ii6 PINK AND SCARLET 



or we may blow our horse, i. e. exhaust our reader's 

 patience, before we have killed our fox ? 



Very well, let us halt, and, as they would say in 

 South Africa, " outspan a bit." 



Although the foregoing is merely an outline of 

 what he who is a keen soldier and a keen sports- 

 man may think of on his way to the meet, it has 

 taken some time to read and longer to write, 

 but it will take a very few minutes to think, as 

 we jog along, casting our eyes to the right and 

 left. 



Is it any good to bother one's head about it ? 



Yes, it is, young soldier, if any part of it, or 

 any other thought which the line indicated may 

 suggest, should cause you to learn one single 

 little thing about the use of ground in sport or 

 in war. 



Especially in war, because in it bad use of ground 

 may mean the avoidable and useless loss of gallant 

 lives, which are entrusted to your keeping for the 

 purpose of defeating the enemy. 



The blatherings of an enthusiast, hey ? 



Well, maybe, but he is backed up by a good, 

 solid, weighty, and publicly expressed opinion. Sir 

 Redvers Buller, speaking as chairman at a lecture 

 on " The possible effect on tactics of the recent 

 improvement in weapons," given by Lieutenant- 

 Colonel F. B. Elmslie, R.A., before the Aldershot 

 Military Society, on February 6, 1899, said — 



" To my mind the lesson we have to learn is, that 

 the better the weapons we have, the more essential 



