The daily morning journal and courier., 1904-05-09

eight and a ha1 hours daily are de- voted to study, and about two hours are given to drill, riding and gym nastics. Every officer is obliged to learn either English, French, German. Russian, or Chinese. As in the case of the other establishments mentioned above officers may be dismissed for in capacity or bad behavior at the dis cretion of the commandant, who in the case Of the Officers School is either a Inajor-generaI or colonel. At the end of the twelve months course a gradua- ting examination is held and the cadets return to their regiment as second lieutenants.
 It will be seen from the above that competitive examinations do not enter into the educational training of candi- dates for commissions in the army, and that all have to receive practical in- struction in the ranks. Also it is con- sidered of great importance that every officer should know one foreign lan- guage fairly we'll Hitherto in the army German has been studied ill preference to English, and very few officers can speak the latter During the last year or two, however English has been taught much more extensively throughout the educational institu- tions of the country.
 Such is a rough outline of the pre- liminary training of Japanese officers. His education is, however, by no means considered to be finished. There are many other courses of instruction, some os which he is obliged to attend during his service. Young officers of the artillery are engineers with two years service or more have to be spent year at the school for Artillery and Engineers at Tolxio, which is intended to give the necessary instruction in the science and arts necessary for the service of each army. One-third of the students are selected to remain for a second year to go through more ad- vanced rhetorical training. At Tokio there is also a school of gunnery for | field artillery, where Investigations, studies and experiments are constantly conducted in all matters connected with that branch of the service. The school | is open to captains and liuetenants of | field artillery, and two courses of three months duration are held every year. The. fortress artillery have it's own school of gunnery at Yokosuks where courses take place lasting -four months | in the case of officers and eighteen months for selected on-commissioned officers and men.
 In order to give opportunities for improvement in professional require- ments to officers of all branches of the service in the practical part of soldier ing classes are assembled at Gymnas- tic School, Toko. These courses last about five months and are held twice a year. They consist of tactical in- struction for captains and lieutenants | of infantry, and musketry instruction f for lieutenants and on-commissioned officers of of infantry cavalry, fortress artillery, and army service corps. Also gymnastic course are held for non-com- missioned officers of all branches of the service, and a special course of tactics 1 is sometimes held for field officers. A idrill battalion of selected non-com- missioned officers and men from differ- ent regiments is maintained at the school and at the end of the various ] terms certificates are granted by the colonel-command The branches all so have a. special Military Practice School at Tokio, where eleven months courses are held for the instruction of young officers of cavalry and some I times of field artillery in equitation and cavalry tactics. A drill squardron of men detached from cavalry regiments i is maintained at the school, and in- struction is given in horse management generally, including the fitting of harness and saddlery The careful training of a large proportion of officers for staff work in peace time, with a view to the increased strain of war, is considered to be of the utmost im- portance. The Staff College at Tokio is maintained for this purpose. It is open only to lieutenants and second Ilieutenants of over two years service whose age does not extend thirty and
 twenty-eight years respectively. There is accommodation for 15 officers, and 50 pass in and out annually. Candidates for admission must pass two com lpetitive examinations. The prelimi- nary examinations are held at the headquarters of each division, and the
 successful candidates in these undergo a further competitive examination in
 Tokio; those who pass the highest be- ing selected for admission to the col lege. The course lasts three years and is divided into three terms of one year
 each. At the end of each year council of professors presided over by the com mandant, assemblies to discuss the Icapacity and progress of the students and to consider whether their retention at the college for further period is desirable.
 l SMALL PAY OF THE OFFICERS.
 Military efficiency being so much
 bound up with the national existence of Japan, the army officers naturally
 take their profession very seriously. Their pay is small and few have much private means, so that they live in a very modest way compared to the off, cers of many other armies. A major
 general only gets the equivalent of
 about G15S a year ordinary pay, a
 captain e30, and second lieutenant e1S.
 Most appointments mean additional pay, but foreign service does not.
 Messes have been established in some
 regiments, but as a rule, the officers
 only have the midday meal together. l Japanese food is cheap, consisting as it
 does chiefly of rice and fish; while rich and poor alike drink the inexpensive liquor Of the country, "sake."' For this