SUPPLY.—ARMY ESTIMATES. (Hansard, 16 April 1858)

GENERAL PEEL
, in rising to move that a sum not exceeding £2,454,027 be granted to Her Majesty to defray the expenses for pay and allowances to Her Majesty's land forces abroad, said that if the Committee would refer to page 2 of the Estimates, containing the abstract of those Estimates, it would find that they were divided into six parts. He should, 1249 however, submit to the consideration of the Committee upon that occasion only that portion of the Estimates which related to the effective department of the army. It was desirable to obtain votes for that department previous to the introduction of the Budget, and he trusted, therefore, that the Committee would excuse him if he refrained from entering that evening into any detailed observations upon the subject of the various items contained in the Estimates. If the Committee were to enter upon that occasion into a general discussion of such points as barrack accommodation, the clothing of the troops, and things of a cognate nature, he was afraid that not only would no progress be made in taking the votes, but that no satisfactory decision with respect to the several items of which the}' were composed could be arrived at. It was customary in moving the Estimates, to institute a comparison between their present amount and that of the preceding year, in older that the House might be afforded an opportunity of forming an opinion in reference to the expediency of any changes in the amount which might be proposed, He had simply to state upon that point, that while the difference in the gross amount of the Army Estimates for this and the preceding year was but slight, there was a considerable variation in some of the items for the two periods—a variation, the reasons of which he should explain when he brought forward those Estimates more in detail. There was, however, but one great comparison to be drawn in such cases—namely, that between the proposed amount of expenditure and the absolute wants of the service. The proper system to adopt was to combine together, as far as possible, economy and efficiency, and he felt bound in justice to the noble Lord who had preceded him in office to say, that he appeared to have framed his estimates upon the combination of those two important principles. Indeed, so thoroughly had that policy been carried out by the noble Lord, that when he (General Peel) had examined the Estimates with a view of discovering what reductions in them might be effected, he had come to the conclusion that he would be justified in diminishing them only by a sum of £10,000, by postponing some Votes which might be brought forward upon a future occasion, should the exigencies of the service require it, but the postponement of which would be productive of no public inconvenience. He should, upon 1250 that occasion, particularize only one Vote in the Estimates, and that was the sum of £10,000 which he had added, in order to secure 100 68-pounders to Malta. It would be recollected that when the Estimates had been framed last year, a great reduction had unfortunately been made in the army. In some points those reductions were unfortunate; for whatever objections might have been urged in former times to maintaining a large standing army, it was absolutely necessary at the present day that the army should be kept up in the most efficient state, especially when they took into consideration the necessity of employing a large additional European force in India. That circumstance, however, would cause no additional expense to this country, the whole of the increase being borne by the East India Company. He trusted the House would excuse him from entering further into detail, and he begged to conclude by placing the Vote which he had risen to move in the Chairman's hands.

CAPTAIN VIVIAN
said, he hoped that, when the right hon. and gallant General entered into the general statement to which he had adverted, he would be prepared to give the Committee some explanation in reference to the reduction which he had made in the Votes for the purchase of land for the erection of new barracks, a subject to which the attention of the public had been of late much directed.

GENERAL PEEL
said, the Government had postponed the Vote for the purchases of land at Windsor and Glasgow, as they had come to the conclusion that no possible inconvenience could result from that postponement. He would give an explanation when the Vote for the purchase of land was before the House.

GENERAL CODRINGTON
asked, if any determination had been arrived at respecting the allowances to staff officers in lieu of servants?

GENERAL PEEL
was afraid the answer he had to give would not be a very satisfactory one. The matter had been referred to the Commander in Chief, and, although no actual decision had been come to as yet, he was afraid that eventually they would have to return to the old system.

§ COLONEL BOLDERO
said, that for the 1251 last two years the House had been continually impressing upon the Government the necessity of having placed before them the Estimates in a clear and distinct form; and although he admitted that some improvements had been effected in that respect, yet he did not consider that the details were rendered sufficiently explicit. This Vote was not properly defined. In former Votes the items were given in detail. They ought to have an account of the number of regiments embodied, and also the number called out. This Vote was really not a reduction from that of last year, but actually an increase of £450,000.

CAPTAIN VIVIAN
said, that, considering the large reductions made from the Estimates of the late Government, he thought it would be much more satisfactory that the Committee should have some statement from the Secretary for War explaining those reductions.

GENERAL PEEL
said, he should explain the reasons for the reduction upon each Vote as it was taken.