No. LXXXII. REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONERS ON THE POLICE BILL. MR. SPEAKER, (P. 248.) YOUR committee appointed to examine the accounts of the commissioners of police, having met according to order, and called for such papers as appeared to them to be necessary, and also examined several witnesses relative to the state of the said accounts, in the most solemn manner, directed me to report as follows: Your committee having examined the accounts laid before them by the commissioners of police, do find, that in the two years and a half, which their institution has subsisted, ending the 25th of March last, they have spent more than 51,000l. of the money of the public. They find further, that the total expence of the first year, including the salaries paid to the commissioners and divisional justices, amounted to 20,1977. 9s. 10d. and of the second year to 19,981/. Os. 23d. of which sums your committee find that the sum of 9,682. 13s. 10d. was the charge for the watch in the first year, and 9,500%. in the second year, and that the remainder (being a sum of 10,514. 16s. in the first year, and 10,4814. Os. 23d. in the second) has been expended in salaries and other charges, which have attended this establish ment. Your committee then proceeded to examine into the particulars of these last sums, and find, that a sum of 4,000l. and upwards has been expended for the police house, and the houses and offices of the divisional magistrates, and of the high and chief constables, and for furniture. Your committee further find among many other unsuitable and objectionable articles composing the last mentioned sum of 4,000l. there is a charge of 1384. 10s. 8d. for looking glasses, and 994. 8s. 31d. for Wilton and other carpets. Your committee proceeded further to examine the expence of the police cavalry, and find that above 4,600% have been expended for the forty horse of the police establishment in the two first years, although it appears to the committee, that the keeping any horse policemen was, and is unnecessary, and consequently that the last mentioned sum was an expence useless to the public. It also appears to your committee, that the additional watch at 9d. per day has not answered the desired effect. Your committee having observed an excessive charge for the article of coals, and enquired into the application thereof, do find, that about 406 tons have been, on an average, the annual consumption, of which 48 tons have been the allowance to the four divisional magistrates; about 209 to high and chief constables, the house of correction, and watch houses; and for the remaining quantity of above 180 tons, there appears no account except for such part thereof, as may have been consumed at the police house. Your committee have further to observe, that the commissioners appear to have made an improvident contract, in paying 20s. a ton in the second and third years, the coal factor who furnished the first year having declared his readiness to continue his contract at 19s. Your committee then proceeded to consider the charge under the head of stationary, and find it to be for the two years and a half 3,3161. 6s. 6d. On this extraordinary charge your committee have to observe, that upwards of 150% were paid for gilt paper, and 491. 8s. 8d. for sealing wax, in the first year and á half, ending the 25th of March, 1788; charges unwarrantable and unnecessary, which are confirmed by the charge of 13. being found sufficient for both those articles in the following year. Your committee find a considerable and very extraordinary charge for books, some of which appear to be unnecessary, and by no means appertaining to the business of the police, the catalogue of which was presented to the house last session. Your committee also find, that the commissioners of police have, for the last year and three quarters, paid by agreement to their stationer 104/. 1s. 6d. per quarter (which is about 8/. a week), for compiling and printing the Hue and Cry, and for occasional hand bills, of which sum he allows one guinea per week to a clerk for compiling the Hue and Cry, and he calculates the occasional hand bill at seven shillings per week, which leaves about 67. 10s. to said stationer, for printing the said Hue and Cry. Your committee then examined John Chambers and Thomas M'Donnel, master printers, and found they would undertake to print the Hue and Cry, on a paper, and with a type of the same kind, as those made use of for it for about 3. 13s. per week less than is now paid by the commissioners. Your committee think it necessary also to take notice, that a sum of 2461. 18s. 8d. was paid in the first year; and 153. 14s. d. in the second, for advertisements in newspapers. Your committee think it their duty to observe, that there is a charge of 1764. 78. 1d. for a survey and maps of the metropolis district. Your committee further find, that about 9001. have been expended in law suits, in the greater part of which the commissioners of police have been unsuccessful. Your committee proceeded to examine into the stoppages made from the police watchmen, and find, that 124. per day, amounting to 2l. 13s. 23d. a year, is stopped for clothing from the daily pay of each police night watchman, which (for the 400 men) amounts to 1064/. 11s. 8d. a year; and that 21d. per day, amounting to 37. 8s. 51d. a year, is stopped for clothing from each watch constable, which, for 40 men, comes to 136l. 17s. 6d. a year, which stoppages amount in the whole to 1,2017. 9s. 2d. per annum. Your committee further find, that the clothing, to which such stoppages is applied, consists, for the night watchmen, of coat, waistcoat, breeches, flannel under waistcoat, one pair of long gaiters, and hat and cockade, for all which the price paid by contract amounts to 21. 4s. 5d. per man yearly, and for the 400 men to 888/. 6s. Ed. and that the clothing of 40 watch constables consists of the aforesaid articles, and also of silver lace, loop and button for the hat, and of a silver epaulet, all which clothing costs 2. 19. 1d. per man, and for 40 men costs 118/. 4s. 2d. which sum added to the aforesaid sum of 8881. 6s. 8d. makes 1,006l. vs. 10d. per annum. And your committee find, that the difference between the actual clothing expences of the police night infantry, and the aforesaid stoppages amounts to 1944. 18s. 4d. per annum, for which saving it does not appear, that the commissioners of police have given credit in their accounts to the commissioners of account or elsewhere. It further appears to your committee, that during the first year of the police institution, neither flannel waistcoats nor long gaiters were given to the watchmen, and that consequently (though the contract price was then seventeen pence a suit higher than at present), yet the clothing of each of the 400 private men did not exceed 21. Os. 11d. per annum, and therefore gave opportunity for a saving of 70% more than their clothing admits in the current year. Your committee also find, that exclusive of the aforesaid stoppage, and of a stoppage for the surgeon, there has been stopped one penny per night from each of the 400 police night watchmen, seven eighths of a penny per night from each of the 40 watch constables, and one penny five eighths per night from each of the 40 horsemen, which different stoppages amount to 7601. 8s. 4d. per annum, and this sum is alleged to have been paid in some subsequent period to such police men as have not been dismissed for misbehaviour. Your committee also find, that in the accounts laid before them by the commissioners of police, credit is not given to the public for more than the sum of 124. 1s. 3d. under the head of arrears, which article is in the second year's charge, and that consequently 6461. 7s. 1d. (which is more than five sixths of the whole of the above stoppages of the first year) is by the account implied to have been paid in or before the second year to the police men as arrears; but no account has been produced to this committee of the payments to the police men of that large proportion of those arrears so stopped from them during the first year, and not credited to the public, but it is alleged said arrears have been paid. It appears that no credit whatsoever has yet been given to the public for the aforesaid stoppages for the second year, ending at Michaelmas last, and amounting to a like sum of 760%. 8s. 4d. although police accounts for the half year, ending the 25th of March, 1789, have been laid before the committee; (the reason alleged for which, by one of the commissioners is, that there are some of those arrears, which have not yet been paid to the men.) Your committee think it right to observe that a greater sum has been received by the commissioners of police, for noneffective men, in the accounts of the two first years, than the sums therein credited to the public. Your committee further find, that a secretary, with a salary of 2001. a year, and three clerks under him, whose salaries amount to 240% per annum, attended the police-house, exclusive of the accountant and his clerk, and of the stationer's clerk, who compiles the Hue and Cry. And that George Parker, one of those three clerks, enjoying a salary of 70%. per annum, has not been in Ireland during the last half year. They also find, that each of the four divisional justices has two clerks, for whom the public is charged 125. making for the eight clerks a sum of 500% a year. Your committee observe further, that the general accounts of the police, laid before the commissioners of account, and afterwards before this committee, are ill arranged, and many of the articles not distributed under their proper heads; and that having examined the accountant as to that point, he alleged, that the arrangement of all accounts of expenditure originated from the commissioners. And your committee came to the following resolutions: |