The Sun.
London, England, 1869-02-02 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, TUESDAY EVENING, FEBRUARY 2, 1869.

of £1 per efficient volunteer has been given, with an
extra 10s. for musketry. The cost of uniforms
alone would make a large hole in the sove-
reign ; would, in fact, leave almost nothing behind.
If, therefore, the Government were to grant
double that sum to meet the other items, the Volun-
teers would still be an unpaid force—would still, in all
probability, be giving not only their time for nothing,
but something out of their pockets as well.
Undoubtedly there are bargains which may be
dear at any price; and if the Volunteers are as
useless as " Hippophylax " makes them out, even
the sovereign which is already paid to them
is thrown away. But are they thus useless ? We
can answer this question only by asking another—
For what was the Volunteer force originally in-
tended ? As a reserve force, which would be able, in
the event of invasion, to undertake certain duties
until then obligatory on the regular army. Such, we
imagine, would be the garrisoning of certain for-
tresses, the guarding of dockyards and aximals, and
the suppression of any attempts at internal insur-
rection which might be made at the instigation
of the enemy. Can it be doubted that the Volunteers
are competent to undertake these duties ? Is there
any reason to suppose that our Volunteer artillery
would not serve the guns of a fortress as well as the
regular artillery, or that, if required, our Volunteer
engineers would not be able to throw up
works of defence ? Of course no one supposes
that they will be wanted to do all these things.
Every year increases the improbability of in-
vasion ; but if improbability is to be considered a
reason for doing away with one part of our de-
fensive force, it will apply to the other part as well.
fact, it will apply more strongly to the
army, for that could not save us from the
constant panics from which the Volunteers
have, however, rescued us ; it is, moreover, far
more costly. The objection that the Volunteers have
no organisation capable of enabling them to take the
field has very little force. The commissariat depart-
ment which now supplies the army could just as well
supply the Volunteers in case of need. The same
may be said for the hospital staff. Nor is there ally
strength in the argument that the calling out of the
Volunteers for active service would paralyse commerce.
No one proposes to call them out except in thedanger of
invasion, and what state commerce would be in at
such a time we leave our readers to judge. The fact
that there were 170,000 soldiers to fall back upon in
time of need would rather tend to restore than
to paralyse. Undoubtedly this argument has
weight so far, that it prevents the general
calling out of the Volunteers for a month's training.
It would be very advantageous if our amateur
army could undergo the same discipline that
our Militia and Yeomanry undergo. But the
first belong to a class of society from whom
no such sacrifice could be demanded, except in
the case of extreme necessity. Meanwhile the Volun-
teers are peife3ting themselves more and more every
year in rifle practice, which must always be their
chief object. The practised sharpshooter would prove
a formidable opponent to an invading army which
should attempt to march through the hopgardens of
Kent or the valleys of Devonshire. It would be a
grievous pity if they should lose this accomplishment
through the withholding of necessary pecuniary aid.
Mr. CARDWELL should be very certain that the. de-
mand now made upon him is neither just nor neces

sary, before, by his refusal to grant a mere fraction
of the sum which has been squandered at Shoe-
buryness, he deprives the country of the finest band
of marksmen in the world.

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