Page:Emile Vandervelde - Three Aspects of the Russian Revolution - tr. Jean Elmslie Henderson Findlay (1918).djvu/192

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Three Aspects of the Russian Revolution

them. Their opinion, corroborated by that of others, with whom we talked, was undoubtedly of considerable value, since they had been fighting for two years with the Russian troops in Galicia.

Moreover, General Nottbeck himself, who up till then had preserved a phlegmatic calm that justified his British origin, yielded finally to the excitement of these enthusiastic scenes, and when we bade him farewell and were climbing into the automobile which was to take us to Czernowitz, it was with visible emotion that he said to us in shaking hands, "Now, I have confidence."

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But that such a confidence be justified, we must look for something more than enthusiasm, more than the applause of audiences, three weeks before the attack. The hierarchical organization of the army is necessary, its moral cohesion, the spirit of subordination and of responsibility must be such that this enthusiasm runs no risk of being wasted or transformed into panic at the first check. In short, there must be a certain minimum of discipline, and

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