Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1900-08-25

length II marching in column of tours
on a soou road and ranks kept closed.
but TINS latter is ar m~possfbility as
al, soialers or experience know, and
out takes place, or a stretching out of
the column of tours from one-hfth to
one-third It's original length.
1t would be folly to attempt in a
country like China to land troops with
out the supplies of food, clothing and
ammunition from home proper and sufn-
Gent to support them for at least three
months. AN average ration weighs three
pounds at least. n lasts a soldier one
day.
Five thousand rations will last tba
brigade n day. To last 80 days would
REQUIRE 45O, 600 pounds or 225 tons of
ioot. An army Wagon holds a ton and
y mar OF food, hence to carry these ra.
IONS would require at least $50 wagons.
Each wagon is drawn by six mules. each
animal must have his food.
a minimum calculation for food alone
requires 400 wagons, and these with
their teams would stretch out on a road
a little over four miles. Ado to this the
clothing, medical supplies, tents, ammu-
nition, etc, and the column Is doubled.
such a column requires protection,
hence more troops are needed with it,
and these need still other supplies.
Iherefore in a country of good roads a
single brigade with all supplies for 90
days would require 10 miles of road.
But In a country like China, where
there are no roads. the difficulties are
intensified and enlarged greatly. The
1hlnsse low country is cut up by in
Vulnerable narrow canals and streams.
and the means of transport are shallow
Junks drawing but a few inches of water
and kin days to sail from one point
to another. Between the flooded rice
helds and canals are narrow bikes with
a single narrow. %footpath. along which
the Chinese coolie carries his pack on
his back until the highlands are
reached. There are ne roads in China.
To transport wagons and artillery along
such roads is impossible.
THE TRANSPORTATION.
This matter of transportatino is the
first and main difficulty in the way of
a successful campaign. According to
the best reports the difficulties of trans
portation are vastly increased beyond
Ilentsin by the cutting of canals and
destruction of the few bridges across the
rivers by the Boxers. In such a country
at the best time Of the year the progress
made by dmiral Seymour's small force
at it's best did not exceed 10 miles a day.
A brigade of 5000 men, however, would
be but a bait to the army of Cinnamon
now surrounding Tientsin with modern
arms and directed by educated and ca
pable officers. The least number of civ
ilized troops that can successfully cope
with the Chinese on the battlefield, it
lis said by those who are presumed to
know, should not fall short of sc, 900,
while twice that number are required
to hold the places captured as the army
advances. The low, fiat country through
which the line of march lies has no
drainage, and sewers are unknown in
China. Even the Chinese, who drink
nothing but tea, drink it while it is boil
ing. All c%esspools empty directly in the
canals, which are but %sspoo them
selves on a large scale.
THE COMING WINTER.
The m are hot and dusty and
dry, and winters hard and cold. The
lack of good water, for either drinking
or cooking, and in winter the fearful
sandstorms are difficulties hard to i'm
agine. The deadly typhoid and dysen-
terry will be as great enemies as the bull
lets of the Cinnamon. There is no fuel
in the country, and no camping place
sufficient for a division of troops in all
the so miles to Picking. How then will the
fight be conducted Simply by indom-
liable grit, pluck and endurance.
Stores and troops will be transported
by boats and mules or asses, of which
China has millions. The. frosts come in
October, and rivers freeze in November.
From thence on the affair is one of
fighting only, n with the proper num-
'bers the dawn of a new year will find
Picking in the hands of civilized people.
The first thing is to rescue Tientsin and
it's garrison; then to put a force Suffi-
ciiently large to hold it till the large