370 
COMMENDED ESSAY, 1897 . 
be manned, both by day and night, at all events so far as executive 
officers, gun captains and layers, range-finding detachments and com¬ 
munications are concerned. It is most important that everyone should 
thoroughly understand what they will have to do in order to avoid 
unnecessary delay and the practice becoming a farce. 
The whole of the ammunition available should be so distributed, as to 
ensure every group having an approximately equal number of rounds 
to fire, and groups unable to use projectiles should have blank. 
On the day that “combined practice” is carried out, every man should 
be taken from employment, and only those absolutely necessary to find 
guards, cooks’ mates, and one or two other special details, allowed off 
parade. 
The battery commands should assemble on their “ manning parades,” 
and be marched to the works in time to open fire at the hour ordered ; 
everything should represent service conditions, and no one should be 
exposed or stand in positions they could not remain in under fire, with 
the exception of those detailed to communicate with the tug if a towed 
target is used ; all arrangements for replacing casualties or breaks down 
in communications should be made ; the B.C. should go to his command 
post and leave the correction of fire to those who would have to do it 
in action. 
If the general idea, notified to all concerned, is to stop ships running 
past, a marked difference should be made according to whether shell or 
belt attack is ordered. 
Before signalling to the tug to start, it should be ascertained that the 
range will be clear for at least fifteen minutes. The target should travel 
at full speed, commencing some distance away from the outermost 
battery to give time for the instruments to pick it up, and for the F.C. 
and B.C.’s to issue their orders as they would in action ; it should run 
straight through the defences, and each group should open upon it as it 
comes into their are of fire, provided the tug is not within the dangerous 
zone. If possible to start two or more targets at an interval, the practice 
will be more realistic and give better training in discipline and direction 
of fire. 
Rapidity should be essential, unless the F.C. orders belt attack, in 
which case the guns would probably have to be fired only at fixed points 
in the channel. 
If a bombardment is represented, two or more targets might be 
employed circling in front of the forts, the F.C. telling off certain 
batteries to each target or concentrating his fire, according to circum¬ 
stances. His orders should mention what class of ship is engaged and 
the form of attack to be used. 
The targets should describe such a course as will ensure the ranges 
changing rapidly ; we cannot unfortunately fire when they are moving 
end on, and thus fail in getting practice in this most important case. 
If we can only get a self propelled target, the experience gained will be 
very great, as it could be set to describe a circular course, and the groups 
could fire at it in every position ; as the corrections necessary would be 
a constantly varying factor, those concerned would learn to correct 
according to the shooting, and not trust to any theoretical calculations. 
Such an ideal is still, alas, only a dream of the future, though let us 
hope, the near future ! 
