SKILL-Al 1 -ARMS. 
54 ? 
our peculiar idea of taking cover can hardly affect them ; they have not 
been devoted to skill-at-arms; and the talk of devoting them to recon¬ 
naissance is idle. In artillery, a smart officer might get a single 
battery into action scathless where another officer would incur loss; 
but, as a single battery ought to be always in line and is easily led, 
there is little handling until batteries are brigaded. If Horse and 
Field Artillery are not to become a disorderly collection of batteries, 
impeding other Arms and each other on the march and in battle, a 
brigade division must be personally commanded and led. The com¬ 
mand is difficult, on account of the difficulty of making the voice heard 
in artillery, and the difficulty of leading a line of carriages at full 
interval square up to a position; but an officer ought not to command 
Horse or Field Artillery unless he can handle them. We have no 
handling in infantry. There would be handling if we attacked in 
force; but we shall not attack in force until we cease to extend for 
safety. Meanwhile, there is danger of the officers of our principal Arm 
forgetting how to name, or to know by name, the formation and 
movements of troops. 
The plain meaning of skill-at-arms, in infantry and artillery, is such 
skill above the common in shooting at targets as may be acquired 
by much pactice. In a wider sense, some things we teach the soldier 
which have little to do with the serious business of fighting, and 
some drills and instructions which are not warlike nor disciplinary, 
are skill-at-arms. Such are signalling, range-finding, cycling, much 
of reconnaissance, mounted infantry, machine guns, Chap. V., Vol. II. 
of our drill-book, and the infantry attack. 
Whether devoting our infantry and artillery to musketry and gunnery 
will cause them to shoot considerably better in future battles is a 
question upon which the experience of many senior officers must divide 
them from many of their juniors. That drill and discipline is more 
important than skill-at-arms ought to be allowed by all officers of 
regular troops. That handling troops is more important than musketry 
and gunnery will be understood only perhaps by officers who have 
some practical knowledge of manoeuvre ; yet it seems not difficult to 
imagine that troops well handled might win where if not well handled 
they would be beaten, and that cruel loss may be incurred through 
inability to handle troops. There must be among us officers who can 
never forget seeing troops badly handled in battle. 
Our gun-drill ought to be warlike, to tend to discipline, and not to 
name taking cover or hiding from the enemy. Nothing more irrational 
than putting taking cover into field drill ever grew upon an army. 
A sergeant now drills an extended squad on broken ground as if he 
were drilling for the Agricultural Hall. It is in the nature of men to 
find out for themselves, never a moment too late, more about cover 
than can be taught them at drill. An officer who has to move his 
command on a field of battle sees the safest way to go: only orders, or 
his talent and character, will make him go another way : education to 
take cover can have no effect but to annul his talent, when his talent 
and what he has been taught are opposed and his character is not 
strong enough to support his talent. It is the duty of Field Artillery 
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