so far, as to see the fatal consequences of this American war, which he was sure they would do more and more; and that Mr. Vyner, though he would not be persuaded by any arguments, would by his feelings be induced to give up the war, as well as the causes of it; but that he, as to the motion, was not convinced so far, as to approve of it, though he rejoiced at finding the sentiments of gentlemen changed, which he believed would be the case more and more every day; that he rather liked the tax, especially because he thought it would be a productive tax.

members of the Committee of the Company of Merchants trading to Africa, was presented to the House, and read; setting forth, " That the petitioners are committee men for the direction and management of the affairs of the African Company, under the authority, and according to the provi sions, of an Act passed in the 23d George the 2d, intituled, An Act for extending and improving the Trade to Africa;' and that the present Committee doth annually receive from parliament considerable sums of public money, for the faithful application of which they are responsible; this public money they would be most unworthy to hold, and it would be highly improper for the House to intrust it in their hands, if they stood justly chargeable with any abuse whatsoever; and that the petitioners having a legal tenure in their said corporate office, during the term, and under the conditions, appointed by the said Act, are, by the law of this land, intitled to protection for their corporate character, without which protection they will be unable to perform their duty; they have also a property equally to be protected, by the same law, in their honest fame and reputation as private citizens and merchants; their pri vate credit, they humbly represent to the House, must be affected to their extreme detriment, should any misconduct or unfaithfulness, particularly in a pecuniary and commercial trust, be publicly imputed to them, and not publicly disproved; and that the petitioners observe, with the ut most concern, a paper laid before the House, purporting to be A Return from the commissioners for trade and plantations, relating to the general state of the

Lord North hoped the opinion would not prevail generally, that the tax on servants would be so productive. He hoped it would answer the sum it was taken for, but begged it might not be taken for granted, that a tax which was merely experimental would turn out so abundant. As to the motion, he was against it, as it might affect the tax; nor did he see the analogy of the argument to the tax, for it went rather to the weighing boys, which perhaps the hon. baronet might be used to, with lambs and chickens, and taxing them proportionably, than to exempt them; and that as he thought they were taxable objects, he was against the motion. Sir George Yonge begged leave to join issue with the noble lord in that part of the argument, which fixed the merits of the question upon the consideration of boys being taxable objects. It was not fair to the argument, to rest it solely on the invidious part of the consideration, which respected boys kept for horses at Newmarket; he was no friend to Newmarket, never was there, and never would be there for the purpose of gaming or run-trade to Africa, and signed George Gerning horses. He thought the question truly stated, was, whether boys were taxable objects? To determine this, the sense and spirit of the legislature ought to be consulted, which upon no occasion had considered boys as public objects, on which the law ought to fall.

Mr. Fox said, he thought boys ought not to be taxed; though he might be thought to speak partially, yet he meant to shew, that lord North's argument was not conclusive.

maine, Soame Jenyns, Robert Spencer, Bamber Gascoyne, Whitshed Keene, C. F. Greville, and William Eden;" and that, in the said Return, the following heavy charge against the Committee for conducting the said trade is made, and pretended to be supported by evidence, viz.

It appears, so far from this trade' (meaning that part of the African trade under the direction of the committee) having • been carried on in a free and open manner, for the benefit of the public, according to the intention of this honourable House, and agreeable to the spirit and tenor of the Act which constitutes the Proceedings in the Commons on the State present committee, that a private trade, of the African Company, and of the 'directly tending to a monopoly, hath Trade to Africa.] May 23. A Peti-been set up and established by the go. tion of John Bourke and John Barnes, vernors and chiefs of the forts in Africa;

The Committee divided; for the motion 17, against it 101.

6

[294 and that this private trade, so injurious them, who shall be guilty of any misbeto the interests of the public, hath been haviour contrary to the true intent and 'carried on by them in conjunction with meaning of the said Act;' and, in order persons at home, some one or more of to enable the said commissioners of trade 'whom have at the same time been mem- to execute with effect the said trusts and ⚫bers of the committee above-mentioned;' powers, the petitioners, as members of that and that the petitioners, members of the committee, are also directed, by the Act present committee, deliberately weighing aforesaid, to give to the said commisand considering all the particulars and cir- sioners a just and perfect account of all cumstances of the said charge, do affirm to 'their transactions, once a year, or oftener this honourable House, that the same (so if thereunto required by the said commis. far as the petitioners are, or may be, com- sioners, or any three or more of them, in prehended therein, by participation, conwhich shall be contained an account of nivance, or neglect) is absolutely false; all the monies received and disbursed by and the petitioners, in justice to the cha- the said committee, or their order; and racter of Daniel Wier, esq., commissary- also an account of all the orders and ingeneral in America, a member of this com- 'structions given by the said committee, mittee, and now abroad on his Majesty's as well to their officers and servants in service in a most important trust, do assure • Great Britain, as on the coast of Africa, this honourable House, that they have and all the answers given thereto by the abundant reason to be persuaded, that the said officers and servants employed by said charges, with regard to him, are 'the said committee, and of all other matequally groundless and injurious; and ifters and things whatsoever, which shall any other committee-man has acted con-be transacted by the said committee;' trary to his duty, and contrary to the true and now the petitioners most humbly re intent and meaning of the said Act, the present to this honourable House, that, if petitioners are not acquainted with or privy there be a foundation in truth for the to the same; and that the petitioners, with many and most gross abuses stated to be the feelings of injured, and the confidence prevalent in the management of the Comof innocent men, do supplicate from the pany, by which the African trade is asHouse a full and strict enquiry into their serted in the said return to be so much imconduct, offering themselves to the heaviest paired and endangered, the means of repunishment which the just indignation of dress and correction have always been in this House can inflict, if any part of the the hands of the commissioners themselves; said charge, so far as regards them, can be and the petitioners humbly conceive, that made good by the said commissioners of it is a most unwarrantable proceeding in trade, or by any other persons, and most the said commissioners, who are authorized humbly request, that they may be con- by act of parliament to judge the comfronted, as the rules of justice require, mittee-men, and to punish them if delinwith their accusers; and the petitioners, quents, to omit the performance of this in order to facilitate the inquiry of this duty, and to charge those whom they had honourable House, do wave the privilege power to order and control, with the conof all accused persons, in not being com- sequences of their own neglect; and that pellable to answer such questions as may the punishment and remedy, appointed by criminate themselves, and are ready, most act of parliament for such misbehaviour cheerfully, to give full and satisfactory an- as is stated in the said return, is to remove swers to all interrogatories, without excep- the committee-men charged therewith tion, which this House, or any committee from their employments; and the mode thereof, shall think proper to propose to of proceeding prescribed by the Act is, them; and that the petitioners represent that whenever any committee-man shall to this honourable House, that the said 'be charged with misbehaviour in his em commissioners of trade are appointed, by ployment, the commissioners for trade the African Act aforesaid, supreme judges and plantations shall summon such comand comptrollers in all cases of abuse or 'mittee-man to appear before them, and misbehaviour in the African trade, with 'shall, in case he attends, hear the said the fullest powers over the committee and committee-man, and upon his attendance all the servants of the Company, without or default, examine into the truth of the exception, and are authorized by the said said charge before they shall remove him Act, to remove any of the said com-from his employment as aforesaid;' but ⚫mittee-men, or any servant appointed by the petitioners represent to this honourable

House, that the commissioners of trade, complex object as the trade and settleinstead of summoning and hearing the ments under the management of the petitioners, and removing or acquitting African committee, no abuses or errors them according to their deserts, did, con- whatsoever do now, or have at any time trary to the true intent and meaning of the prevailed; but they do insist, that no said Act, and to all the rules of equity and abuses have ever been complained of, and justice, institute of their own authority a proved to them, to which they have not secret inquisition, and did privately exa- given such remedy as the case required, mine Richard Camplin, secretary to the or their legal authority did admit; and said committee, and did, without any war- they most humbly submit to the wisdom rant from law, as the petitioners conceive, and justice of this House, the mischievous enjoin him to keep secret the matters on consequence inevitable to every adminiswhich he had been examined; which in- tration of public affairs, from the highest junction the said Richard Camplin did to the lowest, if persons shall be encoucomply with, and refused to give the pe- raged to pass over the proper department titioners any information thereof, although for complaint and redress of grievances, by his duty, as the confidential servant of and then to criminate, for a defect of such the African Company, he was bound to in- redress, that office to which application form them of any accusation or proceed- has never been made; and the petitioners ings against them; and when the peti- cannot avoid observing to this House, that, tioners did repeatedly desire of the com- in the vast multiplicity of abuses, grievmissioners of trade, that they might have ances, and mismanagements, with which a copy of the said report, or the heads the said return is filled, scarce one date, thereof, the said commissioners did abso- place, or person, is specified, so as to lutely refuse to comply with the said just enable the petitioners to discover the deand reasonable request; and that this linquents (if any delinquents there be), method of proceeding is not only inju- or to remove the abuse (if any abuse rious to the petitioners, but tends to mis- exists), nor have the commissioners of inform and misguide this House; the order trade thought proper to communicate to of this honourable House, is, to lay before the committee the names of the accusers, them a general state of the trade to or the particular circumstances of the acAfrica; the return is a partial state, re- cusations, by which alone the nature of lating only to that particular district which the charges could be ascertained, or their is under the management of the African credibility established; the petitioners committee, which, the petitioners assert, therefore do most humbly and earnestly must tend to produce a fallacious and de- implore the justice of this honourable lusive state of the said branch of com- House, that, for their present defence and merce; and the petitioners most humbly future direction, the whole of the evidence conceive, that, even supposing this return. on which the said return has been founded, did not contain matter tending to crimi- together with the names of those who have nate any persons in a public trust, yet, as witnessed the said several facts, be laid a mere state of the trade, it ought to have before this honourable House, or be made been formed on some sort of examination otherwise accessible to the petitioners, as or inquiry of the committee-men, who are they find themselves much injured, and chiefly concerned in the management of the trade under their management greatly that trade; by declining this natural, ob- misrepresented, by the said loose and gevious, and necessary inquiry, and by pro-neral charges; and the petitioners, lastly, ceeding in a secret and surreptitious manner, the petitioners assert, and engage to prove, that a most erroneous as well as imperfect state of the African commerce, is laid before this House; for the petitioners affirm, that the said trade, until the troubles in America had come to their height, was in a most flourishing and growing condition; and that, therefore, all causes assigned for its decay must, as such, be improperly assigned, the effect itself not existing; and that the petitioners do not assert that, in such a remote and

beg leave to represent to this honourable House, that, in the confused body of matter contained in the said return, several things are alleged as grievances, which the petitioners have always apprehended, and do still conceive, to be strictly legal; and other matters and practices are complained of, as detrimental to commerce, which the petitioners apprehend to be extremely useful, if not necessary to it; these last matters the petitioners do request leave to state at the bar of this honourable House, most humbly desiring