Captain Vivian was rather smart in reply. He quoted a,
boast of Lord Elcho's that he was the only " unwhipped " mem- ber of the House, and said that that only persuaded him of the truth. of the old adage, "Spare the rod and spoil the child." If Lord Elcho had lived in the days of Noah, instead of going into the- ark with Shem, Ham, and Japhet, he would have insisted on, paddling his own canoe.' He showed that it was quite impossi- ble virtually to amalgamate the Militia and the Line with pur- chase for the Army standing in the way while there is no pur- chase for the Militia ; and he showed that so far from army as dis- tinguished from regimental promotion above the rank of captain, breaking up the "regimental system," there are at present nearly half as many majors who have exchanged from other regiments as- there are majors who have always belonged to the same regiment. (about 137 to 175).
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