Soldier

Is one who enters into an obligation to some chieftain or government to devote for a specified period his whole energies, and even if nece ary his life itself, to the furtherance of the policy of that chief or government. The consideration may be immediate pay, or prospective reward; or the contract may be merely an act of loyal devotion. The acknowledgment of the service by the employer constitutes the man a recognized soldier, and empowers him to take life in open warfare, without being liable to the penalties of an a a in and a robber. The fact of being mercenary—that is, of receiving wages for killing and being killed—does not render a soldier’s trade le honorable. He bears arms that others may be able to do without them; he is precluded by the exigencies of military training from maintaining himself by peaceful occupation; and it is therefore but fair that those whom he protects should support him, and give him, over and above actual maintenance, reasonable wages for the continual risk of his life. If a man willingly enlist himself as a soldier in what he believes to be an unrighteous cause, it is an act of moral turpitude; but when once enlisted, the soldier ceases to be morally responsible for the justice or iniquity of the war he wages; that rests with his employer. Obedience, implicit and entire, is his sole virtue. The maxim is, “The military force never deliberates, but always obeys.” Brother soldier is a term of affection which is commonly used by one who serves under the same banners, and fights for the same cause, with another. In a more extensive signification, it means any military man with respect to another.