Artillery Drill: Containing Instruction in the School of the Piece and Battery Maneuvers

Reproduction of the original (1864) Artillery Drill. This work, as indicated by its title, has references alone to the serving and maneuvering of Field Artillery, and is designed as a complete Manual of Instruction in the duties of Loading and Serving the Piece, and in the execution of the various movements of mounted batteries. In it the explanation of each maneuver is complete in itself, without the necessity for reference to other movements described in other parts of the book. In order to simplify the Instruction, the explanations are given for the maneuvers of mounted batteries, no reference being made to the modifications necessary for Horse Artillery, since there being none in the United States Service at the present time, the insertion of details respecting it only serves to confuse the learner. The portion of the book containing Instruction in the Manual of the Piece, is liberally illustrated with engravings of the several members of the gun detachment in all the various positions they have respectively to assume while serving and discharging the piece. For the correctness of these illustrations, the compiler is under obligation to Lieutenant-Colonel Burke, commanding officer of Fort Hamilton, for the facilities granted him in obtaining the correct positions by means of photography. These illustrations, as well as those explaining the battery movements, are placed with the text to which they belong, thus obviating the necessity for reference to plates in another part of the book. By restricting this work to Instruction in the Drill, the compiler has been enabled to give everything that has reference to the thorough instruction of officers and men in the duties of serving and maneuvering Field Artillery, in a compact form, easily carried, and convenient for reference. Thus rendering it a valuable adjunct to the larger work on Artillery published by the War Department, with which, in every essential particular this work agrees.

Soft cover, 7-1/2″x5-1/8″, 180 pages. Reprint, originally published in 1864 in New York by J.W. Fortune.