The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1882-01-28

to carry me past the post. But one night
sentry would have none of this representation,
and ruthlessly demanded the watchword.
At my request, the sergeant came forward and
gave me that magic "open sesame" But the
sentry declined to accept it, on the ground that
no civilian had RICH to know the watchword.
He was technically correct, and had to return
dinnerless to my quarters. The contretemps did
not occur again, for / obtained an addition to the
standing orders for that post that Herr Forbes"
was to be allowed to pass on giving his name.
Even in TIE midst of good fellowship, the for
eigner had to be careful lest he offended the
loneliness of the German soldier on certain
points. That warrior has sort of quasi-worship
for his sword, and it wounds his dignity as a
fighting man to have it lightly spoken of.
Once in the march to Sedan, was eating under
a tree with little party Of soldiers. The ut
most good fellowship reigned. had mislaid my
knife, and | wanted to cut some bread.
"Here, comrade," said, "just hand me over
that old toasting fork of yours will you, to slice
this crust 2"
The real passion Of the men was a caution.
With flushed face and flashing eyes, he protested
with many oaths that l had insulted his sword,
and he brandished that weapon and swore that
my blood alone could wipe out the stain with
which had aspersed it.
In vain l apologized. His comrades felt with
and for him; and although they hindered him
from actual violence, was made prisoner, and
hustled roughly up to an officer.
He shared the feeling Of the men, and warned
me, with all solemnity, against thus incautiously
wounding a German soldier in his tenderest
point; then he told the men that l was a stupid
foreigner, who didn't know any better and didn't
mean any harm, so they must forgive me. But
did not reoin that luncheon party.
The German army is the grandest military
force of the Old World. It CLOVIS with genuine
patriotism it is imbued with genuine self-respect
and self control; it halls rigorous discipline as
the only guarantee for efficiency; it brings the
intelligence of nation to bear on the fulfment
of military duty. And all these virtues belong
to it because it is a true national army, each man
of the nation, without regard OF position, dev0t-
ing a portion of his life to army service for the
general behoof of the commonwealth; and ready
in wartime to obey the call Of arms, in the use
OF which his allotted term of service has perfected
him.
professors farmers, manufacturers, landed pro-
prietors, who had come out Of the reserve, back
into the ranks when the war tOcsin sounded,
and were content to fulfil their duty as private
soldiers. There never has been army to equal it
in its broad national Characteristic.
The German army that invaded France in 1870
went home with the cleanest record ever woD by
any army in an enemy's country. There was no
rapine, no plundering, no brutality.
An army corps would march through vine
yard without pulling dozen punches of grapes.
Often have | marched with a detachment into
some quaint. old-world village, wherein tradi-
tons yet fingered of the Cossacks in the Napo-
leOnic wars.
Some of the people had fed into the woods.
Those who remained were sunk into a stolidity
of terror Before shutdown, there had come a
beautiful change. You would see the sturdy
Teutons going to the fountain with the buckets
to draw water for the village women; and other
hairy faced Kerle playing with the children, and
mayhap holding infants in their arms, that re-
minded the citizen-soldiers of the young ones
they had left behind on the other side of the
| German Rhine.
l have often heard French villagers say that
the German invaders treated them infinitely bet
ter than had done the French army wherein, in
/ truth, existed the canker Of indscipline, and
whereof the soldier was too often an enfant perdu
During the siege of Metz, / lived mostly with
| a German regiment on the extreme forepost line
| on the eastern section of the circle of environ
| ment The regiment had three battalions IN the
field one of which remained on duty in the front
line for two days at a time, and then, giving
place to the relieving battalion fell back into The
second line where duty was easier.
Myself and a stray dog were regularly trans
ferred from battalion to battalion, always remain
ing up in the front line. Thus had excellent
opportunities for witnessing the working of {
German regiment under the strain of arduou!
duty complicated by frequent skirmishes.
Nobody ever undressed in the front line. Whe1
| wanted good wash / had to ride back into tn,
second line. The colonel, major, and adjutant
| occupied quarters by themselves. The reg imenta
officers abode with their men, sometimes getting
little room apart, in shattered, rooiless house
sometimes bivouacking under tarpaulin in
garden and always when on picquet duty re
naming out in the open air and awake
1t was seldom that day or night passed with
out skirmish, and the big guns of Fort st. Ju
lien used to fling an average of thirty shells pc
diem into the already semi-pulverized village.
The strain for the two days was constant, bu
was born with wonderful light-heartedness Tn