How to Shoot the U.S. Army Rifle, first published in 1943, was the official manual for new infantrymen on holding, sighting, and shooting the legendary M1 Garand .30 caliber rifle. The manual incorporated everything the new soldier needed to know to become a proficient marksman with the M1. Illustrated throughout with photographs and drawings, the book remains a useful reference for anyone wanting to learn more about using the M1 and for rifle shooting in general.
From the Foreword: The U.S. Army Rifle-be it the M1903 (Springfield), M1917 (Enfield), or M1 (Garand)-has the range, caliber, power, and accuracy to kill the enemy. All that is required is a soldier well enough trained in rifle marksmanship to hit the enemy in the right places.
The U.S. Army believes in this training. Its rifle marksmanship course is the most thorough in the world. In the last war, the deadliness of American marksmanship amazed both our Allies and our enemies. In this war, reports from far-flung battlefields reveal that the hours of marksmanship training in our camps have not been spent in vain.
Deadly marksmanship depends on correct shooting habits. In stress of battle, you must do the right things without thinking about them. You must know the correct sight picture. You must take a rock-steady position. You must squeeze the trigger. You must shoot rapidly. And all the while, your sights must be correctly set for range, wind, and weather.
How to do these things the right way is shown on the following pages. Pictures and text are taken from the U.S. Army's graphic portfolio on rifle marksmanship. They apply, with minor modifications, to the M1903, M1917 and M1 rifles. The method is that developed by The Infantry School for the semiautomatic M1 rifle, a method that enables you to get the most out of any rifle you may ever have to shoot.
Put aside your own ideas on rifle shooting for the duration of the war. Where life and death, victory or defeat, depend on the result, it is wise to follow this method. It is based on countless hours of test and trial, on the range and the battlefield.
Every detail in these pictures is important. Study them carefully. A few minutes with this book in your bunk before going out on the drill field will make your work easier. A little time spent on review before firing on the range will mean more bull's-eyes. Later these lessons, well learned, will cause many a Nazi and Jap to echo the words of that German in the last war who, dying, wrote: "God save us from these Americans. They shoot like devils . . . They are the best marksmen in the world."
