It is a favourite doctrine, with some speculative the orists, that Great Britain may call forth the whole dis posable population of these kingdoms in military array, and form them into great armies. The idea of accom plishing this measure, is founded on the mistaken no tion, that the people may be taxed to the full extent of their whole revenue, above the mere necessaries of life, which would place in the hands of government an im mense sum of money, and thereby enable them to pay soldiers, and defray the maintenance of armies. But it is not by money that armies are supported, it is by com modities themselves ; for money is only a representative of value, and contains no element in itself that could sus tain life,—it must therefore be resolved into commodities to supply all the wants of the army, before it could be of any utility ; but we have already observed, that there is a measure which limits the exactions of any govern ment, and this measure is, the surplus produce of in dustry, or that part of the national stock which can be easily spared, after supplying the ordinary consump tion of the country.
As the magnitude of the standing army which a nation can bring into the field, and support for any length of time, depends as much upon the abundance of food as the extent of population, it is not surprising that some states should be able to raise and to maintain a greater number of fighting men, in proportion to their numerical population, than others. A country in a high state of agricultural improvement, will always support a larger number of soldiers or unproductive labourers, in propor tion to its population, than, one less so; because it re quires fewer hands to till the soil to produce the same quantity of subsistence, which being equally diffused among all the members of the society, leaves a greater proportion of the people at liberty to pursue war, or other objects. The numerical population of Britain does not amount to the half of that of France, yet she has been able to contend with that potent enemy for many centuries, and to baffle all her attempts. The produce of the soil of Britain so far exceeds that of France, that the excess of population of the latter is counterbalanced by the greater abundance of the resources of the former. Britain can spat more fighting men, in proportion to her, population, than France can do ; because she can raise a greater quantity of produce from the same extent of surface : hence she is proportionally richer in men, and in all the resources of war. This principle applies to every civilized nation, and is the true cause of small states having often been able to defend themselves against the attacks of the great. Although this prin ciple also applies to barbarous nations, yet it is not so apparent, as their system of warfare is so different from that of civilized society. When the Goths and Van. dais over-ran Europe, it was the movement of the whole people. They pressed forward, not in armies, but with the whole members of the community—the old and the young, as well as their fighting men, bore down, in one immense mass, on fertile provinces, where they found more subsistence than in their own country ; and they accordingly established themselves. The first were pressed forward by the next, and mass succeeding mass, they carried havoc and desolation over the face of Eu rope. But the empire of the West was on the decline ; it was weak and fe,..ble ; it was like the lion in the fable, it had descended from the lofty eminence from which it had dictated laws to the world, from its manhood and vigour, to a state of total imbecility. But Europe has no longer to fear a similar calamity ; for it has been re marked, that since the invention of gunpowder, the implements of war have become so expensive, as to give civilized nations a decided superiority over barbarians.
The expediency of maintaining a standing army in a free country in time of peace, has been often the subject of discussion ; and no where more warmly debated than in the British parliament. Ever watchful of the liber ties of the country, and suspicious of the encroachments of the crown, the duration of the law by which our mili tary establishment exists, is limited to a year ; and par liament annually pass what is denominated the Mutiny ?ct, "to punish mutiny and desertion, and for the better payment of the army, and their quarters." This act
regulates the manner in which the troops are to be bil leted on innkeepers and victuallers ; and establishes a law martial for their government. If any officer, or sol dier, should excite or join any mutiny, or knowing of it, shall not give notice to the commanding officer, or shall desert, or list in any other regiment, or sleep upon his post, or leave it before he is relieved, or hold cor respondence with a rebel or enemy, or strike or use violence to a superior officer, or shall disobey his lawful commands, such offender shall suffer such punishment as a court martial shall inflict, though it extend to death itself. The.authority which this act conveys to courts martial is fully adequate to support discipline, and to repress disorder among the soldiery ; and its limited duration is a security to the people against the encroach ments of military power ; for, were parliament to refuse to pass this act, the army must disband itself, as there would then be no funds for its support. But some of our most distinguished patriots have thought, that the standing army was dangerous in time of peace ; and Mr Pulteny argued vehemently on this subject : " I have always been," he says, " and always shall be, against a standing army of any kind : to me it is a terrible thing, whether under that of parliamentary, or any other de signation ; a standing army is still a standing army, whatever name it may be called by: they are a body of men distinct from the body of the people : they are gov erned by different laws ; and blind obedience, and an entire submission to the orders of their commanding officer, is their only principle. The nations around us are already enslaved, and have been enslaved by these very means ; by means of their standing armies they have every one lost their liberties." If there are in stances in the history of the world of armies having overthrown the government, or served as instruments to enslave the people, there are others of a contrary ten dency. But the evil which Mr Pulteny here fears has now produced its own remedy. The augmentation of a standing army, the embodying of a militia, a local mi litia, and volunteers, it is generally understood, has, in effect, unsoldiered the army, lormed citizens into soldiers, and soldiers into citizens. It has been remarked, that the despotism of armies is the slavery of soldiers, who can exercise no external tyranny but by submitting to an internal tyranny themselves, and must renounce all the advantages of liberty before they can deprive their countrymen of it. A standing army of 100,000 can never coerce a body of 400,000 or 500,000 armed citizens; and besides the imposing argument of force, a militia, and local militia, by partaking of the nature of citizens and soldiers, form a tie between the body of the people and the army, soften the severity of military despotism, and mould the ideas of the regular army to the bless ings of liberty. Soldiers, in this country, are overawed by their armed fellow citizens, and prevented from con spiring against freedom ; but they are sufficiently en lightened to perceive, that their advantages as citizens are far beyond their military privileges. We may there fore enjoy all the benefit of a regular army, without the danger of any of the evils to be apprehended from it ; and if the constitution shall be overturned, it will cer tainly proceed from other causes than the effects of a standing army. See Goguet's Origin of Laws, Eic. vol. ii. 335. et seq. Rollin's Ancient History, vol. v. p. 306. Adams' Roman Antiquities, 366. ct seq. Robertson's Charles V. vol. I. p. 14. and 131. Edinburgh Review, vol. xiii. p. 431,--455. Military Characters of the Eu ropean Armies, p. 6. et seq. 31, 115, 139. Army List for 1808. Montesquieu's Spirit of Laws, vol. i. p. 287. Mutiny Act. Pulteny's Speech. (T)*