New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1860-02-20
q, in general The most re, dictionary theories in

impunlfy, but even taken INTO GUN . d.
ernmeDts. The fret point was o, course 'ns' Vi
the equipment OF the soldier, which hd iOrneo lne
most conspicuous difference between the TWO armies
on the battlefield and the discussion of tbs Prcec1
was as intermiDable as the varieties Of taste. An
immense deal of ingenuity was expended on mill
tsry tailoring. Caps, helmets, sbakos, hats, coats,
blouses, capotes, collars, cuffs, tiowserS. CATERS,
and boots were discussed with vivacity aud To-
ouacty az If on such things alone bad de-
pended the fate of the day at Solferino.
The Austrans were the most extrayagant In
their military fashions. From an almost exact
copy of the French model earring the color) they
passed through all the intermediate stages, up to
the blouse and slouched, wide.awake hat. Imagine
the stiff, conservative, staid Imperial Royal Aus
TRAN soldier in the cOquettish dress OF the French
chasseur, or, still WORSE 10 the blouse and felt hat
Of the revolutionary German free corps of lS4S. A
greater satire could not be passed on the Austrian
military system than that either of these extremes
should have been taken seriously into consideration
As usual, the debate has been exhausted rather
than settled; military old fegyism has recovered
part of TIE lost ground and in Austria, at least, the
alterations in the uniform will, upon the whole, DO
irifing; while 10 the other German armies scarcely
any change appears probable, except that the
Prussian helmet that pet invention OF the roma.'o
Frederic William w., seems doomed to descend u
the grave even before it's inventor.
Next came the great knapsack question. iha'
tbe French went into battle without tneir hu"P-
sscks vas niece of imprudence which could Dc JUS
tied Nv nothing but their good luck, aad the
warmth of the season. But should IL become
babitual thing with them, the first reverse in cold
mr. rainy weather would punish them severely for 1t.
In fact, the general adoption of this usage would
imply nothing lees than that in every battle the
beaten army should lose not only its artillery,
colors. and stores but the whole of the individual
baggage ofits infantry also. In consequence, aiew
rainy biyouacs would completely break up the in
antry reduced it would be such clothing every
man might happen to be dressed in. The real ques-
ton, however, would seem to be- howth individual
baggage Of the soldier can be reduced to min
imum, and this is point of importance whichmight
easily be settled in satisfactory way if the items
composing it were considered merely as to their
real utility in campaign; but the discussion IN
Germany has not settled it.
Beside the clothes question and the knapsack
question: the organization of the various sub
divisions of the army is also a matter much
disputed. How many men should make COM
pany, how many companies a battalion, how
many battaliOns regiment how many regiments
brigade, how many brgades division, and soforth.
This is another point upon which q great deal OF
bosh may be uttered with the most serious and im-
portant face in the world. In every army the sys-
tenn of elementary tactics confines to certain limits
The strength and number OS companies and battal-
ions; the strength of brgades and divisions find their
minimum and maximum by the strength adopted In
neghbOring armies, that in case of conflict the
disproportiOn between the larger tactical unites
may not be too great To try to solve such ques-
tons not by the actual conditions as given by the
facts of the case but by an attempted recourse to
first principles, is mere fudge, worthy perhaps OF
German philosophers but not suited to practical
men. The increase in the number of the Austrian
regiments of infantry of the line from 63 to &c. with
a reduced number of battaOns, Will no more insure
them; "better luck next time" than the widening
of their trowsers and the turning down of their
collars
But while man. millinery and abstruse specula-
ons on the normal strength and composition of q
brigade occupy attention, the ge,t defects and evils
of the German military system are unheeded.
What, indeed, are We to think of officers who most
furiousy discuss the cut of pair of pantaloOns, or
of collar, and who submit quietly to have in the
German federal army some twenty different calibers
of field artillery and almost incalcuable variety
of caibers for small-arms The introducti IN OF
rled muskets, which offered such splendid occa-
sion for equalizlng the cabers all over Germany,
has not only been shamefully neglected, but has
made matters worse. 1t is worth while to look
for a moment at this confusion of cahbers. Aus
mia, Bavaria, Wurtemberg, Baden, and Hesse-
Darmstadt have one caliber-0.53 of an inch.
With that practical good sense which the South
Germans have shown in many instances, they have
c,rried tbs most mportantreiorm, which establishes
unity of caber for five corps of the federal army
Prussia has two calibres; one the so-called Zand-
nad.iee,eehy, or neede-guD, about gu OF an inch,
and the old smooth-bOre musket lately riaed ON
Minie's principle, about 0.68 The latter, how
ever, is to be superseded by the former as soon as
possible. The Ninth Army Corps has three differ
ent rifed and two or three different smooth-bOre
cabers; the Tenth has at least ten and thereserved
division has as many cabers almost as battalions.
Now imagine this motley army in an active cam
paign. How is it possible that the ammunition
belonging to each contingent can always be at hand
when wanted and if not, that contingent is helpless