134 
FIELD ARTILLERY FIRE. 
pitted against an enemy in the field who could take advantage of our 
lack of this quality. Against those with whom we have had to deal, 
the old “ go in and win ” system has been very efficacious owing to 
the prestige attaching to it, and possible on account of the indifference 
of the armament opposed to it. 
Having, during the last few years, adopted a system based on those 
already in use by other Powers, we have avoided many of the errors 
inseparable from the inception and development of new methods, and 
our drill-book presents a more or less complete scheme to our notice. 
That this scheme is perfect it is impossible to affirm, and many officers 
give their constant care and attention to its improvement, but the 
very fact of our having stepped into a full-blown scheme has deprived 
us of the experience to be gained in working it out, and thus many of 
the improvements that have been suggested are based upon principles 
that have already been tried and found wanting by those gunners 
abroad who initiated the modern system and have brought it to its 
present state. 
It is my intention, then, in the following pages, to deal generally 
with the principles upon which a system of fire-discipline should be 
based, to recount some of the attempts that have been made and the 
reasons for their failure, in order to place at the disposal of my brother 
officers materials for the perfection of our own system and to show 
them what exploded errors to avoid. The methods laid down in our 
own text-books deal only with results, and a study of them does not 
often reveal the principles upon which they are based, but this has 
been inseparable from the fact of our having taken advantage of the 
experience of others; at least, the principles could not have been 
enunciated without greatly exceeding the bulk of a hand ” book. 
By FIRE-DISCIPLINE must be understood the 'possession by the battery 
as a whole , of a combination of those qualities which enable its commander , in 
the shortest possible time , to turn fire , of any desired nature and rate } upon 
any portion of the field at will . 
That is, the battery must be so trained that its fire may respond 
smoothly and quickly as a machine, to the slightest touch of the 
guiding hand. To attain this pitch of perfection something more 
than mere mechanical excellence, such as that induced by a strict drill 
discipline, is required ; and yet a strict drill discipline is the first step 
towards it, for by it men are taught to perform certain of their duties 
pseudo-mechanically, even under the greatest stress of excitement. It 
is necessary to be able to direct the mechanical process called “ drill 99 
in such a manner that the same causes shall produce varying effects at 
will. In short, to produce good practice it is necessary to be able to 
command , and that is the point upon which this most important subject 
of fire-discipline hiuges. 
To explain more fully. Unless we know how to command it will be 
impossible to take advantage of the state of mechanical perfection to 
which the battery may have been trained. The laying and the service 
of the pieces may be perfect, but we must be able to immediately indi¬ 
cate the target and ensure, by good observation, that the fire is 
properly applied.. We must be able to change, with the utmost 
