Manual for Noncommissioned Officers and Privates of Infantry of the Army of the United States, 1917 Part 37

As soon as the shelter tents are pitched the company proceeds to the remainder of the camp work in accordance with a permanent a.s.signment similar to the following:

One squad helps arrange the kitchen.

One squad pitches the officers' tents.

One squad digs the sink.

One squad procures wood and water.

One squad is held available for details from regimental headquarters.

The officers and first sergeant supervise the work.

The sinks are located by the commanding officer. The detail to dig them should wait until informed of the location. An officer should inspect the sink as soon as the detail reports it as completed.

After the camp has been put in order the first sergeant makes the details from roster for kitchen police and noncommissioned officer in charge of quarters for the next day and for such guard as may be ordered for that day.

The details called for by regimental headquarters for pitching the headquarters camp for the quartermaster, etc., should be reported to the adjutant without delay.

The cooks pitch their tent at that end of the company street nearest the kitchen. s.p.a.ce must be left for this tent if the cooks are not in ranks when the company pitches tents. Unless lunch has been carried or cooked during the march, the cooks should get to work on a hot meal as soon as possible. The kitchen police report at the kitchen as soon as their tent is pitched.

Wood and water will be required at once.

Officers should avoid keeping the men unnecessarily under arms or on their feet after a hard day's march.

When the details of making camp have been completed, all men should at once care for their rifles and feet. (For details as to the care of the rifle see Chapter II Section 1, for the care of the feet see Chapter IV.)

SECTION 4. CAMP SERVICE AND DUTIES.

In camp "Reveille" is preceded by "First call," and a march played by the band or field music, and is followed immediately by "a.s.sembly." If there is a reveille gun, it is fired at the first note of the march and is the signal for all to arise. The roll is called at the last notes of a.s.sembly after reveille. At this formation men should fall in in the proper uniform--rifle and belt, service hat, olive-drab flannel s.h.i.+rt, service breeches, leggings, and shoes. The regimental commander may prescribe that coats are to be worn and will prescribe the exact uniform for all drills, parades, and other formations, as well as for men going on pa.s.s.

Immediately after reveille roll call the sergeant next in rank to the first sergeant takes command of the company and deploys it for a general police of the camp within the limits a.s.signed to the company. Men pick up all sc.r.a.ps of paper and rubbish of all kinds, depositing it in the company incinerator or place designated for the purpose. The police limits of each company are usually designated as extending from head to rear of camp within the s.p.a.ce occupied by the company street, including the ground occupied by the tents of the company, no una.s.signed s.p.a.ce being left between companies.

Immediately after breakfast men police their tents and raise walls of same. If the day is fair, all bedding should be spread on the tents for several hours' airing.

At sick call all men who are sick fall in and are marched to the regimental infirmary, under charge of the noncommissioned officer in charge of quarters. The noncommissioned officer takes with him the company sick report previously filled in and signed by the company commander. The surgeon examines all those reporting and indicates their status on the sick report. This status may be "Duty" (available for all duty), "Quarters" (patient to remain in tent or company street), and "Hospital" (patient to be sent to the hospital). The noncommissioned officer then returns to the company with all the men not marked "Hospital" and hands the sick report to the first sergeant.

At "Drill call" the company prepares for drill and falls in so that it will be completely formed at a.s.sembly, which is usually sounded 10 minutes after drill call. All men are required to attend drill except those excused by sick report and those specially excused from headquarters. The excused list should include in each company only the mess sergeant, the two cooks, one kitchen police, and men on regimental guard. During drill hours the guard to be excused should be limited to a small patrol to guard against fire and thieves in camp.

If the bedding has been aired, it should be taken in immediately after drill and placed in the tents neatly folded.

Some time during the morning, at a time designated by him, the company commander inspects the entire company camp. At this inspection the entire street should be policed, kitchen in order, and tents policed, as follows:

In permanent camp, when pyramidal, conical, or wall tents are used: Bedding folded neatly and placed on the head of the cot.

(If bed sacks are used, they will be folded in three folds and the bedding placed on top.) Hats on top of the bedding. Shoes under foot of cot. Surplus kit bag at side of squad leader's cot. Equipment suspended neatly from a frame arranged around the tent pole. Rifles in rack constructed around the tent pole.

In shelter-tent camp: Bedding neatly folded and placed at rear of tent, ponchos underneath. Equipment arranged on the bedding.

Rifles laid on bedding except when used as tent poles.

The regimental commander prescribes the exact scheme to be followed in the police of tents.

Should there be no parade, retreat roll call is held at the same hour. This roll call is under arms and is supervised by an officer of the company. After the roll call and at the sounding of "Retreat,"

the officer brings the company to parade rest and keeps it in this position during the sounding of this call. At the first note of the National Anthem ("The Star-Spangled Banner") or "To the Color" the company is brought to attention and so stands until the end of the playing. The officer then reports the result of the roll call to the adjutant or officer of the day, returns to the company, inspects the arms, and dismisses it.

At the sounding of "Call to quarters" all men will repair to their company street.

After taps has sounded all talking must cease and all lights must be extinguished, and so remain until first call for reveille.

In camp all enlisted men are prohibited from crossing the officers'

street, or from visiting officers' tents unless actually engaged in some duty requiring them to do so, or sent for by an officer.

Men are not allowed to leave camp without a pa.s.s signed by the company commander and countersigned by the regimental adjutant.

The first sergeant is sometimes allowed to give men permission to leave camp from retreat to taps.

The noncommissioned officer in charge of quarters, detailed for 24 hours goes on duty each day at reveille. He is responsible that the grounds around the company are kept in proper police; that no loud noise, disturbance, or disorder occurs in the company street; that men confined to the company street do not leave the same without proper authority. He reports men who are sick to the surgeon. He may be required to report all other details called for. He accompanies the captain in his daily inspection of the company. He will not leave the company street during his tour of duty except as provided above.

One or two privates are detailed daily as kitchen police. They go on duty at reveille. It is their duty to a.s.sist the cooks in the kitchen. They a.s.sist in the preparation of meals, wait on the table, wash dishes, procure water and wood, chop firewood, and keep the kitchen, mess tent, and surrounding ground policed.

They are under the orders of the mess sergeant and the cooks.

Rifles need careful attention in camp. They should be cleaned and oiled daily, preferably just before retreat or parade. It is advisable for each man to have a canvas cover to keep off the dust and dampness. In a shelter-tent camp tie the rifle, muzzle up, to the pole of the tent, placing a chip of wood under the b.u.t.t plate and an oily rag over (never inside) the muzzle.

Wet shoes should be filled with oats or dry sand, and set in a cool place to dry. Never dry them by a fire.

Uniforms need special care, as camp service is very hard on them.

In a permanent camp every man should have two pair of breeches.

The coat will seldom be worn except at parade or retreat. One pair of breeches and the coat should be kept neat, clean, and pressed for use on ceremonies, inspections, and when going on pa.s.s. Woolen uniforms may be cleaned and freed from spots by rubbing with a flannel rag saturated with gasoline. Cotton uniforms may be washed with water, soap, and a scrubbing brush, wrung out, and stretched, properly creased, on a flat wood surface in the sun to dry. Leggings can be similarly washed. Hats should be cleaned with gasoline, and dampened and ironed to restore their shape.

Enlisted men should be very careful to observe all the sanitary regulations of the camp. Flies are the greatest spreaders of camp disease. All fecal matter and food should be carefully guarded from them. In camps extreme precautions are taken to screen the sinks and kitchens from flies, and all enlisted men should cooperate in the effort to make these precautions successful. One fly carrying germs on his feet from the sinks to the food can start a serious and fatal epidemic in a camp. Defecating on the ground in the vicinity of camp or urinating in camp are extremely dangerous to the health of the command, and are serious military offenses.

At night a urinal can is provided in each company street.

In a permanent camp cots or bed sacks are usually provided for the men to sleep on. In a shelter tent camp beds should be made of hay, gra.s.s, leaves, pine or spruce boughs, or pine needles, on top of which the poncho and blanket are spread, thus softening the ground and keeping the sleeper away from the cold and dampness.

Neglect to prepare the bed when sleeping without cot or bed sack means a loss of sleep, and may lead to colds, bowel disorders, and rheumatism.

In wet weather tents should be ditched, and in windy or cold weather dirt may be banked around them. A place for was.h.i.+ng the person and clothes should be arranged for in each company street, and the waste water disposed of by means of drainage or rock-filled pits. In dry weather the streets in camp should frequently be sprinkled with water to keep down the dust. This is specially necessary around the kitchen.

CHAPTER VIII.

TARGET PRACTICE.

SECTION 1. PRELIMINARY TRAINING IN MARKSMANs.h.i.+P.

Effective rifle fire is generally what counts most in battle.

To have effective rifle fire, the men on the firing line must be able to HIT what they are ordered to shoot at. There is no man who can not be taught how to shoot. It is not necessary or even desirable to begin instruction by firing on a rifle range.

A perfectly green recruit who has never fired a rifle may be made into a good shot by a little instruction and some preliminary drills and exercises.