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This article is one in a series in which I am going to analyze and dissect a few period photographs of Federal light artillerymen who are drilling. In particular, I would like to see if what is said in the drill manual (French, Barry, and Hunt) is being carried into the field. Granted, the photos I will be discussing are posed photos and not action shots. This also means that they are not "on campaign," but usually in a garrison or winter camp situation. In most situations I have given each soldier in the photo a letter designation so it will be easier to understand whom I am referring to. In all cases I will also give him his number designation, as per the manual. With that said, let's look at some photos.
Part One:
This first photo shows a half-battery drilling on their pieces. It is an excellent photo to look at for not only the men on the guns, but also the limbers, drivers, caissons, and officers. The left-most piece shows the men in the act of loading the gun. The round has been placed in the tube by the #2 man (D) and he has stepped back to his position. This position is somewhat of a curiosity, as the manual is not very specific about what the #2 man should do after loading. It says, "steps back, commencing with his left foot, to his position outside the wheel, in the same manner as No. 1 does." The section on the #1 man says that his right hip should be on line with the front of the wheel. If the #2 man is doing as #1 is doing (except opposite), then he should be facing towards the wheel. Perhaps this is a case where if he were in that position he couldn't be seen by the camerman. We'll see more of this in other photos. The #1 man (A) is in the process of ramming and has "join[ed] his left hand to his right, casting his eyes to the front." This is a textbook example of that position. The #3 man (B) is in his original position. The manual calls for him to thumb the vent only during the sponging process. After that he is to quit the post, turn to the trail handspike and assist the gunner in aiming. Once that is done, he returns to his original position. It seems unlikely that he has accomplished all of those things in the time it took for the #1 man to come to his new position after sponging. Again, I believe the camerman has influenced this shot. If he were at the trail hand spike he would not be visible to the camera. The #4 man (E) is in his correct spot according to the manual, and awaiting the command "READY."
The center cannon is at the position of "TO YOUR POSTS" prior to the load command. The #1 man (A) is holding his sponge-rammer "in his right hand, and trailing it [at] an angle of 45*, sponge-head up." (The man over his shoulder is actually the #5 man of the left gun.) All of the other positions (B through F) are in their proper positions awaiting the command to load. The #4 man (E) has already taken out his lanyard and is holding it in his left hand. The manual is not specific about when the lanyard is taken out. It simply says that the lanyard hook will be attached to the primer after the command "LOAD."
The right gun's crew is in the position of "READY" and awaiting the command "FIRE." The #1 man (A) has "[broken] well off to his left with the left foot, bending the left knee, and straightening the right leg" and has "[dropped] the end of the sponge-staff into the left hand, back of the hand down, and fixes his eye on the muzzle." The #2 man (D) has done the same on the opposite side. The #3 man (B) has his eyes fixed on the vent in his original position. The #3 man should actually be holding his hand on top of the primer at the vent awaiting the command fire. At that time he should step out and then the #4 man (E) would pull the lanyard. Perhaps this is an indication that this was considered somewhat dangerous then as well, and was not necessarily practiced the way the manual states. The gunner (C) and #5 man (F) have returned to their original positions as well. The #4 man (E), is in his correct position according to the manual, but perhaps a bit relaxed and looking at the camera
NOTES ON THE PHOTO IN GENERAL:
- ALL men are in their standard issue fatigue blouses and forage caps. Since drill is a fatigue duty this is not very surprising.
- All the #4 men seem to be a good bit shorter than the other men on the gun. This may be more of an instance where the taller men are needed for other positions like #1 and #2, than the short soldiers were made #4 men.
- All the #4 men are wearing the tube pouch on the belt, although all three are wearing it in a slightly different location.
- The #3 men are NOT wearing tube pouches as prescribed by the manual.
- The #5 men do not seem to be lined up directly behind the gun's left wheel as called for in the manual. Although, with the angle of the shot, it is difficult to tell.
Part Two will follow shortly....
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