The Wichita daily eagle., 1904-05-08
| turn to their regiments as second lieuten-

| ants.
1t will be seen from the above that COM
| petitive examinations do not enter into
the educational training of candidates lor
commissions In the army, and that all
have to receive practical instruction in
the ranks. Also it is considered of great
Importance that every officer should
know one foreign language fairly well.
| Hitherto in the army French or German
has been studied in preference to English.
and very few officers can speak the latter.
! During the last year or two, however.
English has been taught much more ex-
tensively throughout the educational in
! stitutions of the country.
| Such is a rough outline of the prelim-
| mary training of the Japanese officer.
His education is, however. by no means
| considered to be finished. There are many
other courses Of instruction, some OF
which he is obliged to attend during his
service. Young officers of the artillery
| and engineers with two years service or
more have to spend a year at the school
| for artillery and engineers at Toxic.
| which is intended TO give the necessary
! instruction in the science and arts neces-
sary for the service of each arm One-third
of the students are selected to remain
| for a second year to go through more
advanced theoretical training. AT Toxic
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 lieutenants Of
field artillery, and two courses of three
months duration are held every year.
The fortress artillery has its own school
of gunnery at Yokosuka, 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 i'm
provement in professional requirements TO
officers Of all branches of the service in
the practical part Of soldering classes are
assembled twice a year at the Toyama
tactical and gymnastic school, Toxic.
These courses last about five months and
are held twice u year They consist Of
tactical instruction for captains and lieu
tenants of infantry. and musketry in
struction f9r lieutenants and non-com-
y y.
fortress artillery. and army service corps.
Also gymnastic courses are held for non
Commissioned officers of all branches of
the service, and a special course of tao
tics is sometimes held for field officers.
A drill battalion of selected non-commis
stoned officers and men from different
regiments is maintained at the school,
and at the end of the various terms GER
tifcates are granted by the colonel-com-
mandant The mounted branches also
have a special military practice school at
Toxic, where eleven months courses are
held for the instruction of young officers
of cavalry and sometimes of field artil
lery in equitation and cavalry tactics.
drill squadron of men detached from cav
airy regiments is maintained at the
school, and instruction is given in horse
management generally, including the fit
ting of harnes and saddlery. The careful
training of large proportion of officers
for staff work in peace time. with view
to the increased strain of war, is consid-
cred to be Of the utmost Importance. The
staff college at Toxic is maintained for
this purpose. 1t is open only to lieu
tenants and second lieutenants of over
two years, service whose age does not
exceed thirty and twenty-eight years re-
spectiyely. There is accommodation for
$50 officers, and 80 pass in and out an
nually. Candidates for admission must
pass two competitive examinations The
preliminary examinations are held at the
headquarters OF each division, and the
successful candidates in these undergo "a
ft,ar
those who pass highest being selected for
admission to the college. The course lasts
three years and is divided into three
terms of one year each. At the end of
each year council of professors, pre-
sided over by the commandant, assem-
bles to discuss the capacity and progress
Of the students and to consider whether
their retention at the college for a fur
ther period is desirable
SMALL PAY OF THE OFFICERS.
Military efficiency being so much bound
up with the national existence of Japan
the army officers naturally take their pro-
fession very seriously. Their pay is
small. and few have much private means,
so that they live in a very modest way
compared TO the officers of many other
armies. A major general only gets the
equivalent of about e15S a year ordinary
pay. a captain $50. and a second lieu
tenant e1S. Most appointments mean ad--
ditional pay, but foreign service does not
Messes have been esta blished in some
regiments, but, as a rule, the officers
only have the midday meal together
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. "saks." For this
reason entertaining expenses come to
very little. and the officer is enabled to
maintain his position with but small out
lay. As in the continental armies of
Europe, Japanese officers practically live
in uniform. and the latter is serviceable
and inexpensive. Little attention is paid
10 smartness and appearance generally.
though all are invariably neatly dressed.
Promotion is chiefly by selection. espe-
cially in the higher ranks That of sec
ond leutenaEts to lieutenants is two
thirds seniority. one-third selection: that
OF lieutenant to captain half by seniority.
half by selection and beyond the latter
rank promotion IS entirely by selection
To obtain promotion to a higher grade. |
however, an officer must have served
from two to four years in the grade be-
low. In war there are special rules for
promotion. anu it may be given for dis |
tinSuished service The japanese officers
lHAe the nation as a whole. are extremely |
ambitious. both individually and as re-
CARDS the future OF their nation. They are |
still Asiatic enough to regard life as a |
cheap commodity and are content to lose |
1t If only the fact OF their having done
so is recorded in the annals of the coun-