Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1893-04-23
Improved Warfare.
- VI fff.-fA..,... I

II happens occasionally that the fgura-
tive Language of the poet and the. gradu-
ating Young man IL made actual TACT. III
has long been the delight Of these imagina--
tive individuals 70 refer TO the game OF
war" though in point of fact war mas
been anything bat game III the
| past. War has never of course, been
so serious as some games: the blood
shed incident to live game OF
| foot ball between elevens from rival
theological seminaries Will frequently eX-
coed that of pitched battles nevertheless
war has been far from being what is gene
rally considered an outdoor sport. Dut
end-of-the- century invention ia changing
all of this. The next war IS going to be as
harmless es croquet and as agreeable as
Copenhagen. IL viii be played for points,
the first side 70 sct re 900 q be declared
the winner.
The last great step in putting war on o
footing with progressive euchre Is the ln-
yention OF bullet proof cloth, recently re-
ported from Europe. As already an;
nounced. the Austrian army has adopted
the kind invented by Herr Sylander, OF
Paris while 10 Is possible that the German
soldiers will have their new spring suits
made up from the variety turned out by a
tailor named Dowl at Mannheim. 1t IS q
| fashion which Is certain 70 spread. ana be-
| fore the year 10 over we doubt not every
army In Europe will be wearing 1t. After
all, bullet-proof cloth rather than crlno-
| line is probably gong to be the great tea-
ture Of the 1893 fashions.
| No doubt with the introduction OF oul-
| let-proof clothes, smokeless powder.
| small-calibre rifles, steel bullets, and other
| improvements, a number OF different lnte-
resting military games will gradually de-
yelop. Targets may be chalked out on the
| soldiers of each side, after which they VIII
! blaze away for an hour or 80, and then re,
representatives. of some neutral power VIII
90 about, count up the score, and an
| nouuce the winner. Probably the. steel
| bullets will make q slight dent III the
cloth, thus enabling the judges 20 count
each hit. ANY soldier found guilty OF re-
| moving the dents in his clothes before
| they have been counted Will be punished
| by fine and imprisonment. Or, perhaps, IL
| will be found better to have the Judges
move about along the lines while the hrlng
is going on, also dressed IN bullet-reslstng
garments, of course. and note each mt
| as IL is made, every shot that mus
a Judge 10 take one off of the score OF the
other side. All bullets that strike outside
| of the painted targets will not count any
thing, thus realizing the generous oher
| of the thin, slight man to the large, iat
| man, who, as they were about TO nght
duel with pistols, to the complaint OF MS
| adversary that he. the lat man. was NJ
great disadvantage in such contest, re-
piled that the dissatisfied one could mar (
out place the size of he on yourself. all
bullets | lodge outside of that not to
count" Or. perhaps, with war an out
door sport, a hint may be borrowed from
the game OF billiards. and simply TO hit a
man may not amount to anything, point
being scored only when the ball carroms
on another. By using neighborlng trees
and racks for cushions, no doubt many
Difficult shots can be executed and large
runs made. Cannons and all oyergrown
guns will be rigidly barred from the game.
The great advantage of the new warfare
will, Of course. be in the saving OF men.
Thousands who were swept away IN the
old-style war will now DO saved for So
cial and political purposes. Care Will
have TO be taken that the men do not
organize football teams while in camp and
spread death and destruction among
themselves. The new cloth makes no pre-
tensions to being able to Withstand the
devastating kick of an enragec quarter
back, or the venomous bite of the mad
dened member OF the rush line.