SUPPLY—ARMY ESTIMATES. (Hansard, 3 March 1854)

§ MR. SIDNEY HERBERT
said, he rose to move a Supplemental Estimate, of which notice had been given on a former evening. After the statement which the noble Lord the Member for London had already addressed to the House, it was altogether unnecessary to trouble the Committee with any detailed explanation of the object of the Estimate. It would be recollected, also, that he himself, on introducing the Army Estimates, had communicated the reasons which rendered necessary an additional Estimate over and above the number of men which had already been voted. Although the Estimate formed only one item in the paper, He would ask the Committee to vote it in three items, in order that these might be posted under their proper heads in the general Estimates, with the view of facilitating comparison in future years. In the first place he would move that an additional number of men, not exceeding 15,000, be maintained for the service of the United Kingdom for the year ending the 31st of March, 1855.

COLONEL DUNNE
wished to know whether it was intended to make an addition to the number of regiments, or to increase the strength of the companies in each regiment?

§ MR. SIDNEY HERBERT
said, it was 331 intended that the fresh men should be added to the existing companies. It was thought that additional officers would not be required at present; but should it be found desirable to employ any, they would be taken from the half-pay list.

§ MR. W. WILLIAMS
said, he felt it necessary, in the exigency in which the country was placed, to repose confidence in Ministers, and he gave them credit for not demanding a larger force than was required. He approved the intention to call officers from the half-pay list into active service.

§ SIR JOHN PAKINGTON
observed that, although the right hon. Gentleman had answered the question of the gallant Officer (Col. Dunne), he had not explained how the larger additional number of men which he asked for was to be distributed.

§ MR. SIDNEY HERBERT
said, that the greater portion of the new force would be absorbed in the existing regiments by raising the number of each company. A considerable number would also be kept in reserve for casualties in connection with the regiments on foreign service. He thought it would be unnecessary to appoint new officers, except for the superintendence of combined depôts, in which it was thought that recruits would be brought forward more rapidly than in isolated depôts scattered over the country.