XVIII.-SWITZ ER LAND. 



[Reported by Maj. G. K. Cecil, Tbinl Infaiitiy. I iiiteii 8tntis Military Attache at Bern.] 



The Swiss system of supplying horses for military pur- 

 poses, like the entire Swiss militia system, is unique. In the 

 first place, no recruit is assigned to the mounted service until 

 he has produced conclusive evidence of his ability to own 

 and care for a horse. The horses are bought by the govern- 

 ment and trained. The recruit is permitted to select one at 

 the appraised value, and pays to the government, at the time 

 the horse is assigned to him, one-half the amount. He takes 

 the horse to his home and uses him as his private property, 

 but must keep him in good condition and ready for inspec- 

 tion. The recruit must report with this mount every time 

 he is called to service. The government, at the end of each 

 year, refunds to him ten per cent of the amount he has paid; 

 that is, ten per cent of half the appraised value of the horse, 

 so that at the end of his ten years' service in the elite, all his 

 money has been returned to him, he has had the use of the 

 horse for ten years, and the animal now becomes his private 

 property, which he may sell or otherwise dispose of. 



The recruit may furnish his own mount, which is inspected 

 and appraised, after which the government pays the soldier 

 half the appraised value of his horse, and thereafter ten per 

 cent of the other half annually for ten years. If the horse 

 dies in the meantime, or becomes unfit for service, the bal- 

 ance is refunded to the soldier, who then selects another horse 

 from the depot on the same conditions, except that, when 

 the soldier is transferred to the landwehr, the horse does not 

 become his private property, but must be returned to the 

 depot. On returning his mount to the depot the soldier 

 receives the balance of the amount paid by him. The same 

 rule applies to the horses for both officers and enlisted men, 

 though the officers, in selecting, are not limited to the cavalry 

 remount depot, as there is a horse rdgie at Thun supplying 

 a higher grade of horses, especially for officers. This regie 



(335) 



