The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-06-04
THE BRITISH ARMY.
Duty, Pay, and Prospects of Every
Rank - No Man Has Ever Risen
From Bottom to Top.

Ii
From bottom to Top.
From the London Mail
The man who starts at the bottom rung
of the army ladder with the intention of
climbing to the top has in front of him
long journey. Indeed, so long is 1t that up
TIL now no soldier has accomplished 1t in
its entirety. In other words no Briton
living Or dead has been endowed with
suincient vim, grit, to start as a private
and end field marshal. There have been
numerous major general ''rankers," nota-
bly, Willie Mclean of the Ninety-third
Highianders, Luke OConnor of the Tween
ty-third, John Mckay and our own
f1ghtlng Mac" and there has been at
least one lieutenant general, Sir John
Elley, to-wit, but no field marshal Per-
haps Gen. Hector Macdonald is destined
to establish a record in this respect
The first step which the budding major
general takes when emerging from his
original status of full private is to lance
corporal. The life of a lance corporal is
not happy one. Indeed, so little rest does
he get that he is popularity supposed to
sleep with one eye open. He Is at every
ones beck and call; his duties are novel
and trying, and, worst of all, his late COM
rades keep an eye on his movements and
are not slow TO remind him of any lapses.
In some corps IS per cent. of all lance
TO the rank of private.
Those who survive the ordeal are in due
course promoted to CORPORAL wear two
White cotton stripes ON the arm instead
of one, and receive higher rate of pay.
A corporal Is regarded as fairly on the
road to regimental success, and the du-
ties that fall to his lot are neither so
Wearisome nor so multifarious as formerly
The next step-that to lance sergeant
is like the first, an appointment" not a
promotion. This Is a distinction with a
difference. A commanding officer can or
der lance corporal to revert to private.
and he forthwith reverts So also he can
in the same way deprive lance sergeant
of his lance stripe and bid him revert to
corporal. But he cannot degrade corpo-
raj or sergeant, for these are promotions
to actual ranks, and once conferred can
only be taken away by sentence of court
martial.
After serving his probation as lance ser
geant for a period varying between two
or three months and couple of years
the rising young ''non-com." finds himself
one day sin orders for his gold stripes,
which is to say, he is promoted full SER
geant.
He is now an important unit In that
great family, the regiment, and takes a
more or less prominent part in the social
life that centers around the sergeants
nass.
VI
thai the mani who marries while yet a
mere mon -com." forfeits all future hope
of combatant commission, so our typi-
cal ranker ressts the Establishments of The
fair daughters of the regiment, sticks
tight TO, his bachelor quar-, ers, and in due
course becomes color sergeant. He is hen
very important parsonage indeed, hav-
ing entire charge-under his company
officer, of course-of a whole company,
equivalent TO one-eighth of battalion.
The company has frequently been likened
to a family, of which the color sergeant
is the father. What the men eat and
drink, the manner in which their meals
are served and cooked, how they are
clothed and shod, wheher well or ILL., all
this and much more depends in a great
measure upon The fitness or otherwise
Of the color sergeant for his duties. Nay,
more. A good and popular ''fag"-as the
color sergeant is Invariably dubbed by
his men-can make or mar his company
as fighting unit. From among the eight
color sergeants of a battalion is selected
-as a general rule-the regimental SER
geant major the chief non-commissioned
officers of a corps, and the man who, in
conjunction with the adjutant, is mainly
responsible for the maintenance of that
strict internal discipline without which
a regiment is worse than useless as
fighting machine. In his own realm the
sergeant major is absolute.
The next step, that from sergeant major
to second lieutenant, is the most impor-
tant of all, for it is here that the soldier
passes that mysterious barrier which sep
arates the non-commissioned ranks. To
many, too it is a terrible trial. for II is
the custom nowadays to gazette the new
ly fedged officer to some regiment other
than his own.
AS major most rankers finish their serv-
ice, but a few, a very few, add a star
to the crown upon their shoulder straps,
and become lieutenant colonies: fewer still
become full colonels, while those who
have actually served as major generals
can be counted on the fingers of one
hand.
One word in conclusion as to the pay of
the higher commissioned ranks of the
service. The figures given are approx
mately correct, but there are numerous
extra payments--or allowances" as they
are termed in army parlanee-which. oc-
casionally, more than double the nominal
daily rate. Thus, in time of peace a
colonel may be drawing forage allow
ance, fuel and light allowance, lodging
allowance, the allowances in lieu Of ro-
lions, etc, while in time of war many
more similar "extras" are tackled on.
Mrs. Francena LHote, Of Havana, is