[162] In this connection the following works have been consulted: _Das Gefechtsmäszige Abteilungsschieszen der Infanterie_, 4th Edition (1905), by Lieutenant-General ROHNE, and _Schieszlehre für die Infanterie_, 2nd Edition (1906), by the same author; also _Militär-Wochenblatt_ No. 46 of 1900. To be sure, absolute trustworthiness cannot be claimed for the figures given, for the conditions of firing in action are variable; but, as obtained by Lieutenant-General Rohne, they serve as an excellent standard of comparison, and, when their relative value is considered, as a basis for tactical deductions. (a) Influence of Training. Individual skill in marksmanship is of decisive importance when firing at targets of appropriate size at the short ranges. A good marksman, firing at will, may (not _must_) expect a hit from each round fired, at any target within 250 m., at a single kneeling opponent within 350 m., at a kneeling file within 500 m., and at a standing file within 600 m. At ranges beyond this, influences, due to the imperfections of the rifle, make themselves felt; and these influences grow to such an extent that the best marksmanship training is unable to eliminate them. A considerable number of rifles must fire in order to produce an effect; for, as some of the pieces fire short and others over, the hits are thus distributed over a greater area. But even here skill in marksmanship is apparent in that the cone of dispersion of the excellent shots produces a shot group of small diameter, that of the poorer shots one of very large diameter. Lieutenant-General Rohne computed (_Schieszlehre für die Infanterie_, p. 84) that when firing rifle model ’98 with the appropriate elevation at a target 1 m. high, the marksmen named in the following table would obtain the number of hits given at the ranges indicated: =======+======================================== | NUMBER OF HITS OBTAINED BY +---------------+------------+----------- Range.|Excellent shots| Fair shots | Poor shots | Out of 100 rounds fired. -------+---------------+------------+----------- 1000 m.| 27. | 17.6 | 8.9 1500 m.| 14.2 | 9.7 | 4.8 -------+---------------+------------+----------- This ratio changes, however, very seriously to the disadvantage of the excellent marksmen when the appropriate elevation is not used. The figure given below, in which the curves of hits are traced, shows that even poor shots may obtain better results in this case.