Hill Military Academy - Adjutant Yearbook (Portland, OR)

Page 93 text:

GALLERY RANGE PRACTICE AND ' RIFLE MARKSMANSHIP INSTRUCTION. Built on a foundation that was well started in the school year from September 12, 1923 to June 11, 1924, the ,rifle instruction of this past year has shown marked improvement and has reached quite a high degree of efficiency. Major Luther Felker, U. S. A., our commandant deserves great praise for his leadership in this matter. It has been a pleasure and a profit to all who have cooperat- ed with him and have had the benefit of this practice in marksman- ship. A true eye, steady nerve, a determination to win, to be right, to be exact, these are among the aims of the boys who have quali- fied in this department of cadet life. Of decided help have been the short talks given by the com- manders of the companies. ' When the cadets went to Rocky Butte in May, 1924, they were given a more thorough course than they had been given earlier in the year. The battalion as a whole did very well and a good many of the cadets qualified for medals given for a certain degree of proficiency in shooting. The course that was fired was one that Army Officials had worked out. In the summer, about fifteen cadets went to the C. M. T. Camp at Camp Lewis. Here, due to their previous experience, nearly all of them made the required score to qualify for medals. They also were given the task of coaching the boys who did not know so much about rifle firing. All in all the year was very successful. This year started out with a bang! First the companies were divided into groups with officers and the first sergeant in charge. Each cadet in charge was an instructor and it was his duty to see that the cadets under his supervision were properly instructed. The first step was the sighting bar with its various uses for bringing out the defects in a cadetls sight alignment. The next thing on the schedule was the nomenclature of the rifle. After a few days of this, in which the pupils became very proficient, they turned to the triangle exercise. The implements used in this exercise are, a rifle, a box on which the rifle rests, a piece of paper as a target back- ground and a movable target. Before this they were taught the different positions and the use of the sling. When instructing his group the instructor sights the rifle on the target correctly then he has the spot marked. Next the pupil sights the rifle on the target and the spot is marked. The sight alignment is changed and the pupil endeavours to bring the sights back to the correct alignment again. When he thinks he has done so he has the spot marked. After he has done this three times the instructor looks at the group of spots. If they are close together it shows that the pupills ability to align the sights is good, but if they are widely spaced it indicates that he does not know how to align the sights correctly. The next thing that was done was to have them pass a test to find out if they had been properly instructed. If they passed this

Page 92 text:

fine spirit shown' by the losers in being the first to give their yell for the winners. This spirit was commented upon very favorably by the officers who acted as judges. The battalion of 1924-25 has demonstrated it is a better organi- zation than that of 1923-24, and it is proper it should be. Now for the battalion of 1925-26, you will either be better or Worse, you can't just equal. We believe it will be a further advance. How about it class of 1926? Let's see your stuff. The Work of the military department during the past year, has been a distinct success. The members of the class of 725 have done their part Well, too much praise cannot be given them. Good-bye '25, may all your future efforts be as successful, is the best Wish that can be given you. Major Luther Felker U. S. A. Commandant.

Page 94 text:

test satisfactorily, they were assigned a day on which to go down on the gallery and fire. The first scores were two fired in the prone position. The next was a prone and a sitting score. The third was a prone and a kneeling score. It was decided that the squad firing would be discontinued on account of the fact that there were fifteen men on the Ninth Corps Area team that needed the time for practice. The showing that the cadets made on the gallery this year means that when the battalion went to Rocky Butte there were a good many men qualified for medals. This all points toward a successful year next year. The defects in the schedule, although slight, can be seen and will be corrected in the future. BY Sergeant Donald LeDoux. '26. THE CADET BATTALION FROM THE PRIVATES POINT OF VIEW The private, being supposedly the most ignorant of the assembly which constitutes the cadet battalion, and holding no office what- soever, is thought, by some people, to be merely a piece of ma- chinery and to have no views at all. However, we shall try to cor- rect this error, for, although the lowly private may not say much, at the same time he does a considerable amount of thinking. Not having been asked for his opinion before, he now finds that he has quite a task set for him. The new cadet, upon entering the battalion, is at first bewildered and confused by the numerous movements and seemingly meaning- less commands which are given him, but he soon becomes accustom- ed to these and becomes a part of the working mechanism of the battalion. The newness soon wears off these scenes and it is at about this time that the formerly green private begins to form views and opinions. His first impression of the battalion is one of strict order and discfpline but he soon finds that this strain is relieved by the numer- ous competitions which are started among the different sections of the battalion. His next find of importance is that the officers in charge are human beings like himself and that they have their failings just the same as anyone. At about this time he begins to have ambitions of his own and to look forward to the time when he will be an officer. With this end in view he begins to criticize, to himself, of course, the actions of the officers and to make various solemn vows to himself not to make the supposed mistakes which he imagines that the present corps of officers are making. He then acquires a brood of bolshevistic ideas and gets the idea that he is being 'fdoniineeredn over, and although these stick with him for some time, he at last decides that he was mistaken. In the mezantinpe heufinds that the officers have been treating him very air y a ter a .