(3) Finally, to take part in the cavalry fight; for this they should be judiciously divided among the troops of the advanced guard, and should make use of their mobility. This will allow them to open fire from well-chosen positions before the moment of contact, and help to obtain the desired result. The place for the machine-gun commander is near the General. If the machine guns have been well placed in the column, they will--thanks to their mobility, which is equal to that of any cavalry detachment--be able to make use of the considerable time required by a large force of cavalry to get into battle formation. Whereas with infantry the surprise of the enemy is always effected by making use of the features of the ground, the best method for cavalry guns is to utilise their rapidity of motion and their resemblance to other cavalry units, for which at a distance they are easily mistaken. The widest power of initiative is left to the commander for the grouping of his units in the fight. Very often he will only bring up near the firing line the horse carrying the gun and one carrying ammunition, in order to be able to escape rapidly. At other times all the horses will be brought up close under cover. At others the whole section will dash up to their position at full speed; the guns will be unloaded at once, and the horses will disappear to the rear. The one important thing is to open fire as a surprise. To sum up: the Austrian Regulations only confirm the rules already laid down by very competent writers who have published works on the subject. They enunciate in a clear and concise form the principles which should govern the employment of machine guns in various circumstances, laying particular stress on the necessity for constant readiness for action in a position of observation. In _Les Mitrailleuses à l’Etranger_ Lieutenant M. quotes certain Austrian officers who, writing before the publication of the Regulations of 1908, considered that the value of machine guns lay chiefly in their use as a reserve of fire. Lieut.-Colonel Berndt says: “In offence, as in defence, machine guns must be held back as a reserve of fire to be used at the moment when the rapid development of heavy fire is required.” Lieutenant Binder is of the same opinion, and also recommends their being used in the closest co-operation with the infantry. Lieutenant Hayeck-Liprandi, a cavalry officer, fully realises the importance of machine-guns, as relieving cavalry to a large degree of the necessity for dismounted action. He also advocates the attachment of machine-gun sections to regiments at the disposal of the regimental commanding officer.[61] CHINA GUN.--The Chinese have bought numbers of Maxims for attachment to their infantry. With cavalry they have adopted the Madsen. Their organisation is at present in process of evolution, and no official views on their tactical employment have been published hitherto. DENMARK