Rensselaer Union, Volume 7, Number 23, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 25 February 1875 — European Armies. [ARTICLE]

European Armies.

The military contributor of the Cologne Gazette compares the present strength of the German army with, that of the armies of the other leading European powers. At the beginning AA 1875 the German army consisted of 31,830 officers, 1,329,600 meE, 814,970 horses, 2.700 field guns and 820 siege guns. Of these the number of troops available for service in the field within six weeks after the mobilization is, excluding the transport and staff corps, 710,130 men, with 114,850 horses and 2,082 field guns. These figures do not include the fourth battalions, 3,400 officers and 152,100 men, formed in case of war, or the landsturm to be raised under the new law, which would bring into the field a force, by the lowest computation, of 3,748 officers and 202 500 men. The total force at the disposal of Germany is. therefore, 38,948 of fleers and 1,684,200 men, excluding surgeons and the hospital corps, and not taking into account the probability that the estimated force of the landsturm will be greatly exceeded when in the field. The strength of the Russian army, including the Don Cossacks, but excluding Caucasian and Asiatic troops, is 1,376,860 men, of whom 761,000 are available for field service; the French army, 1,098,400 men, of whom 635.700 are available for the field; the Austrian, 865,900, including 562,750 field troops and reserve; the Italian, 741,700, including 379,000 field troops and reserves ; and the English (including militia, but excluding volunteers), 280,240, of whom 93,860 is the highest number available for the field without fresh enlistments. From these figures Germany is the first military power in Europe. The organization'of the “territorial ariny” in France may ultimately increase the French army by from 480,000 to 520jj000 men; but then Germany will have 100,000 soldiers more than France, and by putting forth all her strength she might obtain 200,000 or 300,000 more. It is also to be considered that even if the German army were raised to 1,800,000 men it would consist almost entirely of well-trained soldiers, which in France can only be the case, as regards the territorial reserve, in some twenty-five years’ time.