The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1805-03-30 00:00:00

EXTRACTS

FROM Tat
ELEVENTH EFFORT OF THE COMMISSIONERS

OF NAVAL. INQUIRY.

Issue of Navy Bills, for thenuronse of raising Money.
Loss arising from the Mndc of Parvi•ig the Interest on Navy
and Trio ors Bins
Money (tamest by the Nary Board, for Secret Naeal Service'.
Haynie unahuno. d that, Miring the late war, bills to a very
consider ible amount had been iraliert he the Navy Board, for
the purpose of raising money; and this traii.m.tion appearing
to is irregular, we deemed it aht abject fur our enqiiiry. We
at the same time mid,. an inyeutipatmo, M some degree eon-
neCted with the subject, into . practice which had potvaii-d
with the Navy and Trairsii,irt Beard., .4 making the Bills
trailed by them seniority days date, pay .ble un the Seth day
from Ch• dare of the bills, although rinefert fur ninety days was
allowed to the parties
la the roar r of our taloa:es on these subjects, we disco
eared %bar cum haul been advanced by the Navy 8-.0, by wry
of imprest, in musicale* of directions from the Lorrb Coin-
miraioners of the 'fromery, fur the performance of secret naval
services.
The present Report we Pail confine to the corsiirriti•iii of
these runners. in the weer in which they have•been mentioned.
issue of Nary Rill. Air the purpose of raising Money.
Previously ro the adoption of this moraine, the Lords f'oni-
mis,ioners of fin:ore direfted the Navy Board to reuse it
to I t notified to the rime, having ninety-lay Navy Bills then
day., and wishing to hair a renewal of thus same insteid of
reeeiring the aminiiit in . ash, that they might be lareomme-
beef' with new hills bearing the same harvest," which SICOIII-
- was direCted to be mr,tittiv-1 till further notice r but
this tootle not fulls answering the prirons• intended, the ex-
pedient of taising money by the issue of navy bills was m-
ooned to.
This trassralion appears to have arisen front a conversation
botwere the Coorrptroller of the Navy and Mr. George Glenny,
• merchant having large concerns with the victualling depart-
aura, upon the difficulties which were occasionally experienced
by delays ito the issues of money from the Exchequer for the
serri,e of the ha,y. In that crriversation Mr Glenny corm
siunic.-tra! the mariner in which he had procured money on the

, .
victualling Mils, made con to him in payment under his con-
trails, through the agency of Messrs litoldamids. This pro-
duced an inter itw the nest day between the Comptroller of
the Navy, Messrs. Cold...nuts. and Mr Glenny, and the plan
of drawing navy hills, foe the rewrite of raising money, was
ihelellpeticoncetted.
The first set at these bills /of one hundred thousand pounds
was drawn nit the 211 d of Gaoler, 1001, payable to Mr COOS.
wall Smalley ; hut he disapproving of his name being made
use of, these halts were destroyed, and others for the same
amount weed ale ent en the name d Mr. George Gleamy. It
was aftcrwasde thought right to make such hills payable to
Dothattimpa end Glenn!, the firm of the house to
libido Mr. Glennybehanged.
The total amount of these bilk, issued between the 24th of
Ofrubet 1600 acid the :41, of May 1602, when the tweak* of
drawing such hilts was discontinued, was four millions there
hundred thousaudpountiv, besidcs ninety days intereit, which
was added to give them the semblanee of reviler hills.
There was however, this e seinial difference between them;
Use regidarbdis stated tier pinucular kind of stores, or services,
for which they were tit payment; these Mlle expressed
Mlle that they were fur 4. Sundry Naval Services."
Not being aware ne any power in the Navy Board to draw
bills of this destripeinn Ile the purpose above-mentioned, we
enught informatamt from the Comptroller of the Navy Oil the
bUttietip but he declined to answer the questitite put to hien,
under that clause ot the Act of Parlianient by which we are op•
pointed, which pmvides, that no person shall be obliged to
answer say questioh which may tend to criminate hint, Or ex-
pia him to pains or .eferring us for the authority
tinder which he and the Nave Beard had acted, to Hi. Mates
ey"s ()Merin Counted iii June 1796, for regidatitig thy &nits of
the several Members . the Navy Board, and to the patent by
which the, are appointed.
From these documents no sorb authority is derived, nor du
We conceive the lase Bo rid ra.i, without the expires autho-
rity of Parliament, ',site hilts to raise money to be applied to
the service of the navy, rer any other service.
It is not meant, by the observations which our duty requires us
to make oo this transaftion, to intimate, that it was midei taken
with any inditeA view, or to. barge any abuse its the execution
of the plan, alter it was resolved upon; it is the measure itself
which w e hate to notice.
It is proper likewise to slate, that three hills were issued
under the dirorlions of the Loris Commission em of the Tr..a
sort., signified at the time of tilt issuer tiv le.ters from their
Serrliary in the Navy Board, which were inel,.s d confident-
ially to the Comptroller, and the pro lace of the balls was paid
to toe 'Peeasurer of the Wirt,; the ietteis entered in the Ap-
pendix spew hose this business was come oft ed
We eliqutred whether the difficulties iii nbtaining money far
the service of the Navy, stated to hare existed in the year.
1400, 1101, and 1402, arose from any unusual deficiencies in
the Navy estimates for those years; the Comptroller could not
speak Mthe estimates, hut informed us, that the &reunites
which led to the adoption of this plan were owing to a defi.
cleaty of money in the Treasury, and sometimes to the Nasal
supplies being exhausted, which he believed to have been the
cam in October tson The Paymaster of the Nary stated the
general oruir.ence of official difficulties in applieatimie for
motley, and that such difficulties might have occurred at the
period when these bills were hailed; although he did not
teeollect any correspondence of the Treasurer of the Navy with
the Treasury or Navy Board, which led or 'elated Sothic issue o.
these bills.
It was certainly proper that the public credit should be sup-
ported, but we cannot admit that this measure was indispen-
sably nemmary foe that purpose; nor can we allow the validity
of the reason given per it by the comptroller, namely, that no
funds were exclusively set Apart for the payment of ninety-lay
bills, the amount being uncertain; at is in the news of the
thing that an estimate should he uncertain. All the supplies
for thee navy are annually voted by Parliament on climate, and
the amount paid by ninety-day bills, forming no ineonaidera-
ble part of the navy expenditure, must, of course, be Inchnied
in the general provision for navy services.
We were led by the examination tat the comptroller and chief

clerk an the office. for bills and account, to am. aline that the

advantage which might accrue by the interest on the bills, frum
the time of their date to the time of their being negociared,
was to Le the remuneration to the brokers for their trouble;
but, by an account afterwards laid before us, we found that
thew had made the usual charge of onelaighth per cent. com-
mission, and had given credit ro Government for the in•
terest on the dads el-peed before the bills were negeciated.
The amount of Moors. Goldsmiste commisairm on the nego-
c iat ion of these bias was five thousand three hundred and seven-
ty-five pounds.
" 1. Goldsmids' account, it appeared, in
had not given credit to the public for
proisme of the hills, at the time of
tliis is stated by Mess-s. Goldamids to
~asitig advanced ti%e money before the
I.
not be discovered from any thing
We are of opinion, that all
ac-
, boards should be made out with
j be necessary to a clear exhibit of
ready facilities the ersamirsatieti of the

Onrst entry,ein that
lnat theyei
Golf
the ihadad i
'; the full amount the pm4u
aeglctlting them. But tine.
have wisen front their '.aviiii
bills were act =may n•gociated.
Thi+ c.rcurtstsno, coutd n
en the face of the account.
counts rtn.iererl to the pohltC
such particolivAies ray b
each item, which will greedy
accounts.