The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1867-01-30

General Won MOltke and the Recent War,
Prussan stat officer at Berlin has sent TO
the Pal Mall Gazette the following notes on the
late war and its master-spirit, General Won
Motke;-
General Won Moltke is by birth, Mecklen-
burger, not HOlsteiner, as many suppose. He
is about sixty years old, very learned, very
sparing of words, and very mild and courteous
in demeaDor. No instance Is known in the army
of his having spoken harshly to any one, and
his criticism of the acts of subordinates seldom
assumes a severer form than that of telling them
what he would have done if he had been in their
place. He looks more like professor or
clergyman than a soldier, with his clever,
thoughtful, beardess face. Forty years ago he
accompanied General Won Muffling to Turkey
witnessed the conclusion of the peace of Adrian
ople, and wrote book on the Turco-Russtan
war, which is OF great value to those
engaged in military researches. He after
wards resided at Rome aud other
places, and rapidly acquired an extensive
knowledge OF the various languages of Europe.
Napoleon ! would doubtless have regarded him
as an ideOlogue; Wellington would have appre'
Ciated him better. When King William | carried
out the reorganization OF the army, and thereby
began the conflict with the Chamber which IN.
sisted on a service of two years instead OF three,
General Won Moltke secretly sympathized with
the Opposition, although as a soldier he could
not openly express his opinions on the subject.
Since the Sd OF September, 1914, the three years.
service has been sanctioned by law in Prussia.
1t was, however. ON economical grounds, tenn
pOrarlly reduced one year by Frederick Will
liam ii, with the provisO that the law should be
reverted TO az soon as the Government should
find 1t necessary to do so. In the campaign of
1S4S-9 the present King observed that the Land
wehr regiments which had served only two years
were not very effective and hesitated to 90 under
fire. This gave him the idea OF increasing the
service by another year, and the circumstance
that the needle-gun had been introduced III
1S47 strengthened his determination. II took
nearly twenty years TO make the use of this
gun in the Prussian army general, for even in
1890 Ot the Land Nnlr rnpimnDtc fbpsn
for instance which fought at Langen salZa were
armed with the old muZzie-loaders. IL was
considered that more time would be required TO
teach the soldier the use of the new gun than
that Of the old. Moreover, it was necessary
that the discipline should be more strict and
the connection between the officers and pTi-
Yates closer than formerly. The soldier was
never to fire except by the order of his officer
and il was, besides, the duty of the latter to
name the sight which was to be used according
10 distance. 1t was for these reasons that the
three years service was revived, and the con.
duct OF the Prussian troops in the last campaign
certainly showed that the plan was effective.
General Moltke, however, has so good an
opinion of the intelligence of the North German
recruits, that he believes a two years service
would produce equally good results.
1T was Immediately after the Gastein negO-
tiations that General MOltke began TO prepare
the plan tor a war with Austria. Its object vas
as every one knows, twOtOld:-FiT5t, to de'end
Silesia and Berlin, and second, to carry the war,
consequence OF this plan was the establishment
OF two separate armies in Slesia and SaXOny,
which, on assuming the offensive, were to ad-
vance each in its own direction until they met.
While the armies were separated from each
other they were in danger OF being attacked
and beaten in detail, a danger to which the
Crown PriuCe-whose men had to 20 through
the narrow SaXo-Sllesian passes, in some places
so narrow that two men only could march
abreast-was particularly exposed. The success
OF this plan obviously depended on junction
OF the two armies, which almost seemed impos-
sible, and WAS undoubtedly hazardous to the
extreme. The result, however, justified the risk
although there can be no doubt that Beuedek's
mistakes greatly contributed 10 the PrussIan
success. Benedek wished 10 do the counterpart
OF what Frederick the Great had done in the
second Silesian waT-to catch the enemy in hlS
| mouse-trap, as Carlyle describes 1t. But this
time the mouse was stronger than tho trap.
General Won Molke." adds the Gazette, ''is re-
/ ported 10 he Just now on a visit TO Switzerland,
He has taken up his quarters at Glyon, noun
tain village, at q considerable elevation, in the
Canton du Vaud, and at short distance irOm
/ the eastern extremity of Lake Leman; and is
said 10 be- accompanied by his staff, all dressed
as civilians. OF course. various COneCtures are
current as to the object OF this visit. The Gene
/ raj himself says he is seeking repOse after his
iatigues, but it is said thar he and his staff are
studying all the passes OF the JuIa chain from
Switzerland into France, and that he has been
trying 10 take Photographic views OF some
Swiss fOrtihCatiops, only the local authorities
prevented him. 1t is added, Significantly, that
the Prussians have already made them selve:
perfectly acquainted with the country between
Switzerland and the Rhine.p