There are four schools for the infantry, one for the cavalry and one for the artillery. L'Orphelinat Heriot receives the orphans of non-commissioned officers and officers.
The recruiting for complementary officers is undertaken by the following means: (1) Spe cial Reserve Officers.— Officers of the active army may, at their request, be placed on the °special reserve" list, in determined proportions. These officers are replaced in the active army, placed on the list of reserves and called up in case of mobilization. They are obliged to un dergo a period of training of five weeks every two years. They draw a pension and receive special privileges. (2) Pensioned Officers.— Officers in receipt of a pension are called upon to serve five years as complementary officers after they have ceased to belong to the active branches of the army.. They may, however, at their request, be maintained in the reserves after this period of five years has elapsed. The officers pensioned off before the completion of their 25 years' service still belong to the army until the expiration of such period. (3) Officers Resigning Their Commission.— Officers of the active army may be called upon to serve in the reserves in their respective grades. (4) Pupils of the Large Schools.— The pupils of the Polytechnic School, designated for employment in state civilian services or resigning when leav ing the school, the pupils of the Ecole Forestiere, Ecole Normale Superieure, ?cole Nationale des Mines de Saint Etienne, Ecole Centrale des Arts et Manufactures, Ecole des fonts et Chaussees, are liable to serve as re serve officers. By the terms of the law of 1905 these young men complete one year's training in a corps troop, under ordinary conditions, and follow during this period a course of studies preparing them for the grade of officer. The law of 1913 modified these arrangements by substituting for the one year's service a mili tary training carried out in the schools them selves with an annual period of two months in a troop corps during the course of the studies., These arrangements, which only applied to the Ecole Normale Superieure, the Ecole Forestiere and the Ecole Polytechnique, up to the present have operated but very little. (5) Non-Com missioned Officers of the Active Army.— The discharged non-commissioned officers who have received a diploma for aptitude on the recom mendation of their chiefs and who possess the necessary training and social status may be nominated reserve officers. They can, while not
actually ranking as an officer, hold a position if chief of section. (6) Young Men Called up for Service with the Colors.— By the terms of the law of 1905 the young men undergoing their two (or three) years' service may be admitted to the regional schools after one year's service provided they have satisfied military require ments as to aptitude. The course of studies lasts six months. On leaving these schools they may he called upon to undergo a period of six months' training in a troop corps in the grade of non-commissioned officer. The law of 1913 granted these young men permission to enter the military schools, admission being allowed after one year's service. The studies last one year. The men accomplish their third year's service, first as candidates and finally as non commissioned officers, during the last six months. These dispositions are not yet in force. The officers of the territorial army are recruited from among the reserve officers.
Promotion in the active army is gained partly through seniority, partly through choice. Second lieutenants are pro moted first lieutenants automatically after two years' service. For the other grades up to and including battalion chief promotion is granted according to seniority. But every year the Minister of War, on recommendation from the proper officials, draws up for each branch of the service a ((promotion') schedule promoting specially chosen officers. The promotion of offi cers so chosen is one-third for captains and one-half for battalion chiefs. From the rank of lieutenant-colonel all promotion is by choice. In the reserve and territorial armies second lieutenants are promoted first lieutenants after four years' service, the other grades being by choice. The minimum period of seniority to rise from one grade to another is two years for a lieutenant, four for a captain, three for a major, two for a lieutenant-colonel and for grades above that three years. This period is just one-half in war time. Promotion in the ranks is entirely by choice with a minimum of seniority. The private soldier should reckon on serving six months before being promoted to corporal, etc.