Of the greatness of the power there will be no doubt. Money is economical power. Every one is aware that England is the greatest moneyed country in the world; every one admits that it has much more immediately disposable and ready cash than any other country. But very few persons are aware how much greater the ready balance—the floating loan-fund which can be lent to any one or for any purpose—is in England than it is anywhere else in the world. A very few figures will show how large the London loan-fund is, and how much greater it is than any other. The known deposits—the deposits of banks which publish their accounts—are, in
| London (31st December, 1872). . . . . | . . . | £120,000,000 |
| Paris (27th February, 1873) . . . . . . . | . . . | 13,000,000 |
| New York (February, 1873) . . . . . . . | . . . | 40,000,000 |
| German Empire (31st January, 1873) | . . . | 8,000,000 |
And the unknown deposits—the deposits in banks which do not publish their accounts—are in London much greater than those in any other of these cities. The bankers' deposits of London are many times greater than those of any other city—those of Great Britain many times greater than those of any other country.[1]
Of course the deposits of bankers are not a strictly accurate measure of the resources of a Money Market. On the contrary, much more cash
- ↑ See Appendix II., Note I., p. 339.
