The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1875-04-24 00:00:00

ARMY RECRUITS.

In the .1101:SE OF COMMONS, Lord mono called attentio
to the recent Army Reforms, and moved that our Army
organization for obtaining a continuous and sufficient supply
of soldiers is calculated to cause well-grounded apprehension
and demands some immediate remedy. Taking the Infantry
as a test, Lord Elcho went minutely into the numercial
strength of the Army, and showed that, after making all
necessary deductions, we have only 30,272 bayonets, rank
and file, over 20 years of age at home, 13,726 in the Colonies,
and 38,000 in India, including officers. We are
worse off both as regards numbers and cost than
in 1853, when we had 74,840 for , £9,000,000 ;
while in 1876 we have but 64,970 for Army
Estimates of £13,488,000. With regard to quality, Lord
Elcho argued from the authority of commanding officers, the
returns of chest. measurement, ctc., that the physique of the
men now enlisted is very inferior. Taking into consideration
the physique of the men and the condition of our Reserves,
to send an army to the Continent would be sheer murder,
and in the Minister would be treason. Discussing the various
remedies which have been suggested, Lord Elcho referred to
the recent discussion at the United Service, Institution, and
expressed his preference for a system by which service in the
Militia, according to the old English law, would be made
compulsory, draughting from the Militia to the Line
would be encouraged, and the men, after a certain number
of years' service in the Line, would be returned to the Militia.
He thought it unnecessary to Prussianize the English Army,
but he would Anglicise the Militia. The aspect of foreign
politics bade us put our house in order, arid if the Secretary
for War would throw himself oa the patri3tiam etthe
country, which would not fail him, he might fill the niche of
the English Scharnhorst
~ • .
Mr. Brown maintained that Manufacturing and commer
cial interests forbade a resort to compulsory ballot for the
Militia. and-held that the NU 'development of lord Card-
well's Localiz.ation system promised us an ariaple ' supply of
len: • •`! •

ink
Fffr. C ntie I contended that our Preheat; iiksteni had
to.seture men in snit crieht numbers and -ofi,adequate
plyne:reconimended a. -mixture Of long service with
pensi ihort service with rewards in the shape of em-
ployitenthl tivil eervree.' ' • -
Major Beaumont condemned compulsory service, and
argued-that it'w.ould be cheaper' to offer larger pay than to
tax thkindustric- of the country, The true course was to
follow'ffut tla4p6liey`cominexiced by Lord Cardwell; and he
also recommended that the recruiting-for the Militia she-did
be stopped, - • . . •.;

-lr H. Pe fly supported the motion; and
St' C. 13Slionr, though not. entirely satisfied with our
organliation fot Increasing our Ann), to a war standard if it
.were necessary, thought that Lbrd Elcifo had taken an un-
necessarily alarmist tone. He had not.much faith In DepOt
Centes, but he advocated short service, and civit,elnploy-
ments' as a reward for the men, and the separation of the
Recruiting Machinery from the military side -of the War
Office.

11r. Butler-Johnstone held that the real difficulty lay in
the condition of the Labour Market. England was at the
head of the Peace Party of Europe, and if she disarmed the
prospects of Peace were proportionately diminished. If
England had been in a position to prevent the territorial
redistribution which closed the Franco German War, in all
liprobability the condition of Europe would not now be one of
1 universal armament. His remedy was a permanently em-
bodied Militia, in which every man should serve.
Mr. Torrens spoke warmly against the employment of im-
mature boys as soldiers, and advocated a fair day's pay f,q• a
fair day's work for the Army as the real solution of the diffi-
culty.

Colonel North supported the motion, and Mr. Campbell-
Bannerman defended Lord Cardwell's military scheme.

After remarks from Colonel Barttelot, and Colonel Mure,

Mr. Hardy repeated his desire to give Lord Cardwell's
scheme the fullest trial, though he regretted that more was
not done at its institution to create a temporary Reserve,
while the short-service Reserves were in course of forma-
tion. In canvassing seriatim the numerous suggestions made
in the course of the debate, he pointed out how divergent, not
to say irreconcilable, they were, and dissented emphatically
from the pessimist view taken of the Army, though this only
represented 30 per cent, as unsatisfactory. He gave reasons
for thinking that the quality of the recruits was not so bad as
had been represented. Lord Cardwell's plan ought to have
a fair trial, and he vas not prepared to take any step at the
present moment to reverse it. He desired time fully to in-
vestigate for himself all the questions evolved before he took
any step. A great deal remained to be done in the way of
organisation, and especially he admitted the necessity of a
thorough organisation of the Reserves.
Lord Hartington admitted the candour of Mr. Hardy's
speech, but thought there could not be much that was
radically wrong in Lord Cardwell's arrangement if it had
not been already found out. The existing state of things
was not that which Lord Cardwell contemplated as the ulti-
mate result of his scheme, but it was a remnant of the old
-state of things. The lesson he drew from the recent Returns
was that Recruiting was improving.
Lord Elcho withdrew the motion.
Some other business was agreed to, and the House ad-
'ourned at five minutes to two o'clock.