Star. — London, England, 1805-06-01 00:00:00

REPORT FROM THE SRLECT COMM/TILE UPON THE TENTH NAVAL REPORT, &e. The Seeet altaamittee, to whom the Tenth Report of the Connnittoners of Naval Enquiry, (rtfpeding the °ghee of the Treafurer of his Moiety's; Navy) was reforred, to in quire into the application of aity monies ',Cued to the Trea furer of the Navy for blared Service% to porpefes not Na val ; and whethcf any, and what Reprefentationa were trade to the Lords Commitments of his Maleily's Tres fury, or the Chancellor' of the Er:bespter, :Amain; the withdrawing front the Bank any fume of Money fo Med, Once the pairing of the Ad of 25 Geo. ltl. e. 3t. • and alto into the procecdinp,s had for the recovery of the Debt due to the Crown by the late Adam jeUicoe; have agreed to the fol lowing Report— In taking into our confideratinn the three fobjeas which are referred to your Committee, it occurred' to us, that though the firft, in terms, comprehends an Inquiry generally, and without rellriaton, into the appl i cation of any monies iffued to the Treafurer of the Navy for Naval Services to purpofes not Na val; yet it mull neceifarily have been the intention of the Hottfe to exclude from our confideration all Inch monies fo ;trued, and fo applied as were to be the fubjea of meafures which the Attorney General was direeted, by an Order of the Hook, to take " by due courfe of law, for afcertaining and rem " Wing any films of Money that may be due from " Lord Melville and Alexander Trotter, Efquire, • in refpea of any profits derived by them from mo. • nies ilfued for Naval Services, and that may have " come to their hands fubfequent to the ift of Janu " any, 1786 :" We therefore conceived it not to be our duty to in quire whether any fums Wired for Naval purpofes had been applied by Lord Melville or Mr. Trotter to their own ufe, for which they would be refponfible m the civil fuit to be inflituted againft them. In profeeuting our inquiry with this referee, it could not be previoufly known to us how any parti cular font of money fo ;trued had been applied, till loch film had been traced to the &anal application of it. We were, therefore, neeeffatily, in Come in:lan ces, led Mtn an examination which, without advert ing to this difficulty, might appear to exceed the bounds of the Inquiry, which we undedlond to have been prefctibed to us, leaving it to the party exa mined to objet to the quellions that were propofed to him, on the ground of their tending perfonally to charge him, whenever he thought fit to do fn. Of the fums iffued for Naval Services, and after wards applied to purpofes not Naval, which the caufe of this Inquiry brought into our view, it appears that the rum of 40,0°01, came into the hands of Lord Melville, and was advanced by the joint concurrenc e of his L ordfbip and Mr. Pitt, then Chancellor of the Exchequer, for the ufe of the hode of Meffirs. Boyd and Co. Another rum of to,oool. fo iffued, appears to have come to the hands of Lord Melville, previous to the Payroaderthip of Mr. Trotter ; but how it was applied the evidence to which we have had the opportunity of refoitiag, does not enable as to de termine. Various rum appear alto to have been advanced by Mr. Trotter, during a period of oetween 14 and t 5 years, whilft he was Payinatter of the Navy under Lord Melville. to the order of Lord Melville, amoun ting in all to 23 or 23,0001. which we than drilinguiffi by the name of the Aggregate Sum of 22 or 23,0001. about one half of which, Mr. Trotter Rates to have been advanced exclufively from Public Money ; the reit from a fund, which is called in Mr. Trotter's evi dence, his Mixed Fund at Meffirs. Comte, confiding partly of public and partly of private money ; for which Aggregate Sum of 22 or 23,0001. Ito interefi was paid. In order to avoid confufion, it may be proper here to Rate, that Mr. Trotter was defired by Lord Mel ville to borrow for him, and did advance to him for his private ufe, a further rum of between 22 and e3,c001. of which he was Marl - elf the lender, and for which he charged him with intereft at 51. per cent. but from what fund the fame was drawn by Mr. Trotter, we did not think it proper to inquire. He was alto occalionally in advance in his account current to Lord Melville, in fums to the amount of from to to 2c,0c01. as mentioned in the Tenth Re port, which came entirely from the mixed fund at Meals. Contts and Company (the balance upon that account being alio meat' )nally in favour of Lord Melville to the amount of 2 or 3000 l.) ; and for the hR mentioned rum of 22 or 23,0001. fo lent on inte tea, as well as for Inch balance when it was in favour of Mr. Trotter, he dates, that he conlidered Lord Melville as his private debtor; but on fuch balances in the account current, no intereft on either fide was paid. Of the fpecific funs therefore of 12 or 23,0001. fo lent on intereft, and thofe occafionel advances in the i account current from the mixed fund at Mefl'rs.Coutts and Company, mentioned in the Appendix to the Tenth Report, we (hall abilain altogether from tak ing farther notice ; confining our remarks to the feveral dims of 40,0001. to,ocol. and the aggregate funs of 22 or 23,0001. upon none of which any inter& was paid. As so the 40,0001. the diverfion of it from Naval' Services to nh.cn it was appropriated, contrary to the provifions and meaning of the 25th of George 111. C. 2 I. attra6ed nor eat tied attention, and called for a fail and minute inq ri. y into the caufes and circum stances of that tr..ifaairet. Fur this purple leveel vrirneffies have been called before us ; from whole evidence it .appears, that in December, 1795, a contra& war made by Govern ment with the h.-ufes of Meffrs. 13.. yd and Co. Ro bots and Co. and G. ldfusid and Co. for a loan of ed,occeoool. of which, in the beginning of the ' oF September, 1796, three inftalments of is per cent. each, were dill due ; and that about the month of April, 1796, a loan of fevers millions and a half was' negotiated by the Chancellor of the Exchequer, in order to fund a rum to that amount of Exchequer Bills and Navy Bills held by the Bank ; principally for the purpofe of re eving the Company from their advances to Government, which then preffed heavily upon them. That loan was contrated for conjoint- ly by the fame patties who war concerned in the preceding loan ; all houfes at that time of unfufpea ed credit ; each houfe being generally confidered, cubfequent to the payment of the depo fi t for which they were all jointly , liable, refponfible only for the amount of the (bares then held by them refpcaively. Of the latter loan in the beginning of September, 179 f, two initalmcnts of 15 per cent. were due.' ' In the beginning of the year 1796, from the em- 1 barragment of public credit, and the decreafing flatel of the fpecie at the Bank, the Governors and Direc tors thought it prudent to reftrain their eng,tqements ; and upem that account had refuted a;vancing the ptogreffive payments upon the loan of December, I 795 ; but in conlideration of the purpofes for which the loan of April t 796, had been made, as well as of its being comparatively (mall, they confented to ad vance to the contraftors, and did advance the third, fourth, fifth, and filth payments ; requiring them to make the feventh, being the lall payment, which was to become due on the .16th of ()dotter in that year. It is hated in the evidence given to your Commit tee, that the autumn of 1796 was a period of peculi ar embarraffinent, both of public and private credit, which led to the reftriakns of payment in fpecie at the Bank, that took place in February, 17 , a7 ; that there was a very great run on private commercial houfe4 a great fcarcity of money, and a very heavy prefure on the Bank for difcounts, which they had been obliged materially to narrow, and had thought it neceffary to contrad their acc-immoiations both to Government and the commercial world, not, how. ever, making any diftineion between the houfe of Boyd and Company, and houfes of the firft mercan tile credit in the City of London. Under thefe circumllances, at fome time before the 9th of September, 1796, Mr. Boyd appears to have reprefented to Lord Melville, and Mr. Pitt, the great pecuniary difficulty and embarrallment of his houfe ; that the Bank had refufed to dilconnt their bills, an.i that, with ample fecurities in their hands, they were not enabled to Talk money to pay the next inftalment on the loan, which was nearly due, and requefted immediate pecuniary affillance for the purpofe of completing their engagement to Govern ment. It appears to your Committee, that in addition to there engagements to Government, Meffrs. Boyd and Company had large payments to make on account of the Emperor of Germany; that they paid, on the 3 tft of O.tuber, 1796, a Turn of 186,3401. 535. id. on account of the Dirthor of the Emperor's finances at Vienna ; and that, in the whole of the fame year, they remitted on the fame account fums amounting to 4,609,5061. 91. It appears alto in evidence, that it would have been difficult, and perhaps impollible, for Meas. Boyd and Company to have procured advances upon the fecurities in their polfeftion (which we Mall hereafter mention) or to have converted them into calk ; that a payment of's per cent. on the loan of 18,000,0001. was due on the 9th of September ; and that, had they brought to market filch a proportion of their fcrip, as was neceffary to raife the faivlfum of ao,oool. in order to make good their engagement, the proba ble confequences would have been, to increafe the difcount on Scrip, which at that time amounted on the loan of April, from t 3 to 15 per cent. to eta injutioufly the credit of Boyd's houfe, efpecially it it had tranfpired that their necelities compelled them to make filch difadvantageous tales, and mull there by have had a general tendency to augment the em barraffment of public credit. It has alfu been flared in evidence to your Com mittee, that if a failure in the loans, thL in progrefs of payment, had been occ.ifioned, either I. hr whole or in part, by the circumilances above a ttt he clz ficiency could not have been flipplied by a fi . •4n (had it been neceffary to rLfort to inch a meat except upon terms of very confiderable kis and u, advantage to the public. Under theft difficulties, Lord Vileonnt Melville, then Treaturer of the Navy, appeals to Lave foggeft ed to Mr. Pitt, that the firm wanted b 7• Boyd and Company, might be (pared, without a probabi• lity that the Naval Service would fuller any inconve nience from the advance, provided there was a fir& cient fecurity for the re-payment ; and no other me thodhaving occurred, by which much ferious mifchief to the public could be prevented, it was thought ad vifeable, by the concurrent opinions of Lord Melville and Mr. Pitt, that the application of Meffrs. Boyd and Company thould be complied with, and that the fum of ao,oool. fhould be advanced, upon a fufficient fecurity being given. And it appeals in evidence, that, under the orders of Lnrd Melville, the fum of 40,0001- was drawn from the Bank, and on the fame day paid over to Mr. Boyd, by Mr. Long,* then Se cretary to the Treafury, upon Mr. Boyd's depoliting with Mr. Long, fecurities amounting to about 40,7001. confining in part of bills, drawn on, anal accepted by the Eaft India Company, from their Pre fidencies abroad, the rell of Government Securities which Mr. Long tranfmitted to Lord Melville, in dorfing upon the cover the purpofe for which the fe. curitics had been fo depofited ; that the faid fum of 40,0001. had been all repaid, and that, with the ex ception of two bills on the Eall India Company, cue for pool. payable in o.9obcr, 1797, the other for 73001. or thereabouts, payable in januai y, 1798, all the tell of the fecurities were payable within three months from the time of the depofit. We do not find that any regular entry or me• morandum, either of a cublic or fecret nature, was made of this tranfation at the time; the itfue of the 40,0001. appearing on the books r.F the Bank, not difchargcd by any carrefpondent payment on the books of the Paroffice, this advance mull at all times have been evident upon an infpeClion of the balances, as a debt againft the Treafurer of the Navy ; but no entry feems to have been preferred, which would in Well have explained the application of this advance (independent of the evidence of the parties) more particularly after the fccurities were difcharged, and the funds replaced. In the courfe of our examination into this fubjelt, we thought it proper to inquire, whether in fad any inconvenience had been fuftained by the Naval Ser vice. in confequence of the diverfion of this portion of Naval Money ; and were more particularly led to. this inquiry, by the information, that an accepted bill for wool. drawn upon the Victualling Office, from Martinique, had been prefented for payment, and that on the 18th of February 1797, the day it became due, the holder of it was told at the Victualling Office, there were no dials, or fomed.ing to that purpofe; that there were many other bills is the fame fituation, and he mull call again; and that the bill was not paid till the tit of March, though he had fent it two or three times for payment in that interval. Upon further inquiry at the Viftualling Office, it appears, that oa the 9th of February 1797, the Vic tualling Office applied for a funs of 70,0001. at the Exchequer, for the payment of cavern' bills, in which , the bill in queflion was included 4 that on the nth of the fame month 47,0001. was received hi part of the 70,0001. for that purpofe ; and that on the fame day the raid bill, with many others, was affigned for pay ment, and would have been difcharged on that day, or as foon after as payment had been called for. In this inflance the delay of the a ffi gnment, and conic quently of payment, appears to have arifen from a delay in the iffues from the Exchequer, and not from a refnfal of payment on the part of the Treafurer of the Navy ; nor has it appeared in evidence, that any I delay of payment has been aCtually occafioned in other branches of the Naval Service by the advance in queflion ' however fuch a praelce might in poffible cafes have been produetive of a different refolt. No intereff was demanded from !Aegis. Boyd and Company for the money fo advanced, and fo repaid; but it is to be obferved, that no intereft would have accrued in the public had the above fnm remained in the Bank in conformity to the provifions of the AEI. As to the (urn of to.oool. it appears in evidence that upon Mr. Trotter's appointmcnt to the office of Payma'ter in the year 1786, he was informed by Lord Melville, that fie, Lord Melville, was indebted to the O ffi ce, in the fum of topool. At what time, under what circumllances, and for what purpore this fum of to,oool originally came into the pollee firm of Lord Melville, the death of the preceding' Paymalter, the abfence of all public documents re lating to it, and the want of any other evidence, pre vent us from afcertaining ; and we can therefore, only Rate, that this fum was replaced, but without intereft, fometime fubfequent to the year 1786 ; but the parti- 1 cular time and manner of the repayment we have not been able to difcover. • _ _ It appears alfo in evidence, that upon Mr. Trotter [weeding to the Office of Paymaller, he was ap pointed Private Agent to Lord Melville ; and was during his continuance in that office in the habit of receiving his falary as Treafurer and other branches of his income arifing in England, as well as frequent remittances from Scotland ; and that the firms re ceived by him on Lord Melville's account, were paid into the Mixed Fund at Meffrs. Coutts : that during the fourteen or fifteen years of his being Paymaller, he at various times advanced various (urns of money on account of Lord Melville to Mr. Tweedy and to other perfons, amounting to another turn of about 22 or 23,0001. being the Paid aggregate fum before mentioned ; that the fums paid to Mr. Tweedy amounted once or twice to 3 or 4.0001.; that of the Paid I aggregate firm of 22 or 23,0001. about one half was advanced exclofively from the public money ; the ref from the mixed fund at Mars. Comas, where all his ' private money was kept; and the whole has been re paid, but without any intereft. At what fpecific period thefe feveral rums were paid by Mr. Trotter, or repaid by Lord Melville, we are unable to find out ; all the vouchers, memoran dums, and writings re lating to the nada/lions and accounts between them, having been del4royed about the time, when releafes, containing a covenant for that purpofe, were mutually executed upon the (et dement of their accounts, viz. by Lord Melville on the loth of February 1798, at Melville Cattle, and by Mr. Trotter on the 23d of February 1798, in London. Mr. Trotter dates that he alto deftroyed all the books in which the accounts between Lord Melville and himfelt were kept, and which contained the accounts of other per lons betides thofe between Lord Melville I and Mr. Trotter ; but which had all been clofed, ex cept fon.: fmall accounts between Mr. Trotter andi friends, which he carried forward into new books. rim the deflation of fuels books and papers, fr. nr the death of Tweedy, and from want of an op portunity of examining Lord Melville, no means were Afforded to us of tracing the precife application of the various (urns fo advanced from time to time to Lord Melville's order, and which formed the laid aggregate fum of 2a or 23,0001. ; or which of there turns specifically were taken from the public money, and which of them from the mixed fund—or in what proportion the that might be taken from the mixed fund ccufilled of public, and what of private money. It appears however, that Mr. Pitt, in a converfa tion with Lord Melville, (ince the publication of the Tenth Report, understood, that, betides the filid forts of 4.0,0001. another fum of about 20,0001. iffued for Navy Services, had been applied to purpofes not na val, during the LAIL treafurefhip of Lord Melville ; but whether the above (urn of 20,00c1. was or was not included in any of the (urns hereinbefore men tioned, we are unable to afcertain. _ In a letter written by Lord Melville to the Com-1 miffioners of Naval Inquiry, dated June 30, 1804, • c_ntaineci in the Tenth Report, he Rates, that he had ' not declined to give occafional accommodation from the funds in the hands of the Treafurer of the Navy, to other fervices ; and in another letter to the Paid Commiffioners, dated 28th March, tBos, he declares he never knowingly derived any advantage from any advances of public money. Upon the fecund head of Inquiry referred to us by your order, v i 2.—Whether any, and what reprefenta dons were made to the Lords Commiffioners of his Majefty's Treafury, or the Chancellor of the Exche quer, refpeding the withdrawing from the Bank any fums of money fo iffued, fince the paffing of the Ad of the 25th Geo. 111. c. 31 ; your Committee do not find that any fuel reprefentations have been ever made to the Lords Commiffioners of his Majetty's Treafury, nor any fuch reprefentations to the Chan cellor of the Exchequer—except what is Rated in the evidence annexed to Mr. Raikes, and is admitted in the evidence of Mr. Pitt—from whence it appears, that lonic time in the rear 1797, Mr. Raikes, at that time Governor of the B.tnk, had occafion to hold an official intercourfe with Mr. Pitt by the authority of the Bank ; and that when the official bufinefs was over, io confequence of information which he had re ceived from Mr. Giles and Mr. Newland, he told Mr. Pitt, in convetfation, of hii having heard at the Bank that morning, that the Tieitiurt r of the Navy now kept cafh at MelTrs. Coutts and Company's, and that Navy Bills were paid by drafts on Melfrs. Coutts and Company, infiead of drafts upon the Bank; and that Mr. Pitt thanked him for the information ; that the above was the purport of the communication to Mr. Pitt, though the length of time that had inter vened prevented his being fore as to the terms of it. Mr. Pitt admits the general import of the commu nication, with fume difference only as to the terms of it ; which he does not undertake to recoiled with ac curacy, but fates it in fubfance to have conveyed to him au impreffion that rums were drawn from the Bank, and carried M a private Banking-hour-, larger amount than was fuppofed neceirary ; took an early opportunity of Rating to Lord ville the information given him by Mr. Raikes ; though he cannot Rate precifely what further p it! between himfelf and Lord Melville upon the rubjeil it impreffed him with a belief, that though films wet. drawn from the Bank, and lodged at a private act'. ing•houre,_no fums were fo transferred but fuch were necefrary to carry on the details of the fervice payment to individuals, and that it was difficult to cart v on the vat iouspayments in detail in any other way-- that he did not himfelf particularly advert to the pro vifions of the Aft, nor did it occur to him, th it draw ing from the Bank fuels rums as were neceffiary for carrying on the details of fervice was an illegal prac• tice ; the relying on the opinion of Lord Melville, he made no inveßigation into the necellity of the practice, and was fo far fatisfied with the gencr,.. flatement given to him, that he did not think it ne ceffary to communicate the circumilance to any why of his Majelty's fervants, to make any further ry, or to take any further Reps upon the fubjen, he, Mr. Pitt, had no knowledge or information r t any irregularity in the management of the public mo • ney advanced for Naval Services, except from fuels communication of Mr. Raikes, till he was acquaint ed, after he was out of office, by Lord Harrowby, that he, Lord Harrowby, thought the practice which prevailed in this rerpeCt had been irregular, and was taking Reps to put a flop to it. That he, Mr. Pitt, had no knowledge or reafon to fulped any private profit was made of the Naval Money, or that the bu finefs of the office was fo concluded as to admit of it, till the converfation with Lord Harrowby ; nor had he any knowledge that private profit had in fad been made, nor that any Naval Money, except the 40,0001. had been diverted to purpofes not Naval, previous to the inquiry that took place before the Commitlioners of Naval Inquiry ; and Lord Harrow by, in his evidence before us, Rates, that it did rot immediately appear to him, for the reafons given in his evidence, when be was appointed Treatiarer critic Navy in June 1800, that the practice of drawing mo ney from the Bank into the bands of a private Ban ker, if carried on kw fide for the purport of official convenience, and for thole only, was neceffarily ille gal, or intended to be prohibited by the itet. Upon the lag fubjeet of the Inquiry referred to us, as to the proceedings had for recovery of the debt due to the Crown by the late Adam Jellicoe ; it appears, in the Tenth Report, p. 159, and the evidence in the Appendix to the Report therein referred to, that the property or the late Mr. Adam Jellicoe returned by the Inquifition taken upon the extent ;End in Au rl 1789, had all been fold, and the proceeds car ried to account s long antecedent to the Writ of Privy Seal, dated 31lt May, 1800 t except the pa : tent of Mr. Cori, a farm at Sheffield, a warehoufe and wharf at Gorport. and a meffnage at Portfmouttt Common, all of which remain Rill unfold. It appears alfo, that the fuze of .toqcl. was due to Mr. Adam jellicoe from his Gin Mr. Samuel Jellicoe who in his evidence before the Conuniffioners of Na val Inquiry Rates, that funs to have been advanced to him by his rather upon entering into bufinef , , but it appeared as a debt due from him on his father's books. Au to the parent, it does not feent that any oppor tunity has occurred, though endeavours have been ufed, to mak.. it available rn any profitable purpofe; the farm at Shefbeld has been taken pofleffion of by themortgagee. As to the warehoufe and wharf, which was valued in the Inquifition at toool. it bad been let to Mr. S. rellicoe at the rent cf tool. a year ; on the 23d of September, 179 t, 1501. and on the 21 ft of May, 'Soo, 8751 for ten years and a quarter's rent for the laid wharf and warehoufe, was paid by Mr. Samuel Jet licoe to Mr. Trotter. cn account of the Treafurer of the Navy; and as to the 40001. it appears that SA' *noel Jellicoe, not being able to difeharg; the debt, an agreement was entered into, either between hint and Mr. White, or between him and Mr. Ti otter, that he &meld pay it by infialments of 200 l a year ; ' and that, on the fame 23c1 September, i 79; . and on the fame 2 tit Key, inol. was Mr. Trotter, lot the initalment. that 6ecame duo to the 31ft March, t Soo. As to the mellttage e Portfmonth Common, let at .21. a 1, a:, no rent feerus ever to have been recc.ved from it, nor any proceeding had rela tive to it, fublequent to the extent and inquifition.-- Since the Paid 2111 of May, 1800, no rent : for the wharf and warehoufe, nor any turther inttalments on the 40001 have been paid, nor any meafures adopted for the recovery thereof. Mr. Pitt, who in May, 1800, was Chancellot of the Eieberiner. but who went out of office early in the year enibing, in his examination before us, ttates, that he undeillood fufficient diredicmi had originally been given to the 4olicitor of the Treafury, to take all meafures neceffaty for the purpofe ; and Mr. White, Solicitor to the Treafury. who was employ ed on the occalion in the year 2798, by Mr. Trotter, on behalf of the Treafurer of the Navy, admits that the inftrudions he received were the anftrudions ufu ally given on fimilar occafions, and that tinier thole original inftrudions, without waiting for further or der,. be thought it his duty to proceed, while there were any vifihle effefts from which liopes could be en terta-ned of recovering airy further iums in difcharge of the balance due from Mr. Jeilicoc to the public ; he alfo ttaies that though he had received foch general inftruftions as are before mentioned, r:. thought himfelr charged only with conduding tgs, and that he u ndo flood Mr. Trot:cr taken upon himfelf to examine into the Rate of property of Mr. Janette that was recoverable, ;.: had employed perfonu for that put pole ; au 4. Trotter appears to have canceled loch parts el Inc debts and property of Mr. Adam Jellicoe, as he had an opportunity of obtaining, till Lord Melville had procured the writ of Privy seal; who being thereby indemnified from the charge that flood againft hint on account of Mr. Jellicoe's deficiency, Mr. Trotter no longer confidercd himfelf under the neceffity of ailing in the bufinefs in which he had before acted without any particular authority or obligation ; and Mr. White not having heard of the writ t F P. , vy Seal till after the examination that took place h.tore the Commiinners of Naval Inquiry, and having t e( civet' no dire6ions either from Mr. Trotter or any 'thee perfon fince the year 1792 or 1793, has not from that period taken any peps whatever relative to the fub jet% ; but adds, the rents may be now recovered; and