The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-12-27
THE CLAWS OF
THE RUSSIAN BEAR
The Cars Army and Navy Described by a
Russian Officer.
BY A RETIRED RUSSIAN OFFICER.
Copyright 1903 t. Mcclure
BY A RETIRED RUSSIAN OFFICER.
Copyright 1903, by t. C. Mcclure.

= tho world in the shape of it's army
IL navy. but there is no other military
~orca Of which the world knows 50
little.
EVEN the numerical strength of the
army is largely a matter of conjecture.
As nearly as can be reckoned, the
<orca available for carrying on the
-or,ier stages of a war amounts to
early 100000. But in case of ma
+ional emergency this force could be
swelled to about 100000 fighting men
nv the calling out Of the Territorial
reserve and the Opoltschenie, or Mi
ltia.
This vast army is more than twice
as large as the population of New York
city. more than twice as large as the
German army, which, when modified,
Is estimated to have a total of 3,0S6,0
trained men. Under the order of Oct.
"a 1902, the strength of the United
states army was fixed at 1885 men
less than one-seventieth of that of the
Russian.
But Russia does not depend upon this
immense army alone. She has one of
the biggest navies in the world, or,
rather, three distinct naVies, each with
its separate organization and separate
base. One is in the Pacific, a second in
the Baltic, and third in the Black
Sea. In many respects the Russian
army and navy differ materially from
the forces of other Powers, and some
of the points of difference are decidedly
interesting.
Reticence is the keynote of the ad-
ministration of both services. The
secrets of both the army and the navy
are most carefully concealed, and so
are many things not usually hidden by
other nations.
For example, the allowance of am
muniton for target practice in the
Russian navy has been as large in the
past year or two as that in the Ameri-
can navy. Even this fact is not gen.
orally known, and no outsider can tell
whether the recent extraordinary eff
forts to bring the craftsmanship of the
gun crews up to the highest point of
efficiency have been successful or not.
The scores are not divulged; even the
fact that ship has gone through
course of target practice is concealed.
The keen rivalry between ships, so
prevalent in the American navy, is
thus impossible, and no Russian vessel
could ever enjoy the wide fame of the
Alabama, however much she might de-
serve it. Absolute secrecy is maintain
ed concerning all naval and military
maneuvers.
Even cases of individual heriosm are
similarly concealed, except in time of
war. The theory of the service is
that every man is equal in all respects
to his comrade of the same rank. EIe
is as brave. as efficient, and as loyal
1t is considered bad for the service to
allow the limelight to fall upon par
ticular men, however heriocally they
may have acted. And it is considered
to be bad for the men, too-in which
belief the Russian administrators
show a pretty good knowledge of hui
man nature.
A sailor may jump overheard and
rescue his captain from death in shark
infested waters, or a Stoker may dare
appalling danger to save the life of
comrade in an engine-roOm accident.
In due course, he will be rewarded and
promoted, and throughout his career
his superiors will remember the deed
in his favor; but it will never become
public. Rewards, promotions and dis
tinctiOns are announced only in war
time or in cases of very exceptional
merit, and even in those cases no ref
erence whatever is made to the occa-
sion of the reward or special common
dation in any published reports or or
ders.
No criticism of anything connected
with the army or navy is allowed
even though it be of a commendatory
nature. No officer or enlisted man is
permitted to criticise a brother officer
or enlisted man, except in the strict
est line of duty. Breaches of this rule
are more strictly punished, and to it is
largely due the harmony and good
fellowship of the Russian services.
o,-ifi Of
of even any minor department of its
administration, is sternly prohibited
and heavily punished. This rule pre-
walls, of course, in other services, but
is often more honored in the breach
than the observance. In Russia it is
most faithfully observed. The Samp-
son-Schley quarrel and the Butler
controversy would be equally impossi-
BILE there.
The Russian naval and military
services are compulsory, the rule be-
ing that every male of sound physique
shall enter one service or the other at
the age of 20 years. But the recruit is
allowed to choose which service he will
enter 1t might be supposed that this
would lead to difficulty, as there
might be more men choosing one serv-
ice than were needed, and less choos-
Ing the other. But it is not so. The
system works well, and helps to make
the men contented
Enlistment is for three years, with
the privilege of re-enlistment only up
on condition that the candidate has
been promoted during his term. In
this respect the Russian service differs
from most other services. This pecu-
liar provision has the merit of insur-
ing that all the veterans are picked
men, while soldiers and sailors of only
average quality are eliminated in due
course
The recruit for the naval service is
usually received, after passing his
physical examination, at one of the
great Russian naval bases-Kronstadt,
st. Petersburg, Port Arthur or Vladis-
Vostok. After a brief term in barracks
there he is sent to a training ship,
and thence promoted to a battleship,
cruiser or other vessel-the class of
ship to which he is sent being deter
mined by his proficiency, a peculiar
feature of the Russian service.
The Russian navy is modelled very
c'osely upon that of England. The
Russian army is modelled on the Ger
man. In both cases the examples
chosen as the best have been copied
10 the minutest detail. There is hardly
any difference in the days routine On
a Russian and an English man-of-war
The duties of men and officers, the
messing arrangements, the stations,
the drills, the regulations-al are
practically the same.
DTscrpnne Is administered under Ar
tlcles of War formulated by Imperial
s.fa q. Ear. In. hn