Geo. I. martial, in time of peace, was altogether unknown in Eng1717-18. land. He fhewed, on the contrary, that the court of admiralty, which is allowed in times of peace, as well as of war, has an equal power in relation to seamen, with a court-martial in relation to foldiers. Debates in When the debate was over, and the queftion put, Whether courts-martial' fhould punish mutiny and defertion with death, it was carried in the affirmative by a majority of eighteen voices only, two hundred and forty-feven against two hundred and twenty-nine. So that there were four hundred and seventy-fix members in the house, befides three Whigs, and fix or feven Tories, who happened to be fhut out when the queftion was put. The abbot du Bois, the French minifter, having defired to be prefent at this debate, he was admitted incognito, a favour which, that day, had been refused to several peers. When the bill came to be read the last time, and the queftion put for paffing it, there were a hundred and eightyfix votes for it, and but a hundred and five against it. This great majority was afcribed to Mr. Walpole's voting for it, and his having declared to his friends, That, though, in the debate about the bill, he was for having mutiny and defertion punished by the civil magiftrate, yet he had still rather those crimes should be punished by martial law than not at all.' The bill, having paffed the commons, was fent up to the lords. When the bill came before the lords, it occafioned very the houfe of warm debates, and many speeches were made on both fides, which these are fome of the most remarkable (e). The lords about the mutiny lord Harcourt spoke against the bill, and urged, among other Geo. I. things, That the parliament, that is, the representative of 1717-18, * ftances of affairs, muft own, that the number of troops that were kept ftanding was very fmall: That it could not be denied, that the pretender had a great many friends both at home and abroad, who watched all pportunities to foment and take advantage of our inteftine divifions: That, on the other hand, Great Britain ftood guarantee for the neutrality of Italy, which was then threatened with an invafion: And therefore it was matter of prudence, as well as of neceffity, to keep up a competent force, both to fupprefs any infurrection at home, or to repel any infult from abroad; and to make good our engagements for maintaining the repofe of Europe. Hereupon a late minifter faid, He was furprised to hear, that the noble lord, who spoke laft, was not better acquainted with fome matters of fact; but that he thought himself obliged to inform the house, That, by the treaty concluded and figned at Utrecht in March 1713, between the minifters of Great Britain and France, the late queen, of glorious memory, was guarantee for the neutrality of Italy, and the islands in the Mediterranean, only during the evacuation of Catalonia, and till the conclufion of a general peace: For the truth of which, his lordship appealed to his colleague in that negotiation. He added, that, fince that time, the ftate of things was quite altered, and thofe in the miniftry the could beft tell, what engagements had been entered into, either with the emperor or France. Hereupon it was thought neceffary to know the contents of thofe new treaties; and therefore it was moved to addrefs his majefty, that the fame might be laid before the house: Which addrefs was agreed to, but was never presented. On the 20th of February, it was moved, That it be an inftruction to the committee, that they do provide that no punishment fhall be inflicted at any court-martial, which shall extend to life or limb.' Some reafons were given for fupporting this motion; but it was anfwered, that fuch a clause would render the bill ineffectual, ba- * Earl of nifh all manner of difcipline Strafford. from the army, and confequently render it intirely uselefs. Hereupon there arose a warm debate, which lafted from two o'clock in the afternoon, till feven in the evening. Herein it was endeavoured to be fhewn, That fo numerous a force, as was allowed by that bill to be maintained in time of peace, was not only dangerous in itself to a free nation, but was yet rendered more dangerous, by their being governed by martial law; a law unknown to our conftitution, deftructive of our liberties, and not endured by our ancestors. To which it was answered, That, among the ancient Romans, the wifeft people in the world, and the great eft Geo. I. the whole nation, were ever extreme jealous of the legifle 1717-18. tive power, with which they are vefted; and that the lords, in a particular manner, ought to be tender of it; because it is a branch of their prerogative to be the fupreme court of judicature; but that by this bill, whereby the king was enabled to establish courts-martial, with power to try and determine any offences fpecified in the articles of war, the parliament vefted a fole legislative power in the crown, which was communicated and delegated to a council of war. That this bill fets afide all other laws, both civil and ecclefiaftical, in teft lovers and afferters of public liberty, martial laws and difcipline were invigorated by decrees of the fenate, and were in force in times of peace as well as in times of war. And replied to, in fubftance, that it was much better to attend domestic then foreign examples; whereupon were produced feveral inftances drawn from the hiftory of Great Britain, that a ftanding army, in time of peace, was ever fatal, either to the prince or to the nation. But hereunto was urged, that thofe, who are vested with the legiflative power, ought not, on all occafions, to govern themselves by precedents, but rather, by the prefent fituation of affairs, because it is very difficult to find examples perfectly agreeing with the various circumftances of times: That it was judged, the number of troops which the commons had thought fit to keep ftanding, was abfolutely neceffary for the fecurity and fafety both of the government and nation; and therefore it was no lefs neceffary to make a law to keep that army within the rules of duty and difcipline, unlefs they would render ufelefs thofe very forces which must be owned to be neceffary. Hereunto fome what was again fuggefted, about the danger of a standing army made fubject to martial law; but it was maintained, on the contrary, that the forces then on foot were neceffary both for the fupport of the government, and the protection of our allies; that their lordships ought to confider, that, when the late rebellion broke out, they had double the number of regular troops, and yet the government was obliged, not only to fend for fome regiments from Ireland, but also for a body of auxiliary troops from Holland; and that, fince the faid forces were neceffary, the bill in queftion, which was only to render them useful, was no lefs neceffary. A lord hereupon, among other things, faid, That, before the noble peer, who spoke laft, was born, he had feen the time, when the nation was in danger of lofing their liberties by a standing army; and then his lordship endeavoured to fhew, that the power of life and death, which by that bill was given to a courtmartial, was unneceffary, unufual, and unjuít. After this followed the fpeeches of lord Harcourt and the lord Carteret, as above in the context. relation relation to the foldiery; and gives courts-martial a larger ju- Geo. I. rifaiction than feemed neceffary for maintaining difcipline in 1717-18. the army; fuch jurifdiction extended not only to mutiny," defertion, and breach of duty, but also to all immoralities, and other offences, which might be committed by any officer or foldier, towards any of his fellow-fubjects, whereby the law of the land might either be obftructed, or fuperfeded by a court-martial. That the officers conftituting a court-martial did, at once, fupply the place of judges and jurymen, and ought therefore to be upon their oath, upon their trying any offence whatsoever; whereas it is provided by this bill, that they shall be sworn, upon their trying fuch offences only as are punishable by death. That martial courts affume to themselves an arbitrary and unprecedented authority, of which they had a remarkable inftance, an enfign of the guards having been sentenced to death without being heard, which was contrary to Magna Charta, and to the birth-rights and privileges of Englishmen; and therefore they ought to reftrain fo dangerous a power.' On the other hand, the lord Carteret faid, That he had maturely confidered the affair now in agitation, not as a person in a public station, but as a private unprejudiced man; and that he was convinced in his judgment and conscience, that it is necessary both for the fupport of the prefent happy establishment, and the security of the nation, to keep up the forces now on foot; and that he was confirmed in his opinion, by confidering what thoughts the pretender and his friends had of this matter, and reflecting, that they have nothing more at heart, than to procure the difbanding of thofe forces that have fuppreffed the late unnatural rebellion. That he doubted not, but the whole body of the nobility that made up that auguft affembly, was inviolably attached to his majesty king George: That his majefty had alfo the beft part of the landed and all the trading intereft; that as to the clergy he would fay nothing-but that it was notorious, that the majority of the populace had been poisoned, and that the poison was not yet quite expelled. That the dangers which feemed to be apprehended from the prefent army may be chimerical, or, at leaft, eafily remedied in any fubfequent feffion of parliament; whereas the dangers with which the nation is threatened from the pretender and his friends, in cafe there were no army to oppofe them, are real, and the mifchiefs that might enfue, upon the fuccefs of their defigns, irreparable. That, if there had been such a ftanding force as we now have, timely to fupprefs the tumults and riots which were raifed foon after his majefty's acceffion to Geo. I. to the throne, in all probability there had been no open rebel1717-18. lion; that, on the other hand, if there had not been troops ready at hand to affift the civil power, in fuppreffing the late riotous affemblies of the wool-combers and weavers in the counties of Devon and Somerfet, there had by this time been another rebellion. That the mentioning Magna Charta was, in his opinion, entirely foreign to the prefent debate: That the thing now in queftion, and that wherein they were immediately concerned, was to fecure and fupport the government, and the Proteftant fucceffion, against vigilant, bold, and restless enemies; and that they had the more reafon to be upon their guard, in that the trumpeters of fedition and rebellion had again forcibly intruded into feveral pulpits in Scotland.' Objections being raised against the preamble of the bill, wherein it was fuggefted, that the number of fixteen thoufand three hundred and forty-feven men was neceffary, it was moved, that the number fhould be reduced to twelve thoufand. But this motion was rejected; as was also another, for leaving out the claufe, which inabled the king to conftitute articles of war. After this, the whole bill was agreed to, and paffed by a majority of eighty-eight against fixty-one. However, feveral lords entered their protek (f). (f) As foon as the parliament broke up, the fpeakers against the mutiny-bill publifhed their fpeeches, for which they were feverely cenfured by the author of the Critic, and their fpeeches boldly examined. The king alfo, foon after the end of the feffion, ordered articles to be published for the regulation and government of the army, pursuant to the power lodged in him by the act. The fubftance of the article is as follows: F. All officers and foldiers (not having juft impediment fhall diligently frequent divine fervice, in fuch places as fhall be appointed for the regiment, troop, or company to which they belong; and fuch as either The wilfully or negligently abfent themfelves from divine fervice or fermon, or elfe, being prefent, do behave themselves undecently or irreverently during the fame, if they be officers, they fhall be feverely reprehended at a court-martial; but, if private foldiers, they fhall, for every fuch first offence, forfeit each man 1 s. to be deducted out of their next pay; and for the fecond offence hall forfeit I s. and be laid in irons for twelve hours; and, for every like offence afterwards, fhall fuffer and pay in like manner; and the money fo forfeited fhall be applied to the relief of the fick foldiers of fuch troop or company, to which the offender does belong.' |