The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1914-10-12
GERMANS FOUND
BY ENGLISH TO
Be UP-TO-DATE
THIS WAS ONE OF THE DIscOv-
ERIES WHICH WAS MADE AT
THE BATTLE OF MONS, AND AN
EYEWITNESS TELLS OF 1T.
ASSOCIATED PRESS.

London, Oct. 11.-Speaking of the
battle Of Mons, an English soldier who
was one of the few survivors of his
company, said to an American in the
field hospital at Amiens:
we thought the Germans were forty
years behind the times; they are forty
years ahead" And according to an
American military expert, there is a
solid basis of truth in Tommy Atkins
statement. The Germans apparently
knew what they were about, he thinks,
when they refused to generalize too
much from the Philippine, Boer and
usso-Japanese wars.
Camp aigning in populous country
with perfect road system and a, hay
atmosphere is quite different from
work in a crude open country distin-
guished by dry, clear air and a sharp
horizon. Too little is yet known Of the
actual fighting in Europe for accurate
deductions, nevertheless certain facts
are apparent which will have their
effect upon military practice in the
United States.
The outstanding facts so far no.
riceable are the terrific effect of siege
artillery in the field, the weakness of
open order fighting when q. vast num-
Der Of men are availa BILE, the COMPARE
tive failure of aeronautics as pictured
in popular imagination, and the i'm
nense advantage of thorough prelini-
nary training.
Germany's great surprise in this war
has been her artillery. The superiority
of her army organization was already
known to the world, and this superb
GRITTY and her perfect preparation were
reckoned, and properly, her greatest
-, %-l1- l-s-- \
eleven inch howitzers, but they were
supposed to be siege guns to be used
against concrete forts and nothing else.
AS such they more than surpassed
expectations at Namur. But the mobil-
ity of these big guns had not even
been suspected 'oy foreign critics, and
their use as field artillery came as
a great shock to the allies.
In the old days, artillery stood in
exposed positions as the aim was taken
directly at the enemy. Consequently it
could be captured by infantry and
even cavalry. But now artillery fire is
directed from concealed positions at
q high angle and is exceedingly diff
ficUlt for the enemy to find. And this
is the most important use to which the
aeroplane has been put. AS the wound
ed British describe the fighting at
A4OIio, "I0I lIlSi[ dI my came So close
to being wiped out, they had very lit
tie trouble in keeping the German in
fantry in check until the aeroplanes
signaIed the correct range. Then the
men were simply blasted out Of the
trenches. The artillery so far captured
appears to have been abandoned in re-
treat.
The standard American field gun is
the three inch, as are the jackass bat
teries substituted in mountainous
country. But the inferior roads Of
America would render the use of the
great German howitzers inpracticable.
When the Germans have been unable
to get their great weapons into action,
French field artillery has proved SUI
perior because of allowing for more
rapid movement than the German of
the same calibre. In rapid action the
French have had decidedly the ad-
vantage in this respect. At any rate,
the European war has caused experts
somewhat to reverse their opinion as
to the value Of artillery, which had
been considera oily less effective in 9TH
er recent wars. Artillery has now re-
gained it old prestige. It settled the
battle of Mons without any doubt.
To come to infantry, on which the
ultimate decision in all wars rests, the
German fighting unit appears to be
inferior to the English or French. He
fires without aiming and does not
make a sufficient used of cover. But
what the German infantrymen lacks
individually is atoned for by the per
feet discipling under which he and his
fellows act American tradition trusts
a great deal to the individual. relic
no doubt of frontier fighting. The Ger
man theory trusts nothing, considers
it less important gthat commands
should be sacrificed through a mistake
in their disposition than that they
should take 1t on themselves to over |
ride the orders Of a superior