Bismarck weekly tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1884-1943, 1898-08-26
SOLDIERS IN CHINA.
oLl.sMETHoD5 wH,cHMAkE THEM
WORTHLESS AS FIGHTERS.


WORTHLESS AS FIGHTERS.
TO Eeoome q Soldier Is to Lose Caste, and
Good Men Are Not Used For Warriors.
Crazy Tactics In the War With Japan.
Pepper Versus Bullets.
Major A. E. j. Cavendish, First Argyll
and Sutherland highlanders, d. A. A. G.,
Dublin district (late military attache with
the Chinese army, writing in The Jour-
nal Of the United Service Institution, says
that in many respects tho army Of China
presents q curious example of the survival
OF tho unfittest. In the broad outlines its
scheme is simple and suited to tho coun-
try. Nevertheless, with the characteristic
Chinese love of detail, in it's minutiao, it
Is exceeding complex. Owing to an equal
~ characteristic want of exactitudo, al.
though returns as rendered by separate no.
countants ore often beautifully worked
out to tho t%housandth part Of a tacl, yet
In a combination of these returns nothing
balances.
For members of parliament who cavil
at the intricacics of tho British estimates
l can imagine no worse punishment in tie
future life than to be set by satan to I'M
ravel the mysteries of the Chinese mill
tary budget. Every province has its sep
arato army, for which the viccroy or
governor ia responsible. and in II OF these
1t consists Of Tartar ard Chinese soldiers
III certain fixed proportions, Any def.
c.eLeics in the military budgets If tho
I:oolsf liHvi:,cei i;.o i:;t h!T q tributicns
tcGni tie g, ltrA! provinces. tho billy Of
tihtna. GrnlE,n:: all t,ssa armies" to
t:et,,ci'. thu t:snI:S tell mtn ,n,,r great Gaze
:oriei-...':tni! ~ Iurr:ti >~ilu;v!S or ban.
nNf iEt!A. t"l ;-:yHi; t.sE::"cH:S or ChiHrs,
trrri.orlal fer e. t3} f;:hG!i.. iTuycs; a.
ttsrllli:ru tiouis. f. p
The TS.it"r ajv.,snn i>;nrneSinr ncronnt
q! 'acSM n'"'s, i:rG .~!oa.rui'.: 10 general
ssnari,| says Niue. IT the after ,nei;i-
c;rliry 90 titiH;t = tc!!'y - uE;lHillrH by tire
nA.Isr ~si,!ia.::. 10 aut u" good s:"tl To
E;.K" rail 1or take /" r":ai nfn to Mala,
N Fui;!ier, which Is most thoroughly acted
uptn The ''abScic. of Ecr.rs'' and tho
animal 1c!nti:E uf tho C,i:laN"nn admir-
ehlv at;lrC him for the Guiibyrato cxter-
E,in2tiun which charactcrizcs tic suppress
sion of a revolt, but in real courage tho
a%bncgation of self under danger, he is
woefully deficient. He will III much for
pay, hewill fight when his rage is aroused,
but his passion, violent as u typhoon, as
quickly passes away. On almost every
occasion in lS94-5 the Chinese troops re-
fused to stand up to tho dcspisod Japanese.
Small wonder, when of the hundreds Of
thousands who since 1869 have been
"drilled" with foreign weapons, not one in
30, 1000 has been taught their proper use.
Muskctry and artillery practice is limited
generally to handling the weapons, and
instruction in tho use of rifles and field
guns is not thought necessary-nuy it is
opposed. In january, 1855, several thou
sands of men had been collected ut Shan
hai-Kuan, undcr General Wuta-chcne, to
REINFORCE the army in Manchnria. New
rif:es and field guns had been served out,
and the force was to move early in Febru-
airy, yet on Jan. 20 the mon fired their
rifles tor tho first tin,o, and barely l per
cent IF hits Gu a tnrgru 200 Yards distant
cilstrd. As iur nc gl:is. not Il soul knew
SOW to load them or s,l II fuse. and wl.c!!
at length enc vas fired with tin a:.l Of the
foreigners present. The ammunition was
SO tr.Ic.i.r TRAIT, although the zen VIVA
iaiG tora.ncH ,T"rds tts s:ell only Travelled,
3Io IcE these wen ">"e sent norsl, to
fight - Ticnf".aua" tel without further
Gr2lI!ntr ln"ri utf1'tE hT IL foreigner hav-
iS::; ,u, i~.nl%h.;:,r ..r:&scd.
10 Re 4 Ssi' ic' IS 80 ;,'Sc ras.r III China,
TO t.nH:tl Ntc.An !ut;t.n4 Is worse still
AID ,:mE:s ti.e h:trrf! ;:,,t s1.:i :ciOn of tho
civilians, Wl.o n ~rr:..!:J in.,vrn tho army
II E;:vy, so .:.u:h so ;i:s'I 10 10 II gralu.
ate of Tie to:yl:-n sci och, Is an almost Ger
tain bar To promotion in tho military
and other schools Established ny sir Robert
Hart and tho viccroys at lic!;ins and else
where the students Ea,c To be bri5ed to
attend, SO hs to compensate them for the
social disadvantages of foreign education.
If we add to this the natural contempt for
foreigners %ingrained in the Chinese ma
ture, we have potent causes for the,willful
laziness and ignorance of officers, which is
truly appalling. Alas, that they should
add cowardice as WE'LL
The commander in chief at Shan-hal-
Kuan told me he did not believe in mus
kerry instruction for all. 1t was quite
sufficient to have ten good shots in each
''ying" to pick of tho Japanese officers.
His other theory was that the troops We're
defeated because they fought hungry, in
which he was partially right His remedy
vas to draw up his men III five lines. The
first would fight fer two hours. ard tIen
AGtiit w NIiit!tI, lIiC AcNdtIu llilG, EuVl1H
lNetrwEiie diECl, r'u::M take its lJiat..
and so IN Tlus Ea wul.ti get tei, hol.,s'
fighting aud ey,r.S enc would !n "a
anatir! rcn; t!,eic, being u.y:urad 10
lttp IL %s!.rl, los Hnut tor llt. .i;.iurrsu.
,Hhnse iAl:tIi's Vas holr!y expected did
10 rs asking t.ln ioi!Mp? station master 20
tHl.u IVA .m.iivs 10 tie ri:.St To .:n,k iur
the elti.y' HIS vas tie plan ut ,:r:nn4s
his men ,;i:h !,;:.:s # !eWrrt e., b, throw I,
III Inc l"cvs u tn" .inpnarst.. who While
engaged in srrrziis wU,..u all 10 slain BY
the CHINESE .laarllon
1t seems Il libel IN the human race 70
S:!ysthat outni ,igrint,Ei,nd I'll S,nl. y .UnU
OF Chinese " ituy Ul good soldiers c,tri3t
be made. and with the example Of the
army which has ..ceil evolved from the
Egyptian frl!shrcn it tiny be- premature
to call it impossible. But China herself
cannot do it. The very best human ma
terial and tho most elaborate instruction
would he wasted under the existing native
official, who steadily resists all reform in
his maladministration. Nevertheless tile
d0cile soldiers sailors of China have
p nouor vof hod n Noh,r<,o of eL1rS~- ,.-a..