Army Life in Russia

SKETCHES OF Army Life in Russia

PREFACE

A YEAR ago, in "The Russian Army and its Campaigns in Turkey in 1877-78/' I endeavored to explain to military readers the organization of the Russian army, to narrate the events of the war I had been sent to observe, and to state certain pro- fessional conclusions which that war justified. In the following pages I have attempted to give a few sketches, which, crude and imperfect as they are, may yet serve to give some idea of the soul which animates the Russian military machine, and tell what manner of man the Russian soldier is, and how he lives and moves and has his being.

To analyse the characteristics of a large body of men is always a difficult matter, and, moreover, in writing publicly of a people from whom the greatest kindness and hospitality have been received, one runs the risk either of offending those who have bestowed this kindness, by giving too great promi- nence to unpleasant truths, or else of being false to thepublic which is addressed, by stating only the virtues of the people described. I have certainly had no intention of limiting myself to the latter, and I hope I have not been indiscreet in stating the former. Should these sketches ever come to the notice of those who treated me as one of them- selves during the campaign in Turkey, I feel sure they will see that whatever I have written in crit- icism of their countrymen is wholly free from malice, and is only what I have often said to them and they to me in friendly conversation ; and they need have no fear of having it made public. If I have not shown the Russian soldier to be above all manly, generous, and warm-hearted, then I have certainly failed to transcribe the picture of him which re- mains in my own mind, and have done injustice to a people whose hospitality to individual Americans is no less conspicuous than their unvarying friendship for the United States as a nation.

Washington, June, 1880.

CONTENTS CHAPTER

I. The Tsar

II. The Russian Soldier

III. Shipka Pass

IV. Plevna

V. The Winter Campaign

VI. Russian Generals

VII. War Correspondents

VIII. Constantinople

IX. St. Petersburg

X. The Eastern Question

SKETCHES OF Army Life in Russia. CHAPTER I. THE TSAR.

In attempting to give any description of the characteristics of the Russian Army, one naturally begins with the Tsar, who is at once the head and the object of the whole organization. It is in Rus- sia alone, of all civilized countries, that at this day we find the idea of personal allegiance existing in its primitive purity, undisturbed by the tendencies of modern representative government. This personal allegiance is the corner-stone of the whole fabric of society in Russia, and it has been strengthened rather than weakened by the changes which have taken place in the development of the country since the time of Peter the Great.

In other coun- tries the soldier fights for his country, for the idea that is so clearly crystallized in the German motto " Fur Gott und Vaterland " but the Russian soldier fights for God and the Tsar. To his mind the Tsar is specially appointed by God as his Viceroy to govern that large portion of the earth called Russia, and devotion to the Tsar includes all that we understand in the word patriotism.

I arrived at the little Bulgarian village of Biela, where the Emperor was then quartered, on the afternoon of August 5, 1877. Winding my way through the crooked little streets I inquired for the Emperor's headquarters, and finally reached a court- yard surrounded by a fenc

be the aide-

de-camp on duty, stating my name and position, and asking him to send my card in to the Minister ofWar. Hepolitelyinvitedmetoentertheyard, took my card, and quickly returned to say that the minister would be out in a few minutes, and would present me to the Emperor before dinner which was about to be served. I was covered with the dust of a ride of twenty-four consecutive hours across the parched plains of Roumania in a telega,* and I was somewhat appalled at the idea of being pre- sented in such a condition ; but, on asking if it were not possible for me to wash my hands and face, I was assured with a good-natured laugh that there would not be time, but I need give myself no un- easiness as it was a daily occurrence for some aide- de-camp or other officer to arrive covered with dirt just at dinner time. Wiping off a part of the dust from my face with a handkerchief, I looked about the place where the Emperor of Russia was quar- tered. It was a plain little courtyard, about a hun- dred feet across, on one side of which was a small one-story house built partly of wood and partly of mud, in which the Minister of War and his office were quartered. Opposite this was an immense tent, formed of three hospital tents joined end to end, in which were tables set for dinner. At one side, partly concealed by a little hedge, were two ordinary officers' tents in which the Emperor lived. In the courtyard, officers of various ranks, ministers, generals, aide-de-camps, officers of the escort, etc., were beginning to assemble.

I was introduced to a number of them, and presently to the Minister of War, with whom I was talking when the Emperor appeared. Every one stopped, faced in the direc- tion of the Emperor's tents, cracked his heels to- gether, and carried his hands to his cap to salute. The Emperor was dressed in an ordinary general's undress uniform without the sword. He walked slowly, coming from behind the hedge in front of his tents, stopped to say something to the men com- posing the band of music, who replied with a simultaneous shout, and then came among the officers, bowing in return to their salutes and extending his hand to some of them, who acknowledged the favor by loyally kissing his shoulder. I was immediately taken up by the Minister of War and presented. The Emperor asked a few questions concerning my journey, etc., and then motioned to dinner. In ac- cordance with the invariable Russian custom, there was a side table containing Vodka and other bran- dies and whiskies, cheese, caviare, small fishes fried inoil,andotherappetizers. Afterpartakingofthis preliminary meal, known as " zakooska," we went into the dining tent where there were two long tables containing about eighty places. The Em- peror sat at the middle of one of these ; on his right a white-headed veteran, General Suwaroff, Prince Italiisky, grandson of the famous one whose deeds at Ismail are familiar to all readers of Byron ; on his left General Milutin, Minister of War, and on either side of them other generals in the order of their rank. Opposite the Emperor sat General Von Werder, Military Agent of Germany, and on either side of him a Roumanian officer just arrived, and —— myself the only three foreign officers present and beyond us other Russian officers. As we sat down the band struck up an air outside the tent, and continued playing at intervals throughout the dinner. The service was of silver, the cups lined with gold, and each piece bore the imperial cipher and the letter N. It evidently was not new, and had in fact seen service in the war of 1828 with the Emperor Nicholas. The servants wore the crown livery of dark blue coats, bordered with gold fringe, covered with double-headed eagles embroidered in black silk, but otherwise the surroundings of the table were of the plainest.

The dinner was simple, soup, joint, entree, compote and coffee, and a small allowance of the light wines of France and Germany. France and Germany. Conversation was general and unrestrained, principally concerning the inci- dents of Gourko's first passage of the Balkans from which one or two aides had just returned. Just after the compote (preserved peaches or some other fruit) was finished there seemed to be a silence, when the Emperor said something in Russian and the whole company responded with one loud simultaneous shout. I looked up startled and saw the Emperor staring at me and laughing very heartily at my confusion. He explained that it was the signal for smoking, and that I must learn to answer withtheothers. ThewordswereVweenemaipah-h-h- to which every one answered tronn; vweenemai patronn being the Russian command "Take cartridges." After this little pleasantry every one produced from his pocket his silver cigarette case, lighted a cigarette, and smoked, and sipped his coffee. Candles were then lighted, and a large package was brought and placed before a gray- headed old courtier, Count Adlerberg, the Minister of the Court, who immediately began reading the comments of the various newspapers of London, Paris, Berlin and Vienna upon the progress of the war. Thesewerearticleswhichhadbeencarefully selected by an official of the Foreign office present at headquarters, from the files of papers brought the previous day by a courier. They had all been trans- lated into French, and were read off in a monotonous tone. Occasionally there was an interjection at some opinion favorable or unfavorable to the Rus- sian cause, and a slight discussion at the termination of some of the articles, but most of them were re- ceived in silence though listened to with attention.

It seemed to me, fresh from the bustling rough and ready world of America, where people read their own newspapers, a strange scene.

The autocratic ruler of eighty-seven millions of people, scattered over a territory comprising one- fifth of the inhabited portion of the entire surface of the earth, sitting here in a tent in a rude village of a foreign land, whither he had come to free his fellow christians from the yoke of bondage to their hereditary enemies, surrounded by his ministers and generals, and listening to the news from the outside world and the opinions formed in the editorial rooms of newspaper offices !

We had news from England, then from Austria, from Germany, from France. IalmostwonderedwhetherIwasreallyin the midst of the every-day bustling life of the 19th century, or whether I was not assisting at some slightly varied rehearsal of one of Shakspeare's plays, so thoroughly medieval did the scene appear tome. Afterthenewshadallbeenreadtherewas a little conversation, and then the Emperor rose to leave the table. Every one stood up to salute him, and he passed along saying a word or two to this orthatperson. Ashepassedmehestoppedand said he supposed I wished to join the army and see the active I that such was operations. replied my 'desire, with his permission. He then said with a certain emphasis that his brother had the entire command of the army, he himself being only a spectator ; that his brother was expected here in a few days, and that I could then make arrangements to return with him to the army headquarters proper.