THE FRENCH ARMY.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LXIX, Issue LXIX, 20 May 1915, Page 8

THE FRENCH ARMY.

• —: ' » ,'-— ITS REJUVENATION. In the four instalments of the official French review, already published by Renter's Agency, an account has been given oi the operations of the French army from the.outset of the war up to the end of January. TheJsecoTjd part of" the report deals exhaustively with the condition of the army after six months of war, the higher command, the supply of officers and non-commissioned officers, and of munitions of war of all kinds, and the transport and. auxiliary services. ; The compiler of the report, beginning his review on February 1, states that on that date the condition of the French army was excellent and appreciably superior to what it was at the beginning of the war from the three points of view of numbers, quality, and equipment. In the higher command important changes have been. made. It has, in fact, been rejuvenated by the promotion of young commanders of proved quality to high rank. All the old generals who at the beginning of August were at the head of large commands have been gradually eliminated, some as the result of the physical strain of war, others by appointment to territorial. commands. This rejuvenation of the higher ranks of the army has been carried out in a far-reaching manner, and it may be said that .it has embraced all the grades of the military heirarchy from , commanders of brigades to. commanders of armies. The result has been to l^wor tbo average age of general officers by 10 years. To-day more than three-fourths of the officers' commanding armies and army corps are less than 60 years of age. Some are considerably younger. A number of the army corns commanders are from 46 to 54 years of age, and the brigade commanders are usually under 50. There are, in fact, at the front extremely few general officers over 60, and these are men who are in full possession of their ; i nysical and intellectual powers. This rejuvenation of the high command was facilitated by a number of. circumstances, notable among which were the strengthening of the higher regimental ranks carried out during the three years preceding the war, as a result of-which at the outset of the campaign each infantry regiment had two lieu-tenant-colonels, and each cavalry and artillery regiment a colonel and a lieu-tenant-colonel, and also the system of promotion for the duration of the war. Many officers who began the war as i colonels now command brigades. Some are even-at the head'of divisions or army corps. Ab'lity proved on the field of battle is now, immediately recognised and utilised, and in this* way ie has been possible to provide in the , most favorable manner for tho vacancies created by the changes in coml p and which were considered necessary in the first weeks of the war. The higher grades of the French army are I inspired by a' remarkable unity in the. matter of military theory, and by a solidarity of spirit which has found striking expression in the course of the numerous moves of army corps i from one part of the theatre of operations to another, which have been carried cut since the beginning of the war. . There are on an average 36 officers to'a regiment, instead ©f the 31 considered to be the necessary minimum. The artillery, which has suffered relatively little, has also an excess of officers, and is further- able to count upon a large number of captains and other officers who before the war were employed in the arsenals or in technical research. Finally, the reserve artillery officers have nearly all proved to be excellent battery commanders. The losses in the junior commissioned ranks have naturally been highest in the infantry. There is, however, nothing like a want of officers in this arm. Many captains and lieutenants who have been wounded by machine-gun »(such wounds are usually slight and quickly healed) have been* able to return speedily to the front. The reserve officers have in general done remarkably well, and in many cases have shown quite exceptional aptitude for the rank of company commanders. The non-commissioned officers promoted to sub-lieutenancies make excellent section leaders, and even show themselves very clever and energtic company commanders in the field, it j must be remembered also that, thanks to the intellectual and physical development of the generation now serving with the colors, and thanks, above all, to the warlike qualities of the race and the democratic spirit of our army, we have been able to draw unon the lower grades, and even upon the rank and file;, for officers. Many men who began the war on August 2 as privates, now wear the officer's epaulettes. The elasticity of our regulations regarding promotion in Avar time, the absence of the snirit of caste, and the friendly welcome extended by all officers to those of their roihtary inferiors who have shown under fire their fitness to command have enabled us to meet all requirements. The state of our infantry cadres on January 15 was very satisifictorv, and much superior to that of the German infantry. On an average each of our regiments has 48 officers, mcludins 18 regular officers, 15 reserve officers, and 15 non-commissioned orneers. In each regiment six of the 12 compan.es are commanded by captains who are regular officers, three by captains or the reserve, and three by lieutenants. Each company has" at least three officers. In sum, the state of ihe army as regards the commissioned ranks, from the highest to the lowest, is declared to be exceptionally brilliant. The army is led by 'young, well-trained, and daring chiefs, and 'he lower commissioned ranks have acquired the art of war by experience JMnally a warm tribute is paid to the work of the staffs of the armies and ot the army corps which were formed three years ago, and have thrown themselves into their work in entire agreement both of views and methods. OVER A MILLEOiN RESERVES. Including all ranks, France now has more than 2,500,000 men at the front! and every unit is, or was on January 15, at war strength. The infantry companies.are at least 200 strong l n many regiments the companies have a strength of 250 or more. In the fcrlT^ *? ich .haVe Suffere<* ™* t n,. t infantry ',th- c units are all up to or above, regulation strength This Poit^? nSt? Ute + S °ne °f the ™st *! poitant advantages of the French army over the German. fl