ORGAN,” &C. 
415 
the required number! This, we believe, will have a most serious 
effect on the efficiency of the German army in a future war. The 
value of a corps of officers is not ascertained by considering the state 
of training of its best members, but by taking an average; and the 
German reserve and landwehr officers are confessedly very little 
acquainted with their duties, and are inferior to our militia, and 
to many volunteer officers. 
The most interesting paper in the number, from an artillery point of 
view, is “ The handling of horse artillery,” which, although written by 
an infantry officer, Major Weissmann of the 67th Regiment, is well 
worthy of most careful study. He divides his essay into three heads 
(1) How, in future, should horse artillery not be used; (2) Is it 
necessary to add horse batteries to cavalry divisions, and if so, when 
and how should they be used; (3) What conditions must the organiza¬ 
tion and gun, &c., construction fulfil. To the first question the answer 
is, horse batteries should no more be used to accompany cavalry 
attacks, in which, under the most favourable circumstances, they have 
only time to fire one or two rounds. On this subject, and on the 
uselessness of the practice of pushing horse batteries at a hard gallop 
to the front to a favourable position for preparing the attack of cavalry, 
the authors remarks are most convincing. On considering the second 
head, Major Weissman concludes that horse batteries should form an 
integral part of the cavalry division, but that it by no means follows 
that the action of the two arms should of necessity be simultaneous. With 
cavalry corps covering the advance or retreat of an army, guns become 
a necessity for the storming of detached posts, villages, &c., or for 
defending temporary positions which cavalry alone, with its small 
defensive power, could not hold. On the battle-field, contrary to most 
received notions, the author expresses his opinion that all artillery are 
alike, and that horse batteries lose their importance and are even 
inferior in usefulness to the heavier batteries. He deplores the 
absence of horse batteries in the corps artillery of the Austrian army 
(a complaint which we have no cause to echo), as this force cannot be 
pushed to the front as quickly as might be desired. The battle of 
Mars-la-Tour (a well-chosen example) is then described with special 
reference to the horse artillery, which appears to have acted in general 
as above described. In the answer to the third question little new 
matter is brought to light; in fact the author desires to reduce the 
number of the mounted detachment and carry five men on the gun. 
On the whole the paper is very well written, and the arguments are 
carefully worked out and lucidly expressed. As expressing Austrian 
views on the subject it is an interesting contribution to field artillery 
literature. 
The remaining papers are :—“ The tactics of supporting points,” a 
sequel to a former paper on the subject; an article on “ Steppe 
warfare,” most of the matter of which is contained in the Intelligence 
Department pamphlet on “ Steppe campaigns ”; and a continuation of 
the collection of Turkish documents relating to the Russo-Turkish war. 
December, 1880, 
