92 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1809. 



years that preceded the comple- 

 tion of her sales, in a way that 

 might render them productive to 

 the public, had employed them in 

 discounting private bills for their 

 own emolument. If these ba- 

 lances had been vested in exche- 

 quer bills between 40 and 50,000/., 

 would have been saved to the pub- 

 lic. 



The next point in the miscon- 

 duct of the commissioners to which 

 Mr. Ord adverted, was, that by the 

 commission at 5 per cent on the 

 gross proceeds, by brokerage and 

 interest on the balances, it appear- 

 ed, the commissioners had taken 

 for their labours the enormous 

 sum of 193,198/., being at the 

 rate of 26,000/. for each commis- 

 sioner. 



Mr. Ord farther pointed out a 

 circumstance which seemed to 

 have escaped the attention of the 

 committee, namely, that the com- 

 missioners appeared to have charg- 

 ed the 5 per cent commission on 

 the property which had been ma- 

 naged and sold by the East India 

 company, in the management of 

 which they had been at no trouble 

 whatever s so that, in point of fact, 

 a commission of 10 per cent had 

 been paid on much the largest pro- 

 portion of thisproperty, inasmuch as 

 the East India company had also a 

 commission of 5 per cent on their 

 sales. Some of the commissioners 

 ■were themselves merchants, and 

 must have known that the highest 

 commission among merchants, on 

 the gross proceeds is 2\ per cent. 

 What are the real services of these 

 commissioners? Their sales had 

 been finished in four years and a 

 half from the time of their appoint- 

 ment, and the important part of 

 their labours had of course then 



closed. Though they were re- 

 tained nominally, as the law suit 

 had commenced in their names, in 

 point of fact, during the ten years 

 the commission lasted after the 

 completion of the business, the 

 gentlemen found time enough to 

 do a great deal of other business. 

 This same John Bowles had been 

 active in several elections which 

 had since taken place, and had 

 time besides to write about thirty 

 pamphlets about religion, morality, 

 loyalty, and the duty of contribut- 

 ing faithfully and accurately to the 

 property tax. Mr. Breckwood, too, 

 appeared by the report to be at 

 this moment a commissioner for 

 the Spanish property. Two of the 

 commissioners pleaded that they 

 had quitted their professions with 

 a view to the fulfilment of their 

 trust. This was not the first time 

 that professions were abandoned 

 for someting better. Another ho- 

 nourable gentleman whom he did 

 not see in his place (Mr. R. Ward) 

 had also quitted his profession for 

 a salary of 1,000/. a year as a lord 

 of the admiralty. This brought 

 into view another case adverted to 

 in the report, which appeared to him 

 to be a most palpable job, namely, 

 that of Mr. Thomas Macdonald, 

 ivho got 5,000/. for abandoning 

 his profession to become an Ame- 

 rican commissioner, and that in 

 addition to a salary of 1,500/. per 

 annum ; when many thousands of 

 persons could have been procured 

 to execute the same commission as 

 well for the same salary. Mr. 

 John Bowles, too, must have a 

 consideration for abandoning his 

 profession, and the house had no 

 difficulty to appreciate the means 

 he bad employed for obtaining it. 

 Mr. John Bowles was to be compen- 

 sated 



II 



