The Monticellonian., 1917-09-06
SELFHELPS for the
NEW SOLDIER
By United States Army Officer
toopyrlsht lgl7 BY the wheeler syndicate, lne5 =
THE PLATOON.

In the preceding articles on the
school of the company, the platoon
has purposely been left out of eonsld-
Grafton and the attention confined to
the squad and company. The reason
was that the principles upon which
platoon movements are executed are
based on those of the squad and COM
pany; for the platoon, consisting of
from two to four squads, is simply
company on a reduced scale. or u
squad on an enlarged scale, and is
handled, generally speaking, accord
ingly. Moreover, when the new sol
der, after drill in the school of the
squad, is first placed in the school of
the company, he is taught the appli-
cation of his squad movements in COM
pany formation. and this supplies the
natural connection between squad and
company eyolutions.
The platoon rs has been said before,
Is to the company what the company
| Is to the battalion. In a war-strength
company there are four platoons, and
In either peace or war strength bat
TALON there are four companies. It
Is therefore apparent that such move
ments as Company right QefD,"
which are for the purpose of throwing
column of companies into line of the
battalion, are simulated with "Pfatoons
right Gef0," by turning the platoons
ON a fixed pivot into line of the COM
pany.
Mt oil ont in
Company right QefD." the movement
is the same in principle as squad
right QefD"; but since a platoon con-
sists of two, three or four squads 1--WE
shall assume hereafter that the pla-
toon is at the war strength of four
squads or 80 men), in such points as
the rules vary between squad and com
pany right" the platoon follows the
rules for the company.
The reason for th~ subdivision of the
company into -four p'otoos,s;, instead of
two, as formerly, l.. that modern battle
conditions have demonstrated that
from twenty to thirty rifles are as
many as can be effectively controlled
by one leader The platoon is there
fore the fire unit, as we shall see when
we take up extended-order drill for the
company.
The platoons are commanded as fol-
lows: The platoon on the right of the
| line, by the first lieutenant; the pla-
toon at the left of the line, by the
second lieutenant; the platoon ut
right center, by the first sergeant, and
| the platoon at left center, by the SER
geant next in rank.
Each platoon has sergeant for
guide, and the file closers are distrib-
uted according to their posts behind
the line of the company. The must
clans march as file elosers with the
first platoon.
The platoons are numbered consecu-
lively from right to left, and these des-
| ignations do not change. Since the
platoon Is the fire unit, its usefulness
is most apparent in extended order !:
but 1t is also frequently employed in
marches. on the parade ground. or in
the armory. In parades through the
streets of city a company front of
GA men would generally be impossible j;
also, company front of 49, or two
platoons, is frequently too wide. The
column of platoons formation, there
fore, of a war strength company would
give a front 16 men wide, and this
would accommodate itself to streets
which were too narrow for the two
platoon front.
Nevertheless. in garrison or ceremo-
MES, the strength of platoons may. If
desirable, exceed four squads. That is,
under such circumstances, the COM
pany might be divided into two pla-
toons of eight squads each.