Walker Lake bulletin. (Hawthorne, Nev.) 1883-1926, 1893-03-22
THE BRITISH ARMY.
It's Numerical strength and Relative
Weakness in Peace and War.

according TO Sir Charles Dixie. ZIG
500 900. saws the London Saturddv Re
uteD and in India the same. or f33. =
600 600 (f34 600 600 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 colonies altogether spend
for themselves about 81 SOC. 900 a year
for army purposes. in addition to the
contributions made by some OF them
toward the imperial forces and toward
marine defense. While the armies of
the British empire cost about f35. 800. :
600 year, the German empire costs
about f33 800 900 and the French army
a little over f28. 600. 900.
Our armies cost us. therefore, con-
siderably more than theirs, but while
each of these powers would have in the
field on the twenty-first day Of mobili-
cation over 2, 900, 600 Of men, with be-
tween 5000 and 1000 guns. and be-
hind this vast force a large garrison
and territorial army in reserve. we
could altogether muster but $50, 900
men from all the resources at our COM
mand. But the ingenious Briton will
retort that. though our forces are
small. they are of exceptional quality;
that one Englishman is equal to two
Frenchmen; that one volunteer is as
good as two pressed men. and so on
ind so weiter. etc Not so.
The 100000 active German or
French troops. of whom we have just
spoken. are pretty much the same all
tbrough"-tbat is to say, they are Of
uniform quality, even if it be granted
that their standard be not as high as
ours. Our muster-roll, on the con-
trary, is built up from the most hetero-
geneous sources. and the quality. when
the training and education of the SOL
der are considered. if ia some cases
high. is in others deplorable. The
total we arrive at is made up of no.
600 troops, excellent though deficient
in some particulars; so, 900 to $4,000
first-class army reserve. useful but not
periodically drilled as is the reserve of
every continental army; 1000 second
class army reserve. hardly worth
counting; 113 600 militia. who may be
said to be without half their officers;
5000 Channel island militia; about
1000 Malta and St. Helena militia;
1000 yeomanry; 224 600 volunteers;
$4,000 regulars in India Undoubtedly
splendid force); $4,000 good native
troops in India; Sc 900 bad native
troops. and q 900 of what Sir Charles
Dixie terms odds and ends"
In other words, the figures we can
produce include everything we can
possibly term soldier. from guards
man to native policeman. They in
clude some regiments of Indian in
fantry 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 efficient in their own sphere,
would probably be so occupied in it
that they can hardly be available 10
fight foreigner. Bua more than this
not only is our force thus variable and
sometimes unsatisfactory as regards
the quality of its component parts, but
regards the arms of which it is COM
posed.
If there is one thing which recent
experiments have established more
than another and upon which there is
complete unanimty of opinion among
military men, 1t is this-that modern
armies should in future campaigns be
remarka u furnished with both
cavalry and artillery; infantry will be
unable to face modern musketry I'M
less they are well supported by guns,
and have the way OF their attack pre-
pared for them by artillery fire. A
thick veil of horsemen will shruud the
movements of IA modern army from its
opponent, and an army which has not
strong force of cavalry. both to gain
information for it aud to ward Off its
opponents scouts, will be at the mercy
of a better-informed antagonist.
1t will neither be able to see nor re-
main unseen. Yet how do we find
that our attenuated levies are furnish
ed with these necessary adjunctsp
Contemptibly So it seems. as regards
artillery. We have but nominal 600
guns all told. against 1000 to 1000
belonging to the powers that may OPP
pose us. and of these we could not
place above 500 in the field.
Not only have we an absurdly small
number of batteries but we propose
on an outbreak of hostlities to reduce
them by fourteen in order to make up
ammunition columnsl That is to say.
we organize, equip and educate
scientific body OF men in order that
they may on the outbreak of hostilities
be equal to the duties which Pickford's
or Carter Paterson's draymen daily
perform in our streets! The Germans
on Oct. last added to their artillery
almost AS many guns AS we have in the
whole world, and Roumania and Swift
zerland can each of them put in the
field about as many guns rs can the
British empire. Nor when we come to
analyze our cavalry returns are mat
ters more reassuring, We have only
12,O00 horses to mount l9, 900 troopers
both in India aud at home together