The Sun.
London, England, 1833-03-28 00:00:00

diminish ti eir number, and be would also endeavour
plainly to state the exact amount of debts and credits in sums
t tel for the different branches, so as to enable the House
to comprehend with little difficulty the present condition
of the army, and the amount of expenditure which was
required to maintain it at its present effective height. He
was, however, compelled, most reluctantly, to own that
the decrease in the effective part of the service was not
carried to that extent which had been expected ; but that,
on the contrary, the complement of that portion of the
army was kept up to the same amount at which it was
when he first had the honour of accepting his present
office. But, at the same time, he was enabled to point
out in the present estimates the absence of several items
which were formerly strongly contested as not forming
part of the necessary appendages to the effective state of
the army during a time of peace. These items were the
waggon-train, the army meoical department, the Perma-
nent Assistant Quartermaster-General, the Inspector of
Clothing, and the S aff of the Civil Governorships, which
latter item, howeve., had disappeared from former army es-
timates. Owing also to arrangements which were made pre-
vious to his entering on the duties of his office, but which:he
had most zealously (tarried into execution, the dead weight of
the estimates had been reduced to an unhoped-for extent ;
and he earnestly trusted that the House would give him
credit for the endeavour, during the term of his continu-
ance in office, to carry into operation the views of tt ose
who preceded him, as well as those which he entertained
himself, with respect to the reduction of the most objection-
able parts of the army estimates. The first item in the pre-
sent estimates was decidedly the smallest that had appeared
since the year 1820. He could show, at the same time,
that since the sear 1820 t ere had been an annual dimi-
nution to the amount of 276,0001. on this part of the es-
ttmatas, and it was not to he expected th ,t with an an-
nual decrease to the extent he had mentioned, a greater
iminution could he expected from him. The amount,
therefore, of the forces which were required fir the pre-
sent year was, for service ahroad, 78,591, and fir Eng-
land anti Isel ind. 17,200, making in the whole the num-
ber of 95 '791 men. The Right Hon. Baronet here en-
tered into a detail of the comparative numbers of men
which were required for the army during the present
year, and its effective force in the year 1792 ; but
whirl], from the circumstance of many of his figures
not clearly reaching our ears, we are compelled
to omit, rather than submit an imperfect or er-
roneous report of them to the public. The branch of
the army which had undaigone the most material increase
was that employed in the colonies and in ladle. The
whole force em toyed in the colonies, during the year
1792, was 15.100; whilst, in 1833, its amount had been
raised to 16,858. But the difference was to be accounted
for by the increase in the populati ,n and importance of
those colonies since thst period; and it might also be
accounted for in another way—namely, by the fact that
the colony of New South Wales, which formerly re-
quired, comparatively speak ng, no force at all, now,
from its incre sed importance, the additional number of
convicts, and the recent large additions to its popula-
tion and territory, swelled the force to no less than
1,788 men. In the West Indies also some increase hail
taken place in the number of troops, at which no one
who considered the state of those islands, and more parti-
cularly of Jamaica, could wonder. In the Canada, how-
ever, the number of troops was less by 225 men than in
1792. On the North American station, Nova Scotia and
Newfoundland, the number was more, by 475 men, than
in 1792. At Gieraltar it was less by 1,025 men, than
in 1792; so that if New South Wales was left out of the
question—as justly it ought to be—the number of
troops employed in the colonies was less by nine
men, than it was in 1792. He trusted the House
would not quarrel with the present estimates on that
ground. Now with respect to India, he must beg their
attention whilst he stated a few facts. In the year 1792
the numher of troops employed in I dia was 9,013 men—
in the present year their numbers were 17,288 ; hut then
the immense ir.c.ease in tl.e extent of territory and also in
the amount of population, which hid since that period
accrued to Great Britain, more than accounted for the
difference betwesn the number of troops on duty there now
and the former period. The extent of country in India,
which was under the immediate control and protection of
Great Britain, was no less than 1,128,000 of square
miles, whilst the amount of the population, according to
the last estimated census, .vas 89,577 000. The amount
of troops employed immediately in Great Britain, was no
more than 4,000 men, whilst in Ireland it was 13,151.—
(Hear, hear, from the Hon. Member for Dublin, we be-
lieve.) It was not his fault that so large a number of
men was required for Ireland. The Right Hon. Baronet
stated the number of troops also employed in the colonies
in detail, but in a manner which rendered it impossible to
follow his figures. The amount of population in the
colonies, as shown by the last census, was equal within
62 men to the whole population of the old co-
lonies, whilst in Great Britain and Ireland the popu-
lation had increased from the year 1792, when it
was 13,882,024, to 24.271,763, which was the amount
as stated in the last census ; so that, at least as far
as population was concerned, either in the colonies,
the Indian, or the home possessions, lie had a
right to say that there now existed no such increase of
the forces compared with their number in 1792, as gave
any one a right to object on that ground to his estimates.
A great deal of the unnecess try expense, as well as a large
portion of the troops, was to he referred to the injudicious
manner in which they were formerly applied. A more ef-
fective distribution of them was now in operation, and this
had been of material use in enabling the Government to
carry their reductions into effect. He had often heard
urgent objections made to the continuance of the military
depots, and he had in consequence seriously applied him-
self to the consideration of that branch of the service
with a view to its reduction if necessary. He had, how
ever, since his accession to office been put in possession of
such facts, and that to() on the authority of persons WI o
wet e well qualified to judge of the matter, t hat he had no
hes tation in saying at once that the military depots were
indispensable, or at all events 'hat they were so tneteriely
connecter' with the economical arrangement of the army,
as to render him very desirous of their centinuance. For
instance, it very frequently happened that a regiment
would return from foreign service, the greater portion of
whin was totally disabled from active duty. Now, if those
men were to he discharged, as in case tie depots were
attolished they must be, they would be entitled to claim
disabled retiring pensions, which would add to the already
overwhelming amount of dead we ght ; whereas, if they
wet e to be quartered in one of the deptes, there was every
chance of the recovery of the greater part, whilst the site.
leton regiments, thus remaining half formed, were of
great ativantage, as they were always available to be
drafted into other regiments to be employed on active
service, or else to be employed in what wire termed small
services. Having stated thus much in defence of the
present estimates, he would pass on to the details of the
numbers and employment of troops, the vote for which
he was about to su :mit to the Committee. He must,
however, first observe, that it would lie app trent on the
face of the estimates that there was an increase in the
number of men since the year 1830, to the amount of
7,689. He felt that he ought to account for the diffe-
rence. There were, at the present time, 1,018 more men
employed abro d than in 1830, and 6,695 more at home.
01 those at home, with the exception of 997, the whole
-increase was in Ireland. In the Mediterranean. there
were 1,395 men less than th- fixed estahlishmest on that
station. At the Cape of Good H ipe there were 103 men
more, and 757 more in New S such Wales, which in•
crease, in chie latter colony, was to he :Ito- buted to the
increased number of convicts, over %shorn these men
were gua.ds. In the Mauritius there were 620 men
more ; and it was scarcely necessary for hint to ex-
plain that this increase was to be attributed to
the disturbances which had taken place in that
colony. In Ceylon, there were 293 more ; in Canada,
610 less. In the West Indies, for a cause be need not
explain, there were also a greater number ; anti on the
coast of Africa there were 280 men more than in 1830.
He thought. under all the circumstances, that this was
as satisfactory an account as the case would adroit of, as
to the difference between the years 1830 and 1833 ; and
now, there only remained the difference between the last
and the present years. In Great Britain, there were
4(192 men less this year than last ; and in Ireland, there
were 3,673 men less. Abroad, there were 571 men more,
so that there had been, exclusive of the forces employed in
India, a decrease of all ranks to the extent of 1,546. He
trusted that he should not be consitiered as going out of
his way, it he ventured to state that be did not conceive
any circumstance now existed, which crshd justify a
diminution of the force voted by the Heine fur the service
of the last year. He was sorry to say that we could not
boast of tranquillity in our own dominions, and the aspect
of jfdrs over the continent of Europe was such that
hardly any Hon. Member would conceive it necessary to
ask for a diminished number of troops, merely on the
ground of economy; Thinking it possible that some Hon.
Gentlemen might be led away by the statements in the
public tout nate an to the diminution of forces, effected by
toe other European Powers, lie hoped he should be per-
mitted to read from a table which he field in his hand,
he tremendous amount of force kept up by the other
Powers, and also by America. He would first state the
proportion of troops to the population, and the proportion