RUSSIA’S RESERVES.

Taihape Daily Times, Volume 8, Issue 104, 3 May 1916, Page 6

RUSSIA’S RESERVES.

INCREASE OF FORCES. SEVERAL MILLION MORE MEN. The progress made in utilising Russia’s splendid manhood for the army notably in respect of the organisation of reserve formations, is described by the Petrograd correspondent of the Times. He says that a marked improvement is noticeable in the supply of trained subalterns. To illustrate this statement he mentions that there are from 25,000 to 30,000 additional subalterns annually from one of several sources of snpply. It may safely be asserted that the Russian army no longer suffers from any deficiency of young officers. If the supply of •ifles could keep pace Avith the supply of men Russia could place several additonal million trained men in the field at once. The correspondent adds:

‘While visiting the Olonets infantry I was shoAvn a card recieved from the sergeants’ mess of a British regiment bearing the same number and dated “Depot, West Yorkshires.’ The exact nature of the missive Avas uriknoAvn until my arrival, as none of the officers Avere conversant Avith English, but they guessed it, and the Avhole regiment was hugely pleased that their British comrades had remembered them. One officer said to me, ‘we Avere then expecting to go into action, and I can tell you .this card immensely bucked us up.” “The exchange of kindly messages between the allied regiments initiated some years ago betAveen the French and Russian armies should be revived, and would certainly be much appreciated. It would be better still if regiments exchanged officers. Scarcely any of the uits I visited during the past three weeks has ever seen a British uniform. Almost nothing is known here about cur army. The Russian neAvspapers are uninformed and are practically not available. We ought to send some officers knowing Russian to serve with the regiments and invite an exchange of Russian officers knowing English. “Prisoners here have been saying for some time past that it is long since they had tasted sugar or eaten their fill of bread. They do not knoAV fresh meat or hot food, being sustained almost entirely by tinned foods. The Austrians unanimously testify that their services are exhausted, and even railway men of serviceable ages are being enrolled, their places being taken by older men. The comparison betAveen the conditions in the respective camps is sufficiently great to Avarrant the fullest confidence in our eventual success in this theatre.”