Waterbury evening Democrat., 1891-04-20
THE BRITISH ARMY.
Its Numerical Strength and Relative
Weakness in Peace and War.


Weakness i'm Peace and War.
The total expenditure on the army,
out of taxes, in the year in the case Of
the United Kingdom was last year,
according to Sir Charles Dixie, e16,50o,-
900, says the London Saturday Review,
and in India the same or a3S, 0O0, 900
(e34, 000, 900 in the present Year,, besides
the expenditure out of loans and that of
the self-governing colonies for the
armies of the British empire. The col
onies altogether spend for themselves
about s1,50o,000 a year for army pur-
poses, in addition to the contributions
made by some of them toward the Inn
perial forces and toward marine de-
Tense. While the armies of the British
empire cost about aS5, 500, 900 q year,
the German empire costs about e33, $780,.
900 and the French army little over
a2s, 100000.
Our armies cost US, therefore, consid.
erably more than theirs, but while each
of these powers would have in the field
on the twenty-irst day of mobilization
over 100000 Of men, with between
5000 and 1900 guns, and behind this
vast force a large garrison and terri
torial army in reserve, we could alto
| gether muster but $4,000 men from all
the resources at our command. But the
ingenious Briton will retort that,
though our forces are small, they are Of
exceptional quality; that one English
man is equal to two Frenchmen; that
one volunteer is as good as two pressed
! men, and so on-und so weiter, etc.
/ Not so.
The 1900, 900 active German or French
troops, of whom we have just spoken,
are pretty much the same all.through"
that is to say, they are of uniform
quality, even if it be granted that their
standard be not as high as ours. Our
muster-ron, on the contrary, is built up
from the most heterogeneous sources,
and the quality, when the training and
education of the soldier are considered,
if in some cases high, is in others de-
plorable. The total we arrive at Is
made up of 100000 troops, excellent
though deficient in some particulars;
$4,000 to $4,000 frst-class army reserve,
useful but not periodically drilled as is
the reserve of every continental ARMY
1900 second-class army reserve, hardly
worth counting; $4,000 militia, who
may be said to be without half their
officers; 5000 Channel island militia,
about ], 200 Malta and St. Helena militia;
1000 yeomanry; 224, 900 volunteers; a..
900 regulars in India Undoubtedly a
splendid force), $4,000 good native
troops in India; sc, 900 bad native troops,
and $1,000 of what Sir Charles Dixie
terms "odds and ends"
In other words, the figures we can
produce include everything we can pos.
sibly term a soldier, from guardsman
to native policeman. They include
some regiments Of Indian infantry
which are recognized even by ourselves
as worthless, and whom we from time
to time disband as such. They include
the st. Helena militia and the Royal
Irish constabulary, who, however eff
cient in their own sphere, would proba-
bly, be so occupied in it that they can
hardly be available to fight foreigner.
But, more than this, not only is our
force thus variable and sometimes un-
satisfactory as regards the quality Of
its component parts, but it is singularly
} badly proportioned as regards the arms
of which it is composed.
! If there is one thing which recent ex'
perimcnts have established more than
another, and upon which there is com
, plete unanimity of opinion among mill
? tary men, it is this-that modern armies
, should in future campaigns be remark
: ably we'll furnished with both cavalry
f and artillery; infantry will be unable
to face modern muslzetry unless they
are well supported by guns, and have
the way of their attack prepared fol
: them by artillery fire. A thick veil o:
: horsemen will shroud the movements O.
: a modern army from its opponent, and
an army which has not a strong force
! g %N SroRr e.,
, it and to ward off its opponents scouts
, will be at the mercy Of a better-informet
antagonist.
1t will neither be able to see nor re
!, main unseen. Yet how do we find tina
!. our attenuated levies are furnished will
n these necessary adjuncts? Contempt
0 bly, so, it seems, as regards artillery
Il We have but a nominal 600 guns all told
against 2,0Oo to 1000 belonging to tn
: powers that may oppose us, and o
: these we could not place above $40 Il
the field.
Not only have we an absurdly SINAI
|. number of batteries, but we propose o.
IS an outbreak of hostilities to reduc
a them by fourteen in order to make u
d ammunition columns! That is to say
u we organize, equip and educate scien
II tific body of men in order that they ma
- on the outbreak Of hostilities be equa
!, to the duties which Pickford's or Carte
s Paterson's draymen daily perform i
= our streets! The Germans on October
d last added to their artillery almost a
e many guns as we have in the Who'll
d world, and Roumania and Switzerlan
can each of them put in the field abou
as many guns as can the British empire
Nor when we come to analyze our cay
Y. airy returns are matters more reassu1
y ing. We have only $4,000 horses
- mount 1900 troopers both in India an
- at home together.
= Woman's Chances at Forty.
ir 81 don't care if am an old maid,
h said charming woman. eff wait ii