Company poffeffed affets from the Nabob, fufficient to pay 136,000l. a-year to his private creditors.

WEDNESDAY, May 21.—A new Writ was ordered for Weftmorland, in the room of Sir M. le Fleming, deceased.

Mr. Whitbread gave notice, that early next Seffion he fhould propofe regulations for the amelioration of the Poor Laws.

The Secretary at War gave notice, that on Tuesday he should propose a Vote of Thanks to the Managers of Lord Melville's Impeachment.

COMMISSION OF INQUIRY.

Some accounts relative to the Barrack Department, fimilar to those which had been moved for by Mr. Robson on a preceding evening, were granted on the motion of Lord H. Petty. His Lordship then moved that a new Commiffion of Inquiry be inftituted into the fyftem of Military Expenditure in the West Indies. He took a view of the establishment formed for this pur. pofe by the late Minister; but, he ob. ferved, the Commiffioners, though they never omitted to take their falaries, foon forgot that there were duties to be performed; in confequence of which, notwithstanding the fuppreffion of the office of Joint Auditors, the accounts were fo much in arrear, as to render it abfolutely neceffary that fome fyttem fhould be inftituted to get through them. As a proof of the neceffity of inquiry into the disbursements connected with the Army, he stated, that there had been iffued for hofpital ftores and field works, which always form a very extenfive branch of the military disbursements,during fix fucceffive years in the late war, a fum of 700,000l. annually, which was paid to a Mr. Trotter; and fuch was the zeal and industry of that gentleman, and fuch the variety of avocations in which he was defirous of distinguishing him elf for the fervice of the public, that he was at the fame time the manufacturer of fome of the articles of tores, the purveyor of other articles, the contractor for others, the comptroller of the expenditure, and finally the auditor of his own accounts: befides, feeling that after fo much zeal and indultry exerted for the accommodation of the country in his own perfon, he was entitled to fome remuneration beyond the ordinary clafs of contractors, he charged ten per cent. upon the whole expenditure, over and above all other profits

upon the articles fo furnished!!! Another head of account was that of Barracks; on which no less than nine millions had been expended in the courte of the late war, no part of which had been fubmitted to the cognizance of Comptrollers. It was found alfo, that by the principal persons in feveral departments many large fums had been illued to Clerks and inferior perfons in office for minor difbursements, of which no account had been paffed for years. He then touched on the glaring abufes committed in the West Indies; and afferted, that the very laft account of Army Pay, examined by the Board of Accounts, was for 1782, and that no account of that nature had been fince audited. The Navy Accounts were also very greatly in arrear; and the Store Accounts lay over fince the period juft mentioned, without any examination: all the expenfes of the laft war were in the fame predicament. The account of the expeditions to the Helder and to Egypt, and all the charges connected with them, as well as all fubfidiary accounts with Continental Powers, were totally untouched to this hour. There were, befide, accounts under the examination of the old Commiffioners, to the amount of 167 millions, not nearly gone through, befides a fum of 58 millions, of which the account had not yet been explained. Add to this a fum of 150 millions, under the head of Army Pay, ftill untouched, as well as 80 millions of Navy Expenditure; and there would appear an aggregate fum of no less than 455 millions fterling ftill unaccounted for within the last twenty years; a fum greater than the whole national debt. He faid it was notorious, that the groffeit malverfations were fhrouded behind thofe unaudited accounts; and that to remedy thefe evils, it was propofed to repeal both the Acts under which the prefent Commiffioners of Accounts were constituted, and to appoint, under another A&t, ten Commiffioners, for the purpose of auditing and controlling the army accounts; and, the better to enable them to direct their investiga tions, it was propofed to arm them with authority to compel all perfons, connected with the disbursements of public money, to furnish their accounts; thefe to be distinct from the Wet India Commifoners; and allo of another diftinct Board of Comptrol. lers of Military Expenditure, conti

tuted

tuted upon a plan fimilar to that eftablihed under Lord Godolphin, whole duty it would be to examine, in the first instance, all army eftinates and accounts; to watch over the expenditure of military funds; to act as the confidential advifers of the Board of Treasury, in all applications of money for military purposes; to report fuch frauds as they should be able to difcover; to have the power of calling before them all perfons in any degree connected with the military expenditure, and of examining them upon oath. With respect to the ten Commiffioners of Accounts, none of whom were to be Members of Parliament, it was proposed to separate them into three dif tinct Boards, the one confisting of four Members, and the other two of three Members each; those Boards to have communication with each other, as they might find neceffary for the general advantage of the examinations referred to them; but by no means to mix the objects refpectively committed to them. The whole body of accounts in arrear were to be feparated into three distinct periods. One of thefe Boards to commence with the public accounts from the 1st of December last, and to bring them up clear to the late period. The next Board to take up the investigation of the 167,000,000l. now under inquiry; and the third to take up the examination of all that body of other accounts which have never yet been called for. By this means, he trusted that the whole of that immenfe mafs would be gone through with the utmoft poffible expedition, and the affairs of the country in thefe refpects placed upon fome regular and fatisfactory footing. With refpect to the peculation in the West Indies, he added, that the fytem had continued to be carried on by the delinquents under every fpecies of crime that could be fubfervient to their purpofe. For. gery, perjury, bribery, and every itratagem, had been reforted to; and not content with falfe charges, falle re. turns, and flagitious embezzlements, they had bribed the Officers of the Customs to fign falfe certificates, fraudulent invoices, and fimilar documents, in aid of their purposes; proofs of which had been detected in one inftance to the amount of 80,000l., and in another 30,000l., actually applied in bribery, to conceal frauds of an enormous extent. He concluded with mov

ing for a Bill for the more effectual examination of Public Accounts in the Weft Indies, and the prevention of frauds therein.

Mr. Rofe obferved, that though there was fome arrear in the accounts, yet half of the 500,000,000!., which were ftated to be unaccounted for, was now in the Pay Office: he, however, wished to fee the whole bufinefs inveftigated.

The Secretary at War, Mr. Bathurst, and Mr. W. Dundas, bore testimony to the great exertions of the perfons em ployed in the War Office; and afferted, that it was impoffible for them to get through the valt preffure of bufinefs.Leave was given to bring in the Bill.

In a Committee on the Army Eftimates, the Secretary at War ftated, that in confequence of the reductions which were made in the different corps, the eftimates of the prefent year would be as follow:-Savings by reductions in Cavalry, 255,000l.-Ditto Foot Guards, 18,000l.-Ditto Waggon Train, 90,000l. -Total faving by reductions, 363,000l.

--

In the whole of the estimates (including the Volunteers) there would be a diminution of 934,1921.; from which, if the diminution with respect to the expense of Volunteers was subtracted, which amounted to 472,000l., there would remain 462,1921. as the total diminution of expenfes, in confequence of the reductions to be made. He then proceeded to ftate the total amount of our effective force at home and abroad, including the troops ferv ing in India, and the fecond battalions, He fhould take their number at the following periods: -1ft of January, 1806, 240,953. 1st of May, 1806, 250,994 -Increase, 10,041.-It ap peared, therefore, that while our army was increased by above 10,000 men, the expense of it would be diminished by near half a million. Government might, therefore, take credit for having provided an army on much cheaper terms than their predeceffors. The next head was, the recruiting staff contingencies for the fupply of the army. This had been estimated last year at 50,cool.recruiting eftablishment, 50,000l contingencies, and 25,000l. for the recruiting establishment in Ireland. The fame fum would be fufficient for the prefent year, although fomewhat a greater proportion fhould be allowed for the recruiting establishment in Ireland. The estimates for the Volunteers were as follow:-For the laft I 2

year,

in a ftile of wealth, state, and fplendour, fuperior to any European Prince; that his jewels alone were worth four millions fterling; that he had 500 elephants in his train, with a military establishment of 13,000 horse and 30,000 foot, exclufive of the police. It then detailed a general outline of the minuter branches of Government, and mode of collecting taxes, and recapitu. lated the various treaties entered into with the Nabob of Oude by the British Governors in India down to the arrival of Marquis Wellefley; it then proceeded to ftate a variety of charges against the Marquis, accufing him of having, without any just caufe, contrary to the expreís orders of the India Company, and in open violation of folemn treaties fubfifting with the Nabob, made exorbitant exactions of money from him, demanded of him the furrender of territory guaranteed to him, frequently urging him to difband his army, and treating him with fo much difrefpe&t and feverity as were calculated to induce him to refign his throne; and when, by the frequent exactions made upon him, his revenues were inadequate to fupplyfurther means, the Marquis not only committed against him new acts of hoftility and indignity, but endeavoured to degrade him in the eyes of his fubjects, and to excite them to difobedience and infurrection. The charges contained a variety of other accufations of a still graver nature; and upon the reading being concluded, Mr. Paull moved the faid charges be printed.

Sir A. Wellesley asked how Mr. Paull meant to proceed; but received no anfwer. The Papers were ordered to be printed; and Mr. Paull then gave notice that he should move the difcuffion of the charges this day three weeks.

The Property Tax Bill was read a third time and paffed; feveral additional claufes being read and agreed

to.

Mr. Francis objected to that which exempts the property of foreigners in our funds, and afferted that this exemption would deprive the country of 100,cool. per year; he moved for expunging the claufe; but after a few obfervations in fupport of it, from Mr. Fox, the motion fell to the ground,

On the motion of Mr. Vanfittart, the Houfe went into a Committee, to confider of the falaries to be granted to the new Auditor of Accounts; and

it was refolved, that a fum not exceeding 1500l. a-year be granted to the firit Commiffioner, and 1000l. to the others; and that, if fent to the Weft Indies, the Lords of the Treafury be empowered to grant 500l. addi tional a-year-Adjourned to

FRIDAY, May 30.-After fome motions for Papers, &c., the Secretary at War moved for a Committee on the Mutiny Bill.

Mr. Windham, in answer to Lord Castlereagh, ftated, that he had not made up his mind on the fubject of the bounties to be given, to induce men to re-enlift at the expiration of the terms of feven and fourteen years.

The Speaker then leaving the Chair, Mr. Windham adverted to the clauses of the Mutiny Bill; and obferved, that by this Bill, while the contract of the foldier was fecured to the public, the former had alfo the pledge of Parliament for its performance, and a power was left to Government to vary the contract after a certain number of years. Thus, though men might be parted with, it would only be with a hope of getting them again with advantage, and might be compared to the putting of money out at intereft. He proceeded to fhow, that all the military meafures of the laft fifteen years had failed in their object, as none had ever afforded a permanent fource of recruiting: even the Additional Force Bill, which profeffed to be permanent, was temporary, and had completely failed; and thinking that the plans which had been already reforted to had been highly injurious, he was fatisfied that they ought not to be renewed till others had been tried. He therefore wished to try the effect of voluntary eulift ment. He contended, that there was no caufe for apprehending that any danger to the fervice would arife from the discharge of men at the end of the times for which they were enlisted; as the men would be too much attached to the fervice to leave it. He concluded with moving an amendment to the oath in the Mutiny Bill; by which the perfon enlifted, after fwearing that he did not belong to the Militia, Navy, &c. undertook to ferve his Majelty for feven years; and if the country should be at war at the time of his ditcharge, then to be at the difpofal of his Majetty for three years longer: if the perfon be under eighteen when he enlilts, as many years are to be added to his

fervice