[Footnote 30: Taking into account these and similar demands on the Inspectors-General, the question arises whether the time has not come to attach to them permanently officers of the General Staff. Every increase in the number of these officers employed in peace is a great advantage for War, because the War formations require far more Staff Officers to fill the new positions created on mobilization than are employed in peace--a very serious disadvantage. I consider it absolutely essential that each Inspector-General of Cavalry should be provided with a permanent Staff.]
Since it is essential in all Cavalry exercises to take into account the numbers and distances with which we shall have to deal in future Warfare, it would be a great gain to the Arm if in the manoeuvres, in which its action in combination with the other Arms should be taught, this point of view was brought more into the foreground.
Of course it is not intended that the interests of the other Arms should be sacrificed to those of the Cavalry; the question rather is whether these interests are not identical even for the Infantry; the importance of minor tactics has fallen very much into the background, and both Infantry and Artillery require far more practice in 'masses.' Detachment warfare can for the most part be quite sufficiently practised in the garrisons, but the opportunities for exercising the large units are far more difficult to find.
I consider, therefore, that it would be of advantage to all Arms if present Brigade manoeuvres, with all their superannuated customs, were abolished in favour of more Divisional and Corps manoeuvres. The Cavalry, at any rate, would welcome the innovation, for from its point of view these manoeuvres could be made far more practical, and it would be easier to arrange schemes for the latter more in accordance with reality.
It is also most desirable that from time to time the Cavalry should have opportunities of practising both pursuit and rearguard action on a grand scale. At present these only arise in the manoeuvres with mixed Arms, since in the Independent Cavalry manoeuvres they are difficult of representation.