The herald., 1898-04-23
fIGRUfS ABOUT WARS
TIMELY STATISTICS OF COST,
MORTALITY AND BOOTY
: Facts Worthy of Present Considera'
tion in View of the
Situation

Those who like to feel their pulses stirred
.t the prospect of war must have been
more in their element during the past
twelve months than for a quarter OF cen-
fury. International situations and rumors
Of war have been the order of the "a!
since.
Strangely enough, though almost every
body talks glibly enough of war just now
It is generally agreed that no one can pos
sibly realize much less describe, what the
horrors Of the next great war will be ike.
Perhaps the statistical method is as erect
ave as any in an attempt to represent the
results of war.
In the last really great war-that De-
tween France and Germany-France lost
as many as 10000 men, of whom some 3D.
GOO died of wounds received in battle, &c.
600 by sickness, accident, suicide, etc., ana
10000 in German prisons. A French statis-
tician estimates that his countrymen VINO
were wounded, but who survived, number
ed $4,000, those injured on the march or
by accident II ,421, those who recovered
from illness 32S 900, making total OF 4f',-
421 direct sufferers. The German klllea
numbered 40,S77, II ,255 died on the field and
21.023 in the ambulances, making 79,155 in
all. The wounded who survived numbered
lS,543 men. From first to last the Ger
man field artillery fired $40 900 shots and the
infantry 2O,000,OOO. The booty of war con-
sisted of 5526 fortress guns, 1915 field guns
and rapid-firing cannon, 107 eagles and
flags and S55, 900 rifles, exclusive of what
was captured at leisure on abandoned
fields.
The monetary loss suffered by France
was 1866, ,4S7 522f., including 1856 412.55Sf.
for military expenses, 5,742 ,9SS, ,Sl4f. paid 20
Germany; loans, 1.156, 1927 955f.; losses suf-
fered by the state, 2033 1889 000f; public
works, POI, ,239 ,S00f.; indemnities paid by the
state to departments, 6O4, ,622, ,425f.; damages
borne by the communes and not reinl'
bursed by the state, 535 ,0T ,00Of.
Austrian Soldiers Statement
Capt. Otto Berndt of the Austro-Hun-
garian grand general staff published about
q year ago figures relating to the mortality
in particular battles between the French
and the Germans. Here they are: Woerth,
81, 100 Germans against 4S,500 French Ger
man loss. 0G40, or 13 per cent; French loss,
20, O,1OO or Ala per cent Spicern, "a ZOO Ger
mans against 81 600 French: German loss,
674O, or IA per cent French loss, 1850, or AS
per cent. Colombey-Neuilly, $500 Ger
mans against 81 200 French; German loss,
1910, or SO per cent; French loss. $3.50, or
per cent. Mars-la-Tour, $1,000 Germans
against 113,500 French; German loss, Il, 500,
or 239 per cent; French loss, 16, $50, or IA per
cent. Gravelotte-St. Privat, $4,000 Ger
mans against 112 800 French; German loss,
21 .13O, or 113 per cent: French loss, 12,270, or
10.3 per cent. Sedan, 154 900 Germans against
10000 French; German loss, $500. or 5.5 per
cent; French loss. $4,000, or 42.2 per cent.
The total loss to both sides averaged 12.5
per cent of the fighting strength. For the
seven years war the average was 23.5 per
cent: for the Napoleonic wars, 10; Russo
Polish war Qs3D. 1856; Italian war GS4S-4s),
b.5: Austro-Hungarian war QS4S-49, AS;