board and coloured specially for the purpose; the contours which show levels at fifty feet vertical intervals being strongly marked.

Another set, much used by the Volunteers, is the Volunteer Service Gazette war-game, designed by some officers of the Artists Corps. The maps are on the large scale of one hundred yards to one inch (17.6 inches to the mile), and they are therefore well adapted for instruction in tactical details, and in showing the movements of small bodies of troops.

The main defect of this set of maps is the existence of a river, which must either enter into every exercise carried out on them, or be supposed' not to exist. Lieutenant Sharpe of the 3rd Middlesex R.V.C. has, however, invented a set of maps on the same scale as the War Office maps, which he calls the 'Interchangeable War Maps,' and in which he, with great ingenuity, gets over the weak point of the War Office maps-the furnishing only the same ground for all exercisesand that of the Volunteer Service Gazette maps-the presence of an ever-flowing stream. Each sheet represents a piece of actual country, being copied from the Ordnance map, but, by a few slight alterations round the margin, the roads and contours in any one sheet are made to fit against those in any other sheet, whether the right way up or reversed. There are also six river slips which may be inserted at pleasure between many of the sheets. The result is some millions of possible combinations for representing country.

For maps are sometimes substituted models of country showing the features of the ground in relief, such as Colonel Wilkinson Shaw's models, and an interchangeable model invented by a Swedish officer, a set of which was presented to the Home District Tactical Society by Major-General Lyon Fremantle; but models of this kind are too bulky and expensive for ordinary use.

In all Kriegsspiel apparatus the troops are small blocks of lead, or other material, coloured blue or red, made to scale, and representing vedettes, troops, companies, battalions, batteries, &c. Scales, compasses, and a practicable clock complete the equipment. The prices of the different sets of Kriegsspiel apparatus differ considerably.

Since, as will be seen hereafter, three sets of maps are necessary for good Kriegsspiel work, the War Office prices are prohibitory.

Given, then, maps on a large scale, showing a piece of ground, its topographical features, hedges, houses, and roads, and also blocks to represent men, object lessons in the disposition and movements of troops can be undertaken by anyone who can measure distances, and

who knows the rate at which troops of the various arms march; but when the Kriegsspiel is employed to illustrate operations between troops acting against each other, the exercise is one not altogether easy to conduct, the difficulty increasing with the strength of the forces engaged. It is with Kriegsspiel used for the latter purpose that we shall deal here. In arranging a Kriegsspiel, the first thing to be done is to select the particular strategical or tactical operation which shall be illustrated by the exercise; and next, the piece of country on which it shall be carried out. Not only the present and the future, but also the past, can be drawn on to supply possible problems for solution and illustration. Thus, we have seen two wellknown Colonels of Her Majesty's Guards, wise after the event, each with his corps d'armée of three divisions under the command of field-officers of Volunteers, struggling for victory on the battle-field of Columbey-Borny, and showing examples of well-considered leading, which put to shame the recklessness of the German general and the absence of discipline and co-operation of the French generals alike. At Aldershot a major-general will direct one of his colonels to reinforce troops at Winchester, threatened by another colonel, turned traitor for the time; whilst at Oxford we have sat at the feet of college dons, some of them clergymen, who have endeavoured to protect Aldershot from capture in a way that made the regular officers present regret that so much real military knowledge could not be utilised to some practical purpose. These points being settled, a document is next drawn up for general information called the 'General Idea.' In this is embodied only just as much information as will make the exercise intelligible to the spectators and to those who take part in it; the amount given in it being as much as in war would be, in all probability, known to both adversaries. To give an example:

General Idea.

On the evening of the 30th of April the Defender's Troops (Red) are at FARNHAM watching the road from the South-West through ALTON and BAGSHOT to LONDON. They are connected with the Main Army to the North-East by a strongly entrenched post at BLACK HILL, at the junction of the roads from ALTON and BASINGSTOKE to LONDON. The leading troops of the Invader arrive at nightfall at the western extremity of HARTFORD BRIDGE FLATS and bivouac there.

The next duty of the framer of the exercise is to communicate to each combatant the particular task he has to carry out and the number of the troops at his disposal, giving him such additional information about his adversary as he may think fit, or perhaps none at all. All this is embodied in what are called 'Special Ideas,' one for each of the hostile commanders. They may be drawn up as formal orders, or as telegrams, or as general statements, or may combine all forms. They may be in writing, or they may be communicated verbally, and in either case be given either at the commencement

of the exercise, or, as is the custom, some hours previously. In the example we are using for illustration there are three special ideas required, and they may run as follows:

Special Idea (Red).

The Troops at FARNHAM are five Battalions of Infantry; two Batteries Field Artillery; half a Battery Horse Artillery; four Squadrons; Co.R.E. At 5 A.M. on the 1st of May the Commander receives from Army Head Quarters the following telegram: The Enemy is advancing from BASINGSTOKE, and not from the SouthWest as previously supposed. The BLACK-HILL POST is seriously threatened from HARTFORD BRIDGE FLATS. Fall back at once so as to succour the Post, and to prevent your own retreat being cut off. We do not know what troops can be spared from BLACK-HILL POST, but the Commander there has been directed to cooperate, if possible, with you, in your movement.'

Special Idea (Blue).

The force is in bivouac at the Western End of HARTFORD BRIDGE FLATS and is composed of six Battalions of Infantry; two Batteries Field Artillery; four Squadrons of Cavalry; Co. R.E. At 5 A.M. on the 1st of May the Commander receives from Army Head Quarters at Basingstoke the following telegram: 'It is believed that the hostile troops at FARNHAM will retire to-day along the ALDERSHOT-BAGSHOT Road. Endeavour to cut off their retreat.'

In this example there would be required a special idea for the commander of the Black-Hill Post; and as, in actual war, this officer and the Commander at Farnham might have to act, at first, in ignorance of each other's intentions, the Special Idea would, in order to prevent collusion, be communicated to the former only at the commencement of the exercise. This Special Idea runs thus:

Special Idea, Black-Hill Post' (Red).

At 5 A.M. on the 1st of May the Commander receives orders to aid the retreat of the troops from FARNHAM by a diversion along the BASINGSTOKE Road with such troops as can be spared. He is to endeavour to draw off the enemy from any attack on the FARNHAM-BAGSHOT Road, or at all events to delay his advance in that direction. The troops to be considered available are one and a-half Battalions of Infantry; two guns Field Artillery; four Squadrons of Cavalry; twenty Sappers in wagons.

It would also be notified that the rates of movement were, we will say, 100 paces per minute for infantry, 200 paces per minute for cavalry and artillery, 250 paces per minute for cavalry scouts, 350 paces per minute for staff officers and orderlies; and further, the imaginary hour of the commencement of the operations would be given, in this case, 6 A.M.

The number of combatants on either side depends on the nature of the operation. In this instance, there would be four on the Red side, and three on the Blue side. Of the Red party one would command the force sent from Black Hill, a second the troops at Farnham, a third the cavalry of the Farnham force, the fourth would