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From Blackwood's Magazine.
FRANCE BEFORE THE WAR.

PARIS, October 20, 1875.

It will not perhaps be altogether useless to give an outline of the situation of the French army at the moment when the late war broke out; for, though important changes have been introduced since into the system which then prevailed, old habits still continue to exist in sufficient force to lead a good many onlookers to imagine that some at least of the same results might be produced again by the same causes. As regards the year 1870, very detailed evidence of both causes and results has been supplied to the world; and though that evidence has been brought forward in a fashion which most Englishmen cannot help deploring, it has, at all events, the merit-for the object which is in view here- of unfolding a complete story of what happened.

and convicted. A variety of measures were adopted in consequence of this clamour: the Bazaine trial and the two parliamentary inquiries into the contracts made during the war, and into the proceedings of the government of the 4th of September, were instituted mainly in order to satisfy it; the nation astonished and afflicted Europe by the savage delight which it seemed to take in dragging into daylight all the secrets of its disgrace; and, to make the confession thoroughly complete, nearly all the more important actors in the war wrote books, describing fully their own merits and each other's sins. By these strange means the whole inner history of the preparations for war was laid bare. It was a sad sight for the friends of France; they have mournfully remembered it: but in France itself it really seems to have become almost forgotten; it appears to have half vanished No foreign spectator has forgotten that, from popular memory and to have left no directly the war was over, the French ex- manifest trace behind it, except, indeed, hibited a fierce desire to localize the blame some unslaked hatreds which are silently of their defeat-to remove it from the biding their time. In one sense, therepeople at large, and to allot it specifically fore, the tale has become prematurely to certain persons. There was a hot long-old; but as, to foreign eyes, the value of ing in the air to destroy somebody a its teaching is in no degree diminished by resistless need to select victims as a sacri- the indifference with which, according to fice to the national pride; so that, when appearances, the mass of the French have public punishment had been brought now grown to regard it; as, indeed, to our down on a few chosen heads, all the rest view, that teaching looks, in some reof the population might soothingly com- spects, to be almost as much needed by fort itself with the conviction that it was them at this present time as it was before proved to be innocent of all participation, the war,- it may be worth while to group direct or indirect, in the faults which had together a few of the facts which it prebrought about the wreck. The idea sents. The revelations made are, howwhich was suggested in certain English ever, so extensive, the questions which newspapers, that the causes of disaster they raise are so complicated and so vamight perhaps be, not exclusively individ-ried, that it would be impossible to conual, but, to some extent at least, national sider all their aspects here: the insuffias well that they might be, in fact, a ciency of military preparation is the only result of weaknesses and infirmities proper one at which we propose to look; and to the generation as a whole was con- though the details of it are scattered temptuously rejected as preposterous. It through a hundred volumes, it will not be was declared to be impossible that so difficult to pick out the more important of utter a discomfiture could be in any way them. attributable to reasons common to the entire land; it was asserted, with all the confidence of rage, that it resulted solely from the personal incapacity and folly of a few guilty individuals, and a shout arose that those individuals must be discovered

But in order to obtain a general view of the material conditions under which France commenced the campaign, it is essential to look back a little and to see what had been passing during the years which preceded 1870. The other wars of

the Second Empire had brought to light | ty; a universal feeling jumped into exist

so many faults of organization and such ence that the army was not strong enough, incredible disorder of management, that it and that immediate measures must be tak was scarcely possible to suppose that the en to increase it. It was not generally government had not attempted to remove imagined that the entire military organisome at least of the defects which had zation of the country needed to be changed been revealed. It was not reasonable to that unsatisfactory conviction was, at imagine that a system could have been that time, limited to a few wise men; but left entirely unchanged which—to refer everybody became convinced that the to one single class of examples only-number of soldiers must be instantly had allowed 75,000 men to die in the Cri- doubled. Yet notwithstanding the unamea of disease and privations, while only nimity of this feeling, a strange delay oc20,000 were killed or died of their wounds; curred; the emperor and his advisers which, though of course on a much smaller could not agree between themselves as to scale, had reproduced in Lombardy nearly the plan to be adopted; they disputed the same proportions of mortality; and over it so long that it was not until nearly which, according to Dr. Champouillon's eighteen months after Sadowa that Mareport, had left badly wounded men so réchal Niel, at that moment minister of utterly without food during the Solferino war, was ready to bring forward his bill campaign that many of them crawled from for enlarging the army; and that bill, their beds into the roads in order to beg which was waited for so long, was limited for bread. And yet it turned out that to the creation of the Garde Mobile. And these "imperfections," as they were grace- then, as if it wished to proclaim to Eufully called, had produced no effects at all; rope that, in the eyes of France, number that routine had kept things as they were; was everything in war and organization that no reforms whatever had been en- nothing, the Chamber refused to allow the forced or even proposed. The various minister to drill this new Mobile for so army services remained exactly in their exorbitant a period as eight days at a old condition; the teachings of the Rus- time as he proposed; it reduced the pesian, Italian, and Mexican wars were for- riods of instruction to twelve hours, thinkgotten in victory; the French had con- ing, apparently, that as every Frenchman quered; a system which had provided tri- was born a soldier, that length of teaching umph was taken to be, if not faultless, at was quite sufficient for him. And the all events quite good enough, notwith- minister bowed down his head before this standing its "imperfections:" and so childish folly, and told the Chamber that, everything went on unaltered. Indeed, though it really was a pity to so restrict so convinced was France of the ample the education of men who knew absolutesufficiency of her military arrangements, ly nothing, he would do what he could all that in 1865 the Corps Législatif called the same: "it is for this reason,” he addfor a reduction of the army, and the gov-ed, "that I see with less regret the supernment did not dare to refuse it, for it was just beginning to struggle out of the fatal expedition to Mexico, which had cost £14,000,000 of confessed outlay, and nobody knew how much more of unavowed expenses. Considerable diminutions were effected: 2 regiments of heavy cavalry, 32 squadrons of other regiments, and 221 companies of infantry were supMaréchal Niel did, however, make an pressed; 1,268 officers were put on half-effort to introduce a few small improvepay. But the very next year the Sadowa ments into the active army; unfortunatecampaign occurred; France woke up ly the effort did not last - he died in abruptly to a sense of impending danger; 1869; and though after the appearance victory ceased suddenly to seem a certain- of General Trochu's celebrated book in

pression of the eight days of drill, and I add that, without them, we will do the best we possibly can." In this prodigious fashion was established the new force which was to render France a match for Germany! From that time forth the Garde Mobile was counted as representing some 500,000 available soldiers.

1867, a commission had been appointed to | tude of a subordinate, had given him to select a new system of infantry manoeuvres understand that if he made complaints his fitted to the changes which had arisen in promotion would be delayed. It should the art of war, that commission, of course, be added, however, that, thanks to M. declared in substance that no modifica- Blondeau's visit, the condition of this tions were required, and things were kept park was altered before 1870. as they were before.