The National Register.
London, England, 1812-02-16 00:00:00

- Tl} ;NATION AL REGISTF,R7

--FEB. l(

over which Parliament had no controul, out of which was to he paid I
every thing requisite to the splendor, dignity, and power of the esta-
blishment of our Sovereign. Under such circumstances, it was necessary
that the amount should be strictly limited, that the burdens of the people
might riot unnecessarily he increased, or the influence of the Crown un-
tecessarily augmented. In the coureg of nature it could not be hoped the !
period was far distant, when it would be absolutely necessary to ent,er i
fully on the subject of the Civil List, he conceived that the present was
a very fit time for commencing the investigation, and however unequal
he might be In ability to conduct the inquiry, in zeal, assiduity, »ad
perseverance, he would not be exceeded. Mr. Eden said, the objects
of the Committee would be to inquire, what were the expenses of the
Civil List ; what part of them were proper, and what part improper ;
and, from a comparison, to decide what the amount of the expenses
ought to be in future.
Mr. PRItCLVAL thought it would be better for the Committee, in
the first place, to endeavour, from the accounts, cheeks, &c. which
should be laid before them, to supply themselves with the requisite
information ; and, if they found it necessary, on any particular sub-
ject, to have liberty to send for persons, papers, and recer4s, they i
could come to the House for liberty so to do. The practice of the
House was uniformly to restrict Committees in the Crst instance, and
he presumed they would not be disposed to depart from this usage on
the present occasion.
Mr. Coyly'. NAY con!ended, that if the House, in such a matter as
this, granted to the Committee the power of sending for persons, papers,
and records, they delegated to them a power which they h.ui never as-
sumed to themselves. He thought an inquity of this kind ill timed, if
;lot indecent, at this peculiar period. He was against an inquiry, which
iii:ht lead to disgraceful comparisons.
Mr. GILES thought, if there was Any thing disgraceful in the inquiry,
it was in the limited means prop sed to be granted fur carrying it into
etfict. It was admitted, that ever since the year 1801, the Civil List
had been constantly in an arrear of 124,0001. a-year, nut only so, but
that this arrear was to he allowed to continue.
The question for the appointment of a Conunittee was then put and
tarried.ee-Adjourned.

TVESDAY, FEll. 11.
LEEWARD ISI.AND DUTIES.
Mr. CRTF.VEY rose, pursuant to his notice, to make a motion upon
this subject, and he thou ht the present moment a peculiarly tit
cae, when a new agreement was to be made with the Executive Go-
comment, and when, therefore, we ought precisely to know what was
to be granted. With regard to the abuses, he would state that this
flmd had pro:Weed 1,600,0r.01. since his Majesty's accession, and out of
this 400,0001. had been paid for salaries to Governors. if this sum had
been paid, however, to the Governors of Barbadoes and the Leeward
Islands, there might be no reason to complain; hut out of this 400,00'1.
all the Governor; of islands seemed to be paid, even those of Guernsey
and Jersey. For special service :328,0001. had bean taken from that
fund; and 48,0001. for Secretaries to the Treasury. It had also contri-
buted 170,e001. in support of his Majesty's Civil List; and all these sums
had been applied without Parliament knowing any thing about it.—
Numerous pensions, too, had been granted out of this fund, dur-
ing the same period, to the amout of 740,0001. Among others was
39001. to the Earl of Chatham, and 90301. a year, during twenty ye.ars,
to the late Duke of Gloucester. Looking at the way in which it was so
injuriously used, he should move, that a Selecet Calamine*: be sus.
application.
to examine into the nature of this revenue, its amount, and its.
application.
Mr. Loran wished that the Hon. Gentleman had studied the history
of the period he had alluded to with a little more attention. He could
not but express his dissent at going into a Committee to inquire into
the application of this inferior branch of his Majesty's revenue.
Mr. P. Woke said, that the simple question was, did those funds
belong to the Crown, or did they not ? contended that they did not,
and that they were on the same footing as the revenues of the 'Duchy of
Cornwall, and no one would contend that the Crown could grant pen-
sions on the revenues of that Duchy.
Lord FOLKESTONB said, that the only person found on either side of
the House to oppose the motion for a Committee, was the Right
Hon. Gentleman (Mr. Long), who was A pensioner to the amount of
15001.
Mr. LoNo explained.
Mr. CREEVEY shortly replied.
Mr. Perceval admitted that they Ivid been excepted out of the Civil
List of Queen Anne, George I. and George 11. but denied that they
were not therefore lett out of the Royal disposal.
• Mr. WIIITIREAD could not help thinking the Right Hon. Gentle-
man (Mr. Long) a most questionable advocate in support of the pre-
sent mode of disposing of the four and a half per cents. If it was af
abuse of those funds, it was an abuse ' front which that Right Hen.
Gentleman derived 11001. a year. He did not wish to under-rate the
public services of that Gentleman, but he would ask, if there had not
been those four and half per cents. if Parliament would have voted
1.5001. a year to that Right Hon. Gentleman in consideration of thrse
services ? He should vote for going into the Committee. The eallery
Was then cleared for a diviAon.
The iLuie then tn.., melon. 19 against it, 50-

ismessamossowsw.
SERJEAN rAT AtevlS' A-ND eLERK Hh 'll-li. ti. Vin.
Mr. PERCSVAL moved far leave to brim in a Bill tn repeal .lie Act
of the 49th of his present Majeity, reulating the olTh a of t....erk and
Serjeant at Arm of thz, House of C-arnmons, and to e,tablish other
and farther regulatlua,.: in place thereof. For the last. tltt. ty yeari tiro
offices of Serjeant at Arms and Home-keeper had been joined in one,
and certain lees had been received in bath capacities. Ile proposed'
that the two offices should in future be conioliOated, and should not
hereafter be capable of separation. The Assistant Cletlx, too, he pro-
pcsed, should be recornized. The Principal Cleik, the House need
not be informed, often acted•by Deputy, and he intended to• propose,
that when a Deputy was required, the As4stant Clerk should be pro-
moted ; a provision having been tirade for a salary for the Principal
Clerk, oh retiring. lle also proposed that a provisitui should be made
for the Deputy Fterjeaut.
Mr. W. Sett i u arid, the House had never found a Deputy Speaker
necessary, nor did he See the necessity of having duplicates of any kind.
Mr. PiItCILVAI. C:nceivA that nothing could be more necessary than
that there 5h0.i.1,1 be a Serjeaut or Deputy Serjeaut at all times in wait.
lug to obey the call of the Speaker.
Leave was then given to bring in the Pill.
Mr. PErteevAr. immediately brought it up, when it was read a first
time, and ordered to be read a second time on Thursday, and iQ .be
printed._ Adjourned.
••••••••••••

AVEDNESpAY, FFIT. P 2,
MARINE CO it PS.
Mr. tieurcitirlsoN rose to make his motion relative to the Royal
Marine Corps. The Hun. Gentleman's speech, on the occasion,
t Aided
to show, that Marine. Of dil not stand on the same footing, nor
possess equal advan:a.„•es, with any other description of Officers in his
Majesty's service. lir concluded with rnovin for a Copy of the Me-
mort,!ls of Mariqe to the Board of Admiralty, relative to the
state of the M.btine Coups.
Mr. Yony.E rcp!kii to the assertions of Mr. Illitchinson, and e.-;n.
tended, that upon the wltole, the condition 61' the Marines was in no
respcct worse that; of other forces.--The rnotiiin was negatived.
On the motion of :lir SAMUEL, RomiLty, a Committee was appointed
to inquire into the manner in which sentences of Transportation to Bo-
tany Bay had been executed, and what elfectswere produced by that
mode of punishnicnt,—Adjourncd.

THURSDAY, FEB. 13.
AMERICA.
Mr. WittT'JCIRAH, in ri,ing to submit a motion relative to Americas
expressA much regt..-t at swing the House so thinly attended upon an
occasion of so :inch importance to the interests of the country. What-
ever miAt he the 3entimetits of Gentlemen upon sitch a subject, his
wets such its none hot a question of wei;;ltt and magnitude could in-
spire. A war with Anitlica was what ait concurred in deprecating, Lnd
of which all had the no serious apprehensions. The persoas engaged
in the negotiations betwceti the two countries, had individually asserted
that each country wcs actuated by a conciliatory disposition ; neverthe-
less it wag every slay shewn that the breach was more and more widen-
ed, and if they were to teke the speech of the President as any autho-
rity, a war was unavoidable, should Great Britain persiit in the line of
conduct which she had hitherto adopted towards America. "The car-
respondcnce for which he should :novo, and which he knew he was to
be refused, was already known to all who could peruse a new3paper.-..
Every body wa3 in possession ef i.hat correapondenec but the Ilritish
Parliitineitt alone. liow then could the refusal of it be justified. bent
clot upon the ground that the production of the docuMeots would put
the House an.l the pid,lic in possession of any secret. Fle. was not de-
strolls to have at:; et Information upon the ,subject. Fie asked for
tto iinellieence but what the papers printed by order of Congress up.)tt
the pendiog negotiathms between the ) cowl! and sobmitted t
the inspection of the whole world contained. In those papers lie saw
noaty reasons for COlSilling the conduct of this C,Livetriment, tut he
could t'iat he had seen, because that Home, as a I-lonse
of
Common.;) wa; inorant of !inch intelligence as that upon which he bad
formed his opinion. How had America been treated by this Govern,.
ment ? Was nut the cone,uct of Lord Wellesley to that Miuistet
tendon, amounting to ? :'he Hon. Gentleman hi.x..)
stated the varions,occaiiiuns upon which, he said, :Li Mai: ter for Attie..
rica had been treated with neglect by the Secretary for Foreign At:..irs.
Numerous letters written by Mr. Vinkuey to Lord \Vat:illy, altht,nli
of the utmost importance to both countries, remaincd, many of theist}
not answered for a len:th of time, and many of them not answered at
all. The conduct of Mr. Er tine Was .by no means of that conciliating
temper which might l•ave beett expected. That of Mr. Jacitstm., who
*ucceeded him was st%U as to produce an undisguised rupture: and Mr.
Foster then stepped in to act,naust unfortunately and most inauspitinusT
ly for this country. He said that the question now was, whether we
should go to war with America ; and tor the purpose of properly (lite-
cu:sing that question, it was necessary that all the papers of ihe cortei.
pondent c should he officially and technically before the House as docu-
ments to act toi 4n: He confe!scd that ..I,inerica was very popular it
wh
hint; she pad, as far he could see, skewed a spirit qt soncilula laticut
tins couotry had by her measure;; turnished a contrast to. Ci.:nee had
wizi, ii,ja;:lce to 4.mt,rif.:3, Thitabi had anted with