The question has been regarded from an Indian
point of view. There is probably no colonel in India, who commands a
British regiment, who would not like to see his men five years older. It
may be that the Indian opinion on the subject is based only on partial
information, and warped by local circumstances. Still I have thought it
right to submit it to the consideration of the public, at a time when
the army has been filling such a prominent position, not only in the
Jubilee procession and the frontier war, but also in the estimates
presented to the House of Commons.
Passing from the concrete to the abstract, it may not be unfitting that
these pages, which have recorded so many valiant deeds, should contain
some brief inquiry into the nature of those motives which induce men to
expose themselves to great hazards, and to remain in situations of
danger. The circumstances of war contain every element that can shake
the nerves. The whizzing of the projectiles; the shouts and yells of a
numerous and savage enemy; the piteous aspect of the wounded, covered
with blood and sometimes crying out in pain; the spurts of dust which on
all sides show where Fate is stepping--these are the sights and sounds
which assail soldiers, whose development and education enable them to
fully appreciate their significance.
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