The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1887-10-08 00:00:00

staurbribge 0/cutter

AATCTRDA.Y, OCTOBER 8, 1887.

001/7r.:RNMENT JAND THE VOLUN.

TEENS.

CP,F. reust be thankful for small mercies
nowea-days, and volunteers, more given to
duty than making demands for State recog-
nition, are endeavouring to extract some
measure of comfort and encouragement from
the fare dier saying at this moment, in view
of one or two slight concessions which Gov-
ernment, in its wisdom, has decided to make
our citizen soldiers. The confession on the
part of the powers that be of the country's
debt to the amateur wintery, if we may so
style the very valuable and extremely inex"!
pensive volunteer reserve, is made tardily ;
telt it is now made by the unbending of the
War Secretary on the matter of the Capit-
ation Grant. The people themselves have
long evinced a desire to honour and sustain
their pa'xiotic and economical defenders,
neerudgingly gave up their leisure and
rest-time to the service of the country, and
ask as reward only a proper evidence of the
appreciation of the authorities, who should
certainly supply equipment liberally and
econp the volunteers for out-of-pocket ex-
pense-. This maintenance of the important
volunteer auxiliaries has fallen a great deal
too heavily upon the public-spirited gentle-
men who have patronised and officered many
of the smartest corps and brigades up and
clow:1 the country; and Government has
grown so ccntent to find efficient battalions
read: to hend at an insignificant netioual
outlay, that the duty of a volunteer officer
has come by consent to he understood as
meaning a pretty stiff annual outlay of
to e yell as a great sacrifice of time.
So thiree-i have gone on; and now, because a
-,ommission costs so much keeping
-:•: ; a striking paucity of applicants
_ our of captainieg a company or
e,e eg a corps. This does not augur
he future of the volunteer service,
• - 4 quite time the War Office should
glee r that it had seen the element of
weele e, and erect a buttress to shore up
the e:--reatened edifice. Unless we much
• ;hem our volunteers have a big re-
-, . nergy as yet undisplayed ; and if
Office chiefs will but warm them up
wish reasonable encouragement they will
al waes lie ready, when wanted, to show
themselves fit to follow the flag or hold the
fort aeainst a threatened invader. Such be-
ing the case, it would certainly be most un-
wise on the part of the Government to let
any volunteer have good ground for con-
sidering himself neglected. We should
honour and support the man who stands out
40 handle the rifle and learn war and defence
for his country's good, when he might he
enjoyiee- the relaxation of recreation with-
oat I€2S:,tkint. We note with pleasure that
the eee- eeities have for the future decided
to de-orate volunteers who may be on active
service for any distinguished or valorous act,
precisely after the manner of dealing with
egular troops. This is just what the vol-
unteer wishes, when on duty to be con-
sidered a real soldier; it is for this he drills
and practices, and gives up his evenings and
his holidays. When put to the test of
actual war, or the long marches and fatigues
of sham fighting on a large scale, he has be-
haved invariably well, acquitting himself
quite as creditably, all things considered, as
the professional soldier. There is far less
disposition on the part of the public to look
upon volunteering as a mere pastime than
there was when the civilian army was first
formed. Not nearly so great a proportion of
the recruits have this erroneous ideas; and
consequentle the volunteer forces are differ-
entle reeetrded by the masses, and held in
Lie7'aer respect. What were derisively spoken
ae..ie..e.er--bed soldiers are now admired
rei -..es of men, capable of endurance
ere'. •• ei military movement. Herd
It3cipline have taken the place of
,eidiering. Volunteers have, they,
e. )ud honourable position in the de-
epee of the laed ; and Government
-nee e-ell to interpret public opinion
aeigh!-, htermine to recognise the cleime
of the 7 Arnteer auxiliary to ade,lutte
official It eert. Another thing which has
een:ribaL. O tlio important position won
b. the volunteer service is the fact ;.hat it is
toe er ae of the people, in which anyon )
physically qua tie I may have his name en
rolled, and than without constraint or con-
scription The volienteers are our arti,ans
our ehopmee, and our clerks, members of ‘th
masses • seetien of the comunity, men of tole
application, an I endurance, and always mea
of in:ellieemee. Intellectually, therefor ),
they are are a cut above "Tommy Atkins,'
*ken at h's average for flet pre-sent even,
and tlse-raele and file of our professions
soldiery ie immensely in advance of what i
<W as, e las ccnisidered, ;en years ago
Had it not -seen that many of those who hay
identified themselves with the growth of th
volunteer movement have been men of tire-
less zeal and pa.triotism, our citizen arm':
would have been to-day in a very differen.
'state from which it now occupies. As is
well-known, officers aud men have gone to
their own parses often in order that that to
jw hic h t•tey had put their hauls might be
d,one with their might. The toll upon
private resource has been as unjustifiable. no
matter how willing the volunteer to sub-
scribe, and we are glad to note that the new
army Circular indicates a desire on the part
of the War Odic° to lift he burden from the
neks of those who have in the main main-
eisined themselves in the past because of the
Ansulciency of Governmental provision. At
nrst. eight time concessions made seem slight;
out though not so large as some have wished
or, they be very welcome. A further

. . additio-u to tlia oriary capit-
altsigb ikuOriaiie+B Of 30a fur OY4tri ftiloieut at

the end of the year now nearing its close
means, in many cases, a good deal of the dif-
ference between adequate equipmmt and in-
sufficient allowance. This extra payment of
5s a head is obtainable only by extra effici-
ency, but it will be none the less appreciated
on that account. Officers, too, will hence-
forth be able to add to the income of their
corps b.: showing themselves masters of tac-
tics and the art of war, a 30s grant taking
the place of one which has hitherto obtained
of 10s; while a new 30s grant is also estab-
lished for officers who have passed in field
signalling. Thus we have incentive to
greater efforts held out at the same time as
provision for further equipment is estab-
lished—an admirable arr ingement in evei y
waj An allowance of 30s a head for bugler
boys and mnicians has also been decided on,
so that the band department wiA for the
future have a new and needed source of
revenue. The chief value of the new Army
Circulai is, however, we hold, its official re-
cognition that at last Government has seen
fit to view the volunteers with that deference
and appreciation to which the general public
have long been pursuaded they are entitled.