the exchequer, &c. Forging or counterfeiting exchequer bills, &c. Felony. EX P. XX. And whereas the several furplusses, excesses and overplus 3 Geo.1.C.7. monies, commonly called the faid finking fund (which in and by the faid act made in the third year of his Majesty's reign were appropriated to and for discharging the principal and interest of fuch national debts and incumbrances, as were incurred before the twenty fifth day of December one thousand feven hundred and fixteen, and were declared to be national debts, and were provided for by act of parliament, in fuch manner and form as should be directed or appointed by any future act or acts of parliament, to be discharged therewith or out of the fame) have usually been computed at or about the feast of Saint Michael the archangel in every year, and the last computation of the clear produce thereof, now lying before the honourable house of commons did terminate at or about the feast of Saint Michael the archangel one thousand feven hundred and twenty two: now to the end, intent and purpose that all the exchequer bills to be made forth by virtue of this act, not exceeding as aforesaid, may be paid off and discharged in fuch course and order as are hereafter in and by this act appointed in that behalf; and to the end the fame bills, or fo many of them as shall from time to time remain undischarged, may the better obtain a currency for fuch time as they or any of them are hereby intended to be current, be it further enacted by the authority aforesaid, That the commiffioners of the treasury, or any three or more of them now being, and the high treasurer, or any three or more of the commissioners of the treasury for the time being, shall from henceforth cause the clear produce of the faid several surplusses, excesses and overplus monies, commonly called the finking fund, to be computed and stated half-yearly (to wit) at the feast of the annunciation of the blessed Virgin Mary, and the feast of Saint Michael the archangel in every year, until all the exchequer bills to be made forth by virtue of this act shall be fully paid off and discharged, or money sufficient shall be referved for completely paying off and discharging the fame: the first of which accounts so to be stated of the faid furplusses, excesses and overplus monies shall terminate at the feast of the annunciation of the blessed Virgin Mary which shall be in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and twenty three, and the subsequent accounts thereof shall be made up and adjusted at every of the faid half-yearly feast-days, or as foon after as the accounts of the publick revenues, whereupon such stated accounts are to be formed, can be collected for that purpose. Produce of finking fund to be ftated half-yearly, &c. XXI. And it is hereby enacted by the authority aforesaid, How applied. That all the monies of the faid surplusses, excesses and overplus monies, called the sinking fund, which were produced at or before the faid feast of Saint Michael the archangel one thousand seven hundred and twenty two, which shall remain over and above the faid fum of two hundred and four thousand seven hundred dred eighty fix pounds three shillings and four pence three farthings, to be issued out of the same as aforesaid, (if any fuch be) and all the monies from time to time arising of or for the faid furplusses, excesses and overplus monies, called the sinking fund, which hereafter shall or ought to appear upon the making up and adjusting every half-yearly account or state of the produce of the fame as aforesaid, (except such monies of the faid sinking fund, as are appropriated to any particular use or uses by any other or former act or acts of parliament in that behalf, and shall be payable or demandable before the end of every fuch half-year respectively) shall, from time to time, as the fame shall arife at the faid receipt of exchequer, be issued to fuch paymafter as is herein after mentioned, by way of imprest and upon account, for and towards the paying off and discharging the said exchequer-bills, which shall have been made forth by virtue of this act, in their due course and order as they shall be numbered and stand in the said register, and for or towards the charge of exchanging and circulating the said bills or any of them, and for or towards fuch other payments as are in and by this act directed or allowed to be made or difcharged out of the fame, and for no other use, intent or purpose whatsoever, until all the faid bills shall be paid off, discharged and cancelled, and the faid other payments shall be fatisfied, or money fufficient shall be referved for those purposes. Treafury to appoint persons to discharge principal, arifing in course of payment, upon exchequer-bills, &c. Surplusses, &c. applied to the difcharge exchequer-bills, Bills to be registred in &c. No undue preference in payment. Treasury to appoint salaries, &c. Treafury may contract with persons for circulating and exchanging bills for money, &c. Contracts to be registred, &c. Contractors not liable to bankruptcy, &c. for that cause only. No fee, &c. to be taken in the exchequer for any thing there done in pursuance of this act, &c. Interest upon bills not to be paid to any fum less than a penny, &c. Treasury may pay out of finking fund, the charges of making forth new bills, &c. Monies due upon bills lost, burnt or destroyed, to be fatisfied upon oath, &c. Bills paid off to be cancelled, &c. EXP. XXXIV. Provided always, and it is hereby likewise enacted Monies arifing by the authority aforesaid, that all the monies arisen or to arife from finking into the exchequer of or for the faid furplusses, excesses and fund, how apoverplus monies, commonly called the sinking fund (except propriated, such monies thereof as are by this or any act or acts of this or any former fession or sessions of parliament, specially charged upon the faid finking fund, or to be paid out of the fame, or out of any revenues or branches compofing the said sinking fund) shall be appropriated, reserved and employed, to and for discharging the principal and interest of fuch national debts and incumbrances as were incurred before the twenty fifth day of December one thousand seven hundred and fixteen, and are declared to be such national debts as may be redeemed, and are provided for by act of parliament, in fuch manner and form as Thall be directed and appointed by any future act or acts of parliament |