TACTICS, in their general acceptation, relate those evolutions, manoeuvres, and positions, which constitute the main spring of military and naval finesse : they are the means whereby discipline is made to support the operations of a campaign, and are, in every regular service, studied for the purpose of training all the compo nent parts according to one regular plan or system ; whereby celerity, precision, and strength, are combined, and the whole rendered completely efficient. Of milita ry tactics, the Romans may be considered the first nation whose military array could. be termed regn far, and whose forces main tained that order, which rendered each inferior individual subject to the control of certain subaltern officers commanding small bodies, corresponding with our sec tions; which being again compacted un der officers of a second class, formed small divisions, as in our platoons, or compa and which divisions being collected under a third class of officers, constituted what we term battalions. The soldiers of ancient Italy were not only inured to great hardships, as a part of their usual exercise, but were taught many evolutions suited to the modes of warfare in those days.
Time has occasioned a considerable change in that particular ; for since the in vention of gunpowder, our battles have frequently been decided by distant can nonades ; and by no means resembled those arduous conflicts in which the he roes of old used to engage, individually contending far the day, and causing the whole field to resemble an infinity of single combats. In this practice all bar barous nations seem uniformly to agree; the sword, the tomahawk, the club, &c. being the chief instruments; though in some instances the javeline, or spear, or the bow and arrow, may be primarily re sorted to. Hence such warfare is far more sanguinary than that carried on with fire arms ; which -rarely do much execution, unless when aided by artillery, and then only when at such distances as to be with in reach of case•shot. It will no doubt surprise most of our readers, but is strict ly true, that, average quantity of musket ammunition expended, as a sum to be divided by the number of kill ed and wounded, not more than one shot in fifty will be found to take effect. Thus, , after,a batallion of may have fired 20 rounds per man, making in all 20,000 discharges of musketry, they will have made terrible havoc if 400 of the ene my be disabled.
Hence we find, that the great features in derisive actions are few indeed; and they depend chiefly on tactics. Thus where a large force is brought to bear upon any particular point, while the enemy is kept in ignorance as to the object in view ; or where certain advantages of locality are gained, merely by dint of superior science in the art of conducting troops by the shortest means, and in the greatest order ; or where by certain evolutions a small force is made to supply the purpOse of a larger, or to resist, independently 'of entrench ments, &c. a more numerous body ; all these evince the presence of the min of tactics, and qualify him Ibr the designs. tion of" an able General." We have also another branch, which is in a degree secondary, because it' depends greatly on the success of the former ; namely, the arrangement, or disposition, of a line, in such manner as may allow each description of force! to act with ef fect : this can be done only when the na ture of the service tobe performedls suit ed to the nature of the troops by which it is to be attempted. In this we necessarily mean to restrict the operations of infantry to storming"parties, cavalry to champaign operations, and artillery to situations where it can be duly protected, while essential service.. Hence the able tactician always arranges his force • in such manner, as to allow each to perform its duty without interfering 'with the evolutions of any other class; and, in what is called maim:owing his army, ne ver fails to estimate the distances, and the time in which each may execute the as signed duty ; so that the whale may coin cide with one great intention, and insure success, by the accurate execution of its respective functions : were it to be other wise, the whole must be subject to disor der ; one failure often leading to the most serious consequence ; the same as is cans ed by the want of a cog, or tooth, of any wheel in a piece of machinery. From this it may be seen how - great a superiority that commander must possess, who, by means of this science, fully comprehends the Most ready arrangement of troops, where change of position becomes neces sary; and who has, in the first instance, so disposed them as to be -able to make those changes (even under the disadvantages ever attendant upon such necessity) with celerity, and in good order.