Manual of Military Training by James A. Moss (best value ebook reader .TXT) 📕

THE OBJECT AND ADVANTAGES OF MILITARY TRAINING

1. Prelude. We will first consider the object and advantages of military training, as they are the natural and logical prelude to the subject of military training and instruction.

2. The object of all military training is to win battles.

Everything that you do in military training is done with some immediate object in view, which, in turn, has in view the final object of winning battles. For example:

3. Setting-up exercises. The object of the setting-up exercises, as the name indicates, is to give the new men the set-up,—the bearing and carriage,—of the military man.

In addition these exercises serve to loosen up his muscles and prepare them for his later experiences and development.

4. Calisthenics. Calisthenics may be called the big brother, the grown-up form, of the setting-up exercise.

The object of calisthenics is to develop and strengthen all parts and muscles of the human body,—the back, the legs, the arms, the lungs, the heart and all other parts of the body.

First and foremost a fighting man's work depends upon his physical fitness.

To begin with, a soldier's mind must always be on the alert and equal to any strain, and no man's mind can be at its best when he is handicapped by a weak or ailing body.

The work of the fighting man makes harsh demands on his body. It must be strong enough to undergo the strain of marching when every muscle cries out for rest; strong enough to hold a rifle steady under fatigue and excitement; strong enough to withstand all sorts of weather, and the terrible nervous and physical strain of modern battle; and more, it must be strong enough to resist those diseases of campaign which kill more men than do the bullets of the enemy.

Hence the necessity of developing and strengthening every part and muscle of the body.

5. Facings and Marchings. The object of the facings and marchings is to give the soldier complete control of his body in drills, so that he can get around with ease and promptness at every command.

The marchings,—the military walk and run,—also teach the soldier how to get from one place to another in campaign with the least amount of physical exertion.

Every man knows how to walk and run, but few of them how to do so without making extra work of it. One of the first principles in training the body of the soldier is to make each set of muscles do its own work and save the strength of the other muscles for their work. Thus the soldier marches in quick time,—walks,—with his legs, keeping the rest of his body as free from motion as possible. He marches in double time,—runs,—with an easy swinging stride which requires no effort on the part of the muscles of the body.

The marchings also teach the soldier to walk and run at a steady gait. For example, in marching in quick time, he takes 120 steps each minute; in double time, he takes 180 per minute.

Furthermore, the marchings teach the soldier to walk and run with others,—that is, in a body.

6. Saluting. The form of salutation and greeting for the civilian consists in raising the hat.

The form of salutation and greeting for the military man consists in rendering the military salute,—a form of salutation which marks you as a member of the Fraternity of Men-at-arms, men banded together for national defense, bound to each other by love of country and pledged to the loyal support of its symbol, the Flag. For the full significance of the military salute see paragraph 1534.

7. Manual of Arms. The rifle is the soldier's fighting weapon and he must become so accustomed to the feel of it that he handles it without a thought,—just as he handles his arms or legs without a thought,—and this is what the manual of arms accomplishes.

The different movements and positions of the rifle are the ones that experience has taught are the best and the easiest to accomplish the object in view.

8. School of the Squad. The object of squad drill is to teach the soldier his first lesson in team-work,—and team-work is the thing that wins battles.

In the squad the soldier is associated with seven other men with whom he drills, eats, sleeps, marches, and fights.

The squad is the unit upon which all of the work of the company depends. Unless the men of each squad work together as a single man,—unless there is team-work,—the work of the company is almost impossible.

9. Company Drill. Several squads are banded together into a company,—the basic fighting unit. In order for a company to be able to comply promptly with the will of its commander, it must be like a pliable, easily managed instrument. And in order to win battles a company on the firing line must be able to comply promptly with the will of its commander.

The object of company drill is to get such team-work amongst the squads that the company will at all times move and act like a pliable, easily managed whole.

10. Close Order. In close order drill the strictest attention is paid to all the little details, all movements being executed with the greatest precision. The soldiers being close together,—in close order,—they form a compact body that is easily managed, and consequently that lends itself well to teaching the soldier habits of attention, precision, team-work and instant obedience to the voice of his commander.

In order to control and handle bodies of men quickly and without confusion, they must be taught to group themselves in an orderly arrangement and to move in an orderly manner. For example, soldiers are grouped or formed in line, in column of squads, column of files, etc.

In close order drill soldiers are taught to move in an orderly manner from one group or formation to another; how to stand, step off, march, halt and handle their rifles all together.

This practice makes the soldier feel perfectly at home and at ease in the squad and company. He becomes accustomed to working side by side with the man next to him, and, unconsciously, both get into the habit of working together, thus learning the first principles of team-work.

11. Extended Order. This is the fighting drill.

Modern fire arms have such great penetration that if the soldiers were all bunched together a single bullet might kill or disable several men and the explosion of a single shell might kill or disable a whole company. Consequently, soldiers must be scattered,—extended out,—to fight.

In extended order not only do the soldiers furnish a smaller target for the enemy to shoot at, but they also get room in which to fight with greater ease and freedom.

The object of extended order drill is to practice the squads in team-work by which they are welded into a single fighting machine that can be readily controlled by its commander.

12. Parades, reviews, and other ceremonies. Parades, reviews and other ceremonies, with their martial music, the presence of spectators, etc., are intended to stimulate the interest and excite the military spirit of the command. Also, being occasions for which the soldiers dress up and appear spruce and trim, they inculcate habits of tidiness,—they teach a lesson in cleanliness of body and clothes.

While it is true it may be said that parades, reviews and other ceremonies form no practical part of the fighting man's training for battle, they nevertheless serve a very useful purpose in his general training. In these ceremonies in which soldiers march to martial music with flags flying, moving and going through the manual of arms with perfect precision and unison, there results a concerted movement that produces a feeling such as we have when we dance or when we sing in chorus. In other words, ceremonies are a sort of "get-together" exercise which pulls men together in spite of themselves, giving them a shoulder-to-shoulder feeling of solidity and power that helps to build up that confidence and spirit which wins battles.

13. Discipline. By discipline we mean the habit of observing all rules and regulations and of obeying promptly all orders. By observing day after day all rules and regulations and obeying promptly all orders, it becomes second nature,—a fixed habit,—to do these things.

Of course, in the Army, like in any other walk of life, there must be law and order, which is impossible unless everyone obeys the rules and regulations gotten up by those in authority.

When a man has cultivated the habit of obeying,—when obedience has become second nature with him,—he obeys the orders of his leaders instinctively, even when under the stress of great excitement, such as when in battle, his own reasoning is confused and his mind is not working.

In order to win a battle the will of the commander as expressed through his subordinates down the line from the second in command to the squad leaders, must be carried out by everyone. Hence the vital importance of prompt, instinctive obedience on the part of everybody,