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with respect to the volunteers. The bill itself he regarded as a mass of incongruity and abfurdities, wh ch he thought to be the general character of all the measures adopted by Minifters upon the fubject. The point of view in which the bill was that night held out, was by no means a fair one; the injurious effects of the meafure, as at prefent confiituted, were kept out of fight; it had he effect of counteracting, not only the regular army, but the milina force, and the army of referve: this was principally done by means of the exemptions; the militia, and the army of referve alfo, in a great degree, counteracted each other. In proof of the volunteer fyftem materially affecting the recruiting fervice, he referred to the ftate of recruiting in thofe parts of the kingdom where the volunteers were proportionably the most numerous, as in Kent, Surrey, and the metropolis. With respect to the bill, he repeated, it was a mass of incongruity-every feparate part was jarring one with the other, and the whole was in the teeth of every fyftematic regulation.

Lord Boringdon aid that he would give no opinion as to the legal point at iffue between the noble Earl and the noble and learned Lord, relative to the afferted right of the King to call for the military fervice of all his fubjects in case of invafion. He did not know that Minifters had put forth this right at the end of the laft feffion, with a view to compel men to enter into the volunteer fervice; but he could confirm from his own observation the statement of the noble Earl, that fuch in many cafes was the effect of that doctrine. He differed materially in opinion from the noble Lord who fpoke first as to the prefent efficiency of the volunteers, and as to the danger which might be apprehended from the volunteers being difpofed to difband themselves in cafe of a protracted conteft. The dangers to be incurred in fuch a contest would, he thought, arife from the character and complexion of his Majefty's prefent Government, and not from any want of patriotifm or perfeverance on the part of the volunteers, whofe conduct was beyond all praife. He thought the prefent bill wholly inadequate to the circumftances of the country, and to the evils which it pretended to remedy: nevertheless he should not oppose it, as it contained some provifions which must have a falutary operation: the provifion giving the fame allowance to the families of volunteers on fervice, as was given to thofe of militiamen, and that which gave to the commanding officer a control over his men at drill, deferved commendation, and no time fhould be

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loft in carrying them into effect. After the numberlets blunders and contradictions of his Majefty's Ministers in carrying this fyftem into effect during last year, no great hope could be entertained, that a bill containing in it as little as the prefent bill could enfure us from further difficulties.

The Bishop of Landaff ipoke as follows:-My Lords, I have no intention of troubling your Lordships at great length; I have little, or to fpeak more properly, I have no military knowledge; but I love my country, and I cannot fee it tottering on the extremeft verge of deftruction, without uttering a cry however faint, without ftretching out an arm however feeble, to prevent its fall. The die, my Lords, is in the air, may God direct its fall in our favour! The die is in the air which, by its fall, will indicate the ruin of Bonaparte or of Britain; which will indicate the confequent reduction of France within its ancient limits; or the confequent reduction of all the ftates of Europe under the military yoke of the French Republic. To avert this cataftrophe from ourselves requires, not fo much, I think, the co-operation of certain individuals, however honourable in principle, however eminent in ability, (and no one thinks of their honour or of their ability more refpectably than I do) but this co-operation is not fo much required in the prefent circumftances of the country, as an entire, cordial, difinterested concurrence of all the talents in the empire. I am far from infinuating, my Lords, that thofe who may thus co-operate are influenced by any felfish views, by any ambitious profpects of place or power; no, on my conscience I am of opinion, that their primary object is the falvation of the country. Nor, on the other hand, do I take upon me to impute to the Adminiftration, what has been fo abundantly laid to their charge, inability-I at leaft have no public document, no private knowledge of them, which enables me to form a proper judgment. But if they have been guilty of miftakes, furely the novelty and unparal leled difficulty of their fituation will with many, at least it will with me, plead their excufe.-With refpe&t to the volunteer bill now before the Houfe, this is not the time to enter into any difcuffion of its feveral provisions; nor is it now a queftion to be debated, whether the volunteer fyftem is the beft poffible fyftem which could have been devised for the defence of the country-it is the fyftem which has been adopted, fo it cannot now be abandoned with fafety. I own I have always confidered it as a fyftem most noble in its prin

principle; moft difficult in its execution; and moft fuccefsful, I truft it will be found, in its operation. No country in the world has ever given a ftronger proof of the patriotifm of its inhabitants, than the volunteers of Great Britain have given. They confift not of an indebted, difcontented, miferable rabble of the country, but of men of rank, of men of letters, of men of property, of refpectable yeomen, tradefmen, manufacturers, of all defcriptions of reputable persons, from the peer to the peasant, from the enlightened statesman to the political perufer of a weekly newspaper or monthly magazine-all are animated with, an ardent zeal to defend their country. And why, my Lords, are they all animated with this zeal? becaufe all know that there is not now, nor ever was a country on the globe, in which all enjoy, in their feveral ftations, the various bleffings of civilized fociety, fo fecurely and fo abundantly as every individual enjoys in this. This is the knowledge which has excited and carried to an unexampled height the fpirit of volunteering. This fpirit is not a vain, frivolous, holiday kind of fpirit delighted with military parade-it is not a four, faucy, capricious fpirit, difdaining reproof, regulation, and reftraint-No, it is a manly fpirit of enlightened patriotifm, which is fenfible that to produce its proper effect it ftands in need of, and ought to fubmit to inftruction, difcipline and direction. But fuppofing the volunteer fyftem to be brought by the wisdom of your Lordships and the other House of Parliament, united with that of his Majefty's Minifters, to the utmost degree of perfection of which it is capable, another queftion prefents itself,--is it fufficient for our protection? I am not able to answer this question, nor, fo precarious are the events of war, is any man able to answer it with certainty; but fuppofing that it is not fufficient, what need is there for our defpair? There are abundant refources to fupply the deficiency of the volunteer fyftem. Do you want arms? Why not put all the gunsmiths, sword cutlers, and blacksmiths in the empire into requifition, till you have procured all the mutkets, fwords, and pikes, which are wanted? Do you want men? Why not call out (for I am clearly of opinion that the King has a right to call out) every man in the country, not already enrolled in its defence, and capable of bearing arms, putting into the hands of thefe men the arms which you fhall have prepared? Do you want horfes? Why not put in requifition every coach and faddle horfe in the empire, to be trained and

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fitted for the various purposes of war? No man on fuch an occafion will grudge to tranfact his bufinefs on foot; your Lordships will be proud to fet the example by walking. down to this Houfe; and the fex, I fpeak it to their ho nour, will on fuch an occafion be content to stay at home. Do you want fhips? Why not hire all the merchantmen and small craft, which can be fpeedily fitted for your purpofe? As to large fhips, let our enemies build them, and let us truft to our gallant admirals and the tars of old England, to conduct them into the ports of Great Britain. Do you want money? Scruple not the impofition of taxes at this moment. Property is the creature of civil fociety; the State has a right to all individual property if it is wanted for the general fafety; and as the money, thus raised, will circulate amongst ourselves, wealth may chance to change hands, but the nation will not be impoverished. Thefe or measures such as thefe, if brought forward with promptitude and executed with vigour, may, when modified by parliamentary wifdom, fave the country. I dread the genius, I dread the power, I dread the intrigue of the enemy, and above all, I dread the effect of that political paralyfis, with which, by his arms and by his intrigues, he has deadened the activity of every cabinet on the Continent-Yet I firmly rely on the courage, and on the unanimity of this country to repel an invafion. Of this country did Í fay? I certainly meant to include Ireland in my idea; the teftimony which the yefterday gave us, in his Majefty's meffage, of her attachment to us, warmed my heart; it put to flight from my imagination the terrors excited by the apprehenfion of an hundred thoufand Frenchmen. No perfonal fervices, no privation of luxuries, no diminution of property ought to be complained of while we are struggling for our existence as a free people. For my own part I had rather live upon oat bread and water, and be fhod with the wooden clogs of Westmoreland for the reft of my life, as a free fubject of this limited monarchy, than be pampered with all the delicacies, cockered with all the luxuries of this luxurious town, as a flave of the French Republic.

The Earl of Darnley made a variety of obfervations upon the measure under confideration. He condemned a great part of the conduct of Minifters with refpect to the volunteer fyftem; yet conceived, that under the prefent circumstances of the country, the bill contained fome beneficial provisions which ought speedily to be carried into effect. There was little of fyftem, he obferved, in the conduct of Minifters relative

relative to the fubject in queftion; and as to fome points, on which the idea of a breach of faith was held forth, he thought it could not well apply, when the many allowances, and the unlimited power of refignation were confidered. His Lordship animadverted upon fome of the detailed provifions of the bill respecting maintenance and difcipline, but obferved, there were many important confiderations connected with the bili, which could more regularly be discus fed in the Committee.

Lord Romney entered into a general defence of the volunteer fyftem, and of the zeal, ardour, and courage of thofe who compofed it. He contended that a force had been raised greater than ever had before been known in this country; and though they certainly ad not the difcipline of complete regular troops, yet they were a defcription of force which would enable this country to look with contempt upon the attacks of the enemy. With refpect to this bill, he thought it contained many regulations which would tend to improve and meliorate that fyftem; and, therefore, he fhould give it his entire fupport.

The Duke of Somerfet-My Lords, I mean to trouble your Lordships with but very few words upon this question. In giving my vote for the fecond reading of this bill, I would not be understood to give a full and unqualified approbation to the volunteer fyftem. My reafon for wifhing that fyftem to be continued is, that it has been carried fo far. I thould think it dangerous to attempt to change it for any other, at a time when the enemy is fo near, and fo foon to be expected. As to the expediency of submitting to any burthen, or any measure, however grievous, in preference to falling under French tyranny, I perfectly agree with the learned prelate. For me to enter into a difcuffion of the various topics connected with this question, after fo much has been already faid upon it, would be to intrude upon your Lordfhips' time. My object in rifing, was merely to ftate my reafon for affenting to the fecond reading of this bill; and to restrict, in fome degree, the approbation which I ball certainly give, to a continuation of the volunteer system.

The Earl of Fife faid, the question then before their Lordfhips was, that the bill be read a fecond time. He faid that he could not help obferving, there had been great irregularity in the debate, by almoft entirely departing from the question. He affured their Lordships that he should not take up much of their time. He was too far advanced in life to have any

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