In Chapter XXIII. of Volume I. I told you that the French began their raid upon Alsace on August 7, 1914. At this time some of the Liége forts were still holding out, and the great German advance through Belgium had not yet begun. As the French were able to push into the enemy's country thus early in the war, you may imagine that they were quite ready for action before Belgium was overrun. Not, however, until August 22 were their preparations so far advanced that they could begin the business of war in real earnest.
Before I tell you the story of the first real battle of the war, let us learn something of the French army. In Chapters IV. and V. of Volume I. you read an account of the little man, with the pale face and cold blue eyes, who made France the greatest fighting nation of the world. He became, you will remember, master of continental Europe, and his legions marched in triumph through Berlin, Vienna, Naples, Madrid, Lisbon, and Moscow. He taught the art of war to all Europe, and France under his rule rose to the highest pinnacle of military glory.
When Napoleon fell, Frenchmen turned in loathing from the work of war. They remembered the awful waste of life and the terrible misery which had resulted from his campaigns, and they longed for peace, during which they might build up the nation anew. The French army, therefore, became a mere shadow of what it had been formerly. Under Napoleon III., however, there was a revival of military spirit. His army, as you know, fought well in the Crimea[1] and in Italy,[2] but it suffered hopeless defeat in the war of 1870-1 against the Germans.[1] The French took to heart the fearful lessons of this war, and began almost at once to put their military house in order.
In 1872 they passed a law which was supposed to compel every young man to serve as a soldier for twenty years—five years with the colours, and then four years in the Reserve; five years in the Territorial Army, and six years in the Territorial Reserve. But this law was not fully enforced. The men called up each year were divided by lot into two groups, and one of these groups, in time of peace, was let off with only one year's service in the Regular Army. Whole classes of persons, such as breadwinners and teachers, were free from service altogether, and any man could escape with one year's training by paying a certain sum of money. This plan proved very unsatisfactory, and in 1889 a new law was passed by which every young man was forced to serve twenty-five years—three years with the colours, seven years in the Reserve, six years in the Territorial Army, and nine years in the Territorial Reserve. By this means France hoped to raise her total number of trained men to 3,000,000.
Up to the year 1893 France and Germany had about the same number of soldiers on a peace footing; but very soon Germany began to forge ahead, chiefly because her population grew so rapidly. Soon it was clear that France could not hope to raise so large an army as Germany; so in 1897 she made an alliance with Russia, by which each Power agreed to take part in the other's quarrel if either of them should be attacked. In 1905 France again altered her army law by reducing the time of service with the colours to two years, and by increasing the period of service with the Reserve to eleven years. But even this arrangement did not give her all the soldiers which she needed; so in 1913 she decreed that every Frenchman found fit for service must join the colours at the age of twenty, spend three years in the Regular Army, eleven years in the Regular Reserve, seven years in the Territorial Army, and seven in the Territorial Reserve. Thus every strong and able-bodied Frenchman became liable for military service from his twentieth to his forty-eighth year. Roughly speaking, this new law enabled France to put into the field, a month or so after the beginning of war, about 4,000,000 trained men. This gave her a first line army of about 1,500,000, a second line of about 500,000, and a reserve of about 2,000,000. Germany feared that this new law would so strengthen France that she and Russia combined would be more than a match for her; and one of the reasons why she declared war on August 1, 1914, was to crush the French before the new arrangement could come into full working order.
Recruits in the Streets of Paris. Photo, Sport and General.
Every year in the month of February a Council sits in Paris and in the provinces, and before it all youths of twenty must appear to pass the doctor. If they are found "bon pour le service," they are told what regiment they must join and the place where they are to undergo their training, and in the following October they join their depots. Frequently the young men so chosen pin big paper favours on their coats and hats, and, thus decorated, march about the streets. Outside the hall in which the Council is sitting there are almost sure to be a number of stalls loaded with these blue, white, and red decorations.
When the young soldier arrives at the barracks he is given three suits of clothes, one of which is his drill dress, another his walking-out dress, and the third his war dress. These clothes he keeps on a shelf above his bed, and he so arranges his garments that the French colours, blue, white, and red, are clearly seen. In summer he rises at 4 a.m., and in winter at 6 a.m., and he goes to bed at 9 p.m. all the year round, except when he is on sentry-go, or has permission to stay out late. Every day the barrack-room is inspected, to see that the beds are properly made, that the men's clothes are in good order, and that the room is clean and tidy. The "little breakfast," which consists of coffee and a roll, is served at 5 a.m.; lunch is eaten at ten o'clock, and dinner at five. The meals usually consist of soup, meat, vegetables, and fruit. On great occasions wine is supplied, and cigars are handed round. The conscript's pay consists of one sou (a halfpenny) a day, and his tobacco. Some of the men receive money from their parents and friends; others have to make shift on the trifling allowance which the Government gives them.