Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1914-09-23
THEIR APPROACH NOT AS
ORDERLY AS GERMAN
ADVANCE.
MARCnED IN POOR ORDER
Kaiser's Troops Throbbed With
Power and Efficiency.

(By Associated Press Correspondent
Beaumont, Belgium, Sept. o.
When the French regiments paraded
through Gembleux, a ripple OF admir-
alton ran through the almost hysteri-
cal Belgium populace, who had waited
SO long for the promised support Of
France. With their bright blue and
red uniforms, their gaiety, glitter and
song, began colorful entry which
quite fulfilled ones conception OF
war But it was noticeable that they
did not march in particularly good
order and the doors of the wagons in
their baggage train Tapped and
banged.
Like Cloud Of Mist. -
When the Germans appeared on
the outskirts or Brussels they might
have been mistaken for cloud OF
low-lying mist, their gray-green uni
forms meeting against a neutral back
ground. The entry was not theatrical
but it throbbed with power and eff
cheney.
In place of the romantic French god
OF war, there was silent gray. color
ed machine which was complete to
the lasu detail. Wagon-doors instead
OF flapping had patented locks and
bars.
For three days the gray4green sol
diers marched through Brussels, part
Of an army of over a million and a
half THAT pushed their way through
BEGUN. In completeness of equip
ment it was like a travelling city. 1t
had it's postal service, it's telegraph
corps, its provision trains miles in
length, which provided for the sol
diers a menu as satisfactory as that
which they could have obtained in a
first class restaurant.
A Colossal Train.
Six caissons with ammunition, each
drawn by six horses, followed each
field gun, and there were professions
of them two miles long. There were
in addition many trucks anl traction
engines for the heavy siege guns. And
in all this colossal train, not a wheel
6Queaked, not an accident delayed the
forward progress.
The efficiency of the Red Cross de-
partments is best indicated by the
fact that in following the German
army for hundred miles over battle
fields at times only few hours be-
hind the fighting, none of the small
group of correspondents dis}:overed
wounded German soldier, uncared
for, or any dead.
+ Speed Of Army.
The speed of the army is attested
by the fact that correspondents with
bicycles and carriages found it diff
cult to keep, up with the German ad-
vance. Daily marches Of so kilome-
ters We're the, usual thing and at times
they greatly exceeded that distance.
At the end Of one CT these exhaust
ing marches, I spent the evening in
barrack-room with German soldiers.
For three hours they sang and dane
ed, without a sign of fatigue. An Of
ficer said he had marched night and
day for three days, but seemed fresh
and anxious to go on. The physical
stamina OF the men is extraordinary.
AT Beaumont. a gas lighting system
as effective taslelectricity was estaIb-
lished twelve hours after the German
entry into the town and not long af-
ter their own trains were running on
the tracks to Charleroi.
Minor evidences of their thorough
ness were seen in the equipment OF
each soldier, who carried with him
rot only every necessity OF war, but
food enough to sustain him il he were
separated from the provision trains.
1T was interesting to note that even
his suspenders were protected against
emergencies and that his trousers
carried an extra set of buttons in case
one set gave way. No detail seems
small enough to have escaped Ger
man study and preparation.
Extract Telephone.
At Zone-Etat, on the way from
Charleroi La Chappelle a man lying
at full length in the station yard sud
denly extracted telephone instru-
ment from flower bed and began a
conversation with headquarters.
g There is no hint of the fulfillment
of the prophecies by French writer's
to the effect that the German soldiers
were victims of an inflexible system
Of rules which were not adaptable TO
emergencies, that their success was
lrcdicated upon given set cf con-
dilions. These German rules, in the
words Of a German officer, ego into
The blain" Of the soldier and he is
not merely the llrlthinking reflex.
"The German soldier cannot retrea.
OF turn back" said an orderly during
g ts,1ack room discussion at Beau
mont. ''If he goes forward and is
killed, then there are others who will
tate lis place, but in the VOCABULARY
of the German soldier there is no such
word as retreat"