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other perfons in public offices to an unlimited extent. abufes of the offices were great indeed; upwards of 30,000l. a year were taken up by the franking of the clerks; this was more than one third of the whole amount of franking by both Houses of Parliament. He wished to know upon what ground it was that thefe Gentlemen were to have a difcretionary power, and the Members of the two Houfes to have none. He thought that too much truft was pit in the virtue of these Gentlemen. Were they purified by fome fixed air among themfelves? Indeed he apprehended that this Bill would tend to increase abuse in the privilege of franking in thefe offices, for fome of the Gentlemen belonging to them might become partners, not fleeping, but writing partners in banking-houses, unlefs fomething like the claufe now offered fhould be adopted. It was idle to fay that the abufes would be corrected in the offices; he never knew any body of men who corrected abufes among themfelves, either in church or ftate. He faw fomething already that tended to the reverse of this, for when any abuse of office was mentioned, and an attempt made to do it away, fome minister or other was fure to ftep in to defend it; whenever any one attempted to approach the abuse of office, minifters feemed to fay, "Take off your fhoes, for now you ftand upon holy ground."

Mr. Long obferved, that there was a particular law in being to restrain the abuse of franking in public offices.

General Tarleton faid a few words on the general abuse of franking. In the matter which he brought forward a few days ago, he declared he had not been actuated by any defire of perfecuting an individual Member, as had been fuggefted by fome, but with a defire to take the business up on a broad and extensive scale. An imputation of abufe of privilege had been caft upon the whole of the Members of the Houfe, for the abufes of one or two. It was his intention to have thrown the blame where it ought juftly to lie. He hoped, by using the word efcape, he fhould not be thought too harsh; but certainly the Hon. Member who was the object of his motion, had efcaped, and, he believed, through the means of minifterial countenance. However, as he thought abufes were as likely to prevail amongst the clerks of public offices, as among Members of that Houfe, he fhould certainly give his vote for the prefent claufe, as tending to prevent them.

General Smith obferved, that in the year 1785, the whole amount of official franking amounted only to the fum of 8501. and now it was rifen as high as thirty thoufand annually. This great and rapid increafe in the fpace of ten years, cer tainly feemed to require a check. Such motions and difcuf

fions as the prefent, were of infinite fervice: When many of the abuses of public offices were mentioned on the first introduction of this Bill, the Chancellor of the Exchequer had faid, that he never before had heard of them; fuch difcuffions as the prefent would ferve to bring them to view, and the claufe fhould have his fupport because it went to correct and check them.

The Secretary at War moved that the Act relative to the reftraints laid on clerks in public offices in franking be read; which being done, a converfation of confiderable length took place, in which Mr. Yorke, Mr. Dent, Mr. Rofe, Mr. Martin, Mr. Buxton, Mr. W. Smith, Mr. Grey, Mr. Thornton, Mr. Huffey, and Mr. Robinson took part; after which Mr. Porter agreed to withdraw the claufe, understanding that. Mr. Dent was to make a motion upon the subject immediately.

The clauses being all agreed to, the Bill was ordered to be read a third time on Friday, if then engroffed.

ABUSE OF FRANKING IN PUBLIC OFFICES.

Mr. Dent then rofe to move for a Committee of Inquiry into the abufes of the privilege of franking in the public offices. He ftated, that the produce of the Poft Office was about 627,000l. a year, and after deducting all charges, the net produce amounted to 390,cool. He then proceeded to enumerate fome of the abufes of clerks in office, and to fhew how that affected the revenue of the Poft Office. By means of these abuses various pamphlets were carried all over the kingdom free of poftage, among others Mr. Lackington's thick and bulky catalogue of books. Nay more, even hares and haunches of venifon had been conveyed in this manner. Thefe facts he did not wish to rest upon his affertion; Mr. Dent faid he was ready to prove them at the bar of that House, whenever he fhould be called upon to do fo. Such abufes, he maintained, ought to be done away as well and as fpeedily as poffible. He concluded with moving, "That a Committee be appointed to inquire into the feveral frauds and abuses, in relation to the fending or receiving letters free of postage, by clerks in public offices entitled to frank letters; that they do examine the fame, and ftate their opinion thereupon to the Houfe."

Mr. Long thought that this inquiry was unneceffary, and that if it was gone into, it would not remedy the evil. He had heard of abufes in many of the offices; he had inquired, and found that many exifted, but he found alfo that thefe abufes had been greatly exaggerated. With regard to haunches of venifon, he apprehended that the Hon. Gentleman mif

conceived

conceived the matter. If any thing of that fort had been carried from the Poft-office, the Public was not defrauded by it, although he had no doubt of the fact being as the Hon. Gentleman related, for he had heard of a turtle being fent in the fame way. But the fact was this; by the contract of the Poftoffice, on mail-coaches, these things were carried as parcels under the fame right as that by which paffengers were carried by the mail, and therefore this was no fraud upon the revenue. With regard to this Committee being unneceffary, he muft obferve, that already many regulations had been adopted in thefe offices, and many others were about to be adopted, and would be carried into effect as fpeedily as poffible. Another reason why he fhould vote against going into this Committee was, because he was convinced, that from the manner the accounts were kept of thefe franks, there could not be proof of the abufe brought before the Committee. Taking the whole of the matter together, he faw no good that would refult from the propofed inquiry; and therefore he thought it would be better to leave the matter to the operation of the regulations which have been, and others that are about to be adopted. If after a fair trial they fhould be found ineffectual, then fome other remedy might be propofed.

Mr. Courtenay faid, it appeared to him that the chief rea fon for bringing this motion forward, was its being denied that any abuse existed in thefe offices. Now that thefe abufes were admitted to exist, and that it was faid they were to be corrected, he, on that account, was rather inclined to agree with Gentlemen on the other fide; and therefore he hoped the fenfe of the House would not be taken on the motion."

Mr. Bouverie faid, he fhould fupport the motion, on the ground that the Hon. Gentleman who made it, had pledged himself to prove the abuses which he ftated: Abuses which, to a certain extent, indeed feemed now to be acknowledged. Minifters ought to be obliged to the Houfe for ftimulating them forward in this bufinefs, for they feemed to want a timulus.

Mr. Wilmot thought it was not neceffary to go into abuses, which were acknowledged to exift, becaufe the queftion ought only to be on the mode of adopting a remedy; one remedy was now trying-if that failed, another might be tried hereafter.

Captain Berkeley did not pretend to know any thing of any of the offices, except the Ordnance; he maintained, however, there was no abuse as to franking in that office; if there was, he fhould be exceffively obliged to the Hon. Gentleman for ftating it to him.

VOL. III.

D

Mr.

Mr. Dent admitted that he knew of no abufes in the Ordnance, but in others there were abuses to an enormous extent, and particularly in the Customs.

Mr. W. Smith wifhed the motion to be withdrawn, because he thought the notoriety of the abuses alluded to, fuperfeded the necellity of inquiring into their existence. The best thing that could be done, was to apply a remedy as foon as poffible; befides, there might be fome difficulty in proving the abuses, although they were notorious, becaufe, when the House came to examine evidence, they muft fubject themselves to certain formal rules; and many Gentlemen who had already furnished this information privately to Members, could not be called upon to give their teftimony in public, without a breach of

faith.

Mr. I. H. Browne was of the fame opinion.
Mr. Porter was for going into a Committee.
The Houfe divided,

For the motion 53-Againft it 41.

Strangers were then excluded for a confiderable time, during which we understood that the Sunday Bill was brought on and difpofed of in the following manner :

On motion for going into a Committee on the Bill, the question was put, "That the Speaker do now leave the chair." The Houfe divided,

For the motion 37-Against it 50.

"That this Bill be committed on Friday fe'nnight." An amendment was moved, That instead of "Friday fe'nnight," the words "This day fix months" be fubftituted. The House divided,

For the amendment 44-Againft it 43.

So that there is an end of that Bill for this Seffion at least. The Bill for providing for Subalterns in the Militia in time of War, paffed the Committee, after a few words between General Tarleton, General Smith, and the Secretary at War. Report ordered to be received the next day.

The Lottery Bill was ordered to be read a third time the next day, if then engroffed.

Mr. Mainwaring afked the Secretary at War, at what time he should be ready to bring forward his plan of relief to the innkeepers, whofe petition lay on the table, complaining of hardships in confequence of billeting foldiers upon them.

The Secretary at War admitted they laboured under grievous hardships, and faid they had born them with patience; he faid he hoped to be ready with a plan for their relief in a few days. Mr. Mainwaring faid he was fatisfied.

The

The Bill for allowing 2,500,000l. to his Majefty for extraordinary fervices of the year, was ordered to be read a third time on Monday, if then engroffed.

Leave was given to bring in a Bill to regulate the shipping employed in carrying flaves from the coaft of Africa in British veffels.

The Militia Pay and Clothing Bill was paffed.

The Dead Body Bill was ordered to be read a fecond time on Friday next.-Adjourned.

HOUSE OF LORDS.
TUESDAY, April 14.

THANKS TO VICE-ADMIRAL HOTHAM, &c.

Earl Spencer rofe, in purfuance of the notice which he gave the preceding day, to move the thanks of the House to Admiral Hotham for the victory which he obtained over the French Heet in the Mediterranean. The Noble Earl obferved, that the victory for which he proposed to move their Lordships to vote their thanks, was the effect of the skill and bravery of the gallant Admiral whom he had named, and alfo owing to the courage of those who were under him in command. Such victo ries, he thought, fhould always be acknowledged and rewarded with the highest honour their Lordships could bestow. He fhould have thought it unneceffary to fay any thing on the fubject more than barely to move the thanks of the Houfe, had he not the preceding day understood that one Noble Lord intended to make fome obfervations upon the grounds of the motion, and the proof of the fact, that a victory had been obtained. He was induced, however, to think that that Noble Lord would not oppofe the motion, with which he intended to conclude; the importance of the victory he alluded to being undeniable. If any thing remained imperfect in the account of that event, it arofe out of the modefly with which the gallant Admiral had tranfmitted it, and of the diffident terms in which he had conveyed the information of a victory that had been fo much owing to his own merit. The Noble Earl, if he wished to have any further information on that head, might, if he chofe, have recourfe to the Gazette, where he would be fully fatisfied as to the fact. By this victory the naval fuperiority of Great Britain had been maintained; and for fuch fervices he was confident their Lordships were ready to bestow their praife, and the Public to acknowledge their obligation. He concluded with moving, "That the thanks of this Houfe

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