Considerations on the present peace, as far as it is relative to the colonies, and the African trade

by Robert Vaughan; Thomas Carney

The following is the copy of a clause from the act of parliament for extending and improving the trade to Africa, directing in what manner the committee are to account for the monies they receive from the public for the support of the forts in Africa. In page 556.

“It is enacted that the committee shall, within one month after the expiration of the year, for or during which they shall have been chosen committee-men, lay before the cursitor baron of the exchequer, an account of all the money received by the committee during the preceding year, and of the application thereof, upon oath. And the said cursitor baron shall, within one month after the said account shall be laid before him, examine, pass, and audit the same; and for the better discovering of the truth of such account, the said cursitor baron is hereby empowered to examine any of the said committee-men, and such other person or persons as he shall judge necessary, upon oath, touching the articles or particulars in such account expressed, or such of them as the said cursitor baron shall think fit; which account, so audited and passed by the cursitor baron, shall be final and conclusive, and shall be a full and absolute discharge to the said committee-men, without their being compelled to give or render any further or other account thereof.”

By the foregoing clause, the African committee is only obliged to account for the application in Europe of any monies they receive from government, or otherwise, for the support of the African forts, by laying their annual account before the cursitor baron, how they have appropriated said monies, whether by purchasing and shipping merchandizes, stores, and other supplies for the use of the forts, or of any other manner they might have disposed of the same[23].

By said clause, the cursitor baron is obliged to audit and pass the committee’s account in one month after it is laid before him; though he should have objections thereto, as he had to their accounts for years 1754, 1755 and 1756. However, he passed them, but submitted it to the house of commons to allow some charges in said accounts, or not, that he certainly thought were charged contrary to act of parliament, or he would not have objected to them. But that would have appeared as well as many other facts, with respect to their management and accounts, if the report, consisting of 87 pages, of the committee, appointed by the honourable house of commons to examine into the state and condition of the forts in Africa in the year 1758, had been examined into. All we can take upon us to say with respect to that affair is, said report was prevented being taken into consideration by the house, in consequence of a motion being made and seconded for such purpose, by the African committee’s friends.

We can with truth undertake to say, that many irregularities in the African committee’s accounts were pointed out during the examination before the several committee’s appointed by the house; upon which they desired leave to bring in subsequent accounts to clear up such objections as had been made, one of which was presented to the committee the 22d April, 1756, wherein the African committee deducted from the balance of a former account they had presented 1891l. sterling. We shall only quote this one instance, to shew how necessary it is that the African committee and their servants should be accountable to the public in the same manner the late African company was, for any monies they are intrusted with by government, for the application of said monies on the coast of Africa, before they should obtain a discharge for the same, which would lay them under a necessity to examine minutely into the accounts they receive from their officers in Africa, of the application of said monies there; which, as they are now no-ways accountable for, we may, we hope without being thought severe, presume is not done; which will, in a great measure, appear by the subsequent account before quoted: besides, we fear people, who have accounts of their own to look after, seldom give themselves much trouble about those of the public, unless obligated thereto.

When the officers, who have the application of the public money in Africa, are once satisfied that their accounts will undergo a strict examination by the committee, and also at the auditor of the imprests office; that it will induce them to be careful how they dispose of the merchandize, &c. committed to their charge; as such officers and their sureties will be liable to make good any deduction there, may be made from their accounts. It will likewise be very advantageous to the inferior servants of the committee; for such good purpose, a method can be pointed out to prevent the merchandize purchased with the public money being made use of by the superior officers in trade, for their own account and emolument, to the great injury of the others, many instances of which we have to produce; also that the soldiers, under-servants, and company’s slaves have been paid out of the refuse goods that the commanding officers had taken in the course of their trade.

A single instance of such inhumanity to the inferior servants we think sufficient to trouble the public with, which happened during governor Melvil’s command; and that we should not now particularly take notice of, but as it fell under our observation when we were upon the spot. It also was a charge urged against Mr. Melvil when living, which he never attempted to contradict, to wit, that John Sweidger, a Prussian, and Gardiner at Cape Coast, desired his discharge, wanting to go to his own country. Mr. Melvil, the then governor and treasurer at Cape Coast Castle, whose business it was to give written orders upon the warehouse (or storekeeper) to pay the servants, gave said Sweidger a note upon the warehouse-keeper, for wages due to him, amounting to 28l. gold value, which is about 27l. 2s. 6d. sterling, which said warehouse-keeper offered to pay in guns, that would not even purchase the poor man a little fresh provisions for his voyage. After repeated applications to the governor and warehouse-keeper, finding he could not obtain any thing else, he offered the governor’s note for 28 l. to sale to several of the servants in the castle; and at last sold it to James Hinch, the overseer of the slaves, for eight pounds. That oppressive transaction fully points out how necessary it is that some other method of accounting for the government’s supplies should be adopted, and carried into execution, which surely there cannot be the least objection to.

For example, we will suppose any gentleman in England to have an estate in Africa, and that he was to order Messrs. Trueman and company, or any other respectable merchants in the city of London, to send out a steward to superintend and take care of the improvement of such estate; and that they were to take security from said steward for the value of any monies or merchandize, &c. that he may be entrusted with, to pay the servants residing thereupon, and other expences; also charges of building and repairs. Is it to be supposed said gentlemen, notwithstanding he had the greatest faith in, and opinion of the integrity and honesty of said merchants, would be satisfied with their giving him an account only of their having sent such steward, merchandize, stores and provisions to his estate, without an account from the steward, properly vouched, of the application thereof in Africa? Surely no! then if a private person thinks it necessary to have such an authenticated account, we submit it to the judgment of our readers to determine, whether they think it reasonable the public should expect the same or not. We, for our own parts, are inclined to believe, that people intrusted with the application of public monies, at so great a distance as Africa, when they can make such immense advantage of it as the committee’s officers can, will be induced to embrace the opportunity, however disadvantageous it may be to their country, when they are satisfied little care will be taken how they account for the same.

We shall conclude this pamphlet, with inserting a copy of a petition, signed by the planters of the island of Barbadoes, in the year 1710. The reasons and observations contained therein, in our humble opinion, fully point out, that they foresaw what has in effect since happened; therefore we beg leave to submit it to our readers to form their own judgment upon.