The National Register.
London, England, 1818-11-15 00:00:00

Wbr

No. 562.—V0L. XI.

POLITICAL DISQUISITION.

REDUCIION OF THE ARMY.

Ar length we have reached the period so long wish-
ed fur, duo. of tbv s.cdac'tioo of the army to a peace eats-
blishment. There are, however, two ways of doing
this; either by reducing the number of reginients, offi-
cers, and men, or by reducing the numbers in each
regiment. The former plan is that which is to be
adopted. The Morning Chronicle says,
The more closely that the scheme of army reductions
is examined, the less satisfaction will be derived from
6itas a measure of retrenchment. In the House of
Commons, last year, Lord Palmerston distinctly said,
that it would be infinitely more economical to reduce
regiments altogether, than to keep up a purrther, of
6 skeletons. Seventy regiments at 800 men each would
' be infinitely more advantageous to the country than
• ninety at 620 each; suul he held out this as the plan
6 of reduction to be pursued, stating the amount of say-
ing that would thereby accrue. flow will the No-
' ble Secretary at War reconcile the plan of reduction
actually adopted with that which he announced ?—•
The extravagant course is preferred to the economical.
The country is saddled with much more expence than
would have been incurred by following the plan
of the Noble Lord ; and what is of almost equal int-
' portance, influence would have been diminished in
' the same proportion as expence.
6 But through the whole arrangement, official regard
has been paid to the preservation of patronage ; and
acordingly we sec that that branch of the service
• which is• the most desirable to young men of interest,
' the Cavalry, is to be kept on a much higher scale
• than the Infantry. The expense of this is not the
▪ only evil. The Line will be made merely a transit
▪to the Horse. Every Cadet of Parliamentary fami-
lies will look for removal to the Cavalry, that he may
' act be sent to the West Indies ; and the influence of
• the Crown will thereby be promoted to a dangerous
' extent in time of profound peace. At no former time
was the Cavalry kept up to so high a rate, and there
' can be no good reason for it in the present state of
our resources.'

The argument adduced by the Courier is, that by
preserving skeletons of regiments, we may, in any war
breaking out, in a few months raise our army to •a war
establishment, fur that there will be nothing to do but
to distribute the new levies among the skeleton regi-
ments thus preserved, where they will be commanded
by veteran officers, and surrounded by veteran soldiers ;
whereas, were the regiments reduced altogether, the
new levies must in such a case be formed into new re-
giments, and they would be much longer being
brought to a state of discipline. But, granting this
argument its full- force, on what supposition does it
proceed ? On one of preparing now for a future war.
Bat was not this painful necessity the very thing
which was to be avoided by restoring the Bourbons
'Was it not the very evil we complained of in Buono-
parte's time, that peace must always be accompanied
by preparation for war ? What have we gained, if this
necessity still exists ? The fact is, this necessity does
net exist to Me recut alleged, but in sonic measure it
does, and the reason is plain ; we did not finish our
all& after the battle of Waterloo. Our Ministers im-
puted too much of the past evils to the sole character of
Buonaparte, and imagined they did every thing 'in re-
storing the Bourbons They forgot, in Boonaparte's
grimes, those of Louis XIV. and of Louis XV. !lad
they remembered these they would have been ratisfied
in expelling Buonaparte, and instead of insisting on
Louis XVIII.'s restoration, ►hey would have insisted
on the cession of Alsace and Lorrain, and the iron bar-
rier of the fortresses of Elantlias.