The Montgomery advertiser., 1909-10-20


 war--of e large and important addi-
 ton to the armies of the French Re- public, says The New York Times. IS
 an event which, so far. has attracted
 . remarkably small amount of outside
 notice and made little or no impression,
 but it may well be one which will produce momentous results.
 The reduction of the term of color
 service in the French Army from three to two years has. temporarily at any
 rate, diminished the strength Of the forces at the innnediate disposal or France on the outbreak of war, while the dimipution in the birth rate and the consequent and corresponding re- duction in the numbers of the military electives have placed the forces Of the republic at a serious numerical disad- vantage in comparison with the armies of that eastern netghbor which enters
 so largely, and to the practical exclu-
 sion of all other potential enemies. in- to the military calculations of those
 who In France are charged with the
 solution of the problem of national de- fense.
 The Idea of introducing compulsory
 service into Algeria is no new one. But 1t is now further suggested that the blacks from the French possessions iy- ing more to the south should also be
 dawn upon to furiish a strong quota of troops, and that these should gradu-
 ally produce an army of several hun- dred thousand men. upon whom France could call in case of need. This scheme
 though ventilated. has hardly as yet
 got beyond the stage of mers susges-
 ton, but the question of the intfoduc-
 ton of compulsory military service
 among the Arab population of North
 ern Africa has now been some time
 before the French public and has
 aroused 6 good deal of discussion, and
 it may not be uninteresting to recall to mind how the matter at present
 stands. and to what has been said both for and against the scheme.
 Early Days in Algeria.
 The French first landed in Algeria m l the year 1880. and they continued fight l ing there for upward of fifty troubled years; but they had not been more
 than Q very few months in the country
 before. with the genius for training alien races to war which they undoubt- ediy possess, they had already com
 menced the enlistment of corps Of
 native scouts, both Kabyies and Arabs of whom a large proportion were
 drawn from a Kabyle tribe named za-
 ouaoua, and thus gave their title to
 the Zouaves. From that time up to DTe8tnl
 ment for the regiments indigenes d d'AIgerie"--as distinct from the 'troupss lcoloniales"--has been one of purely
 voluntary eniistment--after all, the
 only right and equitable system appii-
 cable to the inhabitants of conquered
 country, since the blood tax cannot, in common justice. be levied upon men
 who are not in the enjoyment Of fuii
 rights civil and political.
 Enlisted under these conditions the
 Mussulmans of Algeria who have
 formed the regiments of the local army
 have performed excellent service for France, for these responsible for the
 direction of the French Army have never hesitated to employ them In the same manner and for the same ser vices as the soldiers of the mother land There has never been. as with us, any sentimental objection to their
 employment In any war between white races.
 The first war without the borders of | their own country in which Algerian | troops took part was in the Crimea. where a provisional regiment, formed | from the different battalions of "Tir- ailleurs Algeriens.' and of a strength | of 2,000 of all ranks. was placed un- der the command of Colonel de Wimp- | fen, and lost during the campaign sixty officers and 73o of the other ranks In Killed ana WOuHuNQ. HI tAC AAAtANh campaigns of 1859 the three regiments
 each contributed a battalion to form a composite regiment, whose command ing officer was killed at Magenta. Again, In the Franco-German war, in 1870, the three regiments of Tirailleurs engaged in the early action of the cam paIgn suffered casualties amounting to ninety-seven officers and 2.5s9 men killed and wounded: newly raised bat talions, too. took part in the battles of the armies of the Loire and of the East. Further. the Algerian regiments have done good service across the seas in Tonking. In Madagascar and fin China.
 UnIversaI Service for AIgeria. The proposal for the introduction of the principle of universal service among the Mohammedan races controlled bv | the French Government was first mace ] rather less than two years ago by M. Messimv and was ct that time strong ly opposed by M. Humbert and also | by a very large number of military officers who had n snecial knowledge or
 the country concerned and of the char | acter of its Arab inhabitants. The
 measure. however was cordially ap-
 proved by NJ, Delcasse. by General de I.acroix. who within the last few
 weeks has vacated the post of Com
 man nder-in- Chief. and by others. while
  | July of last year to the Governor Gen l eral of AlReria by M. Clemencee Il. as
 President of the Council 1t would ap-
 near that the Government was unani- | mousiv in favor of the views expressed
 by the Deputy for Paris.
 | Tn tbe letter ahove duoted M, Ciem- | anceau frankly stated that the alarm 1 in~ diminutinn In the birth rate and | the corsenuent loss to Franre of rros- | pective deFenders had decided the .nv-
 ernrnent "de faire appel, dans ltnteret | do Ia defense natiNuale, euN ressourees
 en houmes auo'offrent nos nosses~ions | le PAfricue du Nord.' .' The Minister
 went on to say that the existing Alge- rtan svstem of voluntary enlistment did not by itself appear capable of produe- | ,ng sufficient number of efFeHtves annreciablv to supplement or reinforce | tbe armies of France. and that it had | consAauertlv been decided to extend to the Aleeriau provinces the mode of re- | cruitment mar vole d'appel" which ob-
 ,ains in Frsnce-with certain reserva- tions and that therefore for the future | lt had been arranged that universal | -,i1itary service should exist side by | side with voluntary engagement
 ! The objections raised have been both