Scheme.

This is coolbert:

Here is the URL for an interesting web site about the famous/infamous Japanese officer Colonel Tsuji:

click here.

Although the Colonel was obviously prejudiced toward his own Japanese soldiers, his rating of enemy combatants and their fighting capacities is most interesting.

In "UNDERGROUND ESCAPE", published in 1952, he ranked the fighting ability of all the armies he had opposed.

The Japanese of course were highest, with one Japanese soldier the equivalent of 10 Chinese--the army he rated second, given equivalence in equipment and training. Following in order were 3) Russians, 4) Ghurkas in British service, 5) Americans, 6) Australians, 7) Indians in British service, 8) British, 9) Filipinos, 10) Burmese, 11) Thai, 12) Vietnamese, and 13) French.

Now, some of you may be curious as to the inclusion of the Russians and the French?

The Russians did fight large scale battles (border skirmishes (?)) against the Japanese prior to the outbreak of WW2 in the Pacific.

And of course the annihilation of the Japanese Kwangtung Army in Manchuria by the Russians at the end of WW2 is well known.

Tsuji is probably referring to the battles fought prior to WW2 with the Russians when he includes the Russians in his rating scheme.

The French Foreign Legion forces stationed in Indo-China did fight on the side of the allies in the months following the fall [1944] bof the Vichy French government. The entire Legion forces in Indo-China force marched into China to join with the Nationalist Chinese against the Japanese. I would assume that Tsuji is using this as the background for including the French in his rating scheme?

coolbert.