Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1883-01-18
Stacking Arms with Swivel.

Our Atlanta correspondent, Major Sid
ney Herbert, who is the Southern CORE
spOndent of the army and Nary Register,
sends us the following Manual" pre-
pared by Lieut.. w. c. Brown, of the First
Cavalry, and recommended by a Board of
Officers at the Infantry and Cavalry
School at Fort Leavenworth. 1t has been
approved by the War Department, and
will hereafter be used in the army for all
guns provided with the stacking swivel.
Our Savannah military companies will
find the "ManuaP' of interest to them,
and for this reason we publish it in full:
'"The men being at order arms, bayOnets
unfiXed, the instructor commands: l,
stack: ,. arms. At the command stack
each even number of the front rank turns
his piece, barrel to the front, the barrel
turning to the left and inclines 1t slightly
forward, grasping 1t with the left hand at
the upper band, the thumb and fOrefinger
raising the hOOk-swivel; each even mum
Der of the rear rank then passes his piece
to his file-leader. who graSps it between
the bands with his right hand and throws
it, barrel to the rear, two feet in front of
his own piece, the right hand slipping to
the upper band, the thumb and fOrefnger
raising the hOOk-swivel, which he engages
with that of his own piece, and inclines
front rank grasps his piece with the right
hand between the bands, the left hand
guiding the hoOk-swivel, which he holds
near the hOOk-sWivels of the other pieces.
At the command arms, each odd number
of the front rank engages the hook Of his
piece with the free hook of the piece of
the even number of the rear rank. He
then turns the barrel downward and to
the right between the other twO-sO that
it shall rest upon their intersection-and
rests the butt about fifteen inches in front
of his right foot. The stack being formed
and aligned, the command lay on loose
pieces is given. at which the remaining
pieces in the rear rank are passed to the
even numbers in the front rank, who lay
them on the stacks. The pieces of the file
clOsers are laid on the stack at the same
time. To resume arms, the instructor
commands 1, squad; ,, attention; 3,
take; /. arms. At the second command
the men resume their places in rear of the
stacks and come to attention. At the COM
mand take. the pieces of the Odd-numbered
men of the rear rank and of the file-clOsers
are passed to them; each even number of
the front rank then grSsps his own piece
with the left hand, the piece of his rear
rank man with the right hand, graSping
both between the bands; each odd-number
Of the front rank grasps his own piece in the
same way with the right hand. AT the
command arms. each even number of the
front rank turns his piece to the left, dis
engaging it from the piece of his rear rank
man, which he returns to him; each odd
number Of the front rank at the same time
disengages his own piece by turning it to
the right, all resuming the order arms.
If in single rank, number two Of
each four makes the stack, using the
piece of number three as explained
for the even numbered rear rank man,
number one using his own piece as eX-
planned for the odd numbered front rank
man, and the loose pieces are passed and
laid on as before. In breaking the stack
the loose pieces are passed as before, and
the stack is broken as when in two ranks,
number two taking his own piece in his
right hand and that of number three in his
left, which he passes to him on breaking
the stack. Number one grasps his own
piece with his right hand"