The Saint Paul globe., 1897-06-07
Sixty Years With the Queens Afmy
ked Changes During Vic
toria's Reign.

Vegetables anu personal washing, the
ccst OF which varies now from Sd to 4d
per diem, but his bedding is washed by
| the government.
1t is a fair estimate to put a soldiers
rations, pay, lodging and clothing as
| equivalent to 15S week, which sum
| increases gradually, according to the
| soldiers conduct and consequent pro-
motion He is credited also with sum
of f3 per annum under the head Of de
fefred pay, which is given to him on
! his joining the army reserve, or at the
expiration of his service. After deducs-
! IFS all stoppages, as well-conducted
soldiers of our infantry-the lowest paid
CT our arrny-may reckon Oh having
IS week as pocket money. On the
other hand he sacrifices a great deal
of his personal freedom; but it must be
remembered that if he were employed
! in civil life on a weekly wage, this
ceases on his becoming i'll, and he
would have to pay for medical treat
ment, which to the soldier is offorded
free, I'd per diem being, however,
stopped from his pay while he remains
! in hospital.
! There is a mixture of feudalism and
! parish life in q battalion. Scarcely a
regiment exists which has not char
! liable fund, and in most corps either
! the colonels wife or one of the regi-
mental ladies plays he double part of
the squire's daughter and parsons wife
relied into one. There are Christmas
festivities for the soldiers families,
and in cases of death, or even of out
! break of infantile sickness, not only is
money forthcoming, but | have known
| personal attention and nursing rem
dered by officers wives under the most
| distressing conditions
Although some corps have q better
regimental system than others, yet in
the majority of the mounted corps the
men have coffee or cocoa at 6 a. m.,
served outside the stables. All branches
| CT the service have, as q rule, bread
and butter, with, in some cases, bacon,
| Drawn, or some such relish for break
! fast. For dinner they have boiled,
| baked, or roast meat, and generally
pudding of some kind, the rations be-
| ms increased by grants from the reg
mental Institutes to the company mes
| sing book. Not only are the cooks
stimulated by the monetary prizes
given for general excellence of dinners
| throughout the month, but it is the
| duty of commanding officers and of
company officers to see the bill of fare
from day to Gay, and that the company
| books correspond in quantities Of gro
eeries to the food which is provided.
Petween 4:30 and 5 p. m. there is al
ways tea with sugar and milk, and
bread with generally either butter or
| jam.
The appetites and the habits of re-
! crultS vary greatly, according to the
| locality from which they join. Where
as some men will eat but little more
! than the rations provided, many re-
| crultS will, in addition consume bowl
| OF soup, which in most corps in given
! free for supper, and at the regimental
| institute substantial and palatable
evening meal, which is ohtainable
] throughout the evening at a cost vary
ing from Id to I'd.
If at the end of the seven years serv-
/ ice the soldier does not wish to join the
army reserve, but serves on to COM
pIete tWenty-One years service he re-
/ ceives, on final discharge a lump sum
of l36 deferred pay, and pension Of
Is day for life. A sergeant under
| similar circumstances receives a sum
of f63, and q pension varying from Is
! to IS Sd per day, while the pensions of
warrant officers run to As Cd per diem
Passing now to the life of a soldier,
he is kept hard at work for the first
three months of his service; but re-
/ Gently the drill has been rendered much
| less irksome by being combined with
/ gymnaStlc training, which is carried
on un1nterruptedly for ten weeks, the
n1en being excused all duties which
! may interfere with their regular at
tendance, which lasts for an hour and
a half daily, being divided into morn
! Ing and afternoon lesson. There were
at first some commanding officers who
lamented this innovation, thinking it
would delay squad drill but every one
now admits it has quickened it to an
| extraordinary degree, the recruits
| limbs being rendered so much more
lissom, and the hour and a half which
they spend at gymnastics materially
shCrtens the time which is now required
to pass into the first SQUAD
After the young soldier has been dis
missed drill he has to attend two. and
at some stations more, parades a day.
| and to go on guard, which comes to
his turn about every fourth, fifth or
sixth day. When [ was at Aldershot
1t only averaged once in three weeks:
! and all general officers should keep
down this tine-Wasting duty When
not on guard, or detailed for fatigue
! duties, such as to carry coal, sweeping
| and cleaning barracks, the infantry
soldier is generally master of his time
! from about 8 to $3.50 D. M, when he has
to be in his barracks. Should he pre-
fer to remain in barracks in the even
| ing, II he is of a conVivial nature there
is now in the new barracks q good
| canteen, to which q miniature music
hall is attached, and there is recrea-
ton room, where he can smoke, and
have all the books and papers which
are to be found in London club, and
where he can at all times get tea and
coffee. These rooms are fairly lit, but
the lighting of barrack rooms leaves
something to be desired. There are
game rooms in which he can amuse
himself, and a library in each regi-
ment in barracks we'll supplied with
books. Nearly every want is supplied
on payment in the regimental institute
at the lowest rates consistent with a
slight interest on capital.
Chaplains, to whom much of the i'm
provement in the tone of our soldiers
his due, organize smoking concerts, In
which they are generally assisted by
officers Of the battalions. who cheer
fully give UP their mess dinner for an
''early feed in order to take part in
entertainments designed to keep the
soldiers from going out into the towns
In every corps in the service there is
now a cricket and football club, in
which nearly all the men are interested.
even if they do not play.
If we turn now to the state of the
active army in 1887, we find that at
home, in India and the colonies, there
are $4,000 effectives, and $4,000 in the
army reserve. Numbers alone how
ever, give no adequate idea of the eff
cheney of an army for field service, and
without alleging that our arrangements
mains much to be done, yet it may be
confidently asserted that as regards the
departments, or auxiliary branches,
which clothe, cure, subSist and trans
port the army, and are therefore essen
tial for it's well being in the field, we
have never previously been in so eff
cient a state. The growth of the vol
unteer force and our innumerable
minor wars have made the army known