The Washington herald., 1915-09-12

Modern Methods of Transportation and Communi
cation Preclude German Disaster in Russia Such
as Was Suffered by the First Consul.
ON HINDENBURG against Ma
poleon; the year of our Lord 1915
against the year Of our Lord
1919. modern PrnSSian diScinline

1872; modern Prussian discipline
and efficiency against OLE time French
Individual brilliancy; railroads against
this in short is a truthful summing up
Of the modern invasion Of Russia by the
German hosts in comparison with the in
vSsion of that vast land by the army Of
Napoleon a century ago.
Napoleon triumphantly entered Russia
in the summer of 1912 at the head Of
40O, 600 men. He left Moscow in the WIN
ter with an army of more than 10O,O 900
At the end of his famous retreat he had
but 1000 soldiers left. His disastrous in
vasion of the cars land was what led to
his downfall, although he had overwhelm'
ingly defeated the cars armies whenever
they ventured to give battle. The cars
endless resources in men. the rigors of the
Russian winter, the immense. lengths Of
Napoleon's lines Of communication were
what defeated the great French genius
oven before he had started on his cam
paign.
The Germans in planning their cam
paign, wisely or unwisely, refused to be
guided by what Napoleon had done and
what the Russians had done to Napoleon.
They asserted from the first that condi-
lions had entirely changed, in fact had been
entirely reversed and. that owing to i'm
proved means of communication by rail.
by motor transport and by water every
thing was in favor Of force invading
Russia and worked against a retreat into
the interior by the Russian army
ut has been remarked" said General
Won Buelow who led the famous German
Uhlans' drive near Riga that the present
strategy of the Russians Is the same as
that which proved effective against Ma
poleon.
Such strategy was effective then but
not now when means Of communication
have been so much improved. The bread
which our soldiers eat today in Windau
was baked in Breslau yesterday.
'1n times when railway is being built
. mile behind the advancing forces, when
thousands Of motor transports are close
behind u.s. when asphalt roads grow as 1t
were out Of the earth. no such strategy is
effective.
I'VE drink German mineral water and
eat fresh meat direct from Berlin, and can
build a road. II necessary, fifty miles long
in two days 1t is therefore nonsense to
speak of the days and strategy OF Ma
poleon."
The colossal scale on which arrange
ments were made to supply the armies
caused a sensation in the towns evacuated
by the Russians. Hundreds Of thousands
Of troops which were lying between the
Vistula and the Bug we're being fed as
well as II they were at home.
The men received three warm meals
daily. Millions Of bottles Of mineral
water we're distributed among them The
railroads were reopened speedily behind
the Germans and Austrians, solving the
problem Of restoring facilities for for
warding troops. munitions and provisions
b. rail.
The furnishing OF supplies to the men
was accomplished Notwithstanding the
fact that the Russians removed all such
supplies and set fires to the villages and
the fields before they retreated. As In the
days Of the retreat before Napoleon, the
Russians endeavored to drive the peasants
OF the fields and out Of the villages as
they retired eastward. They were for the
most part unsuccessful and the peasants
and city dwellers in most cases remained
r. their homes and on their farms
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