Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1885-02-19
England,s Unreadlness.

4
-Nelos Letter.
England,s Unreadlness.
Since, four hundred years ago, Eng.
lish yeomen swept French fields with
their "cloth-yard arrows England
has never been, in comparison with
her European neighbors, first-class
military poWer-hardly second. Strong
upon the sea, weak upon the land
again and again saved from destruc-
tive nvasion, If not crushing conquest
by the narrow belt OF blue water and
the fleets it fioated. England, until
quite recently. has always played a
more or less important part in great
continental wars; but her contributions
have been more in money than in men,
buying foreign steel with British gold
and filling the empty Golfers of her al
lies with generous subsidies-for which
the British taxpayer of to-day is suf-
fering in the shape of colossal nation
al debt. Al Blenheim and Waterloo,
if English skill and valor opened the
way to victory, the victory would have
been lost without the aid of these al
lies, and not one of the many campaigns
of Marlborough and Wellington was
fought by English troops alone. In
short, so far as numerical strength is
concerned, the military establishment
of England has been, and still IS, al
most insignificant; the main reliance
for attack or defence being placed upon
the navy.
1t might naturally be supposed that
this small military establishment would
make up in quality what it lacked in
quantity; that it would always be
thoroughly and completely organized
in every respect, and ready at shortest
notice for any emergency. But just
the reverse has been the case. Marl-
borough and Wellington were always
calling for re-inforcements they ought
to have had and could not get; always
complaining and justly too, of the man.
ner in which food, clothing and ANU
milton were furnished by the home
Government; always vainly protesting
against the clumsy and careless War
Department, which would neither learn
nor forget anything. Our American
Revolution might have had very diff
ferent result if Clinton, Howe and
CORVALLIS had not had the same pro-
vocation for complaint and protest;and
Lord Raglan, in the Crimean war,
broke down and died under similar
load of obstinate stupidity and mex
cusable misnlanagement. And now
same old shameful story. The British
expedition to the Soudan-badly Or
ranized and badly managed from the
start-has been halted by events which
should have been anticipated aud pro-
vided for at the outset; and nobody
seems to know what ought to be done
or how to do it. There is more consul
tation, confusion and delay in sending
a few thousands troops tnhelp Wolse-
ley, than Germany had in moving
a million men against France in
1870. Shall the re-enforcements be
drawn from England, the Mediterran-
can garrisons, or India, or from all
three? Shall they go up the Nile, or
by the way of Suakim and Berber? If
up the Nile shall they wait until the
river rises, or try it now? If by the
way of Suakim and Berber, shall they
start this month or next? buy camels
L.. 40 10
boats be small or large? Shall the en-
envy be met in squares as heretofore, or
in some other formation? Must there
be more cavalry and less infantry, or
more infantry and less cavalry? Shall
wells be dug in the desert, or water
transported in tanks? Can the troops
endure the scorching heat and deadly
climate of Central Africa, or will these
be more fatal to them than El Mahdi's
Arabs? IfKhartoum is captured, " hat
next? If Khartoum is not captured,
what then? Who is to have general
charge of the Soudan business in it's
new Wolseiey, who has tried
and failed, or Stephenson, who has not
| OoeD tTicu! Anu WHIT Is tIe cAdCI
work which Wolseley or Stephenson is
expected to do?
The fig hting capacity of British sol
diers is of the finest sort, but with two
or three notable exceptions British
generalship has been decidedly inferior,
and without exception British militia
ry organization has beer utterly con-
temptible. 1t was VoItaire, We be-
lieve, who said that s'the British army
has the heart of a lion and the head OF
an ass" Certain it is that, in view OF
the Soudan military muddIe, English
men ought to be more than ever thank
full that they live on an island, and
have good navy to patrol the ditch
which separates the island from the
main land-Globe-D Democrat.
Bucklen's Arnlca SaIve.