The Colonial Army, about 33,000 men in all, is formed by voluntary enlistment.
Armament.
The Infantry is armed with the Remington rifle, the Cavalry with sword and Remington carbine. Three sections[21] of each squadron of Lancers carry the lance. The Artillery is armed with cast-steel Krupp guns of 3·15 inches calibre; the Mountain Artillery with those of 2·95 inches. The guns have, however, been altered to Colonel Placentia’s system.
The two Royal Household Companies, Halberdiers, are the only ones who wear the old Spanish dress.
The Spaniard combines the liveliness and hot blood of the southerner with the determination and endurance of the northerner, and would now count as one of the best soldiers in Europe if it were not that, in consequence of the long civil wars and disturbances in the country, he had become somewhat less amenable to discipline than formerly. If an instance is required of what Spaniards can do when fighting for their land and freedom, we have only to look at the guerilla and mountain warfare waged by this plucky nation against the old campaigners of Napoleon at the beginning of this century, before the English troops came to their assistance.
Spain.
