139 
Majefty. This, as his enemies faid, was 
evidently calculated to deftroy the Miniiter 
of Finance, and to throw the Committee 
which exalted him entirely upon the de- 
pendence of fo powerful a Minifter, This 
Committee was honoured wich the title of 
The Great Council of Finance. The chief 
Members of it were M. Corradini, whofe 
ftupidity, although concealed under the 
maik of Jefuitical taciturnity, had already 
become proverbial—M. Mazzocchi, whole 
revelling -mind and mannezs had gotten 
hini the mime of Capuchin of Magifiracy 
——and the Prefident, the Prince of Cizi1, 
who, forme years before, had been dif- 
placed from the Roman Embafly for want 
of capacity. The organization of that 
Council was a compound of Minilry 
znd Magifltracy ; a combination of many 
unfettied and irregular jurifdidtions; are- 
partition of bufinefs among the feveral 
members and inferior clerks and agents, 
a&ing and counteracting in fo confufed a 
manner, as to make us believe Mr. Afton 
had done all that in order to have the 
-army, the navy, and the finances, at his 
fole difpofal. We donot mean tocalt any 
refieciions cn the defeéts of a gcvernment, 
much lefs are we inclined to give any un- 
favourable prepoffeffion of this Minifter, 
whem we believe as untainted as any per- 
* Yon in his line. We fhall only relate the 
reports of that time. The funds allotted 
to the fupport of the army and navy were, 
if we recolleé rightly, four millions and 
ahalf of ducats (about 800,000I. fierling). 
The arrangements prefcribed, that the 
navy fhould have a dated number of fnips 
built every year, and the army confilt of 
30,000 troops of the lire, and 46,000 mi- 
litia. It is a faG@t fully eftablifhed, that 
this number of men did not exilt, except 
in the pay-tables, and as if this had not 
been fufhicient, it is alfo an incontroverti- 
ble truth, that from the year 1782 to 
1785, very few, if any, promotions took 
place in the army, owing, as the Minifter 
faid, to the near approaching promulga- 
tion of the new plan; and when fome pre. 
ferments among the fupervior officers were 
unavoidable, for preventing the total 
_ failure of military fervice, the commifficn 
was fent to the candidate fix or feven 
months after his Majefty’s appointment : 
in the mean while fuch officer received 
pay according to the eld rank, whereas in 
the accounts his pay was charged as that 
to which he was about to fucceed. It 
was fuppofed that more than two millions 
(nearly 400,000]. fterling) were faved 
every year, and the public voice had al- 
yeady pronounced a fentence which it is 
v.gacceflary to relate in this place, “Thefe 
Memoirs of General Aftan. 
[Sept. 1, 
proceedings are faid to have caft an unfa- 
vourable opinion on General Aton in the 
eyes both of the army and navy; the in- 
dividusls cf which (generally very poor) 
had confecrated the prime cf their life to 
the royal ferviée, under the pro‘peet of 
enjcying fome comfort in their advanced 
age, but which they were thus dilappoint- 
ed of. Meantime another {cene was open- 
ed -to flatter further his ambition. He 
would attempt an ufurpation of power on 
his two colleagues, theMinifters of Juftice 
and that of Ecclefafical Affairs, the only 
Minifters who ftill preferved their autho- 
rity undiminifhed. By an ancient law of 
the kingdom of Naples (as well as in 
many other countries) fome perfons, and 
efpecially the ofiicers of the army and 
navy, and of the King’s Houthold, en- 
joyed the privilegiuza fori.Por each of thefe. 
orders there was a magiftrate diftinS from 
the body of the law, and all thofe three 
were independent of the Minifter of Juf. 
tice. Mr. Aécton refolved to convert thefe 
individual Magiftracies into Collegial Tri- 
bunals, dependent on his office, fo as to 
give himfelf a further influence over the - 
magiftrates and lawyers of the kingdom, 
Had the matter fiopped here, he would, 
they fay, have gratified his ambiticn with — 
little inconvinience to the public, except 
the additional expenditure for the f{upport 
of thefe newly-eftablithed colleges of judi- 
cature. They were, however, it is laid, 
productive of three fignal inconveniences. 
—1. The Miniter and his fubaltern 
agents found, every day, new clafles of 
people, to whom the priwilegium fori ought 
to be extended, and thus they oradually 
divefted the national magiftracy of their 
jurifdiction.—-2. As the judicial proceed- 
ings of the ancient courts of juftice in 
Naples moved with great regularity, ow- 
ing to a long practice and experience of 
pak ages, and as fuch judicial cuftoms 
were no: eafily to be grafted’ on a newly 
raifed tribunal, confiqing of people in- 
fluenced by a Minitter and his officers, 
unacquainted wich civil and common law. 
there never paflcd a fingie day without 
blunders, which diferaced common fenfe, 
and fumetimes excited laughter ce 
What was werfe than all, certain cra‘ty 
and anibitious lawyers, without me- 
rit, intrigued in Mr. Acton’s office for 
the purpofe of getting a feoting in the 
newly-raifed tribunals, and under pre- 
tence of merit and reward, obtained, 
through, him, a paffage, or rather dn in- 
truficn, into the great courts. By this 
means the venerable body of the crdinary 
magiftracy was infulted by the intrufion 
of a confiderable number of unworthy per- 
feng 
