THE

MONTHLY REVIEW,

For JANUARY, 1768.

888

Debates in the Parliament of Ireland continued; See Review for

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December.

S it is impoffible for us, in the compafs of our pamphlet, to take notice of every minute motion and debate, we fhall felect those of the most public concern.

On the eighth day of the feffion, Mr. T. M. (fuppofed to be Thomas Mahon, member for the county of Rofcommon) brought in a petition of Margaret Afleworth widow, praying aid to carry on the manufacture of printing linen, cotton, callicoe and paper; and moved that it might be referred to a committee. Upon which Mr. E. S. P. who is fuppofed to be Edmund Sexton Perry, Efq; member for the city of Limeric, objected; because this would be the occafion of introducing many petitions of that kind, which they were not able to grant. To which Mr. M. replied; and faid, amongst other things, that he did not know why he fhould not have his JOBB done as well as another. Mr. P. in reply to this, faid, if he could bring himself to submit to do a JOBB at all, he would do his JOBB as foon as any man's. This gave occafion to Dr. L. to remark upon this debate, faying, I am now unfortunately feated between two gentlemen who have bandied the word JOBB from one to another in a fenfe and manner, which makes it justly to be apprehended, that we have loft not only virtue, but hame. The very air which conveys fuch founds is contaminated. The word JOBB is not only an odious, but a peftilential monofyllable; and I moft fincerely hope, that I fhall never again hear it mentioned in this houfe, without the most opprobrious epithets that can poffibly be invented, as none can fufficiently exprefs its turpitude and malignity.'

On this Mr. R. F. rofe up, and, in a very uncommon fpeech, drew a picture, intirely in the ftyle and fpirit of Cebes; in VOL. XXXVIII. B

which

which he ingenioufly carried on the following allegory:

This monofyllable, fays Mr. F. is the name of a certain illegitimate child of public fpirit, whom the world has agreed to call JOBB. He is well known in this houfe, and, I am forry to fay, has not been ill received in it. Permit me therefore to give fome further account of his defcent and family, his character and qualifications. His mother is public fpirit: this lady, though fhe is deservedly esteemed for many great and good qualities, is known to have a freedom of principle and a warmth of conflitution, which, concurring with opportunity, fpecious pretences, and folemn affurances, have frequently fubverted her chastity, and feduced her to the embraces of the meanest and the most unworthy wretches in the world. Among these was felf-intereft, by whom public-fpirit has a numerous issue, distinguifhed by the name of JOBBS. How they came to be fo called, I fhall not at prefent enquire; but, it is certain, that, as to their outward appearance, they greatly resemble their mother, and, that, in their principles and difpofitions, they are altogether like their father. Their refemblance to public-fpirit has enabled them to do much mischief, by executing the projects of private interest: they have been difperfed all over the world, and have acted in every fphere. They have established great empires, and brought them again to deftruction: they have placed monarchs upon a throne, and banished them to a defert; they have appeared in the characters of Alexanders, Bourbons, and Ravilliacs. They have been active both in church and state, from the minifter to the contractor, from the archbishop to the curate, from the judge to the Newgate folicitor, from the commander in chief to the quarter-matter, from the court phyfician to the itinerant quack. They have always flourished in proportion to the wealth and generofity of the country where they have refided and though this country cannot boast to have been vifited by many of the offspring which public-fpirit has born to a worthy father, yet many of the jobbs, her children by selfintereft, have come over hither from a neighbouring kingdom, and have, with great fuccefs, played, both upon our virtues and our weakness. They have flattered us by telling us we were rich; and they have amufed us by pretending to increase our riches. They have applauded our generofity; and to give us an opportunity of fhewing that we deferved the compliment, have been very free in foliciting favours; and this opportunity we have feldom failed to improve. We have lavished upon them whatever they required; and they in return have gone off with their booty, exulting in their own cunning, and defpifing our fimplicity.

On the ninth day the debate which had begun upon Mr. Longfield's motion, was refumed; and on the fifth day, Dr. L.

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expreffed himself with fuch freedom, that he was called to order by feveral members, particularly for faying, that the court of Exchequer, great and refpectable as it is known to have been, has loft its dignity and is fallen into contempt; an event equally unhappy and unavoidable, when fuch perfons as the prefent prefide upon the bench: but afterwards he explained himself in this manner, The court of Exchequer confifts of the chancellor, treasurer, chief baron and two judges. Thefe perfons, five in number, act in a judicial capacity; and if from thefe five judges, two are eventually taken away, by appointing two perfons to fill two of the places, who do not act, whether from want of inclination or ability, furely no gentleman will pretend to to fay, by fuch diminution, the court has not fallen from its dignity. Will not five judges of ability give the court, in which they prefide, more dignity than three? at kaft, will not a court, which, by its conftitution, is to confift of five judges, lofe its dignity if two of them are cyphers? When five judges were appointed to that court, it was furely intended that five judges fhould act; and by what contrivances the places of two of them have been made fine cures, I do not know but this I know, that we pay them very large falaries for doing a duty which they do not do and I fhould be glad to know, if the bufinefs of that court can be effectually done, and its dignity effectually maintained, by the acting of three judges, why we are to pay five? As I believe, no gentleman prefent can deny, that two of thefe judges are cyphers, nor that a court lofes its dignity, by having fuch judges, I conclude that I might, in this fenfe, without reproach, fay, that the court in queftion has fallen from its dignity, and that every gentleman here is of the fame opinion.'-Here the ingenious Dr. seems to have brought himself off very adroitly.

On the tenth day, in the committee for examining the national accounts, Mr. R. F. faid, Before this committee is adjourned, I think it incumbent upon me to take notice of, a very important object of their attention, as it relates to the public income and expences, with refpect to an article, upon which, in my opinion, the very being of our conftitution in a great meafure depends. In the first place, Sir, I am extremely forry to say, that though our revenue has, of late years, very confi derably increased, yet our expences very confiderably exceed our revenue. This circumftance is the more alarming, as no national advantage is procured by this increafe of expence, and as it has arisen at a time when our public affairs were in the fame fituation as they were when our expences were greatly less than our income, though our income was far less than it is. This, Sir, feems to indicate, at left, an injudicious manage

ment in the difpofal of public money, and lays the foundation of a public debt, which, by a continuation of the fame management, muft perpetually increase. I may perhaps be told, that the fum annually added to this debt, will be but fmall. But I anfwer, that we could not poffibly support it if it were large, and that as large and small are relative terms, a debt that would be fmall to another nation, will be LARGE to ours.-It is unhappily too true that the commerce of this country lies under very great difadvantages and its home trade, or manufactories, are very much reftrained by a mistaken policy, which is perpetually operating in favour of a fifter country. Our people, in general, therefore, muft neceffarily be poor, and unable to support taxes, like other countries, to pay intereft for a public debt. On the contrary, it is neceffary that we fhould be able to make fome favings from our public revenue, in order to counter-balance our national disadvantages by pecuniary encouragements, for the increase of our manufactories, and the improvement of our trade. Upon this view of our fituation, and I appeal to all that hear me, whether it is not a true one; it is manifeft that a national debt comparatively very fmall, will to us, be total ruin and give me leave to fay it would be fo, if our trade and manufactures were in a much better ftate than they are; because our money, what we have of it, does not circulate among us, but is drained off by abfentees, and squandered on the other fide of the water.-I have with fome pains and trouble made a very exact calculation of our income, and our expence, for fome years back, and I find there was in the year 1757, a faving to this country, after the demands of government were fatisfied, of 86,095. to be laid out in improvements. There was alfo in the year 1759, a faving of 96,184 1. but in the year 1761, though the revenue was then confiderably increased, the demands of government exceeded it no less than 79,1817. and in the year 1763, though the revenue ftill continued to increase, yet the exceedings amounted to 66,680.-This increase in our expences, being fo great, notwithstanding an increased revenue, as, inftead of leaving us a furplus of 96,184 1. to bring us in debt 79,181 1. in one year, requires a particular examination. One article is obvious, the PENSIONS; fums, large fums annually paid to perfons for performing no public service; perfons who have never contributed to the honour or the advantage of this country, the value of a mite: from whom it cannot receive the leaft degree of either, and from whom it is not even pretended that it will. But befides this, there is a much larger fum than formerly allowed for the concordatum: the allowance during the late reign, was 5000 l. but in the present it increafed to 10,000l. and to that there has fince been an additional

additional increase of no less than 16,000 7. more: fo that the whole increase, in this one article, is no less than 26,000 l. But there is an increase in another article, that feems more extraordinary fill, and I cannot mention it without fome degree both of fhame and indignation-Secret fervice.-Of what nature, Sir, is this fecret fervice? We have no treaties to carry on with other nations, no fecret intelligence to procure from abroad; nor do I know of any intelligence at home, which it is neceflary fecretly to procure, and fecretly to communicate to government; I fhould therefore think, that a very small fum would fuffice for this article. 2,991 1. was found fufficient in the height of the war, for two years, the years 1759 and 1760, and yet for the two laft years, when the exigencies of state muft certainly have required lefs, we are charged 2,209 1. more, the whole charge for thofe years being 5,2001. This, Sir, appears extremely myfterious to me, and I dare fay does fo to every gentleman that hears me. The increase in the penfions is immenfe, for, at prefent, they amount to no less than 42,6271. 195. 2 d. more than the civil lift. I therefore humbly move, that this fact may be recognized by this committee, and that it be the refolution of this committee that the penfions do exceed the civil lift 42,627 l. 19 s. 2 d.

To this Mr. P. T. (fuppofed to be Philip Tifdal, Efq; Attorney-General) replied, As the computation by which the penfions appear to exceed the civil lift, is intirely an arith metical operation, I think it is proper that every gentleman fhould have time to fatisfy himself of the refult of it, before he concurs in a refolution by which that refult is declared. The honourable gentleman who fpoke laft fays, it has coft him fome pains and trouble, to make this computation, and therefore it is reasonable to fuppofe, that other gentlemen cannot make it without; fo that if they are not to take it implicitly from him, fome time must be allowed them, and I think the time of the committee may be better employed, as I do not fee what end the refolution propofed will anfwer, when it is made.'

Mr. R. F. (in reply.)

Though the computation cost me fome time and trouble, as it was neceffary for me to state the article, both of our income and our expence, and then to compare the amount, it may now be done with the greatest facility, because the accounts ready drawn up and stated, lie upon the table; fo that nothing more is neceffary than to write down two fhort lines of Figures, and by the most fimple and ea'y operation in arithmetic, to deduct one from the other. I therefore defire that the chairman may make it on behalf of us all, and report it, which, I apprehend, will, at once, put an end to doubt, and carry univerfal con

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viction