New Britain herald. [microfilm reel] (New Britain, Conn.) 1890-1976, 1917-09-15
LESSON NO. 20.
WARFARE IN EUROPF.

Camp. T. Your Health. s. March |
ing and Care of Feet. 9. Your
Equipment and Arms TO- Recrea- !
ton in Camp. II. Playing the
Game. IL. Team Work in the Army
10. Grouping Men into Teams a.
The Team Leaders. Is. Fighting
Arms of the Service. 16 Staff
Branches of the Service-I. II.
Staff Branches of the Service-II.
IS. Army Insignia. 10. The Army
System of Training. 30. Close Or
der Drill. Fl. Extended Order
Drill. %. Guard Duty. 90 Get
ting Ahead in the Army. "a. Army
Courtesy. %. Discipline and Re-
spect for the Colors. 26. Some Ma
tional Traditions. 81. The Spirit of
the Servict. %. Why We Fight.
In previous sections Of this Course
army life and service have been de-
scribed without special reference to
the changes brought about by the
present war. There are important
changes, and methods of training,
and of fighting used in previous wars
must, of course, be modified accord
ingly
The extent of these changes, how
ever, is often exaggerated At bot
tom the qualities that make good
soldier or an efficient army remain
the same today that they were be-
fore the war The changes that af-
feet the individual soldier have to do
chiefly with weapons.
But behind every weapon there is
| man. If the weapon is to be used eff
fectively, the man must be we'll
trained, disciplined, cool and brave
He must have spirit, tenacity, and
al rel -
just as in all other wars, is to de-
velop these qualities-to their highest
extent. The chief difference probably
comes in the fact that self-reliance
is a bigger factor than in most previ-
Gus wars. And in American armies
| this quality has always been highly
valued and we'll developed.
This brief lesson can not, of course,
enter into a discussion of technical
questions which belong in the field of
| military science. It will simply point
out few of the striking features of
direct interest to every man who
reaches the front.
Character of Present War.
This war differs from previous wars
| chiefly in the enormous increase in
| tho use Of artillery. This is due
partly to the immense manufacturing
| resources Of the countries at war,
which enables them to produce great
| numbers of guns and great quantities
| Of ammunition. 1t is due also to the
| new methods of directing gun fire
| from airplanes. 1t is evident that a
! gun can not be accurately aimed at
| an object the exact location of which
is unknown. The airplane, however,
| Is able to bring back or signal back
this information. SO that the artillery
may now be used with much greater
| effect. The size of the guns and the
force Of the explosive shells fired
from them have also been largely in
! creased.
Partly as result of these i'm
provements in artillery, it has been
necessary to develop better methods
of protection. The protection of
troops consists of digging stronger
| field entertainments than have been
necessary In previous wars. Here we
have the main reason for the So
called trench warfare, which dur
ing the last three years has largely
taken the place of former methods OF
moving armies about freely until
they came into conflict with each
other Digging trenches and throw
ing up breastworks for protection
against the enemy's fire is, of course,
not new thing in warfare. 1t Is be-
ing done in Europe. however, on
much bigger scale than ever before
A complicated network of trenches
now protects the men on both sides.
The spade has become one of the SOL
diers best weapons Of defense.
In seeking protection against
heavy artillery fire very interesting
DEVELOPMENT has taken place. rms
is the use of various devices for con-
cealing field guns and troops from the
view of enemy airplanes Someumes
trees are brought up and planted
near the object to be hidden Some
times the gun or other object mas an
awning spread over it which is paint
ed to look from above like grass or
earth. For the same reason tents may
be painted in greens and yellows.
The chief improvement in methods
of defending entrenched troops is the
increased use of machine guns. Ma
chine guns must be put out of opera
ton by artillery fire Or by rifle fire
directed aainst the gunners before in
fantry can advance directly against
them. There has been also great
increase during the present war IN
the use of barbed wire in front of the
trenches means of defense. Sim
liar devices have been used IN en-
trenched positions for many years,
but never on so large scale. Through
their use it is now known to be pos
sible to defend the front line positions
with smaller bodies of men than
were considered necessary during the
earlier years of the war, thus consid
erably reducing the strain on the in
dividual soldier.
Development of Airplanes.
The chief new instrument of war
fare developed during the present war