|
687. CAVALRY.—A
Cavalry Commander requires peculiar qualifications, that are far
more rare than for any other arm of the service. He should, first of
all, be young, and of fine physical qualities, capable of enduring great fatigue. He should be quick
of thought and decision, without being rash; he should be able to form his plans rapidly and
clearly, and execute with confidence.
688. He should be devoted to this branch of the service,
passionately fond of the horse, unremitting in his care and attention to his command, watching
over men and horses, and jealous of their abuse, guarding and protecting them, so that they may be
in the best possible condition for the moment of action. When that moment arrives, he should
receive it confidently, and should "go in" with
a method akin to rashness, counting only on success, and regardless
of the cost.
689. The capacity to go from place to place, independent of
guides, or with the aid of a map only (that innate knowledge of locality so rarely found), is an
essential of the first importance to a Cavalry Commander He must not be easily misled, and be able to
know intuitively whether he is going right or wrong. The whole object of an expedition may
fail by a want of capacity to go by the shortest and most available route to the destination; for
the main merit of Cavalry is its rapidity of movement, made available by distancing the enemy in
seizing a weak point before he can protect it.
690. The improvements in firearms have produced some
modifications in the use of Cavalry. It is seldom that Cavalry can approach near enough to charge without
being exposed to a destructive fire at long range. The opportunities for the use of
the sabre are much more rare; the nature of our country is such that a weaker force can always
avoid a stronger mounted force by seeking a wood, or a fence, or a stream, for cover, from which,
with the long ranged arm, it can constantly harass its mounted foe as far as it can be seen.
691. This facility to take cover against Cavalry at any time
renders it necessary for the Cavalry to be provided with a carbine of long range, so that the horses
may be left in rear, and the Cavalry dismount, and act temporarily as Infantry, to overcome
obstacles insurmountable for Cavalry; or having availed itself of the rapid movement of the
horses to seize a strategic point, that the Cavalry may dismount and hold it like entrenched
Infantry; for pure Cavalry cannot hold positions on the defensive—it must either fight to win or run
away.
692. In an open country unobstructed by fences, hedges, ravines,
or woods, Cavalry is of great service to watch the enemy, to pick up stragglers, carry
intelligence, and to harass the enemy. But its chances for charging depend upon the character of the
foe, and the nature of their arms. Infantry indifferent in discipline, armed with short range guns,
are still assailable by good Cavalry; and good Infantry will cause severe loss to Cavalry,
even where successfully attacked; but even the best of Infantry may be surprised and taken
unawares.
693. The great merit of Cavalry consists in its celerity of
movement; but this does not mean that the horse should be kept constantly at a dashing pace. On the
contrary, the habitual gait of Cavalry is a walk. It is only when confronted with the enemy, and
where celerity of movement is necessary to be exercised for very short periods to gain definite
results, that it is justifiable to urge the horse to greater speed than a walk; then to decide
definitely, and execute with rapidity, is the province of the Cavalry leader.
694. It is better on an extended march to keep up a continuous
walk for twenty-four hours, than to double the speed and make the same distance in twelve hours.
The best horses would fail in the latter case, whilst most horses could do the former without
injury. The load which a Cavalry horse must carry defeats any comparison with the saddle horse of
the civilian; the equipments that are attached to the saddle, the sabre on one side, and the
carbine on the other, the picket rope and pin, the halter, the nose-bag and forage-bag, the haversack
and canteen, and often other things disposed about the horse and the men, may all be carried
very conveniently at a walk by the horse, but when urged at a trot, or a gallop, are very
serious obstacles, and a few miles at those gaits without interruption will soon end his usefulness,
even on the best of roads.
695. A march should be conducted, as follows: the column should
move out by fours, if possible; otherwise by twos, or by file; but each squadron should
regulate its own march; the leading files of each squadron should keep the required gait,
which should be a walk on all ordinary marches; squadrons regulate their distances by
increasing or slowing the walk gradually; rear files rushing forward at a trot, or gallop, thus
crowding on the heels of the horses in front, and then halting suddenly for room to go on, is a great
injury to the horses, and an evidence of very bad Cavalry.
696. The Captain or Commander of the squadron should march in
rear of his squadron, so as to control the disposition the men have to leave the column on the
slightest pretext; none should be allowed to leave, except in cases of absolute necessity, and then
the Captain (who should be provided with written permits) should give the proper authority,
and it should be required of each man to report his return; otherwise the men will be constantly
falling out, and once out of the column and away from the officer, they are liable to commit
depredations, or they break their horses down in riding from house to house, or place to place, in
search of anything or nothing, with that want of consideration often found among
soldiers.
697. Halts need not be frequent, two or three in a day’s march
are quite sufficient. Sometimes the obstacles to be passed render halts necessary; and whenever
they occur, if only for a few moments, the men should dismount; at such times a few mouthfuls
of grass or other food is very refreshing to the horse. The opportunity to water the horses
should always be considered and ordered in advance, and should be counted as a halt or rest. On a
forced march the horses should not be halted, but they should be relieved fifteen minutes every
hour, by dismounting the men, and requiring them to march. For a march of a day more, the walk
is the most rapid gait, the Cavalry will go farther in less time, and be in better condition
at that gait than any other; the time must be saved by making fewer halts, and marching more hours.
698. On campaigns, the Cavalry is often improperly used. It is a
great expense to the Government, although no doubt a great comfort to the Commander of
an Army, if he can surround his command with a cordon of Mounted Sentinels, five or
six miles out in front of his Infantry pickets; but he can have little knowledge in the use of
this auxiliary arm, when he wastes his horse-flesh in so reckless and improvident a manner.
699. The proper place for the Cavalry of an Army is in reserve,
so that it may be available in the shortest possible time. If it is out on picket, and widely
scattered, the concentration of it fatigues and delays it, and it goes upon the expedition half broken down,
and behind time. The rule is never to use the Cavalry where Infantry will do as well or
better, and particularly not for picket duty. Infantry is far better for this duty, and only sufficient
Cavalry should be used to act as couriers, and to patrol the principal avenues of approach, in
connection with the Infantry.
700. Cavalry should not be used as Infantry. Dismounting the men
and sending the horses to the rear for days, or even hours, thus separating the two, is a
violation of this rule; but it may some-times be necessary, as when a Cavalry column is pushed forward rapidly
to seize a point that can only be held by dismounting; but in such a case Infantry should
always be sent as soon as possible to take the place of the dismounted Cavalry. Men and
horses cannot be separated any length of time without a proportionate injury to the latter.
701. The embarrassing feature of Cavalry is forage; the horses
must be fed, and the feed cannot be transported any great distance, without superior facilities
for transportation. In an agricultural district, however, a Cavalry column of almost any size moving
through the country will find sufficient to subsist the horses, if a proper system of foraging
is adopted. This requires the utmost vigilance. Loosely conducted, it is exceedingly demoralizing and
furnishes opportunities for every kind of excesses; especial care should be taken where it
may be the policy to conciliate the inhabitants.
702. Recent improvements in arms and equipments have made it
necessary that the greater portion of our Cavalry should be armed with repeating carbines and
metallic percussion cartridges. The sabre may be dispensed with altogether, or if forming part of
the equipment, should be strapped to the saddle. Such a force is almost as formidable as
Infantry, and its principal use is to surprise and capture strategic points, and hold them until they
can be occupied by the Infantry; they act as skirmishers or flankers to the army when advancing,
or retreating. They go into action generally dismounted, and their horses are used only as a means
of transportation. Such Cavalry .is of special value in a wooded or broken country, where the
horses may be covered, and the character of the troops thus concealed from the enemy.
703. Cavalry lightly equipped with sabre and pistol, and used
mainly for couriers for carrying intelligence, and watching the enemy, in connection with the
Infantry pickets, has not lost its value in this respect, and should be supplied to the Army in
proportion to its necessities. The signal branch of the service might be economically united with
this arm. But the value of the horse as derived from the force and shock of a charge is fast
passing away; as a means of pursuit, of transportation, and rapid movement, he has rather gained than
lost in value.
704. ARTILLERY.—Like Cavalry, Artillery is an auxiliary arm,
but is less capable of self-defence, and has lost considerable of its importance in field service, in
consequence of the improvements in small arms. It forms but a small proportion of an
army; it cannot act without one or both the other arms to support it. It requires skilled
officers, and in the lower grades furnishes superior opportunities for distinction; but it is not
so good a school for the higher grades, as it does not furnish the same opportunities for
learning the management of large bodies of troops, as Infantry and Cavalry.
705. Artillery is seldom united in large bodies, and never
maneuvers as such. For the purposes of Administration and supply, a Chief of Artillery may have a
great many batteries under his supervision, but they are directed on the field of battle by the
Commanders of Brigades or Divisions to which they are attached. The heaviest batteries and
siege trains are united in a park, and called the "Artillery Reserve," for the convenience
of supply and instruction, but they are rarely maneuvered together.
706. As a branch of the service, it requires all or even more
conditions than the Cavalry—good roads, means of passing streams, forage, troops to defend it,
etc. Its use is to aid in the destruction of the enemy’s ranks, when making an attack, to
destroy his defences, or interrupt the work of making them; and to annoy his operations beyond the range
of small arms. It is composed of two kinds, Field Artillery, and Siege Artillery.
707. Field Artillery is used to break the ranks of the enemy, and
to break down the lighter kinds of defences, as palisades, fences, abatis, etc. It is of two
kinds, foot and horse; the former usually is attached to Infantry, and the latter to Cavalry, in the
proportion of two or more guns to one thousand men, depending upon the opportunities for the use of
Artillery. Siege Artillery is used in the offensive, to break down the entrenchments of the enemy,
and to make way for the assault of the Infantry; or in the defensive, to protect entrenchments by
destroying the enemy before he can reach them. It follows in the rear of the army, beyond the
danger of capture; and it is brought up to man forts, or aid in a siege.
708. The Artillery service is the least fatiguing, and in the
main, the least dangerous branch of the service for the private soldier, for he is seldom on grand
guard duty, and in action, is less frequently closely engaged. The men are often called upon to
entrench their battery, but generally they have the Infantry to assist them in the principal
part of the work. It is, however, a continual task for them to take care of the horses and material
of the Battery, and keep them constantly in condition for active
service.
709. A Commander of one or several Batteries requires to be a man
of scientific attainments, and to possess a thorough knowledge of the Military art. He must
understand theoretically and practically all about his own branch of the service, and
particularly the peculiarities of the guns used in his own command. He must be to a certain extent an
engineer, in order to entrench his guns, and know the vulnerable points of the enemy’s
entrenchments. He must be a tactician, in order to know the position of his battery, with reference to his
supports, and to detect the formations of the enemy most favorable for the effect of his
guns.
710. Artillery requires unremitting attention; the horses require
all the care enjoined on Cavalry; the equipments and ammunition need the greatest care, to keep
them in order; the men and horses require thorough instructions and discipline, and constant
exercise to keep them in condition for field service. On the march, the horses should be
relieved as much as possible, and every precaution taken to prevent the men from loading prohibited
articles on the Artillery carriages; the men should ride as little as possible on the
boxes, and only when necessary to facilitate the movements of the Battery. The Artillery is
generally placed in the column on the march, by Batteries, so as to be duly protected in front and in
rear.
711. In action is when the Artillery officer most displays his
fitness for the duty; if at such a time amid the noise of his own guns, the tearing and bursting of
the enemy’s shot, the plunging of frightened and injured horses and the embarrassment of dead
ones, the blinding smoke and general uproar, he can preserve all his faculties unimpaired, and
remember all the principles involved in the management of his guns, so as to direct the range
and kind of shot to be used, and watch over the men to see that in their excitement they do not
make any mistakes of a fatal nature, he will have accomplished the highest qualifications of
an Artillery officer
712. The administration of Artillery requires that in every
command where there is more than one Battery, and more particularly if there are a number, a Chief
of Artillery should be appointed, who acts as the mouth-piece of the Commander in the
direction and administration of them all, in order to anticipate their wants, and provide them
with the proper amount and kind of ammunition and materials, that they may always be in an efficient
condition. (Act July 17, 1862, § 10.) The same general principles apply, in the matter of
supply and repair, as to the other arms.
713. In our service, Artillery Regiments are mainly organized,
and do duty as Infantry, in time of peace; it has been the custom to have but two Companies
equipped as Light Batteries. The troops are generally stationed in the Forts, and fortified places
on the sea-coast, and have the care of the fortifications, and the armaments thereof. The exercises
are confined principally to instructions in Heavy Artillery tactics, and Infantry tactics.
Most of the Artillery Companies are armed with muskets.
714. It has been the custom to relieve the officers on duty with
the Light Batteries at the end of two years, by others, in order to extend their experience with
Field Artillery, as the design is to provide all the Companies with field guns and equipments in time
of war, as was the case during the great Civil War.
715. The care of the men and horses is a
combination of what has been laid down for Cavalry and Infantry. Instruction has a similar system to be gone through
with as recommended for these arms, beginning always with the rudiments, and going through in
progressive lessons to the completion, as provided in Tactics. Regular and continued
exercises are of the highest importance to accustom both men and horses to the noise and
excitement of Artillery fire, and keep them in condition for active service.
|
|
