Page:Historical Record of the Fifty-Sixth, Or the West Essex Regiment of Foot.djvu/59

Rh In the year 1829, His Majesty’s government deemed it necessary to direct courts of inquiry to be instituted in the several regiments, in consequence of numerous frauds having been committed by certain soldiers, who, on being discharged, had given false statements of their ages, dates of enlistment, and of the periods of their former services, by which many had obtained undue rates of pension, and had thus imposed on their commanding officers, and on the bounty of their sovereign and country.

The court held to investigate the books of the Regiment reported, that the description-book had been well kept, and afforded a practical example of a system which it was proposed to adopt generally, namely, to give each man on joining a regiment a number, to be marked on his attestation, and placed against his name in the description, and other record-books of the regiment; that the book of the  Regiment contained nearly two thousand names, the plan and arrangement of which were highly creditable to the zeal and industry of Colonel Barclay, and that few instances of error, or of fraud, had been detected.

The court concluded their report with a well-merited compliment to Colonel Barclay, whose long service in the regiment had been characterized by zeal and attention to his duties. This report was submitted to the Secretary at War, and Sir Henry Hardinge signified to the General Commanding in Chief, Lord Hill, his cordial concurrence in the observations made by the court, so highly honourable to Colonel Barclay, and his lordship directed it to be announced, that, in the midst of the irregularities which had been made manifest by the investigations of these courts of inquiry in the several corps, it was peculiarly gratifying to him to bear testimony to the successful and unremitting