The state herald. (Holyoke, Logan County, Colo.) 1887-1921, 1894-05-04
SOLDIERS OF FRANCE.
GIANTS THAT GUARD THE
FRONTIER FACING ITALY.
rhey Arc Mostly Natives Of Piedmont
and Are Hardy Mountalnesrs-They
Move Quickly and Depend Much en-
Surprise Tactics,

Tho Parislans love to sec the req.
lments Of soldiers In the streets and
on the boulevardA They are de.
lighted at the sound OF the cymbals,
tho sonoroasness OF the cornet the
deep tones Of the trombone and the
trills OF tho little flute in the mill
tary bands They admire the bright
uniforms Of the officers and the
flashing Of the bay onets; and, filled
with feverish chauvinism. they keep
stop with the dusty soldiers return
Ing to their barracks after a review.
But they know nothing whatever
Of tho martial air OF the Alpine in
tantry In their severe dark blue cos.
tune. Those fortunate enough to
ruralize In tho summer months in the
valleys OF Savoy. ON tho heights Of
the Dauphinian Alps. or. in winter,
IT Cannes. Nice or Mentone, alone
mako an acquaintance with that
troupe d'clite which guards our from
tier facing tho Italians, says the
Paris Figaro
These battalions were formed In
1887 BY General Ferron. The mon
Are drossod with heavy vest and
tunic and q great coat with hood Or
cloak. according to tho season.
Their logs are covered with bands OF
cloth Of q grayish blue color from
the ankle to a little above the knee.
The head is protected by = Basque
cap. and the spreading soles Of their
strong shoes are we'll furnished with
nails They also have Neapolitan
laced shoes in addition to snowshoes.
Their knapsack weighs twenty eight
kilogrammes and is a perfect bazaar.
IN which are packages OF cartridges.
boxes OF preserves. bolts, flannel
shirts. spare clothes, mercury. q
tent with Its pickets, cooking uten-
sils. and above all appears tho crook
OF an alpenstock, which the soldier
uses In climbing steep ascents, catch
Ing tho rocks Or tho roots that arc
imbedded in the sides Of the noun
tain. Add to this the weight Of the
gun and you will foot up q very re-
spectacle load.
Each battalion OF chasseurs alpins
Is re-cnforced by mountain battery
and section OF the engineer corps.
belonging to the Fourteenth and Fiji
teeuth battalions Of that branch OF
tho service, which Is in garrison at
Grenoble. Guns and caissons are
transported by mules. and the picks
and shovels look like steel cuirasses
that sparkle in tho sunlight The
drivers are robust follows who. whom
an accident happens to ono Of their
animals. mover hesitate TO pick up
tho pieces even from tho bottom OF
rnvinc. They arc remarkable for
their extraordinary strength, and
ono OF them. when his mules rolled
Into precipice some days ago went
down after the gun. On bringing it
back to General Dcsgarets. he pre-
seuted arms to him with tho piece.
Solid biceps! But they are almost
all. as l have said. men OF extra
ordinary strength. Their training
ls OF tho sevcrest kind. but never
theless. thcir recruiting is not ex-
ceptional. and docs not differ from
that OF the regular line. Tho secret
Of forming troop Of mon Of this In
comparable strength lies In the con-
tinuous training which they undergo
Gymnastic exercises are practiced
every day. In addition they have
long marches, sometimes with an
empty rack and sometimes with
full load. over tho most rugged OF
countrics
Tho soldiers also perform tho work
Of lab0rcrs. opening pathways and
making roads. Then. Of course, they
arc drilled In the manual Of arms
and target practice. company and
battalion drills and In repetitlons
and rohcarsals OF rapid mobilization
at all hours OF tho day and OF tho
night. They aro almost all Pied
montesc, and Industrious mon. The
genius OF that race was we'll proved
In tho Crimea. where they built
themselves little stone huts In which
they wero perfectly sheltered, while
our soldiers wero famishing and
freezing under tents Theirs Is not
tho scientific movement OF masses on
tho plains, like that OF chessmen;
Il 10 war OF perpetual surprises.
marches and countcrmarchos. with
engagements, ambuscadcs md sud
den attacks In tho day and In the
night A great initiative Is allowed
TO tho officers, on.commlssloncd
officers and soldiers Free squadrons
operate on their own responsibility.
accommodating tho ground and tho
enemy. They are ut liberty TO act
according to circumstances and tho
opportunity OF n military movement
Ono can 500 those dark phnntoms
moving along like Apachcs through
tho rocks under cover OF tho thinkcts,
usjns, their alpcnstocks In ravines.
avoiding ali noise which might bo-
tray their presence TO their Advor-
sarics Fires arc,lightcd on summit
while tho greater portion OF tho
troop is endcavoring To turn tho
enemy. The orders aro TO fro as
little as possible, In order TO avoid
an alarm and the waste Of cartridges,
which arc difficult to replace In these
out.of.thc. way countries Thcy arc
instructed to make usc Of tho cold
steel rs much ms possible. tho oppor.
tunlty for which Is favored In these
rugged regions. In which tho troops
come suddenly faco 10 face Some.
timcs volloys aro necessary when In
the presence OF superior forces 10
create the Impression that thcIr mum.