Virginia Argus. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1796-1816, 1808-02-19


and 50 motions.
The British have reduced their manual
in imitation of the French, To seven words
OF command and fourteen motions but have
excluded from the m mural motions that are
certainly useful, rs The slope and the Sc
cure both of which are of real use, which
are required to be performed, whether they
are comprehended III the manual or not.
Perhaps a system which would 4ccommo
date itself to all the uses, and produce ali
the effects required Tor discipline and pa
rade, might be preferable to-the superAuz
Gus system, or to those which reject useful
motions. t'te ~ .
1t is proposed then to establish manual
of discipline, and manu- al ofiparadc
In the manual ofdiscipine should be COM
pretended all the motions that are requir-
ed under all circumstances in the use OF the
hrelock /; this manu- j then would necessarI-
ly comprehend Al tnat is required TO be
guard or on rlarch The prupriety of this
will perhaps BE seen, if the ends proposed
by "A InfHuaf are considered. Us 10 ~
Unity or uniformity of movement under
alFcIrcurs aDces, is tho basis Of disci pine ;
in so nslicb as this unity OF action is cpn :
p etc, somucn mere l,er Get is lie discipline
l'h princip@l and only eilsc.uli parts of
the manual.aue th9sss which so into action !;
they are ths leading, pruning, and, firing,
The hXng and charging of bayonets all o.
Their motions IRE redccible TO two heads,
motions of coa1enfe,ice, and therefore of
utility, and PROPER TO be preserved mott
ons of hdrode orrespeet, wichtnay be pre-
served or rejected w,thput disadvantage.
Among the. motions of convenience are
the slope, trHb advance, support. the, SCI
cure, and tle. stacking or fling of arms |;
there are also motions that, are Improper,
such as grounding arms. 1t is strictly in the
spirit of good disc pine, net TO accustom
men to any motions which convey humilia-
ting iGeas; an American citizen must DIS
dain submissIonto any invader, and the lay
ing down arms being the'last act of subJec-
tion of vanqui she'd army, and like pas
sing under the yoke among the ancients,it
ought to be banished from our exercises
Independent of the policy, thereeis also
utility inrejectlng the motions of grounding
and taking up 6relocks On service in the
field, tits never done-on duty as centihels,
it is not permissjble; and as a matter Of
prudence and economy, it ought not to- be
suffered. aIr6n acquires rust very rapidly
in every part ofoour country Laying the
hreiock on the earth or gr4ss, is there
fore destru .tvl e. ms ldt Ammunition.
The. stacking of arms by two contiguous
files in the order OF two deep; or in the or
der ofthree deep, st cking the frelocks Of
the three is easy, by facing The centre rank
to the left, and The front rank u the right
about; the firelocks stand in that order,
which tn " are secured from moisture, and
are easily resumed by the members Oh re-
turning into order. sst.5e.. 81. ~
These are illustrations of the use of the
m nual; welshal offer a project of manual
exercise in two classes A manual of pa
rade and aimanual of discipline. s4
MANUAL, OF PARADE
The soldier comes to parade with his
arms traied or sloped, and on falling 10 he
comes to an order at ease without word of
command On tile beatof the drum or COM
mand OF the otfcer-aftrntion as a prepa-
rative, the ranks dress 10 the right or left as
required. The officer then gives notice to
take care to perform manual exercise OF
parade
/. Fix BhYoNErs asoH
IN this motion the frelock is seized with
the left hand, about the upper band. and
without moving the but from the side of the
right foot, is thrown easily in front of the
body in sloping position; the right hand is
carried At the same moment between the
freiock and the body 10 the bayonet which
is seized and xedbriskly on the frelock
and then brought into the position of the or
der ai
2. Prime and load.
This comprehends motions in the manu-
al of discipline here il is executed at one
word OF command, the motions are-1 re-
coUer from the orler-2 handle cartridge
B. primc--4 load-5. draw rdmrod-6.
l.