CHAP. VI. Measures for the Augmentation of the Regular Army-Militia Comple tion Bill-The Effects of Lord Castlereagh's Plan, for this purpose, compared with that of Mr. Windham's.-State of the Regular Army at the present moment.-Deficiency of Numbers in the Second Battalions-To Supply this deficiency, the Object of the Militia Completion Bill-This Bill Passed.--Marine Mutiny Bill.-The Corps of Marines recommended to Public Notice and Favour, by Sir Charles Pole. the throne, to both houses of parliament, to proceed with as little delay as possible, to consider of the most effectual measures for the augmentation of the regular army. So early, therefore, as the 2d of February, lord Castlereagh rose in the House of Commons to move the order of the day, for the second reading of the militia inlistment bill. But, as this bill differed nothing in principle from the bill of last year, and as he had already given his opinion at length on its various details, he should abstain from troubling the house with a repetition of those details, and reserve himself for any objections that might be made to it. Mr. Elliot wished to know the rate of bounties proposed by his noble friend. Lord Castlereagh answered, from six to eleven guineas. Mr. Elliot said, that this bill afforded a striking lesson to the house and the country, of the evil consequences of adopting a bad precedent. Heretofore, previously to the introduction of a similar bill, there was much of detail and preparatory communication with colonels of regiments; but the former measure of his noble friend having been adopted, he relied that, in this too, ha besuccessful. His majesty's speech, at the opening of the session, cer tainly recommended to parliament every attention to the increase of the disposeable army of the country, that was practicable without impairing the means of home de fence. But he thought it impossi ble to accomplish the former by means of this bill, without materially injuring the latter. He did not condemn the colonels of the regiments for their anxiety to adopt the readiest means for filling up the ranks of their corps. But he did most decidedly condemn the principles of a bill, the operation of which would inevitably tend to the dissolution of all discipline, both in the regular army and militia, as well as to the injury of morality throughout the country: for such would be the effect of high bounties, given to the recruits from the militia to the line, and to the substitutes who were to fill their places in the militia, as had been fully evinced by experience. By the present bill, the militia officers were required to recruit at a bounty of ten guineas, for which, it was obvious, that, under the present system of bounties, men hundred and twenty-six battalions. of infantry, whose numbers exceeded six hundred, and there were fifty-six fifty-six that fell short ef that number. It was well known, that battalions not amounting to six hundred, were considered as inefficient, and not fit for service. If the measure proposed obtained twenty-seven thousand, it would complete all the battalions of our infantry up to nine hundred men. Lord Castlereagh entered, now, into a comparative view of his own plan for recruiting our military force, and that of Mr. Windham: a topic become trite, though still worthy of serious consideration, by the prolonged and protracted debates on that subject in the two preceeding sessions of parliament.* On the whole, Lord C. thonght it evident, that men generally preferred the unlimited to limited service. He did not, however, by any means wish to exclude men from limited service. Lord Castlereagh said, the fact was, that whatever was the system of re.cruiting, the country regularly produced about 1,200 men in a month. How the number came to be so exact, he could not say. -But even in the halcyon days of high bounty, and no ballot, it was .not found that the number of recruits exceeded the regular by a hundred, nor under any other system of recruiting did they fall short to that amount. He trusted that the house would not be discouraged by the present aspect of affairs, but that they would see the necessity of increasing rapidly our disposable force. The earl of Temple said, that when lord Castlereagh laid his cold fingers on Mr. Windham's plan, it was producing at the rate of 24,000 men a year, instead of the 13,000 produced by lord Castlereagh's. The bill was then read a second time. On the 14th of February, the third reading of the bill was moved by lord Castlereagh. Some new clauses were proposed by lord C. and agreed to. But upon the question being put that the bill do pass Lord Milton rose to object to it altogether, as being a measure introduced in direct violation of what he always understood to be the positive pledge of the noble lord on the introduction of his former bill; namely, that it was not to be adopted as a regular and permanent system, but only to be resorted to on great and urgent occasions. After so recently carrying into effect a militia ballot throughout the country, he was decidedly adverse to the resorting again to another. He could not give his support to the noble lord in coming forward year after year with a measure like this, totally subversive of the original intent and constitution of the militia, and converting it into a mere ve hicle for recruiting the line. Sir George Warrender, though wishing an increase of the disposable force of the country, thought the means proposed by this bill circuitous, inefficacious, and hostile to their own operation. The bill was passed, and ordered to the lords; where the order of the day for reading it a second time was * See Vol. XLIX. HIST. EVR. Chap. 4, and Vol. IV. Chap. vi. 2 moved, February the 20th, by the earl of Liverpool; who stated, that the regular army, at this moment consisted of upwards of 210,000 infantry, and 27,000 cavalry. The infantry was disposed in 126 first battalions averaging 902 men each, and 56 battalions of which the average was about 400 men each. The object of the bill on the table was, to render these second battalions complete. To carry this into effect, it was deemed expedient to allow a certain proportion of the militia to enlist in the regular army. This measure was resorted to in the last session, and had been found most effectual. The viscount Sidmouth could not approve of the practice of enlisting men for one species of service, and afterwards sending them into another. He regretted that ministers had not availed themselves of the popular enthusiasm in favour of Spain to procure recruits for the army. Had they done so, he was persuaded the present measure would have been wholly unnecessary. However, as he heard of no other expedient from any other quarter for keeping up the army to that efficient establishment which was universally admitted to be necessary, he would not, for that reason, and the extraordinary emergency of the moment, oppose the bill.--The bill was then read a second time, and afterwards finally passed. House of Commons, March the 15th. Lord Castlereagh, pursuant to notice, moved for leave to bring in a bill to complete to its full number the militia of Great Britain. The object of the bill, was, to replace the number of mi litia men, rendered defective by the operation of the bill of last session, for allowing the soldiers of the militia to volunteer into the line. The number already so transferred was about 23,000, and what he proposed, was, to raise in their place a number of men equal to one half of the whole quota for the country, namely, 24,000 men, within twelve months, from an early day to be moved in the bill. Eight months to be allowed for raising the men by bounties of ten guineas per man, to be paid by the public; but at the end of that time, if the whole should not be raised, then, a ballot to take place in the usual way for raising the remainder, with an allowance to each ballotted man of ten guineas towards the bounty of a substitute, if he should not wish to serve in person. At the same time, a privilege was to be allowed to his majesty, in case of any menace of danger to the country, to direct that the ballot might proceed without delay.-After some conversation, leave was given to bring in the bill; which was read the first time, and a day appointed for the second reading. House of Commons, March the 24th. Upon lord Castlereagh's moving the order of the day, for the second reading of this bill, lord A. Hamilton, after arguing against the measure on the same ground with the preceding speakers on the same side of the question, moved, as an amendment, that the second reading of the bill should be postponed to that day six months. Mr. Giles observed, that the noble mover proposed to raise men first by ballot, and then by bounty. But how did that scheme scheme answer? It appeared from experience, that not one man out of ten raised by the ballot, served in person. The remainder then were substitutes raised by bounty. The bounty of each man raised for the line, according to the system he described was equal to £28. And was it not practicable, by wise regulations, to procure men for that bounty by ordinary recruiting without resorting to the circuitous, expensive, and oppressive progress of ballot? Notwithstanding the many military plans the noble lord brought forward, the several parts never fitted well together. According to a clause in the local militia act, the members of that corps could enlist only as substitutes for ballotted men. What was the cause of this provision? Why not allow the local militia to enlist into the militia at once, and then the ballot would most probably become unnecessary? On a division of the house, lord A. Hamilton's amendment was negatived. The bill was read a second time, and ordered to be committed. Windham contended that it was absurd to provide for supplying a deficiency to the extent stated in the bill, without the possibility of previously knowing whether or not the volunteering into the line would be so complete as to occa sion that deficiency. Lord Castlereagh could see no difficulty in disposing of the supernumaries in the militia, even if it should turn out, which he did think it would, that the volunteering in the line would not be so extensive as the present bill anticipated. They might be added to the existing companies, or formed into additional companies. The clause was eventually agreed to. The next clause related to the ballot. It was opposed by Mr. Giles, as pro ductive of great mischiefs. Lord Castlereagh said, that he had been induced to extend the period, before which, the ballot was not to be resorted to, from six te twelve months. Mr. Windham ridiculed the expectation that the recruiting should proceed successfully with a small bounty, while the man willing to enlist, had in prospect the period when the operation of the bill would necessarily cause a great augmentation of bounty. The committee divided.-For the original motion 52-against it 12. House of Commons, April 18.The order of the day for going into a committee on the militia completion bill being read, lord A. Hamilton repeated his great objection to the bill, namely, that a pledge had been given to the country in a former bill, which pledge, the adoption of the present bill would forfeit.-Lord Castlereagh replied, that no such pledge had been ever given. The house having then resolved itself into a committee on the bill, a long discussion ensued on the first clause. Mr. Giles and Mr. Sir J. Montgomery proposed that recruits from militia regiments might be raised in the counties adjoining to those to which such regiments belonged: which was agreed to. On the clause for imposing a fine of £20 on the counties failing to furnish their quota of men, the committee divided.-For it 34-against it 9. Mr. Biddulph proposed a new clause; clause; the object of which was, to prevent the peers of the realm from claiming exemption from the bill.-For it I-against it 37.. On the question for the third reading of this bill in the house of commons, May 2, Sir T. Turton said, that he could not suffer it finally to pass through the house, without giving it his reprehension. He could not consent to keep up a much larger standing army than the necessity of the times required. There was no immediate danger of invasion; and as to coping with France by land, we should not attempt it. The annual expence of our military force was now prodigious, amounting to nearly 25 millions, while we had in arms near 700,000 men. He saw no reason for such a vast expenditure of money, or for tearing so many men from their ordinary avocations. Mr. Wilberforce thought those general declarations against standing armies very dangerous in the present times: experience had abundantly proved that it was only by regular armies well supplied, that regular armies were to be effectually resisted. As to the conduct of ministers with respect to Spain and Portugal, he thought they were rather too forward than too backward in the assistance they gave. This was an error, however, on the right side, and agreeable to the general feeling of the nation. Mr. Hawkins Browne was of the same opinion with Mr. W. Invasion was not impossible; nor the deliverance of Europe, or any part of it absolutely hopeless. Mr. Windham spoke in support of those military opinions which he had so often expressed in that VOL. LI. house. He could not allow that the local militia was worth the money it cost, or that it would be in any way better than the training bill. There were always men enough in the country, and it appeared to him, that if without going to the expence of drilling or training them, they were simply to be enrolled and incorporated with the army; they would be of more use than when locked up in corps under militia officers. The Chancellor of the Exchequer said, the bill had already been so fully and frequently discussed, that even the rich and fertile mind of Mr. Windham had not been able, that night, to advance any thing new on the subject. The house divided. For the third reading of the bill 57-against it 8. The bill was then read a third time and passed. House of Lords, May 9.-On the order of the day being read for the second reading of the militia completion bill, the earl of Liverpool rose to explain its nature. On account of the late volunteering of the militia into a more regular and disposable force, the regiments had been considerably diminished in their numbers. In the regular course this de ficiency would have been sup plied by ballot in the different counties: but as that mode, in the present times, might be considered as rather hard upon that class, on whom the ballot would imme diately fall, it had been thought advisable, by the present bill, to enable each regiment of militia to supply its deficiencies, by enlist ment for a limited time. If after that period it should turn out that this mode had not been successful, it would be then necessary to I recur |