The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1899-06-23

earning anything aside from their
wages as soldiers. In Europe the men
who constitute the difference between
the peace and the war footing must nee
essarily give a part of their time each
year to their military duties, and for
that length of time are taken out of ine
labor markets. In this country the men
constituting the difference between our
peace and war footing, if indeed we can
lay claim to war footing at all, are not
required to give any portion of their
time to military duties, and so our mil
itary service has no effect upon the la
Dor markets.
The armies of Europe on peace foot
ing, exclusive of native colonial troops,
the men and officers for whom the diff
ferent governments must provide food
clothing, barracks and wages, even
though the wages are meager, are as fol-
lows:
Russia, 100000 officers and men of all
classes; France, 615,413; Germany, $780,
4l0; Austria-Hungary, 3S5,G97; Italy,
81, 355; Great Britain, 1913, 500; United
States, 65,OC0.
Even these figures, great as they are,
do not appall one so much until they are
considered in connection with the pop
ulation of the different countries, and
even then it takes the figures of Europe
on a war footing to produce the greatest
effect. The population of the different
countries with great military estab-
lishments that keep the peace of Europe
disturbed are as follows:
Russia, 120, 166, sol; Germany, 50 ,279,
915; Austria-Hungary, 1921 ,342;
France, 3S,517,975; Great Britain, 49,
l04,975; Italy, 31,114,5S9; while the
United States, with its little army of
G5,000 men, has population second
only to Russia.
The number of men which the nations
of Europe are prepared to put into the
field at the first call to arms. and at
whours' notice, and which really COM
prise the armies of Europe, are as fol-
lows:
Russia, 100000; Germany, 100000;
France, 100000; Austria-Ilungary,
l,s2, LIS; Italy, 1,26s, sos; Great Britain,
526,220.
III comparing these vast figures with
the totals of population, the only coun-
try that represents anything like Il fair
percentage of soldiers in proportion to
the population is Great Britain, and
even there one soldier must defend only
~ civilians. In Germany one out of
every II of the population is a soldier in
time of war, and that at time when the
last reserve of the German army is not
included. In other words more than
one-siXth of the Eaiser's subjects are
under arms more or less each year.
When we consider that those at home
include the Women and children, the
aged and intirm and other classes of
government employees, it means that
nearly one-half of the able-bodied men
of the country are soldiers. What would
become of these men, as well as those
out of the ranks of the army, if the
peace conference should decide that Tie
government must dispense with their
services as soldiers. The competition
which their desire and necessity for
work would produce in the labor mar
kets would be disastrous to all.
Conditions are even worse in France,
where there is one soldier to every Is
civilians, which means one-fifth of The
population in the army. To throw
these men out of employment to which
they are accustomed, and expect them
10 earn living when such thing
would be almost impossible, would
mean repetition of the terrible scenes