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Commissariat Bills of Exchange |
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As the colony of New South Wales grew, a need to transfer money over the large distances between settlements led to the introduction of Commissariat Bills of Exchange. These bills were drawn against the issuing Commissariat office, not the English Treasury. Pre-printed and issued in duplicate, they could be converted to Sterling only at the destination Commissariat office, ten days after presentation. To preserve security, both copies had to be presented. The words on the bill stated: Ten days after sight of this first Exchange, Second of the same tenor and date not paid, please pay to .... or Order, the sum of .... Sterling, value received.The words 'or order' made the bills transferable, and thus capable of being used as a negotiable medium of exchange. See the separate article on Paper Money in Early New South Wales.
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