In a preceding article an account was given of the opposing views of the Currency and Banking Schools against the background of events and ideas which gave rise to them. The analysis was carried up to the passage of Peel's Act of 1844. It is proposed in the present paper to conclude with a discussion of the working of the Act and the continued controversy regarding it. Particular attention is given to the first years of the Act's operation, 1845-1857, a period which included two major economic crises.