Page 343 - General Giuseppe GARIBALDI - english version

THE FRENCH CAMPAIGN 1870 - 1871 325

«4. – The volunteers and the partisans must at all costs be respected and
loved by the populations; only in doing so they may easily have guides and
food, which are absolutely indispensable for their action. Being liked by the
population, they will have all necessary information on the enemy and will
be able to take him by surprise very easily.
«A night march can, in favourable circumstances, surely produce a surprise
at dawn.
«When you are obliged to act in unfavourable circumstances and the with-
drawal becomes necessary, you must possibly fight until nightfall, since a
withdrawal during the day in front of an enemy with overwhelming forces
and cavalry, can be fatal. A withdrawal under cover of darkness, on the con-
trary, will be always carried out easily.
The «parties» at the beginning of their operations, must have confidence
in their certain success, without fearing to fight two against one: in this way,
the soldiers will receive a moral strength that will make subsequent opera-
tions easier and more brilliant.
«5. – With such a considerable number of small and large «parties», the
invading army will be forced to remain concentrated and will not have the
possibility to sent forward detachments made up by small groups of soldiers;
this will torment the enemy and will make its provisioning very difficult.
«In a country occupied by foreigners, every bush, every tree could hide a
weapon and by consequence no isolated soldier could be too far from march-
ing columns or quarters.
«Many «parties» will make very difficult, if not impossible, the requisitions
that every enemy corporal feels entitled to make everywhere and will safe-
guard the private property, which otherwise would become a prey to the
invader.
«In fighting, the «parties» must first of all form a chain of snipers to
diminish the effects of modern rifles.
«6. – Against the artillery, deploy in scattered formations.
«7. – I remind the volunteers that they must never be afraid of the caval-
ry and must be convinced of the truth that: only the fear of the Infantryman
makes dangerous the cavalry...
«8. – You have to concentrate the maximum number of elements on the
tactical point or target chosen: this is a constant rule of all great command-
ers that cannot be neglected with impunity.