The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1894-05-10
THE JEW AS A SOLDIER.
Experience of the Russian and German
Military Authorities.

Experience of the Russian and German
Military Authorities.
Russians have told me that it is al
most impossible to catch the Jews for
military service, owing to the facili-
ties they enjoy of changing their DOM
icile. The railways have been in Rus
STA the greatest possible blessing to
the Jews, in that they give them the
means of speedily moving from place
to place, transacting business in parts
of the country where they are forbid
den, and disappearing with their prof.
its to place of safety before the gov
eminent has become aware of what
has happened. Forged passports are
readily procured, and with these they
move from point to point sleeping on
the train and transacting their bust
ness through the day. They avoid as
much as possible spending any time in
a town where they might be called to
account by the police. When the re-
cruiting authorities came to hunt up
their Jews for military service which
all Russians have to render, they are
usually away from home, or have
been enrolled in some other town
or village. If they are finally
caught and brought before the
military authorities, they usual
ly have papers certifying that
they are either too young or too old
70,
authorities regard it now as pretty
well proved that of the three million
Jews in the Russian empire, hardly
one is of military age. In this matter
of deceiving the war office the Jews are
much assisted by their local Jewish
officials, whose duty it is to register
births and grant certificates of this
kind, but the matter at last went to
such ridiculous lengths that the Rus
slams have gone to the other extreme,
and now attach no Importance what
ever to any document which the Jews
may produce, but draw their own con-
illusions by looking at him, and pro-
nounce him of military age or not ac-
cording to his appearance or their in
to my friend that there was little in
ducement for the Jew to enter the
army, where he was not apt to be
treated with much consideration, but
my friend replied that the behavior of
the Jew in regard to his military serv-
ice was analogous to his behavior in
regard to all his obligations to the
81, -, hi
own.
Il do not know how it is with you in
America, said he, but with us, when
ever you see Jew who is rich, you
may be pretty sure that he has either
contracted to furnished food or cloth
ing for the army, or else has been sew
eral times bankrupt. You would have
jew who has not been bankrupt at
least once.
The German Jew complains that his
co-religiOnists are not often selected
for military commands, and argues
that he is therefore not equal before
the law. The Jew is not often found
as an officer in the German army, sim
p4S DCNAuoS liiO VI 'CA mum
officers do not desire to serve with
him. If the officers of Prussian regi-
ment desired Jew to become one of
their mum Der, there is no law in the
country that would stand in the way;
for in this matter of becoming an Off
Ger the Jew stands on a footing as
good as and no better than Christian.
Every candidate for epaulets in the
German army submits his name to the
regiment in which he desires to serve,
and has to be elected into the regi-
ment, much as though he were apply
ing for admission into a rowing club,
or any other scmi-social organiza ton.
German politicians who to-day cham
pion the cause of the Jews tell us that
during the wars of liberation against
Napoleon l. five and half per cent. of
the Jews who were of the military age
entered the Prussian army as volun-
teers, and that one of the first soldiers
to earn the Iron Cross in those wars
was jew. From that day to this the
Jews in Germany have borne a good
record in the ranks of the army, al
though few of them have become Off
GERS. -Poultney Bigelow, in Harper's
Magazine.