MRS. CLARKE, PUTNEY.

"Mr. Illingworth's compliments to Mrs.

Clarke, has inclosed her bill for wine, the amount of which he will be much obliged to her for.

I hope Mr. Illingworth will proceed against me immediately for the amount of his bill, and then I will bring Major Dodd, Colonel Wardle, and Mr. Glennie again into Court, where I may have the pleasure of seeing them expose themselves, and practise perjury !

This is all the notice I mean to take

of the WINE, which Colonel Wardle and his party consumed in drinking destruction to the Duke of York and the

*

In a note* to the first part of this work, I promised the reader some account of his partnership with Mr. Scott, the army clothier, of Cannon -Row, Westminster; I therefore now

take the liberty of fulfilling that pro

*mise. The manufactory in which Wardle has a concern is at Tre Madock

* See page 18, Vol. I.

X

in Caernarvonshire, which is under the management of a person by the name of Barnet, and where the wool is prepared, and great coats manufactured for the army.

My only motive for going into this subject is to shew that the Colonel employed his patriotic speech, in which he proposed to save the nation ELEVEN

MILLIONS a year, for the purpose of be

coming army clothier to Government ;

and, by reference to his first speech, it may be seen that he recommends his own articles, by the character he gives Mr. Scott, his PARTNER !!!

"ARMY CLOTHING.

"Colonel Wardle rose to call the attention

of the House to the prodigal expenditure of the public money in the present system of clothing the army with great coats. The War Office, instead of acting on the principle of open contract, as recommended and ordered by the Treasury, persisted in private contracts; and the consequence was, that, though a great reduction had taken place in the materials of great coats, no reduction had taken place in the price.

In the year 1803, the Secretary at War (Mr. Yorke) consented to pay at the rate of 16s 6d for each great coat, but stipulated that a reduction should take place if the price of kersey should fall. Kersey was then at 4s 6d a yard, and since continued to fall till it came down to 3s 6d; but no reduction was made in the contracts till the present year, nor would any have

then been made, if it had not been for the continued offers forced on the War Office to furnish great coats at a less price than was actually paid. He made a variety of calculations on the prices at different periods, from which he assured there was a loss to the public of 23,000l; he adverted particularly to a tender made by Messrs. Scott, eminent army clothiers, to furnish these coats in 1806 at 14s 9d, which would afford a saving of 21,000 on every delivery. Not getting any answer, Messrs. Scott looked for a share in the contract as made by the War Office; they obtained it, and paid at the rate of 16s 6d. This was an answer to any objection that could be made on the ground of supposed inferiority in Messrs. Scott's clothing.'

I need not trespass on the patience

* See "The Patriot's Looking Glass," which gives the whole of his speech on saving the nation eleven millions a year! with Mr. Huskisson's reply to it.