Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1914-11-15
&. Russians Make rren inches.

| Every battle has demonstrated the
value to the Russians Of, the trench
es and other military field works.
says the writer. ut has been diff
cult in all cases to take positions so
protected, and the. Russian successes
have been mostly due to the laying,
ont Of fortified positions in the open
field.
with the ground frozen and 40
longer easily worked with pick and
shovel, the laying-out Of earth works
VIII be made extremely difficult, ana
the Russians, whose forts from the
times of Napoleon to Mukden, has
lain in the defence of field fortifca-
tons. will thus lose the most import.
ant factor in defensive tactics.
roops operating Oh the offensive
must deal with the fifth element as
Napoleon called the Russian mud. In
the winter the bad roads are covered
with snow and may then be used by
sleishs, and the great rivers anG
swamps, which form the principal fac
tors in the Russian defense lines, will
then be covered with ice, permitting
easy crossing everywhere.
Charles XII. Demonstrated.
The idea that winter was the best
season in which an attack on Russia
might be made is that of genial
soldier of history. Charles XII. OF,
Sweden, who afterwards demonstrate
ed the correctness Of his conclusion.
He waited with his advance into Rus
STA in 1907 until cold weather had
set in, and after the rivers and
swamps OF Poland had been frozen
over. he, crossed the Vistula on De
cember 20 and advanced rapidly as
far as wilma, where he intended to
overtake the retreating Russians.
The enemy. however, retreated again.
and this winter campaign brought no
result, because King Charles could
not get the Russians to stand.
Napoleon counted on the aid OF
winter in his campaign in 1906, but
the weather was against him. De.
cember OF that year. left the roads
as soft as they had been id the au.
tumn, and the French were obliged
to quarter themselves upon the Poles
and wait for cold weather. Frost fin.
ally came on February and six DAYS
later the battle at Prussian.Eylau
was fought. Napoleon, as we'll as
King Charles, awaited himself of the
opportunity offered by harder roads
and frozen rivers.
AS Carl Bleibtrau, in his work on
the campaign of Napoleon in Russia
in 1912, has shown, it was not the
cold that demanded the greatest sac~
fifices in human lives. Napoleoa lost
$1,000 men on his advance into Rus
STA and only 100000 men on his re-
treat. 1t was also shown then that
the Russians suffered as much from
the cold as did the French, and that
both armies were hampered by the
ice. NapoleOn's retreat was due to
a shortage Of powder, only one-half
OF the quantity thought available ne.
ing on hand. The supply service had
failed altogether"
Major Moraht, the military expert
of the Tageblatt, points out that rail-
roads have also revolutionized cons
ditions since Napoleon's time. Rail
road construction now advances al
most as fast as an army and to an
army provided with half a dozen lines
Of steel leading back to its base the
problem Of ammunition and food sup.
ply presents no difficulties, even IN
Russia.
George eGbhard Eof New England
had his jaw cut open. when an auto
mobile he was cranking backfred
.yrOnk Snvnra1 Stifchac IN olOSc Tho