Cincinnati daily press. [volume] (Cincinnati [Ohio]) 1860-1862, 1861-05-29
valuable InforfaatIon JR RespeCtlng RiasS
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tice. II is not ordinarily found in those
IeQiments recruited about our great cities 4
from men who never before handled o gun,
hut in those made up Of young men from
the woods,e who, from daily use Of the ride h
knoy its power; THIS kIn,oWlSs.dge' when
them invincible. Hence schools of practice,
establNhed by governments, are indispen-
sable, and should be organized in this coun-
try. : The French have such at Vineehnes,
Toulouse, St. 0mer and Grenoble, whence
officers aud men well instructed in the prin-
ciples- of firing, are sent into the army az
large, and impart to II the same system and
efficiency. An attempt was made to estsbs
hsh such school AZ Fort Monroe for ar
tillery pfBctice, but schools for infantry
are far more pressingly needed. Toe
yalue of the bayonet in battle is well
understood but thefaCt is now incontestis |,
bic that the efficiency Of a body of iHfsntryl
resides essentially in its accuracy of1hres q
fact made more apparent from the Feoeutim-
proven ent in firearms A. cool, welb directed
fire, from Rbody ofmeu armed with the best !
modern rife or rifle musket, is sufficient 70 |
stop the advance Of almost any body of !
troops, but the very best disciplined 1aen I
will, in time of battle, ere with preeipitAnCy /
and alta too great q distance. 90 u1 gG g1,g1
The thoroughDess Of practice, also, should I
be in proportion to the eficieady Of Vie |
tfoupsto be encountered. In one of Colonel 4
Steptoe'sy encounters with the IndiRns of !
Washington Territory bis men were armed I
with the oldmusket, aud they soon. expended
their ammunition in Intellectual firing against
enemies mounted on feet horses, armed
partly with rflee partly with bows and
/ arrows, whose deadly shaft was shot with
i astonishing, accuracy, and at q rate exceed
/ ing the Fapidity Of an expert hand with
K revolver. charges Of cavalry against them I
! failed, and our men retreatedl TO avoid an.
/ nihilation Some weeks subsequently the
same troops met the same lDdiansi but havH
| ing in the interval procured the rifle instead
I OF The musket; the Indians were totally
routed. &. HfLf ..- d vl>YtHA fll ..
In the successful and oft.Tepeated repulse
, Of cavalry charges by squares OF infantry,
the main dependence is not on the use of
the bayonet; but in the close, well directed
fire, delivered as the horsemen approach.
This, breaking their formation, and disor--
ganizing their ranks, leaves them at the end
of their charge with a wall OF bayonets in
front, against which horses can not be forced
unless at full speed and supported by num-
bers behind. II is this injury, before the
shock takes place, which prevents cavalry
from breaking squares of fnfantFy. 80 &C
cuTate and fatal has the rifle become by
modern improvement, that1t has been cus-
tomary to underrate the artillery arm on
the field of battle; and the assertion Is ffes
entirely supersede the use Of field pieces in
war, since their FIRE has q greater range and
| more accuracy than the feld-pieees now in
use. But able military writer's doubt this.
Others insist that artillerymen will be shot
down at such distance from their guns as
20 makeit impossible to serve them In the
face Of infantry that bayonets will not be
, crossed SO often q that personal conflicts,
such Rs line against line, or column against
column, win cease altogether, and future
combats be decided by the effects of rapid
and destructive FIRE, on the precision OF
which, rather than on personal contact and
extensive combinations, the result viii de-
pend. -,
columns of advancing insurgents by Mimic
rifles They worked dreadful havoc to the
/ Austrians at Magenta and Solferino. Carl.
baldi retreated before their whitening FIRE al
Rome. AT the battle of Ilstedt, body o
, skirmishers, armed with rifles, discharging
conieal balls, made an attack on the Danes
at q distance Of hundred and fifty yards
Artillery replied to them, cavalry made re-
peated charges at them, and infantry I'D
! yanoed, but they could not be moved, La
; less than an huur they killed seventy men
with several officers of high rank, aud
I ninety horses. This havoc gives color to the
. idea Of the improved rifle superseding field
Z artillery. 'u.l Da.t " l-nA .ff"
| The FIRE of the ordinary musket fis1 un.
l certain beyond two hundred yards, but
t when troops are in compact TnasSes, it il
/ still very effective hey ond that distance9 Al
: six hundred and fifty yards the musket bal
: is still deadly, and Has beeh known to- kill a.
Q even greater distances. The effective range
!. / Of the rihed spherical ballis over tour hun
t dred yards the oblong rife ball is effective
s at one thousand yards, or more than halt
Il mile. The rife, wssin use ss early as l49d
9 Almost every European army has adopte'
n its own kind of rifle, essentially differinl
q from each other. In the small German
q States they use bullets Of almost every con
/ ceiyable shape and size. The principal arm
q adopted fer the British army is the Entiel
Y rifled musket, manufactured in the Govern
d lment establishment. 4 It's principal com
is- -petitor is thew hitworth rihe.s The Frenc
d Fafe now perhaps more advanced than a
%, Others in experience and efficiency with tha
70 arm To Captain Mimic of their army, the
ale indebted for the wsapon bearing hi
n name, and it is now being rapidly adopte
y Throughout the French serYice.sH .sl3IJ
20 Ee The schools for practice established in tbs
country should be initiated here. The NE
are there taught to take the easiest andlmo
.e stable positionS eithex standing, or kneelinl
n n 10 sight and FIRE with blank cartridges, PR
! serving immOVable both the body and th
piece. The quick movement the solids
Ne imparts to the piece, by pulling the trlggs
4 principal object of instruction is to habl
be uate him not to- being surprised by the e.
a plosion, by pressing gradually upon 1t. Ft
\. This purpose they are made 10 fire caps at
NJ lighted candle, placed about three inch,
from the piece. If the latter Is proper
A. aimed, the let of gas produced by the oa
a. will e1tineuish the candle. After this, the
"a fire HANK CARTRIDGES. The officers are tho
~ ouahiy instructed in estimating distance
-, -, as they wilt So much better direct the d
n 5of the men they command. - ss,as1 lsIls ..
,as y This knowledge is Of. great adyantage
Of them in maneugering troops and soldie
We thrown out as skirmishers will 0ntrgeneT
nd. an enemy if they know how TO estimate di
nj I tanees with precision, for their hire VIII thl
mi. be more accurate and siAoaef9gss. There .
no regular instructors in al sbsse department
Inc Records Of the firing are kept in each bi
talon It Is TO this tbordnghs tralnir
ma combined with the use of the best Weapc
ne Z tbat the French army owes most OF its pre-
ne ( emit 1supremacy.l 4Dhe men arc as mn
IN narksmen as any of our deerslsyers, y
Iey I MIME ball, fred by them, is terrific missl
ni1A WhRtldesTnction 1t works was shoTn IN I
jnt Y recent riot in st. Louis sThose aYhl
be struck the walls Of the houses, tore up 6Ele
his for a spaca of four inches IA diametek3 NJ =
yal they ssrpck faiFr they sunk slx inches \!
avs aIqIs OF q wall. tore away brick nsxtt !
- dedr. frame passed six inches through
he frame, then through the door aud into /!
fof1 wall Beyond A stroke OF lightningIl
The fiequently done less damage. "a,
NJ 10 6nIOe --r7T 7T57SG0I -17lJ9si iIol b
III ln oRhnERKABLs lRLoREMEsr.@zA hIs, = g
nd md t9dtsi living m BAldHinsvsled oaenas