It is not difficult to understand course has been adopted Duke Nicholas, the commander-in-chief, It is obvious that trained troops are of more value than reserves, and as Russia and Japan have come to an amicable understanding in their Far Eastern policy, a Railway Brigade composed of reservists is considered sufficient to cope with any eventualities that may occur in Northern Manchuria. One battalion, composed of the unfit and sick men from each of the present regiments, will be left, behind, and reserves from Russia and Siberia, who were called to the colours but not drafted into regiments on account of their being already up to war strength, will be brought into Manchuria to make up the quantity of men required for the safeguarding of the railway according to the Treaty of Portsmouth, and if there is then any deficiency no doubt mobilization of reservists will take place in the Chinese Eastern Railways and these reservists will be stationed along the Railway line.
The present Railway Brigade is composed of six infantry regiments and six cavalry regiments, so that, even leaving out of consideration the artillery and engineers,. when brought up to war strength—which in the Russian army is 4,000 men to an infantry regiment and about half this amount to a cavalry regiment—it forms a very formidable force, thoroughly efficient in every way and of far more value than new re-fruits or aged reservists.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.