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zine, reported that a lot on Walnut street, and bordering on the river Schuylkill, the property of Colonel John Patton, was the most proper place that could be procured for erecting thereon a Powder Magazine: Whereupon,

It was agreed that the Committee be authorized and instructed to negotiate the purchase of the said lot, on the following principles, vizt-Council to nominate two disinterested persons on the part of the State, Colonel Patton to nominate two persons, the four to chose a fifth person, and the five persons to ascertain the value of the lot in question.

Upon the petition and recommendation of a number of respectable inhabitants of the borough of Carlisle, in the county of Cumberland, for the pardon of a certain George Mason, who was convicted in the said county of larceny, and sentenced in October, 1788, to two years and nine months hard labour, &ca.,

Resolved, That the said George Mason be and he is hereby pardoned.

On motion,

Samuel Postlethwaite, Esquire, was appointed and commissionated Clerk of the Court of General Quarter Sessions of the Peace and General Jail Delivery of the county of Cumberland, in the room of John Agnew, Esquire, lately deceased.

A letter from Sharp Delany, Esquire, of the thirteenth instant, inclosing a letter from his Deputy, relative to the settlement of his accounts, and requesting a direction to the Comptroller to report on the said accounts, was read; whereupon, the Secretary was directed to inform the Comptroller General that Council wish to have information relative to the settlement of Colonel Delany's account, and to know the reasons why that settlement has been delayed.

The Committee to whom was referred the copy of the list of pensioners furnished to Council by Sharp Delany, Esquire, taken from and compared with the list which he received from the War Office of the United States, made report, which was read and adopted as follows, vizt:

The Committee to whom was referred the business of the Comptroller General respecting the pensioners' pay, &ca., having examined sundry papers relative thereto, and such of his books as he presented to your Committee, report: They find errors in his books to the amount of thirteen pounds thirteen shillings against the Commonwealth as stated by himself; and further, your Committee report that the Comptroller General has produced to the Executive Council a variety of accounts for sundry persons said to be pensioners and invalids, for which, in consequence thereof, orders have issued for payment on the Treasurer, when at the same time it does not appear he was authorised for so doing, not having orders from any court for his justification.

Resolved unanimously, That Council highly disapprove the conduct of the Comptroller General in stating and reporting to this Council larger sums to be due to invalid pensioners than have been warranted by orders of the Supreme Court or of any Orphans' Court; and that the said Comptroller General be considered as responsible to the Commonwealth for all sums so over-stated, and which have been or may be paid by the State Treasurer in consequence thereof.

The Council met.

PHILADELPHIA, Thursday, April 15th, 1790.

PRESENT:

His Excellency THOMAS MIFFLIN, Esquire, President. The Honorable GEORGE ROSS, Esquire, Vice President.

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A letter from the Honorable Thomas Jefferson, Esquire, Secretary of State of the sixth instant, inclosing two copies of the act to accept a cession of the claims of the State of North Carolina to a certain district of western territory, and of the act to prevent the exportation of goods not duly inspected according to the laws of the several States, was received and read, and a letter written by the President acknowledging the receipt of the said letter and inclo

sures.

A petition from Philip Fordenbaugh, of the county of Dauphine, praying that Council would be pleased to remit a fine of ten pounds which has been imposed upon him by the Court of General Quarter Sessions of the Peace of the said county, upon being convicted of fornication and bastardy, was read, with a recommendation from four of the Justices of the said Court in his favor; it was thereupon,

Resolved, That the aforesaid fine of ten pounds be and the same is hereby, remitted.

The Committee to whom was referred the resolution of General Assembly of the sixth instant, relative to the purchase of a suitable lot whereon to erect a gunpowder magazine, and who were instructed to consider of proper persons to ascertain the value of Colonel Patton's lot offered to Council for the purpose aforesaid, reported the names of the following gentlemen, vizt: Israel Wheelen and

Hugh Roberts, on the part of the State, and on the part of Colonel Patton, James Craig, junior, and William Hall.

Council resumed the consideration of the business relative to the conduct of the Comptroller General, when a motion was made by Colonel Miles, seconded by Colonel Willing, in the following words, vizt:

WHEREAS, It appears from a report of a Committee of the General Assembly, that there is a want of that order, regularity, method and arrangement in the transactions of the Comptroller General, which is necessary in the transacting of public business:

And whereas, The Comptroller General has neglected to furnish the Register General with the ballances of accounts directed by an Act of General Assembly passed the twenty-ninth day of September, 1789, to be forthwith furnished:

And whereas, The said Comptroller General has been detected. of defacing and altering sundry warrants on the Treasury of this State, drawn by direction of the Supreme Executive Council, and signed by the Vice President without the knowledge or instruction of this Board:

And whereas, It appears that the said Comptroller General did certify to this Board in sundry instances pensions to be due to invalid soldiers, in consequence of which orders have been issued on the Treasury for sums not warranted by certificates of the Supreme or Orphans' Court agreeably to law; therefore,

Resolved, That John Nicholson, Esquire, be and he is hereby dismissed and removed from the office of Comptroller General of this State, and the said office is hereby declared to be vacant.

Whereupon it was moved by Doctor Gregg, seconded by Zebulun Potts, to postpone the consideration of the said motion in order to introduce the following, vizt:

WHEREAS, It appears to this Council from the arrangement made in the Treasury Department, by the Act of Assembly of the first day of April, 1790, that so soon as the account between this State and the United States, shall be adjusted and prepared for settlement by the Comptroller General that the duties of the said office may without difficulty, be performed by the Treasurer of the State and the Register General, and the abolition of the said office will save a considerable expence to the State; therefore,

Resolved, That Council will recommend to the General Assembly at their next meeting the abolition of the office of Comptroller General, so soon as the account between the United States and this State shall be adjusted and prepared for settlement.

Resolved, That the Comptroller General be directed to proceed with all possible expedition in adjusting and prepairing for settlement all accounts between the United States and this State.

Resolved, That a Committee of Council be appointed to examine the State and situation of the Comptroller General's office, and to report whether the said office has been conducted with that order,

regularity, method and arrangement which are necessary in the transacting of public business.

And on the question, will Council agree to the postponement for the purpose aforesaid? the yeas and nays were as follows, vizt:

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Mr. Gregg,

Mr. Wilson,

So it was determined in the negative.

The motion made by Colonel Miles, seconded by Mr. Willing, recurring on the question, "will Council adopt the same," the yeas and nays were as follows, vizt:

Yeas.

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Nays.

Mr. Hartzell,

Nays.

Mr. President,

Mr. Smith,

Mr. Potts,

Mr. Watts,

Mr. Gregg,

Mr. Read,

Mr. Edie.

Mr. Martin,

Mr. Kucher.

So it was determined in the negative.

A motion was made by Colonel Smith, seconded by General Watt, in the following words, to wit:

Resolved, That the Comptroller General be informed by Mr. Secretary, that Council highly disapprove of his conduct in altering three orders signed by Mr. Vice President in Council, and although the reasons assigned by him for so doing, tend to shew that he had no intention of injuring the community, yet Council think it necessary to instruct him in every instance of similar errors being discovered by him in orders drawn by direction of Council upon his reports, or those of the Register General, to give information of such errors to Council, that they may be corrected by the proper authority.

It was then moved by Colonel Miles, seconded by Mr. Vice President, to amend the said proposed resolution, by adding after so doing, the words if true. And on the question, to agree to the said amendment, the yeas and nays were as follows, vizt: Yeas. Nays.

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Nays.
Mr. Gregg,
Mr. Potts,

Mr. Hartzell,

Mr. Martin.

And on the question, "will Council adopt the original motion made by Colonel Smith, seconded by General Watts," the yeas and nays were as follows, to wit:

Yeas.

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Nays.

Mr. Vice President.
Mr. Wilson,

Yeas.
Mr. Hartzell,

Mr. Potts,

Mr. Gregg,

Mr. Willing,

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So it was determined in the affrmative.

On motion,

Resolved, That the letter from the Comptroller General to Council of the twelfth instant, be entered at large on the minutes of Council, which letter is in the following words, to wit:

GENTLEMEN:-I herewith do myself the honor to lay before you, my books volume 1 and 2, in which the accounts of the pensioners have been kept, and as a difficulty arises respecting some of those accounts, wish them to be also laid before the Honorable the Council, that the whole may be open to their inspection.

The return which I made to the War office, which is said to differ from the orders of Court, was drawn out agreeably to a blank form prescribed by the Secretary at War, and which I received from your Honorable Board. It was delivered by me to Council and by them forwarded to the War office. It contained an abstract from these books exhibiting each disabled pensioner, and the aggregate of the payments to them respectively, from June, 1786, the date of last preceeding return untill it was made, December the seventh, 1789, as there were various changes in the monthly pension of several of them in the colume prescribed in the form, for the rate of pension per month, I set down each rate one after the other, which hath no doubt caused them to return the highest rate in some cases, instead of the existing allowance.

I have examined and compared the return of pensioners received from you on Saturday, with my books, and find that the return from Sharp Delany, Esquire, have exhibited the augmented pension of the following persons, who in virtue of orders of Orphans' Court herewith received while they were doing duty in the guards, the full pension of five dollars each, amounting beyond the pension they were entitled to when not on said duty, as follows, vizt: Folio in books.

41, Joseph Simpson,

£9 7 9

57, James Glover, from 1st January, 1787, till 1st April, 1789,

19 10 0

117, William Murray, from 1st August, 1786, till 1st August 1787,

13 10 0

119, Harminus Thornton, from 1st May, 1787, till first of April, 1788, is £12 7 6, afterwards rejoined £5 12 6 more,

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