The Statesman. — London, England, 1810-03-23 00:00:00

7 . " 7 ' • - ?Erg tote n a nation. He was therefore convinced, that i t was our first duty, and consistent with our best ittetes t, to cherish, and encourage--nay, studis. oa th to seek out talent, rid Military enthusiasm, ,whenever they should manifest themselves. With is i►h;,rcaaiow log and deeply engraven on his he felt it to be his duty, not more towards re pliant Officer, mid the corps he commando!, 1, 1 to the EOIIIICC, to make the statement with shich he had troubled the House, and which, ,„ c ts Gentlemen recollected the times in .whiels pe y livexl, would, he trusted, not be considered o ,;portane. The Huuoarable Member then pro.,, „Jett to wove, of plain; an efficient officer in his situation. The) presenti Governor of Ireland would never yield to popular clamour for the 'papas* of injuring individual. He coucluded by egareips the previous question. A Member followed. Mr. B. BATHURST wished to thew-whether the office was totally abolished, or whether it still existed, and was filled by person who succeeded the late Treasurer ! Mr. W. POLE said, the office had been con. vetted from a sinecure into a situation of absolute duty. • , . Mr. WHITBREAD was sure it WAS not the in- , tention to press the previous question. It waa an attempt to saddle the country with an annual ex pence of 11001. by giving compensation to a man who had never performed any duty. He\wished the Noble Lt-t 1 (Castlereagh) was seated between the Right Honourable Gentleman and the Chan. cellor of th:: Exchequer for Ireland : he could give them some information about the year 1800, a year in Ireland very fertile io compensations. • • The CHANCELLOR - of the EXCHEQUER defended the rendering of the office efficient, and contended for the impropriety of, introducing the subject when the person who could best give the House information was absent on foreign service. Sir SAMUEL ROMILLY thought the whole business a gross job. Mr. GRATVAN condemned the' system of su perannuation, and had a great notion once of mov. ing, that all the superannuated officers should be brought to the Bar, In order thit the House might see what a hale, young, and vigorous corps they would compose. [A laugh.] Mr. PETER MOORS allowed that this was a job, but it was nothing when compared with the 1 job of the distilleries carried ou by a Mr. Hip, he believed Mr. Rowland Hill. (A laugh). Mr. DUNDAS and the SOLICITOR GENE ' RAI. spoke for the previous question ; and. Mr. I M. FiTzG Eitii LI) and . Mr. BARHAM against it, whets Sir JOHN NEWPORT replied, and the. i House divided -1 For the previous question 52 I Against it 31. • . km tomtit tat the Censtitsstsm.,v..---__ _ its readiness at the call of the civil niagilltistn t military commander, to keep the peace, to sup press riot, to quell insurrection, to extinguish rebellion, or to resist invasion. The membe' this " power " are 'pisaishable by 1i failure in any of these duties ; and, iu I reign they bare been several times punishe, at London in 1780, and since at Nottingham, Birmingham, &c. where, fur not having pressed riots end quelled insurrections, the houses of the inhabitants were pulled down, and their pro perty destroyed. On those occasions, "the several vicinities were sued, and cast in'damages, to make good tfill Injury dune by the non-performance of. their cosistitational military duty. Here, Sir, we see the reason, why, ai laid down by Blackstone, (Coin. I. 408) " The laws and " constitution of these kingdoms know no such 4C state as that of a perpetual standing soldier, bred up to no other profession than that of war." To a free Constitution, which provides for its own peace and defence in all possible emergencies, a " power" of a million and a half of armed men, ' a standing army cannot be necessary at home. What, then, has made a stancliag,ircoy in any case necessary to us? And by what rule are we* to draw . a line, as to its strength It The answers are very easy. A etandiirg army can onlyfie for offensive war, • which must be abroad; and tot the defence of our external possessions ; and hot strength is to int in proportion to the gforesdi necessities. But there is yet another qUestion : Who is to judge-el thaeowicamity 2.11.ec0. the answer is as easy as before—a rain PARLIA.; MINT. Do we not now here highs to discover 14 what means, and to what ends, we have had a complete ' regular army of foreign mercenaries, horse, foot* and artillery, engineers,, and staff, quirtared and barracked in our country, in common with tt native army ; a foreign General, commanding esti English district for our DEFENCE; and many thousands of other foreigners smuggled in upon us, in the form of additiosal compauies of Sici. liens, attached to English regiments ; French prisoners captured under Dupont, and enlisted in the jails of Spain, &c. die. to which we have seen recently added thirty thousand Portuguese! ! ! With regard to those, as it is understood that' not half of them had been engaged at the time s , when an English House of Commons voted 4,, million for taking them into pay, it is plain that Ministers give the French credit for good sense, in allowing them time, by high bounties, to com plete this levy; because they conclude that France *ill first secure the conquest of Spaiu, before she takes possession of Portugal; so that we may have opportunity allowed fur procuring, these 30 thousand Portuguese, just in good time for get ting then, ode out of Portugal in company wide ' the English army. • •-, Where Ministers will look for a menfatioe of that' standing army to. sociand our Country, I am at a loss to conceive ' , eless they send to Congo and Aeguta, for tweet or thirty brigades of African nagvves. There are persons, Sit, base enough to vindi.' :sate this insult to English manhood, of hiring thy!, refuse of sebduod nations, born under . desjlotie *wets, and doubly enslated by a militfry code, as guardians and protectors of our laws and liber. ties *'and there are others, ignorant womb to doubt, whether it violate our Constitur 11, That the Thanks of the Hesse be elven to Sir Robert Lu „ f or has eminent services to the wanton cause, and ; die ;,. ‘ „l ut ioa, activity, and persevet.o.iee which had di*. , p ,i,50,1 his catgut dunk the canyaLli." • The CHANCELLOR, of the EXCHEQUER 'cited that thu motion hed been brought before H ou se, because he must regret any thing which •a hurt the feelings of a gallant Officer. But m otion appeared to him inadmissiltle, accord ,. to the practice of Parliament; the Honourable se emed to be conscious of this, from the I ;3; ssiens with which he prefaced his eloquent vez : s ; and painful as the duty was, which fur. the Thank , , that ditty must be done. There 1 , n othing which was snore apt to excite the cry r GO O Oll Ol un the opposite side s than prodigal o: utlittire of that great fund of public hunours,and ', e was UntlUtibtedly nothing of ihich the value so . o h depended oil the cautiewapplicatioa_TheLu. 1 3420 Legion had earned high praise; and there vi d i be no intention hi that House of refusing L i r j u st admiration to the spirit, the activity, t eal, and the valour of the gallant Officer s ,k, commanded the corps. Peculiar praise was t o . ilue to him, from Considering the peculiar ' dsaiity of the troops which be led into the field. o lio was to be looked upon as having given au N atant proof of what the troops of our allies axe spable, under the COlllifiand of British Officers; soraof which would out be forgotten by those oho si rc nose in a situation like that of the gal. wit 031:11. But enough had been done is; al. 1 ,,„i„ .; 50s opportunity fur giving the detail of his sidtich the House hail just heard, lie hoped t he Hauourable Meitsha would not press-his mu. on. • Mr. CANNING regretted that the motion had kca offered to the House. He could f e d t h e wire by whirls tke Hon. Member w se influenced to bringing, it km ward. lie could issiderstand the s ensibility that might have been affected, by find. jog his mote left out in the vote of thanks for the lila) . of Talavera. There could be no doubt, e n the mitt l Of any loan in that Mouse, of th im. root and gallasit :services of Sir Robert Wilson; they «id 'sot fall within the line to which the of Parliament were wisely restricted. He said advise' 116! Hon, .Mover to withdraw the notion, in the full feeling that it was refused only 'game it erred against the rule of that House in the distribution of its honours. The epithet of a partizan, applied, to Sir Robert Wilson in the dispatches, had use connection with any cuntemptu. ins idea. General TARLETON said a few, words in yin. lesion of the eliarael.a. of a partiz on Office*, stoscdsities and services he described to be of the not imps/stint kind, arsethe best schwa& tar' tossing ateareomplisliecl General. Lord CASTLERE.kGH had no idea of throw ing a slight upon the gallant officer, but there tare souse peculiar difficulties in the Me before thorn. Sir Robert Wi'-son had nut been mentioned is Lord Wellington's dispatches as composing a part of his army ; and, in the nest place, he was then in opacity. of a Portuguese Officer, whom that House could not take upon itself to re ward. Gallant actions had been . dune by may officers in the course of the war, to which Parliament had not been called to pay smut. tiin. General Prevost had saved Domiuica, and checked the progress of the enemy at a time when inch a check was af signal importance, and yet be Intl nut been thanked. Sir Robert Wilson, when in Finders, performed eminent services ; he was mot that distinguished regiment of cavalry who mend the Emperor of Germany from the French, ' , What! been knighted for it, but he received no !banks. Sir J. HALL thought •the motion of Thanks proper, as an excitement for the 'Portuguese, and *lured the Honourable Mover, that if he perse terol its his motion, he should have his Or J. Sall's) support. 51r. HUTCHINSON was gratified to find II" the only objection made to Isis motiott was to it. informality ; he tionll uot, however, press it far ther upon the Honse.—Nlotimi withdrawn. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER wished to know of seine Gentleman on the oppo site side of the House, the course intended to be tskets in the debate on hlenday. .Ho was answer td, that it was intended to move two Resolutions, one sin the policy of the Expedition, and the other 09 the retention of Walcheren. IRIS!! POST OFFICE. Sir JOHN NEWPORT ruse to make a Motion on the Ninth Report of the Commissioners of !u -tility Ireland. The Treasurer of the Post 05re there had been superannuated after eight years, during which time he had done no service %totem. Sir John Newport then read some se. tolutions of the Irish Parliament, limiting the sit . Vrannuation with full salary, in the first instance, to those nho had served forty years in • public save witisont eetisisre ; and by a regulation of 1793, reducing that term to twenty-five years. He toncluded by a motion that the House do agree `Olt the Hpport in reprobating a conduct so ad verse to the existing laws, and to that economy shish it was so peculiarly important at the pre lint time his observe. Mr. NV ELLEiLEY POLE expressed as strong a reeling for economy as the Right Hon:Baronet conic pussits!y entertain. Hedenied that the pre. tent case was in any ds..gree a violation of that 1 1 . 1 ' 11 0111e. I n f ac t, th e Treasurer now alluded to had received the office under the idea of its 136 ''ca slat:cure, and had so held it till the year KY?, si lien ,'reform in the aeparttuent being es. 4 ' 1 1; 1 4d, he 1t es superauttuated for the purpose On our Msadmission, we found Mr. Secretary RYDER, moving for leave to bring in the Local Militia Bill, which was given, after a short con. versation between Mr. Ryder, Mr. Whitbread, anti Mr. Giles, as to the omission - of certain oaths, and the regulation of Captain's pay. The Bill was brought in and read a first time, to be mid a second time to.morrow. On the Motion of Sir SAMUEL ROMILLY, the hill for preventing privately stealing was read a' cued and ordered to he committed this day • The SOLICCTOR GENERAL, in not op. posing the question in that instance, begged not to be understood either to adopt or oppose the measure, but wished merely to reserve himself to a future stage of tho measure, to state his send ' mesas up-in it. • Mr. WiNDHAM expressed himself to the same effect. The Bills for preventing robberies, or privately stealing in dwelliug.houses, and also on navigable rivers or canals, were read a socoud time, and or. dered to 1 / 4 1. cammited (his day sennight. • Mr.-MALLTIN gap notice, that he 6114)01316a morrow move for a Return of the different Offices in the Gift-or Patronage of the Crown ; a Return similar to that made on the sth of February,.l7Bo, Which was to be found in the 37th volumerof tke Journals, page 143. Adjusofed at eleven o'clock.. .0 0 To thi EDITOtt of dig STATESMAN. . -~ - • ' that Ifoose adds thirty thou:wed mere, is it suit „.- . time to look about us ? If we cannot get rid of .these mercenaries till we have reformed that . -*- House, how ',oddly ought we to call for that Re. •.. - form !—Here, Sir, rushes on the mind the coos! . of the war in 1793, and the character it has over • since preserved, and which has been so. strongly . Manifested hi Spain and Portugal I—But 1 will refrain from enlarging on that painful topic, re. • marking only how easy it must be to Ministers, aiming at the introduction of mailers gt vens. meat, through the, medium of a Parliament.whicls has Ceased to represent the nation, to find, or to make pretences for going to war, .as the proper means for getting'. 'into their bands an immense • standing army ; and - then how easy again it must be for pretend a farther necessity, of ingrafting upon such a native - army, another; still better adapted to the purposes of despotism ! But, Sir, as nothing is more common than foe •. the devices of the wicked to. recoil upon their owls heeds, let us even admit, that a war originstings on the part.of our own Ministers, in bitter hostia fit to human liberty, and to that especially of ear trait codlitry,' th - Ortht, in its progress, reduce that to the necessity of continuing it for presort* itst themselves, and the government in their hand., , • from subjugation to the foreign foe t and let tea% farther admit, .that the nation should so far be brought to make common cause with own s . . . wicked Ministers, as to be under the necessity of continuing such a war, for the preservation 111 liberties against such foreign foci Here, then, We see the Ministers sad the-nations to a certain extent, and fur their common presor. ration against the foreign enemy, io alliance. But has this necessity of an alliance with the nation s ~ taught Ministers fidelity towards that'll,'? Have - • those 'Ministers, while receiving at the hands sit that ally evCry thing which men and money sued contribute to the *gasmen cause, for one instant ceased to plot against its liberties? for one xnose went abandoned their designs for subterting . she - Constitution I say, No. They originally went to war to crash the Reform of Parliament, at that -time strongly working in . the mind of the station, • What was, on - that subject, down to the • tneutor. able 11th of May,lllo9, their invariable conduct? Aid when Members of their own body, who, its -. gross violation of the Constitetionoters also Mem. ' hers of the Howie of.Conentons,:wore openly cusod in Parliattiont fit selling - seats in that lioqo —iihich la ser.tixd Taff PIMPLE, 211111 Ilk LA Wilt AIM LIBEITIgi I how did Ministers n.ct toward, their ally, the nation?' With fidelity No. Wig common firmest) , i• No. With -ordinary deceoce No.—So flinch with inference 10- - the civil brutish of 'our censtitutiin Harry they sited with mein honour . tit ,cep. • science, regpestlesile military 6renotitierllVe to keep' in mind t'ihat thilawa and cAnstitatie* ' 4 4 4 of these kingdomXlinesaaso Sticia-Stote N. that of . irparpeiaal lettedincioldist ;" and thq eatiellsta leelousy of a standing• army, especially of foreign* • *err- -- taliohlesed _of ' 1, • i ~. . .tioa.. - foe , At: measure,. there were that, sort of over- ~ r, ever shown II the _ • la Irillis pa4ering and self-evident necessity, which just. 'Otir cot*ifry, is known . to after y on at ali.ae.: . des in unarmed man in surrendering his purse to' qulainte& with eve bistory Piece the Refornsatien,.: . u .. . a rubber, who has knocked him doworae makes comae - 6 ce 14y lled the Revolution of 1688. Eve* . • . its demand with a loaded pistol, tae *Shed bay. ,King William, to his Weenie :regret, was sande. * • • —...-- onet in his hand, ern might, without *jail igno., Alek ; Obeettelfy of sending to their olio country his, • ':Sts —l have to request thecorrection, of a ma. spiny, submitto such a necessity ;bat, Sii;:keeoto:,J4o l l o Dutch tiddlers. If then, while beildl i nt.. !twist error in the roped made• in your Paper of ing those mean of defence which are pritscriba . : !P _ . ;II . standin all of *Mims le an asklehlintali' Tuesday the 13th inst. of what I said at the Es- by the Constitution, and which I have noted as: 11.0U,000 1 non, s cal d ing thereto 60,1)00 flereigaiee; - • see Meeting, held at the Freemason's Tavern, on furnishing a million and a half of freemen, for Moister' bad not a settled design against our li. Monday the Pith instant, on the subject of the setting invasion at defiance, should we passively bertha, they would at least have raised up a cotes. Standing Army ; being particularly solicitous. that 'endure the indieuity 'we ought to be sloe scorn of terpaise a truly national force for satisfying us my opinions should not be miseoliceived, after hair. mankind. 1 ' , of. the honesty of their intentions ; that is, they ing published my sentiments on " The Militar y That we may consider whether the meagre be would have revived the proper constitutional mi. , Energies of the Constitution." . . . constitutional or unconstitutional let us acuity ditia, the posse coasitatus, and, restored its reel s It is erroneously stated, that I said, " There understand what the Constitution is. Suttee iti. Iniitary character. . . as i s no pretext for maintaining a standing army then, at present to say, it is that rule . of Goleta., Had this been done, even snehibrartny as I volt 40 this moment ;" whereas my observation was, mot which this free nation had adopted ; or, in of could have inspired no fear; but when we see that the army ought now to he very materially other words, that system for the management of that raising this counterpoise was net dime, end reduced; and net merely by freeing us from the public affairs, by which this feeanation has con- pry a little itito the secrets of their practices re. theme of having sixty thousand foreign merce. auntedto be governed. Can it then be a question, (+posting volunteers, local militia., athen warier quartered upon our country, contra:7j to whether a-measure, on the part tither of the Exc. but too plainly* discover - the indications of set, the Coustitubion, but that a material diminution cutive Magistrate alone, or on the di re ct of the Le. tled design against public liberty. Here I shalt , • might likewise be made of the native troops. gislature, which, independent of its tendency be short. . . The reasons I gavd.for such reduction , I hold to. establish a military desputism on the ruins of What has it length acquire& from Minister' to be unanswerable ; namely, thererance is now public li'uerty, brands the whole nation as cowards, 'themselves, in their Acts of Parliament, the apple. so :grow , by land, we can no whattack her to too dastardly, even with a muster roll of a million lation of the "regular militia," is slew so nearly any useful purpose; and at tho Lime time so weak and abalf of men capable of arms, to defend their identified With ' what they had alwayrused to dis. by sea,. she cannot even alarm the feeblest of our country, would violate the Coostitution ? Can 'kirk& as the " regular forces," namely, the . foreign possessions. this, I ask, he a question? Does this come within standing army v that i(, scarcely retains a trace of Is not our disposable force, both by sea and by the rule of Gum-moat whack this free nation a constitutional militia. land, always to be proportioned to theaecossitks have adopted? Is it thus they consented to be As to the volunteer systeliiit.can only rank of our situation ? When our enemy's navy is re- governed,' • • among the imposture.. of the day; fraudnivoitly duce) to a skeleton, are we to oppose him, as if N. man doubts, that to enslave. the nation contrived to practise . upon the, patriotisin a, tho he were a naval giant in full vigour . ln other would be unconstitutional. Then, who eau station, for answering the purposes of the moineet. words, a all a naval expenditure of ten millions • doubt, that te degrade the nation, and consign it 'The systems• which Succeeded, for arming . and • a year, is all we require for triumphantly holding , to + infamy, infamy, must be unconstitutional t Let it be traioing our population, including the last' or en. the dominion of the sea, are we to expend twenty made an individual, pea-sonal case, 'and their we rolling the lomil militia, were, so-far as their cosi. millions on that object ? and when one hundred shalt probably be of one mind. Suppose it could tnivcra were concerned, all of the same character. .• , thousand land forces are as many as we can use- be put to a man's option, either to be cast into Wo . have heard of a power behind tho Throne, fully employ, are we still .to keep up two buns prison'hy an sot a( flagrant Hestia, and with a greater thati eit'e Throne itself. It this be melon dyed thousand, at double the expence? spotless character fur integrity,; or, by a sen. .of crafty Others,. who • have 4heetedthe Crew' As the military system of our country does not tense of law, or act of parliament, to be branded ' intelmeasotel lot f_urthering their own mischievens seem to be understood, I will beg leave here to for all that is base and infamous, Without the, views, . there: seems . nsittsing ~ Inceedihio .it is repeat what abstractedly I stated at the above means of freeing himself from the imputation; s t e ws, • becauae Kinti ',are proaetbiel' fot • meeting ; and if .I shall add a few observations, which of the too evils would he prefer t But what 'being Wiled *by ill ad. Under a like suppo. . they may nut at this time be superfluous. The must be the feaiings of such a man, on finding sition, it may be thiiught, & that there is a pewee' s . basis of that system, is our proper constitutional both these calamities inflicted on him by one and , behind Patilarahot, greater then revilement th o le; if that' is - tapaideofdeceiving dad misleading it into militia, the posse coM itatus of our law books. the same act ! and what must the nation .feel, This is the only militia that ever denoted the by eau and the same measure it should be at once pernicious Intaisurei. . . With referenc e to all, the x: ..., c, ..ir p h r ,,e ic . L . ,:: name. The feudal tnilitia,, the trained bands, the enslaved, and consigned to infamy ! , . new militia of 1757, a nd the present local militia, But, it will be said, the foreign mercenaries touched On, t i lt h c e 4r pe ae n v o er f a p l ia s u y s s ib tern ilit a y , have been and are all perversions and corruptions have been added to the army by Act of partia. Advice ; and while the ministerial advisers o e th is of. the posse comitatus. This, agreeable to the meet. Some of them have ; but still, if the were leiscrhetmriviwiiitgh principles of free governme includes " every, thing were unconstitutioual, I must deny its being methinks . man, from the Duke to the peasaht," able to bear legal; for Parliament .has not a despotic but a in one 'hand, and, the dagger of assassins i n d o arms. Our law draws the including lines at delegated power ; not a self.derived autoctatic au- other, intent on inisleading Parliament, a nd sta b. fifteen and sixty years of age. Here then we have thcirity, but that of a mere trustee for the peettle, ..bing the Constitution. -. . . a " power" which, according to the , population limited by the Constitution. When, therefore, , lam arguing point, not to he decided by ape. of this Island, amounts to one million -five holt' Parliament so far errs, as to decree that which is Oil pleading subtleties. The truth of my inform. • Brad thcoand ma; mama) joy a common contrary to, or stibeetsive of the ' ConalliOdlis itil 003 hinges all 1 last t hataCtuistic and diaasiye par,. '. • . . . • - I _ al .• .. , • • - . . . .. , 411,11joas Aok i say the boots, 66 :ball be holdall rot' fate, or nouglit l w as beiniitifiliptlbile sad nottitiss:—• - . . . ,' to sup- . Hate, Sir, in a strong point of clew, Wise/A* . . .. :•• • - ', :anguish nectisity of reformingia fleas of Common" for . sobers of the preservation of oar. liberties, in a hkh iii is . , p, for s tpiestionable 'whether ons-srixti part of its. Mon. • • ... ~ this eery ben sit therein according to law and the Cooed. fished ;“ei . teflon. When we see the facility with Which, at ' - gham,"it' a moment that calls for the di:beading E.Airt, leg Sup; thousand foreign mercenaries already in our pay, L_ I- _-- a\—.• it --- —AA. •12.. A.. •L I .....toes ol 1..410•.. in it ma..t . . ,