The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1859-07-22

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tended, lie observed, to GUST the House of
| Commons of it's jurisdiction over form
Of public expenditure. He pointed out the evils
which might arise unless the House took serious
cognizanee of the subject, and he thought the time
had come when the matter should be subjected to a
| systematic and searching examination.
Mr.. II. HERBERT objected to the words "by sea-"
substituted for beyond the limits of the United
| Kingdom" as the motion originally stood in
the notice, which he thought sufficiently compre-
| hensive.
| contract for the conveyance Of mails between Gal.
! way and the United States. The contract was, he
thought he might say, the occasion of the motion for
the committee now proposed; and, without attempt
ing to PREJUDICE the question, he must say judging
from the papers that lay on the table of the House.
that more hasty, reckless and ill considered waste
ofpubic money had never taken place than in the
case of that contract He did net see that the
| terms of the reference made by the Chancellor of
| tae Exchequer would enable the committee to 90
into that particular CASE for be considered that no
actual contract had been entered into with the COM
pany, but that merely the basis Of contract had
| been agreed to. If this were so, he should move
| an amendment which would include the basis of o
contract in the matter referred to the committee.
in the case to which the right honorable gentleman
| referred.
Mr.. BouvERrE-Then the case would, of course,
come before the committee. Besides having en-
tered into most reckless and ill-considered con-
tract, the late government had been guilty of con-
duct towards powerful company in Liverpool
which no gentleman would be guilty Of in the
transaction of his private affairs. The late Secre-
tary for the Treasury had expressed his plea
sure at the manner in which the Chancellor
or the EXchequer proposed to deal with the
subject He (Mr. Bonvere) did not wonder at it,
because by the proposed arrangement the Galway
contract would be CLOSED over. The company which
had the line of packets between Galway and the
United States applied some months ago for q con-
tract for the carriage of the mails from Ireland to
Newfoundland, and so on to Boston and New York.
The government here agreed to go shares with the
government of Newfoundland in a subsidy to the
company. By a minute dated on the 9Th Of Octo.
ber the Treasury authorized advance of "a 500,
in addition to the sum which had hitherto been
paid for the conveyance Of the mails to NewfOund-
land. In the same month Lord Bury, one Of the d.
rectors of the company, went out to Newfound-
land, and on the Esd OF October his lordship got q
contract from the Governor. The home govern
ment had veto on that contract, and they agreed
to subsidy to the company for year. 1t appear
ed that the Liverpool company got wind of some Of
those proceedings for on the 18th of October they
wrote to the government to say that they had
hitherto conducted an independent communica-
tion-that was, one for which they received no sub
sidy, nothing but the usual sum paid for ocean
postage-and that they wished for an opportunity
Of rendering for the conveyance of the mails to
Newfoundland. The Lords of the Treasury replied
that when any postal service was required it was
the practice of their lordshps to invite tenders by
advertisement. Now, that reply was given after
the government here had parted with the power Of
taking any such proceeding. SHear2 In the
offering to contract for the mails from Galway to
New York for sum of f3 900 voyage which, on
fortnightv service, would amount to about
100000 year. What did the Treasury do on re.
ceipt of that offer? They very properly referred
the matter to the Post Office by minute Of the 18th
January. Early in February the Postmaster Gene
raj made his report; and it was matter of astonish
ment to him (Mr. Bouverie) how, after receiving
that report of the Postmaster General, condemning
as it did in the strongest manner the contract and
stating with great ability the objections to THE
oh Iau
! state that they were prepared to enter into that
| contract, The late Secretary of the Treasury had
stated that the recommendation made by the com
mittee which sat six years ago was discretionary
| one and had not been acted on by the govern
ments that had preceded the late administration
But could the late government show that it was for
the interest of the public that they should, in the
| Galway case, depart from the recommendation of
the Postmaster General? He now came to matter
which he could not understand. On the 22d of
February. the very day on which the Lords of the
| Treasury had assepted to the proposal of the COM
| pany, a question on the subject was asked of the
Earl of Derby, in the House of Lords by Lord Stan
! ley of Aderley, and the noble Earl was represented
| by Hansard to have sad:-"H could not state that
her Majestys government had actually entered into
! any such contract; but the Lords of the Treasury
had determined on entering into negotiations with
the Atlantic Company for the conveyance OF
mail once fortnight between the port of Galway
and North America upon the general terms which
had been proposed by that company. The Lords of
the Treasury would Of course, however, reserve to
themselves the power, tne nrSt place, OF aSCer
tanning the entire solvency of the company and
secondly, that of insisting on such conditions as
would enable them to secure the performance Of
the service in the adequate manner in which it was
performed by the Cunard steamers.
Mr.. ELLICE wished to draw attention to the in
jury done to the provinces of Canada by this con-
tract. The Canadian government had granted
large subsidy for the purpose of completing com.
munication that now existed once a week with
| Liverpool, and from personal experience he was
able to say that no better communication, not ex-
sseptng even nth the Cunard line could possibly
! smallest cost to the country, and this being
the case, he thought the Treasury might
i devise some means of following so good
an example. He considered that Sir Samuel
Cunard entitled to the thanks of the country for
the services he had performed. and that therefore
| he was entitled to have his contract extended; but
before this was done it ought to be ascertained
| whether the service could not be performed in
! more economical manner (Hear, hear.) He thought
it rather strange that the Treasury should, as he
called it, squander the public money in the way
they had done in this matter He believed the time
| had come when the correspondence out to be made
to pay its own expenses, but whether favor should
be shown to Sir Samuel Cunard or not, he thought
that while there existed efficient means of CON
Quoting correspondence with America, paying
! f72,OOO year for new contract was throwing
| away public money. He begged the house to be
jealous OF the two quarters from which this propo
sition for committee emanated aud especially to
inquire into the merits of the Galway contract, to
see what securities had been obtained from the par
| ties for its due fulfment.
Lord DUNCAN asked the Chancellor of the Exche-
quer whether the Galway contract had been actually
concluded, and said he should like to know whether
the Lords of the Treasury were to be permitted to
bind the house to every proaigate piece of expen
diture they might choose to commit, (Cres Of
ooh, oh" and laughter) He protested vehementy
against the expenditure of f72000 for seven years
in respect of such contract.
Mr.. DIsRAELI--So far as the late government is
concerned should like to have heard that the ques
ton Of the Galway contract was to be specifically
brought forward in this house. am quite ready to
admit that as respects the subject generally the 60
yernment should be supported; at the same time
the Galway packet contract forward. From what
reached me as to the intention of the govern
ment before / entered the house / certainly
was not prepared for the question of that con-
tract being brought forward as part of the gene
raj question Hear hear. The subject has been Incl