cefs he fhould move that the non-commiffioned officers of the volunteers fhould be allowed the fame pay as those in the regulars, and that half-pay officers, &c. fhould receive the fame as thofe on the staff, in the line, &c. VOLUNTEER REGULATIONS BILL. Mr. Secretary Yorke moved the order of the day for the third reading of the volunteer bill. Mr. Langton adverted to what he had formerly faid upon that part of the bill which related to the right of refignation, the fubftance of which had been adopted, and without which he was apprehenfive that great difcontent would have prevailed. He had now no oppofition to offer to the paffing of the bill. Colonel Craufurd said, that nothing could give him more pain than the idea that he was abufing the patience of the House, except that of an apprehenfion that he was omitting an effential part of his duty by remaining filent on this occafion; but he should incur the rifque of the former, rather than feel the consciousness of the latter. He must therefore fay, that he rose once more for the purpose of expreffing his difapprobation of the whole fyftem of his Majefty's Minifters upon military matters. This fubject was of the greatest importance, for furely nothing could be of greater importance, than that of confidering the means of repelling the most formidable invafion that was ever threatened. Yet, for this object, in the course of seven or eight months, we had had feven or eight bills, and the prefent was called a confolidation of the whole of the regulations which had been before thought of, or were now thought of upon this fubject. This very bill had been five or fix times committed, and now contained twenty-four or twenty-five claufes, by way of amendment. Gentlemen had taken fo much pains with this bill, that one would be led to hope that this fyftem might be of fome duration. He was afraid that he had already fpoken fo much at large upon the topics connected with this bill, that the Houfe would not lend him a very favourable ear. He defired that the permanent military force of this country thould be on a permanent basis ; for without it we fhould not have the advantage of our ftrength; without it we fhould lote our refpect in Europe, and be expofed to the fluctuation of conflicting councils, and a feverish fyftem of policy, which had, of late, marked our measures, and would be our bane, unless it was altered. And he defired to be underflood to fay, that, in his opinion, it was not this fyftem of volunteer fervice which was alone defective; he thought that the whole of our military fyftem fhould un ut° was. dergo a complete revifion. With respect to a regular army, without which it was impoffible that we should be refpected by our friends, dreaded by our enemies, or fecure ourselves, the means of supplying that fpecies of force was every day becoming more and more difficult, and it was now indeed become impoffible; it was impoffible to recruit the army, for we were every day offering bounties to men for not going into it: we were now giving 15 guineas bounty for men going into the militia, and also finding provifion for the wives and families of those who went into it; we were now giving 35 guineas bounty to those who entered into the army of referve, and alfo providing that their wives and children fhould be fupported: was it then to be expected that a man would enter into the regular army, by which he gave up his freedom for life, for a bounty of ten guineas, and that without any provifion whatever for his wife or family? With respect to the militia, it did not appear to him extremely politic to increase a force of this kind fo much as we had done, fince it was not applicable to every part of the empire, as the regular force He did not fee one step which Minifters took in military affairs of which he could confcientiously approve. By the measure now before the Houfe, we should exclude threefourths of the most effective men in the kingdom from the effential defence of it. Inftead of raifing a large difpofable force, we were now raifing a large body of men enjoying privileges and exemptions which were both oppreflive and difgufting to the lower and more diftreffed claffes of the community, and thereby throwing the burthen, which these privileged perfons ought to bear, upon those who, of all the community, were leaft able to bear it. We were raifing and establishing only an inefficient force at the best, and propofing regulations for its improvement, at the fame time that Parliament was under the painful apprehenfion that fuch regulations muft to a great degree be unavailing for Gentlemen in the Houfe who promoted this fyftem were under the neceffity of admitting that certain meafures, however good in themselves, muft not be tried or attempted to be carried into execution, for fear that the regulations would not be agreeable to thofe on whom they were defigned to operate, and Minifters had faid that the fyftem of volunteer force was a delicate machine. Now he was of opinion that a machine defigned for the purpose of war fhould not be of a delicate texture, but should be made of thofe hardy and tough materials that are capable of bearing the rudelt fhocks. He muft VOL. II. 1803-4 Gg alfo alfo fay, that in every view he could take of our military system, it did appear to him not at all calculated for the welfare or the fafety of this country; and that it was necessary that we should lofe no time in the revifion of it; and with all the speed with which we might endeavour to do this, God only knew what difafter might befal us. He thought this a delicate queftion, yet, he could not, on that account, pafs it over. He was actuated by no personal motive whatever, but obferving a system, the foundation of which was so unfafe, and the fuperftructure of which was in every refpect fo defective, it was impoffible to pass it over. It might be faid that he criticifed thefe meafures merely for the purpofe of finding fault with his Majefty's Ministers, for he had heard a great deal faid about his motives in what he had advanced, and it had been infinuated that he brought together, efpecially on the difcuffion which related to Ireland, three or four difcordant facts, from factious motives, for the purpofe of depreffing the fpirit of the people of this country; and factious motives had also been imputed to a right hon. Gentleman on the other fide of the Houfe (Mr. Pitt), who was as inflexible for integrity, as he was eminent in talent, when he brought forward his motion to inquire into the ftate' of the naval defence of this country, and for which the public' were greatly indebted to that right hon. Gentleman. Nor did he understand the propriety of the fe charges made against all Members of the Houfe, who did not fupport the prefent Adminiftration, for he did not fee why integrity should be confined to the precincts of the Treafury, or of Somerset Houfe; and why every man was to be difpofed to change the opinion of the people of this country against the prefent Adminiftration, who did not approve of their measures, when nine-tenths of the whole country did not think them capable of managing the affairs of the country, was what he did not understand. This was a confideration which made him indifferent as to what might be faid of his motives for the part he took in the difcuflion of public affairs. But to return to this bill; every thing that was to be admired in it came not from Minifters, but from thofe who difapproved of their measures; every thing that was calculated to improve the vo Junteer fyftem, and adopted by the Houfe, was not from the aid, but in fpite of the obstinacy and blindnefs of Minifters. What had aroufed the people of this country? A conviction of their danger. But was that conviction effected by the exertions of Minifters, or rather did they not impede the pro grefs grefs of that apprehenfion, by adopting a fort of Stock Exchange policy, by which they endeavoured to perfuade us that a formidable invafion was not to be expected? Ministers had done every thing in their power to keep down the fpirit of the people, but it was roused by the genius and eloquence of the right hon. Gentleman oppofite to him (Mr. Pitt). Nothing did he find in the bill, nor in any part of the military fyftem of Minifters, that was not brought forward by fome perfon or other who had no connection with them, and chiefly by the right hon. Gentleman himself (Mr. Pitt). By the prefent bill there were now excluded from the ranks of our regular force, three-fourths of the youngest, the stouteft, and in every respect the fittest men in the country, to be employed for its fafety and honour. Befides this, there were a number of men in the volunteer corps, who were the masters of families, who, if they were called out, could not long remain in their military character without a ftagnation in the bufinefs of the country: add to this, that the young men. who were without familles, and the fittest on all accounts to be in our disposable force, were locked up in this inefficient fyftem of the volunteer fervice. Having faid this, he proceeded to obferve, that the volunteer fyftem rendered the ballot for any other fervice almost entirely ufelefs, and he maintained that there was in this fyftem of exemption to the volunteers, an hardship which, upon the principle of humanity, as well as policy, ought to be altered, for the heavy tax of providing fubftitutes fell upon the lower claffes of fociety, who could the least afford it, and who were not in the volunteer service. He again repeated the fentiments he had delivered on the subject of an armed peafantry instead of the volunteer fyftem, who would be a force three or four times more powerful than that of the volunteers as a war machine. He had been accused of holding language which tended to difcourage the people of this country, and to encourage the enemy. He asked the Houfe whether he had at any time faid any thing that would bear that construction; and whether he had not faid, that the people of England were capable of every thing that was to be looked for in a brave army, that was, every thing that was excellent? He would not fay it was far beyond any other army in the world, he would fay, that if it had a fair opportunity, it would answer for itfelf, and be equal to any upon the face of the earth; but he would not fo far infult-the understandings of those who compofed our army as to tell them they had nothing Gg 2 thing to contend with, that would be at once an insult to their understanding and their courage, for it would appear as if they know nothing of the party with whom they would have to contend, and as if they had not courage enough to engage in the contest, without being perfuaded there was no difficulty to be expected in it. On the contrary, the army of this country ought to be told the truth, a truth which would not difmay, but would animate them; that they had, or would foon have, to contend with an army which, in the opinion of every liberal unprejudiced man, who knew any thing of the matter, was as fine an army as any in Europe; that was the defcription which ought to be given of the army of the enemy, for that was the force with which they would foon have to contend. To tell the people of this country that they would only have to contend with miferable confcripts, was to tell them that which was not true; for certainly the army of the enemy was as enthufiaftic in the caufe in which they were engaged, as well difciplined, and in every respect as fit for military operations, as any army this hour in the world. And here again he muft fay, that the armed peasantry would be preferable to the fyftem of volunteer force, because it would be of three or four times the phyfical force of the volunteers; and therefore he would fay, give every peafant a pike, and there would be a more efficient body oppofed to the enemy than the volunteers would be, for fcveral reafons. The volunteers, being mafters of families, could not long be spared, without ruin to the whole trade of the country; and they, partaking of the nature of an army, could, as had been formerly faid by an honourable Gentleman (Mr. Fox), be met by another army but an armed peafantry was what the enemy could never meet upon equal terms. Nor was there any objection to the armed peafantry, unless it was to be fuppofed that no body of men could be fit for fighting who were not dressed in red coats, and who had not been taught the Pruffian exercise. Having recapitulated his objections to the volunteer fystem, and his reafons for preferring an armed peafantry, he noticed another point, which although not fo immediately connected as fome others were with the bill now before the Houfe, yet had a bearing upon it, he meant the idea that had been thrown out of deftroying our horfes and other cattle, as well as provifions, when the enemy might effect landing befides the barbarous inhumanity of that idea, he apprehended the practice of it would be more injurious to |