Our Indian native army is perhaps the only entirely voluntary
standing army that has been ever known, and it is, to all intents and
purposes, entirely voluntary, and as such must be treated.[15] We can
have no other native army in India, and without such an army we could
not maintain our dominion a day. Our best officers have always
understood this quite well; and they have never tried to flog and
harass men out of all that we find good in them for our purposes. Any
regiment in our service might lay down their arms and disperse to-
morrow, without our having a chance of apprehending one deserter
among them all.[16]
When Frederick the Great of Prussia reviewed his army of sixty
thousand men in Pomerania, previous to his invasion of Silesia, he
asked the Prince d'Anhalt, who accompanied him, what he most admired
in the scene before him.
'Sire,' replied the prince, 'I admire at once the fine appearance of
the men, and the regularity and perfection of their movements and
evolutions.'
'For my part,' said Frederick, 'this is not what excites my
astonishment, since with the advantage of money, time, and care,
these are easily attained.
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