Nicola, Lewis (1717-1807) Considerations on Military Punishments

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Considerations on military punishments

I believe severe punishments should be inflicted as sparingly as possible, as frequency diminishes the terror thereof, this principle is not, I believe, sufficiently attended to in the british service where the [Cat] is too frequently made use of. Some argue for severe punishment from the necessity of [preserving] discipline, which I apprehend is a mistake, & that discipline is better secured by a due execution of moderate laws, than the terror of sanguinary ones. In the british laws many thefts of small consequence are punishable by death, the jury not having any other option are, through mercy, induced to acquit, whereby the criminal goes unpunished and a commission of the like crime[struck: s] is encouraged. In France highway ro[inserted: b]berys are punished with the utmost severity, this induces the thief to add the crime of murder, in order to lessen the means of conviction. Crimes certainly affect the publick or individuals in different degrees, to which the punishments should be proportioned.
In the german service the men are entirely governed by fear, the cane being constantly brandished over their heads, and the subordination among officers caried to too great a length.
In the french service the men are governed as much as possible by principals of honour, formerly no officer would offer to lift a stick to a soldier, if he thought proper to inflect any immediate punishment he did it with the flat of his sword, how far this practice is continued I cannot say. The subordination among officers is strictly preserved on duty, yet off they are considered on an equality as gentlemen, without that decent respect an inferiour should shew to a superiour being thereby prejudiced
Of these two modes of government I regard the latter by much the most eligible, & would have the noncomissioned & privates so treated as to impress on their minds a strong sense of the dignity attached to their profession, therefore wish the use of the cane was entirely prohibited to comissioned officers, as they have other & ample means of supporting their military consequences and preserving that reverence requisite to enable the few to govern the many. Upon these principles I beg leave to propose the following Scales of punishments
For commissioned officers
1 Reprimands at the heads of corps, Brigades or in publick orders
2 Suspension from duty for a limited time, during which the delinquent should appear constantly on the parade at roll calling, & other occasions when the regiment is under arms, without a sword or taking his post
3 Suspension from duty & pay & to attend on the parade as in the last article
4 Suspension from pay, duty, rations, & all other emoluments. In this case the person not to be considered as an officer during the Suspension
5 Cashiering
6 Cashiering with some mark of ignominy
Tho I have placed reprimand in the first place in compliance with Custom, yet I would not be understood as considering it in the light of [2] of a slight punishment, on the contrary, I think to every man possessed of those delicat feelings every gentleman ought to have, it far exceeds any pecuniary mulet considered no farther than as the loss of so much money...
For privates
As punishments for this order are more numerous, & the distinctions between them, as to value, not well defined, I shall begin with the highest observing that corporal punishments should be considered in two points of view, the Smart & the disgrace. As the sense of the latter is worn from the mind of the criminal as also from those of the spectators, by frequnecy, so is that of the former from his back, therefore officers should be cautious how they order young soldiers, or such as have not before suffered corporaly, to the post. As to those hardened sinners that are become insensible to the shame & pain of lashes, they being often valuable subjects in the day of action & because the State cannot well spare them in time of warr [sic], their pains may be encreased by means that are not only inoxious [sic], but beneficial to bodily sanity
1 Whipping, pickeling with brine & druming out
2 Whipping & pickeling
3 Whipping...