ceipt will fupply a much larger payment than feven hundred pounds. We are therefore of opinion, that the method of paying the balance every week into the exchequer, established in the cuftoms, excife, and other offices above mentioned,fhould be adopted in the post-office: and that the receiver general fhould every week pay the nett balance of his receipt into the exchequer, referving in

his hands no more than is neceffary to answer the current payments and expences of the office. It appears to be customary for the receiver of the firft fruits, to detain in his hands the produce of the whole year, until eight or nine months after that year is ended, befides receiving the current produce of thofe months; and for the receiver of the tenths to detain in his hands, for at least a year, the whole of this duty, received by him before the 3 1ft of May in each year (at which time he delivers a lift of the defaulters into the exchequer), befides receiving the current produce of that year. It appears likewife, that the receivers of the fixpenny and fhilling duties, do not pay into the exchequer, the whole produce of thefe duties as they receive them. All fuch detentions are, in our opinion, a disadvantage to the public, and liable to abuse. There exifts no reafon why the public fhould not have the cuftody and ufe of public money, rather than an individual, until the service to which it is appropriated, of whatever nature that fervice may be, calls for its application the public coffers are the fafeft repofitory for public

money.

One purpose among others, expreffed in the act that appoints us, is, that any defect in the prefent method of collecting the duties may be corrected, and that a less expenfive one may be established; and we are exprefsly directed to report fuch regulations, as in our judgment fhall appear expedient to be established, in order that the duties may hereafter be received in the manner the most advan-, tageous to the public.

We therefore, in obedience thereto, think it our duty to fub-, join one obfervation, that has OCcurred to us during the progress of our inquiries.

The land-tax, and the duties arifing from ftamps, falt, licences to hawkers and pedlars, and from hackney coaches and chairs, are under the management of fivefe parate and diftinct boards of commiffioners, confifting of twentyfive in number: the amount of the grofs produce of the laft four of thefe duties, by the returns made to our precepts, is eight hundred thirty-one thousand one hundred twenty-fix pounds three fhillings and one penny three farthings; of the nett produce, feven hundred fixty thousand five hundred forty-eight pounds fifteen fhillings and fix pence. The time in which the commiffioners are ufually engaged in tranfacting the bufinefs of their feveral offices is as follows: the attendance of the commiffioners of the land-tax, at their office, is thrice a week; of the ftamp office, thrice a week; of the falt office, twice a week; of hawkers and pedlars, once a week; of hackney çoaches and chairs, once a week,

We are aware, that the compa[X] 4 rative

rative produce of different duties, is not alone a criterion by which we may judge with precifion and certainty of the time, trouble, expence, and number of officers neceffary to be employed in the management of them: to have formed an accurate and decifive opinion upon this point, it would have been neceffaryto have entered into an examination, which would have carried us too far from the object of our prefent enquiry; but we are of opinion, that the fall produce of fome of thefe duties, and the short time in which each of thefe five boards are able to tranfact their business, are circumftances which induce a ftrong prefumption, that fo many eftablishments are not neceffary for the management of thefe branches of the revenue; and which lay a reafonable foundation for an enquiry, whether there may not be formed a confolidation of offices, beneficial to the public. This fuggeftion we fubmit to the wifdom of the legiflature.

Office of Accounts, Bell-Yard,
31ft of January, 1781.

ledge in the firft clafs as far as relates to the balances of public. money in their hands, we, in the next place, directed our attention to thofe accountants who receive public money out of the exchequer, by way of impreft, and upon account.

The certificate of the accounts depending in the office of the au- ̈ ditors of the impreft, tranfmitted: to us pursuant to our precept, furnifhed us with a lift of these accountants: we took them into our confideration in the order in which they stand upon that certificate ; a rule we purfue in regard to all lifts of accountants, unless there are fome fpecial reafons for departing from it.

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The fet of accountants therein first mentioned, are the treasurers of the navy; and of thefe, the names that fand firft are the executors of Anthony Viscount Falkland, whofe final account is dated the 4th of April, 1689, and from whom a balance of twentyfeven thousand fix hundred and eleven pounds fix fhilling and five-pence farthing, is declared to be then due. We did not mifpend our time in a purfuit where there was fo little probability of benefit to the public: a debt that has fubfifted for nearly a century,

may

be prefumed defperate. Paffing over therefore this article, we iffued our precepts to Earl Temple, as reprefentative of the late George Grenville, Efq; to Lord Viscount Barrington, Lord Vifcount Howe, and to Sir Gilbert Elliot, Baronet, as reprefentative of the late Sir Gilbert Elliot, for an account of the public money in their hands, cuftody, or power, as late treasurers of the navy. The

returns

returns made to our precepts are fet forth in the Appendix; from which it appears, that the balances of public money remaining in their respective hands, upon the days therein mentioned, amount ed together to the fum of feventyfix thousand seven hundred and ninety-three pounds eighteen fhillings and one penny farthing. That we might learn for what reafon, fervices, or purposes, thefe fums are permitted to remain in the hands of the treasurers of the navy, fo long after they are out of office, we examined several of the officers in this department, namely George Swaffield, Efq; cafhier of the victualling; Andrew Douglas, Efq; paymafter; Mr. Adam Jellicoe, chief clerk to the pay-mafter; and Mr. Francis Cook, ledgerwriter. By them we are fupplied with the following information

:

The office of the treasurer of the navy is divided into three branches, the paymaster's, the cafhier's, and the victualling branch. All the money he receives is for the navy services, and placed under, or carried over, to one of thefe branches; the money in each branch is fubdivided, arranged, and kept under various different heads of fervices; the whole balance, at the time he leaves the office, continues to be liable, whether it be in his hands, or in the hands of his reprefentatives, in cafe of his death, to the fame fervices for which its feveral parts were originally deftined; and the commiffioners of the navy, victualling, and fick and hurt of fices, each in their feveral departments, continue to affign bills upon him for payment, until they have reduced the balance to fuch

a fum as, in their opinions, will not be more than fufficient to anfwer the purposes for which it has been ufual to leave money with him, until his final account is paffed. These purposes are, firft, to carry on the recalls upon those fhips books which were open in his treasurerfhip, and the payment of the half-pay lifts, and bounties to chaplains. The ships books are ufually kept open for recalls, for feven or eight years after the expiration of the treafurerfhip, in order to give thofe feamen who, by being either turned over to other fhips, or employed in other places, could not attend at the time their fhip was paid, an opportunity of receiving their wages when it is in their power to apply for them. The only fund applicable to this fervice is, the money in the pay branch, placed under the head of "To pay fhips and carry on recalls." This fervice is at an end when the fhips' books are made up. They are made up as they come in course, in order of time; and after the last is closed, the half-pay lifts are also closed, and the payment of the bounty to chaplains ceases.

The other purpose is to pay the fees and expences of carrying on, making up, and paffing his accounts. Upon paffing every annual account, fees are paid to the auditors of the impreft, out of the money in his hands, under the head of "To pay exchequer fees, and other contingent expences of the pay office :" but upon paffing his final account, there is a gratuity alfo paid in the following manner: The officers and clerks who tranfact the bufinefs of the treasurer in office, carry on alfo

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at the fame time, and finally make up, the accounts of the treasurers out of office: for which extra work they have no falary or recompence whatever, until the final account is ready to be passed, at which time it has been usual for them, by petition to the lords of the treasury, to obtain a reafonable allowance for their trouble, which has been paid them, by virtue of a treafury warrant, out of any money remaining in the hands of that treasurer, under whatever heads of service it may be placed. This gratuity, together with the fees of paffing the annual accounts, and for the quietus, it is imagined will exhaust the whole balance now remain

ing in the hands of Lord Temple. All the fhips books which were paid by Mr. Grenville, Lord Barrington, and Lord Howe, are made up, and confequently the balances which the three boards have left in the hands of these treasurers must be for the purpose of paying the fees and expences of carrying on, making up, and paffing their ac counts. Of Sir Gilbert Elliot's fhips' books, five hundred and fix are ftill open for recalls; and payments, if applied for, are made upon them once a week; and therefore, whatever fum ftand up. on his account, in his paymaster's branch, under the heads of wages, half-pay, and bounties to chaplains, are still applicable to those services; and the refidue of the money permitted to remain with him is for the purpose of paying the fees and expences of carrying on, making up,and paff ing his accounts.

How foon then will these feveral fums be wanted for this pur

pofe? The accounts of the treafurers of the navy are made up and paffed as they come in course, in order of time; the officers must finifh one year before they begin upon another; and a fubfequent treasurer's account is never finished till his predeceffor's is finally clofed. The ftate in which their accounts are, in the office of the auditors of the impreft, is this:The laft which is declared is Mr. Grenville's account for the year 1758 of all the subsequent accounts, only some sections of their refpective navy and victualling ledgers are delivered into this office; which parts of a treasurer's accounts are ufually fent thither as fpeedily as they can be made up after the year expires.

From an account of the balances remaining in the hands of these treasurers, at the times they refpectively ceafed to be treasurers; and an account of the times when their last flips' books were made up; and a state of Mr. Grenville's balances, and of the balances of Lord Barrington, Lord Howe, and Sir Gilbert Elliot, every year fince they severally went out of office, all tranfmitted to us from the pay office of the navy, pursuant to our requifitions, we find that Mr. Grenville refigned this office in 1762, and his last fhips' book was made up in 1771; that Lord Barrington refigned this office in 1765, and his last ships' book was made up in 1775; that Lord Howe refigned this office in 1770, and his last ships' book was made up in 1778; and that Sir Gilbert Elliot died in 1777: hence it appears, that for nineteen years there have been in the hands of Mr. Grenville, or of his reprefentatives,

fentatives, and for fifteen years in the hands of Lord Barrington, and for ten years in the hands of Lord Howe, and for three years in the hands of the reprefentatives of Sir Gilbert Elliot, confiderable fums of public money (exclufive of the fums on the heads of wages, half-pay, and bounties to chaplains) deftined to purposes which (except the paffing three years of Mr. Grenville's accounts) have not yet exifted, and which, if we may judge from the progrefs hitherto made in paffing these accounts, are not likely foon to exift. Where public money is appointed for a fervice or purpose to arife at a future time, we are of opinion, the public alone ought to have the custody and use of that money, in the mean time, and until the service or purpose calls for its application.

When the fees and the gratuity become payable, we fee no reason why the treasurer in office should not pay them in like manner as the treasurers out of office pay them now.

:

hands of Lord Viscount Barrington, and of Lord Viscount Howe, and of Sir Gilbert Elliott, Bart as reprefentative of Sir Gilbert Elliot, late treafurers of the navy, ought to be paid into the exchequer, for the public fervice, leaving in the hands of Sir Gilbert Elliot the fums in his account placed under the heads of wages, half-pay, and bounties to chaplains, to carry on the fervices to which the fame are applicable : that fuch payments fhould be without prejudice, and a proper fecurity and indemnification be given to each of them, against any lofs or detriment that may accrue to them in confequence of fuch payments.

The

The Right Hon. Welbore Ellis, the prefent treasurer of the navy, returned to our requifition, a balance in his hands upon the 31st of August last, of three hundred forty eight thousand nine hundred forty-one pounds eleven fhillings and nine pence. act directs us to examine into all balances in the hands of public accountants, for the purpose of confidering what fum may be taken out of their hands, to be applied to the public fervice. It is obvious, we could not examine the balance in the hands of the treasurer in office with this view : it could not be in our power to fay, that any part of it ought to be paid back into the exchequer, because in an office of fo conftant and large an expenditure, this fum muft probably be exhausted, even while it was under our confideration: but it was competent to us, and we thought it our duty, to examine whether this was a larger fum than the current bufinefs of the office required should

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