The commercial. (Union City, Tenn.) 190?-193?, 1918-03-01

OF peace or of war, is OF much con
sequence. since public opinion oper
ates powerfully in shaping the di
rection and method of such under
taking. And since we are in tn
worlds greatest war, and since on
success or failure in this war de
ponds primarily on the efficiency o.
inefficiency of our fighting force, thu
building of an cfficacious and in
vincible ermy is a matter of the frs
magnitude. And every man and wo
man should have, ct least. genera
and very safe conception of whai
constitutes a good soldier, and Of
the kind of training and environ
ment one should have to develop tC
the highest excellence the soldier
like qualities. For as the public
thinks, such will be its influence
l make no profession of being an au-
thority on this great military sub
ject, nevertheless 1 have not read
history without learning some very
salient and material facts about
wars. armies and soldiers. And If |
should set some of these forth for
the consideration of the public,
feel that may be pardoned.
Anyone that has read history,
even in cursory manner, cannot
have failed to be impressed with the
prime Importance of hardihood,
thoro training and discipline in any
army. 1t has often happened that
a large, but effeminatc and badly
drilled, army has been defeated and
all but destroyed by few virile and
highly trained troops. With forty
or fifty th0usend seasoned and well
drilled Macedonians, Alexander cut
to pieces the great armies of Asia
and brought the world under his
feet. fernando Cortez, with a hand
fNl of daring, hardy and trained
Spaniards, slaughtered the poor
Aztec Indians by the thousands and
took possession of Mexico. The bad
ly drilled Muscovites often went |
down before Charles XII of Sweden,
though outnumbering Charles army
three of four to one. Casar's
half-starved, war hardened and
veterans destroyed Pom
pey's much larger, but pamper-
ed, army in about four hours. And
IN her last war with Germany, did
not France lose many thousands
more men than the foe, mainly be-
cause of the superior training of the
Germans? But the French, from
he way they have fought in this
war, have learned their lesson.
What then do we learn from all
his? Is it not this: That the
hing of paramount Importance to us
N this war is to have a thoroly
efficient army, every man of which
S hardened by arduous exertions
bhN AhauC W4oc III oil Inc arts anu
of war by effective train
ng. No doubt it is the intention of
he Government to develop such any
lrmy, and in its efforts to do so it
,ught to be heartily supported byl
he people, though such training will
mean severe denials and hardships to
he boys in the environments. For
he more they are Injured to extreme
lifficulties, toughened by strenuous
abor and trained to act with CELEBRITY
md precision here, the greater will
'e their chances of returning from
Europe and of our nation coming
ictorious out of the war. While to
tut them on the firing line unpre-
jared, both in the arts of war and
n the power of endurance, would
cry probably mean an unnecessary
acriflce of many of their lives. and,
'erhaps, the ultimate defeat of our
ountry in this war.
Nearly all great warriors have
'een men, who were not only ex- !
ert in all military affairs, but who
lso possessed great powers of en-
urance, being able to undergo the
1ost trying conditions of life and !
ong and laborious exertions. They
we're sinewy, tough, and hardy like :
knarled and khotted oak. And
hey developed such hardihood by be-
ng subjected often voluntarily, to
ard extremes of life and to severe
nd continual exercise. Caesar lived
cry temperate and on the COM
honest fare, and shared the hard
ot of the common Roman soldier.
alexander, it is said, was the hard
st worker of his time, and was rear
d in the school of rigid self-denial.
Napoleon INDUCED in no luxuries
nd was dynamo of energy. He
ould traverse the burning deserts
I the east or the frozen plains of
he north with equal impunity.
'harles XII of Sweden, though a
ing and all but worshiped by his s
objects, lived on coarse and ordi- !
airy fairy and Injured himself to all