Soldiers dancing in barracks - Public domain book illustration

Русский: Солдаты танцуют в бараках
English: Soldiers dancing in barracks. Painted by Frédéric de Haenen
Identifier: russia00dobsrich (find matches)
Title: Russia;
Year: 1913 (1910s)
Authors: Dobson, George Grove, Henry M Stewart, Hugh, 1884-1934 Haenen, F. de
Subjects: Soviet Union -- Description and travel
Publisher: London, A. and C. Black
Contributing Library: University of California Libraries
Digitizing Sponsor: MSN



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first sight this seems wonderfully little to givein exchange for all these years of free tuition, boardand lodging. However, when the young officer, atthe age of twenty-six or twenty-seven, has put inhis six years of service, and he is free to leave thearmy, the question comes up. What is he to do ?He has received a special education, which fits himonly to be an officer ; he is worse educated than hiscompeers who studied in an ordinary school, as somuch of his time was taken up with military sub-jects ; in a word, the difficulties of starting afreshin civil life are so innumerable that nearly all stayon as officers. Thus the supply of officers isguaranteed. However, these youngsters, who arethus dedicated by their parents to be future officers,undoubtedly, as they arrive at years of discretion,are not all keen to be officers. Their wishes werenever consulted, and undoubtedly many of themwould never have wished to enter the army. How-ever, there they are, nolens volcns, and there, as I
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SOLUIKIIS UANCINC. IN BAURACKS CUSTOMS AND INSTITUTIONS 265 have described before, they find they ha\T to remain.So they stay on and serve. Tliey have no exami-nations to pass, promotion comes reguhirly everyfour years, orders and honours follow continually,so they stay on. But between staying on and takingan active interest in your work is a great step; and itstands to reason that a man who finds himself in apost which supports him, though he does not likeit, and cannot see his way to procure congenial work,must stick to what he has ; but he is not likely totrouble himself much, or to be keen in studying theprofession in which he takes no interest whatever.Under this system of recruiting officers it stands toreason there must be a large proportion of theofficers who come under this category. The Russian Army—though, naturally, nearly allof its officers are gentry by birth—does not pre-clude the private soldier from rising and distin-guishing himself. SkobelefFs father started as