at the disposal of the colonel, who may confer
it on a cadet without regard to seniority."

Here is more provision for those who have
distinguished themselves in a special manner:

"Cadets and officers of all ranks may, for
highly distinguished service before the enemy,
be selected for promotion. The general
commanding an army in the field has a right to
make such appointments up to the rank of
captain of the first-class. Promotion by selection
to higher grades requires the confirmation
of the Emperor."

"In time of peace officers cannot attain the
rank of captain until they have completed at
least four years' service as subalterns."

"Every captain before receiving promotion
to the rank of field-officer, must pass an
examination, the result of which is to be communicated
by the examiners to the commander-in-
chief. If a captain shall (during the illness or
absence of his superior) have discharged the
duties of commanding officer of a battalion for
more than four weeks, the examiners are to
confine themselves to a decision upon the
manner in which such duty has been
discharged."

The next two clauses seem very important,
providing as they do for a very large class of
persons, who are more distinguished by their
integrity and good conduct than by the
possession of such special abilities as would entitle
them to rise to any high position of trust and
command. For such as these the different
posts which come under the general description
of "Local Employ," seem to be admirably well
suited.

"Majors, captains, &c., who do not possess
the requisite abilities which should entitle them
to promotion, but who nevertheless have claims
for long service, may receive promotion to a
higher grade in local employment, receiving the
pension of the latter grade, after completing at
least two years' service in it."

"' Local Employ' includes, commandantships
of local troops; employments under the
war department garrison staff; remount
establishment (sic); hospital, store, and barrack
staff appointments. The number of majors and
captains thus nominated to lieutenant-colonelcies
and majorities in Local Employ, is fixed as
follows:" Here comes a list of the number of
such appointments in each branch of the service,
which it is unnecessary to give in detail. This
matter disposed of, the document before us
proceeds, " officers employed in the Imperial
Schools of Instruction retain their right to
promotion in times of peace and war alike.
Non-commissioned officers employed in those
establishments are eligible for sub-lieutenancies
after six years' good service, provided they can
pass the ordinary examination test for cadetships."

The next few regulations relate chiefly to
certain restrictions connected with the ages of
the officers belonging to the different grades,
which seem in the main excellent.

"In the frontier troops and in the artillery,"
two branches of the service which are probably
considered to be of more importance, and to
require in the officers who superintend them
more of vigour and energy than the others.
"In the frontier troops and in the artillery,"
continues the document from which we quote,
"captains of fifty years of age, lieutenant-
colonels of fifty-six, and colonels of fifty-eight,
are to be considered ineligible for promotion,
except in local employ. The maximum age of
officers of each grade is fixed as follows: For
the active army; subalterns, fifty-four; captains
and field-officers, sixty; general officers and
field-marshal-lieutenant, sixty-two. For local
employ: subalterns, sixty-two; captains, and
field-officers, sixty-four; and generals, sixty-six
years. Exceptions may be made in certain cases
to these rules. A commission, presided over
by a general officer, is to report annually on the
cases of officers whom it is thus proposed to
except. No superannuation limit is laid down
in the case of field-marshals."

These age restrictions seem to be valuable in
more ways than one, serving not only to secure
for the different official posts to which they
relate the services of officers in the full vigour
of manhood, but also tending, it may be
supposed, to counteract that slowness of promotion
for which the purchase system is by so many
believed to be the only remedy. It is said that
in the Austrian army these rules with regard to
age have given the most general satisfaction.

There remain one or two more of these laws
for the regulation of promotion in the Austrian
service, which seem worthy of a passing notice.
Among them may be counted the following:

"Officers may be passed over for promotion,"
have others promoted over their heads, " on
the following grounds: First, having been made
prisoners of war, according to the result of the
court of enquiry on their return." By this is
meant probably according to the degree of
blame which attaches to them for having been
so made prisoners. " Second, their conduct
having been made the subject of military or
judicial investigation, not wholly exculpatory.
Third, not possessing the requisite qualifications
for a higher grade."

This last disqualification for promotion would
doubtless prove to be surrounded by many
difficulties in the working out. Yet one cannot
quite see how any system of promotion with
which merit should have anything to do could
be carried on without some such regulation.
Men enter professions every day for which they
are not naturally qualified, having drifted into
such callings rather than chosen them, and
then sticking to their choice simply because
they do not see their way to anything else. In
no career which men follow under the sun do
persons who are misplaced in this way advance to
the highest places, and it is certainly not
desirable that they should do so in the army. The
superseding them, however, must always be a
painful proceeding; but this necessary severity
may be in some sort modified in the Austrian
service by the existence of those situations