Many witticisms have been lavished on the great loss of
Russian officers in this campaign, and we have been told that the 'Turks had in consequence even been instructed by their superiors never to fire on a Russian General, lest he should unfortunately be replaced by a man of some military capacity. It appears, however, from a very elaborate return compiled by the Germans -of their losses in the Franco-German war, that very nearly as large a proportion of the Generals were killed and wounded as of the non-commissioned officers and privates, and a very much ?larger proportion of Staff Officers. Thus 2'56 per cent, of the 'Generals were killed, and only 2.60 per cent, of the non-commis- sioned officers and privates' ; while 812 per cent, of the generals -were wounded, and only 9.98 per cent, of the non-commissioned .officers and privates. Of the Staff Officers, however, no less than S.67 per cent, were killed, and as many as 18,22 per cent, were wounded. Thus, even in an army so admirably disciplined as the German Army, it is obvious that the staff officers run a very much higher proportionate risk than any private soldier. How 'excellent was the discipline is to be gathered from the fact that while the total number of killed, wounded, and missing was about 14 per cent., decidedly less than two per cent. (to speak precisely, 1'68 per cent.) were missing, and in every grade above that of non-commissioned officers and privates the number of missing was hardly more than one-half per cent. The exceptional risks run by high officers, then, does not seem to be peculiar to the Russian Army.
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