§ Lord Henry Petty rosepursuant to notice, to move for the production of the treasury minute for appointing a barrack Commission, to execute the duties of the barrack-master-general. 426 As he believed there would be no opposition to this motion, he had only to put the house in possession of his object, which would best appear from a statement of facts. Early in the last autumn, the commissioners of military enquiry thought it their duty to communicate to the commissioners of the treasury part of the 4th report, which recommended the appointment of a barrack board, to be substituted instead of a barrack-master-general. The commissioners of the treasury approved of the recommendation, and thought that such a board ought to be appointed. This was communicated to his majesty, who approved of the measure, and affixed his signature to it, and the business might have been completed before the late ministers quitted office; but it had somehow happened that the privy seal was not affixed to the commission, and the noble lord who now held it had not thought proper to affix it. He would not now question the propriety of withholding the seal from it. His object merely was to have the intentions of the late ministry on this point before the house; but he might at least say on this occasion, that he hoped no definitive arrangement would take place till the report of the commissioners had been fully considered. He trusted that the house would seriously consider the report and the method of preventing the recurrence of such abuses as had been found to prevail in this department. He concluded by moving, that the minute of the late commissioners of the treasury, respecting the appointment of a barrack commission, be laid before the house.
The Chancellor of the Exchequersaid he had no objection to the motion. On coming into office, he had found the case to be exactly as the noble lord had stated it to be. But this matter required great consideration. It appeared that it had been referred to the barrack commissioners and the comptrollers of army accounts, and they had found great difficulty in the business, and therefore it became those who were to be responsible for affixing the privy seal, to be cautious how they appointed persons to offices, and adopted all the arrangements, without an opportunity of fully considering the subject. He certainly had no desire to precipitate measures, but at the same time, the observation of the noble lord did not very well apply here, when he recommended the mature consideration of the report; for he and his colleagues had adopted the measure, before any report at all had been 427 presented. But he agreed to the production of the minute.
§ Lord Henry Pettyin explanation said, that he and his colleagues had fully considered the subject on the report of the Commissioners, and there was this difference between the two cases, that the report was now before the house, whereas then it was not expected to be brought forward for some time.
§ Mr. Windhamstated, that two out of the three comptrollers of army accounts concurred in the propriety of the measure.—The motion was then agreed to.