COMMENDED ESSAY, 1895. 363 
have been through a preliminary course with the Regular Artillery. 
Tf however there were any Officers of whom this could not be said 
they would have to forego the lectures during their first year and 
to attend drill exclusively. 
Tt has been thought best to include the senior N.C. Officers with 
the Officers for the earlier lectures, as in action they would be hable 
at any time to be called upon to take the place of Officers, and further 
because it is necessary that they should be acquainted with the principles 
of Range-finding. 
The above programme provides for all Officers being instructed in 
the duties of any post which they would be likely to fill, as it could 
only be very exceptionally that a Lieutenant would have to act as 
Battery Commander, or a Captain as Fire Commander. 
No mention has been made of the Range Group Officer, as this post 
would have to be filled by an Officer of the Regular Artillery, unless 
one of the Corps manning the Battery had qualified himself for it by 
going through a special course. 
The duties for which the Gunners lent by the Regulars toa Militia 
Regiment would be wanted would be not only those of specialists 
properly so called, but also others of a simpler nature, but such as the 
Regiment could not at first undertake itself. Position-finding dial 
readers, Depression Range-finding drum-readers and _ telephonists 
come under this head. When stage B of drill had been completed 
men should be selected to learn the work of each of these posts from the 
Regulars acting in them. When they undertook the work themselves 
supervision would be exercised over them, to prevent mistakes, till 
they had shewn themselves to be fully competent, and then assistance 
entirely withdrawn. Although these duties are easily learnt, the 
posts are ones of great responsibility, as any mistakes made by the 
men filling them would be likely to have serious consequences. It 
would be necessary therefore to select only intelligent and thoroughly 
reliable men; and such men having been once found and taught, it 
would obviously be the best plan to employ them permanently in their 
respective capacities. 
If the men selected as “understudies” to the specialists spoken of 
before were kept exclusively at their special work, a Militia Regiment 
should be in a position to furnish its own Depression Range-finding 
operators during its 2nd year of Coast Defence training. This would 
of course be out of the question in the case of the ‘ understudies”’ to 
the Position-finding operators ; but they would improve each year till 
eventually they would become specialists themselves. 
Although communication in Coast fortresses is generally by tele- 
phone or speaking tube, signalling is occasionally called for, and for 
practice it is always wanted. A Militia Regiment therefore cannot 
consider itself to be thoroughly equipped unless it has its complement 
of Signallers. Instructors would of course at first be provided by the 
Regulars till the Regiment was able to carry out its own instruction. 
It is possible too that amongst the many old soldiers in a Militia Regi- 
