James A. Moss

“ There is no reason, however, why every officer, noncommissioned officer and private should not improve his determination of character by careful training in peace. It can only be done by facing the difficulties, thoroughly understanding the dangers, and asking ourselves repeatedly whether we are prepared to face the ordeal in war. Let us not think, in a vague sort of a way, that in war we shall be all right and do as well as most people. We know that we are not gifted with tremendous personal courage, and we know that, whatever happens, we shall not run away. ”

“ The whole atmosphere of the battlefield is a surprise to the average soldier with no previous experience—the enemy is everywhere, behind every bush, and lurking in every bit of cover, the air is full of bullets, and any advance towards the formidable-looking position held by the enemy is suicidal. However, if the soldier is properly trained and instructed in peace, he will not be greatly surprised at his novel surroundings; he will know that the enemy is not everywhere, and that one bullet sounds much more dangerous than it really is. ”

“ No one except a man who has been in battle can realize how great are the noise and confusion, and how necessary and important are coöperation, team-work, discipline, and communication, in order for a company commander to control and direct the fire of the company—there must be absolute coöperation, team-work, and communication between all parts of the company—between the captain and the platoon leaders, the platoon leaders and the squad leaders, and the squad leaders and the members of their squads. ”

“ Whether on or off duty, he should always look neat and clean, ever remembering that in bearing and in conversation he should be every inch a soldier—shoes must be clean and polished at all times; no chewing, spitting, gazing about, or raising of hands in ranks—he should know his drill, his orders and his duties—he should always be ready and willing to learn all he can about his profession—he should never debase himself with drink. ”

“ The rifle is the soldier's fighting weapon and he must become so accustomed to the feel of it that he handles it without a thought,—just as he handles his arms or legs without a thought,—and this is what the manual of arms accomplishes. ”

“ An officer just joining a company should learn without delay the names of all the men. A roll of the organization should be gotten and studied.
While an officer can gruffly order a soldier to do a thing and have his orders obeyed, it should be remembered that, as a rule, human nature, especially American human nature, responds best to an appeal to pride, fairness, justice, reason, and the other nobler instincts of man. It is only in rare instances that the average man will give the best there is in him under coercion or pressure of authority. ”

“ You can, therefore, appreciate the importance, the necessity, of every officer and noncommissioned officer doing everything that he possibly can during times of peace to qualify himself for his duties and responsibilities during times of war.
If we are going to have a good army we must have good regiments; to have good regiments we must have good battalions; to have good battalions we must have good companies—but to have good companies we must have efficient company officers and noncommissioned officers.
As stated before, everything in the life of the soldier leads to the field of battle. ”

“ Ours is a grand fraternity of men-at-arms, banded together for national defense, for the maintenance of law and order—we are bound together by the love and respect we bear the flag—we are pledged to loyalty, to one God, one country—our lives are dedicated to the defense of our country's flag—the officer and the private belong to a brotherhood whose regalia is the uniform of the American soldier, and they are known to one another and to all men, by an honored sign and symbol of knighthood that has come down to us from the ages—THE MILITARY SALUTE! ”

“ For example, the system of discipline that existed in the days of Frederick the Great, and which, in modified form, exists today in certain European armies, whereby the soldier was so inured to a habit of subjection that he became a sort of machine—a kind of automaton. Such a system of discipline, while answering admirably well its purpose at that time and for those nations, would not do at all in this day and generation, and with a people like ours, in whom the spirit of personal freedom and individual initiative are born. ”

“ The mind reaches out,—control of the body becomes a habit. The feet, legs, arms and body gradually come under the sway of the mind. In the position of the soldier, for instance, the mind holds the body motionless. In marching, the mind drives the legs to machine-like regularity. In shooting, the mind assumes command of the arms, hands, fingers and eye, linking them up and making them work in harmony.
Control of the body, together with the habit of discipline that the soldier acquires, leads to control of the mind,—that is, to self-control. ”

“ It is a well-known saying that a man in battle frequently regains his lost courage by repeatedly firing off his rifle, which simply means that his thoughts are diverted by physical movements. This is no doubt one of the reasons why the attack is so much more successful in war than the defense, because in the attack the men are generally moving forward and having their minds diverted by physical motion from this vague dread of the enemy. ”

“ We now come to a still more difficult question of training, namely, how far can the company get forward from the bank without being compelled to stop in order to gain superiority of fire over the defense? In war we want to get as close as possible; the moral effect on the defense is greater, our fire is more effective, and we are likely to gain our object more rapidly. In peace there is no fire to stop us, and we move forward to ridiculous positions which we could not possibly reach in war without first gaining superiority of fire. ”

“ Self-respect in the individual can be encouraged, not by fulsome praise, but by a quiet appreciation of the good military qualities displayed by him, and by making use of those qualities whenever an opportunity occurs. For example, if a soldier is seen to do a good piece of scouting or patrolling, the first opportunity should be taken to give him a similar task, if possible in a more responsible position or on a more important occasion. Knowledge is a powerful factor in creating respect, and is probably second only to determination of character. ”

“ Requisites of infantry; trained to bear heaviest burdens; good infantry can defeat vastly superior infantry of poor quality. The infantry must have the tenacity to hold every advantage gained, the individual and collective discipline and skill needed to master the enemy's fire, the determination to close with the enemy in attack, and to meet him with the bayonet in defense. Infantry must be trained to bear the heaviest burdens and losses, both of combat and march.
Good infantry can defeat an enemy greatly superior in numbers, but lacking in training, discipline, leadership, and morale. ”

“ The enlisted man is no longer a civilian but a soldier. He is, however, still a citizen of the United States and by becoming a soldier also he is in no way relieved of the responsibilities of a citizen; he has merely assumed in addition thereto the responsibilities of a soldier. For instance, if he should visit an adjoining town and become drunk and disorderly while in uniform, not only could he be arrested and tried by the civil authorities, but he could also be tried by the summary court at his post for conduct to the prejudice of good order and military discipline. ”

“ Captain: Yes, I agree with you, for you are entering a valley which is, in effect, a defile, and the Tracy-Maxey road is a very dangerous avenue of approach to your main body. But you must always bear in mind that it is a mistake to use one more man than is needed to accomplish the object in view. The more you send away from your advance party, the more scattered and weaker your command becomes, and this is dispersion, which constitutes one of the gravest, and at the same time, most frequent tactical errors. ”

“ It is toward this ultimate object that all rules of discipline tend. In war, the value of this habit of instantaneous and instinctive obedience is invaluable, and during the time of peace everything possible should be done to ingrain into the very blood of the soldier this spirit, this habit, of instantaneous, instinctive obedience to the word of command. ”

“ What fire discipline implies. "Fire discipline implies, besides a habit of obedience, a control of the rifle by the soldier, the result of training, which will enable him in action to make hits instead of misses. It embraces taking advantage of the ground; care in setting the sight and delivery of fire; constant attention to the orders of the leaders, and careful observation of the enemy; an increase of fire when the target is favorable, and a cessation of fire when the enemy disappears; economy of ammunition." (See pars. 432–433.) (Small-Arms Firing Manual.) ”

“ Everything in connection with physical training should be such that the men look forward to it with pleasure, not with dread, for the mind exerts more influence over the human body than all the gymnastic paraphernalia that was ever invented.
Exercise should be carried on as much as possible in the open air; at all times in pure, dry air.
Never exercise the men to the point of exhaustion. If there is evidence of panting, faintness, fatigue, or pain, the exercise should be stopped at once, for it is nature's way of saying "too much." ”

“ The attributes of the human mind, such as determination, bravery, ambition, energy, etc., are all capable of improvement and also of deterioration. It is essential therefore, for us to endeavor by all means in our power to improve our strength of character—our determination. It is, of course, useless for us to learn the art of war if we have not sufficient determination, when we meet the enemy, to apply the principles we have studied. ”

“ The object of the facings and marchings is to give the soldier complete control of his body in drills, so that he can get around with ease and promptness at every command.
The marchings,—the military walk and run,—also teach the soldier how to get from one place to another in campaign with the least amount of physical exertion.
Every man knows how to walk and run, but few of them how to do so without making extra work of it. One of the first principles in training the body of the soldier is to make each set of muscles do its own work and save the strength of the other muscles for their work. ”

“ In common, every-day courtesy no man with the instincts of a gentleman ever thinks about taking advantage of this thing and that thing in order to avoid paying to his fellow-man the ordinary, conventional courtesies of life, and if there is ever any doubt about the matter, he takes no chances but extends the courtesy. And this is just exactly what the man who has the instincts of a real soldier does in the case of military courtesy. The thought of "Should I salute or should I not salute" never enters the mind of a soldier just because he happens to be in a wagon, in a postoffice, etc. ”

“ While too much importance can not be attached to the proper use of cover, you must not forget that sometimes there are other considerations that outweigh the advantages of cover. Good sense alone can determine. A certain direction of attack, for instance, may afford excellent cover but it may be so situated as to mean ruin if defeated, as where it puts an impassable obstacle directly in your rear. And don't forget that you should always think in advance of what you would do in case of defeat. ”

“ The treatment of soldiers should be uniform and just, and under no circumstances should a man be humiliated unnecessarily or abused. Reproof and punishment must be administered with discretion and judgment, and without passion; for an officer or noncommissioned officer who loses his temper and flies into a tantrum has failed to obtain his first triumph in discipline. He who can not control himself can not control others. ”

“ The leader of every subdivision must always start a reconnaissance the instant the enemy develops. He may, as in the case of the point, only send one man around to discover the enemy's strength; or, if the leader of the main body of the support, he may send an entire squad. In almost every case the instant he has given his orders for deploying and firing at or rushing the enemy, he sends out his man or men to work around to a position permitting a view of the hostile force. ”

“ A soldier may have many acquaintances and a number of friends, but he has but one "bunkie." In times of great danger two men who are "bunkies" will not shirk so easily as two independent men. The best in one man comes out to the surface and dominates any bad military points in the other. They can help each other in countless ways in war, and if one is unfortunately killed or wounded, the other will probably do his best to get even with the enemy at the earliest possible opportunity. ”

“ The object of training and instructing a company is to thoroughly knit together its different parts, its various elements (individuals, squads and platoons) , into a complete, homogeneous mass, a cohesive unit, that will under any and all conditions and circumstances respond to the will of the captain—a cohesive unit that knows how to march, that knows how to live properly in camp, that knows how to fight and that can be readily handled tactically on the field of battle. ”