The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1864-08-02
The rIghrInr hlr n.,n nr EnrInnh.

! According 20 the London Spectator, which de-
votes an elaborate article 70 The subject: the avail
able hghting strength of England IS small. Nomi-
nally, the.e are 81 900 regular troops, IO2OJO
milhin, and 100000 volunteers, but really L
| more iban $4,000 are aya.lLble for foreign ser
wee. ard OF thesa out 2J,OUo would be troops of
1 the line. The Spectator adds -
| Even allowing that the militia and volunteers
| would suffice 10 defend Greas Britsin-and it
\ WOu be madness 10 lpava them % themaalyna
| unsupported by regular roops-:nere would still
/ remain ireland 20 ba garri5Jnel, and the depo.s
| to be taken into account. In practice no general
Who was also poitican would, uuless tue clln-
1 Try were in eXtrCmis, leave ireland without A
| garrison 1f20,0 900 men, or remove the Guards, or
an equivalent force, beyond the limits of Great
! Britain. This is . deduction OF $4,000 men 70
begin with, and II We realned a reGsOna1te pro-
portion between the ferent arms Of the serYi,e
counted, for instance, rs we ought 10 do nye men
OF the line 20 one of every Other arm the country
! has scarcely force Of i000J men available 10
meet sudden foreen demand. It coud MT
| send much more Than that number, for Instance
| 70 detenu Denmark, or prevent the invasion OF
| Hol and, or r. sist me annexation OF Belgium.
"All this while The country paying, ~ employ
round numbers AMI rnsh understate the case,
| tl4,OCO,OOo sterling year for the main enlnco
OF ts a'my Inat IS, IN other words. IL Is paving
| tl66 year for every regular soldier now en-
poyed on the gaTTi.Ons of Great Britain and
Ireland, every soldier ret lined at home costing
on an average the keep Of eight agricultural
labortrs or three fkilled artisans, he himself
being all the while strictly a nOo- producer-l
being HhO II he does not defend as, Is not only
loss but nuisance. Whenever tnis expense
Is put before the Departments, the regular hduit
Is 10 deny the facts, % quote the whole number
OF the army upon the muster-Tol, and the
whole amount OF cash voted for its support,
and assert point. blank that every soldier costs,
when departments, ordnance horses, eX eXDeriment,,
and every other expense are included about El 100
year, thai it has always been so, and that I.
will remain so tO the end OF time. That estimate
preBuppOses that soldier must cost about f2 a
week.-Mrs. cost as 4 laborer in his cottage being,
say 4s week-or the highest average rate paid
10 the skilled workman, in itself q large demand
upon the credulity and the purses Of itish tax
payers. In reality, however, the demand Is much
greater, for the estimate is made up entirely with
out regard 10 the Indian budget, which bears the
whole expense of the Indian army, wages, depart
ments, ordnance, clothing, transport, and depots
which in fact absorbs nearly one.half the army rs
completely as If it were Il foreign country.
There remain the colonies, which, In obedience
partly to real necessity and partly 70 excessive
reluctance TO iritate the colOnists we still garr
son at our own expense, bat taking the force en-
spend more than Ella, 900 on il0 800 soldiers
or El36 per man. Meanwhile the Emperor of
the French retains the control Of 600 900 men, all
available for foreign service, all more or less ft
for duty, and more or less thoroughly trained,
for tl3,OO0,000 sterling or eos a man He con-
trolls Europe Tor half the money It takes 10 make
our skulking clearly visible TO the world and he
all the while has 70 pay the officers, 10 whom we
sell commissions at O price which leaves their
pay very moderate interest on the money in
vested"