Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-05-03
THE FRENCH SOLDIER
His Life is Anything But a
Pleasant One.
MUST SERVE HIS TERM
EFFORTS TO REDUCE THE TIME
OF MILITARY SERVICE.
Hardships of the Present Conscript
System-Rigorous Discipline and
Deadly Monotony.
MUST SERVE HIS TERM
p0ndence Of The Evening Star.

Special Correspondence Of The Evening Star
PARIS, April 81, 1902
France proposes to reduce her young
mems term of enforced military service and
abolish the army's most painful hold upon
the middle-aged business man. When the
new chamber Of deputies takes up the work
of the outgoing one 1t will have to consider
proposition already accepted in principle,
that three year., active service is too much
to ask of every young Frenchman at the
outset of his business career and that to
force middle-aged business men to submit
TO rigorous discipline in time of peace is
needlessly vexatious.
AS the practice now Island must remain
in principle-every French youth owes his
country personal military service. Neither
money nor influence can save him from It.
| Not even infamy can save a Frenchman
from these forced military duties. Those
| sentenced to prison for above two years re-
main at the disposition of the minister of
| the marine. Those who have had only three
months or two condemnations for shorter
periods must be incorporated In the light
| infantry of Africa.
| The service-as 1t now stands-is made up
of three years in the active army, ten years
In the reserve of the active army. six years
In the territorial army, and six years in its
| reserve
Dreaded by All.
1t is, however. the three years active
| service which is dreaded by young men
and bewailed in families. The youth recois
from prfson-like confinement and routine:
| his father regrets the loss of time from
business; his mother breads the contamina-
ton of his morals. and his sisters know 1t
means scrimping Of their dots"
| once year the authorities of every can
| ton or township lin Paris pacb or
ACCOMPLISHMENTS draw up their lists of
| young men twenty years of age. When the
day comes to act upon them it is a public
| junction of painful interest. The bows and
| their parents are there to await the result
of curious lottery-drawing. The parents
nave their papers, protests and excuses
ready The boys have made their toilet
for the council of revision. before which
| they must pass-naked
| 1t is, indeed, to this council of revision
| that many families look with shamefaced
| nope TO get their boys exempted. 1t decides
| on physical condition and gives certificates
to those it finds unfit for service Young
men simply not yet up to standard height
| or development are put by Professionally
Along with the able-bodied they must draw
| their lottery tickets and take their place by
| number, in the class" of the wear And
In this class they keep their number tech
nlcally, throughout the whole period of
| twenty-five years, active. reserve and terri
| torial. 1t is life number.
Drawn by Lot.
In the country it is an anxious and up
roarious kind of feast day. In Paris the
disturbance of the various wards is less
noticeable. All those concerned-and MANY
who are not-gather in the public hall of
the municipal building. The roll of young
men twenty years old is called. and as
each one steps up he draws a numbered
| ivory ball from an urn. According as the
number drawn is lucky or unlucky. the
young man has cause for rejoicing or re-
| gret. Yet even here chance is sought to
be equalized. Low numbers carry the
| choice of this or that branch of the SER
vice. High numbers. on the other hand
carry chance of partial eXemption-for
| each year the minister of war. commencing
with the highest number, sets aside GER
| tain quota of young men who may be re-
| turned TO their homes after one year of
| active service under the flag" This num-
| Der varies each year according to the nu-
merical condition of the active army
Prior TO 1898 the payment into the treas
| ury of $500 would reduce the actual bar
| racks life from three years to one Such
men were called "conditionals," and the
exemption was bought eagerly by all the
well-to-do. Then, in the name of liberty,
| equality and fraternity, it was abolished.
! That is to say, it was abolished to pacify
the indignation of the poor. 1t is curious
that now far-seeing statesmen propose to
resume tin the interest of the poor The
proposition would be to accept such lump
sums-say $500 or 500 per eXemption-and
use 1t to pay real wages to some honest
volunteer for, say, four years or five years.
| The elite volunteer service thus encour-
aged, being more permanent and more pro-
fessional, would form an excellent "cadre"
or framework for the training of the pass
Ing conscripts; while the volunteers would
go out, their service ended, with q serious
lump sum of money with which to begin
their civil life again.
Let Off Lightly.
oldest
the only or eldest son of a widow or of a
father who is blind or in his SEVENTEEN
year are considered as having imperative
duties to their families which the law en-
forces. Such, therefore, are let off with
one years active service. So the only or
eldest son Of a family of seven children
(only when the other six are girls is
SO favored because of the fruitfulness of
his parents; so the brother of volunteer
or brother dying in the active service.
1t is the university, however, that gets
off most well-to-do young men. Those TAX
ing university degrees, together with those
contracted for ten years as teachers in the
public schools and young men entering the
priesthood or ministry, are now let off with
one years active service. In most of The
several plans lately considered by the
chamber of deputies such favoritism is
abolished-the idea being to reduce the
three years service to two years or eight
cen months for all alike. Lastly, young
men certified by the authorities of their
| cantons to be the support of their parents
or their brothers and sisters are let off
with one years active service. These, too
like all partial exempts, will lose instead
of gain when the new plan is adopted
On the Same Footing.
One-year men or three-year men, at pres
ent they are all blues that is to say,
new conscripts. There are fearful good
byes before they are marched in squads
fo IN he fad 70
other part of France. They march to-