The record-union., 1897-01-25
SOLDIERS ON BICYCLES.
Experiments Made by French Mill.
tary Authorities.

The experiments in the French army
with the bicycle have surprised the mil
itary authorities of all Europe. They
have developed the fact that bicycle
corps can be developed so as to very
nearly take the place of cavalry squad
rons.
The more the French officers expert
ment the more clearly they discover the
adaptability of the bicycle to the mod
ern army. OF course, it is obvious what
an Improvement the bicycle is over the
horse, If it can be made to do the work
of the horse.
The initial cost Is about that of a
good horse, but 1t does not need to be
fed, while a horse eats up more than
his own cost in a few months. The
transportation of fodder for the horses
is one of the most serious problems
that confront the military commander,
and their care entails a vast labor,
which takes just so many men out OF
the list of available fighters.
Over the good roads to be found in
most European countries the speed OF
the bicycle is much greater than that
of the horse. 1t is these good roads to
be found all over Europe, and especially
in France and Germany, which make
the bicycle d more important adjunct
to uhe army than would be the case
elsewhere.
They make it possible to transport
a fighting corps mounted on bicycles
fully 100 miles a day. The forced
night march," which has so frequently
turned the course Of history and ter
rorized commanders sleeping in fancied
security, is now by means Of the bicy-
Gle made possible IN form never
dreamed of at the time of the last great
war.
Noisalessly, and with almost the
speed of the wind, a strong fighting
corps, mounting their wheels at dusk,
could sweep across q wide extent OF
territory, making a sudden and unex-
pected descent at sunrise upon a sleep
ing foe fifty miles away. BY means
of bicycle courters widely separated COL
umns Of the army may communicate,
and a kind of light artillery Is posi-
BILE possessing many advantages over
that to be- found In all the regular ar
miles,
The French experiments have demon
strated that many of the regular cav
airy feats can be performed by soldiers
mounted on bicycles. The bicycle SOL
der Of the future will carry a saber.
Under the command of Captain GT-
ard, a young officer Of the French
army, a battery of soldiers have been
practicing various bicycle exercises, the
particulars of which have just leaked
out One of these exercises consisted or
cutting the Turks head"
A Turks head is dummy head OF
man placed upon a post about five feet
above the ground and held by a stout
piece Of wood. In all cavalry schools
the son Yer is trained to rush past this
dummy, his horse going AT full speed, and
to cut off the head with a single sweep
of his saber.
Every cavalry soldier is supposed to
be able to do this, whether the dummy
be on the right or left Of the horse, and
10 be equally competent to sweep off the
head of a man if standing in the same
place. Captain Gerard has been train
ing his men in the performance Of this
feat with the bicycle instead of the
horse.
II was found TO be extremely difficult
ait first, as the sword arm had to be free
to use the saber. and the slightest shift
French bicycle soldiers soon acquired
great proficiency In cutting the Turk s
head.
They demonstrated that the weight
and impetus of the horse add nothing to
4he capacity Of the cavalry soldier to
perform this feat, and that 1t IS done by
strength and dexterity alone. Supposing
a sentry to be standing guard in a road
on a dark might Without a sound, and
almost invisibly. the bicycle cavalryman
sweeps down upon him and the sentry
loses his head before he has time to ut
ser a word. opening the way for the pas
cara of a large body of the enemy
-,,oa,nte-d ON bicycles within the military
lines.
full battalion Of regular soldiers has
Hean assigned TO Captain Gerard, and
e.hev are now being drilled daily on the
s,cvcIe They go on long rides through
rf,a. country and are put through all the
svxYiutaons Of war times.
Rapid firing machine guns are carried
ON saver,al types OF wheels, including
randems. double tricycles and the regu-
lar h5cvc1e. These guns are rigged In
various ways in an effort to discover
rhe hest roethod for distributing their
weight and that of the ammunition
On the regular safety the rapid firing
gun IS f1xed between the handles. II Is