The rifle fire of the tiny British Expeditionary Force when it first encountered the German army in the opening weeks of the Great War, was so sustained, rapid and accurate that the Germans at first thought that their enemy was firing machine guns. They were, in fact, as this manual makes clear, the result of strict training in every aspect of the latest rifles; the fruits of hours of practice on such rifle ranges as Bisley and Hythe. Published in 1915, this large study explores the history of rifles, and looks at British models such as the British Lee-Enfield, and foreign competitiors such as the Mauser, Remington and Hotchkiss. It explains elementary ballistics, and gives practical advice to the rifleman on the maintenance of his weapon, camouflage, sniping and all other aspects of the rifle. Lavishly illustrated with photographs and diagrams, this is the classic study of the rifle as both a weapon of war and an instrument of sport.