The Washington herald., 1918-06-23

SAS Souoc' opFiy Suc bLciiSl1a IL you
want to make the enemy recoil. beat
him; without that. you can do moth
ing. and to do that you have q single
means-battle. There can be no VIC
tory without a battle.
The immortal truths shine forth
still, once more latter the Russo
Japanese war Of 1865. with dazzling
brilliance:
An offensive Of manoeuver finally
will overcome every resistance;
The passive defensive cannot escape
defeat; with however much devotion it
is sustained, it is TO disaster that 1t
leads. Victory most decidedly cannot
be won by heroism in the last hours.
Victory dictates conditions beforehand
to the offensive; without maneuver,
there can be no victory.
And "maneouver' means, for the
chief Of an army, combination. direc-
tion, and Impulsion; II means for the
troops preparation. suppleness, apti-
tude and endurance on the march, su-
periority Of fire, knowledge Of how to
fight and TO make use of ground. Un-
der these conditions alone will the
combination be sound. will II be pos
sible to hold out against the enemy
in one place with few forces, while
we attack him somewhere else with
crushing superiority.
Victory, be it said. once more, "wIu
be to the armies which maneuver,"
which means to those who are the
best taught. But victory demands
knowledge, now more than ever.
Task Of GeneraIIssimo.
The generalissimo alone practices
fha ~ afH l.
sense Of the word, and strategy Is
the poetry Of war; all others practice
tactics, the prose Of war. He alone
is the organizer and the conductor of
the orchestra; the others are only
players under his baton.
Whether the generalissimo is him
self with the advanced-guard divisions
or divisions Of battle. every unit in
our military organization-the army.
the corps, the division. the brigade,
the regiments q subordinate unit.
The chief Of each Of these different
units. consequently, as well as COM
manding 1t. must learn to obey; be-
fore debating his own orders. he must
inspire himself with those which he
has received. But in war to obey is
a difficult thing. Obedience Is needed
in the preesnce OF the enemy, and in
spite Of the enemy; in the midst of
dangers. of various and unforeseen
circumstances, before the unknown,
full Of menaces. and despite the
fatigue which results from many
causes.
And how can an officer pursue the
execution OF an order received, how
continue the development OF a pro-
gram, Of a scheme, IL he does not
foO1tor rd
move in spite of the enemy? Moltke
said: I'm war our will soon encounters
the Independent will of the enemy"
The art of war is the art Of guard
ing ones liberty of action" wrote
Xenophon.
Difficult Questions.
In the measure that numbers in
crease, and with them length of time
and extent OF space, these questions
become more difficult. The high COM
mand, in the strict sense of the word,
loses In precision. 1t must as always
determine strictly the result to be
won, but not the ways and means of
winning II. How, then, can subordl-
mates maintain the clear vision OF
the single aim with which they have
been inspired. and at the same time
conserve their own liberty Of action
in the sense indicated? Only BY the
development Of intellectual discipline,
the hrst requirement, which impresses
and imposes on all subordinates the
aim desired by their superiors; and,
in the second place, by intelligent and
active discipline, or rather initiative,
choosing the means by which to ar
rive at the goal indicated.
Here we have the high conception
OF military intelligence, which, be Il
well understood, makes demands upon
character, but also upon initiative,
requiring thought and reflection, and
rejecting immobility of intelligence,
absence Of thought. the automatic
obedience Of the ranks, sufficient per-
haps for the soldiers who have only
to carry out orders Though even they
will work better II they know what
they are DOING, but entirely insuffi-
cient for the subordinate chief, who
must, with the means at his disposal,
interpret and carry out the win of
his superior.
To do that he must understand the
generals plan, then he must accom-
plish 1t with the means which he
possesses most appropriate TO the cir
cumstances, and Of these he Is the
sole Judge .
Employment Of Moral Force.
Who says chief" then. says a man
of character, that Is obvious-but the
word means more than that; II means
also a man capable Of comprehension,
who works on his own initiative
while carrying out his orders. To pas
sive obedience, In the absolute forms
Of former centuries. we must oppose
active obedience, which makes con-
tinual demands upon initiative.
' War Is the employment of moral