New-York tribune., 1870-09-29
TILE PRHSSIAN SOLDLERY.

Ihe London Spectator, apfOpOS 10 inc supcIloI
material of the Prussian forces, says: I'VE
"confess we cannot believe in educated pd,cns.
Educated soldiers will think more critically
"about the military policy than uneducated;
"will be apter to discern if their lives are
"thrOwn away to no purpose; will necessarily
"feel distrust sooner; and this criticisng and
rationalizing spirit in the minds Of the troops
"will be of a paralyzing kind, and tend to
"mutiny if they have not full right to put
"perfect faith in the ability of their leaders"
The successes Of tho Prussian soldiery it
urges, is no argument in favor of culture
among the rank and file because they do have
the requisite faith in their leaders.
The problem proposed by The Spectator is one
that increases in Importance with every year.
as it is only the present century which has
produced the phenomenal spectacle of great
armies possessing individual culture equal to
those of Prussia, or our own during the civil
war. War is, in essence, the application of brute
force to subserve moral purpose the question
becomes a vital one, whether that force is more
effective or not as it loses its resemblance to
mere machinery. The Spectator hardly meets
the point at issue. The educated soldier is not
likely to be educated in the art of war. The
general conduct of battle is, as everybody
knows, a matter of which the subordinate oili-
GERS even have but the vaguest conception
while it is in progress. The printer, or lawyer,
or merchant serving in the ranks would have
certainly but little opportunity to Critcise the
tactics of their leaders, and, from the mere fact
that education teaches the necessity of disci-
plne and obedience would not be half so
4 "a ~ h.n L.
motive TO subordination is fear. Besides the
better a man cOmprehends his own business
the more likely is he to respect the knowledge
of another man which he has never mastered.
In any exceptional case, too, the culture of the
common soldier would undoubtedly render him
more effective. An army fights no worse,
surely, because, when exigency requires Gas
was so often the case with our Northern
troOps), it can produce from the ranks archi-
tects, engineers, surgeons every practical
handcraftsmen needed. The theory that
educated men without faith in their leaders
would be more apt to mutiny, can be dis
proved by the unhinching patience with which
our troops, both in the North and South, stood
in the jaws of death while commanders and
policy were changed again and again, and
each time, as they well knew, for cause. Our
rank and file, too, unlike the Prussians, were
men, in ordinary life, not only unused to dis
cipline but accustomed to make and tiflmaaa
both their leaders and policy.
"The educated pawn" no doubt, will be the
safest and boldest piece to play, provided
always that he, too has his heart in the game
Here comes the rub which The Spectator does
not seem to have seen. The educated Prussian
or American consents to be tool when the motive
seems worthy of the sacrifice but the days of un-
reasoning masses of red cloth and pipe-clay,
moving steadily to death with no idea of the
why or wherefore, beyond vague notion of
pluck and glory and their pay, are wei nigh
over. 1t would be worth while to ask, TOO
whether, when the pawns are a little better
educated than now, they will not be inclined to
question whether the game could not be played
in some altogether different fashonf Whether
brute forceis the fairest and most rational method
OF discovering the justice of moral question.
we look with disgust at our grandfathers
when they referred the defense of womans
honor or property claim, or a religious truth,
to the decision of single combat. In our en-
hghtenment we have done away with the
pistol and duellO. But we leave our national
questions OF right and wrong not to the arbi-
trament OF common sense and justice, as rcpre-
sented by conference of the wisest and
clearest-sighted among the people, but to the
blind brute force of masses of men, 10 the
chassepot and the mitraileuse. These be the
gods VINO decide for us. We have not much
hope in the plans of any so-called Peace party,
but we have absolute faith in the growing
common sense of mankind, and we believe
that our grandchildren will consult other
oracles than ours.
Mr. Wendell Phillips promise, to be the