THE ZULU ARMY.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume XIV, Issue 111, 10 May 1879, Page 4

THE ZULU ARMY.

The Zulu army, which may be estimated at &om 40,0qq to .0,000 men,

is composed of tbo entire nation capable of bearing arms. The method employed in recruiting its ranks is as follows :— • At short intervals, varying from two to five year. , all the young men who have during that time attainI ed the age of 14 or 15 years are formed into a regiment, which, after a year's probation, during which they are supposed to pass frotn boyhood and its duties to manhood, is placed at a military kraal or head. quarters. In some cases they are sent to an already existing kraal, which is tbe bead-quarters of a corps or regiment, of which tbey then become part ; in others, especially when the young regiment is numerous, they btiild a new military kraal. As the regiment grows old it generally has one or more regiments embodied with it, so that the young men may have the benefit of their elders' experience, and when the latter gradually die out, may take their place and beep up the name and prestige of their military kraal. Ia this manner corps are formed, often many thousands strong— such, for instance, aa the Undi. Under this system, then, the Zulu array has gradually increased, until at present it consists of twelve corps and two regiments, each possessing its own military kraal. Tbe corps necessarily contain men of all ages, some being married and wearing the head-ring, others unmarried ; some being old men scarcely able to walk, while others are hardly out of their teens. Indeed, five of these corps are now composed of a single regiment each, which has absorbed the original but practically non-existent regiment to which it has been affiliated. Each of these fourteen corps or regiments has the internal formation. They are in the first place divided equally into two wings— the right and the left —and in the second are subdivided into companies from t$D to 200 in number, according to the numerical strength of the corps or regiment to which they belong, and which is estimated in the accompanying table of fifty men each, with the exception of the Nkobamakosi regiment, which averages seventy men to the company. Each corps or regiment, possessing its own military kraal, has the following officers : — One commanding officer (called the induna yesibaya 'sikulu), one second in command (called the induna yohlangoti), who directly commands the left wing ; and two wing officers (called the induna yesicamelo yesibaya 'sikulu, and the induna yesicamelo yohlangoti) Besides the above there are company officers, consisting of a captain, and from one to three junior officers, all of whom are of the same age as the men they command, while in the case of a commanding officer of each regiment composing ifc takes rank nest to its four great officers when he is himself not of them. The chief distinction is between married and unmarried men. No one in Zululand, male or female, is permitted to marry without the direct permission of the King, and when he allows a regiment to do so, which is not before the men are about 40 years of age, they have to shave tbe crown of the head, and to put a ring round it, and they become one of the " white " regiments, carrying white shields, &c, in contra-dtstiuetion to tbe " black " or unmarried regiments, who wear their hair naturally, and have colored shields. The total number of regiments in the Zulu army is 33 : of whom 18 are formed with rings on

their heads, and 15 of unmarried men. Seven of the former are comoosed of men over 60 years of age, so that for practical purposes there are not more than 20 Zulu regiments able to take the field, numbering altogether 40,400. Of these 22,500 are between 20 and 30 years of age, 10,000 between 30 and 40, 3,400 between 40 and 50, and 4,500 between 50 and 60 years of age. From which it w iH be seen the mortality in Zululand is unusually rapid. Drill— in the ordinary acceptation of the term — is unknown among tbe Zulus ; the few simple movements which tbey perform with any method, such as forming a circle of companies or regiments, breaking into companies or regiments from the circle, forming a line of march in order of companies, or in close order of regiments, not being deserving of the name, The officers have, however, their regulated duties and responsibilities, according to their rank, and the men lend a ready obedience to their orders. As might be expected, a savage army like that of Zululand neither has nor requires much commissariat or transport. The former consists of three or four days' provisions, in the shape of maize or millet, and a herd of cattle, proportioned to tbe distance to be traversed, accompanies each regiment. The latter consists of a number of lads who follow each regiment, carrying the sleeping mats, blankets, and provisions, and assisting to drive the cattle.