There is an average of sixty or seventy candidates yearly. Only forty of these can be taken. If some additional case seems meritorious, the officer may obtain a promise of appointment, but his entrance is deferred. It is not uncommon to try more than once.
The entrance examination passed, the school opens on the 1st of October, to continue its lectures, with a fortnight’s break at Christmas and at Easter, till the first of June. It has its 120 pupils, divided into their three classes, one for each year, working (with only little of practical work) under professors, military for the lectures of a military, and civil for those of a non-military character. No difficulty, we understood, is found here, as we had heard to be the case at St. Cyr, in enforcing the fullest attention to the lectures of the civilian professors; each is respected according to his knowledge of the subject, and it would be thought as absurd for a military professor to undertake a non-professional subject, as vice versâ.
The method of working is that so commonly followed in the Prussian universities of listening to numerous lectures, and taking copious notes upon them. Nearly five hours daily, from eight in the morning till one, are often continuously occupied in this manner; for although only twenty hours of attendance are absolutely exacted weekly (an amount which to our own students would seem more than ample) ten more are said to be necessary to enable an officer to do any justice to the various subjects of which he is expected to show some knowledge at his examinations.
These lectures are usually read aloud; there is no questioning and answering. The student, after five morning hours, must spend at least five or six more in copying them out, or in writing an essay on the subject of some of the lectures. Of these one is given about every three weeks, but only on military subjects. They are carefully corrected and sent back to the student with the notes of his teacher, and their merit influences the final estimate of his whole work.
Besides this daily work, the examinations are at once a stimulus and a means of testing proficiency. These occur every three months, but the yearly ones are the most important. They are entirely upon paper. In the quarterly ones the papers are only given for two hours at a time daily, and take the place of two common lectures; in the other examinations they are daily for four or five hours. They are entirely essays upon the numerous subjects lectured on in the school, History of War, Philosophy, Tactics, &c.
Perhaps there is no better way of giving an idea of the mode of studying than by a statement of some of the subjects of these essays. They have been supplied to us by the kindness of Lieutenant Berger, of the 28th Infantry, from whom we have received much valuable information on the subject.
General Essays.
On Tactics:—I. A Prussian Division, added to which is,—
1 Regiment of Infantry,
1 twelve pounder Battery,