ELEMENTARY INSTRUCTION.
The first thing to be done is to accustom the soldier to darkness, to
teach him to overcome the nervousness which is natural to him, and to
train his powers of vision and hearing to suit conditions which are
strange to him.
_Training of Vision._
Two or three men, under an instructor, should be taken out to ground
with which they are perfectly familiar. The instructor will direct
them to notice the different appearance which objects present at
night, when viewed in different degrees of light and shade; the
comparative visibility of men under different conditions of dress,
i.e., in khaki, in a tunic, in shirt-sleeves, etc., when viewed against
different backgrounds; the ease with which bright objects are seen,
especially if in movement. If there is rising ground in the vicinity
the difference in the visibility of men standing on the sky-line or on
the sides of the slope should be noted. Experiments in the distance at
which a match struck in the open and also under cover of some object,
or a man smoking, can be seen should also be made. Blank cartridges
should be fired, and recruits taught to judge the direction in which
the rifle was pointing and its approximate distance from them.
_Training of Hearing._
To train their powers of hearing, men, placed a few yards apart,
should be made to guess what a noise heard is caused by, and the
approximate position of it. The rattle of a mess tin, the working of
the bolt of a rifle, the movement of a patrol, the throwing down of
accoutrements, low talking, or any noise likely to be heard on outposts
may be utilised. Special pains must be taken to impress upon the
men the penetrating power of the human voice. The distance at which
men talking, even in a low voice, can be heard on a still night is
astonishing, and as it is a sound which cannot be mistaken for anything
else, and which disturbs birds and animals more than any other, it is
most important that the recruit should be shown the absolute necessity
of keeping perfect silence.
At this stage it is a good practice to post the men in pairs at
intervals along an alignment which the instructors endeavour to cross
unnoticed. The instructors should cross from both sides, so as to
compel the recruits to watch in every direction.
_Finding Bearings._
When the recruit has become accustomed to the dark, and entirely
overcome his nervousness, he should be taught to find his bearings by
the pole star, to check the direction of his advance by means of stars,
landmarks, or even the wind, and conversely by the same means to find
his way back to the point from which he started. He should also be
taught to recognise the phases of the moon, and to judge whether it is
rising or setting.
To test a man’s ability to keep a given direction when moving at
night, the following plan is useful. Having chosen a spot from which
no prominent landmarks are visible, the instructor, accompanied by the
recruit, will advance towards it from a distance of not less than 200
paces. While advancing the recruit must take his bearings. On arriving
at the spot chosen the instructor will turn the recruit rapidly round
two or three times, and then order him to continue his advance on the
same line as before.
_Moving in the Dark._
For this exercise three or four recruits, with the instructor on the
directing flank, will be placed in line at about one pace interval.
Some clearly visible mark, such as a lamp, should be placed as a point
for the directing file to march on. The instructor will impress upon
the men the importance of lifting the feet up high and putting them
down firmly and quietly, also of keeping in touch with their neighbour
on the directing flank, and of conforming to his movements without
sound or signal. The pace must be very slow, and frequent halts made to
test the quickness of the men in working together. As the instruction
progresses, each man in turn will take the instructor’s place on the
directing flank, and the light on which they are marching should be
obscured at intervals, in order to test their ability to maintain the
original direction.
When the recruits have thoroughly mastered the foregoing principles
they should be taken to more difficult ground, and gradually advanced
to work together in larger numbers. They must be taught to turn into
single file for the purpose of passing obstacles, and to form up
rapidly in single rank again without noise or confusion. It must
always be remembered that the rougher the ground, the darker the
night and the longer the line, the slower must be the pace and the
more frequent the halts. After passing any obstacle, such as a ditch,
hollow road, etc., which does not necessitate turning into file, it is
always advisable to halt and make sure that the alignment is correct.
After passing an obstacle men instinctively line up parallel to it;
consequently, if the obstacle does not lie exactly at right angles to
the line of advance, the direction is lost. I remember seeing a brigade
thrown into complete disorder by the neglect of this precaution, after
successfully advancing for about 1,000 yards on a very dark night. In
this case one flank of the line crossed a hollow road, lying at an
angle to the direction of the advance, and forming up parallel to it
advanced across the front of the rest, and altogether broke up their
formation.
_General._
During the earlier exercises the men may be taken out without arms,
but, as the instruction progresses, they must be trained to work in
full marching order. Each man must be taught to note carefully those
portions of his equipment which are likely to cause a noise under
special circumstances, such as lying down, rising up, crossing an
obstacle, etc., and to take precautions accordingly. Bayonets should
always be fixed, but to avoid accidents the scabbards should be on
them. Special attention must be paid to seeing that the rifles are
carried at the proper angle to prevent the bayonets clashing.
From the commencement of the training the instructor will not fail to
continually impress upon the men that it is absolutely criminal to fire
during a night attack, and that the bayonet is the only weapon the
assailants can use with advantage to themselves and safety to their
comrades.
Except during a brief period in the middle of summer, it is generally
possible to carry out these elementary exercises before 10 p.m., and
in the short winter evenings they can take place immediately after the
men’s tea. It is always advisable that the men should have had a meal
shortly before starting to work in the dark, and if the weather is
cold, or they are kept out late, they should be given soup or cocoa on
their return.