Proper Readiness 54th Massachusetts

As Col. Shaw sees his soldiers playing with their new Enfield rifles, he emphasizes the importance of proper drill in the heat of battle. He himself has learned this traumatic lesson at the Battle of Antietam. He makes the marksman private realize that no matter how good a shooter he is, it is of no use if he cannot reload fast enough to shoot again. The private learns the lesson well enough to survive his first skirmish, loading his rifle fast enough to shoot a charging rebel.