Scottish Banking(part 8)

''December 20th  1761- Archibald Trotter brought an
action against Cochrane and Murdoch ,and
Proprietors of one of the Glasgow banks(Glasgow Arms),
setting forth-‘That he had applied to the bank for
payment of about £3000 of their notes, and they had
offered him payment in sixpences; but in making
payment their servants had proceeded in a way design-
edly evasive and slow; that they had miscounted the
money on purpose to have a pretence of counting it
over again ; had quitted him in order to pay other
 people, and by many other arts had protracted his
 payments; on which account he had taken a protest
 against them, and he concluded for payment of the
sum with interest from the date of the protest, cost
of suit and damages ”

The defence pleaded from the banking company
was :-" That Trotter was sent TO and settled AT
 Glasgow by the directors of the two public banks
 at Edinburgh, as their agent,in order to pick up
the defender’s notes, and then to make a sudden
 run upon them in order to ruin their credit. That in
 such a case it was their right to defend them
selves by every legal method against so inviclious
 an attack. That payment in sixpences was a legal
 tender. That they were not obliged to keep all
 their servants employed in making payment to
him only, and that therefore they could not be
liable for anything further than payment of the notes.
Secondly, supposing there had been an absolute
refusal to pay, they could not be liable for damages;
because, being only a private banking company,though
thirty in number, they were in the case of any private
debtor by bill or note, who, if he refuses payment, can
only be sued for the debt, interest, and expenses, but
not for damages.”


(£3,000- TODAY = £37,000 approx)


More to follow............