Southern standard. [volume] (Columbus, Miss.) 1851-1856, 1853-12-10
The Russian Military Power as il i.

ana eIncltncY Oh thit power II Is difficult to form
exact estimate Neither the boastful cxaggera-
tons of the Russian boyars, the coarse ard IL
disguised misrepresentation of ofici: persons, are
to be depended on. In country where the re is
no freedom OF the press, and where The indScrcet
revelation OF fact may subject the loose tonrued
official to the gentle conec,ives of dismissal the
knout or Siberia, the best public instructors
apt to b public deceiyers, and private conf
dence cannot and does not exist. Buteven though
there Were facilities for reference and inform ,tion
yet the constant changes Introduced by a monarch
whose mania IS military set accuracy at de tidence;
AMI IRON their number aud variety, in iced, almost
transcend human belief. Without some knowl-
edge, however Of the Russian military system ii
Is lmro sl5le 10 know anything Of Russia. The
whole civil Institutions modelled after, while
they are subSeryient 10, the military system. The
highest civil power in Petersburg and Moscow is
vested IN the military governor, next under whom
Is the head OF the police. Much OF the numerical
force OF Russia is nominal, and GA paper only. In
order however, to give that weight to The power
of the Gar which he is always anxious to claim in
the politics of the East and West this paper army
is Pompously and periodically paraded in tie al
geHctR7 Ie,taR9, tie 1ugSbury Gozctte, and the
frankfort Jouanat, one and all in the pay of Rus /
sla. And even some of our American papers are
not clear of this charge. But when it is consider
ed that most of the titles conferred by the Empe-
of military nature it is not difficult to d.
vine by what means the amount the Ruscian ar
mics Is swccd out The orilcia returns raise he
numerical force q Russia to the as onshing amount
of ,O20, 600 men, and not including the reserves
to $4,000; though there is another statement
which reduces it to G62 600. Some military wri-
terS there are, indeed, who would reduce the army
OF Russia TO 100000 men but this is an obvious
error, for 1t cannot be supposed that with her pop
ulaton and extent of tcaritory, Russia is inferior
in numerical strength TO either France Austria
or Prussia, whose forces, with International guard
or landwehr, approach, if they do not amount to,
that compliment When, moreover, ii is remem-
be!ed that Russia has cen acquiring not only an
immense increase of territory, bat also of popua-
ton, may We'll accord to her lumber OF eff
cienttroops amounting to from coo, Geo, or 10 G40,
600 men at the very utmest. That we will prove
by giving some statistical and historical statements
from reliable sources.
Though Russia extends over surface embra-
cling thirty five degrees latitude-though it COM
prises within it territory of 9 goo English miles
i'll length and 2,0GO in breadth, with population
. amounting to 60 C0O, 000-though the empire is
! divided into ffy one governments, and is adLinis
tered by eleven governors 9enero yet this organ
cation, however imposing and magnificent on pa
per, is really more snowy than strong-more ex-
tended and ditiused than compact and powerful.
6 The sterile and thinly -peopled provinces of Arch
angel, Olonetz, and Voogdo furnish few recruits.
The scattered tribes popping the Siberas, compri-
a sing the Kamschatkans, Aeutians, Samoiedcs,
= etc., from but an ill-compactcd mass of men, diff
= fering in races, habits, and feelings; while the
= Maushurs, and remnants of the MOngols, whose
names acc barely known in Europe, add little to
: No population, and nothing at al TO the military
>. powerof RUSSIA. tribute offars and skins they
undoubtedly pay but the chief Of their country
!, seems to be that it prison for convict,
" and eXileS, two thousand of whom escape every
/ year to the steppes plains around, where they
:, are left unmolested. Orcnburg, aproyince large
~ than most European kingdoms, has within it pop
ulation OF 900, 900 souls but in Iskonsz, on th,
other hand, there are only four men to the squar
;, mile.
d The distant provinces, therefore, furnish fey
Of recruits for The army and even though The mum
IN berS were more considerable, it would be Difficult
ST to move such leves, not only from the want o
means, but from the necessity of leaving military
J. force in their place for the desert tribes of tn
or Ural, comprising the Baskrs and Kirghises ant
h especially the Causasans, are not to be kept i
,e order witEouthe presence of large military force
m In Georgia, in time OF peace travellers procee
at with a large escort, and field pieces to back them
or in their distant peregrinaions. 1t is hence appa
c rent that he army must be chiefly supplied iron
n the central provinces Of Russia proper. These, q
wen as LlLit huSSia ana ti.c UKRAINE, are Nt
a. peopled and fertile but Finland on the other han
in does otfurniSh more than 90 600 for service
The difficulty of obtaining le'ies is, Therefore, III
A. donbtedly great; but these difficulties small
o. comparison TO the wide cXpanSe of duty and SCI
on vice which opens out before the eye OF Russia
nj soldier the moment he enters on actual service
a He may have to defend the fors and coast on til
ch Black sea, in orler to watch every movement c
II the part of the Turks-to guard the frontiers c
49, the side of Persia on the Oral-to rcpress the CT
~ cassians and o1her warke tribes of the Caucasl
zee to keep in bounds the rowing families Of the Gasp
de an-or to repress the just discomfort of his BRAY
Yer warlike, and oppressed Sclavonlan brother in u
nd happy Poland. And for all these varied and We
atious duties neither Siberia, New Russia, Ii
sh the Crimea, nor Georgia, Eor the Caucasus, fur
he ish one soldier to the imperial government. II
CIV campaigns of 1912 and 1913, the Turkish war, Il
DIV instruction of Poland. and recently the Hungal
m an intervention will abundaty prove our assertion
ire that the distant provinces are not an 0DFcind
in neinum' When it is known from authentic doc
of ments that only 100. Geo soldiers could be cole
he ted at one point, with which force the battle of
nit rodna' or Mosqua' Was lought' and OF whom lro
) % 600 to so, 600 men were who had just been Ct
be ected, clad IN Their sheepsAns, from The lands
as their masters and that ii is equally true and
ms indeed an admitted fact, that the Russian arm
la was filed up on its entry into Paris by the Cossac
ms and Bashkirs, and that the levy thus raised
ans last that could have been resorted to- had the
ais been prolonged, we shall be better able to form
a Just opinion of the military power of Russia.
i'm any doubt remained as to the exaggerated cStma
il of Russian armies, it would be eRectualy reno
rise ed by the history ofthe next campaign. The In
Md ish under Debitch cost the Russians 2O0,G
,ot men whom one half we're carried off in the ii