New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1904-10-12
ANNIHILATING The TARGETS
Seventh Battalion Begins Practice
Shooting.
Four Guns Being Used Each Fore
noon and Afternoon.
Soldiers Life in Camp Full of In.
teresting Features.

Target practice by the Seventh bat
talon of United States field artillery
encamped at New Ulm began Monday
and for two days and half the sound
of cannon shooting has been heard
over the city. It is an unusual sensa-
ton in peaceful New Ulm and has
aroused much interest, with the result
that there have been many visitors to
the ranges.
OF these ranges there are number,
located northwest of the city on the
farms of Christ Filzen, August He'll
mann and August Kuehn. Shooting
takes place in the forenoon and in the
afternoon for two Or three hours each
day, with the exception of Saturday
and Sunday, and is extremely interest
ing.
Off in the distance, three-quarters of
a, mile, or on some of the ranges two
and half miles, the targets loom up,
small white objects seeming scarcely
larger than a mans hand They are,
however, life size and represent men
on horseback, men standing, men
kneeling and men lying down
GUNNERs GETS RANGE.
Suddenly there's boom and sharp
mel ball whizzes through the air. Then
with force that rends the ball into a
hundred pieces it explodes. The tar
get is untouched for the aim of the
gunner has been little too low. An
other shot is fired and the sharpnel
strikes a little nearer to the target.
Then another and another and the
range is found at last. The cannon
targets is hung above with cloud of
white smoke which almost envelopes
them from view. Then the cannonad-
ing ceases, for the enemy has been an
initiated, Theoretically.
The difficult things in artillery shoot
ing is to get the range and then cut the
length of the fuses just right. When
that has been done the object of the
practice has been attained, although
each captain is frequently given GER
tain length of time, say a minute, in
which to see how many hits he can
make.
In each battery there are four guns,
making eight in all, but only one bat
terry shoots at a time in the practice
work, the other battery acting as the
range party and looking after the tar
gets. Each battery is in charge of a
captain and lieutenant has direction
over two guns, while the actual person
al direction of the pieces is given to
@sergeants. The guns are fired in prac-
tice at the rate of about one shot a
minute, although in active warfare
the rate can be increased. After the
shooting the guns are hurried back to
the camp in the fair grounds and are
given a rest until next day.
CAMP LIFE OF SOLDIERS.
Here the soldiers live the ideal camp
life, as simple and sanitary as science
can make it. Each battery, the Tenth
and the Thirtieth, has been given one
side of the grounds and they form two
wards in the little village. The men
live in tents which will accommodate
about a dozen and these are fixed up
with little stoves which temper the
chill night air. On a cold day or
evening the smoke can be seen issuing
from the little chimneys in the tops
of the tents.
In front of the line of tents the horses
and mules are ranged, 100 of the for
mer and twenty -four of the latter, all
being tied to two fences arranged for
the purpose. Here also are the supply
wagons and the wagons carrying the
blacksmiths, supplies and the extra
pieces of harness. To each battery is
attached two blacksmiths, a carpenter
and a saddler.
Arrangements for feeding the men
are perfect. Three cooks have a kitch-
en- tent by themselves and prepare the
food for the battalion. Each man has
his eating kit and at mess call marches
to the kitchen and receives his rations.
The officers have eating quarters by
themselves.
WHAT LIFE OF MEN IS.
To be a soldier is not the round Of
pleasure it appears to some. A great
deal of the time of the artillery men is