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ADDITIONAL SECURITY TOR FLANK FLANKWhilo Whilo the flanks of a column are protected to a degree by the advance guard it may be necessary to provide additional security for a flank espec ¬ ially if threatened by the enemy This i dime by sending out a force of cavalry known as a flank guard It may be a patrol only or a large organi ¬ zation always in constant touch with the element from which it was detailed by signals or mounted messengers messengersEven Even when advancing supposedly toward the enemy the possibility of an attack in the rear gen ¬ erally exists and is guarded against by a covering detachment known as the rear guard This is rela ¬ tively weak during an advance but in a retreat especially before a pursuing force its functions be ¬ come vital If the enemy is aggressive its role will consist principally of fighting of the most desperate kind involving quick arduous changes from one position tti the next The usual method of proeed aire is to occupy successively positions which the enemy must capture in order to continue the pur ¬ suit holding them as long as necessary to give the main column freedom of movement and not retir ¬ ing except as a last resort Meantime reconnais ¬ sance has chosen the next position and the first units withdrawn are the first to occupy it and open fire An engagement of this character will test the endurance of men and mounts to the utmost as chances of saving horseflesh are generally nil and failure to hold back the enemy may be the prelude to disaster disasterWhen When an army is not engaged in actual combat cavalry attached to it is employed in outpost duty raiding mapsketching convoy and escort work and other duties too numerous to mention It would be almost impossible to overestimate the value of mounted troops on the battlefield or to advocate too strongly the necessity of fostering the breeding of mounts suitable for this purpose purposeThe The horse is the cavalrymans first weapon and his uncomplaining better half in great emergencies If it fails him he ceases to be a cavalryman be ¬ ing dismounted The ideal horse for this service must possess superior speed heart anil lung power courage soundness and bottom and it is only from the breeding studs of the race track that horses possessing these essential qualities are produced In these studs the process of evolution is encour ¬ aged to reproduce better horses with each genera ¬ tion of foals
