Palace and Hovel; Or, Phases of London Life

by Daniel Joseph Kirwan

THE BANK OF ENGLAND.

I saw, in a glass case, a bank note for one million of pounds (canceled,) which had passed between the Bank and the government in some transaction or another. Think of it, a piece of paper five by two and a half inches in size, which was good on its face any place in the world for Five Millions of Dollars. I saw also here, several other bank bills for large amounts, such as ten, fifty, one hundred, and two hundred and fifty thousand pounds each. These were the most valuable strips of printed paper I ever saw.

It must be recollected, that inside of the walls of the Bank of England, which covers four acres, as I have observed, everything is made, excepting the paper of which the bank notes are manufactured. The gold, of course, is coined in the Mint on Tower Hill, but everything else is done inside of the Bank walls, including paper staining, engraving, making the steel plates from which the notes are transferred, and other useful arts. Printer's ink is also made, the ink having to be of a peculiar shade so as to prevent counterfeiting. Then there are book binderies, where the ledgers and accounts are bound, and a number of other rooms devoted to various purposes.

It is a noticeable fact, that every Bank official whom we meet on our journey through all these lofty apartments, halls and saloons, wears full evening dress though it is not yet noonday. Swallow-tail coats, white neck-cloths, and white vests, of the most spotless hues, seem to be the Bank uniform.

And what pleasant surprises there are in this institution. Now the guide leading, and I following, we emerge into an open court-yard, of very good size, which has lawns, shrubberies, and dainty little grass plots, with the most cheering flower-beds, the colors of which are very refreshing to the eye. Here are well-shaded and sanded paths, and lofty, leafy trees, and all these rural delights are concentrated in a space of one and a half acres, the dimensions of the grounds walled in by the Bank. Here, in the heart of mighty London, is a green oasis, like a diamond set in a pig's nose.

These detached buildings, with white steps leading to their doors, and neatly-ornamented porticoes, are the residences of the Governor and Directors, and here they hold receptions, and levees, and the questions and inquiries of angry stockholders are heard and answered at quarterly meetings. The guide asks me if "I would like to see the workshops of the Bank." I agree at once to his proposition, and on ascending a flight of narrow stone steps, we find ourselves in a large room which is used by the Bank mechanics to prepare the steel plates upon which the Bank notes are engraved.

A very powerful steam engine, which is used for other mechanical and artistic purposes in the Bank, is the motive power by which the work is done in this room. I can hear the sharp steel wedge scraping and polishing the already bright sheets of steel, and the noise is a most disagreeable one. All the workman has to do, however, is simply to place the plate and spindle in the exact spot, when the machine, like a stroke of vengeance seizes it, and in a second it is bright as silver.

MAKING INK FOR BANK NOTES.

Now we are in the room in which the printer's ink is manufactured with which the Bank notes are printed. The ink has to be of a very peculiar black shade, as counterfeiting would be easy were the materials used to be the same as in other inks.

Masses of black matter are being ground into a fine powder by rollers, I think that the guide told me it was nutgalls; large lumps are placed beneath the rollers, the cylinder revolves, and the powder is crushed to a fine paste.