fleeing enemy is pursued by fire,
while local reserves follow up and secure the position against
counter-attack. Superior commanders must take steps to organise the
pursuit, to cut off the enemy's line of retreat, and to complete his
overthrow. No victory is ever complete if the enemy is permitted to
retire unmolested from the field of battle, and given time to recover
order and moral. "Never let up in a pursuit while your troops have
strength to follow" was a favourite maxim of Stonewall Jackson. The
pursuit is the task of the infantry until it is taken over by aircraft,
cavalry, and tanks, and the limits to which the infantry will carry the
pursuit will be fixed by the commander, who will bear in mind the
principle that "Success must be followed up until the enemy's power is
ruined" ("Field Service Regulations," vol. ii. (1920)). If the fruits
of victory are to be secured the work must be put in hand whilst the
enemy is still reeling under the shock of defeat. A few hours' delay
gives him time to recover his equilibrium, to organise a rearguard, and
to gain several miles on his rearward march. In modern warfare motor
transport may enable the comparatively immobile infantry to achieve the
mobility of cavalry, if arrangements for embussing them have previously
been made, and in a few hours infantry may thus be transported beyond
the reach of pursuit.

{70}

FORMATION OF INFANTRY FOR THE ATTACK

"Only by the rifle and bayonet of the infantryman can the decisive
victory be won."--MARSHAL HAIG.

The formations in which Infantry move to the Attack must be such as
will enable them to achieve their object by the combination of Fire and
Movement. For this purpose, the forward troops must be furnished with
supports belonging to the same unit as themselves, in order that a
connected leading may produce a joint action of the whole.

THE PLATOON.--The smallest unit which can be divided into independent
bodies, each capable of Fire and Movement, is the platoon, the four
sections of which can pin the enemy to his position by fire and can
manoeuvre round his flanks. The normal distribution of the platoon for
the Attack is either the Square or the Diamond Formation. In the
_Square Formation_, two sections are forward covering the frontage
allotted to the platoon, and the remaining two sections are in support,
in such formation as may keep them in readiness for instant manoeuvre
with due regard to the avoidance