Salt Lake Herald-Republican | 1894-08-05 | Page 11 | Troopers in Cromwell's Time

I TROOPERS IN CROMAVELLS TIME From Macmlllans Magazine In Cromwells time the troop 100 strong was for purposes of manoeuvre drawn up in five ranks giving a frontage of twenty men with sixfoot interval between be-tween man and man and sixfoot distance dis-tance from rank to rank In civilian language lan-guage every man was six feet from his neighbor to front flanks and rear six feet two less than our present allowance allow-ance being then the conventional length of one horse Each of the five ranks bore Its own name First Leaders second Followers to the front third Middlemen fourth Followers to the rear fifth Brmgersup The object of thesixfoot Interval was to I enable the whole troop to take ground to flanks or rear by the simple words I t Right or left turn Right or left 1 about turn Thus the open formation i was indlspenslbla for the execution of I the simplest manoeuvre If it were desired to wheel the troop I entire the files were closed till the men I were knee to knee and the ranks closed I till horses were nose to croup This was called close order and may fairly be I sailed to have deserved athe name Think of the feelings of the men in the vicinity horses with bells on their cruppers I I