CHAPTER VI FIRE DIRECTION AND CONTROL Section =41=.--General Remarks. =1.= In the previous stages of instruction the foundation of training for fire action beyond close range will have been laid. The eyesight of both fire-unit commanders and men will have been trained to discern service targets at all ranges, and they will have become familiar with their appearance under various conditions of light and atmosphere, and accustomed to look for them and detect them quickly. Both fire-unit commanders and men will also have been trained in military vocabulary and the study of ground, so that they apply a common phraseology to various military objects, especially those under the head of service targets, and also to the ground and its natural features, the military value of which they will have learned in field training through instruction in the use of ground and cover. =2.= Fire-unit commanders and men must now be taught to work together as an unit in directing fire at service targets beyond close range by the efficient performance of the various duties described in the following sections. This instruction should commence with lectures, illustrated if possible by the use of the Solano and landscape targets as described in Secs. 72, 73, and 74. Lectures should deal with organization for fire action, the effect of rifle fire at various ranges, the tactical application of rifle fire, the description and recognition of targets, fire orders, fire discipline, and night firing. =3. Lectures and Demonstrations= (see pp. 221-225). Special lectures in their duties should be given to fire-unit commanders, non-commissioned officers, and observers, and these lectures should include information and hints which will enable fire-unit commanders to train their men both by lectures and practical instruction. Lectures to men should be given by their fire-unit commanders, and should deal with all the various duties which are combined for fire action, including organization and the duties of fire-unit commanders. These lectures must deal thoroughly with the duties of men in the firing-line and with the vitally important subject of fire discipline (see pp. 214, 215). Section =42=.--Organization for Fire Action.[18] 1. Fire direction and control depend in a great measure upon good organization for fire action. The value of this organization depends on the fitness of superior officers and battalion commanders to handle their troops efficiently, and issue such clear and concise orders as will enable each unit to carry out its allotted task well supported, with their communications and ammunition supply well maintained. The duties of organization for fire action may be described generally as follows:[19] (i) Allotment of frontages and objectives to various units. (ii) Arrangements for communications and ammunition supply. (iii) Arrangements for covering fire by supports and reserves, machine-guns, and artillery.