ARTILLERY IN COAST DEFENCE. 
807 
exercises fire control over them tlirough a staff officer at his fighting 
station. The role of these guns is analagons to that of the Corps 
Artillery of an Army Corps. They would be used to support the 
action of any fort which, in the opinion of the Section Commander, 
might require assistance in engaging the objectives allotted to it. 
Besides these officers who exercise tactical control or fire control 
over the various units and whose duties we shall consider under the 
heads of fire tactics, fire control, and fire discipline, there are others 
who have special duties to perform, these are Sub-Commanders (for 
discipline), ammunition officers, and electric light officers, who are all 
under the orders of the Fort Commanders, with the exception of 
officers in charge of Section Commander’s lights. 
The “ Sub-Commander for discipline ” is the representative of the 
Fort Commander on the gun floor. His presence is rendered necessary 
when, as is usually the case with guns of the primary armament, the 
Fort Commander has his station at some distance from the groups, 
near the instruments (range or position-finders), by the aid of which 
he controls their fire. 
In such cases a Sub-Commander is appointed to see that the Fort 
Commander’s orders are carried out and to supervise and assist the 
Group Officers. 
His duties must not be confounded with those of a “ Sub-Com¬ 
mander with fire control ” who actually fights the guns under him, 
while this officer has nothing to do with the fighting of the guns. 
His chief duty will be the general supervision of the discipline of 
the gun floor; he will have to see to the prompt transmission of orders 
from the Fort Commander to the Group Officers; he will have to 
superintend the removal of wounded and to the replacement of 
casualties among men or stores, for which purpose a portion of the 
reserve would be placed under his orders; and he would be in direct 
communication with the Fort Commander. 
He would not interfere (unless ordered) with the Group Officers as 
regards the fighting of the guns, nor with the Ammunition Officer; 
but should a group for any reason become disorganised and its shoot¬ 
ing consequently unreliable, he will cause it to cease firing, reporting 
the fact to the Fort Commander. 
Electric lights are used for two distinct purposes, and are controlled 
according to the purpose for which used. 
Search lights are mainly used for finding out the position of an 
enemy’s vessels, and are controlled by the Section Commander. 
Fighting lights are used principally for lighting up the vessels 
when found, and each Fort Commander would usually have one such 
light under his control. 
The means of generating the light, and of keeping it in action, are 
entrusted to the R.E., but with each light there will be two men of 
the R.A. to elevate and traverse it under the direction of an R.A. 
officer (or N.-C. officer). 
The system on which these lights are worked (only provisional at 
present) is shortly as follows. The Section Commander’s search light 
(assisted sometimes by some of the fighting lights) searches the water 
