Star.
London, England, 1823-02-20 00:00:00

dotillioseholders of 'Sou‘Stritt..
„„InotLotoii:j*aive takation, isca)sl6,ned by lane
paid itlinistry, and an elitearve Att of *Mail
peusions.und sinecures. it prayed ,for tile'
theleptelinial 13111, for the ;repeal` of 'the Assesiel.l
Tales,' and that the House would pass a Bill to re-
form itself,,that it might truly represent the People.
Sir ROBERT WILSON' said, that if a Petitia
deserved attention in proportion to the respectability
and temper of the Meeting at which it was resolved
upon, this would claim the highest attention of
.the
House. Every branch of the pilblic intertif mtist
suffer unless taxation were consideribly ditniriiShO
and in order to this being done "effectually, the !lett-
tioners thought, and he 'thought with them, that 'a
Reform of the Pailiament Was netessAry. The de
mands of the Petitioners were not made from agf
temporary or local excitement, but after due adif
ternperate consideration.
The Petition was then brought up and read.
Mr. C. CALVERT was perfectly aware that the
usual course would be that the Petition be ordered
talk on the table, and then that no fuaher notice
be taken of it. He should, thereforec in discharge of
hi* duty, have moved that the subject of the Petition;
be referred to a Committee of the whole House; but
that he was aware he should, bydoink so, open the
*hole question of Parliamentary rierotm. With this
opinion, he conceived it would be'beitei for hint to!
leave the subject in better and able's. Minds than his
own; and he should wait until a Noble Ltied (Lord
J. Russell) should bring forward his promised Mo-'
tion on that subject.
The Petition was then ordered to lie on the table,
and be printed.

I DISOLVINT ACT.
Mr. HE ATHCOTE presented a.Pitition from the
tradesmen and inhabitants of SOiton, praying for a
total repeal of the Insolvent Act.
, Lord ALTIIORP observed, that mdch complaint
had been mare against the priniiple of the Insolvent
Act, founded upon certain returns, by which it ap-
peared that the debtors who had availed themselves
of the Act had not paid three farthings in the pound.
He found that these returns were made under the
old Act of 1819; and the evil, therefore, to its full
extent was not fairly attributable to the present Act.
It was also to be remarked, that a debtor was fre-
quently under the necessity of inserting in his schedule,
some of his debts three or four times over, to meet
the possible claims of different individuals, arising
out of the same transaction. This, in many cases,
swelled the nominal amount of the debts, and affected
the dividend which had been calculated upon them.
Mr. HEATHCOTE, in explanation, stated that the
Petitioners distinctly referred to debts amounting
to eleven millions, the dividends upon which had
amounted to only 60,0001.
The Petition was read and ordered to lie on the table.
Lord A. HAMILTON moved for certain Bettina connected
with the Elections for Scotch Burghs.—Ordered.

POSTMASTERS GENERAL.

Lord NORM ANBY wished to ask his Majesty's
Ministers what steps had been taken in consequence
of the Resolutions of the House last Session, for the
abolition of the office of one of the Postmasters-Ge-
neral ? He understood, that although the salary of
the office in question was taken away, no alteration
had been made in the construction of the office. If
this were the case, it appeared that a Public Officer
was allowed by-Ministers to go without that remu-
neration they considered him entitled to, or that a re-
fie:ion had been thrown on the vote of that house.

Mr, Secretary PEEL said, he could only answer,
that in consequence of the Resolution of the House,
no salary had been paid for the performance of the
duties attached to the office in question.
Lord NORM ANBY said, this was precisely what
he had alluded to. He thought this arrangement
pointed somewhat invidiously at the Resolution which
had been come to by the House.
BOARD OF ORDNANCE. _ _ _

Mr. HUME said he had no doubt the subject he
was about to introduce to the notice of the House
would be found to be one deserving of the most se-
rious attention. He had, in the outset, to observe
that the Commission of Military Inquiry, the Reports
of which were before the House, had been appointed
in consequence of the 45th of George 111. cap. 27, for
inquiring into and correcting abuses of the military
department of the public service. This being a Board
of Inquiry appointed by Parliament, he conceived
OM it was entitled to greater attention than any other
stiblitirtient Board, not so appointed, should that be
Mentioned in the course of the present ditcussion.—
The Board was well formed ; it was composed of the
late General Oakes, General Drinkwater, Mr. Giles
Templeman, and other respectable persons in civil
and military offices. It had made several Reports,
particularly with-regard to the Ordnance, to which
he, for the, present, intended to confine himself. The
Board of Ordnance was originally constituted-in the
reign of Charles If. and the Cominissioners in ques-
tion had made seven Reports upon a system of mis-
management growing out of this appointment. That
system had now been put an end to ; but the Report
to which he now begged the attention of -the House
was the thirteenth. The Commissioners, in the com-
mencement of their Report, stated as an apology for
its delay, that they had been anxious to collect every
information, and to make the most minute inquiries
touching the subject upon which it treated; so that
the House might be satisfied that this Report had
been prepared with every possible 'attention, and with
a complete knowledge by its authors of all the neces-
sary facts.- They first stated the formation of the
Board of Ordnance, which consisted of a' Master-
General, a Lieutenant-General, a Surveyor-General,
a Clerk, a Storekeeper, and a Clerk of Deliveries; in
all six persons. To these different offices various
duties were attached, and Certain salaries were an.;
nexed to the performance of them. Of the duties he
should speak afterwards ; but, as to the salaries; they
had been considered by the Commissioners to have
been too much increased. That of Master-General
had been increased from 1,5001. to 9,2851. that of
Lieutenant-General from 1,100/. to 1,5911. that of
Surveyor-General from 8001. to 1,2611. that of. Clerk
frOm 6001. to 1;1401. thit of Stiwekeer from 5001.
t 051,5201. and that Of Clerk of the Deliveries froin
5001. to 1,0451. The Consinlssioners had proceeded
to elan-line several individuals' as to the duties at-
taehed to these Some, it appeared, were no
lonier•Oerfnimed,Und • it %run -Oestion with the
Commissioners whether th i ought to be suffered/ he
question applied particularly to .the Surveyor and;