"Hans-Feuerrich, sailor of the 1st class, native of Bremen, from the battleship 'Alsace', marine, 'excellent' in rifle shooting. Pen & Fun & Pavilion www.biquge.info"

Reading this, the sergeant with a mustache and a first-class naval corporal armband raised his eyes to look at the young sailor opposite him, he was not tall but had broad arms, his body looked extraordinarily stocky, and his strong legs looked very explosive.

Before moving on to the next sailor, the sergeant asked coldly, "How many goals were scored in the league last year?" ”

Because he still maintained a upright posture, the stocky sailor did not show a smile wantonly, but only the corners of his mouth were slightly upturned: "Report sir, 32 balls." ”

The sergeant nodded at him: "Very good results, and two goals were kicked into my goal." ”

The sailor couldn't laugh, so he said respectfully, "It's my honor, sir." ”

Passing the remaining sailors one by one, the sergeant came to the end of the line, where standing was a large man with his head raised to meet his eyes.

"Dimir Hook, sailor of the first rank, a native of Hanover, from the battleship 'Alsace', a stoker, skilled in combat."

"33 balls, sir." The big man took the initiative to say.

The sergeant looked at him and said, "I have scored two goals here." ”

The big man raised his chin: "It's an honor, sir." ”

The sergeant didn't mean to be angry, but his face was not very bright, he whispered, "You're welcome", put away the list information in his hand, walked to the front of the 11-person team, paused his throat, and said in a loud voice:

"Gentlemen, it's a pleasure to see you here. From today, we will live and train together as a full-fledged combat class, and we will have the opportunity to fight side by side in the future. For me, it's a matter of great pride to be your chief. Ladies and gentlemen, just as the Navy General Staff has issued a new Marine Corps Instruction, after rigorous and hard training, we will become an invincible elite force. We are able to ride the waves, appear in the enemy's soft underbelly by sea, attack the enemy with a combat force that is not inferior to that of the army, and make the enemy tremble before our banner! ”

The sailors in front of them were tall and short, fat and thin, some had good facial features, some were unsatisfactory, some were shrewd and cunning, some were honest and honest, and despite such individual differences, their upright posture, serious expressions, and neat attire could still show that they were a group of well-trained and obedient soldiers.

"Now, based on your past experience and personal characteristics, we will make a preliminary assignment. In accordance with the troop establishment standards issued by the General Staff, we will be issued 8 rifles, 2 pistols, and 1 machine rifle as an ordinary combat squad. Sailor Ferrich, 1st class, you are the best shooter among us, you are the machine rifle shooter, Private Grosser is your partner, and the two of you are issued a machine rifle. Second Rank Simon and I were dispensed with pistols, and the rest were riflemen and dispensed with rifles. ”

After arranging these, the sergeant ordered a "rest". In the open space in front of the barracks, three other crews of the same size were on standby, who together formed the Marines' junior combat platoon, under the command of a second lieutenant officer or senior noncommissioned officer.

After about a quarter of an hour, the company's quartermaster and his assistant arrived at the barracks in a wagon. In class order, the sergeants and sailors went to collect the equipment. The "machine rifle" assigned to each ordinary combat squad is the Danish-made Madsen light machine gun, and its most emblematic shape is the curved magazine placed on top of the bolt. Born at the end of the 19th century, this automatic weapon is the world's first practical light machine gun, and its improved and derivative models are still in use after a hundred years, and have become the standard equipment of many countries with simple performance, light and durable.

As one of the early users of the Madsen light machine gun, the German army chose the 7, which was common to the Mauser rifle. 92 mm caliber, but they were ordered in small quantities, at first only for the Royal Guards infantry equipment, and later gradually distributed to the mountain infantry and some cavalry units. Under the instructions of the Kaiser, the Royal Guards Corps, which was refitting MG08 in batches, handed over 500 Madsen machine guns to the Navy, and all of these machine guns were distributed to the 1st Marine Brigade.

The sailors who received the machine rifles were intrigued by the new weapon, and the riflemen found that the rifles were shorter than the previous Commission rifles or Mauser 1898 rifles. Their official name is the "Karabiner Type 1888 Cavalry Carbine", that is, the Type 1888 cavalry rifle, which was the first special rifle issued to the cavalry, and its structural principle is the same as that of the Type 1888 Commission rifle, and the barrel length was shortened from 765 mm to 500 mm, which greatly reduced the weight and made it meet the needs of cavalry combat. However, the recoil and muzzle flare of this simple cavalry gun were too high, so they were not favored by cavalry units. At the request of the German Army Weapons Bureau, the Mauser company created the "Type 98AZ Carbine" with a 600 mm barrel based on the Mauser M1898, and this new cavalry gun with a downward curved pull handle has begun to be installed. In line with the concept of training first and then upgrading, the German Navy received 8,000 1888 cavalry guns that had been replaced from cavalry units and immediately distributed them to the officers and men of the 1st Marine Brigade.

Machine rifles, cavalry guns, in addition to these two weapons, each naval infantry combat squad was also issued two pistols, one for the popular "Ruger" and the other for the controversial "Mauser military pistol". The former has been the standard gun of the German army and navy, and the latter has been in production for more than ten years, but has not been adopted as a standard weapon by any country.

Receiving the dispensed pistol, the sergeant hesitated for a moment and took the Luger pistol for himself, and handed the bulky Mauser pistol to Simon along with its wooden case, holding his new pistol, the second rank of the Navy corporal looked dazed......

After the weapons were distributed, the quartermaster left in a carriage. The officers and men who had just been incorporated into the Marine Corps examined their guns on the spot, some of them looking full of interest, while others felt that they were unremarkable. A short time later, a herald galloped on horseback.

"His Royal Highness Prince Joachim has come to review the troops, everyone assemble!"

"Assemble! Gather! "The non-commissioned officers and sergeants were busy calling the soldiers to assemble and line up, but fortunately there were not many people and the space was not large, and the four combat squads and the platoon headquarters quickly formed a horizontal formation. Although the Prussian prince did not hold a position in the newly formed 1st Marine Brigade, most people here have heard that this unit was promoted by this "Hohenzollern genius" from the formation plan, personnel preparation, and equipment mobilization of this unit, and the organization and tactical regulations issued to the Marine Corps were also completed under his leadership.

Suddenly, a royal blue Mercedes-Benz sedan drove into the barracks. The young officer in the back seat was the Prussian prince Joachim, who wore a naval officer's wide-brimmed blue-brimmed beanie, a double-breasted dark blue navy coat, a ribbon of the Order of Merit with a multicolored stripe at the second button, and a Red Eagle medal pinned to his left chest near the ribs.

After getting out of the car, Natsuki calmly and calmly saluted the salute with his usual grace, and glanced at the ranks of soldiers, and he saw at a glance the tower-like Hook, the main force of his team when he was on the "Alsace". As he walked towards Hook, he saw another of his forward teammates, Fairrich, shook hands with them in front of the crowd, and then came to the front of the queue and said in a loud voice, "Everyone, I'm glad you chose to join the 1st Marine Brigade. This is a brand-new unit, and it is also a unit full of youthful vitality, and it is by no means a unit that is simply used for parades or exercises, but a unit of unique strategic significance, and a unit that is destined to fight a tough battle. The training of the future will be rigorous and arduous, and those who do not have the determination to be trained and tempered, and those who do not have the courage to face the test of war, I advise you to quit as soon as possible, and those who stay in the end and endure the trials and tribulations, you will become the best soldiers in Germany, and you will see in the future that this excellence is not inferior to that of any army of honor! ”

"Among you, I see some old friends. In the past, we have worked together on the pitch to win glory for our team; In the future, we will fight side by side on the battlefield and win new honors for Germany, for the German Navy, and for the German Marine Corps. Of course, there are also some of you who have competed with me in the past, and I can't name them all, so I'm glad to see you here again. The reason why I am here today is to see what kind of troops I have poured my dreams and efforts into are like. I would like to say that your military salaries are not the highest, your firearms and weapons are not the best, and you are not known to the majority, but, I, Joachim, hereby pledge that I will make you the best-paid, best-equipped, and highest-ranking unit in the Navy, and for no other reason than that your outstanding performance deserves all this! ”

Although the officers and men who joined the Marine Brigade out of their own considerations did not fully understand what he meant, many of them were already encouraged by his commitment and felt longing and anticipation for their future in this unit.

Looking at the soldiers in the front row, Natsuki said to Simon, who he had never met, "Sergeant, can you lend me your gun?" ”

The second lieutenant corporal looked surprised and presented the Mauser pistol, which had not yet been warmed.

Natsuki opened the gun case and took out a new gun that was black and shiny. Except for the necessary calibration commissioning, it has not been put into service.

"Paul, give me the bullets. Martin, go set the jars. ”

The two accompanying lieutenants were prepared, one quickly delivered a 10-round magazine for the Mauser pistol, and the other placed five canisters 100 meters away.

Natsuki quickly filled the bullet into the fixed magazine, raised the gun in his hand and said to the naval soldiers: "Some people think that the Marine Brigade has no heavy equipment, and the land combat is definitely not as good as the regular army troops, and at most it can only be used for landing operations against colonies or backward countries, and that kind of combat operations do not need to be independently organized and specially trained troops, so the Marine Brigade does not have the necessary troops." There are many similarities between this evaluation and the gun in my hand, do you also think that it is of little use? ”

No one of the officers and soldiers squeaked, but craned their necks one by one and waited to see the next scene.

He assembled the gun box to the gun body, and fired at the can 100 meters away in an aiming state, and when the 10 bullets were gone, only one can remained in place, and the shooting lasted less than half a minute.

The Navy soldiers were all speechless.

"In my personal understanding, this pistol is suitable for medium and close range functions, within 100 meters, its firepower is comparable to that of a team of riflemen, if it is closer, ......" Natsuki removed the gun box, withdrew the empty magazine, reloaded, turned it over, and shot at the roof wall thirty meters away without aiming, and poured out 10 rounds at the fastest speed, only to see a row of bullet marks at about the same height left on the roof wall.

The Navy soldiers were staggered again.

"Machine guns and rifles are used to hold off enemies from a distance when defending against trench positions, and when the enemy rushes to the front of the position, they can be used to kill and wound the enemy. For Army units, there may not be many opportunities for its use, but for the Marine Corps, defense is essential in the case of autumn exercises. In addition, if the area of engagement is a mountainous or urban terrain, this pistol is also more effective than ordinary pistols and rifles. By the same token, with proper use, a Marine Brigade can be worth more than one or even more Army Divisions. ”

Natsuki's remarks were decisive and convinced more Navy soldiers, and in the future, there was no need for him to go to more Marine units to make such demonstrations and speeches, and the officers and men of the entire Marine Brigade would soon hear these inspiring truths from their companions and see the true essence of Mauser's military pistols. In this way, it was not in vain that he persuaded the Navy top brass to order 2,000 Mauser military pistols at double the price of the Luger 08, and ordered Hubert Ordnance Company to devote itself to the development of a "small machine rifle" that used 9mm pistol cartridges.

(End of chapter)