Mr. Hardy brought forward the Army Estimates on Thursday, in
a.very good speech. It appears that he intends to grant an increase of 2d. a day to all private soldiers, the money to be re- garded as deferred pay, and distributed as a bounty of £18 on completion of the six years' service. The Guards will receive beyond this another penny a day of direct pay, and all non- commissioned officers obtain an increase,-6d. a day for serjeant- majors, 2d. a day for serjeants and 4d. a day if they remain two years, and ld. a day for corporals. The Medical Service is to be better paid, and the Yeomanry turned into Light Cavalry. The Reserve men also obtain £2 a year more, and will, Mr. Hardy thinks, be ready when called upon. These changes appear to be all sound, and will, it is to be hoped, increase the popularity of the Service, which already the Secretary for War affirms is drawing fair recruits, the average height of the Infantry being 5 ft. 61 in., with 34i in. round the chest. When the additional 3,600 men to be voted have joined, we shall have a corps d'armee of more than 30,000 men ready for foreign service, in addition to the three regiments of the Guards. The only drawback to the scheme is that Mr. Hardy suggests no method of retrenchment, but flings the whole burden on to the Estimates. The method of saving suggested on Thursday, by reducing the Army by 10,000 men, is of course absurd ; but Mr. Hardy acts as if there were no waste.
Previous page
