THE KAISER AND HIS PRUSSIAN ARMY.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 7238, 26 October 1901, Page 4

THE KAISER AND HIS PRUSSIAN ARMY.

* A PERFECT MACHINE. (Special Correspondent of the "Daily Mail.") KCEXIGSBERG, Sunday, Sept. 8. The German manoeuvres made a ceremonial start yesterday, when the Kaiser himself, accompanied by the Kaiserin and the Crown Prince, and surrounded by a brilliant staff of high officials of 'the Tirtpcrial Army, and the representatives of the historic families of th© Prussian province, held a grand review of the entire Firsb Army Corps, upon the smooth, wide, military plain of Kccnigsberg. Unusual interest attaches to the year's manoeuvres, because the First Army Corps, whose turn arrives to take part in the annuail grand exercises, is 'the original Prussian Army, the parent and nucleus of the vast German military organisation. It is upon the ground, where German greatness first developed that the manoeuvres ji.ro to hi held. From Kocnissberg,. across the Vistula by Marienburg, the historic fortress and memorial of ilie ; laiights of •■the 'Teutonic Order of Dirseh'au, to fianlzig, there is not an inch of ground which has not sacred associations for the patriotic German. It is exactly 200 years since in> 'this very Schloss of Kcenigfbci-g the first Frederick crowned himself, founding the dynasty of the Empire. It is this bicentenary which naturally awakens the keenest interest <>n the part of the most patriotic of all Germans, the K*Uer. In ti-o old r.chloss. some part of which is comparatively modern, but whose great frowning walls 'still front the market place, and avlioss great Gothic 'tower still rises conspicuous as a mediaeval landmark, the Kaiser and 'the Empress are now .lodged, surrounded by the princes.and great .npbles of Prussia. THE KING OF PRUSSIA. In the schlosskirche, within the castle waits, the Kaiser this morning went in- state to church as King of Prussia. It was an occasion of state, but not of Imperial state, for it was as King of Prussia, not as German Emperor, that he passed across the great quadrangle of the schloss to the west wing, where ths church is. Thtey were not Imperial officials wihk> attended upon him, but Prussian ; it was not the Imperial crown borne on a cushion before him, but the famous Prussian crown ; and the sceptre and other insignia were Prussian and not Imperial. It was a rigorously Prussian ceremonial, but, remembering the part Prussia has played in the creation of German consolidation, it was of inexpressible Imperial interest. It was the first occasion on which the Kaiser appeared as King of Prussia, for by a succession of unhappy events, the projected ceremony of formal self-crowning, according to historic custom, has not yet beeo accomplished. But 'the crown was borne before him, though not worn, and ■there was all the circumstances of pomp and state in the procedure of his formal appearance in the character of King of Prussia. A HINT FROM SOUTH AFRICA. For this solemn and, to Germans, inspiring occasion, Saturday's great review was a grand accompaniment. Under General Finck von Finkenstein the entire East Prussian Army Corps paraded, forty-one battalions of infantry, filty-fcur squadrons of cuvahy, thirty- two batteries of -artillery, besides a" new German military equipment and the first apparent result of the lessons of South Africa, three batteries of Maxims, each of six guns. Kcenigsberg is a groat place of adonis. It is the headquarters of the Ist Army Corps', with mignty barracks, protected, by an encircling chain of twelve forts. Evtry fort is the lust word ol" modern engineering science and skill. Its geographical position renders it of trie greatest military importance, and German thoroughness renders it of the highest military value. Nc enemy coming from the east and desiring to keep its Baltic base, dare leave it in the rear, and it is so strong that the enemy never could hope to reduce it. Among its equipment is a magnificent parade ground— x long, Avide, level plain almost limitless as far as the eyesight carries. Here the Kaiser reviewed his trcops. A grand stand most perfectly and solidly constructed, seating many thousands, was open to all at a otiarge'of five shillings. Every seat was taken, and long bafore eight o'clock this morning every seat was occupied, while many thousands of people divpof.ed themselves around the boundaries of the plain, and along two or thrse miles of roadway leading from the town. THE PUNCTUAL EMPEROR. The Kaiser was due on the parade-ground at ten o'clock. He arrived to the monssro and found tlie tioops dirposed in a. double iine nearly two miies long. Ths infantry batta.iou/AVcre in front, every one ■occupying the identical amount v-i space, and every two having an identical interval beiwcc'n. Behind, at a distance, were placed the batteries, wit-h a similar perfect uniformity, and away far on the flank, their white " pennants making a long straight line on the horiisuii, like a snow-line on the distant mountains, were the cavalry. All along the lines the bauds of each regiment burst forth with the National Anthem as the Kaiser appeared, fdlowod by the great officers of the household, and bearing his 'marshal's baton.. He was wearing the Prussian uniform,. aMd,!,wa§.mounted on a ma-gnilicent bay, the Crown Prince accompanying him. He was recaived by General von Finkenstein, Graf m Eulenburg. Generals v* n ALts-n, Von Bock. Pollak,°'and ether 'high officers, the meeting making * brilliant picture in the- middle of a smooth plain, specially noticeable rteure;; bdng those- of the Princes Aibrecht, father and son. It was. as a preliminary, a most impressive spectacle to ?ee tin absolutely perfect, .'.imult'ant-'ous salute all along the immense line the moment the Kaiser arrived within saluting distance.. Near at hand 1 saw the v r hite-trouKered infantry straighten themselves in one single moment, as every hand fivung over and every rifle came up to a straight position to palute. Further away, Where vl« ; ' details were beyond vision, one only saw a sudden flash of lightning run along the line as the sun caught this lilting of the gleaming steel bayonets, but everywhere it was the same movement — a simply marvellous perfection of training and organisation. AN IMPERIAL INSPECTION. After an interval — photographic — *the Kaiser rode away fur tt> the- left of the Hue and presently returned, conducting thia Krnprees, irho, •d't^sscd: lit <Je«p mourning, was in a carriage drawn by six horses. With her his Majesty made a slow processicn along the Avhcle lina. and as each battali en and battery was reached the band took up the na trenail hymn. It was noticeable that, so exact- werfc the distances apart, t'vere- were identical -intervals of .i-infus ..lfetireen the commencement of the bands a.s ths Imperial party passed. Then the Kaiser and Empress took up tfosir petition nt the saluting point, and the march pa.*u began. The perfect machine-like performance was beyond description ; even the waggons kapb a perfectly even line, while r.s to the infantry, their lines .'.-bowed exact spaces as identical a.s if marked by a. parallel rater. All seemed perfect beyond pcjible improvement to the spectator, but there i.« no perfection in mil'ii.uy n;«tt«is to the Kaiser. Every im>w ar.d t.hien some hrill'iantly-uni-fm-mkl aide-de-camp of -his staff would &?- tadi himvelf from the group around him and gallop with some message, order, cr criticism to a passing regiment. It v."is ir.U'it-tiug <i> iniiiuiry sppct.Unrs tfi try and ili>ci;ver what (.ct.asiou-ed \hi?s Mi'kk'n- messages by watching for after-

effects. Ones it was that the reginrembal hand was not sufficiently accentuating the time, once that the line of toklisrs, far away, was not marching at perfectly regular intervals. Nothing saems to escape the Kaiser's notice, not even the ■smallest detail, amd th' 3 tiniest, apparently insignificant, dietail to hint is of the greatest importance. After parade he gathered round him the regimental officers " pour faire la critique," and, perfect as the display had f*em©d, a good half of an hour was occupied! by tho Kaiser m pointing out merit* here and possible improvements there. It was a fine spectacle of perfection, but not less admiirable ar.d perfect were tire arrangements mads for regulating the passing of the crowd from the review back to the town. Kcenigsberg was brilliantly illuminated entirely hy electricity last night. To-night ard to-morrow, having shown the perfection of drill, the First Army Corps leaves to march to Dantzig, where the grand combined manoeuvres take place next week.