manual for commanders of infantry platoons. - US Army Combined ...

2MbTANAL~O ECO tM~9aN~DE~S OP~INF~B·ANTRYfEs PLAT~BOONS. 179
advtiance in arr1anging thle ciefefisive sectors of the company and
the l~aittallion. Grenadier's are distr~ibuted in groups alongr the
line ; the numbor~ is increased on exposedl fronts (in sdlients and
pa~rts which ar~e very near thle enemy's trenches). It is bett~er,
in the latter case, to double -these portions of the trench by other
iines v'ery .close t~o the first;, so as to form~ substantiallyT -twto
ra~nks of grenadierls in- thesce places.
Al~l solldicis wtThohlave hadt' a~ny trazining~ in this wrork lshouldt
b~e ablel to take paart in froming azhairier w~ith greaade lire at
a dlista.nce of' 30 ya~rds; thtis can be docne by: one grenadlier to 1_2
yar~ds of fr~ont using 0). F. grenades, and~ by one grenadier to
30Oyarzds of fr~ont using FE.1 gr~enadtes. Ia ordler to avoid conutinual
l.osses in p~laces wherile the hzostile trenches are ver~y close
to oug owin, a decdiced superiority should~ be seized in the throw-s~:
ingf of grenades alnd the holstile tr~enches rendered unt-enable.
Soe30TC g,-renad~ier's' positions anti grenade dep~ots should bnepro-
videi in thec covering trench, at th~e entrance of the approachesx.
a~t thle angles of long commal~uni~icating trenches anti in the cave
shelters, in.orderi l to cover exi-t from~ them when thie trench is
inva~tletl by the enemySI, aznd alrso behindc barricadtes. Th~e differetnt
sqluads shou~ld be -trainedl to makale coun~ter a~tta.cks wvith
grenadres qluickily, to r~etake any part of the tre@nch~ which maly
havL-ebeen takien by the enemuy.
2~. Srtep-by-?Jstep pr'ogress ia a tr· I~ench or' coaimumicatinyti~z
trlench.-In th~e dlispositions taken in the communication
trenchies bunchiing up is alwaySs to be avoided. O9nly th~e minimumI11uf
m1en1actullZy needed. for the wTorkishould be exposedl to
the enaemy's grenades,, and thley should not; be so crowdedd as to
l~revent: free movement. T~his form of fighting is very severe
anin fr~equent reliefs shoulti be providedl for; and·~ the sqluad
leader should 'be able to replalce immediatelyy an injured mnan.
andc to rein~for'ce, if? necessary, the leadieing group, by fresh r·iflemnen
or thrlowTer~s.
Ah profounti silence should. 1)0 maintained, so that all soundis
com3ing~ froml th'fe dlirection of the enemy, alnd wh~lich1 m~ight serve
a~s an indicd~tion as to whatZ h~e is dioing, can be hleardl; comm~un~ic-ation~s
shouldl ther^eihore be, a2s far1 as possible, by gestulres
andc signa2ls. Fig~ure 159 sh-ows the ordinar~y disposition of the
mlen.