ADDENDUM TO FRANCE.

[Pp. 46, 47]. Now that the new law has come into force, July 1890, the terms of service have been entirely changed. As the law now stands, seven-tenths of the annual contingent of recruits have to serve for 3 years, and three-tenths for 1 year. After his colour-service, a man joins the Active Reserve for 7 (or 9) years, then the Territorial Army for 6 years, and after that the Territorial Reserve for 9 years more—total 25 years.

312,000 youths reach the military age (20) every year. Of these only 174,000 are required for colour-service. The effect of the new law will be that by 1915 A.D. there will be no fewer than 3,500,000 of Frenchmen properly trained as soldiers and ready to take the field, and 60,000 trained men per annum will have been added to the army!

N.B.—The war-strength of over 4,000,000 given on [page 47] includes all men, old and young, who have ever received any military training, and is therefore hardly a just estimate of the French fighting-strength. The latest trustworthy estimates put it at 2,790,000 men.

[P. 49]. The Cavalry is now, or will be very shortly, composed of 92 regiments of 5 squadrons, and 4 regiments of Spahis of 6 squadrons each—total, 484 squadrons.

They consist of

14RegimentsofCuirassiers,
34””Dragoons,
22””Chasseurs à Cheval,
14””Hussars,
8””Chasseurs d’Afrique,
4””Spahis.

Total, 96 regiments.

[P. 49]. 12 Mountain Batteries are being formed. There are, in addition to the numbers given, 12 batteries in Corsica, Algeria, and Tunis.