43 NNUAL REG 
ments to Penne diiters: and the 
people to the buyers of manufac. 
tured goods, our government was 
ove that carried an inferior article 
to market, and was, therefore, 
compelled to give a premium to its 
subjects, in order to induce them to 
become purchasers of ifs wares, or 
it had recourse to artilice and decep- 
tion, in order to tempt the ignorant 
and the thoughtless to be its custo- 
mers. Nothing, then remained, if 
we were to have an army by volun- 
tary enlistment, but to improve the 
trade of asoldier, and to bring it 
into faircompctition witha suflicient 
portion of fhe trades and callings of 
the lower orders ; and, till this was 
done, we should be striving in vain, 
in the hopeless task of persuading 
men to embrace a profession, in op- 
position to those motives which 
usually decide them in the choice 
of one. On this principle, then, 
did Mr, Windham mean to found 
his plan for recruiting the army. 
He would improve the article which 
government had to dispose of, and he 
trusted, when that was done, there 
would no longer beany complaints 
heard of the want of purchasers. 
Toreduce these principles to prac- 
tice it behoved us to consider what 
was the most eligible mode of im- 
proving the condition of thesoldiery, 
so as fo render the military professi- 
om au object of general desire a- 
mong the people. ‘The most sim. 
ple and obvious expedient was to 
raise the pay of the army, and no 
doubt we might carry that principle 
so far as to ensure an abundant sup- 
ply of soldiers. But besides the 
objections on the score of expence, 
the pay of an army cannot be in- 
creased to a great extent without 
rendering the troops licentious, and 
GIST ER,: 
in proportion as the army becomes 
licentious, a severity of discipline 
must be resorted to which deters 
from enlisting. Little therefore was 
to be done by encreasing the pay of 
the army, though much might be 
elected by encouragement of a diife- 
rent sort. A better provision might — 
be made for those persons who were 
disabled from further service by 
their wounds, infirmities or age. 
The severity of discipline might be 
lessened without relaxing its strict- | 
ness. But the great change which he 
proposed to introduce in the army 
was in the terms of its engagement. 
Instead of an engagement to serye 
for life he proposed that the soldiers 
in future, should be enlisted to 
serve fora term of years. Such | 
was the systemn of service, he said, 
in all the states of Europe, except | 
in England, and in part even of our © 
army the same system was establish- 
ed. No inconvenience had any 
where resulted from it, while its 
tendency to make men enter more 
willingly into the army was obvi- 
ous and apparent. 4 
He proposed therefore, that the | 
term of military service should be ; 
divided info three periods, of seven — 
years each for the infantry ; and” 
for the cavalry and artillery the | 
first per od to be of ten years, the | 
second of six years, and the third of | 
five years, At the end of every” 
period the soldier should have a_ 
right to claim his discharge.. if he. 
left the army at the end of the first — 
period, he should be entitled to ex. 
ercise his trade-or calling in any | 
town of Great Britain or [reland 5 | 
if at the end of the second period, § 
he should be entitled, besides, to a ™ 
pension for life ; audattheend of the dl 
third period, after a service of twen- _ 
] 806. 
4 
