Star.
London, England, 1819-03-06 00:00:00

CONIMITTEE OF SUPPLY.

The House then went into a Committee of Supply
to which the. Miscellaneous Estimates were referred.
. _

Mr. ARBUTHNOT proposed the following Reso-
luti)ns, explaining that the whole sum for Civil Con-
tingencies required for the present year, would be
about £50,000 less than last year.
£79,1.50 to pay certain charges not defrayed out of the Civil
List.

X 7.00,000 for Civil List Contingencies.
a 18,449 to make good the deficiencies of Pee Fund, in the
Office.; of the three Secretaries of State, the Treasury, and the
Privy Council.
Sir H. YARNELL wished the vote to be post-
poned until further inquiry could be made.
Mr. ARBUTHNOT did not think that any fur-
ther information could, be furnished.
Sir H. PARNELL' added, that further papers
ought to be produced regarding the accumulation
of this fund.

The CHANCELLOR of the EXOHEQUER said,
that an increaie had been occasioned by,the addition
of a part of the Irish Treasury to that of England ;
hnt he had no objection to produce the Estimates.
Upon the whole the reduction was considerable.
Sir H. PARNELL then gave notice that he should
move for the papers. •
Mr. Aldermen WOOD thought that the least.the
House could expect was, that the accounts should be
produced before the money was voted.
Mr. CALCRAFT said, that there was a sum of

nearly £600,000 requiring explanation. It was the
duty of the House to postpone the vote until the
claim had been duly examined.
The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER re-
plied, that the sum was to make good the deficien-
cies of the last year.
Mr. CALCRAFT rejoined, that if the money had
been improvidently spent, it was still more the duty
of the House to inquire--(Hear, hear.)
Mr. BARNETT said, that he should feel bound
to resist the vote until information was given on the
subject—(hear, tear).
Mr. C. HUTCHINSON was sure that Ministers
were too much alive to the distressed situation of the
country not to withdraw the vote until grounds had
been shewn for giving the money required: no less
than £20,000 had been expended f..n- snuff-boxes to
foreign Ministers.
Mr. AR BUTIINOT did not wish to press the vote
against the sense of.the House, and would withdraw
it accordingly: he was ready to give all the details
as to whom the snuff-boxes were presented, and al-o
on what accounts.--The Re%olution was• then with-
drawn, as well as a further vote for £90,000, for
the same purpose.
Lord CARHAMPTON begged that he might be
informed whether any snuff had been charged for,
to give with the boxes ?—(Laughter).
Mr. ARBUTHNOT then moved, that a sum not
exceeding £73,000 be granted to his Blajesty, for de-
fraying miscellaneous contingencies and expenses of
messengers ; also £6,500 for the payment of'the sala-
ries and compensations to be made to the Officers
appointed for the receipts of his Majesty's Exchequer,
for the year 1819.
The Motions were agreed to, and the Reports or-
dered to be received on Monday next.
The following grants were then moved for and
agreed to, viz. 4:14,516 for the expenses of the Houses
of Lords and Commons for 1819 ; 1:22,400 for the
salaries of the Officers of both those Houses for the
same year ; and 1:922 ts. Id. to make good the de.;
ficiency of the grant of last Session, for 'the same
purpose; £31,974 for the expenses of public works
and buildings for the current year. • .
Mr. BENNET observed among the items of this
Estimate, a charge of £2116, for repairs of the Kink's
Bench Prison. If he mistook not, a large proportion
of twit sum ought to be otherwise liquidated,. The'
enormous fees received by the Marshal and other,'
Officers of that Prison, might surely be applied, in
part, to defraying some of" the repairs necessary far
that fabric.
Mr. ARBUTHNOT begged leave to remind the
Honourable Gentleman, that these sums had not been
already expended, but were estimate of the probable'
expenses only, made out by'r ce to former years.
The Board of Works_ hadits, otlisiii!itenlit to go by
in preparing dem, Shim OtakOtpit ofte amount.

in antecedent periods. And he could assure Lis /ion.
Friend, that as•to this particular sum of £2116, it
was no more than an average estimate of what might
be necessary. On the other hand, it was very pro-
bable that not a single shilling might be required for
this purpose. •
Sir HENRY PARNELL said, that he knew of
no better principle upon which to prepare these esti-
mates, where expenses could not be exactly and mi-
nutely foreseen, than to take their average on former

years.
Mr. WILLIAMS wished to ask a question of the
Right lion. Gentleman opposite (Mr. Arbuthnot) re-
specting an item of £lO,OOO, the estimated epenses
of his Alajesty's ,Mint for the current, year. He
wished to know whether this related to any addi-
tional new building ?
Mr. ARBUTHNOT could assure the Honourable
Gentleman that that item had no such reference. He,
had sent for a particular Gentleman attached to the
Board of Works, in order that it might be e..plained.
It was well known to the Honourable Member, that
' the Mint seas a very large buildinE, and however
trivial it might erri as a part of so large a sum, yes
it was necessary to observe, that it was this year in-
tended to paint the Mint throughout, which would
be a very considerable expense. It had been deemed
advisable also to repave it. Still possibly the esti-
mate might be too large; but the House would ob-
serve, that it by no means necessarily followed that
the sum would he expended.