The Express.
London, England, 1865-09-01 00:00:00

THZ CAMP AT CHALON&

(MOM • 0011/ZIRO9DOT.)
CARP, CHALONS, AUGUNt 28,
In all probability the present will be my last
letter from this military hot-bed. To-morrow I
betake myself to Strasbourg, and shall most likely
not return to Ohalona, even to see !ea resales
esanteuvrea that are to take place ou the Let and
2nd of the month, previous to the oamp breaking
up, which it does on the 4th. The troops
seem delighted to get back to their winter
quarters, although they also appear to have en-
joyed their plc-uic here very much. The
French War-oftioe is wiser in its genera-
tion than our Horse Guards. Our fellows—
officers and men—hate Aldershott, and detest the
Curragh, for the reason that was stated some time
ago iu the Daily .News, they get too much of it.
They are at camp work all the year round, and
as was very truly observed in the same lead-
ing article, our camps are now mere large garrison
towns, with all the drawbacks and inconveniences of
camp life added thereunto. Now, the French come
here under quite different circulustauces. They
leave all their cares behind them with their heavy
baggage. They come to Chalons to lead ,iiiite a differ-
ent life than that of the usual routiue of quartets.
They put up with all the inconveniences of camp
existence with pleasure, because it is a change for
a time, and any change, even for the worse, is, as
we all know, very much better than none. The
consequence is that they learn very much wore
hero than our men do at Aldershott. Not that I
believa iu lee grandee) tnanteurres, either Freueh or
English. I don't think these under the rank of •
battalion commander learn anything at those show
parades ; and even they don't add much to their
stock of knowledge. It may be good fur generals
and brigadiers to have divisions, brigades, and
regiments to knock about, but to the troops they
counuaud the work is anything but pleasant.
What agonies of dusty eyes, a dry throat, and
a general feeling of having " tubbed" last
some three weeks past, dues the very name
of Peunefather call to mind ! And yet a better
or a kinder hearted man has not his name ou our
Army List, or that of any other country. But I
know that in all that coustitutes a belief in ma-
meuvring great bodies of troops I ant a heretic,
for I feel certain—in fact, experience has taught
me—that 'whenever a regiment, brigade, division,
or army goes into action, the commander of the
force must have wits enough about him to act as
the occasion requires, for you never know where
your adversary will have you.
We form very erroneous opinions in England
respecting moat points of discipline connected with
the French army. I confess that until I came to
Chalons this year I was under the impres-
sion that the officers—the regimental officers, of
course—looked much more after their men than
we do in the English service. But the exact con-
trary is the case. Here is the routine of duty in a
French cavalry regiment with which I have mixed
a great deal since I came here, and the officers tell
me that the very same rules govern every corps in
the service, whether in camp or quarters. At five
o'clock—six iu winter—the reveille sounds. A
quarter of au hour afterwards the men assemble in
stable dress, and the roll-call is called. At this
duty one officer per squadron must be present, and
he remains present until the men begin cleaning
their horses. This duty is taken by the week, and
as in each aquadrou there are two lieutenants and
two aubdieuteuauts,beaides a first and second cap-
tain, the work cannot be very hard. For the
stable duty and general police of the regiment there
is a captain, a subaltern, au adjutant-major, and au
adjiitaut of the week. These are present at all
stable duties, and visit the kitchens of the regiment
be-ore the meals are taken away to the rooms, as
well as the meat before it is distributed to the
cooks. But this iv not, as with us, a duty under
arms—that is, the officers on these duties do not wear
swords. or button up their uniforms ; they look
upon the work as a fatigue duty. Once the dinners
have left the kitchens they never go near the men.
There is no visiting of dinners as with us ; nut
even the sergeant* go into the barrack-rooms or
touts when the men are at dinner. The French say
that it worries the men and does no good, and
I sin not sure but they are right. Every
corporal is responsible for his squad, and
as the men of the same squad always go
on guard together, the corporal is never away from
his mm. He dines with them, lives with them, is
responsible for their good order and cleanliness.
The sergeants, sergeant-majors, and adjutants live
quite apart. They are called collectively lea seas•
ulliciers, for a corporal is not considered a sons-01l
i-
cier, and mess together at the canteen of their
squadron. It is wonderful how much a corporal
has to do in the French army, and bow uncommonly
well he does it. In their service the rank of cor-
poral is considered the most difficult to fill in the
service ; and if a man can do the work well he is
moot
uon as fitted for au post. The exami-
tion he has to pass through before he gets the
stripe would shame many a Stall College man,
I can assure you. Ile does everything that
can be imagined, except keeping the accounts
uE clothine, forage, rations, bedding, necessaries,
and so forth. All that kind of work is done by the
sergeants of the squadron, who in barracks are mere
pee and ink men, and on duty look to the drill and
riding and conduct of the men.
In the French cavalry the regiments are not
divided into troops as with us, but into squadrons,
and each two sinadroos form a perfect little corps
of its own. In each squadron there are a first cap-
tain, a second ditto, two lieutenants, two sub-
lieutenants, a fouriee (or kind of quartermaster ser-
geant, only lie takes part in all parades), a Inarechal
de !ogle chef (or sergeant-major), four merit:hal de
(ogle (or sergeants), and eight brigadiers, or
corporals, and a hundred mounted and
twenty dismounted men. The latter are
recruits, officers' servants, cooks, and such like.
To each two squadrons there is a chef d'escad rens,
an adjutant-major, and an adjutant. The first of
these is • major, as we should call Lim, and has
complete command over the two squadrons under
him, both in quarters, in camp, and iu the field. The
adjutant-major is a captain, senior to all other cap-
tains, and corresponds with our adjutant ; the
adjutant is a non-commissioned officer, correspond-
ing with our regimental sergeant-major—only in the
French cavalry there is an adjutant to every two
squadrons, and there are eight squadrons in every
regiment.