The Portland daily press., 1900-01-05
ARMnRAILwAY CORPS.
A Force OF Volunteers Recruited from
the Great shops.

The importance 30 military command
srs In the fsld Of having the control Of
an efficient railway corps able to move
with an army, In order to construct or
repair railways In advancing. and to dis
mantle and break them down when nee
essary to cover retreat--for railways are
never destroyed except In the latter
contingency cannot be overrated. For
instances, when the Germans invested
Paris, they largely avalled themselves Of
the railways round the city. and took
possession Of this extensive locomotive
works OF the Northern company In order
10 repair. the rolling stock and plant rs-
quired. But their own special railway
corps. overwhelmed with work on their
lines Of communication, was not avails-
BILE for this additional task; consequently
they were compelled to seek out and Int
press into their service many Of the
French artisans and skilled mechanics
employed In the shops, onorably paying
these men for their forced labour.
For facilitating and acoelerating mo b.
iliza,ion ana concentration on frontiers
like those Of France. Germany and other
con tinental countries, IL has long tesn
realized that railways are invaluable.
OF little more than academic interest.
however, would be an Kccount OF the
special military railway systems organ
ized for the purpose since the require
men Is Of those nations are SO different
from our own. In short, IL Is not hsro
necessary to discuss the question Of our
own railroad Eystsm Is u factor OF nation
"A hav that the
basis of the whole scheme rests In the
recognition OF the fact that as sys-
tenn, per Sc, IL Is acknowledged TO be she
best In the world. and Ia being worked
| always at high pressure, therefore its
own cfvil functionariss rre the proper
persons to b. retained to control 1t.
There can be little or no doubt that this
plan is greatly preferable to those Of
France, Germany. Austria, ETC., where
the aotua n technical working OF the rail-
wass is taken out Of the hands OF expert
enced officials and placed In those of mill
tary officers. whose only practical knowi-
edge has been gained by occasional exeI-
else and periods Of training. some years
ago, however. Colonel II. III. Hozisr read
a paper before the members Of the Royal
I'm tied Service institution, In which he
enlarged upon the idea that In addition
to a we'll .thought-out railway mobiltza-
ton scheme for home defence, the pecu-
liar requirements of the British army
demanded provisions by which special
rail way corps or only the nucleus OF one,
might be forthcoming from The great
railway works OF the country, to aooom.
pany IL on expeditions or In operations
abrosd. For, as the lecturer pointed out,
there could be no possible doubt that Is
would be Of the greatest assistance TO
those conducting such operations. partiou
larly In q civilized country, we'll equipped
with railroads. to have at their disposal
L.
specially enlisted artincers, engine driv-
ers. firepen and skilled .workmen Of all
the various crofts concerned with the
construction. repairing and working OF
railroads.
The despatch Of an army corps to South
Africa 10 a case In point. anu, happily,
the troops are to be accompanied BY Just
such q semi- military and unique depart
mental corps, IL the term may be applied
TO the men now mobilizing at Chatham.
from two. II net more, OF the principal
railway works.
fer this eminently practical force come
atoutY The scheme owes its origin to the
patriotism and foreeighs Of the late Sir
George Findlay, the general manager OF
the London and Northwestern rail way
company, who conceived the Idea Of form
ing q technical volunteer corps solely
from the men employed at the famous
Crewe works; and early In 1871 an eject
i've force OF over COO men was here EN-.
bodied under the title Of the End Cheshire
railway engineer volunteers. The
corps is composed almost entirely Of men
who in their every day svocations are
smiths, filters, engine-drivers. signalmen.
etc., lin short, acquainted with every
pulse phase Of railway work, and who
undergo, In addition to the ordinary in
fantry drill, a course OF instruction In
military engineering.
But Sir George Findlay's patriotic an
deavor did not stop here. Realizing that
the corps, from having been Incorporated
upon the ordirary volunteer principle,
was liable only TO lie called out for active
service In event NJ invasion, he next ap-
preached the Wax Office with o scheme by
which u certain portion Of 1t might be
rendered available for service abroad.
His idea was at once heartily acquiesced