ARMIES TOO LARGE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LI, Issue 15686, 13 August 1914, Page 5

ARMIES TOO LARGE.

WHERE GERMANY MAY FAIL. THE COST OF THE WAR. MONEY DRAINING AWAY. A rnoFKsscm in the University of Paris Dr. Charles Ricliet, lias recently calculated the coat of a European war at the present day. Should war break out, he says, the Triple Alliance and the Triple Entente would together be forced to mobilise roughly 20 million men, of whom at least half would be sent to the front. On the basis of official statistics ho works out this mobilisation by land and sea as follows :— Germany 3,600,000 England 1,500,000 France '. ... 3,400,000 Italy 2,800,000 Austria 2,600,000 Roumnnia, 300,000 Russia 7,000,000 21,200,000 More striking still is the expense per day which Europe would incur through keeping these huge armies in the- field :— Expenses Per Day. £ Provisioning of troops 2,500,000 Feeding of horses 200,000 Pay . ... ... «.. 850.0C0 Wages of arsenal and harbour personnel 200,000 Mobilisation (on average 100 ltilomolres spread over 10 days) ... 400.000 i Transport of foodstuffs, weapons, : etc ' ... 800,000 AmmunitionInfantry (10 rounds per man per day) 800,000 Artillery (10 shots per sun per day) 250,000 Ship Artillery (two shots per gun . per day) 75,000 Fitting out of army 800,000 Ambulanco (500,000 wounded or ill at -Is per day) 100,000 Movement of ships (6 hours' journey per day) 100.000 Deficit in taxes (25 per cent.) •■• 2,000,000 Support for population without means (9d per day for 10 per cent. of population) 1,350,000 Requisitions, damage to towns, bridges, otc, 400,000 Total 10,825,000 The inference to be drawn from Dr. Richet's figures is that armies are becoming too largo. This view is held by Mr. Ellis Barker, who, in a recent issue of the Fortnightly, says that, with the vast growth of modern armies, superiority in numbers has lost much of its former importance. " Efficiency is becoming more important than numbers," says Mr. Barker That was shown in the RussoJapanese war. The Russian troops were defeated, although they possessed a largo numerical superiority, in men, and far more and far better guns than the Japanese, because the Japanese were more efficient, and were better led than the Russians. An army may be too large. A very large army is a very slow, ponderous, and awkward machine which cannot live on the country, but must cling to the railway for its supplies, and which can be fed, moved, and manoeuvred only with great difficulty. It may have the fate of the whale who is attacked by the swordfish. It may bo defeated by a small but more agile force. Besides, tho eastern districts of France and southern Belgium Bro so densely studded with powerful fortresses and forts that there is not sufficient room for deploying armies of the largest size. Lastly, the paucity | of roads forbids tho effective use of largo ; armies. When the ground is heavy, I troops on the march must stick to tho | roads. " A German army corps of 36,000 men, marching on a single road, extends over fifteen miles, and requires five hours for | deploying for battle. It is followed by two ammunition columns and a baggage I column, which extend over another fifteen ! miles of road. Through the great increase of trio fcld artillery and of the number of ammunition carts, which the modern quick-firing guns and magazine rifles have made necessary, and the recent addition of siege guns, howitzers,' mortars, machine guns, wireless telegraphy sections, balloon sections, flying machines, field kitchens, and the like, the length of the army corps is constantly growing. As an army corps with all its impedimenta requires thirty miles of road, it is clear that every army corps requires a road'for itself, and that the effective use of milI lions of men in battle is impossible, except in countries where the ground is hard." Germany's Strength Over-Estimated. I Germany is generally looked upon as a : menace, casting jits dark shadow on the whole political landscape.. But a writer ! in tho Fortnightly is of the opinion that | her strength is much over-estimated. The i reckless enlargement of Germany's land I and sea forces has provoked a similar policy by the other Great Powers, with the result that of tho two Alliances which divide Europe that to which the fortunes of Germany are linked is hopelessly overshadowed. Tho writer puts in a novel and impressive form tho figures showing the relative strength of the Groat Powers —military, naval, arid financial. Ho takes the figures from Britain as the basis of his .arithmetic, and shows how the other Great Powers stand when measured against Great Britain Armies Cruisers PeaceJßattlo- (first Cruisers strgh. ships, (class), (light). Great Britain* ... 10.0 10.0 10.0 10.0 Germany ... ... 32.8 6,7 2.1 5.1 : Austria-Hungary 18.9 1.6 0.2 1.0 Italy 12.8 2.0 1.6 1.5 France 29.7 4.0 4.3 1.4 Russia 61.4 2.8 1.1, 1.7 Credit Interest on Des- Sub- Govt. troyers. marines. Stock. £ s. d. Groat Britain' ... 10.0 , 10.0 3 8 6 Germany ... ~; -6.2 8.5 - 413 ! Austria-Hungary ... 0.7 1.8 417 9 Italy 1.6 2.3 ■ 4 9 0 i Franco ... ... ... 3.8 10.6 • 315 0 i Russia ... ... ... 4.6 v 6.2 4 8 6 'Including Indian establishment. The broad facts which emerge from this analysis'of military, naval, and financial fiowor, is that in neither does Germany told the primacy; situated liko a nut in j tho crackers between Russia and France, her army is hopelessly outnumbered; she has about half the naval power of Great Britain,' and her credit stands lower than that of either Great Britain or France. The Cost ot Peace. If tho cost of war is great tho cost of peace is also great, i Sir Max Waechfcr says that tho States of Europe spend at present upon their armies and navies about £360,000,000 a year. The Panama Canal will, when completed, cost approximately £80,000.000. It follows that Europe is spending every year, on armaments more than four times the cost of the most gigantic and the most expensive engineer' ing undertaking which the world has seen. At £15 per, gross ton, the value of the entire merchant marine of Great Britain, which comprises 10,000 ships of 19,000,000 tons gross, is £285,000,000, and the vajue of tho merchant marine of the whole ' world, which comprises 40.000,000 tons i gross, is £600,000,000. As the States of I Europe spend on military and naval preparations £360,000,000 per year, or £30,000,000 per month it appears that they spond every 10 months a sum equal to the value of the gigantic merchant marine of Great Britain, and that they spend ovory 20 months a Bum equal to the value of tho entire merchant marine of the world. If the seas should disappear wo could easily build a first-class broadgauge railway with all the necessary bridges, tunnels, stations, sidings, and rolling stock, circling the whole earth, for £360,000,000, the sum which Europe spent last year upon armaments.