sentences:  The early 1880s saw a rapid increase in the size of the colonial military forces.Between 1883 and 1885, the force rose from 8,000 to 22,000 men, although only roughly 1,000 of these were permanent soldiers.In 1885, unpaid volunteer soldiering returned following the dispatch of a contingent of New South Wales soldiers to fight in the Sudan led to fears of a Russian attack on Australia.