The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1866-07-03


Court Of Appeals as soon as possible, In order
that the present conflict Of jurisdiction between
the courts and commissioners may cease.
The Military Strength or the European
Belligerents.
We published yesterday some interesting
statistics, oollated from Official sources show
ing the military strength Of the present Eu-
ropean belligerents From these figures it
would appear that vast armies are in the field.
and that tho clash of arms, when It comes in
earnest will be tremendous and rock Europe
to the centre. {.
It is . well established fact, but one not
generally noted, that the numerical strength OF
armies In actual and active service Is greatly
exaggerated. The immense armies OF the
ancients, numbering in some instances, accord
Ing to sacred and profane history, millions Of
men, were undoubtedly composed more of
camp followers and other non-combatants than
men capable Of bearing the rude and cumber-
some arms Of the period. The tabled myriads
included In the armies Of the ancient Persians,
Tartars, Egyptians, ASsyrians and the other
warlike powers of the early ages, were no doubt
impeded In their marches and battles by the
great number Of useless and unserviceable
characters that hung upon the rear and tanks
Of the main armies. It Ia q curious circum-
stance that while ancient historians men,
ton the interminable numbers OF those
ancient hosts they neglect to state how
the m,a vera supported; how the oommissa-
r{a I'd xwhf Ia trov
known and desert regions; where the quarter
master replenlshed his s.ores tor his famishlng
horses, elephants oamels and other beasts of
burden and transportation. They had no rail-
roads In those days. They had no magnetic
telegraph then. They could not talk from
point to point and transmit orders with the
regularity and despatch of personal communi-
cation. They had no light artillery then. They
had no spherical shot or ave-hundred- FOUNDER
shells; no torpedoes, no two mile rides, no sub
marine batteries, no iron-clad war ships, no
electric fuses, no gunpowder-except the Chi
nese-nO gun cotton, no nitro-glycerine and
other explosive material. They had huge bat
tering rams, weighing some tons; immense bow
guns, mounted on carriages and throwing very
heavy arrows; stone sings, javeiins and all
those articles Of warfare the careful student Of
ancient military history is familiar with. But
although 1t would require a great physical
force to manage these implements, we doubt
very much whether history Is correct In placing
the numbers Of these ancient armies at the
large figures 1t does, for the simple reason that
the hordes could not be fed In the hostile coun-
tries they traversed.
We presume the extent and condition Of the
armies In the United States during the rebel
lion were larger in number and better
equipped. better fed and clothed and
better disciplined than any armies Of
half the number In ancient or modern
times In April, 1865, the Union armies had ON
their rolls one million three hundred thousand
mon. At the same time the rebels had ON their
rolls seven hundred thousand men-making
together two millions Of troops OF this num-
Der ct least one-third were not In the field at
any one time, but were engaged In doing gar
rison duty, occupying fortified places, protect
Ing six thousand miles Of posts lying sick in
hospitals, and otherwise not in the field. All
the great battles of the rebellion were fought
with less than seventy-five thousand men on
each side, except the battle Of the Wilderness,
when Grant had about one hundred thousand,
and Lee about the same number This was
the greatest and most stubborn battle OF the
war, the men not being out OF the hearing Of
musketry for ten days. The other battles, like
most Of those Of the Greclans, Romans, Cartha-
ginians and the First Napoleon, were fought
with between fifty and sixty thousand men,
except the battle Of Waterloo, when probably
two hundred thousand men were engaged on
both sides In deciding the final throw in the
game Of settling the destinies Of Europe.
II will be thus In the present European war.
For, although Austria will have an army esti-
mated ct million and quarter Prussia and
it, alhes, exclusive OF Italy. some eight hun
dred thousand, and with the army Of that
Power nearly million and . half We shall
be very much surprised n We hear Of . battle
numbering over one hundred thousand on each
side at any time while the war lasts, be that
period brief or protrscted.
The So-Cailed spiritualists In . Very
bad BOX.
Since the Davenport brothers have subsidized