=Covering Fire.=--Fire delivered from the rear or flank by a special body of troops to keep down the fire of the attacked during the advance of the attacking body. It also includes fire delivered by portions of a line with a view to assisting the advance of the remainder (Fig. 48). =Effective Fire.=--Fire which has the desired result upon the target. =Enfilade Fire.=--Fire which sweeps a line of troops or defences from a flank (Fig. 48). =Frontal Fire.=--Fire which is delivered directly to the front. =Grazing Fire.=--When the angle of the fall of the bullets (see Trajectory) is the same as the slope of the ground and the missiles sweep along its surface the fire is called grazing (Fig. 9). =Individual Fire.=--Fire opened without orders from a fire-leader. On account of the difficulty of observation 600 yards may be taken as the limit of effective fire of this nature against small targets. =Indirect Fire.=--Indirect fire is fire directed by means of auxiliary aiming-marks at an objective which is invisible to the firer (Fig. 48). =Masked Fire.=--Troops (guns or rifles) in a position whence they could employ fire effectively against an enemy, but for the fear of causing casualties to their comrades, are said to have their fire masked by these latter troops. =Oblique Fire.=--Fire directed on a target in a slanting direction--_i.e._ not directly to the front (Fig. 48). =Rapid Fire.=--Fire delivered as quickly as the nature of the rifle admits. =Reverse Fire.=--Fire so directed that the bullets strike the target in rear (Fig. 48). =Searching Fire.=--Searching is the term applied to collective fire when the depth of its dispersion over a beaten zone is increased by the use of combined sights (Fig. 7). =Sweeping Fire.=--Sweeping fire is fire distributed laterally (Fig. 48). =Unaimed Fire.=--Unaimed fire is fire directed at a visible objective which strikes another objective to the rear of it (Fig. 48). =Fire Control.=--Fire control is the duty of junior officers and non-commissioned officers, and consists in giving ranges to and pointing out targets to the fire-units, and seeing that their men adjust their sights to the range given. It further consists in regulating the volume of fire, the accurate passing of all orders and information, and in the cavalry and infantry the collecting of ammunition from casualties and its redistribution. =Fire Discipline.=--The training of men so that they will instinctively carry out all orders of fire-unit commanders, and in the absence of orders adjust their sights and fire with due regard to the tactical situation.