Evening star., 1941-02-16

chief of the Army of the Nile.
A P. Photo.
being an expert at skiing. He lost his
left eye at LIE Cateau in the World War,
which explains his adoption of mon
ocle; and is Notwithstanding a crack
marksman. He is keen rider to hounds,
and an excellent golfer. 1t is in terms
of a golf handicap that he sometimes
amuses himself by reckoning the martial
qualities of the nations that fought in
the World War He finds that the Turk
ish soldier, for instance. was usually set
to receive five or six strokes from the
nation placed at scratch"
A stout advocate of discipline, he is
gifted with many social graces. An elo-
quent conversationalist on many topics,
he encourages others to talk and enjoys
listening to them. When his elder daugh-
ter was presented at court in 1887 and
had her first London season, he accom-
panied her and Lady Wavell to debutante
balls, where he danced with enthusiasm
He is described as a man of medium
stature, not powerful of build, but very
good looking and impressive"
Compared to Wellington.
The late Viscount Allenby, under whom
Gen Wavell served as a staff officer in
the campaign that drove Turkey out of
the war, is regarded by the latter as
the most eminent British soldier since
wellington One of his books is Allen
by: A Study in Greatness" The prime
qualities of the hero are listed as infinite
pains in preparing supplies and commu-
nications astute employment of military
deception and boldness of temper. From
Allenby's example he drew principle
used again and again in the operations
against Libya: "A commander in chief
must have touch of the gambler"
Further adages of Mussolinis nemesis
are as follows:
The principles of warfare are i'm
mutable.
The geography of land determines
the course of its wars.
Speed is armor.
The chief aims of troop organizations
are mobility, which gives the power of
surprise; and training, which gives the
ability to maneuver.
Whether it lasts for years and is spread
over hundreds of miles, every war is
fought on the accepted principles of the
field service regulations.
and routine.
In all professions, especially the mill
tary one, character is of greater impor-
tance than brains.
Troops in pursuit must be given as
objectives not those you think they will
reach, but the farthest they could pos
sibly reach.
No one should hold the rank of higher
commander without at least six months
of close association with the. Royal Air
Force within a few years of his promo
ton.
Military Co ordination.
"The commander of the future" he
explains, must be able to handle air
forces with the same knowledge as he
does forces on land. 1t is this combina-
ton which will bring success in future
wars" He might have added third
factor-ability to cooperate knowingly
with naval forces. Gen. Wavell himself
has exemplified this trait to the highest
degree during the last weeks, as did Gen.
Allenby in 1917 One of the latter's most
famous exploits was using British ships
to make convincing feint against GAIA,
while Allenby struck at his real OBJ
jective, the water wells of Beersheba.
"A leader" Gen. Wavell once said in
words prophetic of his own career, must
have personality. That simply means
knowing your own mind and being per-
fectly determined to get it. He must
have a genuine knowledge of humanity
the raw material of his trade. # had