The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser. — London, England, 1806-05-07 00:00:00

r - ; tile fdrenoen ; but having, in sane tdestsure, been instrumental in inducing the Noble Lord Oh; to brng forward ;he discussion of this question on this day, he found it necessary to intrude a few oh lervations on their Lordships. He was inimical to this measure, horn the principles of it, as they went to legalise an Atl, which, by the law, as it at pre sent stood, was unlawfal ; and, therefore, he con sidered it dangerous to leave that in the power and discretion of persons entrusted with official si sue ions in tho,e islands, which, at any time, might be vseicised in too great a degree. It would, he continued, be a very hazardous experiment to re sort to, and should only be thought of when our navy was not sufficient to suppiy those islands, without having recourse to the assistance of other nations. After taking an enlarged and general view of the suttjeft, the Noble Lord concluded, in de.:laring, that, from every argument which had be .n made use ot, and every consideration he could wive the measure. be could not see the necessity of it; and, therefore, should give it his decided dis approsation. Lord SHEFFIELD, in reply to the several ar tts.nents on the other side of the House, shortly ob i.-: vet, that notwithstanding all that had been said is support of this measure, not one argument or re ison had been adduced, which could lead him Inman opinion of the necessity or propriety of such a procte :ing, and be therefore declared it his intention to support the Petitioners against. this Bid, in every stage of it. After a few further observations from Lord GRENVILLE and Lnrd ELDON, the question was put for the second reading of the I3dl, and car ried without a division. The Hill wait hen read a second time, and ordered to he Committed on Thursday next. The other Orders of the Day, mostly of a private nature, were then disposed ot, and the House ad 10Y..1nd till to-morrow ; when their Lordships stand summmed upon ell second reading of the Slave Trade Limitation Bill. PIOUSE OF COMMONS. A %towage fro - n the Lords anonumd that thee had agreed to the W. • India LOT one.y and 4orrie prtv rte Bitls, •oil that they woe r iteo eed fan ..er on the Drina t..urd Voscount , on Thurrtar nest. • Lad OSW LS TONE %violins,/ the Hotne.ithat Ifs Ma jesty had b. en waiter on wide their last Adds.', send would be tiles e. , to give orders accordingly. sir. JAMBS FITZGERALD loosed for an Account of all ba mei Money wad he their sh Treasu , v, a. far .ts we ennui co -6 (or the screw, of the Courts of 1.,. tit Ireland; but, twat taformed by the SPEAKER. that it was ifeles.an, ter hint to o.saatn iii pus' , of axaohation nt the Cotten, and Mr. VAbiIiaTTAR having sued that ht• did nut reel himself art. tbutt..ist ts express that approbation, he gave notice that • siine for ant: M 41 , 41 taw•rd to-morrow Kir Sc tact Smith op the Rep in of the Con. milts@ m the Iron Estoort Dvtiry t, hiett was Ordered to be referred to stir t.o omntee t.,e Iron Trad , . The Lead Arlsucate of S,ol.atid brunt in the Rill for remote an MCI OSA of salary to the Judge. o f the Court or Adintralt. and th C,mnts-aries of th C.ty of Laiiihurzh ; which was read a bad, and ordered to be read a secoad time to- Morrow. UV. IRON DUTY. VANSITTAR on aec.ounrof other IT MN! Ilt hosinees, wbi rattgt twee* Clam the antiunion of the Hots- to a tat , li-orr t o morrow, awed that the men omitmeot of the Rill POT IMpOdist additi mat duty on Pug Iran to: deferred till Fraley nest, which Wig &reed to. Rl' PE I. OF THE AD% untikL FORCE ACT Mr. Secretary WINDHAM, without any pre fatory ritiservation, moved the Order of the Day for goiag int , a Committee on Rik Bill. Mr. JOHNS'TONE opposed the Speaker's leav ing the Chair, and wished to state to the House the motives which in•lused him to objet to the mea•ute. It was true, he said, that he disapproved of 'the Additional Firma Bill, on its first introduetto•i, em account of what he considged to be its in elfi _jersey, and to lA* an enlarged view of the new and cornprebens vs plan, which it was in contemplation to propose; now that plan was siihmitted. but in such a shape as must have his dis approbation. When the Right lion. Secretary described the present military state of the country, as one which may be compared to a battalion with clubbed at ms, he expriled from him a 11301 d efficient system than that which he disclosed ; but the argu ments of his 800. Relation (Sir James Puheney), appeared to him couclusive in respell to the cha 'offer of the soldier, and the extent of his service. He could not be red to behave, upon any calcula tion he could form, that the advantage of IS. per week, and the Chelsea pension, after a sea vice of 14 years, would be so strong as inducement to enlist ing, as the ',resent bounty, which the Right Ho nourable Gentleman declared his intention to di minish ; nor did he think the plan altogether s uch as ought to have been looked for, considering the es t i• and compass of the Right Honourable Gentle aan's talents. He was solicitous for the a option of the same Irish in the army, which obtained and hod so striking as influence in the navy, in regard to rotnotion. sltentd Mile liked* eesside.rable augmentation of the serkants and officers, for the • reward of merit. The Right Honourable Secretary bad taken a review of the several services of Europe, but in doing so he did not seem to notice, that in the military services of other countries, promotion, as in our navy, was the reword of merit. Those who displayed meritorious exertions, and were dis tinguished in the reports of the General Officers, were always sore of being promoted. and he wished the same rule of conduct to be observed in the British army, as it would certainly afford the strong est incentive and best inducement to engage iii the profession. Such was the case is France for more than a century under the last monarchy, and such did it cortinue during awl since the revolution. There was not, he was convinced, any man who would be so unjust as to feel any jealousy for promotion ob tained by distinguished and meritorious services. He would also recommend the same principle to prevail in the and the Mote so, at that body was now meant to be reduced ft, .m 3.1,000 to 40,000 men This sort of encouragement snould be held out to them, and he should be also d; Sirius of seeing these piopos• d to be redricect. Lallot•ed for into the Regulars. Their gteat utility was evinced in the commencement of tie present war ; tor, notwith standing their reduction at the conclusion of peace. Oleic were isnmedia.ely fortod to come forward as many res.reCtab . e aid highly disciplined men, a. composed it during the former war. 'Die 20,000 meow to be now reduced, if balloted for the army, tit aollitiun to what might be drawn from the saute • 0 • • 'Mee in Ireland, would, he believed, incteese our military force to 'ZOO,OOO tesular troops. It would also, in his opinion, be destrable to omit the fine upon such per sons as were unsealing to serve ro person. Such fines were not in tie contemplation of the Legislature, when the Militia was originally established. The Rule was then, that every man should either see personally, or find a propci substitute where he could ; but a false lenity had since provided, that halt the fine should be paid be the parishes, which he considered to beenery den i mental to the service. as ens also the practice, which of late ye-ors prevailed, of insuring against being drawn for the militia. General GRAHAM adverted to the statement nude on a former day by Sir :times Pulteney, that on the Continent the soldiers were always recruited for general service, or doting the war. Since that aviertion was made, be said, he had an oppor. tunity of ascertaining she tact by any official docu ments ; but upon making an inquiry from a number of French ()Miters now in London, he was informed, tl.nt betties and sines the Re volution, the universal praCtice of that nation was to recruit for limited service, (in proof of which he read, from a French account, the mauve of the agreement which the soldiers made on entering the service). This, he said, was very far tram injuring their military system ; for, in many provinces of France, a man was not considered as a respeanble person, if he did not continue his service in the army for the term of eight years. It might appear in consistent in him to have e rig:tinily supported the Additional Force Bit, and now to vote for its repeal ; but he was induced to do so for the purpose of mskieg way fi r a far more gene al plan, which, if followed up, ne thought, could nor fail of its effect In the present posture of aff.ers in Europe, it would be necessary us intnnince a new system, which was likely to be attended with tint desirable consequence of changing a defensive into an offensive- war ('his plan, he thought, should be persevered in. and ac quire a consistent ch trailer, :16 no partial trial, made by the executive Government, could eve, be sncnns tul. "The system, developed in the opening of this subject, did abandon comptnso y service, which he esteemed necessary for the support of our coestito tion and independence as a great nation ; hut th he was induced to support the plan gene: ally, he did not wish to be un "e: stood :IS pledging himself to sup port the whole of it in its •letail. Revery highly ap proved of the Volunteer Systene, in its present form; for though he had Lut little opportunity of a tend ing to the discipline and state ui the volunteers of Engl end, he had seen some corcfs in Scotian ! highly respectable ; .nd, as to the volunteers of Ireland, be would answer for their being as good troops as any of that sort which could possibly he formed. There were two lea ling objeCtions steed to the new measure ; as it '.could off. Et the chareEter, and the discipline of the soldier. A. to the first, he did not think that any change or the term of setviee, in the "sew levies, conid have an injnreous Kea, as the clurneer of the British soldier was, neve.- to mur mur, nor express any discontent, if :he public faith were kept with him; and he was the more desirous that this :Oka should he fully discussed, from a conviction that the army bad so much confidence in the wisdom and justice of Parliament, as to be eo upleteiy satisfied with whatever may he the re sult. With regard to the second objrCtion, of its ' having a nad effea upon disciohne, he was certain that, however attached the office's may be to their men, and however desirous of retaining them, and inducing them to re-. rilist, they knew their duty too web, tvrto relax their discipline upon that account. Another great recommendation of the plan to him was, th it it would prevent degrading punishments ; for to render the lives of men more comfortable, could never have the *feet of making them the worse soldiers; and, as to the danger of their claim. ing their d sena, ge, in the moment of peril, there was a spirit in the breast of every military man, whatever may be his rank, which must prevent him from making himself ever liable to be stigmatised with the name of coward. It was said, that soldiers were only formed by the force of habit ; but he would venture to ask any officer, whether, in pee. ference to men of physical power. he would not wish to command men influenced by honour, and the dignity of their own character? Lord CASTLEREAGH said, that no man could be more impressed than he was, with a seine of the invidiousness of an opposition which might seem to have for its object, to render any public measure more grating than it might otherwise' be; but he had so deep and strong a sense of the value of the measure now pro posed to be repealed, that he felt it a duty to use his best exertions to prevent it, and leave the full responsibility for the mischiefs it may occasion, on the Ministers themselves. His Right Hon. friend, (Mr. Canning), had, on a former occasion, stated his objections to this measure, in a manner that , could not fail of producing considerable effect ; but, notwithstanding the uncommon eloquence and solidity of argument with which he supported his opi nion, the Rt. lion. Secretary did not think proper to make any answer to him, but contented himself with asking, tauntingly, if any member were disposed to speak in favour of the Additional Force Bill ? He would therefore confine himself chiefly to the merits of that Bill at present, and the advantages it pos sessed, as there would be future opportunities of discussing the plan proposed to be substituted for it. He knew that the whole of the Right Hon. Secre tary's measure mast bear upon this aft, but as it was broad enough of itself to embrace all he had now to offer, he should abstain from many other topics connected with the point, but which were of sufficient importance to require separate discussions. He should begin then by represeming what deficiency there was at present in out unhurt force; and what, by the intended measure, it was likely to prove in the course of the present year. Toe Right Honourable Secretary said, the present complement of the army was not sufficient for our purpose. Sappostag then, upon his own computatinenthe establishment to bede deticinrnt in ,he number of 25,000 men, and adding to them the amine yearly casualuesot 15,000 men, his plan would deannss all the battalions, the soldiers in which had served 21 years, he would suffer 5,000 of the present militia to waste sway, and dis aand at least 6000 of the old battalions, which. taken with the casualties before stated, wool.' make a sit mimuiva oi 40,000, all of who.it ire put:tost.td to supply by rvi,u4rs. Upon this part of the suhjeet, • he would confine his 'ittoereatinns to the military Ana civil branches of the service, hat p trticularly the latter, as every one knew that the military branch wool,' raise a considerable force. whether the old or new system should be adopted. It the produce of the Additional Force An were taken at vraat it `had been, namely , 14,500, or more, probablt 15,000 men, 5,000 of them would be raised by the military, and 10,010 Sy tha civil branch ;, hut the operation of the Defence Bill, taking both branches together, he maintained, would, according to the average of the last year, WhiCil WAS rendered more onfayoursale by the expectation of its being repeal ed, be re oduative to the nu:nber of 26,445 men. — The Right Honourable Secretary had taken, in his opening, a review of the different periods of the war, but he would content himself with four pet iods. First, before the form aim) of die Army of Reserve; secondly, after that measure came into opera tion; :idly, in the interval between the Army of Reserve, and the Additional Force Ata ; and, fourthly, the time that has elapsed since the passing of that Aft. In the first period, the average of men raised was 9d4) per m.inth ; in the second, 755 a though, at the same tune, 100,000 were also rased fm general service. In theSd period, the monthly average was 7:40 ; and in the fourth, 956 men, exclusive of the regiments raised for Ireland, which, if included, would make a total average of 1,100 men. This statement, he thought, wa . sufficient to shew, that the civil operation of the A I fition.l Force Al was not prejudicial to the re cruiting for the regular serviaa He was aware, that tile feat was alleged to be otherwise ; but tough it was not easy to prove a negative to such statements, the House would find, from a co:apstison of the several returns, that even far the Ito I 2 week., the number of men recruited for geneati stir sae was as great as it was before. It may he obje.hed to hints that his estimate was tea .n at a time when there was. a considerable augmentation in the foreign corps ; but the neces sity of making that augmentation was a strong argument against parting with this measure, before a more ancient substitute could , be found. The reason why he gave this additional force measure 1 a preference over what was adopted in a former (Lord Sidatouth's) adminiaration, was, not that he disapproved of the Army of Reserve, but that he console' ed this to be a more efficient measure. One of the worst parts of the intended plan WAS, that it was subversive of all the former systems, and repugnant to the principles before proclaimed by its presto:a adv. cates. The plan of the Additional Force At, when first introduced. was scouted and reprobated by tie Oppositin of that day, as being uliconesitutional, and leaving too much, in the power of the Crown ; but the plan they now suamitted, when in offi:e, was that of a per , manent military force, a reduction of the consti t tutioaal militia, and a total change in the Volunteer system, leaving every thing at the disposal of the Executive Government. The point then to be coo silered was, whether there was any thing which .h'suld induce the House to part with a measure, which, in the last ten months, though peculiarly unfavourable to its operation, had produced no less than 11,000 men. As to the progress of ordinary reel uiting, it must be at all times various ; and without the additional aid of the civil branch, the necessary number of men were not to be obtained in such a country as this. Besides, even in point of expends, a little consideration would :hew the expediency of having recourse to other means be yond the ordinary recruiting. Tne parties now em ployed on the recruiting service amounted to 500. These kept 1300 in constant employment, and yet obtained no more men, on the average, than 12,000* recruits annually, out of a population of 20 mullions. These parties produced but a vet y slight effeat in the agricultural parts of the country, which were always very unfavourable to recruiting. The Right Hon. Secretary might attempt to obviate this objeutiun, by proposing to increasethe parties; but supposing them to be dounled, it would require 3,000 recruiter, in cluding 6 or 700 Officers, whose absence on that duty, no military man, he fancied, would say was advisable under the present circumstances of the country. The average erpetice of recruiting io the ordinary way was 201,0001. 'this arose from the bounties which the recruiting parties were obliged to pay, whereas, the parishes magla raise recruits at the rate of 41. per min. Had it not been for the circumstances which produced a change in the Ad ministration, it was 114 intention to have proposed a plan, with the concurrence of his Right Hon. Friend, now no more, to substitute civil officers, genes ally, for the recruiting parties ; as he was con vinced, that they would have a more effeaual, and less expensive, operation. When he mentioned this to persons for whose opinion he had the highest respeß, he was told, that the recruiting officers were incapable of making the hest selediosi of the civil agents, and that their efforts, if so substituted, would be counteradted by the Parish Officers. This observation determined him to leave that selection to the parishes themselves, as they, from local know. ledge,were able tcyjadge cf the persons best qualified for the task and duty thus transferred, which would interest whole counties in the success of the mili tary service. It may, indeed, be said, that his plan would include those men who might be desirous of enlisting, at any rate; but, even then, his case te mained good; for no one could deny, that the regu lar army would gain as many men as it did before, with a strong probability and prospect of a vary material augmentation. lie did not venture to deny that there might have been some abuses in recruit ing for the additional force, but that was an evil al ways incidental to every measure; and he meant, nn a future day, to move for some siocuments which would shew, that these abuses were tar from be. ing so great as had been represented ; and it must he obvious, that such as had hitherto taken place, might easily be remedied by some slight alterations in the previsions of the Att. No Military system had ever been reiffe localised ;non this would be, and the civil agents might as easily be employed in the army as the militia, with • out salting such a number of setjeants from the ie . gulars, as was done by tile recruiting parties. The 0 Legislature had already authorised these civil agents •in the several parishes of ['eland, as well as SCot• tanJ I and what he proposed would b . no more than extending the otme beneficatl regulations to this _ninny. the best time for etfefting that obiret was now, when all the difficulties in the operation of the Defence Bill were rapidly diseppeari: t'A ; end when the duties hf the parish rents welt , iy relieved in conseeptincat of abslsi.m.ce rime g o o ,d ley the ex , rtsons of the Impeding Fteld ChiL , TS It the difficulties of the county: wese 5 5,,,0; (4 /eyed OM ibe Aliaistrrial side) titat we coald setety di-pence with a part of our Ti sources, then 'h a Right Hon. Gentleman (Mr. Wiodhe,O) did welly eerhaps, to propose s the repeal of this ad ; ,at the exigencies of the state were great, the 11 /use would do well to preset ve t measure that had are forded such earnest e/ its tffizacy. It was not tau which imposed an intolerable 'lgnition upon the people, as the militia hod been reduced 24 000 men, in anticspation of its onerotion t and the force re quited by the Array of Reserve Ad, which win re. Inictaished with the some vi e w ; won't/ make the number of men Gregone c , ..Otemplation of this Aft, 40,000. He would adduce an instssece of the facility of its operation, and the manner in which :t had been carried into jai. which had been fur nished to him by one of the Grputy Lieutenants of the County of Leicester. The number of men re m:ered to be raised in that countywas 200; the fines, supposing the- whole number to hove been utout • nidsoi, would have amourted to 400'1).; but, ii ire the expiration of one month, 131 rn- ht-o raised under the Mt, the remaining 40 %s o .- supplied by toe perishes, before the Field Officer u the district could provide them, and the tines in-- fhtied, therefore, only cost the whole comity 2451. Under the Army of Re:erve the deficiency in the number of even required from Leicestershire, although a bounty of O 0 gninees per ma, was given, would have sotkited the county to fines amounting to 65001. .tos, by the milder ot rm. tints of the Additional Force Ad. 50451. were wet to the county. Office dietrids weuld have loot equally benefitted, it those to whom the execution of the ad was entrusted, bad done them duty, and if the parish officers had been properly inbtruded. lle would ask, whether the House were prep .o.el to abandon this measure, lenient as its effed hod been, or, it was tulles proved, might be, for what the Right Hon. Gentleman must in tug forwaid instead of it t That Right Hon. Gentleman hid said, that the de. Sciency tinder the Ad, and occasioned by the Ad, in the recruiting service, am ruined to 26,000 ci rn ; but as, when the perishes find the Moe a:,hongli at a later*etiud thon that prescribed, they save a loree proportion of the fines, there was eve:y reason to suppose that the amount of the fines to he ultimately levied, would vet be much re duced, and the number of men furnished, greater. If the House recollec.ed the perpetual etforts which were made to procure the repeal of the Act, the total ignorance of the Parish Officers, who were to act under it, and the total neglect of duty by there who ought to have instructed thorn, they would not be surprised, that it had !tot better effected the ob. ject of its projectors ; but, it they looked at the re ports of the Inspecting Field Officers, respecting the probahility of success attending the measure hereafter, they could not but infer that it would be fully equal to any thing ever promised of it. Its parts ing with it, the House relichunshed that for which nothing its the Right lion. Gent.'s plan promised to ; compensate; and, in a year's time, the House waull have to make up for a year lost in thesenrertata object of recruiting and maintaining the army oi the conrery. The Right Hon. Gentlemen had in timated what he (Lord Castlereagh) could not raw refrain from warmly deprecating. tamely, that ha would propose to rescind the tines impaled upaa the parishes. Would Parliament, after two years persisting in the measure, now abdicate their outhc ray, and place the defaulting parishes—thnie 'With hid not loon I a man its put suence of their coo ments, on a tontine with the an. ritorious parisnes which had raised the full number required ? Such a line of conduct would eery soon tecoil on the Right Hon. Gentleman himself. Could it be expected that any person would conform to, or exert them selves to carry into execution his measures, whet they too might look to a future intlemnifi,otirin from the consequences of contumacy There could not possibly be proposed to Parlioraeio a more fatal principle of legislation ; its alarming effect would go to an extent, tor which the R ght Hon. Gee. man vi..uld fiat it very di to make to de country the evarside hanorahle. When the Lee gislature suspended the Army of Resort Act, and passed the Additional Force V.. 17,000 men sere deficient under the former, ar . :he outstanding fines were larger in amount than the! were now under the A isiitionelFurce Ad. 1)41114m-a remitted the fines, taut imposed equivalent bathos upon the defaulting parishes, in the re colsition d men; and most of the parishes had w ise felf,ll what was required of them. Ile would advert 0 the case of a single parish (which was toe only one that had come, by petition, before the House) Ave the Mt had not been complied with. It was of Mary-10-bonne. When the Additional For Ad passed. that parish was deficient t 25 men to Army of Reserve. The number required by tit Additional Force Ad was eighty. Nut a tin; man, however. had been raised. In the cat tiguous parish of Si. Ann's, .50 men w e r e defic under the Army of Reserve Ad ; -20 _ more ste e to be raised under the Additional Force Statute; and the parish had actually raised all the men 7r quired by both Ads : yet the Right HVI14,111%.)1 GtntlC in .n would put both perishes on a to equally regarding the deference to the low part of one, and the contempt of it on that of 0 Cher ! (hear ! hear ! A principle, he repeated , ;It'' calculated to make all future measure, ii,nperai could nut be proposed. The Noble Lord apelogi thatf o rs o thefaonr I pursuingonly alternative th estuo h h je i c s t in de tai with such irksome mo t t er, was, the abandon :nem his duty. He would repeat to the Rt. lion. Ge man ( Mr. Windham) that no mea sure he had, could propose, was calculated to r aise the num of men this had done. It he wished ro involve troubling the bu i s i l : t o Government in di ffi culty, he coald h ot bur devil that the should pursue the plat, proposed by 1 110 Hear ! y Hier ./.) The security of the counttesO home and abroad, was embroced by the t oopotu to repeal the Additional Force Bill, and be 44 '1 continue to moms, it in every stage. It wits enter convidion, that he could not more ems.: Ministers than by withdrawing that olvP Not less in a military, than in a civil point was the repeal of the Ad inexpotient, as he ' on some future occasion :hew. Ills Lcros.