service. After acquitting themselves of service in the line, the volunteers either undergo a military examination of an inferior degree, and pass over to the reserve, or they may pass an officer's examination and become either army officers or reserve officers. Volunteers passing into the reserve, as officers or as privates, remain in the reserve till their 36th year. All other officers leaving the regular army before their 36th year are likewise liable to serve in the reserve to that age. Soldiers belonging to the reserve are exempt from service only in case of illness, or if serving in some other public capacity. All able-bodied men not entering the army, or navy, can in time of war be called out to serve in a militia, to be organised in accordance with the rules announced in an Imperial manifesto. The levies furnished by the Cossacks are regulated by particular treaties; and many half-savage tribes are excused, partly on account of their diminutive size, and partly because of their great aversion to a military life. In 1883, 728,149 young men having reached their 21st year (1.8 per cent. of population), 723,305 were liable to military service. Of these, 187,163 men were taken into the army, 34.5 per cent. of them were married.

Under the law of army organisation the land forces of Russia consist of (a) field troops; (b) fortress troops, for the defence of the fortresses; (c) depôt troops; and (d) auxiliary or special corps. In addition to these, (e) reserve forces are organised during the continuance of peace, and independently of the army being placed on a war footing; and (ƒ) a militia is formed for extraordinary contingencies, if the safety of the country require it. The forces really disposable in time of war will be best seen from the following composition of the army, each battalion having in time of peace 384 armed men (officers, subofficers, and auxiliaries not included), and 864 men in time of war; which figure is reduced in reality to 800 men, the sick and others being taken into account. There are in the field troops-Infantry: 768 battalions (192 regiments, 48 divisions) of infantry; 56 battalions of riflemen (of which 8 Finnish); 33 battalions in Siberia and Turkestan; 4 battalions of Cossacks, and 2 battalions of indigenous troops. Cavalry: 56 regular regiments (4 of cuirassiers, 2 uhlans, 2 hussars, and 48 dragoons), making an aggregate of 328 squadrons; 28 regiments of Cossacks (260 sotnias, or squadrons), all divided into 20 divisions, and all kept in time of peace at the standard of 768 armed men (864 with sub-officers) in each regiment, and 33 squadrons of native cavalry. In time of war only a few harness-horses are added, so that this cavalry can be moved to the Artillery: 51 brigades, of which 3 (15 batteries) in Siberia and Turkestan, containing altogether 303 batteries of 8 guns each; 28 horse-batteries (all men mounted), of 5 to 6 guns each (altogether 150 guns), and 2 batteries in Siberia and Tur

field at once.

kestan; besides 20 batteries, 98 guns, with the Cossack divisions. Forty-eight 'parks' and 20 sections of 'parks' supply each infantry brigade and cavalry division with cartridges. The fortress artillery consists of fifty battalions, distributed as follows: Six battalions at Cronstadt and Novogeorgievsk, five at Sebastopol, four at Litevsk and Ivangorod, three at Kars, two at Viborg, Sweaborg, Dunaburg, Kovno, Warsaw, Kieff, Kertsch, Poti, and Osovitz, and one at Dunamund, Otschakoff, Alexandropol, and Bender. Each battalion is 457 strong when on a peace footing, while the war effective is 1,321. The two parks of siege artillery are at Dunaburg and Kieff, each park consisting of 280 big guns and 120 mortars, and in 1887 each of these parks of artillery was raised to the following strength-12 8-inch guns, 60 heavy 6-inch guns, 144 light 6-inch guns, 116 3-inch guns, and 130 mortars.

During 1884 the engineer corps was reorganised. The peace establishment now consists of 17 battalions of sappers (besides one half-battalion in Turkestan and 3 companies in Siberia and Transcaspian); 8 battalions of pontooners; 17 field telegraph companies, each of which is mounted so as to maintain telegraphic communication for 40 miles, and have 2 stations; 6 engineering parks or trains, each of which has 10 sections, carrying each sufficient tools and material for an infantry division; 4 battalions of military railway engineers, and 2 in the Transcaspian region; 4 mine companies; 2 siege-trains, and 1 telegraph instruction company. The whole is divided into 6 brigades, and provisions are taken for training recruits and supplying the losses during war.

The fortress troops, for the defence of fortresses, consist of 43 battalions of 1,200 men each in time of war, and 9 companies of 300 men each. The depôt troops, for garrison service, consist of 13 battalions and 357 detachments. If mobilised, they supply 33 battalions and about 670 detachments.

The reserve troops supply 109 battalions of infantry, 51 batteries of artillery, and 34 companies of sappers. If all mobilised, they are intended to supply 544 battalions, 56 squadrons, 96 batteries (768 guns), and 34 companies of engineers.

The second reserve, or Zapas,' consists of 'cadres' for instruc tion, organised in time of war. If mobilised, it must supply 204 battalions, 56 squadrons, and 51 batteries with 402 guns. The militia is armed with Berdan rifles, and so reorganised as to be able to have each legion of from 600 to 1,000 men ready to march one month after its being called out. It consists mostly of able-bodied men who have not been called under the colours and have had no military instruction, but partly also from men aged from 36 to 40 who have made the regular service in the army.

The special corps consist of (a) educational and hospital detachments; (b) local artillery and arsenal detachments; (c) railway battalions for building railways in time of peace; and (d) the corps of gendarmes.

The following is an estimate of the present strength of the Russians:

In this table only the staffs in direct command of the troops and the troops themselves have been included. Siege parks, Cossack staffs, bands, &c., have been omitted, so that the table represents the fighting strength of the army.

If the militia (untrained, and levied only in time of war) were added, the total available war forces of Russia would amount to about 3,200,000. A census of horses taken in 1883 in 58 provinces of European Russia gave a total of nearly 15 millions as fit for service in case of necessity.

By the law of December 18, 1878, which came into force on January 1, 1881, personal military service is declared obligatory in Finland. The Finnish troops form nine battalions of riflemen, each with 18 officers and 505 men, and number in all 4,833. In 1886 obligatory military service was extended to the natives of Caucasus, but, according to the law of June 9, 1887, the Mussulman population of Caucasia has had a tax imposed of 528,000 roubles, to be paid from January 1, 1890, instead of the military service.

The military organisation of the Cossacks is in ten great divisions, called Voiskos-Don, Kuban, Terek, Astrakhan, Orenburg, Ural, Siberia, Semirechensk, Transbaikalia, and Amur. Each Voissko furnishes a certain number of regiments, fully armed and equipped, and undergoing constant military exercise, so as to be prepared to enter the field, on being summoned, in the course of ten days. The Cossacks are a race of free men; neither serfage nor any other dependence upon the land has existed among them, except those of Transbaikalia and Amur, who were Crown serfs. The entire territory belongs to the Cossack commune, and every individual has an equal right to the use of the land, together with the pastures, hunting-grounds, and fisheries. The Cossacks pay no taxes to the Government, but in lieu of this they are bound to perform military service. They are divided into three classes, viz., first, the minors or 'Maloletniye,' up to their sixteenth year; secondly, those on actual service, the Sluzhiliye,' for a period of twenty-five years, therefore until their forty-second year; thirdly, those released from service, the 'Otstavniye,' who remain for five years, or until their fortyseventh year, in the reserve, after which period they are regarded as wholly released from service and invalided. Every Cossack is obliged to equip, clothe, and arm himself at his own expense, and to keep his horse. Whilst on service beyond the frontiers of his own country, he receives rations of food and provender, and a small amount of pay. The artillery and train are at the charge of the Government. Instead of imposing taxes on the Don Cossacks, the Russian Government pays them an annual tribute, varying in peace and war, together with grants to be distributed among the widows and orphans of those who have fallen in battle. Their squadrons of cavalry, called sotnyas, contain 145 men, and their batteries are of 6 guns each. The regular or Don Cossacks' war strength is 46,985 officers and men and 47,413 horses; Cossacks of the Kuban, 36,521 men; of the Terek, 8,956 men; of Astrakhan, 1,308 men; of Orenburg, 19,745 men; of the Ural, 7,313 men; of Siberia, 8,919 men; of Semirechensk, 1,971 men; Transbaikal Cossacks, 9,297 men; and Cossacks of the Amur, 2,115 men. The total Cossack force is reckoned in time of war at 13 battalions of infantry, 806 squadrons of cavalry, and 38 batteries of artillery, with 228 guns. In time of peace they represent 4 battalions, 261 squadrons, and 20 batteries with 102 guns. As to the indigenous troops, they form 2 battalions and 26 sotnias in Caucasus, and one rifle company and one-half sotnia in the Crimea for the instruction of Crimean Tartar recruits. In case of need squadrons can be organised of Tartars and Bashkirs.

2. Navy.

The Russian navy consists of two great divisions--the fleet of the Baltic, and that of the Black Sea. Each of these two fleets is again subdivided into sections, of which three are in or near the Baltic, and two in or near the Black Sea. The divisions carry the white, blue, and red flag-an arrangement originating with the Dutch --but without the rank of the admirals being connected with the colour of the flag.

On January 1, 1887, the strength of the various divisions of the Russian navy was returned officially as follows:-I. The Baltic Fleet, comprising 31 completed armour-clads, including 13 low freeboard or coast defence ships, 1 unarmoured frigate, 5 steam corvettes, 2 transports, 11 completed first-class torpedo-boats, and 2 others in construction, 8 clippers, 4 unarmoured cruisers, 1 torpedocruiser, 3 sea-going steamers, 15 gunboats, 5 Imperial yachts, 2 steam transports, 10 schooners, 16 river steamers, 24 steamboats, 1 sailing corvette, and various other sailing craft. II. The Black Sea Fleet, including 3 ironclads (Catherine II., Tchesma, and Sinope), 2 Popoffkas, 1 cruiser (Pamyat Mercuria), 6 gun-boats, 12 armed steamers, 8 steam schooners, 1 torpedo-cruiser (Sacken), 12 torpedo-boats, 1 sailing tender, and various small craft. III. The Caspian Flotilla, consisting of 8 armed and 3 unarmed steamers, and 2 sailing vessels. IV. The Siberian Flotilla, comprising 1 unarmoured clipper, 2 schooners, 4 gunboats all armed, and 5 steamers. The Pacific squadron consisted of 2 armoured ships, Dmitri Danskoi and Duke of Edinburgh; three unarmoured cruisers, Opritchnik (8 heavy guns), Nayezdnik (4 guns), Djigit (3 guns); and 2 gunboats, Bober (2 guns) and Sivutch. Many torpedo-boats, most of them constructed in 1877 and 1878, and of an obsolete type, were excluded from the fleet in 1886.

The ironclad fleet of Russia, comprising 39 vessels, 2 of which are building 32 in the Baltic and 7 in the Black Sea-was made up, at the end of 1887, of the following ships (see pp. 432, 433). The number of guns is exclusive of pieces of small calibre and mitrailleuses.

Until 1886, the most powerful vessel completed for the Russian ironclad fleet was the mastless turret-ship Peter the Great, constructed in the dock-yard of St. Petersburg, and launched in 1872. She resembles in design and construction the great mastless turretships of the British navy, more especially the Dreadnought, though of larger size, its length being 330 feet, and extreme breadth 631 feet. The Peter the Great carries two turrets. The engines originally