From this point dates modern
conscription--the father of which was General Stein--and this also
inaugurated the birth of the War Machine. In the three years Prussia
had 180,000 well-drilled men and 120,000 reserves, quite a different
proposition from the 12,000 men Napoleon thought he had to face on his
retreat from Moscow, and which played a decisive factor in the
overthrow of the dictator of Europe.
Through the wars of 1864 and 1866 to 1870, the Franco-Prussian War,
the War Machine of Prussia was merged into that of the German Empire
and is a record of increasing efforts, entailing unbelievable hard
work and a compilation of the minutest details. The modern system of
organization, especially the mobilization schedules, are Helmuth von
Moltke's, the "Grosse Schweiger," the Great Silent, the strategist of
the 1871 campaign.
It is curious that there is a great similarity between the late Moltke
and Heeringen. They have the same aquiline features, tall, thin,
dried-up body, the same taciturn disposition, even to their
hobbies--Moltke being an incessant chess player, Heeringen using every
one of his spare moments to play with lead soldiers. He is reputed to
have an army of 30,000 lead soldiers with which he plays the moment he
opens his eyes--much in the same manner as Moltke, who used to request
his chess-board the first thing in the morning. In military circles
Heeringen is looked upon with the same respect and accredited with
quite as much strategical knowledge as Moltke was.
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