Show BLOATED ARMAMENTS latterly in consequence of the huge armies which are maintained by the ibe different powers it has been the custom to speak of europe as a great I 1 military encampment since the the date of the great franco german war the tendency has been steady toward increased armaments the rivalry has haa been and the result is that armies and navies davies have grown to such an extent that peace has become greatly more expensive than war was wont to be most people have a general idea of the bulk of these armaments but only a very few have any anything thina like an accurate conc conception eDtl on of the actual condition of affairs prom from a well prepared table based upon the most recent official documents and declarations just published we give some figures which will enable our read era to form an idea of the enormous strength of the finales armies of europe figures are at hand also regarding the navies of europe but for the present we shall confine ourselves to besent the e pu purely rely military aspect of the question for the sake of convenience we put the figures covering the different grades of the armed forces of the different nations in tabular form war second rinal final strength sorves germany prance france 1 russia 2 italy austria turkey balkan states total the column headed war strength shows the approximate number of men disposable for offensive purposes in the event of the outbreak of war in 1889 the second column headed second reserves shows the approximate number of men wha in the event of an n outbreak of war would join the colors but remain at home unless circumstances required them at the front the third column headed final reserves shows the number of men who in addition to the above would be available for defensive pir purposes poses in the event of invasion the men in the first and second columns are all of them trained soldiers who have served with the colors in the last column many but not all of the men are also veterans these figures speak for themselves here we have a mass of men in numbers equal to oe he population ru no of a first class state all trained ain and equipped for or battle and ready at any moment to obey the call and take the field in the next great war which in the estimation of many competent judges is extremely liable to become general there is the possibility of some twenty eight millions of europeans being engaged en ed of these more than two thir thirds lawre are now engaged in civil pursuits u rs u its with the outbreak of war fh they aey would wo uld be hurried from the office the field and the workshop and commercial manufacturing abad and agricultural interests would be virtually paralyzed to illustrate more clearly what would happen pe n let us take the german em empire ire the population lation is estimated estimate T at 90 aku of this number about axe are females and the calculation cu lation la is that about males taking into account 14 infancy fancy old age and physical unfitness are of no use for war purposes these deductions being made the able bodied persons available for service in camp and barrack are reduced to about more than one fourth of these would have to don their uniforms and abandon their civil occupations the moment war was declared and in the event of an entrance having been effected by the enemy on german territory more than one half would have to join the colors what would happen in germany would happen in each of the other countries russia ex cepter reasoning from the basis thus laid down one half of the able bodied men of germany france italy austria turkey and the balkan abates states are at the present moment held in readiness for arms it is no exaggeration when the general situation is thus looked at to speak of the european continent as an armed camp prom from some returns which have been prepared for the information of the austrian war office om ce we get an idea of the marvelous rapidity with which some of the states can now mobilize their armies and rush them to and across their frontiers in the event of war breaking out suddenly or absolutely sol without any warning what could germany do in seventy two hours she could have men full fully equipped on french soil and at ge the end of seven days this number would be increased to she could in three days put men upon russian soil and in the same space of time she could plant in austria what could austria do she could in three days carry troops into russia russia is not so well prepared for rapid movement but it if is calculated that she I 1 could bring to the A austrian frontier in three days 25 men and bythe by the end of seven days prance france is already well prepared a red for rapid movement and str she e er Is s about to increase her railroad facilities in the direction of the northeast already she could it is thought carry men to the frontier in three days and within a week when the new arrangements shall have been completed the calculation is that these figures will be increased to and respectively of course calculations eions may fail and accidents may m mar the success of the best laid plans it is reasonable to conclude that the cost of these vast armies must be something fearful the annual cost of the whole Js is estimated at one hundred and twenty million pounds sterling during the last seventeen years the preparations for the great war that is yet to come have cost the powers not under fifteen hundred millio millions ns F sterling such a state of thin things is a disgrace to this christian nineteenth e century new york matt mail and express |