The Somerset reporter., 1885-07-15
Losses IN Battle.

Strange as IL may sound, Improvements
10 killing men 10 battle actually prevent
men from being killed. Ancient " r were
always more bloody, counting The hummer
Of nshlIDg m N, than modtrn ones. heath
d,aang machines IN the hands Of an army
or navy 20 very far TO make battles in-
pr0D3b.e. In the FraucD-Pfusslan war,
France had pO~erf II feet Of roo ciaas
Which WAS oil not the slightest use, De
cause German tOrpedoes and hrupps great
guns made d venture into German harDors
risk at humiliation. The same thing
hsp9tnrd in the late war between the Rus
SLAMS auu Turks, where neither side ven
tureJ on naval battle though both mad
irOncl ads. Indeed Ia the march " skiiied
warfare the time may come when TWO az
mes confronting each other, and each nhs-
ing attack To mean the e1tetmlnatlUu OIL
the assaiiUg party, one Viii either retfei
gracefully throwing up the spooge, or both
viii walt Ia carp until the side which has
The shortest purse retreats without nring a
gun. Or war may become 50 dangerous
that na,iUus will settle their differences 10
some other way than one which promises
military or naval perdi,ion,
Ali this las been shown lately by an
analysis OF the per cent OF the loss ID be
prominent battles OF the last go years.
on fortified places are omitted, and WaleI-
loo losses, because there are no accurate
returns of the latter. For convenience
these battles are divided into periods.
The first period, from 1851 TO 1914, en-
braces the time from when firearms were
generally used TO the Introduction OF the
iron Iamrod and the bayobet. AT this time
the rudest and heaviest nuskets were 10
use, together with the heavy iron rest
which the soldier used in firing, and every
musketeer stood with firing tools enough
hung round him to furnish out pack ped
der, while the loading aud discharge Of
his musket took about as much time as II
would for II smart housewife to get fam
lily breakfast. Yet battles with such weap.
oDs were very bloody, and the proportion
OF the killed to the wounded was very
great. At Marston's Moor, in the war be.
tween Charles |. and Cromwell, the losses
were over 1000 in a total of about ~, 900
men of both armies. a. Lutzen, Walen-
stein lighting against Gustavns Adophu,
left 5000 dead. At Rocroy, OF 5000 Span.
ism infantry 5000 were killed 10 the ranks
by the victorious FreUch. The average
per cent of loss for this period was &c.
In the second period. from l745 10 1913
the old Drown Bess" smooth bore hlut
lock musket, with bayonet, an improved
trearm, was used, and the Napoleonic wars
came. The average per cent of loss iD
This period, was 20.. Al Bunker's Hill the
per cent was -, and at Lundy's Lane 10
The third period, from 1854 to 1868, VIZ
nesses The use of flhed barrels and percu-
sion caps. The per cent oil loss was -.
The loss at the Alma, 1854, in the GRIM "a
WI, was 8 per cent; at Soiierinc 3, at Sal
ieh ~, al Aniielam IL. ut Fredericksburg
8, a q Mt Charlottesville IL per cent of the
forces engaged. Grants wilderness cam
paign i omitted III the estimate because Ot
the confusion III the CUnfcd' rate report Of
their losses, but the Union Army, from
May An 10 Jure 8 !, when il declined to r.
new the attack a. C1d tlarhor out of $780,,
900 men lost over $1,000, per cent nuch
above the general average.
The fourth period, 1866 to 1870, the age
If he Understanding rifles, and embracing
The wars hetwctu the Prus>iaus and Aus
TRANS, and between Gel many and Franc
shoes IA loss OF II per cent. A, koDnig-
gratZ he loss Was per cent, at Sedan 9.
From all Of wnich it appears that the i'm
proVcmepts of war are fast destroying the
bloodinesS of modern warfare.