Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1916-07-28
The French Army
By Henry Wood
Jnited Press staff correspondent)


two years, despite the handicap of
maintaining her own unequal end in
the world s greatest war, France has
built up a military machine that to-
day the French contend is superior to
the organization which Germany was
forty years in preparing. q
France is not a military nation. She
does not boast of her war engine, but
she takes credit for genius in organ
ization and resoureefuness which she
would have preferred to employ in
pursuits of peace.
That ner armies today are superiorl
to chose of Germany, France feels has
been demonstrated by the successful
resistance to date. Germany has had
| to divide her organization on various
fronts, but has opposed man for man
on the French front, and there is rea.
son to believe that in most combats
she had had numerical superiority.
Barring the first two months of the
war, wnen unprepared France fell back
under the impetus of this worlds CO.
losus, she has held her own. Before
the war ends, she expects to have dem
onstrated that she can do more tnan
that.
France feels Verdun is the supreme
| test of the present relative efficiency
OF the two fighting machins Best es-|
Inmates available mere place the total
of German troops emplayed there
since the beginning OF the battle at ~
100000. France can give the names
and numbers of German regiments to
establish this figure.
! France has had no more than half
that number. The Germans themselves
place the total of French troops at Yer
dun at 100000. Some neutral military
experts give the same figure while
the Swiss and Argentine military at
/ tacnes with the crown princes army
place the figure so low as 100000. Yet
the French have more than held their
own at Verdun.
100000 in Service
| This intensive organization has cost
France tremendous effort. Since the
beginning of the war;, 100000 French
men have worn the French uniform
in actual service. With a population
of fewer than 40000,000 one person
of every eight in France, regardless
of age, sex or physical ability, has ser
we'd.
| Before the wal, eacn class as it was
called to the cOlors with its attainment
of military age, gave France but $780,
600 soldiers. Since war began, the
classes of 1916, l9l7 and 1918, the
last not called but its number known,
have yielded 100000 men each. The
\ yiexplanation is that when France had
to create military machine in a hur-
ry societies for military preparation
lsprang up. The youth OF France be-
gan in these societies course of rigid
military training largely athletic vita
the result that $4,000 more soldiers
in every class have attained the phys
ical perfection necessary for the mill
tary requirements than attained it be-
fore the war France can still call
. another million men without recourse
to q call en- masse which would serious
ly affect the French industrial, eco
nomical and commercial life that is
running as smoothly as her military
machine. She does not believe she
. will ever have to do it.
Military Engine Perfect
The French military engine has at
tanned its present perfection without
a terrible toll of human life. The class
of 1916 was called out and prepared
but it has never been sent to the
front; the class of 1917 still is in train
ing. while the class of 1918 is simply
in the hands of private societies for
military preparation. Frances new
steel helmet alone has reduced the
head wounds 33 l.3 per cent. France
has spared her men by superior genius
in organization.
Upbuiding the material side Of the
French machine involved greater gen
ius. There is not one French soldier
, who is wearing the same uniform OF
using an ounce of the same material
he entered the war with. All have
been entirely refitted many times Be
, side the munitions and artillery ac
complishments, the above fact is moi
, even worthy of mention.
Not the least military accomplish
ment of France has been the generous
, help extended her allies, especially tht
/ lttl ones.
4 In November 1914, when the Servial
, army retreated for three weeks befor,
/. the Austrian invasion owing to lacl
, of ammunition, it was the steamers o.
the Messaggeries Maritimes and tn,
flagship Waldevk Rousseou that rush
ed to Salonika the heavy artiller,
! and French ammunition that enable,
the Serbans to turn the only decisive
! victory that the allies have won +
: date, the destruction of an entire at
:, my. .g,,
!, When few weeks later the heavs
artillery on Mount Lowcen, the Gibral
:. ter of the Adriatie proved insufficient
: French artillerynIen dragged heaT
French guns up the all but inaccessi
BILE sides of the Montenegrin noun
y tain and manned them.
7 Has Aid TO Serbia
l. Had all the allies extended the sam
L timely and generous aid TO Serbia an
! Montenegro that France did, these tw
u countries would still he enjoying fhei
Independence and the presept Salonik
!. expedition would never have been. nee
u ssary. ...siI
From a purely military standpoint
France has rendered even greater al.
/ to her allies. So far back as the Ba
l. kan wars the remarkable efficiency o
e French artillery had been demonstra'
$ ed. Germany began the war with q
y abundance of heavy artillery but the
d could not compete with the mechanic
lal perfection Of the French guns o
i the superiority of the French -.arti
k.l