My War Memories, 1914-1918
and likely to be the cause o'f heavy losses. The problems of the reorganization and equipment of the infantry could be dealt with only step by step. The excessive use of hand grenades had come about because these could be usefully and safely employed from behind shelter, whereas a man using a rifle must leave his cover. In the close fighting of some of our own raids, and also in the large-scale attacks by the enemy, where the fighting at any moment came to be man to man, hand grenades were readier weapons for unpractised men and easier to use than rifles, the latter also having the disadvantage of getting dirty easily. One could understand that; but infantry must keep able to hold the enemy off and to fight from a distance. When it came to hand-to-hand fighting, the superiority of the enemy in men was much too great.
The infantry soldier had forgotten his shooting through use of grenades. He had to relearn it. He had to reacquire confidence in his weapon, and that meant that he must become master of it. That was easier to advise than to get accomplished. In the short training given to our new drafts little could be accomplished even if the attempt were made. Complete training was possible only under the conditions of peace, if the use of the rifle were to be a real protection when war came.
In the case of the hostile infantry, the strength of the men had been greatly increased by their war-machine; we, on the other hand, had still to rely chiefly on our men. We had every reason to be sparing of them. An important change, moreover, had occurred ; the machine-gun had to become chief firing weapon of the infantry. The companies must be provided with new light machine-guns, the serving of which must be done by the smallest possible number of men. Our existing machine-guns in the machine-gun sections were too heavy for the purpose.
In order to strengthen our fire, at least in the most important parts of the chief theatre of war, it was necessary to create special machine-gun companies—so to speak, machine-gun sharpshooters. Already a beginning had been made; it was necessary to consolidate and to increase it.
The fighting power of the infantry had to be further streng-
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