Payroll Account of Corporal James Smith, 1758

An accountant at the War Office in Westminster, London, was ultimately responsible for the tracking of hundreds of millions of pounds being spent on funding British armies on multiple fronts around the world. At the regimental level, paymasters were charged with accounting for the income and expenses of every soldier, ensuring assets were properly tracked down to the very last pence. (Jeffrey Campbell, Accountability, 2024. Artist's rendition created with Perchance AI Image Generator)

Payroll Account of Corporal James Smith, 1758

Much like today accounting books were used in the eighteenth century for documenting military pay and other related expenses accrued over periods of time. The payroll account of Corporal James Smith, 78th Regiment, covers the period of July 5, 1757, through April 24, 1758. 

Note: Category headers and bracketed script have been added for clarification and do not appear in the original document. Additionally, it would not be uncommon to discover accounting errors as these were gentlemen who created inaccuracies the same as you and I.

[Page 6 - Corporal James Smith]

Income

To 9 Weeks Pay & arrears from y'e. 5th July to y'e. 5th Sept'r.

     £: 2. 0. 10½

To 5 Weeks arrears of Pay Due from y'e. 5th Sept'r. to 10th Oct'r.

     £: 0. 8. 1½

To 3 Weeks arrears @ 5p week

     

To 6 Weeks Pay & arrears Due from y'e. 17th Oct'r. to y'e. 28th Nov'r. 1757

     £: 1. 7. 3

To 21 Weeks arrears of Pay from y'e. 28th Nov'r. 1757 to y'e. 24th Apr'l. 1758

     £: 1. 14 . 1½

[Total]  £: 5. 10. 4½

Expenses

To 1 Pair Shoes & 1 Nap Sack

     £: 0. 6. 6

To 1 Haversacks & 1 Cocade

     £: 0. 1. 8

To 1 Pair Garters & 1 Sett buckles

     £: 0. 1. 4

To 1 Kilt & 1 Small belt

     £: 0. 1. 4

To 1 Turn Key Screw brush & wire

     £: 0. 0. 9

To Provisions at Glasgow

     £: 0. 4. 8

To Spruce Beer at Halifax

     £: 0. 2. 8

To 2 Cheq'd. Shirts

     £: 0. 7. 0

To 10 Months Stoppages for y'e. Payment Serjt. @ 1p month

     £: 0. 0. 10

To 7 Months D'o. for y'e. Barber @ 2p D’o.

     £: 0. 1. 2

To y'e. Proportion of a Cook's Frock

£: 0. 0. 8

To Cash given you at Fairf'd. & Boston

     £: 0. 18. 8

  [Total]  £: 2. 7. 3

 [Income minus Expenses equals Cash Paid]

To Cash Paid as Bala'ce of Above

       £: 3. 3. 1½

[Total]  £: 5. 10. 4½

Halifax 11th May 1758 Rec'd. y'e. above Bala'ce. in full of my Pay & arrears of Pay from y'e. Date of my Attestation to y'e. 24th Apr. last as witness of my hand.     [signed]  James Smith

Source:

Major James Clephane, "Payroll account of Corporal James Smith, 1758." Military Account Book at Halifax. NAS GD125-34-5, pp. 16-17.

©  Jeffrey Campbell, The 78th Regiment of Foot, 2019.