The Sun.
London, England, 1862-03-11 00:00:00

CAVALRY IN iIIODERN ARMIES.

The Revue Contemporaine publishesan article, by
Comte de Latour,',on the important question of the
part which cavalry is likely to play in future wars,
now that fire-arms have acquired a range far supe-
rior to that of former days. Many professional
men, since the last Italian war, have expressed
the opinion that the number of cavalry ought to
be considerably reduced, since the long range
will prevent its ever repeating those brilliant
charges which won for it an undying reputation
in the fields of Rossbach, Hanna, Marengo, Aus-
terlitz, and Essling. Before a mass of cavalry,
they argue, can be brought near enough to a
square or a battery, it will be crushed by the
overwhelming power of ordnance rendered effec-
tive at a distance of 2,000 yards, and muskets with
a sure range of 800. At Solferina, for instance, the
1 Austrian cavalry, which attempted to charge Gen.
1 Desvauxis squadrons, could not even deploy under
the murderous tire of the French rifled guns, which
I ploughed their deep ranks. Henceforth, then, ac-
cording to the adversaries of cavalry, the duties of
that art will be reduced to escorts, foraging, and
skirmishing parties, and pursuing the enemy after
a battle. Comte de Latour is not of that opinion.
The proportion of cavalry, he observes, in modern
armies is about one-fourth in time of peace, and
one-sixth in time of war. In the latter case,
France would probably have 100,000 horse in
an army of 700,000 men, and this would not
be too much. The effect of a well-served artillery
will always be terrible, whenever it can enfilade
close masses; but it will be much less effective
against a cavalry-force masked by woods or ravines,
or even concealed at a distance of 1,000 yards by a
thick veil of dust and smoke. In such a case, cavalry
may resolutely charge a battery; andv this it m
its
ay
even do nehen quite exposed, prod it makes
approach in skirmishing order, so that, instead of
presenting a deep mass, it may only oppose scattered
points to the showers of grape and shot directed
against it by the battery. This manoauvre is now
I adopted by the infantry, and must shortly be also by
cavalry, when, our author believes, it will regain
all its superiority of former days, and be able, as
before, to extinguish a murderous artillery-fire in
the open field, execute offensive movements when
there is a long distance to be gone over, break an
attacking column, complete the defeat of a waver-
ing army, change a check into a rout, make nume-
rous off and surround singleparti
that the opinions now
generally held regarding the power of the new
fire-arms are vastly
es. prisoners,
T he and
Count
ficuntds
exaggerated, and shows that
many more men were lost in the great battles of
the Empire than in the last Italian campaign. At
lost 30 per cent., the Aus-
triansute
the French lost
14 per cent. At Wagram the loss of the Austrians
Austerlitz z
per th e c
eßussiansnt .
of
ot h
eir
army ;
was 14, that of the French 13 per cent. At La
As
Moak°. wa the Russians lost 44 per cent.; at Waterloo
the allies lost 31 per cent,, the French 36 per cent.
At Magenta, on the contrary, the Austrian loss was
not more than 8 per cent., that of the French only
7 ; at Solferino the Austrians sustained a similar
loss, and the Franco-Sardinians only lost one-tenth.
This may be explained by the fact that a long range
obliges the projectile to describe a large curve; thus,
according to M. d Azemar, if the column of the
Place Vendome were placed between the gun and
the mark, the latter being at a distance of 2,500
yards, the projectile would pass clean over the
monument without touching it. Count de Latour
very justly observes that when the new musket
was invented, the same predictions of the future
uselessness of artillery Were made as are now brought
against cavalry, and concludes with other argu-
ments tending to prove the importance of this sec-
tion of a regular and well-appointed army.

Tim REPRESENTATION OF THE NOR= RIDING.
—The high sheriff has fixed the nomination for Monday,
the 17th inst., and the poll will be taken on the following
Thureday, and the declaration on Skturday.