The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-07-24

geometric precision by the command
ing officer Capt. Ola w. Bell.
Crowds ThrOnged the Park.
The exhibition was unlike anything
ever seen in Savannah, and the crowd
which went out to witness it, remained
until dusk prevented a further con-
tinuance of the exercises. The sabre
drill and exercise, the close and ex-
tended order drill, the skirmishing and
deploying, the carbine and pistol firing,
the exhibition of the training of the
horses, the firing from behind the
horses lying down, the charge at fun
special formed part of a most in
teresting programme.
In order that the volunteer cavalry
might derive full benefit from the ex-
hibition, and might, at the same time,
do police duty in keeping the crowds
back, the troopers were placed at in
tervals entirely around the enclosure.
The regulars were marched upon the
field as soon as this formation had
been perfected. Col Meldrim and his
regimental staff, on which also rode
Col. G. Noble Jones and Col Shelby
NIyrick, took up their position by the
Confederate monument, where an eX-
celent view of the exercises was OBJ
tainable.
The appearance of the regulars was
most inspiring The men, mounted all
on sorrel horses, and wearing blue linen
shirts. campaign hats, khaki riding
trousers, tan shoes and black bow ties,
were uniform in appearance. They
were commanded by Capt. Bell, who in
the platoon movements was assisted by
Lieut. William Kendrick and Lieut..
Troup Miller, both Georgia men. Inc
troop is composed of fifty-siX men,
their weight being uniform, since a
limit of 1866 pounds per man is pre-
scribed in the cavalry enlistment regu-
lations.
After a number of difficult platoon
movements, the men were put through
the manual of the sabre on horseback.
The precision and nicely with which
each command was executed, provoked
applause at the outset. The platoon
movements were then continued, the
exhibition demonstrating the training
of the horses as well as the men. They
seemed to know the bugle calls as
well as did the men. When the com
mand to dress was given, the horses
stepped to the right or the left, as the
case might be, with the discernmenl
and ease of an infantryman.
The men were ordered to dismount
and while the corporal in each -four
held the horses belonging to the other
three members of the squad, they pro-
ceeded forward on foot. Here was
given one of the prettiest exhibitions OF
the afternoon. The sabre drill through
which the men We're put differed from
the drills which Savannahians have
been used to seeing. Instead of going
through the manual exercises designed
to develop the men were given. These
were executed with vim, but with the
grace of a class of girl graduates in Del
sartean exercises.
The Charge.
The charge was one of the features
of the exercises, and was the mos
spectacular part of the whole per
Torrance. The men were started at one
end of the extension at a walk; this
was increased to a trot, and then (
a run. The men seemed to take as
much interest in the charge as If the
enemy were really being moved dowr
before them. Each horse seemed K
try to excel the other in speed The
hats of fully fifteen of the men were
blown off, but they continued to swing
their sabres high In the air and vel
in a manner calculated to strike terror
into the hearts Of an opposing force
After the charge II became necessary
for trooper to be detailed to pick vi
the hats.
The sxirmishing on foot, the deploy.