THE COLONIST. Published Daily (Mornings.) Friday, February 19, 1909. THE SWISS MILITARY SYSTEM.

Colonist, Volume LI, Issue 12469, 19 February 1909, Page 2

THE COLONIST. Published Daily (Mornings.) Friday, February 19, 1909. THE SWISS MILITARY SYSTEM.

If the military system of Switzerland, of which we hear so much, were adopted by /Britain, an army of ■ 4)000-000 men would be assured, '/with ; : 70,0Q0 cavalry .-arid- ; 4000 "/ field ; guns, at a tiost £of rime: : and;' 'a half" millions; annually. , Lieutenant-Colonel Delme Itadcliffe, a 'British" military attache for some time ; stationed- at Berne, has made a close study of the Swiss system "and ; its pbssibilitiesyand his verdict' is entirely favourable to it..- It provides a real : army;/gobd and cheap.; In .Switzerland' at no time does the number of men underarms exceed one-fjfth~bf,.tho"gbptal strength', and this number is only reached "during'£he. most strenuous periockof .the autumn manoeuvres.;; ■■' ft .is-an ajnriy \vhich in peace time never is.an~a.rmy; Jjas^np_JbarracikVlt6^B^eiak(-ofV/and' gives litifcle .' evidence., of its , existence except : during : trainings. On ;an enemy's threat, however,-^ at once becomes a mighty and complete" army: r— a host stamped from the: r-grduhd£ armed.from;.head to:f6otj 'arid feady^ for any, eventuality.. The 6$ chief- excellence": in ihe.Swiss"' "Army; after , the ; spirit .wbict;'{animates it, and 'which:: must "always be. placed first j is the'perf ection' of; the orgartjsation in all;its /de'taUs;" /.. down" to the smallest of the subsidiary services. It really is ah .army, . compie'c.^ and ready. . -JRe'ady , too, for instantfi-mojba-"-■lisation,'.. Tho recruits rhaVefo' sei-ve 15? days in thejnfahtry, and'engineers must serve cloven- clays each -siibsequent year, and. the artyiery and. fortress troops fifteen'daysV As "far as the performance of duty -withythe colours is "concerned, Jhe army is divided into three., categories!:, the.^uszug, the' Landwehr^: and ?ihe ' Landstrum. . The Ausz^ug iricludesr all-men fit ;for service' heWeen^ 'the ages of tweht^and^thLri^two^A The-,;!Jja.n^f wehr. includ^Me ;^me^of the'^m^ category, after have compjeteij ' •their .Auszug service, ,unjE;U' they feacfc f prty-four years of ,age, . apd- the strum includes, all capable^. of serving i.betwe.en the ages ;of seventeen. : andr" fifty- whcvdo' not belong ; either T to the Auszug or the r Landwehr. The total strength of the -■ . .forces : \ 6f. Switzerland* may be - .stated thus \ ml round numbers :--The Auszug. coirtains 143,000 men ;:. the Landwohr abbut 91,000 men ; ; "arid the armed I/andstrum, about ;:4sjObO men.? The Land-' stnunis not yet completely, organised.

From its organisatioh the army in Switzerland is entirely a citizen force. In it all classes, all trades, all professions are represented, and the peculiarities, qualities and capabilities of each class, trade, and profession are very much turned to account for the benefit of general efficiency. . The doctor- and chemist in civil life serve in the medical corps ; tho electrician, "engineer arid mechanic in the engineers; the 'bus and cab drivers as artillery drivers 5 the farmers and Jhorse-owning classes in the cavalry'; butchers and bakers in the supply departments, and so on; Thus, for many, the military training is not even an interruption of their usual occupations, for they continue them, not for their own interests, " but in pur-, suit of a greater end. According to recent figures, the number of men under : arriis : in Switzerland is about 280,000, in. addition to the unarmed force, the Landstnim, which has a strength of about 260,000: This bo'cly is used to a large extent in the ■auxiliary services— such / as "pioneers," medical corps drivers and horses' attendants, guides and carriers in the mountains, signallers' } workshop artificers, storemen, and stores workmen, bakers, butchers, office assistants and clerics, cyclists, and about 60,000 are described as "being "at the disposal of tho military commands." Were Britain's position similar for land "defence on a similar basis, -wo sh6uld have iin the, United -.Kingdoni , alone, besides' fttiouibfour million armed men, somothing;.like.."eight millions who ;•... would: be available'for niilitary purposes of/ all kinds. . Besides these forces, Switzerland encourages her cadfet movement and her. rifle clubs.. Says Colonel Ra'dcliffe : "If wo had as many cadets from our "secondary schools anil gyrhriasiums as they have in. Switzer-lMd-we should have 98,900 cadets. If our. shooting clubs were as numerous as.tiie Swiss they would have 3,000,000 shooting members; with anj annual grant of £250,000^ We should, alto "have 400^000 members of ;t)le ... Red Cross Corps.. The .number o : f officers and non-reommissioned .officers in the Swiss armed force is such that, in the proportion of the English population, it should represent more than. 500,000 men,' or as many,; .as;-- our", regulars, militia and volunteers -in -England put together." The cost 'of 'this army is remarkably small:; The Swiss citizen soldier is trained and taught to a high and lasting state of efficiency at little more than the sum our New Zealand volunteers represent, per riian per annum . The total war budget of S witzorland is £1,500,000. net,. working out at an annual outlay. per \ man of ;£5 65.. Taking these figures as a basis,- Colonel- Ra'dcliffe estimates that with a recruit contingent of : 130,000. men annually, giving them a three months' recruit course and eight annual trainings of a fortnight afterwards, Qreat' Britain should have an armypf a million strong, costing £6,000,000, a year' Employers of labour in- Switzerlaiicl -consider that the small loss .in 'working time is more than compensated for by the increased efficiency of the men. In comparison with this system •the British-Territorial Army scheme is a mere tinkering with the 'question of defence. The adoption of the Swiss idea would, vastly improve the manhood of the, nation; and would go -a long way towards solving the".- the peronnial problem of .uriemploymertt. But it possesses the objectionable feature to Britons everywhere of compulsion, and-that alone :will be a bar to its introduction. until sterner necessity arises^than has arisen yet.r