ss of Virginia.

_He must arrange for the reorganisation_ of his victorious forces and
for the pursuit and complete overthrow of the enemy.

{98}

PROTECTION AND RECONNAISSANCE

"Surprise consists in the hard fact that the enemy suddenly appears in
considerable numbers without his presence having been known to be so
near for want of information; and without it being possible to assemble
against him for want of protection."--MARSHAL FOCH.

Every commander of a force, however large or small, is responsible for
the protection of his command against surprise, and a force can only be
regarded as secure from surprise when protection is furnished in every
direction from which interference is possible. Detachments are
therefore provided by every commander, their duty being to warn him if
hostile forces are discovered in the vicinity of such forces, and to
gain time, at all risks and at any sacrifice, for the commander of the
troops they protect to carry out his plans unimpeded by the enemy. "A
mission of protection does not necessarily imply a defensive attitude,
it will often be better performed by an offensive" (Marshal Foch).
There is the closest connection between Reconnaissance and Protection.
It is only by finding out the location, strength and movements of the
enemy that a commander can decide how best to protect his troops, and
the forces he employs to protect his troops against surprise will very
largely prevent the enemy finding out his own strength and
dispositions. Detailed and timely information about the enemy and the
theatre of operations is a necessary factor in War and the value of the
information depends on whether it can reach the authorities in time to
be of use.

Facilities for reconnaissance have been enormously increased by the
introduction of man-carrying, self-propelled Aircraft. Before their
introduction reconnaissance {99} at a distance from the forward troops
was limited by the speed and endurance of the cavalryman's horse, and
by the skill of the cavalry scout in penetrating the preventive screen
of hostile cavalry, and in escaping the net spread out to catch him on
the return journey. His radius of operations was comparatively small,
that of the aerial observer is practically unlimited, as his machine
will carry him over the hostile area, and unless he is driven down by
opposing aircraft, or crippled by defensive fire from the ground, he
returns in a comparatively short space of