Introduction

The necessities of the maritime service in France, public and private, military and commercial, have created a system, or at least a series of special schools for children whose parents are occupied on the sea, or youths preparing for the exigencies of naval affairs, several of which we will proceed to describe, with the aid of official documents,[11] without reference to the chronological order in which they have been instituted. The system includes

1. Nautical School for the Orphans of Sailors. 2. The Inflexible and other School-ships. 3. Naval Apprentice Schools at the government naval stations. 4. School for Boatswains and Shipmasters. 5. School for Naval Engineers and Stokers. 6. Naval Drawing School. 7. Schools of Navigation and Hydrography. 8. Naval School at Brest. 9. School of Naval Architecture at Paris. 10. School of Marine Artillery. 11. School of Hydrography. 12. Naval School of Medicine and Pharmacy.

[Footnote 11: Official Report on Paris Industrial Exhibition of 1866, group X. Official programmes of the several schools noticed.]

In addition to the schools above enumerated, several of which will be described in detail, the French government has now under consideration the establishment at Paris of a Central School of Commerce and Navigation. The instruction, while it will be special, will not be technical, and will be designed for young persons who propose to enter either the military or mercantile marine, leaving the practical details of the particular branch of the service to be acquired elsewhere.

A system of maritime conscription for recruiting the navy, and strict regulations requiring special instruction in masters and mates of all mercantile vessels, are in force in France.

NAUTICAL SCHOOL FOR ORPHANS OF SAILORS.

Formerly, when the children of sailors were obliged at the age of seven to leave the asylums (salles d’asile,) which are open to them with such liberality, they had to stay for six years in the primary schools before, they were admitted to the “school for young sailors” (école des mousses,) where their professional education commenced. This state of things, entirely satisfactory when the child belongs to a family, is different when it is an orphan. Then there is a void to be filled.

An imperial decree, published Nov. 15th, 1862, at the suggestion of the Marquis of Chasseloup Laubat, provides for this want by furnishing at Brest an institution for the orphans of the navy, and placing it under the especial protection of Her Majesty, the Empress. Vice-Admiral, Count de Gueydon, gave all his care to the organization of this especial school, which was intended to gather the orphans of seamen, to place them under the protection of the navy, to educate and instruct them that they might follow in the steps of their fathers. They were placed under the supervision of lieutenant Picard of the navy. Their general instruction was confided to the Brothers of the Christian Schools, and the “Daughters of Wisdom” (filles de la sagesse) were intrusted with all the cares which such young children require.

We have nothing to say in this place of the excellent primary instruction given in this school, and will only notice briefly the special or professional instruction, which is imparted in a military style by divisions, subdivisions, companies, sections, squads commanded by masters, second masters, quarter-masters, and naval instructors. There are three sizes (the low, middle, and high,) each of which is commanded by a pupil.

The lessons which they receive consist of instruction in the management of sails, sailor’s practice, (école de matelotage,)the whistle, fife and drum, rowing, swimming, military practice, gun-practice, bayonet-practice, bats, eillon-drill, principles of music, gymnastics, and boxing. There is likewise given to them a physical and military education, which developes their strength and gives them the ability to study more closely.

On the 1st of January, 1867, there were in the school 415 pupils. Most of them are sent to the Seamen’s School (école des mousses,) when they have attained the thirteenth year of their age; those who are not considered fit to serve in the navy are struck off the lists and returned to their families.

Name of School. 3d Degree. 2d Degree. 1st Degree.

School of maneuvering on the naval gymnasium. 40 learn to mount to the mast-head and to hold themselves on the sail-yards. 185 are just learning to take in the sails and the reefs, and to make knots and splices. 190 take in the reefs and make knots and splices.

School of whistling. 20 learn to whistle. 10 give almost all the blasts of the whistle. 20 give all the blasts of the whistle.

School of rowing. 30 learn to row. 90 are just learning to row. 90 row.

Infantry school. 255 are drilled without arms. 20 are not fit yet to join the battalion. 140 are drilled in the gun-practice, bayonet-practice, and form a battalion.

School of the fife and drum. 8 commence. 10 do pretty well. 7 do well.

School of gymnastics. 50 commence the elementary movements. 10 do pretty well. 30 do well.

School of music. 125 commence. 140 do pretty well. 150 do well.

The following table shows the number of pupils that had entered and left the school, up to Dec. 31, 1866:

-------------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+------- | 1863. | 1864. | 1865. |1866. +-------+-------+-------+------- | | | | Number of pupils on the 1st January, | -- | 224 | 256 | 420 | | | | Entered during the year, | 247 | 102 | 235 | 157 | | | | Total, | 247 | 326 | 491 | 577 | | | | Left during the year. | | | | {Sent to the school ship, |15} |53} |42} |93} {Sent back to their families, | 6} 23 |15} 70 |26} 71 |67} 162 {Died in the hospital, | 2} | 2} | 4} | 2} | | | | Present on the 31st of December, | 224 | 256 | 420 | 415 -------------------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------

THE INFLEXIBLE AND OTHER SCHOOL-SHIPS, AT BREST.

For a long time the children of sailors were placed on board the vessels of the fleet, where they lived in a state of servitude, and frequently arrived at a mature age without being able to read or write, while the gasket of the sailor formed characters which would not yield to any moral suasion. It is only since 1822 that they received, before being placed on board the vessels, an elementary and professional instruction, and since that time the school-ship has become the principal seminary for naval officers. The children must be at least twelve years old and their parents pledge themselves not to take them away from the school till they have reached the age of eighteen.

The school-ship, first established at Brest in 1823, was transferred to a corvette in 1836, to a frigate in 1851, and finally, in 1861, to the man-of-war, “l’Inflexible,” where it numbers at present 900 pupils from the age of 13 to 15. They remain here at least one and not more than two years, and receive a primary and professional instruction. After leaving the school they are placed on vessels of the fleet, where they continue to be under the special superintendence of the naval department. Even here they go through a regular course of instruction, given by one of the officers, and have thus an opportunity to continue the studies commenced on board the school-ship.

It would lead us too far here to enumerate in detail all the exercises performed on board the Inflexible. It will suffice to say that besides school instruction, the pupils are progressively accustomed to the practice of their profession, and learn everything which a sailor can be taught on board a vessel; the washing and cleaning of the vessel and of their linen, the rigging of the mast, the maneuvering of sail-boats and row-boats, which occupations fill the morning hours. After dinner, which takes place at 11 o’clock, they go on board two brigs, where they study and execute alone all that constitutes the practical art of the sailor.

It is not to be wondered at that these young sailors on board the Inflexible get a liking for their occupation. Always in the open air, with good clothes, varied bodily exercises and abundant food, they acquire robust health and a thorough knowledge of their profession. Whilst two companies tack, two others go through military, exercises with rifles or guns, taking them to pieces, lashing the pieces, and in various ways maneuvering with the mountain howitzer, bayonet-fencing, &c. Some go to the sail-maker’s room and make hammocks. In 1857 there were selected 16 sail-makers and 20 steersmen from those in each company who showed most aptitude and taste for these specialties. This classification of the young sailors according to their professional ability, has produced very excellent results.

More recently still (by an imperial edict of Aug. 11, 1868,) a special section of sailor apprentices has been formed on board the “Inflexible” for children, who have not the required size and strength, (taille;) they are received into the school as apprentice sail-makers, carpenters and calkers. Pupils, after having reached the age of sixteen, are transferred to the school-ship La Bretagne.

The following table will give the statistics of this school to 1866.

[KEY] NA Number Admitted. CoT Chief of the Topmast. T Topmen, (gabiers.) FT Flying Topmen, (gabiers volants.) S Supplementary. L Left the Navy or died.

----------------------+-------------------------------------------- | | Left | +-------+-----------+-----+-----+------ Date of Admission. | NA | CoT | T | FT | S | L |Total ----------------------+-----+-------+-----+-----+-----+-----+------ Present April 1, 1861 | 493| | | | | | Admitted in 1861 | 275| 10 | 32 | 32 | 12 | 10 | 96 “ “ 1862 | 712| 30 | 202 | 66 | 157 | 54 | 509 “ “ 1863 | 579| 30 | 183 | 115 | 205 | 38 | 571 “ “ 1864 | 580| 31 | 173 | 152 | 212 | 28 | 596 “ “ 1865 | 545| 33 | 191 | 115 | 186 | 64 | 589 “ “ 1866 | 540| 39 | 190 | 110 | 158 | 72 | 569 ----------------------+-----+-------+-----+-----+-----+-----+------ Total |3,724| 173 | 971 | 590 | 930 | 266 |2,930 ----------------------+-----+-------+-----+-----+-----+-----+------

The chambers of maritime commerce at Bordeaux, Cette, Marseilles, Ajaccio, Havre, &c., have established similar nautical schools and placed them under the supervision of the government.

NAVAL APPRENTICE SCHOOLS.

There have been since 1824, in every one of the five naval stations of France, elementary schools, intended to give to the apprentices in the various workshops a degree of elementary knowledge, on the system of monitorial or mutual instruction. After some years of prosperity they were abandoned, in consequence of the great aversion then generally manifested against this method. The only one that remained was the school at Rochefort, which was under the superintendence of the Brothers of the Christian Schools. But in 1828 and 1829, under the ministry of Martignac, the Baronet Hyde de Neuville ordered their reëstablishment. Every one of these schools organized itself in its own way, and it was only in 1851 that a decree of April 7th prescribes uniform regulations.

We have nothing to say here on these apprentice-schools, which are simply primary schools for adults, to which are added special schools for rowing. Their professional instruction is given in the various workshops of the port, to which they have been assigned; the apprentice school has had during the year 1866, 954 pupils.

SCHOOLS OF BOATSWAINS.

The navy maintains schools called “école de maistrance” (maistrance corps of under-officers of a ship,) where a certain number of workmen from the arsenals, chosen by open competition, receive the special theoretical instruction required for the boatswain and foremen of the various workshops.

The origin of these establishments goes back as far as 1819. A circular from the Secretary of the Navy, the Baronet Portal, of Aug. 17th, decreed the establishment, at the ports of Brest, Rochefort and Toulon, of special schools, in which a certain number of young workmen, destined for the “board of shipmasters” (maistrance) and chosen from among the most intelligent ones, should go through a theoretical and practical course of ship-building. The same circular contained a provisional regulation, giving the rules to be observed in these schools. The number of pupils in each was limited to 12, of which 8 should be carpenters, 1 pulley-maker, 1 blacksmith, 1 locksmith, 1 cooper, &c. These pupils should be chosen from among the most intelligent and best-behaved apprentices and young workingmen. They must know reading and writing, have served two years in one of the ports, and be at least eighteen and not more than twenty years old. The supervision of these schools was confided to a naval engineer.

We have just given an outline of the programme of admission required in 1819, because it is an official indication of the state of primary instruction at this period; but the same regulation proves that it was too high yet, for the minister allowed, for the first two years, the limit of age to be extended to 25 years.

The course of instruction which was to be given, comprised the first elements of mathematics, elementary geometry, the first elements of rectilinear trigonometry and the first elements of statics, &c. This course of studies was to last two years, and a system of examination and prizes was organized.

It was generally supposed that such an organization would obtain great success, and that the advantages which it presented would attract many pupils. But such was not the case. The working classes at that time were very much neglected, and there were very few who could read or write. Moreover the working men did not receive any pay whilst attending the school, and thirdly, there was no opportunity for these young men to perfect themselves in the practical exercises of their profession during the two years they studied the theory. The necessity of making some modification became clearer every day, and this was done by a royal decree of Feb. 9th, 1833.

Instead of choosing the pupils, competition was substituted, and as the primary instruction had advanced, candidates were required to be able to read fluently, to write neatly and correctly, and to be acquainted with the rudiments of arithmetic; they must be workingmen of the first or second class, must be 21 years old and have served for three years in some port; finally, they must furnish a certificate of their professional capacity, given by the foreman of their workshop, and countersigned by the director.

The course of instruction was to last two years, but the theoretical studies were confined to the first year; the second year was exclusively devoted to the practical application of the various professions of the pupils, the number of whom was increased, the recruits coming to a great extent from the naval ports. Brest was to receive 24, Rochefort 14, and Toulon 14; 52 in all, instead of 36.

In spite of the abolition of the limit of higher age, which gave a larger number of pupils access to the school, the recruiting of pupils still presented great difficulties. These were partly obviated by admitting assistant boatswains, and even boatswains, who were paid by the day. This measure was productive of very happy results; the number of pupils was soon increased and the studies were pursued with greater vigor.

The republican government, likewise, devoted its attention to these schools. A decree ordering a reörganization, was published April 23, 1856, and is to the present day in force. The conditions of admission were retained and extended to workingmen of the third class; the number of pupils assigned to each post was somewhat changed; the course of instruction was to last two years; during the first, the pupils spent the whole morning at the school, and during the second, only three mornings per week. Finally, it was agreed that the pupils were to be paid for the time which they devoted to the school, just as if they had worked in the dockyard.

PROGRAMME OF INSTRUCTION.

In order to make the scientific instruction of more practical use, the following programme was fixed for each year.

First year.--Arithmetic, logarithms, square cube roots; 2, geometry; 3, elements of descriptive geometry; 4, elements of algebra up to equations of the second degree; 5, linear drawing; the course of arithmetic and algebra lasted a month and a half, from 10 o’clock till noon, instruction in drawing from 8 till 10. The two last months of the year were employed in reviewing all that had been taught during the year, and in preparing for the examination.

Second year.--1, Common mechanics; 2, workshop accounts; 3, drawing. The course of mechanics and workshop accounts lasts two months. The half-day spent at the school is divided into three parts; the first is occupied in drawing, and lasts two hours; the second (either mechanics or workshop accounts) also two hours; the remainder of the time is devoted to optional studies. When the course of mechanics and workshop accounts is finished, the pupils are divided into two sections; the first comprises the carpenters, and workmen of similar rank; the second the mechanicians and workers in metal. During two months and a half the professor of mathematics teaches the section that works in wood the application of geometry to the drawing of working plans, explains to them all the details of the drawing of the frame, the stern, the bow and pieces, &c. He teaches them to calculate the deplacements from the centre of the keel, or metre-centre. Finally, the pupils are taken to the molding-loft, in order to trace there a vessel in its true dimensions under the directions of a drawing-master. The metal-workers receive instructions from the professors of mathematics, on the property and application of steam; the functions of the various parts of a steam-engine; the applications of descriptive geometry to the drawing of the different parts of the steam-engine, &c.

The instruction in drawing receives in these schools all the attention which the development of naval construction demands. During the first year the pupils learn successively shading strokes of different thickness, simple and dotted; the construction and use of ladders. After this preparation, which applies to all, they execute professional drawings; the carpenters, plans of vessels after a copy; the mechanicians, plans of steam-engines and steam-boilers, &c. The time devoted to drawing during the second year is employed by the carpenters in drawing a fair copy of the complete furnishing material of a vessel, the details of the masting, the capstan, the helm, &c.; by the metal-workers in drawing a fair copy of the various machines. All these courses of instruction have been attended with satisfactory results; most of the pupils who have not been able to draw a straight line before entering the school, on leaving can draw in a creditable manner the working-plan of a vessel as well as of the most complicated machines.

From its foundation in 1819 till the end of 1862, the Echo de maistrance at Brest has been attended by 429 pupils, viz.:

275 pupils actually in the service, viz.: 34 pupils; 60 workingmen; 57 assistant boatswains; 100 boatswains; 24 paid boatswains.

59 pupils died in the service, viz.: 5 pupils, 15 workingmen, 7 assistant boatswains, 22 boatswains; 7 paid boatswains; 1 naval storehouse-keeper.

95 pupils left or were discharged.

To get an idea of the manner in which the pupils pass the examination on leaving, it will be seen from the following table, which shows the results in the school at Brest during the last five years, that the instruction given has not been lost. The same is the case at Rochefort and Toulon.

--------+----------------------------------------------+-------- | Number of pupils who have | Total Years. | attended the school. | number +------------+----------+-----------+----------+ of | With great | Success- | With good | Without | pupils. | success. | fully. | results. | result. | --------+------------+----------+-----------+----------+-------- 1862 | 6 | 5 | 13 | 3 | 27 1863 | 3 | 4 | 20 | -- | 27 1864 | 5 | 5 | 15 | 4 | 29 1865 | 3 | 6 | 14 | 1 | 24 1866 | 6 | 9 | 14 | -- | 29 +------------+----------+-----------+----------+-------- Total, | 23 | 29 | 76 | 8 | 136 --------+------------+----------+-----------+----------+--------

SCHOOL FOR NAVAL ENGINEERS, STOKERS, ETC.

Since the introduction of steam into navigation, it is indispensable to have well-trained stokers and mechanicians, men who enjoy robust health, great presence of mind, prudence and an inventive genius when facing difficulties, skill in working metals, a knowledge of elementary mathematics and its application to their labor. In order to prepare such men, two special schools have been established by an imperial edict of Sept. 24, 1860, one at Brest, on board the Urania, and another at Toulon, on board the Jena. To be admitted to these schools, the conditions must be fulfilled which are required for the various grades in the personnel of a steam vessel.

In order to recruit these schools, all the blacksmiths, braziers and weighers, (ajusteurs) who belong to the annual contingent of the army, may be sent officially, or at their own request, to the ports of Toulon and Brest, to be incorporated in the companies of mechanics of the navy. Civilians are admitted by contracting a voluntary engagement as stokers. All, however, must undergo an examination in manual labor, to show their physical capacity.

The course of instruction for stokers who are candidates for the grade of quartermaster, comprises, 1, arithmetic up to and including the rule of three, and square roots; 2, common geometry up to and including spherical bodies; 3, a concise knowledge of mechanics, and physics; 4, description and classification of steam-engines for vessels; the adjusting of their various parts, a concise knowledge of the property of metals and their use; 5, the practical management of machines and steam-boilers; 6, the repairing of machines.

It is evident that this instruction attracts to the service of the navy many intelligent and industrious young mechanics who would not enter it, because, not possessing the special knowledge required, they would not run the chance of remaining for a long time in the lowest grade, viz.: that of working stoker, the only one to which their attainments would allow them to aspire. In following this instruction, however, attentively and passing their examination successfully, they obtain the rank of pupil mechanicians, and even of quartermasters. In continuing their studies, they can rise still higher; their schools furnish them with the means, if they wish to become second boatswains. To the knowledge already acquired are added: 1, arithmetical progression; 2, the whole of planimetry; 3, theoretical mechanics and physics; 4, theory, description, regulation, and construction of steam-engines and steam-boilers; 5, the working and repairing of machines. By further pursuing their studies and working diligently, they can rise from second to first boatswain, and may ultimately obtain the position of principal mechanician, with the rank of lieutenant on men-of-war, and even of captain on corvettes, if they became chief mechanicians. The following table, giving the statistics of the school at Toulon, will show the success with which these schools have been attended.

[KEY] G Designation of the different grades. M4 May 1864 N4 Nov 1864 M5 May 1865 N5 Nov 1865 M6 May 1866 N6 Nov 1866 NA Number of pupils who have attended the school during the half-year. NE Number of pupils prepared at the school, who underwent an examination. NS Number of pupils who were successful at the examinations.

--+--------------------++--------------------++------------------- | NA || NE || NS +--------------------++--------------------++------------------- | Competition of || Competition of || Competition of G | M4| N4| M5|N5|M6|N6|| M4| N4| M5|N5|M6|N6|| M4| N4|M5|N5|M6|N6 --+---+---+---+--+--+--++---+---+---+--+--+--++---+---+--+--+--+-- For 1st Boatswain, || | | | | | || | | | | | | 38| 34| 35|23|19|13|| 29| 24| 26|10|14|13|| 15| 10|12| 8| 8|10 2d Boatswain, (theoretical,)| | | | | || | | | | | | 49| 41| 44|31|13|22|| 31| 37| 31|22|11|22|| 18| 22|16| 9| 7|19 2d Boatswain, (practical,) | | | | | || | | | | | | 25| 29| 12| 4| 3| 3|| 23| 15| 7| 4| 3| 3|| 16| 10| 7| 4| 3| 3 Pupil Mechanic | | || | | | | | || | | | | | | 6| 5| 23| 3|--| 1|| 4| 5| 14| 2|--| 1|| 1| 2| 2| 2|--| 1 Quartermaster, (theoretical,) | | | | || | | | | | |129|124| 67|36|32|19||115|108| 35|34|--|12|| 99| 97|27|26|--|11 Quartermaster, (practical,) | | | | | || | | | | | | 4| 2| --|--|--|--|| 3| 2| --|--|--|--|| 2| 2|--|--|--|-- Total | | | | | || | | | | | || | | | | | |251|235|181|97|67|58||205|191|113|72|28|51||151|149|64|49|18|44 --+---+---+---+--+--+--++---+---+---+--+--+--++---+---+--+--+--+--

Note.--Since the 1st January, 1865, the number of candidates being too great, the number of pupils has been reduced, but may again be increased, when occasion demands it.

NAVAL DRAWING SCHOOL.

An edict issued by Napoleon I, Sept. 27th, 1810, established at Brest and Toulon, on board the Duquesne and the Tourville, drawing-schools for those who wished to enter the naval service, where theoretical and practical instruction was given. At the foundation of the naval school at Augoulême in 1816, these drawing-schools were transferred to the shore, became less exclusive, and admitted to their gratuitous course all young men from these two great naval stations who wished to adopt the naval profession. They have always been very largely attended.

SCHOOLS OF NAVIGATION AND HYDROGRAPHY.

Long before the navy had acquired any importance, maritime commerce had been immensely developed. The coasting and ocean trade required experienced and well-informed sailors. There were therefore in the principal seaports, gratuitous schools of navigation, whose aim was to disseminate theoretical knowledge. These schools were well conducted from the year 1584, when Henry III issued the first ordinance on the subject, by which boatswains and captains of merchant vessels had to undergo an examination of qualifications; but opportunities of instruction were wanting at that time, and it was reserved for Louis XIII to fill this void.

During the memorable siege of La Rochelle, Cardinal Richelieu became convinced that the knowledge of a captain, to whom the State intrusts a merchant-vessel, ought not to be confined to the most simple rules of the art of navigation. He consequently, in January, 1629, published a decree, ordering the establishment of schools of hydrography, open to all who intended to study navigation theoretically. The king himself engaged to maintain, at his own expense, a certain number of such schools, and encouragements were held out to all cities which would found such schools. The professors of hydrography were detained to assist at the examinations of captains, boatswains and coxswains.

Such was the origin of the first professional instruction in navigation. Here, as in all institutions of learning, the instruction of manhood succeeded that of youth. If the orders of Louis XIII were not as generally executed as they deserved, they were instrumental in producing a certain number of learned hydrographers, some of whom became the authors of the first treatises on navigation ever published in the French language.

A decree of Louis XIV, (August, 1681,) another by Louis XV, (September 14, 1764,) and third by Louis XVI, (January 1, 1786,) show that the ancient monarchy did not lose sight of this branch of instruction. In the last mentioned decree, the Marquis of Castries, Secretary of the Navy, united under one common law all these establishments, whose organization was far from uniform. The professors were in future chosen by competition. Two chairs of “hydrographic examiners” were created, charged with the superintendance of the instruction, to assist at the examinations.

A decree of the National Assembly, which became a law, August 16th, 1791, decided that gratuitous schools of hydrography should be established at the expense of the State, in thirty-four different places. This decree was supplanted by others published a few years later, further regulating the course of instruction.

During the wars of the first Empire, Napoleon I never forgot to extend the benefits of French institutions wherever his armies were victorious. To this circumstance several foreign seaports owe their excellent schools of navigation.

The hydrographic instruction was completely reorganized by a royal edict of August 7, 1825, under the ministry of Count de Chabrol. This is still in force with but few modifications. One professor is charged with giving instruction in each of the 42 schools of the Empire; two examiners have charge of the general supervision of these schools, and hold the annual examinations.

Instruction is gratuitous, and sailors can enter from the age of 13 upwards, but they rarely attend them before they are 22 or 23 years old. The professors, on five days of the week, impart instruction for four hours a day. There are two different courses; one superior and the other elementary; the first theoretical and practical, the other essentially practical. Wherever there is an observatory, the pupils are practiced in observations.

The programme of the theoretical instruction comprises: for ocean voyages, elements of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, trigonometry, elements of astronomy, navigation, use of instruments and nautical tables, elementary knowledge of steam-engines, as applied to navigation, French composition; for the coasting-trade, elements of practical arithmetic, geometry, practical navigation, elementary knowledge of steam-engines, nautical calculations. The examinations are annual, and no one is admitted to the practical examination, unless he has reached the age of 24, and has served five years on a French vessel. It comprises rigging, management of sails, a knowledge of coasts, currents, tides, and gunnery. After the practical examination has been successfully passed, the pupil must undergo the theoretical one.

For the results produced by these establishments, the average attendance of the schools of navigation, and the number of sailors, who have become captains or boatswains, we refer to the following tables.

Number of sailors who have attended the schools of hydrography from 1849 to 1866; of candidates who have obtained the rank of “captain” for sea voyages, or “boatswain” for the coasting trade.

[KEY] PS Pupils of the Schools. AC (of the sea voyage.) Captains. AB (of the coasting trade.) Boatswains. ---------------+-------------------------------- | NUMBER OF SAILORS. +--------+----------------------- Scholastic | | Admitted As Year. | +-------+-------+------- | PS | AC | AB | Total. ---------------+--------+-------+-------+------- 1849-50 | 1,307 | 163 | 331 | 494 1850-51 | 1,347 | 187 | 369 | 556 1851-52 | 1,344 | 156 | 325 | 481 1852-53 | 1,324 | 168 | 317 | 485 1853-54 | 1,255 | 208 | 292 | 500 1854-55 | 999 | 151 | 178 | 329 1855-56 | 1,116 | 148 | 182 | 330 1856-57 | 1,804 | 253 | 493 | 746 1857-58 | 1,907 | 252 | 426 | 678 1858-59 | 1,568 | 258 | 354 | 612 1859-60 | 1,525 | 234 | 278 | 512 1860-61 | 1,424 | 253 | 263 | 516 1861-62 | 1,422 | 213 | 244 | 457 1862-63 | 1,424 | 229 | 252 | 481 1863-64 | 1,571 | 279 | 276 | 555 1864-65 | 1,410 | 309 | 260 | 569 1865-66 | 1,205 | 270 | 278 | 548 +--------+-------+-------+------- Total, | 23,952 | 3,731 | 5,118 | 8,849 Ann. average, | 1,409 | 219 | 301 | 520 ---------------+--------+-------+-------+-------

Ports where schools of hydrography are established, with the average number of pupils who annually attend every school, collected from official documents since the year 1849.

THE NAVAL SCHOOL AT BREST.

NAPOLEON, in 1810-11, established the first naval school-ships in France, the Tourville being chosen for that purpose at Brest, and the Duquesne at Toulon. These schools were placed under the orders of the maritime prefects of the two ports. In 1816, these two schools were abolished by decree, and a royal marine college was established at Angoulême. Several other changes took place, and in 1830 the college was replaced by a naval school on board the Orion, an old 74; this vessel was succeeded by several others, all of which have received the name of the second school-ship, the Borda, named after Captain Borda, a naval officer of great scientific and practical ability. The present ship is a noble three-decker, pierced for 120 guns, was launched in 1847, and took part in the Crimean war.

The Borda is stationed at Brest, and its rigging has been reduced to that of a frigate. The forepart of the second gun-deck of the vessel still retains something of its old character, and is provided with six guns on each side for practice. The other parts of the vessel have been completely altered; the decks have been cut away, so as to form two large lecture-rooms and two school-rooms. Not only the pupils but also their professors and most of the officers are lodged on board the vessel. On deck are specimens of various kinds of guns in use in the French navy, and a gymnasium. The quarter-deck, which is continued to the mainmast, is divided, the forepart being appropriated to the pupils, and the aft to officers.

Candidates are admitted to this school after a public examination, which occurs annually. For admission to the examination the applicant must prove his French birth--his being at least fourteen years of age and not over seventeen years, and his having no infirmity that disables him for marine duty.

The requirements for admission are a knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, plane trigonometry, applied mathematics, natural philosophy, chemistry, geography, the English language, drawing. The candidates must prepare a composition in French, a translation from Latin, an exercise in English, a numeral calculation in trigonometry, a geometrical drawing, and an off-hand sketch of a head. There are two oral examinations on the above studies, the second of which is not attempted if the first, which is elementary, is unsatisfactory.

The commander of the Borda is a full captain, and the instruction, which is practical as well as theoretical, is confided to eleven professors, of whom five belong to the hydrographic department, eight are full lieutenants, and one a principal engineer. The duties of the five hydrographic professors are thus divided:--Two teach astronomy and navigation, two analytical and mechanical science, and the last natural philosophy and chemistry. The duties of the other professors are thus arranged:--Two for literature, history and geography; two for the English language; and two for drawing. The lieutenants direct four courses of instruction, namely, naval architecture, the theory and practice of managing a ship, gunnery and small arms, with practice, and nautical calculations. The engineer professor teaches the theory and management of steam-engines and mechanics. The other officers are a captain of a frigate, (second in command,) a chaplain, a financial and an administrative officer, and two medical men. Besides these, there is a captain of gunnery and several under-officers of the marine and artillery.

The school sessions commence on the first of October, and on that day promotions of the pupils are made in the various classes. Those who have passed two years of study in the ship are called grand ancients, rank with naval aspirants of the second class, and are eligible to make a voyage of circumnavigation in another vessel appropriated to that purpose; pupils who have been one full year in the Borda are called ancients, and the rest new boys, or in French naval language, fistots. The boys have each a number, and in all the ordinary routine of the school-ship, this takes the place of a name.

The elder pupils are employed as monitors over the younger, and each of the former has one or more allotted to him, not as a fag, but as a scholar, whom it is his duty to teach all he himself knows. It is said that the system succeeds admirably, and that for the first few months the instruction of the new comer is left almost entirely to his ancient; the new pupil thus escapes without difficulty many errors of discipline into which he would otherwise inevitably fall.

The discipline of the school is severe; the boys rise every morning, all the year round, at five o’clock, stow away the hammocks in which they sleep, attend prayers, and then commence their morning’s work.

They are well fed, having coffee or chocolate in the morning, dinner (old style) at 12 o’clock, a lunch of bread (goûter) at 4.30, and supper at 7.45, with bread à discrétion, and about four-tenths of a pint of wine at each of the two principal meals.

The morning studies are devoted to science; those of noon to practice with guns, or practical study, marine machinery, or drawing; and the evening to literature, the English language, or naval architecture. All the studies are pursued on board, with the exception of natural philosophy and chemistry, the professor of which has at his command in the town the collection of instruments and chemicals, as well as the lecture-room and laboratory of the central pharmaceutical establishment. At times, also, the pupils are taken to visit the vessels in process of construction, and the workshops in the arsenal, and to practice with small arms on shore.

There are eight boats attached to the Borda, and the pupils are practiced almost every day, and in all weathers, in rowing and sailing, under the eye of an officer, who watches the exercises from on board a small steam-gunboat attached to the school. The ordinary studies of the school end between six and seven in the evening, and the pupils turn in at nine o’clock for their eight hours’ rest.

Thursday and Sunday, as usual in France, are exceptional days, when, after nautical calculations, (which are never omitted,) the elder pupils or ancients practice with small arms on shore, and the juniors are drilled in the use of the sword, musket, and bayonet. After this they have six hours’ hard work in maneuvering two small corvettes, provided for the purpose, that belonging to the ancients being a screw-steamer.

The boys, as a rule, are at liberty on alternate Sundays, and the most advanced every Sunday afternoon. This is a recent innovation; the pupils used to be free scarcely more than once a month; but this gave rise to much discontent and some disturbance, and the rule has, therefore, been made less severe. In addition to this liberty, however, all the lads are allowed to see their friends for a short period during the exercises on shore on Sunday and Thursday mornings, and those who are not free on Sunday are taken on shore for a change in the afternoon. During the summer months the boys bathe in the sea.

A peculiar custom exists in the school--the boys are allowed to smoke during the hour of recreation after dinner, and at certain other times; and for this reason, that as it was found utterly impossible to stop the practice entirely, it was deemed better to recognize it in moderation, and thus stop its secret indulgence and the attendant danger of fire.

The punishments inflicted in the school are extra drill and confinement, either in a small cell or in a dark hole, with a regimen of bread and water; for very grave offences, boys are dismissed or expelled. On the other hand, the marks for good conduct are numerous; there are several examinations in the various classes during the nine months of the school year, and those pupils who gain the greatest number of marks are called élèves d’élite, and wear a gold anchor on their collars, or, in the case of the first twelve, two anchors; the pupil who has gained the largest number of marks bears the high but merely nominal rank of first brigadier, and he who enters the school with the greatest success at the examination is called major. A general examination takes place at the end of the year, when the ancients who pass become aspirants in the navy, and the juniors are raised to the upper class in the school; those who fail in the examination are either sent back to their class, or rejected as unfit for the naval career. The first and second prizemen, on quitting the school, receive each a quadrant in the name of the Emperor, and the third a telescope.

The elder pupils have nearly three months’ holiday, but the junior pass a month on board another vessel, the Bougainville, for what is called the summer campaign. This vessel, which was constructed specially for the school, is a screw dispatch-boat with engines of 120 horse power; the summer voyage is settled by the Minister of Marine, and includes a visit and examination of the ports of L’Orient and Cherbourg, touching at some remarkable points of the French coast, sometimes casting anchor off the English coast, and sometimes running as far as Ferrol in Galicia.

The grand ancients, when their holidays are over, that is to say on the first of October, join the Jean Bart, which makes an annual voyage of several months’ duration. This boat was built in 1852 and made its first voyage of this kind in 1864-5. She is an 80-gun ship, of the mixed class, having engines of 450 nominal horse-power. In August of the present year she will have completed her fourth and last voyage of circumnavigation, another vessel, the Donawert, now being prepared to succeed her. The upper gun-deck of the Jean Bart is disarmed, and converted for the use of a part of the officers and the pupils, who number about a hundred, and occupy eight cabins, each with two portholes; here the young men eat, and drink, and sleep, as well as pursue their studies.

The officers of the Jean Bart consist of a full captain in command, a second captain, a chaplain, ten lieutenants, one having charge of each pupil’s cabin, or poste, as it is called, and two giving instruction in sailing and gunnery; a surgeon-major, who gives instructions respecting the means of keeping a crew in health; two assistant-surgeons, an engineer, a drawing-master, and some others.

The Minister, as in the case of the summer cruise of junior pupils, settles the course to be taken by the Jean Bart. Generally the West India islands are visited in the months of March and April, when the pupils are principally exercised in hydrographical works off St. Pierre and Fort de France; in gunnery on board, and small-arms on shore; in the daily management of boats for embarkation and disembarkation; and in the management of sails in the intricate channels of the archipelago. They are shown, moreover, how to perform difficult operations, such as the unshipping of the rudder and bringing it on deck for examination, lifting a mast, &c. The pupils are required to keep written records of all such operations, and to illustrate the narrative when necessary with drawings. When they visit foreign yards and arsenals, they are expected to give minute accounts of what they have seen there, and besides a daily journal, to write critical notices of all the different machines, methods of rigging, and maneuvers, which they have witnessed.

The difficult channel of the Isle St. Sebastian, off the coast of Brazil, that of the Bermudas, the river Hudson, and the coast of Newfoundland, are among the places selected to initiate the pupils in the difficulties of navigation. At Annapolis, in the Chesapeake, a visit is paid to the National Naval School of the United States at the season when the general examinations take place in that establishment. The voyage usually terminates with a visit to Cape Breton and some points of Newfoundland; the fisheries and drying-houses of St. Pierre and Miquelon are generally visited, and the Jean Bart returns to Brest between the 1st and 5th of August, having been absent ten months. A sailing brig named the Obligado has lately been attached to the Jean Bart as a supplementary vessel.

SCHOOL OF NAVAL ARCHITECTURE AT PARIS.

The construction of ships and engines in the French naval service is intrusted to the Corps of Marine Engineering, (Corps du Génie Maritime,) consisting of 121 officers, viz., 1 inspector-general, 10 directors of naval construction, 40 marine engineers, and 70 assistant engineers.

This corps is recruited from the graduates of the Polytechnic, and having passed satisfactorily the required examination for the public service, are sent to the School of Application of Naval Engineering at Paris, and to the dockyards, to learn their special business. The usual number in attendance is 30, and the annual cost of the school is about 100,000 francs.

The course occupies two years and a-half--three winters in Paris and two summers in the dockyards. The pupils having a good general education and a complete special knowledge of mathematics and geometrical drawing, the courses are from the start eminently practical.

The instruction in Paris during the first session consists of: 1, a course on construction; 2, on displacement and stability; 3, on strength of materials; 4, English; 5, free-hand drawing; 6, plan-drawing of vessels. During the second session it consists of: 1, a practical course on steam-engines; 2, a theoretical course on steam; 3, applied mechanics, machines in general; 4, English; 5, accounts; 6, plan-drawing, ships and engines; 7, pictorial drawing. During the third session: 1, course on stability, (2d part;) 2, on naval architecture; 3, naval artillery; 4, technology of workshops, special to the navy; 5, accounts; 6, English; 7, plan-drawing, projects for ships; 8, free-hand drawing.

In the first year ship-building is taken up; in the second, the steam-engine, and in the third the two are combined and completed. When in the dockyards, the pupils are placed under the order of the engineer in charge of works in execution, who sees that they are attentive to their duty, and have proper instruction. He also examines and certifies the journals which the pupils have to keep. The director of the school gives each pupil detailed instruction to guide him in the choice of the practical work he shall attend to. The first summer is devoted to the construction of ships, the second to that of engines. The pupils select the ports to which they will go, according to their standing in their class.

At the end of two years and a half, the pupils are examined by a board, and if found qualified, they are appointed assistant engineers of the third class. If they fail to pass, they may be allowed another year--but failing in that, they are definitely rejected.

The private pupils, natives or foreigners, who to the number of eight are allowed to attend the course in Paris, may obtain permission to go through the whole practical course in one of the imperial dockyards, but are not subjected to the same discipline as the regular pupils. On leaving, they receive from the director a certificate of the course gone through, their talent and diligence.

The school is under the immediate orders of a Director of Naval Construction, who is also one of the professors, and is assisted in the several branches taught by other professors, who are marine engineers, and a special teacher of drawing, and another of the English language.

MARITIME CONSCRIPTION.

The French naval service is supplied by a system of conscription analogous to that for the army. All persons, who reside on the coast, whose labor is on the sea, or on navigable rivers reached by the tide, are enrolled on arriving at the age of eighteen, and are liable to be summoned to the naval service until they are fifty, for an aggregate period of seven years.

SCHOOLS OF MARINE ARTILLERY.

There is at Brest, Toulon, and L’Orient, schools of marine artillery, besides floating schools at Brest and Toulon, for practice at firing at a mark at sea.

BOARD OF HYDROGRAPHERS.

The Board of Hydrographers is located at Paris. Pupils who have completed the polytechnic course enter the corps with the rank of élève hydrographe, with the same rank and advantages as naval architects. They are sent to the coast to make surveys, and after two years service in the field, and in office work under special instruction, become assistant hydrographers without further examination.

NAVY AND NAVAL EDUCATION IN FRANCE.

I. MILITARY AND COMMERCIAL MARINE.

The progress of the French Navy is represented in the following statistics taken from the Statesman’s Year Book for 1871: In 1780 the war fleet consisted of 60 first-class ships, 24 second class, and 182 smaller vessels,--total 266 ships, with 13,300 guns, and 78,000 sailors. In 1805, the number was reduced by casualties and neglect to 18 men-of-war, with 1,352 guns. In 1844 the whole force amounted to 226 sailing vessels, and 47 steamers, with 8,639 guns and 24,513 sailors. In 1855 the navy was reorganized, by the introduction of every new appliance of naval architecture, construction, and ordnance, with the following results, in 1869-70:

Classes. Number. Horse-Power. Guns.

1. Iron-clads, 62 28,150 672 2. Screw Steamers, 264 55,812 1,547 3. Paddle Steamers, 62 8,665 154 4. Sailing Vessels, 113 .... 672 --- ------ ----- Total, 401 92,627 3,045

The iron-clads Magenta, Solferino, Couronne, Normandie, Invincible, and the cupola ship Taureau, are plated, with rifle breech-loading guns, and are not surpassed in strength and destructive armament by the ships of any other navy.

Eleven of the smaller iron-clads, besides the ordinary floating batteries, are so constructed that when out of service they can be taken to pieces, packed up and stored away at the arsenal of Toulon.

The navy is manned by a marine conscription, which dates back to 1683. For this purpose the maritime population is divided into five grand divisions, the centres of which are the five great Naval stations, with 12 subdivisions, including all the great seaports. Within these divisions all men and youths from the 18th to 50th year of age, devoted to a sea-going life, are enrolled, to the number of about 170,000. Except in a national emergency the government dispenses with the services of all under 20, and over 40, as well as pilots, captains, fathers of large families, and seamen ready for long voyages in merchant ships.

The navy was officered in 1869 by two admirals, 16 vice admirals in active service, and 10 on the reserve list; 30 rear admirals in active, and 19 on reserve list; 130 captains of first class; 286 captains of frigates; 825 lieutenants; 600 ensigns; and 300 midshipmen, or aspirants;--total, 2,218 officers, and 39,346 sailors, who, together with engineers, dockyard laborers, surgeons, chaplains, brought up the number in actual service in 1869 to 74,403, which did not include 28,623 marines.

The commercial marine of France embraced in 1867, 15,259 vessels, with a tonnage of 1,042,811, ranging from 30 tons to 800 tons each, and employing over 150,000 seamen, including 40,000 officers, whose duties required special professional training. Of these, 607 were steamers, with an aggregate of 129,777 tons and 55,160 horse power. The value of the commerce of France for 1867-8 was 7,500 millions of francs.

II. NAVAL AND NAVIGATION SCHOOLS.

The French government was among the earliest to provide special schools for the officers of its merchant service as well as for its war-vessels. Prior even to the establishment, under an ordinance issued by Cardinal Richelieu, of schools for the study of navigation in 1629, Henry III., in 1584, had instituted examinations for boatswains and captains of merchant vessels, for which preparation had to be made with private teachers. In 1791 free schools of hydrography were authorized in thirty-four sea-ports; out of 24,000 pupils of these schools, from 1850 to 1866, 3,731 qualified themselves as captains of vessels in the foreign trade, and 5,118 for service in the coasting trade. Prior to 1800, in fitness of design and skill in construction, French naval architecture was superior to that of other countries.

The system of education for the mercantile and military marine embraced in 1866 the following schools:

1. Nautical School for the Orphans of Sailors. 2. The Inflexible and other School-ships. 3. Naval Apprentice Schools at the government naval stations. 4. School for Boatswains and Shipmasters. 5. School for Naval Engineers and Stokers. 6. Naval Drawing School. 7. Schools of Navigation and Hydrography. 8. Naval School at Brest. 9. School of Naval Architecture at Paris 10. School of Marine Artillery. 11. School and Board of Hydrography. 12. Naval School of Medicine and Pharmacy.

NAVAL AND NAVIGATIONAL SCHOOLS IN GERMANY.

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Introduction

The organization of the North German Confederation, and more recently of the German Empire, and the necessities of its position, have already led to the rapid development of a military marine, and the unity of the commercial interests of the different States will soon expand its navigation as well as its naval armament.

1. KINGDOM OF PRUSSIA.

Long before Prussia was largely interested in either a military or commercial marine, the government had provided for the systematic training of all concerned in the construction, equipment, and running of ships, whether destined for the defense of the country or to its commercial interests. After enjoying opportunities of studying the theory of their business, as well as the practical application of its principles, they must pass an examination to test their knowledge both of the theory and practice--with a provision that no one shall assume the responsibility of the life and property of others without holding a certificate of proficiency.

NAVIGATION SCHOOLS.

There are six schools, situated at Memul, Dantzic, Pollan, Grabow (near Stettin), and Stralsund, devoted to the education of young men who propose to become mariners and masters of merchant vessels. A single director, residing at Dantzic, has the superintendence of all these schools, which have each two professors, each in charge of a division of the school, and an assistant who devotes himself to drawing in connection with the construction of vessels, and of charts. The principal has charge of the higher division, in which navigation and geography, both of the sea, and of the natural productions and commercial facilities of different countries are taught. The lower division deals with subjects which concern pilots--their professional and legal duties.

Candidates must have mastered the subjects of elementary instruction, and are examined as to their ability to read, write, and compose in their native language, and to go through ordinary arithmetical problems with facility and accuracy. An examination of candidates takes place every year at each school, which is conducted by the head professor, in the presence of the director of this class of schools.

To be admitted to the examination the candidate must bring a certificate of good character, that he is over 14 and under 40 years of age. The school fee is ten thalers per quarter for the highest or navigation class, and six thalers for the lower or pilot’s class. There are 32 lessons per week in both divisions.

The subjects taught in the lowest division are:--arithmetic, plane geometry, carpentry, plane and spherical trigonometry, navigation, territorial and astronomical observations, drawing of sea charts and astronomical maps, and the English language.

In the highest division, in addition to the studies of the lower, in which the pupils are carried further on, rigging and other points of practical seamanship, drawing the different parts of a vessel, the commercial requirements respecting a ship’s papers, and the course of exchange at the principal commercial ports, are taught.

A final examination is held in which diplomas are awarded to those who have completed the whole course, and of proficiency in certain studies, either of which are of practical service in obtaining situations, and without which certain positions can not be obtained.

NAVAL ARCHITECTURE.

In the Trade or Polytechnic School in Berlin, provision is made for instruction in naval construction:

First--In the mathematical foundation of the most important physical laws; in physics, drawing, modeling, and the general principles of construction; in practical hydraulics; the theory of machinery, and the steam-engine.

Second--In the application of these principles to the business of ship-designing and construction, and particularly to designs for vessels, and the different parts of a ship in detail; to the art of ship-building; the general displacement of water and stability; hydrostatic calculations; general principles with regard to the form of vessels, and the theory of sailing and steam-ships; details of construction of wooden and iron vessels; practice; and planning and calculating the cost and capacity of vessels.

There are reviews of the ground gone over at the close of each term, which is obligatory only on those who enjoy free places, and each student receives a certificate at the end of his course, setting forth all his lectures and practical exercises, with an opinion as to his practical judgment.

II. AUSTRIA.

Under the new army organization of 1869, the military forces of the whole empire are divided into the Standing Army, under the control of the Imperial Minister of War; the Landwehr, whose duties are limited to the respective divisions from which it is drawn, under the control of the Austrian and Hungarian war ministers; and the Landstrum, or general levy, which is compulsory in the Tyrol and Military Frontier, and voluntary in the rest of the empire. The Emperor is supreme chief of the military and naval forces, and from him must emanate all concentrating movements of troops. In 1871 the Standing Army consisted of 278,470 men on the peace footing, and 838,700 on the war footing.

The naval forces of Austria consisted in 1871, of 46 steamers and 10 sailing vessels, viz.:

Horse-power. Guns. Tonnage. 2 Iron-clad Line-of-battle Ships, 1,800 22 11,138 7 Iron-clad Frigates, 4,550 88 25,452 4 Screw Frigates, 1,500 149 9,407 3 Screw Corvettes, 860 50 4,703 7 First class Gunboats, 1,610 30 4,311 3 Second class Gunboats, 270 9 999 16 Paddle Steamers, 2,381 51 9,442 10 Sailing Ves’ls, viz.: 2 Frigates, .... 35 3,032 2 Corvettes, .... 30 1,416 4 Brigs, .... 40 1,176 2 Transp’ts, .... 4 283

The navy is officered and manned by 2 vice-admirals, 4 rear-admirals, 24 captains of steamers and frigates, 14 captains of corvettes, 106 lieutenants, 343 ensigns and cadets, and 3,803 sailors, besides 875 officers and men in the marine corps. On the war footing the sailors number 3,743, and the marines 1,410. The men are recruited by conscription from the seafaring population, although the voluntary enlistments in the province of Dalmatia renders its enforcement unnecessary.

The total commerce of Austria, comprising imports and exports, exceeded $400,000,000. The commercial marine includes 7,830 vessels, of 324,415 tonnage, and 27,979 seamen. The Austrian Lloyd, a trading society established in Trieste in 1833, owns a fleet of 70 steamers, of 12,500 horse-power.

To provide officials, well instructed and trained in the administration of each department of the public service, military and civil--war by land and sea--both for military and commercial purposes, the government establishes schools, with studies and practical exercises adapted to each branch.

SCHOOLS FOR THE MILITARY AND COMMERCIAL MARINE.

1. Military Marine.

There are in Austria several kinds of naval schools, as follows: One each for sailor boys, for marines, for quartermasters, for naval pupils of the first class, for naval pupils of the second class, a theoretical school for naval cadets, and a superior establishment for naval officers.

1. The school for sailor boys is intended to train, as petty officers for the navy, young men from the Slave and German provinces, admitted between 12 and 14 years of age into the naval service. The instruction lasts until the pupil has attained the age for the conscription; he is then entered as a sailor and becomes a petty officer as soon as he gets sufficiently used to the sea. The highest post he can attain is that of upper boatswain (Hochbootsmann.)

2. The schools for marines (Zeugscorps) receive men drawn from different corps of the army. They are trained as petty officers, and a part receive the uniform. Those who are fit to become officers receive their promotion when they leave their corps to enter the school.

3. The school for naval cadets of the first class is kept on board a war vessel selected for the purpose. The object is to prepare for the naval service youths of 16 or 18 years of age, who, on entering the school have already received a complete civil technical education. The teaching here consists, therefore, chiefly of practical seamanship, and also of the application of previously acquired scientific knowledge to navigation and nautical astronomy. The course occupies a year; on leaving, the pupil is received as a naval cadet. After passing two or three years at sea these cadets enter the theoretical school for naval cadets.

4. The school for naval cadets of the second class is intended solely to prepare them to become officers. In this school, beside the pupils placed there at the cost of the State, there are others maintained by endowments, and also others who pay for their instruction. The sons of officers and State functionaries are entitled to enter this school at the public expense, and any Austrian subject who has the necessary qualifications is admitted on payment. Foreigners are also admissible as paying pupils, provided they can obtain authorization from their own government to enter the Austrian service. To be admitted, candidates must be between 12 and 14 years of age, of sound health without bodily defect, and able to pass a previous examination. The instruction is given in accordance with a determined plan, on board a vessel prepared expressly to receive the pupils. After three years’ instruction the pupils leave the school as naval cadets and are sent to sea. At the end of two or three years’ active service the cadets are admitted to the theoretical school. This school receives from 40 to 50 pupils. The chaplain on board is charged with the religious instruction; the other teaching is given by professors from the hydrographic schools. The naval officers of the school-ship give the instruction in practical seamanship.

5. The theoretical school for naval cadets is on shore, and its course occupies a year, after which the pupil undergoes the examination prescribed for his commission as an officer. On leaving this theoretical school the pupils are still naval cadets, but become officers when appointed to a ship.

6. The superior school for naval officers is intended for the further improvement in mathematical and hydrographic studies, of such young men as have shown decided talent and taste for those sciences.

III. GERMAN EMPIRE.

The jurisdiction of the German Empire, by treaty concluded at Versailles, and ratified by the Diet of North Germany Dec. 10, 1870, embraces among other national interests, the Army and Navy, and the protection of German navigation.

The war-fleet of the Empire, which embraces all that had been constructed by Prussia since 1848, consisted in June, 1870, of 38 steamers and 7 sailing vessels, with 42,415 tonnage, and 480 guns.

Horse-power. Guns. Tonnage. 5 Iron-clads, 3,700 62 15,846 9 Steam Frigates and Corvettes, 3,200 200 14,210 8 “ First class Gunboats, 640 24 5,858 14 “ Second “ “ 840 28 5,858 1 “ Yacht, 160 2 445 2 Paddle-Steamer Corvettes, 600 13 1,750 3 Frigates (sailing vessels), ... 114 3,736 4 Brigs, “ ... 46 1,927

The German navy was officered and manned by 1 admiral, 1 vice-admiral, 1 rear-admiral, 27 captains and 217 lieutenants, and 3,283 seamen and boys, besides 2,760 in the marine corps. The sailors of the fleet and the marine corps are recruited by conscription, from the seafaring population, which numbers 80,000.

The provision for naval expenditure in 1870, was for--

Ministry of Marine, 81,250 thalers. Administration officers, 65,557 “ Pay of seamen and marines, 1,086,990 “ Repairs of ships, 890,000 “ Marine hospitals, 71,820 “ War material, 1,221,317 “ Miscellaneous, 179,796 “ --------- Total ordinary expenses, 3,596,730 “ Extraordinary expenditure, 4,403,460 “ --------- Grand total, 8,000,190 “

The artificial harbor and dry-docks at Wilhelmshaven, in the Bay of Jade, on the North Sea, which was opened by the King of Prussia in June, 1869, have cost over $10,000,000.

The system of professional training for officers of the Imperial Navy is not yet matured. The Naval School at Kiel is still recognized. Aspirants enter as naval cadets after passing an examination equivalent to the requirements of a gymnasial maturity certificate, which in general education is superior to the requirements of graduation of either our Naval or Military Academy. Before entering on their professional studies, the cadet is first sent on a cruise to test his aptitude for sea-service. He then studies eight months at school and one year at sea, to pass as midshipman; and one year more at school, and three years at sea, to become sub-lieutenant.

MARINE ACADEMY AT KIEL.

The German Marine Academy established in 1872, at Kiel, is designed not for the education of cadets, but for the professional training and improvement of officers already in the naval service of the empire--and is of the same character as the Staff School of Berlin for officers of the army. Those only will be received as pupils, whose conduct and talents seem to qualify them for superior scientific attainments, and, hereafter, for the filling of the most important posts. These officer-pupils will be required to give proofs of their diligence and progress by the production, from time to time, of theses and dissertations on scientific subjects given to them by the professors. At the same time, all naval officers will be permitted to attend the courses of instruction when their professional duties do not call them away.

The course of study is to occupy two terms, each of twelve months’ duration, with a vacation of three months for practical exercises.

The subjects for the first term are:--Mathematics, natural philosophy, chemistry, the theory of naval war in all its branches, military tactics in as far as disembarkations are concerned, coast surveying, the theory of the formation of coasts, coastal defenses, field fortification, the constitution of military courts, the principles of international, military, and naval law, the system of administration, sanitary science, especially with reference to life aboard ship and in different climates, the elements of logic, ethics, &c.

The following subjects will be included in the second term:--Nautical astronomy, geodesy, theory of maps and charts, the history of war, with especial reference to naval war, artillery, ship-building, the construction of steam-engines (with practical exercises), the position and construction of naval ports, physical geography, the elements of geology, marine botany and zoölogy, and the general history of modern literature and civilization, &c.

[Errata for Part VIII (England and Naval Schools): Oxford Blues, the Royal Scots, and the Second Queen’s Royals.[1] Royals.”[1] [Footnote 1] The latter is the only body that has the privilege hyphen in “priv-/ilege” invisible at “to place themselves under the orders of a director of studies mismatched open quote in original feel the effects of the change which has been made in it.” closing ” missing practical trial in their work. ... appointments and promotion. both . missing will be regulated at the following rates, as heretofore: followig elsewhere than at Eton Eaton The use of meteorological instruments intruments and to lay them underground, undergound Facing B.L. guns. / Practical examination, etc. etc, the Royal Warrant for Pay, Promotion,” etc., printed as shown: missing open quote or superfluous close quote? [Footnote 5] and an examination of persons to act as pilots and mariners. final . missing [Footnote 6] Hollanders, 1,(3); printed as shown and give a great deal of trouble; we want men.” close quote missing a physical and military education, which developes their strength anomalous spelling unchanged averages a little more than £6 per boy per annum. final . missing But such was not the case. csse and the studies were pursued with greater vigor. persued [The following table, giving the statistics of the school at Toulon] |251|235|181|97|67|58| last row of table has 225 for 235 The requirements for admission are a knowledge of arithmetic, knowlege]

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IX. MILITARY SYSTEM AND SCHOOLS IN SWITZERLAND

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MILITARY SYSTEM AND MILITARY INSTRUCTION IN SWITZERLAND.

[Extract from “A Plan for Military Education in Massachusetts.” By E. Dwight.]

1. OUTLINE OF MILITARY SYSTEM.

In the year 1847 seven of the cantons of the Swiss Republic seceded from the Confederacy. Among them were the three forest cantons, the original nucleus around which the whole Republic had been formed, the birth-place of William Tell and Arnold, of Winkelreid. The seceders held the strongest military position in Europe, but the loyal cantons put on foot an army of 100,000 men, well armed, drilled, and officered. The city of Friburg was taken, and in thirty days from the first proclamation of the commanding general the war was ended and order was restored.

In 1856, a quarrel having arisen with the king of Prussia, Switzerland placed on foot an army of 200,000 men well provided with artillery. Thus the military system of Switzerland has proved itself effective; and as there is no standing army whatever, and the state is a confederacy of cantons under democratic forms of government, we may find something in their system applicable to our own case.

Switzerland covers an area of about 15,000 square miles, equal to that of Vermont and New Hampshire together, of which a large portion is covered by lakes, forests, mountains, ice and snow, leaving only thirty-one per cent of the land fit for agricultural purposes, not including the mountain pastures. Possessing a population of only two millions and a half of people, it is surrounded by military powers of the first class, and must needs be strong to be free. France, Austria, and Prussia are not always as good friends as they are near neighbors, and the little Republic must ever be ready to ward a blow and return it. The constitution of Switzerland declares that every citizen is a soldier. “Tout Suisse est soldat.” Military service is required between the ages of twenty and forty-four. The substitution of one man for another is forbidden, but exemption from service is allowed to certain persons, such as officers of the government and of public institutions, clergymen, students of theology, members of the police, pilots and others. In some cases a man is excused from the more active service, but required to pass through the regular course of military instruction and to serve in the reserve of the army when called upon. Such are the only son, or one of the sons, of a widow; or of a widower, provided the father be over sixty years old, and the son necessary to his support; a widower, the father of children in their minority, who has no resources except the work of his own hands; one of two or more sons when they make common household with their parents, if the family could not be supported by other brothers not subject to service; married men, or widowers having at least two children. These exceptions do not apply to officers.

The Council of State of each canton appoints yearly a “Commission on Furlough and Discharge,” consisting of ten members, of whom two are medical men, two officers, one a corporal, one a soldier, and the others members of the council. The commission acts under oath; grants exemption for physical defects or want of height; or passes men from the active service to the reserve. A man who at the age of twenty has not attained the height of five feet and one inch can be furloughed for two years; and if, at the end of the third year, he has not reached this height, discharged from all service. Men who have been convicted of disgraceful crimes, or have suffered penal sentence, are declared unworthy of bearing arms; and if once deprived of their civil rights can not hold a commission.

The militia is divided into the federal contingent and the landwehr. The federal contingent consists--First, of the elite, which includes three per cent of the whole population, taken from those between the ages of twenty and thirty-four. The time of service in the elite is eight years. Second, the reserve, being one and a half per cent of the population and not above the age of forty. The landwehr includes men up to the age of forty-four. The landsturm, or levy en masse, consists of the whole male population, capable of bearing arms, between the ages of twenty and fifty, and not included in the classes before described. The male population of Switzerland is 1,140,000, of which thirty-seven per cent, or 422,000, are between twenty and forty-four years of age. One-fourth of these are exempt or found unfit for service, leaving 316,000 perfectly fit. In 1853 the number of men required for the federal contingent was 104,354,[1] but according to official statements the number of men in all branches of the service, well armed and instructed, amounted to 125,126. The excess of men supplied, over those required, arose from the public spirit and general desire for military instruction existing among the people. Add to these 125,000 the landwehr, which numbered 150,000, and we have a total of 275,000 effective men, well armed, drilled, and officered.

[Footnote 1: Infantry, including Rifles, 89,366; Artillery, 10,366; Cavalry, 2,869; Engineers, 1,530.]

The federal army is composed of the following arms: engineers, including sappers and pontoniers; artillery, including rocket batteries; cavalry, riflemen, light infantry, and infantry. There is besides a medical corps for the service of the ambulances and hospitals. But as uninstructed men are of little or no value, the federal law upon military organization provides that the cantons shall see to it that the infantry of their contingent is completely instructed according to the federal rules, and though the application of this principle in its details is left to each canton, yet the following rules are laid down: recruits are not received into the federal elite until they have gone through a complete course of instruction which lasts at least twenty-eight days for infantry, and thirty-five days for light infantry. The confederation charges itself with the instruction of the engineers, artillery, cavalry, and riflemen. This course lasts twenty-eight days for riflemen and forty-two days for the three other arms, but these recruits have previously been drilled in the school of the soldier by their cantons, and the riflemen have received preparatory instruction in firing at a mark.

In the larger cantons--that of Zurich for instance--divisions of recruits in succession are put into barracks and well drilled practically and theoretically for fifty-six days, either consecutively or at two periods of the same year, as may best suit the youths. In the second year after entering the elite, and for each year afterwards, the infantry is called out for drill during three days, by half battalions at least, with preparatory drill of three days for the “cadres,”[2] the commissioned and non-commissioned officers forming skeleton corps. Days of entry into service are not counted as days of drill, and in case of interruption the days of drill are increased by two days. The reserve is called out for drill during two days of each year, with a preparatory drill of one day for the “cadres.”

[Footnote 2: The officers, non-commissioned officers, and corporals, constitute what is called the “cadre.”]

In the corps of engineers, artillery, cavalry, and riflemen, the elite is called out every alternate year for the engineers and artillery, and every year for the cavalry and rifles. The drill lasts four days for the “cadre” of engineers and artillery, and immediately after ten days for the cadres and companies united, or twelve days for both together. For the cavalry the drill lasts seven days for dragoons and four days for “guides;” for riflemen, two days for the cadres, and immediately afterwards four days for cadres and companies united. The reserve is called out for a drill of half the length of that of the elite.

To complete the instruction of the soldier the cantons in their turn send their men yearly to the federal camps where the troops to the number of three or four thousand, are kept under canvas for two weeks. Larger numbers of men, forming bodies of 5,000 and upwards, are also mustered and cantoned in the villages, and during several days exercised in the grand movements and manœuvres of war, chiefly for the instruction of commanders and officers of the staff.

To keep up the efficiency of every department of the service the whole is subjected to the yearly inspection of colonels of the federal staff appointed by the central government. The inspection of infantry is confided to ten colonels who serve for three years. There is also an inspector in each of the arms of engineers and artillery, the latter having under his direction an administrator of materiel charged with the inspection and surveillance of all the materiel of the confederation. This administrator directs and superintends the workmen employed in the factories of the confederation for the manufacture of powder and percussion caps, as well as arms, gun-carriages, &c. The colonel of cavalry and the colonel of rifles direct all that relates to their respective arms, and recommend the necessary improvements. If these inspectors detect in the contingent of any canton any want of perfection in drill, they have the power to order such additional drill as may bring the men up to the proper standard.

Great care is taken in the instruction and selection of officers. The officers of infantry, up to the grade of major, are appointed by the cantonal authorities; the higher officers by the federal government. But no officers can be appointed to the special arms of engineers, artillery, and cavalry, except such as have gone through a course of instruction at a military school appropriate to each arm. No one can become a non-commissioned officer who has not served at least one year as a soldier, nor a commissioned officer except after two years’ service. Candidates for promotion must pass a public examination, before a commission, both in theoretical and practical knowledge. Promotion is given, according to seniority, up to the grade of first lieutenant. Captains are chosen from among the lieutenants without regard to seniority. To be appointed major, eight years’ service as an officer is required, of which, at least, two years as captain. For a lieutenant-colonel, ten years’ service as officer, of which, at least, four as major of the special arm. For a colonel, twelve years’ service as an officer is required, of which, at least, four years as “commandant,” or in a higher grade. In the Swiss service there is no higher rank than that of colonel. When a colonel has been appointed commander-in-chief of the army, he receives for the time being, the title of general, which he afterwards retains by courtesy.

We are indebted to Professor L. Simonson, of Trinity College, Hartford, Conn., for the following communication respecting the cadet system in schools not specially military and the practice of target shooting in Switzerland, by which a military spirit is fostered throughout the entire population and the highest skill in the use of the rifle is attained by a large number of individuals, who are thus prepared for any sudden call to arms.

2. THE CADET SYSTEM.

The Swiss boy learns target shooting and practices gymnastic and military exercises at a very early age. He imbibes with his mother’s milk the thought that his first duty is to become a defender of his country.

These boy-soldiers are styled Cadets, and are a fruit that can spring up and ripen on democratic soil only. The first armed corps of the kind we find in Berne near the end of the 16th century. But the general practice of military exercises among them dates back only about eighty years, when the HELVETIC MILITARY ASSOCIATION began to advocate the formation of Corps de Cadets in all parts of Switzerland. From that time the most efficient and eminent officers devoted themselves enthusiastically to this cause. The first corps sprang up in Aarau, Sursen and Olten. Aarau possessed for a long time the best drilled, largest and finest corps, and in the canton of Argovia generally the system has struck deeper root than elsewhere; but well drilled corps can be found in any of the larger places, as in Zofingen, Lenzburg, Brugg, Baden, and a dozen other places. It was an old custom for the cadets to parade in the federal cities--Zurich, Berne and Lucerne--in honor of the assembling of the Swiss Diet, (Tagsatzung.) As far back as 1770 we find a boy-corps of infantry and artillery in Zurich, yet towards the end of the last century the organization was partially broken up, until the political renovation of the canton in 1830 re-organized the corps anew. Besides in the capital, we find corps in Winterthur, Uster, Wald, Stäfa, Meilen, Horgen, Wädenswyl, and other towns on the lake shores. Berne, Biel, Thun, Burgdorf, and many other Bernese villages, for thirty or forty years have practiced their school-boys in the exercise of arms. The state takes special care to give the students of the University of Berne and of the two normal schools a thorough military training. The cantons of Lucerne, Solothurn, Basle, Schaffhausen, St. Gall, Appenzell, Glarus, Tessin, Friburg, Neufchâtel, and the countries of Vand and of the Grisons, possess each of them one or more cadet-corps. Military drill, as well as gymnastic exercises, forms part of the regular school routine of all middle and higher schools of the above-named cantons. Provision is now made to extend this discipline over all schools, making it obligatory on every pupil who is not disabled by bodily defects. Military practice commences at the age of eleven and is continued to the age of eighteen or nineteen. Federal or cantonal officers and instructors drill the youth two afternoons in the week, the more advanced only once a week. The youth thus disciplined, learn not only to obey but also to command. The officers of every corps are promoted from the rank and file, and in this manner are excellently fitted to become afterwards officers in the federal army. All cadets when they are enrolled at a later period into the militia, are by law exempted from drill. The arms are furnished by the state or community; the uniform, which the pupil may wear in or out of service, must be procured by himself.

Most of the cadet-corps consist of infantry, (sharp-shooters and musketeers;) many have, however, artillery also, as in Zurich, their guns throwing balls of two and four pounds weight. In Argovia and some other cantons there are even grenadiers and sappers. Cavalry exist in theory only. A gun with bayonet and cartridge-box, here and there also a knapsack and sword form the equipment of the foot-soldier. The uniforms are various and fanciful. The Zurich Cadets distinguish themselves by their simple and tasteful appearance; they wear a dark blue coat with white metal buttons, grey pants, and dark blue cap with the cockade. Every corps has one or more smaller or larger flags. Many cantons have excellent bands of music; others, as Zurich, have only drummers and their indispensable drum-major, and sing martial songs while marching.

It is a universal custom to close the school year in autumn by a festival, the shining point of which is the military parade and field manœuvre. The Swiss juvenile festivals have gained quite a reputation at home and abroad. In the Argovian communities all the school children, the females as well as males, festively adorned, participate. The corps of the whole canton and even of several cantons are often united in the field manœuvre; on such an occasion the enthusiasm and emulation of youth reach the highest pitch. Thus the Bernese Cadet Corps in 1821 had a common drill parade in the neighborhood of the capital, and many others have since come off. In 1816 about 1,000 Argovians went into camp at Lenzburg, and all of them will joyfully remember this merry festival. A still greater notoriety was gained by the hot sham fights at Wettingen, which came off in 1821, and in which the Argovian, Zurich and Winterthur cadets operated together. Two brigades consisting of 1,560 men, all told, with seven cannon fought there for the positions between Wettingen and Baden; the most glorious affair of the day was the heroic defense and final storming of the Wettingen bridge. Yet all other manœuvres of that sort have been thrown into shadow by the great Swiss cadet feast in September, 1856. It will not be forgotten by the thousands, who participated either as actors or spectators, even if there should be at some future day a re-union of all the corps of Switzerland. Ten cantons participated in that festival. Argovia furnished 974 men; Zurich, 805; St. Gall, 472; Schaffhausen, 186; the Grisons, 166; Ausserrhoden, 155; Lucerne, 148; Thurgovia, 111; Glarus, 60; and Tessin even sent over the St. Gothard a contingent of eighty-four. Thus 3,161 young heroes, in various but generally tasteful uniforms, with bands of music, one hundred and twenty-four drums, numerous banners, and ten cannon, entered the festively-adorned Zurich from all sides. Divided into two little armies drawn up in battle array between Oerlicon and Schwamendingen, they fought over the celebrated battle of June 4th, 1799, in which the French under Massena, were defeated by the Austrians under Archduke Charles.

The youths in Zurich as well as in other cantons, have no reason to complain that their physical development is neglected in favor of the mental; nay, we might rather fear that the first is at times too much exaggerated, considering the tender age of the majority of the boys. The pupils of the canton Gymnasium and Industrial School, many of whom are foreigners, Germans especially, practice gymnastic exercises throughout the whole year; the military drill is limited to the summer course only. In the month of August, from time immemorial, the boys, all and every one, practice target-shooting. The smaller boys only are allowed to rest the gun on the stand; the older must shoot without any support whatever. The cities and individuals furnish prizes for those who hit the centre of the target. In September the cadets--the infantry as well as artillery--hold their target-shooting; in October they drill in the field, (“Vorkämpfli,”) and then comes off the annual School Festival with its gymnastic exercises and the combined manœuvre in field.

At the sham fight on the 1st of October, 1860, the enemy as usual existed in fancy only; they fired, however, as if he were flesh and blood. They had the task of pursuing the imaginary foe from Windicon to the Höckler. The division marched over the covered bridge at Aussersihl, detached then a column to the woody heights in order to outflank the enemy, while the principal body marched along the Sihl and drove the enemy from the clearings into the thick woods. Both divisions re-united at the Höckler Bridge and marched to the great “Wollishofer Allmend,” where they practiced firing. This is a beautiful spot for the deployment of troops; the sound of every shot is returned in manifold echoes from the surrounding heights. The Zurich and federal troops also encamp, practice, and shoot on this “Allmend.”

The annual festival of one canton school came off on the day for gymnastic and military exercises. The printed programme distributed among the pupils contains the order of exercises, the plan of the manœuvre, and some useful hints in large type, as, “Clear the road”--“Smoking is prohibited to the pupils during the festival”--“Not too fast”--“Do not forget the ramrod”--“Always 120 paces distance.” At 6 o’clock, A.M., the drummers beat the reveille, proceeding from the guard-house in three different directions. If the weather is unfavorable, the reveille is not beaten, the school begins at the usual hour, and the next fair day is chosen for the feast. The beaming sun dispersed, however, on this occasion, the autumnal morning mists, and universal joy beamed from all faces. On the first day the public gymnastic exercises came off, and after supper the decisions of the umpires were proclaimed and prizes distributed.

The second day the whole corps, numbering about five hundred, hastens at 7 o’clock, armed and equipped, to the barracks, and marches from there to the open space near the railroad station, where from 8 to 10, Colonel Ziegler, the Secretary of War, accompanied by members of the Board of Supervisors, is occupied with the general inspection of “his young comrades.” At 12½ the corps assembles again near the barracks, where they receive their ammunition, and at 1 o’clock they turn out to the manœuvre. The corps is divided into two small armies, each of which consists of a centre, right and left wings, and a reserve. The enemy under the command of Lieutenant-colonel Von Escher, marches over Riesbach and Zollicon into his position. The federal troops under Commandant Nadler, take their way over Hirslanden and the Balgrist. The left wing of the enemy, meanwhile, had taken possession of the heights above the Zollicon, and his main body is marching on the right bank of the lake upon Zurich. The enemy makes a halt, and receives the report of his scouts, that the “Burghölzli” and the heights of the Balgrist have been taken possession of by the federal army for the purpose of impeding the further advance of the hostile troops over Hirslanden. The federals at 3 o’clock attack the enemy in his position on the mountain, but they are beaten back, notwithstanding their heroic endeavors, and are compelled to retreat since the enemy changes his defensive position into a general charge. The federals retire in good order, and the enemy purchases every inch of ground at a great sacrifice. Though he succeeds in cutting off a side column, his losses must be great until he can silence the murderous fire of the federal battery which has taken a very favorable position on the “Oberrieder Heights,” and after having done so he advances to the lowlands.

The fight offers many a picturesque scene. Nowhere such a diversified, broken battle-ground can be found as in the Swiss fore-lands. Especially in the neighborhood of Zurich one is at a loss which to choose. There are every where covers and ambuscades for riflemen; the infantry find numerous advantageous positions, and many heights easily accessible which command vales and plains are at the command of the artillery. The leaders have hard work to restrain the ardor of the boy-soldiers, especially of those in the broken chain of the sharp-shooters. Finally the signal shot is fired, followed immediately by many others. It is a real feast to observe how the skirmishers, while running from one cover to the other, crouch together as much as possible; how skillfully they take advantage of every little mound, and how they endeavor in their attack to avail themselves of every protection. This or that one seems a perfect little Zouave; some even show the disposition of a Turcos. One loads his rifle lying flat on his back, another springs forward like a tiger. To be commanded to the chain of the skirmishers is considered special good fortune, for there the individual is something by himself, can move at will, and is supplied with plenty of ammunition. Yet, the main body also of the army, which is obliged to fight in closed lines and strict order, is allowed to vent its fury in firing by single files and by battalions in thundering vollies. At the command to fire a hundred muskets at once, but a single peal as of thunder is heard, and the smoke of the powder fills the air with the sweetest of savors. For a change we turn to the artillery. Though they do not possess any rifled cannon, they are nevertheless intent upon aiming their guns accurately, and the little self-possessed gunners who serve the pieces would prove dangerous adversaries to any foe. They mount and dismount a piece as quickly as any trained artillery-man, and where the ground offers great impediments, one can see the stronger boys carrying their own pieces.

The “Father of the Cadets,” Colonel Ziegler, is present at the sham fights as an impartial umpire, walking continually on the battle-field, and smiling as one or the other section makes a good hit. As soon as the retreating federal troops have gained a favorable position, they stop short, concentrate their forces, and brave any further advance of the enemy who, after he has made some further unsuccessful attempts, is convinced that the federals are a match for him, and even stronger than himself, makes a halt, and the battle ends. The white cross in the red field (the federal banner) remains, of course always master of the field.

Many a manœuvre has ended without any accident, yet sometimes a hot-blooded cadet forgets the ramrod, and wounds a soldier from the hostile lines or a spectator, for the people mingle without fear among the combatants. Every Swiss is a soldier, and the crack of the guns is a congenial sound to him. The European diplomatists who met in Zurich in the Fall of 1860 for the settlement of the peace of Villafranca, were all present at the manœuvres, and undoubtedly depicted the cadet system to their respective governments in glowing colors, recommending the general adoption of the system. We now ask our governors and our people in general--“Shall we be the last?” A noble ardor may accomplish a good deal, yet strength combined with will can accomplish far more--almost every thing.

After the parties have fought an hour and a half in the sight of the Alps and the glittering lake, and rested a little while, they march in brotherly union with glowing faces, to the sound of the drum, or singing patriotic songs, from the heights down to the shore road, enter Tiefbrunnen, and stack their arms in pyramids on the green sward of its hospitable pleasure-grounds. Then after the labor and heat of the day, the young soldiers hasten at double-quick step, and with Goliath-like appetite, to the garden of the neighboring inn, which stands on the shore of the beautiful lake, and give fearful battle to a second enemy in the form of loaves, sausages, etc.; the blood of the grape runs like water, and so indefatigable are they in continually repeated onslaughts, that in a short time the forces of the enemy have wholly disappeared. The state bears the expenses, in order that the poorest boy may be that day as rich as his upper-ten comrade. Shouts and hurras spice the good things still more. Meanwhile it has grown dark, the cadets take to their arms again, and by the light of numerous torches, Colonel Ziegler proclaims and distributes the prizes. The name of every victor is received with the beat of the drum and thousands of hurras. The results of the target shooting in 1860 were not so satisfactory as in former years. The artillery gained 65 prizes in one hundred shots, the foot 28; while in 1859 the former received 86, and the latter 33, in the average of all distances. The first two prizes were again taken by Glarus boys. This little people, renowned through its marksmen, has for the last seven years monopolized the first prizes.

Finally the warlike band marches home and the officers and instructors meet again at a social supper, which lasts until after midnight. Thus ends the manœuvre of Swiss boys.

The Swiss militia system may be our model. It will insure our internal peace and national independence. It will unite the citizens of all states into one band of brothers. Every people rears troublesome individuals. Switzerland had to contend with internal difficulties, factions, etc., as we have now, but the majesty of the law was upheld by the masses, and while the rebels were beaten in the field, the people of the different sections met again in friendship. And so, we trust, it will be with us. The day may not be distant when we shall want the strength of our whole beloved Union to maintain our position among the great nations of the earth. United we need not fear the world in arms.

The Swiss are the most peaceable and industrious people, and at the same time the most warlike and ever-ready. In the idea of the Swiss, the citizen is inseparable from the soldier, lest the free man should become the slave of a domestic or foreign tyrant. The first advantage of this idea is, that Switzerland has not a standing army, and yet it can call into the field at any moment 200,000 well trained men in the flower of their age; a like number could be raised of younger men under twenty-one and above forty-five. 200,000 men is eight per cent of its population, according to which we could have about 2,200,000 citizen soldiers, not on paper only, but real soldiers. If we institute the cadet system the next generation will be a warlike one, and no American will even think of making a law, exempting the citizen from his first duty to appear in person for the defense of his liberties and independence. The whole amount of the Swiss military Budget[3] is between four and five millions of francs, equal to ten millions of dollars for our 2,200,000 men--a trifle indeed.

[Footnote 3: Federal and cantonal.]

From time to time the governors of neighboring states could unite the cadet-corps of different sections and invite the corps from distant states to send a contingent for a grand manœuvre. Such a proceeding would tend more to cement the band of brotherhood among the states than many artificial means. It would at the same time promote the good morals of the boys, if the governors were to select the best delegates from their states. Every obdurate, mischievous individual should be expelled from the ranks, since the state must not suffer a bad subject to enjoy the honor of serving his country. What a wonderful change will take place in the disposition of our youth; when accustomed to the discipline of a soldier, many a bad habit will disappear entirely. They will become punctual and orderly in the execution of their duties in general, their step elastic, their carriage erect, their bodies strong, their chests large, their cheeks rosy, a joy to their parents and a pride to our people. The lad who leaves his city or his state, if furnished with a regular certificate from his drill-master, can enter a company in the place of his future residence, and be no longer a stranger but a brother-soldier--the member of a mighty association. He enters the circle of well educated boys at once, and is thus saved from the danger of associating with such as might corrupt his good habits. There are thousands of advantages to him and the country, and not a single disadvantage. Why shall we not seize upon the subject at once? Let our small state have the honor to be the first, as we already have the best regulated system of schools--primary, secondary, and higher institutions. Forward! forward!

In a subsequent article we shall give a description of a “Swiss Shooting Festival.” It is an ancient custom with the Alpine people, but since the system of cadet corps has become perfected, these festivals have come off with a splendor that had never before been dreamed of. They unite the men of all sections and have gained quite a fame in Europe.

We implore all statesmen and teachers to take the system of military drill and organization in schools into due consideration; not as a mere experiment, but as something that has proved an excellent success in a sister republic.

3. TARGET SHOOTING.

Having made military exercises a part of the regular routine of schools and the education of youths, and identified the vocation of the soldier with the privileges of citizenship and the safety of the state, the policy of the Swiss government, both cantonal and federal, has been directed so as to make the pastimes of neighborhoods and the national festivals minister to the general culture of a military spirit, and of the highest individual skill in the use of arms. To these ends target shooting is encouraged in various ways, and the festivals of the sharp-shooters are more generally and enthusiastically attended than any other national anniversary. We give below an account of a festival of this kind, which was held in Zurich in July, 1859.

A Festival of the Swiss Sharp-shooters.

The Frenchman has his rose festivals; the Italian his barcaroli; the Spaniard his bull-fights; the Englishman, since his cock-fights and boxing in the street are prohibited, has nothing left to him, for horse-racing as well as the Parliament belongs to the aristocracy only.[4] Germany has its popular festivals, though the potentates have suppressed even these harmless popular gatherings in several parts of the country.

[Footnote 4: The rifle shooting, cricket matches, and other popular sports of England seems to be overlooked by Professor Simonson.]

In southern Germany and in the north-west you may still find the old-fashioned popular festivals. But Switzerland is their field; there in the land of freedom they flourish in the utmost freshness. They arouse and foster in the people the consciousness that they are a people--a nation; they awaken and strengthen the national spirit; they unite all citizens, whether they sit as legislators in the Diet, or till the ground in some unknown corner of the republic.

The festival begins at 6 o’clock, A.M., with the firing of cannon--one shot for each of the twenty-two cantons into which Switzerland is divided. The sharp-shooter festivals are the oldest of the Swiss popular festivals--the original fruits of a free warlike people. They are customary in every canton, in every community. But the Swiss sharp-shooter festival means that in which the whole country unites, and it has existed now for many, many years, always fresher and more beautiful, representing not only the united citizens of the Swiss cantons, but of Switzerland as a political power.

Such a festival takes place every second year. Then, thirty thousand free, warlike men, the best marksmen from all parts of the land, the “élite” of Switzerland’s defenders, assemble with their rifles, which they handle with more skill than any other nation. They represent in fact the best men of their nation, the bodyguard of law and order, the rampart against hostile aggressions, and the stay of popular commotions. In such a noble assembly many a wise word is spoken, many an idea exchanged and corrected. The actions of the administration are subjected to a sharp but judicious and just criticism; you will not hear there ostentatious speeches, nor see noisy demonstrations. They do not pass resolutions such as we are wont to see in our country--a small clique of petty politicians announcing to the people that: The People of the State, . . . . resolved, etc.; but calmly they reason and reflect on what would be beneficial to all sections of the country, and after having reconciled the opposing interests of all, they go home and work each in his circle for the realization of their ideas. There is a principle--not of blind opposition to actions, whether good or bad, simply because they proceed from another party--but the principle of doing justice to all, of upholding the rights of all, and of reconciling opposing interests. A people that has been educated in such principles and acts in accordance with them has reached the perfection of republicanism, and need not fear either internal or external foes. Every American patriot may take example from this little Alpine race; and since every one, man or woman, is by nature an educator, whether as director of a household, or as a teacher of other men’s children, let us all unite in educating the growing generation in the right way, and our beloved country shall never again see brothers in arms against brothers.

Many a corrupt official has feared the criticism of the assembly of the Swiss sharp-shooters, and whatever “the men have resolved at the festival,” is usually adopted by the people and carried through in a judicious, constitutional way.

At the above-mentioned day Zurich was all in a glee; the city adorned with flags, triumphal arches and evergreens, the streets thronging with people in Sunday dress who had come from far and wide to participate in the popular feast. The shrill sound of an engine is heard, and soon after the first company of guests from abroad forms in line at the railroad station. It is the delegation from the Bremen sharp-shooters, who have come from the far north of Germany to meet their brethren of the south. They are enthusiastically received by the crowd, the mayor addresses them and gives them a cordial welcome to the land of freedom. After one of their number has replied to the speech, the mayor leads the guests to a tent and invites them to partake of some refreshments; the best of native wines from the “Rathskeller” are offered, and many a toast spices the nectar.

An hour later the flag of the Swiss sharp-shooters is received and unfolded, while shouts and the roar of cannon rend the air. As we stated before, the festival of the United Sharp-shooters comes off once in two years, city and canton taking their turns. Two years before, in July, 1857, it had been celebrated in Berne, and the flag had remained there until now, when a deputation from Berne delivers it to the sharp-shooters of Zurich, to be kept by them for the next two years; and so on.

As soon as the banner is unfurled the procession is formed, and the banner and guests are escorted to the City Hall, preceded by bands of music playing national airs. What a glorious sight! Man and nature seem to revel together in joy. The bright morning sunshine gleams from the polished rifles and a thousand flags wave in the light breeze, while the procession is accompanied by crowds of men and women, boys and rosy-cheeked girls who, dressed in white and decked with red ribbons, in the national costume and colors, add an element of bewitching beauty to the scene.

Meanwhile other companies of riflemen have arrived, and the lake is still covered with festively-adorned gondolas that are continually adding to the crowd of guests. At 10 o’clock the procession is again formed. It leaves the city and moves toward the “Seefeld,” a large meadow on the shore of the lake, a short distance from the city. Here an immense hall has been erected. Behind it are arranged the targets and shooting-stands, and opposite we see a neat structure in the form of a temple, with many large windows, in which are exhibited the prizes, disposed in the most attractive manner. These prizes are of the value of 104,407 francs, and are the contributions of all parts of the world--every corner where a few Swiss are to be found, having furnished some small gift in honor of the national festival.

The procession halts in front of the temple. The Bernese deliver into the hands of the Zurich delegation the flag of the Swiss Rifle Corps, and Colonel Kurtz, of Berne, thus briefly addresses them: “When two years ago this flag was delivered into our safe keeping, peace reigned all around us; and but just now our country has come forth victoriously from a crisis in which we have shown, as, we had never done before, that we are one band of brethren.[5] What we have hoped for is now realized, and we can carry this flag--the banner of the largest association in Switzerland--to the beautiful lake whose blue waters play around our sister town. We of Berne have held this flag in peace. Who knows whether you will be as fortunate, or whether you will be forced to plant it on the highest pinnacle of your good city, as a sign that the fatherland is in danger and calls upon her sons to defend her. Relentless war rages now on our borders;[6] we know not whether the storm will pass over, or the thunderbolt strike in our midst.”

[Footnote 5: He alludes here to the Neufchatel difficulty. This canton had been heretofore under the sovereignty of Prussia, and a handful of royalists made the attempt to sever it from all connection with the confederacy. The people defeated them and voted themselves independent. Switzerland assisted them and Prussia gave up whatever rights she might have had.]

[Footnote 6: The Italian.]

Dr. Dubs replies in a brilliant speech: “We receive this banner and shall defend it. We are ready now for a joyous feast, and as ready at any time for the war-dance. Let the trumpet sound and Zurich’s men will be the first in the field to lead you on to victory or death!” etc.

Thus was the festival opened. A dinner had been prepared in the hall, to which all marksmen, whether from home or abroad, were invited. This hall is a wooden structure of large dimensions, open at the sides, with a wide passage running through the middle, intersected by several narrow ones. In the middle of the building is a magnificent fountain. The whole remaining space is filled with tables and benches of unvarnished pine, at which 6,000 persons may be conveniently seated and served, A platform hung with Swiss banners is so placed that the speakers can be heard through the whole hall, and many a wise word has been thence spoken that met a ready response from both present and distant brethren. Behind this platform is raised a lofty gallery for the music. Here the bands play soul-stirring chorals and national tunes, and when the “Marseillaise,” or other similar air is heard, a chorus of thousands of voices accompanies enthusiastically the instruments. It is in fact a feast of the people; unity, peace and joy reign everywhere. There may be seen men of different religious and political creeds, embracing each other in brotherly concord. Men whose language is Italian from the southern cantons, and men who speak French from the west, and German from the northern, eastern, and middle cantons, form one family, though their localities, institutions, and interests may differ widely. The words which Schiller, in his well-known historical drama, “Tell,” causes Rösselmann to express--

“By this fair light, which greeteth us before Those other nations that, beneath us far, In noisome cities pent, draw painful breath, Swear we the oath of our confederacy! We swear to be a nation of true brothers, Never to part, in danger or in death!

These words have become true in our age.

At 1 o’clock the firing of a cannon announces the commencement of the target shooting. The marksmen press to the stands, and their shooting continues from morning till evening, with only an intermission of an hour for dinner, for an entire week. As we have before said, the shooting-stands are erected at the end of the hall, but in a separate building. Ninety-six stands are arranged in one line, each with its own target, so that nearly a hundred shots may be fired at once. Behind each stand there is sufficient space for loading the rifles, and all the necessary apparatus. There are smaller buildings near by for the repairing of arms, and a regular field-hospital, completely furnished, to supply medical or surgical aid to such as may fall suddenly sick or be wounded. The medical fraternity of Zurich have offered their services in turn, and two physicians of their number are always present day and night. The shooting is directed towards the lake and large quantities of firewood are piled up like a rampart around the grounds, so that an accident is almost impossible. Navigation on the lake within a certain distance is also prohibited. The safety of the people is thus secured, and an accident can happen only at the stands or to a careless target-man. Only two injuries in all have been reported--a finger-wound received by a marksman, and the loss of an eye to a target-man by a splinter from the target.

More than thirty thousand tried their skill during the ten days of the festival. On the 7th of July 74,000 shots were fired, and about 61,000 on the 11th, though many of the people had already gone home. The rifles and targets are of various kinds. The Swiss have rifles for field service, and also target rifles--the latter being much the heavier. No support whatever is used with either. The distance of the target is proportioned to the calibre of the rifles, the “field targets” being over a thousand, and the “stand targets” about six hundred feet distant. Both the stand and field targets are sub-divided into “Stich” and “Kehrscheiben;” the former a single fixed target, the latter made double and turned around after each shot, so as to be immediately ready for another marksman. The “Kehrscheiben” are designated by the letters in the order of the alphabet; the “Stichscheiben” have names attached to each, such as “the Stand,” “Fatherland,” “Industry,” “Titlis,” “Pilatus,” “Rigi,” “Gotthard,” “Jungfrau,” “Splügen,” “the Field,” &c. No more than one shot may be fired by the same marksman at any of the “Stichscheiben,” with the exception of the “Fatherland,” at which two are allowed. The number of shots at the “Kehrscheiben” is not limited, but all must be paid for--the “Kehrscheiben” at the rate of about thirty centimes, (six cents;) the “Stichscheiben” a little more. Commutation tickets, however, may be obtained.

The prizes are very various, but the most valuable are appropriated to the “Stichscheiben.” The first prize this year was a large silver basin, of exquisite workmanship, together with 2,500 francs ($500) in money, given by the Swiss in Paris, to be won at the target “Fatherland.” The lowest prize is five francs, and this can be won only by those who succeed in hitting the bull’s eye, the size of which varies in the different targets. In the “Stichscheiben” for the target rifle it measures ten inches in diameter, but in the “Kehrscheiben” only two and a half, while in the “Kehrscheiben” for the field rifle it measures six inches. Every six hits in the centre of the “Kehrscheiben” gains a prize of five francs, to which is added on the twenty-fifth successful shot, a silver cup or watch. He who hits the bull’s eye fifty times receives another prize of one hundred francs. Special prizes are also given to the best marksman of the day, for the first and last hits of the day, and for the greatest number of hits during the whole festival, etc. The prizes of the day may be obtained immediately; the others are distributed publicly at the close of the festival.

Let us now give a glance at the “Gift Temple.” This neat structure is made wholly of glass, save the roof, in order that the rich prizes may be more conspicuously exhibited. Here are gifts and prizes for the successful shooters, consisting either in articles of value or in money, that have been contributed by the cantonal governments and communities, and by individuals at home or abroad. The government has also had new Swiss five-franc pieces coined for this purpose, bearing on their face the figure of a rifleman instead of Helvetia. There is many a piece of fine workmanship among the gifts, of which we can here only mention the silver basin with the 2,500 francs, the first prize of the “Fatherland,” and a beautiful drinking horn of massive silver, richly embossed, presented by some friends in Leipsic. The Bremen sharp-shooters also brought with them twelve “Römer,” large cups of massive silver, gilt within, which were admired and coveted by all the disciples of Bacchus. This was not, however, the only present from the old Hanse-town. The senate had opened the celebrated “Rathskeller” and sent some of their Hock of the vintage of 1684, the Nestor of German wines, to their brothers in Bacchus. The greater part of these gifts consisted in silver cups, and pitchers, and gold and silver watches.

During the festival the houses of Zurich continued adorned with flags, transparencies, and evergreens, which were every day entwined with fresh flowers. Near the festive hall a triumphal arch had been erected, on which stood a colossal figure of William Tell in the act of menacing Gesler with the arrow, after having shot the apple from the head of his boy. Some of the critics would have us believe that Tell is not Tell, that no such person ever existed, but that he is a purely mythical character--the creation of Schiller’s imagination. Yet it matters little to the Swiss whether the hero was, or was not; all these thousands of marksmen who daily pass that triumphal arch are possessed by one thought, and many can not refrain from shouting, “Hurrah for Tell, father of the marksman! The Swiss of to-day is as skillful an archer, as daring and as free as thou wast!” Myth or not, Tell is the man of the people, the Washington of Switzerland--or, rather, Washington is the Tell of America; and these words of the dying Attinghausen--

“Hold fast together, then--for ever fast. Let freedom’s haunts be one in heart, in mind! Set watches on your mountain tops, that league May answer league, when comes the hour to strike. Be one--be one--be one”--

are never forgotten in these days by the inhabitants of Switzerland.

Around the hall there has sprung up a village of wood and canvas, and while the men are engaged with their rifles, the women and children crowd to see the circus, the menageries, rope-dancers, puppet-shows, “the giant Kentuckian,” “General Tom Thumb,” &c., and while every one amuses himself, there is no rioting, no impropriety, no beggary, no placards bidding us to “Beware of Pickpockets;” the people are as sound as their institutions.

At 8 o’clock in the morning the target shooting commences, closing at 8 in the evening. The target and signal men are promptly at their stations, and the members of the different committees for keeping order, arrive one by one. The marksmen are impatiently awaiting the signal shot. Spectators gather in from all sides. The signal is given, and in a moment the sharp crack of ninety-six rifles is heard. The firing is kept up incessantly till noon, when the sound of the cannon again calls to dinner. At about 10 o’clock the first steamers have landed their passengers from “beyond the water,” and the first trains have come in, bringing new guests to supply the place of those who leave, so that new faces and new acquaintances greet us every day. Here a fresh company of sharp-shooters from distant Ticino approaches, marching to the sound of music and preceded by their flag, and receive their welcome--there another company from Neufchâtel is escorted to the station and takes its departure homeward.

One of the most joyous occurrences of the festival--a silvery gleam in the general sunshine--was the reception of the marksmen from the four forest towns, Lucerne, Switz, Uri, and Unterwalden. They numbered full seven hundred men, noble specimens of the native Swiss, all picked men--“Kernmannen.” They were preceded by four of their number attired in the ancient national costume, who carried the very same bugles that for the last five centuries had called their forefathers to arms. The ancient banners followed. As they passed under the triumphal arch and beheld their father, Tell, their shouts, hurrahs, and vivas, knew no bounds. Their ranks were broken and each threw himself upon the breast of the nearest stranger--nay, brother. The very men that perhaps were adversaries in public life, or opposed to each other in political principles, were here united; the love of fatherland was a common bond of union. Thus, also, Schiller speaks through the mouth of Meier:

“I know him well. There is a suit between us, About a piece of ancient heritage; Herr Reding, _we are enemies in court; Here we are one_.”

Thus is it in Switzerland. Will it ever be so with us? Come, ye educators of the people and of the young, preach this principle from the pulpit, and make it the corner stone of your instructions in the school and at the firesides of your homes!

At the signal for the noon intermission the firing immediately ceases, and in a few minutes 6,000 hungry and thirsty people are seated at the one hundred and fifty tables in the hall; the rest disperse to the eating-houses in the neighborhood and in the city. The dinner is enlivened by toasts which, however, are never of a personal character. No homage is done to the individual; to the country, to the fatherland alone, is homage due in a republic. Toasts are heard in German, in French, in Italian--yet all tongues unite in the glorification of a common country. Separate tables are set for the different cantons, but so arranged that the more distant cantons are usually the nearest together--Ticino near Berne, Geneva near Basle, Zurich near Vaud. In the middle of the hall are the tables for the committees and the honorary guests.

On the second day of the festival the delegations of marksmen hold a general conference, and though they enter the hall with opposing opinions and feelings, yet before they part all differences are settled, all contradictions are reconciled, and their resolutions are usually endorsed by the whole people. There is no tendency to disunion, no necessity for secession, for each one endeavors to satisfy the wishes of the other; the public weal is considered, not the interest or aggrandizement of the individual or of the canton.

On Sunday, the 10th of July, a public service was held on the meadow. It was a solemn ceremony, attended by all the different creeds that hold fellowship together. On the next day the members of the Diet, which was then in session at Berne, visited Zurich. The banished duchess of Parma, who lives in the neighboring Swiss town, Pappenschwyl, was also the guest of the citizens. She and her children sat with them at the rough pine board and partook of the same viands. After the dinner she said, with tears in her eyes, “The Swiss do not know how happy they indeed are.”

On Tuesday, July 12th, the last shot was fired, and on the following day the prizes were distributed. This ceremony took place on the grounds before the gift temple. President Dubs opened with a speech, in which he said: “We are distributing now the prizes to those who have proved themselves the best marksmen. An equal chance is given to all; let all practice with their weapons and emulate their lucky companions. I am convinced that all who have hit the centre of the target will be able to pierce the breast of the enemy, should war be unavoidable.” The first prize, the silver basin from Paris, with the 2,500 francs, was won by a manufacturer, Durrer, of Unterwalden; the second, the silver horn from Leipzig, by a farmer named Glogg, of Obermeilen; the third, the twelve silver cups from Bremen, jointly by Professor Dr. Hug, of the University of Zurich, and Mr. Baer, of Männedorf, the best shot in Switzerland, who had hit the target four hundred and eighty-seven times during the festival.

The whole was closed with a serenade, given by the marksmen to President Dubs, the chief magistrate of the confederacy, as well as president of the festival. The next day the remaining guests departed, the garlands and banners disappeared, the people returned to their business, all external show had vanished; but the feeling that Switzerland’s sons have again renewed the bonds of their brotherhood still survives in the breasts of that simple, quiet people--our republican brethren of the Alps.

SCHOOLS OF INSTRUCTION FOR OFFICERS.

The Federal system of Military Instruction for officers, in 1871, embraced--

I. A Central Military School at Thun, to which all officers appointed to the General Staff repair to be instructed in their duties.

II. A School of Officers at Thun, in which all officers appointed to their respective regiments are instructed in their duties.

III. A School of Cantonal Instruction, held in Basle, to which the infantry instructors resort from every canton to learn their duties, undergo inspection, and preserve a common rule.

IV. A School of Young Officers, held at Solothurn and at St. Gallen, turn by turn, to which the several Cantons send their young officers who have just received their commissions, and to which all candidates for commissions repair for examinations.

V. Comissariat School, to which is joined a Medical and Ambulance School generally, at Thun.

VI. A Shooting School, for officers who give instruction to the Cadet Corps and other organizations in the several Cantons.

To these school organizations with their practical exercises must be added the opportunities afforded by the Cantonal reviews and field manœuvres, to which the young Swiss officer brings much valuable experience in his previous school and cadet drill.

The events of the late French-Prussian war tested the efficiency of the Swiss military organization and instruction. The French declaration was announced in Paris in the afternoon of Friday, July 15, 1870, and responded to by a counter declaration from Berlin on Tuesday, the 19th. But the Federal Council of Switzerland (which lay between the combatants, and might become the first theatre of belligerent operations), was summoned by President Dubs to consider the situation; and within an hour, the Cantons had been regularly summoned to complete their regiments with men, arms, horses, guns, and all stores and tools required for actual service, and five divisions of the Elite (the first, second, sixth, seventh, and ninth), were ordered to assemble in their several Cantons. The first division, under Colonel Egtoff, was to secure the bridge at Basle and occupy the two banks of the Rhine. The first news which the men of Aargau had of the impending war was late on Friday night. By noon on Saturday squads of men were falling into the ranks in front of the town-hall of the cantonal capital--companies were formed--guns were got out--sappers, engineers, and guards were in readiness--officers were at their posts. In the afternoon the first Swiss troops were in march for Basle, and by midnight the first regiment of Aargau were on the bridge; and by Sunday night the first division, under Col, Egtoff, with 8,296 men, and 692 horses, besides the staff and guides; and the second division, under Colonel Salis, with 8,319 men, and 632 men at the same hour had assembled at Basle and held the roads and streams which led to Bonn. By Tuesday night, before the Prussian manifest was known in Bonn, the five divisions of the first Swiss army, with their eleven batteries of artillery mounting 96 field pieces, and a total force of 37,423 men, and 3,541 horses and 104 staff and guides, were under arms and at their respective rendezvous; and the President was authorized by the Council to announce to all concerned, “that any troops belonging to belligerent states, whether regulars or volunteers, who violate the territory of the Swiss nation, will be repelled by force.”

Out of the officers whose men were first in the field, the Federal Council placed Colonel Herzog, of the Aargau detachment of the Federal army, in chief command, and by Saturday night the General’s head-quarters were established at Alton (the center of the Swiss railways), where he organized his staff, issued his instructions to organize two hospitals, one for wounded men, and the other for horses, and at the same time ordered magazines of stores and clothes to be established in his rear, and the forces to be moved up to the front. All railway companies were ordered to report their stock of engines, carriages, and open wagons, and telegraphic communication was established for night as well as day service, and engineers were sent out to study every pass and point by which an enemy in any strength was likely to enter the territory of Switzerland. When all danger to the Cantons had passed away in the victories of the German arms, Gen. Herzog was directed to raise his camps, and send to their several Cantons their respective troops. Later in the war, when it was authentically known that Bourbaki was moving an army of 150,000 strong, to sweep across the Rhine; and still later, that the Germans meant to push the French, in either whole or part, across the Swiss frontier, and put them out of service for the rest of the war--General Herzog satisfied the President and the Council, and the Minister of War, of the impending danger, and on Thursday, Jan. 19th, the third, fourth, and fifth divisions, with two batteries of mountain guns, well prepared for winter service in a district lying under snow, were ordered out; and in one week from that date, these forces were distributed through the various passes in the Jura, from Basle to Geneva, with orders to repel, or receive--to fight, or feed and lodge, according to the spirit in which the broken detachments of the French army should present themselves. For the enormous number (83,301), who laid down their arms, food and beds were distributed in the Swiss Cantons, by less than 20,000 citizen troops, without the forfeit of a single life. And when their work was done, these citizen soldiers laid aside their arms and uniforms and returned to their shops and industries of various kinds, to earn their daily bread, without forgetting for a moment their civic rights and household duties.

If the occasion had required it, as it did in the war of Secession in 1856, each Canton would have contributed 30 men from every 1,000 inhabitants, to the Elite, and 15 men to every 1,000 to the Reserve; and in case of danger to the Union, every male Switzer, from the age of nineteen to forty-five, not included in either of the above forces, would have obeyed the summons of the national authority for the Landwehr, adding 97,934 to the ranks, besides volunteering above and below the military age, to the number of 100,000 men, who, in case of a defensive war, could have been relied on,--all familiar with military tactics, and accustomed to obey as soldiers, as well as to the use of arms.

According to recent official statistics the strength of the several armies of Switzerland is as follows:

Elite. Reserve. Landwehr. 1. Engineers, 900 630 ...... 2. Artillery, 6,513 4,254 ...... 3. Cavalry, 1,937 932 ...... 4. Carabineers, 4,600 2,460 ...... 5. Infantry, 55,994 26,448 ...... 6. Sanitary Service, 144 78 ...... Armorers, 30 ...... ------ ------ ------ Total, 70,088 34,832 97,934

The system of recruiting, drilling and brigading, is local--which brings neighbors and friends into camp and field companionship, and inspires a sense of trust and coöperation.

The cost of the reliable military force is as follows:

Cantonal expense, 4,508,901 frs. Federal expense, 5,486,396 --------- 9,995,297

Contrasted with the cost of education the figures stand thus:

Communal expenses, 5,000,000 frs. Cantonal expenses, 5,157,756 Federal Polytechnic, 287,611 ---------- 10,445,367

And for this sum Switzerland makes a near approach to universal education in schools of different grades, adapted to all classes.

[Errata for Part IX (Switzerland): 200,000 men well provided with artillery. final . invisible The drill lasts four days for the “cadre” closing ” missing to take the system of military drill and organization text has “mili-/itary” at line break Never to part, in danger or in death! expected close quote missing “Gotthard,” “Jungfrau,” “Splügen,” “Gotthard,” Jungfrau,” “Splügen,”]

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Introduction…

Introduction

Introduction

IX. MILITARY SYSTEM AND SCHOOLS IN SWITZERLAND