VOLUNTEER ADJUTANCIES. 
155 
the town, and rendered most attractive by the excellent band of the 
corps) many recruits were enrolled. After the annual inspection, 
which took place in July, little drill was done in the corps. Endeavours 
were made to keep squads of 15 or more recruits together, and take 
them right through their drill, the Adjutant passing them, first in squad 
drill, then in carbine drill, gun-drill and repository. 
There are some men in a Volunteer corps who are glad to attend 
nearly all the year round, and will learn anything in which they can 
obtain instruction, and for this reason the Volunteers are much better 
off than the Militia, for such men, living near their head-quarters, may 
be made thoroughly good and useful artillerymen, and will probably be 
made much more of as time goes on. 
The men are fallen in in plain clothes to the number varying from 
20 to 120, one N.-G.O. takes the recruits in squad drill, another takes 
the men to gun-drill, another a repository squad, or does a little com¬ 
pany drill (if near the inspection), signallers will proceed to practise 
signalling, trumpeters are in a separate place practising. No one is 
allowed to remain in the reading-room or Sergeants' Mess unless they 
are thoroughly efficient and not required on parade. 
The Adjutant superintends the drills, coaches officers for their 
examinations, examines men who are competing for skill-at-arms, or 
for Bombardier, Corporal or Sergeants' rank, or superintends the ex¬ 
amination of layers. If officers are available, who will undertake to 
conduct examinations under the Adjutant's supervision, they gain 
greatly in knowledge of their work and of their men. 
Recruits are sworn in between drills, or after they are finished. 
As usual, part of the gun-drill consists of pure drill, the rest instruc¬ 
tion in ammunition and gunnery. Some men may be taught how to aim 
by means of a Morris tube range, which may be fitted up in almost any 
armoury in such a manner as not to interfere with any other drill. 
If the whole object of artillery is to “ hit, hit, hit," as said by Prince 
Kraft, and since reiterated by many military men in every army in the 
world, surely an artillery officer may hail with delight the chance of 
obtaining an Adjutancy of Volunteer Artillery, for he will have the 
superintendence and direction of firing more ammunition than he 
would have in any other branch of the Royal Artillery. He is generally 
left to himself in the arrangement of the practices, and the object for 
which each series is carried out. He can range-find with plane tables, 
or any other means that can be obtained, and use dials and code 
signals, by which the commanding officer can work the guns from a 
distance. Drifting targets can be used, standing targets, sometimes 
towed targets. On the land range the Battery of Position can fire at 
every kind of entrenchment, dummy guns and men. There is, how¬ 
ever, one difficulty in connection with practice. Every member of the 
corps must attend one practice during each year in order to be efficient, 
and this is not easily arranged. If the inspecting officer, at the annual 
inspection, wishes to see practice the matter is fairly easy, but even so, 
all men in the corps cannot go on the guns in one afternoon, nor would 
it be desirable to shew up the worst attenders before the inspecting 
officer in a body. Indeed most of the practice is carried out prior to 
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