PRACTICAL MEASURES.

No. III.

ARMY EXPENDITURE.

IN investigating this subject, we shall consider it under three beads,-

I. The improvement in efficiency and the saving in expense which might be accomplished by consolidIting the now various and independent administrative departments of the Army; 2. The retrenchment that might be effected by abolishing superfluous and mischievous expendi- ture; 3. The saving that could be made by reducing the numbers of the Army. In our examination some suggestions will be palpable, others conjectural ; but where the inefficiency of the accounts or the nature of the subjects drives us to conjecture, we shall always say so.

An army consists of three leading branches,-the Infantry and Cavalry, who form its personnel; the Ordnance, which represents its machinery and material; the Commissariat, which is charged with the supply of its provisions. The nature of the case obviously requires, that departments so inseparably connected with one another should be under one controlling head ; and so they are in every European state excepting England. . But here, each branch forms a separate and inde- pendent department as regards civil management. The necessities of war, however, prevent the principle being fully carried out in actual service. We have not yet made a campaign with one Commander in Chief of what the War-office calls "die Army," one of the Artillery, and one of the Commissariat, each doing as seemed best in his own eyes.

The first step in Military Reform, is to carry out the suggestions so often pressed upon the Government both by civilians and military men, and consolidate all these departments. Then, the whole mili- tary force of the country would be managed, as in France and else- where, by a Minister at War, instead of having the anomaly of a Commander in Chief and a Secretary at War, each with a long and expensive array of subordinates under them-each with clashing no- tions, powers sufficiently balanced to thwart one another's improve- ments, but not to prevent each other's jobs-and, under the late and present Whig Governments, each with opposite politics. This func- tionary would of course have a seat in the Cabinet : he would be responsible, like other Ministers, for his actions ; and liable, like other Ministers, by himself in one House of Parliament and his deputy in the other, to give an explanation of any thing he may have done, to any Member who may choose to ask the question. The Ordnance depart- ment, with its seven distinct divisions and its six great functionaries with salaries varying from 1,0001. to 3,000/. a year, would be abolished. Its modes of business should also be simplified, its branches lessened, and the principal of each branch, together with the heads of the sub- ordinate Army departments, should form a Board assisting the Com- mander in Chief with information and advice. The Commissariat would of course be transferred from the Treasury, of which it now forms a part, and its principal likewise have a seat at the Board. By this means, unity, simplicity, and vigour would be introduced into the management of the Army : its directing head would communicate immediately with the Cabinet-which now he does not ; and be jointly responsible for its decisions as regards the strength, distribu- tion, and cost of the Armywhich now he is not : he would be both responsible and answerable-the " annoyance " of which prevents very much mischief-for all he did in the public management of the Army ; and be assisted in the working of its details by the practical experience of his subordinates, who would respectively check him and each other. The leading advantages of this consolidation would be rather politi- cal than pecuniary, by rendering the internal management of the Army more rapid and simple, and by bringing public opinion, for the first time, to bear with some effect upon the military grandees and the subordinate gentlemen of the Army. There is good reason, however, to expect a considerable reduction in the pecuniary cost, by combining all the different independent departments enumerated in the following tables into one.

COST OF THE OFFICIAL MANAGEMENT OF THE ARMY.

LAND FORCES.

HOUK GUARDS,

General Commanding in Chief, Lord Hill 43,453

Four Aiilea-de-Cainp 694

Military Secretary, Lord Fitzroy Somerset 2,000

Allowances Forage to the above Officers

,fio

968

Clerks-numbers, tke. not stated 5.751

Total of Horse Guards

412,871

ADJITTANT•GlAYERAL's OFPICE,

AdjittauLGeueral. Sir J. Macdonald 1.384

Allowance to ditto 500

1,884

Deputy Adjutant-General 692

Assistant Adjutant General 346

Deputy Assist..itt Ailjtatant.General 260

Allowances for Forage, Travelling, and Miscellaneous Expenses to the above Officers 659

Clerks-nitrullers. Sze. not stated Total of Adjutant-General's Office 3,294 _ 7,135

QUARTICRMARTERlikNERAC, ()MO% Quartermaster General, sir .1. W. Gordon 1,384

Allowance to ditto 500

1,894

Assistant Quartermaster.General 502

Deputy As-istant Qaartermaster-General 319

Allowances for Forage to the above Officers 286

Clerks-numbers, Sec. not stated 2,531

Total of Ouarteimaster-Generars Office ..... 5 522

Secretary at War, his Deputy Clerks, &c.-no detailed information rendered 27,879

Judge.Advocate.General, his Deputy Clerks, &c. including his

Deputy in Ireland

4,587 Total cost of Civil Establishments of the Army

57,994 ORDNANCE.

There are three head departments, as it were, in the Ordnance,-one in Pall Mall, one at the Tower, one at Dublin. The expenses of the last only are stated separately,

PALL MALE ANT) THE ToWIR,

Master-Geueral, Sir B. Hussey Vivian 43,000 SarveyouGeneral, Sir Ridaue Deakin 1,200 Clerk of the Ordnance, Sir Andrew Leit It Hay 1.2110 Principal storekeeper, Lieutenant-Colonel Hon. George Anson 1r1.200 Secretary to the Master-General, Colunel C. P. Fog 1,000 Secretary to the Board

1,4ee

2 Clerks in the Master-General's Office 950

40 Clerks in the Surveyor-General's Office 11,325

30 Clerks in the Clerk of the Ordnance Office 8.717

31 Clerks lit the Principal Storekeeper's Office 8,310

16 Clerks in the Store Account Examiner's Office 4,127

34 Clerks in the Secretary's Office 10,319

9 Clerks in the Inspector-General of Fortifications' office

9.120

23 Porters, Doorkeepers, and Messengers 2.112

6 other Persons 1,380

Total Expense at Pall Mall and the Tower

£59,360 750

DUBMN,

1 Storekeeper

'7 Clerks

1,550

1 Clerk of Survey 650

7 Clerks in Surveyor's Office

1,550

4 Clerks in Account Office 995

8 " Clerks to the respective Officers" 2,021

3 Clerks in Commanding Engineer's Office 550

8 other Persons 549

Total Expense at Dublin

8,615

In addition to which, there is what the Ordnance people call an " Extraordinary Expenditure." amounting in the whole to £13,661. This is for tlw superintendence of " ‘N'orks and lie. pairs," and the works themselves. Of this the superintendence. pay of Engineers and Clerks, &e. is

1,569

Total Cost of Management of the Ordnance

£68,544

COMMISSARIAT.

This department has the reputation of being cheap, efficient, and well-managed. It is looked down upon even by the common soldiers, who think the Commissariat officers cheat them in their rations. The aristocracy of course eschew the service, fonts apparent connexion with trade, and its much work and little pay. This department even at present can scarcely be said to have a head ; for, by a strange anomaly, it forme a branch of the Treasury. The principal officer is called a clerk, and paid as a clerk-an example to be followed.

Principal Clerk 4900 Chief Clerk 600 4 Senior and 3 Junior Clerks 1,808 Irish Branch 1,790

Pay or the Commissariat Expenses at Foreign Garrisons and Pos-

sessions 40,244 Total Cost of Management of the Commissariat 445,312 SUMMARY, Civil Establishment of the Army . ..£57,994 Nlanagement of the Ordnance 68,544 Management of the Commissariat 45,342 Total Cost of Official Management 4171,880

To pronounce an opinion as to the positive saving that might be effected in this expenditure of 171,880/. by the proposed consolidation,

would be difficult without a practical acquaintance not only with what the different offices do, but with the actual nature of the business to be done ; for, in several public departments, very much of labour is spent in doing unnecessary things. We should say, however, without any qua- lification, that a reduction might be made in the Secretary of War's office, by the necessary abolition of the Secretary, his " Deputy," and some of the other " heads ; " but the amount of this saving cannot be stated, as the gentlemen of that department do not think fit to publish the amount of their salaries, or any details connected with their expen- diture. The consolidation of the offices of Adjutant and Quarter- master- General was suggested, last January, by a valued correspondent, for the purposes of military efficiency ; and this would give a probable saving of 5,000L, or 40 per cent. on those two offices. In the Com- missariat, not much retrenchment probably could take place, except through the means of Colonial Reform, which, by allowing the Colo- nies to govern themselves and pay their own soldiers, would enable us to save about 33,000/. out of an expenditure of 45,0001., and re. duce one-half of the Army to boot. In the Ordnance, the 9,0001. for the salaries of the great officers might be abolished, and extensive savings effected by adopting the system of supplying stores and arms by contract, which works so well in the Indian army. As the mili- tary branch of this department would be turned over to the Army,- and the business of the Ordnance would only consist in managing the building and repair of barracks,-one office instead of seven would certainly suffice ; which, allowing the present rate of expenditure in the highest office, would give a saving of upwards of 50,000/., or consi- derably more than two-thirds of the present amount. In short, it is probable that 70,000/. at least could be saved by this consolidation in an expenditure of 170,000/, or deducting the Commissariat branch, in an expenditure of 125,000/. But whatever difficulties the want of official knowledge and the ohs. scurity of the public accounts may throw in the way of exact econo. mical conclusions, there is one point which cannot be concealed in this or any detailed account of public expenditure-the disproportion be- tween the pay of the aristocracy and that of the people. At the Horse Guards, the pay of Lord Hiss, his Secretary, and Aides-de-camp, is 7,1:20?.; all the clerks, who do the work, get only 5,725/. The Ad- jutant-General and his three deputies receive 3,841/. ; the clerks 3,294/. The Quartermaster- General and his two assistants 2,9911.; their clerks 2,331/. The proportions in the office of Secretary at War we cannot tell. In the Ordnance, the disparity is not so great through.. out ; there, however, the Master-General has 3,0001. a year, his Secre- tary 1,000/, and their clerks 950/. These are the things which render the Whigs covertly, and the Tories openly, so hostile to the remedy of proved abuses-the aristocratical caste will suffer by every wrong which is set right : even when this consolidation takes place, about a dozen grandees ought to be deprived of profitable places. It is the investigation of these things, however dry and troublesome, which enables one to comprehend thoroughly the true moving influences that operate upon public men, and to see the complete humbug of the theory of the British constitution. In foreign governments, whether of one or a few, the state is managed like a private property ; depart- ments are framed solely with a view to their efficiency-men are paid in proportion to the service they can render. In England, every thing has been arranged by a numerous aristocracy, (resting for support on a section of the middle classes,) with a view to extract the largest amount possible from the people. Hence, complexity is preferred to simpli- city, as affording a lavish expenditure on themselves and a ineanso rewarding their followers. In considering the saving that could be effected by abolishing unnecessary expenditure, it will be necessary to examine in some detail tho..e different branches of the Army to which our suggestions apply. The first branch will be what is technically called Land Forces ; the ordinary expense of which is exhibited in the following

TABLE OF THE STRENGTH AND COST OF EACH REGIMENT.

C 0 R S. NUMBERS.

Pay Pay

AND DAILY ,

AL' OWANCRI.

Annual An nwannes to Field Oaken, Captdinti. and Ridant Mader, and Allowance. for Farriery.

AGDNOT.

Czomtaa. Tara. tor the Service of tbe Teel.. Months ending Slot March ISS8, beteg 1165 Day.

Horses.

OfTwere.

Non-

Corruniv.ioced

°Ulcer., Trumpeters, ft Drotrunere.

Rank and File. All Ranks.

: tvALRY ,

x

..t.

lot Regiment of Life Guards

274 32

53

351 4'36 ' 23.691 1,894

207

3.993

29,7309

7d Ditto 274 32 53 351 436 73621 1,828 287 3,993 29,730 Royal Regiment of llorse Guards 274 32 53 351 436 21,787 1,823 275 2,403 26,295

822 96 159

1.053

1,308 £69,030 £5.481 1 £350 !

£10.391

.05,757

CAvAtalY OF THE LINE,

kt Regiment of Dragoon Guards 337 34 39 406 479 ; 19,023 973 254 1,921

22,185

61h Ditto 253 28 31 304 363 i 15,076 744 193 1,453 17,473 1511 Regiment of Light Dragoons 253

28

31 304 363 14.976 741 198 1,453 17,373 7th Regiment of Dragoon Guards 253 28 31 304 363 . 14931 744 194 1.453 17,327 3d Regiment of Dragoons 254 27 32 304 363 : 14,753 746 197 1,459 17.161 2,1 Regiment of Dragoon Guards 253 27 31 301 362 i 14,725 741 197 1,453 17,120

Ten reher Regiments. of like Numbers and Charge ; viz. 3,1, 4111, .1015th Dragoon Guards ; 24 and 6th

Dragoons ; 7th, 9th, luth, 1411,, and 1711, Light

Dragoons 2,530 270 310 3,040 3.620 147.255 7,445 1,970 14,530 171,201 1st Regionn. t of Dragoons '253 27 31 301 362 14.079 741 196 1,453 17,074 9th Regiment of Light Dragoons 253 27 31 394 362 14,693 744 195 1.453 17.019 12111 Ditto 253 27 31 304 369 ' 14.025 744 196 1.453 17.019 4th Regiment of Dragoons (India) 701 47 67 675 739 ; 28,732 1,367 352 3,215 33,667

Two other Regiments of like Numbers :old Charge ;

a iz. 13th and 16th Light Dragoons (India) 1,407 94 134 1,350

1,578 1

57,464 2.735 704 6,430 67,334 llth Regiment of Light Dragoons (India) I701 47 67 675 789

24,686

1,367

352

3,215 33,621

7,696 711 866 8,578 10,155 £399,562 . £19,857 £5,213 £40,945 £465,579

Foox GCARrts,

Grenmlier Regiment

• • .

96

177

2,06 2.353 66.569 9,876

684 8.950

86,041 Coldstream Regiment

Scots Fusileer Regiment

•

61 61 109 103 1,240

1,240

1,450 1,430 41 644 41,641 5,430 5,430

425 425 5,511 5,511

53,011 53,011

218 395 4,640 5,253 £142,w58 £20,737 £1535 £19,972 £192,103

INFANTRY olr THY LI NY, th Regiment of Foot

57

57 739 835 1 22,349

313 232

2,136 25,082 Forty-seven other Rogitnents.of like Na,,, hers and

Cliarge ; viz. 5/It. Will. 1 1th, 12th, 14th. 15th,

19th, 20th, 21st, 22,1, 23.1, 24th, 2511,, 770t, 29th, 3011,, 391, 33,1, 31th, 36th, 37th, 38t1t, 42.1, 46th 47th, 44111, 50th, 531. 54t It, 59th, 61st, 64411, 65111, 67t11, 70th, 75th, 76th, 771h, 80th, Slot, 8411t,

87th, 4411,, S911t, 9lat, 911, 933

1,833 2,679 34,73.3

39.215 1 1,050,405

14,746 10945

102.753

1,17s.!,56 8th Regiment of Foot

39 57 7o9

835 22,303

313

232 2,186 25,038 Eight other Regiments, of like Numbers and

Itarge ; viz. 18th, 28th, 35th, 56th, 733, 78th, 79th, 97th

312

456

5.912

6,640 11 173.427

2,510 1.860

17,490 200,289 66t1 Regiment of Foot

39

57 739 835 22,219

313

239 2,186 24,981

Ten other Regiments, of like Numbers and Charge ;

viz. 00111, 77d, 74th, 82t1, 83.1, 86th, 9411,, 96th, 94th, 99th

390 570 7,390 8,350 222.490 3,137 2.322 21,863 249.814 95th Regiment of Foot

39 57 739 835 22.203 313 231 2,18G 24.935 434 Regitnent of Light Infantry ive other It eghnent s, of like Numbers and Charge;

"

39 57

739 835 22,303

313

232 2,186 25,036 viz. 51st, 524, 68th, 8511,, 90th

195

285 3695

4.175 111.517

1.568 1,163 10,931

125.180 71st Regiment of Lignt Infintry

• • •

39

57 739

835 22.257

313

232 2.186 24990

7th Regiment of Fusileers

39 57 739 835 22531

313

234 2,186 25.265 1st Regiment of Foot, two Battalions

77 114 1,478 1,669 44,098

627

461 4.372 49,560 60th Regiment of Foot, two Battalions

79

114 1.474 1.071 44.745

627

466 4.377 50,211 Rifle Brigade, tw o Battalions

79 114

1,478 1,671 44,845

627

466 4,372 50,312

2,1 Regiment of Foot (India)

51 GO

739 e50 24,098

386

244 2,219 26,948 Fifteen other Regiments, of like Numbers and

Charge; viz. 3.1; Iith, 9th, 17111, 31st. 39111, 40t11, 41st, 14th, 45111, 49th, 54th,55th, 57t11,631 (1 inlia)

765 900 11,085 12 750

361,470 5,801.

3.664 33,291 404.227 691 Regiment or Foot (I ndia)

51 60 739 850 23,998

386

243 2,219 ,26,847 16th Ditto (India)

51 60 739 850 24,052

386

248 2,219 26,902 26th Ditto (India)

51 60 739 850 21,052

386

243 2.919 26 909 13th Regiment of Light Infantry (India)

• • • •

51 69 7:39 850 24,052

3:86

243 2,219 2.6,902 Additional Assistant Surgeons Inr four complete

Regiments on service in the Colonies, :tiut for

Fifty DepAts of Regiments on Foreign Service

51

54 7,391

• . • •

46

7,437 Additional Contingent Allowance to the Captains of the Service Companies of Fitly Regiments

. . . .

2,737 17

2,754 1st West India Regiment

51

77

998 1,126

20,3,2

365 277 2.9a3 32.978 Oil Ditto

5(1

78

997

1,125 29,198

547

2,954 32.982 Royal Stall Corps

3 6 60 69 2,334

27

23 142 2.527 Royal Newthuntlland Veteran Companies

15 22 299 336 14,4-t0 129 • • • •

440

9,090 Royal African Colonial Corps

30 34 480 544 14,584 332

500 15,416 Ceylon Rine Regiment

100 173 1,600 1,823 35,372 624

1,500 37.4%

t eylon Invalids

6 6 153 165 1,899 54

1.954 ('ape corps or mounted Riflemen 200 14 21 234 269 6,503 761

65

7,868

Royal Malta Fencible Regiment

23 41 468 534 10,547 140

509

11,187

Infantry of the Line 200 4,606 6,339 81,406 92,331 .C2.480,147 £39,494 £24,841 6235,491

£2,779,973

Guards and Ilorse Guards 822 96 159 1,053

1,304 , 69,113't

5 484 850 10 391 85.757 Cavalry of the Line 7,8911 711 866 578 111,155 1! 339 562 19,852 5,218 40.915 465.579 Foot Guards • • 218 395 4,640 5.253 I 149,434 211,737 1,535 19,979 192,103

3.718

5,631

7,759

95,677

109,06;

£3,099,399

£35,573 £32146

6306,500

£3,51:419

De./ect,

For men wanting to complete the establishments of Cavalry 580 Foot Guards 464

001,1

0,036

6,036

8 161,000

• • ' •

20,000

181,000

Infantry and Colonial Corps 6 992 Short Issues and Stoppages for Men in Confine- ment, or in the Hospitals, or under Sentence of

8,718 5,631

7,759

87,641

101,031 £2,037,399 I '•1 599

.695,573 ! £32,416

c'28G,A9

£3,342,419 Coutt.Martial

16,200

• ' • '

16.200

Total of Numbers and Cost of the Land Forces

8,718 5,631 7,759 87,641 101,031 ; £9,921,390

£,5,573 £32,440

£296.800 .03,326.219 Which Numbers and Cost are thus distributed -

Puid by the Itritish Government,

In the United Kingdom an.1 the Colonies 5,914

4,515 6,413

70,353

81,311 2,324,791

72,368

26,153 229,551 2,052,86.1

Paid lo the East India Company.

In the East Indies, exclusive of the Numbers,

Intl including the Charge of the Officers and

Men at Home for the put pose of Recruiting

2,804 1,116

1,316

17,288 19,720 506,607

13,205 6,293 57,218

673,354

• There will be a small difference, nearly throughout this column of totals, between the amounts laic gis en, and those that will be produced by ad ling together the previous columns ; as hichis caused by the utui,,ton of the shillings and pence.

Before proceeding to examine the ordinary expenditure for the " Land Forces," it will be requisite to consider generally their compo- sition, so far as it is necessary to our purposes.

Their generic division is into Cavalry and Infantry, and each of these branches is subdivided into regiments. The abstract standard of a regiment is 1,000 strong, divided into ten companies (in the Cavalry called troops) of 100 men. To each of these companies or troops th :re should be a Captain, and two or (in war three) subalterns—a Lieutenant and a Sub.Lieutenant. The regiment must have a head to command it ; and this officer is called a Colonel, though with us the Lieutenant- Colonel does the duty. In case of death or absence, his place is supplied by the Major, who takes an intermediate rank between the Colonel and the Captain ; though, whilst the Colonel is with the regi- ment, the Major's duties are slight or nought. The " colours "—em. bodying, as General CHARLES NAPIER says, " the honour of the band "—are carried on show.days by officers, but in actual service the Colour. Sergeantsare the efficient men. In the English service, the name of the show-officers is Ensign in the Infantry, and Cornet in the Cavalry. The French have no Ensigns. In the English, sometimes all the Sub- Lieutenants are called Ensigns ; sometimes there are two additional subalterns, one to each colour.

Thus much by way of proem. We now proceed with our exami- nation.

I. Sinecures. Let the test used be what it may, in every English regiment there is one sinecurist; in every Infantry regiment there are two sinecurists, whilst in a few there are three and four. Eight Ca- valry regiments also have their double, treble, or quadruple sinecures. The first and universal sinecurist is the Colonel of the regiment. To many, who have only vague notions about military matters, this will sound odd ; but the Colonelship in the English service is as much a sinecure as Lord ELLE/Ulf/ROUGH'S Clerkship of the Pleas or the late Lord GRENVILLE'S Auditorship of the Exchequer. The whole of the duty is discharged by the Lieutenant-Colonel : upon him de- volves all the trouble and all the responsibility : the Colonel rarely sees the regiment—for aught he does he never need to see it—prac- tically, indeed, he must not see it for any military purpose, as all our Colonels are General Officers, and a General is not allowed to Serve with his regiment ; and in fact many regiments are in India whilst their Colonels are lounging among the coteries of Paris and London, or busy in political and court intrigues. Their chief, if not their only regimental employment, is to bargain with the contractor for their snacks of profits from the clothing, and to draw their pay of from 5001. to 1,8001. a year. This is an abuse which in itself calls aloud for remedy ; and as the system of sinecures is given up, and pro- fessed to be abolished everywhere, these Colonel-sinecures should follow the example ; by which a saving of 95,000/. a year would be effected, independent oi the " emoluments " from the clothing, of which no account is rendered. And what makes this abuse greater in practice, is that these sinecurists are also pluralists; all being Gene- rals in addition, and many with other appointments

The Major is the second sinecurist; and in the Infantry, where there are two Majors to each regiment, he is as universal as the Colonel. As long as the Lieutenant-Colonel is present, the Major has no field-duties to perform, unless to stand by his superior's side upon parade. In case of the Colonel's death or absence, the command of the regiment devolves upon the Major ; so that at present his real utility is to allow the Lieutenant-Colonel to gad about as well as the Colonel. Rigorously speaking, even one Major seems useless in a peace establishment ; but two are such a gross and ridiculous abuse as could have originated in no country where the public money and the honours of the military profession were not both systematically applied fur the benefit of a ruling class. There is also an abuse existing amongst the Lieutenant. Colonels; four of the Cavalry regiments and about twenty of the Infantry having two Lieutenant-Colonels as well as two Majors and a Colonel. Now observe the general results of the sinecure system. To every Infantry regiment, and to many Cavalry regiments, there are four commanders ; two of whom are utterly useless, and the third is only a locum tenens in case of the absence of the actual chief. In some cases there are five chiefs. All this, of course, gives rise to strange statistical anomalies. Thus, there are 134 Colonels ; which is the key to the number of regiments, excluding a Colonial corps or two. But there are 163 Lieutenant-Colonels, and no fewer than 257 Majors. The whole expense of officers to command regiments is 237,000/, but the pay of the Lieutenant-Colonels, who do the work, is only 57,0001., whilst that of the Majors—the inferior offi- cers waiting on the chance of having work to do—is 83,0001. Of course we would deal with the sinecure Majors as with the sinecure Colonels, and abolish them. One commander and one deputy com- mander to a regiment—a Colonel and a Major—is ample for every purpose, if, in time of peace the Major might not be dispensed with. Moe ever, leave a Major to every regiment ; get rid only of the. double Majurs ; and there will be another saving of 41,000/., and, like the former one of 93,0001., from sinecures alone.

2. Disproportion of Officers to Men. Reminding the reader that a regiinent consists of ten companies each one hundred strong, we pass ou to observe, that in reducing the numbers of an army, the rigid econorniet would say reduce by regiments. If you have 120,000 men and wish to get rid of 20,000, disband twenty regiments, as, in the Navy, ships are put out of commission. Some, who are always for spending money in preparations for war, might argue, Will it not be better to reduce by companies ? because, if, twenty or thirty years hence as it may happen, a war should come, we shall not have to raise new regiments, but merely to increase the number of companies ? A man infected by the military notion of keeping up what they call skeletons of regiments for the sake of training officers, would say, Disband neither regiments nor companies, but reduce the latter from 100 men to some 84; by which means, 160 recruits only will have to be added to each regiment of 840 veterans, and you have your army complete and perfect. This last is the plan upon which our military authorities have proceeded : and effectually they have worked their invention for the benefit of the aristocratical classes. If the reader desires to become thoroughly familiar with the extent of this abuse, let hint place before him the large table of the preceding page, -eee take up an Army List, and, by counting the number of Captains in any given regiment, he will get at the number of companies. Their strength is then only an affair of multiplication, of which we will give a few instances.

Each of the regiments of Horse Guards consists of eight non-corn. panics. The professed " establishment" is 331 rank and file • so.

that each company consists of only 45 privates, or, reckoning on

missioned officers, of not more than 50 men. The non-commissioned officers in these regiments are 44 in number, deducting drummers and trumpeters. If these be added to the officers, the arithmetician will find that, in the Horse Guards, there is one officer of some kind or another to every four and a half soldiers. And we are speaking of their returned, or paper numbers, which is above their actual strength. The Cavalry of the Line is not quite so bad as this, because the Horse Guards are more fashionable than the Cavalry of the Line; bet it comes next to the Horse Guards, as being next in request amongst the aristocracy. There are in the Cavalry about 50 privates to every troop, or, including non-commissioned officers, about 55; being rather more than half their full complement. In other words, in an average of all our Cavalry regiments, the number of officers is double what in strictness it ought to be in proportion to the number of men. The observer will also note, that whilst 39 non-commissioned officers and trumpeters suffice for 406 men in the Cavalry of the Line, in the Guards 53 are wanted for 351 men.

The disparity is less in the Infantry than in the Cavalry; and doubts less for the same reason which rendered it less in the Cavalry of the Line than in the Horse Guards. Deducting 464 men wanting to complete the establishment of the three regiments of Foot Guards, it will be found that 72 men to a company is about their complement ; whilst the marching regiments have about 68 after deducting the numbers wanting to complete. Thus, on an average, the officers in the Infantry are nearly one-third more numerous than in strictness they ought to be in proportion to the numbers of the men. We say in strictness, because we know that it would be impossible to keep every company in every regiment filled up to mathematical exactness, even if it were desirable. A rough average of 10 or 15 per cent. below the full complement of men, no reasonable person would cavil about, because privates are more readily made than officers ; but 50 per cent. in one branch of the ser- vice and 30 in the other are beyond bounds.

In reality, however, this discrepancy is very much greater than it seems in our table ; which only gives what is called the establishment of the forces, but this establishment varies considerably from the actual numbers. Thus, the strength of the Army paid by Parliament is represented by the War-office, after every reduction, as upwards of 81,000 of all ranks. But when we refer to an account of their distri. bution, put forward by this same War-office, there appears to be 9,433 "wanting to complete" this "establishment." Of this discrepancy no detailed particulars are given ; but, so far as we can calculate from the data before us, it would cause an average deduction of some eight men to every company or troop throughout the Army. The Horse Guards, then, would really appear to have only 37 privates to a troop ; the Ca. valry of the Line 42; and the Infantry both Line and Guards from 60 to 64. And so much for the test by companies.

This fails, however, fully to bring out the whole working of the aris. tocratical influences. Putting proportion,: out of view, there is no uniformity or regulation as regards the officers. In some regiments, the Ensigns take the rank of Lieutenants ; in others, there are Lieu- tenants to each company and Ensigns to boot ; some, again, have First Lieutenants to the flank companies; and one, the Royal Fusileers, has no subalterns but First Lieutenants. The 62d and 16th Regiments of Foot have 23 Lieutenants and 8 Ensigns ; the 26th Foot has 22 Lieu- tenants and 9 Ensigns; the 13th, 23 Lieutenants and 10 Ensigns; being 11 subalterns more than there ought to be to the first three regi- ments, and 13 to the last. As they have also 2 Majors and 2 Lieu- tenant-Colonels, and are stationed in India, they may be considered on a war establishment ; but they should at least have their comple- ment of men, as well as officers. Then, single officers are added to a regiment, for the sake of the convenience of a man with interest. Major MEADE is Deputy-Assistant-Adjutant-General, with a salary of 260/. a year, and allowances for forage, and " miscellaneous " items of 141/. more. This officer is also a Captain of the 21st Foot, with the brevet rank of Major ; but of course he cannot attend to both duties, so to his regiment is given an additional Lieutenant to take the deputy's place. A similar plan is followed with Captain Theocii, of the '23c1 Foot, the Deputy-Assistant- Quartermaster. General. We have shown that three out of four of the commanding officers of a regiment are sinecurists, or quasi-sinecurists; and some military men consider one subaltern to a company sufficient in peace. It will not, therefore, after this general exposition, be assuming too much to say, that our Army is over-officered by at least one fourth ; and that no system of military reform will be efficient which does not act upon their num- bers, by reducing companies when officers die or retire, as well as by merely ceasing to fill up the vacancies caused in the ranks, which plan in fact only increases this discrepancy. To state this saving with arithmetical precision, would involve very long calculations, and could not be properly accomplished without official assistance, which we are not likely to get. Deducting, however, from 1,011,0091., (tile total pay of the officers,) 237,0001. as the cost of Colonels, Lieutenant-Colonels, and Majors, there remains 774,0001: about one-fourth of which, or 193,0001., could be saved under this head,—forming a total retrenchment of &27,0001., or 30 pr cent. on the officers alone ; which sum, if carried over two-and-twenty years, gives nearly seven millions spent upon "pre- paration" for a war which is not yet come. The immediate pecuniary saving is, however, a small matter in comparison with its indirect operation and its moral effects. The aristocratical abuse of over-officering is strongly felt in the Army Dead- weight, though it escapes a superficial observation. The constant ten- dency of the system is to turn the honours of the military profession into a fashionable amusement for a few years whilst the novelty pleases and afterwards to make the overgrown soldier-boy a pensioner, or probably a jobber, for life. A young man with political interest is allowed to enter the Army as an Ensign by purchase, his commission costing him say 450!.; after a certain " regulation " time, he may have a Lieutenancy, if he can find one in the market,. by paying say 709/. and receiving " the difference "—that is, the Ensign who succeeds him pays him the 45,01. which he gave. He becomes a Captain through the same means ; by which time, with your mere aristocratical idlers, one of two things commonly happens—he goes upon half.pay, or, he begins jobbing. Time has removed the gloss of novelty ; the young gentleman is tired of playing at soldiers ; with the Captaincy comes the responsibility of his company, and a certain set of routine business to perform in relation to it, for which he has no stomach : so be gets permission to exchange, and retires upon half-pay, re- ceiving the "regulation" difference between the value of the full-pay which he gives up and the half-pay which he receives, and as much more as he can get in the shape of a private douceur. If this game be played with any skill, it is one of the best modes of investing money, nowadays, for a man with interest : he sees all the pleasant side of feather. bed soldiering—gets a position in society, an annuity for life, and the title of Captain, with the chance of brevet rank, and any other promo- tion which time may bring. There are other modes of increasing the Half-pay list, but enough for a passing peep.

If our Captain, however, has ambition and interest,—or good interest, which is all in all sufficient,—he will not retire upon half-pay without a

struggle. The Captaincy is indeed not relished, on account of its trouble ; so he strains every nerve for a Majority. With this he has not only higher rank, higher pay, and little or nothing to do, but he has now a better chalice of pushing for higher promotion : he may become Lieutenant-Colonel, or get brevet rank as a Major-General and still retain his pay as a Major. The reader can now comprehend why there are 257 Majors to about 120 regiments.

The Brevet is itself a grievous abuse, having its origin in purely aris- tocratical influence turning national institutions to its own purposes. There are two kinds of rank in our land service—Army and Regimental.

A Captain in a regiment may be a Lieutenant. Colonel in the Army by brevet. In such case, he will only receive pay according to his regi- mental standing, the brevet merely fixing rank, (accompanied, however, with an "allowance" of 2s. a day ;) but if the regiment is acting along with other troops, and thus forming part of an " army," then brevet

rank enables a regimental junior to take the command over the bead of

his regimental superiors. In this case he would receive the higher or Army pay, and take the chance of any promotion that might happen

through the death or wounds or other incapacity of the real commander. Let us now, in a single broad instance, allude to the opeiation of aristocratical influence in its effect upon the efficiency of the Army ; which, after all, is the most important matter. A glance at our large table will prove, that the non-commissioned officers increase in the ratio of the commissioned officers,—or in other words, that the more numerous the officers, the less they do.* In the Infantry of the Line, there is about one officer to every 19 men, and one non-commissioned to every 12 men. In the Cavalry of the Line, there is one officer to every 12 men, and one commissioned ofliecr to every 101 men. In the Horse Guards, however, the officers compared with the men are as 1 to 11, the non-commissioned officers as Ito 6. So that, in the marching regiments, an officer and less than two non-commissioned officers can manage 19 privates ; in the Guards, a somewhat similar number of men requires two officers and three deputies. The moral of all which is, not that the Horse Guards are more unruly than other soldiers, for they are the best-behaved men in the Army, but that their Sergeants do all the duty, and the officers do nothing.

We try another tack, and then close for the present week. The course shall be towards the Officers' Dead-weight ; which, it will be seen by the following table, is greater now by 32,0001. than it was two or rather three years after the peace.

In iSO.

In tan.

X101,SSO £113,000 647,301 615,500 96.406 148,72i £814,937 £877,223

It is worth while to pause upon the items. We find during twenty years of peace, when no one could have an opportunity of becoming a General by any other method than the routine of service, that the cost of the Generals is higher by one-twelfth than after a war of unexampled extent and duration, and in which the British army was engaged in active service far beyond what it had ever been before. Look then at the half-pay, &c. and see the result—a paltry reduction of one. twentieth part in twenty years. Two years after the close of a long war, the half-pay list must have been as full as it ever ought to have been. Twenty years later, the reduction is too inconsiderable for a thought. Now, will any one say that this could have been possible under a proper System? Thirty years is the average extent of a generation. If all the officers on the Half-pay list of 1817 had been young men, death would have made sad havoc with their numbers ; but, considering that many Must have been old, many wounded, many worn out with the fatigues of war, natural causes ought by this time to have reduced it to neatly nothing. And we can guess from the third item, that death has not been idle. The Widows' Pensions are higher by 50 per cent. than they were after all the mortality of the battle-field and hospitals ; although all officers do not leave widows, although every widow is not entitled to a pension, and although several pensions are requisite to amount to one half-pay. But, as fast us the old officers have died off, their place has been filled up by the operation of the processes we have indicated. A pensioner is your true phoenix—the old bird seems to die, but a new one immediately rises from his ashes. And a very ex- pensive sort of bird it is. The Officers' Army Dead. weight alone has cost the nation about 17 millions during these last twenty years, even excluding Pensions for Wounds, &c., which would carry it to about 23 • 1Ve do not ellen:11bn, the statement by endeavouring to deduct the trumpeters and drummers from the nou-commissioned officers, because se have not the data fin doing exactl: ; uud as it is a question of proportion. little or no effect is produced upon the result.

General Officers Retired Full Pay, Halipay, and Allowances Widows' Pensions