_The Director_: “Lieutenant Williams, what is a visiting patrol?”
_Lieutenant Williams_: “It is a patrol consisting of a non-commissioned officer and two or three men. It is sent out from the support at intervals during the night to keep up communication between the elements of the outpost.”
_The Director_: “Captain Hastings, tell us just how the visiting patrol makes its rounds.”
_Captain Hastings_: “Let us say that the patrol is to start out from our support No. 2, which is located at this point. The patrol will go out to the right and touch upon the left outguard of Support No. 1; then pass along our own line of observation to the right outguard of Support No. 3 and then come back here.”
_The Director_: “Yes, that is the general procedure. The details of how the patrol is to do all of this is what we are interested in and that is what will be brought out in this Terrain Exercise. Lieutenant Wallace, what do you understand to be the specific duties of a visiting patrol?”
_Lieutenant Wallace_: “Included in the duties of visiting patrols may be enumerated:
“1. They bring back information of incidents that may occur along the line of observation and form a medium of exchange of information between the various elements of the outpost.
“2. In a measure, they prevent the unobserved approach of the enemy between sentinel posts. When the enemy is very active there is constant patrolling between the observation posts.
“4. They take charge of detained persons and conduct them back to the support.”
_The Director_: “That is very good. Now, Lieutenant Ralston, suppose you were Lieutenant A, commanding Support No. 2. What instructions would you give regarding your visiting patrols?”
_Lieutenant Ralston_: “The visiting patrol is a night institution. There is little necessity for its employment in the day time, but I would not wait until dark to give my instructions regarding it. I would give orders:
“‘There is no further information of the enemy and our own troops.
“‘The second section will furnish the visiting patrols for tonight.
“‘Corporal Black, with the 4th Squad, will conduct the visiting patrols at 8 and 10 o’clock p. m.
“‘Corporal Canes, with the 5th Squad, will conduct the visiting patrols at 12 midnight and 2 o’clock a. m.