The Sun.
London, England, 1806-05-17 00:00:00

BARRACK DEPARTMENT.

Mr. ROBSON rose, agreeably to notice, to move
for ..certain Papers relative, to. the Barrack Depart
ment. About five years ago he had called the at-
tention of the House to this Department. He had
then taken the opinion of the House on the subjeets'
.:s•tibrnitted by him 3 but no notice was taken of Ibis'
suggestions, and even of his earnest remonstrances.
If they had, the Nation 'woUld now have • been'
saved the disgraceful sight which the Papers on the
Table exhibited. Of late years the expences inthis
Department had increased in a very rapid degree, add,
for • the last year, amounted to 1,700,0001. The extent
of this expence was a subject well deserving of consi
derationi and, in his opinion,' was . paramount to
any other duty he had to, perform. It was nor his
wish to go into any detail. He did not suppose there'
Was any.disposition to withhold from him the Pipers
he vyished to , have produced; if there I..iottld be
any such disposition, he would . beg to be heard in
.reply.' He then moved for a List of Barns taken,
and'employed as Barracks, in Sundown Bay, Isle of
Wight, specifying the sums paid 'for the same, and
the rate of such payment; from • the time 'at which
the same were taken, until the 25th of Dec: 1805,
inclusive. _ ,

Mr. JAMES MARTIN seconded the Motion.

• Lord HEATRYPE7TY declared that he had no
intention to ob'je& to the Motion. He begged, how-
ever; to recall to the recolleaion of the Hon:Gentle-
Man and of the House, that a Military-Cortimiss;ion
was in existence, to whose investigation any. subje&
Of this kind more properlytelonged; and, be sub-
mitted if their Report was not the proper mode of
getting at the conclusion, not by any inSulated'faa
which the Papers to be moved for might tend to
produce. ~ • .
Mr. ROBSON said,- if -he had not knpwn the
contrary; he should have-thought it was tlae ghost -of -
the deceaSed Minier which now addressed
These were the very_ words ,used by hirn.on is' former
occasion. Believing as :he 'that the question.
should be sifted. 'to the bottom, he., should proceed.
The Report of the Military' Commission had lain
On the Table.• for six weeks without any notice
being taken, :of it- by any Mefriber of: the' House.
Of course, he-was called onin duty to go on. Should
it be told him, that he had not right to iniluiro.
into the. Public Expenditure; boause there was a
Committee sitting ? What was he but one-of the
Guardians of •the Public Purse ? and 'he not in-
titled-to see, independently of any Committee, that
its affairs were properly managed ? He recolleeled
that four or five years ago he had obje&ed to giving
-money to Gen: De Lancey. ' Then the same -answ&
'was made to -him-4 Oh, Do not interfere, you'
•Eave nothing, to say in the matter ; there is a Com -
mittee appointed,to investigate Military Affairs, and
to their determination must you leave it." His ob-
je6,t in making. his present Motion 3,vas, to point out.
where,the evil existed, and to take care that no such
practice should prevail in future.

Lord HENRY PETTY stated, that he' had 'al-
ready said he 'had no obje6tion to the Motion.—
beg'6;red, however, 'that it should be recollected
by the House, that he had given "notice of a Mo-
tion relative to the Report of the Military Commis-
sioners, the very first opportunity; before it had been
laid before the House.

'' The Motion. was then agreed to. • -
Mr. RoßsoN then moved for a Copy of a Letter
to the late Secretary at War from alb Barrack-
Master at Sandown;• in the Isle of Wight, datcd the
29th Of December, 1805; relative to the -Building
Barracks at Brady. •
Mr. PERCIVAL submitted, whethCr any question
of this kind, or any abuse; if such were charged to
exist in the building 'of such Bi=:rracks, might not,
With greater propriety, be referred to the Committee
appointed to examine into Military Affairs?.
Mr. RoßsoN thought he was entitled to the
Thanks of the House, if he could bring any mai,
administration of the Funds of the Country, before
the House. He -was probithly informing certain
Gentlemen of what
.they knew already. In
.again
urging. .the propriety-of the question, Mr. Robson
described the Letter.to be onefrom the Secretary
at War, not to him ; and persevered. in this state-
ment,
. .

The .SPEAKER informed him it was differently ex-
pressed in the' written Motion.
Mr. ROBSON then said it was as expressed in the
Paper.
This created 'a 'considerable degree of laughter in
the House.

Mr. PAULL remarked on the levity of proceeding
in that manner, when the Question before the House
.was an Inquiry into a profuse Expenditure of she
Public Money.
Lord HENRY PETTY asked, How, it could be, said•..
that the House acted with levity in seeming dis-
inclined to countenance a :','.)lion, of the nature of
which the Mover. seemed so -completely 'ignorant ?
:He was convinced the House would never be de-
terred by aufside-.view refiekaions of the kind from
discountenancing such Motions ; and be hoped the
Hon. Gentleman would reserve all expressions simi-
lar to that which' had now fallen .from Ern, till the•
condua of the House should a little better warrant.
him.in using them.
Afterra few observations from Mr. RosE, Mr. W.
SMITtI, and Mr. ADDINGTON,
Mr: CALcr„iier said; that from the uncertain state
in which .the Hon. Member stood as 'to what he
wished,.. be found himself warranted in moving
.the
previous Question.
• Mr. ROBSON declared, that if he did pot think the
House competent to interfere in such a business, he
would resign his scat. What relief could any per-
suffering under injustice,.have, if a Member of
Parliarbent durst not state his case.? And what would
the world.think.when they saw Gentlitnen on the
Treasury Ilencli couptenance the idea, Olaf Po in-

vestigaticin into money transnaio3s of tile Co•.:ntry
lay with. that House ? ,
Lord HENRY Pl:l'l'Y did 'not deny the.power of
the House to enter tratO any inquiry cf the kind.
All he contended for was, that having once dele-
gated their power, they could not properly again
proceed without shewing some reason or ground Ibr
the inquiry.
Mr. MARTIN found himself called onto stand up
in defence•of a Gentleman :who wished. to see jus-
tice done to the Public and the Country. .

:The Question was then put, and negatived with-
out a division.

Mr. ROBSON , again stood up to move for a Copy
of Proposals from the Barrack-Master of Sandown
Bay to .the Secretary at War, on the part of Mt.'
James Day, of Brady, relative to the building of,
Barracks there. The :Previous doestion he re,
garded as a poor way of 'getting quit of a subject of
,such importance ; and he begged it to be remarked,
thakthis•was the way in which it was attempted to
get the better of the Tenth Report, which, but for
him, would never have made its appearance, ~but .
which had since occupied the attention of. that ;•
House, and of the . world ; and such was-also -tire
way in which his Motion on the 10. los, Bill was
• got the better of.
After some, farther, conversation,. the Previous
,ClUestion was also moved on this ,Motion, and on .
the other Motions Whieh the Honourable Member
had to propose ; ;all of whiCh'lyere negatived with•
rout divisions. 1 •