6 APRIL 1944, Page 22

WE have here a translation of the first part of

the memoirs of a Russian soldier who began his career as an officer in. the Tsar's Chevalier Guards and who is now a general in the Red Army. This part deals with his early life and with his service in the Russo- Japanese War. Almost from the beginning of his military career, in contrast to the majority of his colleagues, he put his loyalty to Russia before his loyalty to the Tsar ; this was the reason which led him to continue to serve his country after the Revolution. There are interesting sketches of Russian officers, especially Kuropatkin and Wrangel. The section dealing with the war against Japan throws little light on the actual operations, but a good deal on the internal reasons for the Russian defeat. General Ignatyev, then a captain, had the duty of looking after the members of the foreign military missions, and his observations on them are amusing and instructive. Incidentally, the "Lieutenant-General Gerald," wham he describes as the head of the British mission, should be General Sir Montagu Gerald, who died at Irkutsk in 1905. This is a mistake that might well have been corrected by the translator.