903] HOUSE OF COMMONS, Motion respecting the Grant of certain Pensions. [90

his observations to that pension which was
granted from the office with which he was
connected; and while he felt that this
grant was made to an officer (colonel
Congreve) of indisputable merit, he was
prepared to maintain that the grant itself
involved no unusual exercise of the Royal
prerogative, but that, on the contrary, it
was fully agreeable to ancient practice.
There were, indeed, various sources of
revenue which formed no part of the he-colonel Congreve, and 700l. a year to that
reditary revenue included in the commu-
tation with respect to the Civil List, upon
which the Crown had been in the habit
of charging pensions for the reward of
public services. Among those sources
were certain fees and gratuities received
in the public offices; and upon such funds
it had been an old custom to assign pen-
sions for the compensation of retired of
ficers, or as a remuneration to persons
rendering some public service in such de-
partments. Upon the Post-office, for in-
stance, between 6 and 7,000l. a year were
so charged, including an annuity of 3,000l.
to Mr. Palmer. But it would seem, from
the strain of the hon. and learned gentle-
man's observations, that the pensions to
which he referred were really smuggled
cases, which now, for the first time, had
come to light; whereas the fact was, that
above thirty such pensions had been
granted within 35 years, which had never
been animadverted upon or pronounced
illegal, although such grants had come
under the consideration of the Finance
Committees of 1785 and 1797. Nay, al-
though such grants had been noticed in
the Committee on Public Expenditure in
1807, of which the hon. mover was him-
self a member, the subject had not been
brought under the consideration of the
House until the present moment. How
came it, then, that the subject had for nine
years been allowed to sleep, and how
came it, also, that although the hon. and
learned mover's notice referred only to
one case, he had this night brought
forward three cases? But where, he would
ask, was the law, written or unwritten,
that forbad this mode of granting pensions
by the Crown? The hon. and learned
mover had stated, that these pensions were
virtually granted out of the Civil List,
and that being granted without the pre-
vious consent of that House, they involved
a violation of Mr. Burke's Act. But he
denied the hon. and learned member's
fact, and his inference also. He denied
his fact, because those pensions were not

granted out of funds included in the com-
mutation of the Civil List for the here-
But even admitting his
ditary revenue.
fact, his inference was incorrect; for ac-
cording to Mr. Burke's Act, the Crown
was authorized to grant pensions out of
the Civil List, to the amount of 95,000l. a
year; and the fact was, that up to Fe-
bruary last, only $7,000l. had been so
granted-so that as only the pension of

meritorious servant of the public, Mr.
Cooke [Hear, hear! from lord Castle-
reagh]; it followed of course, that Mr.
Burke's Act had not been in any degree
violated, even supposing colonel Con-
greve's pension to have been granted
without the previous consent of that House.
But, in truth, the prerogative of the Crown
was competent to order the allowance
alluded to, to be granted to colonel Con-
greve, for his services in the Ordnance
department, in which department no other
grant had been made for some time, but
one to himself (Mr. Ward), for which he
did not think it necessary to offer any
justification, as he had made a sacrifice
by accepting office in that department.
As to the alleged illegality, however, of
such grants, it was evident from Mr. Per-
ceval's Act of the 50th of the King, that
that allegation was unfounded. For this
Act was avowedly brought forward and
drawn up to regulate office pensions, which
of course was a clear admission of the le-
gality of such grants as those under con-
sideration. But it was obvious, that the
order of the Crown with respect to the
grant to colonel Congreve, was made with
the consent of that House, for it was in-
cluded in the Ordnance estimates, which
were voted by the House; therefore it
appeared that the hon. and learned mover's
complaint was totally unfounded. Then,
as to the hon. and learned mover's re-
ference to the Act of Anne, there was not
one word in the order of the Crown ad-
dressed to the Master-general of the Ord-
nance, which implied that the pension to
colonel Congreve was granted during
pleasure. Of course this pension did not
come at all within the meaning of that
Act; for it was not granted with any
view to create undue influence upon the
mind of a member of that House, but to
remunerate eminent public services.

Sir J. Beresford bore testimony to the great benefits which were derived from the use of colonel Congreve's rockets, as he had himself witnessed in actual service.

stating the circumstances of the Petition, and leaving it to the judgment of the House to determine upon what course ought to be pursued. He begged leave, however, to say, that he was in no manner influenced by the feelings which actuated the petitioner, who was goaded and stung, no doubt, by a deep sense of injuries which he believed himself to have sustained. Who was the petitioner? Not an obscure, not an ignorant individual; not a person, who, from his condition in society, or his conduct, was likely to be disaffected to the Government; but a gentleman educated to the bar in this country, and selected by the Crown as a fit person to execute the duties of an important legal appointment in one of our most important colonies. He understood that he owed his appointment to the late Mr. Windham, a patronage which, of itself, was sufficient to confer no mean dignity. He understood, from the Petition, that Mr. Firth went out in 1808, at a considerable ex

Mr. H. Martin in reply stated, that his reason for abstaining from bringing forward any motion earlier, respecting the particular pension which had been alluded to, was because he thought the Report of the Committee of Public Expenditure would have effectually checked all such grants; but when he found two other pensions granted, of precisely a similar description, he thought it right to bring the whole subject under the notice of the House, lest the thing should, at last, swell into an intolerable grievance. With regard to the Post-office revenue, that was distinctly commuted upon the accession of his present Majesty, and the Crown, therefore, had no right to charge pensions upon it. As to what had fallen from the hon. gentleman respecting the application to that House in the way of estimate, for its concurrence, if he was correctly informed, that pension had been paid to the individual for at least ten years, out of different offices, and which they were now called upon to continue. He apprehended, how-pense, to take possession of his office. ever, that the constitutional way of granting a pension, was not by foisting it into an estimate, but by a message from the Crown. The hon. gentleman said, that the seat of colonel Congreve in that House was not affected by his pension, because it did not come within the meaning of the statute of Anne; but upon the above points, and especially the latter, he differed from the hon. gentleman. What was the intention of the Parliament that passed that Act? To prevent the extension of the influence of the Crown, not surely so far only as related to granting pensions from the Civil List, but in every other way. Was it probable, indeed, that Parliament would leave the Crown in possession of numerous offices, with the power to grant pensions upon those offices in any manner, except from the hereditary revenue? He apprehended, therefore, that the hon. gentle man was a little incorrect in his view of the effect which the pension ought to have upon the seat of colonel Congreve.

It

Shortly after his arrival, governor Gore thought proper to let loose a number of petty vexations against Mr. Firth, and which continued during the last two years of his residence in that province. Those minor persecutions were not indeed exactly specified in the Petition; but it did not require any very deep knowledge of human nature to know that the combined effect of a series of petty mortifications, incessantly repeated, was often as great, and greater, than that produced by persecutions of greater magnitude and severity. did appear, however, that the grievances complained of, were not all of that minor description. A plan was devised to get rid of the Attorney-general, by depriving him of the emoluments of his office; and in order to accomplish this, he was prevented, by governor Gore, from carrying on various public prosecutions, by which his income was diminished one-sixth, and all the dignity and efficiency of his office abolished. Another mode of persecuting him was also resorted to. When, froma some peculiar circumstances in which the province happened to be placed, no serMOTION RESPECTING THE PETITION OF vants except soldiers could be procured, MR. FIRTH.] Mr. Marsh rose, pursuant a special exemption of the Attorney-geto notice, to move that the Petition of Mr.neral, as entitled to a servant of that deFirth, his Majesty's Attorney-general in the province of Upper Canada, be referred to a select committee, to inquire into its allegations, and report thereon. He said he should content himself with merely

that he did not state these things as facts, Sir J. Beresford spoke strongly in bebalf but merely as allegations contained in the of general Gore's character and conduct, Petition, brought forward by a man who both as governor of Bermuda, and in his had held a bigh station, and, prima facie, present station. On his arrival in this

a therefore entiiled to belief. They were country, he was asked if he knew any such, in his opinion, as ought to produce reason why governor Gore had dismissed inquiry, not only that the character of the Attorney-general, and his answer general Gore might be vindicated, if he was, that before he left America there was was innocent, but that the shame and not a voice in that country which did not disgrace of having made such allegations, say that governor Gore had done right, might fall with tenfold aggravation upon and that it was impossible the colony the head of their author, if they were could go on with such an Attorney-gefalse. There was another most important neral. He was sure general Gore had charge in the petition, in so far as it went acted from the most honourable motives. to the declaration of a serious change Mr. W. Smith said, he could not suphaving been introduced into the adminis- port the motion for inquiry, and he would trative justice of the country. It appear- state his reasons why he could not. With ed that a very mysterious case of child- respect to the petitioner, he knew him murder bad occurred in that province, well and long; he believed bim to be a into which the Attorney-general thought man of strict integrity, and he was sure it his duty to inquire; but during the the Petition did not contain a single allepreliminary investigation which he insti- gation but what he believed to be well iuted, general Gore interfered, and ex- founded. When he returned from Capressing his aversion to the inquiry, or- nada, he requested him (Mr. Smith) to lay dered it to be stopped. In consequence a memorial before the Secretary of State, of that proceeding, and being besides worn which, after reading it, he did, together out and wearied with these multiplied with as strong a recommendation as he persecutions, Mr. Firth applied for leave felt himself justified in using. That meio relurn to England, which was not morial procured to him a certain degree granted; but his residence in the province of relief as to certain points which were became so utterly impossible, that he was urged in it: but that relief did not satisfy obliged to leave the country without ob- him, and he then requested him to present taining the consent of Government, and his Petition to the House. Upon looking he now applied to the justice and com- into the Petition, however, and finding passion of that House for redress. Such the allegations extremely vague, and many were the allegations contained in the Pe- of them such as must have existed in the tition; and ihey were of a description imagination only of the petitioner, he told which must make general Gore himself, him he could not undertake to present it, and his friends, anxious for an inquiry, unless he also felt disposed to move somethat they might be repelled, if unfounded. thing like an impeachment against the In presenting the Petition to that House, Secretary of State, for not paying more he had reluctantly undertaken a task attention to the first memorial, wbich he which he was far from seeking, because certainly was not inclined to do. Upon it was an unpleasant thing to appear as those grounds, therefore, he should feel it the accuser of any man without knowing his duty to vote against the motion. all the merits of a case. He had, how Mr. Forbes said, that the conduct of ever, long been acquainted with the peti- governors, both in the West and in the tioner, and he could vouch for his general East, was often such as would stamp their honour and integrity of character; and characters as petty tyrants.

To them he should have been subject to the re might well be applied what Buonaparté proach of his own feelings and conscience, addressed to certain of his generals--that if he had deserted an old and early friend by being made governors their brains were by refusing to present his petition when turned. He had often witnessed such he stated that he had been seriously ag- persons as he had just described, and was grieved. He should conclude with 'mov- proceeding to lament that a notice entered ing, “ That the Petition be referred to some time ago on a similar case had not the consideration of a Committee, to exa- been pressed on the House, when mine the matter thereof, and report the The Speaker interrupted him, by obsame, as it shall appear to them, to the serving that he was wandering from the House."