The
Stars and Stripes, France, March 22, 1918
The Official Newspaper By and For the Soldiers of the A.E.F.
~~~~~
48
MEDALS AWARDED IN LUNEVILLE SECTOR
Every Rank from Colonel to Private and Most of
United States Represented in New Group of Honor Men
MAJOR “BEST OFFICER UNDER FIRE EVER SEEN”
Two Sergeants Commended by Every French Officer in
Sector-Trio of Corporals “Showed Coolness of War Hardened Veterans”
Forty-eight more
Americans have been awarded the cherished Croix de Guerre for gallantry
in action. All 48 have been engaged in the sector east of Luneville—a new
combat area for American troops. They represent all ranks, from colonels down
to humble buck privates; and they represent nearly all sections of the United
States from way down south in Alabam’ to ‘way up north in Minnesota.
Other
American troops have had the Croix de Guerre distributed among their
numbers in addition to those already listed in The Stars and Stripes, but those
lists are not as yet available. In fact, the habit of annexing the coveted war
cross of France has become so general among the Americans at the front that it
is hard, at times, to keep up with the awards and citations as they are made.
The names of those who won the medal in the operations further to the west than
the Luneville and Toul sectors will, however, be speedily forthcoming.
The Newly Honored Men
The men whose awards of the Cross came
as a result of the operations on the sector east of Luneville are:
Colonel
Douglas McArthur; Lieut-Colonel Matthew A. Tinly
[Tinley]; Major William J. Donovan; Captain
Charles W. Atkins, Captain Thomas H. Handy,
Captain Edward Stellar; Lieutenants Oscar L. Buck, W. Arthur
Cunningham, A. A. Pailette, Henry A. Peterson, Howard G. Smith, Alexander W.
Terrill, and Bernard Vanhof; Sergeants
Abraham Blaustein, Earl [Pearl] Edwards,
Varner Hall, William J. Moore, Daniel O’Connell, Theodore Peterson, Raymond
Quinlan, Spencer Rossell, Charles W. Stout and James H. West;
Corporals Marvin Dunn, Russell A. Selix,
Lewis A. Simmons, Thomas W. Sporror, Joseph N. Walker, Homer Whittel, and
Russell A. Yarnell; Privates Percy Breese,
John A. Bedner, Charles Danielson, Herbert
Freeman, Charles Gerdon [Gordon], John
Golix, Emil F. Kraft, Floyd R. Leseman, Nicholas McAughren, Elmer
McDonough, Charles McLaughlin, Harvey A. McPeak,
Charles Meffard, Frank Osgood, James E. Potts, Walter Smith,
Amos Tevke, and Lawrence Wenell.
Major William
J. Donovan’s citation says that he is “a higher officer who showed brilliant
military qualities, notably on the 7th and 8th of March,
giving, during a violent bombardment, a remarkable example of bravery, and
activity and presence of mind.”
Major
Donovan, whose law practice has been removed from Buffalo, N.Y., to Luneville
sector, France, by the exigencies of war, stayed up front, although his own unit
had just been relieved, to steady a new unit which had never been in the
trenches before, during a period of heavy and accurate shelling by the Boche. A
French officer, who was in the trenches at the time, reported to his superiors
that Major Donovan was “the best officer under fire that he had ever seen.”
Kept His Line Intact
Another higher officer of
the A.E.F. to obtain the coveted French war cross is
Lieutenant-Colonel Matthew A. Tinly [Tinley], whose home in
the piping times of peace is in Council Bluffs, Ia. The citation
accompanying the award to him says that “during a violent enemy attack he
directed, with the coolness and calmness of experience, the defensive
operations; and, thanks to the brilliant way in which his orders were given
before and during the fight, he succeeded in keeping the line intact despite the
efforts of the enemy, who was aided by powerful artillery.”
The incident
noted in the citation occurred during the raid of March 5, northeast of
Badonviller, when the Germans knocked our positions almost to pieces by shells,
and then attacked in waves. Although our forces were shaken by the artillery,
Colonel Tinley gathered them together and organized them. When the German
infantry appeared they met a hot reception, and after a sharp fight were forced
to withdraw.
The
circumstances attendant upon Colonel McArthur’s celebrated bagging of the Boche
were related in the last number of The Stars and Stripes. The French citation
says that he received the decoration “for extreme valor in participating in a
French attack with French troops, in order to observe personally the methods
used by the infantry and artillery for such engagements—risking his life that
the lives of soldiers in the future might be preserved, and for capturing
single-handed a Bavarian officer.”
Of Captain
Handy, the report reads: “To get a better idea of the effects of artillery fire,
he followed the assaulting waves of the infantry into the German front line
positions, exhibiting a fine example of coolness and bravery.”
What the Others Did
The other recipients of the Croix, with the
reasons for the bestowed in each case, are listed below:
CAPT. CHARLES
W. ATKINS, Winterset, Ia.—“He installed a platoon under heavy fire on
demolished terrain, preparing a counterattack to oust the enemy.”
CAPT. EDWARD
STELLAR, Ottumwa, Ia.—“For bravery and coolness with his troops
during an engagement with the enemy.”
LIEUT. OSCAR L. BUCK, New York and
LIEUT. W. ARTHUR CUNNINGHAM, Detroit—“They distinguished themselves by their
bravery during a terrific night bombardment when the Germans hammered the
trenches held by the troops to which they were attached using trench mortar
bombs weighing 250 pounds.”
LIEUT. A. A. PAILETTE—“He organized
his men, after an enemy attack, into a counterattack, repelling the enemy from
the trenches his men occupied.”
LIEUT. HENRY A. PETERSON—“With one
trench mortar in his battery knocked out, and all the crew killed, he continued
working the piece in the face of an enemy attack until the ammunition was
exhausted, shattering the enemy storming columns which were trying to advance.”
LIEUT. W. ALEXANDER TERRILL, Fort
Worth, Tex.—“Seriously wounded and courageous under bombardment.”
LIEUT. HOWARD G.
SMITH—“Counterattacked, he repulsed the enemy from the first line trench which
the enemy succeeded in occupying temporarily.”
LIEUT. BERNARD VANHOF, Grand Rapids,
Mich.—“He was badly wounded in the leg, but exhibited coolness and bravery
before his troops during an enemy attack.”
SERGTS. SPENCER ROSSELL, ABRAHAM
BLAUSTEIN, WILLIAM J. MOORE AND DANIEL O’CONNELL, all from New York, received
their decorations for valorous conduct under fire of the Boche trench mortars.
Two of these sergeants took command of machine guns which the Germans were
trying to smash, directing a constant barrage upon the German front line. They,
with Lieutenants Buck and Cunningham and Major Donovan, were commended by every
French superior officer in the sector.
SERGT. EARL
[PEARL] EDWARDS, Centerville, Ia.—“For organizing the men left
in his command, and counterattacking the enemy, who was entering the
positions.”
SERGT. VARNER HALL, Birmingham,
Ala.—“He met an enemy party while on patrol, but gave combat and brought back
prisoners.”
Medical Sergeant Hero
MEDICAL SERGT. THEODORE PETERSON, of
Minneapolis, was awarded a posthumous Cross. He was killed in action. He
installed an emergency dressing station in an advanced position, and continued
working under fire until mortally wounded.
SERGT. RAYMOND QUINLAN, St. Paul—“An
energetic soldier, who proved courageous under fire, although wounded in
action.”
SERGT. JAMES H. WEST, Hoke’s Bluff,
Ala.—“He helped organize a detachment, routing an enemy patrol and taking
prisoners.”
CORPLS.
MARVIN DUNN, of Des Moines, Ia; LEWIS A. SIMMONS, of El
Reno, Okla.; and RUSSELL A. SELIX, of
Unionville, Ia., had this said of their action: “During a violent
bombardment and attack, although it was their first engagement, they showed the
coolness and courage of war-hardened veterans. They were seriously wounded
while repulsing an attack.”
CORPL. HOMER WHITTED, Bessemer,
Ala.—He was in a boyan opposite a German, who, after making out to surrender,
tried to kill him. The corporal freed himself, striking down the enemy.
PVT. PERCY
BREESE, Red Oak, Ia.—Seriously wounded while repelling an
enemy counterattack.
PVTS. JOHN BEDNER, of New Prague, Minn.;
CHARLES DANIELSON, of Storm Lake, Ia.;
EMIL KRAFT of St. Paul, Minn.; FLOYD LESEMAN, of Prescott, Wis.; NICHOLAS
McAUGHREN, of St. Paul; CHARLES McLAUGHLIN, of Hutchinson, Minn.;
HARVEY A. McPEAK of Renwick, Ia. And
WALTER SMITH of Hutchinson—members of a field artillery unit—are mentioned, with
Sergt. Quinlin, as being “energetic soldiers, who proved courageous under fire,
although wounded in action.”
PVT. CHARLES
GERDON [GORDON], Centerville, Ia.—Wounded while in performance
of duty while counterattacking against great odds.
PVTS. HERBERT FREEMAN, of Mobile,
Ala., and AMOS TESKE, of Coal Valley, Ala.—While patrolling, they met the enemy,
and aided materially in the capture of two of his number.
PVTS. CHARLES
MEFFARD and JOHN GOLIX, both of
Woodbine, Ia.—Seriously wounded while repelling an enemy counterattack on
March 5.
PVT. FRANK
OSGOOD, Centerville, Ia.—Wounded in the leg while performing duty
valorously.
PVT. ELMER McDONOUGH, Kellogg,
Minn.—Killed while carrying dispatches through the barrage.
PVT. LAWRENCE WENELL, Minneapolis,
Minn.—Killed after accomplishing an important mission under heavy fire.
Several
citations and awards fell to the lot of a certain trench mortar section. SERGT.
CHARLES W. STOUT, of Baltimore, Md., continued to work his trench mortar despite
heavy bombardment. CORPL. RUSSELL A. YARNELL, of Swarthmore, Pa., though
seriously wounded, remained at his post of combat. CORPLS. JOSEPH N. WALKER and
THOMAS W. SPORROR, both of Baltimore, continued to work their guns under a
violent bombardment, as did SERGT. STOUT. PVT. JAMES E. POTTS, of Baltimore, was
killed while serving one of the guns under fire. All six receive the Cross.
The Crosses
awarded to the men who, in gaining it, lost their lives were buried with them.
A duplicate of the Croix will be sent to the family of each of the
deceased. |
