Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1877-11-21
Russian Generals.

| London News Bucharest Correspondence.
| have spoken of Russian Generals in
a previous letter, and | NAV add anoth-
er reason to the ones then gave for the
want Of capacity and talent displayed
among them In the first place, all
those high in command are very old
men. They are men who studied the
military art forty and even fifty years
ago, since which time the science of
war has undergone most important
changes and developments revolu-
ton, in short. In addition to this, they
are men who, for the most part, never
look IN book, and who rarely read a
newspaper, and appear to be utterly
oblivious of the march of progress,
and Of science, especially in the mill
tary art.
Their whole lives may be said to have
been passed in one occupation their
whole minds, whatever they ever had,
concentrated on one object, and that
the most trivial to which the human
mind can descend-card- playing. They
have done nothing else, thought of moth
ing else, for years. Their minds have
rusted until they are as dull, as heavy,
and as incapable of receiving new i'm
pressions as the veriest clodhopper.
Called from their card tables by the
trumpet of war, they rise, rub their
eyes, look round them completely be-
wildered, and as thoroughly out of the
current of modern war as if they had
been asleep for forty years Not even
Rip Van Wrinkle, with his rusty gun
dropping to pieces after his long sleep,
was more bewildered and lost than the
ajority Of these poor old Generals
suddenly thrown into the campaign at
the heads of their brigades, divisions,
and corps.
1t may be asked why the Emperor
does not send these old dotards back to
their card-tables, and replace them by
younger men, and men Of talent, of
which, after all, the Russian army is
not destitute. Well, in the first place,
there is the tradition, according to
which no functionary must be removed
or disgraced as long as it can be helped,
from some absurd idea that the pres
tige of the Government would suffer
The Government would be acknowledge
ing its own fallibility. The result is,
that the Government, instead of re-
nouncing, assumes all the responsibility
of all the stupidity, of all the idiocy, all
the perversity, and all the dishonesty Of
the tchenovnik or functionary Then
it must be confessed the soft heart of
the Emperor has much to do in retain
ing these old incapables in their posi-
tons. He cannot bear the idea of de-
priving an old and what he considers a
faithful public servant of his position,
and thus disgracing him, and SO uncon-
sciously prefers to sacrifice the lives of
thousands of brave fellows to this mis-
placed feeling of kindness.
One more fact, while | am on the
subject, illustrative Of the way things
are managed in the Russian army, for
which the headquarter staff must be
held responsible. At the time of Sulei-
man Pasha's attack upon the Shipka
Pass, although the pass had been in
the hands Of the Russians for some
thing like sly weeks, the plan of the
pass and positions had not been
made. This is fact which for military
men speaks volumes. And yet such
men as these have dared to take the
direction and command Of an army
of 100000 men. 1t is simply mad
ness