The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1888-02-15
DRILL AND TACTICS.
THE GREAT CHANGES IN MODERN
METHODS OF WARFARE.

aIagazine Rifles to snpersede Breech
Leaders Ms Breech Leaders Superseded
sTuzzIe Observation-Disclosures Powder.
The Charge-Use Of Cavalry.
To those who knew him it Is almost incon.
ceivable that Gen. Skobelef could have be-
come strategist, but he was born tao
tician. On the other hand, the lieutenant in
the United States army who lays his plans so
that he surprises and captures band of hos
tile Indians is, pro tanto, strategist. The
line between strategy and tactics cannot be
drawn easily or exactly; butthe line between
drill and tactics is so clear that it is passing
strange how any confusion between them can
ever have arisen. The band Of farmers who,
the other day, hunted down and surrounded
the lair Of family Of murderers, knew, prob
ably, nothing of drill, but they brought tao
tics into play.
There is danger lest our officers fail to
study tactics such as they would require
every day and hour II they were opposed TO
regularly organized force. The fact that
they have to handle troops mainly against
Indians and rarely against mobs in cities, is
apt to induce them to ignore field tactics as
understood and practiced in other countries.
We are apparently ON the eve OF mighty
struggle, in which magazine rifles will super
sede breech leaders, as breech leaders, In 1886
and 1870 superseded muzxle leaders. Not
only will more shots minute be available
for the defense OF position, but those shots
will be more effective on account OF the lower
trajectory of the bullets. "a bullet fired point
blank will henceforth hit anywhere up to 500
yards, instead of falling far short of that
range At any rate, this win be so with the
new Enfield Lee Burton rifles and with the
Lebel rifle in France, and we may be sure the
other nations win not be long in rear Of tho
French and the English.
IN COMING WARS.
The new number Of Whitaker's Almanack,
it may be interesting to Say, contains very
well written and instructive article on the
present status OF the nations of Europe In
this respect. But not only will magazine
rifles play their part in coming wars; maya
zine guns also will add enormously to tho
effectiveness Of both attack and defense,
though probably more to the latter than to
the former Mitrailleuses were indeed used
in 1870, but, for mechanical reasons, they
were not very effective, and, in any case, the
French had not enough Of them, and did not
know well enough how to handle them to get
the best work out Of them. 1t will be very
different next time, when these machine guns
will to considerable extent take the place
of light artillery, and. In some respects, Of
half battalions Of infantry. II Is, therefore,
obvious, that every operation Of war will be
largely affected by the change In the rifles
and in the habitual use of machine guns.
Strategy itself win have to take the progress
into account, and it will profoundly modify
and, in sense, revolutionize tactics; how
greatly we shall probably not know until
thousands of men have fallen through blum
dering. But that Is no reason why we should
wait for such an experimentum crucis.
Each year sees 80 many changes In the
armament Of nation that the tactics Of to-
day are In some respects Anticipated this day
twelvemontb. Suppose 1t is true that tho
French and English have got smokeless pow
der in their new cartridges, as Is more than
suggested in the almanac above mentioned,
That In itself must materially modify tactics
employed by or against them. We do not
indeed believe that the heat waves arising
from snokeless powder will sometimes fail
to deceive as well those using it as their ad-
yersaries, or that this powder will be found
as well adapted as black powder for transport
and for keeping purposes But its disadvan-
tages will in any case be outweighed by its
advantages, and when 'the war cloud rolling
dunn has disappeared many movements now
possible under its curtain win then be inn
practicable
CHARGING THE WORKS.
Gen. Skobeleff said to Capt Green, United
States engineers: 'sThe only formation In
which troops can successfully assault in
trenched positions is in successive lines Of
ilzirmishers." And that viii probably now
remain true in some senses as long as war
asts. But against magazines guns and ma
chine guns the lines of skirmishers will have
20 be far more open than they were against
oreech leaders. IL is even doubtful whether
hey will be, strictly speaking, lines at all or
whether they will not have to be turned into
rather what Is called the cloud formation.
The trouble with this will be, except with
Toops Of the very highest training, to bring
enough men together and well in hand to
make the final assault against the serried
line of the defenders holding all the advan-
tage OF the cover of the trenches. And here,
again, as any soldier must see, comes In the
question of the support to be given TO the
skirmishers by machine guns or artillery
seeking to keep down the fire from tho in
trenchments. In fact, the whole problem il
altered by the shifting of what might appear
but minor factor OF It,
We recently pointed out thecoming change
in the use Of cavalry, when each squadron
shall have attached to 1t galloping gun-a
machine sgun-such as Col Hasbrouck saw
one or two English cavalry regiments with
on his recent visi. to Aldershot. Infantry
will cease to despise cavalry SO much as they
are now taught to do, when they have:had