The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1864-12-27


appointed Uhlans, and the picturesque Spahis
present a scene no less attractive from ts variety
than from the conviction that with such men an
imperial commander may be master Of VIII ttever
position he chooses 20 take up. force Of
$50 600 such mCn-a number that may speedily
and with scarcely an effort be raised 70 10000
backs with tremendous weight tho moral in1u-
enCe Of an empire, and when wisely and dis
Creetly handled can render the PrJmethcus which
has created 1t formidable at home and irresistible
abroad absolute amongst his own subjects, a
potent arbiter in the de,tne, Of foreign nations
proyided there be no checks. Are there such
checks for France Yes, and for other countries;
but unfortunately it Is In the eQn ti1atOn Of the
military strength OF each nation hence the vast
menaCug expensive armies which stand at at
tcntion throughout the continent crppng the
energies, and noutraliziug the industry, and de-
youring the resources Of rich aud poor ia mon
arches alike,
rHB RUSSIAN RECRUIT.
"The regular and irregular army Of Russia is
estimated at upwards Of Sc, 900 officers snd lO0-
600 Triyates. This mighty forces ,urges, like the
waters Of the ocean, against every frontier, and
by pcrpe'ually lashng IL, oventu slly disintegraes
and acquires portion Of il. How Is this multi
tude of armed men raised Again the answer is,
by compulsOn The cOnscrpton is in full force
amongst the peasants and artisans the net OF the
recruiting officer is dragged through the popula-
ti0us of the towns anG villages, and the pRy Is
caught in the proportion Of four or si2l1hnd
sometimes as much As eight or ten, In every
between the conscrption in France and Russia,
that whereas in the former country every indi-
vidual who is Of the proper age Is liable 10 be
drawn, in Russia only the lower classes are the
Victims-nobles, magistrates, merchants, priests
students, and the members of certain trade guilds,
being, by imperial ukase, exempt from this per-
sonal military service. The Government, indeed,
trouble themselves very little about the levy
the number 10 be raised Is fixed for each district
according to the last census, and an order issued
to the nObleman or landowner OF each estate to
furnish the number. They can nominate which of
their dependents they please, provided the men
are OF healthy body and sound OF limb, and be-
tween the ages Of eighteen and forty. SO vast
are the territorial possessions of some of these
NOTES.-The DemidOfis, for eNample-sO large
the tribes Of serfs they own, that not untrequenty
their COntiDgents amount 70 30O0 and sometimes
even 20 5000 and 5000. The imperial reforms re-
Gently introduced into Russia, by which the rea-
tOns between thepeasant and his master have been
considerably modified, will no doubt affect this
system of recruiting; but at present the system
is in full force, and TO it the Car IS indebted for
by far the largest portion Of his regular army.
"There is, however, another mode of recruit
ment which is peculiarly characteristic OF a
encouraged amongst the Russian soldiers, and
every facility is afforded to those who desire to
take unto themselves wife. The State supplies
the martial Benedict with lodgings, and under
takes to feed, clothe, and educate the young
oliyc-branches that may chance to spring up
around the happy troopers table. All this is of
course, kindly meant, and seems benevolent ;
but often things sweet to taste prove in diges-
| tiOn sour A bounty that appears on the
! first blush generous in the extreme has its
| drawbacks The male children OF these MuscO-
| Vte sons of Mars, called cdntO,uStS are claimed
| by the State; and from infiucy are reared
| and trained with view of being made soldiers,
or OF being otherwise employed in the public SER
| vice. They remain at home until they are
| breeChed and coated, when they are summarlly
sent Off TO the military depots TO be instructed in
| their military duties. IL is estimated that tnis
Leyitica class numbers no less than 100000 souls
and from it the enOn-Commissioned officers of regi
ments are obtained; the discipline they have un.
| dorgone, and the education they have received
having contributed, it is supposed, to habits Of
steadiness and industry, as well as rendered them
proficient in the rudiments Of the Russian field
book.
One thing the army Of Russia especially suffers
| from, and this we may allude TO here-A dearth o
officers. Superior education is confined to so few
classes in that colossal empire, that the sources
it has 10 draw from for its captains are very con
tracted indeed. Notwithstanding that schools fo
| pages, engineers, officers Of artillery, and sub
officers of the guard have been established at st
| PetersbuTg-And Notwithstanding that the prin
cipal of these institutions the Corps de Cadets,
numbers upwards of seven hundred pupis-thi
| deficiency has been and Is sOrely felt. By
recent decree, various new rules have been laid
down for the entrance of officers into the army
| and in these inducements have been held out &c
| young men leaving the high schools to accept O
| commission. 1ney VIII ne received as nOn-cOIn
| missiOned officers for three months withou. pass
ing an examination; at the expiration of thai
time, if they are properly qualified, they will bt
| promoted at once TO the higher grade. NOuthI
from the middle schools undergo a probation o.
! six months; and other volunteers, OF whatever
origin, noble or plebean, will receive commission
after one years service, AFTER having been thor
oughly tested by the ordeal of board of mill
tary examiners.
dIn addition however, 10 the standing force
raised by cOnscription and maintained by thu
Government, the Gar has another and no ignoblC
auxiliary IN tue semi-sayage feudal militia OF th'
| COssaCks. This wild Iribe-a race free and inde
| pendent TO the hearts core, and martial by
nstinct-pay no taxes, regarding the ground OF
which they pitch .heir tents as their own fee anC
simple To enjoy it peaceably aud unmolestedly
| however, they consent to perform military ser
vice 10 Russia; but even this service, as well a,
the extent of the leyies, is regulated by treaty.
Two in every five hundred IS about the average
but in critical times, when danger is impending
every man between the ages OF hfteen and sixty
| is bound 10 take the field and do battle in behoo
| of the father Of his people, A hundred anC
twenty thousand CosSacks-Cossacks of the
EuXine Cossacks of the Dom Ural Cossacks
| CossaCks of the Caucasus, Orcnburg, COssacki
and Siberian Cossacks-it is estimated, stand pre-
pared in their irregular way 10 H. 5ht the enemies
of the Car. They are, as a rule, semi-sayage anC
uudisciplined, knowing nothing of the arts o
civilized life; their courage is that or the barba
rans; whilst their warfare is conducted witt
ieroclous cruelty wherever they have the poWe
10 commit atrocities.
THE GERMAN CONFEDERATION.
"In the heart of Europe founders ponderous
cumbrUus monster with two heads, Its body
like that of EnCeadus, covers a vast area but 81
unWiedy is it, so disjointed are its limbs, so in
cohesive ts parts, that though leviathan in size
il has little real power. IL Is called the Germani
Confederation. Its actual strength lies In its tw
heads, which are as large in bulk rs the rest Q
the body itself. However, the two heads hay
no unity OF idea, no common purpose of actor
no singleness Of aim; and the consequence is tina
that which, in a state of moral cohesion might b
omnipotent, is, from its uinte partitions an
divisions, dilapidated and weak It's the bundl
of sticks tied up with rope OF sand. Wit
more than half million OF men at Its instaI
command, the Federal Diet is ieebler than Swi
zerland and takes alarm nc every turn {
European politics, every rustic OF wings of th
French or Russian eagle. BY the act of Cor
gress of 1915, the contribution OF each OF th
thirty States and the four free towns composiu
Germany was fixed at one per cont. Of the popr
latiOn, according to the census Of that year, wit
ten pieces of cannon for every thousand men
One-seveYenth OF this complement being cavalry
In 1858, after tho war With Denmark, out
which the Germans emerged with somewhat tai
nished laurels, the force was increased one-sixtl
and at the present time stands at total OF O3,Ou
men, divided into ten corps d'Grglee. Austria
the largest contributor her quota being l55,OOy
Prussia follows suit with l33900i Bavaria take
the third place, and brings $4,000 troops into th
held then come Wurtemburg with 23,OO
| Hanover with u 900, saxony with 10000, aud 6