Chapter 328 Steel Helmet

The parliamentary questioning ended with some boring questions, such as:

"Colonel, do you think your military talent has surpassed Foch and Pétain?"

"You think their military theory is wrong, so why can they also win on the battlefield? How do you explain this?"

"Will you use your military talent to benefit your own business?"

...

Charles answered them one by one calmly:

"This is not a question of military talent, sir. We are all groping in the war. I certainly don't think I have surpassed them."

"Everyone has different ideas, which is normal. Which military theory is correct? I think this should not be answered by me, but by the battlefield, facts and soldiers. This is very important because it concerns the lives of soldiers. They have the right to choose what tactics to use in battle."

"Am I benefiting my business? No, sir! I don't think so. I have been benefiting the French people!"

...

Charles' answer avoided the main point.

The purpose of the parliamentarians asking these questions was not to really know the answer.

They are smart people who know that military theory is "truth in practice". It is useless and meaningless to discuss right and wrong. It must be used on the battlefield and win to be determined.

But they still asked this question, in order to make Charles offend both Foch and Pétain at the same time.

The former was the deputy commander-in-chief of France and commander of the Northern Army Group. Although he was not as powerful as Joffre, his influence was much greater than Joffre, because the whole army was using his offensive thinking to fight at that time.

Although the latter was a small group, he had already emerged at this time.

Because Pétain always advocated the theory of defense, he served as a second lieutenant for 5 years, a lieutenant for 7 years, and a captain for 10 years. Before the outbreak of the war, he was still a colonel and only commanded a regiment, and he was 58 years old at this time.

As the saying goes, events make people, the trench warfare of World War I perfectly fits Pétain's defense theory. He led his troops to achieve success on the battlefield. In just a few months, he was promoted to brigadier general and then major general. At this time, he was the commander of the 33rd Army.

It would not be good for Charles to offend these two elders at the same time, and people would think that Charles was stubborn and ignored his elders.

As for whether Charles was seeking benefits for his own enterprise, the parliamentarians tried to portray Charles as a capitalist who wanted to monopolize the arms market and control the country.

Although Charles did think so in his heart, he could not say it out loud, otherwise the newspapers would immediately criticize Charles the next day.

Charles sighed in his heart: This is a war, but it is a war without gunpowder. Every word and every question is a trap, and you will step into the pit if you are not careful. The capitalists are like staring at Charles with a magnifying glass. As long as Charles says something wrong, it will be caught and magnified infinitely.

Fortunately, Charles knows how to deal with it. He just needs to act a little confused, speak vaguely, and answer as if he didn't answer, and he will succeed.

...

After finally getting out of the parliament, Charles returned to the city defense headquarters not far from the House of Representatives.

Gallieni seemed to be waiting for Charles. As soon as Charles appeared at the entrance of the corridor, he looked him up and down and said, "You seem to be able to handle it easily, Colonel? I underestimated you!"

"Not really." Charles replied helplessly, "I feel more tired than fighting a war!"

Charles was telling the truth. The temperature in April was still cold, but Charles was already sweating when he walked out of the House of Representatives.

Then Charles asked in confusion, "They didn't tell me the result, General. No one told me whether it passed or not."

"Do you think the result will come out immediately?" Gallieni smiled with a smile, looking at Charles with a hint of helplessness in his eyes: "They need to discuss for at least a few days or even longer, Colonel. If it passes, the bill will be sent to the Senate, and the Senate has the right to veto it."

"If it is vetoed, it's over?" Charles asked.

"No." Gallieni shook his head gently: "The House of Representatives can propose again. If it is rejected by the Senate three times, and the House of Representatives passes it for the fourth time, it does not need to be submitted to the Senate."

Charles understood that another meaning of "veto" by the Senate is "delaying time". The decision-making power is always in the hands of the House of Representatives. If the House of Representatives insists on passing a certain issue, it will definitely pass. It is just a matter of time.

No wonder modern countries that learn this system are so inefficient. The interests of the parties in the two houses are different. They pull each other and dig holes. In the end, even if it is passed, it may have missed the opportunity or even become useless.

Just like changing military uniforms, if you wait for these procedures to be completed, it will take half a year at the fastest and one or two years at the slowest. By then, the war will be over. What is the point of passing it smoothly?

"That's why we need wartime procurement regulations." Gallieni explained: "It can bypass the parliament to purchase equipment, but changing military uniforms is not just a matter of purchasing equipment."

Charles nodded to show that he understood. As the parliamentarians said, it also concerns the dignity of France and whether the soldiers are willing to attack.

These idiots actually hope that the red military pants and military caps can stimulate the soldiers to charge at the enemy.

Charles recalled the red fez of the Ottoman army. Did they behave so bravely under the stimulation of red? This might provide a perfect argument for the parliamentarians who support this view. Then Charles thought of the helmet. He rolled his eyes and asked Gallieni: "General, if the replacement of military uniforms cannot be included in the wartime procurement regulations because it is more sensitive, then what about equipping helmets?"

"Steel helmet?" Gallieni looked at Charles puzzledly: "Do you think it is useful?"

During this period, there was basically no steel helmet. People thought it could not stop bullets, so it was not only useless but also a waste of money and material resources, and would increase the burden on soldiers.

But this idea is obviously wrong.

"Of course it is useful, General." Charles replied: "I have a deep understanding of the battlefield. Soldiers are injured not only by bullets, but also by shrapnel and even stones blown up by shells."

In fact, the role of the steel helmet is not only that, it can really stop bullets.

As long as the bullet does not hit the center of the steel helmet, most of the time it will slide away because the steel helmet has a curved surface, just like a shell will bounce when it hits the inclined armor of a tank.

Gallieni thought for a while and said:

"If you think so, you can try it."

"Not changing the military cap is indeed not a problem of changing military uniforms."

"You can try to produce a batch and put it into the battlefield to see the reaction of the soldiers and the battlefield. If it is really effective, the parliament cannot stop it!"

If it has been proven to be effective and someone tries to stop it, it will not help telling everyone that they want to kill the soldiers on the front line.

Charles answered confidently, "Yes, General!"