ABSTRACT
Whatever was done had to be done quickly. The Bank of England, whose directors were, as usual in trying times, at their wits' end, applied now to the Chancellor of the Exchequer to help them to remedy a state of things in part brought about by their own incompetence and want of foresight. The directors nrged that unless they could give facilities for discount, which in existing circumstances they did not see their way to do, the crisis must continue, and ruin would overtake even the most sound and cautious establishments. Then, apparently for the first time in all this turmoil of excitement and hopeless confusion, the facts of the situation were faced. It was recognised that thero was no reason why, because the
