72, OKEHAMPTON, 1895. 
system was the best. It was far easier to work, more rounds were 
fired, and they were more effective ; its advantages being especially 
apparent when the advance of the target was irregular. 
There are no doubt some defects in the service system ; the orders, 
for instance, are absurdly long and complicated, and it is not well 
described in Field Artillery Drill; but both these will be remedied 
this winter, and I feel sure that if Battery Commanders will drill at 
it, they will find that it is not difficult to work, and that it is very 
effective. Of course where the difficulty comes in at practice camps 
is that there has usually been a ridiculous little target with a very short 
run; in consequence of the small size of the target the unreal factor 
of accuracy of direction came in; the laying was slow and ranging 
rounds unobserved. ‘The short run was in consequence over before 
any effect was produced, and everybody went away disgusted with 
the system. 
Having given you adverse criticism of infantry officers on our be- 
haviour with surprise targets, let me quote what one of them says about 
the moving target:—“The chief point was the wonderfully accurate 
practice made by the guns on a moving infantry target; so good was 
it, and so systematic in the way of working that it gave one pause as 
to the feasibility of a frontal attack of infantry on guns at all.” With 
an increase in this nature of practice, the results next year should be 
better still. 
The improvements in the arrangement of the cavalry target were 
that it was quite invisible from the battery until it started, and the 
pace was much quicker than in previous years. It was certainly, I 
think, as quick as cavalry would move on service, though not possibly 
equal to that of a certain distinguished regiment of light cavalry, one 
of whose officers attended some artillery practice this year, and wrote 
in his report: ‘“ The time taken by cavalry advancing over 1000 yards 
up to the guns would be under one minute.” Thatisatarate of over 34 
miles an hour! or, to put it another way, just three or four seconds 
quicker per mile than the best ‘‘ Derby ”’ record. 
Before leaving the subject of moving targets, I wish to draw 
attention as strongly as I can to the fact that in order to make this 
practice really valuable, the targets should not be only on one or two 
well known runs where they are expected, but that batteries at service 
practice should never know when they will be turned on to a moving 
target, or when the target they are firing at will begin to move ; and 
also to the fact that to give valuable practice these targets must have 
a broad front. We should not on service waste the fire of a battery on 
half a dozen men, whether infantry or cavalry ; and it is not sound to 
say that practice at a small target is good training for shooting at a 
largeone. Itisnot; forit teaches wrong lessons. Accurate direction 1s 
almost forced upon the layers; the fire is in consequence slow, and all 
ranks feel want of confidence in their power to efficiently resist such; 
an attack. 
The ground at Okehampton allows of a far greater development 
in these directions next year, if only the targets and the stores for. 
working them are allowed. The targets themselves are excellent ;. 
all we want is more of them. 
