102 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1804. 



CHAP. VII. 



parliamentary Proceedings continued and conchidcd — Debates in the House 

 of Lords on " the Additional Force Bill" — carried by a considerable Ma- 

 jority. — Corn Trade Bill — Charge on the Lord Advocate of Scotland — 

 Proceedings on the Petitions against Judge Fox— Stamp Duty Bill — India 

 Budget — Aylesbury Election Bill — Speaker^s Address to the Throne — His 

 Majesty'' s Speech — Close of the Session. 



ON the 25th of June earl Cam- 

 den brought " the additional 

 force bill" forward, iu the house of 

 lords : he stated, that it had been 

 found that the army of reserve bill 

 had failed in its operation, and in- 

 terfered considerably with the regu- 

 lar army. The obje6l of the pre- 

 sent bill, therefore, was to provide 

 such a force as should not interfere 

 ■with, but, on the contrary, pro- 

 mote the recruiting for the regulars. 



The duke of Clarence conceived, 

 that some very strong reasons ought 

 to be assigned, for the introdudtion 

 of a bill of so novel and extraordi- 

 nary a nature; and, that the mere 

 ipse-dixit of a chancellor of the ex- 

 chequer was not sufficient. After 

 commenting on several of the clauses 

 of the bill, he declared his general opi- 

 nipn, that it would be found nuga- 

 tory and vexatious : he therefore 

 should vote against it. 



Lord Spencer also opposed the 

 bill : there were some parts, how- 

 ever, to which he entirely agreed, 

 lie approved of the reducing the 

 militia to its original establishment; 

 he also approved of the removal of 

 the ballot ; and the high bounties ; 

 but he disapproved of the compli- 

 cated machinery of the bill, which, 

 he thought, must render it ineffici- 



ent. The objc6l was professed to 

 be, to raise men ; and he was con- 

 vinced, theeffedl of it would be only 

 to raise money by the fines upon the 

 parishes. The tax that-^vould be so 

 imposed, would fall most un^ually 

 upon the proprietors of lands and 

 houses, instead of being raised in 

 the regular way, from the general 

 revenues of the country. 



The duke of Montrose defended 

 the bill, which he said was likoly to 

 raise a considerable number ol' men, 

 and to forward considerably that 

 objeft which was so much desired, 

 namely, the increase of the regular 

 armj'. If the objection that noble 

 lords had, were to the ministers w Jio 

 proposed tiie bill, he would much 

 rather see them come forward di- 

 rectly, and move for an address to 

 his majesty, to remove them. 



The earl of Caernarvon insisted, 

 that the bill could not succeed in 

 raising men, as there were none to 

 be got, at the small bounties it of- 

 fered : he thought it must turn out 

 merely an oppressive parochial tax. 

 Many rich men, Avho were now 

 obliged to find substitutes for the 

 militia, would be entirely exempt 

 from any share of the expence of the 

 present levy. lie considered the 

 bill as unconstitutional and oppres- 

 sive, 



