[From Atholl Papers - AP X75-4]

[Letter from Henry Dundas to Duke of Atholl 28 Nov [1791]

Copy of a letter from Mr Dundas

Dunevia 28 November [?1791]

My Dear Lord

I have given a mature consideration to your Isle of Man Business and with a view to your determination in what shape to bring it forward. I will suggest the General outlines of what occurs to me.

It is natural for your Grace and your friends to wish to see it restored to your family, in the same state, and with the same rights and perogatives your family enjoyed; but prudence forbids your aiming at or entertaining any such idea. To such a claim the objection would be felt and argued, that there ought to be no participation of Sovereign Rights in the country, but that the subjects of every part of the British Dominions should be under the immediate protection of, and one allegeance only to the great executive magistrate, which is the Sovereign upon the Throne - Indeed of such a claim was even to be successfull. I greatly doubt the Efficiacy or use of it to your Family - The Jealousy which in these modern times would attend the possession of such a right, would have a direct tendency so to cripple, as almost to annihilate the Exercise of it. In point of prudence I must likewise suggest to your Grace, the propriety of avoiding to dwell too much on some of the circumstances of hardship which you may conceive to have attended the mode of conducting the former transaction on the part of Government. Those who conducted the public concern at that time, certainly meant well for the publick interest, and if in promoting that Interest they have been led to establish a right in the publick, injurious to the Interest of your family; they if alive or their descendants will be foremost to step forward to obtain you justice - In stating this suggestion I do not mean to prevent you urging by every manner of proof in your power the Inadequacy of the Compensation. That is the substantial foundation of your claim on the Justice of the publick, and cannot therefor be departed from. But the Topick in my opinion to be insisted upon is this That it was unnecessary for the publick, which the publick had in view to divest your familiy of its Interests in the Isle of Man, to the extent the transaction with your Father did; and if this proposition can be fairly made out, it seems a natural consequence that the publick should now apply the experimental knowledge it has attained, to the the object of reinstating you in what it has no occasion to retain for the purposes of its original interference with your property - In the application of that principle, the publick will insist and ought to Insist on the full power of Legislating in any manner it may think expedient for the security of the British Revenue, or the Irish Revenue - The House of Keys will naturally be left in the possession of such Legislative powers as they now possess for the internal Government or police of the Island; But the supreme controul both executive and legislative will not be given up by the Publick.

Having established that principle I do not conceive the publick ought or will Grudge to you the enjoyment or possession of any situation that can add to your patrimonial Interest, and if that principle is to be carried to the full extent it will bear, it might be urged that the British Legislature possesses the whole power of Legislation for the purpose of regulating & Collecting the Revenues of the Isle of Man, these Revenues should naturally be allowed to go into the pockets of your family, and if it was to be assumed as a proposition that the Revenues were to be Stationary at what they now are, I do not think the small Exoresscence which now remains after defraying the Establishment would be an object which the publick would be disposed to dispute with you. But on more maturely weighing that subject, it occurs that there are some considerations which will operate against such a claim on your part.

In the first place the idea of the revenues remaining stationary as what they now are is inconsistent with the Truth of the case for in proportion as the prosperity of the Island encreases the population and other circumstances will of course increase the Revenue - It may be said that the Revenues might be taken off or in part diminished, to prevent them on the whole encreasing beyond their present Standard, but this could not be without putting the Inhabitants of the Isle of Man in a situation to be prejudicial to the Revenues of Great Britain and Ireland, by becoming again the Intrepot for Smuggling, and thereby bring back those mischiefs which were the motive of the original transaction, and altho' it should be argued, or even proved that this would be the case, the jealousey which would operate against such a statement of your case, would prevent any part of it receiving a candid consideration - Your proposition therefor must go upon the supposition that the Prosperity of the Island will Increase, that the Revenue will encrease in proportion; and under that supposition I conceive it will be essential for you to State your Case as to prove that the publick and you shall be equal Gainers by the encreasing prosperity of the Isle of Mann. You must have a Copartnery of Interest under such an arrangement, the Publick will have no Interest to Enact laws expecting the Isle of Mann, calculated not to Improve it nor not to encrease its prosperity and consequential Revenue, but to retards its progress as prejudicial to the Interest of Great Britain and Ireland. In like manner your family will have no temptation to encourage and countenance any frauds against the Revenue. You will have an Interest clearly the other way because of the participation you will have in the appropriation of the Revenue that may be fairly collected - So much will this be the case that I cannot see a reasonable objection the public can have to leave the department of Collecting the Revenues in your hands - The improving and taking off Impositions must be with the British Legislature. But so far as concerns the collection within the Island you for your own sake will do it with as much oeconomy as possible, for your Interest as much as that of the public is concerned in your doing so and on the other hand there is no danger of you attempting to do it too sparingly so as to disappoint the fair collection, by so doing you would likewise suffer as well as the publick in consequence of a failure in the Collection of the fair Revenues.

I have already mentioned that in my opinion the publick will Insist to maintain the full Legislative and Executive authority over the Island of Mann - Under these Expressions I think it right more explicitly to mention, that I mean to Include every thing respecting the administration of Justice - It is the policy of modern living to annihilate all subordinate Jurisdictions and to make the Sovereign the fountain of all Justice and Judicial procedure - The Family of Atholl must under the new arrangement if your Grace is successfull in your application, be placed in a situation of Great Weight & authority and it is essential to guard against the abuse of such power by rendering the administration of Justice in the Island totally independant of that authority.

A more minute consideration of this subject would of course lead to a more minute detail. But I trust the preliminary explanation I have given will sufficiently Illustrate the heads of the arrangement I suggest.

1st Altho the Sovereignity may not be restored, there is not the same objection to hold up the Importance of your family in the Island by your acting as hereditary Governor exercising your authority in that capacity under Titles subordinate to the King.

2ndly The Representation of the Royal Authority in all transactions with the House of Keys to be your Grace's person subject as at present to the controul of the King and Council in all Legislative Acts.

3d Taxations in all Foreign articles of Importation to belong exclusively to the British Legalative.

4thly The Collection of all Revenues so imposed to be entrusted to your Grace the public and you participating equally in the produce of the Revenues so collected, and the public to be intitled if it see cause to appoint officers to supervise or check those appointed by you.

Lastly all exercise of Judicial authority in the Island to be by persons appointed by the King. But Justices of the Peace and other Magistrates employed in the police and Insular Government of the Island to be appointed by your Grace as Governor but subject to the approbation or disapprobation of the king in Council.

I am My Dear Lord yours fathfully Henry Dundas

Notes

Henry Dundas 1742-1811, Lord Melville from 1802, was Secretary of State for the Home Department (today's Home Secretary) from 1791 to 1794 and was responsible for appointing the 4th Duke of Atholl as Governor-in-Chief in 1793. Described as the most powerful politician in Scotland in late 18th Century, a trusted lieutentant of Wm Pitt and an encourager of the Scottish enlightenment. This latter description would seem to clash with his apparent support for an hereditary Governorship for Atholl - a similar letter of advice, AP_X29-5, dated 1792, following the 1792 Commission, rows back on some of the suggestions in this letter.