Military involvement was due to begin in October 1932.[5] The 'war' was conducted under the command of Major G.P.W. Meredith of the Seventh Heavy Battery of the Royal Australian Artillery,[2][6] with Meredith commanding soldiers Sergeant S. McMurray and Gunner J. O'Hallora,[8] armed with two Lewis guns[9] and 10,000 rounds of ammunition.[6] The operation was delayed, however, by a period of rainfall that caused the emus to scatter over a wider area.[5] The rain ceased by 2 November 1932,[2][5] at which point the troops were deployed with orders to assist the farmers and, according to a newspaper account, to collect 100 emu skins so that their feathers could be used to make hats for light horsemen.[10]