§ MR. GROGANbegged to move for a return of the names of all persons appointed, or recommended for appointment, by the President of the Board of Control, to any medical situation in the East Indies.
§
Motion made, and Question proposed—
That there be laid before this House, a Return of the names of all persons appointed, or recommended for appointment, by the President of the Board of Control, to any Medical or Surgical situation or office in the East Indies, since the first day of January, 1832, down to the present time, specifying the places to which such appointments were made, the dates thereof, and the salaries and emoluments attached thereto respectively.
§ SIR J. C. HOBHOUSEopposed the Motion, as being one of a very objectionable and invidious character. A similar return was moved for by the hon. Member for Carlow on the 16th of April, and on a division it was rejected by 53 against 23 votes. That return, indeed, extended to every description of appointment excepting the judges of the courts of law in India. Why the President of the Board of Control should be so particularly pointed out for this exhibition, as if he had done something worse than any other Minister of the Crown in the dispensation of patronage, be could not understand. As far as he was himself concerned, he could say that the distribution of patronage was just the most disagreeable thing that attached to the office he held.
§ MR. GROGANdid not intend to cast the slightest imputation on the manner in which the right hon. Gentleman had dispensed his patronage. He had made the Motion at the request of the medical profession in Ireland, among whom there prevailed a suspicion that they were not fairly dealt with in respect to the appointments in India.
§ LORD NAAScould confirm the statement of his hon. Friend, that the medical 1286 profession in Ireland felt themselves aggrieved in this matter; and the return now asked for would show whether their opinion was well founded or not.
§ SIR J. C. HOBHOUSEhad omitted to mention that, after all, the appointments put in his hands as President of the Board of Control were only two in each year, for, in point of fact, it was the East India Company who made the appointments, he only having the power of recommending the parties to the Company.
§ SIR G. GREYcould not understand why the return should be confined to the medical appointments. It might, with as much reason, be extended to the whole patronage exercised by the East India Company.
§ MR. GROGAN, though not satisfied with the explanations given, would withdraw the Motion.
§ Motion, by leave, withdrawn.
§ The House adjourned at One o'clock.