The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1914-06-14
TIE NATIONAL SUNDAY MAGAZINE
Private Smith in Mexico
oContmued nom Pave -

rance OF his exact destination. There
are certain facts that he does learn.
however. and all of them tend to
confirm the old sergeant's words.
Among the enlisted men as in officers
clubs there always are to be found
those whose minds are reservoirs of
statistics. which they are eternally
ready to pour forth.
He learns that the Orange Free
State and the South African Repub.
lie - as the Transvaal once had the
right to call itself -- together have an
area of about $4,000 square miles
and a population of SS7 900. The
Orange Free State is almost, but not
quite. as large as Virginia. Mexico,
in extent. is nearly 14S.00c square
miles. Its population is nearly
ll,S00O00. For every Boer in exist
ence there are more than ten
Mexicans. The proportion of fighting
units is about the same: one in five
In dealing with Mexico we have one
possible advantage that Great Britain
did not have in It's affair with the
Beers. We are closer } the scene
of action. This advanta-c IS however
largely If not wholly ncutralized by
the great length of the Mexican
frontier: also by the character of that
frontier. In all other respects Eng
land. in her Boer war. had advantages
that are wholly denied tn us.
THE Mexicans have a very respect.
able army; the Beers had none. The
regular army of Great Britain stands
high among the armies of the world,
ours numbers less than seventy
thousand men. The younger genera.
tions of the Beers were without
experience in warfare; of late years
the MeXicans, of all ages, have
INDUCED in few other pursuits.
Little wars, in India and elsewhere,
always afford the Briton chance to
keep his hand in; except for tn
Spanish War. with its one small land
battle and half dozen skirmishos, and
the bushwacking fights in the
Philippines. We have been without
such experience within the memory
of any man young enough to 20 and
fight.
Again. except by sneaking them
across the short and comparatively
well-policed Portuguese border from
Lorenzo Marques, the Beers had little
or no opportunity to rcplenish
depleted stores of arms and ammuni-
ton. Nothing We can do will prevent
the Mexican from getting all he
wants. Forced loans, together with
Contlscation of mine revenue $ and the
like, will pay for them. Ports of entry
are not required in order to bring
them in Mexico has something
more than six thousand miles OF coast.
Cur navy can maintain no effective
blockade against stretch such as
that. England's navy could not do
it. The combined navies of the world
could hardly do II.
The theater of the Boer War
consisted partly of fertile plains,
partly of hills. partly of prairie. The
same Is true of Mexico. But the
South African prairie usually can
boast certain degree of fertility.
: A large portion of the Mexican
prairies are among the most impos'
siblc and impossible deserts that the
planet affords. Its hills are apt Ia
be rugged mountains, replet" with
businesses that can be held by IA squad
against brigade.
John Smith mentally arranges
these facts in parallel columns. Ne
longer does he wonder at the old
sergcant's words; only at the wisdom
of him who uttered them. In due
time the end of this first stage of his
journey arrives.