MILITIA BILL.
The next bill that engaged the attention of the commons, was a measure of the utmost national importance, though secretly disliked by many individuals of the legislature, who, nevertheless, did not venture to avow their disapprobation. The establishment of a militia was a very popular and desirable object, but attended with numberless difficulties, and a competition of interests which it was impossible to reconcile. It had formerly been an inexhaustible source of contention between the crown and the commons; but now both apparently concurred in rendering it serviceable to the commonwealth, though some acquiesced in the scheme, who were not at all hearty in its favour. On the fourth day of December, a motion was made for the bill, by colonel George Townshend, eldest son of lord viscount Townshend, a gentleman of courage, sense, and probity; endued with penetration to discern, and honesty to pursue, the real interest of his country, in defiance of power, in contempt of private advantages. Leave being given to bring in a bill for the better ordering of the militia forces in the several counties of England, the task of preparing it was allotted to Mr. Townshend, and a considerable number of the most able members in the house, comprehending his own brother, Mr. Charles Townshend, whose genius shone with distinguished lustre: he was keen, discerning, eloquent, and accurate; possessed a remarkable vivacity of parts, with a surprising solidity of understanding; was a wit without arrogance, a patriot without prejudice, and a courtier without dependance.
While the militia bill remained under consideration in the house, a petition for a constitutional and well-regulated militia was presented by the mayor, jurats, and commonalty of the king’s town and parish of Maidstone, in Kent, in common-council assembled. At the same time remonstrances were offered by the protestant dissenting ministers of the three denominations in and about the cities of London and Westminster; by the protestant dissenters of Shrewsbury; the dissenting ministers of Devonshire; the protestant dissenters, being freeholders and burgesses of the town and county of the town of Nottingham, joined with other inhabitants of the church of England, expressing their apprehension, that, in the bill then depending, it might be proposed to enact, that the said militia should be exercised on the Lord’s day, commonly called Sunday, and praying that no clause for such purpose might pass into a law. Though nothing could be more ridiculously fanatic and impertinent than a declaration of such a scruple against a practice so laudable and necesssary, in a country where that day of the week is generally spent in merry-making, riot, and debauchery, the house paid so much regard to the squeamish consciences of those puritanical petitioners, that Monday was pitched upon for the day of exercise to the militia, though on such working days they might be much more profitably employed, both for themselves and their country; and that no religious pretence should be left for opposing the progress and execution of the bill, proper clauses were inserted for the relief of the quakers. Another petition and counter-petition were delivered by the magistrates, freeholders, and burgesses of the town of Nottingham, in relation to their particular franchises, which were accordingly considered in framing the bill.
After mature deliberation, and divers alterations, it passed the lower house, and was sent to the lords for their concurrence: here it underwent several amendments, one of which was the reduction of the number of militia-men to one half of what the commons had proposed; namely, to thirty-two thousand three hundred and forty men for the whole kingdom of England and Wales. The amendments being canvassed in the lower house, met with some opposition, and divers conferences with their lordships ensued; at length, however, the two houses agreed to every article, and the bill soon received the royal sanction. No provision, however, was made for clothes, arms, accoutrements, and pay: had regulations been made for these purposes, the act would have become a money-bill, in which the lords could have made no amendment: in order, therefore, to prevent any difference between the two houses, on a dispute of privileges not yet determined, and that the house of peers might make what amendments they should think expedient, the commons left the expense of the militia to be regulated in a subsequent bill, during the following session, when they could, with more certainty, compute what sum would be necessary for these purposes. After all, the bill seemed to be crude, imperfect, and ineffectual, and the promoters of it were well aware of its defects; but they were apprehensive that it would have been dropped altogether, had they insisted upon the scheme being executed in its full extent. They were eager to seize this opportunity of trying an experiment, which might afterwards be improved to a greater national advantage; and, therefore, they acquiesced in many restrictions and alterations, which otherwise would not have been adopted.
BILL FOR QUARTERING FOREIGN TROOPS, &c.
The next measure that fell under the consideration of the house, was rendered necessary by the inhospitable perseverance of the publicans and inn-holders, who conceived themselves not obliged by law to receive or give quarters in their houses to any foreign troops, and accordingly refused admittance to the Hessian auxiliaries, who began to be dreadfully incommoded by the severity of the weather. This objection implying an attack upon the prerogative, the government did not think fit, at this juncture, to dispute any other way, than by procuring a new law in favour of those foreigners. It was intituled, “A bill to make provision for quartering the foreign troops now in this kingdom,” prepared by lord Barrington, the chancellor of the exchequer, and the solicitor-general, and immediately passed without opposition. This step being taken, another bill was brought in, for the regulation of the marine forces while on shore. This was almost a transcript of the mutiny act, with this material difference: it empowered the admiralty to grant commissions for holding general courts-martial, and to do every thing, and in the same manner, as his majesty is empowered to do by the usual mutiny bill; consequently every clause was adopted without question.
BILL FOR THE MORE SPEEDY RECRUITING THE LAND-FORCES AND MARINES, &c.
The same favourable reception was given to a bill for the more speedy and effectual recruiting his majesty’s land-forces and marines; a law which threw into the hands of many worthless magistrates an additional power of oppressing their fellow-creatures: all justices of the peace, commissioners of the land-tax, magistrates of corporations and boroughs, were empowered to meet by direction of the secretary at war, communicated in precepts issued by the high sheriffs, or their deputies, within their respective divisions, and at their usual place of meeting, to qualify themselves for the execution of the act: then they were required to appoint the times and places for their succeeding meetings; to issue precepts to the proper officers for these succeeding meetings; and to give notice of the time and place of every meeting to such military officer, as, by notice from the secretary at war, should be directed to attend that service. The annual bill for preventing mutiny and desertion met with no objections, and indeed contained nothing essentially different from that which had passed in the last session. The next law enacted, was, for further preventing embezzlement of goods and apparel, by those with whom they are intrusted, and putting a stop to the practice of gaming in public houses. By this bill a penalty was inflicted on pawnbrokers, in a summary way, for receiving goods, knowing them not to be the property of the pledger, and pawned without the authority of the owner. [395] [See note 3 F, at the end of this Vol.] With respect to gaming, the act ordained that all publicans suffering journeymen, labourers, servants, or apprentices, to game with cards, dice, shuffleboards, mississippi, or billiard tables, skittles, nine-pins, &c. should forfeit forty shillings for the first offence, and for every subsequent offence, ten pounds shall be levied by distress.
Divers inconveniences having resulted from the interposition of justices, who, in pursuance of an act of parliament passed in the present reign, assumed the right of establishing rates for the payment of wages to weavers, several petitions wore offered to the house of commons, representing the evil consequences of such an establishment; and although these arguments were answered and opposed in counter-petitions, the commons, actuated by a laudable concern for the interest of the woolen manufacture, after due deliberation, removed the grievance by a new bill, repealing so much of the former act as empowered justices of peace to make rates for the payment of wages. [396] [See note 3 G, at the end of this Vol.] The commons were not more forward to provide supplies for prosecuting the war with vigour, than ready to adopt new regulations for the advantage of trade and manufactures. The society of the free British fishery presented a petition, alleging, that they had employed the sum of one hundred and thirty thousand three hundred and five pounds, eight shillings and sixpence, together with the entire produce of their fish, and all the monies arising from the several branches allowed on the tonnage of their shipping, and on the exportation of their fish, in carrying on the said fishery; and that, from their being obliged, in the infancy of the undertaking, to incur a much larger expense than was at that time foreseen, they now found themselves so far reduced in their capital, as to be utterly incapable of further prosecuting the fisheries with any hope of success, unless indulged with the further assistance of parliament. They prayed, therefore, that, towards enabling them to carry on the said fisheries, they might have liberty to make use of such nets as they should find best adapted to the said fisheries; each buss, nevertheless, carrying to sea the same quantity and depth of netting, which, by the fishery acts, they were then bound to carry: that the bounty of thirty shillings per ton, allowed by the said acts on the vessels employed in the fishery, might be increased; and forasmuch as many of the stock proprietors were unable to advance any further sum for prosecuting this branch of commerce; and others unwilling in the present situation, and under the present restraints, to risk any further sum in the undertaking; that the stock of the society, by the said acts made unalienable, except in case of death or bankruptcy, for a term of years, might forthwith be made transferable; and that the petitioners might be at liberty, between the intervals of the fishing seasons, to employ the busses in such a manner as they should find for the advantage of the society. While the committee was employed in deliberating on the particulars of this remonstrance, another was delivered from the free British fishery chamber of Whitehaven in Cumberland, representing, that as the law then stood, they went to Shetland, and returned at a great expense and loss of time; and while the war continued, durst not stay there to fish, besides being obliged to run the most imminent risks, by going and returning without convoy: that, ever since the institution of the present fishery, experience had fully shown the fishery of Shetland not worth following, as thereby the petitioners had lost two months of a much better fishery in St. George’s channel, within one day’s sail of Whitehaven: they took notice, that the free British fishery society had applied to the house for further assistance and relief; and prayed that Campbelton, in Argyleshire, might be appointed the place of rendezvous for the busses belonging to Whitehaven, for the summer as well as the winter fishery, that they might be enabled to fish with greater advantage. The committee having considered the matter of both petitions, were of opinion that the petitioners should be at liberty to use such nets as they should find best adapted to the white herring fishery: that the bounty of thirty shillings per ton should be augmented to fifty: that the petitioners should be allowed, during the intervals of the fishing seasons, to employ their vessels in any other lawful business, provided they should have been employed in the herring fishery during the proper seasons: that they might use such barrels for packing the fish as they then used, or might hereafter find best adapted for that purpose: that they should have liberty to make use of any waste or uncultivated land, one hundred yards at the least above high water mark, for the purpose of drying their nets; and that Campbelton would be the most proper and convenient place for the rendezvous of the busses belonging to Whitehaven. This last resolution, however, was not inserted in the bill which contained the other five, and in a little time received the royal assent.