Year: 1876

ringing blare OF martial music, came the
Twelfth Army Corps, the whole army of
the kingdom of Saxony, thirty thousand
strong. And Germany might well feel
proud of these, her martial sons, for the
army is the nation, and the nation is the
army, but they are menace to all the
rest of Europe. First, with measured
step and slow, the infantry, headed by
the two regiments of household grena-
diers, and followed by the chasseurs, ri
femen and Schuetzen Corps-marching
with the stiff parade step" which takes
away all bend of the knee, raises the foot
about sixteen inches from the ground,
and points the descending toe sharply
downward. They were all in pickle-hu-
lies, except the rifemen, who wore the
round leather cap, with flowing black
horse-hair plume. All wore white trou-
sers and had cow-skin covered knapsacks
packed, with blankets rolled on top, and
cooking tins carried over that. Each
regiment, about twenty-four hundred
strong, went past in close column of
divisions each seemed solid square of
marching men, moving by one impulse,
steel capped, and topped with glittering
bayonet points. The bands and drum
corps of each brigade were consolidated
together, and as they wheeled out in
front of the reviewing point to play their
respective brigade past, the welkin rang
amain with the strain of one hundred
and fifty bandsmen and the rolling of
more than two hundred drums. The
alignments were perfect, the step fault-
less, distance admirably kept could less
have been expected from those who are
confessedly the finest soldiers of Europe
Each brigade commander rode in front,
alone, saluting with the sword !; close
behind him came an aid de camp with
sword in scabbard, who saIuted with the
hand then the entire field and staff of
the three bataliOns of the regiment, who
rode past in two ranks with sabres at a
carry, and did not salute, nor did the
company officers, marching on foot with
the men.


The cavalry went past at O walk, by
squadrons front, the mounted band of
each regiment, of trumpets, comets,
hautboys and kettledrums, wheeling off
to face the reviewing point; until its re-
giment passed, and then following in the
rear, while its place was taken by the
band of the regiment next succeeding.
The Garde-Reiter Cuirrassiers led the
column, and great curiosity was every
where manifest to witness the appear
ance of this favorite and aristocratic re-
giment of guards and well did they
bear themselves throughout the ordeal,
the very horses seeming to share in the
pride of their long -sworded, steel capped
riders, each steed looking and stepping
his very prettiest. Then came the Hus
sars with their curved sabres, and then
regiment after regiment of splendid
looking Uhlans on their light horses,
bearing their long lances at the sport, :"


with the green and white pennons fut-


tering gaily overhead. There were eight
regiments of cavalry in all, and remem-
Der that each German regiment is of
three battalions, each battalion the size
of an English or American regiment.
The men were all in jackboots reaching
to the knee, and tight white breeches.
Then followed the artillery, headed by a
shrill band of clarions, marching by bat
terry front, with the gunners marching
in one rank behind each battery, except
in the case of the two battalions of horse
artillery, where they were all mounted
on the axle Seats We observed that
each battery of horse artillery had a
special escort of company III cavalry,
uniformed like the gunners, and form
ing part of the battery, which they al
ways accompany, replacing from their
numbers such gunners or drivers as may
be disabled in action. To these follow
ed the Pioneers, with shouldered axes,
and pontoon train in complete readi-
ness for service, closed the column.


After marching past in common time
they went by again, the whole now un-
der command of King Albert himself, in
the same order as to arms, but the Ca
valry and artillery-with gunners now
all mounted-and the train moving at a
brisk trot, and the infantry at the dou-
BILE. It was fun to see the bard work
the cavalry bands had now to play in
anything like time when their horses
kept bobbing them up and down in the
saddle. The kettle drummer of the
Garde Reiters, who had TO use both
hands for the two drums, guiding his
horse by his legs, was so absorbed in the
difficulty of his performance and in his
tribulation in beating the step in proper
time as to forget when his band wheeled
off opposite the reviewing point, and
marched on solennly and alone to the
great glee of the reviewing staff, includ-


ing the Emperor. One of the horse an
tillery guns, drawn by eight spirited
horses, was run away with by its fiery
team just before reaching the reviewing
point, and went flying across the plains
at terrible pace until brought up Dy
one of the leaders falling and breaking
his neck. But iron discipline ruled su-
preme, and not a man on the other guns
moved his eyes from the front to wit
ness the exciting escapades of his COM
rades.