of information may know its events more correctly than officers who were actually present, being limited (as a man must necessarily be) to one part of the field at a time, and, if a regimental officer, to one part of the field altogether. This rather improbable fact is curiously proved by an anecdote in the life of the great German historian Niebuhr : he was one day discussing with some friends the details of the great defeat of the Prussians at Jena; the battle, you will recollect, which laid Prussia at the feet of the French Emperor. Two officers were present who had been engaged in different parts of the field; both flatly contradicted the historian as regards some movement which he asserted had taken place at a certain time; a statement based, if I remember right, upon the formation of the ground on the field. Splendid as was Nicbuhr's historical knowledge, his geographical was more marvelous still, and both were here called into court at once. An arbiter must be appointed. Would the disputants submit to the decision of the military archives at the Berlin war-office? The officers-how could they otherwise?-consented most readily. Notes were made by third parties of the points in dispute, the Prussian records of

the battle consulted, and their evidence was decisive in favor of the historian. The officers had viewed the scene with eyesight limited in scope and half-blinded with the smoke of musketry and artillery. The historian surveyed the field with all the aid that could be supplied by many eye-witnesses of the struggle at various points, by general orders, dispatches, adjutant-generals' and quartermaster-generals' returns; in a word, he had amassed that knowledge for his own personal information, which you will I trust amass of many a great battle to enable you to become a first-rate officer.

I have spoken mostly hitherto of the knowledge to be gained from books. As my evidence on books may appear partial, hear what an old officer, Sir C. Napier, writes to a young officer-the warrior of forty-five years' hard service to an ensign: "Whether a regiment be in good or bad order, it ought not to affect a young man of sense, because by reading professional books you will discover what is faulty in your corps, if faults there are; you will then learn how things ought to be, and will by daily observation see how they are. Thus you can form your comparisons, which will in time teach you your profession. I hope your regiment is in

good order; but if not, take care that your company or section is, when you are intrusted with one. Keep up all knowledge that you have gained, and gain as much more as you can. By reading, you will be distinguished; without it, abilities are of little use. A man may talk and write, but he cannot learn his profession without constant study to prepare, especially for the higher ranks, because he then wants the knowledge and experience of others improved by his own. But when in a post of responsibility he has no time to read; and if he comes to such a post with an empty skull, it is too late to fill it, and he makes no figure. Thus many people fail to distinguish themselves, and say they are unfortunate, which is untrue: their own previous idleness unfitted them to profit from fortune. The smith who has to look for his hammer when the iron is red strikes too late the hammer should be uplifted to fall like a thunderbolt while the white heat is in the metal. Thus will the forging prosper." And this, remember, is the language of a man as original as he was well read.

I

V.

TO A PUPIL ENTERING THE ARMY.

HAVE written at greater length concerning

the many lessons to be learned from books, because these are, from some unaccountable reason, so distasteful to many young men nowadays; and yet think how unreasonable is your dislike. You would sit and listen by the hour together to the Duke of Wellington or the Napiers, or any great soldier recounting the narrative of his campaigns; and what else are their dispatches, or diaries, or biographies, but conversations or lectures? lacking indeed all the life of personal narration, but even superior in accuracy and carefulness and fullness of narrative.

There is, however, a large class of subjects where study and experiment must go hand in hand-such as chemistry, all the applied mathematics, and the physical sciences, and one other study of the deepest importance to a young officer; it is certainly a dull

one, but to every officer and soldier of the greatest moment, and can happily be studied, not only in books, but also by actual observation and experience. I have spoken of all studies, except history, as more or less useful: history is no doubt essential to an officer. You may or may not be a linguist, draughtsman, mechanician, chemist, or engineer. So much the better if you are any or all of these; but remember, a judge you must be. You will again and again be called on to decide on questions affecting the liberty, the honor, and perhaps the life of your fellow-soldiers. Now I am sure you are far too kind and high principled not to wish to do your very best when on a court-martial; and I am equally sure that the thought that you had voted an unjust sentence would cause you bitter regret, and perhaps lasting remorse. But don't think that kind-heartedness and high principle can teach you how to weigh and estimate evidence: study and experience will alone do that. Apropos of study versus good intentions, there is an amusing anecdote of Simeon, the leader of the Low-Church party at Cambridge for many years. How a young clergyman who belonged to his school came to visit him after a year's experience of parish-work, lamenting