The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1824-05-06 00:00:00

member fla society e Ewa/ individual who bad worked on the
tread. wheel roust feel Itionself perminentlY degraded.lt Wall
Sidl.ll 1111 ridiculous a punishmeki, that when ince a loan hail been
employed upon it, lilie a dug in a wheel, he could never agaiO
think as well of himself tal befirre. It had been applies', not only
in a torclaing manner to every species of Whores, butt sometimes
to persons who liaii coil:mined 001 rime at all. There was the case
of an attorney 1:11:.1 lint) cat S:atiold, who bad le:est mixed up with
vagednirels, and t t.ly sort of criminals short of felony. It ales
impossible for this grsth utan attniti to Walk through the *treats of
Stafford. without hotiting it There Kota the man that
was at the tread-wheel. ' It had been judged expedient to relras2
this gentleman nftei wool*: but eo net of the Crown (mad fella(
the disgra, hod unasuielstily attaet.eti to his character. The
magistracy ought to he very (11 ,re and cautious in applying this
punishment to prisoners. It might perhaps be made a good cowl_
mutation for the potter punishments of transportation or death,
but above all, it ought 1:111 in any ease tet be inflicted harshly and
unnecessarily, and rontrary to the spirit of the law.
The petition wits than ordered to be printed.
111111. S AND SKINS 1111,10
Sir It. FER (I I 'St IN prment. el a petition from the corporation
of lieshera at Dundee, in favour of the repeal of penal-
ties on Haying aaintals; and another to the Name effect from the
curporatim of shniserekers nl.ll leather-dealers of the same place.
For opieunls of 251 years there had been no inspector at Dundee.
Within the List two years u needy favourite of the Chief Magis-
trate hot had the appointment confe.red upon hint, and it had
proved extremely vexatious to the cordwainere of the town, who
were decidedly favourable to the ninth then of theseabsurd penalties.
The petitioos were referred to the t'onintitiee.
Oil, GAS COMPANY.
Mr. 11011111)('SE presented a petition from some inhabitants
of the Strand against the (hi ties 11111. It deteerved to be re-
marked, he said, that there was rot a single petition trona London
or Westminster in f. vu of that 1/111.—fIrdeted to lie on the table.

IRISH MI LI TI t.
Colonel D.WIES then rose, pursuant to notice, to move for
leave to bring in a Bill to enable his 111/jolty to reduce the staff'
estaliliehininta of the regiments and battalions of Irish militia
when not embodied. This was a subject, he said, worthy of the
consideration of Parliament, and, as far as it went, of great
itu-
portance. fly the llilitir Estimates it appeared that whir the
militia of Great Britain,ennsisting of 30,10011 men, cost 193,01101. the
militia of Ireland. emulating of only 111,12 in wen, COSt upwards rif
911.00111. The expense, therefore, of the Irish militia was one-third I
greater than that of limit Britain. Ile was at a has to know why
this difiiiente should continue—why the establishments of the
regimehta and battalions in rine amutry should be so much larger
titan the ether. If any raison could be shown, he should
be diapoaed to 11-!en to it, and give it its due weight, but
he complained that no mama had ever been attempted to he I
*hewn. 11 it were said that the difference rendered the Irish mi-
litia more available to put down diaturbances, that would be a
reason worth attending to, but the Irish militia nett7MOSCd out of,
toe counties to which they bt hewed. They were perfectly station-
ary
and useless. The fact was. that the auperfluou a men were em-
ployed for private purposes. The non-commissioned Accra, and
perms attached to the stall; were acting as musicians to the coin.
nets. Perhaps hr should he asked why he had not left the quea.
lion to his Majesty's Ministers. Ile could mature the House he
would willingly give up the task into their hands, but when he
had men year alter year pass away without any proposi:ion for re-
duction proceed from them, he bad telt it his duty to interfere.
The relative difference of expense between the militia of Ireland
and that of Great Britain was as 3to 2 against the Irish. Ity new
modellii.g the regiments on an equalised plan, 30,81101. might be
saved ; lon without going to that lem,oh, it would be quite easy to
save 211,01N1. a-year. The Irish militia had both Quarter-
masters and Quarter-master Sergeants ; in the British militia
there were only Quartet-masters, and frequently the Paymasters
did their duty. There was besides a charge of 6,0001. for lodging,
fuel, and candles for the Irish militia. 'l'he barracks were left
empty, and belgings provided for the soldiers in the towns. Not a
farthing was charged on this account in the British militia. He
took. ea the basis of his Bill, the .'l7th of the late King, which bad
been pivoted for a Similar purpose. The Honourable and Gallant
Alcniher concluded with moving for leave to bringin hie Bill.
Kr 11. If 11,1, was surprised that the Gallant Mover had post-
poned the subject till this late period of the Session, when the esti-
mates were already voted. An arrangement had been made, that
en the death or resignation of the present Quarter-matters, their
situations should not be filled up, but that the duty should be per-
formed by the Quarter-master-sergeants. The charge for fuel would
be a fair matter of discussion next Session. The main object of
the motion was to reduce the cumber of the staff of the Irish
militia. The 110:mumble and Gallant Member had alluded to the
primetilings id 1817. when the first proposition for reduction was
entertained. The Act Lad then passed, after a full discussion of
the question, and a :tenders' was then fixed at which the staff' was
afterwards to be continued. It was invidious to raise a comparison
between the stied the Irish and English militia. During the
late war many thousand soldiers had been recruited through the in-
strumentality of timeshare(' the Irish militia; and he thought that
men who had deserved so well of their country were entitled to
some provision during the rest of their lives. some of them had
spent thirty years in the service of their country, and it would be
bmentable to see such men, with their large familiee, reduced to
struggle with disarm. He was sure that if the llonourahle and
Gallant Mover had seen some spectacles of this nature which had
fallen under his obaervation, his disposition to economy would
have yielded to Ids setae of justice. The question now was, whe-
ther, after a *retold inquiry, Parliament could make a further re.
duetion below that of 1817. The sum that could be saved would
he small and paltry, compared with the distress it would produce,
and the claims of the parties who received it. Indeed, It would
almost amount to a breach of !kith on the part of the Legislature,
towards a most deacrving class of the community, well entitled to
all the charitable consideration of the House.

111 r. HUME said that with respect to the objection of the late-
ness of the motion, that was no fault of the mover, as this was the
third attempt he had made to bring the subject forward this session.
The question was, why should Ireland have a larger establishment
of militia stair than rnigland ? Why should the people of Eng-
land pay for the firing slid lodging of the stud' of the Irish militia?
The Right Honourable Baronet (Sir G. Hill) had not answered
these questions. In his (Mr. Hume's) opinion, the Cotinnander.
in-Chief ought to have dismissed all the Colonels who had signed
the memorial in 11117, against the reduction of the staff of their
regiments. It was no wonder that other Colonels had bearded the
Commander-in-Chief when it was seen that it might lie done with
impunity. Any other ten officers of less rank would have been
dismissed for insubordination. The doctrine of that memorial was
that Government had no right to reduce the strati', bitt ought to
leave the pertains to die ofil since then, Parliament had interfered
and made • reduction. The doctrine was therefore destrnyed. Ile
(Mr. Hume) had then proposed a larger reduction than was adopted,
but the Noble Lord (Palmerston) had stated that expectations ex-
isted which had not been realised. The Right Honourable Baronet
had spoken of the distress that had fallen upon men after thirty
years service. Afterltwenty years the sergeants were eutitledto
a-day pension.
Sir G. HILL intimated across the table, in a low tone of voice,
that he was aware that those who had served the full time were, en-
titled to a retired allowance.
Mr. HUME resumed.lt was one of the anomalies that he
wished to see abolished, that if • man served ten years io the line,
and ten in the ntisitu, he was ROI entitled to what he would receive
if he spent the whole twenty yearn at home in the militia. It was
a similar absurdity to allow a 'arm stall' in Ireland than in Eng-
land. Precisely the 'tante objections that were urged to this reduc-
tion would apply to the discharge of common 'oldies' trout the
anny.
Mr. IR /I'I.BITRN saw no good reason why he should acqui.
ewe in the motion. Last year he had brought in • Bill to reduce
the Irish militia to the amount that the Irish Government deemed
requisite. Originally the Irish and English militia had been
fiinned by very ditfeeent Acts of Parliament. Each militia 111114
adeulatid for the country to which it belonged. Fllllll the first it
was judged expedient to have a larger propunion of °thee-% in the
Irish militia titan in England. At the chow of the war the stor
generally was reduced, but the reasons were very obvinua, why
that of the Irish should be larger titan that of the English, for
in various case" of necessity they were found most useful to the aid
lof Government. A reduction of one-half the Irish stall was
already made, and he would tlwrelore resist any further petty re.
&titian. Reduction. if necessary, should take place at once, soil
nut yrar after year, to call fur the reduction of one or two hundred
men.

Mr. U E explained.
Mr. C. H. HUTCHINSON was of opinion that the staffs of
the English and Irish militia ehould be placed on an equally tel.i.
tire footing. He' Aimed the Irish militia was a useful body, and
had well conducted themselves when called upon. Ile knew this
was a ticklish and delicate subject foe the Right lion. the Irish
Secretary to manage; but he had not stated why a reduction should
not take three. Let him at all events speak out, and state his this
ticubies, but he IJlr. II.) was rut in a situation to do so. Ile
should vote for the motion of his Hallam Friend.

Col. I/A V lES briefly replied, and stranger were ordered to
less,: the ;4111:iy. A division then took place—
Vim the motion - - 10
,Igain.d it - - 21:
-
Majority against the motion . —l6
On our return to the gallery. we found 3lr. King N fair moving
the linter of the Day on the Search Juries Bill, which 1111% agrtral
in. 'Floe lii port was then bnitight up., and ordered to be taken
into turthvr eraisliltration on Alondav ',est.