THE VOLUNTEERS IN TIME OF NEED.

MORE than a quarter of a century has passed since the menace of some French colonels, expressive of their ardent loyalty for Louis Napoleon, called the Volunteers into existence. The proclaimed object of the new force was the defence of this country against invasion. In all the years since, there has never been so much reason to provide against that formidable contingency as at the present moment. The situation is far more menacing now than when the Volunteers first assembled in Hyde Park. It is impossible to deny that a combination of certain Great Powers, not ostentatiously friendly to us, would enable them to command our coast line and to land a great army on our shores. An especial interest therefore attaches to an inquiry into the competence of the Volunteers to bear their part in a possible event, to form a security against which is the reason of their existence.

Since their first establishment the Volunteers have largely increased in numbers. There was a time, some fifteen years ago, when, for some years, the force kept diminishing. But since 1873, when the number enrolled stood at 172,000, of whom nearly 19,000 were non-efficient, it rose steadily, till it stands now at 214,000 enrolled men, of whom less than 7,000 are non-efficient.1 That so many men, of whose lives leisure forms but a small part, should give so much of it to this almost gratuitous service, proves that they have taken up the task in no holiday spirit, and is one of the hopeful signs of the times.

For some years the Volunteers were constituted in small corps according to localities-and of these there were many hundred. The infantry of the force, of which I will first speak, are now formed in battalions made up of companies-manifestly a great improvement; though with the tactical drawback that there is great inequality in

It is difficult to say what other forces would be available for defence, because regular troops with their reserves, and in certain cases militia, would be required for foreign service, and to reinforce the garrison of Ireland. Taking the present establishment, and counting Army Reserve, Militia, Militia Reserve, and Yeomanry, the Volunteers would probably form two-thirds of our defensive army in Great Britain.

the number of companies in a battalion, for any number of men offering themselves, short of the number of a battalion, are added as fresh companies to an existing battalion, and the numbers who offer themselves vary much in different localities. These battalions are allotted to regimental districts in their own counties, and form part of the forces enumerated in the army list as constituting the brigades belonging to those regimental districts which are under the orders of the officers of the regular forces who command those districts.

For instance, the two battalions of the 10th Foot have their depôt at Lincoln, and form with the two battalions of Lincoln Militia the territorial regiment entitled 'the Lincolnshire;' with these are affiliated the two battalions of Lincoln Volunteers, having their headquarters one at Lincoln, the other at Grantham; and the wholeline, militia, and Volunteers-form a brigade under the command of an officer of the 10th Foot, who is said to command the regimental district. This, with four other brigades, formed on the Norfolk, the Suffolk, the Bedfordshire, and the Essex Regiments, are under the general at Colchester, who commands the Eastern District. Though they would, if needed for defence, be assembled in divisions and corps, they have at present no organisation beyond that of the brigade. When fresh candidates for the force, in any county, desire to form a new body, they address the general of the district; should their services be accepted on his recommendation, they are formed, according to their numbers, into an entire battalion, or into one or more companies added to an existing battalion. Thus not only the number of companies in a battalion, but the number of battalions in a brigade, varies considerably. The Royal Lancaster Regiment has only one Volunteer Battalion, the Lincolnshire two, the Norfolk four, the Devonshire five, the Lothian six. All the Volunteer Infantry counts at this time in round numbers 160,000 efficient men.

The conditions of efficiency are these. A Volunteer rifleman must fulfil thirty drills in the first year, or, in case of shortcomings, make his attendances up to sixty in two years, the drills to be of not less than one hour's duration. His certificate of efficiency must testify to that, and also that he has fired a certain number of rounds of ammunition with a sufficiently satisfactory result, and that he possesses a competent knowledge of squad, company, and musketry drill. After his first two years his number of annual drills is diminished to nine.

There are two eminently satisfactory facts connected with this question of efficiency. The one is that popular opinion in the force is so strong respecting non-efficiency resulting from neglect, that the non-efficient finds he had better retire into private life. The other is that the average number of annual drills done by Volunteers very largely exceeds the number demanded for efficiency, and that most of the force largely supplement the quantity of rounds of ammuni

tion fired in practice out of their own pockets. The result of this zealous spirit is that more than 97 per cent. of the whole force hold certificates of efficiency.

Besides the ordinary drills, a portion of the force is assisted every year to form regimental camps of exercise. There are few neighbourhoods which do not see something of these gatherings. Or a Volunteer corps may join a military camp such as Aldershot for one or two weeks. And as these military camps ought to be models of their kind, the instruction to be gained from them may be expected to surpass even that of the regimental camps.

In a battalion of eight companies (and in others in proportion) there are a lieutenant-colonel, two majors, eight captains, eight to twelve lieutenants, a quartermaster, and a surgeon. Of non-commissioned officers there are, roughly, about sixty to seven hundred privates.

Candidates for appointment as officers are recommended by the lord-lieutenants of counties, or, failing them, by the commanding officers, with a detailed description of their qualifications. Officers are recommended for promotion by the commanding officer through the general of the district to the military secretary. At sixty years of age officers resign their commissions unless, at the recommendation of the general, they receive an extension limited to five years.

Officers on half or retired pay of the army are eligible for commissions in the force. The percentage of these is not large.

Failure to attend the number of drills prescribed for the men, without good reason, disqualifies an officer for further service.

Schools of instruction exist at Aldershot, Glasgow, London, and York, for officers of the Rifle Volunteers, who may be qualified by elementary knowledge to enter them. They receive pay while going through the course, and quarters, or an allowance for lodging, as well as the travelling expenses. At the end of the course the officer receives a certificate, and the letters ps are placed before his name in the army list. Or, the officer may be attached to a regiment of the line or militia, in order to attend prescribed drills. At the end of the course he is examined by a military board, passing which he receives a certificate, and the letter p is placed before his name in the army list. Or, instead of these alternatives, he may receive the necessary instruction from the adjutant and sergeant instructors of the corps to which he belongs, when, after passing the examination of a military board, he receives a certificate with the letter p, as in the last case.

The very small number of officers who are not thus distinguished in the army list, proves that the very strong unwritten law which determines the conduct of large classes is in this case completely on the side of public spirit and manifest efficiency.

Officers of all ranks may also pass an examination in tactics at

the head-quarters of military districts, when the nature of the certificate they have obtained is also indicated by a letter in the army list.

The non-commissioned officers are appointed by the commanding officer from among the enrolled members. Sergeants must obtain a certificate of proficiency within one year after appointment. They are tested, in a prescribed examination, by the adjutant, and their certificates, signed by him, are countersigned by the commanding officer.

This adjutant is, for the most part, an officer of the regular or auxiliary forces who fulfils certain conditions prescribed in the Queen's Regulations. He gives instruction to his corps. He visits all parts of it twelve times a year for military instruction. The names of Volunteers present are recorded by him, and he examines the recruits in drill. He notes those Volunteers present who may be qualified for the certificates of efficiency already described, drills the company, keeps a diary of the instruction he imparts, visits the practice ranges, and inspects the arms. He is assisted by duly qualified sergeants from the active army, their principal duty being to attend to the drill and instruction of the corps.

Hitherto the infantry has been spoken of. The formation of artillery Volunteer corps is only sanctioned when circumstances enable them to obtain suitable facilities for artillery practice. Great Britain is divided into artillery sub-districts, to each of which a lieutenant-colonel of the royal artillery is appointed under the orders of the officer commanding the royal artillery of the district.

The garrison batteries of the royal artillery and the militia artillery are formed in territorial divisions. Thus a brigade of the royal artillery has its depôt in Sunderland, and forms-with the Durham, Northumberland, and Yorkshire brigades of militia artillery, who have their head-quarters at Sunderland, Berwick, and Scarborough -the Northern Division. With these are associated twelve corps of Volunteer artillery, having their head-quarters at Newcastle (2), Alnwick, Tynemouth, Scarborough, Hull, Middlesborough, Carlisle, Seaham, Leeds, Bradford, Sheffield. The adjutants of these corps and the sergeant instructors are taken from the royal artillery and royal marine artillery.

They have officers in the proportion of one lieutenant-colonel, two majors, eight captains, and eight to twelve lieutenants, with a quartermaster and surgeon, to a corps of eight batteries, numbering from four hundred to six hundred and forty men, with a sergeantmajor and two to three sergeants and three to four corporals per company. To obtain a certificate of proficiency the officers can go through a school of instruction at Woolwich, or be attached to a battery of the royal artillery, or a regiment of artillery militia; or be examined by a board of officers-non-commissioned officers are

examined by their own adjutants. They may form camps, by corps or by batteries, at stations where gun-practice can be carried on.

The efficient artillery Volunteers in Great Britain number roundly 38,000, forming 62 corps.

Engineer corps are formed, as a rule, of men whose business has fitted or prepared them for the service: of engineers, masons, carpenters, quarrymen, or the like. They form part of the forces of the military districts, and are under the orders of the Commanding Royal Engineer of these. A corps of eight companies has the same establishment as a similar artillery corps in officers, but a larger number of enrolled men, its force being 480 to 800, averaging 80 per company, and their non-commissioned officers more numerous in proportion (sergeants two to three, corporals eight to ten). The three years' course of instruction in the business of engineers comprises the making of field works, the preparation of posts for defence, the construction of military bridges, batteries, magazines, and mines. The drills, for two years, are divided into twelve engineering and twenty-four other drills—afterwards six engineering and nine others, and the certificate of proficiency depends on the Engineer Volunteer in each year attending and duly profiting by these.

The Engineer Volunteers number roundly 9,000 efficients in 22 corps. Those admitted to a course of instruction go to Chatham for purpose.

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The Light Horse and Mounted Rifles, less than 300 in all, are too few for specific mention.

Of the whole force, 6,000 officers and 12,000 sergeants hold certificates of proficiency.

Every corps, of whatever arm, is inspected once a year by an officer of the regular army duly appointed. Arrangements are made for the inspection by the general of the district, and time and place are made to suit the general convenience of the corps. Two-thirds of its numbers must be present, or the inspection is postponed. When a corps is in its regimental camp of exercise it is to be inspected in the camp. But when it joins a camp of exercise of the regular or militia forces, it is not to be inspected there (the number being too small for the purpose), but at its own head-quarters.

The Volunteers are not left altogether without assistance from the public to defray their necessary expenses. An annual allowance of 17. 108. is granted for every efficient Volunteer officer (who has attended a prescribed number of drills) and man, with a special additional allowance of 21. 108., on account of each Volunteer officer or sergeant who holds a certificate of proficiency; and a special allowance of 10s. for every officer who has passed in the year the examination in tactics is granted for that year only. These sums go to the general fund.

Travelling expenses on a fixed scale are granted where companies