The idea of the offensive is not, however, meant here in a narrow sense, such as seeking a tactical battle, but rather that the reconnoitring army cavalry must under all circumstances maintain the initiative, use its activity against the enemy, and impose its will upon him. It is by no means its duty under all circumstances to seek out the enemy's cavalry in order to defeat it. By such conduct it would allow the enemy's cavalry to dictate its movements. It must rather subordinate all else to the particular objects of reconnaissance, and advance in those directions which promise the best fulfilment of the reconnaissance needs of the Army Head Quarters. Should it thus meet with the enemy's cavalry it must naturally attack and overthrow it. On the other hand, it can safely reckon that the more decisive the direction in which it moves for the purposes of reconnaissance, the more chance there will be of meeting the enemy. 1. _The Main Body of the Army Cavalry_ The same principle holds good for the strategical disposition. The old Cavalry Drill Regulations laid down that the strength of the cavalry division was to remain concentrated until the enemy's cavalry had been driven from the field. This considerably over-stepped the bounds of restriction usually imposed by regulation, and at the same time fettered the freedom of movement of the cavalry in a way that, under certain circumstances, might have become most harmful. The new Regulations have left out these directions and indeed lay down that, in the "advance to the fight," efforts must be made to reunite columns that are advancing separated before collision with the enemy takes place (413).[6] Here is expressed a principle which, if rightly understood, is certainly justified, but which, on the other hand, might give rise to misunderstandings. It must first be pointed out that it is by no means always desirable to unite columns that are separate before the fight. It may, for example, very easily happen that a detachment in favourable country will be able to occupy a superior force of the enemy, and thus, by remaining dispersed, ensure superiority at the decisive point. If, however, by the "concentration of columns" a natural approach is understood, which ensures a concentric co-operation of divided groups against a common enemy whose direction of march is more or less known, then the principle is an excellent one. If, on the other hand, it is intended that single columns should be so closely concentrated that the division as a tactical whole can be thrown into the fight, it appears to me that it goes too far, and might easily lead to harmful dogmatism. Thus read, the regulation appears to me to be the more dangerous, as exercises in a limited space encourage the concentrated employment of the larger cavalry bodies in the fight, and their approach and deployment from formations of assembly or intermediate formations, for which brigade columns are usually chosen.