The mirror. (Stillwater, Minn.) 1894-1925, 1921-06-02
THE SWISS ARMY

In connection with the frequent agita-
ton in the United States, it is interesting
to study the systems of other countries
where such service has been tested.
The National Geographic Society has
issued bulletin concerning the citizen
army of Switzerland, based on COM
munication to the society which says:
universal compulsory military service
in Switzerland dates from 1874, when the
old system of requiring each canton to
raise an allotment of three men for every
hundred men of its population, was done
away with and the system Of requiring
every ble-bodied man to meet for train
ing was substituted. The system worked
with very little trouble or friction from
the beginning, and the Swiss people are
very proud of their citizen army.
'In its fundamentals the idea of the citi
zen soldier laid down by the man who
framed the constitution of the United
States is the same as that followed in the
organization of the Swiss army. The
Swiss do in practice what we do in theory.
Every able bodied man in America is sup
posed to be member of the militia, and
yet how few have ever shouldered gun
or marched in company formation
"The Swiss boy, at the age of 10, is
put into the gymnastic class at school and
begins learning the elements of the SOL
der drill on the school house playground.
Long before he is old enough to be called
upon for service he has learned to do the
manual exercises and to 60 through much
of the drill that afterward fits him for
soldier.
"When boy reaches II years he is liza
BILE to service-a liability which continues
until he is 50 years of age<Even after
that he may be liable, if he is capable of
doing any other army work than soldier
ing, such as acting as baker, veterinary
surgeon or otherwise.
"Yet with all of this universal training
the only people in Switzerland who make
arms an exclusive profession are the COM
mander in chief, selected by the Federal
Assembly and the general staff. These
form the brains of the army. The rank
and file belong to the cantons, just as the
militia do to the States in this country.
"The Swiss man sacrifices cheerfully
definite amount of his time to preserve his
independence as a citizen of free coun-
try.
"Entrenched behind its native rocks, the
citizen army of Switzerland contains every
element of the nation. The man of wealth
and the peasant are found shoulder to
shoulder. No man is compelled to spend
the crucial years Of his life away from
home in the army, and yet every man is
required to contribute his share to that
army's maintenance and the nations
safety.
"At the age of 20 every able-bodied
Swiss youth becomes a member of the
'Auszug,' and every one who lacks the
necessary qualifications regrets that he is
unable to cooperate with other young de-
tenders of his country. During the first
year of liability he must serve IS days or
more, and II days for each successive year
he is called to the standard. 1t is no ex-
cuse that he has brothers already in the
army, or that he has widowed mother
dependent upon him. The burden of pre-
paredness, spread over nation, becomes
no onerous task for anyone, and the aver
age young man in Switzerland looks upon
his time spent in training camps as
pleasurable vacation, profitable to the
safety of his country.
Service in the 'Auszug,' or Elite con-
tinues until the citizen reaches the age of
81. Thereafter he passes into what is