Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1913-02-09
WINTER and WAR
Bitter Cold as a Factor In the
Campaigns In Europe.
ARMIES WRECKED BY FROST.

ARMIES WRECKED BY FROST.
In Most Of the Great Conflicts For 4
Century Past Icy Weather Has Play
ed . Prominent Part-Napoleon's
Disastrous Invasion Of Russia.
War is bad enough under the best of
climatic conditions. but when war and
bitterly cold and icy weather mix the
suffering is woefully intensified. And
yet there has hardly ever been a Euro
pean var IN Il big scale in which Gen
eral Jack Frost has not taken Il hand.
Go back Il century. Eighteen hun
dred and twelve was the year when
Napoleon made up his mind to invade
Russia. Before starting he was care
ful to inquire or the experts at what
date winter usually set in in southern
Russia. They told him the middle Of
December.
1T was on June a that he invaded
Russia with 100000 men, and he reach.
ed Moscow on Sept. II. That night
fire broke out, and within five days the
city was burned to the ground. Even
then he remained until Oct. IS before
commencing his retreat,
In the last week of October began
tle worst frost which Europe had
known for three generations. The
Thames frOZe from its source to the
sea. The Seine, the Rhine, the Dan
ube, were all icebound. On the Adri.
attic, off Venice. was seen the amazing
sight Of floating ice foes. The Darda-
nelles and nearby waters were frozen.
Jack Frost's icy finger lay heavy even
| upon North Africa. Drift ice appear
ed in the Nile, and there We're snow
storms in Tripoli and Morocco.
AS for NapoleOn's huge army, it was
almost wiped out. -Four hundred thou
sand men persisted. They froZc to
death in battalions as they bivouack-
ed. and when at last, OH Dec. 6, Ma
poIeon reached German soil. out Of his
whole vast host but 10000 men were
left alive. e.
During the winter of 1854 the
Turks were battling for dear life along
the Danube against hordes of Rus
slams. In the following Septcmber25 %
600 British troops, Il similar number
Of French and 5000 Turks were land
ed in the Crimca.
Again CAME Il terrible winter. and
from the west of Ireland right acros
into Asia frost fell heavy on land and
sea. In London it froze for six weeks
without a break. From Jan. ii to Feb.
- the thermometer was below freezing
every night. In the Crimea the cold
was ~fearfui, and the English army, dis
gracefully catered for, suffered hOrri.
bly,. In all the British forces lost 20.
O5G men, and Of these only Il per cent
fell in battle. The rest were destroyed
by cold and disease. aggravated by a
rotten cOmmissariat.
In 1870 came the biggest war Of the
latter half of the nineteenth century.
the titanic conflict between France and
Germany. BY Oct. 90 there were $780,
900 German troops in France, Paris
was bcsieged. and there began the four
months investment, with furious fight
ing on both sides. .'t
Again Jack Frost came to the aid ot
the Germans. A long spell Of intense
cold made life almost impossible for
the half starved French, while the
Germans, who had the whole country
to draw OH. besides their own excellent
commissariat, suffered very little. BY
January the city was in such q terrible
condition that it surrendered.
The date Of the last great war before
that Of 1912 in which Turkey was en-
gagged was 1877. The Turks were at
tackled by an enormously superior force
of Russians, with the car himself in
command. Osman Pasha. with 10000;
men. hurried inland to Plevna, a vii
lage which stood upon a hill, and there
hastily %entranched himself. The Rus
slams had 100000 men, but Osman and
his dauntless band defeated them in
four successive battles.
In November winter set in three
weeks earlier than usual. The Turks
had no winter clothing and little to
eat but maize porridge and horsefesh.
They suffered fearfully. At last, on
Dec. 8. they determined to break out.
There were only 10000 left. but their
rush was so tremendous that they carr
ried three lines of Russian trenches, be- |
fore they were surrounded and forced
by enormously superior numbers to
surrender Observation-Disclosures An
swers.
Napoleon's Piano.