11th. Persons in his Majesty's service in any of the Dock-yards or Public Arsenals, having King's stores in their possession, to the amount of 5l. value, and not being authorised to keep such stores, to be conclusive evidence of embezzlement, and to be punished by transportation.
12th. As an encouragement to excite vigilance in Officers of Justice, it is humbly proposed, that the Commissioners of his Majesty's Navy, Victualing, and other Departments, should be authorised, and required by Law, to pay the following rewards for the conviction of offenders, on the certificate of Judges and Magistrates, before whom such convictions took place—
40l. on Conviction for any Capital Offence.
20l. on Conviction for Felony, punished—Transportation, Fine or Imprisonment, or Whipping, before a Superior Court.
10l. for Misdemeanors, by Indictment before the Quarter or General Sessions of the Peace.
2l. for Convictions before Justices for Minor Offences.
From such Legislative Regulations infinite would be the advantages which might reasonably be expected, when by the establishment of a Naval Police System, their due and proper execution would be rendered certain; and also, in all cases, where the evidence against offenders, although perfectly conclusive as to the fact, may be deficient in some points of legal nicety, by putting the onus probandi on the offender, and treating it as a minor offence: the ends of Public Justice will, in a great measure, be answered by inflicting some punishment on the offender, and however inferior it may be to what he deserves, it will still have an excellent effect, since it is not so much by severe punishments, as by the certainty of some punishment being inflicted, and the obloquy of a conviction when offences are committed, that Delinquents of this class are deterred from the commission of crimes.
Having thus traced the outlines of such remedies, for the protection of his Majesty's Naval, Victualing, Ordnance and other stores, as certainly require Legislative Regulations; it remains now to consider, what other measures may appear necessary, within the limits of the authority with which the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty are invested, for the purpose of rendering the Preventive System complete.
Those which have occurred to the Author of this Work will be classed under the following Heads:
IV. Regulations respecting the Sale of Old Stores.