102 
EXPERIENCES AT OKEHAMPTON IN 1891. 
surely, as tlie quick arrival at an effective time shrapnel fire is onr 
great object, one should TRY to get the first fuzes RIGHT and not 
postpone the wished-for moment by preliminary operations; unless the 
indistinctness of the target, or other reasons, render such proceedings 
necessary. 
While speaking on the subject of fuzes, it will interest yon to know 
that, working from a very large number, some hundreds, of fuzes, it 
has been ascertained that the mean error of the fuzes of a well-trained 
battery is as follows :— 
Range. 
Yards. 
600 to 1000 
1000 to 2000 
2000 to 3000 
Mean error, 
Yards. 
... 18 
... 19 
... 19-5 
With these figures as a point of reference, if any officer will take 
trouble to work out the mean error of the fuzes of his battery, he will 
not only be able to see the result of the training that his men have 
had, but most infallibly to find out at what guns the fuzes are badly 
set. 
As showing the result of the high velocity of our gun on the burn¬ 
ing of the fuzes, I am permitted to mention the results of firing with 
a charge of 12^ oz. of cordite, giving a muzzle velocity of 1537 f.s., 
in which the mean error of 27 fuzes, at ranges between 2100 and 2600 
yards, was only 12*7 yards. 
An old complaint has cropped up again this year under a new form. 
It was remarked of the batteries practising in 1889, and referred to in 
the “Instructions for Practice of 1890,” that there was too much ex¬ 
posure in taking up positions. It was noted that in 1890 there had been 
a great improvement in this respect, but it has been a remark 
frequently made this year, that the calling of the sectional officers and 
gun-layers to the front is an unnecessary revelation of the spot upon 
which the batteries are eventually to come into action. 
This is a question of such very great importance that it deserves to 
be treated somewhat at leug’th. The German Regulations go so far as 
to say that, “ after the simultaneous opening of fire on the occupation 
of the first position in action, the thing next in importance is the 
occupation of a preparatory position under cover,” from which the 
preliminary reconnaissance of the target may be carried out before the 
battery is committed to action. 
Those by whom I have most often heard the indictment preferred 
have generally been standing with the range party at a higher elevation 
than the target and well to a flank, they were, therefore, enabled to 
look both over and round the folds of ground covering the battery 
from the target, hence I am inclined to think that in many cases where 
batteries are said to have exposed themselves unnecessarily they were 
not really so exposed to an observer at the target itself. 
Again, the ground at Okehampton is exceptionally open and also, 
the spectators, knowing exactly where the batteries were coming into 
action, were on the keen look-out for any appearance on the bare hill- 
