The daily Alaskan., 1917-09-25
Daily Points For
 Citizen Soldiers
Qssued by the War Department And all rights to reprint
 ReserYed).
WARFARE IN EUROPE

In previous sections of this Course army life and service have been described without special reference to the changes brought about by the present war. There are important changes, and meth ods of training and of fighting used in previous wars must, of course be modified accordingly.
 Character Of Present War
 This war differs from previous wars chiefly in the enormous in crease in the use of artillery. This is due partly to the immense manu- featuring resources of the countries at war, which enables them to pro duce great numbers Of guns and great quantities of ammunition. It is due also to the new methods Of directing gun fire from airplanes. It is evident that a gun can not be accurately aimed at an object the exact location of which is unknown The airplane, however, is able to bring back or signal back this in formation, so that the artillery may now he used with much greater ef- feet. The size of the guns and the force O. the explosive shells fired from them have also been largely increased.
 Partly as a result of these im- provements in artillery, it has been necessary to develop better methods of protection.
 The chief improvement in meth ods of defending entrenched troops in the increased use of machine guns. Machine guns must be put of operation by artillery fire or by rifle fire directed against the gun uers before infantry can advance directly against them.
 DeyeloDment or Airplanes
 The chief new instrument of war fare developed during the present war is the airplane. As previously explained, it is used for scouting, d. recting gunfire, and dropping bombs .Tte scouting machine is usually equipped with large camera which takes q series of pictures. When these pictures are developed and compared day by day they give in- valuable information as to the exact location of troops, guns, and sup plies. The scouting and bombing machines are usually protected by swift fighting machines.
 Another very interesting ana promising device is the tank q heavily armored machine so con structAd that it can advance under its own power over almost any o0- stacles, and thus lead an attack on enemy trenches. It is armed with machine guns. Armored mo'or cars have also been used effectively un- der some conditions.
 Another weapon of the trenches introduced by the Germans, ID sDite of international agreements to the contrary, is poisonous gas. This was at first very effective, since no defense against it had been prepared. At the present time, however, each man in or near the front carries a gas mask, which en- ables kim to meet an attack Of this kind without serious injury.
 Wonderful Staff Organizations
 Back of the lines the organiza- ton os the staff branches of the service has been enormously eX- tended. Railroads are constructed up to within a short distance of the front. Transport of supplies ana ammunition by motor trucks has been organized on a big scale. The medical department have also made notable gains in methods of treat ing wounded men, with the result that very large percentage recoveT' Even in the early months of the war it was announced that of the wounded actually treated in French hospitals 54.5 per cent were retur1E ed to duty within a short time; 24'5 per cent were sent home to com plete their recovery and later re- turned to duty; IT per cent at the time of making the report were still in hospitals, with the prob ability of complete recovery; 1.5 per cent were unfit for further ser vice; 2.5 per cent had died from the effects of their wounds.