House of Commons Journal Volume 9: 2 May 1679

Veneris, 2 die Maii, 1679.

Prayers.

Lord Mohun's Estate.

ORDERED, That the ingrossed Bill, sent down from the Lords, intituled, An Act to enable the Trustees of the Manors and Lands late of Charles Lord Mohun, therein named, to fell and sell Timber, and to make Leases, for Payment of his and his Father's Debts, and to raise a Portion for his Daughter, be read To-morrow Morning, the first Business.

Judgment against Sir S. Bernardiston.

Ordered, That the Committee appointed to inquire into the Matter of reversing the Judgment in the Case of Sir Samuel Bernardiston, do sit de die in diem, till they are ready to report the same: And be impowered to send for Persons, Papers, and Records.

Bankrupts.

Ordered, That Leave be given to bring in a Bill, That where the greater Number of Creditors of any Bankrupts are willing to come to any Composition, it shall not lie in the Power of the lesser Number of the Creditors to defeat such Composition: And it is recommended to the Care of Mr. Papillon, to prepare and bring in such a Bill.

Woollen Manufacture.

Ordered, That a Committee be appointed to inquire into the Abuses and Causes of the Decay of the Woollen Manufacture; and to consider how the same may be improved, and the Abuses rectified; and to bring in a Bill or Bills, upon the Debate of the House, for that Purpose; and to consider of repealing Laws, now in being, that are prejudicial to the said Manufacture; and report their Opinions therein to the House; and to inspect the Bill depending in the last Parliament, for encouraging the Wearing of Woollen Manufactures; and report their Opinions likewise therein to the House.

And it is referred to Mr. Duboys, Sir Henry Foord, Mr. Whitacre, Sir Francis Russell, Mr. Boscawen, Sir John Coryton, Sir John Wynn, Sir Gilbert Gerrard, Sir Robert Peyton, Mr. Powle, Colonel Birch, Sir Trevor Williams, Serjeant Seys, Mr. Freake, Sir John Mallett, Sir Robert Carr, Sir John Darrell, Mr. Henry Bulkeley, Sir John Salusbury, Mr. Wm. Bulkeley, Sir Thomas Lee, Sir George Downing, Lord Ancram, Mr. Woogan, Sir Philip Egerton, Lord Morpeth, Sir Wm. Robarts, Sir John Talbot, Sir James Long, Mr. Gresham, Sir William Poultney, Mr. Papillon, Mr. Williams, Mr. Treby, Mr. Gould, Mr. Barker, Sir John Cloberry, Mr. Garraway, Mr. St. John, Sir Francis Drake, Sir Robert Cleyton, Mr. Whitehead, Sir Anth. Irby, Sir William Escourt, Mr. Lewis, Doctor Jacob, Sir Ralph Ashton, Sir Robert Markham, Mr. Thomas Bulkeley, Sir Henry Capell, Mr. Owen, Sir Joseph Tredenham, Sir Gervas Elwes, Mr. Elwes, Mr. Greenvile, Sir William Hickman, Mr. Onslow, Sir James Rushout, Sir Robert Dillington, Sir William Francklyn, Mr. Dalmahoy, Mr. Moore, Sir Henry Goodrick, Sir Humphrey Forester, Sir Francis Winnington, Mr. Courtenay, Mr. Ayliffe, Sir John Reresby, Sir Scrope How, Mr. Barker, Sir Richard Corbett, and all the Merchants that are Members of this House: And all that come are to have Voices: And they are to meet To-morrow at Three of the Clock, in the Afternoon, in the Speaker's Chamber: And are impowered to send for Persons, Papers, and Records.

Absentee without Leave.

Ordered, That Mr. Norborne, having departed the Service of this House without Leave; be sent for in Custody of the Serjeant at Arms attending this House: And that he shall not be admitted to take his Place in the House, till he hath paid the Serjeant his Fees and Charge.

Call of the House.

Ordered, That the House be Called over on this Day Fortnight.

Disbanding the Army.

Sir Richard Cust reports from the Committee appointed to inquire, What Part of the Money given for disbanding the Army is undisposed of, in pursuance of the Directions of the Act of Parliament, and now remains in the Exchequer, That the Committee had met; and had examined the Matter to them referred; and had agreed upon a Report to be made to the House: Which he read in his Place; and afterwards delivered the same in at the Clerk's Table: Where the same was again read, and is as followeth; viz.

The Committee upon the Perusal of the Act of Parliament made 30° Car. II. Regis, intituled, An Act for granting a Supply to his Majesty of Six hundred Nineteen thousand Three hundred and Eighty-eight Pounds Eleven Shillings and Nine-pence, for disbanding the Army, and other Uses therein mentioned, do find these following Clauses; viz.

Page the 14th, in hæc verba; "And it is hereby further Enacted, by the Authority aforesaid; That, after Orders shall be registred for the Repayment of the Loans in this Act, not exceeding One hundred and Fifty thousand Pounds, with Interest as aforesaid, and the Forces actually disbanded; that other Orders of the Lord Treasurer to the Paymaster of the Land Forces, for Payment for Cloaths and other Necessaries for the Forces to be disbanded by this Act, shall be registred in Course, according to their respective Dates: And that all Orders for Repayment of Monies lent shall be registred in Course, according to the Date of the Tally respectively: And that all other Orders, after the actual Disbanding of the Forces, shall be entered in Course, according to the respective Dates."

Page 15. Those Monies not to be divertible to any other Use, Intent, or Purpose, whatsoever.

In this Paragraph there seems to be Two distinct Appointments, or different Uses and Consignments of the Monies before-mentioned, viz. One hundred and Fifty thousand Pounds, for the actual Disbanding of the Army, and Fifty thousand Pounds, &c. for Payment of Cloaths, &c. had for the Use of the Army.

Page 21. It follows in the said Act in hæc Verba: "Be it Enacted, by the Authority aforesaid, That all Monies herein before-named and mentioned, collected, levied, and paid by virtue of this Act, except the Allowances therein made to the respective Collectors, Clerks, Receivers General, &c. and what shall be issued out of the Exchequer for the Repayment of Loans made in pursuance of this Act, upon the Credit of the Two hundred and Six thousand Four hundred Sixty-two Pounds, Seventeen Shillings and Three-pence into the Exchequer, and Interest for the same, shall be applied and appropriated, and are hereby appropriated, for the speedy and complete paying and disbanding the Forces, Officers, and Soldiers, raised since the Twenty-ninth of September 1677; and to no other Use, Intent, or Purpose, whatsoever."

Page 27. "Be it enacted, by the Authority aforesaid, That the said Treasurer or Paymaster of the Land Forces shall, in the First place, pay off and discharge the Wages and Pay due to the Officers and Soldiers at the respective Time of their Disbanding: And shall, within Twenty Days after the Disbanding of any Regiment, Troop, or Company, or any Number of Horse or Foot, return, into the Receipt of his Majesty's Exchequer, a Certificate, fairly written in Parchment, of the Money he paid, and the Numbers of Men, together with the Days of their Muster; whereby a due Account may appear thereof: And out of the Residue of the Money he shall pay and discharge what appears due for Cloaths, and other Necessaries, and Charges relating to the said Forces, &c."

These Paragraphs seem to appropriate the whole intire Sum to the Disbanding of the Army first; yet with a regard to the Payment for Cloaths and Necessaries for the Army also.

Thus for the Act.

The Committee then desired the Paymaster of the Land Forces, Mr. Kingdome, to inform them, What Sums of Money he had paid in pursuance of the said Act, and by what Orders, for the Disbanding of the Army; and What was registred in the Exchequer upon that Account; that so they might be fully informed, What was undisposed of, and remaining in the Exchequer, of all the Monies given by the said Act.

The said Paymaster informed the Committee, That he had disbursed the whole Two hundred thousand Pounds raised upon the Act, in paying off and disbanding the Forces; and produced the Copies of Two Orders, the One bearing Date the Three-and-twentieth of July 1678, for One hundred and Ten thousand Pounds: Signed

"Danby, J. Ernley. Examined, Howard."

This Order, he saith, was registred.

Another Order, bearing Date the One-and-twentieth of August 1678, for Ninety thousand Pounds: Signed "Danby, J. Ernley. Examined, Howard."

This Order, he saith, was not registred.

The Committee also heard, what an honourable Person, a Member of this House, Sir Robert Howard, could inform them in this Matter: Who averred, That he was indeed privy unto, and had entered and registred the former Order for One hundred and Ten thousand Pounds, which was allowed to be disbursed for the Payment of the Army, according to the Act; and believes, That, in pursuance of the said Act, Forty thousand Pounds more might be paid by the said Paymaster towards the Disbanding of the Forces; but affirms, That Forty or Fortyfive thousand Pounds more is yet undisposed of, and must or ought to remain in the Exchequer, or will be there in few Days; for that he never had, nor would enter and register any more Orders for other Monies, till the Army was complete and actually disbanded; for that it could not be justified by the Act.

This is the utmost Truth, as to the Matter of Fact, the Committee could find out in so short a time: And, indeed, whether any of the Monies, before-mentioned, be regularly paid for Disbanding of the Land Forces, as the Act limits, appropriates, and directs, the Army being still kept up, the Committee humbly submits to the Opinion of this House.

Privilege- A person discharged.

Doctor John Nelson being called in to the Bar, according to the Order of the House; and there kneeling; and having received a Reproof from Mr. Speaker; was discharged from the Custody of the Serjeant at Arms, paying his Fees.

Warwick Election.

Ordered, That the Report touching the Election for the County of Warwick be made To-morrow Morning at Ten of the Clock.

Liberty of the Subject.

A Message from the Lords, by the Lord Chief Justice North and Sir Robert Atkins;

Mr. Speaker, The Lords have agreed to the Act, intituled, An Act for the better Securing the Liberty of the Subject, and for Prevention of Imprisonments beyond the Seas; with some Amendments: To which they desire the Concurrence of this House.

Supply Bill; disbanding the Army.

A Bill for paying off and disbanding the Army, was read the Third time.

And some Amendments being made at the Table;

Resolved, &c. That the Bill do pass: And that the Title be, An Act for granting a Supply to his Majesty of Two hundred and Six thousand Four hundred Sixty-two Pounds Seventeen Shillings and Three-pence, for paying off and disbanding the Forces raised since the Twentyninth of September One thousand Six hundred Seventyand-seven.

Ordered, That Sir John Trevor do carry up the Bill to the Lords for their Concurrence.

Leave of Absence.

Ordered, That Sir John Kempthorne have Leave to go into the Country for Ten Days, from Monday next.

And then the House adjourned till To-morrow Morning, Seven of the Clock.