STRENGTH OF THE VOLUNTEERS.

The conditions affecting unfavorably the strength of the Volunteers have been given above. The establishment is 346,450, and the actual strength by the latest return (Jan. 1, 1903) 250,990, leaving 95,460 wanting to complete. The enrolled strength has been as follows since the establishment of the force: '60, 119,146; '61, 161,239; '62, 157,818; '63, 162,935; '64, 170,544; '65, 178,484; '66, 181,565; 187,864; '68, 199,194; 193,893; '71, 169,608; 171,937; '74, 175,387; 185,501; '77, 193,026;

'67,

'69, 195, 287;

70,

'72, 178, 279;

'75,

'73, 181,080; '76,

Service is for two years with the colors and eight in the reserve, eight in the National Guard and ten in its reserve; the cavalry, however, spending ten years in the National Guard and eight in its reserve.

The Standing Army consists of ten infantry regiments, eight battalions of light infantry and rifles, three cavalry regiments, and three regiments of field artillery. The Gendarmerie consists of sixteen divisions, and the men are borne upon the strength of the line. The peace strength of the army is about 1880 officers and 25,000 men. As a matter of fact these numbers are never attained under ordinary circumstances, the number with the colors varying from 16,000 to 18,000. There are three general commands. The total war strength is 82,000 men and 114 guns. Including the territorial army, and its reserve, there are said to be some 160,000 men available, but the organization is very defective. The Evzonoi highlanders are by far the best troops.

ITALY.

The Italian army consists of the Active Army, the Mobile Militia, and the Territorial Militia. There are 12 army corps, each having 2 infantry divisions, except that in the Rome district, where are three. The organization of the permanent army comprises 96 regiments of line infantry (288 battalions), 12 regiments of bersaglieri (36 battalions) and 7 Alpine regiments (22 battalions). The strength varies considerably, the company having upon a peace strength a maximum of 100 and a minimum of 60, with a mean of 80, known as the forza bilanciatia. Large numbers of men are upon what is known as unlim

ited leave. There are 24 regiments of cavalry (144 squadrons), each squadron having a mean strength of 145 men and 124 horses. There are 24 regiments of field artillery, with 186 6-gun batteries, but in peace time the battery has only 4 guns. The army also comprises 1 regiment of horse artillery (6 batteries), 1 of mountain artillery (12 batteries), 1 brigade of mountain artillery, with 3 batteries in Venetia, 3 regiments of coast artillery and a brigade in Sardinia, 2 regiments of fortress artillery and 5 of engineers, comprising 60 companies of the various branches.

The total strength of the forces is given as follows:

The military forces of Japan are the Permanent Army, with reserves and recruiting reserves, the Territorial Army, the National Militia and the militia of certain of the islands. The Permanent Army is available for foreign service, the Territorial Army for home defense, and the militia for auxiliary operations in more distant parts of the country.

Service is personal and obligatory from the age of 17 to 40. The total actual period is 12 years and 4 months, of which 3 years are in the Regular Army, 4 years and 4 months in the Reserve, and 5 years in the Territorial Army. The recruiting reserve is drawn from the excess of the contingent, and the men, after passing their 7 years and 4 months in the Reserves, pass to the Militia.

The Emperor is supreme head of the army, and military affairs are directed through the War Minister and the Chief of the General Staff by the Superior War Council. In order to insure unity of action between the various branches of the navy, there is a council consisting of the War Minister, the Naval Minister, the chiefs of the General Staff and the Naval Staff and the Director-General of Military Training.

The following are details of the effective strength of the army on a war footing, not comprising the troops in the island of Formosa: Administrations and establishments, 1,000 officers, 2,900 men; Permanent Army, infantry, 156 battalions; cavalry, 55 squadrons with 9,000 horses; field artillery, 19 regiments of 6 batteries with 684 guns; fortress artillery, 20 battalions; engineers, 13 sapper battalions and 1 railway battalion; transport, 13 battalions: total, 203 battalions, 55 squadrons, 684 guns; or 7,500 officers, 193,790 men,

61,390 horses. Depot troops: 52 battalions, 17 squadrons, 26 companies, 19 batteries; or 1,000 officers, 34,600 men, 9,000 horses, 114 guns. Territorial Army: 130 battalions, 26 squadrons, 312 guns, 3,200 officers, 118,530 men, 11,860 horses. Militia: 35 officers, 1,180 men, 210 horses. Grand total, 386 battalions, 26 companies, 99 squadrons, 1,116 guns, 11,735 officers, 348,100 men and 84,460 horses. The total fully trained force, according to the St. Petersburg Gazette, is 509,960. The Military College and Academy train accomplished officers of great intelligence. They were pronounced by General Grant to be among the foremost of the kind in the world. The barracks and gymnasia are of the best type, and every care is paid to the physical development of the men.

MEXICO.

The Mexican army consists in peace time of 3,500 officers, 31,000 men, and 11,000 horses or mules. It was proposed to introduce personal or obligatory service, but the plan has been postponed, and the army is recruited by voluntary engagement of 3, 4 and 5 with years, special levies drawn by lot. The passage of the forces to a war footing has been defined by law, and provision is made for mobilizing the first and second reserve, including the rural and urban police, the national guard and other forces.

The following is the strength: Regular army, 2,700 officers, 61,000 men; reserves, 1,000 officers, 155,000 men; total, 3,700 officers, 186,000 men, with 32,000 horses and 12,000 mules.

Holland has at present no standing army, but a cadre of officers and non-commissioned officers (establishment about 2,200) for training the forces embodied.

The Landwehr, which has replaced the old Schutterij, received its first contingent recently, and the country has been divided into 48 Landwehr districts. The corresponding battalions cannot, however, be formed before 1909. The Landwehr and Landsturm to which men are to be transferred will have a peace strength of about 20,000, and a volunteer establishment in time of war, the militia to be increased to 12,300, to be permanently embodied, with 5,200 more to be called up for short periods; and the reorganization is being proceeded with. The total armed strength is estimated at 69,000.

The army of the Dutch East Indies numbers about 35,000 officers and men, recruited voluntarily, one-half of the men natives, and a

plan of mobilization for war has recently been adopted.

PORTUGAL

The army was reorganized on October 1, 1899. The peace footing is 62,427, including 33,420 militia. The infantry of the line are 18,000, the cavalry 3,032, the dragoons 1,804, the light troops 1,012, the field artillery The total 3,375 and the horse artillery 479. number of guns is 448. The war footing is 100,264 including 52,675 militia.

A new law was introduced in September, 1895, by which the service is three years with the colors, five with the first reserve and four with the second. There is in addition a colonial army of 9,000. The rules of exemption are most, liberal, a sum of money paid to the Government being accepted as an equivalent.

ROUMANIA.

The armed forces of Roumania consist of the Regular Army, the Militia, and the Opoltchénie. In peace time there only exist cadres for the regular army, which is divided into permanent and territorial troops. The period of service for the permanent troops is three years, and for the territorial troops five years for the infantry and four for the calvary; but in this latter force the soldier at first only puts in three months of continuous service; he is then sent to his home and called up, in his turn, for one week each month.

The effective of the army in war is as follows: Infantry: 8 rifle battalions; 34 infantry regiments (102 battalions; altogether 2,250 officers, 126,000 men, and 4,700 horses). Cavalry: 6 Roshiori regiments (24 squadrons, forming an independent division); 11 Caalrashi regiments (44 squadrons); total, 530 officers, 13,200 men, 12,100 horses. Artillery: 12 regiments (75 batteries, 450 guns; 40 ammunition columns; 2 fortress artillery regiments); total, 930 officers, 26,900 men, 22,800 horses. Engineers: 12 sapper companies, 4 telegraph, 4 pontoon, and 4 railway companies: total, 140 officers, 6,200 men, 1,500 horses. Grand total, 2,850 officers, 169,800 men, and 41,400 horses. If to these are added the transport, auxiliary troops, 32 militia regiments, etc., the numbers will amount to 7,500 officers, 314,000 men, and 65,000 horses.

RUSSIA.

The huge Russian army makes continual progress, and its varied composition and littleknown development make it very difficult to describe. It may be said to consist of several armies: the European, the Caucasian, the Turkestan, and the Amur force; the first of these organized like other European armies, and the constitution of the others varying in conformity with local requirements. Moreover, the strength of each varies according to the necessities of the situation, the troops being on the

Of these forces the active army numbers 731,000 in Europe and the Caucasus, and 87,000 in Asiatic Russia. Baron von Tettau, in a volume on the Russian Army (1902), gives the peace strength, including Cossacks and Frontier Guards, as 1,100,000.

It must be understood that in regard to the preceding estimate and in what follows concerning the distribution of the Russian forces, considerable doubt exists. The troops were moved secretly in view of the war with Japan, and very various statements have been made as to the force actually available in the Far East.

An Imperial order of November 12, 1903, gave instructions for the formation of 2 new brigades.

The Cossack forces have a special constitution. Every Cossack becomes liable to serve as soon as he has completed his eighteenth For the first three years, which are year. looked on as "preparatory," his service is, however, purely local; but for the next twelve years he is considered as belonging to the "front" category. This category consists of three bans, the first of which is formed of men actually serving, and the two others of men who have been granted unlimited leave. The last five years are spent in the Reserve category. There is, however, a still further category, for which no limit of age is fixed: this comprises all able-bodied Cossacks not otherwise classified. These have to supply and maintain their own horses, besides providing their own clothing and equipment. The peace effective of the Cossacks is stated to be 65,930, with 52,400 horses, but it is probable that not more than 54,000 are permanently with the colors. The war strength is given as 182,065, including 4,275 officers, and there are 173,150 horses. This gives a percentage of 13.2 to the male population liable to Cossack service.

In the Russian Empire considerably over a million men annually attain the age for joining the army. In 1902 the number liable to serve was 1,122,000, and 315,832 were embodied in the standing army. Seventy per

cent. of the men so entered are illiterates. About 5,000 enlist annually as volunteers, and 16,000 join the Cossacks. The period of liability to personal service lasts from the twenty-first to the forty-third year of age. Those who join the standing army spend five years with the colors (four in the infantry), thirteen in the reserve, and the remainder in the Opoltchénie, or militia. In some instances, however, the War Minister has power to retain men for a longer period with the colors; whilst, on the other hand, this period is shortened by one, two, three, or four years for those possessing a superior education. The Opoltchénie, which has been developed from a simple militia into a first reserve formation, now embraces two different classes: (1) Men between 21 and 43 years of age, who have never served; (2) men who have completed 5 years' service with the colors and 13 years in the reserve. The ages of the men vary between 39 and 43 years.

The Finnish Military Service Law, whereby the Finnish army has lost the independence guaranteed by treaty, was promulgated on August 1, 1901. The offices of Finnish commander-in-chief and staff have been abolished.

The war strength of the Russian forces consists of about 56,500 officers and 2,855,000 men, including 1,792,000 infantry and 196,000 cavalry. These form the active army of all classes. To these figures must be added the available reserves, estimated at 1,064,000; frontier battalions, 41,000; Cossacks, 142,000. There are besides these the Territorial Reserves, some 2,000,000 men, and the Opoltchénie, 1,300,000, which could be employed in case of emergency. Gen. Redigers, a wellknown authority, estimates the trained reserve to be 2,700,000. It is expected that under new organization the Opoltchénie, or militia, in time of war will form 40 infantry divisions, 640 battalions; 20 regiments of cavalry, 80 squadrons; 80 batteries of artillery, and 20 battalions of sappers; but owing to the vast distances to be covered, and the want of railway accommodations, the mobilization of this great force would be neither easy nor rapid. In regard to the embodiment of the reserve force in the event of war, great advances have been made by the establishment of brigade commands and the organization of reserve brigades.

SERVIA.

The military forces consist of the national army and the militia (Opoltchénie).

The national army is divided into three levies: 1st, men from 20 to 30 years of age, and containing permanent cadres and a reserve; 2nd, men from 31 to 37 years; and 3rd, men from 38 to 45 years, with no constituted cadres in peace time.

The militia consists of men from 17 to 50 years of age not in the national army. No

substitution or buying off is allowed. The annual contingent is usually about 20,500 conscripts, of whom 6,000 are generally unfit for service.

The peace effective is difficult to calculate, because, for economic reasons, it is usual to send down men before their proper date for release. The units are strongest in the spring, and from then gradually dwindle away until a company barely consists of more than 10 or 15 men. The army is a species of semi-militia.

The war effective, according to official tables, the accuracy of which must be accepted with caution, amounts to 8,110 officers, 331,900 men, 420 guns, and 39,070 horses. The number of actual combatants would be about 228,000, but a very large proportion are of the 2d and 3d levies, with little or no training.

SPAIN.

Under the terms of an order of January 29, 1903, the army has been reorganized on the basis of an effective of 80,000 men; the second battalions of the infantry regiments and the fourth squadrons of the cavalry being reduced to skeleton formations. There are in all about 23,000 officers provided for the old establishment, but the supernumeraries are on half-pay, and their places are not being filled. There are eight captain-generalcies, but the eight army corps are replaced by divisions, and further reductions are being introduced. The headquarters are respectively: 1st, Madrid; 2nd, Seville; 3rd, Valentia; 4th, Barcelona; 5th, Saragossa; 6th, Burgos; 7th, Valladolid; 8th, Corunna.

The following is the constitution, by units, of the army: Infantry, 56 regiments, 20 battalions of Chasseurs, 4 African regiments, 2 regiments in the Balearic Islands, 2 regiments in the Canaries, recruiting cadres, etc. The cavalry, 28 regiments, and 3 squadrons for foreign possessions. Artillery, 13 field, 1 siege and 3 mountain regiments (all with four 6-gun batteries), 14 fortress battalions, 1 central gunnery school, 1 central remount committee, and 4 companies of artificers. The engineer corps consists of 4 regiments of sappers and miners, 1 pontoon regiment, 1 telegraph battalion, 1 railway battalion, 1 topographical brigade, 1 company of artificers, and 8 reserve depots, with 5 separate companies of sappers and miners for the Balearic Islands, etc. recruiting purposes the Peninsula has 116 districts, the Canaries and Balearics have 2, and Ceuta and Melilla have 2. The total armed strength is estimated to be 500,000.

SWEDEN AND NORWAY.

For

SWEDEN. The Swedish army underwent a reorganization in 1901, which is progressive and will have its full effect in 1914. General personal service has been adopted, with short periods with the colors: one year for service in the cavalry and artillery, and eight months for

the infantry. The army will be substantially increased in strength. The 24 existing infantry regiments are to have a third battalion each, and 3 fortress regiments of similar strength are to be raised. Some of the new formations have already been brought into existence.

On a peace footing there are 2,606 officers, 1,797 non-commissioned officers, 6,947 corporals and others, 557 cadets, 7,792 volunteers, and 22,332 men, being a total of 40,031. The artillery are to receive Krupp quick-firing guns, of which the pattern is still under trial in an experimental battery. There are 4 corps of engineers. Steps are also to be taken to increase the body of reserve officers. One great object in the recent change is to give a more homogeneous character to the forces. The plans for mobilization of the reserves have been improved, and a Landsturm is being organized.

NORWAY.-The force now availabe for service beyond the frontier numbers, with officers and men, 25,109; but the total armed strength is estimated to be 38,000, There is, however, the defect that there is no reserve of the line to fill up the gaps which might arise during a war, without taking men from the militia (Landvaern). Besides the troops of the line there exists the militia or Landvaern for the defense of Norway, in case the troops of the line should be taken over to Sweden.

SWITZERLAND.

The federal forces do not constitute a standing army, the principle being that of a militia, and the liability to serve twelve years in the Elite, twelve in the Landwehr, and six in the Landsturm. During the twelve years in the Elite (ten for the cavalry) the aggregate service is 141 days in the infantry, 146 in the engineers, 160 in the cavalry, and 163 in the artillery.

The total military strength consists of: Elite (20 to 32 years of age): 96 battalions of infantry, 8 battalions of rifles, 24 squadrons of dragoons, 48 field batteries of 6 guns, 2 mountain batteries, 10 position batteries, and 12 companies of light horse. Landwehr (32 to 44 years of age): 96 battalions of infantry, 8 battalions of rifles, 24 squadrons of dragoons, 8 field batteries, and 15 position batteries. An aggregate total, in round numbers, of 200,000 men, of whom 130,000 are in the first 12 classes of the Elite, formed into 4 army corps. In addition, the Landsturm can furnish fully 300,000, giving an armed strength of 500,000, maintained at a cost of about $5,000,000 a year for a total population of 3,500,000.

TURKEY.

The Turkish military forces are organized on the territorial system, the whole empire being divided into seven territorial districts. By the recruiting law all Mussulmans are liable to military service. Christians and certain sects pay

an exemption tax. The nomad Arabs, although liable to service by law, furnish no recruits, and many Kurds evade service. The conscription therefore falls somewhat heavily on the Osmanlis, or Turks proper.

The men liable to service are divided into(1) Nizam, or regular army, and its reserve; (2) Redif, corresponding to Landwehr; and (3) Mustahfiz, or Landsturm. There are also 660 Ilaveh battalions, mostly skeleton formations, in which men supplementary to the establishments are enrolled. Liability to service until recently commenced at twenty years of age, and lasted for twenty years-i.e., with colors of the Nizam, four years; in the reserve of the Nizam, two years; in the Redif, four years in first class and four years in second class; and in the Mustahfiz, six years. An Iradé issued in November, 1903, increases the

The

total Nizam service to nine years and the Redif service to nine years, it being estimated that this will add 250,000 men to the army. cavalry are set down at 55,300; the artillery (174 field and 22 mountain batteries) at 54,720 -1,356 guns; the engineers at 7,400; infantry, 583,200; total, 700,620. The Nizam has 320 battalions, 203 squadrons, and 248 batteries, and the Redif 374 battalions, 666 supplementary battalions (incomplete), and 48 squadrons. An irregular "Hamidieh" cavalry has been raised among the Kurds, and has 266 squadrons.

The total war strength is estimated to be: 46,400 officers, 1,531,600 men, 1,530 guns, and 109,900 horses. The Ottoman army has been trained and reorganized largely by German officers, and is composed of the best fighting material, as the war with Greece proved.