Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1904-01-05
The Russian navy Is modelled very


closely. upon that Of England. Tht
Russian army is modelled on the Ger.
man. In both cases the examples
chosen as the best have been copied
to the minutest detail.
There Is hardly any difference in the
days routine on Russian and ar
English man-of-war. The duties OF
men and officers, the messing arrange.
ments. the stations. the drills, the reg.
ulations-all are practically. the same
Discipline is administered under ar.
ticles Of war formulated by imperial
ukase It is far stricter than In the
British service, which, again, Is fal
stricter than the American.
All government in Russia, Is Of
course, essentially autocratic. and the
spirit is nowhere stronger than In the
naval and military services. Yet there
is no discomfort in the Russian army
and navy, however much there may be
among some grades Of Russian civil
ians.
The reason is that the man In the
enlisted ranks lives better, dresses bet
ter and has more money to spend thar
the average peasant Of his class In civ.
IL life. He has profited materially BY
becoming a soldier or sailor, in which
respect he differs from the enlisted
man in most other services.
As for the rigid discipline, 1t IL
only what he has always known. The
Russian peasant is accustomed to the
iron heel from infancy.
AS a general rule, the officers are
liked by their men and the mere fact
that every Russian soldier and sailor
refers habitually to the czar as the
Little Father will give foreigners some
idea OF the intense loyalty which per-
vades the service.
In the non-commissioned ranks, the
grades 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 q Rus
sian seaman is only eighty kopecks
every ten days. kopeck being about
three quarters Of cent.
Nevertheless, the seaman's mess on
the Pacific and Baltic stations COM
pares favorably even with that on the
American ships. where the sailors are
said to be the best fed in the world
The same is measurably true Of the
Black sea fleet.
The officers messes are supported by
fixed contributions from all the off,
GERS according to their rank, and the
British idea Of gunroom and ward
room messes is carried out on the
larger Russian ships.
Eligibility for the commissioned
ranks in both services depends upon
birth and educational qualification. 1t
Is necessary that candidates be well
born.
Their parents must have been Of no
BILE birth, or members Of the govern
ment or the civil service, or officers In
the army or navy, or-to quote the
words Of the imperial ukase on the
subject-"persons Of substance, who
never kept an open store or market"
That is to say, the son Of q rich mer-
chant would be eligible for a commits
On, but a traders son would not.
In addition to the qualification OF
birth and family, candidates must have
passed the final examination In the
gymnasium, which Is about the equiv
alent Of that for entrance to the high
Ell class Of American universities, or
the final examinations Of the best
American high schools.
The pay of officers in both services
is practically nominal. That OF 1u-
nlor lieutenant in the navy Is 100 rou-
bles a month, about $50 in American
money, as compared with $50 month
for the same rank in the American
navy.
Russian officers enter the service Tor
a career, never for a livelihood. Any
man with social ambitions In Russia
must become an officer Of either the
army or the navy, unless he be per-
son Of transcendent ability. No faith
e. would think Of entering 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 re-
ceive liberal allowances from the gov
ernment 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
service.
The officers have to pay every cent
out of their own pockets. and yet no
where Is hospitality more magnificent
ly dispensed than on Russian war
ship. It 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 or any otner SERVICE lheFe
are two reasons for this.
In the first place, II not better ed
ucated, his education has certainly
progressed further at the time OF his
entrance into the naval academy at
Kronstadt than that Of either the Eng
lish or American cadet; and, In the
second place, he Is under far more ef-
fective compulsion to keep up his
studies when af1oat.
But mere book learning will not take
a lad far in the Russian service. No
cadet Is eligible for promotion to the
rank of lieutenant until he has made
a trip around the world in Russian
man-of-war. That is his postgraduate
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