The Sun.
London, England, 1852-03-30 00:00:00

tions as well as individuals are equally subject to, and
so to diminish at least, if not to prevent, the chances of
danger, by providing against it in time of peace, I bare
offered to you reasons political and financial why we be-
lieve these defences cannot be improved by increasing
our naval and military establishments, and hating done
that, I know not what course you have to choose except
this constitutional and rational course, which bas already
done good service, I mean by the enrolment of the
militia, relieving the people of this country of almost all
the inconveniences attending it, and securing all the ad-
vantages they have hitherto derived.—(Hear, bear.) ll
you accept this measure, I trust you will assist us with
your counsel and support in accomplishing an object
which all of us have in view, of preserving to this coun
try a permanent and effective defence, combining willi
that the anxious desire to put the
as little constraint—to subject the people
constraint as we possibly can, and also to interfere in
as small degree as we are able to do with their ordinary
habits and industrial oecupations.—(Hear, bear.) But
I must say that if you reject this messuro from any
false, mistaken notions of parsimonious economy
topeople to
, aosr
from
l e
what I should consider a vain supposition of your being
ever able to provide against danger just at the moment
when it bursts upon you—or if you should trust in .en
overweening confidence in the assumed impregnability
of your insular position, permit me to warn you that
you may be deceived, and in that case we shall have the
satisfaction of knowing that,
melancholy • '
ment, we have endeavoured to do our duty; and I mast
add, that the whole responsibility of leaving our Attires
in a defenceless state must rest with you, and not with
us.—(Hear, hear.) But lam persuaded that you in"'
as a Govern-
fteow give
inconveniences;upnot say—that the people of this great country will not
gate
syaoeud asree
asadyv—anttha
that they will tell you, " we will not sacrifice fora penny
attiease with so ma.,
saving the permanent security of our hearths and homes—,
but rather, I think'
it we may have to pay a heener
we wilt not grudge a small annual sum when we know the'
possibly if we do not pay
and a far more disgraceful impost levied upon to by
a foreigh power"—(Loud cries of " Hear, hear.") No;
we will steadfastly maintain to the utmost of our power
the dignity and independence of this country, with eshieh
our liberties are inseparably united. We are bound to
our ancestors as well as to our posterity to preserve that
freedom they have transmitted to us, and which you
hold in trust for those who come after you; and knee;
ing full well that our resources, our national character'
present blessings, and our future hopes, and, indeed,l
may add, our very existence, depend on the measures
ywthciiitec
will
fori tihl the
ouriwv give,
wisdom and
nalaeniadsdto foresightdefence—knowing
cp oa—t
ieknoutfo.woPoianorgsl
consideration
dat
that,
itol
nmi
eatooyl Pt
thr :lie;
measure I now have the honour to submit.—(chess_)
Mr. HUME said the Right Hon. Gentleman need
not be under any apprehension that his statement was
not intelligible; but he confessed that ho could not
agree with him in the arguments he had brought for-
ward in support of the measure. The only arguments
he had used were based upon a fallacy—upon the
apprehension of an imaginary danger. Was it be
cause Russia maintained an army of 600,000 men,
and France an army of 400,000, that this country will,
to increase her military force to so great an extent?
There was no ground for the increase, and no
satisfactory reason had been assigned. If they were to
have an army of 180,000 men in England, what became
of the Speech from the Throne, in which it was stated
that we were in amity and peace with all foreign
powers ? The Right Hon. Gentleman appeared to have
lost sight altogether of the 250,000 men they had in
India. No specific or threatened attack by
any power
had been mentioned by the Right Hon. Gentleman.
They were at present upon the most friendly relations
with France, Belgium, and all other foreign powers.
They had already voted 101,900 men for the regular
military establishment of the country; they had voted
15,500 artillery, and 39,000 men for the navy, with e
reserve of 5,000 more, making, in all, a force of 162,000
men; and yet out of that force the Right Hon. Gentleman
told thorn that they could not muster above 25,000 men
for the defence of the country. It was stated that WI
had 45,000 men absent in the colonies, but whY no!
bring them home from the colonies if there was any
danger ? In Canada they had 9,000 or 10,000
bad
troops. Why keep them there when they
her
been told that Canada was able to manage
own affairs? Not less than 14,000,000/. sterling, dbe
voted for the army, the navy, and the ordnance, sateen be
did not think the French naval and military establish
ments amounted to so much. Out of all their large
naval force they had, it would appear, only nine line-of-
battle ships, fifteen large frigates, one sloop, nine steam'
frigates, and eight smaller steamers. He was surprised
to hear that statement, when be found that there were
no less than 235 sail in commission. Would the House
believe that on the coast of Africa, on both sides, they
had at the present time 35 sail, that in the Mediterra-
nean they had 31 sail of men-of-war? If there was enY
danger why not have these vessels on our own u"sts.;
They had 6,000 coast-guard men, who would be found
efficient as sailors. In the East Indies they bad 25 sailt
on the North American station 26, and at the Cup° on
Good Hope and the coast of Africa 37 sail, Lie would
remind the House and the Right Hon. Gentleman, th
they had enrolled the pensioners and the dockyard bat
talions at a cost of 30,000/. per annum. Teking. tit
these different bodies he could find 25,000 men, wing,
out touching the regular troops. The Marines bad °the
been recently increased in order to set
free
that
regulars for other duty. Again, het
was
told
'Bed,
they had as many police in the metropolis Grilled,
out
as would, if armed, drive all the regulars _ a
of London, and why should not these men
theb
regularly armed and drilled? Then three was .
_c.
Irish police force, which was already armed, and wht__n_
wile h'.tter than on ;egular militia. It alt these were
put together it would make a force of 232,000
They had the industry of that country already saddell
with a charge of 65 to 67 millions per annum, That
they they were about to add another half million to it:
heavy charge might be borne when prices were
otits hen
profits large, but now prices were low and pr .
s that it
come down, and it was under such circumstance
_a 4
was proposed to increase the weight upon the peon! u
peace?
high and,
that country. Was that wise after forty years of
The Hon. Member stated the case of a Mr. Lovell, who
win 1831 had been drawn for the militia, and had
pressed
for for exemption on the ground that having alay. a
support, and having been out of work for some time,
bor
had now got work, by which he earned some three
.
four shillings a day, and that it would be very hard and
The
unjust to force him to leave his family destitute to 00
on the militia service at Is. a day.—(Hear,
hear.) _ ,
magistrate said, however,
was committed,
exemption; the man refused to serve—be for
that this was no ground of
still he refused; his goods were seized and put up a
sale; no one would buy; for two months a sale.w b.ae
attempted in vain; they were sent to a broker, ar
and t e
never saw them again; ho became from that
honte
a Chartist, and had since continued so;
matter caused such excitement that the Government
were obliged to abandon the measure.—(Hear, hear-)
Such cases would infallibly occur under the proposed
p
measure, and with a similar result.—(Hear, bear.) Let
the Government make a proper use of the forces they
had, including the coast guard, with its 8,000 men and
35 cruisers—such forces would be of far greater effi-
ciency than ten times the number of raw recruits,
There really was no necessity for this measure. The
panics that had prevailed had been got up, not by old
" grist to
women, but halt-pay officers, who haunted the Cubs
about town, and were always looking out for ernapley-
naent and running about circulating rumours and se. d”ing
letters to the papers, in the hope of bringing
...service than • t
their mill.—(A laugh.) This was the eonacqnuotence of
promoting so many officers that there were ono in
them were actually
seven who had employment; and
jus
It was absurd to
anfotwer moreLatlaienywar,
alarm about the elevation of Napoleen to the
excite any a 40 uypeoanrsthage
0n......0n(-}je efenert.;ve 1
Presidency. What had vie to
couldclo h
with that? It was ilia'
lioors s
e prepared in Franco
f
wthout our having full
notice of ir. And in such an emergency the militia
theibl e
invasionthat
any
of artmhiasmen countryt i
with its present staff,
would
kepthbaeclusbeeigsat all
npfourvaelnitsthese years at an expense
of millions, and would be in time of service not only of
Of Lansdowne no use but a positive nuisa
fo rice, and would be at once
replaced by effective officers from
When the Marquisffice
was th
ate tne regularli e
ta
ef.oo.rees.
several experienced officers
staff wore useless, and had reported that the militiat
be at once got rid of that the volunteer corps eagle t
By re-establishin and the militia as soon as possible.
about to heist _g such a system the Government were.
bon extinguished. a flame in England which would not easily
glllBhed. It would never be endured that such a
system should be put
levy in operation concurrently with the
sof about 15,000,000 e for this very . - 1311'
object of our
tional defences—(Hear , hear)—and while our navy was
scattered all over the earth employed for purposes often
neither national nor necessary; and our troops sent to
distant colonies were they were not wanted.—(Hear,
hear.) The people never would stand it! The coun-
try was in a very different position now from that in
which it bad beets when the militia were originally es-
tablished. The militia could not possibly be new a na-
tional force. ['he character of the population had been
wholly changed.—(lslear, hear.) They had become a
manufacturing and commercial country, and every /ne,
was applied by the division of labour to that species ot
employment for which ho was best suited, and the mi-
litia system would disturb and disarrange all existing
sources of employment—(Hear)—and would certainly
entail an enormous amount of demoralisation when the
force was embodied.—(flear.) The result would be
that the riff-raff and refuse of society would first
.be re-
ceived, and then the virtuous and respectable, d
anbalml mote
youthful portions of our population would be ot
from to make tip the deficiency, and would be combined
Would such a
with such associates.—(Hoar, bear.)
system be endured—the only alternative being the
paying for substitutes, which many who would be bal-
loted for could not afford; for these were times when
every man's income was reduced—(Hear, hear)—and he
believed that under such circumstance the embarking
in such a system would never be sanctioned by the
country.—(Hear.)
Sir DE LACE'
said he bad given notice,
as an amendment, of a resolution with reference to the
provisions of the Militia Bill, that, though an immediate
amendment and consolidation of the existing militia
laws be indispensable, in order to give the Government
the power of promptly resorting to the levy
of a force of that description in case of necessity,
any sudden or unforeseen hostile attempt against bald.
Majesty's dominions will be most economically and
efficiently provided for, and with least interrupti.oll_
to the industrial pursuits of the people, by regale:
troops and volunteers. He had been informed• howeve
a,
by the Speaker, that ho could not move it until the
second reading. He should, therefore, confine his
seal
servations to the Government measure. He must _
,_
that the Right Hon. Gentleman who had proposed
°I!
(Mr. Secretary Walpole) needed not to make anY.ll.
logy for himself on account of the novelty of his !cacao
tion, for certainly his speech had been most nhle,jaht
clear.—Hear. ) He eoneeired, however, that t":"0.04
lota, Civutleinon bad follect into gtierai
_OW'