Evening star., 1934-08-05
BY CYRIL A. PLAYER.

fTeSl0eHt pon HfHdeHoHyS cnTceTs
BY CYRIL A. PLAYER.
Paul Won Hindenburg and his fell
lows returned from the Franco-Prus-
sian War with rich fund Of expe-
rienee, and an enlarged sense OF Ger
many's importance.
with the Fatherland," he COM
mented, we had created a single
army, the fundamental form Of which
was only affected superfcially by the
demands of state sensibilities.
What his youth did not permit him
to note was the inner continuity Of the
narrative of which he was, at that
time, q subordinate part. But the
piping times Of peace had come,
wherein, through two reigns, Germany
was to rise beyond its fondest dreams
in culture, science, world prestige and
contribution to civilization.
These things were as they might be;
peace, of itself, was not particularly
attractive to Hindenburg. or to any
other soldier who had just tasted the
business for which he had been pre-
pared. To Hindenburg, peace opened
with a special distaste. for he was re-
quired to make his way through the
bloomless meadows of mathematics,
which he held in low esteem. Not un-
reasonably. he would have preferred to
explore military history and apply, In
theory, the lessons Of recent battles.
Future Marshals in Glass.
He was formally accepted at the
Kriegsakademie, and among his con-
temporaries we're the later Field Mar
shals Won Buelow and Won Eichorn,
and Friedrich Won Bernhardi, better
known for his writings than for his
general command. Time took its rou-
tine way with Hindenburg. He cele-
brated mildly but deeply his return to
the regiment at Hanover, when the
Kriegsakademie was done with. But,
in six months, he found himself
transferred to the general staff and
(April, 1877) promoted to captain. As
he said: subsequently, I was only
twice employed with troops until
was appointed to the command OF a
division" But his experiences OF and
with troops were of such variety and
extent, when they happened, that few
generals of the German Army were
able to enter the European war with
such a fine balance of field and staff
preparation.
He was stationed at Stettin, where
he met and won his bride, Gertrud
Wilhelmina Won Sperling, daughter OF
Maj. Gen. Won Sterling, chief OF stan
of the 6th Corps in 1865, and chief
of. staff of the First Army in 1670-71.
Hindenburg remarked simply: Il
found in my wife loving mate who
shared with me Loyalty and untiringly
my joys and sorrows, my cares and
laborS." Paul's younger brother,
Bernhard, added: "As far as was in
her power, she knew how to keep any
thing away from him which might
have disturbed or bothered him in the
performance of his military duties" :"
They had a son and two daughters.
The son, Oskar, served during the
European war on the general stan,
and, later, as personal adJutant 10
President Hindenburg. became a mis-
chievous tool in all the intrigues which
subsequently enveloped the Reichs
presidency.
Studied Profession.
Hindenburg studied his profession.
During the Kaiser maneuvers of 1879,
he met Skobeleff, the Russian general,
then riding high after the war with
Turkey; remarked, in reminiscence,
'he gave me the impression of man
of ruthless energy, alert Of mind and
undoubtedly a very efficient COM
mander" The Russians habit of
boasting he found "a less pleasant
characteristic.
BY 1881, Hindenburg was definitely
back at Koenigsberg with the 1st Diyi-
sion and, under the inspiration of
Gen. Won Verdy du Venois, began
painstaking study of the Eastern Front
which. throughout the army, was as
sociated with his name before he re-
tired. He passed to command of
company recruited almost wholly of
Poles, at Fraustedt, in Posen. He found
them Industrious, willing and devoted,
$50 long as bore in mind their diff
culties in learning their work and also
did all I could for their welfare" He
always reflected pleasantly, in casual
conversations, on the days when he
commanded his company and made
the men his own.
He felt a distinct regret when he
was recalled to the general staff in
1885, even though It brought promo
ton to major There was further
compensation in the happy fact that
he was placed in the department of
Col. Count Won Schlieffen, the genius
whose counsels already were supplant-
ing those Of Won Moltke, peacefully in
semi-retirement and whose plans were
to dominate the military ideas of pre-
war Germany and carry her armies
resiStleSsly forward until, at the Marne,
the leader, fatally forsook those plans.
AS instructor in tactics at the Kriegs-
academic, Hindenburg came directly
under this man.
Another chief was Col. Vogel Won
FalkensteiIl, later commander of the
9th Army Corps, and director of the
Corps Of Engineers and Pioneers.
Worked on Field Code.
Hindenburg worked for more than a
year on the code to be issued as field
service regulations. On one memoir
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