The Express.
London, England, 1848-12-20 00:00:00

tney have but recently moved nes a new set of offices
provided for them attheTressuy. How is this consistent
with the promise of Mr. Basin, put forth towards the
latter Gado/ the parliamentary mesh" that the report of
the commireion would be ready in about five weeks?
That gentleman is likely to butane famous for his
rash emotions. The two-shilling piece was ready, 11
according to him, a year and a half eipal
when the engraver, absorbed with private be&
ness, had not touched the die. The Penlasaler
medals, too, were ready long siooe, though sat •
single officer has yet received one. They seem is
manage matters quicker, if not better, in Austria, ef
which we reed that, "au the 611, a distribution of
medals took place at the head quarters of Priam
Wits DISCIICIHATZ, at Behonbrunn, to those soldiers
who had distinguished themselves in the siege of
Vienne." We may presume toe mind of the Vienna
engraver was not distracted by private and pecuniary
interests. What is singular enough, though the
public have been waiting long and impatiently for this
now coin, the engraver of the Mint has, in the mean-
time, been distributing specimen pieces amongst his
friends, and siding them to others at a very great profit.
We were told, that the name of the coin had not
been agreed upon, which was assigned as a reason for
the delay; but in the piece we have seen, the word
"florin" is stamped upon it legibly enough. We
may ask, has the engraver authority to issue these
coins on his own account ? Han he the uncontrolled
privilege of a private press? If so. we apprehend
it is a very dangerous power to entrust to any man,
as it is quite contrary to the cautious restrictions of
the Mint indenture. We have no suspicion whatever
that the present talented gentleman who holds that
office would abuse that trust; but, as a security to the
public, the indenture very wisely places no trust ur
confidence in man, or even princes, permitting no
work to be done in relation to the coinage of the
country, without abundant checks against fraud and
collusion. This salutary injunction is, we are
a dare, constantly deviated from in the Mint by
reason of the helplessness of the local board
(some of whom are parties interested in abuses)
and the total inefficiency of the officers of control.
The die department, which properly has the custody
of the dies and the commit of the presses, has de-
generated into a kind of sinecure, the proper officer
attending on the average about once a week, and
thus the engravers by degrees have obtained a
monopoly and free use of machinery and labour.
On the other hand, it is enjoined that the
moneyers shall coin no money without the
presence of a check, called in the Mint report,
" the surveyor of the money presses ; " but we
have ascertained that this proper regulation is not
strictly enforced, as it shoulA be, so that the moneyers,
if so disposed, might fraudulently coin base money,—
a possibility sgainat which the rule was evidently en-
acted. It is true the present officers may be men of
the utmost integrity ; but that is no palliation of a
breach of a necessary regulation, drawn up to com-
prehend all possible cases.
The appointment of the Mint commission was, in
the words of the instrument, designed to discharge a
two-fold duty—namely, to reduce expenditure if pos-
sible ; and to enforce a satisfactory discharge of the
public service. This could only be effected by a rigid
inquiry into every branch of expenditure, as
authorised by the Treasury at the instance of the beard,
and into the several duties of each department, or
distinct officer, as the case may be, with the view of
ascertaining the competency of each officer, and in
what manner his duties have been discharged in times
past. Nothing can be easier than such a routine
business., because we presume the business of each is
sufficiently defined. 'lle constitution, proper func-
tions, and the efficiency of the Mint board, as a local ,
body, to carry out the indenture to the letter, are 1
points, too, of considerable importance, not to be
overlooked. And we think, too, that parties who
may have performed meritorious services might be
encouraged either by promotion or otherwise, while
those who may have been found wanting or incompe-
tent by habit or education should be removed.
Now to these points of necessary inquiry we be.
lievo the commission have paid little, if any, atten-
tion. We have taken some pains to acquire informa-
tion, and we can confidently assert that abuses are
allowed to go on which have not come under the
cognisance of the commissioners. Some of these
facts, elicited from an authority on which we place
implicit reliance, we shall hold back till we see
by the forthcoming report to what actual extent
the inquiry has been carried; but in the meantime,
we may, by way of illustration, refer to one which, if
not vouched for, would seem incredible. We have in
former articles asserted that parties in the Mint were by
sufferance or usage, allowed by the board to use
public materials, labour, and machinery in the pro-
motion of private work, entailing thereby great ex-
pense on the public. This is evidently a privilege
extremely liberal and accommodating. But will it
be believed that with the knowledge or connivance
of the board, officers of control, and other parties
concerned, the refiner, receiving bullion from the
public to refine for the coinage, is allowed to
sell it in the msrket as his own silver in
order to obtain possession of so much capital
wherewith to carry on his private r,-coileit'ons ? The
amount in value is very considerable, sometimes as
much as 20,0001., which paying no interest, as we
may assume, enables him to carry on his private work
to very great advantage. Bat it is not the amount,
but the principle, we condemn; and after such a fact
coming to light, who will accuse us of injustice to-
wards the officers who can tolerate day by day and
month by month so undeniable a breach of the Mint
indenture? We do not see how any of them can
exonerate themselves from the charge of a gross dere-
liction of public duty. Nor can they plead iriorance;
for we are assured the fact is notorious to
every one in the Mint. Now this is an
abuse the commissioners should have inquired into,
and immediately abolished; but we have strong rea-
sons for believing that they have, in their cursory,
superficial, and imperfect inquiry, wholly overlooked
it, while the supreme.° reri was not likely to produce
it without asking.
Our correspondent is quite correct with regard to
the " foreign engraver," who hisnot yet finished
the Waterloo medal, because the Mint authorities
were simple enough to pay bim for it above twenty
years ago; who has a hou a in the Mint to the ex-
clusion of others, ,to whom such a thing might be an
advantage ; who receiveshis full salary, and
does nothing for it ; as a reward for holding a
situation without duty. Bar his non-residence is not
an exception. Though the officers of the Mint gene-
rally are provided with handsome houses, few, if any,
reside there • and, we understand, not one board
officer ; so thin, in cue of fire or any other casualty,
we do not know to whom the public property would
look for protection. It might naturally be asked,
why those, paid too well to reside, should not
relinquish their privilege in favour of the
" working men " or industrious bees, to whom
a residence might be an object in more
respects than one. In reply we may safely say that all
men become selfish as they are pampered, just within,
become avaricious in proportion to their wealth. This
question of residence is one, too, which is not un-
worthy of the attention of royal commissioners se-
lected to do something. Why should a man uncon-
nected with the Mint, and permanently residing
away. from it, have a house appropriated to him ?
This is one of the strange inconsistencies of that sin-
gular and anomalous establishment. Why should not
the house be given to some cone whocan make a beneficial
=sof it? But,in truth, it is not the characteristic of those
holding high offices and enjoying fat livings in the
state to care about the underlings who, nine times
out of ten, do all their muter.' work and receive
scarcely thanks for it. Pure, griziding selfishness
everywhere prevails. The public is the great cow
from whose uptowns udders all draw sustenance ;
but the great drink the cream, and dole out the skim
milk to unhappy and famishing clerks. As an
illustration of this, me the report on the miscella-
neous expenses, where the assistant secretary to
the Treasury, enjoying his fat 2,6001. a year, recom-
mends, as a measure of public policy, that all clerks
should be paid at the rate of 1001. a year,
end no more, and that they should have their eonyi
without fee or pension whensoever they might break
down or utter a word of dissatisfaction. So much fur
the kindliness or public officials!
A great and mighty cry is raised about the enor-
mous expenses of public offices ; official men in and
out of parliament knit their brows and look thunder ;
the well-paid look grave • poor clerks tremble on
their seats—sad what is tlie certain end of this hypo-
critical P Poor clerk. are out down, ' and
mewed, weak and unresisting : the great
escape and are flattered. As Elwin says of the law,
it is a sort of net in which small flies are caught, but
greet ones break through. The result of all commie.