Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-10-18

are Mohammedans. 6s per cent are Hin
duS by religion and the rest, pagans,
Christians and Jews. About a third OF
the cavalry and infantry regiments are
class regiments" each composed of
men of particular race or religion,
and even within the regiments the
companies are often organized on caste
lines.
In addition to these there are about
10000 excellent soldiers who are known
as imperial service troops They are
raised ard maintained by the princes
of the native states in British India.
but the imperial government has the
right to call on them and they are
armed and organized on the same
lines as the Indian army. Next
to them come the troops of the indie
pendent rulers 1t is estimated that.
trained and organized more or less
modern lines, there are about $4,000 of
them. but such a figure is misleading,
for in states like these practically
every man is trained to arms and is a
potential soldier. India, il the pinch
really came, could probably send to
Europe an army that would be reckoned
in millions rather than in hundreds of
thousands
The best known of the native troops
are the Ghurkas, of whom there are
twenty regiments. They are hillmen,
many of whom come from the indie
pendent states over the Nepal border.
They are the dominant race in Nepal.
Little brown men. they are wonderfully
active and hardy and are among the
finest fighters and most loyal troops in
t tts .nuian army; hey reiialieu ioSaA
dared S,ie ,he inaiaii ~ ut "a ara
When Lord Roberts was in India they
were his favorite troops, and his mem
WIN a,G+hinn eons u-rnn, +ba;r
onlv comn,ent ;s ~ was NOV inns in
the DAYS Of Roi,erts sab,h Raba1ur
who fool, nc NV tbe bapd AND traated no
lie men t,e antira1I- 1;LeiT that
the GhurlSas when thew arrive on the
European battlefield will contribute
largely to the discomtiture of the Ger
mans. They are splendid in a charge
when they use not the bayonet, but a
long curved knife known as the kukri,
the use of which is particularly discon-
certing to European troops, they cut
upward with 1T.
*
Euron,an troons arc .1wavs+r,ioeJ
,,,,,,.,, o,,;,.+ ,l1,,o,a 49,. 80. -.
: va 's7"''-s' Su's I'm a0oV9'
IL IS as scout, though that the Ghusk
independently and cut up the enemy's
sentries C.hurx. c,n ,nnro,ob
,,,b;ta .i,a.,.,. a.. ~
"hi'e man SO siieh'ly that the latter
never hioWS tndt anything is happen
ing until he feels the first touch of the
k,kri and after that n,,++ers nrooead
foo r,nid1,, for bin, ~ 49, - 80,
Aoi MN " give eiie diifhi'
having disposed OF the sentries like
tn.s' the ihurka craWls back and bring;
Ms ms lrae erat TO rush the enemys camp.
- me erect OF such warfare on the
Iernahs, especially II they should be
IN retreat, can well be imagined The
1olloWlns story as told me few days
ago by a srlt'sh officer who has COM
Iianueu Ghuska troops ana ne assures
me that II is typical or the little brown
mans ans linpertuT pa pillty
we were IN cahtoa1nents IN lndia,
ne sa1d. ana one night we heard
devil or a row in the lines l rushed
out ana round the Ghurka sentry walk
ing up and down ms post as If nothing
mad happened On fls post, half II and
hal1 out OF the store tent, lay the '.ody
Oh Pathan ciVllian: asked him
what mad happened ard he made his re-
port something like this:
was walking up and down on my
post when saw Pataan budmash
crawling toward the store tent. j COLI
t1nued walking up and down on my
post and 6id nothing. When he had his