Page:Every Woman's Encyclopedia Volume 1.djvu/223

 MARRIAGE No. I.— WHAT IT MEANS TO BE AN ARMY OFFICER'S WIFE The Etiquette oE the Army— New-Comers— Guest-Nights— The Colonel's "Wife— Institutions I o be the wife of an officer in the British Army is to be assured of a sound social position. Whatever a woman's position before she marries an officer, she takes his position on marriage, and rises as he rises up the roll of promotion. Of course, different regiments are of differ- ent rank or seniority — the wife of a captain of the Horse Guards ranks higher than the life partner of a surgeon-major of the Royal Army Medical Corps — but this is largely due to the original social position of the respective wives. As the Household Cavalry never goes into garrison, being stationed in London or at Windsor, it and its social position may be considered as quite distinct from that of the rest of the Army. The Etiquette of the Army Cavalry, Artillery, and Infantry are officially of equal rank ; all the wives are of equal status. In the big garrisons, like Aldershot, Colchester, and the Curragh, where there are regiments of horse, foot, and guns, the officers and their wives mix together equally — apart from personal dislikes. The etiquette of the Army is rigid — more rigid than that in any other division of society. It is as strictly adhered to among the wives as among the officers, and the person who dares to go against it will be made to repent the act. New-Comers Each regiment always welcomes a new- comer in the heartiest manner, and, if he has a wife, the welcome is readily extended to her. They are at once accepted as part and parcel of the regiment, and everything is done to make them feel at home. If the new officer is married, the rest of the officers and their wives will call at once, ready with all kinds of helpful information about the garrison. Invitations will cordially be given to them to join all the entertainments and amusements arranged by the regiment. Not only do the officers' wives of the regiment to which the new-comer is attached call upon them, but the officers' wives of all the other regiments of the garrison, and many of the people of the neighbourhood. No married officer lives in barracks, and D 32 the Government allows him an almost neghgible sum for board, as his wife is not officially recognised. The allowance for stabling and forage for his horses is also quite inadequate. He rents a house — gener- ally a small one — as near the regiment's lines as possible, or, if the regiment has only a short time to stay in the station, takes lodgings. A regiment of any branch of the Army seldom stays longer than three years in a home station. Guest-Nights The regimental mess is at the officer's service, though his meals there will cost him a little more than if he lived in barracks ; and his wife will often be invited on guest- nights — a weekly function in large garrisons. Staff officers — ^those who are not attached to any particular regiment — have not a regimental mess of their own, as they have not a regiment. They, and the general officer commanding the district, are made honorary members of one or more regimental messes, and their wives share this privilege. An honorary member of a mess is entitled to use it in the same way as he would if it were his own. In place of subscriptions, he pays a slightly bigger sum for all the meals he may have there. The general and his wife are the leaders of garrison and local society. They enter- tain largely, and the presence of any indi- vidual at the general's parties or dinner- table is usually a mark of his fitness for any other society. The general and his wife make their own friends in the garrison. They are not bound down only to those of high rank. A lieutenant's wife may be the chosen friend of the general's wife, though their husbands can only convei^se with each other over a very big chasm of rank. Amusements Even in a one-regiment station there is always plenty of amusement at hand for officers and their wives. A polo club, a pack of fox or stag hounds, a regimental coach — now becoming a matter of the past — a sports club, annual dinners, balls, and races contribute as largely to the amusement of the ladies of the garrison as they do to the husbands. Local hunts extend cordial invitations to all Army people. The Irish