§ MR. AUGUSTUS SMITHsaid, he rose to move, That it is the opinion of this House that the practice of voting sums on account, especially so late in the Session, is inexpedient, and that instead of voting sums on account, Votes should be taken on the whole sums given in the 1515 Estimates on those items on which the balances in credit are deficient. The hon. Member said that Parliament had already been sitting upwards of four months, and yet the Civil Service Estimates, which was one of the most important, if not the most important of all the Estimates submitted for the consideration of the House, had not been fairly brought before them, although Votes on account had been asked for and granted; and he feared that if they allowed the Government to take the Vote of Credit for which they were about to ask, the Civil Service Estimates would not come on till it was too late in the Session for them to be discussed with any effect. If there ever was a Session in which they ought to have given deliberate consideration to the Civil Service Estimates it was the present, for they had had no measure of great importance to engross their attention. Those measures which had been brought forward and which were likely to lead to discussion had disappeared one after another, and the Government measures of importance were very few. Further than this, every facility had been given to the Government for expediting their business; the rules of the House had been so far altered as to give them every possible assistance; and yet they had several "counts out" when the Government might have maintained a House for the Motions of private Members upon the occasions appropriated to them; and the Government had already commenced morning sittings. If it had not been for these "counts out" they might have already been far advanced in the consideration of these Estimates, which involved many important matters, including the great question of education, the various public works, the questions connected with prisons and convict establishments, and a variety of other subjects which would suggest themselves to the minds of hon. Members as subjects requiring discussion. When they remembered the enormous increase that had taken place in these Estimates of late years, when they remembered how fertile a theme that increase had proved for denunciations of hon. Gentlemen both on the hustings and in that House, and when they rembered the accusation of the Chancellor of the Exchequer against that House of the reckless extravagance of the public expenditure, it seemed to him absurd that they should support that cry and yet take no proper steps for remedying the evil. It had been said that Parliament 1516 could do little, and the noble Lord the Member for the City of London had said sneeringly once, that it had always been the practice to pass the Civil Service Estimates as a matter of course. But though the savings that Parliament had been able to effect might be small, yet they entered into a discussion of the items, and thus checked the extravagance of the Government. A rather dangerous doctrine had been promulgated that these items should be taken upon the responsibity of the Government; but the responsibility rested upon the House, and if they accused a Minister of past extravagance the reply would be that the House of Commons examined and adopted the Estimates, and was, therefore, responsible for the extravagance. The Secretary to the Treasury said it was absolutely necessary that this Vote should be taken, because the quarter day was nearly approaching, and money would be wanted to meet the demands that would then become due. But the departments generally had balances in hand amounting to a quarter of the annual expenditure. They were asked to vote £10,000 on account for the Treasury, he whole expenditure for the year being £53,000, and the balance in hand being £15,900. The Board of Trade had in like manner a balance in hand of £19,000, and so he might go on with the other Departments. Under these circumstances he begged to move the Resolution of which he had given notice.
§ MR. SPEAKERsaid, the hon. Gentleman could not now make a Motion, because the House had already decided that the words, "that the Speaker do now leave the chair," should stand part of the question.
§ MR. AUGUSTUS SMITHhoped that, under those circumstances, the Government would not proceed with the Civil Service Estimates to night, but would go on with the Army Estimates.