The Karabijn (M. 95) — the M. 95 carbine, a 6.5 mm carbine — was the standard shoulder weapon of the K.N.I.L. soldaat in the late colonial period, and the principal weapon of the Marechaussee patrouille. In Oom Ambon van het K.N.I.L. the karabijn M. 95 is the weapon with which the dardanel Nussy shot first at Tgk. Tjhi Ma’at on 3 December 1911, the weapon with which Thijs de Fretes shot a tiger through the brain at ten metres, and the weapon whose korrel (front sight) was onbeschermd (unprotected) and could be damaged by a tik (knock), causing shooting inaccuracy.
The M. 95 and the korrel
The M. 95 carbine’s korrel (front sight) was onbeschermd (unprotected) and could be damaged by a tik (knock). Damage to the korrel required repair by the geweermaker (gunsmith). The bokschutters — mostly small soldiers — tested the carbines on the range before the repair of the korrel by the geweermaker. The fragility of the korrel was therefore a small but constant concern of the colonial soldier: a knock on the korrel could turn an A-schutter into an achterlijke schutter.
The karabijn and the dardanel
In the colonne Schmidt, the karabijn M. 95 was the weapon of the dardanel — the point-man who went ahead of the patrouille and engaged the enemy first. Nussy — the book’s most fully drawn dardanel — shot first at Tgk. Tjhi Ma’at on 3 December 1911 with the karabijn M. 95. “Driemaal werd er een karabijn M. 95 op Nussy gericht, driemaal weigerde hij” — three times a karabijn M. 95 was aimed at Nussy, three times it failed to fire. The episode is the book’s small register of the weapon’s unreliability in the field.
The karabijn and the jager
Thijs de Fretes shot a tiger off a comrade’s body with a 6.5 mm karabijn through the brain. “Dat schot moest zuiver in de hersens zitten, want het kaliber is eigenlijk te licht voor de grote jacht” — the shot had to be precisely in the brains, because the calibre is really too light for the big game. The 6.5 mm karabijn was therefore the weapon of the jager (hunter) in the rimboe, but its calibre was marginal for the larger game; the shot had to be precise.
The A/B/C-schutter classifications
The colonial soldier was classified by his shooting on the schietbaan as an A-schutter (matig / mediocre), B-schutter (behoorlijk / decent) or C-schutter (goed / good). The C-schutter had the best chances for kaderschool or spandri. The achterlijke schutter (backward shooter) was zonder meer uitgesloten (simply excluded) and got verplichte mik-mik (mandatory aim practice). C-schutters could try for scherpschutter (sharpshooter). The book’s set-piece examples — Tanamal and Taris — were natural shots who could not hit a stationary target on the schietbaan but could kill a moving target in the field.
Significance
The karabijn M. 95 is significant in Oom Ambon van het K.N.I.L. as the standard shoulder weapon of the K.N.I.L. soldaat and the principal weapon of the Marechaussee patrouille. The book’s argument is that the weapon’s korrel was a small but constant concern, and that the schietbaan classification system failed to capture the actual marksmanship of the natural shots — Tanamal and Taris — who could kill a moving target in the field but could not hit a stationary target on the range.
See Also
- Korps Marechaussee van Atjeh en Onderhorigen
- Klewang
- Beaumontgeweer
- Donderbus
- Revolver
- Dardanellen
- Nussy
- Thijs de Fretes
- Tanamal
- Taris
- A-klas
- Geweermaker
- Bokschutters
- Mik-mik
- Colonne Schmidt campaign against the Tiriō Teungkoes (1910-1911)
Source
Oom Ambon van het K.N.I.L., by G. W. T. Dames, Maj. Inf. K.N.I.L. b.d. (‘s-Gravenhage: Koninklijke Bibliotheek, 1954), chapter “Moeilijkheden op den weg” (where the M. 95 and the korrel are described) and chapter “De colonne Schmidt” (where Nussy’s M. 95 is described).