Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1905-08-04

Experience obtained both by means Of
careful and exhaustive experiments. as
well as In actual warfare, have demon
strated the beneficial effects Of total
abstinence upon the physical endur-
ance Of the troops.
AS far back as ten years ago, Field
Marshal Lord Wolseley. at that time
British commander in chief, inaugur-
ated a series Of Investigations into the
matter, especially In connection with
1.-The annual maneouvers. One regi-
ment would be deprived of every drop
same brigade would be allowed to pur-
chase as usual its malt liquors at the
canteen. while the third, probably a
Highland corps. would restore sailors
rations OF grogs In the form Of whis-
ky. In each instance the experiment
went 10 show that whereas at first the
battalion which had received an allow
ance Of grog surpassed the others
in dash and in impetuousiy Of attack.
yet that after the third or fourth day
is members began to show notable
signs Of lassitude and lack Of spirit
and endurance. The same manifesto
tions, though In minor and slower de-
gree, were apparent In the regiments
restricted to malt liquors, whereas the
men who had been kept from every
kind Of stimulant increased in staying
power, alertness, and vigor every day.
| Demonstrated In the Soudan.
The result Of these experiences led
Lord Kitchener to obtain from the
British war department permission to
bar the use of all stimulants In that
last campaign of his In the Soudan,
which eliminated in tn victory OF
| Omdurman and In the destruction of
the power of the Madhi. Not on the
ground Of principle but solely for the
sake Of maintaining the powers Of en-
durance Of the troops engaged in that
expedition, he would not permit a SIN
gle drop Of stimulant in camp save
for hospital use. Spirits, wines, and
malt liquors were rigidly eliminated
from the officers mess. as well as from
the regimental canteen and from gen.
erals In command down to the drum
mer boys and the camp followers. IL
quor refreshments were restricted to
tea and oatmeal water.
When one remembers how devoted
the Englishman is to his beer, the
Scotchman to his mountain dew" and
the Irishman to his drop Of the cray
tur." modern history abounding In the
upsets Of cabinets III advised enough
to attempt an increase Of the tax on
these sitmu,ants. which are regarded,
rot as luxuries but as actual necessa-
ries OF life, the boldness and likewise
| he difficulties Of the innovation Will
be appreciated, and 1t Is doubtful
whether any general less stern as a
disciplinarian or possessed Of less force
of character than Lord Kitchener
would have been able to carry 1t
through. But the scheme fulfilled all
his expectations. Thanks to total abb
stinence his men were able to make
forced marches of the most extraordi-
nary character across the burning des-
ert and under blazing sun, the heat
OF whose rays can only be appreciated
by those who have lived under the
equator.
Temperance Increases Endurance.
The Soudan Is famed for its deadly
climate, which either kills or prema-
turely ages the majority Of white men
who penetrate beyond its frontiers.
Indeed, It has often been called, and
with good cause. too, "the man eat
ing Soudan," by reason Of the number
OF white lives that 1t has consumed.
Yet, in spite OF this, there has never
been a campaign In which English
troops have been engaged where there
was so little sickness as In this Sou
dan expedition. where so few men were
compelled to fall out, even on the long
ess marches. and where the officers
and the rank and file were got into
such magnificent physical and moral
training that they would actually cover
thirty miles of sand with empty water
bottles without shaking their thirst
once from the beginning to the end or
the march, at the close Of which they
would still find themselves sufficiently
fresh and vigorous to win hard
fought victories. such as those OF AT
bara and Omdurman.
In spite Of the magnificent results
achieved by Lord Kitchener In his
Soudan campaign he was unable to Sc
cure the adoption of an equally string
ent policy in the war in South Africa.
Yet the trend Of the British army to-
day is all In the direction Of absti-
nence from stimulants, especially when
in the field. and the phenomenal en-
durance displayed by the Japanese
troops In their struggle with Russia, as
well as their equally amazing immu-
nifty from those sicknesses which In
| former conflicts have proved even more
deadly than the enemy's fire may De
ascribed to the circumstance that the
same rules prevail In the mikados
army today as those which Kitchener
enforced In the Soudan.
In conclusion, 1t may be well to point
out that the spectacle Of bloodshed and
the noise and din Of battle are quite
sufficient in themselves to arouse all
the latent disposition to savagery that
turks in every human breast. This be-
| ing the case, Is 1t wise or polite 10
still further loosen the restrictions OF
civilization by the use Of stimulants!
II ever sobriety ought to be enforced,
and becomes Of SURPRISING value, II
is in times of war, both at sea and on
land.-Ex- -Attache Chicago Tribune.
| A Test of Reading.
Let him who pretends to be a mas
ter of English letters say whether he
has read the prose works OF Milton