El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1914-09-08
ARMY Of RUSSIA
ISBE5T TRAINED
War with Japan Gave Its Of
ficers and Men Valuable
Practical Experience.

Petrograd. Russia, Sept. s-Due to
their experience IN the war Win
JaDan. the officers Of the RUSSIAN
army were said 10 be the best trained
in EurOue at the beginning OF the
present titanic conflict me educa-
ton of the modern officer mas radlcal-
" changed during the last few years
The DEVELOPMENT OF present DAY war
fare has rendered 1t necessary for him
to acquire an ever increasing burden
of knowledge so that on the continent
today the military Ofucer IS certainly
one of the hardest worked members or
the community. Every year maneuvers
are made more realistic But after
all the best training for war is war.
Russian Army Experienced
The Russian army today contains
the only men in Europe who have had
this training, as far as war on vast
scale is concerned Tens Of thousands
of officers and men who are in the
field with the Russian army today mad
the actual experience in modern war
fare on which the text books Of the
other COntending armies are based
Among the endless battaliOns which
are now on the Prussian and Austrian
frontiers fighting the Germans and
their allies. are any number Of off
GERS who have made the inevitable
mistakes committed by troops facing
fire for the first time.
It is probable that every regiment
o. Russian troops in action now con-
taius seasoned men who faced the IN
fernO Of Japanese fire at Port Arthur,
Mukden and the other deadly cOmbatS
OF the Manchurian campaign Military
experts understand the inappreciable
moral effect which the presence OF
such veterans has on untried recruits.
Against these fire tried veterans are
opposed the Germans with their a
years Of ceaseless drilling and prepar-
alton for war. The conflict Of 1914,
five weeks old, has not yet demon
strated whether or not book training
is equal to experience The world is
eagerly watching the test.
Standing Of Russian Officers
The Russian officer, in social stand
ing and in his relations with his men
is a sort of mean between the Ger
man and French officer. Like the
German he is Of official caste and per-
haps may come from the nobility, but
often, like most of the French Off
GERS. he comes from humble origin,
and therefore is on friendly and in
innate terms with the men under him.
The Russian officer enters the mill
tary academy very young, seven years
OF Whereabouts, and remains in train
ing 10 or II years before he is given
a commission
The difficulties confronting the
Russian general staff in the present
war are many and great While the
British army knows something of the
guarding Of frontiers by its expert
ence in India, and the Germans and
French have had their Alsace-Lor-
raine frontiers to look after. huge
Russia has seven frontiers TO be pro-
tected. The great empire is vulner-
able from seven angles. by land and
5ea- and while sending her hordes Of
invaders into Austria and Prussia,
must always keep a big force at home
10 look after her thousands Of miles
of borders.
It is an axiom of war TO be prepared
10 outnumber an enemy at given
point. but Russia has TO be ready TO
outnumber her enemy at many points
hundreds and sometimes thousands Of
miles from each other. Another grave
obstacle in the way Of the Russian
general staff now are the traditions
of bribery and corruption which still
remain in certain circles Of the Rus
sian bureaucracy