COAST. I ARTILLERY JOURNAL, - Air Defense Artillery

TACTICAL INSPECTION
their own personnel out thinner. This may not be a drawback as regular
army cadres of inactive units may, for a day, function as such and
find out for the first time that they are cadres.
If a harbor defense inspection can not well be arranged on these
lines where there is only one company present, recourse may be had
to map problems, war-game exercises, and problems in supply, equipment
and processing, for officers and key men.
On the day following the tactical inspection should be held the
critique, when step by step, order by order, and action by action, the
war maneuver will be fought over by all officers under the supervision
of the commander. He will constructively criticize and analyze actions
taken, being very careful in his later report to acknowledge merit where
he found it, as this will be the most effective measure he can take
toward making next year's inspection better.
Some of the advantages of such an inspection are:
451
It can be put on a competitive basis.
It will prove interesting and instructive to all participating.
Responsibility for mistakes is fixed at the critique by records kept.
Actual rates of naval ves!:lelswill be used in the analysis although
targets may have been towed to simulate the enemy.
It increases familiarity with the possible battle ground of the defenses
and their employment in battle.
It promotes constructive thinking and serious consideration of war
responsibility.
It promotes initiative in officersand men and discloses defects.
It promotes and tests out team work.
In fact it tests the commander, his staff, his command and its responsiveness
to his will, his supply system and communications,
and does all it is possible to do in time of peace to determine and
promote the readiness of the Harbor Defense for war.
r I,
The pacifists include as military expenditure
the amount we pay for pensions on account of the
Ch-il War. If we had been prepared for the Civil
War, w-e should have had a mighty short war and
fe" pensions.-Representative A. P. Gardner, of
Jfassachusetts.