The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1870-09-05
The Crcntcm Folly of tie Age

Leon at S,rasbouIg and Boulogno. 1t was
undertaken with the same reckless indiilcr
cucc to iacla and the same contempt for all
the probabilities Of tho care ~ wcrc those
two notorious adventures The Leading
statesmen Of France, the French Legislature,
and all intelligent Frcnchmen were perfect
ly aware beforehand that France WIS NOT
able TO make war against Prussia, and that
her armies could not cope with thc Prussan
armies but they were all carried away by
the determination of tic Quixoiic old En-.
peror and by that uatrrI instinct which
leads every nation 10 support lie Government,
for time ut least, nftor II has onco become
involved in n controversy with a foreign
power TO Mr.. THEIRS alone belongs the
credit Of having dared TO stand up in his
are in tho Legislative CORPS. after MI Tie
prel miuarics had been gone through, aud
wi,cS t!.s ennction Of the Legislature WINS
alone necessary to the commencement Of
hosilitics, and tha.. aud there to proclaim
the truth thlt war was nNt"lation OF common
scusc that inilare was certaia sd success
impossible.
War was formally DECLARED by France On
the 18th of July. Bnt only fortnight hc-
fore. there was debate in tie LcG,slatiro
C1r!s ulou the number If corecrip's which
should be drawn in 1910 to recruit the army.
! In his debate The facts in regard 10 thc
Prussiar military system, the forces which
pr1fsia could bring into the field, aud the
actual in'ei'of.ty OF the French army were
! fullv st forth ly men Of such authority ga
! Marshal H. BG:ur, Nu'scr of War, Mr..
| TuIrV-. u. Couut Or II TulE. and Mr..
GAuSrra.PAcls. Il was dcmoE,r-; THAT
Will, tie French standing army COZ tanned
1ut four hundred thousand men, with n re-.
serve OF four hupl.rd thousand latl1 to he
called ont in cnso Of war, and Garde
Mobile composed of untrainel young mon
from twenty 10 twenty nine years Of age,
described oy the Minister of Wan ns an in.
m force existing only On paper the armies
| Of the North German Confederation ;n' the
States allied with Prussia ard subject
90 tho same military system, amounted % lyo
hundred thousand men WHO could instcn,ly
hc put into the field, with a reserve OF five
hundrad thousand, all t,Jincl soldiers; and
in addition to these all the men w 70 forty
years Of age in the entire population, in
| NUMBERS not less than half n million more.
and none of them without some knowledge
, Of military discipline.
! Thus it was stated, war between F.anca
r | ard Prussia would be NJ The very outset sim.
/ plyacoudict Letwccn lalfG million Of soldiers
Is r.a3y 70 take the field on the silc OF q r.
70 many ma four hundred thousand on the
j sRc Of France. but to exhibit tbs dis
,, rr,roncy in Its full proportions, 1t was shown
4 in the debate that while the French army
r. las To Furnish at all times 10000 soldier.
c for service in Algeria, and 10000 gnlaumct
o FOR service IS police Throughout France, III
| Prussirns suffers no such reduction. So tina
ID Will. the Germans could tt pg. into tn
20 field hrlfnmilion NJ skilled iioht'n@ me- a.,
is have their reserves OF half million oils,
Il ready for acton in an Incredibly short par.o,
8; If time, tta French could only furnish at III
is oats 10 iAr.e Hundred and twenty thousand
d willie .h,ir reserves requircd much longc
or pcI Oh e. ord .rto become prepared for use.
ia Bat tlic d'A>r nee between three hundrc
IN | aud ~. IS thourlr1or five hundred thou
IL sand doasuut suticiel,iy express t,la ncquo
III 10y lutUeon the two powers b the prcutt
n. rrpmTEyes 81 the German Fys.'m u! lyin,
no Ing forward TIE reserves, sufficient numb,
r oC ilrm at once become disTosable for earriso
4. duty, for guards along rho lines Of comm
W. n.,aipu AMI for tho thousand U.lcr detail
20. Of service which so greatly diminish q
IL effective force Of an army ;Nnd in this respc
nj also France was inferior As Mr.. THEIR
tho highest authority on such subject sa
d in this debate with four hundred tho
be- sand eli tive intn We must not believe thi
e. We have four hundred thougand men TO tai
H. under fire. This number must DC diminis
BIS ID Ivy NJ least one hall" Thus while III
~ Germans could easily calculate upon brin
al. ing into the field for actual fighting tho IN
". fleet We force of Lalf million, the Freuc
or according to Mr.. TIuEns, could not at Il
d. beginning Of the campaign bring under G
"c more dian two hundred thousand men. III
IH uHlce of his estimate is fully confirmed !
'u ,ho result Of the present campaign III
ch whole Frcuch force tlat was drawn
ss- along Tho boundary at tho beginning Of Il
h. WA oud after month If active propnradC
~ was something above two hundred thousan,
pr' 1 certainly did not surpass two handrod al
o. iity Thousand men. OF course their def
Us 10y the PrUssian hail million was ioredoor,~
-
WI az" """' VIC nave no" "..sed il but t
u' Ion, -.....s.un OF what W. stated in this
,ul Dato,
ror Tho only voice OF hostility against G
az many manifested in this debate was Il
, a. Of GRANiER DE CAssAGSAc. When
.Ao, Government. wac urged by GAANHRPAo