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honneur de fervir: le pauvre bourgeois feroit "confolé par l'exemple du riche; et celui-ci "n'oferoit fe plaindre, voyant fervir le noble (a)*.”

Take another preliminary confideration. While there were any remains among us of a martial fpirit, the difficulty was not great of recruiting the army. But that tafk hath of late years become troublesome; and more difagreeable ftill than troublefome, by the neceffity of ufing deceitful arts for trapanning the unwary youth. youth. Nor are such arts always fuccefsful: in our late war with France, we were neceffitated to give up even the appearance of voluntary fervice, and to recruit the army on the folid principle, that every man should fight for his country; the juftices of peace being empowered to force into the fervice fuch as could be beft fpared from civil occupation. If a finglé clause had been added, limiting the fervice to five or seven years, the measure would have been unexceptionable, even in a land of liberty. To relieve officers of the army from the neceffity of practising deceitful arts, by fubftituting a fair and conftitutional

(a) Les reveries du Compte de Saxe.

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"The method of inlifting men, by putting a trick upon them, is "fully as odious. They flip a piece of money into a man's pocket, "and then tell him he is a foldier, Inlifting by force is ftill more "odious. It is a public calamity, from which the citizen has no means "of faving himself but by money; and it is confeqnently the worst of "all the refources of government. Would it not be more expedient to "enact a law, obliging every man, whatever be his rank, to serve his "King and country for five years? This law could not be difapproved "of, because it is confiftent both with nature and justice, that every "citizen fhould be employed in the defence of the ftate, Here would "be an inexhauftible fund of good and able foldiers, who would not be "apt to defert, as every man would reckon it both his honour and his "duty to have ferved his time. But to effect this, it must be a fixed "principle, That there fhall be no exception of ranks. This point must "be rigorously attended to, and the law must be enforced, by way of "preference, first among the nobility and the men of wealth. There. would not be a fingle man who would complain of it. A perfon "who had served his time, would treat with contempt another who should "how reluctance to comply with the law; and thus, by degrees, it "would become a task of honour. The poor citizen would be comforted "and inspired by the example of his rich neighbour; and he again would "have nothing to complain of, when he faw that the nobleman was not "exempted from service."

conftitutional mode of recruiting the army, was a valuable improvement. It was of importance with respect to its direct intendment; but of much greater, with refpect to its confequences. One of the few difadvantages of a free ftate, is licentioufnefs in the common people, who may wallow in diforder and profligacy without control, if they but refrain from grofs crimes, punishable by law. Now, as it appears to me, there never was devifed a plan more efficacious for reftoring industry and fobriety, than that under confideration. Its falutary effects were confpicuous, even during the short time it fubfifted. The dread of being forced into the fervice, rendered the populace peaceable and orderly it did more; it rendered them induftrious in order to conciliate favour. The most beneficial discoveries have been accidental: without having any view but recruiting the army, our legiflature stumbled upon an excellent plan for reclaiming the idle and the profligate; a matter, in the prefent depravity of manners, of greater im portance than any other that concerns the police of Britain. A perpetual law of that kind, by promoting induftry, would prove a fovereign remedy against mobs and riots, difeafes of a free ftate, full of people and of manufactures *. Why were the foregoing ftatutes, for there were two of them, limited to a temporary existence? There is not on record another ftatute better, intitled to immortality..

And now to the project, which after all my efforts I produce with trepidation; not from any doubt of its folidity, but as ill fuited to the prefent manners of this ifland. To hope that it will

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* Several late mobs in the fouth of England, all of them on pretext of scarcity, greatly alarmed the administration. A fact was difcovered by a private perfon (Six weeks tour through the fouth of England) which our minifters ought to have discovered, that these mobs conftantly happened, where wages were high and provisions low; consequently that they were, occafioned, not by want, but by wantonnefs.

be put in practice, would indeed be highly ridiculous: this can never happen, till patriotifm flourifh more in Britain than it has done for fome time paft. Suppofing now an army of 60,000 men to be fufficient for Britain, a rational method for raifing fuch an army, were there no ftanding forces, would be, that land-proprietors, in proportion to their valued rents, fhould furnish men to ferve feven years and no longer *. But as it would be no lefs unjust than imprudent, to difband at once our prefent army, we begin with moulding gradually the old army into the new, by filling up vacancies with men bound to ferve feven years and no longer. And for raifing proper men, a matter of much delicacy, it is propofed, that in every fhire a fpecial commiffion be given to certain landholders of rank and figure, to raise recruits out of the lower claffes, felecting always thofe who are the least useful at home.

Second. Thofe who claim to be difmiffed affer ferving the appointed time, fhall never again be called to the fervice except in cafe of an actual invafion. They fhall be intitled each of them to a premium of eight or ten pounds, for enabling them to follow a trade or calling, without being fubjected to corporation-laws. The private men in France are inlifted but for fix years; and that mode has never been attended with any inconvenience t.

Third. With respect to the private men, idlenefs must be totally and for ever banished. Suppofing

* In Denmark, every land proprietor of a certain rent, is obliged to furnish a militia-man, whom he can withdraw at pleasure upon fubftituting another; an excellent method for taming the peafants, and for rendering them industrious.

Had the plan for discharging soldiers after a fervice of five or feven years been early adopted by the Emperors of Rome, the Pretorian bands would never have become mafters of the state. It was a grofs error to keep thefe troops always on foot without change of members ; which gave them a confidence in one another, to unite in one folid body, and to be actuated as it were by one mind,

pofing three months yearly to be fufficient for military difcipline; the men, during the rest of the year, ought to be employed upon public works, forming roads, erecting bridges, making rivers navigable, clearing harbours, &c. &c. Why not alfo furnish men for half-pay to private undertakers for ufeful works? And fuppofing the daily pay of a foldier to be ten pence, it would greatly encourage extenfive improvements, to have at command a number of ftout fellows under ftri&t dif cipline, at the low wages of five pence a-day. An army of 60,000 men thus employed, would not be fo expenfive to the public, as 20,000 men upon the prefent establishment: for befide the money contributed by private undertakers, public works carried on by foldiers would be miferably ill contrived, if not cheaply purchased with their pay

The most important branch of the project, is what regards the officers. The neceffity of reviving in our people of rank fome military fpirit, will be acknowledged by every person of reflection; and in that view, the following articles are propofed. Firft, That there be two claffes of officers, one ferving for pay, one without pay.

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filling up every vacant office of cornet or enfign, the latter are to be preferred, but in progreffive advancement, no distinction is to be made between the claffes. An officer who has ferved feven years without pay, may retire with honour.

Second. No man fhall be privileged to reprefent a county in parliament, who has not served seven years without pay; and, excepting an actual burgefs, none but those who have performed that fervice, fhall be privileged to reprefent a borough. The

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*Taking this for granted, I bring only into computation the pay of the three months spent in a military discipline: and the calculation is very fimple, the pay of 20,000 for twelve months amounting to a greater fum than the pay of 60,000 for three months.

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The fame qualification fhall be neceffary to every. one who afpires to ferve the public or the King in an office of dignity; excepting only churchmen and lawyers with regard to offices in their refpective profeffions. In old Rome, none were admitted candidates for any civil employment, till they had ferved ten years in the army.

Third. Officers of this clafs are to be exempted from the taxes impofed on land, coaches, windows, and plate; not for faving a trifling fum, but as a mark of diftinction.

The military fpirit muft in Britain be miferably low, if fuch regulations prove not effectual to decorate the army with officers of figure and fortune. Nor need we to apprehend any bad confequence from a number of raw officers who ferve without pay among men of birth, emulation will have a more commanding influence than pay or profit; and at any rate, there will always be a fufficiency of old and experienced officers receiving pay, ready to take the lead in every difficult enterprise.

To improve this army in military difcipline, it is proposed, that when occafion offers, 5 or 6000 of them be maintained by Great Britain, as auxiliaries to fome ally at war. And if that body be changed from time to time, knowledge and practice in war will be diffufed through the whole army.

Officers who ferve for pay, will be greatly benefited by this plan: frequent removes of those who ferve without pay, make way for them; and the very nature of the plan excludes buying and felling.

I proceed to the alterations neceffary for accommodating this plan to our prefent military establishment. As a total revolution at one instant would breed confufion, the firft ftep ought to be a fpecimen only, fuch as the levying two or three regiments on the new model; the expence of

which

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