OKEHAMPTON, 1895. 71 
target’”’—in fact I think one formed part of each day’s service 
practice. Iwill say something of each in the order in which I have 
just mentioned them. 
The tramway is half a mile long, on the switch-back principle, and 
is most ingeniously designed so that the targets should move at walk, 
trot or gallop as desired. Unfortunately with a wind against it (as 
was almost invariably the case this year) the gradient is not steep 
enough, and so we could only manage to get the complete run by sub- 
stituting small flags for the figure targets and by sending them at full 
speed. We had hoped to have five full-sized cavalry figures on each 
track, 60 in all; as it was, a few flags rushing diagonally across the 
front at 20 miles an hour was scarcely a fair target. I trust this will 
be put right before next season, for it is of the utmost importance that 
batteries should know, what they cannot know now, how to deal with 
cavalry moving at the trot or canter at ranges between, say 1200 and 
2000 yards. 
The other moving targets were all on the principle brought in by 
General Richardson—five cavalry or seven infantry figures on a 
barrel. The infantry targets were moved two abreast, a great im- 
provement over a single one. Another novelty in their arrangement 
was that surprise targets were placed in line with them on to which 
fire was first turned. After a few minutes the moving portion of the 
line advanced, and the sections represented by surprise targets were 
turned off; the idea being to represent a line of infantry doing what 
infantry officers say they would always do—move as soon as our fire 
became effective. 
As regards the system of firing against these targets there has been 
a feeling for some time that the service system was not perfect, and 
last year this feeling found expression in the reports of the Comman- 
dants both at Okehampton and Glenbeigh. It was suggested that 
ordinary fire with some slight modifications might be made available 
against an advancing or retiring target; so doing away with the 
special ‘ranging section” system, and having but one for all occasions. 
The idea was immediately taken up, and 300 rounds were specially 
allowed for the purpose of experiment at Shoeburyness, where far 
greater facilities exist for working moving targets than anywhere else. 
As this is a matter of such great interest, I will briefly describe how 
the experiment was carried out. 
Two batteries were formed out of the officers and non-commissioned 
officers of the long course, and trained, one to the service system, and 
one to that proposed. The two batteries then shot against each 
other, all arrangements for targets, ranges, etc. being made indepen- 
dently of the Battery Commanders, who were kept in complete 
ignorance. ‘The two systems were tried alternately on identical targets. 
The targets were large and the advances long—as muchas 1000 yards— 
and covered all ranges between 2500 and 700 yards. The pace 
was varied and halts were made, (as no doubt would occur on service) 
at uncertain intervals without any warning being given. Before the 
practice there was, I think, a very strong leaning to the new system, 
but when it was over, the opinion was unanimous that the service 
10: 
