TABLE B.

ANNUAL COURSE—ROYAL ARTILLERY, ARMY SERVICE CORPS, AND ARMY ORDNANCE CORPS.

Trained Soldiers’ Course for Marksmen, First and SecondClass Shots.
No.	Practice.	Target.	Distance in Yards.	Rounds.	Position.
1	Grouping	2nd Class Elementary (Bull’s-eye)	100	5	Lying.
2	Application	2nd Class Figure	200	5	Lying. Taking cover behind stones or sandbags and firing round them with side of rifle only rested.
3	Application	2nd Class Figure	300	5	Sitting or kneeling.
4	Application	1st Class Figure	400	5	Lying.
5	Rapid	1st Class Figure	400	5	Lying. 40 seconds allowed.
6	Application	1st Class Figure	500	5	Lying. Taking cover behind stones or sandbags representing a parapet and firing over them.
7	Snapshooting	2nd Class Figure	200	5	Lying. Taking cover as in 2. 5 seconds’ exposure.
8	Observation	Iron falling	300	5	Lying. Taking cover as in 6. Firing in pairs.
		Total rounds		40

Note.—Three points will be allowed for every direct hit in Practice 8.

In Practices 5 and 8 there will be no signalling until the firer has completed his practice.

In Practice 8 there will be separate targets for each firer, and the firers in each pair will fire alternately, assisting each other by observation.

Classification:—

Those who obtain 95 points or more	1st Class shots.
Those who obtain 60 points and less than 95	2nd Class shots.
Those who obtain less than 60 points	3rd Class shots.

Section 65.—General Rules for Field Practices.

1. Special Instructions.—(i) (a) Not more than twenty rounds should be fired in field practices in one day.

(b) The dress for individual field practices will be drill order, and for collective field practices marching order.

(d) Some practice should be given in snapshooting in the standing position during rapid advances at short range.

(ii) Practices on Classification Ranges.—If it is absolutely necessary to use classification ranges (see Sec. 66), the practices should be performed on a flank, if the extent of the danger area will permit. In this case, or if the actual range is used, the ground should be broken by means of screens, earth parapets, brushwood, or any other suitable contrivance, with a view to introducing some realism and uncertainty as to distances.

(iii) Allotment of Ammunition.—The allotments of ammunition to individual and collective field practices respectively may be varied as general officers commanding may decide, but the total amount allotted to field practices is to be fired in field practices, even if a classification range only is available. Due safety precautions must be taken (see Musketry Regulations, Part II.).

(iv) Registers and Records.—Company commanders will keep registers of all collective practices fired. Ricochets will not be included in the figures recording results of standard or comparative firing. They will be shown separately from other hits in the registers.

2. Individual Field Practices.—(i) The distances should not exceed 600 yards. Training should be progressive in regard to targets, distances, and all other respects. It is essential to give firers full information as to the object of the practice, and to criticize freely the good and bad points of their shooting [Sec. 54, para. 2 (iv)].

(ii) The firers should be formed into small squads, but there should be no fire control, nor any orders except such as may be necessary to regulate fire and movement in the interest of safety and to insure that the objects of the training are fully carried out.

(iii) Practice will be afforded in acting promptly against targets appearing suddenly and disappearing after a short period of exposure. The value of every shot will be ascertained by markers, and notified to the firer. The men will as a rule fire alternately, working in pairs for mutual assistance. When a successful shot is observed, the correct sighting as found will be immediately notified by the firer to the remainder of the squad.

(iv) Any preliminary information as to the ground and results of range-finding at long range which might be available on service should be given in the later practices in order to combine all methods of ranging.

3. Collective Field Practices.—(a) Collective field practices, if ground is available, should be fired almost entirely at longer ranges. When ground is not available for firing at ranges beyond 600 yards, practice in collective firing is necessarily conducted at shorter ranges, but such practice must be supplemented by fire-direction practices without ammunition at longer ranges.

(b) Arranging Targets.—The practice of requiring units to arrange targets or positions for others to fire at, or during a skirmish to place head-and-shoulder targets on the ground to represent themselves in position at any temporary halt, has been found to stimulate interest.

Casualty Competitions.—Falling or collapsible targets are of great value in all field practices, and may be used with advantage in casualty competitions designed to test the relative abilities of two firing lines, which simultaneously fire at separate sets of targets representing their opponents. Each man is represented by a target placed in front of the opposing firing-line, and becomes a casualty if that target falls. In this way superiority of fire is soon established by one line or the other, and fire ceases.

Section 66.—Field Practices on Classification Ranges.

1. General Rules.—The following are examples of individual and collective field practices for use on classification ranges, as used at the School of Musketry, Hythe. They are intended as a guide to officers who have to frame practices for their units. These practices and similar ones may be fired on classification ranges on which rapid practices are allowed if the following points are observed:

(i) Damage to Gallery.—It is most important, for the safety of the range, that any damage done to the gallery-bank should be made good each day, as soon as the practices are completed.

(ii) Oblique Fire.—In practices involving oblique fire, such as those in which the crossing figure No. 6 is used, the run of the figure or figures should be confined to a lateral space of 25 yards. The firers should occupy a corresponding space at the firing-point. These oblique practices must not be fired at ranges less than 400 yards.

(iii) Falling Plates.—Earthenware tiles should be used, as steel plates give back-splashes which may endanger the markers. Tiles should be placed about 4 feet below the top of the stop-butt. If there is no stop-butt, they may be placed at the foot of the gallery-slope.

2. Targets.—Targets will be supplied by R.E. (vide Musketry Regulations, Part II., 1910, para. 141).

(i) Wood.—Veneer figures can be supplied, or they can be cut out of match-boarding. Dimensions will be found in Musketry Regulations, Part II., 1910, Plate 37 et seq. For use in a gallery, the figures must be mounted on poles.

(ii) Tiles.—Earthenware tiles can be obtained. Ordinary roofing tiles are cheaper, and answer the purpose. A useful and cheap substitute is 3 bricks placed on end on a flat piece of wood, and tied together with a piece of string or wire.

3. Markers.—The success of a practice depends largely on the markers. They should be rehearsed carefully, but not in view of the firers.

Individual Field Practices.

No. 1.

Object: To teach the necessity for quick opening of fire with effect from the first shot.

Rounds: 5 per man.

Targets: 2 iron falling-plates for each pair of firers.

Distance: Unknown—about 250 yards.

Method: 2 squads, each of four firers, are extended in pairs, rifles unloaded and at safe, sights normal, till the command “Fire.” Squads fire against each other.

Targets represent the firers of the opposing squad.

When a target is knocked down, the man of the opposing team in a corresponding position ceases fire, unloads, and takes no further part in the practice; his ammunition is available for the other man of his pair.

Points are allotted as follows:

For each hit, 5 points; total, 10 points.

If both targets hit within 40 seconds, 5 points; total, 15 points.