Liang Kiang provinces, reports the advisability of forming a Military Academy and a school for instruction in the science of Railway building to be connected with the first named establishment as an adjunct. Memorialist had been led to inaugurate the two institutions from the fact of the organisation by him of The Ad Astra Brigade, consisting of picked young men trained to become cavalry, infantry, and artilierymen and sappers and miners, under German instructors, concerning which a memorial had already been sent to the Throne and approved of by his Majesty. China is sadly in want of trained material to resist the aggressiveness of outside nations and the reason why Germany's armies are superior to those of other European countries is due to the fact that every man in the former country is a soldier whilst those who have shown superior knowledge in their duties and clever talents are made officers. Not a single "officer in the German armies but has graduated from some military academy or other. Hence the superiority of Germany over others. If China desires to be strong she must follow these lines and encourage every military man to study at military academies like those in Germany. To do so academies must be established throughout the whole—the more the better. Ten yearsago itary academy was established in Tientsin. At that time memorialist was Viceroy of the Two Kuang provinces, and also followed the example of the Peiyang authorities by establishing similar academy at Canton, Although the number of graduates turned out by the two institutions named above is but Jimited yet opportunity has been taken to utilise their services by using them officers in the new German-drilled brigade (Ad Astra) organised recently by the: memorialist and already reported to the Throne in a former memorial, Even if it should turn out that the graduates above noted be nut thoroughly fitted for their new posts, yet with the foundation already grounded in them they would be able to better ther knowledge much faster with their new instructors than would have happened in the case of young officers who have had no proper training before. That these academies have borne good fruit, however, cannot denied and the young graduates have already proved their efficiency in more instances than one of Jate years. But two academies are not sufficient for China ior even three, and it remains for the government to establish as many as possible for the empire which needs them to withstand the aggressions of outsiders in the future. There is already a naval academy established at Nanking and memorialist has decided therefore to establish a military academy at the Yifeny gate of the same city, spaciously Inid out and constructed after German methods. Memorialist. has already telegraphed to Hit Ching-cheng, our minister at Berlin, to engage five Professors of military science to take charge of the new academy. The cadets will all be above twelve and under nineteen years of age, chosen for their brightness, physique, and an average knowledge of the written language, and the limit will be 150 boys to commence with. The school will be divided into cavalry, infantry, artillery (horse and foot), engineering, and fortifications classes, and strategy and tactics will be carefully taught in the academy. Two years will be devoted to preliminary studies and drills peculiar to each of the above classes, and the third year will be mainly occupied in the practical study of artillery in all ita branches. German will also be taught in order to enable the graduates to keep up their knowledge by reading any new German military books and inventions that may in the future be published. At the end of the third year a grand examination will be held and commissions in the army distributed to each graduate, according to their various merits. The amount required to lay out the parade grounds, etc., and the building of dormitories and' recitation rooms fr the new academy will be over Tls. 40,000, and this sum will be furnished from the Kiangnan Military Defence Administration's treasury. The annual expenditure will also be something over Tls. 40,000. As railways will be a portion of the strategic defences of the empire, motorialist intends to form an adjunct to the academy of a school for the study of railway engineering and construction. In foreign countries there are various Boards similar in fanctions and authority to the Six Boards of China, Amongst these a minister of the highest class is
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.