Press and daily Dakotaian. (Yankton, Dakota Territory [S.D.]) 1880-1889, 1886-06-09
GERMAN ~CAVALRYMEN.
THE NORMAL SCHOOL WHERE OFF,
GERS ARE INSTRUCTED.

THE NORMAL SCHOOL WHERE Off
GERS ARE INSTRUCTED.
ers Than Are Seen In q Circus-How En-
lciency Is Acquired-AH Hunting Ground
OF 5000 Acres.
There are two cavalry schools in Ger
one in Hanover and a minor n in
Munich, but it is not to be imagined for q
moment that either of them compares
even in the least degree with West Point,
except in the rather important matters OF
discipline and training. The exquisite
lawns, the magnificent views. the appear |
ance of historic associations, the beautiful
grounds and cottages of the officers and
professors ut West Point, and the atmos-
phere OF perfect refinement and good soci-
ETY. that clusters like an aroma about 1t,
as it might in kind about the country
seat of n wealthy n highly educated
gentleman, are all wanting. On the con-
trary, the otherwise well constructed bar
racks of the riet schulz, with long stables
extending back and across an open rect
angular battle-ground in the rear, have
nothing about them suggestive OF any
thing but their exact purpose.
When the officers enter the school they
have, already been well trained by those
who have preceded them here, but they
are put on the footing of raw recruits at
once. The first year they ride three differ
ent horses every day, the object being to
acquire q good seat, and skill in the use OF
the sword. The first horse is a so-called
Astampferd" "a common, well-trained
trooper,) belong to the school. Thesec
ond horse Is called a charger" which in
German military usage signifies a raw
5-year-old colt. The latter is to be trained
n broken by the officer who rides him.
and after being ridden five years becomes
ms private property, at which time he re-
ceives another to be trained in the same
way. Each officer (they are at first all
l~eutenants) Is also obliged to provide an
extra horse, which must be so well trained
That 1T can replace the charger in case Of
injury or ~indisposition.
HOW EFFICIENCY IS ACQUIRED.
~Ihroughout the winter there are bi-
weekly lectures on riding, veterinary sur
gerry, and also on horse -shoeing, with
thorough Instruction in turning and fenc-
Ing, In all of which complete practical eff
nciency is acquired. The second year, rs
lar as the routine referred to is concerned,
Is q repetition of the first.
The non-commissioned officers ride two
already well-trained horses daily, and are
trained to become rough riders and train
ers of new horses in their w regiments.
The majority remain in the school only
one year, though the twelve best are
usually kept through the second year. The
instructors in the Ron commissioned Off
GERS department in the second year are the
twelve best-trained lieutenants from the
officers department.
IN view OF the peculiar duty of a cavalry
artillery officer, the medium between
The rough riding of hunting and the
steeple-chase on the one hand and the fine
eauestrianism of the laute ecole (hiRh
schooD on the other is supposed to afford
the proper training. Few bet~terlocalities.
therefore, could be chosen thar Hanover,
with a hunting ground which covers 5000
acres, and is SO full of grass-hidden bitches,
DOGGY ground, and scattered marshy spots
That it would perhaps puzzle the most
sklllful English rider to cross it in safety.
The school opens the 1st, of October with
hunting three times a week, the game be-
Ing foxes. stays and boars. The young Of
tcers Sof the first year are not allowed to
hunt at once, but " twelve preparatory
"urags" with anise-seed bags In order to
get acquainted with the country, and
bring their horses into good hunting con
dlton. The first actual, hunting on st,
Hubert's day, Nov, $, is looked forward
70 WIN delight. The Hanover field ia
famous, and there are often a hundred and
nIty riders at the meet in brightly colored
snlts, n rs the whole cayalcade goes
L 0AShInp ncrnQQ thu rn,,rfrxr ATTN IL.
Ter OF the hounds and his "whipso clad in
scarlet, and the sixty d~eep-voiced English
hounds haying through the echoing forests
the spectacle is full of interest and excite.
ment.
lntheahaute ecoie (within doors) a sup.
erlatiye skill is impaired which makes bet.
Ter riders than are usually seen in u circus,
ana IL has Il direct practical bearing in the
cavalry service. 1t would be impossible
TO describe its intricacies in q
single letter, but it's essential
yalle will be understood whep
! say that a horse learns In the haute
ecoie to respond to the riders control
nearly as perfectly as the rider controls and
directs his own movement, SC that the ami
mai becomes ~measurably the plant in
strument of his will.
TRAINED ToA WONDERFUL DEGREE.
He is taught to stop instantly in full
course, Sithout injury to his Joints, by re
ceiying the shock with his hind legs. He
also learns to jump from ''all tours" ant
alight a foot or two or three feet forward
as required, n is trained to a wonderful
degree in making sudden, short turns, and
IN moving back and forth In a crowd to en-
able his rider in actual combat to use nj.
sword effectively, to extricats hi1nsell
readily, and to be sure that when h,
strikes his horse will be at the requisit,
distance from the mark; all of which, il
spite of its maryelously graceful evolu
tions, gives n frightfully grim and premed
itated aspect to the art of war. Both sys
TENS of training accomplish together tn,
desired results, but in the haute ecole tn,
rider become n master.
The kennels Mt the riding schools, wher,
sixty hounds, with their accompanying
terriers, sleep in a tiled room on a raised
straw-covered platform, and are kept scru
pulousiy. sweet and clean, form an inter
esting feature of the Establishment ss:.s
as we watched the dogs bounding about il
their play ground, the great splendid Eel
lows came TO US singly as their name.
were called, with n gravity beftting thsi
Importance in the kaiser's military serv
ice.
Throughout the long; clean, well
lighted stables, another interesting point
there was a fresh, bright, continuous car
pet of straw behind the horses, secured By
a tightly braided straw rope, with which
it was interviewer, and the round beams
in lieu of partitions, We're wrapped in {