ters which ftood in the way of the recruiting fervice for the army. The only augmentation he had to propofe, came to him through Lord Amherft; and that was, an augmentation of 500 men to each of the regiments commanded by Colonel Humberfton and Colonel Fullarton, neither of whom were to get any additional rank for raifing the men. The intended augmentation of the regiment commanded by the latter, was, he knew, already more than complete. Of the augmentation of the regiment commanded by Colonel Humberton, he had not yet heard. In the courfe of his speech, he mentioned the act he had propofed two years ago, and faid, it had ftruck him at the time, that fuch an act would effentially contribute to the recruiting fervice of the army; experience had proved, however, that though it operated materially to the benefit of other fervices, it had not much affifted the army. In confequence of that act, the navy got men more eafily, and militia fubftitutes were to be procured at half their former price, but the army got only a few, and those the worft men; he therefore should drop all thoughts of reviving that part of the act which carried in it a compulfion with refpect to the army, being now convinced, that no force would aid the recruiting of the old regiments. He lamented that our army in general had decreafed fo rapidly in the courfe of the laft two years; but he accounted for it by reminding the Houfe, that the nature of the war had been changed; and it having been thought adviseable to employ a great number of forces in the fouthern provinces of America (the climate of which was not near so healthy as that of the more northern provinces) and in the Weft Indies, great numbers had fallen martyrs: but then it was to be confidered, that both these measures were unavoidably neceffary and had proved greatly fuccessful; the laft accounts from Georgia and Carolina had been extremely to the credit of his Majefty's officers and army, and in the Weft Indies, though France and Spain had fent thither fuch vaft armaments, we had fo effectually defended our islands, that our combined enemies had not only not atchieved any enter prize, but had not even attempted any. Nor was the fickness in our armies a misfortune peculiar to Great Britain; the armies of France and Spain experienced the fame fatality; the Spanish fickness, indeed, according to all report, raged with a violence scarcely poffible to be conceived. After speaking to other matters, he faid he would, for form fake, move the first eftimate; but that he should be ready to answer any queftions

Col. Barre.

for.

queftions relative to the estimates on the table, or to give any explanation gentlemen might defire. He then moved, "that 39,000 men be employed in the fervice of Great Britain for the year 1781."

The question having been read by the chairman,

Colonel Barre rofe and obferved, that on his reference to the estimates of the last year, and the estimates now proposed, he found that they differed extremely; that it appeared, if he had taken down the amounts exactly, that inftead of a faving by the prefent eftimates, the public were called upon for more men and more money than had been afked laft year. For inftance, the estimates for guards and garrifons prefented laft year was but 35,000 men, whereas now almoft 5000 more were asked. He was aware that the right honourable gentleman had made his references to the full number voted laft year, comprehending as well the amount of the estimates firft propofed in the committee of fupply, as the augmentations proposed by the right honourable gentleman after Chriftmas; whereas his account of the number voted laft year was taken folely from the estimates, and that he thought the fairest way; because now he fuppofed the right honourable gentleman would come to the House on a future day, and ask for an augmentation of fome kind or other, and therefore till the extent of that augmentation was known, it was impoffible to fay whether the number to be voted this year would be more or lefs than had been voted last year, and the only fair comparison that could be made was, between the eftiinates of one year, and the estimates of another. He wished therefore to know, what the augmentation was likely to be which was to be applied for hereafter...

Mr. Jenkins Mr. Jenkinson, fecretary at war, faid, the hon. gentleman was ftrictly founded in fuppofing that he had formed the account, which he had recited, of the number of men for the army expence, &c. of laft year, by uniting the augmentation with the numbers, &c. firft voted by eftimate. That in a war of the nature of the prefent, carried on at a vast distance from the capital, it was impoffible to make an exact estimate of what could only be known to be neceflary, from a knowledge of events which had not yet reached home. Laft year the augmentation was afked for, in confequence of the requifitions of the commanders abroad, and the plans of his Majefty's minifters; this year the faine matters muft govern any fimilar requifitions which he might have to make.

The

fhend.

The right honourable T. Townshend said, he saw it was the Rt. Hon. defign to injure the regular army, merely to benefit two fa- Townvourite regiments. He meant not to give any perfonal offence, and was aware of the danger of talking about these two regiments; but in fpite of that danger, in fpite of all that had been done, and all that could be threatened, he should perfevere in his duty, and speak his mind freely in that House. He now rofe, not to dwell much upon the two regiments to which he had alluded, but he muft take that opportunity to declare, that the manner of recruiting them was fcandalous to the laft degree,―any person almoft in any condition was taken-boys too young, and men too old, for the fervice. Some things he had feen dreffed up in regimentals, and called foldiers, who did not weigh as much as their arms and accoutrements. A new mode of levying the recruits was adopted; men were committed to the regiments. The practice was common. In the newspapers of that day there was a ftory of an usher to a school, who had robbed the boys of gol. he was taken before a magiftrate, examined, and his punishment was, a commitment to one of the new regiments, into which he was compelled to enter. He declared, he had lately had an opportunity of seeing the recruits of one of these regiments, and had gone through their quarters, and the greatest part of the recruits he faw, were London recruits, men to be met with at Charing-Cross, men purchased of the common London crimps! The arguinent therefore, that recruits could not be got for the old regiments, fell to the ground. Thefe recruits that he had seen would have entered chearfully into an old regiment, if the levy money for a new one had not been greater; it was therefore the continued new levies, and nothing elfe, that hurt the recruiting fervice. Befides, how fcandaloufly injurious was it to the feelings of old officers, to be fending out men as colonels, who had never been in the army before, or who had been in very inferior fituations. The last year, a colonel had gone out to take the fuperior command of a brave and gallant veteran, under whom the new colonel had formerly ferved as a matrofs. How hard too had been the fate of Colonel Campbell? Now, indeed, it might be thought that he should not complain, because that officer had got promotion, but then he had been put over the heads of thirty-nine lieutenant-colonels. The right honourable gentleman, in juftification of the augmentation of the two regiments commanded by Colonel Fullarton and Colonel Humberston had faid, thofe gentlemen were

to

The Seeve

to get no new rank. Laft year these regiments were raised for a special fervice, and on the extraordinary pretence that old regiments would not fuit that fervice fo well. What was become of that fervice now? The regiments were ftill in England, and to be fure it was a hard fate for Colonel Fullarton to have been in the army a whole year, and to have got no new rank! Colonel Humberston indeed, for whofe private character he had the highest respect, had been regularly bred in the army, but he had feen no fervice. With regard to what the right honourable gentleman had declared, that the rapid decrease of our army was owing to the unhealthy climates, but "that the Spanish ficknefs was fo great, that it was not to be conceived," he was a little surprised. He could not say what degree of ficknefs that might be, which was not to be conceived; but had heard that our own corps, which were carried out raw, and the men in which, when put on board the tranfports for embarkation, were not capable of handling their arms, had been fo fickly, that they had not landed at St. Lucia a fortnight, before the whole corps were fo bad, they were totally unferviceable, died daily, and could not mufter four men and a corporal who were well enough to put each of their fellow foldiers in the ground after death. Mr. Townshend imputed great blame to minifters for fending new levies abroad, and renewed his complaint made the preceding day, that though the regiments were eftimated at 900 men each, there were not in feveral, which he had feen in the course of the fummer, many more than 300.

The Secretary at War antwered Mr. Townshend, and faid Gary at War that office were not to blame, if the recruits were unfit for service. That not any regiment had pay, nor any officer his commiffion before the regiment had been reviewed by a general officer, and a return made by that general officer, that the regiment was complete. That it had frequently happened that on these reviews many of the recruits were refused by the general officer, and the perfon who raised the regiment obliged to get more men. With regard to the old regiments being preferable to the new levies, he was ready to admit it: nay, he would go ftill farther; he would own that he had much rather have one recruit for a regular regiment, than two for a new-raifed one; he was aware how preferable, and how much fitter for the fervice the one was, when compared to the other; the only ground on which the levies ftruck him

as

as warrantable, was, they were much eafier to be got, and the neceffity of the war was preffing. As to the recruits, furely gentlemen did not expect that as good recruits were to be got now, as in the beginning of the war; or that as fine men were to be seen in a new raifed regiment, as in a regiment of militia; the thing was impracticable. In proportion to the continuance of a war, the recruiting service became more and more difficult; our refources of men were fo much the nearer exhaufted, and therefore that recruits to be had now, fhould not be equal to thofe had formerly, was a natural confequence, impoffible to be avoided.

General Burgoyne took up the fecretary at war, on his jufti- General fying the preference given to new levies over the old regi- Burgoyne, ments, on the plea of the neceffity of the war, and argued against the admiffion of it. He faid, among various other matters, that it was frequent when a general officer reviewed a new-raifed regiment, for him to find a deficiency of fifty or a hundred men; that when the general officer asked where thofe men were, the commander of the regiment replied, they were fick, or absent on furlough, and undertook to certify for them. In confequence of this practice, regiments were frequently embarked for foreign fervice, one hundred men fhort of their complement. The general farther faid, that it was well known to every man in the army, that the new levies were mere wax, when fent to unhealthy climates; that they were of no fervice whatever, but melted away immediately. With regard to what his honourable friend near him had faid of the recruits in those new regiments, it was strictly true, that they were bought up of the crimp merchants at Charing Crofs, who tricked all they dealt with, and kept a parcel of good-looking men for occafional recruits, which they ran from one regiment to another, as fuited them, but let them continue in none. He obferved, that this would always be the cafe, whilft the old regiments were restricted to five pounds levy-money, and the new ones left ad libitum, to give fix, eight, ten guineas, or what they pleased.

bame.

Sir William Cunyinghame replied to General Burgoyne, and Sir William faid, to his knowledge, the 92d regiment was complete when Cunyingit embarked, at Plymouth. That it had been reviewed by General Stiles, who took no certificate, but vifited and examined the fick himfelf. That there were none of those VOL. XVIII.

Y

crimps'