The Sun.
London, England, 1835-03-12 00:00:00

Grand Totals 8755 7361 1653 264 7838

Decrease of Officers in twenty years only-1394

In July, 1815, we had 462 Sail in Commission, out of 871 Sa i
of all sorts, with 29 Rag Officers, 196 Captains, 191 Commanders,
1,165 Lieutenants, 295 Masters, 372 Surgeons, 333 Assistant-
Surgeons, and 381 Pursers afloat, or employed therein.
In January, 1835, we had only 173 Sail in Commission (Packets
included), out of 543 Sail of all sorts on the list, with 9 Flag
Officers, 51 Captains, 56 Commanders, 362 Lieutenants, 82 Mas-
ters, 92 Surgeons, 175 Assistant-Surgeons, and 93 Pursers, em-
ployed therein afloat.
If we add the increase of 263 Commanders from July, 1815, to
January, 1835, as we ought, to the Lieutenants from which they
were taken, we shall find that in October, 1830, there was hardly
any reduction in that class of officers ; and in the latter period of
Whig Government, for four years, we have only saved the number
of 207 Commanders and Lieutenants.

I have oniitted in both cases the Officers employed in Dock-yards,
the' Ordinary, Hospitals, and Coast-guard, and other extra services,
civil or military, as the Navy List of 1815 does not regularly return
them all. The relative proportions would be nearly equal ; and
the Coast-guard is only a Revenue duty, and paid in that depart-
ment. _ _ _

Enough is, however, to be found in the above list, to afford
matter for the most painful reflection. It ceases to be matter of
wonder that our debt is stationary, and our financial situation as
bad as ever,
_when our military establishments, as far as respects
the officers, remain, after twenty years of peace, nearly as large as
they were in war !
For the very small reduction that has taken place in the Flag
Officers, Captains, Lieutenants, and inferior ranks (since October,
1830) we are indebted solely to the Whig Government— to the
much abused Whigs. That your readers may judge of this, I give
in a fifth column, the several numbers of each rank, from the Navy
List of October, 1830, just before the turn-out of the Tories, and
the accession of the Whig party in November, 1830; from which
it will be observed that in 16 years there was only a decrease of 22
Flag Officers, 40 Captains, 207 Lieutenants, 128 111 asters, 109 Sur-
geons, 200 Assistant Surgeons, and 326 Pursers—while there was
an increase of 129 Commanders, and of 9 Chaplains. In short, the
only rank in the Navy, which at all corresponds with the wants of
the Service, after 20 years of profound peace and opportunity for
reduction, is that of Assistant Surgeon, of which rank there are
235 on the List, of whom about 200 are employed, leaving only 85
Idlers—a proportion unusually small for our service !
By way of contrast, I add the state of that useful Corps, the
Royal Marines, at the same periods, viz.: on the Ist July, 1815,
and Ist January, 1835. This statement shews a reduction of 514
out of 1,353 Officers, that we had at the peace. of 1815 ; leaving
only 437, or little more than half of the remainder, on half-pay,
beside 64 Officers, retired on full-pay. This unusual effort of
economy in an English Government, can only be accounted for on
the fact, that the Marines is not an aristocratic Corps, like the Army
and Navy, and that no scions of nobility or boroughmongers delight
therein. For the same reason, all the serious reductions in the
Navy for the past 20 years, have fallen on the Masters, Surgeons,
Assistant-Surgeons, and Pursers, ranks wit ich our nobles and
gentry eschew. Hence all the real reduction has fallen upon those
proscribed cla:ses.

Royal Marines.

July Jan.
1815 1835 De..rease Increase.
10 4 6 0
8 13 0 5
8 8 0 0
140 103 35 0
131 106 25
0
239 102 137 0

Colonels
Lieut.- Colonels
Majors
Captains
First Lieutenants
Second Lieutenants

On Full Pay

536 338

Colonels .
Lieut.-Colonels
Majors...
Captains
Second Captains
First Lieutenants
Second Lieutenants

0 3

I 2 0

4 2 2 0
121 84 37 0
21 2 19 0
383 19G 197 0
207 158 49 0

On Half-pay

Colonels
Lieut. - Colonels
Majors
Captains ...
First Lieutenants
Second Lieutenants ......

-5
2 3 6.
6 2 4 0
10 3 7 0
34 35 0 1
14 12 2 0
8 10 0 2

Retired on Full Pay

Grand Totals .

-
1353 839 5'2.5 11

Real Decrease-514,

If the whole of the Navy were now on half-pay, it would cost the
country a million per annum ; not including the Royal Marines, or
a single person beyond the Officers above included ! The few that
are on full pay, adds but little to the expense of officers !
Never was a generous and confiding nation, so shamefully used as
England has been, during the last 20 years of peace.
When the Army Estimates are about to come on, I will send you
a similar statement of the Army Reductions in Officers since the
peace of 1815.—1 am, Sir, your humble servant,
__

A TAX PAYER.

HUMAN LIFE.—I have always thought, says a re-
cent writer, that life is too short to waste any portion of it in
fretting at the prosperity of others.