General In peace time besides the Army General Staff there exist staffs for army corps, divisions and brigades. Their personnel is composed of gazetted staff officers and ad ministrative officers of the General Staff, the latter being more particularly concerned with carrying out orders emanating from the cabinet or government. The recruiting of gazetted staff officers is undertaken at the Superior Mili tary School. Officers fulfilling requirements as to age, seniority of rank and command may participate in the annual examination on recom mendation of their superior officers. This ex amination or competition is drawn up by the Minister of War. The pupils admitted follow during two years the course of studies at the Paris school. They are gazetted staff officers on termination of their studies provided they have satisfied the necessary tests. The grade of staff officer can be attained by superior officers and captains not having followed the course of studies at the military school hut having satis factorily passed the tests equivalent to those required by candidates belonging to the school. Such cases are, however, exceptional. Gazetted officers on leaving the school are attached for two years to general staff officers to complete their training. •After this period serve in the branch of their serri.::. mander for two years. They have sr tain length of time previous to thee to the General Staff in other bran_: service than that originally chosen The principal branches of the '47 The Control, charged with safegnarLi,, terests of the Paymaster's Deparri, the administrative services, with stile proper application of decrees and ill: The controllers form a special own governing body. The Artillery & tends to the general direction of of this service and its proper worEez of a special General Staff. The ice is confided to military enginet7. own governing body. The Engineer looks after this .branch of the servie sures its proper running in the mr_'• engineers. There follow the Aeronz ice, the Sanitary Service, the Veterini the Military Justice and Penitential the Recruiting Service, the Payrna,:r the Post and Telegraph Service. Service, the Automobile Service, etc Troops:—The law of 15 Apr] vided for the following organizatia_ gram of which was not entirely time of mobilization: The infantry comprises 173 reper 3 battalions of 4 companies. 31 tari, [ achasseurss of which 12 are specially to serve in the Alps, 6 regiments of 12 regiments of Algerian sharpshoc,:r: ments of the Foreign Legion, a van:J[1, of Saharian companies, the Paris rr sapper-firemen, and special discipliner, The officer-personnel of an infant::: comprises, besides the normal units. mentary body destined for the needs zation. It comprises one -[ addition to the one seconding the battalion chiefs, six captains, three chiefs and three adjutants. Each cc.77!1 one captain, two lieutenants and orf Ten cyclist groups, one attached to el± division, are formed by certain 11271 ' "chasseurs.” Commanded by a caps one of them is divided into two platoon, commanded by a lientenan: seven non-commissioned officers and :I The cavalry comprises 93 regimen lows: 12 cuirassiers, 32 dragoons, 23 a cheval," 14 hussars, six African 'ch six Algerian There are. four Algerian-Tunisian remount corn_ 17 cavalry remount groups in airy regiments are composed of tc.• squadrons and one depot squadron. ber of squadrons in Africa may he a[::: ministerial decree. Brigades of ca va!ri vided with wheeled-machine-gun The field artillery comprises 62 three or four groups of batteries autonomous groups of field and inom•1 lery in Algeria-Tunisia and batteries of horse artillery are divided field artillery regiments. In all therc batteries mounted in France and l France. The heavy artillery forms 7. in all 34 batteries. The tillery forms two regiments, 14 l'er' France and eight outside France, including the autonomous groups. The foot artillery forms nine regiments in France. In all 89 batteries, of which 30 are coastal and 59 land — two autonomous groups in Algeria-Tunisia of four batteries each.
The engineers are composed of nine regi ments of sapper-miners of 25 battalions. Be sides two battalions forming a corps, one regi Ment of sapper telegraphers of four battalions and two battalions forming a corps in Algeria Tunisia unite all the units of this arm of the service without distinction of specialty. The troops of the Aeronautic Service comprise: (1) Seven companies; (2) Sections, the num ber of which is determined by ministerial de cree; (3) One company of conductors. These units are formed into groups making one corps.
The °Train des Equipages° (Supply Train) forms 21 squadrons of three companies, in i which are included a few Companies from Al geria. The troops of the administrative and sanitary service make up sections of secretaries to the staff officers and recruiting officers, sec tions of clerks and laborers and sections of hospital attendants, orderlies, etc., forming a corps. The Departmental Gendarmerie (Con stabulary) form 27 legions, 25 of which for France, one for Algeria-Tunisia and one for Paris. The legion is subdivided into depart mental companies and the company plus a cer tain number of mounted or unmounted brigades are spread over different regions according to the needs of the service. The Colonial Gen darmerie forms a few detachments. The Re publican Guard of Pals consists of three bat talions and four squadrons. The °Corps de Douanes° (Customs) and eChasseurs Forest iers° (Foresters' Corps), attached to the Ter ritorial Army, are dependent in peace time on the Ministry of Finance and Ministry of Agri culture, respectively. The Saharian troops, of variable strength, form four companies. The Colonial troops, autonomous and distinct from the Home (Metropolitan) Army form 24 regi ments, a part of which is in France, and a part in the colonies: Tonkin, Cochin-China, China and Morocco Battalions forming corps at Die go-Suarez, Senegal, Madagascar and New Cale donia. Companies forming corps at Guiana, Martinique, Guadeloupe. In addition there are sections of secretaries, clerks, laborers, hospital orderlies, etc., Native troops also form part of the Colonial troops, in the following manner: One regiment of Annamite riflemen, four regi ments of Tonkinese riflemen, four regiments of Senegalese riflemen, battalions forming a corps of Senegalese riflemen in various African colonies, native corps in Gaboon, Kongo, Tchad and three regiments of Madagascar riflemen. The artillery of the Colonial troops is divided up in France and in the colonies to form seven regiments and two autonomous groups, . be sides five companies of laborers and one com pany of ammunition loaders in France and six mixed companies in the colonies. Finally, two squadrons of Senegal ospahis,° one native squadron in the Kongo and one in Indo-China. To these regular corps should be added a vari able number of corps and detachments formed according to local and temporary circumstances for the needs of the colonies.
Mobilization.—The active army corps are Completed by means of reservists from the youngest classes. They also form new corps called reserve corps, by means of reservists and complementary cadres from the active corps completed by the reserve cadres. Under these conditions each active regiment forms a re serve regiment and each battalion forming a corps a battalion. Similar dispositions were taken for the mobilization of artillery, cavalry and other corps and services.
The Territorial Army when mobilized com prises 145 regiments (one per subdivision), seven battalions of °chasseurs° and 17 bat talions of ezouaves.s The territorial cavalry forms a number of squadrons corresponding to the resources in horses. The territorial artillery comprises a group of batteries cor responding to each one of the active regiments. Finally, according to the military region, the Territorial Army forms one battalion of en gineers, one train squadron, one section of ad ministrative troops and one section of hospital attendants.