9^ 



ANNUx\L REGISTER, 1804. 



of adminlsiration was merely to gain 

 time, to get together the ministerial 

 voters, it is unnecessary to detail 

 their speeches. Bj' the latter end 

 of the evening, however, a ministe- 

 rial majority was collected, and ilr. 

 Grey's motion negatived by 214 to 

 185, being a majority of barely 29 

 in favour of ministers. 



On the 18th the amendments 

 ■were read a third time, and another 

 debate took place upon the ques- 

 tion, " that the bill, with its amend- 

 ments, be engrossed." . 



Mr. Elliot objc6tcd to the mea- 

 nre, both in its principles, and from 

 the dilTiculty of its execution. lie 

 thought one of these three things 

 must happen, if the men were to be 

 had under it ; — either the parish offi- 

 cers must employ crimps, or they 

 must use oppressive means of oblig- 

 ing men to enlist, or else the whole 

 plan would turn out to be only a 

 parochial tax. He considered, that 

 the surest means of immediately 

 reinforcing the regular army, were 

 by the mode of recruiting proposed 

 by Mr. Windham. General jNIait- 

 land opposed the bill, and suggested 

 the propriety of giving larger pay to 

 the soldiers who were employed for 

 general service, than was given to 

 those upon limited service. 



General Gascoigne warmly sup- 

 ported the bill. 



Mr. Canning considered the plan 

 as the best that had hitherto been 

 proposed, both for keeping up an 

 army in time of war, and in time of 

 peace. He said, the opposers of 

 the bill wore so divided in their opi- 

 nions about the best mode of in- 

 creasing the army, tliat though they 

 might agree in their votes, they 

 would disagree in the lobby. As 

 to the formation of the present ad- 

 ministration, be confessed that he 



Avas as much disappointed as any 

 man, but did not think he ought to 

 relinquish the part he was called 

 upon to act, merely because it was 

 an arduous^ one. The principal 

 points in which he had complained 

 of the late administration had been 

 changed. 



Mr. Addington observed, that 

 when INIr. Pitt first proposed his 

 plan, the ballot was to have been 

 retained ; but, that since that time, 

 he had been induced to abandon it : 

 all he should say upon that point, 

 was, that it was only a change from 

 a measure of rigour, to a measure 

 of inefficiency. He could not but 

 look with constitutional jealousy on 

 so large a force, that was not under 

 the direct control of parliament. It 

 had been his objeft to draw forward 

 as much efficient strength as possible, 

 without entirely altering the domes- 

 tic habits of the people. He consi- 

 dered the militia as our constitution- 

 al force, and therefore he objedted 

 to its being reduced. He always 

 thought that it should be increased 

 in the same proportion that the re- 

 gular army was increased. For 

 home defence he should prefer the 

 old militia, to the force now pro- 

 jjosed. He, therefore, decidedly 

 disapproved of the bill. 



Mr. Sheridan, considered the 

 argument of the right honourable 

 gentleman (Mr. Addington) as clear 

 and conclusive on the constitutional 

 ground. He thought that gentle- 

 man's entering into office, Avas a sa- 

 crifice, and that his retirement was 

 a triumph. His opposition to the 

 minister, on this business, was man- 

 ly and constitutional, and he had 

 given him no insidious promises of 

 assistance and support. He thought 

 the manner of his retiring from of- 

 fice, did him much honour. When 



he 



