Imatges de pàgina
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1734-35

Anno 8. Geo. 11. has, and always had, the Intereft of the Publick more at Heart than the Intereft of the Minifter; therefore I am convinced, that if these Accounts have been upon our Table, all the other Gentlemen of the House are in the fame Condition with me; they are so far from having canvassed every Article of them, that they are quite ignorant of their having been ever laid upon the Table before this Seffion : If any Gentleman had but caft his Eye upon fuch Accounts, in any preceeding Seffion, and had obferved the Arrears ftanding unpaid, or unprovided for by Parliament, his Regard for the Publick, his Regard for the Diftreffed Creditors of the Publick, would certainly have prompted him to have moved to have had them taken into Confideration, and paid off long before now; nothing could have prevented it but a Neglect, which has been occafioned by its not having been made the Concern of any particular Set of Men; and for this Reason we never ought to think it fufficient to have Accounts or Eftimates laid upon our Table, we ought always to refer the Confideration of them to felect Committees; and thus, by making it the particular Bufinefs of a few, we may expect they will never be neglected as thofe now before us feem to have been, by their having been left to the Care of the whole House.

• I must beg Leave to differ with the honourable Gentlemen, when they fay, that the Nature of the Service is only to be regarded, when we are to determine, whether it ought or ought not to be laid before the Parliament; for in my Opinion, the Sum to be laid out ought likewife to be confidered: If the Sum be but small, and the Nature of the Service fuch as often occurs, it may be undertaken without any particular Authority from Parliament; but if the Sum be large, tho' the Nature of the Service be fuch as often occurred, and has generally been undertaken without any particular Directions from Parliaments, yet fuch Directions become neceffary when the Sum is much larger than what is ufually required for that Service: His Majefty may, without Doubt, give Orders to have a Man of War, or perhaps half a Dozen in a Year, repaired; but if by any great Miffortune, it should become neceffary to lay out, in any one, two or three Years, a very large Sum for that Purpose, it would then be proper to lay that Neceffity before Parlia ment; and I think no Minister ought to undertake fuch an extraordinary Service without having firft obtained an Authority from Parliament for fo doing: In the Cafe mentioned, I believe it will be granted, that the building of Houses is a Service that does not often occur; and I am very fure the Sum that has been laid out, and which now makes a great Part of our Navy Debt, is a much larger

Sum

1734-35.

Sum than was ever laid out in this Nation upon fuch a Ser- Anno 8. Geo. II. vice, in fo fmall a Number of Years; nay, I do not know but it amounts to more than was ever before expended in this Nation for Building Docks or any other Sort of Buildings for the Ufe of the Navy, or the Officers of our Navy; and therefore, both with refpect to the Nature of the Service, and the Sum to be laid out, it ought not to have been undertaken without a previous Authority from Parliament.

Sir, if the Nation has been run into any unneceffary Expence, I am forry to hear it faid, that nothing has been undertaken without the Approbation of Parliament; but, Sir, if it were fo, the Authority or the Approbation of former Parliaments can be no Reafon for our following their Example, in giving our Authority for undertaking fuch Services for Years to come, as they have authorised for Years paft: We are under no greater Obligation to approve of what was approved of by the very laft Parliament, than that Parliament in King Charles IId's Reign, called The Penfionary Parliament.

To pretend that what is now proposed will raise Jealoufies among the People, or give them any Sufpicions of his Majefty's Government, is an Argument, I find, always to be brought in when any Attempt is made to inquire into the Conduct of his Majefty's Minifters; but I would have Gentlemen confider, that the proper Business of Parliament is to inquire into the Conduct of Ministers; and if the People find that fuch Attempts are always over-ruled, it will give them a Sufpicion, not only of his Majefty's Government, and the Conduct of his Ministers, but it will give them likewise a Sufpicion, and a just one too, of the Conduct of Parliament: We ought to confider what it was that gave the Parliament in King Charles IId's Reign, the ignominious Epithet it is now branded with; and if the People fhould conceive any fuch Sufpicion of this or any future Parliament, it would raise real Jealoufies among them, it would make them despair of ever having their Grievances redreffed in a legal Way, and that Defpair might drive them into the most violent Methods of feeking Redress; therefore I wish Gentlemen would, upon all Occafions, diftinguish a little between his Majefty and his Minifters, and never allow the Refpect they have for the latter, to over-balance the Duty they owe to the former.

The Refpect that former Parliaments have fhewn to the Minifters for the Time being, and the great Confidence put by Parliament in their Conduct, is, I am afraid, one great Caufe that the Nation now remains under fuch a Load of Debts and Taxes; and therefore it is high Time for us to reaffume that Jealoufy which has fo often proved to be

of

1734-35.

Anno 8. Geo. 11. of the most fignal Benefit to this Nation. We have bee talking, Sir, of putting ourselves in a Condition to comp the Acceptation of the Terms of Peace we are to propofe but I wish we may not find that our Neighbours are too well acquainted with our Circumftances to be afraid c any Thing we can do: They know that our People are already as heavily taxed as they can bear: They know that all those Taxes are already engaged, either for the Payment of our Debts, or for the Support of our Civil Government; can it be supposed that our Menaces will have great Influence upon any of their Refolutions? But if they hould find, that our Parliament were beginning to look closely into the Management of our publick Affairs, they would from thence conclude, that the best Use would be made of every Shilling hereafter to be raised; that the People would contribute with the more Alacrity, and from thence they will probably be induced to give fome Atten tion to whatever we may think neceffary to propofe, for reftoring the Peace of Europe. For this Reafon, if there were no other, we ought to agree to what the honourable Gentleman has been pleafed to propose.'

Mr Plumer's Mo-
tion for appointing
quire into the
Port-Office.

Then the Question being put upon Sir William Wynd ham's Motion, it was, upon a Divifion, carried in the Negative, by 198 to 168.

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Feb. 26. Mr Walter Plumer mov'd, That the Copy of a Committee to in- the King's Warrant, whereby Letters were permitted to pais Poft-Free, which had been laid before the Houfe on the 19th Instant [See p. 73] might be taken into Confideration. The Warrant being accordingly read, Complaints were made by feveral Members, that their Letters were not only charged at the Poft Office, but that they were often broke open and perufed by the Clerks: That this Practice of breaking open Letters was become frequent, and was fo publickly known, that the very End for which that Liberty was given to the Poftmafter was entirely difappointed; for the Intention being at firft to difcover any treasonable Correfpondence that might be carried on against the Gover ment, that Intention was rendered altogether vain, becaufe by the Practice of opening Letters being fo frequent, and fo well known, it was certain that no Man would carry on any treasonable Correfpondence by Means of the Poft-Office; fo that the Liberty given to break open Letters at the Poft-Office could now ferve no Purpose, but to enable the little Clerks about that Office to pry into the private Affairs of every Merchant, and of every Gentleman in the Kingdom. At last it was infifted, that the Warrant then laid before the House was not the last Warrant granted by his Majesty, nor the Warrant by which the Poft-mafters then afted; and

there

therefore it was moved, that a Committee be appointed to Anno 8. Geo. 11. inquire into that Affair.

1734-35

Mr Heathcote.

Mr Dundafs.

Sir Wal. Wagstaff

a Claufe to be add

Mr Plumer's Motion was fupported by Mr Lifle, Mr Debate thereon. Heathcote, Mr Pulteney, Mr Dundafs, and Mr Perry; it Mr Life. was in fome Measure oppofed by Sir Robert Walpole, and Mr Pulteney. Mr Henry Pelham, but at laft they agreeing to the Mo- Mr Perry. tion, provided that Committee did not inquire into any Mr H. Pelham Sir R Walpole. Thing that might tend to the discovering the Secrets of the Government; a Committee was appointed accordingly. The fame Day the Mutiny-Bill being reported to the Houfe, Sir Walter Wagftaff Bagot, Bart. ftood up, and Bagot's Motion for faid,That fince the House had made fuch a large Addi- ed to the Mutinytion to the Army, and feemed inclined to continue the Bill, relating to the inlifting of Soldifevere Penalties on Deferters, and the Method of recruiting ers. prefcribed by that, and former Bills of the like Nature, he thought it neceffary to add fome Claufe, to make the Bill lefs dangerous to the Subject: That by a Clause in the Bill it was propofed to be enacted, as in former Bills, that if a poor Country-Fellow fhould inlift with an Officer and take his Money, and afterwards, when carried before a Justice, refufe to declare himself inlifted and to take the Oaths prescribed by Law, it fhould then be in the Power of the Officer to fend fuch a poor Fellow to Prison, and confine him in a Dungeon for a whole Month, even tho' it should appear that the poor Fellow inlifted when he was drunk, and was willing to return the Money he had taken, and fatiffy all the Charges the Officer had been at: That this Power of confining a Man in a Dungeon, where he might be in Danger of ftarving, was, he thought, too great a Power to be intrufted abfolutely in the Hands of any Officer: That it was no way neceffary for his Majefty's Service, and might be of dangerous Confequence, because it might tempt fome Officers to practise all the inveigling Arts they could think of, not with an Intention to recruit his Majefty's Forces, but to compel poor Country-Fellows to give them a Sum of Money, by way of Compofition, for being difcharged from the Bargain they had made when drunk, or in a Paffion, and for being freed from the Confinement to which the Officer had, by Law, an uncontroulable Power to fubject them: That therefore he would beg Leave to offer a Claufe to be added to the Bill, That every Officer, who should thereafter inlift any Man to serve in any Regiment, should Days carry the Man fo inlifted before fome = one of the next Juftices of the Peace, where the Man fo inlifted fhould be at Liberty to declare his Diffent, and = his having repented of what he had done; and upon his fo doing, and returning to the Officer the inlifting Money, and the Expences the Officer had been at by inlifting him,

= within

and

Anno 8. Geo. ¡I. 1734-35.

Debate thereon.

Mr Bramfton.

Gen. Wade.

Mr Lindsay.

M: Hay,

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and carrying him before the Juftice, not exceeding the
• Sum of
fuch Juftice fhould forthwith
discharge him: And that an Officer, guilty of any Fai-
lure or Neglect in this Refpect, fhould be liable to the
" fame Penalties to which Officers are made liable for falfe
• Mufters.'

This was feconded by Mr Bramfton, who informed the
Houfe,That he actually knew a Cafe, where a poor Fel-
low was inveigled when he was drunk, and when he came
to be fober, repented, and therefore refused to take the
Oaths when carried before the Juftice; but the Officer in-
fifted upon his being fent to Prifon, and confined for a
Month in the Terms of the Act of Parliament, tho' the
poor Fellow offered to return the inlifting Money and all
Charges; and it not being in the Power, or in the Incli-
nation of the Juftice to refufe the Officer's Demand, the
poor Fellow was accordingly fent to Jail, where he remained
for fome Time; but having no Victuals nor Drink, he was
at laft compelled to go before the Juftice and take the Oaths
prefcribed, in order to prevent his being ftarved.'

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To this it was anfwer'd by General Wade, Mr Henry Mr Hen Bromley Bromley, Mr Lindfay, and Mr Hay, That what was propofed by the Claufe offered had already been taken Care of by his Majefty's Orders for regulating the Army, for as no Soldier could be tried upon the Mutiny-Act, unless he had taken the Oaths prefcribed by that A&t before fome Juftice of Peace, therefore his Majefty had given an Order to all Officers, that no Recruit fhould be brought to or entered in any Regiment, 'till he had firft been regularly inlifted, and had taken the Oaths prefcribed by Law, before fome of his Majefty's Juftices of the Peace; fo that by his Majefty's Order every Officer was obliged to do what was propofed by the Claufe offered; and as the Bill then before them was of the fame Nature with former Bills againft Mutiny and Desertion, it would be abfolutely neceffary to continue the fame general Order to all Officers, with refpect to their carrying Recruits before fome Juftice of Peace, therefore they thought it was unneceffary to add any Claufe for that Purpose; and it would be attended with many Inconveniencies, particularly, that it would be fometimes impoffible for an Officer to carry a Recruit before any Justice within the Time proposed, or within any limited Number of Days.'

Wyndham. i Bernard.

To this it was replied by Sir William Wyndham, Sir John Barnard, and Mr Sandys, That the very Claufe then propofed had been in feveral Mutiny Bills during the Reign of King William, tho' it was then in Time of War, and Recruiting of Course more difficult than it could be supposed to be at prefent: That the honourable Gentlemen who op

pofed

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