A. curious history has been published by the Star of
the pro- ceedings as to the clerkships held by Mr. Leonard Edmunds in the Patent Office and the House of Lords. He has been seventeen years Reading Clerk and Clerk of Private Committees to the Lords, with 1,500/. a year. Also since 1833 he has been Clerk of the Patents with 400/. a year, and also, since 1851, Clerk to the Com- missioners of Patents with 600/.,—drawing in all, since 1851, an income of 2,5001. a year. Last summer there was an inquiry into the state of his Patent-Office accounts, and in July he resigned both the Patent-Office clerkships, and refunded in September, it is said, 7,800/. out of his private funds as the admitted balance due to the office. The Commissioners appointed to investigate his accounts, Mr. Greenwood and Mr. W. M. Hindmarch, Q.C., have since, it is said, reported that 9,000/. more is due by him to the Patent Office. Lord Westbury filled up the smaller Patent clerkship by appointing his own son-in-law, Mr. C. B. Caner; the larger one is still vacant. Mr. Edmunds was also obliged, or thought himself obliged, to re- sign his office as Reading Clerk to the House of Lords, but on doing so he applied for a pension, not on the ground of ill-health or superan- nuation, but on the ground that he is sixty-three years old, and has served the House faithfully ; the pension (800/. a year) has been granted, and the vacant office conferred on the Lord Chancellor's second son, the Honourable Sling,sby Bethel!. Certainly there is something very odd about the transaction. A man compelled to resign by the public censure in which his conduct is held should at least, one would suppose, have his pension sequestered till Ws accounts have been finally set straight. At least that was said to be Lord Westbury's decision last month in the case of a recent defaulting official assignee of the Bankruptcy Court. Can it make a difference that in this case the defaulter has made room both for a son-in-law and a son?
Previous page
