1751. PROCEEDINGS of the POLITICAL CLUB, &c. 107 often, or with as much feverity, as of their city, were almost continual- C Thus, Sir, the commander in chief of our army may make him D felf master of many of our elections'; and where he cannot by fuch means make himself mafter, he may do as Caius Marius did at Rome, he may give private orders to his foldiers to murder any one that fhall dare to fet himself up as a candidate against the man he has recommended; for the first attempt that great and wicked Roman made against the liberties of his country, was to get his foldiers to murder the man who ftood candi E date for the tribunefhip in oppofition " For this reafon, Sir, we ought to be careful not to give the meaneft foldier of our army an occafion to think, that he is in a flate of flavery: On the contrary, we fhould, as far as is confiftent with the nature of military fervice, furnifh them with reafons for rejoicing in their being English foldiers, and confequently in a condition much fuperior to that of the flavish armies upon the continent; and as this of inflicting punishments, by the fole and arbitrary will of a commander, is a power that has been very feldom exercifed in time of war, it cannot, I think, be neceflary in time of peace; confequently I muit, for the fake of my country, as well as for the fake of the ftaff officers and foldiers of our army, agree to have this claufe made part of the bill now under our confideration: The next that spoke was Cn. Fulvius, whofe Speech was to this Effect; Mr. Prefident, SIR, Tregard to te mition, with is of late grown fo very warm, that I wish we may not, in the heat of our zeal, do as Jack did with his father's coat; wifh we may not tear the fubftance to pieces by too rafhly tearing away the ornaments. O 2 For my 0wན * 108 PROCEEDINGS of the POLITICAL CLUB, &c. March B own part, I fhall never be for intro- This, Sir, was the manner in which that question was then determined; but if fuch a claufe as this now propofed had then been in the mutiny act, perhaps the question might have been otherwife determined; and if the adding of this claufe fhould hereafter produce an D E F G alteration in the opinion of our lawyers, I believe, there are many ferjeants and corporals in the army, who would have very little reason to thank you for the favour you intended them by adding fuch a clause. In fhort, Sir, you may, I think, as properly take from a captain the power of removing a foldier from the front to the rear rank, or from the right to the left, of his company, as to take from a colonel the power of removing a halbert from one man's hand to another's, as often as he finds it may be for the benefit of his regiment. Then, Sir, as to the punishment of foldiers, I do not know that any thing properly called punishment was ever inflicted upon any of them, but in purfuance of the fentence of a court-martial; for if the major or adjutant of a regiment should give a foldier a tap with his cane, for not having clean linen, or for carrying his arms in a flovenly manner, I hope, you would not call fuch a neceffary correction a punishment; and yet if this claufe fhould be pas fed into a law, I do not know but that our foldiers may take it into their heads, that this fort of correction has been declared illegal, and that the officer who makes ufe of any fuch is liable to an action of affault and battery, Nay, I do not know but that our judges might be of the fame opinion; for tho' we may make laws, it is they that are to interpret them; and we cannot always forefee what fort of interpre· tation they will put upon the laws we make. This I am very fure of, that they have fometimes put an interpretation upon a law, that was never fo much as dreamt of by any one concerned in making it. For this reafon among many others, Sir, we ought to be cautious of adding any new and unprecedented claufes to the bill now before us ; and as to ranfacking all the military laws of Europe for feverities, I do not know POLITICAL CLUB, &c. 109 Upon this C. Trebonius ftood up again, and fpoke in Subftance as follows, B 1751. PROCEEDINGS of the know what the noble lord means by it: I know of no severities that have been lately introduced into this bill, nor has any alterations or amend! ments been made to the articles of war, but in order to give people a true notion of what is meant by dif- A cipline, or to deferibe clearly and fully the offence, the punishment, or the method of proceeding intended. And as to any new regulations, no one has been introduced but what was before, established by custom in our army; upon the whole of which I will fay, that no army in the world is better regulated, nor are the fol. diers in any country lèfs feverely dealt with, or better secured against injuftice or oppreffion. They are fo far from being in a state of flavery, that they are, in my opinion, lefs lia. C ble to be rigoroufly dealt with when guilty, than thofe criminals are that are to be tried by common law; for courts-martial are always more inclined to lenity than feverity, and are but too fhy of declaring a man guilty, when there is not the strongest D evidence against him. F We have not therefore, Sir, the leaft caufe to apprehend, that our foldiers will ever look upon themfelves as flaves, or that they will enable any commander to overturn that conftitution, under which they E enjoy fo much fecurity, and from which they reap fo much benefit. With refpect to our army, we have nothing to fear but a relaxation of difcipline, which might render them unfit for defending us againft our foreign enemies, and too apt to be troublesome not only in their quarters, but in every country they pafs through; and as a relaxation of difcipline might probably be the effect of the claufe now offered, I must be against making it a part of the bill, especially as the Hon. gentleman who offered it, did not attempt G to fhew, that in any one instance an unjuft ufe had been made of the power, which the colonel has over the staff officers in his regiment. viz. Mr. Prefident, I juft danger of juft apprehenfion of danger or mifchief was fufficient for inducing this house to agree to a new regulation, or to abolish an old and useless cuftom; but the Hon. gentleman who spoke laft, it seems, thinks, that we cught not to ftop up the hole in a bridge till fome perfon has fallen through and been drowned: We ought not to abolish that abfolute power, which the colonel has affumed over the staff officers of his regiment, till an instance be given of its having been egregioufly abufed. I confefs, Sir, I always thought otherwife, and for this reafon, when I opened this clause to you, I endeavoured only to fhew, that this power was in itfelf dangerous and useless, that it might be very much abused, and that it never could be neceffary for any good purpose; but now I am called upon, I think myself obliged to give an inftance of its having been abused, which I do with reluctance, because I do not like to rake into the mifconduct of officers, either of a high or low degree; and I must say, I am fo far from being of opinion, that this power never was abufed, that I believe, it would be found, upon inquiry, that hardly any ufe was ever made of it, but what was an abuse. Now, Sir, as to the facts I am going to mention, I must premise, that I do not affert them from my own knowledge: I had them only by information; and therefore all I fhall fay is, that I shall faithfully relate them, and exactly as they have been told to me. During the heat of the Westminster election, a ferjeant and corporal had the misfortune ([ call it a misfortune, from what after GT-d. wards 110 PROCEEDINGS of the POLITICAL CLUB, &c. March I muft ftill look upon it as a very fevere punishment; and I fhall continue in that opinion, unless the Hon. gentleman could convince me, that there is no difference between 10s. 4 d. per week, and, 4s. 6d. per A week, or between commanding and being commanded. This I believe he will never be able to convince me of; and while I continue in this opinion, I must think, that this was a very great abuse of the power which the colonels in our army have by cuftom affumed, of reducing ftaff officers to the rank of private centinels, whenever they pleafe. wards happened) to be marching aJong the streets with a party, going, I fuppofe, to the playhouse, or upon fome other duty; and as they were upon their march, fome of the foldiers behind them joined in the popular cry then reigning in the streets, and called out, Vandeput for ever. Thefe uncourtly words, for tho' they were popular, they were certainly at that time uncourtly, neither the ferjeant nor corporal took any notice of; but after their duty was over, returned to the parade, and B difmiffed their party, without making any report of this accident to the commanding officer. The acci- The Hon, gentleman, Sir, may dent was however taken notice of, talk of the happy condition of the and related by fome busy tale-bearer: foldiers of our army, and of its beThe ferjeant and corporal were fent ing preferable to that of the foldiers for and examined: They confeffed C of any other army; but no man that they had heard fome fuch words reflects can think himfelf happy, from fome of the foldiers in their whilst he is liable to be feverely purear; and because they could not fix. nifhed at the mere whim of any man upon the man who had committed whatfoever. And tho' I fhall althis heinous trefpafs, nor had made low, that a little manual correction any report of it to the commanding may now and then be neceffary; yet, officer upon guard, they and their D it is what a good officer will always whole party were fent prifoners to be very fparing of, and will never the Savoy, and both the ferjeant and make use of it, till he finds that no corporal were reduced into the ranks, amendment can be expected without where they have ever fince ferved, it. But this is not what is now comand are like to ferve for years to plained of, or proposed to be remecome, as common foldiers. died by the clause I have offered to your confideration. It is to prevent any military commander's taking upon him to fubject a foldier to fuch as have always been deemed military punishments, by his own fole authority; for that this is fometimes done, every gentleman knows, that knows F any thing of our army; and that this fhould ever be permitted, I can never think neceffary, confidering how foon a court-martial may be held, and the proper punishment inflicted, after due proof of the crime, by the authority of their fentence. E Thefe, Sir, are the facts as they have been related to me; but that you may not entirely depend upon my relation, I muft inform you, that the two men are now at your door, and ready to atteft what I have told you, if you will please to call them in for that purpose. And now I muft appeal to gentlemen, whether this was any military crime, or indeed a crime of any kind, much lefs a crime which deferved fuch a fevere punishment, as that of reducing a ferjeant and corporal to private cen-, tinels; for notwithstanding what has been faid as to its being no punish G ment, and notwithitanding the trial at law, which the Hon. gentleman was pleased to give us an account of, As to courts-martial, Sir, I believe it may be true, that they have generally a bias to lenity, when uninfluenced by any particular refentment, and when they fit upon the 1751. PROCEEDINGS of the POLITICAL CLUB, &c. trial of a brother officer; and I' likewife believe, that they have a pretty ftrict regard to juftice, when the complaint is by one officer against another; but I doubt if they have the fame bias to lenity, when a poor fellow of a common foldier comes to A by tried before them, or the fame regard to juftice, when the complaint" is made by a private centinel againft a commiffioned officer, or by fuch an officer against a common foldier. And as to our foldiers being fo well fecured against injuftice, I wonder to hear any gentleman talk of it, that has ever read the report of a committee of this house, made but a very few years ago; relating to our army; for the off-reckonings of every regiment certainly belong to the foldiers of the regiment, and if not wholly employed in cloathing, the furplus ought to be divided among them, or employed fome way for their benefit; the colonel has no right to put a fhilling of it into his own pocket. I was likewife furprifed, Sir, to hear it faid, that no alterations or amendments had been lately made to our military laws, when every one knows, that great alterations, I fhall not call them amendments, have been made both to the mutiny bill, and to the articles of war, within thefe laft three or four years: Nay, this very power, which the colonel has over the ftaff-officers of his regiment, has been but lately brought into our articles of war; and it is no excuse for any oppreffive regulation, to fay, that it is founded upon an old cuftom; for such a cuftom, when taken notice of, instead of being confirmed, should be abolished, by a written law; this was what induced me to offer this claufe to your confideration, which muft, I think, be approved of by every gentleman who believes the ftory I have related; and if any one doubts the facts, he may easily fatisfy himself, by calling in and examining the two men, who are now attending at your door, The next that spoke in this Debate reas C. Salonius, whofe Speech avas to this Effect: Mr. Prefidenty Hatever doubt I may have as WH to the truth of the facts re lated to us by the Hon gentleman who fpoke laft, I have not the leaft doubt of his having had fuch an information; and I am fully convinced, that B he believed his information to be well founded, otherwife he would not have communicated it to the house; but from the very nature of the facts related I cannot think, that they farnifh us with a fufficient reafon for abolishing a cuftom, or a power, that has fo long prevailed in our army, and which, when properly exercifed, must always contribute to the prefervation of that authority, which every colonel ought to have over the regiment he commands; and this power is the lefs liable to objection, because if it fhould ever be improperly exercifed, the error might be corrected by a board of general officers, who would order the colonel to replace a ferjeant, whom he had reduced and turned into the ranks, for a reafon which he could not jusE tify. Now fuppofe, Sir, that the twą men at your door, upon being called in and examined, should, and I believe they would, give the fame account that the Hon. gentleman has done: Nay, I will go farther, I will fuppofe the facts to be true; yet F can it be supposed, that they can tell the motives which the colonel had for turning them into the ranks? Can any one with certainty tell those motives but the colonel himself? He might have had other motives for doing what he did, and fuch motives, perhaps, as thefe men would industriously conceal, even tho' they were fenfible of their being well founded. Id GS!c. |