rolls, brigade and division returns. Before entering upon a campaign, care should be taken to have a sufficient supply of all needed blank forms, but the clerks should previously be made so familiar with the forms that in the event that no blanks are to be had in an emergency, they will be able to rule them on blank sheets of wrapping paper, or any other available material.
Report of troops when in campaign. 319. It is a requirement of regulations (Troops in Campaign, 267) that within ten days after the close of every engagement or affair, the commanding officer of each regiment, separate battalion and light battery concerned will prepare and forward to the next superior headquarters a concise report of the part taken therein by his command, including the effective strength of the same, and the losses incurred, under the separate headings of “Killed,” “Wounded,” and “Missing,” and a duplicate of this report is required to be forwarded direct to the Adjutant-General of the Army; brigade commanders, within ten days after the receipt of the reports of the organizations composing them; division commanders, within twenty days; and corps commanders, within thirty days thereafter are required to prepare and forward similar reports to the next superior headquarters. These are to be accompanied by appendices containing consolidated reports of the effective strength and casualties of the several commands, of the losses of property incurred, and a nominal list of the officers attached to their respective staffs; and duplicates of these reports are required to be forwarded direct to the Adjutant-General of the Army.
Importance of reports. 320. The importance of these last mentioned requirements cannot be overestimated. The necessity that commanding generals shall be advised as to the strength, efficiency, and availability of the various units of their command; that the importance of a victory or defeat may be estimated; that the anxiety of relatives and friends as to the fate of officers and men engaged may be relieved; that not infrequently the promotion or reward of an officer or soldier may depend upon his conduct in action; are among the many reasons why a neglect to render promptly the reports of this character are military offenses, inexcusable, and frequently irreparable.
