268 ARTILLERY FROM AN INFANTRY OFFICHR’S POINT OF VIEW. 
Our gun has the greater muzzle velocity and the flatter trajectory, 
the German gun has the greater searching effect even with its ordinary 
shrapnel shell. There is no question that our guns are better horsed 
than the German and their mobility is greater. The Germans cannot 
turn out their horses, guns or harness anything like as smartly as our 
gunners do. It is marvellous how the Germans manage to get the 
amount of work out of their comparatively badly bred animals, which 
they undoubtedly do get out of them, and the reason they manage to 
do so is principally attributable to their excellent system of buying 
their horses as four-year-olds and keeping them in the riding school 
until they are six. They very seldom cast a horse until he is 18 and 
often not until he is over 20. 
Whether we do not sacrifice too much to hghtness having as we 
undoubtedly have better horsed artillery than any on the continent is 
a question I will leave to artillerymen. I say advisedly than any 
on the continent, for in this respect all accounts tell us that the 
Germans are far ahead of their possible antagonists. Whether also 
our present turn out does not necessitate too much time being devoted 
to spit and polish is a question which I will not enter into. 
We now reach the subject of numbers. In the German army the 
proportion of guns to rifles is between five and six guns to 1000 men 
and the tendency is to increase the number of guns. At present the 
artillery is directly under the corps commander, but it is contemplated 
to split up regiments and to allot one artillery brigade of two regi- 
ments to each infantry division. As I have already said enormous 
worth is in Germany laid on artillery fire. What the number of guns. 
per 1000 men is, which we can afford to our regular and auxiliary 
infantry is no doubt known to most of my audience better than it is 
to me. 
There are stilla few remarks which I should like to make upon some 
points which I saw in Germany and which I consider to be of interest. 
On the line of march the artillery generally followed the leading 
battalion, but in the case of a long line of guns a couple of companies 
were put in between every fourth and fifth battery. fe mre ‘ 
A cavalry escort invariably accompanied artillery moving into posi- 
tion. When once in position the cavalry were usually relieved by 
infantry, unless there happened to be other troops in the immediate 
neighbourhood, in which case no further escort was provided, it being 
laid down that it is the duty of the nearest troops to secure the safety 
of the guns. In the case of a special infantry escort this escort was 
usually thrown out in front of the guns. ; 
For artillery to fire over the heads of infantry was not the exception, 
but the rule, being done every day. Sometimes the artillery in position 
and firing was only 150 yards behind the infantry line, and it must 
be borne in mind that the Germans only practice that in peace which - 
they mean to carry out in war. 
On a certain day at last year’s manceuvres a rear-guard action was 
being fought and [ was much struck by the masterly manner in which 
the artillery used the ground, never letting the attacking infantry 
