TH3 INRANTRY IN JAR
Exactly how future wars will be fought cannot be predicted,
but from past experience we know that each war differed slightly
from previous wars, even with the advent of startling innovations.
The broader principles of wab have not changed since history
made them a matter of record. In the wars being fought at present
in various parts of the world the general methods are little, if
at all, different from those practiced in the World War.
The object of war is to determine which side will win, through
force, and be able tc impose its will upon the other. The contest
is not decided by having two forces go out into some convenient "
area to settle the issue. The fact that one side loses an army |
in some fai-off land will not necessarily cause that side to sub
mit to the will of its opponent. In any dispute which is vital
enough to require the decision of war it may be expected that
neither side will give up until defeated or until defeat is immi
nent and that further struggle wpuld be useless.
A nation submits when it a territory, its homes, factories and
sources of raw material and food, and the lives of its citizens
come under the control or threatened control of a hostile force.
These nerve centers of a nation are situated on the surface of
the ground where people habitua.lly live, Shooting from a distance
or drppping bombs from the air will not achieve positive results.
The logical way to take possession of hostile territory is to
go into it and actually control its resources.
Unless there is a marked change in the habits of the huir.an race
the objectives of war will continue to be on the ground, and the
logical instrument through which to fo<Fce a decision will be troops
capable of maneuvering in settled communities, in other words, the
Infantry, with its supporting troops.
In the World War “vast areas were shelled from the land and homed
from the air, hut victor was not attained until Infantry began its
slow, irresistible advance into critical territory.
General Pershing has said: ’’Armies must still fight our battles
and to win must overcome opposing forces. Infantry still remains
the backbone of attack and the role of all other arms is to help
it reach the enemy. The idea that principles of warfare has changed
and that armed contests will be settled in any other way has nothing
substantial in our experience to warrant serious consideration".
General Drum has said: "In times of peace we must not be blinded
as we have' been in the past, to the sacrifices of the American
doughboy. He has and always will be, the decisive element in warfare
The prance of horses, the flurries of trumpets, the booms of
cannon and the whirl of air propellors cannot replace the dodged
determination, aggressiveness, the "will to win" and the tenacity
to h&ld of the American Infantryman. The mechanical device can
never replace the mental, moral and physical qualities of man".
General Hines has said; "Wars, whether on land or' sea, will be
won in the future as they have been in the past, by the compara
tively slow, but irresistible force which is able to move from
one stagetic position to another, take it, hold it, and move on to
the next. On land this force is the Infantry; on sea the battleship"
Former Secretary of War Baker has said: "It is the occupation
of the enemy’s territory with Infantry under conditions which will
allow it to maintain itself there, which will impose the nation’s
will upon the nation’s adversary".
General Summerall has said: "From my observations, the next war
will be fought as it has been fought in the past. The Infantry will
be the backbone of offense and the backbone of defense".
.*.... Infant ry Journal.