HISTORY OF EUROPE. 
which it judged to be most expe- 
dient. But the whole number of 
persons liable to that service should 
be enrolled in classes according to 
their age, and on any emergence 
a discretionary power might be 
left with government to call out 
and embody whatever, classes it 
should think proper, and in what- 
ever parts of the country itshould 
find necessary. 
With respect to the militia Mr, 
Windham had at present no altera- 
tions to propose. .He meant to 
continue the suspension of the bal- 
lot, and he would certainly recom. 
' mend, in future, recruiting for that 
service on the scheme projected in 
Ireland, and at a limited bounty, 
He was also disposed to promote 
a measure, introduced by the late 
government, of permitting the Irish 
militia to enlist in the line; and 
heintended, in conjunction with the 
_ Irish government, to propose some 
permanent arrangement for that 
purpose. : 
Mr. Windham concluded by 
moving for leave to bring in a bill 
to repeal the act passed in the 44th 
‘of his majesty called the additional 
force bill. 
Lord Castlereagh after enlarging 
on the inexpediency of undertak- 
ing a fundamental revision of any 
of the leading establishments of a 
country in time of war, contended 
_ that it was unnecessary to enter 
into such a revision of our military 
establishments at the present mo- 
ment. In proof of this position, 
and to shew how much the army had 
#e" increased in its numbers dur- 
g the late administration, he stated, 
Ist, that, the gross strength of the 
army at home and abroad, inelod- 
ing militia and artillery, in effective 
rank and file, was 
& 
5] 
ist January, 1804 234,005 
ist March, 1806 267,554 
increase 33,549 
2dly, That the regular army, 
including artillery, as distinguished 
from the militia, was 
ist January, 1804 
Ist March, 1806 
148.496 
192.372 
increase 43,886 
3dly, The regulararmy disposabl 
for general service, was : 
ist January, 1804 
ist March, 1806 
115,947 
165,790 
increase 49,843 
He admitted that the annual loss 
of the army, independant of extrae 
ordinary occurrences, amounted to. 
15,000 men; and that the annual 
supply, by the ordinary means of 
recruiting, did not exceed 11,000, 
or at most 14,000 men. He ad- 
mitted also that an addition of 
43,000 men was still wanting. to 
raise the army to its full establish. 
ment. But, he contended that the 
annual supply which might be ex. 
pected from the Irish militia, and 
the operation of. the bill now pro- 
posed to be repealed, were fully 
adequate to supply these defi- 
ciencies. He entered into a detail- 
ed account of the reasons why this 
bill had been so long unproductive ; 
but he contended, that since thé 
progress* of the inspecting field 
officers through the counties, it had 
furnished 300 men a week, being 
at the rate of 16,000 men a year; 
and he endeavoured to shew that, 
in future, it would afford a still 
greater number, He argued. against 
the plan of enlisting men for a 
limited term of years on various and 
not very consistent grounds. He 
seemed to think the experiment 
was dangerous, and yet argued it 
would produce little real change in 
2 the 
