Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-12-26

are about the same as in the British navy,
| but the men have less authority, receive
| less pay and have fewer privileges. The
| pay of Russian seaman is only 80 ko-
pecks per ten days, kOpeck being about
| three-quarters of a cent.
| Nevertheless, the seaman's mess on the
| Pacific and Baltic stations compares favor
| ably even with that on American ships,
| where the sailors are said to be the best fed
| in the world. The same is measurably true
I of the Black Sea fleet. The officers messes
are supported by fixed contributions from
all the officers according to their rank, and
/! the English idea of gun room and ward
room messes is carried out on the larger
| Russian ships.
Eligibility for the commissioned ranks In
| both services depends upon birth and edu-
| cational qualifications. 1t is necessary that
candidates must be well born. Their
parents must have been of noble birth, or
| members Of the government, or the civil
| service, officers in the army OF navy, or
to quote the words of the imperial ukase
| on the subject-"persons of substance who
| never kept an open store or market"
In addition to the qualification of birth
| and family candidates must have passed
| the final examination in the "gymnase,"
which is about the equivalent of that for
| entrance to the higher class of American
| universities, or the final examination OF
| the best American high schools.
| The pay of officers in both services is
practically nominal. That of a junior lieu
/ tenant in the navy is 100 roubles per month.
| with $50 per month for the same rank in
| the American navy.
Seek a Career
+, Russian officers enter the services for a
| career, never for livelihood Any man
with social ambitions in Russia must be-
| come an officer of either the army or the
| navy, unless he be a person of transcend
| ent ability. No father would think of en-
| tering his son in the cadet school unless he
could give him "a suitable income with
which to maintain his rank.
In the British navy and other fleets the
| officers of the higher ranks receive liberal
allowances from the government to defray
the expenses of the frequent entertainments
given when in port or when foregathered
with the WarShips of other countries. There
are no such allowances in the Russian serv-
ice. The officers have to pay every cent
out of their own pockets, and yet nowhere
Is hospitality more magnifcently dispensed
than on a Russian warship. 1t has become
proverb in all the ports of the world
visited by naval vessels.
In point of seamanship the Russian naval
| officer compares favorably with the officer
| OF any other service. There are two good
reasons for this. In the first place if not
better educated. his education has certainly
progressed farther at the time of his en-
trance into the Naval Academy at Kron-
stadt than that of either the English or
American cadet; and, In the second place
he is under far more effective compulsion
to keep up his studies when afioat
But mere book learning will not take a
| lad far in the Russian service. No cadet
| If eligible for promotion to the rank of
| lieutenant until he has made a trip around
| the world in a Russian man-of-war That
! Is his postgraduate course after he leaves
| the naval academy.
Standard of Discipline.
! The standard of discipline in the COM
| missioned ranks of both services is sim
| liar to that in the armies and navies of
| other nations, with this striking difference,
| that off duty there are practically no dis
| tinctions of rank among the officers. In
! the mess room or at the card table the
Junior lieutenant does not defer respectfully
| to the colonel of his regiment " the cap
| tain of his ship. as he would do in other
| services On the contrary, he. Is haii-fel-
| low-well-met with him. There is remark
able spirit of brotherhood in Russian
| mess and one officer stands absolutely
! upon an equality with another.
| 1t is this feature of Russian military life
! which most surprises foreign officers when
| they dine on Russian warshp or with q
| garrison mess. They stare in amaZement
when they hear mere boy of a lieutenant
| call to his colonel by his Christian name. or
even chaff him as might have fed