GOLD MEDAL PEIZE ESSAY, 1894. 
335 
more than 100 yards in rear of the guns, the 2nd lines being grouped 
together and placed some distance in rear. One or two wagons of 1st line 
are brought up in line with the limbers. 
The information given above is gathered from <e armed strengths ” 
and official handbooks. 
England. The brigade or battery on leaving the line of march to England, 
advance into action is divided into two parts : (1) the guns; (2) the 
wagons. Until the batteries come into action, the latter remain from 
200 to 400 yards from the former. When the guns move into position, 
3 wagons are sent forward to supply the battery, and the 3 remaining 
ones with the limbers form the 2nd line, from 200 to 400 yards in rear 
of the guns. 
An examination of these different systems appears to show (1) that 
it is usual to divide the wagons into 2 lines; (2) that the wagons of the 
2nd line of the batteries of a Brigade Division are, as a rule, massed 
together, in order to place the control of ammunition more under the 
hand of the Brigade Division Commander. In our Regulations, the 
only direction for guidance as to the supply of ammunition to a higher 
unit than the battery appears in the following paragraph:— 
“ When a Brigade Division is in action the senior Captain will arrange 
for the distribution of wagons arriving from the ammunition column, and 
for the collection and despatch under proper charge of empty battery 
wagons to the Ammunition Column.” (“Field Artillery Drill,” Chap. 
IV., Section 13). 
These instructions might perhaps with advantage be amplified by 
defining rather more fully the authority (presumably the Lieut.-Colonel) 
who controls the ammunition in the 2nd line. It is further urged 
that this arrangement should be worked out beforehand into a regular 
system, and that the system, whatever it may be, should be tested 
practically on the manoeuvre ground before becoming a fixed regulation. 
Should it be decided to increase the number of our wagons to 9 per 
battery (giving a total of 144 rounds per gun), the best division would 
appear to be 3 in the 1st line and 6 in the 2nd. The 18 2nd line 
wagons being massed under the senior Captain, acting under the direct 
orders of the Lieut.-Colonel Commanding the Brigade Division. This 
officer would at once establish communication with his Ammunition 
Column. 
Lastly comes the question of the position of the wagons when an 
artillery force is marching with an army unit. 
There is a strong prejudice in our Regiment against the separation 
of the gun from its wagon, which has found expression in the following 
paragraph (Section 3, Chapter. IV. “ Field Artillery Drill ”) of our 
Regulations:-—• 
“ The Officer Commanding a battery must on no account permit his The system 
guns to push on in front of his wagons, nor must the Officer Command- of g “^® 
mg a Brigade Division ever allow the wagons of his batteries to be wagon, 
massed in rear of his guns, or to march separately from them.” 
The argument in favour of the above is that, although guns will 
easily enough obtain a free passage to the front of the column, there is 
likely to be some difficulty in persuading the advanced troops to make 
