■*f•■^^;v,s•^■•;•' ^^'il;^ m »- '^'.'iTKSX'''*'' '• !^!i<;;:;;; ■.v'=' iW> ^- BUENA VISTA'S PART IN THE WORLD WAR BUENA VISTA'S PART IN THE WORLD WAR ONE IOWA COUNTY'S RECORD OF SERVICE AND SACRIFICE PUBLISHED BY TOM D. EILERS STORM LAKE, IOWA 1920 Copyright, 1920, by] T. D. Eilers V THE TORCH PRESS CEDAR RAPIDS IOWA '15H -\P\ \ ©CI,A597298 SEP -7 m^ vjn ^ ^/ TO THE MEMORY Ol^ THE ''GOLD- STARS" OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Those who in the Struggle eor Civilization made the Supreme Sacrieice Whether in Field or Camp This Volume is Dedicated by the Editor and Publisher PUBLISHER'S ACKNOWLEDGEMENT IN presenting" this volume for the approval of the citizens of Buena Vista County and in compliance with the promises of the long months in which it has been in course of preparation, the publisher wishes to make grateful acknowledgement of the services and assistance of those who have contributed to whatever degree of excellence it has attained. First of all, the subject matter could not have been made without the sacrifices and the glorious accomplishments of our fifteen hundred men w4io gladly enlisted for the great task of humbling the Hun. The publisher provided the organization for assembling, editing, and publishing the facts of the events that transpired incident to this county's participation in the world conflict. Jos. E. Morcombe, a student of national atiairs, has, from his wide range of information, been able to contribute interestingl}^ to the volume. Much information has Ijeen available through The Stars and Stripes, the overseas publication. Scott H. McClure gave further assistance in the editorial work of the history. Acknowledgement must be made to the men of the varied training activities and participants in the fray of battle who, in the quiet hours of refllection in post-war days, have recounted their experiences for the information of interested friends at home and as side-lights on the great events that have made this record a subject of vital interest; to the men w'ho have cooperated in providing details of service records, thus assisting to make the volume authoritative; to the Mother's Club, whose members have cooperated whole-heartedlv in the assembling of information to make the record complete ; to the many citizens of the county, workers in the varied activities in support of war work, who have contributed the stories of the Red Cross, the Liberty Loan Organ- ization, the Y. M. C. A., the K. of C, etc. Finally, to the purchasers whose financial support of the venture has helped to meet the large expense incurred and who have made possible the presentation to families of gold-star men this volume which is dedicated as the tribute of the county to their sacrifices. T. D. EiLKRS, Publisher THE BOY WHO WILL NEVER RETURN ' There is mourning in cottage and mansion, There is sighing and moaning and tears, And hearts that are breaking with sorrow That will never pass on with the years. Yet hoping is mingled with weeping, And the candles of faith brightly burn In the homes where the mothers are praying For the boy who will never return. His chair at the table is vacant, His room, as he left it, is still. And the pictures and pennants seem waiting Like his father and mother, until Their laddie comes back up the roadway, And, oh ! how their hearts for him yearn, But, alas! in his grave he is sleeping — He is one who will never return. His clothing, sent back from the army. Is tenderly laid on his bed. Where his mother's fond fingers caress them As she kneels down to pray for her dead. God be good to those mothers and fathers At the limit of agony's bourne ; Give repose to the soul of their loved one, The boy who will never return. His service flag hangs in the window, A gold star instead of the blue. Mute sign of a soldier's devotion. Which a fond mother's tears will bedew As she folds it away in the Bible, Whose promise again she will learn That in heaven some day she will meet him — Her boy — who will never return. 1 Written and published bv John F. Dalton, editor Manson, Iowa, Dcuwcrat, December 1918. EDITORIAL FOREWORD E'AL or community history is seldom considered at its true value. The national or general record is given attention to exclusion of the primary but less pretentious sources of information. Yet it is from the latter, with their intimate details, that the truest knowledge of a particular time or people is to be gathered. If one can understand the sentiments and thoroughly comprehend the activities of a typical communit}^, during- any important or critical period, he will be better able to estimate the forces involved, and the motives that have impelled or sustained national action. Thus it has seemed that the war activi- ties of this essentially rural county of northwestern Iowa is deserving of record, as being truly representative of the life of the common- wealth and of the nation during the late eventful years. Such a county is more truly American in its life and in its ideals than are the con- gested centers of population. In them the life is more complex, the currents and cross-currents are confusing, and there are elements alien and even hostile to real Americanism. To put down in perma- nent form, with such accuracy and completeness as is possible, the story of Buena Vista's part in the great war, is therefore, a work that, if fairly well done, will be of lasting benefit. In preparation of the present volume there has been no intrusion of the commercial idea. The dominant thought is that the record of every man and woman, having any part in war work, should be dili- gently sought out, verified, and given place. The only honor is that of effort and accomplishment. Between those who have served there can be no distinction. There has been no tax upon any for full inclusion of what they have done ; no money sufficient to buy space beyond what is justified by the open record. The intention of the editor and the publisher is that the volume shall completely cover the field; that no phase of the diversified war work shall be neglected, and that for time to come the book shall be accepted as adec[uately presenting the more than creditable labors of the people of Buena Vista County. The compiler in this can lay no claim to authorship. The ability to write in such a task is of less importance than the having patience to seek out details, to overcome the indifiference or the modesty of some, and to insure a painstaking accuracy throughout the volume. GOLD STARS Honor Roll of Buena Vista County GOLD STARS ANDEBSON, W. H. Xiiuu Grove Born July 17, 1886. Enl. January, 1918. Pvt. Signal Carps, Aviation Section. Trained: Jefferson BarracliS. Died at Jefferson Bar- racks, March 24, 1918. Buried at Havanah, North Dakota. ANTONSEN, JOHN I,. Maple Valley Township Enl. May 13, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 102d Inf. 26th Div. Trained: Jefferson Barracks; to Waco, Texas; to Camp Merrit. Sailed August 18 from New York; landed Brest August 25. Was with Co. K, 55th Inf. one week; to camp in interior of France; transferred to 102nd Regt., 26th Div. August 31; September 4 to front lines; hiked every night for a week to reach front lines; at St Mihiel September 10; into action at 8 a. m. September 12. To Ver- dun October 22. Killed in action October 24. BENGSTON, GOTTFRIED Albert City Born September 8, 1891. Enl. February 25, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 351st Inf. 88th Div. Trained Camp Dodge. Died at Camp Dodge May 1. 1918, of pneumonia. Buried at Fairfield Town- ship Cemetery, Albert City, Iowa. BRAZEI., JOHN F. Sioux Rapids Born April 19, 1888. Enl. April 9, 1917. Fire- man 2d cl., on U. S. S. Montana. Trained: G. L. N. T. S.; on Montana patroling coast of Atlantic. Promoted from fireman 3d cl. to fireman 2d cl. Died on Hospital Ship at Nor- folk, Va., July 21, 1918. Buried in Lone Tree Cemetery, Sioux Rapids, Iowa. BRIGHT, CLAUDE I.EANDER Sioux Rapids Born January 13, 1895. Enl. April 27, 1918. Pvt. Co. B, 307th Inf. 90th Div. Trained: Camp Dodge; at Camp Travis; to Camp Mills. Sailed from New York June 19; ship had to put in at Halifax for ten days; sailed again July 4; landed Liverpool, July 15. To rest camp at Winchester; to Argonne at Bar-le-Duc four weeks. Went to St. Mihiel; over top Septem- ber 12, facing heavy artillery fire, under Are sixty days without relief; to Argonne Forest; wounded October 25 at 3:30 a. m. and removed from field at 9:00 p. m. of the 26th; to hospital; died November 2. Buried in France. Pvt. Bright was given the honor of being one of the best in his organization in bayonet drill and rifle I'ange practice; he was commanding the company when wounded and was scheduled for promotion to corporal; out of 250 men in his company only 50 were left at the time of tlie armistice. He was wounded in shoulders, both arms, and right side. BYAM, OLIVER F. Lee Township Born August 14, 1895. Enl. June 25, 1916. 2d Lieut., Instructor in 146th M. G. Bn.; with 7th Inf. 3d Div. at time of death. Trained: with 2d Idaho N. G.. 2d Idaho Inf., Gooding, Idaho — not assigned — on border duty from July 1916 to January 25, 1917; enlisted in regular army August 5, 1917; promoted to Sgt. April 26, 1917; to 2d Lieutenant, October, 1917; to Ogden, Utah; to Boise, Idaho; to Camp Greene; to Camp Mills; to Camp Merritt. Sailed Janu- ary 8, 1918; Landed in France. Instructor in 146th Machine Gun Bn. at Selles-sur-Cher until September 1. Killed in Argonne Forest while with the 7th Inf. 3d Div. at Cunel, October 20, 1918. Buried on battlefield, Cunel. Lieut. B.vam was cited as follows: For extraordinary heroism in action near Cunel Heights, France, (October 11, 1919. Upon his own initiative Lieut. Byam moved his machine gun platoon through heavy artillery and machinegun fire 400 meters in advance of the front line and from there opened fire on the enemy, who was holding our advance, displaying exceptional bravery in holding this position against several hostile attacks. This officer was later killed by machine gun fire while leading a patrol against the enemy's line. GOLD STARS W. H. Anderson Linn Grove Jclin L. Antonsen Maple Valley Township Gottfried Bengston Albert City John F. Brazel Sioux Rapids GOLD STARS Claude Leander Bright Sioux Rapids Oliver P. Byam Lee Township Jesse Craif? Lincoln Townsliip Herbert E. Danielson Washington Township i8 GOLD STARS CRAIG, JESSE Iiiucoln Tovmship Born August 13, 1899. Enl. Dec. 16, 1918. Fireman in Merchant Marine. Trained: on the U. S. S. Meade at East Boston. Died in hospital at Chelsea, Massachusetts, December 18, 1918. Buried at Sioux Rapids, Iowa. ■DANIISJ.SON, HERBERT E. Waslxingiion Township Born March 10, 1896. Enl. July 24, 1918. Corp. Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained: Camp Gordon five weelis. Sailed September 1, 1918. Was in France only a short time before he was taken to a hospital and died Nov. 7, 1918. DOMEIER, Alt}ert Sioux Rapids Born Oct. 3, 1892. Enl. July 30, 1918. Pvt. Co. F, 212th Engrs. Trained: Camp Forrest until August 20; at Camp Devens until Septem- ber 29. Died, September 28, 1918, at Camp Devens of Spanish influenza and pneumonia. Buried in Lone Tree Cemetery near Sioux Rapids, Iowa. FLETCHER, CALVIN Providence Township Born April 22, 1895. Enl. July 10, 1918. Pvt. Co. 14, 4th Bn. 163d D. B. Trained: Camp Dodge. Died of Spanish influenza at Camp Dodge October 11, 1918. Buried at Storm Lake. (Grew up in home of J. H. Rubin. Had not lived in county for several years, and while there might be some question as to whether he properly belongs in Buena Vist County it is not probable that he would be listed in any other county). GRAEBER, FRANK FRED Sioux Rapids Born November 27, 1892. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. B, 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained: Camp Gordon;, to Camp Merritt. Sailed August 30, 1918 on U. S. S. Plattsburg; landed Brest September 12. Sent to front on Meuse-Ar- gonne; was in attack on Hill 378, struck by shrapnel and instantly killed November 7. 1918. DYVAD, CARL C. Albert City- Born September 6, 1888. Enl. September 10, 1916. Pvt. Co. M, I. N. G., later made Co. M, 168th Inf. 42d Div. Trained: Served on Mexi- can border during winter 1916-17; entrained at Cherokee August 17, 1917 for State Fair Grounds; Sept. 10 to Camp Mills. Embarked October 18 on U. S. S. President Grant; re- turned to port and sailed again November 14 on the Celtic; landed Liverpool Nov. 25. To Le Harve December 2. To Rimaucourt February 1; to Baccarat Sector, Alsace-Lorraine, March 9, wounded in left hand and in same month burned by liquid fire while raiding a German trench; June 15 to Champagne; to Chateau- Thierry July 24. Killed in Battle of Sergy at Hill 212, July 28, while trying to capture a machine gun nest. Buried one-quarter kilo- meter north of Sergy, Grave No. 47-C, map of Fere-en-Tardenois. GREENFIELD, LESLIE AMBROSE Alta Born March 9, 1889. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained: Camp Gordon; to Camp Merritt. Was overseas only ten days when he died of lobar pneumonia. Entered hospital September 19; died September 23, 1918. Buried in Karfantras Cemetery, near Brest. GROTE, EMIL Sioux Rapids Born March 16, 1893. Enl. September 6, 1918. Pvt. U. S. A. Trained: Camp Dodge. Con- tracted Spanish influenza October 8. Died at Base Hosp. at Camp Dodge October 16, 1918. Buried at Lohrville, Iowa. ENGLEDOW, JOHN H. Storm Lake Born May 13, 1888. Pvt Co. M, 161st Regt. 41st Div. Trained: Camp Dodge; at Camp Cody. Sailed to France. On return to U. S. was sent to Debarkation Hospital No. 1, Ellis Island; to U. S. Gen. Hosp. Ft. Bayard. Died January 27, 1919. Buried at-Fonda, Iowa. HANKE, JAMES E. F. Born April 4, 1890. Enl. June 26, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, No. 1 Development Bn. Inf. Trained: Camp Dodge. Sent to hospital at Camp Dodge November 11 with influenza. Died November 13 of pneumonia. GOLD STARS tf% & ^^ ^Bi^^ ^B Albert Domeier Sioux Rapids Carl C. Dyvad Albert City £ fl^ff -j»> *^^^ ■ H ^H^ ^ « ^^1 ^^■> tali''/ ' 1 ■ ^^^1 Wi yjr^ "wSt m ^K^^i^twana^ ' Jl 1 fl 3 =jB John H. Engledow Storm Lake Frank Fred Graeber Sioux Rapids GOLD STARS Leslie Ambrose Greenfield Alta Emil Grote Sioux Rapids James E. F. Hanlte Newell Carl A. Haroldsen Rembrandt GOLD STARS 21 HABOIiDSON, CABI. A. Bembrandt Born July 12. 1892. Enl. May 25, 1917. Pvt. 1st cl. Co. B, 5th Engrs. Trained: Ft. Logan; at El Paso; at Corpus Christ! ; to Camp Merritt. Sailed for France July 31; landed Brest August 12. To Pone-en-Nessen Barracks for five days; to Aisy-Amoncon-Yonne six weeks; to Chalig- ney; to front lines; to St. Mihiel sector Sep- tember 26; to Minorville two weeks; to front at Puvenille Woods October 9 to November 10; to Thiaucourt until killed. Killed while removing German mines November 20, 1918. Buried at Thiaucourt, France. HABTMAN', ED-WABD E. Marathon Born November 1, 1887. Enl. May 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. H, 352d Inf. 88th Div. Trained: Camp Dodge from May 24 to Aug 25. Sailed from Camp Mills September 2, 1918. "Was in hospital five days and died with pneumonia October 15, 1918. Buried in France. HINTZ, CHABI.es A. ■Washington Township Born July 22, 1890. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 316th Regt. 79th Div. Trained: Camp Gordon; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from New York August 30 on U. S. S. Plattsburg; landed Brest September 12. To St. George; to Mon- therand, where he joined company specified above on the Verdun front, going into action October 26; participated in the capture of Hill 378, going over the top November 4; wounded in the arms by machine-gun bullets; sent to Base Hosp. No. 83, where he died December 4. 1918. Buried at Revigny, France. His com- manding officer wrote of him: 'He was every inch an American and acquitted himself fear- lessly in what became his first and last battle." HUMPHBEY, JOHN I.. Storm Iiake Born October 1, 1895. Enl. July 27, 1917. Corp. Co. E, 16th Inf. 1st Div. Trained: Co. F, Montana N. G. at Glendive, Montana; to Helenato train; to Butte to guard the I. W. W. August 3 to October, 1917; entrained for Camp Mills, there six weeks training selective service men; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from New York December 15; landed Liverpool. To Win- chester; to Southampton; to Le Havre. Trans- ferred to Co. E, 16th Inf 1st Div.; to front; gassed twice and wounded once; returned to front. Killed in action July 18, 1918. Given posthumous decoration of Croix de Guerre by Marshal Foch, announced November, 1919; cita- tion: "He gave evidence of the greatest bravery in all of the conflict and showed the finest loyalty to his comrades." HAMS, SETH G. Providence Township Born August 2, 1894. Enl. July 22. 1918. Pvt. Co. A. Trained: Camp Funston. Died at Camp Funston January 20, 1919; buried Janu- ary 23 at Warsaw, Missouri. JENSEN, EMU. Newell Born March 3, 1896. Enl. September 20, 1917. Pvt. (Sharpshooter), Co. F, 18th Inf. 1st Div. Trained: Camp Dodge; at Camp Pike; to Camp Merritt. Sailed July 1, 1918. Sent to Meuse-Argonne offensive October 1, 1918; to hospital. Died of i^neumonia in A. E. F. hospital. JOHNSON, I.ABS Iiee Township Born September 22, 1893. Enl. September 19, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C. Trained: Dunwoody Institute. Died of Spanish influenza October 7, 1918. Buried in Lone Tree Cemetery, Sioux Rapids, lov/a. KAUFMAN, BENJAMIN Iiincoln Township Born May 30, 1893. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. B, 136th Inf. 79th Div. Trained: Camp Gordon. Killed in action November 7, 1918. Buried in American Battle Area Cemetery, Commune of Revelle Meuse, France. KESTEI., HENRV Maple Valley Township Born November 15, 1895. Enl. June 26, 1918. Pvt. M. G. Co. 350th Mch. Gunners, 88th Div. Trained: Camp Dodge. Transferred to Signal Corps after arrival in France. Died of bron- chial pneumonia. Was sick in hospital at Bel- fort. Died in Base Hosp. No. 27 S. O. S. No- vember. 16. Buried at Angers, France. KBUSE, HENBY W. I.incoln Tovmship Born May 10, 1892. Enl. July 24. 1918. Pvt. Co. M, 163rd Inf. 41st Div. Trained: Camp Gordon; to Camp Merritt. Sailed September 1; landed Brest September 10. Landed U. S. January 18, 1919, from U. S. S. Houston. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Funston; taken sick January 29; transferred to Base Hosp. at Ft. Riley. Died of spinal meningitis February 12, 1919. Buried at German Lutheran Cemetery, Grant Township, February 17, 1919. GOLD STARS Haroldsen's Grave in France Edward E. Hartman Marathon Ji-;lin L. Humphrey Storm Lake Charles A. i£intz Washington Township GOLD STARS ■p -?^~f| H J^^K^Knt ^^H ^B^^^^B|jwfa|i 1 Mppni ir^^ jI ^^^^^F^°^ „>4». — ^ Spth G. Tiams Providence Township Emil Jensen Newell Lars Johnson Lee Township Benjamin Kaufman Lincoln Township H GOLD STARS I.ARSOIT, NEIiS F. Elk Township Born August 20, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. G, 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained: Camp Gordon three week.?; to Camp Merritt. Landed France September 12. To St. George; to front lines October 20. Killed in action November 9, 1918. Buried in cemetery in Commune of Gib- ercy, Meuse, France. I.OI:, BAYmOND H. Iiinn Grove Born August 24, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. B, 214th Engrs. Trained: Camp Forrest. Died in service October 15, 1918. I.YDX:i.I., DAVID a. Rembrandt Born April 16, 1892. Enl. July 20, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained: Camp Gor- don. Sailed to France, after twenty days of training at Camp Gordon; landed Brest. Died of pneuinonia September 27, 1918. MABTZ, GEOBGi: H. Storm Iiake Born May 2, 1895. Enl May 13, 1918. Pvt. Co. I, 102d Regt. 26th Div. Trained: Jeffer- son Barracks: at Camp McArthur; to Cainp Merritt. Sailed from Camp Merritt on U. S. S. Leviathan August 18; landed Brest August 25, with 55th Regt. 7th Div. To rest camp one week; to interior of France, transferred to Co. I, 102d Regt. 26th Div. August 31; September 4th began hike to front at St. Mihiel; at St. Miliiel September 10; into action September 12, 8:00 a. m., against Austro-Hungarian troops, caiDtured Hills Les Eparges, Combres, and Amaranthe, and the villages of St. Remy and Domartin; moved into city of Verdun October 22, billeted in ruined buildings of city; into front lines a few miles north of Verdun October 27. Killed in action October 28. Buried in A. E. F. Cemetery at Loriecy, Meuse, France. IVIIKKi:i.SON, I.OUIS c. Newell Born July 10, 1892. Enl. April 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, 357th Inf. 90th Div. Trained: Camp Dodge; at Camp Travis. Sailed June 10; landed Liverpool. To Brest; to Toul; to St. Mihiel. Killed in action September 12, 1918. Captain "Wood wrote of him: "A braver soldier and finer man was hard to find. He was a credit to his company and to the country to which he gave his life." McFADDEN, ZiEO F. Frovidence Township Born December 20, 1894. Enl. May 30, 1917. Pvt. 1st cl.. Motor Platoon, Hdq. Co. 168th Regt. 42d Div. Trained: Cherokee, Iowa; to State Fair Grounds; to Camp Mills. Sailed from Hoboken October 18 on IT. S. S. President Grant; returned October 2 8 for re- pairs; sailed again November 14 on R. M. S. Aurania; landed Liverpool Deceinber 1. To Winchester; to Southampton; to Le Harve. To Rimacourt; to Lorraine; to Baccarat sector February 26 to June 19; to Champagne sector July 4 to 20; to Chateau-Thierry July 25 to August 5; to St. Mihiel September 12 to 26; to Argonne October 12. Killed by a fragment of liigh-explosive shell October 14. Buried at Kremhilde-Stellung 200 yards east of Arietal Farm; removed to American Cemetery, Exer- mont, Ardennes, France. Chaplain "Winfred E. Robb wrote to Mr. and Mrs. John McFadden, under date of November 27, 1918: 'As chaplain of the 168th Inf. I am writing you with deepest sympathy concerning the death of your son. He was instantly killed by enemy shell fire while advancing with his platoon, and was buried by me near the place of his death. You are no doubt very proud of Leo and you have every reason to be. Although he made the supreme sacrifice he made it for the greatest cause and shall receive his just reward from Him we all love and trust. Leo was always i-eady to do more than his share of work." NIEZ.SEN', CHABIiES Newell Born August 2, 1890. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. F., 316th Inf., 79th Div. Trained: Camp Gordon in Co, E, 316th Inf. 79th Div.; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from New York August 30 on U. S. S. Plattsburg; landed Brest, Sep- tember 12. To St. George; in Co. M, 163d Inf. 1st Div.; to Verdun; to Genicourt Octo- ber 25, assigned to Co. F, 316th Inf. 79th Div.; to front lines October 29; November 2, at night, took part in a raid on the German lines and was severely gassed, got back to lines of dugouts, where he was found dead the next morning. Died November 3, 1918. Buried in" Argonne-Meuse Cemetery. 0I.SI:N OI.AF s. Scott Township Born February 26, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. I, 163d Inf. Replm. Regt. Trained: Camp Gordon until August 24; to Camp Mer- ritt. Sailed from New York on U. S. S. Platts- burg September 1; landed Brest September 12. To front at Bouguen. Killed September 28, 1918. The dugout in which Olsen was sta- tioned was crowded and Olsen was outside ly- ing in tlie sun when a piece of shrapnel struck him directly on the head. Buried in cemetery at St. Aignan-Noyesn, Loire-et Cher, France. GOLD STARS Henry Kestel Maple Valley Township Henry 'W. Kruse Lincoln Township Nels P. Larson Elk Township Raymond H. Loe Linn Grove GOLD STARS David G. Lydell Rembrandt George H. Martz Storm Lake Louis C. Mikkelson Newell Leo P. McFadden Storm Lake GOLD STARS 27 FETERSOIT, MARVIN EIiBEBT Barnes To-wmship Born Nov. 29, 1892. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. L, 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained: Camp Gordon. Sailed August 25 on U. S. S. Platts- burg; landed Brest September 12. To Camp Georges for training; to Verdun Oct. 13; to the front October 24; took active part in Meuse-Argonne offensive until armistice was signed. Died of disease caused by exposure November 18, 1918. Buried near Etraye. France, November 20, 1918. PIEBSON. MANFORD C. Albert City- Born January 4, 1887. Enl. May 19, 1918. Yeoman, Radio Service. Trained: G. L. N. T. S., in Co. F, 7th Regt. Taken sick with influ- enza which later developed into pneumonia. Died October 22, 1918. Buried at Mediapolis, Iowa, in the family lot. Commended by Cap- tain of the U. S. Navy Commandant: "Yeo- man Pierson had a very satisfactory record in every particular and gave promise of be- ing a useful and valuable member of the naval service who would acquit himself credit- ably of any duty or responsibility with which he might be entrusted." FI.OG, MARTIN "WIXiIiIAIVI J. Maple Valley Township Born April 28, 1895. Enl. July 24. 1918. Pvt. Co. M, 163d Inf. 79th Div. Trained: Camp Gordon five weeks in Co. A, 4th Replm. Regt.; to Camp Merritt. Sailed on U. S. S. Plattsburg. Transferred in France to Co. M, 163d Inf. 79th Div.; took sick about November 14; sent to Evac. Hosp. No. 8. Died in Base Hosp. No. 54 December 12 at 7:40 p. m. Buried at Mesves-Nievre, Grave No. 572 in A. E. P. Ceme- tery No. 86 on December 14, 1918. Cherokee, Iowa; to Mexican border winter of 1916-17 at Brownsville, Texas; at State Fair Grounds; to Camp Mills, September 10, 1917. Sailed from New York on U. S. S. President Grant October 18; returned to port October 28; sailed again November 14 on Celtic; landed Liverpool. To Southampton; to Le Havre. To Rimacourt; to Langres; to Baccarat; into ac- tion February 22; cited for bravery March 9, "For penetrating the enemy line and destroy- ing enemy shelter"; to Lorraine front in Luneville sector; to Champagne July 3 to 18; Chateau Thierry July 22. Killed in action by inachine-gun bullet July 31, 1918. Buried in Ainerican Cemetery at Ainveile, after being re- moved from Sergy. SMITH, GII.BERT Cr. Sioux Rapids Died at Naval Hosp. Ft. Lyons, Colo., No- vember 26, 1919. (Additional information and photograph will be found under "Service Records"). SMITH, FRBD W. Nokojnis Township Born October 30, 1893. Enl. September 20, 1917. Pvt. Co. H, 26th Inf. 1st Div.. Trained: Camp Dodge in Co. A, 350th Inf. 88th Div.; to Camp Pike latter part of October; to Camp Merritt. Sailed June 10; landed Liverpool July 1. To Le Havre July 4; toSoissons. where he joined the 1st Div. July 19; at Soissons July 19 to 23; in St. Mihiel offensive September 12 to 13; at Verdun front September 21 to 30; to Argonne-Meuse offensive October 1 to 12; to Vavincourt Rest Area October 16 to Novem- ber 2; to front lines at Romagne until Novem- ber 5 ; November 6 in forced march on Sedan. Killed in action November 6 near Chemery, France. REDBNBAUGH, DANNII! Storm Lake Born July 7, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. A, 304th M. P. Trained: Camp Gordon; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from New York Augu.st 30, on U. S. S. Plattsburg; landed Brest Sep- tember 14. To Verdun sector October 23 to November 11, shell-shocked and sent to Base Hospital No. 25. Died at 12:15 p. m. Novem- ber 11, 1918. Buried in American Military Cemetery, Allerey-Aone-et-Loire, France. SCHABFFBR, HAROIiD Storm Iiake Born September 10, 1896. Enl. June 30, 1916. Corp. Co. M. 168th Inf. 42d Div. Trained: SMITH, FXiTBR Coon Township Born October 19 1887. Enl July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. G, 313th Inf. 79th Div. Trained: Camp Gordon until August 25. Sailed from Hoboken September 1 on U. S. S. Plattsburg; landed Brest September 12. To St. Georges September 16 to 30; to Verdun October 28; in Meuse sector, Verdun front offensive November 4 to 9; wounded by high-explosive shell in hip November 9 in Argonne-Meuse offensive. Died on way to hospital. Buried in Grave No. 32, Row 90, Freeh Cemetery at Glorieux, near Verdun, France. John Blucker, Captain 313th Inf. Co. G, U. S. A. wrote: "The taking of Hill 378 is considered one of the hardest that the 79th Div. was in." GOLD STARS Charles Nielson Newell Olaf S. Olsen Scott Township Marvin Elbert Peterson Barnes Township Manford C. Pierson Albert City GOLD STARS Martin William J. Plog Maple Valley Townsliip Dannie Redenbaugh Storm Lake Harold Scliaeffer Storm Lake l''rc(l W. Sniitli Nokomis Tmvn.ship 30 GOLD STARS SOMMEB, HERBERT Storm Iiake Born November 10, 1894. Enl. July 25, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 316th Regt. 79th Div. Trained: Camp Gordon three week.?; to Camp Merritt. Landed Prance September 12. To St. Georges; to front lines October 20; wounded severely November 9, in Argonne battle. Died Novem- ber 10, 1918. Widow: Mrs. Herbert Sommer, Webb, Iowa. TAYLOR, ILO IVAN Storm Iiake Born April 28, 1885. Enl. April, 1917, in Lieut. 350th Regt. Engrs. Reserve Corps. Trained: Ft. Leavenworth one month; special training in New York and Washington, D. C; to Camp Lee. Commissioned July, 1917, in charge of Engineer Sub-Depot No. 409; in First Officers' Training Camp, entered from Purdue Univ. Died following apparently minor opera- tion on nose of cerebral meningitis at Base Hosp. Camp Lee on January 25, 1918. Buried at Petersburg, Va., in Blaudford Cemetery. Pike January 21, 1919. Buried at Ingraham, 111. Corp. Tolliver was married, and came to Buena Vista County in 1916. TOOMBS, FBRRY I.. Newell Born January 19, 1890. Enl. September 21, 1917. Pvt Co. F, 39th Inf. 20th Div. Trained: Camp Dodge; at Camp Pike; at Gamp Green; to Camp Mills. Killed in action September 27, 1918. Buried in American Cemetery, Brinville- sur-Meuse, Commune of Brinville-Meuse, Prance. -WBST, I.BSIiIB EARL Albert City Born December 24, 1896. Enl. September 7, 1918. Pvt. Inf. Trained: Camp Dodge. Took sick with influenza October 2, 1918; taken to Base Hospital; influenza developed into tuber- culosis. Died November 6, 1918. Buried Storm Lake, Iowa, November 12, 1918. THOMSEN, OTTO Newell Born April 28, 1891. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 54th Pioneer Inf. Trained: Camp Wadsworth until August 17; at Camp Stewart. Sailed August 29; landed Brest September 12. Entrained for front September 22; arrived Steury-sur-Aire September 23; night hike to Clermont Woods September 24; September 25 in hospital. Died of pneumonia in Lauilly Hos- pital October 5, 1918. TOLLIVER, OTIS Storm Lake Born September 7, 1894. Enl. September 21, 1917. Corp. Co. 1, 347th Inf. 87th Div. Trained; Camp Dodge; at Camp Pike; to Camp Dix. Sailed August 22; landed Liverpool. To Lon- don; to Southampton; to Cherbourg Septeinber 17. To Tours; to Tels; to Romoranton; to Brest. Sailed December 24; landed New York December 30. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Pike January 9. Died of influenza at Camp YOUNIE, ARTHUR SX. Maple Valley Township Born January 31, 1887. Enl. February 25, 1918. Pvt. Batt. F, 77th Div. Trained: Camp Dodge; at Camp Upton. Sailed for France April 28; landed May 14 in Prance. Was taken sick and died of bronchial pneumonia February 13, 1919. YOUNIE, HOWARD W. Maple Valley Township Born February 1, 1889. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. B, 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained: Camp Gordon one month; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from New York on U. S. S. Plattsburg August 30; landed Brest, September 12. To St. George; to Verdun; to Genicourt October 25; assigned to 316th Regt. in front lines October 25; over the top November 3; assisted in the capture of Hill 378; November 10 attacked hill at Danvillers and was severely wounded — shot through the kidneys. Died at 2:00 a. m., November 11, 1918. GOLD STARS Peter Smith Coon Township Herbert Sommer Storm Lake ♦* Ilo Ivan Taylor Storm Lake Otto Thomsen Newell GOLD STARS Otis ToUlver Storm Lake Perry L. Toombs Newell Leslie Earl "West Albert City GOLD STARS Howard W. Younie Maple Valley Township Ai Ll.ui M. Younie Maple Valley Townsliip Honor Roll of Buena Vista County ADOI.FHSOIT, AXEIi EDWARD Coon Township Born March 18, 1890. Enl. July 25, 1918. Pvt. Co. B, 4th Inf. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon; transferred, on December 3, to 107th Ordnance Depot Co. Promoted to Company Mechanic. Mustered out March 31, 1919. AITKEN, WILLIAM GLENDENNING Storm Lake Born November 11, 1892. Enl. May 12, 1917. First lieut. Mach Gun Co., 26th Reg., 1st Div. Com. 2d lieut. August 15, 1917; promoted to 1st lieut. October 26, 1918. Trained at Fort Snelling; in Third British Army Inf. School at Auxi-le-Chateau, British Gen. Headquarters; and at Small Arms and Mach. Gun School at Camiers. Sailed from New Jersey, August 29, 1917; landed Liverpool. Le Havre, France, Sep- tember 16. At Third British Army Inf. School, Auxi-le-Chateau, September 26 to October 30; assigned to 26th Infantry, November 10 — de- tached service; at British Mach. Gun School from December 1 to December 25; taken sick in British Gen. Hosp. No. 20 at Camiers on December 26, 1917 to February 24, 1918; re- joined regiment at Bouconville, March 10, 1918; left Toul sector on April 2 for Picardy; in Montdidier sector from April 16 to July 6; at Soissons July 16 to July 26; at Pont-a-Mous- son July 30 to August 20; at St. Mihiel Sep- tember 6 to 18; in Verdun area September 21 to 30; In Argonne from September 31 to Octo- ber 4, until severely wounded in start of sec- ond phase of battle of the Argonne near Hill 272, southeast of Fleville, on October 4; in base hosp. No. 44 at Pouques-Lormes from October 8 to November 24; discharged from hosp. on December 30, 1918; to Blois; to Angers, to Brest. Sailed for the United States from Brest on January 13, 1919. Dis- charged at Camp Dix, January 25, 1919. ALBRECHSOIT, ALBERT Ne'well Born March 6, 1893. Enl. March 6, 1918. Pvt. in Co. K, 59th Regt., 4th Div. Trained at Camp Greene. Sailed on U. S. S. Olympia, May 5, 1918; landed Southampton, May 13. To Liverpool; to Dover; to Calais, France. , Trained with the British for six weeks at Samer; to Chateau Thierry from July 19 to August 7, in continual fighting; to Velie from August 7 to 12; fighting for five days on the Vesle river; after short training-period was sent to Toul sector for six days; on trench outpost duty after September 1; from Septem- ber 7 to 17 at St. Mihiel — continual fighting, was in capture of one town; to Argonne from September 26 to October 16, continual fight- ing; wounded by shrapnel in foot in Argonne, October 6, and sent to field hosp., but joined his Co. on October 10; was in reserve at Metz when armistice was signed. Started for Germany; served at Bremen and Coblenz; left for Brest July 24. Sailed from Brest on U. S. S. Texan; landed at Norfolk, August 5, 1919. Mustered out August 11, 1919. ALFERS, CHARLES L. Coon Township Born October 10, 1895. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. in Co. M, 316th Inf., 79th Div. Trained Camp Gordon; to Camp Merritt, August 25. Left September 1, in 27th Replm. Co.; landed at Liverpool September 14. To Le Havre, France. To St. Georges; left St. Georges on October 7, for the front at Verdun; remained at Verdun until wounded in head and right shoulder on November 10. Sailed on Christ- mas day for the United States. Mustered out April 22, 1919. ALFERS, ERNEST C. Coon Township Born October 19, 1889. Enl. April 24, 1918. Pvt. 1st cl.. Medical Corps, 14th Infantry. Trained at Camp Dodge until December 1; ordered to Camp Grant. Mustered out at Camp Grant, May 13, 1919. ALFERS, W^ILLIAM J. Coon Township Born August 17, 1887. Enl. February 25, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 132d Inf., 33d Div. Trained at Camp Dodge until April 15; to Camp Logan until May 7. Sailed from New York, May 15, on transport Mount Vernon; landed at Brest, May 24. Moved to Abbeville, June 9; to Amiens sector, June 29 to August 23; to Trouville-en-Barrois in Toul sector, August 26; moved to Verdun sector, Septem- ber 6; engaged in Meuse-Argonne offensive, September 26 to November 11; moved to Lux- emburg December 1; stationed there until March 1, 1919; moved to Brest. Sailed from Brest for the United States, May 9, on the transport Mount Vernon; landed at New York, May 17. To Camp Mills; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, May 26, 1919. Axel Edward Adolphsen Coon Township Wm. G. Altken Storm Lake Albert Albrechtsen Newell Charles Li. Alpers Coon Township Ernest C. Alpers Coon Townshia Wil'iam J. Aloers Coon Township C. H. Anderson Lee Township Clarence Anderson Albert City Conrad H. Anderson Albert City Elmer B Anderson Poland Harry W. Anderson Fairfield Township Horace Shade Anderson Storm Lake Howard J. Anderson Elk Township Orville M. Anderson Linn Grove Oscar Anderson Albert City J. R. Andrews Linn Grove Segurd Ankerson Nokomis Township Elmer Ankerson Nokomis Township Bernard Arnts Storm Lake Alfred Z. Ashbaugh Fairfield Township ,1 Alva E. Avenall Storm Lake Ralph Harvey Avenall Storm Lake Axel Edwin Axelson Maple Valley Township Robert M. Biiiliu Storm Lake 38 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY AMBIiEB, HERBERT DONAI.D Storm Iiake Born July 0, 18'J5. Enl. July 24, 1918. Sergt. in Headquarters Department, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon. Mustered out January 26, 1919. ANDERSON, EI.MEB B. Polancl Born June 22, 1896. Enl. April 8, 1918. Pvt. Batt. D, 77th Field Artillery, 4th Div. Trained at Madison, Wisconsin, from April 8 to June 12, 1918; to Cainp Jackson, from June 12 to July 17. Left froin Hoboken, July 23 on transport Tydens; landed in London, August 8, to September 1. To Le Havre, France, Sep- tember 4. To Camp Hunt at Bordeaux; joined 4th Div., September 19; in Meuse-Argonne offensive from September 26 until November 11; to Pont-sur-Meuse for one week; moved into Army of Occupation at Kaisersesch, Ger- many, until May 25, 1919; to Neunahr until July 11; to Brest. Sailed from Brest, July 17. 1919, on U. S. S. Tiger; landed at New Yorlc, July 29. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, August 5, 1919. ANDERSON, GOTTFRIED G-. Marathon Born November 19, 1891. Enl. April 8, 1918. Pvt. 110th Aerial Squadron, Mach. Gun Dept. Trained at Madison, Wisconsin, in Detachment School until June 8; to Dayton, Ohio, until September 25; trans, to Carlton Field until November 1; to Dorr Field until February 1, 1919; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, February 10, 1919. ANDERSON, HORACE SHADE Storm Iiake Born April 3, 1893. Enlisted October 8, 1917. Pvt. Co. A, 350th Regt., 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge for two months; trans, to 87th Div. at Camp Pike. Mustered out February 2, 1918, on account of physical disability. ANDERSON, ORVII.I.E M. ZiiuiL G-rove Born May 25, 1896. Enl. August 20, 1918. Pvt. 1st el.. Remount Dept., Field Artillery. Trained at Camp McClellan. Mustered out April 2, 1919. ANDERSON, JOHN -WII.I.IAM Alta Born May 6, 1888. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. A, 5th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon, in Co. C, 4th Replm. Regt.; to Camp Merritt. Left Hoboken on Vaterland, August 29, 1918; landed at Brest, September 6. To Le Mans; to Nancy; to Nixeville, where he was transferred to Co. A, 5th Div.; entered line of fighting at Cunel on October 12; to Brest, July 8. Sailed on Aquitania, July 12, 1919; landed at New York, July 20. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, July 28, 1919. ANDERSON, CI>ARENCE Albert City- Born March 5, 1893. Enl. May 11, 1918. Seamon 2d cl. Trained at Camp Lewis, Great Lakes Naval Training Station, in 17th Regi- ment. Naval Station; trained at Camp Decatur until May 29; to Camp Dewey; June 3, to Camp Paul Jones; August 3, to Camp Perry, December 5, to Camp Lewis. Mustered out February 10, 1919. ANDERSON, OSCAR Albert City Born June 19, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. L, 163d Inf., 41st Div. Trained at Camp Gordon; to Camp Merritt. Embarked August 29; landed at Brest, France, September 20. To St. Georges; January 26, 1919, to Brest. Sailed from Brest, February 4; landed at Camp Dix, February 16. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, March 4, 1919. ANDERSON, CONRAD H. Albert City Born March 21, 1891. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon. Sailed from New York, August 30, 1918, in U. S. S. Plattsburg; landed at Brest, September 12. Two weeks of intense training at St. George; arrived at Verdun, October 12, but was not sent into the line of fighting until October 29; was hit by fragments of a high ex- plosive shell on November 3, taken to a field hospital, then to Evacuation Hospital No. 15, where he had first operation; to Base Hospital No. 53 for 18 days; to Base Hospital No. 10 at Kerhornou, near Brest. Sailed from Brest as stretcher case on U. S. S. Agamemnon, Decem- ber 27; arrived at Debarkation Hospital No 5, New York City, January 5, 1919. Remained at Debarkation Hospital No. 5 about four weeks till recuperation was sufficient to allow him to walk on crutches; to the general hospital at Des Moines, and after six weeks in this hos- pital he was given a furlough and upon his return waited about a month for his discharge. Mustered out May 23, 1919. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 59 ANDERSON, HARBY W. Fairfield Born July 29, 1892. Enl. May 27, 1918. Pvt. Co. K, 352d Inf., 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; to Camp Mills on August 9. Sailed, August 16, on Ulysses; landed at Liverpool, August 28. To Camp "Winchester; to Southamp- ton. To Le Havre, France. To rest camp; to Les-Loumer, September 2; to Alles-St. Reinine, September 4; to Vegeloise; to Chevermont, Oct. 6; to Rowghont, Oct. 10; to Camp Norman, Oct. 13; to Hagenback, Oct. 24; to trenches in Alsace-Lorraine sector, Oct. 31; to Toul sector, Nov. 4, to support the proposed drive of the newly-organized Second American Army; arrived at Belfort Area, Nov. 8, and remained there until November 11; to Lucy, Nov. 13; to Bonnet, Nov. 30 to May 11, 1919; ordered to Le Mans; to St. Nazaire. Sailed May 21, 1919, on the U. S. S. Pocohontas; landed at Newport News, June 1. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, June 14, 1919. Dodge for two months in Co. A, 350th Reg., 88th Div.; to Camp Pike for four months; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from Hoboken on trans- port Mount Vernon, April 19, 1918; landed at Brest, April 28, 1918. Took sick on boat and went to Base Hosp. Sec. 5; one month after leaving hosp. joined Co. L, 9th Inf., 2d Div. near Chateau Thierry, was there twelve days and was wounded and sent to Field Hosp. No. 1 for three days and then was sent to Base Hosp. No. 20 for one month, then sent back througii classification camp to Co. L, 9th Inf., 2d Div. near St. Mihiel sector for four days; to Champagne front 8 days; to Argonne until armistice was signed; on hike to Germany to Bendorff, for four months; to Ruschied for three months; left Ruschied, July 16, 1919, on train for Brest. Sailed on Princess Matoka. July 23, 1919; landed Hoboken, August 1, 1919. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, August 14, 1919. ANDERSON, C. H. Lee Enl. June 2, 1918. Apprentice Seaman on the U. S. S. Ryndam. Trained at tlie Great Lakes Naval Training Station. Crossed on transport duty five tiines. ANDERSON, HOWARD J. Elk Born January 30, 1896. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. K, 11th Inf., 5th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon for four weeks; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from Hoboken on Leviathan, August 30. Landed at Brest on September 7. To Le Mans for five weeks; to Verdun sector until the armistice was signed; to Luxemburg with the Army of Occupation for seven months; to Brest. Sailed for the United States, on July 11, 1919, on the U. S. S. Plattsburg; landed at Hoboken, July 20. To Camp Mills; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, July 28, 1919. ANDREWS, J. R. IiliLn. Grove Born July 6, 1892. Enl. July 30, 1918. Musi- cian in Inf., Headquarters Co., 153d Depot Brigade. Trained at Syracuse, New York, and at Camp Di.x. Passed examination for "gas hound." Mustered out December 11, 1918. ANEERSON, BOSS Ii. Alta Born January 22, 1895. Enl. Sept. 20, 1917. Corp. Co. L, 9th Inf., 2d Div. Trained at Camp ANKERSON, SEGURD Nokomis To-wTLship Born April 11, 1893. Enl. June 25, 1918. Pvt. 274th Field Hosp., 19th Sanitary Train to Base Hosp. Detachment. Trained at Camp Dodge for 10 - months, promoted to horsesho'er at Field Hosp. Dec. 19, 1918; transferred to 163d Depot Brigade from engineers, transferred to 274th Field Hosp., 19th Sanitary Train to Base Hosp. Detachment. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, May 1, 1919. ANKERSON, EIiMEB Nokomis Township Born May 16, 1890. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. 205th Co., 103d Military Police Battalion. Trained at Camp Gordon four weeks; ordered to Camp Merritt. Sailed from New York, Aug. 3, on U. S. S. Plattsburg; landed at Brest, September 13. To St. Georges four weeks; to Auton one month; to Tours from November 10 to July 26, 1919; to Brest. Sailed on Mercury, August 3; landed at Norfolk, August 13. To Army Base Supply at Norfolk; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out Camp Dodge, August 20, 1919. ABMSTRONG, FRED A. Iiincolu Township Born August 24, 1891. Enl. Sept. 4, 1917. Sergt. in Co. A, 25th Mach. Gun Batt. Trained at Camp Dodge from Sept. 5, 1917 to Apr. 15, 1918; to Camp Hancock, August 12, 1918; to Camp Sheridan; February 4, 1919; to Camp Dodge. Promoted to Sergt. January 4, 1918. Mustered out Camp Dodge, February 12, 1919. John Paul Bair Storm Lake Arthur N. Barnard Alta Harvev A . Barnard Alta George C. Barnes Providence Township Samuel Jo^c'iih l;:iriM--lt Hayes Townsliip Ijionaiil 1'"'. Barr Storm Lake Kenneth R. Barrett Sioux Rapids Hilbert F. Barrick Storm Lake Edward D. Bartels Coon Township Frank S. Bass Newell Jesse H. Battern Storm Lake Russell W. Battern Storm Lake Robert S. Beatty Storm Lake Calvin A. Belcher Storm Lake Alva J. Belding Fairfield Township Benj. F. Beldins Marathon Wm. Sherwood Bell Storm Lake Leo A. Beller Newell Carl G. Bengstun Nokomis Township Lewis Kip Bennett Lee Township C. F. Benson Alta Edgar H. Benson Alta Reuben L. Bensnn Lincoln Township George Adam Bentley Poland Townsliip 42 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY ARNTS, BSBNARD Storm Iiake Born January 2, 1893. Enl. July 29, 1918. Wagoner, Co. B, 211th Engineers, 11th Dlv. Promoted from private to wagoner. Trained at Camp Forrest from July 21, 1918 to Oct. 31,' 1918; to Camp Meade. Mustered out Camp Dodge, February 6, 1919. ASHBAUGH, AZ.FKI:D Z. rairfield Townslxip Born September 30, 1886. Enl. February 25, 1918. Pvt., Co. H, 327th Inf., 82d Dlv. Trained at Camp Dodge, at Camp Gordon and Camp Up- ton. Sailed from Boston on S. S. Grampian, May 1, 1918; landed Liverpool. To Southamp- ton; to Le Havre. Trained at Franieu; to Toul; entered line of fighting about twenty miles from Toul, July 20, relieved, Aug. 5; to Pagney for two weeks; to Nancy sector, Aug. 17 to Sept. 19; to rest billets for a few days; to Chaumont, Sept. 30; joined 30th Dlv. In Ar- gonne Forest at Commes, and was twenty- four days In fighting line; ordered to Champ- litte and remained there from October 30, 1918 until March 1, 1919.; to St. Medard. Sailed from Bordeaux, May 7; landed at New York, May 18. To Camp Upton; to Camp Dodge. Muster- ed out Camp Dodge, May 26, 1919. AVUNAI.!;, AI.VA E. Storm Xiake Born April 12, 1897. Enl. December 14, 1917. Corp. Co. A, 1st Batt., A. O. B. D. F. Trained at Camp Dodge for two months and twenty-two days; transferred to Camp Merritt. Promoted from private to corporal. Sailed from Hobo- ken, March 13, 1918, on ship Henry R. Mallory; landed at Bordeaux, France, March 28. To Genlcourt, one week; to Gelvers, two weeks; to Is-sur-Tllle, nine months; to Mayan, two months;- to evacuation camp, one month; to St. Lager, six weeks; to Bordeaux. Sailed on S. S. -Black Crow, April 24, 1919; landed at Hoboken, May 6. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, May 20, 1919. AVENAIoXi, RAIiPII HARVEY Storm Iiake Born August 18, 1898. Enl. September, 1918. Pvt. in Student Army Training Corps, in Co. 9, Iowa State College, Ames Iowa. Mustered out December 21, 1918. AXEI.SON, AXEI. EDWIIT Maple Valley Township Born April 18, 1894. Enl. August 20, 1918. Pvt. in Salvage Co., Quartermaster Corps. Trained at Camp McClellan. Mustered out February 25, 1919. BAHiIi:, ROBERT BI. Storm Iiake Born January 22, 1891. Enl. July 23, 1918. Pvt. in Engineers' Div. of Officers' Training School at Camp Pike and at Camp Humphreys. Scheduled for commission two weeks after time of being mustered out. Mustered out November 28, 1918. BAIR, JOHN PAUL Storm. Xiake Born April 27, 1898. Enl. October 1, 1918. Pvt. In Naval Unit, Student Army Training Corps, Iowa State College, Ames, Iowa. Mus- tered out December 24, 1918. BARITARI), ARTHUR N. Alta Born December 27, 1889. Enl. August 5, 1917. Sergt. major at General Headquarters, Chau- mont, France. Trained with South Dakota Na- tional Guard at Camp Carlton, Parker South Dakota; transferred to Camp Greene and as- signed to the 147th Field Art., June 27, 1917; to Camp Mills, October 2, 1917; to Camp Mer- ritt, December 7. Sailed for overseas on Olym- pic, January 11, 1918; landed at Liverpool, January 18. To Southampton; to Le Havre, France. Reported for duty at General Head- quarters of Adjutant General at Chaumont, on February 20, where he was promoted to sergt. major, there he was connected with the print- ing department of the Adjutant General of the American Expeditionary Forces at Chaumont, Haute-Marne, and was engaged in the print- ing of several orders, special orders, codes, pamphlets, bulletins, stationery, blanks and other printed material needed by the Ameri- can Expeditionary Forces. Left Chaumont for Brest July 2, 1919. Sailed from Brest for the United States on the Kaiserln Augusta Victoria, July 10, 1919; landed Hobo- ken, July 18, 1919. To Camp Mills; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out, July 24, 1919. BARNARD, HARVEY A. Alta Born September 20, 1892. Enl. July 15, 1917. Pvt. Co. B, 29th Engineers. Trained at Camp Greene, Battery F, 147th Field Art., 41st Div.; to Camp Mills. Sailed for overseas, January 11, 1918; landed at Liverpool, January 19. To Le Havre, France, January 22. Trained at Army Engineering School at Langres, there transferred to Co. B, 29th Engineers; reached HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 43 the front with Sound-Ranging Sec. No. 2 on April 3, at the time when the 26th was reliev- ing the 1st Div. on the sector northwest of Toul; was located at Grondru and then at Brossay; in the battle of Seicheprey; joined the French at Petite-Marche; to Chateau-Thierry sector in June and was with the Second and Twenty-sixth Division; next moved to a point for the next drive: sliell-shocked and was sent to a hospital for a month and half of treat- ment; rejoined sound-ranging section late in September and was located at Villers-sous- Preny until after the armistice was signed, the battalion was then mobilized at Toul — the first time it had been together — and was trans- ferred by special order to the 74th Engineers and sent to the base port for transportation home. Sailed from St. Nazalre for the United States, February 26, 1919; landed at New- port News, March 11, 1919. Mustered out, March 21, 1919. BABITES, GEORGE C. Providence To-wTiship Born November 5, 1894. Enl. September 19, 1917. Corp. Headquarters Co, 58th Inf., 4th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge, Cainp Pike, and Camp Greene; to Camp Mills. Sailed from New York May 10, 1918; on S. S. Shermistles; landed at London, June 5, 1918. To Folkstone, for four days. To Calais, France. To Liezey; to Cliateau-Thierry, July 17, and was in line un- til wounded, August 7, by a high explosive shell; to Base Hos. No. 17; to Base Hos. No. 24; to St. Aignan; back to outfit; attacked on September 26, in Meuse-Argonne fighting line until October 9; to Metz sector when armistice was signed; started for the Rhine, November 19; to Diedenhoff-Moselle; to Bondsdorff-on- the-Rhine, April 6; to Coblenz, May 22; to Brest, July 24. Sailed from Brest for the United States, July 24; landed at New York August 1. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, Aug- ust 8, 1919. BABITETT, SAMUEI. JOSEPH Hayes Township Born November 2, 1892. Enlisted, July 25, 1918. Private in Company A, in infantry regi- ment. Trained at Camp Gordon. Mustered out January 13, 1919. BARR, RUSSEtL H. Storm I.ake Born July 5, 1897. Enlisted September 5, 1918. Private in Co. B, 88th Inf. Trained at Camp Dodge. Mustered out, January 27, 1919. BARRETT, KENNETH R. Sioux Rapids Born July 14, 1899. Enlisted April 12, 1917. Yeoman 1st cl. on U. S. S. Montana. Trained at Great Lakes Naval Training Station for seven days; remainder of training on board ship. Promoted to yeoman 1st cl. in July, 1918. Montana was in continuous service from April 22, 1917, until December 10, 1918; made eleven trips with convoy to war zone and return. Mus- tered out, December 10, 1918. BARRICK, HII.BERT P. Storm Iiake Born March 2, 1896. Enlisted, July 14, 1917. Private Ist-cl., 109th Ammunition Train, 34th Div. Trained at Fair Grounds, Des Moines, Iowa, for two months; transferred to Camp Cody, September 1, 1917, and remained there until August 10, 1918; transferred to Dimmel Motor Works, Chicago, drove trucks through to Raritan Arsenal at New Brunswick, New Jer- sey; to Camp Dix; to New York. Sailed from Hoboken, October 17, on Olympic; landed at Southampton, October 23. To Cherbourg. To Camp St. Sulpice for two months; to Bordeaux; to Gononcourt. Sailed for the United States, June 10, 1919; landed at Philadelphia, June 22. To Camp Dix; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, June 28, 1919. BARTEI.S, EDWARD D. Coon Township Born March 28, 1896. Enlisted August 20, 1918. Corporal in Co. F, 6th Replm. Reg. Trained at Camp Gordon until June 22, 1918; ordered to Camp Dodge to be mustered out. Mustered out January 28, 1919. BASS, FRANK S. Newell Born November 23, 1896. Enlisted April 1, 1917. Private, Pack Train No. 303. Trained at Fort Bliss Remount Station. Mustered out June 1, 1919, BARR, XiEONARD P. Storm I^ake Born December 15, 1893. Enlisted June 25, 1918. Private in Co. C, 350th Inf. Trained at Camp Dodge. Given medical discharge at Camp Dodge, October 7, 1918. BATTERN, JESSE W. Storm Iiake Born February 6, 1897. Enlisted September 7, 1918. Private in Co. B, 88th Reg. 19th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge. Mustered out Feb- ruary 25, 1919. Howard Delos B?ntley Poland Township Carl Ralph Berg Fairfield Township Carl A. Berger Rembrandt Raymond I. Bertness Torris H. Bertness Torris H. Bertness Barnes Township Oscar Emil B.iork Fairfield Township "W^illiam R. Bland Hayes Township Robert Merwyn Bleakly Storm Lake Earl J. Blomgren Lincoln Township Gustaf C. Blomberg- Albert City Harvie E. Blomquist Poland Township Alfred Boese Brooke Township l-'red I'J. Hoettchet Coon Township James Bolen Henry Theodore Borcherding Clarence A. Bosley Lee Township Maple Valley Township Storm Lake Ira J. Boslough Grant Township Karl W. Bowers Storm Lake Millard H. Boyce Newell Quincy Edgar Boynton Sioux Rapids Edward P. Brady Storm Lake George N. Brady Scott Township" Joseph M. Brady Scott Township Philip Brady Scott Township 46 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY BATTEBN, JOHN EtVIN Storm Iiake Born February 1, 1892. Enlisted July 22, 1918. Pvt. Co. L, 148th Inf., 37th Dlv. Trained at Camp Gordon; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from Hoboken on S. S. North Amberland; landed Liverpool, October 31. To Camp Cod- ford; to Southampton. To LeHavre, Novem- ber 6. To Le Mans; to Brest, March 1, 1919. Sailed from Brest for the United States, on S. S. Santa Olivia, March 16, 1919; landed at New York, March 30. To Camp Mills for ten days; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, April 14, 1919. BATTERN EUSSELL "W. Storm Iiafee Born May 22, 1898. Enlisted March 26, 1918. Pvt. in Machine Gun Co., 48th C.A.C., 41st Div. Trained at Port Flagler and was sent to Camp Eustis. Sailed from Newport News, October 7, 1918; landed at Brest, October 2o! to St. Anglers; to La Charite; to St. Nazaire. Sailed from St. Nazaire for the United States, February 28, 1919; landed at Newport News, March 13. To Camp Stewart; to Camp Dodge! Mustered out at Camp Dodge, March 26, 1919. BEATTY, BOBEBT S. Storm. Iiake Born October 21, 1895. Enlisted December 5, 1917. Chief Quartermaster on U. S. S. Lake Frances. Promoted from Seaman 2d-cL to Quarter Master 2d-cl„ to Quarter Master Ist-cl., to Chief Quarter Master. Trained at Municipal Pier, Chicago. Fourteen months con- tinuous sea service overseas in France, Eng- land, Ireland, Wales, Belgium and Holland. Sailed for the U. S. from Cardiff, Wales August 28, 1919; landed New York, September 15, Mustered out September 29, 1919. BEBABD, JOHN P. Storm. Lake Born May 8, 1888. Enlisted February 20, 1918 Sergeant in Heavy Art., 54th C. A. C. Trained at Boston, Massachusetts. Sailed for France August 15, 1918, on U. S. S. Mongolia; landed at St. Nazaire; to Angais; to Paris; to western front on November 5; to Pymide until Feb- ruary 15; to Brest. Sailed for the United States from Brest on English ship Vedic Feb- ruary 22, 1919; landed at Boston, March 8, 1919. To Camp Devens; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, March 28, 1919. BEIiCHEB, CALVIN A. Storm Lake Born February 16, 1892. Enl. April 6, 1917. Second Lieut. Co. D, 126th Mach. Gun Batt., 34th Div. Trained at Ida Grove, Iowa, for two months; transferred to Camp Cody for ten months; to Camp Hancock; from July 15 to December 13, 1918. Promoted to Corp., to sergt., to 2d lieut. Mustered out December 13, 1918. BELDING, ALVA J. Eairfield Township Born January 15, 1891. Enl. February 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 351st Inf., 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge until August 7, 1918; to Camp Mills, August 15. Sailed from Hoboken, Au- gust 28, on the Scotia; landed at Liverpool, September 2. To Southampton. Landed in France September 3; to Cherbourg, Septem- ber 4; to Champey, September 18; was sick with Spanish infiuenza for three weeks; at Fulaine, October 17 to October 20; to Alsace sector, October 30; on November 10 started for Metz, stopped at Francheville on November 29; to Houdancourt on December 16; to Base Hosp. No. 81 on account of rheumatism; December 30, back to Houdancourt; assigned back to company, January 7, 1919; back to American Base Hosp. No. 42 on account of mumps; assigned to Casual Co. 1450 at St. Aignan, January 24; to Brest, February 15. Embarked at Brest on the U. S. S. Huntington, March 11; landed at Hoboken March 24. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, April 2, 1919. BELBING, BENJAMIN F. Marathon Born September 14, 1886. Enl. July 11, 1917. Cook 2d-cl. on U. S. S Sierra. Trained at Great Lakes Naval Training Station; served from November 15, 1917, to February 10, 1918, in the Panama Canal Zone; then transferred to the receiving ship New York on March 3, 1919. Promoted from fireman 3d-cl. to ship cook 4th-cl., to cook 2d-cl. Sailed from New York, March 20, 1918; landed at Bordeaux, April G, 1918. Sailed from Bordeaux for the United States, April 6, 1919; arrived at New York, April 17, 1919. Mustered out September 14, 1919. BELL, WILLIAM SHEBWOOD Storm Lake Born June 19, 1898. Enl. October 1, 1918. Pvt. Student Army Training Corps, Co. 2, Sec. A, Iowa State College. Trained at Iowa State College, Ames, Iowa. Mustered out December 13, 1918. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 47 Bi:i.I.ER, 1.1:0 A. Newell Born August 6, 1891. Enl. July 25, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, 30Gth Inf., 77th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon. Sailed from New Tork on U. S. S. Plattsburg, August 29, 1918; landed at Brest, September 12, 1918. To St. Georges; to St. Aignan; to Contres; transferred to 77th Div. November 13; at Colomby; ordered to Brest. Sailed from Brest, on transport Mount Vernon, April 17, 1919; landed at New York, April 25, 1919. Mustered out May 18, 1919. BENGSTON, CABI. G. Nokomis Township Born March 3, 1895. Enl. July 24, 1918. Corp. Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon; transferred, December 29, 1918, to Camp Dodge. Promoted to corp. October 2, 1918. "Was in Officers' Training School. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, -January 10, 1919. BENNETT, I,E"WIS KIP Iiee Township Born July 10, 1891. Enl. December 15, 1917. Corp. in Headquarters Co., 60th Art., Coast Art. Corps. Trained at Fortress Monroe. Pro- moted from pvt. to Corp., February 1, 1919. Left Newport News on U. S. S. Siboney, April 23, 1918; landed at Brest May 6. To Bmilion, July 21; to Camp de Louge, July 21 to Septem- ber 4; left for front on September 5; arrived at Toul, September 8; took part in St. Mihiel drive from September 12 to September 16; to Meuse-Argonne offensive and was in this offen- sive from September 12 to September 16; spent month in training area. Sailed from Brest, January 26, 1919, on R. M. S. Cedric; arrived at New York, February 4, 1919. Dis- charged at Camp Dodge, February 26, 1919. BENSON, EBGAB H. Alta Born November 9, 1898. Enl. October 16. 1917. Radio operator. Trained at Great Lakes Naval Training Station and at Radio School, Cambridge, Massachusetts. Promoted from seaman to radio operator. Sailed from Cam- bridge, June 30, 1918, on U. S. S. Henderson — caught fire at sea — and finished trip across on the U. S. S. Von Steuben; landed at Brest, France, July 7, 1918. Crossed France and Italy to Corfu, Greece; worked on patrol line on submarine chaser until the armistice was signed; to Austria for thirty days; to Athens for thirty days; to Gibraltar for three months. Sailed for the United States; landed at New York, April 15, 1919. Edgar H. Benson was in the bombardment at Durazzo, Albania, October 2, 1918, for three hours at the time that the submarine chaser on which he was serving was with the Italian Fleet and was honored by the Italian Government. Mustered out at New York, April 28, 1919. BENSON, REUBEN I.. Iiincoln Township Born July 13, 1891. Enl. July 25, 1918. Pvt. Co. K, 11th Inf., 5th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from Hoboken August 31 on the Leviathan; landed at Brest, September 7, 1918. To Le Mans, trained here for five weeks in the 33d Inf., 83d Div.; to Nissville, near Verdun; quarantined for measles for fourteen days in the 5th Div. Casual Camp; to Longvay, December 4, there assigned to Company K, 11th Inf. 5th Div.; to Esches, Luxemburg; to Shifflauge until July 5, 1919; landed at Hoboken. July 20. To Camp Mills; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out July 28, 1919. BENSON, CONBAD FORREST Alta Born December 29, 1897. Enl. June 4, 1918. M. M. 1st cl. Naval Air Station, Washington, D. C. Trained: G. L. N. T. S.; at Washington, D. C. Promoted from L. M. M. 2d cl. to M. M. 1st cl. Mustered out at G. L. N. T. S., September 9, 1919. BENTIiEY, GEORGE ABAIVE Poland Township Born May 30, 1896. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon until October 4. Sailed from New York on S. S. Cedric, October 23, 1918; landed at Liverpool, November 8. Crossed Channel to Le Havre, France, November 14. To Coutras until February 21, 1919; trans- ferred to Headquarters Co., 116th Ammunition Train at Auge, March 12; sent to Hosp. No. 26 at St. Aignan; to Base Hosp. No. 69 at Savenay, April 6. Sailed from St. Nazaire on S. S. Matsonia, April 13; landed at New- port News, April 24, 1919. Sent to United States Gen. Hosp. No. 28 at Fort Sheridan until May 2. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, June 11, 1919. BENTLEY, HOWARD DEI.OS Poland Township Born August 28, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Sergt. Military Police. Trained at Camp Gordon until October 28; ordered to Camp Wheeler until March 5, 1919. Mustered out March 6, 1919. 48 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY BERG, CABI. RAI.FH Pairfield Township Born March 20. 1895. Enl. February 25. 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl., 48th Co., 20th Engineers. Trained at Camp Dodge; ordered to American Univ., Washington, D. C, and engaged in road and bridge instruction. Sailed from Hoboken, May 22 on Leviathan; landed at Brest, May 30. To Sen; to Sainte-Marie; June 18, ordered to Vauxet; to Chantegrue in Lorraine sector; left during the first uart of October for Baum- le-Dames, and remained there until January 14, 1919; to Captieux, from January 9 to fviay 25, in march on convoy to Luxemburg and Belgium; to Bordeaux. Sailed June 9, on tiie U. S. S. Ohio; landed at Philadelphia, June 21. To Camp Dix; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, June 28, 1919. Dodge. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, March 8, 1919. BEBTNESS, TOBBIS H. Barnes Born October 11, 1889. Enl. August 20, 1918. Pvt. 5th Receiving Batt., 17th Co., 157th Depot Brigade. Trained at Camp Gor- don, was in Physical and Bayonet Training School, served from August 20 to September 23 with 157th Depot Brigade, with 6th Inf. Replm. Regt. from Septeinber 24 to December 29, with 3d Regt. Casuals from December 30, 1918. to January 6. 1919. with 17th Co., 5th Receiving Batt., Depot Brigade from January 7 to January 20. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, January 28, 1919. BEBGEB, CABZi A. Bembrandt Born March 13, 1892. Enl. June 2.3 191S. Pvt. in Headquarters Co., 350th Inf, Sth Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; left Camp Dodge, August 4 for service overseas. Sailed from Hoboken, August 11; landed in England, August 25. Landed at Cherbourg, France, August 29. Left Cherbourg for Semur for six weeks' training, September 3; to Haute- Alsace sector, October 7 to October 29; in Toul sector, November 9 to 11; to Menaucourt, November 27; left Menaucourt, May 26. 1919, for St. Nazaire. Sailed from St. Nazaire. May 19, on the transport Aeolus; landed at Newport News, May 30. Left Newport News, June 3 for Camp Dodge, Mustered out at Camp Dodge, June 5, 1919. BJOBK, OSCAB BMIIi Fairfield Townsliip Born July 23, 1893. Enl. April 26, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 338th Mach. Gunners, 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge and Camp Upton. Promoted to horseshoer. Sailed for overseas on the Casmere, August 16; landed at Liverpool, August 28. To Winchester; to Southampton; to Cherbourg, France, September 1. To Marigne; to Hericourt; to front Middle Alsace from October 5 to October 20; to Bessan- court; to Toul sector for thirty days; left, November 29, for Gondecourt sector and re- mained in this sector for seven months. Sailed for the United States, May 22, 1919, on Nether- land; landed at Newport News, June 4. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, June 15, 1919. BBBGI^ING, EMIT. O. Poland Township Born September 16, 1893. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Headquarters Co., 112th Inf., 28th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon. Sailed from New York, September 1, on Leviathan; landed at Brest, September 7. Moved to Le Mans; to Lamalou-les-Bains until October 1; to Vignot until October 10; to front on St. Mihiel sector until November 11, under shell fire for twenty- six days; left front, November 25, for Boux- ieres; to Le Mans, March 1, 1919. Sailed from St. Nazaire, April 18, on U. S. S. Poca- hontas; landed at Philadelphia, April 30. To Camp Dix; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, May 18, 1919. BEBTNESS, BAYMOND I. Barnes Born October 27, 1896. Enl. September 5, 1918. Pvt. Co. 10, 3d Batt. Trained at Camp BIiAND, WIIiIiIAM B. Storm Iiake Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl., Co. D, 316th Inf., 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon for one month; to Camp Merritt. Sailed, August 31; landed at Brest, September 12, 1918. To rest camp for one week; to St. Georges, for intensive bayonet drill for ten days; to front lines, to relieve the 29th Div. and part of the 17th French Corps in the Meuse-Argonne sec- tor; engaged in fighting in Meuse-Argonne sector for three weeks up to the time that the armistice was signed. BI.EAKI.V, BOBEBT MEBWYIT Storm I^ake Born December 2, 1898. Enl. October 1, 1918. Pvt. in Student Army Training Corps at Iowa State College. Trained at Iowa State College, Ames, Iowa. Mustered out December 20, 1918. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 49 BIiOiaBSRC, GUSTAF C. Albert City Born June 4, 1898. Enl. October 4, 1918. Mechanic Co. B, Student Army Training Corps. Trained at Modern Auto School, Spokane, Washington, from October 16 to December 16. Mustered out December 16, 1918. BOESi:, AIiFRSD Brooke Born March 25, 1887. Enl. July 29, 1918. Pvt. in 10th Co., 110th Regt., 35th Div. Sailed overseas. Landed at New York, April 10, 1919. Mustered out May 2, 1919. BI.OIVIGBEN, EARI. J. lincoln Township Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. M, 163d Inf., 41st Div. Trained at Camp Gordon in Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt. until August 25; ordered to Camp Merritt, arrived there August 27, and marched to Alpine landing. Sailed from New York on the U. S. S. Plattsburg, August 30; landed at Brest, September 12. Remained at Napoleon's Fort until September 16; sent back to Brest for guard duty in Officers' Casual Camp; September 19, to classification camp; September 22, to St. Georges, transferred to Co. M, 163d Inf., 41st Div. and remained at St. Georges until October 8; October 12, to Verdun, in French billets near Verdun until October 24; when he was taken to classification hosp. sick with gastro-enteritis; to Evacuation Hosp. No. 6; to Base Hosp. No. 22 at Bordeaux on October 27, at this hosp. on November 3 he became sick with Spanish influenza and re- mained there until November 26. Sailed on transport U. S. S. Sierra at Bordeaux, Novem- ber 26; landed at Hoboken, December 9. To Base Hosp. at Camp Merritt until December 25; transferred to United States Army Gen. Hosp. No. 21, and remained there until dis- charged from service. Discharged April 18, 1919. BLOMQTJIST, HARVIE E. Poland Township Born October 1, 1895. Enl. December 13, 1917. Pvt. 27 Balloon Co., Aviation Branch of the Army. Trained at Camp Morrison from March, 1918, until July 1, 1918; to Camp Eustis until November 1; back to Camp Morrison until mustered out of the service. Mustered out at Camp Morrison December 13, 1918. BOATMAN, THOMAS LE ROY Barnes Township Born January 14, 1896. Enl. February 25, 1918. Pvt. Co. I, 82d Div. Trained at Camp Upton. Sailed overseas. Was in active serv- ice; was wounded, returned to the United States. Engaged in vocational study at Iowa State College, Ames, Iowa. BOETTCHER, CHRISTOPH Grant Township Born March 26, 1893. Enl. May 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. A, 158th Inf., 40th Div. Trained at Camp Lewis and Camp Kearney; transferred to Co. 14, 4th Bat., 166th Depot Brigade at Camp Lewis, and again transferred at Camp Kearney to Co. A, 158th Inf. BOETTCHER, EUGENE VICTOR Truesdale Born July 28, 1899. Enl. October 13, 1918. Pvt. in Student Army Training Corps. Buena Vista College, Storm Lake, Iowa. Mustered out December 13, 1918. BOETTCHER, FRED E. Coon Township Born July 20, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. B, 316th Regt., 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon until August 25. Sailed from Hoboken on U. S. S. Plattsburg, August 30; landed at Brest, September 14. To St. Georges until September 25; to Verdun sector until October 5; to Meuse sector, Verdun front, in offensive from October 28 until November 11; left front and went to Revilles; to headquar- ters at Le Hieppe, December 28; moved to Orquevaux, April 1, 1919; to Classun, April 26; to St. Nazaire, May 15. Sailed from St. Nazaire May 16, on the U. . S. S. Texan; landed at Philadelphia, May 29. To Camp Dix; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out at Camp Dodge June 8, 1919. BOIiEN, JAMES Lee Township Born December 11, 1889. Enl June 15, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 8th Div. of Motor Transport Corps. Trained at Iowa State College from June to August 13; at Valparaiso from August 15 to October 1; at Fort Sheridan until October 20; to Camp Mills. Sailed from the United States on November 4, but returned on November 9, when three days out. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, February 12, 1919. John H. Brailey Storm Lake Aaron John Brandvold Rembrandt Earl W. Bray Sioux Rapids Leo J. Brazel Barnes Township Everett B. Breig Arthur Bertiii I ;i •■single Forrest McKinley Breyfogle Merle Edward Breyf ogle Storm Lake , Alta Alta Alta Jotham M. Bristol Marathon Fred Bruhn Storm Lake Wilie Brummer Grant Township William F, Bryant Sulphur Springs Charley A. Bryngelson Linn Grove Elmer Bryngelson Linn Grove Francis Edward Bullard Storm Lake Carl W. Human Storm Lake Edward C. Bumann Maple Valley Township Ernest E. Bumann Maple Valley Township Herman W. Bumann Maple Valley Township William W. Bumann Maple Valley Township Tiiomas G. Burcham Storm Lake Edwin E. Burke Poland Township Will A. Burke Lee Township Earl Q. Burkholder Sioux Rapids 52 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY BORCHEBDING, HENRY THEODORE maple Valley Township Born March 26, 1888. Enl. February 25, 1918. Corp. Co. E, 351st Inf., 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge. Sailed on the Scotian from Hobolien, August 16; landed at Liverpool, August 28. To Brockwood; to Camp Stony Castle; landed at Cherbourg, France, September 3. To rest camp; to Paullenay on the morn- ing of the 7th, billeted in an old castle which was built in 1554, after drilling there left on September 14 for Champau for further drill; went into lines October 19 in a quiet sector near the Swiss border in Alsace-Lorraine; to Belfort, billet in Chaux, just out of Belfort; on the evening of November 10, started for Argonne-Meuse front — not in action — arrived at Francheville, near Toul, and remained there until November 28; hiked to Houdelaincourt for maneuvers and drills; to Lefaulz for con- voy work into Germany; May 4, back to Houdelaincourt; to Gondrecourt; to Avoys; to St. Nazaire, May 18. Sailed from St. Nazalre on U. S. S. Mercury, May 20; landed at Newport News, May 31. To Camp Hill; to Camp Dodge — paraded in Des Moines. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, June 7, 1919. ond trip for Bordeaux, out two days and re- turned. Relieved from Bali and sent to re- ceiving ship in New York from November 28, 1918, to May 9, 1919. Transferred to U. S. S. Philippines transport until May 19, 1919. Dis- charged from U. S. S. Philippines, May 19, 1919. BOIATERS, KARI. W. Storm Iiake Born July 18, 1895. Enl. May 13, 1917. Pvt. (sharpshooter) Co. A, 8th Engineers (Mtd.). Trained at Fort Logan May 15 to May 28; ordered to Fort Bliss until August 25; re- ported for duty on Mexican Border and partici- pated in engagement against Villistas near Juarez, Chihuahua, June 15-17, 1919. Made sharpshooter, May 20, 1919 — per J. 0.-3 — Head quarters Co., 8th Engineers. Mustered out August 25, 1919. BOYCE, MII.I.ARD H. Providence Township Born October 20, 1892. Enl. July 24, 1918. Bugler, Co. C, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon. Mustered out January 9, 1919. BOSXiEY, CIiAREirCE A. Storm Iiake Born January 28, 1896. Enl. June 4, 1917. Pvt. Co. C, 315th Engineers, 90th Div. Formerly Cook, Co. M, 168th Inf., 42d Div. Trained at Cherokee, Iowa; to State Fair Grounds, Des Moines, Iowa; to Camp Mills. Sailed for Prance on President Grant, October 18, 1917; returned to New York October 28; entered St. Mary's Hosp. ati Englewood, ,'New Jersey, with pneumonia on November 8; left hosppital December 20; to Camp Merritt; sailed for France January 3, 1918, on U. S. S. Mercury; landed at St. Nazaire, France, January 15. To St. Aignan; to Berncastle. Germany; to Cob- lenz; to St. Nazaire. Sailed from St. Nazaire on the S. S. Alaskan; landed at New York, June 15, 1919. To Camp Mills; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 26, 1919. Bosiiouan, ira j. Grant Tow^nsliip Born December 6, 1894. Enl. December 11, 1917. Yoeman Ist-ol., on U. S. S. Philippines. Promoted to seaman 2d-cl., to yeoman Ist-cl. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. from December 15, 1917, to September, 1918. Went on U. S. S. Bali September 9, 1918. Left the United States from New York, September 16, 1918; landed at Bordeaux. Returned on Bali and landed in New York, November 11, 1918. Started sec- BOYNTON, BRYANT B. Sioux Rapids Born May 16, 1896. Enl. May 28, 1918. Pvt. Co. L, 352d Inf., 8Sth Div. Trained at Camp Dodge from May 28, until August 9, 1918. Sailed from New York, August 16, on S. S. Ulysses; landed at Liverpool, August 28, 1918. Crossed English Channel to Le Havre. Moved to Lavazan; to Belfort, September 15; hiked to Vezelois until October 1; moved to Rouge- mont for one week; then to Camp Norman; to Lorraine front, October 15; held as reserve in lines until November 1; returned to Belfort until November 12; to Lucy, until November 20; sent to hosp. at Toul on account of foot until November 30; moved to hosp. at Orleans; at casual camp until December 30, 1918; to St. Aignan; to Brest. Sailed from Brest on trans- port Mount Vernon, March 3, 1919; landed at New York, March 11, 1919. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out March 21, 1919. BOYNTON, QUINCY EDGAR Sioux Rapids Born January 17, 1894. Enlisted April 14, 1917. Quarter Master Ist-cl. (General). Pro- moted from apprentice seaman to Quarter Mas- ter Ist-cl. (general). Trained at Great Lakes Naval Training Station from April 18-24, 1917; at Naval Station, Algiers, Louisiana, from April HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 53 24, 1917, to June 9, 1917. Assigned to duty on the U. S. S. Kearsarge with the Atlantic fleet; on duty with Signal Corps until March 1, 1918; transferred to General Quarter Master and reinained on duty with same ship until June 3, 1919. Mustered out at Great Lakes Naval Training Station, June 3, 1919. BRADY, EDVTARD F. Scott Township Born July 4, 1888. Enlisted September 4, 1918. Private, unassigned. Medical Corps. Trained at Fort Riley from September 5, 1918, until February 1, 1919. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, February 4, 1919. BRADV, GBORGB N. Scott Township Born June 12, 1892. Enlisted April 26, 1918. Corporal, Company B, 338th Machine Gunners, 88th Division. Trained at Camp Dodge; to Camp Upton. Sailed from Hoboken on Kash- mar, August 16; landed at Liverpool, August 28. To Southampton; to Cherbourg. To Mar- rigney for two weeks; to Lucy; to Toul sector when armistice was signed; to Metz; to Coure- prits for five months; to St. Nazaire. Sailed for the United States on May 22, 1919; landed at Newport News, June 4. The king of the Netherlands was on the ship on which he sailed for the United States. To Camp Hill; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 15, 1919. BRADY, JOSEPH M. Scott Township Born February 15, 1884. Enlisted August 8, 1918. Private, Battery D, 2d Reg., Field Art. Trained at Camp Taylor and Fort Logan (three weeks). Mustered out at Camp Taylor, Decem- ber 11, 1918. BRADV, PHILIP Scott Township Born August 12, 1888. Enlisted May 22, 1918. Private Ist-cl., at Gen. Headquarters, Chau- mont, France. Promoted from private to private Ist-cl. Sailed from Hoboken, August 20, on Leviathan; landed at Liverpool, August 31. To Southampton; to Cherbourg. To Paris; to Gen. Headquarters at Chaumont. Sailed from Brest August 20, on Vaterland; landed at Ho- boken, September 1, 1919. To Camp Dix. Mus- tered out September 15, 1919. BRAIIiBY, JACK H. Storm Iialie Born July 5, 1891. Enlisted April 10, 1917. Cook, Battery B, 103d Field Artillery, 26th Div. Trained at Camp Green during erection of that camp; ordered to Camp Mills with the 147th Field Artillery, 41st Div.; to Newport News Remount Station. Sailed with four companies of casuals on March 5, 1918, on the Northwest- ern, a small passenger boat taken off the west coast service; after rough trip reached Brest, March 14, without convoy; after laying in har- bor four days disembarked and proceeded to Lacourtine. In April left for Lorraine-Toul sector with the 103d Field Artillery. 26th Div.; at Chateau-Thierry July 8 to August 4; rested on banks of the Vesle river; to Chalbons until August 20; arrived at St. Mihiel September 6, taking up gun position September 10 to Sep- tember 18; after advancing across No Man's Land held position at St. Reny until October 3, fighting in battles of Meuse-Argonne and Verdun; after armistice was signed went on long hike back to Neufchatel; arrived at Le Mans January 23, 1919; transferred to Military Police Corps, serving in Paris until July 9, 1919; guarding prisoners at Tours until Sep- tember 20; spent four days in Paris; worked at Headquarters of Commandant of American Forces in France until November 11, 1919; assigned to convoying supplies to different parts of France. Still in Paris when this rec- ord was compiled. BRAKB, EDWIN Maple "Valley Township Enl. September 3, 1918. Pvt. Base Hosp. 1. Trained: Camp Bodge; Camp Beauregard; Camp Upton; Camp Merritt; Camp Lee. Mustered out December 31, 2918. BRAITDVOI.D, AARON JOHN Rembrandt Born September 26, 1899. Enl. October 11, 1918. Pvt. in Student Army Training Corps. Trained at Buena Vista College, Storm Lake, Iowa. Mustered out December 13, 1918. BRATTIN, THOMAS Maple Valley Township Born June 13. 1895. Enl. June 13, 1918. Pvt. Bat. E, 338th Art., 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge. Went to Desnth, France. After the armistice was signed was transferred to Mili- tary Police. Wlas at Lorraine sector. Re- turned to the United States about February 8, on the U. S. S. Pocahontas. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, February 27, 1919. 54 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY BBAV, EABZ. W. Sioux Rapids Born August 22, 1895. Enl. December 8, 1917. Pvt. Co. 8, 41st Aerial Squadron. Trained at Kelly Field and Camp Mills. Sailed from New York, May 3, 1918; landed at Liverpool, May 16. To Winchester; to Salisbury; to Liver- pool; to Calais. To Liverpool. Sailed from Liverpool November 28; landed at New York, December 11, 1918. Mustered out December 27, 1918. BBEICr, EVEBETT B. Storm Iiake Born January 14, 1898. Enl. April 8, 1917. Sergt. Co. B, 166th Regt., 42d Div. Trained at Cherokee; to Camp Cody, left Co. K, 133d Inf. at Camp Cody in June as Replm. Co. No. 3. Sailed from New York, June 28; landed at St. Nazaire, July 10. Transferred to 162d Inf., 41st Div., then to 42d Div. at Champagne sector, July 14; to Chateau Thierry; to St. Mihiel; to Verdun; to Meuse-Argonne; to Sedan; to Coblenz, Germany; to Base Hosp. No. 36 for six weeks; to Toul for three weeks; to Podensac; to Bordeaux. Sailed from Bor- deaux on Walter A. Luckenbach, March 6, 1919; landed at Camp Mills, March 18. At Camp Mills for eighteen days; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out April 8, 1919. BBUMMBB, "WIIiIiIi: J. Grant Township Born December 20, 1896. Enl. September 6, 1918. Pvt. in Quarter Master Corps, 163d Depot Brigade. Trained at Camp Dodge from September 8 to November 8, 1918; to Camp Johnson from November 10 to January 10, 1919; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out January 11, 1919. BSBYFOGIiB, ARTHUR BBRTEN Alta Born April 4, 1901. Enl. April 2E, 1917. Seaman on U. S. S. Welles. Promoted from apprentice seaman to seaman. Trained at G. L. N. T. S.; to Philadelphia; to New York. Made four trips on S. S. Pioneer with armed guard gun crew. First, second and third trips were round trips touching at Liverpool. Le Havre, Rouen, and then back to Plymouth; fourth trip to Gibraltar, Algiers, Tunis, Brez- erta. Island of Malta, and Gibraltar. Left Gibraltar for New York on S. S. Pioneer; landed at Bayonne, New Jersey; to Brooklyn; at Brooklyn transferred to the U. S. S Gamble. To Cuba; to Norfolk; to Boston; to Rockland, Maine; to Boston to convoy President Wilson's ship, the George Washington, into harbor; to Norfolk; to Key West; to Cuba; to New York. Transferred to U. S. S. Welles. Mustered out August 30, 1919. On September 2, 1919, re- enlisted for two years. BRB-STFOGIiB, FORREST McKINZiEY Alta Born January 2, 1900. Enl. October 11, 1918. Pvt. Student Army Training Corps. Trained at Buena Vista College, Storm Lake, Iowa. Mustered out December 13, 1918. Died of scarlet fever October 2, 1919. BREYFOGIiE, MERZiE EDWARD Alta Born September 20, 1898. Enl. May 7, 1917. seaman on U. S. S. Wisconsin. Promoted from apprentice seaman to seaman. Trained at Newport, Rhode Island; sent to receiving ship at Boston; to New York; to U. S. S. Wiscon- sin, general service on U. S. S. Wisconsin, cruising on Atlantic Coast, the work of the ship being to train naval men for service; cruised in summer of 1919 for midshipman training. Mustered out at G. L. N. T. S., August 3, 1919. BRISTOI., JOTHAM M. Marathon Born April 2, 1900. Pvt. Student Army Training Corps. Trained at Buena Vista Col- lege, Storm Lake, Iowa. Enl. October 11, 1918. Mustered out December 13, 1918. BROWIT, CI.AUDE E. Hayes Township Born June 2, 1892. Enl July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, 11th Regt. Marine Corps. Trained at Paris Island. On September 15 ordered to Quantico. September 29, sailed from Phila- delphia on U. S. S. De Kalb; landed at Brest, October 13. To Mehun; to Gievres on guard duty; to Brest on July 15, 1919; to Camp Hosp. No. 33, where he underwent an operation for appendicitis. Sailed from Brest on U. S. S. Agamemnon, August 10; landed at Hoboken, August 18. To naval hosp. until August 24. To Quantico, where he was mustered out on September 13, 1919. BRUHN, FRED Storm Ziake Born May 11, 1893. Enlisted July 24, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl., Co. C, 316th Regt. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon and St. Georges, France. Promoted from pvt. to pvt. Ist-cl. To Camp Merritt. Sailed from New York on the U. S. S. Plattsburg, August 29; landed HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 55 at Brest, September 13. To St. Georges for Barracks. Sailed for France, November 12, training; to Verdun; in Meuse-Argonne offen- sive; in Battle of Grande Montagne. Sailed from St. Nazaire on U. S. S. Texan, May 16, 1919; landed at Philadelphia, May 29. To Camp Dix; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out, June 8, 1919. 1917, on Madawaska; landed at St. Nazaire. To Issurtille; to Hosp. No. 119 at Saveney on account of sinusitis. Sailed from St. Nazaire on the Manchuria. May 11, 1919; landed at New York. May 21, 1919. To Camp Merritt; to Fort Sheridan. BRYANT, WUiIiIAM F. Sulphur Spring's Born January 16, 1882. Enl. April 13, 1917. Pvt. Ist-cl. Engineers, Railroad Reserve. Trained at Municipal Pier, Chicago. Sailed from New York, July 22, 1917, on R. M. S. St. Louis; landed at Liverpool, August 1. To Borden Camp, paraded in London August 15, with 1st U. S. troops in London; to Le Havre, France, August 17. To Chalons-sur-Marne for two weeks; to Fleury-sur-Aire until April, 1919; to Marseilles. Sailed on U. S. S. Bel- videre: landed at New York, April 28. To Camp Merritt; to Chicago for Parade; to Camp Grant. Mustered out May 12, 1919. BBYNGEI.SON', CHABI.i:V A. Iiinn Grove Born June 12, 1888. Enlisted September 20, 1917. Pvt. Co. G, 26th Inf., 1st Div. Trained at Camp Dodge and Camp Pike. Prom Camp Pike to port of embarkation for overseas. Sailed on June 12, 1918; landed in France July 1. Arrived on front lines July 19, and participated in drive known as the Second Battle of the Marne; in St. Mihiel offensive from September 12 to 16; in Meuse-Argonne offensive from September 26 to November 11; on Victory Hike through Germany from No- vember 15 to December 20; crossed the Rhine, December 13; remained with Army of Occupa- tion until August 17, 1919. Sailed from France August 23; landed at Hoboken, Septeinber 4. Paraded in New York City and in Washington, D. C. Was in service two years and four days; overseas, fourteen months and sixteen days. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, September 24, 1919. BBYNGZiliSOIT, BIiMEB Ziinii Grove Born January 13, 1893. Enl. July 29, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, 211th Engineers. Trained at Camp Forrest and at Camp Meade. Mustered out January 17, 1919 . BUCKINGHAIVI, BAY D. Storm £ake Born July 14, 1892. Enl. September 5, 1917. Pvt. Supply Co. 307th Regt., Quartermaster Corps. Trained at Fort Logan; at Madison BUI.I.ABD, FBANCIS BDWABD Storm Iiake Born August 31, 1885. Enl. January 19, 1918. Fireman Ist-cl. on U. S. S. Conner. No special training after last enlistment, but had had eight years previous service. Served on board the U. S. S. Conner. Sailed from New York for overseas on May 12, 1918; first port, the Azores Islands; to Brest, where he was sta- tioned for the rest of his stay overseas, do- ing convoy duty. Left Brest for the United States on June 16, 1919; landed at New York, June 26, 1919. Released from naval service on July 7, 1919, subject to call in United States Naval Reserve Force. First enlistment Sep- tember 7, 1907; discharged on December 2, 1915. No real battle engagements, but was in several submarine attacks. BUMAN, CABI^ W. Storm Iiake Born September 28, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. in inf. unassigned. Trained at Camp Gordon, attended Non-Commissioned Officers' Training School. November 1, transferred to Camp Shelby. Recommended for promotion to sergt. Mustered out December 30, 1918. BUMANN, BDWABD C. Maple Valley Township Born September 14, 1894. Enl. September 9, 1917. Musician Headquarters Co., 78th Field Art., 6th Div. Trained at Port Logan for five weeks, in the 24th Co. Band Barracks; ordered to Fort Riley October 21, 1917, at this camp the 20th Cavalry originated from the old 13th Cavalry which was in service on the Mexican border and he was stationed there with the cavalry outfit for two weeks; sent to Camp Logan, Texas, for six months and was with the 78th Field Art.; to Camp Doniphan; to Fort Sill, May, 1918, trained here until July 3; to Camp Mills, July 4. Sailed for Liverpool, England, July 13; landed July 26, 1918. To rest camp at Knotty Ash; to AVinchester; to Southampton; crossed the English Channel and landed at Le Havre. In box cars to Vercel; was billeted at Vercel for seven weeks; hiked to Camp Valhadon and camped there for six weeks; to Liffol-le-Grande; was in reserve for the front lines at the time that the armistice William H. Buri^man Washington Township George C. Burkmeister Grant Township William Earp Burns Storm Lake Jerry D. Carey Storm Lake John R. Carey Storm Lake Ernest O. Carlsen Elk Township Arthur Carlson Albert City *- Arthur Carlson Fairfield Township Carl Gerhard Carlson Albert City Carl Sigurd Carlson Alta Oscar Carlson Fairfield Township Richard Arthur Carlson Alta Adolph Carstensen Newell Charles Carstensen Newell Acey Caskey Sioux Rapids Buford H. Caskey Lincoln Township Henry C. Caskey Sioux Rapids Donald E. Castle Alta Francis E. Castle Matthew A. Cavanaugh Alta Storm Lake Lester Henry Challand Storm Lake Gerald W. Chaney Newell Osbornp M, Chaney Newell Lyell A. Chapman Storm Lake 58 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY was signed; hiked on December 6, for a weeli's hilte to Baigneux-le-juifs wliere he re- mained froin December 13 to the middle of January; left company on account of sick- ness on April 6, 1919; sent to Camp Hosp. No. 48 at Recy for ten days; to Base Hosp. No. 103 for four days; evacuated to Hosp. Center at Saveney; to Base Hospital No 113 for one week; sent to camp near Brest for twelve days. Sailed from Brest, May 6; landed at Hoboken, May 16. Sent to Base Hosp. at Camp Merritt until June 14; sent to Gen. Hosp. No. 29 at Fort Snelling for an operation. Mustered out July 24, 1919. BUMANN, ERNEST H. Maple Valley Township Born September 10, 1891. Enl. January 20, 1918. Musician 3d-cl., Headquarters Co., 350th Regt., 88th Div. Promoted from pvt. to musi- cian 3d-cl. Trained at Camp Dodge; trans, to Camp Upton. Sailed overseas on S. S. Delta. Trained at Semur, France, for five weeks; at Chagny for three weeks; to Alsace front; re- lieved the 29th Division; then trans, to a point near Toul for three weeks; to Menon- court; took tour in Southern France; returned to Menoncourt for three months; played for the sick and the wounded at Toul for one week; sent to the Le Mans area; to St. Nazaire. Sailed on the Aeolus; landed at Newport News. To Camp Dodge. Was with the 350th Inf. Band all of the time that he was in the service. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, June 5, 1919. BUMAITN, HEBMAir H. Maple Valley Township Born April 6, 1897. Enl. September 5. 1918. Pvt. Motor Transportation Trucks Corps. Trained at Camp Dodge for two months; trans- ferred to Fort Sam Houston for one month; to Camp Normoyle for one month; sent back to Fort Sam Houston for one month; to Chicago Municipal Pier, two weeks; transferred to Brenan School for six weeks, for service in Motor Transportation Trucks Corps, garage work. Mustered out March 18, 1919, at Brenan School. BUMANN, WII.I.IA1VI W. Maple Valley Township Born March 12, 1890. Enl. December 15, 1917. Musician, 15th Cavalry Troop. Trained at Denylas, Arizona, for one and one-half months; transferred to Camp Merritt. Sailed for France from Hoboken, March 14, 1918; landed at Brest, March 26, 1918. Regt. was split up on landing and sent to several re- mount stations, taking horses to different fronts; from March to January 1, 1919, he was engaged in this work; entire regiment was released from remount duty and trans, to military police duty for six months. Sailed from St. Nazaire, June 8, on Pammusun; landed at New York, June 19,' 1919. To Camp Mills; all members of the band were then trans, to Fort D. A. Russell; then trans, to Camp Grant. Mustered out July 9, 1919. BUBCHAM, THOMAS G. Storm Iiake Born April 17, 1891. Enl. July 24. 1918. Pvt. Co. A, 361st Regt., 91st Div. Trained at Camp Gordon for six weeks; to Camp Merritt. Sailed overseas on America, September 4; landed at Brest, September 14. To rest camp three days; to Lunery for two weeks; to Rulaire, Belgium; to Odenahr; to Flanders front; was at front until armistice was signed; moved back to St. Martin and re- mained there from December 1 to March 20, 1919; to St. Nazaire. Sailed from St. Nazaire April 3; landed at New York April 14. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge Mustered out at Camp Dodge April 26, 1919. BUBGBTT, KENNETH I^. Newell Born August 10, 1898. Enlisted October 18, 1918. Pvt. Co. G, Student Army Training Corps. Trained at Iowa State University, Iowa City, Iowa. Mustered out December 21, 1918. BURKE, EDWIN E. Foland Township Born August 23, 1898. Enl. January 14, 1918. Wagoner, Aviation (Army) in Motor Headquarters Depot, 104th Ammunition Train, 29th Div. Trained at Camp McClellan for two weeks; at Kelly Field froin February to May 1, 1918. Promoted from pvt. to wagoner, July, 1918. Sailed from Hoboken, June 29; landed at Gilburg, July 21, 1918. To Cherbourg. To Poitiers one month for training; to Camp de Mencon from August 25 until November 9; to Jussy until March 10, 1919; to St. Nazaire. Sailed from St. Nazaire on S. S. Fairfax, May 11; landed at Newport News, May 21. To Camp Mills four days; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out May 27, 1919. BURKE, -WII.I. Ziee Township Born August 6, 1896. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Marine Corps. Started to Paris Island for training but was called back to Cincinnati, Ohio. Mustered out at Chicago, November 14, 1918. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 59 BUBKHOIiDER, EABI. Q. SiouK Rapids Born December 28, 1895. Enl. July 24, 1018. Pvt. Co. M, 316th Inf., 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon from July 27 until August 24. Sailed from Hoboken on U. S. S. Plattsburg. August 30; landed at Brest, September 12. To St. Georges for t\vo weeks; moved to a position near Verdun until October 20; received an in- jury in his left foot while hiking to lines; sent to Base Hosp. No. 43 at Blois, and re- mained there until November 2.'>; to St. Aignan as a casual; to St. Nazaire. Sailed on S. S. Finland from St. Nazaire, December 28; landed at Newport News January 9, 1919. To Camp Hill until January 19; to Camp Dodge, arrived January 22. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, January 29, 1919. BURKMAir, WrLIiIAM H. Washing'toii Township Born January 20, 1895. Enl. May 28, 1918. Corp. Bat. A, 337th Field Art., 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge, left Camp Dodge for Camp Mills. Promoted from pvt. to corp. Sailed from New York, August 18. Landed at New York, on return from overseas, January 19, 1919; sent to the U. S. with Casual Detach- ment No. 51. Mustered out January 31, 1919. BUSBY, RAY Storm Xiake Born November 21, 1891. Enlisted Septem- ber 7, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 161st Inf., 41st Div. Trained at Camp Gordon. Sailed overseas, October 26, 1918; landed at Liverpool, Novem- ber 4, 1918. CARBY, JERRY D. Storm Ijake Born February 24, 1896. Enl. April 7, 1917. Corp. Co. Headquarters, 168th Regt., 42d Div. Promoted from pvt. to corp. April 1, 1919. Trained at Cherokee, Iowa; to Des Moines, Iowa; to Camp Mills. Sailed from New York on U. S. S. President Grant. October 18, 1917; returned to port, October 28; sailed again on English transport, November 14; landed at Liverpool. To Winchester; to Southampton; to Le Havre. To Langres; to Baccarat; en- tered line of fighting at Baccarat in Luneville sector, February 22; to Lorraine front; to Champagne, July 1; to Chateau-Thierry, July 22 to August 5; to St. Mihiel, September 12; to Argonne, October 12; to Sedan, on the line when the armistice was signed; went to Ger- many to become a part of the Army of Occu- pation at Nieder Breisig; left Germany for Brest, March 6, 1919. Sailed from Brest on U. S. S. Leviathan, April 18; landed at New York April 26. To Camp Upton to Camp Dodge. Mustered out May 16, 1919. BVRMBISTBR, GBORGB C. Grant Township Born May 29, 1895. Enl. January 3, 1918. Pharmacist's Mate 3d-cl., Hosp. Corps. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. for thirteen months; trans, to Chelsea Naval Hosp.; to Ammunition Depot, Hingham, Massachusetts; to tJ. S. S. Delaware; on February 16, 1919, sailed from Boston to Cuba; to Martinique; to Fort de France; to Tangiers Sound for battle practice; trans, to U. S. S. Rhode Island; to San Francisco by way of Panama Canal; detained at Balboa thirty days on account of broken propeller shaft, then proceeded to San Francisco with one propeller. Mustered out at St. Louis, Sep- tember 22, 1919. BURSTS, VrHiIiIAM BARF Storm Iiake Born November 23, 1888. Enl. October 28, 1918. Second Lieut., Sanitary Corps. Trained at Yale Army Laboratory School. Mustered out December 20, 1918. CAREY, JOHN R. Storm Iiake Born December 18, 1891. Attended Second Reserve Officers' Training Corps at Fort Snel- ling in 1917, and was given an honorable dis- charge for physical disability. Enlisted June 12, 1918. Pvt., Central Headquarters Co. of Tank Corps. Trained at Gettysburg, Pennsyl- vania, and at Tobyhanna, Pennsylvania. Sailed from New York on R. M. S. Orenteo, September 25. 1918; landed at Liverpool October 8. To Southampton; left Southampton for Cherbourg, October 10; landed at Cherbourg, October 11. Trans, to 1st Provisional Depot Co. Tank Corps and convoy work between tank center at Varrennes; trans, to 302d Center Casual Detachment on November 13 in order to join "Tank Corps Follies" which toured nearly all American camps for the entertainment of sol- diers; trans, to 302d Center Headquarters on March 1, 1919; left Bourg on March 8; to St. Nazaire, March 11. Sailed from St. Nazaire on U S. S. Philippines, March 20; landed at New York, April 3. In tank parade in New York City. To Camp Meade, April 12; paraded in Washington, D. C, and Baltimore; to Camp Grant. Mustered out April 23, 1919. 6o HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY CARI.SEN, EBNEST O. Elk Township Born January 11, 1893.- Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 316th Inf., 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon in 4th Replm. Regt. for 6 weeks; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from Newport News, August 29, on U. S. S. Plattsburg; landed at Brest September 12. Trans, to 132d Inf. at St. Georges, trained here for three weeks; trans, to . Co. 305, Military Police, 79th Div.; two weeks afterwards was transferred to Co. E, 316th Inf., 79th Div.; joined the 316th Inf. north of Verdun; was wounded in Verdun sector November 4; sent to Base Hospital No. 900; four months in Southern France; joined Co. E., 316th Inf'.; south of Verdun; to Waly; to St. Nazaire. Sailed from St. Nazaire, May 17, 1919, on U. S.' S. 'Texan; landed at Phila- delphia, May 30. To Camp Dix; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out Jutie 8, 1919. CABI.SOIT, ARTHUR Albert City Born February 10, 1887. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained at Gamp Gordon. Sailed from New York on the U. S. S. Plattsburg, September 1, 1918; landed at Brest, September 13. Sent to Fort Napo- leon; to St. George, where he left the inf. and was transferred to the General Headquarters at Valbonne, Aisne; to Clamecy; to Le Mans Rifle and Pistol Camp. Sailed from Brest, July 18, 1919, on the F. J. Luckenbach. Mustered out August 8, 1919. CARIiSON, ARTHUR C. rairfield Tcwnship Born January 9, 1897. Enl. September 13, 1917. Pvt. Mach Gun Co., 61st Regt., 5th Div. Trained at Fort Logan; to Gettysburg, Penn- sylvania; October 5, to Camp Greene; April 9, to Camp Merritt. Sailed overseas, April 16 on the Czar; landed at Brest, April 28. To Bar-sur-Aube; to camp near Gerardiner; to front lines in Colmer sector; in Vosges Moun- tains; to Locud sector; to St. Die sector until October 23; to St. Mihlel sector; ordered ■south of Toul to Montfaucon; in Argohne Forest, in attack from October 12 until Octo- ber 22; to Malincourt, October 27; in attack southwest of Brielles, took Dun-sur-Meuse, and remained there until November 11; to Radauge, Luxemburg; to Brest. Sailed from Brest on Aquatanion, July 13, 1919; landed at Camp Mills, July 20. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out July 28, 1919. CARI.SON, CARI. GERHARD Albert City Born March 7, 1891. Enlisted June 25, 1918. Pvt. Co. 1, 351st Inf., 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; to Camp Mills. Sailed on Gueleses, August 16; landed at Liverpool. To Southampton; to Cherbourg. Trained at Hancourt for twenty days; in line at Belfort front until October 29; back to Belfort for eleven days; to Toul until November 30; to Hudailcourt until May 10; to Le Mans area; to San Husain; to port of embarkation. Sailed May 20, 1919; landed at Newport News. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 7, 1919. CARI^SON, CARI^ SIGURD Alta Born November 21, 1897. Enl. September 20, 1917. Pvt. Co. C, 168th Inf., 42d Div. Trained at Camp Dodge for two months; to Camp Cody for eight months; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from New York June 28, 1918; landed at Glas- gow. Crossed England by train; crossed Chan- nel to Le Havre. In Aisne-Marne offensive July 26 to August 6; in St. Mihiel offensive September 12 to September 16; in Meuse-Ar- gonne offensive September 26 to November 11; after armistice was signed went with Army of Occupation to Ramagen. Sailed from Brest in April, 1919; landed in United States in April, 1919. To Camp Mills; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out May 12, 1919. CARI.SON, GOTTFRIED R. Newell Born July 25, 1890. Enl. April 6, 1917. First Sergt. Co. H, 16Sth Inf., 42d Div. Trained at Sioux City, Iowa. Sailed from New York on U. S. S. President Grant, October 6; returned on October 13, on account of dis- abled ship; sailed again on H. M. S. Baltic, November 1; landed at Liverpool, November 11. To Southampton on November 15; to Le Havre. To Langres; to Baccarat sector until May 17, 1918; went over the top in six major engagements; to Champagne front from May 23 until July 19; fought in Champagne offen- sive; to Chateau-Thierry from July 23 to July 29, advancing all of these six days; wounded at Sergy on July 29; sent to First Aid Sta- tion No. 105; to Base No. 26; Convalescent Camp at St. Goraine; to Langres as an in- structor in infantry at army school; recalled and joined regt. for Argonne drive for 19 days until November 11; sent to Tours to check records; back to regt. March 23, 1919. Sailed with 42d Div. convalescents on Mercia, April 26; landed in the United States May 7. To Camp Upton and waited for regiment to arrive. Mustered out May 19, 1919. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 6i CABI.SON, OSCAR Fairfield Township Born August 27, 1891. Enl. June 25, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 350th Inf., 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; to Camp Upton. Sailed on Delta, August 11; landed at London, August 25. To Camp Woodley; to Southampton; to Cherbourg. To Semur; trained at Hericourt; to Alsace front about three weeks; was on way to Metz when the armistice was signed; to Malancourt five months; to Saint Husani. Sailed on U. S. S. Asleus, May 19, 1919; landed at Newport News May 30, 1919. Mustered out June 5, 1919. CABI.SON, RICHARD ARTHUR Alta Born November 24, 1894. Enl. August 28, 1918. Private Auxiliary Remount Depot 323. Trained at Camp Funston, Co. 14, 164th Depot Brigade, from August 28 to October 11; to Auxiliary Remount Depot 323 from October 11 to May 14, 1919. Mustered out May 14, 1919. CARSTSNSi:^, ADOI.FH Newell Born December 17, 1892. Enl. June 24, 1918. Fireman on U. S. S. Beaver. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. Did service in Canal Zone. Patrol duty on U. S. S. Beaver. Mustered out July 5, 1919. CARSTI:NSI]N, CHARZ.KS New^ell Born August 10, 1895. Enl. July 29, 1918. Sergt. Co. B, 214th Engineers, 14th Div. Trained at Camp Forrest three months; to Camp Custer. Promoted from pvt. to sergt. In inf. training, bridge construction, and pontoon work. Mustered out February 11, 1919. CASKEY, BUFORD H. Iiincoln Township Born November 16. 1S96. Enlisted July 11, 1918. Seaman 2d-cl., Co. 7, 4th Regt. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. from July 23 to August 31, 1918; to Bremerton Navy Yai-d; assigned to U. S. S. West Maximus, January 15, 1919. Mustered out January 23, 1919. 30; landed at Brest September 14. Sent to hosp. at St. Bruic until October 15; returned to Brest and joined a casual co.; moved to Le Mans on rifle range until October 25; to Conlie; to Toul sector but did not get to front, was in Toul sector until November 17; hiked to Choilley, November 25 and remained there until March 15, 1919. Sailed from Bordeaux on the Antonio Lopez, May 1; landed at New York. To Camp Upton; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out May 26, 1919. CASKEY, HENRY C. Sioux Rapids Born March 20, 1898. Enl. April 20, 1917. Seaman in Navy. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. five days; to Navy Yard, Portsmouth, New Hamp- shire until July 6, 1917; for ship training was sent to battleship Nebraska, July 8, 1917, re- mained on ship two and one-half months; to Norfolk, September 21; on S. S. Monplace, December 1; left on first trip December 3, 1917; inade four trips between Norfolk and Bordeaux and .between Norfolk and Nantes . Mustered out August 9, 1919. CASTI.E, DONAI.D E. Alta Born February 23, 1896. Enl. May 23. 1917. Musician Ist-cl. in the G. L. N. T. S. Batt. Band. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. Promoted froin 2d-cl. to Ist-cl. musician. Mustered out March 1, 1919. CASTI.E, FRANCIS E. Alta Born September 23, 1896. Enl. July 17, 1918. Seaman on U. S. S. Astoria. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. for 2 months; trans, to Philadelphia; to New York; to Louisville for two weeks; to Brooklyn. Trans, to U. S. S. DeKalb; sailed to Brest. Trans, to the destroyer Worthington; sent to Plymouth, England; to Cardiff, "Wales; to Barry, Wales. Trans, to the U. S. S. Astoria; sailed to St. Nazaire, France; sent back to Barry, Wales; to Queenstown, Ireland; to Azores Island; to Norfolk, Virginia; to Ports- mouth, New Hampshire. Ordered to G. L. N. T. S. to be mustered out. Mustered out August 16, 1919. CASKEY, ISAAC Sioux Rapids Born May 18, 1892. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. F, 325th Inf., 82d Div. Trained at Camp Gordon from July 25 to August 25. Sailed from Hoboken on U. S. S. Plattsburg, August CAVANAUGH, MATTHEW A. Storm Iiake Born February 15, 1892. Enl. July 27, 1918. Sergt. Headquarters Co., Gen. Head- quarters American Expeditionary Forces, Julian N. Cheney Newell Alfred O. Christensen Elk Township Chris A. Christensen Chris M. Christensen Newell Newell ^ '%-^ Clara Eugenie Christensen Clarence P. Christensen David Christensen Gus A. Christensen Sioux Rapids Newell Newell Sioux Rapids Jens Mathiesen Christensen Carl Emil Christenson Newell Sioux Rapids O. Aron Christenson Sioux Rapids Victor Christenson Sioux Rapids Victor Christenson Sioux Rapids Mori-is Edgar Christian Isaac Martin Christiansen Glenn S. Clabaugh Alta Rembrandt Sioux Rapids DeLoss AV. Claris Edric Foss Clarlv William McKinley Clarlv Harley H. Claus Newell Alta Alta Sioux Rapids Carl G. G. Clement Fairfield Township Jesse Arthur Cleveland Linn Grove Oscar Clevehiiid Barnes Township George Richard Coakley Storm Lake 64 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Chaumont, France. Trained at Camp Gordon, assigned to Co. D, 4tli Replm. Inf. Regt.; pro- moted to Co. Clerk on October 19 and trans, to Co. 22 as Special Duty Man; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from New York, October 26; landed November 8. On arrival in Prance, assigned to Co. C, Gen. Headquarters American Expedition- ary Forces, at Chaumont. Arrived at Ne'w York, June 25, 1919. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out July 3, 1919. Stoim Iiake Born January 23, 1894. Enl. February 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. 45, 20th Engineers. Trained at Camp Dodge with Co. E, 351st Inf., 88th Div.; ordered to Camp, American University, Wash- ington, D. C; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from Hoboken on the President Lincoln, May 10, 1918; landed at Brest, May 23. Set out for rest camp three miles from Brest; May 31 started for front, but were switched off at Bazoilles, thirty kilometers from front and put to work in the woods cutting wood and remained there until August 5: to Rennes, August 9, pitched tents and worked on a sawmill and four kilo- ineters of railroad; left for Grancourt Septem- ber 20; arrived at Grancourt, September 24, worked in stone quarry night and day, could see airplanes and hear the roar of guns a.bout twenty kilometers away, remained at this place until November 3; trans, then from Co. D, 72d Engineers to the 45th Co., 20th Engineers; left Grancourt for St. Maurice, November 3, worked making a sawmill and tearing down a sawmill until after the armis- tice was signed; left for Lamarche, December 1; arrived at Lamarche December 2, worked in woods and sawmill until January 13, 1919; to Bordeaux, worked in woods logging; May 13, left Ponteraz; to Bordeaux. Sailed from Bordeaux on Luckenbach, May 17; landed June 1. Mustered out June 9, 1919. CHANEY, CARLTOH L. Weweli Born April 18, 1892. Enl. June 23, 1918. Pvt. ■Coast Art. Trans. to Paymaster, Quarter Master, on account of physical disability. Trained at Fortress Monroe. Mustered out February 12, 1918. CHANEY, GI:BAX.D W. Newell Born October 5, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Sergt. Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon; attended a Non-Commissioned Officers' School. Promoted from pvt. to sergt. Mustered out December 24, 1918. CHANEY, OSBOBNi: M. Ne'weU Born March 13, 1890. Enl. May 25, 1918. Pvt. Ist-class, Concentration Brigade, 820th Aero Squadron. Trained at Austin, Texas, Ground School. TVitli Examining Board at Kelly Field Proinoted to pvt. Ist-cl. Mustered out January 25, 1919. CHAFMAN, I.YEI.Z. A. Storm Xiake Born August 1, 1887. Enl. September 5, 1917. Second Lieut., Co. M, 126th Inf., 32d Div. Promoted from pvt. to sergt., November 9, 1917; to 2d lieut., June 1, 1918. Trained at Camp Dodge and Camp Pike; to Camp Merritt. Sailed overseas, August 24; landed at Liver- pool, September 4. To Southampton, Septem- ber 4; to Le Havre, France, September 7. To St. Aignan, September 11; assigned to 32d Div., September 16 at Joinville; September 21 to Camions; to Bois de Lavois to reserve line, September 26; September 30 to front line west and north of Montfaucon; captured Lagrange farm; to Gesnes; to Cierges; relieved October 7, by 125th Inf. coming into support position; to Base Hosp. No. 45 at Beaune; rejoined regi- ment at Bois de Montfaucon, November 3; moved to Breheville in support of the 5th Div. on November 10; relieved the 5th Div. on November 13; started for the Rhine on Novem- ber 16; entered Germany, December 13; located at Rengsdorf; December 28 moved to Weiss until April 20; to Brest. Sailed from Brest, May 15 on the Imperator; landed at New York, May 26; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, June 11, 1919. CHENEY, JULIAN N. Newell Born June 2, 1899. Enl. October 4, 1918. Pvt. Student Army Training Corps. Trained at Buena Vista College, Storm Lake, Iowa. Mustered out December 13, 1918. CHZMSTENSEN, AXaF2iED O. Elk Township Born March 2, 1895. Enl. June 26, 1918. Pvt. Co. B, 349th Inf., 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge for eight months; trans, to 19th Div. Supply Train; was in 88th Div. for one month and was then trans, to 163d Depot Brigade; then trans, to above named supply train; to Detroit, Michigan, for convoy work between Detroit and Chicago for three weeks; from Chicago sent back to Camp Dodge; then to Camp Lewis for mustering out. Mustered out February 26, 1919. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 65 CHBISTIINSEN, CHABI.II: J. Elk Township Born March 19, 1SS5. Enl. August 6. 191S. Pvt. Ist-cl., H Troop, 12th Cav. Enl. at Chicago as pvt. in cav. replm. outfit; trained at Jefferson Barracks for two months; trans, to Pamma, Illinois, to Regular Army, H Troop. 12th Cav., here he was promoted to pvt. Ist-cl. and was in training at this cav. post for eight months; to Camp Grant. Mustered out June 3, 1919. CHBISTSNSEIT, GUS A. Sioux Bapids Born December 4, 1894. Enl. April 21, 1917. Baker Ist-cl., on U. S. S. Text^s and U. S. S. North Dakota. Trained at Great Lakes Naval Training Station. Promoted from baker 3d-cl. to baker Ist-cl. Service cruising in south sea waters; served seven months on board the U. S. S. Texas and on the U. S. S. North Dakota — the first dreadnaught to pass through the Panama Canal. CHBISTSirSEN, CHBIS M. Newell Born March 19, 1889. Enl. June 25, 1918. Pvt. Co. K, 5th Replm. Inf. Trained at Camp Gordon. CHBISTENSEN, CHBIS A. Newell Born October 30, 1886. Enl. July 7, 1917. Mechanic, Co. B, 42d Regt., 12th Div. Trained at Fort Logan; Fort Douglas; Camp Dodge. On guard duty at Tocahoe, New Jersey, from March 25, 1918, to July 4, 1918; in Camp Devens until November 25; in Camp Upton until June 14, 1919. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, June 16, 1919. CHBISTENSEN, CIiABENCE P. Newell Born December 18, 1893. Enl. December 10, 1917. Mechanic, Co. 312, Aero Squadron. Trained at Fort Logan, Kelly Field, Camp Hempstead, Brooklyn, Paris Institute, at Me- chanics School, St. Paul, at Washington, D. C, and Bowling Field. Mustered out Septem- ber 2, 1919. CHBISTENSEN, (Miss) CI.ABA EUGENIE (Nurse) Sioux Bapids Born December 18, 1892. Trained at Camp Taylor in United States Army Nurse Corps. Mustered out December 19, 1918. CHBISTENSEN, DAVID Newell Born May 7, 1895. Enl. June 15, 1918. Musi- cian Ist-cl. Headquarters Co.. Military Bank. Motor Trans. Corps. Trained at Training Dept., Ames State School, Valparaiso, Indiana, promoted to musician first-class. Mustered out December 21, 1918. CHBISTENSEN, JENS MATHIESEN Newell Born August 4, 1890. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. B, 9th Inf., 2d Div. Trained at Camp Gordon with Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt. Sailed from Hoboken, September 14, on the English ship Olympic; landed at Southampton, September 21. Stayed in England until Sep- tember 30; crossed the English Channel and landed at Le Havre, October 1. Went through the camp at Le Mans; ordered to La Bazon to Co. B, 49th Inf., trained with them for two weeks; left on the 17th of October to join the 5th Div. on Meuse-Argonne front; sent to Co. E, 11th Inf., was in reserve from October 25 to the night of November 4; crossed the Meuse river on the morning of the 5th and went for- ward until the signing of the armistice; on November 15, transferred to Co. C, 23d Inf., 2d Div.; made the hike to Vallander on the Rhine, Germany, arriving there December 20, 1918; liiUeted at Vallander 011 the Rhine until April 10. 1919; transferred to Co. B, 9th Inf., 2d Div., Stationed at Bendorff at that time, but moved on April 19, to the outpost line of the American Zone, vacated by the 32d Div.; at Stiemel; to Westewald until July 15, when he left for Brest. Reached Brest, July 19. Sailed on the U. S. S. Princess Matoka, July 23; landed at Hoboken, August 1. To Camp Merritt; paraded with the 2d Div. in New York, August 8; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out August 14, 1919. CHBISTENSEN, JOHN Newell Born November 11, 1888. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon and at Camp Dodge. Mustered out Jan- uary 9, 1919. CHBISTENSEN, OLE J. Providsnce Township Born January 25, 1894. Enl. March 7, 1918. Mechanic, Co. 3, Coast Art. Trained at St. Louis, near Jefferson Barracks; on March 25, ordered to Fort Moultrie. Mustered out May 9, 1919. 66 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY CHBISTENSEN, WAIiTER Scott To'TOTttship Born July 23. 1889. Enl. July 29, 1918. Pvt. 1st Train. Batt. Engineers. Trained at Camp Forrest for five months; transferred to 212th Engineers, to 213th Engineers in first support. In Company G to Company H. to 25th Casualty Company at Camp Dodge. Mustered out January 6, 1919. CHBISTENSEN, CABI. EMIi; Sioux Rapids Born May 12, 1899. Enl. May 2, 1917. Baker 2d-cl., in transport service. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. and at Dunwoody Institute. Promoted from apprentice seaman to baker 2d-cl. In transport service made trips to Brest, St. Nazaire and Bordeaux, France. Made thirteen round trips to Europe. Mustered out August 1, 1919. CHBISTENSEN', O. ARON Sioux Rapids Born March 16, 1896. Enl. November 9, 1917; began active service on August 14, 1918. First Lieut, in Medical Reserve Corps, Medical Corps. Promoted from pvt. to 1st lieut. Trained at Army Training Detachment, Des Moines College; at Ft. Leavenworth, Decem- ber 17, 1918, for one month's training; pro- moted to Dental Assistant August 14, 1918; received first lieutenant's commission Jan- uary 31, 1919. Mustered out January 21, 1919. CHRISTENSEN', VICTOR ED-WIN Sioux Rapids Born November 22, 1898. Enl. April 12, 1917. Cook Ist-cl. Promoted from landsman baker to baker 2d-cl, to baker Ist-cl, to cook Ist-cl. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. At the G. L. N. T. S. during entire term of enlistment. Mustered out February 18, 1919. CHRISTENSUN, VICTOR R. Sioux Rapids Born December 19, 1889. Enl. May 10, 1917. Chief Gunner's Mate (A) in Aviation Branch of Navy. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. from May 10 to September 19, 1917; to Charleston, South Carolina from September 19 to July 4, 1918; to Bay Shore, Long Island, from July 4. 1918, to December 1, 1918; at Brunswick, Georgia, from December 1 until August 8, 1919. Pro- moted from fireman 3d-cl. to fireman 2d-cl; to gunner's mate 3d-cl., to gunner's mate 2d- cl.; to gunner's mate Ist-cl., to chief gunner's mate (A). Sent to Minneapolis for discharge. Mustered out August 12, 1919. CHRISTIAN, MORRIS EDGAR Alta, Born March 2, 1891. Enl. July 22, 1918. Corp in Cos. 49, 45 and 9, 163d Depot Brigade. Promoted from pvt. to corp. Trained at Camp Dodge. Mustered out December 12, 1918. CHRISTIANSEN, JAMES GEORGE Ne^well Born December 16, 1893. Enl. April 26, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, 29th Batt., United States Guards. Trained at Camp Dodge and Fort Snelling. On guard duty in Chicago Quarter Master Buildings. Mustered out December 19, 1918. CHRISTIANSON, ISAAC MARTIN Remliraiidt Born November 16, 1895. Enl. February 23, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl., Co. B, 39th Inf., 4th Div. Trained at CamiJ Green. Sailed from Hoboken on Italian ship Dansi Alghieri May 10; landed at Brest May 25. To Chateau-Thiery offensive, July 15. when this offensive was launched the 39th Inf. was moved from its training area at Acy to take its place in the front line for the first time; at Second Battle of the Marne, Vesle sector; at St. Mihiel operation; in Meuse- Argonne offensive where he received three wounds; was with the Army of Occupation in Germany. Sailed from Brest, July 30, 1919. on the Leviathan; landed at Hoboken, August 6. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out August 13, 1919. CI.ABAUGH, GI.ENN E. Sioux Rapids Born October 13, 1895. Enl. April 24, 1917. Pvt. Co. C, 16th Inf., 1st Div. Trained at Fort Logan from April 24 to May 8; to El Paso, Texas, from May 10 to .lune 2. Sailed from Hoboken on transport Havana, June 12, 1917; landed at St. Nazaire, France, June 26. To Gondrecourt until October 10; moved to Lorraine front October 5; trans, to De Mouse, October 25; moved to Toul sector January 5. 1918; in Toul sector forty-five days; moved to Ligney, February 20; to Montdidier, April 15; to Soissons July 15 and took part in the battle of Soissons on July 18; wounded by shrapnel in right foot on that day; taken to field hosp.; trans, to base hosp. near Bordeaux and was in this hosp. from July 26 until December 5; to embarkation hosp. December 7. Sailed from Bordeaux on Aeolus December 17, as a casual; landed at Newport News, Decem- ber 30. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, Janu- ary 21, 1919. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 67 CIiASK, BE I.OSS Vr. Ne'well Born April 7, 1895. Enl. July 3, 1917. Chief Radio Electrician on U. S. S. Illinois. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. and at Howard Radio School. Three months in war zone on Illinois. Mustered out August 1, 1919. CI.ABK, EDBIC FOSS Alta Born January 12, 1893. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. B, 316th Inf., 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon for one month; to Camp Merritt. Sailed on U. S. S. Plattsburg, August 30, 1918; landed at Brest, September 12, 1918. Trans, to the 163d Inf. for ten days; trans, to 316th Inf. and was sent to front on Meuse-Argonne, and remained there until the armistice was signed; was in attack on Hill 378, remain- ing in this sector for about three inonths; moved to various camps in France and then went to St. Nazaire. Sailed from St. Nazaire on U. S. S. Texan May 16, 1919; landed at Philadelphia, May 29, 1919. To Camp Dix; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 8, 1919. from June 30 until September 30, 1917; trans, to Camp Mills. Sailed on Baltic for France; landed in England, December 9. To Brest, December 13. To Longecourt, February 23, 1918; to Alsace-Lorraine, February 26; on April 14 relieved Nopmasoine; April 24, back to Alsace-Lori-aine; June 30, relieved the 77th Div.; to rest camp; to Champagne front on July 4; on July 20, relieved by French Algiers; July 26, at Chateau-Thierry front; August 1, relieved by the 26th Div.; on July 28, victim of mustard gas; to American Base Hosp. No. 66; trans, to American Base Hosp. No. 67; to American Base Hosp. No. 44; re-assigned to company on September 14, when at St. Mihiel front; relieved by the 77th Div.; October 15 to Argonne front; October 18, chlorine-gassed, taken to Field Hosp. No. 167; to Gas Hosp. No. 1; trans, to American Base Hosp. No. 58; to Base Hosp. No. 52 at Remecourt; to Bor- deaux on February 15; assigned to casualty company of Co. E, 160th Inf. Sailed for the United States, March 6. 1919, on the Lucken- bach; landed at Base Hosp. No. 5 at New York, March 19. To Fort Des Moines, March 28; then trans, to Camp Dodge for discharge. Mustered out April 15, 1919. CIiABK, "WIXtlilAlVI McKINIdEY Alta Born November 11, 1897. Enl. April 23, 1918. Yeoman Ist-cl., District Enrolling Office. Pro- moted from yeoman 3d-cl. to yeoman 2d-cl. to yeoman Ist-cl. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. Mustered out January 31, 1919. CIiUMENT, CARI. G. J. Fairfield Township Born April 2, 1896. Enl. July 29, 1918. Pvt. Co. H, 1st Training Batt. Engineers. Trained at Camp Forrest and Camp Dodge. Mustered out January 6, 1919. CIiAUS, HABI.EY H. Sioux Rapids Born February 6, 1894. Enl. September 20, 1917. Sergt. Co. A, 350th Inf., 88th Div. Promoted from pvt. to Corp., from corp. to sergt. Trained at French training camps. Sailed from New York on S. S. Delta, August 11, 1918; landed at London, August 25. Moved across the Channel to Cherbourg, France, August 28. To Foutry; to Chaguy; went into center sector of Haute-Alsace-Lorraine. Octo- ber 4; transferred to Toul sector, November 7, in offensive when armistice was signed; moved to Gondrecourt area until May 7, 1919; to St. Nazaire. Sailed from St. Nazaire on U. S. S. Aeolus, May 19; landed at Newport News, May 30. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out at Camp Dodge June 5, 1919. CliEARWATEB, BOY D. Albert City Born November 17, 1898. Enl. April 10, 1917. Pvt. Mach. Gun Co., 168th Inf., 42d Div. Trained at State Fair Grounds, Des Moines, Iowa, CIiFVEI^AND, JFSSE ARTHUR Iiinu Grove Born September 12, 1896. Enl. September 5, 1918. Pvt. Inf. in Depot Brigade, Trained at Camp Dodge. Mustered out February 25, 1919. CIiEVFIiAND, OSCAR Barnes Township Born August 18, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. A, 316th Begt., 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon in Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt.; trans, to Camp Merritt. Sailed from Hoboken on U. S. S. Plattsburg, August 29; landed at Brest, September 12. To St. George; to Verdun sector; to Genicourt. joined Co. F, 316th Regt., 79th Div; to Meuse-Argonne front from Octo- ber 15 to November 11; at Reiville from No- vember 11 until December 30; to Issencourt, trans, to Co. A, 316th Regt., 79th Div. for two months; to Orcaron for two weeks; to Henni- court three days; to St. Georges; to St. Nazaire. Sailed on U. S. S. Texan May 16, 1919; landed at Philadelphia, May 29. To Camp Dix; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 8, 1919. Elwood Thomas Cole Storm Lake William J. Condon Storm Lake Harry L. Cone Nokomis Township George W. Conley Newell Andrew J. Cuiinc!! Providence Townsliip Charley J. Connell Providence Township Jame.s VV. Connell Providence Townsliip John R. Connell Providence Township Thomas Glen Connoy Rembrandt Daniel K. Cosman Storm Lake Leigh Cottew Nokomis Township Samuel R. Couch Newell James Freeman Coulson William Howard Coulson Storm Lake Newell Herman llrni\ (^ox Alta Ollie Craig Sioux Rapids David B. Crissey Storm Lake George Dewey Crissey Storm Lake Howard R. Crissey Storm Lake Walter E. Crissey Storm Lake Clarence Eugene Crow Sioux Rapids Justice M. Crowley Storm Lake Albert H. Cunningham Luther W. Cunningham Storm Lake Lee Township 70 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY COAKZ.i:V, GEOBGi: RICHARD Storm Iiake Born December 31, 1896. Enl. April 3, 1918. Mechanic, 1st Co., Coast Art. Trained at Fort f'lagler and Fort Logan. Mustered out Janu- ary 4, 1919. COI^i:, EIiWOOD THOMAS Storm Iiake Born December 12, 1896. Enl. December 11, 1917. Quarter Master Ist-cl., 6th Regt., Avia- tion Dept., U. S. Navy. Trained at United States Training Station at Great I-akes, Illi- nois, and at Philadelphia Navy Yard. Sailed from Philadelphia on Olympic, June 15, 1918. In overseas service over six months at United States Naval Air Station in England near the North Sea. Sailed from Liverpool on Levia- than; landed at Pelham Bay, New York. To Charleston, South Carolina; to Akron, Ohio. Mustered out June 2, 1919. CONDOIT, VrrE.I.IA« J. Storm Iiake Born March 5, 1889. Enl. April 13. 1917. Pvt. Ist-cl., Co. M, 168th Inf., 42d Div. Trained at Cherokee; to State Fair Grounds, Des Moines, Iowa; to Camp Mills. Sailed for France on President Grant October 18, 1917; returned to port, October 28; sailed again November 14 on English ship Celtic; landed at Liverpool. To Winchester; to Southampton; to Le Havre. To Rimacourt; to Langres; to Baccarat; entered line of fighting in Luneville sector, February 21; to Champagne, July 1; to Chateau-Thierry, July 22; to St. Mihiel; to Argonne Forest; entered Base Hosp. No. 24 at Maves, October 5, with blood pionsoning; later went to Niederzessen, Germany; to Nieder- breisig; to Brest. Sailed on U. S. S. Leviathan in May, 1919; landed at New York. To Camp Upton; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out May 17, 1919. CONE, HARRV I.. ITokomis Tcwnship Born December 8, 1896. Enl. September 5, 1918. Pvt. Inf. Replm. Regt. Trained at Camp Dodge for nine months and nine days. Mustered out June 14, 1919. C0NI.I:Y, GEORGE w. Newell Born April 10, 1892. Enl. May 7, 1917. Second Lieut. Adjt. Gen's. Dept., 81st Div. Trained at Camp Cody. Sailed from New York on U. S. S. Olympia, October 17, 1918; landed at Southampton, October 24. Landed at Cherbourg, October 26. To Bordeaux with Headquarters Co., 34th Div.; in November sent to Headquarters, 34th Div.; in Gen. Quarter Master Headquarters at Chaumont; with Army of Occupation in Germany; assigned to 81st Div. in June, 1919. Sailed from St. Nazaire on June 9; landed at Newport News June 20; sailed on S. S. Manchuria. CONNEI.I., ANDREW J. Providence Township Born September 6, 1888. Enl. October 20, 1918. Pvt. Veterinary Co. No. 1. Trained at Camp Greenleaf. Mustered out at Camp Greenleaf December 19, 1918. CONNEI.I., CHARIiE-X- J. Providence Township Born March 21, 1900. Enl. September 9, 1819. Pvt. Co. A, Student Army Training Corps, Dubuque College. Trained at Dubuque College, Dubuque, Iowa. Mustered out Decem- ber 14, 1918. CONNEI^I., JAMES W. Providence Township Born August 17, 1890. Enl. October 1, 1918. Sergt., Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon and at Camp Wheeler Officers' Training Corps. Mustered out December 24, 1918. CONNEIiIi, JOHN R. Providence Township Born February 4, 1898. Enl. October 1, 1918. Pvt. Co. A, Student Army Training Corps, Dubuque College. Trained at Dubuque Col- lege, Dubuque, Iowa. Mustered out Decem- ber 16, 1918. CONNOY, THOMAS OIiEN Rembrandt Born December 26, 1892. Enl. February 24, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. Bat. F, 337th Art., 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge, trans, on April 12 to 35th Div. Promoted on August 5, 1918, to pvt. Ist-cl. Trained at Rumsley, England, for three months; left for Cherbourg. To Sarogona for one week; to Bains-les-Bains for three weeks; trans, from 35th Div. to the Military Police Army Corps, Remount; to St. Mihiel sector for six weeks; to Verdun, armistice was signed while here; started following the Ger- mans into Belgium; was at Veron. Belgium, on Thanksgiving day; left for Luxemburg; to HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 71 Germany; left March 13 for Metz; to Toul; to Chaumont; to Tours; to Le Mans; to Belgium, and was on the rifle range at this time, quali- fied as a sharpshooter, April 1. 1919; to St. Nazaire. Sailed April 16; landed at Newport News, April 28. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out May 7, 1919. COSMAIT, DANIEIi K. Storm Iiake Born December 30, 1887. Enl. August 29, 1918. Pvt. Service Park Unit No. 503, Motor Transport Corps. Trained at Camp Dodge and at Fort Sam Houston; taken to the base hosp., October 25. Mustered out January 24, 1919. COTTEW, I.EIGH Alta Born June 13, 1887. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. A, 348th Mach. Gun Batt., 91st Div. Trained at Camp Gordon; drilled for five weeks; to Camp Merritt, quarantined ten days for measles. Sailed overseas on the U. S. S. America, September 19; landed at Brest, Sep- tember 29. To St. Amand; re-classified and put into Mach. Gun Batt. and sent to Lunery, trained there for three weeks; went to the 91st Div. where they were camped after re- turning from the Argonne battle; hiked to the front arriving there the morning the armis- tice was signed. His division was given credit for the Lys-Mons Battle. Hiked back to Houtkerque; to Noce for two and one-half months; to Nogent-le-Rotrou; to St. Nazaire. Sailed from St. Nazaire on U. S. S. Arizona, March 25; landed at Hoboken, April 2. To Camp Upton for sixteen days; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out April 22, 1919. 1918; arrived Liverpool January 24. To Camp Morn Hill; to Le Havre. To St. Nazaire; transferred from Q. M. C. to Co. 324, Motor Transport Corps, for convoy work and post duty hauling ammunition and supijlies to the front; took exam, for commission November 1; commission signed November 11, but with- held on account of signing of armistice. Sailed from St. Nazaire on S. S. Huron, May 26, 1919; landed Newport News, June 7. To San Francisco. Mustered out June 24, 1919. COUIiSON, WIIiI-IAM HOVTARD Newell Born July 12, 1895. Enl. July 24. 1918. Pvt. Medical Corps. Trained Camp Gordon. Sailed from New York, September 13; landed France September 25. Sailed on Matzonia. Trans, to S. O. S. October 15; stationed at Med. Supp. Dep. No. 2, Intermediate Section, Gievres. Sailed from Brest on U. S. S. Impera- tor July 7, 1919; landed New York July 13. 1919. To Camp Mills. Mustered out July 23. 1919. COX, HERMAN HENRY Alta Born May 23, 1898. Enl. October 11, 1918. Pvt. Inf. S. A. T. C. Trained at Buena Vista College, Storm Lake, Iowa. Mustered out December 13, 1918. CRAIG, OI.I.IE Sioux Rapids Born December 23, 1895. Enl. April 2, 1918. Pvt. Supp. Co. 87th Inf. 19th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge, April 2 to May 1; to Fort Des Moines Hosp., May 1 to June 18; to Camp Dodge January 27, 1919. Promoted private to wagoner. Mustered out January 27, 1919. COUCH, SAMUEZ. B. Ne'well Born February 22, 1892. Enl. December 15, 1917. Pvt. in Gen. Hosp. Trained for five months at Camp Dodge; ordered to Fort Des Moines until mustered out. Mustered out October 21, 1919. COUI.SON, JAMES FREEMAN Storm Iiake Born August 26, 1883. Enl. June 8, 1917. Sergt. in Q. M. E. R. C, M. S. T. 406, Co. 321, attached to 41st Div. after arrival in France. Trained at Presidio, near San Fran- cisco. Left San Francisco, December 17; arrived New York, December 23. Sailed on S. S. Carmania from New York, January 8, CRANE, CIiARENCE Sioux Rapids Born April 12, 1890. Enl. December 6, 1917. Pvt. 236th Aero Squadron, A. S. M. A. Trained at Southern Field. CRISSEY, DAVID B. Storm. ILake Born April 21, 1896. Enl. April 13, 1917. Rejected; re-enlistcd April 9, 1918. Corp. Co. M, 131st Squadron. Trained Wisconsin State University; Wilbur Wright Field; Armour's Institute; Taylor Field Flying School. Granted promotion, May 7, 1919, on re-enlistment. After 30 day furlough spent at home in Storm Lake, returned to Wright Field, Aviation Repair Depot No. 3. Maynard V. Cuppy Truesdale Kenneth Charles Dagger Alta Ralph ,T. Dagger Alta Wilbur Earl Dagger Alta LeRoy A. Dake Brooke Township Harold S. Darr Storin Lake James W. 1 )arr Lee Township Sj'lvester S. Davidsen Storm Lake Arthur L. Davis Linn Grove Earl V. Davis Washington Township Floyd Davis Storm Lake Gilger E. Davis Marathon B f ^ ^^^H Rollo G. Davis Poland Township Edward A. Degner Coon Township James Lael DeLand Storm Lake Eva Delbridge Storm Lake Michel N. Delp Storm Lake Sam Dennison Storm Lake William Deppe Storm Lake Lloyd L. DeSpain Lincoln Township 'WW- Clinton Diehl Storm Lake George P. Diehl Storm Lake Arthur A. Dierwechter Storm Lake Herman Dokken Linn Grove 74 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY CRISSEY, GEOBGi: DEWEY Storm Xiake Born March 30, 1899. Enl. April 7, 1917. Pvt. Co. M, 168th Inf. 42d Div. Trained: Cherokee, Des Moines, Camp Mills. Sailed on President Grant, October 18, 1917; returned to U. S. Octo- ber 28; sailed again November 14 on Engli.sh ship Celtic; landed Liverpool. To Winchester 1 week; to Southampton; to Le Havre. To Rainacourt; to Langres; to Baccarat; entered line of fighting in Luneville sector at Baccarat February 22, 191S; to Champagne July 1, 1918; to Chateau-Thierry; on the Ourcq; to Hill 212; wounded in action capturing Sergy, July 29; sent to Base Hosp. 22 at Bordeaux; to Blois; to Le Havre, September 8 to December 1; to Brest. Sailed from Brest on U. S. S. Rhode Island January 2, 1919; landed at New- port News January 16. To Camp Hill; to Camp Lee; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out February 12, 1919. CRISSEY, HOWARD R. Storm Iiake Born September 13, 1897. Enl. April 13, 1917. Corp. Co. M, Inf. 42d Div. Trained: Cherokee. Des Moines, Camp Mills. Sailed on President Grant October 18, 1917; returned to port Octo- ber 28; embarked November 14 on English ship Celtic; landed Liverpool. To Winchester for nine days; to Le Havre. To Rimacourt; to Langres; to Baccarat; entered line in Lune- ville sector February 22; to Champagne July 1, 1918; Chateau-Thierry July 22 to August 5; St. Mihiel September 12; to Argonne Octo- ber 12; to Sedan on the line when the armistice was signed; to Germany with Army of Occupa- tion; at Niederzessen from December 16 to March 6; to Niederbreisig; to Brest. Sailed from Brest on U. S. S. Leviathan, April 18, landed New York, April 26. To Camp Upton; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out May 17, 1919. CRISSEY, WAI.TER E. Storm Ziake Born October 4, 1900. Enl. April 7, 1917. Pvt. Ist-cl. Co. M, 168th Inf. 42d Div. Trained: Cherokee, Des Moines, Camp Mills. Sailed from New York, October 28 on President Grant returned to port at New York, October 28; sailed on English boat Celtic November 14; landed Liverpool. To Winchester; to Le Havre. To Rimacourt; to Langres; to Baccarat; in Luneville sector February 22; to Champagne July 1; to Chateau-Thierry July 2; wounded in action August 1; to Hosp. No. 67; trans, to Base Hosp. No. 44; returned to duty October 30, on front; after armistice to Germany as part of Army of Occupation at Niederzissen; left March 6, 1919 for Niederbreisig. Returned to XJ. S. with regiment. Mustered out May 6, 1919. Re-enlisted in 330th M. T. C. CROW, CIiAREirCE EUGENE Sioux Rapids Born March 1, 1898. Enl. April 20, 1917. App. seaman. Trained G. L. N. T. S.; Ports- mouth, N. H.; and U. S. S. Rhode Island. Detailed to armed guard September 29. Left Newport News on S. S. Hawaiian for Genoa, Italy; landed January 22, 1918. Returned to New York March 12; left New York March 17; landed New Brunswick; left New Brunswick March 31 for Naples; landed April 27; visited Rome; steamship torpedoed May 20 (S. S. Hawaiian with New Sweden); arrived New York June 27; left July 17 for Brest. From Brest to Bordeaux; to New York; landed August 6; left New York for Bordeaux, August 17; gas tanks on board ship burned on this trip and gassed several members of the crew — no fatalities; arrived Bordeaux September 3; to New York, September 27; left New York October 12; arrived Marseilles October 17; on this trip S. S. Lucia torpedoed; October 27 rammed and sunk S. S. Larch Grove (17 lives lost); arrived Marseilles, November 27; sailed for New York within month; arrived New York December 16; Mustered out on S. S. Hawaiian January 28, 1919. Promoted to Sea- man 2d-cl.; to Coxswain. CROWLEY, JUSTICE M. Storm Ijabe Born November 15, 1887. Enl. June 25, 1918. Pvt. Co. F, 350th Inf. 88th Div. Trained: Camp Dodge. Sailed from New York August 11 on H. M. S. Delta; landed London August 25. To Romsey; to Southampton; to Cherbourg. To Seman 3 weeks; to Hericourt; to Haute in Alsace sector three weeks; to Andilly on Toul sector; to Gondrecourt, December 1; to St. Nazaire. Sailed on U. S. S. Aeolus May 17, 1919; landed at Newport News May 30. Mustered out June 5, 1919. CROXDALE, WAYNE EDWARD Truesdale Born November 20, 1896. Served one term in Navy and enlisted in tlie Army, May 22, 1918. Sgt. Ist-cl. Park Battery, Third Corps of Artillery. Trained: Fort Logan, 19th Co. Art.; Cainp Jackson; Camp W^adsworth; Camp Hill. Sailed from Newport News on British ship Keenan, August 12; landed Liverpool August 28. To Southampton; to Le Havre August 30. To Angouleme; to Clermont; to HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 75 Chateau-Thierry; to Carnac; in fighting line September 16 to November 11; to Saint Juvin; to Herleourt until November 20; to Carnac; to Sievry; Rimacourt; to Le Mans; to Brest. Sailed on U. S. S. Missouri, May 27, 1919; landed June 8, at Newport News. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 23, 1919. CBOXDAI.I:, WUiI^IAM Tmiesdale Born May 31, 1891. Enl. as Seaman Co. O, 7th Regt. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. CUNNINGHAM, AIiBEBT H. Storm Xial^e Born June 2, 1886. Enl. September 16, 1918. 1st Lieut, unattached, Engineers. Trained at Camp A. A. Humphreys to November 30, 1918.. Mustered out November 30, 1918. CUNNINGHAM, I^UTHEB W. Iiee Born May 28, 1893. Enl. July 26, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. Co. M, 331st Inf., 83d Div. Trained Camp Gordon. Sailed September 14 from Hoboken on the Callmiers; landed Brest Sep- tember 28. Used in several replm. cos.; two trips to Lemburg, Germany, with prisoners of war; a member of P. "W. E. Co. 271 at Verneuil, France; also with P. "W. W. Co. 96 at Is-sur- Tille; sailed from Brest October 12; arrived Hoboken October 20, made trip on Siboney. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, October 25, 1919. CUPPY, MAYNABD V. Truesdale Born November 27, 1896. Enl. September 6, 1918. Pvt. Co. 56, 141 Bn. Inf. 163d D. B. Trained at Camp Dodge. Tried to enlist but was rejected. Trans, to Hosp. Corps in 1918. Mustered out December, 1919, at Camp Shelby. DAGGER, KENNETH CHABI.ES Alta Born June 5, 1900. Enl. October 10, 1918. Pvt. Q. M. C, S. A. T. C. Co. H. Trained at Iowa City, Iowa. Mustered out December 19, 1918. DAGGER, RAI.FH J. Alta Born July 25, 1894. Enl. December 4, 1917. Sgt. Mobile Hosp. No. 3. Trained at Fort L.ogan, Fort Riley, Camp Merritt. Sailed from Hoboken June 1, 1918; landed Liverpool June 25. To Cherbourg June 28. To Blois; to Paris; to Toul; to Alencon. Sailed from St. Nazaire June 9, 1919; landed Newport News, June 20. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 30, 1919. DAGGER, -WIIiBUB EARI. Alta Born April 18, 1896. Enl. December 14, 1917. Pvt. Ist-cl. Med. Dept. Trained: Fort Riley, 6 months; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from New York June 12, 1918, on boat Massonabie; landed Liverpool June 25. To Southampton; to Cher- bourg. To Blois; to Paris, stationed there two months waiting for equipment for base hosp. while on detached service on Chateau-Thierry front; to Paris again; joined outfit; to Toul sector; to Meuse-Argonne; to Nancy two months after armistice; to Alencon; to Le Mans; to Camp Hosp. three months; to St. Nazaire. Sailed on South Bend, July 5; arrived New York July 15. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out July 26, 1919. DAHI., NED E. Alta Born June 24, 1884. Enl. October 11, 1918. Acting Top Sgt. S. A. T. C. Trained at Buena Vista College, Storm Lake, Iowa. Mustered out December 13, 1918. DAKE, I.E BOY A. Brooke Township Born April 28, 1897. Enl. September 5, 1918. Pvt. Co. 58, 15th Bn. 163d D. B. Trained at Camp Dodge in Co. 58, 15th Bn. 163d D. B.; trans, to 105th Base Hosp. Sailed for France November, 1918. Was barracks orderly and room orderly in hospital. DARR, HAROI.D S. Storm Iiake Born October 26, 1893. Enl. July 17, 1917. 2d Lieut. Aviation Branch of Service. Trained at Austin, Texas; at Kelly Field; also trained in Aerial Gunnery and Pursuit School at Ar- cadia, Florida. Mustered out December 29, 1918. DARR, JAMES VT. Iiee Township Born September 19. 1892. Enl. May 25, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, 351st Inf. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge. Left U. S. August 13, 1918; landed Liverpool, August 27. Landed in France September 10. Trained at Hindenburg and Grandecourt; in reserve trenches November 11. Still in service, April 18, 1919. Chester L; Doty Newell Glenn H. Doty - Newell Paul F. Duffy Grant Township Arnold Duncan Storm Lake Emil J. Dvorak Storm Lake Fred L. T. Edwards Storm Lake Russell M. Edwaids Hayes Tow nship George Burr Eginton Storm Lake la&i'i John Elmer Ekstam Marathon Andrew EUrich Newell Homer Ellrlch Newell Clarence J. Enright Storm Lake Frank Jeremiah Enright Storm Lake George Enright Storm Lake William Enright Storm Lake Fred Ralph Erickson Albert City Kaleb Erickson Fairfield Township Nels Erlundsuii Albert City Hadley H. Ervin Newell Merlyn B. Ervin Newell Aage George Eskildsen Nokomis Township Henry Alfred Espe Nokomis Township Stanley B. Espe Storm Lake Alvin J. Evans Linn Grove 78 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY DAVIDSON, syi.vdsti:b s. storm Iiake Born April 5, 1891. Enl. May 26, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, 352(J Inf. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge 3 months; Camp Mills. Sailed from Hoboken on August 14, on S. S. Ascanias; landed Liverpool August 28. To Southampton; to Le Harve; to Leslammes; to Havricourt; to Belfort; to trenches in Haute-Alsace sector five days; to Toul two weeks; to Ribeaucourt five months; to St. Nazaire. Sailed from St. Nazaire on Canonicus May 21, 1919; landed at Newport News, June 3. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 13, 1919. DAVIDSON, BOY Storm Iiake Born February 13, 1894. Enl. November 6, 1917. Carpenter's Mate Ist-cl., Co. 29. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. Mustered out January 6, 1919. DAVIS, ARTHUR L. Iiinii G-rove Born March 12, 1898. Enl. March 28, 1917. Pvt. 5th Mach. Gun Bn. 18th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge, Co. F, 19th Inf. 88th Div.; Fort Logan; Camp Travis, in Mach. Gun School; at San Antonio attached to 5th M. G. Bn. 18th Div. Mustered out February 15, 1919. DAVIS, DABI. V. Washing'ton Tcwnship Born March 2, 1891. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. A, 34 8th M. G. Bn. Trained at Camp Gordon, Co. C, Replm. Co.; Camp Merrltt. Left U. S. September 14, 1918. Battle skir- mishes — expeditions — Ypres, Lys-Mons offen- sive, October 31 to November 11. Returned to the U. S. with 91st Div. on April 2, 1919. Mustered out April 22, 1919. DAVIS, GIX.GDB D. Marathon Enl. May, 1918. Corp. Bat. F, 339th F. A., 88th Div. Trained: Camp Dodge; August 13 to Camp Mills. Sailed on British ship Empress, August 23, from Hoboken; landed Liverpool with convoy of 13 ships, Septem- ber 5. Paraded through city, marched five miles to rest camp for a few days; to Southampton; crossed the Channel on U. S. S. Harvard; landed Le Havre September 14. To rest camp three days; September 20, passed through Paris to camp; moved to another camp for range-firing practice, here when armistice Was signed; to Bordeaux, December 1; guard duty until January 18. Sailed for U. S. on La Lorraine, January 19; landed New York January 28. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out February 8, 1919. DAVIS, I^SSX.!!! Xi. Iijm.n G-rove Born July 31, 1898. Enl. October 3, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C, Buena Vista College. Trained at Buena Vista College, Storm Lake, Iowa. Mustered out November 25, 1918. DAVIS, BOI.I.O G. Foland. Township Born July 29, 1888. Enl. May 26, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 352d Inf. 88th Div. Trained: Camp Dodge until August 9. Sailed from Hoboken on English ship August 16; landed Liverpool August 28. To Southampton; to Le Havre August 30; to Les Louins; to Bermarit for three weeks; to Chevermont; to Rougemont; to Hagenbeck, September 18; to Lorraine front September 24 to November 4; to Peruse when armistice was signed; trans, to Toul sector until November 28; to Riveaucourt until April 12, 1919; to St. Aignan in 3972 Casual Co. Sailed from Marseilles April 26 on Patria; landed Hoboken May 10, 1919. Mustered out at Mitchell Field, May 15, 1919. DAVIS, FLOYD Storm Lake Born April 19, 1892. Enl. May 7, 1917. Bugler, 113th Amb. Co. 104th Sanitary Train, 29th Div. Trained: Iowa Field Hosp. No. 2; at Sioux City, Iowa; to Camp Cody 11 months; to Camp Dix. Sailed from New York on Baltic October 13, 1918; landed Liverpool October 23. To Romsey; to Southampton; to Le Havre, October 27. To Le Mans; to St. Aignan; to Thesse: to Bourbonne; to Melay for six months; to Beaumont; to St. Nazaire. Sailed on Manchuria for U. S. May 11, 1919; landed New York May 21. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 4, 1919. DDALY, DENNIS M. Albert City- Born November 13, 1890. Enl. July 29, 1918. Pvt. 8th Co. R. P. D. Troop, Engineers. Trained at Camp Forrest. DDGNDB, EDWARD A. Coon Tcwuship Born January 24, 1895. Enl. July 29, 1918. Pvt. Co. B, 210th Eng. Trained: Camp For- rest until September 30; to Camp Funston until October 30; to Camp Mills to Decem- ber 31; Camp Hampshire to February 28, 1919. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, March 31, 1919. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 79 DE I.ANI>, JAMES IiAIil. Storm. Iiake Born May 6, 1894. Enl. December 5, 1917. Ensign in U. S. N. R. F. Trained: Municipal Pier; Lalte Erie; Lake Superior; Lake Michi- gan; Cleveland, Ohio; Pelham Bay. Promoted from seaman 2d-cl. to Quarter Master 2d-cl. to Ensign. Sailed from New York for Mar- seilles on U. S. S. Ophir, October 23, 1918; ship destroyed by fire in Gibraltar harbor the night of November 11; returned to U. S. December 6, 1918. DEI^BBIDGi:, EVA (Nurse) Storm Iiake Born January 16, 1887. Enl. November 8, 1917. Red Cross Nurse, 114th Hosp. Unit, Orthopedic Unit. Took nurse's training at Methodist Hosp. Des Moines; was in service at St. Joseph Hosp. Sioux City when enlisted. Trained: Camp Cody 8 months. Left New York in May, 1918; landed at St. Nazaire. Assigned to Base Hosp. No. 101; to Base Hosp. No. 6 near Bordeaux; to Camp Souge; most interesting experience at Beau Deset, largest hosp. in France; near Chateau-Thierry where she served in evac. hosp.; had charge of surgical department of Base Hosp. No. 114; on leave after armistice was signed; visited Rome, Naples, Venice. Returned home; landed New York May 23, 1919. Visited parents at Storm Lake on furlough. Died in Chicago, August 17, 1919. Buried at Storm Lake, Iowa. I>i:i.F, MICHAEIi H. Storm. Iiake Born August 15, 1890. Enl. August 29, 1918. Pvt. Inf. Trained at Camp Gordon. fighting line October 23 in Argonne Forest; on German line November 11, remained five days; to western France on 13-day march; to Brest in April. Sailed on President Grant April 22, 1919; landed New York May 6. To Camp Mills; Camp Dodge. Mustered out May 19, 1919. DE SPAIN, LtOYD L. Xiincoln Toivnship Born April 1, 1897. Enl. August 23, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, Inf. 163d D. B. Trained: Camp Gordon. Mustered out August 28, 1918. DIEm., CI.INTON H. Storm Iialie Born in 1892. Enl. December 13, 1917. Pvt. Remount No. 322, Q. M. C. Trained; Camp McArthur. Mustered out December 1, 1918. DIEHI., GEORGE F. Storm Iiake Born October 9, 1894. Enl. July 8, 1917. Pvt. Ist-cl. Co. B, 323d F. S. Bn. Corps Replm. Trained at Camp Funston. Left U. S. Janu- ary 28, 1918; landed Brest, February 12, 1918. , Taken to casual camp at Blois; given insur- ance work; two months later transferred to postal department at Tours; 1 month later transferred to telegraph office as night cliief cleric; ten months later ordered to casual camp at Cour Cherverney to await transpor- tation home; rejoined former Bn. which had been left in States; to the Coast. Sailed for the U. S. on Easter Sunday; landed New York two weeks later. Mustered out at Camp Dodge May 22, 1919. DENNISON, SAM Storm. Ijake Born December 3, 1892. Enl. September 18, 1917. Senior Sgt. Mch. Gun Co. 344th Bn. 87th Div. Spent two months and twelve days in Liverpool and one month in Queenstown. Mustered out December 9, 1918. DIEICWECHTER, ARTHUR A. Storm Iiake Born July 24, 1895. Enl. November 3, 1918. Pvt. Co. A, Mech. Trng. School. Trained: Mechanical Training School, Ames Iowa. Mustered out December 11, 1918. DEFFE, WII.I.IAM Storm Iiake Born June 20, 1887. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. A, 21st Regt. 77th Div. Trained: Camp Gordon, pvt. C. H. 4th R,eplm. Inf.; Camp Merritt. Sailed August 29; landed Eng- land. To France September 15. Volunteered as shutter in Co. A, 21st Regt. 77th Div.; in DOKKEN, HERMAN Iiuin Grove Born May 18, 1899. Enl. September, 1918. Pvt. Co. 7, S. A. T. C. Trained: Iowa State College, Ames, lov^a. Studied mechanical engineering. Mustered out December 21, 1918. 8o HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY DOI^AN, FRANK Iiinn Grove Enl. August 5, 1918. Pvt. in Inf., trans, to Q. M. C, 318th C. and I. Trained: Hill, Va. Mustered out December 24, 1918. DOX.A]!f, MICHAEL F. Storm. Iiake Born August 3, 1891. Enl. August 5, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. 318th Regt. Q. M. C. Trained: Camp Hill. DOI^IiIVFB, JAUJIES I. Alta Born August 21, 1894. Enl. June 15. 1918. Pvt. 3d Service Co. Trained: Yale University. Received a reserve commission after discharge. Mustered out December 11, 1918. No. 3 Green Hut Building, March 13, 1919. To Roland Park (General Hosp. No. 7); to U. S. General Hosp. No. 2 at Fort McHenry. Suffered loss of left eye. "While on lines was engaged in telephoning maintenance con- struction. Mustered out October 1, 1919, with rating of fifty per cent disability. DUFFY, PAUL F. Grant Township Born October 25, 1894. Enl. March 11, 1918. Seaman, 146th Co. Trained: G. L. N. T. S. from March 11 to March 27, 1918; to Norfolk, in TNT plant from March 28 to July 10, 1918; to hosp. with broken knee cap July 11; at Portsmouth until November 1; to St. Helena Training Station from November 2 until December 2, 1918; to Great Lakes Decem- ber 4. Mustei-ed out February 28, 1919. DOTY, CHESTER L. Ne-well Born September 10, 1896. Enl. June 9, 1917; called to service September 1, 1917. Corp. Co'. D, 7th Telegraph Bn., later designated as 408th Telegraph Bn. Assigned to Municipal Pier for three days; to Camp Alfred Vail. Sailed on R. M. S. Carpathia, November 22; landed Liverpool December 6. To Winchester; to Le Havre, December 10. To Nevers until February 7; to Vierzon until May 2; to Troyes until June 8, 1918; transferred to St. Nazaire and remained there doing telephone and tele- graph line work until July 26, 1919; to Mon- toir until September 9; to St. Nazaire. Sailed on U. S. S. Radnor, September 10; landed Brooklyn September 23. To Camp Upton. Mustered out September 25, 1919. DOTY, GLENN H. Newell Born May 8, 1898. Enl. May 25. 1917. Pvt. Co. B, 307th F. S. Bn., 82d Div. Trained: Camp Dodge; Camp Gordon. Sailed from New York on U. S. S. Virginia May 18, 1918; landed Liverpool, May 30. To Southamp- ton; to Le Havre June 8. To Rangeaux; to Tours sector June 23 until August 15, 1918; to Marbache sector until September 17; to Ar- gonne front from October 1 to October 20, on that day was wounded by shrapnel; sent to Evac. Hosp. No. 10; to Base Hosp. No. 67; to Provision Base 8; to Base Hosp. 89; to Bordeaux, Base Hosp. No. Ill; to Evac. Hosp. 20; to Evac. Hosp. 65 at Brest. Sailed for U. S. on S. S. America March 4, 1919; landed New York March 13. To Debarkation Hosp. DUNARD, WALTER N. Grant Township Born February 10, 1893. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Troop B, Headquarters Train and Mili- tary Police. Trained at Camp Funston. DVORAK, EMIL J. Storm Lake Born February IC, 1893. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. D. 4th Replm. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon. Mustered out December 18, 1918. ED-WARDS, FRED L. T. Storm Lake Born January 23. 1891. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Mach. Gun Co. 361st Regt., 91st Div. Trained: Camp Gordon two months; Camp Merritt ten days. Sailed from Hoboken on U. S. S. America September 20; landed Brest September 29. Trained at St. Amant until October; trans, to Belgium October 27, going by way of Dunkirk, England; participated in battle Lysle-Schuldt, in support position when armistice was signed; returned to Belleme; in France January 1 to last of March; to St. Nazaire. Sailed April 3 on tr. S. S. Mexican; landed Camp Mills April 15, remained here one week. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out April 28, 1919. EDWARDS, RUSSELL IVI. Hayes Township Born June 8, 1899. Enl. October 1, 1918. Corp. S. A. T. C. Trained: Buena Vista College, Storm Lake, Iowa. Mustered out December 13, 1918. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 8i EGINTON, CrEORGE BUBK Storm Ziate Born June 13, 1S90. Enl. June 27. 1918. Sea- man 2d-cl. U. S. N. R. F. Trained at G. L. N. T. S.; receiving ship at Brooklyn Navy Yard; to Base No. 6, Queenstown, Ireland, via S. S. Glacier; transferred to U. S. S. Texan, Sixth Battle Squadron, operating with British Grand Fleet in North Sea for four months of service; Sixth Battle Squadron took part in surrender of German High Seas Fleet Novein- ber 21, 1918. Released from active service December 31, 1918. EINDMABK, GUSTOF G. Albert City- Born September 24, 1893. Enl. June 25. 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 350th Inf. 88th Div. Trained: Camp Dodge; Camp Cody. Mustered out November 27, 1918. EKSTAM, CABI. FRED Poland Township Born December 3, 1887. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, 4th Replm. Regt. Discharged by reason of physical disability, July 31, 191S, at Camp Dodge. landed Liverpool August 28. To Southampton; to Cherbourg September 1. To Hericourt two weeks; to Alsace-Lorraine front for four days; to Rope two weeks; to Luiyon on way to Metz November 11; to Bibeaucourt May 11; to St. Nazaire. Sailed on S. S. Canonicus; landed Newport News June 4, 1919. Mustered out June 12, 1919. ENNINGEB, PAUL R. Storm IjaUi: Born May 6, 1891. Enl. May 26, 1918, Pvt. Mach. Gun Co. 352d Inf. . 88th Div. Trained: Camp Dodge until August 8; to CamiD Mills. Sailed from New York August 16; landed Liverpool August 28. To Winchester; ito Southampton; to Le Havre. To Gresigny for two weeks; to Noval; to Chermont; to Mor- terechaeton; to Haute-Alsace sector for five days; to Belfort; to Fort Lucy, at this fort when armistice was signed — was headed for Metz sector; to Bonnet, winter headquarters from November 30 to May 9, 1919; to Le Mans; to St. Nazaire. Sailed for U. S. May 21 on U. S. S. Canonicus; landed Newport News June 3. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 13, 1919. EKSTAM, JOHN EI.MER Marathon Born November 22, 1891. Enl. April 26, 1918. Pvt. Co. B, 338th Bn., S8th Div. Trained: Camp Dodge until June 30, when he contracted acute spinal meningitis, was taken to hospital at once and held there until date of discharge. Mus- tered out December 11, 1918. ENRIGHT, CLARENCE J. Storm Lake Born September 25, 1887. Enl. July 24, 1918. Corp. Co. C, 163d Replm. Regt; trans, to 77th Div. Trained: Camp Gordon. Sailed for Prance August 10, 1918. Was on German border when armistice was signed. ELLRICH, ANDREW Newell Born February 26, 1896. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, 4th Regt. 3d Div. Trained Camp Gordon. Sailed from New York on Leviathan August 25; landed Brest September 1. To Roseierre for one month's training; to Des- seljim; to lines on Belgium front for three days; was in battle of Ypres on November 11; to Camp Noyan, Belgium; to Egie, France, all winter; to St. Nazaire. Sailed on S. S. Virginia, April 8, 1919; landed New York April 20. Mustered out May 7, 1919. ELLRICH, HOMER Newell Born April 18, 1891. Enl. May 26, 1918. Pvt. 352d Regt. Inf. 88th Div. Trained: Camp Dodge. Sailed from New York August 15; ENRIGHT, FRANK JEREMIAH Storm Lake Born December 6. 1889. Enl. January 9. 1916. Sgt. Ist-cl., Med. Dept. 126th F. A. 34th Div. Trained: Fort Riley; Camp Cody, joined 34th Div.; to school at Camp Stanley; moved from Camp Cody to Fort Sill, July 3, 1918. Sailed from New York September 23 on Brit- ish transport H. M. S. Kashmir, wrecked with the H. M. S. Toronto in Irish Sea Octo- ber 6, the Kashmir having to land at Glasgow, Scotland; sailed from Southamptcn to Le Havre October 8. Billeted at Lamarque from October 11 to November 1; moved to Camp De Souge, where regt. received artillery prepara- tion for the front, was here when armistice was signed. Sailed from Bordeaux December 25, 1918; landed Newport News January 6, 1919. Mustered out January 21, 1919, at Camp Dodge. David J. Evans Linn Grove Ernest W. Evans Linn Grove Everett John Evans Linn Grove Howard M. Evans Linn Grove Louis H. Evans Storm Lake Enoch Faber Newell Chaiius A. Pairchild Barnes Township Herbert Elmer Pairchild Lee Township George Eddy Farmer William Henry Farmer Alanson M. Fitchett Harold L. Pitchett Sioux Rapids Sioux Rapids Newell Coon Township Jerome Pitzpatrick Providence Township William Floyd Marathon Vernon Foell Storm Lake Helmer Fontey Linn Grove Frank B. Foote Brooke Township Gehard O. Fosmark Lee Township Louis Louverne Foster Storm Lake Archie Frandson Newell Philip Frederick Storm Lake Ole N. Fuller Linn Grove Sophia Fuller Linn Grove John W. Fulton Storm Lake 84 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY ENRIGHT, GEORGE Storm liake Born January 17, 1893. Enl. February 12, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. Co. B, 32d Eng. Trained: Camp Dodge and Camp Grant; to Camp TTpton June 8. Sailed from New York on Levlatiian June 15; landed at Brest June 22; there two weeks. Three months at Bordeaux, where co. built camp basins — regt. split up, our co. to Marseilles and spent the remainder of the time in Prance at that place building railroads, docks and camps. June 7 embarked from Marseilles on French boat Patria; landed New York June 22. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, June 30, 1919. ENRIGHT, WII.I.IA]yi Storm Iiake Born August 14, 1879. Enl. in U. S. Army December 14, 1899. Sgt. Instructor Co. B, 30th and 19th Inf.; at Vancouver Barracks; served twelve yearsi in Philippine Islands from 1899 until 1912; six months in Mexico during Vera Cruz Campaign 1912 and 1913; was given a captaincy commission as an instructor for several states; conducted a non-commissioned officers' school at Council Bluffs, Iowa; served at Camp Dodge, when the camp was first started; to Port Sam Houston; to Fort Bliss; to Fortress Monroe; to Fort Pickens. Three months after war was de- clared resigned captaincy commission in hopes of getting overseas, and re-enlisted in Coast Artillery. (Still in service.) ERICKSON, FRED RAI.FII Albert City Born October 4, 1893. Enl. July 29, 1918. Pvt. Co. P, 212th Eng. 12th Div. Trained at Camp Forrest; to Camp Devens. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, January 31, 1919. ERI.ANDSOIT, NEI.S Albert City- Born November 3, 1886. Enl. February 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. I, 1st Bn. Inf. 163d D. B. Trained at Camp Dodge from February 24, 1918 until December 12, 1918. Mustered out December 12, 1918. ERVIN, HADI.E7 H. Nevrell Born April 29, 1894. Enl. July 10, 1918. 1st Lieut. O. R. C, Dental Co. No. 1, Med. Dept. Branch. Trained: Camp Greenleaf; Camp Merritt. Promoted to 1st Lieut. Officers' Reserve Corps. Mustered out February 1, 1919. ERVIN, 1VIERI.VIT B. Neiwell Born July 25, 1899. Enl. October 3, 1918. Sgt. S. A. T. C. Trained at Iowa City. Iowa, with 1st S. A. T. C. Bn. Promoted from bugler to sgt. Mustered out December 21, 1918. ESKII^DSEN, AAGE GEORGE ITokom.is Township Born January 24, 1892. Enl. April 25, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, 357th Inf. 90th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; Camp Travis; Camp Mills. Left New York June 20; landed Liverpool July 15, 1918. To Southampton; to Le Havre. To Ouconnigrot, August 20; to St. Mihiel, Septem- ber 1; to Argonne October 15; wounded in Argonne October 24; to Base Hosp. 36, Octo- ber 25; to St. Nazaire. Sailed on transport Susquehanna; landed Newport News Deceinber 6. To Base Hosp. To Cainp Dodge. Mustered out January 11, 1919. ERICKSON, KAIiEB Fairfield Township Born April 14. 1891. Enl. September 19, 1917. Pvt. P. W. E. Co. No. 21. Special training with Escort Co. No. 21. Trained: Camp Dodge in Co. A. 350th Inf.; to Camp Cody, Co. L, 133d Regt. 34th Div.; to Camp Merritt. Sailed June 30 on Glasgow; landed at Glasgow, Scotland. To Southampton; to Le Havre. To St. Aignan; to Tours; to Mermeis; to Marseilles; to Bordeaux. Sailed December 25 on Netherland; landed Newport News. To Camp Lee; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out February 2, 1919. ESFE, HARRY AI.FRED Nokomis Township Born February 26, 1895. Enl. June 5, 1918. Pvt. Co. B, 349th Inf. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge, Co. C, 350th Inf. 88th Div.; to Camp Upton. Left Hoboken August 9; landed Southampton August 16. To Le Havre. To St. Jeanne; to Danjatan; to Prabas; entered trenches on Alsace front latter part of Octo- ber; to Grasser Manqs; to Camp Hermitage; on November 30 to Huverni; to Chameure; to La Sure; to St. Nazaire. Sailed for U. S. on U. S. S. Henry Mallory May 18; landed Brook- lyn May 28. To Camp Mills; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 10, 1919. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA MSTA COUNTY ESFE, STANIiEY B. Storm Lake Born April 19, 1892. Enl. February 25, 1918. Pvt. Co. L, 131st Regt., 33d Div. Trained: Camp Dodge; Camp Logan; to Camp Upton. Landed Brest May 30. To Amiens front July 1 to August 25; to Toul sector; to Verdun, September 8 to 26; severely wounded Septem- ber 26. taken to Johns Hopkins Hosp. for one week; to Base Hosp. No. 11 at Martes October 3 to January 9, 1919; to St. Nazaire. Sailed for the United States; landed Newport News February 11, 1919. Sailed on U. S. S. Prin- cess Matoka. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out February 22, 1919. EVANS, ALVIN J. Iiinu Grove Born in 1895. Enl. May, 25, 1917. Pvt. Co. D, 142d Inf. Hdq. Co. First service in Co. M, Second Iowa N. G. Trained: Camp Cody, trans, to Co. C, 127th N. G. Bn., to Co. I, 133d Inf., to M. G. Co. 133d Inf.; to Camp Dix. Sailed October 10, 1918; landed October 22 in France. Trans, to Co. D, 142d Inf., to Hdq. Co. 142d Inf. Left France May 19, 1919; landed New York May 31. Mustered out June 7, 1919. N. T. S.; to Radio School at Cambridge; to Sea- plane School at Pensacola, Fla.; where he operated wireless on seaplanes. Mustered out April 9, 1919. EVANS, I.OUIS H. Storm LaJis Born December 4, 1894. Enl. July 1, 1917. Corp. Co. M, 168th Inf., 42d Div. Sailed for France from New York October IS. 1917, on U. S. S. President Grant; returned to port October 28; re-embarked November 14 on Brit- ish transport Celtic; landed Liverpool, there for ten days. To Le Havre. To Ramicourt; to Langres; to Baccarat; entered the line Feb- ruary 22, 191S, in Luneville sector; at Badon- viller; to Champagne July 1, 1918; to Chateau- Thierry July 22 to August 6; to Verdun and St. Mihiel September 12 to 25; to Argonne October 5; to Sedan; left for hosp. November 9 with influenza: re.ioined Co. M April 15. 1919: to GeriTiany with the Army of Occupa- tion along the Rhine; left Germany April 6 for Brest. Sailed on U. S. S. Leviathan; landed at New York. To Camp Upton; to Camp Cody. Mustered out May 17, 1919. EVANS ERNEST W. Xiinn Grove Born November 18, 1894. Enl. June 15. 1918. Mech. in Hdq. Co. Mechanical Branch of Army. Trained: Iowa State College; was instructor in truck driving at Valparaiso, Indiana. Mustered out December 23, 1918. EVANS, EVERETT JOHN Iiinu Grove Born November 18, 1894. Enl. May 28, 1917. Ist-cl. petty officer U. S. Navy. Trained: G. L. N. T. S. Served at U. S. Naval Base at Brest from May, 1918 to December, 1918. Trans, to Paris for duty with Peace Com- mision on January 10, 1919; on January 22 became member of Military Mission and went to Berlin for duty at that place, return- ing when mission was withdrawn; to Paris on February 16 for duty; on March 10 trans, to U. S. Naval Hdq. at Brest for duty until Sep- tember 21, 1919. Returned to U. S. on Pow- hatan. Mustered out October 21, 1919. EVANS HOVrARS M. Iilnn Grove Born February 5, 1898. Enl. June 21, 1918. Electrician in Radio Section. Trained at G. L. FABER, ENOCH Ne-well Born August 4, 1895. Enl. July 12, 1917. Pvt. Ist-cl. Med. Dept. 353d Inf., 88th Div. Trained: Camp Dodge; Fort Logan; Fort Riley. Sailed August 16 on City of Exeter; landed Manchester. August 28, 1918. To Southampton; to Le Havre. To Bussy-le- Grand; to Hericourt; to Meraux-Vizelois; to Alsace front for 14 days; to Toul November 11; to Ribeaucourt until May 10, 1919; to St. Nazaire. Sailed on U. S. S. Canonicus May 21; landed Newport News June 3, 1919. Mustered out June 13, 1919. FAIRCHII.D, CHARI.ES A. Barnes Township Born August 5, 1891. Enl. September 20, 1917. Corp. Co. M, 350th Inf., 88th Div. Trained: Camp Dodge; Camp Pike; Camp Dix. Left Montreal, Canada, on Tenation August 24, 1918; landed London September 9. To Southampton; to Cherbourg; to Lanzac; to Brest. Sailed on H. M. S. Mauretania Decem- ber 24; landed New York December 30. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Pike; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out January 30, 1919. 86 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY FAIRCHrCD, HERBERT EI.MEB Ijee Born December 8, 1887. Enl. February 25, 1918. Pvt. Co. L, 131st Inf. 33d Div. Trained: Camp Dodge until April 26; to Camp Logan to May 6, 1918. Left New York May 21 on Leviathan; landed Brest May 30. To Somme front June 15 to August 25, in offensive and reserves; in Argonne-Meuse offensive Septem- ber 1 to October 10; captured by Germans October 10; confined at Camp Rastatt, Germany, until December 6; released, sent tlirough Switzerland to Vichey, France: joined casual CO. January 25 at St. Aignan. Sailed from Brest on S. S. Huntington, March 12; landed Hobolien March 23, 1919. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out April 2, 1919. FABIHER, &EOR&E EDDV Sioux Rapids Born March 24, 1887. Enl. August 27, 1917. 1st Lieut. Co. B, 42d Inf., 12th Div; Captain Inf. tJ. S. Army. Trained: Second Officers' Training Camp, Fort Snelling, November 27 to September 5, 1918. 1st Lieut. Co; B, 42d Inf., 12th Div. September 5 to Feb 15, 1919, Captain Inf. U. S. Army. Mustered out Feb- ruary 15, 1919. FARMER WIIiIiIAIMI HEITRY Sioux Rapids Born November 24, 1892. Enl. August 27, 1917. 1st Lieut. Chief Observer at Camp Knox. Candidate in F. A. Training CamiJ at Fort Benjamin Harrison; commissioned 1st Lieut. November 27, 1917; August 27, 1917, to Novem- ber 27, 1917, at Fort Benjamin Harrison; No- vember 27 to February 28, Bat. F, 322d F. A. Camp Sherman as 1st Lieut.; February 28 to May 1 at Fort Sill School of Fire and Aerial Observation; May 1 to July 4, Co. O, Squadron E, Camp Dick; July 4 to Sept. 28 F. A. B. F. C. Aerial Observer, Camp Jackson; September 28 to January 2, 1919, Chief Observer at Camp Knox. Mustered out January 2, 1919. FEITS, GEORGE W. Truesdale Born December 31, 1896. Enl. September 20, 1917. Pvt. Co. H, 101st Inf., 26th Div. Trained: Camp Dodge; Camp Pike; Camp Merritt. Sailed from New York on S. S. Anthem, June 20, 1918; landed Liverpool July 1. To Camp Winnell, Winchester; to Southampton; to Le Havre July 5. To St. Aignan, to Casual Camp; to St. George, detached to Co. K, 163d Inf; to Chateau-Thierry, Co. H, 101st Inf.; entered line of battle for five days in Second Battle of the Marne; to rest camp 27 days; to St. Mihiel sector six days; to Verdun sector, October 18; to Argonne offensive, was there until the armistice was signed; shelled and attacked all the time while in trenches, went over top October 23; November 13 hiked 235 kilometers to Chaumont and remained there until Decem- ber 23; to Le Mans; to Brest. Sailed March 28 on the German ship Amerika; landed Boston April 5, to Camp Devens; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out April 28, 1919. FERGUSON, EARZ. J. Storm Xiake Born April 29, 1889. Corp. Co. B, 1st Train- ing Bn. Trained at Jefferson Barracks; Camp MacArthur; Camp Dodge. Mustered out December 23, 1918. FITCHETT, AIiANSON HI. Ne-well Born November 22, 1896. Enl. September 5, 1918. Trained: Camp Dodge until June 26, 1919; to Ft. Des Moines until October 22, 1919. Mustered out October 22, 1919. FITCHETT, HAROIiD Ii. Coon To-wnship Born December 18, 1894. Enl. December 14, 1917. Trained: Ft. Logan, assigned to Batt. C, 62d Regt. as pvt.; at Presidio, California, until June 13, 1918; to New York June 21. Sailed on S. S. Baltic July 14; landed Liver- pool July 26. Crossed Channel to Le Havre. Transferred to Libourne; to St. Laurent from August 3 until January 16, 1919; to camp near Bordeaux January 17. Sailed on U. S. S. Poca- hontas February 6; landed Newport News February 19. To Camp Eustis three weeks; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out March 11, 1919. FITZFATRICX, JEROME Providence Township Born September 13, ISfll. Enl. February 24, 1918. Sgt. Co. C, 308th F. S. Batt. Third Army Corps. Trained: Camp Dodge, pvt. Co. C, 163d D. B.; to Camp Sherman, pvt. Co. C. 308th F. S. B. Sailed on S. S. Megantic from Ho- boken June 12; landed Liverpool June 23. To Southampton; to Cherbourg, June 26. To Eccomoy; to Nogent; to Conflans-Sainte-Honor- ine; to Meaux; to Coulonges; to Dormans; to Souilly; to Rampont; to Malancourt; to Cuisy; to Ttontfaucon; to Nantalois; to Septarges; to Romagne; to Dun-sur-Meuse; began march to Coblenz, Germany; to Brest. Sailed on U. S. S. Pocohantas July 22; landed Hoboken August 1, 1919. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out August 8, 1919. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 87 TImOYU, VTUiIiIAM lUarathou Born April 28, 1895. Enl. April 26, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. Co. H, 359th Inf., 90th Div. Trained: Camp Dodge 8 weeks; to Camp Travis; Camp Mills, June 7. Sailed on English transport Ardunna, June 20; landed Liverpool July 2. Celebrated July 4th at Winchester; crossed Channel July 5; landed Brest. Six weeks training at Rocey; to St. Mihiel sector August 19, on firing line 33 continuous days and while on outpost duty was shot by pistol, bullet, entering just below left eye severing some nerves and went out through right eye tear- ing out part of right cheek, the right side of .iawbone, cheek and eye; wounded September 22. Landed Hampton Roads January 1, 1919. Has been in special hospital at Baltimore for the blind, receiving twelve operations; on December 5, 1919, trans, to Walter Reid Hosp. Washington for further treatment — classifica- tion, 2-200 — is considered industrial-occupation blind; brother killed on same front September 17, 1918. Is in hospital named above at present time. FOEIiIi, VEBNON Storm Iiake Born March 11, 1897. Enl. September 5, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. 19th Military Police. Trained at Camp Dodge. Mustered out January 28, 1918. FONTSV, HEIiIVIEB . Iiinn Grove Born July 11, 1S87. Enl. October. 1917. Machinist in Aviation Section. Trained at Salt Lake City; at Waco, Texas. Acted as ex- pert machinist on turning lathe, then started machines in field, then on wrecking crew. FOOTE, FRANK B. Brooke Tc^nship Born February 19, 1890. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. 316th Replm. Regt. 79th Div. Trained: Camp Gordon. Left Hoboken August 31 on U. S. S. Plattsburg; landed Brest Sep- tember 13. To St. Georges for training; to Verdun; to the front in the Argonne Forest for thirty days previous to signing of armis- tice — four days without food; one of the few men who held a sector that might have been taken by the Germans had they known the weakness of our force; November 11 was taken to hospital with typhoid and trench feet; sailed on hosp. ship Magnolia, January 22, 1919; landed New York January 31. Expresses grati- tude for services of Salvation Army and Red Cross. Mustered out at Camp Dodge Febru- ary 21, 1919. FOOTE, JOHN PAUL Storm Iiake Born December 22. 1898. Enl. October 1. 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C. Trained with S. A. T. C. Co., Iowa State College. FOSMABK, GEBHABB O. Lee Township Born June 10, 1S92. Enl. February 25, 1918. Pvt. 351st Regt. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge. Served in infantry until October, 1918; trans, to Q. M. C. Depot Brigade, in hospital service for five months. Mustered out Decem- ber 26, 1918. FOSTER, CLARENCE HAROLD Storm Lake Born August 3, 1894. Enl. August 20, 1918. Pvt. Machine Gun Co. 3d Group, 35th Training Corps, M. G. Training Center, Camp Hancock. Trained at Camp Gordon for three weeks; to Camp Hancock three months. Mustered out December 28, 1918. FOSTER, LOUIS LOUVERNE Storm Lake Born February 14, 1894. Enl. December 2, 1917. Ensign, U. S. Navy, assigned to U. S. S. Western Coast. Trained at G. L. N. T. S.; to New York. Enl. as seaman 2d-cl. promoted to ensign. Assigned to U. S. S. Western Coast, October 31; sailed November 1 for Le Havre; arrived Le Havre November 15, 1918. Laid at the docks of Le Havre until January 1, 1918; after two days out ran into storm and was blown 150 miles off course; made Bermuda Islands after 21 days at sea; stayed in Ber- muda for two weeks making repairs on ship; ship was put in dry dock and officers and crew taken to receiving shijo from which Foster was released February 19, 1919. FRANDSON, ARCHIE Newell Born February 3, 18X9. Enl. December 13, 1917. Q. M. C. Pvt. 307th Butchery Co. at- tached to 3d Div. Trained: Camp Meigh. Sailed from New York on S. S. Von Steuben June 26, 1918; landed Brest May 8, 1918. Sent to St. Nazaire on convoy duty principally to American sectors with meat trains; was also at Nantes in charge of warehouse. Sailed for U. S. on S. S. Sierra, June 16, 1919; landed New York June 26. Mustered out July 7, 1919. Ralph Y. Gaffin Storm Lake John Farrell Gaherty Grant Township Eugene T. Garten Lee Township Orrin C. Garton Lee Township Miiuiice W. Gary Poland Township Vernrtlt AL (laskins Linn Grove Wallie E. Geary Providence Township Rufus Edward Geib Marathon Lawrence J. Geisinger Storm Lake Albert Gerdes Albert City Christ Gerdes Fairfield Township Benjamin F. Giddings Elk Township Charles V. Gilchrist Sioux Rapids Floyd H. Gilliland Storm Lake William R. Gilllspie Marathon Eugene C. Glowczewsky Storm Lake George A. Glowczewsky Roland E. Goldsmith Storm Lake Storm Lake F. V. Goodness Storm Lake Albert G. Gran Storm Lake -"sssr ■?•:> Rudolph Arthur Gran Storm Lake Edward Leland Greene Storm Lake Royal Eugene Greengo Sioux Rapids Adolph Gregerson Nokomis Township 90 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY FRANDSON, CABI. Newell Born January 13, 1889. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt. Inf. Trained at Camp Gordon. Mustered out January 9, 1919. FRANSEN, CABI. HI. Albert City- Born April 25, 1896. Enl. September 20, 1917. Corp. Co. A, 350th Inf. 88th Div. Trained: Camp Dodge; Camp Pil^e; Camp Green, with 4th Div.; trans, to Camp Pike, 87th Div., until March, 1918; to Camp Greene. Sailed on Italian battleship Caserta May 10, 1918; landed Brest May 3. In Brest three days; to Calais; bombed by German airships; to front, served witli 41st Regt., 4th Div.; in Army of Occupation 7 months at Coblenz; in battles of Champagne, Aisne, Argonne, St. Mihiel, Meuse-Argonne; in action with French — no credit given. Sailed September 1, 1919; landed Hoboken September 8. Mustered out at Camp Dodge September 26, 1919. FREDERICK, FHII.IF Storm Iiake Born November 29, 1892. Enl. February 24, 1918. Trained: Camp Dodge; Camp Logan. Pvt. Co. F, 132d Inf. 33d Div. Sailed May 15, 1918; landed May 24, 1918. Sailed home May 9, 1919; landed May 17, 1919. Saw service with A. E. F. at Argonne-Meuse, St. Mihiel and Somme. Mustered out May 26, 1919. FUI.I.FR, OI.F N. Iiinn Grove Born February 18, 1889. Enl. February 25, 1918. Horseshoer 49th Co. 20th Eng. Trained: Camp Dodge; American University. Went to France May 22, 1918; horseshoer in lumber camp, also at Murat, and at Arangoose in Pyrennes Mountains on boundary line of Spain. Operated on for hernia twice in France. Mustered out ApTil 3, 1919. FUIiIiER, SOFHIA (Nurse) Iiinn G-rove Volunteered for service October 1, 1918, during "flu" epidemic in Army Nursing Corps at Base Hospital, Camp Custer. Graduate of St. John's Hospital, Sioux City, Iowa; was supt. of St. John's at time of volunteering. FUIiTON, JOHN Vr. Storm Iiake Born October 7, 1891. Enl. May 15, 1918. 2d Lieut. Recruit Training Officer. ■ Trained for five months prior to entry into service in Y. M. C. A. service at Atlanta, Georgia; en- listed in the Marines at Atlanta; sent to the Recruit Depot at Paris Island and was chosen to attend the N. C. O. School at termination of recruit training; having completed the course was granted a corporal's warrant and chosen as one of the 70 men — Paris Island quota — to attend the Second Officers' Training Camp of the Marines at Quantico, Va.; on graduation from this school commissioned 2d Lieut, and stationed at Paris Island as re- cruit training officer. Resigned commission to return to Buena Vista College. Mustered out July 15, 1919. GAFFIN, RAI.FH Y. Storm. Iiake Born November 3, 1899. Enl. October 1, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C. Trained: Iowa State College. Mustered out December 20, 191S. GAHERTY, JOHN FABREI.I. Grant Township Born July 27, 1895. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. M, 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained: Camp Gordon, trans, to Replm. Div. Sailed on U. S. S. Plattsburg, August 30; landed Brest Septem- ber 12. To St. George; to Verdun; to Issen- court; joined 79th Div. October 29 at Genicourt; in front lines in attack on Hill 378 Novem- ber 4; in lines until November 11; to German prison camp until November 29; to Base Hosp. No. 31 with "flu," pneumonia, and typhoid; operated on January 1 for enypyema; Febru- ary 1 to Base Hosp. No. 79; April 19 to Base Hosp. No. 69; to St. Nazaire. Sailed May 14 on Mercy; landed New York May 25. To Grand Central Palace one week; to Ft. Sheridan; home on leave August 23; returned for treat- inent September 21; on furlough in November; gradually regaining health and expected to be discliarged early in 1920. GARTON, EUGENE T. Ijee Township Born July 9, 1893. Enl. July 1, 1918. Water tender. Trained: G. L. N. T. S., July 1 to August 1; to Norfolk; boarded Iowa August 15; left Commonwealth Pier, Boston, sailed to Montreal; sailed on Dancy October 31; landed St. Nazaire November 25. By boat to Roche- fort; to Cardiff, Wales, December 10 to 22; Tonnchurente River December 25 to January 2, 1919; Newport, Wales, January 24 to 30; Barry Docks January 30 to 31; to Rotterdam, Holland, February 3 to 11; to Danzig, Germany, February 15; to New Castle, England, March 1. Released from G. L. N. T. S. September 15, 1919; still subject to call as reserve. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 91 CrABTOir. ORBIN C. Iiee To'wnship Born October 13, 1891. Enl. May 15, 1918. Wagoner, Batt. D, 163d Brigade, 337th Regt. F. A. Trained: Dunwoody Institute May 16 to July 8; Camp Dodge July 14 to August 15; to Camp Mills. Left U. S. August 18 on trans- port Bohemian from Hoboken; landed Liver- pool August 31. To Southampton September 2; crossed Channel to Le Havre September 4 on Narragansett. To Clermont; Ferrand, Septem- ber 8; trained two and one-half months at Cetezeta; did motor work at Clermont October 13 to 27; December 3 arrived Camp St. Sul- pice; to Bordeaux. Sailed January 8, 1919; landed Hoboken January 19. To Camp Mer- ritt January 20. Mustered out January 31, 1919. at Camp Dodge. GARV, MAURICE W. Poland Township Born October 20, 1898. Enl. October 1, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C. Trained: Buena Vista College, Storm Lake, Iowa. Mustered out December 13, 1918. English Channel to France. Remained a cook during all time that he was in Prance. Sailed from St. Nazaire, June 28, 1919, on the U. S. S. Edgar F. Luckenbach. Mustered out July 15, 1919. (tEISINGHB, LAVTBENCE J. Stonn Iiake Born August 11, 1895. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained: Camp Gordon three months; to Camp Shelby. Mustered out December 30, 1918. GEBDES, AI.BEBT Albert City Born December 17, 1885. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained: Camp Gordon; Camp Merritt. Sailed August 31 on U. S. S Plattsburg; landed Brest September 13. To St. George, trained there two weeks; to Somme Forest and stayed one week; to the front and stayed until the signing of the armistice — in France 9 months; was in the battle of Argonne Forest, at the front about two weeks. Mustered out June 8, 1919. GASKIXS, VEBNETTE M. Ziinn G-rove Born February 14, 1892. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. 315th Inf. Sanitary Detach., 79th Div. Trained: Camp Gordon. Sailed September 13; landed Brest September 21. Trans, to the 79th Div. October 23, attached to the 315th Inf. San. Detach.; arrived at the front 18 miles north of Verdun October 21, taking part in the Meuse-Argonne offensive up to the time of the armistice. Mustered out June 7, 1919. GEBDES, CHRIST Pairfield Township Born December 19, 1893. Enl. July 29, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, 116th Eng. 81st Div. Trained: Camp Forrest; October 24 to Camp Merritt. Embarked on U. S. S. George Washington No- vember 1; landed Brest November 9. Novem- ber 16 to N. J. Camp; to Louzerra. Sailed for U. S. Dec. 27; landed Newport News January 9, 1919. To Jefferson Barracks. Mustered out January 28, 1919. GEABAI.D, AZ.BEBT Sioux Rapids Born May 26, 1891. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. G, 5th Replm. Inf., 5th Replm. Div. Trained at Camp Gordon. Mustered out October 24, 1918. GEARV, WAI.I.IE E. Providence Tovmship Born March 21, 1895. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon. Mustered out December 8, 1918. GEIB, RUPUS EDWARD Marathon Born January 14. 189f;. lOnl. May 28, 1918. Cook Co. 3, 34th Eng. Trained: Camp Taylor; to Fort Benjamin Harrison; to Camp Upton. Sailed from Long Island August 16; landed Liverpool August 28. September 1 crossed GIDDIKGS, BENJAMIN P. Elk Township Born January 22. 1893. Enl. February 25. 1918. Pvt. 314th Trains Hdq. Trained: Camp Dodge one month, pvt. Co. H, 351st Inf. 8Sth Div,; at Camp Upton, pvt. in 27th Eng.. there was taken sick and was sent to camp hosp. ward A-5 for two months; trans, to 29th Co. D. B., then from 29th to 40th D. B.; to Camp Mills, to 314th Trains Hdq. Sailed June 27 on Saxon; landed Glasgow, Scotland. To Win- chester; to Southampton by boat; to Le Havre. To Rimacourt; to Mein-la-Town; to Grosvire; to Riececourt; to .Jubecourt; to Bouillanville; on Toul sector: at St. Mihiel; Damphian sector; to Meuse-Argonne sector; to Kylburg, Ger- many, December 6 to May 11, 1919; to Toul; to Brest. Sailed May 19 on Crown Prince Fredrich Wilhelm; landed Hoboken May 27. To Camp Upton; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 7, 1919. Denton B. Gregg Storm Lake Walter Stewart Grey Lee Township Rudolph Grienke Nokomis Township Ingebert Grodahl Barnes Township Knudt M. Grodahl Barnes Township Otis C. Grote Sioux Rapids Charles E. Gulling Washington Township Charles Gustaf Gustafson Sioux Rapids Eric J. Gustafson Storm Lake John A. Gustafson Albert City Carl R. Gustavson Maple Valley Township Ivar V. Gustafson Maple Valley Township William T. Gutel Washington Township Otto Gutz Newell Vernon Haahr Coon Township Conrad Haaland Sioux Rapids Oscar C. Haaland Sioux Rapids Harry Haarup Washington Township Lloyd E. Haburn Hayes Township Albert Hackerson Fairfield Township Clarence Edgar Hageman Sioux Rapids Burl J, Haight Brooke Township Walter George Hale Lee Township Albert F. Halverson Lee Township 94 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY GII.CHKIST, CHABI.i:S V. Sioux Bapids Born May 21, 1S91. Enl. May 29. 1917. Pvt. Co. M, 168th Inf. 42d Div. Trained: Cherokee, Iowa, from May to August 20, 1917; to D«s Moines two weeks; to Camp Mills for two weeks. Left U. S. October 18 from Hoboken on U. S. S. President Grant; returned and went over on Celtic; landed Liverpool. Crossed Channel to Le Havre November 25, 1917. To Rimacourt until October 1; to Lorraine front October 1 to June 15, 1918; went over top March 9, 1918; with Co. M took railroad at Baccarat; to Champagne July .4; in offensive from July 14 to 20; moved to Chateau-Thierry from July 21 to 28; wounded in arm and shoulder by high explosive shell July 28; to Field Hosp. No. 4; to Base Hosp. No. 116; to Vichy; trans, to Base Hosp. No 8; at Savenay September 25; to Brest. Sailed for U. S. Octo- ber 8; landed Newport News October 21. To Fort Des Moines October 26. Mustered out July 14, 1919. G-IIsItHrAKB, nOYD H. Storm Iiake Born July 25, 1892. Enl. May 15, 1917. 1st Lieut., Co. E, 350th Inf. 88th Div. Trained: Ft. Snelling and Camp Dodge. Promoted to 2d Lieut; to 1st Lieut. Sailed for France; was overseas from August 11, 1918, to May 30, 1919. Center Haute-Alsace sector October 4 to November 1; Argonne-Meuse November 8 to 11. Mustered out June 20, 1919. GII.IiISI'IE, WILLIAM K. Marathon Born June 8, 1900. Enl. October 1, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C. Trained: Iowa State College. Mustered out December 9, 1918. G-IlOWCZEWSKY, EUGENE C. Storm Lake Born February 25, 1888. Enl. July 24, 1918. Bugler, Co. A, 352d Inf. 88th Div. Trained: Camp Dodge; to Camp Mills. Sailed for Eng- land August 30, 1918. Saw active service; short time in Germany; now at Ribeaucourt, France. GLOWCZEWSKY, GEOKGE A. Storm Lake Born April 7, 1898. Enl. May 2, 1918. Sec. Yeoman, Co. IS Regt. B. Trained: G. L. N. T. S.; trans, to Brooklyn Navy Yard. Mustered out at Brooklyn, June 1, 1919. GOETHE, LOUIS FKESEKICK Grant Township Born July 12, 1887. Enl. February 20, 19i8. Pvt. Co. I, 130th Inf. 33d Div. Trained with original assignment with Co. E, 351st Regt. Left U. S. May 18, 1918. GOLDSMITH, ROLAND E. Storm Lake Born December 13, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 315th Inf. 79th Div. Trained: Camp Gordon one month; Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt.; to Camp Merritt. Sailed for France from Hoboken on U. S. S. Plattsburg, August 30, 1918; landed Brest September 12. To rest camp one week; to St. George two weeks; assigned to Co. E, 315th Inf. 79th Div.; to Verdun sector; Belleau sector for two weeks, wounded in right forearm by piece of shrap- nel; to field hosp. out of Verdun; to Base Hosp. No. 28 for two months; to Base Hosp. No. 114 at Bordeaux three months. Sailed March 19 on U. S. rf. Henderson; landed at Hoboken April 2. To Debarkation Hosp. No. 3 twelve days; to Ft. Des Moines. Mustered out July 2, 1919. GOODNESS, P. V. Storm Lake Born April 5, 1890. Enl. December 15, 1917. Sergt. Ist-cl. Med. Corps. Trained at Camp Dodge and Fort Des Moines. Promoted from pvt. to Corp., May 15. 1918; to sergt., July 1, 1918; to sergt. Ist-cl., June 1, 1919. Still in service. GBAN, ALBERT G. Storm Lake Born September 22, 1889. Enl. July 15, 1918. 1st Lieut, in Med. '^'oros. Trained: CaTiD Meade; in base hosp. at Camp Meade; to Camp Greenleaf, M. O. T. C. Mustered out May 28, 1919. GBAN, BUDOLFH ABTHUB Storm Lake Born December 6, 1891. Enl. Dec. 12, 1917. Ist-cl. Storekeeper, Co. F, 3d Regt., Cth Div. Trained: G. L. N. T. S. Promoted from app. seaman to Ist-cl. storekeeper. Transported troops and provisions from U. S. to Bordeaux; on land transport General W. C. Gorgas. Mustered out July 14, 1919. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 95 GrKEENE, ED'WAED LEIAND Storm Iiake Born January 25, 1883. Enl. March 14, 1916. 2d Lieut., 10th Batt. King's Own Yorkshire Light Inf. 21st Div. 64th Brigade. Trained: at Rugeley Camp. Stafford. Ensyland. Com- missioned 2d Lieut. January, 1919. Served as platoon commander with the 10th K. O. Y. L. I. C Co., No. 10. Platoon; on the Arras front June to August, 1916; later the battery moved to the Somme region and took part in the battle of the Soinnie, capturing the village of Fluer; on the 17th of September while wait- ing for a relieving battery was wounded and sent home. Recovered from wounds and was trans, to Corps of Royal Eng. ; again in action on many fronts until sent home in the latter part of 1918. Still in home service. GHEENGO, BOYAI. EUGENE Sioux Rapids Born July 3, 1S94. Enl. July 23, 1918. Pvt. Recruit Co. No. 14, Motor Transport Corps. Trained: Camp Maybray for two months; to Kelly Field No. 1 for six weeks; to Camp John Wise for two months' course in telephone work. Mustered out January 24, 1919. GRIENKE, RUDOI.F C. P. Nokomis Township Born September 22, 1894. Enl. August 5, 1918. Sgt. 617th Motor Transport Corps. Trained: Jefferson Barracks; "Waco, Texas; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from Hoboken on U. S. S. President Grant September 18; landed St. Nazaire October 6. To St. Aignan, trans, to 116th Amm. Train; slightly wounded; to Paris, trans, to 017th M. T. C. Sailed from Brest on U. S. S. President Grant December 11; landed Hoboken December 25. To Camp Merritt. Mustered out January 8, 1920. Married while in Prance to Miss Lucette Raymond. GREY, WAIiTER STE^WART Iiee Tcmiship Born October 31, 1898. Enl. October 11, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C. Trained: Buena Vista Col- lege, Storm Lake, Iowa Mustered out Decem- ber 13, 1918. GRODAHIi, IITGEBERT Barnes Township Born April 1, 1895. Enl. July 24. 191S. Corp. 4th Replm. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out January 9, 1919. GREGEBSON, ADOI.PH Nokomis Township Born February 9, 1897. Enl. September 5, 1918. Pvt. Co. F, 88th Regt. 19th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge from September 5 to January 24, 1919. Mustered out January 24, 1919. GREGG, DENTOir B. Storm I.ake Born September 27, 1895. Enl. June 22, 1915. Sgt. Hdq. Co. 168th Inf. 42d Div. Trained: spent winter of 1915-1916 with regt. at Brownsville, Texas; when called for over- seas service joined his regiment at Cherokee, Iowa; trained at State Fair Grounds at Des Moines; to Camp Mills. Sailed from Hoboken, October 18; returned to port October 28; left again November 14; landed Liverpool Decem- ber 1. To Winchester; to Southampton; to Le Havre. To Rimacourt; to Baccarat in Lor- raine sector February 26 to June 19, 1918; Champagne July 2 to 20; Chateau-Thierry July 25 to August 5; St. Mihiel September 12 to September 26; Argonne October 12 to 24; Base Hosp. No. 202 at Orleans October 26 to Jan- uary 10, 1919. Sailed from Brest March 5; landed Newport News, March 18, 1919. Mustered out March 28, 1919. GRODAHIi, KNUDT M. Barnes Township Born October 8, 1887. Enl. September 20, 1917. Pvt. Co. H, 9th Regt., 2d Div. Trained: Camp Dodge two months; to Camp Pike seven months; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from Ho- boken on Anselm June 20, 1918; landed Liver- pool July 1, 1918. To Winchester two days; to Southampton; to Cherbourg. To St. George Training Camp for two weeks; moved toward Paris, billeted there ten days; to Nancy; to Morbecque; to St. Mihiel drive; to Champagne drive ten days; to Argonne drive eleven days, when armistice was signed; took sick Novein- ber 20, and was sent to hospital at Allevay for five weeks; to Toul one month; to Bordeaux one month. Sailed from Bordeaux March 25, on Luckenbach; landed Hoboken April 5. To Camp Mills; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out April 24, 1919. GROTE, OTIS C. Sioux Rapids Born November 26, 1899. Enl. April 20, 1917. Coxswain on Miwaiu. Ti-ained: G. L. N. T. S.; Transferred to. U S. S. Rhode Island; to Miwaiu. Made five comnlete nmingson Newell Elmer E. Henningson Lincoln Township Hans C. Henrlckson Newell Walter R. Hensel Barnes Township Henry W. Henseling Maple Valley Township John W. Henseiing Maple Valley Township William R. Heschke Storm Lake Otto E. Hesla Liinn Grove Fo:T'=-t "W. Hi'^kman Rembrandt Allen Higgins Grant Township Earl L. Highley Storm Lake Burnie Franklin Hildebrand Charles E. Hildebrand Marathon Marathon Donald Hill Storm Lake Lyall W. Hinch Poland Township Merle, J. Hines Newell Roy D. Hissong Alta io6 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY HABOI.DSON, HSRBEBT T. Rembrandt Born September 23, 1888. Enl. April 26, 1918. Pvt. Co. A, 338th M. G. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Podge. HAKOZ.DSOIT, TALETTA (Nurse) Barnes Tcwnship Born January 10, 1888. Volunteered in Jan- uary, 1918; enlisted June 1, 1918. Nurse, U. S. A. N. C. Trained at Swedish Hosp., Minneapo- lis, three years. Upon enlistment assigned to Port Des Moines for two months; to New York three weeks. Sailed September 2 on Aquatania; landed Southampton September 9. Crossed Channel to Le Havre. To Langres Base Hosp. No. 88; stationed near Chaumont on duty at Base Hosp. No. 88 and Base Hosp. No. 53 until March 1, 1919; trans, back to Base Hosp, No. 52 until it was closed on June 6, 1919. Received French citation at Base Hosp. No. 53. To Bordeaux Embarkation Base for two weelis; to Saraney three weeks; to Kerchun; to Brest. Sailed for U. S. July 8, on Emperator; landed Hoboken July 15, 1919. To New York ten days; to Ft. Riley for six weeks; to Denver. Still in service when this information was comiJiled. HABOX,DSOir, THOB REUBEN Barnes Tovrnship Born April 26, 1898. Enl. April 20, 1918. Pvt. 13th Vet. Hosp. Unit, Vet, Corps. Trained at Fort Riley; Camp Lee. Left for Fi-ance October 25; landed France, November 9. HARRIS, RAI.FH MURDOCK Sioux Rapids Born January 9, 1899. Enl, April 21, 1917. Fireman 2d-cl. on U. S. S Great Northern. Trained at G. L. N. T. S.; at Navy Yard, Portsmouth, N. H. ; to U. S. S. Kearsarge. Sailed from New York December 11, 1917. on U. S. S. Antigone; landed at St. Nazaire December 25 with 3,000 troops; returned to New York and made trip to Brest, France, on Antigone; transferred March 20, 1918, to re- ceiving ship at New York; to U. S. S. Great Northern July 12. Made Ave trips to Brest with troops on Great Northern. Mustered out January 23, 1919. HARRISON, Z.YZ.E G. Storm Ziake Enl. March 23, 1918. Pvt. Batt. D, 3d F. A. 6th Div. Trained at Camp Doniphan, assigned to Batt. F, 11th Field Artillery, 6th Divi- sion; transferred to Batt, D, 3d F. A. 6th Div. October 7, 1918. Left Brest June 16, 1919, on U. S. S. Kansas; landed Newport News June 27, 1919. Mustered out at Camp Dodge, July 9, 1919. HARRISON, I.'X'SIiE G. Storm Iiake Born December 23, 1899. Enl. March 21, 1918. Pvt. Batt. D, 11th F. A. 6th Div. Trained at Fort Sill. Sailed July 14, 1918; landed Liverpool July 26. Trained for two and a half months at Valdalion, France; and one and a lialf months at Villouwell; moved in the 14th Training Area; Hdq. at Agimy Le Duo; left for Brest June 9, 1919; transferred from Batt. P, 11th P, A. to Batt. D, 3d F. A. Octo- ber 7, 1919. Sailed from Brest June 16; landed U. S. June 27, 1919. Mustered out July 9, 1919. HARTI.EY, HAROI.D R. Iiincoln Township Born September 30, 1892. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. L, 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon. Sailed to France. Was in foreign service from August 30, 1918, to Jan- uary 9, 1919. On Verdun front October 28 to November 3; slightly wounded November 3; to hospital 24 days. Sailed for U. S. with Casual Co. 113. Mustered out January 27, 1919. HAVIIiAND, ARTHUR Storm Iiake Born December 21, 1895. Pvt. Co. 123, D. B. Inf. Trained at Camp Dodge. HAWK, JAIVtES Cr. Mar:ithon Born December 16, 1896. Enl. June 11, 1917. Sergt. M. G. Co. 20th and 70th Inf. 10th Div. Trained at Fort Douglas until June 30, 1918; Camp Funston until February 12, 1919. Mustered out in August, 1919. HAYWOOD, JACOB J. Storm Iiake Born November 29, 1895. Enl. April 1917. Pvt. Co. D, 103d Motor Supply Train. Trained as pvt. Co. M, 168th Inf., 42d Div. at Chero- kee, Iowa; to Camp Cody, trans, to Co. D, 103d Motor Supply Train, at Camp Cody five months; to Detroit and assigned to work in Co. D, 103d Motor Supply Train. Sailed over- seas. Trans, to Motor Supply Train in 4th Div.; later stationed at Coblenz; drove truck among number sold by the U. S. Government to Poland; was volunteer in Polish Relief Expedition; was in England; shell-shocked. HEARS, RAYMOND E. Foland Township Born April 5, 1900. Enl. October 15, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C. Trained at Buena Vista College, Storm Lake, Iowa. Mustered out December 13, 1918. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 107 HEDIN, ENGI^EBRECHT COKSTANTINS SiouK Bapids Born February 17, 1892. Enl. March 19, 1918. Wagoner, Co. 43 Evacuation Ambu- lance. Trained at Fort Riley and Fort Snell- ing. Mustered out July 23, 1919. HEI^BERG-, IiESIiIi: Storm. Iialie Born March 4, 1897. Enl. April 14, 1917. Seaman 2d-cl. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. Mustered out at G. L. N. T. S. December 15, 1917. Enl. in Army September 6, 1918. Pvt. Co. 62, 163d D. B.; trans, to Development Bn. A. Trained at Camp Dodge. Mustered out November 30, 1918. HSITBICKSEK, HANS C. Newell Born July 18, 1890. Enl. December 13, l!il7. Pvt. Ist-cl. Hdq. Co. 54th Art. C. A. C. Trained at Fort Logan with 11th Co. D, 52d Am. Tr., 31st Brig. C. A. C. and with Co. 11, C. A. C. from December 13 to 27, 1917; to Ft. Baker December 27 to May 9, 1918, with San Francisco June Replm. Draft; with Hdq. Co. 54th Art. C. A. C. from May 9 to July 18; with 52d Amm. Train from July 18 to July 29; with 4th Co. 164th D. B. at Camp Funston from July 29 to February 5, 1918; at Camp Dodge from February 5 to 13, 1918. In Meuse- Argonne offensive September 26 to November 11. 191S. With A. E. F. from June. 1918, to January 23, 1919. HEBBEBT, JOHN Sioux Bapids Born October 10, 1918. Trained at Camp Scott as truck driver for the Auto Motive de- partment of the Red Cross. Mustered out November 5, 1918. Received an honorable discharge because of inability to get passport on account of German parentage. HBMMINGSON, CHRIS T. Nevrell Born March 12, 1892. Enl. February 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 351st Inf. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; Camp Logan; Ft. Bayard. Mustered out April 21, 1919. HENNINGSON, BIiMBB E. Iiincolu Township Born February 24, 1896. Enl. February 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. I, 130th Inf. 33d Div. Trained at Camp Dodge February 24, to April 5; Camp Logan May 7; Camp Upton. Sailed May 15; landed Brest May 26. To Camp Duelandville June 2; to Embrivlee, June 15; July 1 to Bel- lencourt; July 17 at the Somme sector; in Somme sector July 17 to 25; to rest camp at Allonville Woods; August 1 sent to Australian Casual Clearing Station No. 8; trans, to No. 10 and No. 12; August 8 to Stationary Field Hosp. at Long Pre No. 6; August 11 sent to Rouen Base Hosp. No. 9; August 23 to Rest Camp No. 1 and assigned to 11th Casual Batt.; to Winchester. Sailed for U. S. from South- ampton December 28; landed January 7, 1919, Hoboken. To Camp Mills, January 11; to Camp Dix, January 27; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out February 1, 1919. HENSBI., WAZ-TSB B. Barnes Township Born March 1, 1895. Enl. July 27. 191f Pvt. 61st A. B. N. Trained at Camp Dodge. HBNSBIiING, HBNBY W. Maple Valley Township Born February 7, 1892. Enl, August 23, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 1st Bn. Replm. Co. Trained at Jefferson Barracks; trans, to Camp Mac- Arthur. Mustered out January 10, 1919. HBNSBI.ING, JOHN W. Maple Valley Township Born September 29, 1890. Enl. May 26, 1918. Pvt. D. B. Trained: Camp Dodge six weeks; transferred to Fort Snelling five weeks; to Port Brady 8 months; to Camp Grant for two weeks At Ft. Snelling acted in U. S. Guards. Mustered out January 22, 1919. HBSCHKB, VTIIiIiIAM B. Scott Township Born July 4, 1891. Enl. July 23. 1918. Hrjrse- shoer. Hdq. Troop, 1st Army. Trained: Camp Gordon one month; Camp Merritt. Sailed from Hoboken on August 16: on U. S. S. Plattsburg; landed Brest August 27. Transferred to Horse Shoer School three months at St. John; to St. Mihiel; to Ligny; to Toul; to Trier, Germany; to Le Mans; to Brest. Sailed for U. S. on June 27 on Mohstien; landed New York July 10. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out July 16, 1919 Thomas Hoare Rembrandt Edwin A. Hoch Storm Lake Forrest D. Hoch Storm Lake Peter Hoch Scott Township Forrest L. Ho9fle Newell Harry John Hoffeins Alta Charles Methiap Hoffman Lee Township Josephine Hoffman Storm Lake Aaron Bruce Holderness Nokomis Township Lars B. Holii Rembrandt Siverlan Holm Lincoln Township Clarence F. Holmes Alta -'itm Clifford J. Holmes Lee Township Emmit Llovd Holme.= Alta Forrest G. Holmes Storm Lake Aldo Holmgren Nokomis Township »»r-i Harvey Allen Hood Storm Lake Chester Hostetler Maple Valley Township Gail W. Householder Newell Township John William Huber Truesdale Arthur P. Hughes David James Hughes Everett L. MiiyT Storm Lake Storm Lake Storm l^alve Wilbur P. Hughes Storm Lake no HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY HEIiSA, OTTO E. Iiinn Grove Born September 22, 1897. Enl. October, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C. Trained at St. Olaf's Col- lege, Northfleld, Minn. Mustered out Decem- ber 11, 1918. HINES, MERZiE J. Newell Born May 27, 1898. Enl. October 11, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C. Trained at Buena Vista College, Storm Lake, Iowa. Mustered out December 13, 1918. HICKMAN, FORREST W. Rembraudt Born May 22, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon from July to November, 1918; to Camp Shelby from November to December, 1919. Mustered out December 30, 1918. HIX.SEBRAND, BURNIE TRANKHN Marathon Born October 7, 1895. Enl. June 5, 1917. Radio Operator, Navy. Trained at G. L. N. T. S.; Harvard Radio School. Promoted from app. seaman to S. 2d-cl., to El. 3d-cl., to El. 2d-cl., to El. Ist-cl. Mustered out October 10, 1919. Served on U. S. S. Michigan and U. S. S. Kansas. HIGGINS, AI.I.EN Grant Township Born June 1, 1898. Enl. October 11, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C. Trained at Buena Vista College, Storm Lake, Iowa. Mustered out December 13, 1918. HIIiI., DONAI.D Storm Iiake Born November 19, 1895. Enl. September 19, 1917. Sgt. Co. E, 350th Inf. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge. Sailed from New York on H. M. S. Delta August 11; landed Lon- don August 28. To Romsey for one week; to Southampton; to Cherbourg. Trained two weeks at Cherbourg; in front lines of Haute- Alsace. sector from October 5 to November 2; to reserve on Toul sector November 5; to Gon- drecourt December 1; attended A. E. F. Univ. at Beauve from March 5 to May 15. Sailed from St. Nazaire on U. S. S. Madawaska May 25; landed New York June 5, 1919. Mustered out July 15, 1919. HINCH, I^VAI.1. "W. Poland Township Born November 7, 1896. Enl. May 1, 1918. Seaman Ist-cl. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. from May 1 to May 25. Promoted to seaman Ist-cl. Left U. S. from Newport News on transport Mongolia May 28; landed Brest June 11, 1918. To Pouillac, France, and was stationed there from June 14 to November 29; left Pouillac November 29. Arrived New York December 11, 1918. To Pelham Bay Training Station December 12 and remained there until Jan- uary 6, 1919. Mustered out January 6, 1919. HII.DEBRAND, CHARI.ES E. Marathon Born November 19, 1894. Enl. June 6, 1917. Pvt. Ist-cl. Hdq. Troop 24th Div. Served in cavalry and infantry; with B. Hdqrs. Bn. and General Hdqrs.; trained at Camp Cody from August 20, 1917, to August 27, 1919; trans- ferred to Headquarters Troop, 34th Division. Left Hoboken September 17, 1918; on S. S. Cretic; landed Liverpool September 29, 1918. Crossed Channel to Le Havre. To Bordeaux, remained there from October 7 to November 15; to Le Mans until November 25; to Chau- mont from December 1 to May 30, 1919; to St. Aignan for ten days; to Brest. Sailed June 17 on U. S. S. Mobile; landed New York. To Camp Mills. Mustered out July 7, 1919. highi;ev, eari. i;. storm Iiabe Born July 28, 1897. Enl. November 23, 1916. Corp. Batt. B, 63d Artillery, C. A. C. Trained at Ft. Norden. Sailed overseas. Served a short time in England; seven months in France. Active service in air raids. At Ft. Tilden in Q. M. C. when this record was com- piled for publication. HINKEI.DEY, DICK Maple Valley Township Born December 23, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Oo. C, 4th Replm. Inf. Trained at Cainp Gordon four weeks; to Camp Merritt. Sailed for France on U. S. S. Plattsburg, August 29. Trained two weeks at St. George; trans, to Verdun sector two weeks; to 79th Div. in Co. E, 316th Inf.; to Meuse sector. Sailed May 16; landed Philadelphia. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 8, 1919. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY III HISSONG, ROY D. Alta Born February 9, 1888. Enl. July 1, 1918. Pvt. Manual Training Worker in Educational Dept. Medical Corps. Trained at U. S. Gen. Hosp. No. 26; at Fort Des Moines eight and one-half months. Mustered out March 10, 1919. HOARE, THOMAS Rembrandt Enl. Septentiber 20, 1917. Pvt. Co. I, 34th Inf. 87th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge two months with Co. A, 350th Inf., 88th Div.; to Camp Pike; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from New York June 20, 1918, on the Anselin; landed Liverpool July 1. To Winchester; to Southampton; to Cherbourg. To St. Aignan; joined 9th Inf. 2d Div. July 16 at Soissons; in attack at Soissons July 18; wounded in action about 5 P. M., shot through wrist — has permanently crippled arm. HOCH, EDWIN A. Storm. Iiake Born April 3, 1895. Enl. July 15, 1918. Pvt. Signal Corps, Wireless Section, Co. A, 219th F. S. Bn. 19th Div. Trained at Sioux City, Iowa; Hdqrs. Training Detachment, High School Building, for two months; to Camp Doage for four months. Mustered out Janu- ary 18, 1919. HOCH, FORREST D. Storm. Xiake Born July 25, 1896. Enl. May 31, 1918. Corp. Co. A, Med. Detach. Trained at Jeffer- son Barracks two months. To Walter Ried Gen. Hosp. Mustered out at Camp Dodge after 14 and one-half months of service, October 17, 1919. HOCH, FETER Scott Tovrnship Born May 1, 1891. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. B, 316th Inf., 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon one month; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from New York August 29; landed Brest Sep- tember 12, 1918. To St. George in training camp two weeks; was with Co. B, 79th Div.; in Argonne front three weeks when armistice was signed. Sailed from St. Nazaire; landed Philadelphia May 31, 1919. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 8, 1919. HOEFI.E, FORREST I.. Newell Born October 22, 1895. Enl. July 27, 1918. Pvt. Balloon Co. No. 20. Trained at Fort Omaha; Camp Morrison. Sailed October 21, 1918; landed Brest. To Bordeaux; to Camp De Souge. Sailed for U. S. April 4, 1919. Mustered out May 2, 1919. HOFFEINS, HARRY JOHN Alta -Born February 19, 1888. Enl. July 20. 1918. 2d Lieut. 5th Vet. Replm. Unit, Veterinary Corps. Trained at Fort Oglethorpe; Camp Lee; Camp Merritt. Mustered out January 18, 1919, at Camp Lee. HOFFMAN, CHARI.es METHIAS Xiee Township Born July 22, 1898. Enl. March 27, 1917. Pvt. Co. D, 21st Regt. Trained at Camp Logan three weeks; Colexico, California, three months; Camp Kearny September, 1917, to February, 1919; Vancouver Barracks one month. On April 16, 1919, he was at Spokane, "W^ashington. and had one year to serve to com- plete his term of enlistment in the Regular Army. HOFFMAN, JOSEPHINE Storm Iiake Born October 8, 1886. Enl. February 21, 1918. Nurse in U. S. N. R. Served in U. S. Navy Hospital, Mare Island; U. S. Navy Hosp. Elysian Park, Los Angeles, California; U. S. Navy Hospital San Diego, California; now in service in Tuberculosis Hospital in Colorado. Will be discharged in summer of 1920. HOFFMAN, SAMUEI. I.EE Storm Iiake Born March 17, 1884. Enl. May 13, 1917. Civil Engineer in 109th Regt. 34th Div., Com- missioned 1st lieut August 15, 1917; promoted to Captain September 9, 1918. Sailed from Hoboken September 17, 1918; landed Liver- pool September 28. To Chercourt. October 1. To Headquarters Second Army Staff at Toul; at Toul had charge of construction of rail heads American dump, railroads, reconnais- sance entire Verdun to Nancy; back to regt. at Nevers November 26. Sailed April 28, 1919; landed New York May 9, 1919. Was trained at Ft. Snelling and Ft. Leavenworth; com- mended in letter from Commander Second Army, Lt.-Gen. R. L. Bullard upon termina- tion of service. Mustered out May 23, 1919. William N. Hughes Storm Lake George H. Hull Storm Lake Jens C. Husted Providence Township Clyde Ibsen Storm Lake Ernest O. Hu.senian and wife Manle Valley Townshij) Mr. Huseman won his bride while in English Camp. Clarence Di^k Huseman Maple Valley Township Floyd M. Ingram Lee Township Lewis Arthur Jackson Sioux Rapids James Jacobsen Elk Township Martin Jacobsen Elk Township John R. Jacobson Marathon Lyle Merle Jeffers Poland Township Albert H. Jensen Newell Anfln Jensen Barnes Township Carl M. Jensen Newell Christ J. Jensen Nokomis Township Clarence M. Jensen Newell Eddie Jensen Alta Einar Jensen Newell 114 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY HOIiDEBNESS, AARON BRTTCi: Nokomis Township Born December 11, 1896. Enl. September 5. 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. Base Hosp. No. 105. Trained at Camp Dodge for one month; to Fort Ben- jamin Harrison two weeks; was trans, with Med. Corps at Camp Dodge and left in Base Hosp. No. 105. First assigned at Camp Dodge to Co. 58, 163d D. B. Sailed on October 28 from Hobolten on transport Mongolia; landed Brest November 9, 1918. Was at hosp. at Herhoun. Sailed from Brest June 30, 1919, on U. S. S. Frederick; landed Manhattan July 10, 1919. To Camp Mills. Mustered out July 17, 1919. HOI^m, IiABS B. Rembrandt Born March 9, 1896. Enl. September 20. 1917. Pvt. Co. C, 9th Inf. Trained at Camp Dodge two months; Camp Pike seven months; Camp Merritt. Sailed from New York June 20, 1918, on the Anselin; landed Liverpool July 1. To Winchester; to Southampton; to Cherbourg. To St. Aignan; joined 2d Div. near Soissons; in attack at Soissons July 18 and 19; to Marbach sector August 9 to 24; to St. Mihiel September 12 to 16; to Champagne front for ten days; to Meuse-Argonne November 1 to 11; to Beaumont to November 17; in Army of Occupation at Bendorff, Germany; to outpost duty thirty miles on the Rhine; to Brest July 15, 1919. Sailed on Manostaria; landed New York August 20. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out August 31, 1919. HOI.IVr, SIVEBIAN Iiincoln Township Born July 13, 1887. Enl. April 9, 1918. Mech. 211th Aero Squadron. Trained at Pitts- burgh from April 11 to June 11; to Long Island. Sailed from Boston July 16; landed July 31 at Aramamasth Lacks, England. To Rest Camp August 1; August 4 to Camp Calne; November 18 to Notyash. Embarked for U. S. November 30; landed Boston December 11, 1918. To Camp Devens; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out December 30, 1918. HOI^MES CrARENCi: F. Alta Born November 29, 1891. Enl. July 29, 1918. Pvt. Co. B, 212th Eng. 12th Div. Trained at Camp Forrest; Camp Devens. Mustered out February 7, 1919, at Camp Dodge. HOI.MES, CI.IFFORD J. Iiee Township Born August 30, 1895. Enl. July 29, 1918. Wagoner, in Engineers' Train, 214th Regt., 14th Div. Trained at Camp Forrest until October, 1918; Camp Custer until February, 1919. Mustered out at Camio Dodge February 7, 1919. HOIiItlBS, EMMIT IiI^OYD Alta, Born October 1, 1894. Enl. November 5, 1917. Sgt. Hdqrs. Co. and Batt B. 31st Brig. 57th Artillery Regt. First service with Coast Artillery; later Field Artillery. Trained at Fort Hancock. Promoted to corp. April 18, 1918, to sgt. July 19, 1918. Preliminary train- ing at Vayres and Libarne, France; Artillery Range Camp De Souge. Left for front August 25; at St. Mihiel; Verdun; to Argonne-Meuse. Positions: September 12 to 18, Vignot; Sep- tember 21 to 30, Montzeville; October 1 to 7, Esnes; October 8 to 22, Cuisy; October 23 to November 1, Romagne; November 2 and 3, Bentheville: November 4 to 11, Beaufort. Turned in guns and equipment at Dolevant- le-Chateau. Sailed from Brest January 2. 1919; landed New York January 14. To Ft. Hancock, January 15 to 21. Discharged at Camp Grant, February 1, 1919. Sgt. Holmes' chief duty in France was connected with tele- phone communication in battery. HOIMFS FORREST Cr. Storm Xiake Born in 1895. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. 12, 3d Bn. 166th D. B., 13th Div. Trained at American Lake, Mustered out August 7, 1918. HOIcMG-RFN, AIcBO ITokomis Township Born November 7, 1896. Enl. September 3, 1918. Pvt. Co. 58, 163d D. B. Trained at Camp Dodge: to Camp Cody, with Provost Guard Co.; went back from Cody to Camp Dodge. Mustered out January 29, 1919. HOOD, HARVEY AIiIiEIT Storm Xiake Born October 7, 1893. Enl. September 4, 1917. Sgt. to Major Hdq. Co. 350th Inf. 88th Div. Promoted from pvt. to Corp., to sgt., to bn. sgt., to Major. Trained at Camp Dodge. Sailed from New York August 16 on H. M. S. Kashmir; landed Liverpool August 28. To "Wimmal Dawn Camp August 29; crossed Eng- lish Channel to Cherbourg, September 1 on H. M. S. Viper. Encamped for training at Fie Cote d'Or September 4 to 17; at Eschevans September 19 to October 5; in support at St. Cosne; to Haute-Alsace sector October 7 to HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 115 15; in training at La Vallonne October 15 to November 18; in concentration camps at Le Mans and D' Anvour November 19 to Decem- ber 23; in training at Menancourt December 25 to January 16, 1919; at Central Records Office, Bourges, January 18 to May 14. Sailed from St. Nazaire May 19 on U. S. S. Aeolus; landed Newport News May 30, 1919. Mustered out June 5, 1919. HOPKINS, WrLI. H. Stonu Iiake Born February 8, 1888. Enl. February 25, 1918. Junior sgt. in Q. M. Branch. Military Postal Detail. Trained at Camp Dodge. Pro- moted to sgt. Mustered out February 13, 1919. HOSTETIiEB, CHESTER Maple Valley Township Born August 10, 1887. Enl. July 28, 1917. Ship's cook, Div. 11. Trained: was ))ut on draft for foreign service April 28, 1918; pre- vious training at Norfolk and Philadelphia. Sailed from New York for Scotland where he was sent by train to Rosite where the Ameri- can Fleet was located; was put on Texas, one of the most modern and best ships in the fleet and sailed on .Tune 27 for Scapa Flow. Scot- land; in no large engagement but was in the fleet which helped run the blockade on sub- marines and was with the fleet at the time the German Fleet surrendered. Mustered out April 28. 1919 HOUSEHOIiDEB, GAIXi VT. Newell Township Born February 24, 1897. Enl. July 10, 1918. Fireman in Navy. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. until September 4; to Norfolk until Septem- ber 10; then ordered aboard U. S. S. George Washington; made nine trips to Europe on this ship; on the last trip brought King Al- bert and Queen Elizabeth from Antwerp, Bel- gium. Mustered out October 9, 1919, at G. L. N. T. S. HUBEB, JOHN WII.I.IAM Truesdale Born October 24, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. B, 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon; Camp Merritt. Sailed from New York September 1; landed Brest Septem- ber 14. To hosp. for guard duty; to St. Georges; to Verdun and sent into open fields for two weeks; then assigned to 79th Div. and ordered to Verdun; in battle of Verdun Sep- tember 26 to November 11; after signing of armistice sent to field hosp.; to Dijon four months; to Nantes; to Brest. Sailed May 5, 1919; landed Hoboken May 12. To Camp Mer- ritt hosp. for ten days; to Camp Sherman. Mustered out May 29, 1919. HUGHES, ARTHUR F. Storm Iiake Born November 28, 1891. Enl. April 9, 1918. "Wagoner, Battery A, 150th Heavy Field Art., 42d Div. Trained at Madison, Wisconsin, two months; to Camp Jackson one month; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from Hoboken on Tydem July 23; landed at George's Dock, London, August 8. To detention camp at Ramsey for one month; to Camp Hunt at LaConners, France, for six weeks. To Sedan; to Argonne front; was on this front until armistice was signed. To Neuenahr, Germany, with Army of Occupa- tion four months; to Brest. Sailed on Levia- than, April 18; landed Hoboken April 25, 1919. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out May 12, 1919. HUGHES, WII.BUR F. Storm Xiake Born August 28, 1895. Enl. July 14, 1917. Corp. 109th Amm. Tr., 34th Div. Trained at State Fair Grounds. Des Moines, Iowa, two months; to Camp Cody September 1; on August 10, 1918, to Diamond Motor works, Chicago, for ten days; drove trucks to Raritan Arsenal ten days; to Camp Dix one month; to New York. Sailed from Hoboken on Olympic; October 17; landed Southampton October 23. October 23 to Cherbourg. To Camp St. Sulpice for seven months; to Camp Genicourt near Bordeaux. Sailed on U. S. S. lowan June 10, 1919; landed Philadelphia June 22. To Camp Dix; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 28, 1919. HUGHES, DAVID JAMES Storm Iiake Born July 12, 1899. Enl. July 6, 1917. Corp. Co. D, 20th Inf. 10th Div. Trained at Ft. Douglas; Camp Funston. Promoted from pvt. to pvt. Ist-cl., to Corp. Mustered out January 24, 1919. HUGHES, EVERETT L. Storm Iialce Born June 19, 1895. Enl. July 29, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. 314th Detach., Q. M. C. Trained at Syracuse. N. Y.; to Newport News. Mustered out December 16, 1918. ii6 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY storm Ijake Born April 10, 1896. Enl. March 28, 1918. Corp. Batt. A, 60th F. A. Trained at Univer- sity of Wisconsin: to Camp Jaclison; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out February 1, 1919. HUI.I., GEORGi: H. Storm Iiake Born June 6, 1897. Enl. July 1, 1917. Pvt. Hdq. Co. 168th Inf., 42d Div. Trained at Chero- kee, Iowa; to State Fair Grounds, Des Moines, Iowa; to Camp Mills. Sailed on U. S. S. Grant October 18, 1917; returned to port October 28 sailed again on U. S. S. Aurania November 14 landed Liverpool. After ten days at Le Havre To Remicourt; to Langres; to Baccarat entered line at Luneville sector February 22 1918; wounded June 19; to Base Hosp. No 23 at Vetell; returned to duty. March, 1918 with Army of Occupation on the Rhine; left Germany from Brest. Sailed April 18 on trans- port Leviathan; landed New York May 24. To Camp Upton; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out May 16, 1919. HUSSMAN, CI^ABIINCE DICK Maple Valley Township Born July 31, 1896. Enl. September 5, 1918. Pvt. Co. A, Med. Dept. Trained at Camp Dodge in Co. F, 88th Inf. 19th Div. Mustered out October 20, 1919. HUSEMAN, ERNEST C. Maple Valley To-wnship Born September 2, 1890. Enl. February 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 350th Inf. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge two months; to Camp Mills ten days. Sailed April 24; landed Liverpool May 6, 1918. Took sick going across; to Eng. Hosp. at Belmont for three weeks; trans, to American Red Cross Hospital at Mossyhill about eight weeks; to rest camp Notyash about 8 months. Married in Liverpool to Miss Edith Hartley, December 2, 1918. Sailed from Liverpool to Brest for return to the U. S. March 22, 1919; landed New York. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out April 15, 1919. HUSEMAN, FRANK Maple Valley Township Born' August 6, 1895. Enl. April 2, 1918. Cook, Base Hosp. Detach. Med Corps. Trained at Camp Dodge 18 days; to Camp Logan; to Camp Dodge; to Camp Logan. Mustered out March 19, 1919. HUSTED, JENS C. Providence Towmship Born July 4, 1892. Enl. July 24, 1918. Sgt. Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt. ; to Co. D, 99th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon for three months; to Camp Wheeler. Mustered out December 21, 1918. IBSEN, CI.YDE Storm Ijake Born July 17, 1895. Enl. August 9, 1917. Pvt. Ist-cl. Co. F, 21st Engrs. Light Railway, 8th French Brig. 42, 77, 26, 5, and 2d Divs. Trained at Camp Grant. Landed in Prance December 6, 1917, for 18 months. 17 days in French service. Only authorized light rail- way or narrow guage R. R. Regt. in France; the track gauge was 23% in. in width and was used to transport ammunition supplies, artil- lery, and troops from the standard guage rail- head to the trenches; two classes of motive power were used — steam 5 to 15 kilos, behind the lines, and gas tractors were used im- mediately beliind tlie lines; regiment was well scattered over the entire French and American fighting lines and took part in every battle by the French and Americans from December 20, 1917, until the armistice was signed. Mustered out June 20, 1919. INGRAM, riiOYD M. Iiee Township Born January 19, 1897. Enl. August 3, 1918. Striker in Aviation Section of Navy, Second, Third, and Fifth Regts. Trained at Charles- ton August to November 15, 1918; Norfolk November 15 to January 15. Mustered out at G. L. N. T. S. January 28, 1919. INMAN, CI.IFFORD FORREST Storm Iiake Born July 1, 1896. Enl. October 28, 1918. Master Mechanic in Aviation Section of Navy. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. Mustered out December 23, 1918. JACKSON, I.EWIS ARTHUR Sioux Rapids Born May 19, 1902. Enl. July 9, 1918. Fire- man 2d-cl. on U. S. S. Arizona and U. S. S. Aeolus. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. and Logan Rifle Range. Promoted from seaman 2d-cl. to fireman 2d-cl. Sailed from Newport News to Cuba; to Trindad; to South America on U. S. S. Arizona; to Cuba; to Newport News; to Brest; to Smyrna; to Constantinople; to Gibraltar; to New York; trans, to Aeolus; two trips from New York to Brest and return. Mustered out September 25, 1919. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 117 JACOBSEir, JAMES Jllk. To'nmship Born December 19, 1892. Enl. August 29. 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 41st Regt. 10th Div. Trained at Camp Funston. Mustered out February 1, 1919. JENSEN, AIiBEBT H. Newell Born November 24, 1893. Enl. June 15, 1918. Corp. Co. D, 426 M. T. C. Trained at Ames and Valparaiso. Promoted from pvt. to corp. Mustered out July 15, 1919. JACOBSEN, MARTIN Elk Township Born August 8, 1887. Enl. July 29, 1918. Pvt. in 212th and 213th Eng. Trained at Camp Forrest three months; to Camp Merritt. Sailed October 29 on XJ. S. S. George Washington; landed Brest November 9. To Anglers one week; to Brest Area; trans, to 503d Co. and worlted baclt to St. Nazaire, 3 months. En- gaged while in France in building roads. Sailed for U. S. on Martha Washington May 7; landed Newport News May 19. To Camp Dix; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 2, 1919. JACOBSON, JOHN B. Marathon Enl. October 11, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C. Trained at Buena Vista College, Storm Lake, Iowa. Mustered out December 13, 1918. JAMES, HABOI.S H. Providence Tcwnship Born March 19, 1888. Enl. June 26, 1918. Wagoner with Supp. Co. Inf. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge. Sailed from New York August 11; landed Liverpool August 25. To Southampton; to Cherbourg, September 1. Sent immediately to Alsace-Lorraine front; in lines for 11 days; to Legny Woods for two months, until after the armistice; with Army of Occupation near Coblenz; to Merimcourt. Sailed from St. Nazaire May 19 on U. S. S. Aeolus; landed Newport News May 30. Serv- ice in France and Germany was hauling am- munition and food. During stay in England was taken sick with pneumonia and "flu" and was in hospital six weeks at Seymour. JEFFEBS, I.YZ.E MEBIiE Foland To'wmslup Born June 14, 1900. Enl. September 23, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C. Trained at Iowa State Col- lege. Mustered out December 21, 1918. JENNINGS, WALTEB J. Providence Tcwushlp Born July 4. 1S94. Enl. December 14, 1917. Mech. Mate Ist-cl., Squadron 2, U. S. Aero- nautics Station. Trained at G. L. N. T. S.; Pensacola, Fla. Mustered out March 21, 1919. JENSEN, ANFIN Barnes Township Born May 1, 1896. Enl. June 15, 1918. Corp. Co. D, M. T. C. Trained at Iowa State College eight weeks; to Valparaiso at tempo- rary camp for two months; to Detroit for convoy work; to Boston, until December 25. 1918; to New York, stationed at 150th St. do- ing trucking until July 2, 1919; to Camp Mer- ritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out July 8, 1919. JENSEN, ANTON Alta Born April 21, 1893. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Casualty Co. Trained at Camp Gordon four weeks; to Camp Merritt. Sailed September 1 from Hoboken; landed Brest September 13, At Brest in Casualty Co.; to St. George, Co. L, one week; to La Wolobine three months; to Clemancy three months; to Le Mans four months; to Brest July 24, 1919. Sailed on U. S. S. Mongolia August 1; landed Hoboken August 9, 1919. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out August 16, 1919. JENSEN, CABI. M. Newell Born April 1, 1898. Enl. January 11, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 2nd Bn. 26th Div. C. A. Trained at Ft. Cassell . Sailed from Boston on H. M. S. Corgegnan; landed Liverpool June 14. To Southampton; to Le Havre June 24. To Ft. Barelle at Langres until August 15; to Ar- gonne-Meuse front for three weeks; to Vitry; to Cornille; to Brest. Sailed on S. S. Mangdiv March 31; landed Boston April 10, 1919. Mustered out April 25, 1919. JENSEN, CIiABENCE M. Newell Born April 21, 1896. Enl. December 10, 1917. Pvt. Co. D, 81st Aero Squadron. Trained at Ft. Logan until February 2, 1918; to Camp Sevier until March 6; to school at Brooklyn, where he was taught building and repairing of airplanes; April 18 sent to Ft. Sill and re- mained there until May 24, 1919; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out May 26, 1919. Elmer Jensen Newell John H. Jensen Newell Julian H. Jensen Providence Township Julius Jensen Newell Llovd Brvan Jensen Alta Louis Jensen Brooke Township Marius Jensen Newell Nels Jensen Newell Soren V. Jensen Newell Walter D. Jensen Newell Carl G. M. Jeppesen Newell Eugene M. Jimmerson Alta James B. Jimmerson Brooke Township Carl A. Johansen Albert City Charley Johansen Alta Albert Johnson Maple Valley Township Alfred Johnson Elk Township Arthur J. Johnson Providence Township Arthur S. Johnson Poland Township Arvid G. Johnson Albert City Bengt S. Johnson Maple Valley Township Bertel M. Johnson Lee Township Carl Johnson Elk Township Carl A. Johnson Newell I20 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY JBNSEir, jmUTE Alta Bom December 25, 181)2. Enl. February 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. K, 139th Inf. 35th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge in Co. E, 351st Inf. SSth Div.; Camp Mills Co. K, 139th Inf. 35th Div. Sailed from New York April 24, 1918; landed Liver- pool May 7. To Wincliester May 8; to South- ampton; to Le Havre May 12. To rest camp No. 2; to Eu, May 16; to Melleville; June 26 to Londoniers; June 8 to Mehonie; June 9 to Morgney; to Jarnneil June 12; June 19 to Kruth; June 19 entered trenches at Alsace- Lorraine; relieved on September 3; to Kiuth; September 4 to Clearmont; to Boynn; to Veuve-Mesons; to Billet de Brush Woods on re- serve for St. Mihiel drive from September 12 to 16; left St. Mihiel September 17; rested September 17 to 24; entered Argonne drive September 25; in drive October 1; relieved by 1st Div.; to Clearmont; to Louppy Petit Octo- ber 10; to Sommendieu; took Verdun sector of trenches October 24 to November 5; relieved by "Wildcat" Div. October 28; to Lemmes; November 7 to Bennoncourt; to Rupt Novem- l>er 13 to December 7; to Vignot December 7 to 9; to Le Mans March 11; to Gorce; to Belgian Rifle Range at Le Mans March 20; to St. Nazaire April 2; Camp Guthrie April 3. Sailed from St. Nazaire on U. S. S. Mat- sonia April 13; landed Newport News April 24. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out May 2, 1919. JENSEN, EINER Ne^well Born December 25, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon. Sailed from New York August 30; landed September 12. To St. George until October 1; to Verdun front; in front line trenches 9 days; wounded November 3 by Machine-gun bullet; to Evac. Hosp. No. 15; to Langres, Base Hosp. No. 53; to Base Hosp. No. 27; to Base Hosp. No. 8; to St. Nazaire. Sailed on St. Zellandia December 10; landed Newport News December 22, 1918. Has crip- pled hand; was also hit by shrapnel in foot. Mustered out June 17, 1919. JENSEN, EI^MER Ne'weU Born August 29, 1890. Enl. December 5, 1917. Coxswain in Navy. Trained at Camp Decatur at G. L. N. T. S.; to Camp Perry; to U. S. S. Leviathan April 22; May 30 experi- enced submarine attack of convoy; made 17 trips between the United States and France carrying troops. Mustered out September 22, 1919. JENSEN, HEI.1VIEB Alta Born February 27, 1889. Enl. July 29, 1918. Pvt. Co. A, 605th Regt. 8th Eng. Corps. Trained at Camp Gordon. Sailed from Hoboken on U. S. S. George Washington September 30; landed Brest October 13. Left Brest October 20 for Chalindrey, Haute-Marne, and stayed there until November 26; to Montigny- sur-Aube and worked with Engr. Corps; to Camp Joffre December 15; to Veuxhalles; to Cote d'Or for road work; to Le Mans; to Brest. Sailed on Agamemnon June 7; landed New York June 15. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 25, 1919. JENSEN, JENS Z. Ne'well Born December 5, 1889. Enl. June 27, 1918. Pvt. Batt. D, 338th F. A. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; placed in class 1 "Group 'C " Mechancs' Class; given citizenship papers on July 9, 1918. Released subject to call. JENSEN, JOHN H. Newell Born May 30, 1888. Enl. June 21, 1916. Corp. Hdqrs. Co. 163d Inf. Trained at Camp Dodge; July 25, 1917. on border until Jul" 26, 1918. Re-enlisted for foreign service April 15, 1919 — enlistment for three-year period. JENSEN, JUXiIAN H. Providence Township Born September 1, 1897. Enl. October 1, 1918. Pvt. Inf. S. A. T. C. Trained at Buena Vista College, Storm Lake, Iowa. Mustered out December 13, 1918. JENSEN, JUI^IUS Newell Born September 27, 1893. Enl. June 25, 1918. Pvt. Co. F, 350th Regt., 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; Camp Upton. Sailed from Camp Upton August 11; arrived Tillbury, Eng- land August 25. To Cherbourg September 2. To Semur September 10; to Hericourt; to front October 3, in Alsace sector, stayed until October 20; to Toul sector November 5 to No- vember 29; to Malincourt November 30 to May 6, 1919; to St. Nazaire. Sailed May 20; landed Newport News May 30. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 5, 1919. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 121 JEITSSN, I.I.OYD BBYAir Alta, Born November 20, 1896. Enl. December 4, 1917. Corp. Mobile Field Lab. Med. Corps, 36th Div. Trained at Ft. Logan with Casual Co. Med Dept.; to Ft. Riley Prov. Co. D. M. O. T. C; Fort Leavenworth Central Med. Dept. Lab. School; to Camp Bowie, Mobile Field Lab.; to Camp Mills. Sailed from Ho- boken on U. S. S. Lenape July 8; landed Brest July 22. To Bar-sur-Aube; to Champagne front September 25; to Meuse-Argonne; to Cham- pagne offensive to "Verdun secto.- Nov. 1 ; to Tonnerrery-Yonne; to Le Mans; to Brest. Sailed on boat Von Stueben June 1; landed Hoboken June 8, 1919. To Camp Dodge Mills to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 16, 1919. JENSSN, IiOUIi: Brooke To'wnship Born December 9, 1895. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. L, 163d Replm. Regt. 41st Div. Trained at Camp Gordon one month; to Camp Merritt August 24. Sailed on U. S. S. Platts- burg August 29 as a member of Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt.; landed Brest September 12. To St. Georges for five months; at St. Georges trans, to Co. L 163d Replm. Regt., later to Hdq. Classification Camp at St. Aignan and was at this camp until July 5, 1919; to Brest. Sailed for U. S. S. on S. S. Agamemnon, July 13; landed Hoboken July 22. To Camp Merritt; in Base Hosp. at Camp Merritt until August 6; to Ft. Sheridan Gen. Hosp.; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out August 13, 1919. JENSEKT, niABIUS Ne'well Born September 6, 1887. Enl. September 3, 1917. Pvt. Co. H, Inf. Trained at Camp Dodge; Camp Cody. Mustered out January 1, 1918. JEXSEIT, NEZiS Newell Born February 26, 1897. Enl. September 6, 1918. Pvt. Hdq. Co. 87th Inf. 19th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge, training in handling one-pound guns. Mustered out January 26, 1919. JENSEIT, SOBEN: V. Ne'weU Born September, 1S8S. Enl. September 19, 1917. Pvt. Ist-cl. Hdq. Co. 347th Regt. 87th Div. Trained at Camp Pike. Sailed from New York September 3 on S. S. City of Calcutta; landed Manchester September 27. To South- ampton; to Le Havre September 30. To S. O. S. Camp at Gievres; on detached service engaged in construction work. Sailed from Brest on Mauretania Dec. 24; landed New York Decem- ber 30, 1918. Mustered out January 16, 1919. JENSEN, "WAIiTEB D. Newell Born February 22, 1893. Enl. February 24, 1918. Musician Ist-cl. Co. D, 42d Regt. Eng. Trained at Washington, D. C, at American University. Sailed from Hoboken May 10; landed Brest. To Bazoiles-sur-Meuse May 30 to .luly 15; in American lumber camp; to Rennes; built sawmill, also railroad mainten- ance; to Gironcourt on road building until October 1, 1918; to St. Maurice; built sawmills till November 21; to Romagne; to Ponteaux January 5, 1919; transferred to Batt. Band as trombonist, traveled with regt. till April 15, 1919; to Bordeaux. Sailed May 22; arrived Hoboken June 5, 1919. Mustered out June 10, 1919. Promoted to cook, to musician Ist-cl. JEFFEBSEN, CABI. G. M. Newell Born in 1882. Enl. July, 1917. Sgt. Co. A. Trained at Fort Logan; to San Francisco; to Camp Funston. Promoted from pvt. to sgt. JESSEiJ^, CHBIST J. Nokomis Township Born February 2, 1889. Enl. June 25, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, 350th Inf. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge six weeks; to Camp Upton. Sailed August 11 on Delta; landed London August 25. Across part of England; in camji three days; to Southampton; crossed Channel to Cher- bourg. To Havicourt two weeks; to Alsace front 3 weeks; to Toul front when armistice was signed; to Gondrecourt; 5 months; to St. Nazaire. Sailed May 19 on German boat Aolas; landed Newport News May 30. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 5, 1919. juktmebson, eugene m. Alta Born October 31, 1892. Enl. July 8, 1918. Pvt. 192d Co. Marine Corps. Trained at Mare Island for ten weeks; to Bremerton, Washing- ton, September 26 to March 26, 1919. Mustered out March 26, 1919. JIMMEItSON, JAMES B. Brooke TowTiship Born July 22, 1881. Enl. April 30, 1917. Pvt. Co. F, 3d Regt. I. N . G. Trained at tempo- rary camp at Villisca, Iowa, until July 9, 1917. Discharged on account of physical disability. Carl Emil Johnson Albert City Carl Francis Johnson Albert City Carl O. Johnson Fairfield Township Conrad J. Johnson Alta Edwin G. Johnson Albert City Effie Johnson Alta Elmer B. Johnson Fairfield Township Emil H. Johnson Poland Township Emil O. Johnson Albert City Ernest L,. Johnson Fairfield Township Fay G. Johnson Linn Grove Prank Preston Johnson Alta Gust Johnson Washington Township Harry P. Johnson Newell Herbert Arthur Johnson Albert City Herman Johnson Sioux Rapids Hilder Julius Johnson Fairfield Township Hjalmer Johnson Albert City Hubert E. Johnson Albert City John Johnson, Jr. Alta Leon Julius Johnson Linn Grove Mahlon H. Johnson Storm Lake Nels E. Johnson Elk Township Oscar Bernhard Johnson Poland Township 124 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY JOHANSEN, CARI. A. Albert City Born November 10, 18!)6. Enl. September 6, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. Base Hosp. No. 105. Trained at Camp Dodge; Ft. Benjamin Harrison; Camp Merritt. Sailed from New Yorli on Wilhimen October 28; landed Brest November 9. To Kerhown Hosp. Center until June 25; to Pon- tenage. Sailed June 30 on U. S. S. Fredericlt; landed Hoboken July 11. To Camp Mills. Mustered out July 17, 1919. JOHANSEN, CHARI.EV Alta Born July 28, 1896. Enl. September 6, 1918. Pvt. Co. F, 58th Inf. 19th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge. Mustered out April 15, 1919. JOHNSOir, AIiBEBT Maple Valley Township Born October 12, 1895. Enl. May 26. 1918. Pvt. Co. B, 352d Inf. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge eight weel Elk Townsliip Born May 7, 1891. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, 4th Replm Inf. Trained at Camp Gordon four months. Mustered out December 5, 1918. JOHNSOIT, ANTOir ITokomls Township Born June 27, 1891. Enl. June 17, 1917. Sgt. Troop A, 4th Cavalry. Trained at Ft. Logan; Angel Island; Ft. Castner; Ft. Ring- gold. Promoted to pvt. lst*-cl., to corp., to sgt. In Hawaiian Territory as member of Regular Army for fifteen months, stationed at Ft. Castner at Honolulu, Hawaii. Mustered out June 2, 1919, at Ft. Ringgold. JOHNSON, ABTKUB J. Providence Township Born December 8, 1896. Enl. May 27, 1917. Pvt. Co. A, 13th Regt. Eng. Trained at Munici- pal Pier. Sailed from New York July 22, on R. M. S. St. Louis; landed Liverpool August 1. To Borden Camp; paraded in London August 15 witia first U. S. troops in London; to Le Havre August 17. To Chalons-sur-Marne for two weeks; to Dieury-sur-Aire until April, 1919; to Marseilles. Sailed on U. S. S. Belvidere; landed New York April 28. To Camp Merritt; to Chicago for parade; to Camp Grant. Mustered out May 12, 1919. JOHNSON, ARTHUR S. Poland Township Born December 31, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. K, 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon from July 24 to August 4. Sailed from New York August 31 on U. S. S. Plattsburg; landed Brest September 12, 1918. To St. George for three weeks; to Verdun Octo- ber 1 for one month; to front November 5; did not get Into action; on front three weeks after armistice was signed; to hosp. at Long November 27, remained until January 5; to Nantes January 7 to February 25. Sailed from St. Nazaire April 5: landed Cliarle'=;ton. To Camp Jackson; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out April 29, 1919. JOHNSON, ABVID G. Albert City Born March 11, 1890. Enl. February 25, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. Co. A, 130th Inf. 33d Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; Camp Logan. Left New York on U S. Agamemnon; landed Brest May 26. To Oisemont; to Visnes; Inchville; to Ailly-le-Haute; to Clocker front lines July 18 near Amiens; to Querrin Woods; at fronts at Meuse-Argonne, Somme, Amiens, Albert, Ver- dun and in Troyon sector; to Corbie, Albert, Vignecourt, Ligney, Bethslainville, Bailey- court, Chateaucourt, Donnaveaux Woods, Con- sovoye, Fresnes, Rangiers; to Oberbillig, Ger- many; to Gilsdorff, Luxemburg. Sailed from Brest on U. S. S. Siboney May 11, 1919; landed New York May 20, 1919. To Camp Mills; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out May 29, 1919. JOHNSON, BENGT S. Maple Valley Township Born June 16, 1887. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. A, 148th Inf. 37th Div. Trained at Camp Grant, Co. L, 344th Inf. 86th Div.; sta- tioned at Camp Mills from September 1 to 9. Sailed September 10, 1918, on British ship Megantic. In, Ypres-Lys offensive October 31 to November 4; again in offensive at Ypres-Lys November 9 to 11. Arrived in XJ. S. March 30. 1919, on the U. S. S. Saint Louis. Mustered out April 14, 1919. ' HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 125 JOHNSOir, BEBTEIi TUt. Lee ToTwnship Born February 20, 1895. Enl. December 1, 1917. Pvt. Ist-cl. 667th Aero Squadron. Trained at Kelly Field; Hazelhurst Field. Sailed from Hoboken on U. S. S. Antigone March 24; landed St. Nazaire April 13. As- signed to duty in Air Service Production Cen- ter No. 2, Supply Depot No. 3 near Romorantin, Loire-et-Clier, for duration of activities. Sailed from Brest on Leviathan June 6; landed Ho- bolven June 12. Mustered out June 23, 1919. JOHNSOir, CABI. Elk Township Born August 5, 1892. Enl. May 25, 1918. Pvt. 27th Aero Squadron. Trained at Van- couver Barracks; spent first ten days at Camp Lewis then trans, to Vancouver Barracks for eight months; to Camp Dodge to be mustered out. Mustered out February 28, 1919. JOHNSON, CABI. A. Newell Born August 25, 1887. Enl. March 6, 1918. Chauffeur, Aerial Photograph Section No. 44. Trained at Cornell Univ.; Wilbur "Wright Field; Barron Field. Promoted to chauffeur. Mustered out March 27, 1919. JOHNSON, CABI. EMII. Albert City Born February 19. 1887. Enl. February 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. A, 103d Eng. 28th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge with 351st Inf. Co. E, 23d Div.; Camp Grant with Co. B, 32d Eng.; to Washington Barracks May 24 in 1st Replm. Engrs.; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from New York September 1 on Belique; landed Liver- pool. To Winchester; to Southampton; to Cherbourg. To Angiers in 116th Engrs.; to Vilassee with 103d Engrs.; to front October 16; at Thiaucourt until October 28; to Vig- mulles until January 6; to Wrifife; to Le Mans; to St. Nazaire. Sailed April 20 on Finland; landed New York May 1. To Camp Dix May 15; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out May 19, 1919. JOHNSON, CABI. FBANCIS Albert City Boi-n October 21, 1895. Enl. June 8, 1918. Sgt. Hdq. Co. 2d Inf. 10th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; trans, to Demobilization Group and promoted to sgt.; had charge of the Board of Review where men In service take their final physical examinations at the Medi- cal Examining Board. Mustered out Novem- ber 25, 1919. JOHNSON, CABI. O. rairfield Townsliip Born December 3, 1880. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon with Co. I, 163d Inf. Sailed from New York August 29 on U. S. S. Platts- burg; landed Brest September 13. Arrived at the front October 26, participated in battle of Meuse November 4-5. Sailed from St. Nazaire with casual detachment April 8; landed New- port News April 29. Mustered out May 14, 1919. JOHNSON, CONBAD J. Alta Born October 26, 1885. Enl. September 20, 1917. Corp. in 347th Regt. 87th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge in Co. A, 350th Regt. 88th Div.; to Camp Pike for nine months with Hdqrs. Co.; later trans, to 347th Regt. 87th Div.; at Camp Dix. Sailed from Philadelphia July 24, 1918, on City of Calcutta; landed Man- chester, England. To Southampton; to Le Havre; to Gievres; to Chaumont; to Chateau- Thierry front when armistice was signed; moved back to Brest. Sailed on Mauretania December 24; landed Hoboken. To Camp Mer-. ritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out January 17, 1919. JOHNSON, EDWIN G. Albert City Born September 24, 1890. Enl. August 16, 1918. Fireman 2d-cl. on battleship Massachu- setts. Trained at G. L. N. T. S.; to Hampton Roads; to sea on the battleship Massachusetts for patrol work nine weeks; to Hampton Roads, served as master-at-arms while there; to G. L. N. T. S. Mustered out March 22, 1919. JOHNSON, EFFIE (Nurse) Alta Born March 1, 1889. Enl. May 14, 1918. Nurse. Was sent as a trained nurse in the U. S. A. N. C. to Ft. Logan from May 14 to September 8; September 11 reported to Mobilization Station at New York. Sailed from Hoboken on Leviathan September 28; landed Brest October 8. To Base Hosp. No. 65, one week on temporary duty; to Base Hosp. No. 101, October 15, was at this hosp. until June 20, 1919. Sailed from St. Nazaire on Pocahontas June 22; landed Newport News July 2, 1919. To Camp Stewart one week. Mustered out July 26, 1919. 126 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY JOHITSON, i:i.mi:b b. Fairfield Township Born March 30, 1895. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon; to Camp Merritt November 1; ready for embarkation. To Camp Gordon; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out January 9, 1919. JOHNSOir, EMU. H. Poland Townsliip Born March 12. 1890. Enl. April 9, 1918. Pvt. Aviation Section of Army, 194th Aero Squadron. Trained at Wisconsin State Univ. from April 9 to June 12; to Wilbur Wright Field; to Ellington Field August 5 to April 24. Mustered out April 24, 1919. JOHNSON, EMIi; O. Albert City Born March 20, 1895. Enl. July 29, 1918. Pvt. Co. F, 212th Engrs. 12th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon August 1 to 29; Camp Devens to January 31, 1919; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out February 8, 1919. JOHNSON, ERNEST i;. Fairfield Township Born February 8, 1896. Enl. August 20, 1918. Pvt. Co. 5, 2d training Bn. Inf., 157th D. B. Trained at Camp Gordon from August 24 to September 12; Camp McClellan where he was trans, to the Q. M. C. on October 26; while at Camp Gordon chief organization was Co. 21, 6th Training Bn. 167th D. B. Mustered out April 2, 1919. JOHNSON, FAY G. Iiinn Grove Born January 8, 1897. Enl. August 15, 1918. Pvt. Batt. B, 20th Div. Motorized Artillery. Trained at Iowa State College; to Camp Jack- son, was assigned to 24th Overseas Batt.; after armistice was transferred to 24th Overseas Battery. Mustered out February 1, 1919. JOHNSON, GUST A. D. Albert City- Born August 2, 1888. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. L, 163d Inf. 41st Div. Trained at Camp Gordon; Camp Merritt. Sailed August 27; landed Brest September 12. To St. Georges; taken sick with pneumonia September 23 and sent to Base Hosp No. 26; to American Hosp. Pone-la-Voy; re-assigned to regt. October 23. Sailed from Brest January 26; landed Camp Dix February 16. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out March 4, 1919. JOHNSON, HARRY P. Newell Born August 11, 1896. Enl. September 5, 1918. Pvt. 2d Co. Coast Artillery. Trained at Camp Dodge; Ft. Barrancas. Mustered out April 4, 1919. JOHNSON, HERBERT ARTHUR Albert City Born August 16, 1891. Enl. July 29, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, 212th Engrs. 12th Div. Trained at Camp Devens. Mustered out December 28, 1918. JOHNSON, HERMAN Sioux Rapids Born July 12, 1891. Enl. June 25, 1918. Pvt. Hdq. Co. 350th Regt. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge from June 25 to August 4. Sailed from New York on S. S. Delta August 11; landed London August 25. Crossed Chan- nel to Cherbourg, August 29. To Semur Sep- tember 1 to 19; to Chagey October 4; to cen- ter sector Alsace-Lorraine-Haute, November 7; in offensive when armistice was signed; to Gondrecourt area until May 7; to St. Nazaire. Sailed on U. S. S. Aeolus May 19; landed Newport News May 30. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 5, 1919. JOHNSON, FRANK PRESTON Alta Born July 21, .1887. Enl. July 25, 1918. Sgt. 4th Replm. Inf. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon. Promoted to corp., to sgt. Mustered out November 29, 1918. JOHNSON, GUST Washing-ton Township Born January 2, 1895. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 4th Replm. Inf., later trans, to Q. M. C. Trained at Camp Gordon. Mustered out March 23, 1919. JOHNSON, HIXDER JUZ.IUS Fairfield Township Born December 26, 1892. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon, Camp Merritt. Sailed from New York on U. S. S. Plattsburg August 30; landed Brest September 12. To St. Georges; to Ver- dun; to Genicourt; joined 79th Div. here on October 25; on October 26 helped capture Hill 378; relieved on November 4; November 7 back of lines; November 10 wounded in ac- tion by machine-gun bullet in hip and back; to First-Aid Station; to Evac. Hosp.; to Base HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 127 Hosp. No. 47; to St. Aignan for two weeks; to Flatfoot farm; to St. Aignan; to Brest. Sailed March 3 on U. S. S. Mt. Vernon; landed March 11. at New York. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out March 21, 1919. JOHNSON, JOHN M. Albert City- Born June 4. 1893. Enl. August 20, 191S. Pvt. Inf. 163d D. B. Trained at Camp Gordon. Mustered out August 26, 1918. JOHNSON, HJAXiMEB Albert City Born February 22, 1887. Enl. August 20, 1918. Pvt 22d Co. 2d Training Bn. 157 D. B. Trained at Camp Gordon until September 12; t5 Camp McClellan, trans. October 26 to the Q. M. C. Mustered out April 2, 1919. JOHNSON, IiEON JUI^IUS Iiinn Grove Born March 21, 1894. Enl. June 17, 1918. Served on U. S. S. Harding, Destroyer No. 91. with duties of 1st Lieut. Promoted from sea- man 3d-cl. Trained at Puget Sound Navy Yard; Municipal Pier; and Pelham Bay Naval Training Station. JOHNSON, HUBEBT E. Albert City Born May 9, 1896. Enl. April 27, 1918. "Wagoner, Field Hosp, No. 41, 1st Army Corps. Trained at Camp Dodge; Fort Riley; to Camp Mills. Sailed July 9 on Agamemnon; landed Brest July 18. To St. Nazaire; to Chateau- Thierry sector for two weeks; to St. Mihiel drive September 12; to Meuse-Argonne at Verennes when armistice was signed; to Brest. Sailed April 10; landed Hoboken April 21. To Camp Mills; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out May 2, 1919. JOHNSON, JOEi; P. I£arathou Born May 25, 1887. Enl. February 25, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. Co. E, 313th Engrs., 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge until August 6. Sailed from New York on British transport Plassy August 16; landed Liverpool August 28. Crossed Channel to Le Havre August 31. Moved to Villers and built target range; September 16 to Wilfersdorff ; hiked on to Denny, in Toul sector; after armistice company moved to Norroy; to Eaville November 18; to Bayonville January 6 until May 12, 1919. Sailed from St. Nazaire on Madawska May 25; landed New York June 5. To Camp Mills until June 11; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 16, 1919. JOHNSON, JOHN Jr. Alta Born January 9, 1894. Enl. August 31, 1917. Horseshoer, Wagon Co. (Rocky Mountain Regiment) 40th Div. Trained at Camp Bald- win, assigned to Cavalry; to Camp Kearny, Q. M. C. at Camp Kearny one year and five months. Promoted to Corp., to sergt. Mustered out April 1, 1919. JOHNSON, MAHIiON, H. Storm Iialie Born July 29, 1892. Enl. February 26, 191S. Corp. Co. C, Hdq. Bn. Gen. Hdq. A. E. F. Trained at Camp Dodge; Camp Sevier. Sailed May 11 on H. M. S. Haverford; landed Liver- pool May 27, 1918. To Southampton; to Le Havre; to Calais; to Ypres; trans, from 30th Div.; to Langres at Army Candidate School two months; to Gen. Hdq. Station eight months; to Brest. Sailed on U. S. S. Von Steuben June 22; landed New York June 30. To Camp Mills. Mustered out July 9, 1919. JOHNSON, NEIiS E. Elk Township Born October 10, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Sgt. Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained: Camp Gordon one month, attended Non-commissioned Officers' School. Promoted to sgt.: to Camp Shelby two months; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out December 29, 1918. JOHNSON, OSCAR BEBNHABD Poland Township Born June 4, 1887. Enl. September 4, 1918. Farrier, Verterinary Corps. Trained at Camp Dodge; to Ft. Riley. Mustered out January 13, 1919. JOHNSON, OSCAR R. Albert City Born February 28, 1897. Enl. August 5, 1918. Pvt. Co. B, 88th Inf. 19th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge. Mustered out January 27, 1919. JOHNSON, BITBEN H. Fairfield Township Born December 15, 1896. Enl. September 5, 1918. Pvt. in D. B. Trained at Camp Dodge; to Camp Devens; to New Hampshire in spruce fields for two weeks. Mustered out December 24, 1918. Ruben H. Johnson Fairfield Township Torval A. Johnson Elk Township Victor J. Johnson Lincoln Township Victor (J.scai- Johnson Albert City Walter Emil Johnson Alta Anton Jonas Storm Lake Charles. Jones Elk Township Forrest K. Jones Storm Lake Raymond Allison Jones Storm Lake Valentine S. Jones Christian Skytte Jorgensen Washington Township Newell Gust A. Josefson Lincoln Township James Alfred M. Kair Newell Township Arnie A. Kelso Newell Thomas F. Kennedy William J. Kennedy Washington Township Washington Township Robert Kesler Storm Lake Anthony Kestei Hayes Township George C. Kidman Lee Township Thomas Kielty Storm Lake Ejvind Kiilsliuhn Storm Lake Viggo Kiilsholm Alta Elmer Chester Kindwall Alta James J. Kinnerup Newell I30 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY JOHNSOUt, SIEGrKBD JOHN Sioux Rapids Born January 14, 1900. Enl . October 11, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C. Trained at Buena Vista College, Storm Lake, Iowa Mustered out December 13, 1918. JOHNSOK, TOBVAI^ A. Elk Township Born September 22, 1892., Enl. June 25, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 350th Inf. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge five weeks; to Camp Upton. Sailed from Hoboken August 11 on Delta; landed London August 25. To Camp Rumsey; to Southampton; across Channel to Cherbourg. To Seinur; to Havicourt; to Alsace sector 11 days; to place near Toul sector until armistice was signed; to Gondrecourt December 1 to May 1; to Le Mans one week; to St. Nazaire. Sailed May 19; landed Newport News May 30. To Camp Alexander; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 4, 1919. JOHNSON, VICTOR J. Iilncoln Township Born March 13, 1896. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 11th Inf. 5th Division. JOHNSON, WAIiTSR EMIZ. Alta Born September 30, 1896. Enl. May 3, 1917. Carpenter's Mate Ist-cl. on U. S. S. George Washington. Trained at G. L. N. T. S.; to recruiting- office at Detroit, Michigan, in Yeo- manry Dept.; sailed on U. S. S. Manchuria from New York April 30, 1918; landed Brest June 14. Made 14 round trips in convoy serv- ice on Manchuria; from New York to St. Na- zaire; other trips from New York to Brest; returned from last trip to Calais with King and Queen of Belgium on board to New York. Service in navy expires August 25, 1920. JONAS, ANTON Storm I Humphreys. Promoted to Corp., to sergt.. to 2d Lieut. Mustered out December 11, 1918. LAYMAN, DENTON N. Newell Born January 11, 1890. Enl. December 14, 1917. Sergt. Intelligence Dept., 328th Squad- ron Aviation. Trained at Ft. Logan; Kelly Field; Camp Taylor; to T. C. six months. Mustered out November 26, 1918. LEE, HARRY B. Poland Township Born July 25. 189-1. Enl. .luly 24. IPIS. Pvt. 53d Pioneer Infantry. Trained at Camp Gor- don in 43 8th Motor Supply Train, Motor Trans- portation Corps. Sailed from New York August 30 on U. S. S. Plattsburg; landed Brest September 12. In hospital at St. Georges two Arthur E. C, Lindgren Clarence Elmer Lindlief Fairfield Township Storm Lake Elwin Lindlief Alta Amcis H. Lindsay Nol^omis Township Thomas King Lloyd Linn Grove Ira H. Lockwood Storm Lake Arthur O. Lokken Scott Township Fred G. Long- Washington Township Harry S. Lovesee Storm Lake Joseph R. Loving Theodore T. Loving Carl Elem Lundberg Fairfield Township Fairfield Township Poland Township Muhin Lundeen Linn Grove Ralph O. Lusher Storm Lake Bu'-t M. Mack Storm Lake Frank W. Mack Storm Lake Alfred C. Madison Coon Township Hans ''\ >'fadsen Newell Carl W. jvfadson Newell Carl A. Magnusen Nokomis Township Henry Fred Manteufel Hayes Township GeorKe Otto Marcher Elk Township Paul P. Mark Washington Township William T. Mark AVashington Township 144 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY weeks; to Verdun front October 10; hauled ammunition to front until October 22; to Field Hosp. at Beneivaux until November 11; to Replm. Camp near Souilley; assigned to 53d Pioneer Inf. November 24. Sailed from Brest April 22; landed Newport News May 4. To Camp Stewart; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out May 19, 1919. ver work; to Prov. Hosp. No. 1 with influenza and typhoid fever for three months, had oper- ation for mastoids; to Base Hosp. No. 79; to Evac. Hosp. No. 31; to Keson June 5. Sailed as casual on U. S. S. Leviathan June 5; landed Hoboken June 12, 1919. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 19, 1919. LEHMAN, ERIfEST W. Grant Townsliip Born February' 21. 1894. Enl. July 24. 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 316th Regt., 79th Dlv. Trained at Camp Gordon. Sailed from iNew York August 29; landed Brest September 12. To St. Georges two weeks; to Verdun sector; to Mockasin Woods; November 5 to Alsace-Lor- raine front for three days; to Reveille until December 26; to Issencourt until March 28; to Trampart; to Vallet; to St. Nazaire. Sailed May 15; landed Philadelphia May 29. Mustered out June 8, 1919. I.EONABD, RAYMOND H. Sioux Rapids Born July 29, 1887. Enl. December 11, 1917. Sgt. Second Prov. Ordnance Dept. Bn., Army Ordnance Dept., later Intermediate Ordnance Depot No. 4, France. Trained at Camp Dodge; to Camp Merritt April 1. Sailed from New York on Aquatania April 2; landed Liverpool April 10. Crossed Channel to Le Havre April 12. To Mehun and worked there until August 20; to Toul sector August 23, served on am- munition supply work during St. Mihiel offen- sive; assigned to Munitions Office 4th Army Corps October 4, salvaged ammunition; put in charge of ammunition dump at Limey Octo- ber 26 until November 11; to Buconvllle; to Mayen, Germany, December 15; on detached service with Chief Ordnance Officer at Coblenz until March 8, 1919. Sailed from Brest April 8; landed in U. S. April 20. Mustered out at Mitchell Field April 25, 1919. XiESSMEIER, FRED Washing'ton Township Born October 16, 1892. Enl. June 23, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 350th Inf. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge one month; to Camp Upton August 7; trans, to port of embarkation at New York August 11. Sailed on S. S. Delta August 11; landed New London, Eng., August 26. To Camp Rumsey; crossed English Chan- nel to Cherbourg. Trained at Semur one month; to Belfort; to Boschello near front; 23 days on patrol duty; to Toul sector; to Sanzy; to Conercy; to Mullemount for maneu- LE-WIS EDWIN V. Newell Born January 10, 1880. Enl. May 10, 1918. Sgt. Ist-cl. In School for Bakers and Cooks. Trained at Camp Dodge; was instructor in cooking. Mustered out January 23, 1919. LEWIS FLOYD M. Storm Lake Born October 16, 1896. Enl. September 6, 1918. Pvt. in Officers' Training School at Camp Pike. Trained at Camp Pike. Mustered out December 1, 1918. LEWIS, GEORGE HENDERSON Storm Lake Born June 6, 1887. Enl. September 20, 1917. Corp. Co. F, 313th Engrs. SSth Div. Trained at Camp Dodge. Promoted from pvt. to corp. March 15, 1918. Sailed August 16, 1918; landed Le Havre August 31. Trained in back areas until October 5; at front at south end of battle line October 7; at Haute-Alsace front October 7 to November 9, doing engineer work, no flghting, under shrapnel Are a few times; after armistice built railroad on line to Metz from south and built and repaired roads. Sailed from St. Nazaire May 27; landed New York June 6, 1919. Mustered out June 15, 1919. LEW^IS, LEO Storm Lake Born June 27, 1896. Enl. February 25, 1918. Radio Operator. Trained at G. L. N. T. S.; at Cambridge, Harvard University. Mustered out December 19, 1918. LEWIS, THOMAS Linn Grove Born November 4, 1890. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, 11th Bn. 4th Replm. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon. Saw foreign service begin- ning August 24, 1918; in guard duty at Camp Hosp. No. 26 at St. Agni, France. Mustered out February 25, 1919. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 145 Z-EWIS, VIBCrli; S. Marathon Born September 5, 1893. Enl. July 1, 1918. Pvt. Motorized Field Artillery. Trained with Batt. B, 3d Regt. F. A. R. D. ; at Armour Insti- tute from July 1 to August 26; to Camp Taylor August 28 to December 31. Mustered out December 31, 1918. XiICHTENBEBG, EDMUND Maple Valley Tow^nship Born October 4, 1894. Enl. September 20, 1917. Pvt. Ist-cl. Co. E, 18th Regt. 1st Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; to Camp Pike. Sailed from Hoboken on British transport Aurelius June 20, 1918; landed Cherbourg, July 5, 1918. In Sazuria sector August 7 to 24; to St. Mihiel offensive September 12 to 13; Meuse-Argonne October 21 to November 8; in Army of Occupation December 1 to August 18, 1919. Citation awarded G. O. 5th Hdq. 1st Brig. June 1, 1919; decorated by the Frencli Government with the red-green shoulder cord. Sailed from Brest on U. S. S. Santa Teresa August 23; landed Hoboken September 4, 1919. Mustered out September 24, 1919. IiICHTENBBBG, OTTO T. Alta Born June 12, 1896. Enl. September 5, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. Co. F, 88th Inf. 19th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge. Promoted to pvt. Ist-cl. Mustered out February 9, 1919. ZiIEBSCH, HBBMAN A. Storm Iiake Born January 9, 1893. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. A, 4th Replm. Bn. Trained at Camp Gordon. Mustered out December 19, 1918. I.IBBSCH, WII.I.IAM T. Storm Iiake Born January 17, 1890. Enl. September 17, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. Med. Corps, Motor Detach- ment. Trained at Camp Dodge; to Camp Pike; to Camp Jackson. Mustered out Febuary 12, 1919. Sailed August 30 on U. S. S. Plattsburg: landed September 12 in Prance. To Verdun sector two weeks; moved to front lines November 7; to Evac. Hosp. No. 15 December 6 to 18; left hospital February 28, 1919, cured of influenza and typhoid fever. Sailed from St. Nazaire May 16; landed Philadelphia May 29. To Camp Dix; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 7, 1919. I.IND, BDVTABD Marathon Born September 24, 1896. Enl. September 5, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. 2d Inf., 19th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge from September 6, 1918. to June 30, 1919. Mustered out June 30, 1919. I.IirDBI.ADB, CHABI.BS AUGUST Alta Born August 2, 1886. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 164th Inf. 41st Div. Trained at Camp Pike; to Camp Merritt. Sailed October 1; landed Brest October 13. To Contres; to Friend about six weeks; to St. Aignan two weeks, and then were moved frequently until time for departure for home; did not partici- pate in any battle, but was under orders to leave for front when armistice was signed. Mustered out March 11, 1919. IiINDGBEir, ARTHUR B. C. Fairfield Township Born November 19, 1889. Enl. June 26, 191!s. Pvt. Med. Dept. Mustered out July 9, 1918. Re-enlisted September 4, 1918. Pvt. Hdq. Casual Detachment M. O. T. C. Trained at Fort Riley. Mustered out on account of flat feet, January 13, 1919. IiINDIiIBF, CI.ABBKCB BI.MBB Storm Iiake Born April 3, 1S97. Enl. July 27, 1918. Seaman 2d-cl. U. S. N. R. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. one month; to Puget Sound Naval Training Station; reported for active duty on U. S. S. "West Zeda. Sailed from Portland, Oregon, December 28 with cargo of flour bound for Brest. Arrived New York January 29 where he helped load provisions. Received a release from active duty February 3, 1919. I.II.JA, HJAI.MBB F. Maple Valley Township Born September 10, 1892. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 4th Replm. Inf.; permanently as- signed to 316th Regt. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon four weeks; to Camp Morritt. IINDIIEF, ELWIN Alta Born April 4, 1899. Enl. October 11, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C. Trained at Buena Vista College, Storm Lake, Iowa. Mustered out De- cember 13, 1918. 146 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Albert City- Born September 21, 1893. Enl. and assigned to 13th Inf. 163d Depot Brigade. Trained at Camp Dodge. IiINSSAY, AMOS Nokomis Township Born September 19, 1887. Enl. February 24, 1918. Pvt. Batt. B, 305th Regt. F. A. Trained at Camp Dodge; to Camp Upton. Sailed April 26 on U. S. S. Northern Pacific; landed Brest May 4, 1918. To Alsace-Lorraine, Bac- carat sector; to Meuse-Argonne; Oise to Aisne river; to Cherry Chatraine; to Havlcourt when armistice was signed; to Yonne four days; to Verpel; to Arcembavr; to Malicome; to Brest. Sailed April 21 on captured Kaiser-Wilhelm; landed Hoboken April 29. To Camp Mills two weeks; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out May 18, 1919. LLOYD, THOMAS KING Linn G-rove Born December 14, 1894. Enl. June, 1917. Sgt. Co. 79, 6th Regt., Marines, 2d Div. Trained at Paris Island; Quantico, Va. Sailed from Hoboken August 18 on the U. S. S. Von Steu- ben; landed Brest August 27. In Meuse-Ar- gonne offensive, went over the top November 1; after armistice with Arnny of Occupation seven months at Rheinhold, Germany. Won honors as expert rifleman; recoinmended for Good Conduct Medal; recoinmended for re- instatement upon re-enlistment. Sailed on U. S. S. George Washington July 25; landed Camp Mills August 3, 1919. Mustered out August 13, 1919. LOCKWOOD, IRA H. Storm Lake Born November 29, 1883. Enl. July 10, 1917. Captain, Evac. Hosp. No. 1. Sailed from New York December 24, 1917, on British sbip Can- ada; landed Liverpool January 8. To Win- chester 3 days; to Southampton; to Le Havre. To Blois; to Is-sur-Tille; to Toul January 19; to Sebastapol Barracl^s; to Evac, Hosp. until February 19, 1919; to Nantes; to St. Nazaire. Sailed April 14 on Prince Matioka; landed Newport News April 27. To Camp Hill; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out May 5, 1919. LOKKEN, ABTHVB O. Scott Township Born November 22, 1887. Enl. May 26, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 352d Regt., 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; there trans. June 15 to Co. 18, 5th Bn. 163d D. B. Mustered out November 30. 1918. LONG, FRED G. Washing-ton Township Born December 27, 1896. Enl. January 2, 1918. Pvt. Aerial Squadron, Div. No. 831, Aviation Service. Trained: Winchester and Stanford, England; chief work, mechanic in airplane service. Mustered out December 23, 1918. LOVESEi:, HARRY S. Storm Lake Born November 3, ISSS. Enl. April 9 1918. Corp. Batt. B, 12th Regt. M. T . C. Trained at Wisconsin State University in A. T. S.; to Cainp Jackson,' as instructor in driving am- munition trucks. Mustered out April 3, 1919. LOVESEi:, RALPH H. Storm Lake Born January 10, 1893. Served in 15th Veter- inary Hosp. Unit, Med. Corps. LOVING, JOSEPH R. Fairfield. Township Born August 25, 1894. Enl. Fe'-ruary 21, 1918. Pvt. 306th Co. Batt. E. Trained at Camp Dodge; to Camp Upton. Sailed April 22 on Leviathan; landed Brest May 2. To Bordeaux; to front lines in Baccarat sector; to Chateau-Thierry about 21 days; to Argonne front until November 10; to Boudeville two months; to Noyen; to Brest. Sailed April 20 on Agamemnon; landed Hoboken April 28. To Camp Mills; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out May 18, 1919. LOVING, THEODORE E. Fairfield Township Born November 19, 1890. Enl. February 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, 314th Ammunition Train, 89th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge in Co. E, 351st Inf.; to Camp Upton March 2^ i- C-^. B, 39th Engrs. 3 weeks; to Batt. F, 305th F. A.; to Hosp. with infected arm; assigned to Depot Brigade; June 10 to Camp Mills, at- tached to Ammunition Train. Sailed on Cretic June 27; landed Liverpool July 10. To camp at Winchester; to Southampton; to Cherbourg Julj' 12. To rest camp 2 days; to Eyseines; to front August 3 at Andelot; in motor trucks to Bourq; received more trucks next day and began duty at front hauling ammunition to infantry and artillery in Toul sector; Sep- tember 14 to Bouillonville; to Flircy, Essy, Envezin, Limey, Pannes, Benny, Thiaucourt and other small villages; in tlris sector he was subjected to nightly shell fire and aerial raids, HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 147 on the road and at Co. Hdqrs.; with others wounded and gassed sent to hospitals; re- joined company October 15 at Exmouien Farm in Meuse-Argonne sector; supplied infantry at Eppionville, Romagne, Cirges, Genes, Remons- ville, Bayonville, Barricourt, Nouahr, Tilly, Beauclair, Beaufort, Beaumont, Luhaville, and other points; subjected to shell fire and aerial raids; October Z5 under heavy shell fire, many men gassed and wounded at camp and on am- munition detail, at Romagne; at Barricourt took; pontoon boats to be used in crossing Meuse river: after armistice moved to Stenay, Montmedy, Mixlatige, Belgium; to Arlon; to La P^ochette; to Luxemburg; to Flussem, Ger- many; to Gindorf ; to Rohl, stationed here until May 10; to Erdorf, Germany; to Brest. Sailed May 16; landed May 25 at Hoboken. To Camp Upton; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 6, 1919. LUCEY, JERRY T. Storm Xiake Born August 25, 1886. Enl. June 5, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, 338th Regt., 8th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge. Sailed from New York August 1; landed Liverpool. To Winchester; to South- ampton; to Le Havre. To Bordeaux. Sailed December 22; landed Newport News January 5, 1919. Mustered out January 15, 1919. IiUNDBERa, CARIi EIiEM Poland Township Born January 12, 1897. Enl. September 5, 1918. Pvt. Co. y, 88th Inf. 19th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; confined to hospital one month. Mustered out December 17, 1918. MACK, BURT M. Storm Iiake Born October 6, 1884. Enl. October IS. 1918. 1st Lieut. Co. N, 2d Bn. In service at Edge- wood Arsenal, Edgewood, Md. Mustered out January 30, 1919. MACK, FRANK W. Storm Iiake Born October 23, 1881. Enl. August 27, 1917. Major, Chemical Warfare Service. Served in Cliemical Warfare Service, 2d Bn. Edgewood Arsenal; at Second Training Camp Ft. Snell- ing; at Fortress Monroe, Coast Artillery U. S. R. November 27, 1917. Promoted to 1st Lieut. Ordnance Corps; to Captain, Ordnance N. A. June 29, 1918; to Major, Chemical War- fare Service July 20, 1918. Mustered out March 20, 1919. MADISON, AI.FRED C. Coon To^wnship Born December 12, 1891. Enl. July 29, 1918. Pvt. Co. A, 122d Engrs. Trained at Camp Forrest July 30 to September 18. Sailed from New York September 30 on U. S. S. George Washington; landed Brest October 13. To Javes to November 12; to Allencon to November 20; to Le Mans November 21 and stationed there until May 1, 1919; to Joinville May 7 and assisted in building stadium; to Brest June 21. Sailed from Brest June 30 on Pretaria; landed Hoboken July 12, 1919. To Camp Mills; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out July 20, 1919. tUNDEEN, MEi;VIIT liinn Grove Enl. October 9, 1917. Trained at Santiago, California. I.USHER, BAI,FH O. I'Storm I^ake Born November 26. 1893. Enl. July 24. 1918. Pvt. Hdqrs. Troop, Inf. 2d Div. Trained at Camp Gordon. Landed Brest September 14, 1918. Detained three weeks at St. Georges with influenza; joined the 2d Div. November 1 in Meuse-Argonne Forest; after armistice passed with troops across Belgium to Luxem- burg and the provinces of Germany west of the Rhine; crossed the Rhine December 13 and began duties with Army of Occupation until July 20; to Brest. Sailed July 25; landed Camp Mills. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out August 14, 1919. MADSEN, HANS C. Newell Born April 11, 1896. Enl. February 24, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. Co. 48, 20th Engrs. Trained at Camp Dodge in Co. E, 351st Inf.; trans, to Co. 48, 20th Engrs.; to Washington, D. C. Sailed on U. S. S. Leviathan May 22; landed Brest May 30. June 15 to Sens, truck driver for American lumber mill; to Vaux Gironde September 14; to point near Bordeaux March 10, drove truck for lumber mill. Sailed from Bordeaux June 10; landed New York June 21. Mustered out June 30, 1919. MADSON, CARL W. Newell Born September 28, 1895. Enl. March 9, 1918. Pvt. 75th Co., Regt. Hdcirs. C. A. C. Trained at Fort Moultrie. Sailed from Ho- boken on U. S. S. Sippeney September 6; Andred C. J. Mark Elk Township Edmund L. Marousek Storm Lake William P. Marquardt Storm Lake Lester William Marsh Sioux Rapids Roland M. Marten Raymond A. Martz Joseph L. Mason Clarence R. Mattelin Storm Lake Storm Lake Washington Township Poland Township \\";Uter MatzdorfE Elk Township William J. Matzdorf Brooke Township Prank G. May Storm Lake Oscar Mays Sioux Rapids Jesse Medsker Rembrandt Edivard C. Meinking Brooke Township Edward J. Mernin Providence Township Blanche Adeil Merry Sioux Rapids Roscoe Cecil Merry Sioux Rapids Arthur H. Meseck Grant Township Leo Meyer Truesdale Ora William Meyer Storm Lake Warren E. Meyers Carl Edwin Mickelson Roy Aaron Mikelson • Thorwald V. Miklake Born February 23, 1896. Enl. July 24, 1918. Sgt. Co. A, 383d Inf. 96th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon; Camp Wadsworth. Mustered out at Camp Dodge December 31, 1918. RICE, NORMAN BERYI. Storm Iiake Born April 12, 1898. Enl. October 7, 1918. Cadet S. A. T. C. Trained at Buena Vista Col- lege, Storm Lake, Iowa. Mustered out Decem- ber 13, 1918. Garret D. Robar Nokomis Townshii3 Irene Robar Harry Clyde Robbing Nokomis Township Newell Hug-h Cedric Roberts Storm Lake Guy Thomas Roberts Storin Lake Hi.iiicr A. Roberts Oren McKii)le\- Roberts Coon Township Storm Lake Fred J. Robinson Storm Lake Ralph W. Itobinson Storm Lake Virg-il Lewis Robinson William S. Robinson Alta Storm Lake Orville B. Rogers Newell ^; ^ * ^ J -^::: Alexander N. Romstad Martin Francis Rosell Truesdale Sioux Rapids John D. Rosenbrook Storm Lake Hawley Rose Storm Lake 1 n^T V 1 ;*#- vl 1 L v^ p 111 8 1/ . i^l is Ivor Lewis Uowlands Aita (jle A. Iliisley Sioux Rapids Ralph R. Rutherford Storm Lake Otto S. Rystad Barnes Township Samuel Rystad Barnes Township John R. Salton Poland Township Charles A. Samsel Storm Lake Ray Byron Samuels Storm Lake 190 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY BICHABBSON, HEBBEBT WESLEY Storm Iiake Born October 29, 1895. Enl. December 13, 1917. Sgt. 67th F. A. Med. Corps. Trained at Ft. Riley. Mustered out December 31, 1918. BIGDON, CLIFEOBD Alta Born September 7, 1897. Enl. June 7, 1918. Seaman 2d-cl. Trained at G. L. N. T. S.; on U. S. S. Haushon, S. P. 517. Mustered out at New York April 18, 1919. BIGDOir, BOY Alta Born January 26, 1896. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. A, 312th Machine Gunners, 79th Div! Trained at Camp Gordon with Co. C, 4th Replm. Regt.; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from New York August 29; landed Brest September 12. To St. Georg-es; to Verdun front; Geni- court; to Gignacourt; to Denands; to Rima- court; to Georges; to St. Nazaire. Sailed on U. S. S. Texan May 15; landed Philadelphia May 29. To Camp Dix; to Camp Dodge. Mus- tered out June 11, 1919. BU^EY, DANIEL A. Ziincoln Township Born September 25, 1888. Enl. October 8, 1917. Sgt. Co. D, 129th Regt. 33d Div. Trained at Camp Grant; Camp Logan; Camp Upton. Sailed from New York May 10 on U. S. S. Lov- ington; landed Brest May 24. To Huppy Area; to Eau training sector; June 21 to Amiens lines with Australians; to right of Al- bert six days; to Ronird Woods; to Moulin-ne- Bois Woods; to Toul sector; to Trouville-en- Barrois; September 5 to Vei-dun sector for 19 days; September 26 to Meuse-Argonne; wounded in action September 27; to Souilly; to Base Hosp. No. 202 Orleans; to Ettlebreck', Luxemburg; to Brest. Sailed May 10 on Levia- than; landed New York May 24. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Grant. Mustered out June 9 1919. EIIiEY, EDWABD J. Iiincoln Township Enl. December 2, 1917. Sgt. Ist-cl. Trained at Camp Johnston; later trans, to Auxiliary Remount Depot No. 333 and put in charge of civilian employees in construction of camp; appointed acting 1st sgt., promoted to 1st sgt. Received part of training at Quarter Master School Camp Joseph E. Johnston; recommended for Officers' Training Camp, Inf. Branch, Camp Kearny. Mustered out March 8, 1919. BIirGBI.01VE, C. T. rairfield Township Born June 26, 1889. Enl. July 24, 1918. Sgt. Inf. N. A. R. D. Replm. Co. No. 2. Trained July 27 to October 6 at Camp Gordon; October 6 to December 15 at Camp Wheeler; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out December 21, 1918. BISVOI.D, CABL BEBNABD Barnes Township Born January 10, 1894. Enl. July 29, 1918. Musician, Engrs. Band, Hdqrs. Co. 212th Regt. 12th Div. Trained at Camp Forrest one month; to Camp Devens from September 1 to February 1; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out February 8, 1919. BISVOLB, SEI.1VIEB A. Scott Township Born June 25, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon. Sailed from New York Septem- ber 1; landed Brest September 14. To St. Georges; was in Argonne front from October 24 to November 4; wounded by machine gun bullet and taken prisoner by the Germans; released from German hosp. February 6, 1919. Landed New York April 27. October 12, 1919, still at Ft. Sheridan, U. S. Gen Hosp. No. 28,' and probably will be for several months. BOBAB, CLIFTON J. Nokomis Township Born August 29, 1893. Enl. May 13, 1918. Pvt. Co. L, 56th Regt. 7th Div. Trained at Camp MacArthur two months; to Camp Mer- ritt. Sailed August 3 on Leviathan; landed Brest August 11. Went into training at Bragualin; one month in Lorraine sector until armistice; to Manunville; to Maxie-Surcy; to Le Mans; to Brest. Sailed on battleship Genza June 16, landed Newport News June 27. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out July 5, 1919. BOBAB, GABBET D. Nokomis Township Born April 3, 1898. Enl. October 1, 1918. App. seaman. Naval , Reserve. Trained at Madison, Wisconsin, three months. Mustered out December 22, 1918. BOBAB, IBENE (Nurse) Nokomis Township Born December 29, 1886. Enl. November 8, 1917. Nurse, Army Nurse Corps. Trained at American Red Cross Military Hosp. No. 1, Paris; at Base No. 66, Neuf Chateau, France. Sailed from New York December 12, 1917; HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 191 landed Liverpool December 25. To London; to Folkstone; to Boulogne December 29. To Paris; to Neuf Chateau July 19; to Chateau- Thierry for work with 32d Div. Field Hosp. No. 125 and No. 127; to Godoigne; to Reddie- farm; to Coincy September 1; to Neuf Chateau September 15; to St. Nazaire January 11. Sailed from St. Nazaire February 6; landed New York February 28. Released from serv- ice March 5, 1919. BOBBINS, HABBY CIiYDE Ne-weU Born May 13, 1891. Enl. February 25, 1918. Pvt. Batt. E, 304th F. A. 77th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; to Camp Upton. Sailed from New York April 24 on S. S. Leviathan; landed Brest May 2. To Bordeaux for training from May 10 to July 10; to Baccarat sector July 12 for 30 days; to Chateau-Thierry from July 16 to September 26; to Meuse-Argonne from September 26 to November 11; to Le Mans; to Brest. Sailed April 24; landed New York, made trip on U. S. S. Agamemnon, May 2, 1919. Mustered out May 26, 1919. BOBBBTS, HUGH CBDBIC Storm Xial^e Born July 16, 1898. Enl. October 1, 1918. Pvt. Field Artillery, Batt. 8 Obs. Officers' Training School. Trained at Camp Taylor. Mustered out December 5, 1918. BOBBBTS, GUY THOMAS Storm Iiake Born May 10, 1900. Enl. October 1, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C. Trained at Iowa State Col- lege. Mustered out December 17, 1918. BOBBBTS, HOMBB A. Coon Township Born December 2, 1896. Enl. September 5, 1918. Pvt. 4th Co. 13th Replm. Battalion. Trained at Camp Dodge until September 19; at Camp Pike until December 9. Mustered out at Camp Pike December 9, 1918. BOBBBTS, OBBN MCKIKI.EY Storm Lake Born May 18, 1897. Enl. July 27, 1918. D. M. M. A. 2d Regt. Trained at G. L. N. T. S.; received greater part of training at Camp Dewey, Great Lakes. Released December 23, 1918. BOBINSON, TBED J. Storm Iiake Born December 22, 1897. Enl. April 8, 1917. Pvt. Co. M, 168th Inf. 42d Div. Trained at Cherokee, Iowa; State Fair Grounds; to Camp Mills. Sailed from New York October 18; re- turned to U. S. October 28; sailed again on November 14; landed Liverpool. To Win- chester; to Southampton; to Le Havre. To Rimaucourt; to Langres; entered line at Bac- carat in Luneville sector February 21, 1918; wounded in action March 9 by machine-gun bullet through arm; to French Hosp. No. 214 8 days; to Base Hosis. No. 31 seven days; to lines at Baccarat; to Champagne July 1-15; gassed and taken to Hosp. No. 15 at Chaumont for 17 days; back to company at Chateau- Thierry; to St. Mihiel September 12; to Ar- gonne October 12; to Sedan November 9; in line when armistice was signed; with Army of Occupation at Niederzissen, Germany, Decem- ber 16 to March 6; to Niederbreisig; to Brest. Sailed on Leviathan April 18; landed New York April 26. To Camp Upton; to Camp Dodge. Wfes decorated in France with croix de guerre. Mustered out May 17, 1919. BOBINSON, BALPH W. Storm Iiake Born May 31, 1901. Enl. March 18, 1918. Pvt, Ist-cl. Hdq. 14th Regt. unassigned. Trained at Ft. Logan and Ft. Sill. BOBIITSOIT, VIBGII. LEWIS Alta Born March 15, 1898. Enl. July 10, 1917. Carpenter's mate 2d-cl. Trained at G. L. N. T. S.; after three months of seaman train- ing took up radio work until March, 1918; then took up carpenter work; left G. L. N. T. S. October 16 for Morehead City, N. C, to con- truct a naval air station; January 15 ordered to Norfolk; to receiving ship; went aboard U. S. S. New Hampshire May 7 for transport duty. Sailed for Brest May 20; started back June 10 with 1200 troops; arrived Norfolk June 21. On June 23 sailed for Philadelphia Navy Yard for repairs which were in course of completion when this record was compiled. BOBINSON, WILLIAM S. Storm Lake Born October 25, 1890. Enl. July 18, 1918. Fireman 3d-cl. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. Mus- tered out January 17, 1919. BOGEBS, OBVILLE B. Nevfell Born March 13, 1897. Enl. October 11, 1918. Pvt. Chemical Warfare Service. Trained at American University Exp. Station; was in Gas Mask Research Section of Research Div.; was commended by Major A. C. Fielder for services in poisonous gas research. Mustered out December 16, 1918. ig2 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY BOMSTAD, AZiEXANDEB IT. Truesdale Born April 30, 1895. Enl. February 26, 1918. Corp. on Detached Service. Trained at Camp Dodge with 33d Regt. Engrs.; at Camp Devens four months. Sailed June 30 on Calamorces; landed Brest July 12. To Rlmacourt one month; to Bazoilles two months; to Neuf Chateau two months; to Alongves six months; to Brest. Sailed June 21 on U. S. S. Montana; landed Brooklyn June 30, 1919. To Camp Mer- ritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out July 7. 1919. ROSEXiIi, MARTIN FRANCIS Sioux Rapids Born March 10, 1892. Enl. September 4, 1918. Corp Co. C, 57th Inf. 40th Div. Trained at Camp Wadsworth. Was overseas; saw ac- tive service; was gassed; seven months over- seas service. Mustered out April 28, 1919. ROWIiANDS, IVOR I.X:-WIS Alta Born May 13, 1899. Enl. May 10, 1918. Sgt. Co. 5, Signal Corps, Aviation Section. Trained at Ft. Logan; at Kelly Field; at Garden City, N. Y. Sailed October 27 from New York; landed Liverpool November 8. At rest camp Knotty Ash; to Codford; to the Langnure Aero- dome 35 Eaton Place, London; assigned to work on wrecking crew at Port Junction Flying Field. Sailed for U. S. November 22 on Lap- land; landed New York December 3. Mustered out December 20, 1918. RUSI^EY, OI.E A. Sioux Rapids Born May 22, 1891. Enl. September 19. 1917. 2d Lieut. Inf. U. S. A. with Co. A, 10th Bn. I. R. C. Trained at Camp Dodge. Mustered out December 7, 1918. ROSENBROOK, JOHN J>. Storm Iiake Born June 13, 1895. Enl. April 26, 1918. Corp. Co. M, 359th Inf. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; to Camp Upton. Sailed from New York August 9 on Olympic; landed South- ampton August 16. To Le Havre, October 18. To Alsace-Lorraine front seven days before company moved up; did guard duty at Hecken; near Metz at time of armistice; in spring of 1919 filled trenches in France. Sailed from St. Nazaire- May 19; landed New York May 30. To Camp Merritt. Mustered out at Camp Dodge June 11, 1919. ROSENE, NEIiS M. Marathon Born November 1, 1889. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon until August 25. Sailed from New York September 1 on U. S. S. Plattsburg; landed Brest September 12. To St. Georges until October 1; to Verdun sector October 25; took over trenches October 27; in Argonne Woods until armistice; to Etray Noveinber 13 to December 7; to Base Hosp. No. 115; left Hosp. January 26; to Casual cam;? at St. Aignan; to Brest. Sailed on U. S. S. Hunting- ton March 12; landed New York March 23. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out April 2, 1919. ROWE, HAWI.EY Storm lake Born August 22, 1890. Enl. September 19, 1917. Sgt. to Major, Auxiliary Remount No. 322, Q. M. C. Trained at Camp Dodge 18 months. Mustered out March 17, 1919. RUVTE, GEORGE H. Marathon Born January 14, 1897. Enl. April 30, 1918. Pvt. Dental Co. No. 1, Medical Enlisted Re- serve Corps. Med. Corps. Trained Camp Greenleaf; at Ft. Oglethorpe. Mustered out December 16, 1918. KUWE, HEITEY H. JU. Marathon Born January 5, 1899. Enl. October 1, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C. Trained in S. A. T. C. Band Iowa State University. Mustered out Decem- ber 13, 1918. RUTHERFORD, RAIiFH R. Storm Iiake Born September 8, 1896. Enl. June 25, 1917. Pvt. Ist-cl. Hdq. Co. 168th Inf. 42d Div. Trained at Cherokee, Iowa; at State Fair Grounds; to Camp Mills. Sailed on U. S. S. President Grant October 18, 1917; returned to Port October 28; re-embarked November 24 on English ship Celtic; landed Liverpool. To Winchester; to Le Havre. To Rimacourt; to Langres; to Baccarat; to Lorraine front; to Champagne front July 15 to 20; at Chateau-Thierry July 20 to August 5; to St. Mihlel September 12 to 26; in battle of Argonne October 12; to Lune- ville front; wounded; to hosp.; returned within four weeks to company. Mustered out April 26, 1919. RYSTAB, OTTO S. Barnes Township Born November 9, 1893. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Hdq. Co. 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 193 at Camp Gordon until August 27. Sailed from Hoboken August 30 on U. S. S. Platts- burg; landed Brest September 12. To St. Georges September 19 to October 2; to avia- tion camp near Verdun sector until October 27; joined 79th Div. and went to Meuse sector of Verdun front; October 29 in offensive at Ver- dun, there until November 11; held line until December 27; to Heippes December 27; to Orquavaux by march, arrived April 2, re- mained there until May 2; to Clisson; to St. Nazaire. Sailed May 16 on U. S. S. Texan; landed Philadelphia May 29. To Camp Dix; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 10, 1919. BYSTAD, SAmUEI. Barnes Township Born November 8, 1S97. Enl. July 29, 1918. Pvt. in 128th Engrs. Trained at Camp For- rest two months; transferred to casual outfit and sent to Camp Upton. Sailed from New York on U. S. S. George Washington Septem- ber 30; landed Brest October 13. To Angers training camp October 25 to November 3; to Giavls; to Issoudun from time of armistice until April 29, 1919; to Ordy; to St. Nazaire. Sailed June 30 on Henderson; landed New York July 12. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out July 21, 1919. SALTON, JOHN R. Foland Township Born October 7, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt., unassigned, in Inf. Trained at Camp Gor- don until October 20 in Replm. Co. and Non- commissioned Officers' School; at Camp Wheeler from October 21 until December 15. Mustered out December 21, 1918. SAT/LSHI., CHARI.es A. Storm Xiabe Born January 22, 1888. Enl. June 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. I, 349th Inf. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; at Camp Upton. Sailed from Hoboken August 9 on Olympic; landed South- ampton August 16. To Le Havre August 19. To Corrombles; to Les Laummes; to Belfort September 18; to Mennecourt; to trenches October 2 to 28; to Reppe Offermont; to Bel- fort; to Bernecourt; to Minorville; to Lu Horgue; December 1 to Reffry: May 8 to De Mange; to La Souge; to St. Nazaire. Sailed May 19 on Ryndham; landed Hoboken May 30. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 11, 1919. SAMUELS, RAY BYRON Storm Iialce Born December 23, 1888. Enl. April 9, 1918. Sgt. 17th Bn. Replm. Depot. F. A., later in 8th Corps Artillery Park, 96th Division. Trained at W'isconsin State University Vocational School two months; to Camp Jackson; to Camp Wadsworth in 8th Corps Artillery Park, 96th Div. until December 6; transferred to Salvage Div. Mustered out February 6, 1919. SAMUEI.SON, EDGAR MAGNUS New^ell Born December 25, 1898. Enl. January 23, 1919. Seaman, 8th Co. Elec. School. Trained at Hampton Roads, Va., at Naval Operating Base. Enlisted for four years. SAND, AUGUST lEVIN Siouz Rapids Born May 25, 1892. Enl. September 20, 1917. Pvt. Hdq. Co. 315th Regt. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Cody. Was with the 79th Div. at Verdun from late in September to November 11, under shell fire all the time. Mustered out October 13, 1919. SANSTEDT, HARRY A. Fairfield Township Born February 21, 1893. Enl. April 25, 1918. Pvt. Machine Gun Co. 338th M. G. Bn. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; at Camp Upton. Sailed from New York Aug. 6 on Kashmir; landed Liverpool August 24. To Winchester; to Southampton; to Cherbourg. To Belfort; to front lines in Alsace sector October 5 for 14 days; to Bessencourt; to Toul; near Metz when armistice was signed; to Gondrecourt area; to St. Nazaire. Sailed on Netherlands; landed Newport News June 9. To Camp Hill; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 15, 1919. SANSTEDT, ORVII.I.E E. Pairfield Township Born July 18, 1895. Enl. September 19, 1917. Pvt. Co. G, 38th Inf. 3d Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; at Camp Pike; to Camp Merritt Sailed on Anselin June 19; landed Liverpool July 1. To Southampton; to France July 5. To St. Aignan; to Montsmard; to St. Engenewe Woods where he joined 38th Inf. July 18, while in front lines; to Maizy; to Fismes August 1 holding trenches; to Maizy; to Mondicourt; through Toul to St. Mihiel for attack Septem- ber 12 about 15 days; in Argonne; with Army of Occupation; to Brest. Sailed August 6; landed Hoboken August 23. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out August 29, 1919. SCHMIDT, CHRISTIAN M. Newell Born January 5, 1889. Enl. June 25, 1918. Pvt. Co. B. Inf. Trained at Camp Dodge. Mus- tered out July 11. 1918. August Levin Sand Sioux Rapids Albert R. Sclimitt Maple Valley Township Rufus P. Schofield Newell Henry Schramm Coon Township Carl Schultz Brooke Township John K;irl Sdi w ,i i-y, Storm Lake Ida May Schweitzer Storm Lake Louis C. Schweitzer Hayes Township William P. Schweitzer Hayes Township George P. Scott Nokomis Township Lloyd T. Scott Nokomis Township f^7 Roy U. Shaeffer Storm Lake Cliarlps M. Shaffer Lee Township Bert B. Shannon Storm Lake John L. Shannon Storm Lake Aubrev DeLoss ShauU Storm Lake James Kenneth Shaull Storm Lake Charles A. Shewell Storm Lake Victor B. Shirk Linn Grove Cliarles Everett Shoemaker Lee Township Carl S. Sholander Elk Township Albert Oren Siefken Rembrandt Carl Hobert Siefkin Barnes Township Paul Sievers Grant Township 196 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY SCHMITT, AIiBERT B. Maple Valley Township Born December 11, 1890. Enl. September 20, 1917. Sgt. Quarter Master Cori^s, Reclama- tion Co. Trained at Camp Dodge with Co. A, 350th Inf. 88th Div.; at Camp Pike with 347th Inf. 87th Div., later transferred to Militarj' Police; to Q. M. C; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out March 5, 1919. SCHBAMIVI, HENRY Coon Township Born March 30, 1894. Enl. April 2, 1918. Pvt. Hdq. Troop, 3d Army Corps, veteran corps of the A. E. P. Trained at Camp Dodge and Camp Mills. Sailed June 4 on Tennyson from Brooklyn; landed London June 21. To Winchester; to Southampton; crossed chan- nel June 25; landed Le Havre June 26. To Bains-les-Bains, joined the 3d Army Corps; to Remiremont; to Meaux July 14, to take part in the Aisne-Marne battle; operated under French at Soissons offensive; w&s in three major offensives: Aisne-Marne, Oise and Meuse-Argonne; on Verdun sector September 10 to 26; at Romagne when armistice was signed; to Dun-sur-Meuse; to Longuyon; to Longwy; to Luxemburg; to Linster; Echite- mach; to Kilburg; to Daun; to Polch; to Neuwied December 15 to July 15, with Army of Occupation; to Aix-la-Chapelle; to Liege; to Namur; to Charleroi; to Amiens; to Rouen; to Le Mans; to Rennes; to Brest. Sailed on Finland July 24; landed Hoboken August 4. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out August 13, 1919. SCHUI.TZ, CABi; Brooke Township Born December 4, 1895. Enl. May 26, 1918. Corp. Co. A, 352d Inf. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge two and one-half months; to Camp Mills. Sailed from New York August 14; landed Liverpool August 28. To Gendi- court. Was at Gendicourt five months; to Brest. Sailed May 20 on Konicicus; landed Newport News June 3. To Camp Dodge. Mus- tered out June 13, 1919. SCHWARTZ, JOHN EABi; Storm Zia:ke Born July 15, 1893. Enl. June 17, 1918. 2d Lieut. Batt. F, 38th Art. C. A. C. Trained at Ft. Monroe; to Ft. Adams; to Cainp Abra- ham Eustis; to Camp Stewart; to Ft. Wads- worth; to Ft. Hamilton. Mustered out Decem- ber 19, 1918. SCHWEITZER, IDA MAY (Nurse) Storm Iialie Born January 14, 1893. Enl. March 25, 1918. Nurse, U. S. A. N. C. Trained at Camp Devens. Sailed from New York July 29 on S. S. Wilmer Castle; landed Liverpool. To Southampton; crossed the Channel to Le Havre. To Paris; to Camp Man-sur-AUser; Base Hosp. Center No. 14 for six months; to Base Hosp. No. 103 six months; to Brest. Sailed July 14 on Rot- terdam; landed Hoboken July 22. Released, but subject to call, July 22, 1919. SCHW^EITZER, I.OUIS C. Hayes TowTiship Born May 13, 1891. Enl. July 25, 1918. Pvt. Casual Co. No. 1349. Trained at Camp Gordon two and one-half weeks; to Camp Merritt. Sailed overseas. Was in the same casual company all the time. Mustered 'out May 1, 1919, at Camp Dodge. SCHWEITZER, WIZ.I.IAM P. Hayes Township Born July 22, 1897. Enl. August 26, 1917. Pvt. 109tK Supply Train. Trained at Camp Cody ten months; transferred to Q. M. Supply Train; to Detroit, Michigan; did convoy work to Baltimore one month; one trip from Cleve- land, Ohio, to New York; to Camp Dix one month. Sailed from Hoboken with 109th Sup- ply Train; landed Southampton. Did convoy work out of St. Nazaire; to Le Mans; to Cob- lenz from St Nazaire for nine months. Sailed on S. S. DeKalb from St. Nazaire; landed Newport News. To Camp Dodge. SCHOFIEI.D, RUFUS S. Newell Born December 17, 1892. Enl. February 24, 1918. Cook Co. K, 139th Inf. 35th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; at Camp Douglas. Sailed from New York on City of Brisbane April 26; landed England. To France. In British re- serve back of firing line in Belgium two months; to Alsace-Lorraine, held front lines from July 18 to August 18, without relief, under heavy shell fire daily; to St. Mihiel drive; taken to hosp. September 12; was on duty there cooking for 825 sick and wounded patients until February; sent back to his co. at Le Mans; after two weeks inspection of men and equipment was sent to St. Nazaire. Sailed on LT. S. S. Matsonia April 13; landed Newport News April 24, 1919. Mustered out May 5, 1919. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 197 SCOFIEIiD, ■WARREN S. Storxa Iia:ke Born September 12, 1890. Enl. April 7, 1917. Cook, Supply Co. 133d Inf. 34th Div. Trained: Enlisted at Cherokee; to Camp Cody; to Camp Dix. Sailed from New York October 12 on English ship Taltshabis; landed Breckenridge, England. To Codford; to Southampton; to Le Havre. To Le Mans; to Brest. Sailed for U. S. on Leviathan June 28; landed New York July 8. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out July 15, 1919. SCOTT, GEORGi: P. Nozomis Township Born May 3, 1896. Enl. October 27, 1917. Chauffeur, Air Service. Trained: Enl. at Sioux City and trained there for three and one-half months; to Camp Morrison. Sailed June 29 on S. S. America; landed Brest July 14. To Court Cotequidan until August 26; to Toul; to St. Mihiel sector; to Argonne front, ad- vanced to front until armistice; to Consences billets; remained at billets until February 10; to Column Bey; to La Belle; February 22 to Crevan; through Gennicourt Camp. Sailed April 20 on Susquehanna; landed Newport News May 3. To Camp Stewart; to Camp Lee; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out May 15, 1919. SCOTT, LLOYD T. Nokomis Township Born September 8, 1889. Enl. June 6, 1916. Corp. Co. M, 168th Inf. 42d Div. Trained at Camp Hyatt; at State Fair Grounds; served on border nine months; to Camp Mills. Dis- charged at Camp Mills, just before 168th sailed for France. Honorable discharge granted by reason of disability, October 21, 1917. SHAEFFER, ROY U. Storm Lake Born June 22, 1899. Enl. March 22, 1918. Pvt. Artillery. Trained at Ft. Logan; sent back to Sioux City. Mustered out April 12, 1918. SHAFFER, CHARLES IVE. Lee Township Born August 14, 1893. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. Machine Gun Co. 316tli Inf. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon until August 26. Sailed from Hoboken on U. S. S. Platts- burg August 30; landed Brest September 12. To St. Georges until October 2; to aviation camp in Verdun sector October 29, in offen- sive 14 hours; taken prisoner by Germans and held in prison camp until November 14; re- leased and returned to Casual Co. near Ver- dun. Joined regiment December 5, 1918, at Reville; and put into M. G. Co. Sailed from St. Nazaire on U. S. S. Texas May 16; landed Philadelphia May 29. To Camp Dix; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 10, 1919. SHANNON, BERT B. Storm Lake Born April 16, 1893. Enl. May 13, 1918. Seaman. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. Sailed from Hoboken June 15, 1918; arrived Brest June 21. Located^ at Pouillac at U. S. Naval Air Sta- tion, a supply station for all naval stations in Europe; planes were shipped to this sta- tion and assembled. Sailed January 12 on re- turn to Pelham Park, New York. Mustered out February 14, 1919. SHANNON, JOHN L. Storm Lake Born July 26, 1882. Enl. June 24, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. Hdq. Co. 33d Inf. Trained at Ft. Logan until July 10; to Camp Nichols until August 15; at Gatun (Canal Zone) from August 22 to February 24; acted as locks guard and did patrol duty. Mustered out at Cristobal, Canal Zone, February 24, 1919. SHARP, LOU B. Storm Lake Born May 31, 1887. Enl. April 22, 1914. 1st Lieut. Co. K, 133d Regt. 24th Division. Trained at Camp Cody and Ft. Baird. Pro- moted to sgt. July 1, 1916; to 2d Lieut. Octo- ber 5, 1917; to 1st Lieut. June 19, 1918. Mus- tered out January, 1919. SHAULL, AUBREY DE LOSS Storm Lake Born July 30, 1895. Enl. July 14, 1917. Corp. Co. B, 109th Ammunition Train, 34th Div. Trained at Des Moines; at Camp Cody. Sailed from New York on H. M. S. Olympic October 17, 1918. landed Southampton Octo- ber 24, 1918. To Southampton; to Cherbourg. To Camp De Soughe two months; to Camp St. Sulpice six months. Sailed from Bor- deaux June 10 on U. S. S. lowan; landed Phila- delphia June 22. Mustered out at Camp Dodge June 28, 1919. SHAULL, JAMES KENNETH Storm Lake Born June 15, 1890. Enl. July 24, 1918. Corp. Co. C, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon. Mustered out January 9, 1919. SHELLEY, BOONE R. Storm Lake Born August 22, 1891. Enl. August 22, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon; ordered to Camp Dodge. Mus- tered out January 9, 1919. Theodore Sievers Newell Ivan W. Silver Poland Townshiij Niels K. H. Simonsen Newell Marten A. Skibsted Newell Brisbin Skiles Rembrandt Ingolf Skogsto Sioux Rapids Sidney Slagle Storm Lake Beniamin H. Smith Sioux Rapids Carleton B. Smith Storm Lake Gilbert G. Smith Sioux Rapids Rev, James A. Smitli Sioux Rapids Kenneth M. Smith Storm Lake Ora F. Smith Poland Township Paul Matliias Smith Sioux Rapids William McKinley Smith Sioux Rapids Robert M. Smoot Storm Lake Joseph Paul Sohm Storm Lake James Sondergaard Newell Waldemar Sondergaard Newell William F. Sorbe Lincoln Township Anton Sorenson Newell Helmer Ludvic Sorenson Alta Walter L. Spooner Storm Lake Amos C Sprecher Storm Lake 200 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY SHEWELI,, CHARLES A. Storm Iiabe Born April 22, 1893. Enl. December 8, 1917. Pvt. Co. H, A. M. O. R. S. Trained at Camp Grant three months; at Camp Hancock four months; to Camp Mills. Sailed from Hoboken July 9 on Mt. Vernon; landed Brest July 18. To Limoges; billeted in monastery two months; to Verdun defensive September 26 to October 16; to Meuse-Argonne until No- vember 25; to Verdun sector two weeks; to Rehon; to Jarny; to Vintun until 16th of May; to Issen to pick up trucks and drive them to St. Nazaire; to Gievres with con- voy of trucks; to St. Nazaire. Sailed on U. S. S. Scranton July 6; landed Brooklyn July 18. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Sherman. Mustered out July 25, 1919. SHIRK, VICTOR B. Iiiun G-rove Born April 12, 1898. Enl. March 27, 1918. Pvt. M. G. Co B, 52d Regt. 18th Div. Trained at Camp Travis. Mustered out February 15. 1919. SHOEMAKER, CHARLES EVERETT Lee Township Born December 6, 1895. Enl. July 26, 1918. Pvt. Co. B, 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon four weeks. Sailed from Hobo- ken August 30; landed Brest September 12. Served In action at Verdun front at edge of Argonne Forest; slightly wounded; while in action which began October 26 and continued for seven days, he received wounds in right thigh and knee also in left side, while lying wounded was taken prisoner by the Germans November 4, released December 1; returned to France and was cared for at different hospitals. Sailed for U. S. April 21, 1919; landed New York April 29, 1919. Mustered out May 26, 1919. SHOLANDER, CARL S. Elk Township Born March 27, 1891. Enl. July 29, 1918. Pvt. 50th Co. 20th Engrs. Trained at Camp Forrest, until December 26. Mustered out at Camp Dodge January 6, 1919. SIEFKEN, ALBERT OREIT Remhrandt Born July 13, 1894. Enl June 26, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. Co. C, 1st Army M. P. Bn. Trained at Camp Dodge; at Camp Mills; took train to Quebec. Went aboard English ship Demos- thenes; sailed down St. Lawrence River to Gulf of St. Lawrence; to Camp Breton. N. S. Sailed with convoy of 14 ships carrying 88th Div. men on August 12 from New York; landed Liver- pool August 31. To Knotty Ash; to South- ampton; to Le Havre September 5. to Semur; to Haricourt; in Alsace sector in Co A, 313th M. P. 88th Div.; transferred to Co. C, 1st Army M. P. Bn.; September 24 moved near Verdun; to Argonne; to Varennes; to Autry at time of armistice; to Bar, on duty with 1st Army Hdqrs.; to Coblenz; to Meunahr until June 2; to Le Mans; to Brest. Sailed in U. S. S. Louisville June 29; landed Hobo- ken July 7. To Camp Mills; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out July 14, 1919. SIEPKEN, CARL HOBART Banies Township Born March 21, 1897. Enl. August 12, 1918. Radio operator, U. S. N. R. F. Trained at U. S. Naval Radio School, Harvard University. First training at Dunwoody Institute until October 31; to Harvard University until Feb- ruary 13. Mustered out February 13 at Cam- bridge, Mass. SIEVERS, PAUL Grant Township Born May 12, 1897. Enl. September 5, 1918. Pvt. 3d Bn. 163d D. B. Trained at Camp Dodge; Camp Cody. Mustered out at Camp Dodge December 20, 1918. SIEVERS, THEODORE Newell Born June 9, 1896. Enl. August 14, 1918. Corp. Ambulance Unit No. 62, Med Corps. Trained at Ames Training Detach.; Camp Crane. Mustered out March 1, 1919. SILVER, IVAN -VST. Poland Township Born March 1, 1897. Enl. July 17, 1916. Pvt. Batt. A, 8th or 53d C. A. C. of the Regular Army. Trained at Jefferson Barracks until August 20, 1916; to Ft. Howard until Feb- ruary 25, 1917; to Fisherman's Island, Vir- ginia, until July 10; returned to Ft. Howard; to Ft. Adams. Sailed from New York on Pamonia August 23; landed Liverpool Aug. 31. To South- ampton; to Le Havre in September. At Camp Mailley from September, 1917, to March, 1918; to Champagne front from March until April 10; to Toul sector; to Verdun sector May 15 to June 15; to R. R. Artillery Hdqrs. until February, 1919; to Bordeaux. Sailed May 5 on Arizona; landed New York May 21. To Camp Mills; given sixty-day furlough. Period of enlistment not expired when this record was compiled. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 20 1 SIMONSEN, NIELS K. H. Newell Born November 26. 1S92. Enl. February 24, 1918. Pvt. 45th Co. 20th Engrs. Trained at American University. Sailed from New York May 10; landed Brest May 23, sailed on U. S. S. President Lincoln, which was sunk on the homeward bound voyage. Detailed immediately back of Verdun sector; to Rennes for railroad and sawmill construction; did same work in Alsace-Lorraine. Sailed from Bordeaux on S. S. Luckenbach May 17; landed New York June 1. Mustered out July 9, 1919. SEIBSTED, MARTIN A. Ne'weU Born January 18, 1891. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. H, 129th Inf. 33d Div. Trained at Camp Gordon. Sailed from New York on U. S. S. Plattsburg; landed Brest September 12. To Le Mans; to St. Mihiel front from October 18 to November 11; on front lines four days; over top in one big engagement; left outfit at Luxemburg; to Hosp. No. 60 — bad arches and lung trouble; to St. Nazaire; to Brest. Sailed on U. S. S. Leviathan February 5, landed New York February 12. Mustered out February 25, 1919. skii.es, brisbin Rembrandt Born February 6, 1893. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. M, 7th Inf. 3d Div. Trained: Co C, 4th Replm. at Camp Gordon. Sailed from tJ. S. August 30; landed Brest September 12. Joined 3d Div. Oct. 29; served in defensive sector. Second Army Area October 29 to No- vember 11; with Army of Occupation Decem- ber 1 to August 10, 1919. Mustered out August 27, 1919. SKOGSTO, INGOI.F Sioux Rapids Born September 11, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Trained at Camp Gordon. Pvt. Co. C, 4th Replm. Regt. Mustered out December 7, 1918. SI.AGLE, SIDNEY Storm Iiake Born October 6, 1896. Enl. July 12, 1918. Has remainder of four years to serve in U. S. N. R. F., Aviation Corps, before receiving discharge. Trained: Went through detention with Co. 579, 14th Regt., at Camp Boone, G. L. N. T. S. Transferred to following companies in the 15th Regt. at New Aviation Camp: Co. P, Co. N. <^o. A, these being companies under instruction on aviation motors, includ- ing the Liberty Twelve. Released from duty December 24, 1918. SMITH, BENJAMIN H. Sioux Rapids Born April 16, 1889. Enl. June 5, 1917. 2d Lieut. 112th Hdqrs. M. P. Vet. Corps, 37th Div. Trained at Camp Perry June 5 to Septem- ber 5, 1917; Camp Sheridan September 10 to June 12, 1918. Sailed on Australian ship Lester June 28; landed Liverpool. To Le Havre, July 12. To Burmont; to Lorraine sector July 25 to September 1; to Meuse-Argonne offensive September 25 to October 9; to Thiaucourt in the St. Mihiel sector October 10 to 18; to St. Julian October 22; participated in offensive at Ypres-Lys from October 26 to November 11; left Div. February 22 and went to St. Aignan until March 17; transferred to 21st F. A. at Dedenlange, Luxemburg, until April 29; trans- ferred to 313th Sanitary Train. Sailed from St. Nazaire May 22 on Queen of Nether- lands; landed Newport News June 4, 1919. Mustered out at Camp Grant July 1, 1919. SMITH, CARLETON B. Storm Iiake Born June 15, 1895. Enl. August 2, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. 22d Ordnance Guard. Trained at Syracuse, N. Y., six weeks; to Portsmouth, at ammunition base on guard duty. Mustered out March 12, 1919. SMITH, GILBERT G. Sioux Rapids Born April 16, 1889. Enl. June 6, 1917. Signalman, Ist-cl. Marines. Trained at Mare Island until August 25; to Naval Station at San Diego until December 21; boarded U. S. S. Cincinnati December 21, did guard duty patrol- ling coast along Central America until Febru- ary 8, 1918; through Panama Canal Zone to Bahia, Brazil; patrolled South American coast off Bahia until May 25; to Rio de Janeiro for month's patrol duty; returned to Virgin Islands July 3; to Key West to join American Patrol Detach.; to Charleston October 5; to Tampa. Florida; patrolling coast of Cuba and entered Havana Harbor February, 1919; to New Orleans March 22; transferred from ship to barracks at New Orleans March 23 to July 14, 1919. Died in the Naval Hosp. at Ft. Lyons, Novem- ber 26, 1919. (Word was received just before going to press that Gilbert G. Smith died at Naval Hospital at Ft. Lyons, November 26.) 202 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY SMITH, BEV. JAMES A. Sioux Bapids Born July 12, 1890. Enl. March 17, 1918. Army Divisional Chaplain. Served on Board of Examiners who investigated cases of con- scientious objectors; also chief assistant chief psychological examinations. Trained at Camp Dodge and Camp Fremont. Promoted from brigade chaplain to divisional chaplain. Sailed from Hoboken October 28; landed Brest No- vember 9. To Jouzac; to St. Gensis; to Put- tanezen; poisoned November 30; sent to Officers' Casual Camp at Brest; to Naval Base Hosp. No. 1 December 20; operated upon for appendicitis December 21. Sailed on U. S. S. President Grant January 4 from Brest; landed Hoboken January 18 Sent to Hosp. at Ellis Island; to Base Hosp. at Ft. Des Moines. Mus- tered out February 18, 1919. SMITH, KENNETH M. Storm Iiake Born March 18, 1892. Enl. August 27, 1917. 1st Lieut. Inf. Transport Engineers. Trained at Ft. Snelling, in 2d Reserve Officers Training School, commissioned 1st Lieut, of Inf.; to Camp Dodge in 163d D. B.; to Co. C, 313th Supply Train; Division Exchange Officer, Camp Dodge; transferred to Engineers' Training Camp, Camp Humphreys July 30, 1918; trans- ferred to Engineers' Corps, Highway School, Mustered out January 8, 1919. SMITH, OBA F. Poland Township Born January 15, 1893. Enl. February 23, 1918. Mech. Co. G, 351st Inf. 88th Dlv. Trained at Camp Dodge until August 6. Sailed from New York August 13 on Scotian; landed Liver- pool August 28. Crossed Channel to Cher- bourg September 16. To Campey until Sep- tember 30; to front of Haute-Alsace offensive which lasted from October 12 to 29; to Toul sector and held trenches near Pont-a-Mousson until armistice was signed; to Gondrecourt Area November 29; to Liffoble Grande Decem- ber 26 to April 10; to Casual Camp at St. Aignan; to Marseilles. Sailed on Europia May 10; landed New York May 27. To Ft. Sheri- dan. Mustered out at Camp Dodge June 23, 1919. SMITH, FAUlb M. Sioux Bapids Born September 24, 1894. Enl. May 9, 1917. Sgt. Ist-cl., Medical Dept. 16th Balloon Co. 7th Div. Air Service. Trained at Angel Island; at Camj) Morrison. In reserve at St. Mihiel September 4 to 20; active service at Thiaucourt September 20 to November 11; with Army of Occupation April 20 to July 14, 1919; served with American Polish Relief Expedition July 19 to December 6 — in Poland October 1 to December 6, 1919. Mustered out December 6, 1919. SMITH, WII.I.IAM McKINIiEY Sioux Bapids Born March 1, 1898. Enl. January 24, 1918. Sgt. Air Service, 4th Co. 7th Regt. Trained at Jefferson Barracks; Camp Hancock; at Camp Green. Sailed from New York July 15; landed Liverpool July 31. To Southampton August 1; to Le Havre August 5. To Romorantin; the largest air field in Europe, August 8; to Orly Field, Paris; to Neufchateau August 26; to Meuse-Argonne September 14; to Tricourt September 18; to Langres November 7; was in Argonne Forest 38 days; to Luxemburg November 18; to Coblenz December 16 to July 22, 1919. SMOOT, BOBEBT M. Storm Iiake Born December 31, 1898. Enl. June 18. 1915. Corp. Co. M, 14 2d Regt. 36th Div. Trained: Enl. at Cherokee, Io>va; to Camp Cody; saw service on border during Mexican trouble. Sailed from Hoboken August 6; landed Liver- pool August 17. To Prance August 24; landed Le Havre. To Le Mans; to Bar-sur- Aube; in Meuse-Argonne sector. Sailed from Brest May 17; landed in U. S. June 2, 1919. Mustered out June 12, 1919. SNVDEB, SAX.EM Brooke Township Born September 19, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon until November 5; to Camp Shelby until December 22; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out December 30, 1918. SOHM, JOSEPH PAUL Storm Iiake Born December 17, 1893. Enl. August 27, 1917. 2d Lieut. Batt. F, 337th F. A. 88th Div. Trained at Ft. Snelling, where he was com- missioned 2d Lieut.; reported at Camp Dodge December 15, 1917; attached to Batt. F, 337th F. A. 88th Div. until January 2, 1918; to Camp Jackson May 22; assigned to Batt. C, 3d Bn. F. A. Replm. Depot; to School of Fire at Ft. Sill for ten-weeks' officers' course June 16, was graduated August 23; assigned to School of Fire in the Dept. of Material August 23. Mustered out January 15, 1919. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 203 SONDERGAARD, JAMES Newell Born June 2, 1896. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. L, 107th Inf. 27th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon. Sailed from Hoboken on U. S. S. Plattsburg- August 29; landed Brest Sep- tember 12. To St. Aignan; to St. Georges; to Tours; to Dieppe; to British sector on Hinden- burg Line for seven days — over top three times here; to St. Suplet in continual fight- ing; took Jean de Merc Ridge and another town; to Glissy until November 11. Sailed from Brest February 28, on S. S. Amsterdam; landed New York, March 9. Mustered out March 29, 1919. SONDERGAABD, WAZiDEMAB Newell Born July 24, 1891. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. H, 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from Ho- boken on U. S. S. Plattsburg August 30; landed Brest September 12. To Tours; to Verdun; to Base Hosp. No. 47; to Beaune; to St. Aignan; to Brest. Sailed on S. S. Hollandia March 3; landed Hoboken March 15. To Camp Mer- ritt. Mustered out March 25, 1919. SOBBi:, WTIiIiIAM F. Storm Iia^ke Born October 20, 1895. Enl. August 28, 1918. Pvt. Q. M. C. 17th Co. 2d Regt., placed in 314th Fire Truck and Hose Co. Trained at Camp Funston. Mustered out May 21, 1919. SOBBNSON, ANTON Newell Born May 14. 1893. Enl. April 9, 1918. Cook Batt. B, 12th Regt. Artillery. Trained at Madison, Wisconsin, Training Dept.; at Camp Jackson. Mustered out December 18, 1918. SOBBNSON, HEIiIOSB I.UDVIG Alta Born October 18, 1890. Enl. July 18, 1917. Pvt. Co. D, 43d Inf. 15th Div. Trained at Ft. Logan; Ft. Douglas; at Camp Pike; to New Orleans for guard duty; to Madisonville, La., for guard duty; to Camp Logan for duty as guard; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out January 21, 1919. SFOONBB, BABIi Zi. Storm Iiake Born June 15, 1895. Enl. July 26, 1918. Pvt. Co. G, 313th Ing. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon. Sailed overseas in August, 1918. Saw active service in Verdun. After armistice was sent to Condon. SFOONBB, TV ALTER L. Storm Iiake Born May 8, 1897. Enl. September 5, 1918. Pvt. in 347th Motor Transport Corps. Trained at CamiJ Dodge. Mustered out June 5, 1919. SFBECHEB, AMOS C. Storm Iiake Born November 18, 1895. Enl. July 25, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon. Mustered out December 8, 1918. STACV, HABRIS EI.MER Sioux Rapids Born December 6, 1891. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. Co. C, 304th F. S. B. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon in Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt.; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from New York on U. S. S. Plattsburg September 1; landed Brest September 14. To Verdun and entered line of fighting October 7, was in line until November 11; at Verdun, trans- ferred to Co. C, 304th F. S. B.; to Souilly; to Chaumont; to Tours; to Brest. Sailed August 6 on U. S. S. President Grant; landed Hoboken August 17. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out September 26, 1919. STAHL, CI.ABENCE Albert City- Born November 27, 18S9. Enl. September 20, 1917. Corp Co. C, 313th Inf. Field Signal Bn. Trained at Camp Dodge; to Camp Mer- ritt. Sailed from New York on Bohemia August 17; landed Liverpool August 30. To Knotty Ash; to Southampton; to Le Havre September 4. To Semur; to Hericourt Septem- ber 11; to Chassis until September 30; to Braeschmont in Alsace sector on October 2; to Giromagny; to Bois-le-Lagny from Novem- ber 6 to 29; to Menicourt; to Horville; to St. Nazaire. Sailed May 19 on Ryndam; landed Hoboken May 30. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 11, 1919. STAFFOBD, FAUI. Storm Iiake Born December 15, 1889. Enl. September 5, 1918, Pvt. Co, M, 20th Regt. 19th Div. Trained at Camp Funston; ordered to report for guard duty at U. S. Hosp. No. 21 at Denver, Colo. Mustered out at Camp Funston March 5, 1919. Harris Elmer Stacy Sioux Rapids Clarence R. Stahl Albert City Ernest Staples Alta Oscar Albion Steele Alta Rudolph Steffen Storm Lake Walter F. Steig Storm Lake Fred Steinbeck Albert City Walter Brown Storey Storm Lake Ernest Fred H. Stout Storm Lake William Strebelow Storm Lake Francis I. Stringer Storm Lake Morton M. Stull Storm Lake Giles L. Sturchler Providence Township Dick Suling- Maple Valley Township Ernest J. Sundberj Linn Grove John Arthur Sundberg Barnes Township David M. Sundeen Albert City Edwin P. Sundholm Marathon Charles V. Sutherland Storm Lake Elmer F. Swanson Albert City Harry A. Swanson Albert City John Bernhard Swanson Storm Lake Albert Swenson Alta Anton Ludwig Swenson Fairfield Township 2o6 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY STAFIiES, ERNEST Alta Born February 8, 1897. Enl. September 5, 1918. Pvt. Co. M, 2d Inf. Trained at Camp Dodge. Was in infantry organization at time of tlie influenza epidemic at Camp Dodge, liad 19 continuous days of duty on liospital de- tail assigned to carry corj)ses from the wards to the undertal^iing! department; remainder of time in service spent in infantry drill and on guard duty. Mustered out June 11, 1919. STEEI.!:, OSCAR AIiBIOIT Alta Born October 24, 1895. Enl. June 26, 1916. Pvt. Co. M, 168th Inf. 42d Dlv. Trained at Cherokee, Iowa; at State Fair Grounds; at Camp Mills. Sailed October 13, 1917, on ship XT. S. S. President Grant; returned October 28; sailed second time November 14; landed England December 1. To France December 9. Trench duty near Badenviller; to Cham- pagne front; at Chateau-Thierry; St. Mihiel; Argonne; Meuse; Sedan; with Army of Occu- pation December 3 to April 8, 1919. Mus- tered out May 2, 1919. Re-enlisted May 2, 1919. STEFFEN, RUDOIiFH Storm Ijake Born September 26, 1886. Enl. July 23, 1918. Sgt. Co. B, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon; ordered to Camp Dodge. Mus- tered out May 28, 1919. STEIG, WALTER P. Storm Iiake Born January 26, 1893. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 4th Replm. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon. Mustered out December 16, 1918. Train. Trained at Iowa State College; at Valparaiso, Ind.; at Ft. Sheridan. Mustered out December' 25, 1918. STORY, WAIiTER BROWIT Storm Ijake Born April 10, 1893. Enl. May 27, 1918. Sgt. Hdq. Co. 9th Bn . 163d D. B., later transferred to Co. 3, 2d Candidate Bn. I. C. O. T. S. Trained at Camp Dodge; to Camp Grant to I. C. O. T. S. Mustered out November 30, 1918. STOUT, ERNEST FRED H. Storm Iiabe Born June 28, 1892. Enl. June 28, 1918. Machinist 2d-cl. Navy. Trained on Sub Chaser No. 132, San Francisco to San Diego, Calif.; to Hampton' Roads, Naval Operating Base. Mustered out January 6, 1919. STREBEIiOVr, Wri.Z.IA]VI storm Iia:ke Born September 3, 1881. Enl. February 27, 1918. Sgt. Squadron O, Aviation Service. Trained at Ft. Logan; at Kelly Field; Elling- ton Field. Mustered out January 31, 1919. STRINGER, FRANCIS I. Storm Iialie Born December 7, 1895. Enl. December 10, 1917. Ensign in N. R. F. Trained at Muni- cipal Pier; at Ellis Island; at Brooklyn Navy Yard; to Boston receiving ship; at Hingham (Mass.) Ammunition Depot; assigned to Wau- kesha for three-months' trip in foreign serv- ice; to New York: to Pelham Bay; to Officers' School. Commissioned Ensign April 1, 1919. Mustered out May 9, 1919, at New York. STEINBECK, FRED ATbert City- Born February 18, 1898. Enl. January 5, 1918. Sgt. Co. 2, Aviation Service. Trained at Aviation Field, San Antonio; to Camp Mills. Sailed from New York oh S. S. Baltic March 15; landed Liverpool March 28. To Loycombe Corner Camp, England; to Camp Winchester; to Knotty Ash. Sailed for U. S. March 9, 1919; landed Hoboken. To Camp Mills; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out April 8, 1919. STOCK, -WAI.TER R. Storm. Iiat:e Born October 15, 1894. Enl. June 15, 1918. Corp. Co. F, M. T. C. with 433d Motor Supply STUXiI., MORTON, M. Storm Iialie Born May 22, 1896. Enl. September 21, 1917. Corp Co. H, 18th Regt. 1st Div., later transferred to Co. M, 11th Regt. 5th Dlv. Trained at Camjo Dodge; at Camp Pike; to Camp Merritt. Sailed June 8; landed Liver- pool. To Winchester; to Southampton; to Le Havre. To St. Aignan; in action July 18 at Second Battle of the Marne; to Toul August 1; to St. Mihiel September 12; to Argonne October 1; to Hosp. October 10 with influenza; to duty November 20 with Army of Occupation at Remich, Luxemburg; to Schifflange; to St. Aignan; to Marseilles. Sailed May 16; landed New York June 2. To Camp Mills. Mustered out June 6, 1919. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 207 STUBCHI.EB, GII.i:S I.. Providence Township Born July 26, 1891. Enl. September 5, 1917. Sgt. Co. 354, Mobile Laundry Unit, 89th DIv. Trained at Camp Dodge; at Camp Meggs; to Camp Upton. Was in O. T. C. at Camp Meggs. Saw overseas service in France and Germany. STUBCHI.EB, WAZiTEB B. Providence Township Born February 22, 1896. Enl. December 1, 1917. Pvt. 668th Aero Squadron, Aviation Service. Trained at Kelly Field; at Carlston Field; at Ellington Field. Mustered out April 17, 1919. SUIiING, DICK Maple Valley Township Born January 20, 1897. Enl. September 6, 1918. Pvt. with 58th Co. Trained at Camp Dodge for six weeks. Mustered out after six weeks' service on account of weak heart. SUI.I.IVAN, CHABIiSS C. Newell Born January 21, 1889. Enl. August 26, 1917. Pvt. Med. Dept. Trained at Ft. Riley Base Hospital. SUNDBEBG, EBNEST J. Linn Grove Born April 15, 1897. Enl. August 3, 1918. L/ G. M. Co. 8, 11th Regt. Trained at Charleston Training Station until December 4, 1918; at Hampton Roads until February 20, 1919; at G. L. N. T. S. until March 11. Mus- tered out March 11, 1919. SUNDBEBG, JOHN ABTHUB Barnes Township Born May 13, 1894. Enl. August 29, 1918. Pvt. 204th Bakery Co. Trained at Camp Fun- ston. Mustered out December 20, 1918. SVNDEEN, DAVID M. Albert City Born February 5, 1894. Enl. July 5. 1918. Petty officer, Merchant Marine. Trained: first stationed 54 Day Street, New York City; boarded U. S. S. Meade at Bos- ton July 8 to 27; to U. S. S. Dorothy Bradford until September 9; into service at New i'ork; to Porto Rico on the S. S. Brazos; then on S. S. John L. Camn October 9, coast- wise to Newport News and Chesapeake Bay. Mustered out December 23, 1918. SUNDHOI.M, BDWIN P. Marathon Born October 12, 1897. Enl. July 10, 1918. Mechanic, Railroad Reserves, Batt. A, 73d C. A. C, R. A. R. Trained at Ft. Snelling; at Jefferson. Barracks; to Ft. Williams; at Ft. Preble; at Ft. Levitt; to Camp Mills. Sailed form New York September 27 on Sco- tian; landed Liverpool October 7. To Knotty Ash Camp; to Camp Woodley; crossed Chau- nel to Cherbourg October 13. To Haussamont three weeks; to Artillery School at Mailley three weeks; to Somme Souse November 1 to 12; did repairing on front; to Haussamont until November 16; entrained for Brest. Sailed December 15 on Mongolia; landed New York December 23. To Camp Mills; to Camp Devens. Mustered out at Camp Dodge January 15, 1919. SUTHEBIiAND, CHABIiES V. Storm liaise Born July 11, 1886. Enl. July 24, 1918. Sgt. 24th Co. C. O. T. C. Trained at Camp Gordon; resigned from Officers' Training Corps on account of close of war. Mustered out December 16, 1918. SWANSON, BIiMBB F. Alljert City Born November 4, 1891. Enl. July 29, 1918. Corp. Co. F, 212th Engrs. 12th Div. Trained at Camp Forrest; at Camp Devens until Sep- tember 1; to Camp Dodge February 2; pro- moted December 7 to Corp. Mustered out February 8, 1919. SWANSON, HABBY A. Albert City Born September 1, 1889. Enl. November 3, 1918. Mechanic Co. A, Section B, S. A. T. C. Trained at Iowa State College. Mustered out December 11, 1918. SWANSON, JOHN BEBNHABD Storm Iiake Born October 8, 1891. Enl. February 25, 1918. Pvt. Co. A, 130th Inf. 33d Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; at Campj Logan. Sailed May 13. Sailed from France for U. S. Arrived Hdqrs. August- 20, 1918. Returned to the U. S. by reason of physical disability. Mustered out February 19, 1918. SWANSON, LESLIE E. Alta Born April 26, 1894. Enl. December 14, 1917. Sgt. Ist-cl. Ordnance Corps, 1st O. R. S. D. Co., Artillery Rifle Shops, Mehun-sur-Ujenre. John Charles Tansey Sioux Rapids Anton Teerinlv Alta Ole M. Teig Rembrandt Wiliam H. Thavs Scott Township Jake P. Tliavenot Elk Township Clarence E. Thiel- Washington Township Warren E. Thieman Newell Lester J. Thompson Storm Lake Carl C. Thomsen Providence Township Chris T. Thomsen Newell Thorwald Andrew Thomsen Newell Anton Tillgren Linn Grove Tom Toohey Storm Lake Eilet M. Torkelson Sioux Rapids Howard T. Torkelson Sioux Rapids Dewey Townsend Sioux Rapids Perry E. Treman Poland Township Cecil P. Troeger Storm Lake Edward Irving Troeger Philip Theodore Troeger Storm Lake Storm Lake Evald R. Trukken Newell Otto K. Trukken Newell "Ward V. Trusty Sioux Rapids Roy E. Turner Storm Lake 210 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Trained at Camp Dodge in Co. C, 2d Ord. Depot Brigade; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from Ho- boken on Northern Pacifle Marcli 29, 1918; landed Brest April 7, 1918. To duty at Mehun- sur-Ujenre. Promoted to sgt. Ist-cl. Sailed on V. S. S. Manchuria May 11 from St. Na- zaire; landed Hoboken May 22. To Camp Merritt; to Camij Dodge. Mustered out June 2, 1919. SWENSON, AIiBERT Alta Born Nevember 7, 1892. Enl. September 20, 1917. Corp. Co. I, 347th Inf. 87th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; at Camp Pike; to Camp Dix. Sailed from Montreal August 23; landed 20 miles below London September 9. To South- ampton; to French port. September 16. To Remorantin September 29; to Brest. Sailed from Brest Deceinber 24; landed New York December 29. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Pike; to Camp Dodge. In service at Camp Dodge with Co. A, 350th Inf. 88th Div.; at Camp Pike with Co. I, 347th Inf. 87th Div. Mus- tered out at Camp Dodge January 29, 1919. SWENSON, AITTOir I.TTDWIG- Fairfield Township Born September 26, 1890. Enl. May 13, 1918. Corp. Co. F, — later Co. A — 7th Supply Train, M. T. C. Trained at Jefferson Barracks; at Camp MacArthur; to Camp Merritt. Sailed August 16 on Niagara; landed Bordeaux August 28. To Bubucley until October 12; to Deon- lard; to Minnencourt; to Bassey-au-Plain; to Brest. Sailed June 16 on S. S. Kansas; landed Newport News. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out July 5, 1919. TANSEY, JOHN CHARI.ES Sioux Bapids Born June 30, 1900. Enl. April 20, 1917. Trained at G. L. N. T. S.; to Portsmouth, on receiving ship, Southery; to Norfolk on U. S. S. Oklahoma; to Hosp. Ship Solace; to Naval Hosp. at Portsmouth; to U. S. S. Kearsarge; to Leviathan; sailed on Leviathan from Ho- boken to Cuba; to Liverpool (three trips); from Hoboken to Brest and return (15 trips). Mustered out September 22, 1919. TAYI.OB, CEDBIC C. Alta Born December 4, 1892. Enl. August 14, 1918. Pvt. Batt. F, 14th F. A. R. D. Trained at Army Training Detachment, Des Moines Col- lege; at Camp Jackson. Mustered out Decem- ber 11, 1918. TEEBINK, ANTON H. Alta Born October 26, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Drill sgt. Co. D. Inf. Trained at Camp Gor- don; at Camp Wadsworth. Promoted to corp.; to sgt. Mustered out December 14, 1918. TEIG, OI.E T/l. Bembraadt Born October 1, 1887. Enl. September 20, 1917. Pvt. Co. B, Military Police. Trained at Camp Pike in Co. I, 347th Inf. 87th Div.; later transferred to Co. B, M. P. Mustered out at Camp Pike May 31, 1919. Pvt. Teig was highly recommended by Capt. Gerald Jones as a sol- dier who always performed his duty in a highly creditable manner. THAVS, vrii.i.iABi: H. Scott Township Born March 25, 1888. Enl. September 19, 1918. Pvt. Co. A and Co. B, 33d Regt. Trained at Camp Dodge until November 5; to Camp Cody until February 8, 1919. Mustered out Feb- ruary 8, 1919. THEVENOT, JAKE F. Elk Township Born April 16, 1894. Enl. April 26, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 359th Regt. 90th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; to Camp Travis; to Camp Mills. Sailed from Hoboken June 18 on the Tin P. Castle; landed Liverpool July 1. To Win- chester; to Racey; to France. To Toul sector; at St. Mihiel; to Argonne; gassed; sent to field hosp. at Toul; to Bordeaux Base Hosp. No. 14 four weeks; to convalescent camp at Bordeaux two months; transferred to 40th Div. and sent back to U. S. Sailed from Brest March 6 on Walter Luckenbach; landed Hoboken March 18. To Camp Mills; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out April 8, 1919. THIEI^, CI.ABENCE E. 'Washing'ton Township Born January 7, 1892. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. H, 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon Co. D. 4th Replm. Regt.; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from Hoboken September 1 on U. S. S. Plattsburg; landed Brest Sep- tember 12. To training camp with 163d at St. Georges two weeks; transferred to 79th Div. Sailed from St. Nazaire May 16 on IT. S. S. Texan; landed Philadelphia May 29. To Camp Dix; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 10, 1919. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 211 THIEMAIT, WABBEir E. ITewell Born November 10, 1889. Enl. September 5, 1918. Cook Co. F, 88th Regt. 19th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge. Mustered out February 28, 1919. THOMPSON, CI.VDZ: B. Storm Iiake Born March 16, 1896. Enl. July 29, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 211th Engrs. 11th Div. Trained at Camp Forrest; at Camp Meade. Mustered out February 1, 1919. THOMFSON, IiSSTEB J. Storm Iiake Born June 1, 1889. Enl. July 24, 1918. Co. 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gor- don, Co. D, 4th Replm. Inf. Sailed from New Yorlc August 30 on U. S. S. Plattsburg; landed Brest September 12. To St. Georges; to Verdun front eight days; to hosp. at Mesves; to Brest forty days. Sailed March 11 on Huntington; landed New Yorli: March 23. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out April 3, 1919. THOMSEN, CABI^ C. Providence To'wuship Born May 23, 1895. Enl. July 24, 1918. Corp. 4th Co. 13th Training Bn. Inf. Trained at Camp Pike, was in Non-Commissioned OfRcers' School. Mustered out March 1, 1919. THOMSEN, CHBIS T. Ne-well Born January 27, 1887. Enl. January 31, 1918. Farrier, attached to 351st and 352d Inf. in 176th Brig. 88tli Div. Veterinary Corps. Trained at Camp Dodge. Sailed from New York August 16 on Saxon; landed Liverpool August 28. To Southampton; to Le Havre September 2. To Florvinie; to Hericourt; to Alsace front for 28 days until November 11; to St. Nazaire. Sailed May 20; landed New- port News May 31. Mustered out June 8, 1919. THOlVISEir, THOB'WAI.D ANDREW Ne^well Born December 12, 1892. Enl. May 27, 1918. Wagoner, Batt. E, 337th Regt. lG3d Art. Brig. Trained: Chiefly in France. Sailed August 16; landed Liverpool. To Southampton; to Le Havre. To Clermont-Ferrand; to Bordeaux. Saw service with A. E. F. in England in train- ing, and in France in training and actual fight- ing. Returned to U. S. January 19, 1919. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out Feb. 1, 1919. THOMSON, CHABI.es R. Storm Iiake Born August 27, 1893. Enl. December 11, 1917. Sgt. Hdqrs. Detachment, Inf. Trained: aviation service at Kelly Field; at Camp Greene where he was transferred to infantry September 2, 1918. Mustered out April 1, 1919. TIIiIiGBEN, ANTON Iiinn Grove Born June 7, 1888. Enl. September 4, 1917. Pvt. Co. A, 350th Inf. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; at Camp Pike. At Camp Pike assigned to wagoner duty in Supply Co. 347th Regt. 87th Div. Mustered out February 2, 1918. TOFT, P. J. Ziinn Grove Born February 16, 1893. Enl. July 26, 1918. Line sgt. U. S. A. Trained: Pvt. in 6th Co. 2d Replm. Regt. Inf. at Camp Gordon; at Camp Shelby. Promoted to line sgt. August 25; trained men at Camp Gordon. Mustered out December 31, 1918. TOPT, STANLEY E. Ziiun Grove Born February 18, 1898. Enl. August 1, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. Automobile Transport. Trained at Iowa State College. TOOHEY, TOM Storm Iialce Born December 1, 1898. Enl May 25, 1918. Div. Commissary, 78th Div. Pvt. Ist-cl. in Hdq. Co. with 303d Supply Train, later made Div. Commissary, 78th Div. Trained at Ft. Logan; at Camp Johnston; to Camp Hill. Sailed from Newport News August 5 on Mada- waska; landed Brest August 18. To Camp Williams two weeks; 78th Div. followed 42d to St. Mihiel front September 12 to October 1; to Argonne until armistice; to St. Mene- hould; to Semur for six months; on leave and visited Nice, Monte Carlo, Paris, Marseilles, and other interesting cities of France. Sailed from Bordeaux May 27 on S. S. General Goe- thals; landed Newport News June 7. To Camp Lee; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 18, 1919. TOOHEY, WTLIiIAM M. Providence Township Born February 21, 1897. Enl. July 15, 1918. Seaman 2d-cl. in Navy Relief Society. Trained at G. L. N. T. S.; toured Missouri and all of Michigan with Navy Entertainment Troupe. Mustered out February 20, 1919. Gust Turnquist Lincoln Township Mason L. Turpin Scott Township William C. Turpin Nokomis Township David Henry Tutt Alta Claude Henry Typper Sioux Rapids Cliarles F. linger Storm Lake Roy Volkerts Storm Lake Gust Alg-ot Walquist Linn Grove Carl E. Wahlstrom Storm Lake Emil Joseph "Wahlstrom Storm Lake Lloyd Arthur Wall Alta Robert Wallace Alta A. F. Walner Albert City George Albert Walton Alta Tom H. Watts Poland Township Fred W. Webb Lincoln Township Joseph R, Weeks Storm Lake Glenn R. Weeks Storm Lake Henry F. Wehking Henry "Wehrenberg Maple Valley Township Newell Elmer Claire Welch Marathon John Garner Welch Marathon Thomas Verne Welch Marathon Bert A. Wells Marathon 214 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY TOBKi:i.soiT, i:ii.i:t m. Sioux Bapids Born January 8, 1895. Enl. May 17, 1917. 2d Lieut. Co. C, 108th Field Sig. Bn. 33d Div. Trained at Cami) Grant; Ft Logan; Ellington Field, in 190tli Aero Squadron; at S. M. A., Austin; to Camp Dick; to Ft. Monroe Coast Artillery School. Mustered out January 18, 1919. TOBICi:i.SOIT, HOWARD T. Sioux Bapids Born June 27, 1897. Enl. October 1, 1918. Pvt. in Tank Corps. Trained three weeks at Camp Colt; entered OfRcers' Training Camp at Camp Colt October 15, in school until November 31; candidate for commission. Mustered out December 15, 1918. TOWNSEND, DEWEY Sioux Bapids Born August 20, 1898. Enl. July 3, 1917.. Pvt. Ist-cl. 349th Inf. Med. Dept. 88th Div. Trained at Ft. Riley; at Camp Dodge; to Camp Upton. Sailed August 7; landed Southampton. To Le Havre; to Semur; to Les Lownes; to Belfort; to Phaffans; to Don Joutlan; at Don Joutain had first aid raid by Germans; to Toul; at Metz; at L'Emitage Woods waiting for orders to go into battle when armistice was signed; to Trevary. Sailed from St. Nazaire May 18, 1919, on U. S. S. Mallory; landed Brooklyn May 28, 1919. Mustered out June 13, 1919. TBEMAIT, FEBBV E. Foland Township Born February 21, 1897. Enl. September 25, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C. Trained at Iowa State College. Mustered out November 30, 1918 TBOE&EB, CECII. F. Storm Iiake Born December 27, 1894. Enl. June 17, 1917. 2d Lieut. Batt. Adjt. 138th Regt. Artillery, 35th Div. Trained at Des Moines in 109th Engrs. four months assisting in construction of Camp Dodge; to Camp Cody January 9; O. T. S. at San Antonio. Commissioned 2d Lieut May 18, 1918. At Camp Cody was assigned to 135th Inf.; to Camp Dix. Sailed from New York September 12 on Balmore Castle; landed Glasgow September 26. To Southampton; to Le Havre September 29. To Inf. Weapon School at Clemecy; to Commercy, assigned to 13 8th Inf.; to Larouville; to Le Mans March 8; to Tuffe; to A. E. C. Hdqrs. transferred to 77th Div. for return to U. S. Sailed from Brest April 26 on U. S. S. Presi- dent Grant; landed Hoboken May 4. To Camp Mills; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out May 25, 1919. TBOEGEB, EDWABD IBVING Storm Z^ake Born July 14 1896. Enl. February 25, 1918. Seaman Ist-cl. Trained at G. L. N. T. S.; to receiving ship Philadelphia; sailed on U. S. S. Corala, to Brest; transferred to U. S. S. Tantintin for tug service in the harbor of Brest; returned to U. S. October 16, 1919; landed Norfolk November 10, 1919. Mustered out November 22, 1919. TBOEGEB, FHII.IF THEODOBE Storm Iiake Born October 19, 1889. Enl. April 5, 1918. Chief Carpenter's Mate. 12th Regt. Div. Con- tract-Public Works. Trained at U. S. Naval Training Station, Great Lakes. Mustered out April 3, 1919. TRUKKEN, EVAI.D B. Newell Born February 4, 1893. Enl. May 4, 1918. Seaman. Trained at G. L. N. T. S.; to New- port. R. I., ten weeks: to Hampton Roads; to U. S. S. Cincinnati April 22; to receiving ship New Orleans; to U. S. tug Barnett. Mustered out September 3, 1919. TBUKKEN, OTTO K. Newell Born June 20. 1891. Enl. September 20, 1917. Pvt. Inf. to Aviation 54th Balloon Co. Trained at Camp Lewis; at Kelly Field; Ft. Sam Houston; Base Hosp. Corpus Christi; to Con- valescent Hosp.; to Kelly Field; to Camp John Wise; to Camp Morrison; to Lee Hall; to Camp Morrison. Mustered out December 17, 1917. TBUSTY, WABD V. Sioux Bapids Born August 12, 1894. Enl. May 29, 1917. Called into service July 9, 1917. Wagoner, Supply Co. 108th Regt. 42d Div. Trained at Des Moines; at Camp Mills. Sailed October 18 on President Grant; out 8 days and turned back on account of engine trouble; re-em- barked November 14 on English ship Aurania; landed Liverpool December 1. To Le Havre December 9. To Rimacourt December 11; ar- rived trenches February 26; released from trenches June 17; to Champagne; to Chateau- Thierry front; to Toul front and Argonne; to Sedan; to Germany December 1, did guard duty until April 7. Sailed from Brest April 17 on U. S. S. Leviathan; landed U. S. April 26. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 215 TURNER, ROY E. Storm Iiake Born March 22, 1899. Enl. July 15, 1917. Pvt. Ist-cl. Hdq. Co. 133d Inf. 34th Div. Trained at Camp Cody. Sailed for France October 12; landed England October 24. To France. On way to front when armistice was signed; sent to Coblenz, Germany, in December with Army of Occupation. After serving nine months was detailed home and mustered out of service August 20, 1919. Term of enlistment expired and re-enlisted for one year; assigned to S. O. S. and stationed at Tours, France. TURPIN, MASON !■. Scott Township Born June 22. 1894. Enl. May 11, 1917. Pvt. Troop D, 1st U. S. Cavalry. Trained at Ft. Logan, attached service one week; to Arizona: to Ft. D. A. Russell for nine months; trans, to 83d F. A.; to Camp Fremont 4 months; to Ft. Sill, transferred to 9th F. A. Batt. B; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out March 27, 1919. TURPIN, wii:.i.iam: c. Nokomis Tow^nship Born February 5, 1892. Enl. December 11, 1917. Seaman 2d-cl. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. Was taken sick with pnuemonia, had oper- ation — one rib removed; sent home to recuper- ate and afterwards discharged. Mustered out May 16, 1918. TUTT, DAVID HENRY Alta Born February 12, 1890. Enl. May 27, 1918. Pvt. Co. 25, 166th D. B., later transferred to Co. A, 159th Regt. 40th Div. Trained at Camp Kearny; sent to Base Hosp. for opera- tion June 25; went home on furlough July 19 to August 8; transferred to Co. A, 32d Regt. 16th Div., remained with this organization until February 13; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out February 26, 1919. TYPPER, CI.AUDE HENRY Sioux Rapids Born November 30, 1892. Enl. September 20, 1917. Corp Co. B, 338th M. G. Bn. 88th Regt. Trained at Camp Dodge; to Camp Gordon; by command to Camp Upton for operation for gastric ulcer, abdominal adhesions, and appen- dicitis on July 18, 1919. Mustered out Febru- ary 8, 1919. TYSON, CHARI.ES W. Storm Iiake Born June 23, 1894. Enl. September 21, 1917. Bugler Co. M, 320th M. Gunners, (Inf.) 80th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; at Camp Pike; to Camp Merritt. Sailed overseas June 20, 1918. UNGER, CHARIiES F. Storm Iiake Born May 24, 1892. Bnl. August 27, 1917. 1st Lieut. School of Fire for Field Artillery, U. S. A. Commissioned 2d Lieut. F. A. No- vember 27, 1917. Reported for duty with 342d F. A. at Camp Punston December 15, 1917: transferred to F. A. Replm. Depot at Ft. Sill the latter part of June, 1918; commissioned 1st Lieut, and held as instructor in School of Fire for Field Artillery. Mustered out at Ft. Sill, December 16, 1919. VAST, FREDERICK Maple Valley Township Born November 9, 1892. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 4th Replm Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon 4 months. Discharged tempor- arily for Limited Service. Mustered out August 1, 1918. VICKERMAN, JOHN B. Rem'brandt Born April 13, 1889. Enl. April 26, 1918. Sgt. 5th Batt. U. S. Guards. Trained at Camp Dodge with Co. C, 338th M. G. Bn. 88th Div.; transferred to 5th Bat. U. S. Guards at Ft. Robison August 7; to Rock Island Arsenal; to Camp Funston. Mustered out January 11, 1919. VOI^KERTS, ROY Storm Iiake Born June 22, 1885. Enl. May 30, 1917. AVagoner, 134th Ambulance Co. 109th Sani- tary Train, 34th Div. Trained at Camp Eaton; to Camp French; to Camp Cody. Sailed from New York October 13; landed Liverpool. To Romsey; to Soutliampton; crossed English Channel to Le Havre. To Le Mans; to Thesse; to Marseilles; to Nice. Sailed from Marseilles June 25, stopping at Gibraltar 8 days; and then continued voyage to the United States. Was over most of France during service. Mustered out July 28, 1919. WALQUIST, GUST AI.GOT Iiinn Grove Born December 24, 1888. Enl. August 6, 1918. Pvt. Co. C, 111th Inf. 28th Div. Trained at Camp MacArthur. Landed Brest October Ned Edward Wells Marathon Willard W. Wells Marathon Clifford Guy Wessman Alta Eskil M. Westlin Albert City Henry A. Westphal Elk Township James P. Wliealen Providence Township Donald C. White Storm Lake Harry DeWayne White Sioux Rapids Ross E. White Storm Lake Z. Z. White Storm Lake Bernerd Whiting- Frank Lincoln Willfong Alta Alta Harold M. Williams Linn Grove Herman "W^illiams Rembrandt William Witzke Newell John Drake Wolcott Poland Township Albert T. Wolfe Truesdale Bernard Wright Providence Township Mart E. Wright Providence Township Lester Harold Yerington Storm Lake Charles E. Young Newell Rudolph A. Youngstrom William A, Youngstrom Hayes Township Hayes Township Juhu H. Zoffka Coon Township 2l8 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 6. To St. Aignan; to St. Mlhiel; to Nansord Woods; to Thiacourt; to Benney; to Cannes; to Beineville; to St. Bernard; to Base Hosp. No. 45 to Toul; Base Hosp. No. 210; to Army Rest Camp; to 28th Casual Camp at Colombey; back to Casual Co. at Mall; to Le Mans Camp No. 1; to camp at St. Nazaire. Sailed for the United States. WAHI.STBOM, CABi; E. Storm Xiake Born June 13, 1891. Enl. August 26, 1918. Sgt. Hdq. Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon; at Camp Merritt. Sailed overseas and saw serv- ice in France. 'WAHI.STBOM, EMII. JOSEPH Storm Iiake Born November 7, 1893. Enl. December 14, 1917. Musician Ist-cl. in 39th Balloon Co.- Trained at Kelly Field; Post Field. Mustered out May 26, 1919. WAI.I., XIiOYD ARTHUR Alta Born May 23, 1895. Enl. July 24, 1918. Acting sgt. Co. H, 384th Inf. 96th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon; Camp Wadsworth. Mustered out December 31 at Camp Dodge. WAI.I.ACI:, ROBERT Alta Born February 22, 1893. Enl. May 28, 1918. Pvt. Ist-cl. Hdq. Co. 350th Regt. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; at Camp Upton. Sailed from New York August 4; landed Lon- don August 14. To Commercy. To Alsace sector and entered line of fighting; to Toul sector; to Minnecourt; to St. Nazaire Sailed May 6; landed Newport News May 30, 1919. To Camp Arthur; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 6, 1919. WAI.NER, A. P. Albert City- Born June 1, 1890. Enl July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, Trench Mortar Regt. Trained at Camp Gordon. Mustered out at Camp Dodge January 9, 1919. WATTS, TOM H Foland Township Born March 26, 1897. Enl. September 5, 1918. Pvt. Co. P, 88th Inf. 19th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge Mustered out February 27, 1919. WEBB, BERT A. Storm Ziake Born January 3, 1899. Enl. October 1, 1918. Pvt. Field Art., 8th Observation Bn. Trained at Camp Taylor, where he attended Officers' Training School Mustered out December 5, 1918. WEBB, PRED W. Iiincoln Township Born August 26, 1894. Enl. September 4, 1917. Corp. Co. A, 350th Inf. 8Sth Div. Trained at Camp Dodge until November 23; at Camp Pike until mustered out. Mustered out April 8, 1918. WEEKS, gi;enn r. storm I^ake Born May 29, 1900. Enl. October 4, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C; transferred October 13 to Camp Pike with 7th Co. 4th Bn. of I. C. O. T. S. Mustered out December 6, 1918. WEEKS JOSEPH B. Storm I^ake Born May 10, 1897. Enl. November 17, 1918. Seaman 2d-cl. Naval Auxiliary Reserve School. Trained at N. A. R. S.- at Camp Lawrence, Great Lakes. Mustered out January 17, 1919. WEHKING, HENRY P. Maple Valley Township Born October 15, 1891. Enl. December 14, 1917. 23d Balloon Co. Air Service. Trained at Ft. Logan one month; to Kelly Field No. 2; at Camp MacArthur; to Camp Morrison; to Camp Eustis; to Camp Morrison. Sailed from Newport News September 20 on Duke de Asto; landed Brest October 3. To a company near Bois-de-Pammes; to German Hosp. Camp after armistice, about two months; to Pont-a-Mousson; to Luxemburg; to Rheims. Sailed from Marseilles through Strait of Gib- raltar. Sailed for U. S. May 30 on Duke de Abruzzi; landed New York June 18. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 30, 1919. WAZiTON, GEORGE AI.BERT Alta Born June 18, 1894. Enl. April 25, 1918. Pvt. Med. Corps, Base Hospital. Trained at Camp Dodge. Mustered out April 25, 1919. WEHRENBERG, HENRY Newell Born April 8, 1883. Enl. May 10, 1917. Pvt. Ist-cl. Co. A, 2d Regt. 2d Div. Trained at Camp Baker. Sailed from New York Septem- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 219 ber 10 on R. M. S. Carpathia; stayed in Hali- fax nine days, sailing September 2t; landed Glasgow October 2. By train to Southampton; crossed Channel to Le Havre. To billeting area around, Colombey-les-Belles; to Beau- mont two months; to Chateau-Thierry; went into lines on Decoration Day and fought with French against Germans in the big German drive against Paris, left lines July 5; on July 1 was wounded by high-explosive shrapnel; to Base Hosp. No. 3; joined company at St. Mihiel and was in lines there from September 12 to 16; on Champagne front breaking Hind- enburg Line; to Meuse-Argonne October 1 to 28; rested four days; to Meuse-Argonne again to November 11; marched to Germany In Army of Occupation; at Engers December 12 to July 20, 1919; to Brest. Sailed July 24 on U. S. "s. Finland; landed New York August 4. Mustered out August 7, 1919. WEIiCH, ELMER CIiAIBE MarathoxL Born December 28, 1895. Enl. July 10, 1917. Electrician 2d-cl. Radio Service of Navy. Trained at G. L. N. T. S.; Harvard Univ.; stationed on U. S. Submarine Chaser No. 211; May 14 to New London, Conn., as wireless telephone operator; encountered German sub- marine in American Submarine Zone and re- ported one sunk; convoyed troop ships through submarine zone; stationed at Washington, D. C. September 23, in high-power wireless sta- tion, there until March 10, 1919. WELCH, JOHN GARNER Marathon Born May 25, 1891. Enl. July 28, 1917. 1st Lieut. Dental Corps. Called into active service at Camp Greenleaf and Ft. Oglethorpe October 28, 1918. Stationed there until Decem- ber 15. Mustered out Ft. Oglethorpe Decem- ber 15, 1918. WELCH, THOMAS VERNE Marathon Born March 6, 1894. Enl. July 10, 1917. 1st Lieut. Trained at Ft. Snelling July 20, 1917, to October 5, 1917; to Ft. Crook until January 3, 1918; sent to Third Officers' Train- ing School at Camp Dodge until April 19; to Camp Gordon as sgt.; commissioned 2d Lieut. June 1; sent to Camp Pike until September 1; to Camp Taylor; commissioned 1st Lieut. Octo- ber 27, at Camp Taylor. Mustered out Decem- ber 19, 1919. WELLS, BERT A. Marathon Born July 12, 1894. Enl. July 10, 1917. Electrician, Radio, 2d-cl. Trained at G. L. N. T. S. until October 28; to Naval Radio School November 1 to February 24; to receiving ship at Philadelphia until March 9; joined armed draft detail at New York March 9, assigned to duty on S. S. Westwego March 21; made one trip from New York to Bordeaux; made five trips to Le Havre from New Orleans; acted as radio operator on voyages; to receiv- ing ship New Orleans June 25. 1919, and re- mained there until July 28, 1919. Discharged at G. L. N. T. S. July 30, 1919. W^ELLS, EDWARD WELLS Marathon Born September 5, 1896. Enl. October 7, 1917. Chauffeur, 323d F. S. Bn. Signal Corps. Trained at Camp Punston until February 7, 1918. Sailed from New York February 16 on Sus- quehanna; landed St. Nazaire March 4. Sent to Nevers for duty; worked in 33d Service Co. Signal Corps until July 1, 1919; furloughed to Paris and went to La Bourbole; to St. Nazaire. Sailed on Panamon July 9; landed New York July 19. To Camp Merritt. To Camp Dodge. Mustered out July 29, 1919. WELLS, WILLARD W. Marathon Born April 25, 1892. Enl. December 27, 1917. Pvt. 35th Co. 11th Regt. Marine Corps. Trained at Mare Island until May 4, 1918; to Norfolk. Sailed from Norfolk June 4 on U. S. S. Kittery; to St. Thomas, Virgin Islands June 29 to April 6, 1919. Sailed from St. Thomas on U. S. S. Rainbow; landed New York May 1. Sta- tioned at New York Navy Yard until June 15. Mustered out June 15, 1919. W^ESSMAN, CLIFFORD GUY Alta Born January 31, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. M, 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from Hoboken August 30; landed Brest September 12. To St. Georges September 22; to Verdun October 12; to French Aviation Camp; to Evac. Hosp. November 8, with influenza; to Base Hosp. No. 38 November 11; to Brest. Sailed on U. S. S. Harrisburg March 10; landed Hoboken March 19. To Debarkation Hosp. No. 3, New York City; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out April 5, 1919. 220 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY WESTLIN, ESKII, M. Albert City- Born February 24, 1890. Enl. July 24, 1918. Corp. Co. 202, 101 Batt. Circulation Div. Trained at Camp Gordon one montli; to Camp Merritt. Sailed on U. S. S. Plattsburg August 30; Joined convoy of 13 vessels and sub- marine chasers; part of convoy went to Eng- land, part to France; docked at Brest Septem- ber 12. To rest camp; Joined M. P. with 41st Dlv. ; to Autun — first American troops to enter town — with cavalry training depot detail; studied traffic control at front; ready to go to front as mounted patrol when armistice was signed; to Paris, directed A. E. F. through city; helped patrol stadium during Inter-Al- lied Race Meet; to Budapest; to Vienna; to Paris; to Brest. Sailed on S. S. Siboney; landed Hoboken October 20. To Camp Dodge. Mus- tered out October 30, 1919. ■WESTPHAL, HENRY A. E1& Tovrnship Born August 11, 1894. Enl. May 26, 1918. Corp. Co. B, 352d Regt. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; to Camp Mills. Sailed from Camp Mills August 16 on British ship Ascan- lus; landed Liverioool, August 28. Main stops were Hericourt, Toul and Gondrecourt, was at the latter place when armistice was signed; held the front line sector in Alsace for one week; on way to Metz at time of armistice; to St. Nazaire. Sailed May 21 on U. S. S. Canon- icus; landed Newport News June 3. Mustered out June 26, 1919. College, Storm Lake, Iowa. December 20, 1918. Mustered out WHITE HARR-S- DE WAYNE Sioux Rapids Born May 6, 1895. Enl. April 30, 1917. Elec. 2d-cl. Trained: Electrical School, Brook- lyn Navy Yard; to convoy duty on U. S. S. Salem March to June, 1918; submarine hunt- ing squadron June to December, 1918; at Navy Yard at Boston; on U. S. S. Turkey, a mine- sweeper, which was one of the first to start and stayed up to the last, finished sweeping the North Sea Mine Barrage September 30, 1919. WHITE R. E. Storm Iialie Born July 4, 1890. Enl. July 30, 1918. Pvt. Co. B, 212th Engrs. 12th Div. Trained at Camp Forrest; to Camp Devens. Mustered out January 16, 1919. WHITE, ZENO Z. Storm Iiake Born April 6, 1892. Enl. June 15, 1918. Corp Hdq. Co. 337th P. A. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge. Sailed August 16; landed Liverpool. To Southampton; to Le Havre. To Clermont; to Ferrant; to Bordeaux. Sailed from Bordeaux; landed New York. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. The chief activities of the 88th Div. included the center sector of tIaute-Alsace. Mustered out February 1, 1919. WHEAIiEN, HAROXiD B. Storm Iiake Born January 14, 1898. Enl. October 11, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C. Trained at Buena Vista College, Storm Lake, Iowa. Mustered out December 11, 1918. WHEAIiEN, JAMES F. Providence Township Born October 1, 1896. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. I, 316th Regt. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon. Sailed on U. S. S. Platts- burg from New York August 30; landed Brest September 12 To St. Georges two weeks; to Argonne-Meuse until November 11; entire regi- ment recommended for bravery and service here; to Rambluzin; to St. Nazaire. Sailed May 16 on U. S. S Texan; landed Philadelphia May 29. Mustered out June 10, 1919. WHITE, DONAI.D C. Storm Lake Born November 15, 1889. Enl. October 3, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C. Trained at Buena Vista WHITING, BERNARD Alta Born October 19, 1893. Enl. August 20, 1918. Quarter Master Corps, Hdq. Co. 315th Service Bn. Trained at Camp Gordon; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from Hoboken September 3; landed St. Nazaire September 12. To Camp No. 1 St. Nazaire; to St. Nazaire Docks; to Paris and battlefields on leave; to St. Nazaire. Sailed July 12 on U. S. S. Amphion; landed Newport News July 27. To Camp Lee; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out August 1, 1919. WILCOX, FRANK J. G-rant Township Born August 12, 1893. Enl. February 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. L, 131st Regt. 33d Div. WIILPONG, FRANK LINCOLN Alta Born June 15, 1890. Enl. May 26, 1918. Corp. Co. M, 352d Inf. SSth Div. Trained at Camp Dodge; to Camp Mills. Sailed from HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 221 Philadelphia on City of Exeter August 16; landed Liverpool August 30. To Southampton; to Le Havre September 1. To Belfort Area; to Alsace sector; entered trenches October 24; in action 10 days; to Belfort; to Lucy; to Pondrecourt area until armistice was signed; to St. Nazaire. Sailed on U. S. S. Pocahontas May 21; landed Newport News June 1, 1919. To Camij Dodge. Mustered out June 14, 1919. 'WII.I.IAMS, HABOIiD M. Iiinn Grove Born February 17, 1899. Enl. October 1, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C. Studying chemistry for war work. Mustered out December 21, 1918. WUiIiIAMS, HSBMAN Rembrandt Born April 4, 1897. Enl. July 14, 1917. Mech. Ambulance Co. 27, Hdq. Train, Med. Dept. Trained at Ft. Clark, eight months do- ing border patrol duty. Sailed from U. S. March 18, 1918; landed France. Spent two months in training at Chateauvillain; first in action May 31; participated in battles at Cha- teau-Thierry Area; Aisne defensive; Cham- pagne-Marne defensive, Alsne-Marne offensive, St. Mihiel offensive, and Argonne offensive; motor dispatch rider in and around Chateau- Thierry in June, July and August; in Army of Occupation from December 2 until August 10, 1919. Sailed from Brest on U. S. S. Canan- daigua August 15; landed Hoboken August 26. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out September 6, 1919. from Marseilles June 16 in Casual Co. 999; stopped at Gibraltar 3 days, also at a port in Africa; landed New York July 2. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out July 16, 1919. WITTHAUER, ROY E. Storm Zia^e Born March 24, 1898. Enl. October 7, 1918. Pvt. S. A. T. C. Trained at Buena Vista Col- lege, Storm Lake, Iowa. Mustered out Decem- ber 20, 1918. wiTZKE, ■wrri.i.iAM: Nevrell Born December 3, 1899. Enl. May 26, 1918. Pvt. Co. D, 352d Inf. 88th Div. Trained at Camp Dodge. Sailed from New York August 18; landed Liverpool August 28. To South- ampton; to Cherbourg September 1. To St. Georges; to Alsace-Lorraine front about four weeks; retired near Metz front until armis- tice; to Leffol-le-Grande; to Army of Occu- pation near Coblenz; to St. Nazaire. Sailed May 21 on S. S. Canavius; landed Newport News June 3, 1919. Mustered out June 13, 1919. VrOEHIiER, OTTO HENRY Crrant Township Enl. July 30, 1918. Pvt. Medical Replm. Unit No. 37. Trained at Camp Grant. wii.i.iA]V[soir, wrLxis c. Providence Township Born May 15, 1896. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. F, 77th Regt. 14th Div. Trained at Camp Custer; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out January 28, 1919. WITT, EMII. R. Storm liake Born November 7, 1898. Enl. April 11, 1917. Pvt. Co. M, 2d Iowa National Guards, later to Co. B, 133d Inf. Trained at Camp Hyatt one month; to Camp Cody ten months; transferred to 127th M. G. Co., to Co. H, 133d Inf., to Hdq. Co. 133d Inf., to Co. B, 133d Inf.; to Camp Merritt; to Boston. Sailed on Runic May 28; journeyed by way of Halifax; landed Liverpool. To Junell; to Southampton; to Le Havre. To St. Aignan, transferred to 116th Motor Suply Train, transferred to Hdq. De- tachment; to Nancy; to Coblenz; to Riviera Leave Area December 17, visited Nice. Sailed VTOI^COTT, JOHN DRAKE Folana Township Born November 12, 1879. Enl. November 6, 1918. Religious Work Director. Trained at Camp Dodge at the Y. M. C. A. College, Chi- cago. Service in Camp Dodge with Y. M. C. A. men in general camp service — most of the time at Y No. 91. Promoted to Hut Secre- tary. Mustered out May 20, 1919. WOLPE, AI.BERT T. Truesdale Born May 5, 1894. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. E, Art. B. A. Inf. 308th Art. 77th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from Hoboken August 28 on U. S. S. Plattsburg; landed France. Went to head- quarters of 77th Div., 308th Inf., in the first part of October; in Argonne until armistice. Landed in U. S. April 29, 1919, with the 304th F. A. Mustered out May 18, 1919. 222 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY WBIG-HT, BEBITABD Providence Township Born June 8, 1897. Enl. July 15, 1918. Seaman 2d-cl. Guard Co. Navy. Trained at G. L. N. T. S.jfto Camp Farragut; to Camp Boone two months; in hospital with influenza two and a half months; to Camp Decatur; to Camp Dewey. Mustered out January 21, 1919. WRIGHT, MART E. Providence Township Born December 7, 1890. Enl. February 23, 1918. Pvt. 1st cl. Base Hosp. No. 114, Med. Corps. Trained at Ft. Riley until April 1; to Camp Crane; to Hoboken. Sailed from Ho- boken June 5; landed St. Nazaire June 18. To Camp Beau Desert; part of time in detached service with 28th Engrs. Truck and Motor- cycle; September 5 with Surgical Team to Souilly; October 20 rejoined outfit; at Bordeaux for operation. Sailed November 28 on U. S. S. Sierra; landed Hoboken December 9. To Camp Merritt; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out January 21, 1919. VEBINGTON, IiESTEB HABOI.D Storm Iialie Born October 3, 1896. Enl. April 3, 1917. Sgt. 16th Regt. Med. Corps. Trained at Jef- ferson Barracks. Mustered out January 16, 1919. VOVNG, CHABIiUS E. Newell Born August 1, 1891. Enl. June 15, 1918. Pvt. Co. 798. Training Detachment, Motor Transport Corps. Trained at Iowa State Col- lege; at Valparaiso; at Purdue; to Truck Masters' School for commission; at O. T. C; to Ft. Sheridan; to Hoboken. Mustered out March 11, 1919. YOUNGSTBOM, BUDOI.PH A. Hayes Township Born October 8, 1893. Enl. February 24, 1918. Platoon sgt. Co. E, 351st Inf. 88th Division. Trained at Camp Dodge until August 7; to Camp Mills. Sailed on Scotian August 16; landed Liverpool August 28. To France, Sep- tember 3. Trained at Paulinet and Champey more than a month; moved up unto the Bel- fort sector October 6; into front line trenches October 19, in trenches two weeks; to rest camp at Chaux two weeks; to Toul sector November 9; near front when armistice was signed; to Houdelaincourt for one month's after-war training; to Liffol-le-Grande; con- voyed special train into Germany, Luxemburg, and Lorraine to the Army of Occupation. Sailed from Brest May 21; landed Newport News June 1. To Camp Morrison; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out June 7, 1919. YOUNGSTBOM, WUiIiIAM P. Hayes Township Born February 8, 1886. Enl. January 15, 1918. Pvt. Aviation Service. Trained at School of Military Aeronautics, transferred to to Machine Gun Branch Officers' Training Camp with 21st Co., at Camp Hancock. Mus- tered out January 2, 1919. ZOPPEA, JOHIT H. Coon Township Born May 5, 1896. Enl. July 24, 1918. Pvt. Co. B, 316th Inf. 79th Div. Trained at Camp Gordon until August 15; to Camp Merritt. Sailed from Hoboken on U. S. S. Plattsburg August 31; landed Brest September 12. To St. Georges from September 18 to October 2; to Verdun sector October 5 to 18; to Meuse-Ar- gonne front October 25, in offensive until November 4; wounded by inachine-gun bullet through chest November 4; taken prisoner of war, released from prison November by ad- vance of American Forces; to Base Hosp. at Contrexeville November 24 until December 28; to Bordeaux until January 31. Sailed on Bastores, February 1; landed Newport News February 15, 1919. To Camp Stewart; to Camp Dodge. Mustered out March 13, 1919. The following list of names are those on which we have not been able List of Those in World War from Buena Vista County In December, 1918, when the publisher of this volume first started gathering data, a list of names of those in the service from this county was started. On the original list were the names secured from the library at Storm Lake, from the recorder's office, and those from the draft board. To this list were added other names as checked from the county newspapers, handed in by friends, and those from the family questionnaires which were sent or presented to each family in the county. As the information was received for the service records the names were checked off the list. to secure data. A personal call has been made at every home in Buena Vista County, letters have been sent a number of times to the addresses given and this list of names has been advertised in all the papers in the county but up to the time of going to press (January 6, 1920) we have not been able to get these records completed. Some of these names, no doubt, are misspelled and we have the record under the proper name, others are those included through error and are not enlisted from this county, a large number of the names are of men who were merely tran- sient residents and have not returned to the county, and a few who have neglected to give or turn in the desired information. The list is published in order that all who represented Buena Vista County in the World War may have credit for doing so. No doubt a few names are missing from both this list and from the service records. To these people we can only express regret, as we have conscientiously tried to have every person represented in this book who was entitled to mention through service rendered to our Nation during the past war. R. C. Auspach, Sioux Rapids Carl A. Anderson, Sioux Rapids Arthur Anderson, Sioux Rapids Artliur W. Appel, Coon Township Stanley Amidown, Sioux Rapids Gold Star Albert Anderson, Alta Alfred Anderson, Sioux Rapids Wallace Alexander, Alta Aldrich. Scott Township H. C. Anderson, Sioux Rapids Louis Alsin, Coon Township James Britchell Frank S. Buzette, Storm Lake Ray V. Barrick, Alta Oscar Bergwall, Albert City "Walter A. Brookes, Lincoln Township Austin E. Brown, Lee Township Albert O. Becker, Storm Lake Clir. Berreson, Newell Emmanuel Berg-, Lincoln Chas. W. Burkholder Julius Bergson Clayton Birchard, Lincoln Township Hans M. Bonde, Albert City Harold Carlson, Lincoln Township Harry Carlberg H. H. Carter Clias. Colburn, Alta TVm. Clifton, Storm Lake Clarence Coombs, Storm Lake Elmer Christensen Archie V. Cox, Scott Township Howard Cramer Chas. Coakley. Providence Township Ray Churtz, Grant Township Clyde Crist, Lincoln Townsliip Raymond Christopher, Storm Lake Leo Cosgrove. Alta Guy Colburn, Sioux Rapids Joseph P. Distel, Washington Township Edward Deppe, Storm Lalce George Degner, Coon Township Davidson, Scott Townsliip Plorent Distel, Wasliington Township Theron B. Doll, Providence Damon P. Edwards, Storm Lake Philip Ellrich, Storm Lake John J. Egan George Ellright, Storm Lake Paul E. Ericksen, Sioux Rapids Wm. T. EUiston, Storm Lake 224 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Arnold E. Erling, Linn Grove Arlie Ford, Alta Wm. H. Fields Pete Graveson, Newell Harry D. Gordon, Storm Lake Ray Greene, Storm Lake Edward Glynn, Sioux Rapids Gold Star Louis Gehring-, Sioux Rapids Wm. Glending- Chris. Gravesen, Newell Franklin Giddings, Fairview Ross Hart, Storm Lake Dr. Wm. Hubbard, Rembrandt Urbert Holm, Lincoln Township Arthur Haviland, Grant Township Martin M. Hanson, Newell James K. Husted, Newell Fred R. Hemmimgson, Lincoln Township Clyde Houdershell, Storm Lake Raymond Hanson Harold H. Henkle, Alta Herman V. Hjelm, Nokomis Township Carl Ham, Washington Township H. M. Hahn. Sioux Rapids Donald Johnson, Albert City Manfred Johnson, Alta Gust Johnson, Maple Valley Township Pearl Wm. Johnson, Maple Valley Township Jens B. Jensen. Newell Jean Jacobsen, Alta Jean Jensen, Alta Paul Jensen, Newell Earnest Johnson, Nokomis Township Oscar E. Johnson, Albert City Niels J. E. Jensen, Coon Township Eustace James, Hayes Township Ralph Johnson, Maple Valley Township Otto Johnson, Maple Valley Township Everett Kinney, Scott Township Michael Kaster, Nokomis Township Arthur Koth, Alta C. F. Kay John Kevane, Storm Lake John Koch, Maple Valley Township Win. Kinney Paul Koch, Hayes Township Wilbert W. Larson, Barnes Township Henry Little, Elk Township Otto V. Larson. Newell Christ A. Larson Clyde Leevey Peter L. Linding John R. Leach, Newell Severt Larson, Nokomis Township Max S. Littlefield Marinus Larson, Maple Valley Township Albin Larson, Maple Valley Township Jas. Martin John Montgomery Christ W. Magnusen, Hayes Township Conrad H. Mehkosch, Maple Valley Township Carl Molgaard, Linn Grove R. D. Morgan, Storm Lake Fred Moeler, Storm Lake Ralph Marten, Storm Lake C, P. Malliston, Storm Lake Arthur Miller, Alta Elzie MacDonald, Nokomis Township Alfred Machiprang, Coon Township John Matson, Washington Township W. H. McLaln, Storm Lake Edwin Mickelson, Linn Grove Fred Meinking Chris. Mark, Fairview Hans Nielson, Newell Albert Nelson, Alta Eric A. Nissing, Hayes Township Marianus Nielsen, Lee Township Niels P, Nielson, Lincoln Township Niels Nielson, Newell Ole Olson, Linn Grove John Henry Often, Scott Township Lars Olson, Coon Township Jesse Osmonsen, Fairfield Township John E. O'Niel, Scott Township John Peters. Alta Albert K. Peterson, Newell Fred C. J. Peters, Storm Lake Thorwald Pederson, Coon Township C. L. Pingel, Brooke Township Herbert Flagman J. Rvitherford, Storm Lake Wm. Richard George Reed Chas. E. Rice, Sioux Rapids Samuel P. Roub, Storm Lake Fred W. H. Ruehle, Storm Lake Claude W. Robbins Joseph Storey, Storm Lake Robert Stewart Walter F. Streight, Storm Lake Ernest H. Scarborough, Nokomis Township Frithiof Swanson, Nokomis Township George A. Stanley, Brooke Township Henry H. Stradtman, Coon Township Elmert E. Swanson, Alta Fioyed Smith, Truesdale Paul Starr, Washington Townsliip Miss Stacy Nels Thompson, Nokomis Township Hans Tvedten, Lee Township Roy R. Thomsen, Maple Valley Township Stanley Todd, Hayes Township E. L. Thomas, Sioux Rapids Aubrey G. Thompson, Newell Township Roy Van Cleve Ira Wedge, Storm Lake Jacob White, Storm Lake Clifiord Waterman, Newell John Warta, Barnes Township Verne "Welch, Storm Lake Frank White, Storm Lake Ross Wilson, Newell Clarence Waterman, Providence Township Fred L. Weiland, Scott Township Carl Westergaard, Newell Waldemar Westergaard, Newell Cecil Waldron, Rembrandt Rudolph Brecher Alta John F. Cheney Newell A. B. Claus Sioux Rapids George Currier Storm Lake James Hervey Haughey Storm Lake William Holmes Scott Township George W. Johnson Storm Lake Joseph Schultz Providence Township ^msS;)bk.-^ Tyler E. Sprague Alta Christian Stamm Alta Samuel Stangland Alta Civil War Veterans — Service Records The editor and the publisher of the War History of Buena Vista County, de- sirous of giving representation to the veterans of the Civil War, secured the ser- vice records of a number of veterans who served during that period of our na- tional gTowtih when internal dissension threatened our united existence. With all honor to those men who served our country in its most trying hour in order that the governmental integrity of the United States might be preserved and developed, we present these records of military service of Civil War veterans. Civil War veterans were back of all of the various activities. Alta Born August 25, 1843. Enl. September 11. 1861. Pvt. Co. B, 36th lU. Inf. 2cl Div. 4tli Army Corps. Battles: Pea Ridge, Perry viUe, Stone River, Vicksburg, Chiclcamauga, Siege of Chattanooga, Missionary Ridge, Peacli Tree Creelc, Atlanta. Love.ioy, Jonesboro, Pulaski. Spring Hill, Franklin, Nashville. Wounded in head at Chickamauga. Aiustered out Octo- ber 13. 1865. CHENEY, JOHN P. New€ll Born April 19, 1842. Enl. August 15, 1862. 2d Corp., Co. G, 26th Iowa Inf., 1st Div., 15th Army Corps. Service: Arkansas Post; Vicks- burg, August 22-28; Siege of Jackson; to Branden, Miss.; at L.ookout Mountain; Mission- ary Ridge; Ringgold; Resaca; Kenesaw Moun- tain; Atlanta. July 22-28; to Jonesboro; Love- joy Station; Taylor's Ridge; Raid from Atlanta to Savannah; through South Carolina and North Carolina to Bartonville. Mustered out at Washington, D.C., June 6, 1865. many small battles and skirmishes at differ- ent points in Alabama and Tennessee, and while marching through Georgia and North Carolina. Mustered out June 10, 1865. HAUGHEY, JAMES HEBVEY Storm Xi^ke Born January 31, 1846. Enl. in winter of 1864. Pvt. Co. G, 46th Illinois Volunteer Inf. Trained: Jackson, Miss., July 6-7; to Fort Blakely; in Mobile Campaign. Mustered out January. 1866. HOI^MES, WII.I.IAia Scott Township Born June 21, 1843. Enl. April 26, 1861. Pvt. Co. K, 5th (Light) Artillery, 1st Div., 20th Army Corps. Trained: Harrisburg, Pa., and Washington, , D.C. Battles: Siege of Yorktown; Mechanicsvllle; Gaines Hill; Gaines Mills; Savitz Station; Malvern Hill; Freder- icksburg; Chancellorsville; Bull Run; Antie- tam; Gettysburg; Atlanta; with Sherman on March to Sea. Mustered out at Key West, Fla., February 13, 1867. CIiAUS, A. B. Sioux Bapids Born May 10. 1848. Enl. January 31, 1865. Pvt. Co. H, 26th New York Cav. Trained: Sacketf's Harbor, New York. Mustered out July 7, 1865. CUBBIEB, GEOBGE Storm I>ake Enl. March 2, 1862. Pvt. Co. H, 13th Inf., 3d Div; re-enlisted in 7th Mississippi Battery, January 2, 1864. Service: Moundsville; at Y^ellow Bayou. Mustered out in November, 1865. JOHNSON, GEOBGE W. Storm Iiake Pvt. Co. K, 23d "Wisconsin Volunteer Inf. Left Madison. W^is.. with the regiment Sep- tember 15, 1862. Battles. Chickasaw Bayou, December 25-31; Ft. Hinaman, January 11; Cypress Bend. February 19; Ft. Gibson, May 1; Champion Hill. May 16; Black River Bridge, May 17; Vicksburg, May 19 to July 4; Jack- son, July 12-23; Carrion Crow Bayou, Novem- ber 3; wounded and sent to prison at Sabine Cross Roads, April 8; Cane River, April 23; Jackson, La., October 5; Siege of Mobile, March 2 to April 12. 1865. Under fire, during ser- vice. 74 days; traveled by railroad 1,044 miles, by steamboat 6,478 miles. HABI.AN, JOHN ADDISON P. Storm Ziake Born January 1, 1844. Enl. August 12, 1862. Corp. Co. A, 39th Iowa Inf., 4th Div., 15th Army Corps. Service: Pasher's Cross Roads; Altoona, Ga. ; saw active service in lOADSON, N. Storm. Iiake Born April 21, 1843. Enl. July 23, 1864. Pvt. Co. A, 13th W'is. Regt. Landed in U. S., May 20, 1864. Mustered out at San Antonio, Texas, November 24, 1865. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 227 IffATSON, CHABIiES P. Storm Lake Born February 27, 1847. Enl. October 1, 1864. Pvt. Co. B, 44th Wis. Inf. Trained: Nashville, Tenn. Mustered out August 28, 1865. MOOBE, HENRY G. Storm Iiake Enl. August 5, 1863, at age of 21 years. Pvt. Co. K, Sth Iowa Cavalry. Mustered out at Macon, Ga., August 13, 1865. SCHUIiTZ, JOSEPH Providence Township Born April 22. 1837. p:nl. August 27, 1863. Pvt. Co. F. 76th Penn. Inf. Trained: Hilton Head Island. Was in all the skirmishes around Petersburg; wounded when the fort was blown up at Petersburg. Discliarged. on account of physical disability. June 2, 1865. Company, Capt. James Hankins. Mustered out at Davenport, Iowa, September 23, 1864. The 46th Inf. was a 100-day regiment. It went into service at Davenport, June 10, 1864, was sent to Cairo and thence to Memphis, ar- riving June 20. Tlie regiment on June 27 was ordered to Camp Looliout where the men did heavy duty on picket and had several light skirmishes in August. Returned to Memphis September 10, 1864; to Davenport to be mus- tered out. SPBAGUE, TYI.EB E. Alta Born December 21, 1845. Enl. .January 24, 1862; re-enlisted January 5, 1864. Sgt. Co. G, Sth Vermont Inf., 2d Brig.. 1st Div., 19th Army Corps. Promotions: Corporal .January 1, 1864; Sergeant, July 1, 1864. Service: Siege of Port Hudson under constant fire for forty- four days, the regiment suffering daily casual- ties; also in several other battles and skirm- ishes. Mustered out June 28, 1865. SCOVEI., HENBY JASPER Newell Born January 7, 1839. Enl. October 19. 1864. Pvt. Co. D, 4th Inf., 1st Div. Service: Savan- nah, Ga.; Bartonsville, N. C; Raleigh. N. C; with Sherman on March to the Sea. Mustered out at Louisville, Kentucky. STAMM, CHRISTIAN Alta Born November 7, 1843. Enl. June 4, 1861. Pvt. Co. G, 20th 111. Inf. Trained: Joliet, 111. Pvt. Stamm's regiment was one of tlie regi- ments of the. First Call for 75,000 men. Ser- vice: In action under Generals Grant, Logan, and McPherson. Mustered out June 22, 1864. SMITH, ROBERT H. Newell Born August 14, 1847. Enl. June 10, 1864. Pvt. Co. F, 46tli Iowa Inf. In training dur- ing entire period of service. Commander of regiment. Col. D. B. Henderson; Captain of STANCrliAND, SAMUEIi Alta Born January 27, 1842. Enl. February 28, 1865. Pvt. Co. H, 156th HI. Inf. Trained: Cliattanooga, Tenn. Mustered out September 27, 1865. There are a number of others in the coiinty from whom we were not able to get data. ^( Babi les )) Buena Vista County Babies born while Their Fathers were in the Service George C. Barnes Providence Township Parents: Mr. and Mrs. George C. Barnes. Claude ilcik- Bright Buena Jane Caslcey Sioux Rapids Rembrandt Parents; Claude L. Bright Parents: Mr. and Mrs. (deceased) and Mrs. Claude E. Caskey. L. Bright. Venetta Jean Goodness Storm Lake Parents: Mr. and Mrs. Frank Goodness. ^ Donald Holderness Jeannette Alvira Hackerson Newell Arnold Marius Olsen Nokomis Township Albert City Parents: Mr. and Mrs. Newell Parents: Mr. and Mrs. Parents: Mr. and Mrs. Al- Denton Layman. Parents: Mr. and Mrs. Aaron B. Holderness. bert Hackerson. ' Marius J. Olsen. Helen Marie Porath Newell Parents: Mr. and Mrs. Alex. Porath. Newell Parents: Mr. and Mrs. Charles Peterson. Dorothy Lorene Tolliver Storm Lake Parents: Otis Tolliver (decea.=ed) and Mrs. Otis Tolliver. H O p u ■u 01 m ^^ cd o ^ o c » d h ^^ r- be 3 o . 0; ^ . C c Is 3 . M ■HpS O 3 C oj £5 o bio El m— . ■M o o . o m -^^ C . a W 11 -a a; o ^ ft OJ Oi x><\ 03 -7 CITISENS or STQRMtBi «ICINITY aij^SJ*-. • ■ Barbara Harding, daughter of Governor and Mrs. W. L. Harding, and crated goose pre- sented to the governor. This goose brought .■SB.OOO at Red Cross s?-le BuL'iia \'ista county "Rainbow" boy in gas masl<;. Guess who Highview Red Cross sale March 18, 1918. The calf on the auctioner's block brought $497.74 at auction storm Lake Fire Department in Armistice Day Parade, 191S Public speeclies, Armistice Day, 1018. T. H. Cliapman and Stanton Olinger of Buena Vista College, speaking Selective service contingent leaving Storm Lake. July 25, 191S Spruce log on motor truck at Williams Landing, Washington E. B Ackerman and the goose that was sold and resold until a total of $5,000 was raised. This goose was later presented to Governor W. L. Harding Highview service flag Alta Red Cross goat. Presented by Elmer and Everett Sandine. sons of Mr. and Mrs. C. E. Sandlne; sold for $6,000 >^ Twelve-inch mortar. Fortress Monroe, Virginia. Projectile weighs 1,070 pounds, shoots four and a half miles in the air, and at a maximum range of 15,000 yards American rolling kitchen at Niederzissen, Germany. Left cross marks Fred Robinson; right cross marks Walter Crissy Interesting Views Sent Home by Buena Vista County Men A German officers' duy-uLit — a stronghold built of successive layers of steel and concrete several feet in thickness Captured German ammunition carts. Oscar J. Olsen to right. Photo taken by group of American Engineers Salvage gathered by Engineers. Heaps similar to tliis \\ere satliered every few rods and contained material of every description I'meiiLlle wond^ In the Puvenelle Woods near Metz, showing a lieavily shelled area formerly the German first line. A mass of barbed wire, trenches, shell holes and shattered trees — truly "No Man's Land" German underground kitchen used by the Yanks. Note "gas alarm" and shell scarred tree Fay-en- Hay f, b'rance Barbed wire entangl'ements In the St. Mihiel Sector. Mostly of German construction, but later rebuilt and strengthened by the Yanks to hold off German counter-attacks. The irreg- ular lines in the distance are successive waves of wire One of the larger shell holes — the result of an aerial bomb V i.Jr m ; -^^iM^^ • \, g^r ,1- €f^" gj^S German observation post in a forest Billets back of second lines, Badonvillers, Lorraine front. Company M. 168th Regt. Chris Jorgensen says he found more comfort here than at any place he visited German prisoners working on the docks at St. Nazaire hdnAardj^ent^ German Guns, fvontU^Trance. ■ ^^ i^b •• r PP'l^ j-i ^^r*'upBtA(71|3E'^E^<^H>NHi^V^Bl ^ST'rf ~ igjBJHi^fAF^^ . « m A.. ^ ■■fcMlWII 1 li»/tf ffiiw/ra.: *-- f - , ^ moving Mp action *~ h'ance 1 A typical German dug-out, occupied by the Yanks after its capture. The shelter at the left of the entrance protected the gas guard at night from flying shell fragments. Suspended from the post at the right is a short length of railroad rail used as a gas alarm. In the left hand corner can be seen a "dud." a shell that failed to explode Village of Flirey, France Yanks in front line trench watching "No-Man's I^and," France - i:^ Iv ■■■• .-■ -^ ''^•iSfj 1^^ ^3 r -^^^ Camouflaged Road U. S. Coast Artillery \ T < ^ Bg^^BjLg^x <^ c^oH Hj^HHtt ,, 1 A 1 1 fljif-MiilW HHH^ft^^^i^ ak> -..., -"Jmeim^ Mfte '^^iSiii .<^ ^^^H^I^P^^ i^SIQI > ' ' wl^W'fM ^^Mdil?laHBi^^^^ EaKKPiVtw sRtMMtz jJIBpJigl!^ >»-,' - :j^Km Wjm^ B i 1^ ^^^^H H^^^K '^ ■ InMiliMllHl BBiixwLf^ V ^.% 1/*-='** ^ .1 1 i^m ^ ^^^m n^ttilWitf y J^jraW^iAMI ■ rf mmmm^ w^ m^^m> ^ ^.r •<£ ^"i - -_/ . U. S. S. Rambler American Ambulance Our Honored Dead Ruined Homes American Camp in Lorraine Sector, at Vaux-et-Cliantegrue "No-Man's Land, " Jjorraine Sector Marslial Foch and Genpral Pershing at Chaumont, General Headquarters German machine gun. Film from wliich this picture was printed was found on tlie battle- field at Thiacourt by Carl E. Johnson, Albert City Near a dug-out in France. Leo McFadden, a Buena Vista county gold star man, is in this picture 'i'^'^'%'^. ^'^ aL"- Grave of Ted Butler, one of the first men in Company M, 168th Infantry, who met death; Lorraine front Horses killed by German bombardiiirnL uii Clianipasnu iioiU H If ^%'^ 1 r.. ,.^^_^^_^ I^^^^HP Lm '^^^^w-'^^P ^^^M ^Hp* • , I^K ^r^r ^P ^™ S^ -• ^J ^^^\ ^^H| M "^ r.^ 9| ■H liw ii 4^ •- iB^ H HH ■1 ^HPt^^f^^^^^^I H M QH^^^HH ^Hn^^ |^R^^^^^HR||l^ 1 ^^ oNcouRrtMeusEj.] United States army observation balloon, taken at Balloon Scliool, A. K. b\ Sausage balloon inflated and ready to ascend In December. 1917. when the Amer- ican fleet arrived in England, two British planes were stunting- above the U. S. S. W^yoming. They clashed together about 200 feet off the star- board beam of the battleship. One man was saved, but two went down with the planes. About a month later when the Wyoming was hoist- ing anchor one of the planes caught and was hauled up. It wns one of the missing planes with the pilot strapped in his seat. The photograph is furnished by Henry E. Reese, an Alta man who was a musician on the Wyoming HOME! Dorothy Greg Storm Lake Blanche Olson Storm Lake Mary L. McKe Storm Lake L,..,.. Anna Riley Storm Lake Lurene Swope Storm Lake With the call for men for the army and navy came a call for trained stenographic and office workers to take care of the immense amount of details necessary to keeping proper record of all the war activities. Girls from all over the U. S, A. answered the call as they could fill the places of many men who were more needed in active service. The war department erected a great many dormitories to accommodate the large additional population of the city of Washington. The following young ladies from Buena Vista county answered the call: Gladys Burke, Dorothy Gregg, Christy Haughey, Marjorie Gates, Blanche Olson, Esther Point, Lurene Swope, Merle Sooth. Edna Unger, and Ethel Van Cleve. Red Cross Motor Transport Corps, Storm Lake vjf ' M. O'Connor and Newell Ked Cross Turkey which was donated and sold for $3,100 Group of charter meiiibers of what was originally organized as the War Mothers' Service Club; later merged into national organization of War Mothers of America I Poland Township Executive Committee War Service As"Ociation: Sanford Lundgren, chairman; Chas. Thomas, J. W. Tremain, Frank Lally, Will Geary W F Anderson Henry F. Ahnholtz Linn Grove Coon County Food Administrator Exec. Com. War bervice Geo. B. Anderson Barnes Cliairman Wood Fuel Miss Beda Anderson Lincoln-Lee Secretary Red Cross James G. Anderson Coon Council of Defense W. G. Avenall Providence Exec. Com. War Service Ira Angler Storm Lake Townsliip Exec. Com. War Service J. H. Allen Alta Exec. Com. War Service Miss Edna Bradley Highview Secretary Red Cross A. H. Barnett Linn Grove Council of Defense Fred C. Bitter Sulphur Springs Food Administrator Nils Chilgren Brooke Exec. Com. War Service Dr. E. D. Bangheart Storm Lake Medical Examiner Draft Bd. A. L. Bergling Albert City Exec. Com. War Service Chas. Blomgren Lincoln Exec. Com. War Service J. R. Bell Storm Lake Publicity Liberty Loan Mrs. B. S. Bryson Albert City Women's Defense Council Oscar Bodine Scott Exec. Com. War Service O. L. Byam Lee Exec. Com. War Service S. A. Bennett Lee Exec. Com. War Service Mrs. R. J. Bradley Highview Chairman Red Cross Mrs. Roy Burr Sioux Rapids Secretary Red Cross Henry Berg Linn Grove Exec. Com. War Service H. C. Bodholt Providence Exec. Com. War Service O. F. Bellows Coon Exec. Com. War Service J. E. Buland Storm Lake Legal Advisory Board .J. C. Bell Storm Lake Co. Baker Rep. Food Admr. Mrs. Geo. Chaney ■Newell Chairman Red Cross Pat Clancy Storm Lake Co. Enforcement Repr. Mrs. Martin Cliristensen H. H. Covey Ira Canon Sioux Rapids Rembrandt Hayes Vice Chairman Red Cross County Fuel Administrator Chmn. War Service Assn. D. H. Carpenter Alta Council of Defense Otto Dokken Linn Grove Exec. Com. War Service Jas. De Land Storm Lalie Chmn. Legal Advisory Bd. T. E. De Spain Lincoln Exec. Com. War Service Dr. J. A. Delahunt Marathon Food Administrator J. J. Duffy Storm Lalie Price Int. Food Admr. Mrs. I. P. Davidson Sioux Rapids Vice Cliairman Red Cross Alfred Danielson Albert City Exec. Com. War Service W. C. Edson Storm Lalve Bureau Military Affairs T. D. Filers Storm Lake County Food Administrator J. T. Edson Storm Lake Township Exec. Com. War Service W. L. Ernst Lincoln Chairman War Stamps Mrs. W. L. Ernst Truesdale Chairman Red Cross Oscar Erickson Linn Grove Exec. Com. War Service Mrs. H. E. Erickson Linn Grove Vice Chairman Red Cross H. C. Erickson Brooke Exec. Com. War Service Ben Eno Washington Exec. Com. War Service C. O. Friedlund Ijinn Grove Exec. Com. War Service Geo. Rov Fanning Scott Council of Defense Mrs. Geo. R. Fanning Fairview Cliairman Red Cross Laura H. Figert Ma rati! on Chairman War Stamps Fi-ed P. Foster Storm Ijake Bureau Military Affairs W. E. Gaffey Hays Council of Defense Wm. Gutel Washington Chmn. War Service Assn. W. L. Geisingcr Storm Lake Township Exec. Com. War Service C. M. Hanson Elk Exec. Com. War Service K. .T. Hahne ^- i\ Hames Storm Lake Hays Bureau Military Affairs Chmn. 11th Dist. \\ ai Food Board Em. J. M. Hussey West Grant Chmn. War Service Assn. Miss Gertrude Hanson Fairview Secretary Red Cross Mrs. O. H. Hesla Linn Grove Vice Chairman Red Cross Exec. A. B. Heath Providence Com. War Service T. F. Householder Newell Township Chmn. War Service Assn. Henry Hadenfeldt Lincoln Exec. Com. War Service A. E. Harrison Storm Lake Chairman Victory Boys Henry Haase Fairview Treasurer Red Cross Miss Mae Hamilton Storm Lake Publicity Food Admr. V. E. Herbert Storm Lake Council of Defense Mrs. Wm. Haxby Hlghview Women's Defense Council F. F. Higgins Grant Council of Defense N. H. Johnson ^ ^l^^^-J. ^A ■'^°5."^°" t Storm Lake Sec. B. V. Co. Farm Imp. Secretary Y. M. C. A. Drive Assn. C. G. .Johnson Andrew Johnson Elk Linn Grove Exec. Com. War Service Exec. Com. War Service Mrs. Geo. A. Jolinson Hlghview Treasurer Red Cross James Jensen Providence Exec. Com. War Service A. Kacmarvnski Miss Bertha Knight Scott Storm Lake Exec. Com. War Service County Demonstration Agt. Mrs. R. U. Kinne Storm Lake Secretary Red Cross Roy U. Kinne Storm Lalie Legal Advisory Board L. P. Lund Newell Township Exec. Com. War Service Frank Lindlief Brooke Chmn. AVar Service Assn. James Lewiston Linn Grove Exec. Com. War Service J. O. Landsness Lee Chairman War Stamps Levi G. Landsness Lee Treasurer Red Cross Geo. H. Larson Nokomis Chmn. War Service Assn. Miss Alice Larson Albert City Secretary Red Cross E. P. Layman Dr. J. W. Morrison Chas. H. J. Mitchell Newell Alta Storm Lake Exec. Com. War Service Medical Examiner Dft. Bd. Chm. Speakers Liberty Loan Fred Mangold Linn Grove Exec. Com. War Service Mrs. Will McGrew Rembrandt Secretary Red Cross Mrs. C. T. Millard Guy E. Mack Storm Lake Storm Lake County Chmn. Women's Gov. Appeal Agt. Draft Bd. Defense Council Miss Mabel F. Moore Rev. W. T. McDonald Albert City Storm Lake Secretary Red Cross Co. Chmn. Armenian Reliet S. H. McClure Storm Lake Publicity Work Peter Matson Nokomis Exec. Com. War Service Jens Miller Elk Council of Defense E M Matzdorf W. J. Miller Alfred O. Meinhard 'Elk Marathon Hays Chmn War Service Assn. Chmn. War Service Assn. Exec. Com. War Service Jos. E. Morcombe Storm Lake Dr. L. M. Nusbaum (dec'd) N. P. Nelson ^i^^' 9,'"'^^ Storm Lake Linn Grove Marathon Organized Red Cross Exec. Com. War Service Exec. Com. War Service Mrs. J. H. O'Donohue E. "W. Gates A. N. Peterson Oscar Peterson Storm Lake Storm Lake Elk Maple Valley Chairman Red Cross Bureau of Military Affairs Exec. Com. War Service Chairman War Service Mrs. Geo. M. Pederson Geo. M. Pederson Storm Lake Storm Lake Chairman Red Cross Bureau of Military Affairs Mrs. Wm. Rutter Linn Grove Chairman Red Cross Tom Renshaw Hays Exec. Com. War Service F. G. Redfield Newell Food Administrator C. A. Robbing Storm Lake Township Climn. War Service Assn. M. O. Reuland Lincoln Chmn. War Service Assn. Chas. H. Rawlins Storm Lake Asst. Draft Board Oscar A. Risvold Geo. J. Schaller Mrs. J. A. Schmitz J. A. Sclimitz Linn Grove Storm Lake Storm Lake Storm Lake Exec. Com. War Service County Chmn. Liberty Loan Vice Cliairman Red Cross Climn. Fuel Administration P. J. Swanson Nokomis Exec. Com. War Service Mrs. Geo. A. Sedgewick Storm Lake Secretary Red Cross August Siekman L. M. Slagle Lincoln Storm Lake Exec. Com. War Service Co. Merch. Rep. Food Admr. A. E. Sweet Lincoln Exec. Com. War Service Mrs. Jennie Smith Albert City Chairman Red Cross C. F. Stuhlmiller Linn Grove Exec. Com. War Service G. M. Sherman Sioux Ranids Publicity Work Mrs. G. M. Sherman Sioux Rapids Secretary Red Cross Mrs. R. R. Smith Lincoln-]_,ee Chairman Red Cross Mrs. M. R. Soeth Marathon Secretary Red Cross M. R. Soeth Marathon Publicity Work F. Schaller W. M. Storey Dr. .J. A. Swallum Dr. E. F. Smith Storm Lalve Storm Lal^e Storm ]L,alie Storm Lake Liberty Loan County Treasurer Y. M. C. A. Medical Examiner Draft Bd. Contract Surgeon S. A. T. C. Peter Strom Nokomis Exec. Com. War Service H. D. Thieman Coon Exec. Com. War Service Mrs. E. C. Thatcher Alta Publicity Work P. J. Toohey Storm Lake Bureau of Military Affairs G. F. Thomsen Truesdale Legal Advisory Board S. A. Treman Storm Lake Price Int. Food Admr. T. Thomas D. W. Thomas Storm Lake Township Rembrandt Exec. Com. War Service Chmn. War Service Assn. P. C. Toy A. T. Troeger Mrs. Ed Vogel Storm Lalie Storm Lake Truesdale Treasurer Red Cross Chm. Price Int. Food Admr. Vice Chairman Red Cross Mrs. J. Wilkenson Alta Chairman Red Cross E. P. Wright Miss Elizabeth Walpole G. W. Weyrauch Providence Storm Lake Elk County Council of Defense Sec. Library War Service Chairman War Stamps John W. Wui-t Newell Township Exec. Com. War Service Wm. Wellmerling Lincoln Exec. Com. War Service Mrs. E. B. Wells Marathon Vice Chairman Red Cross Mrs. A. W. Wilson Sioux Rapids Chairman Red Cros.o .„ _i^&_ Mrs. R. L. White Slovix Rapids Chairman Red Cross ai A. L. Whitney Storm Lake Co. Chm. Council of Defense Chas. Zwemke Maple Valley Exec. Com. War Service Mrs. Rawn Alta Secretary Red Cross LAYING THE BACKGROUND IN a volume such as this, it is not to be expected that any large dis- cussion of the World War shall be given place. The story at first hand'from local participants is the primary object of the book. Yet a certain background must be furnished if there is understanding of these narratives. For without such general survey there would be incoherency and lack of order in the entire work. It is not necessary to introduce the causes which brought about the unprecedented conflict. Students of affairs will place as most im- portant the clashing interests to which they themselves have given most attention. The material factors had slowly accumulated strength and in variance of objection to each other. The tragedy at Serajevo was but the kindling of heaped combustibles which had been gathering for a century. Beyond all in importance were what might be termed the spiritual issues involved. It was primarily a clash inevitable between the democratic aspirations of the world and those who still held to the exploitation of the people by a caste which held themselves divinely appointed and guided. The skirmishes which preceded the actual outbreak of war showed themselves in the affairs of every nation, and were the constant struggles for a larger freedom and as constant an effort to repress every such aspiration. Students and thinkers had long regretted the unstable condition of affairs and it was but a question of time to such minds when armed conflict should result. That there were economic rivalries,, industrial greeds, and dynastic ambitions which entered into the problem is beyond question, but these were incidental to the greater and moral issues involved. Yet for all the mental preparation, not even the responsible states- men of Europe were ready for the quick movements which in August of 1914 ushered in the most tremendous struggle in all history. With the exception of those who were resolved upon a test of strength and who only sought an excuse which might pass for the time with their 276 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY own people, the chancellories of Europe were helpless as against the sudden onrush of events. The great military machine of the central empires moved swiftly and relentlessly on its course as a result of almost half a century of construction and testing. As against this huge war-making power the other nations could oppose but little in comparison. The first drive on the western front through Belgium to strike at the heart of France was expected to carry alhbefore it and to result in a short and decisive campaign. As against Russia, the movement could be more deliberate, as the very extent and inharmoni- ous nature of that country precluded any rapid mobilization of forces. But the plans and theories of the German general staff were shattered by the heroic, yet inevitably futile defense of the Belgians. And at the outset another factor with which the war-lord and his advisers had not reckoned was the immediate entry of the British Empire into the strugg'le. Almost immediately the naval strength of Britain was loosed in the North Sea while the cruising squadrons of the greatest maritime power swept all the seas and obliterated general commerce. Then in the first few days of the war was applied that slowly strang- ling process which was never released during the four years of war and which finally brought the boasted German fleet out of its security as prison ships held without a fight. The further and more important result was, of course, the blockade which kept from the harrassed and starving population all the necessities of life. It is idle now to attempt any final estimate of the various forces employed by the Allies, yet it is safe to say that history will account to the British navy a part second to none in bringing about the final result. We will not consider now the following, the earlier years of this struggle, except insofar as the making plain of issues brought the United States to a realization of its own duty. Upon the surface we looked to the unrestricted submarine warfare and the ruthless sinking of passenger ships, with the murder of women and children, as being the immediate cause of our entry into the war. Yet back of this and seizing upon these incidents as concrete causes, we find a popular con- viction growing among all the people that this country could not be true to its principles and avoid taking its part and paying its share so that the common danger of civilization should be crushed. . HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 277 It was no sudden enthusiasm nor emotion that brought the admin- istration of the United States to its momentous decision. Very slowly and deliberately — too deliberately, as many thought at the time — the statesmen of America attempted to bring into the controversy new and more liberal ideas as between the belligerents, but as has been before said the issues were spiritual rather than material, and these could not be met nor solved by any diplomatic phrase nor put off by any eva- sions. The Russian revolution and the collapse of that great country left the Allied cause for a time in a precarious condition. Added to this the Italian battle began. Capratho increased the danger of an overwhelming victory for the Central Powers. It was at this juncture when the arrogance of the German war machine went farther than ever before and when, despite the protests of the American govern- ment, it resolved upon ruthless and unrestricted warfare. The actual fact of the matter is that the United States had at last come to a per- ception of duty and to the realization that at whatever cost it must thenceforth take its future part in the struggle and pay its full share of the cost in bringing about a righteous decision. There is reason to believe that the President and his advisers waited patiently and moved cautiously until such time as American public opinion should support a definite break with Germany. Yet through- out this period there is to be noticed a constant increase of firmness in the tone of American diplomatic exchanges with the Teutonic Empire and its allies. Matters came near to a head with the proclamation of a state of armed neutrality in March, 191 7. It will be remembered that the Presidefnt came before Congress late in February and asked from the legislative body authority to arm American ships traversing the war zone. A resolution to this effect was passed enthusiastically by the House but was defeated in the Senate by a mere handful of pacifists. Thus thrown back upon his own authority. President Wilson deter- mined that American ships should be armed as desired, and able to defend themselves against the piratical attacks from German sub- marines. It was but a short step from this to the actual rush of war. One can do no better in presenting the real motives of the United States than to take, these words from President Wilson that were delivered before Congress on January 8, 1918, and are part of the 278 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY speech made notable because of the progress then enumerated and known to man as the fourteen points : We entered this war because violation of right had occurred which touched us to the quick and made the life of our people impossible unless they were corrected and the world secured once for all against their recurrence. What we demand in this war, therefore, is nothing peculiar to our- selves. It is that the world be made fit and safe to live in and par- ticularly that it be made safe for every peace-loving nation which, like our own, wishes to live its own life, determine its own institutions, be assured of justice and fair dealing by the other peoples of the world as against force and selfish aggression. All the peoples of the world are in effect partners in this interest, and for our own part we see very clearly that unless justice be brought to others it will not be done to us. . . For such arrangements and covenants we are willing to fight and continue to fight Until they are achieved ; but only because we wish the right to prevail and desire a just and stable peace such as can be secured only by removing the chief provocations to war. We have no jealousy of German greatness and there is nothing in this program that impairs it. . . Ours is the principle of justice to all peoples and nationalities, and their right to live on equal terms of liberty and safety with one another, whether they be strong or weak. Unless this principle be made its foundation, no part of the structure of international justice can stand. The people of the United States could act upon no other principle ; and to the vindication of this principle they are ready to devote their lives, their honor, and everything that they possess. The moral climax of this, the culminating and final war for human liberty has come, and they are ready to put their own strength, their own highest purpose, their own integrity and devotion to the test. The concreteness of the great Allied nations in these principles may be judged from the speech of Lloyd George, the British premier, deliv- ered three days before that of President Wilson as here quoted. In this the world was told : If, then, we are asked what we are fighting for, we reply, as we have often replied : We are fighting for a just and a lasting peace, and we believe that before permanent peace can be hoped for three conditions must be fulfilled: First, the sanctity of treaties must be reestab- lished; secondly, a territorial settlement must be secured, based on the right of self-determination or the consent of the governed; and, HONOR ROLIv OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 279 lastly, we must seek, by the creation of some international organization, to limit the burden of armaments and diminish the probability of war. On these conditions, our people are prepared to make even greater sacrifices than those they have yet endured. On April 2d, President Wilson appeared before a joint session of Congress and asked for a declaration of a state of war with Germany. In presenting to that body this momentous document the President proclaimed the sentiments of the nation and in words that will be counted among the greatest historical monuments of the war. He said: Neutrality is no longer feasible or desirable where the peace of the world is involved and the freedom of its peoples, and the menace to that peace and freedom lies in the existence of autocratic governments backed by organized force which is controlled wholly by their will, not by the will of their people. We have seen the last of neutrality in such circumstances. We are the beginning of an age in which it will be insisted that the same standards of conduct and of responsibility for wrong done shall be observed among nations and their govern- ments that are observed among the individual citizens of civilized states. Here is a clear cut statement of what has before been termed the spiritual issues of the World War. It was and is a tendency against autocracy, the rights of the people against a privileged class or caste, whether political or militarist. In response to the President's request, the Senate of the United States on April 4th, by a vote of 82 to 6, passed a resolution declaring this state of war with the Imperial German Government. This was, on the 6th of April, concurred in by the House by a vote of 373 to 50. Immediately the great energies of the nation were turned to a new direction. Every industry was mobilized in such manner that it might aid in assuring victory for the cause espoused by this country. We live too close to that time to appreciate what was meant by the radical change in the national life; that there were extravagances and huge mistakes made goes without saying. That could not be avoided. But the decision of the American people had instant influence beyond mere estimation upon those already engaged. To the Allied nations, almost exhausted with their long efforts and great sacrifices, the assur- ance of American assistance gave them new life. The effect upon 28o HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Germany, in spite of the published statements of her military and political leaders, was depressing in the extreme. The bulk of the population in the Central Empires, who had borne almost uncomplain- ingly the hardships involved by the blockade, now despaired of the success which had been so constantly promised by their leaders as against the man power and limitless material wealth of the United States. They could not hope for anything but defeat. Thus the moral strength brought to the Allies by the American decision was felt long before any of our battalions were ready to cross the ocean. Now, having put its hand to the plow, our country was determined that the furrow should go deep and straight. On May 17th, the Senate passed the army draft bill which immediately was followed by united action in the House, and the next day it was signed by the President. As a re- sult of this law, on June 5th nearly 10,000,000 men of military age reg- istered for compulsory military service under the selective draft law. During the same month the first Liberty Loan for $2,000,000,000 was put before the people and despite its novelty was oversubscribed by $700,050,000. Thus given the men and the means, the military and naval depart- ments of the government hummed with activity. The navy being from its very nature more advanced in preparedness was able very shortly to send a fleet of destroyers across the Atlantic where it joined with the English vessels in making relentless war upon the lurking submarines. American ingenuity and daring did very much even beyond the movements of the navy to reduce the danger in the narrow seas. We can do no more than follow briefly the military activities. Almost immediately with the registration of men under the selective draft, camps were established at convenient points over the country and an army of 500,000 was called for from among the young men. It should be said, however, that thousands of the more ardent had already volunteered and had been assigned to training and to duty with the existing units. But the dominant factor was the citizen army to be raised over the country, and the Allies realized it, and here again was a surprise for those who had reasoned from European ex- perience. It had been held there, among military men, that a period HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 281 of at least three years was necessary for the training and making of a soldier. The intelligence of American youth and the energy of those who were placed as officers and instructors proved that the raw mate- rial could be turned into service soldiery within a comparatively few months. It is true that when our lads went abroad they had to be seasoned, and even the best of our officers trained again in a warfare that was constantly changing, and it is also true that our impetuous boys suffered beyond the necessity, perhaps, because of their ardor. But these very qualities which may have seemed recklessness to the veterans in France were of splendid effect in that the jaded enemy could oppose nothing of equal value, while the example to the Allied troops was beyond any estimation of worth. The first American troops were sent into the war fields long before the War Department had intended they should be moved. They went in response to the almost despairing cries from France and England. The moral effect of American soldiers at the front, and the sight of their flag among the Allied colors, was relied upon for its effect upon both friend and enemy. It is with this period of the war history, that our own immediate interest begins. And those from this locality were among the first troops to be sent over, and every succeeding contingent had in it some of our local boys. These were in the French and American training camps learning in the school of the soldier the duties and disciphne which fitted men for the greatest game that can be played upon the world stage. Quick-witted scholars were these, as all their instructors, of whatever nation, enthusiastically admitted. We have their stories in this volume, of the training camps, the home, the movements from point to point, the voyage overseas, the experiences in rest camps, and then the gradual movements nearer and nearer to the trenches and the battle lines. We cannot appreciate the war laddies. These young men were transported into the midst of the greatest events of all his- tory, each intent on doing his share in the mighty episodes. Every one of these narratives will be read through the years to come, and with an ever increasing interest. Thus now their greatest value is that they are written in the simple and unaffected language of those we know so well. Another generation, having gained perspective, will 282 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY be able to gauge these men as we can not hope to do, to understand their heroism, to judge the extent of their sacrifices. And these words have no other purpose than to form a background here and there for the stories themselves to show in a manner, what part of the war game this one and the other played. The object is that thus a coherent story- may be woven from all and that the part of this county may be appre- hended from beginning to end of the American participation in the struggle. DIPLOMACY OF THE WORLD WAR Exposure oi^ German Intrigue A REVIEW of many circumstances during the interim between the first declaration of war in Europe in 1914 and April, 191 7, L shows why the United States was compelled by breaches of international law, by inhumanities practiced in conflict with The Hague Conventions, by the attack upon the Lusitania, by attempted restric- tions of United States communication and trade with foreign countries, by arrogant efforts to pervert public sentiment in this country, by actual misrepresentations of facts and the circulation of unfounded charges, and by an effort to dictate the manner in which American ships should be marked before they might be guaranteed safe passage through the war zone, in fact a general abridgement of America's rights upon the high seas, to take up the issues of war against the Cen- tral Powers. All of which, viewed in the light of their cumulative effect, appear vastly more important than they did developing one incident at a time. In the fall of 19 14, German influences in the United States, through German-American and pro-German organizations, began to influence the government and its citizens to at least deny support to other bellig- erent nations if they could not take a stand upon ,open issues that would be favorable to Germany. It was sought to bring the United States into that country's contention with Japan over Kiao-Chow and to incite sympathy through charges of the use of dum-dum bullets by the Allies. In response to the latter France and England made a counter charge of the same oifense on the part of Germany. Germany used flags of neutral countries on her mine-laying ships; violated the neutrality of Belgium in spite of expressed agreement; everywhere the path of her warfare was marked by murder, rapine, brutality, and crime, destruction of historic monuments, masterpieces of architecture, and works of art. A campaign of submarine frightfulness began with the sinking, 284 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY in February, 191 5, of the American ships, Evelyn, off the Borkum Islands, the Carib, which struck a mine, and the William P. Frye, loaded with wheat, which was shot by the Prinz Eitel Friedrich. On the 28th of April a German aeroplane dropped three bombs on the American steamer Gushing in the North Sea. Three days later the Gullflight, off the Scilly Islands, enroute from Port Arthur, Texas, to Rouen, France, was torpedoed by a German submarine but did not sink. The captain died of shock and ten of the crew who jumped over- board were drowned. The rest of the crew were taken off by a patrol boat, and the Gullflight was towed into Crow Sound and beached. This attack was made on Saturday, the first of May, and on that day this notice appeared in the newspapers : Notice! Travelers intending to embark on the Atlantic voyage are reminded that a state of war exists between Germany and her allies and Great Britain and her allies; that the zone of war includes the waters adja- cent to the British Isles ; that, in accordance with formal notice given by the Imperial German Government, vessels flying the flag of Great Britain, or of any of her aflies, are liable to destruction in those waters and that travelers sailing in the war zone on ships of Great Britain or her allies do so at their own risk. Imperiai, German Embassy Washington, D. C, April 22, 191 5 A dozen trusted agents of the United States Government had been placed in important German and Austrian offices when it became apparent that these countries would go to any length to spread their propaganda to organize and consolidate the German-Americans. Through these sources much conclusive and authoritative evidence was discovered as to the operations and intentions of Germany in the war. All efforts led to the conclusion that Germany was making persistent efforts to irritate the United States. The President had told the German Government that "if the com- manders of German vessels of war should act upon the presumption that the flag of the United States was not being used in good faith and should destroy on the high seas an American vessel, or the lives of American citizens, it would be difficult for the Government of the HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 285 violation of neutral rights." In view of the openly published notice to United States to view the act in any other light than as an indefensible travelers and the President's notice to Germany, the tragic loss of the Lusitania was the most serious incident that had arisen between the United States and any belligerent. By many of our countrymen the attack was regarded as indicating that Germany had begun to show her resentment because of the shipment of arms to her enemies, and the widespread sympathy for the cause of the Allies. The Von Bernstorff note, the manner of its publication, and the warnings to Americans not to take passage on ships under the flags of Great Britain or any of her allies, all pointed, it was said, to such animosity on the part of Germany. What was she doing ? Why should she spend so much money in trying to gain the support and sympathy of America, and then by official acts and utterances deliberately injure her cause? Did Germany now think that threats would succeed where pleadings had failed? Was she seeking the enmity of the whole world as a good reason for peace ? The meaning of the warning notice from the German embassy, printed in the newspapers of May ist and repeated in many of them on May 8th, now became apparent. On May ist the Cunard mail steamship Lusitania sailed from New York, with 1,251 passengers and a crew of 667. On May 7th, when eight miles off Old Head of Kin- sale, on the south coast of Ireland, she was struck by two torpedoes discharged from a German submarine, and in a few minutes foundered and went down bow first. No warning was given. Many of the passengers were at luncheon; but in the few minutes before she sank such as could found a refuge in ten life-boats. The wireless operator sent call after call for help, and tugs, steam trawlers, every available vessel was hurried from Queenstown. Of the 1,918 human beings on board 1,153 were drowned. Of the 188 Americans, 114 men, women, and children lost their lives. Among them were men well known in their walks of life. Not since the sinking of the Maine had the coun- try been so stirred by any single event. A cry of mingled horror and rage arose from every section. Beyond all doubt, it was said, the destruction of the Lusitania was carefully and deliberately planned. The warning notice in the papers, it afterward appeared, had been preceded by .anonymous letters and telephone messages to many of the 286 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY passengers. American citizens traveling peacefully had been sent to their death by the deliberately planned act of Emperor William and his advisers. The German language press attempted to justify the deed by placing the blame on England, charging that this adversary was attempting to protect a cargo of contraband by carrying neutral citizens whose status as noncombantants it was expected that Germany would respect. One German newspaper in this country said: "We cannot allow Ameri- cans to be used as shields to get articles of war into the hands of the AlHes." Agitation in this country followed varied lines of thought. Some wanted Congress to assemble and enact special legislation to fit such cases; some thought the German ambassador should be handed his passports, while many demanded that war should be declared. Yet it was almost two years after this before the final declaration was made. Germany soon dispatched a note to the United States Government expressing sympathy for the loss of lives on the Lusitania, but in the course of the diplomatic correspondence which followed she alleged that the Lusitania was armed with mounted guns, that she was carried on the British naval list as an auxiliary cruiser, and that part of her cargo was contraband of war. In support of these allegations Ger- many cited affidavits of men who had professed to visit the vessel before sailing and which affidavits were secured through the efforts of Ger- man agents. One of these spies later pleaded guilty to perjury and was sentenced to penal servitude for eighteen months. It was later shown that Germany did not have her alleged information in regard to the character of the cargo until three days after the disaster actually happened. She also made profession of the fact that the lives would not have been lost had it not been for the explosion of the ammunition aboard. In contravention of these charges was the statement of the collector of customs that no unlawful cargo was carried and that the ship was not armed, with the further circumstance that if such had been the case she would not have been given clearance papers from the port. The first note issued by the United States Department of State was given to the public on May 13th. In it expression was given to the idea that the Government of the United States "was loth to believe — HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 287 it cannot now bring itself to believe — that these acts so contrary" to the rules, practices, and spirit of modern warfare could be sanctioned by the Imperial German Government, and felt in duty bound "to ad- dress the Imperial German Government concerning them with the utmost frankness." It assumed that the German Government "accept as of course the rule that the lives of noncombantants, whether they be of neutral citi- zenship or citizens of one of the nations at war, cannot lawfully be put in jeopardy by the capture or destruction of an unarmed merchantman, and recognize also, as all other nations do, the obligation to take the usual precaution of visit and search to ascertain whether a suspected merchantman is in fact of belligerent nationality or is in fact carrying contraband of war under a neutral flag." The Government of the United States expected "that the Imperial German Government will disavow the acts of which the Government of the United States complains, that they will make reparation, so far as reparation is possible, for injuries which are without measure, and that they will take immediate steps to prevent the recurrence of any- thing so obviously subversive of the principles of warfare." Expres- sions of regret and offers of reparation for the destruction of neutral vessels sunk by mistake might satisfy international obligations when no lives were lost. They could not justify a practice the effect of which was "to subject neutral nations and neutral persons to new and innu- merable risks." The Imperial German Government will not expect the Government of the United States to omit any word or ai;iy act necessary to the per- formance of its sacred duty of maintaining the rights of the United States and its citizens and of safeguarding their free exercise and enjoyment. All indications pointed to the fact that the Lusitania had been delib- erately chosen for destruction. The foreign language press sympa- thized generally with the purposes of Germany. Germany made a gala occasion in celebration of the destruction of the ship. A medal was struck to commemorate the event. On one side was a rude represen- tation of the Lusitania sinking into the sea, and the words, "No con- traband. The liner Lusitania sunk by a German submarine May 5, 191 5." On the other was a long line of travelers waiting their turn 288 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY to buy tickets at a Cunard Company's window, behind which stood Death as the ticket agent, and the words, "Business as usual." Then on May 25th the American steamship Nebraska, enroute from Liverpool to the Delaware breakwater, was attacked forty miles from Fastnet, Ireland, and a huge hole blown in her bow. No lives were lost and she was able to move into port. That the German Govern- ment, in the face of the excitement in America, should endanger the lives of an American captain and an American crew, was unbehevable, unless Germany intended to drive us into war. On the 31st of May the Department of State made public a response from Germany to America's first Lusitania note. The trend of the document was to evade the issues brought up by the United States and to. fix the blame upon England as it had in the first note of sympathy, charging that if neutral ships had suffered through submarine warfare because of mistakes in identification, it was the fault of Great Britain's abuse of flags, this latter particularly in regard to the Gushing and the Gullflight. Two days later Ambassador Von Bernstorff interviewed President Wilson, during which he agreed to concede that Germany would stop her attacks on vessels known to carry citizens of the United States, if the American Government would suggest to our citizens that in future, when going to Europe, they should take passage on such ships only as carried no goods contraband of war; that the German submarines would attack no merchant vessels save such as were known to be carry- ing contraband of war ; that this would be made easier if the President, by proclamation, would forbid the ships of belligerent nations to carry as passengers citizens of the United States; and that if the United States would bring about these conditions, German ships would not attack any merchantman, neutral or belligerent, carrying passengers, whether the ship did or did not have contraband goods on board, with- out first giving passengers and crew a chance to seek safety in boats and on rafts. When it became again necessary for the United States Government to make known its stand on the open issue reports developed concerning a division in the cabinet. It proved that the difiference was between the President and the secretary of state, W. J. Bryan, and the point of HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 289 difference was as to how far the United States ought to go in making its demands upon Germany. As a result of this contention the secre- tary resigned. The effect of this in Germany was to carry the impres- sion that the people of the United States were not solidly behind the President in his firm demands. Robert Lansing, counselor of the Department of State, now became acting secretary, and the diplomatic negotiations proceeded in conformity with the policy already entered upon. The second Lusitania note was made public June nth. Von Jagow had expressed his belief that the Government of the United States was not aware of the character and outfit of the Lusi- tania, not aware that she carried masked guns, trained gunners, and special ammunition, not aware that she had transported troops from Canada and a cargo not permitted under the laws of the United States to go in a vessel carrying passengers. Were these statements true, the Government of the United States (Mr. Lansing replied) would have been bound to take official cogni- zance in performing its recognized duty as a neutral power and in enforcing its national laws. It was its duty to see to it that the Lusi- tania was not armed for offensive action, that she was not serving as a transport, that she did not carry a cargo prohibited by the statutes of the United States, and that if, in fact, she was a naval auxiliary of Great Britain she should not receive her clearance as a merchantman, and it performed that duty and enforced its statutes with scrupulous vigilance through its regularly constituted officials. The Government of the United States was able, therefore to assure the Imperial German Government that it had been misinformed. The message further stated that "the sinking of passenger ships involves principles of hu- manity which throw into the background any special circumstances of detail that may be thought to affect the cases. . . The Government of the United States is contending for something much greater than mere rights of property or privilege of commerce." The Government of the United States cannot admit that the procla- mation of a war zone from which neutral ships have been warned to keep away may be made to operate in any degree as an abbreviation of the rights either of American shipmasters or of American citizens bound on lawful errands as passengers on merchant ships of belligerent 290 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY nationality. . . The Government of the United States, therefore, deems it reasonable to expect that the Imperial German Government will adopt the measures necessary to put these principles into practice in respect to the safeguarding- of American lives and American ships, and asks for assurances that this will be done. Germany responded with a note under date of July 8th, which was made public in this country July loth. Her attitude was made appar- ent in the following line of argument : While the enemies of Germany were conducting a war without . mercy for her destruction, she was fighting "in self-defense" for- her "national existence and for the sake of peace of assured permanency." Forced to adopt a submarine war- fare to meet the intentions of its enemies, the German Government on February 4th, in its memorandum "recognized that the interests of neutrals might suffer from the submarine warfare." The case of the Lusitania showed "with horrible clearness to what jeopardizing of human lives the manner of conducting the war employed by our adver- saries leads." "All distinctions between merchant ships and vessels of war had been done away with" by the orders of British merchantmen to arm themselves, by instructions "to ram submarines and the promise of rewards therefor." Had the German commander of the submarine which sank the Lusitania caused the crew and passengers to take to the boats before firing the torpedo, his own vessel would surely have been destroyed. Experience justified the belief that the Lusitania would have floated long enough to enable all aboard of her to take to the boats, had it not been for the large quantity of highly explosive material she carried. In the spirit of old friendship the Imperial Government would do all it could "to prevent the jeopardizing of lives of American citizens." But to prevent "unforeseen dangers to American passenger steam- ships," they must be "made recognizable by special markings" and German submarine commanders must be "notified a reasonable time in advance." That American citizens might not suffer for "adequate facilities for travel across the Atlantic," the German Government would suggest that "a reasonable number of neutral steamers under the American flag" be used in passenger service. There would be "no compelHng HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 291 necessity" for American citizens to travel under an enemy's flag. The Imperial Government was "miable to admit that American citizens can protect an enemy ship through the mere fact of their presence on board." If an adequate number of neutral passenger steamers could not be acquired, the Imperial Government would not object to placing under the American flag four enemy passenger steamships, "for pas- senger traffic between North America and England." President Wilson, after having "maturely considered the situation," made reply on the 21st. "Illegal and inhuman acts, however justifiable they may be thought to be against an enemy who is believed to have acted in contravention of law and humanity, are manifestly indefensible when they deprive neutrals of their acknowledged rights, particularly when they violate the right to life itself." If a belligerent could not retaliate without injury to the lives and property of neutrals, "a due regard for the dignity of neutral powers should dictate that the practice be discon- tinued." The Government of the United States was ready to make reasonable allowances for the novel aspects of submarine war, but could not consent to abate any essential right of its people "because of a mere alteration of circumstances." Events of the last two months had shown that submarine operations in the so-called war zone could be conducted according to the "accepted practices of regulated warfare." The Government of the United States could not "accept the sugges- tion" that certain vessels should be designated which should be free "on the seas now illegally proscribed." Such an agreement "would, by implication, subject other vessels to illegal attack" and would be "an abandonment of the principles for which this government con- tends." The note closed with this warning: "Friendship itself prompts" the Government of the United States "to say to the Imperial German Government that repetitions by the commanders of German naval vessels of acts in contravention of those rights must be regarded by the Government of the United States, when they affect American citizens, as deliberately unfriendly." The German-American press was outspoken in condemnation of the note. By the American press the note was regarded as the final word 292 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY lo Germany on the sinking of the Lusitania and the submarine attacks on American merchantmen. The Koelnische Zeitung (Germany) found the German and American standpoints as far apart at the end as at the beginning. An understanding was impossible. "Germany will neither disown the sinking of the Lusitania nor offer indemnity for the lives of the reckless Americans who perished on the steamship. Germany will continue her submarine warfare in the same manner as in the past two months." It was not long after the war began, and after the sinking of the Lusitania made the carrying the carrying of munitions of war an issue, that there began to be influences brought to bear upon Congress and upon the President to place an embargo upon any traffic in arms or ammunition. The agitation came mainly from German- Americans, Germans, and pacifists. The effect on disordered minds of the agita- tion for an embargo on the exportation of munitions was to incite some men to place bombs in ships leaving the United States, and though several bombs were discovered none of them did any serious damage. The Government of the United States took the stand that this foreign trade in rifles and ammunition did not constitute a breach of neutrality laws, and when Germany pleaded for an embargo our government held that any change in the laws after a situation arose that would alter the circumstances toward either belligerent would be in itself a violation of a neutrality status. A host of incidents indicated German activities in the United States to work to the advantage of the Central Empires. They need not be recited in detail here, but a resume given in order to indicate the lines of designing activity that were employed. One of the first manifestations of this intrigue was the effort to buy passports in order to provide passage for German reservists who wanted to return to their native land. This was soon nipped in the bud. The espionage laws were not stringent at that time and the punishment meted out to the offenders was not as severe as it would have been later. The point of chief interest and importance in this matter is that the evidence led to the office of Captain von Papen, mih- tary attache to the German Embassy at Washington, who was supply- ing the money and the brains for the whole scheme. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 293 Werner Horn, a lieutenant in the German army who had failed in his effort to return home, attempted on the night of February 3, 191 5, to blow up the international bridge at Vanceboro, Maine. Horn was indicted before a United States commissioner on the charge of violating the law regulating the transportation of explosives. On the 1st of March the Hamburg- American line and four indi- viduals were indicted, charged with having conspired to defraud the United States by false statements, false clearances of vessels from our ports, and false manifests of cargoes made in order that the vessels might go, not to the places for which they were cleared, but to deliver coal and supplies to German warships at sea. By the indictment they were charged with conspiracy "to defraud the United States in and by causing collectors of customs, by means of false statements, to make, record, and transmit untrue and inaccurate records." The fact was later brought to light that as early as the autumn of 1 91 3 the Hamburg- American line had contracted in the event of a war to send coal and supplies to German warships in the Atlantic Ocean. When complaint and prosecution brought out the facts it was admitted that twelve vessels were consigned to this duty, but only one, the Ber- wind, accomplished her mission. The others either returned to port to escape capture or never left port because they were held under suspicion, or failed in their mission because the war vessels they were to serve had been sunk by the British. Four were found guilty. In sending coal, provisions, and supplies to German ships on the high seas, at a time when the United States and Germany were not at war with each other, the defendants had done no wrong, the court held. Neith- er the law of nations nor any act of Congress forbade such an under- taking. But they had defrauded the United States by obtaining from its officers clearances for their vessels to which they were not entitled. One of the most striking instances of intrigue occurred when, sus- tained by German money and cooperation, Victoriana Huerta, one time Provisional President of Mexico, came to the United States and made a show of establishing his home here ; then organized an expedition into Mexico with a view to stirring up an insurrection in that country that would distract the United States from its attention to European prob- lems. Huerta started upon his journey from Long Island ostensibly to 294 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY visit the Panama Exposition, but when he turned his journey south- ward he was shadowed, and was arrested at El Paso. He died early in July, and the incident was closed. One of the amazing and impudent features of all this intrigue was that it all led back to the office of Von Bernstorfif, German ambassador to this country, who was presumed to represent state relationships between the two countries and not to come here as a plotter against the nation which received him in a friendly way. Evidence accumulated that the German spy system was established in America even before the war began. Germany tried in various ways to get information about our wireless system service, to learn about details of the construction of American ships, to secure control of private wireless systems ; and it was shown that a civilian employed in the electrical service of our navy was in the pay of Germany. Jas. F. Archibald, an American newspaper correspondent, enroute to Germany on the Rotterdam, was found to be carrying documents from Dr. Dumba, the Austro-Hungarian minister to this country, and Count von Bernstorff to German and Austro-Hungarian authorities on many vital questions of the relationships between the United States and the Central Empires. Particularly offensive was a suggestion for inciting strikes in the Bethlehem steel and munition works through foreign sources. Thereupon the United States made a demand that Dumba be recalled, and though he entered a general denial of any connection with such plots his government did recall him from service in this country. Later Baron von Nuber, of the New York consulate, proved as offensive as had Dumba. It was time that the government acted. Actual warfare had been conducted by German and Austrian officials against the United States. Guns had not been trained on our citizens, armies had not been landed on our shore, but the torch had been set to munition plants, bombs had been prepared to sink ships at sea, plots had been hatched to prevent manufactured goods reaching their destination, passports for German and Austrian spies had been forged, and strikes fomented. On December loth, the German ambassador notified the secretary of HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 295 state of the recall of Captain Boy-Ed and Captain von Papen because of the United States' objection to their activities. Meanwhile agents of Germany had been busy on the Pacific Coast. Efforts were made to interfere with the United States' trade with the Allies, the mails were being used to incite arson, murder, and assassina- tion, and agents of the German Government were acting in collusion with enemies who would destroy property in Canada. In February, 1 91 6, thirty-two conspirators were indicted by a federal grand jury. It was shown that Labor's National Peace Council was an organization effected for the purpose of making big peace demonstrations and incit- ing strikes. President Wilson, realizing the need of closer restrictions in the espionage laws, in his message to Congress on December 7, 1916, pleaded for laws to take care of "some men among us, and many resi- dents abroad who, though born and bred in the United States and call- ing themselves American, have so forgotten themselves and their honor as citizens as to put their passionate sympathy with one or the other side in the great European conflict above their regard for the peace and dignity of the United States. They also preach and practice disloy- alty." Late in October, 191 5, Germany sent a note to the United States Government in regard to the attack on the Orduna, saying it "was not in accordance with the existing instructions," and that "the repetition of which appears to be out of the question, in view of the more explicit instructions issued in the meantime." Though, by this admission, the surrender of Germany seemed to be complete, the triumph of American diplomacy was not to endure. Because of the capture and sinking of large numbers of Germany's submarines by England the Kaiser's government found it advisable to adopt for the time being a policy of restraint of submarine frightfulness, until Germany's submarine fleet could be reenforced. However, Austria did not feel involved by any promises not to sink without warning which Germany might have made, and she soon equalled her ally in frightfulness. On November 7, 191 5, the Italian liner Ancona, with 400 passengers 296 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY and a crew of 170, enroute from Messina to New York, was torpedoed off Cape Carbona by a submarine which, when first seen, was flying the German flag, but immediately hauled it down and replaced it with the Austrian colors. The Ancona attempted to escape but was fired upon and hit, whereupon the captain ordered the boats lowered and just as the eighth touched the water the Ancona pitched forward and sank bows first, carrying down with her over two hundred human beings, many of whom were killed by gunfire after the torpedo struck. Of twelve Americans aboard nine lost their lives. The Austrian government took the position that the attack was the fault of the crew who tried to escape. Secretary Lansing demanded that Austria denounce the sinking of the Ancona as an illegal and indefensible act; that the commander of the submarine be punished; and that an indemnity be paid for the citizens of the United States who were killed or injured. Not one of these demands was answered; the Austrian response was an impudent assumption "that as a matter of course" the Austrian Government "reserves to itself full freedom of maintaining its own legal views in the discussion of the case of the An- cona." The United States answered on December 19th with Secretary Lansing's note which reminded the contender that the Austrian admi- ralty's first published note on the occurrence admitted the ofifense, and renewed the demands for acknowledgment and reparation. On the 29th Austria surrendered to the American viewpoint and promised indemnity in a note which was made public on New Year's day, 191 6. With this prospect of a settlement of the submarine issue freshly in mind, it was learned soon that on the second day of January the Persia was sunk in the Mediterranean. Of 558 passengers and crew, only 158 survived. Among the drowned was the newly appointed American consul on his way to Aden, Arabia. Immediately the Austrian dip- lomat at Washington asked that judgment be withheld until the facts could be known. Survivors had seen neither submarine nor torpedo, and Germany and Austria both denied that their submarines had in- flicted the damage. Meanwhile, negotiations went forward with regard to the Lusitania. Germany's representations, unsatisfactory to President Wilson, were revised until she granted all claims except that the sinking was illegal. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 297 On the 24th of March a German submarine torpedoed in the Enghsh Channel the French passenger steamer Sussex on which were twenty- five American citizens. The ship carried no ammunition, was never used as a transport. By this attack eighty persons were killed or wounded. Soon thereafter the Englishman, the Manchester Engineer, the Ber- windvale, and the Eagle Point were torpedoed. President Wilson, in a note under date of April i8th, reviewed the many aggravations that had caused protest to be made, and said that the "roll of Americans who have lost their lives upon ships thus attacked and destroyed has grown month by month until the ominous toll has mounted into the hundreds." The Government of the United States had "been willing to wait until the facts became unmistakable and were susceptible of only one interpretation. . . It now owes it to a just regard for its own rights to say to the Imperial Government that that time has come. Unless the Imperial Government should now immediately declare and effect an abandonment of its present methods of submarine warfare against passenger and freight-carrying vessels, the Government of the United States can have no other choice but to sever diplomatic relationships with the German Empire altogether." Germany's reply, dated May 4, 191 6, asserted that "the German Government attaches no less importance to the sacred principles of humanity than the Government of the United States." The note pro- ceeded farther to charge that it was not Germany but the British Gov- ernment that "has extended this terrible war to the lives and property of noncombatants. . . As matters stand, the German Government cannot but reiterate its regret that the sentiments of humanity which the Government of the United States extends with such fervor to the unhappy victims of submarine warfare are not extended with the same warmth of feeling to the many millions of women and children who, according to the avowed intentions of the British Government, shall be starved and who, by their sufTerings, shall force the victorious armies of the Central Powers into ignominous capitulation. The German Government, in agreement with the German people, fails to understand this discrimination. . . The German people know that the Govern- ment of the United States has the power to confine this war to the 298 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY armed forces of the belligerent countries in the interest of humanity and the maintenance of international law," by insisting "against Great Britain on its incontestible rights to the freedom of the seas. But, as matters stand, the German people is under the impression that the Government of the United States, while demanding that Germany, struggling for her existence, shall restrain the use of an effective wea- pon, and while making the compliance with these demands a condition for the maintenance of relations with Germany, confines itself to pro- tests against the illegal methods adopted by Germany's enemies. Moreover, the German people know to what a considerable extent its enemies are supplied with all kinds of war material from the United States." The impression created in this country was that the tone of the note was intended for Berlin; the substance for Washington. The special concession thus wrung from Germany after months of constant protest and negotiation was small, indeed. Enemy freight ships found in the war zone were not to be stopped, visited, searched, and destroyed according to the principles of international law ; other merchant ships, if they did not resist or attempt to escape, were to have the benefit of the principles of visit, search, and destruction as prescribed by inter- national law. Yet it was of real importance to force Germany to pledge herself to conduct her submarine warfare "in accordance with the general principles of visit and search and destruction of merchant vessels," for it was an admission that she had not hitherto done so. But was this pledge worth anything with the condition attached ? The President and his cabinet thought not, and on May 8, 1916, Secretary Lansing replied with a note, made public on May 9th, in which "the Imperial Government's declaration of its abandonment of the policy which has so seriously menaced the good relations between the two countries," was accepted and the condition expressly rejected. In order to avoid any possible misunderstanding, the Government of the United States notifies the Imperial Government that it cannot for a moment entertain, much less discuss, a suggestion that respect by German naval authorities for the rights of citizens of the United States upon the higli seas should in any way or in the slig'htest degree be made conting'ent upon the conduct of any other Government affecting- the HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 299 rights of neutrals and noncombatants. Responsibility in such matters is single, not joint ; absolute, not relative. In a later note Germany acknowledged responsibility for the damage to the Sussex, and culpability on the part of the commander of the submarine in acting too hastily. Congressme;n Difp^er on Policy When, on the loth of February, 191 6, Ambassador von Bernstorff announced that Germany and Austro-Hungary would instruct their submarine commanders to treat armed merchantment as auxiliary cruisers, a storm of agitation was raised in this country as to what course the United States ought to take to protect its citizens. The status thus brought about was argued by personal and public sources. Differences existed in Congress which, in the light of later developments, made some of the members of that distinguished body seem little less firm in insistence upon the rights of Americans than were open opponents. A resolution introduced in the House of Repre- sentatives by Congressman McLemore of Texas called upon the Presi- dent to issue a proclamation to warn American citizens to refrain from traveling on ships of belligerents, but the issue was decided when a resolution was introduced by Gore of Oklahoma in the Senate. His resolution declared that the sinking by a German -submarine of a mer- chantman on which American citizens lost their lives would constitute cause of war between Germany and the United States. This resolu- tion was laid upon the table by the Senate, and by so doing the Senate established the very principle for which the President had been con- tending. Ex-Secretary of State Bryan was against the President on this point, and took part in several peace meetings where opinions were expressed which fell short of the President's demands as to the rights of Ameri- can citizens to travel unrestrained upon the high seas. Dei^Ers Crisis by Pledges Still Germany continued to make pledges and pursue diplomatic negotiations which, in the light of later developments, appeared evasive and to defer this crisis as far into the future as possible. 300 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY On May i8, 191 6, Von Bernstorff announced that the German Gov- ernment was opposed to the plots and propaganda leading to violations of our laws and our neutrality. Developments accumulated to show that German governmental representatives in this country were con- spiring through intrigue to pursue schemes of any character that might work in favor of Germany. When Captain von Papen, recalled from service here and enroute to his native land, was arrested at Falmouth, England, papers found among his effects showed payments made to parties well known in this country as offenders against our laws and neutrality. Among his personal correspondence were notes of sympathy from German consuls and his friends in this country in which they extended sympathy and gave expression to a feeling of ultimate conflict and faith in German power to dominate. His papers gave corroborative evidence that Von der Goltz, travel- ing as Bridgeman Taylor, who had been relieved from service with a brigade of the Mexican army, had come to the United States and tried to organize a force of German reservists to go to Canada, there to create a fear of giving aid to England; that Von Goltz had been asked by Von Papen to see two Irishmen about a scheme to blow up locks of canals between the Great Lakes, and main railway junctions and grain elevators in Canada. As a result of this testimony Von Papen and four others were in- dicted for a conspiracy to blow up the Welland Canal, but Papen could not be arrested because he was attached to the German embassy. The following day, at 60 Wall Street, New York, Wolf von Igel was ar- rested on suspicion of unneutral intrigue. Conflict was inspired over the right to take his papers by the German claim that he was attached to the German embassy. It was shown that the embassy was not paying his rent, so the quarters could not be considered as Germany property ; however, part of the papers were eventually returned to him. Enough was taken to justify the indictment of nine men for placing explosives upon ships with the idea of destroying the vessels. All of them were sent to the Atlanta federal penitentiary for two and a half years. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 301 Karl A. Luederitz, German consul at Baltimore, was indicted for securing a false passport for Von Goltz, alias Taylor. On May 8th Von Igel and two others were indicted for conspiring to falsify ships' manifests in order to get cargoes of oil into Germany. Protests from the Alliks So much has been said concerning diplomatic negotiations between Germany and the United States that it will be interesting to recall the occasion for similar correspondence between England and the United States. Late in December, 191 5, reports reached the Department of State that British customs authorities were interfering with the mails. From the Danish steamer Oscar II 734 bags of parcel mail were re- moved while on their way from the United States to Norway, Sweden, and Denmark; from the Swedish steamer Stockholm fifty-eight bags while on their way from New York to Gothenburg; from the Danish steamer United States the customs authorities at Kirkwall took 5,000 packages of merchandise, the property of American citizens ; from the Frederick VIII, manifested for Norway, Sweden, and Denmark, 597 bags of parcel mail, and from the Dutch steamship New Amsterdam the entire mail, American diplomatic and consular pouches included. Against all this Mr. Page was instructed on January 4, 191 6, to enter "a formal and vigorous protest." The department was "inclined to regard parcel post articles as subject to the same treatment as articles sent by express or freight in regard to belligerent search, seizure, and condemnation." But it could not admit the right of Great Britain to seize neutral ships on their way from neutral European ports to ports in the United States, bring them in, and while in port remove and censor the mails they carried. France and Great Britain repHed February 15, 1916, in a joint mem- orandum. In no wise, they held, do "parcels" constitute "letters" or "correspondence" or "dispatches," and are clearly not exempt in any way from supervision, visitation, and seizure any more than belligerent cargoes on the high seas. As regards letters, wrappers, envelopes en- trusted to the postal service and generally contained in the mail bags the Allied Government "bring the following consideration to the notice 302 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY of the Neutral Governments." Between December 31, 1914, and De- cember 31, 191 5, German or Austro-Hungarian naval authorities sunk without warning mailships with mail bags on board coming from or going to neutral countries without a word of protest from any neutral government. Examination of the mails of steamers that called at ports in the Allied countries revealed the fact that in the wrappers, envelopes, and mail were contraband articles much sought after by the enemy. On the Turbania were 147^ pounds of india rubber and seven parcels of wool, and on the Medan seven parcels of crude rub- ber, worth in Germany on December 15, 191 5, twenty-five marks per kilog. Enemy traffic, driven from the sea, "thus resorted to hide in mail matter, in order to get through, all kinds of merchandise, contra- band of war included, apparently by imposing on the postoffice depart- ment of the neutral states." Hence the Allied Governments had decided that merchandise shipped in post parcels "shall not be treated otherwise than merchandise shipped in any other way;" that the inviol- ability of postal correspondence does not affect the right of the Allied Governments to visit and, if needs be, "arrest and seize merchandise hidden in wrappers, envelopes or letters contained in mail bags ;" and that in future they will refrain from seizing on the high seas genuine correspondence, letters, or dispatches and will forward them as quickly as possible after "the sincerity of their character has been ascertained." A pamphlet. The Mails as a German War Weapon, published in London some months later, gives some account of what had been found in the mails. From the first few mails that were examined over 3,000 packets of raw rubber were seized on their way to Germany, while the German exports intercepted comprised jewelry, drugs, machine needles, violin strings, in short almost every article Germany could afford to export. When it became known that merchandise sent by letter mail was not to pass unmolested, resort was had to every sort of subterfuge. Thus, the wrapping of a package of photographs when examined was found to contain a bar of pure nickel in each fluting of the corrugated paper wrapper. Packages described as containing photographs in reality contained packed sheets of dental rubber. In our country par- cel post packages for Germany during two weeks in April, 191 5, increased from 115 to 1,200 per day. All sorts of food except meat HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 303 were in them. Department stores made special provisions for such shipments and furnished airtight containers. Merchandise by Submarine This country was amazed when, on July 8th, an immense submarine, the Deutschland, arrived in port at Baltimore, with a cargo of dyes and similar merchandise. Though some previous predictions had been made through German sources that such a visit was to be made, it had hardly been believed possible. England and France called to the atten- tion of the Government of the United States the presence of this strange, and to them questionable craft in our port, with the request that her character be determined. The collector of the port reported that she had no guns, was manned by a merchant crew, carried mer- chandise cargo and was not a warship. The Deutschland made a second trip, putting in November ist at New London. Reports that others would start a regular service never materialized. The Allies continued to insist that the submarine should be treated as a vessel of war. Laws passed in contemplation of war circumstances provided clauses dealing with hindrances to mail service. On July 18, 1916, England made public a "blacklist" of eighty-three firms and individuals of enemy nationality or associations, resident in our country, and forbade British subjects to trade with them under the same penalties as if trading with the enemy. This prohibition it was explained applied to German firms with head offices in Germany; tcf German firms incorporated in the United States and technically American; and those that made use of secret code or cloak to cover the fact that they were using the cables in the interest of the enemy. Mr. Lansing at once instructed Mr. Page to protest. The "blacklist," he said, had been received with "the most painful surprise" by the people and Government of the United States. It seems to be an arbitrary interference with neutral trade against which it was the duty of the Government "to protect in most decided terms." Negotia- tions over this subject continued until we entered the war. There suddenly appeared off the coast of Newport, R. I., the U-53, a German submarine, which stayed a few hours and put to sea, to a point 304 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY sixty miles south of Nantucket lightship. There the American steam- er Kansan was stopped, then permitted to proceed. The Strathdene was met, torpedoed, and sunk. One British ship and two neutral ships were stopped and sunk. American boats went out in response to radio calls for help. It was made apparent from German sources that the design was to ascertain what course the United States would take in regard to pro- tecting stranded crews and passengers, under the view that to save them would be to aid Germany. The British steamer Marina was torpedoed without warning off the southwest coast of Ireland. Six of fifty-two Americans aboard were drowned. On October 26th the British steamer Rowanmore, with Americans aboard, was torpedoed. A few days later the Arabia, with one American aboard, was sunk in the Mediterranean. Off the Span- ish coast the American steamer Columbian was required to follow a submarine which captured her. The submarine captain was advised of her American ownership, but he took the crew off and sunk her, the crew going aboard the Bolo, a prize ship in charge. The Swedish steamer Varing was captured; all men held as prisoners were trans- ferred to the Varing and the Bolo was sunk; the Norwegian steamer Fordalen was captured and sunk. Later the American steamer Che- mung was torpedoed in the Mediterranean. On December 4th, the Italian steamer Palermo, enroute from New York to Geneva with horses and mules, was torpedoed near the coast of Spain with twenty- five Americans aboard. When called upon for an explanation, Ger- many alleged that the Marina was a transport and that she was armed. England admitted that she carried horses on her east-bound trip, but was not in the government service on the trip west. Her claim with regard to the Columbian was that the ship was torpedoed because of assistance given to the enemy by wireless. BeIvGian Men in SivAvEry In October of 1916 a new reign of terror began in Belgium. Hav- ing destroyed that country's industry by carrying off her machinery, seizing raw materials, and depriving thousands of men of the means of earning a living, German authorities in the military area in Flan- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 305 ders seized idle workmen to send them to Germany. On October 3d she posted decrees in every town and village in the area subject to military orders calling on the men to prepare to leave. When the municipal authorities refused to give the lists of men the towns were fined. Tournai resolved against compliance; a fine of 200,000 marks was levied. Five thousand men between the ages of seventeen and thirty were taken from Ghent and 15,000 were taken from the country. Refugees told how men of the prescribed ages were loaded into cars while wives, children, and relatives were not permitted to approach within three hundred yards of the station. At Mons 6,200 men were marched before bayonets. The women of Belgium appealed to Minis- ter Brand Whitlock, who represented this country. Belgium, through its minister at Washington, protested to Secretary Lansing. When the protest was made German authorities assumed that this course was necessary to make men work who were not voluntarily inclined to work. They alleged that the British policy cut them ofi: from raw materials so that they had nothing with which to work. When the war opened Germany established a bureau for the acquisi- tion of. raw materials by purchase in neutral countries and by seizure in countries to be conquered. In obedience to sixty-six decrees at different interims Belgium was stripped bare of machines and machine tools, of lathes, wool and linen, cotton, jute, and thread, rubber, min- eral, and chemical products, locomotives and automobiles, horses, cattle, hides, fats, and oils, of almost everything the people possessed. Why this was done was made clear in a speech by Herr Beumer in the Prussian Diet about the time of the great "slave raids." "Anybody," said he, "who knows the present state of things in Belgian industry will agree with me that it must take at least some years — assuming that Belgium is independent at all — before Belgium can ever think of competing with us in the world market. And any- body who has traveled as I have done, through the occupied districts of France, will agree with me that so much damage has been done to industrial property that no one need be a prophet in order to say it will take more than ten years before we need think of France as a competi- tor or of the reestablishment of French industry." Protests produced no effect whatever. . 3o6 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Suggestions of Peace Late in the year of 191 6 negotiations for peace were suggested from two different sources. On December 12th the Emperor of Germany, speaking through the chancellor, addressed the Reichstag, announcing that he had made an offer of peace to the Allies. His address followed a boastful vein, assumed that the advantage of the situation as it stood was all in favor of the Central Powers, and professed "unconquerable strength" on the part of Germany, Austria, Bulgaria, and Turkey. He further pro- fessed that Germany's aims were not to "shatter or annihilate our enemies." In opposition to this suggestion the Allies acknowledged that grant- ing peace at that time would be proclaiming Germany as victorious; and responded that the only ground on which peace could be granted was that Germany accede to restitution, reparation, and guarantees against repetition of their offenses against humanity and international law. On December i8th President Wilson wrote a peace note to the war- ring nations. He did not suggest means of arriving at peace, but assumed that all parties were ready to form, not rival leagues, but a league of nations to preserve the peace of the world. He was not proposing peace, nor offering mediation, but suggesting that soundings be taken that neutral and warring nations might know "how near the haven of peace may be." Secretary of State Lansing made an explanation of the President's note by saying that it was "not our material interests we had in mind when the note was sent, but more and more our own rights are becom- ing involved by the belligerents on both sides, so that the situation is becoming increasingly critical." According to the President's message on the subject, "the concrete object for which it is being waged had never been definitely stated." The response of the Entente to Germany's note, delivered January 4, 191 7, assumed that the note suggesting that negotiations for peace be opened and not in itself an offer of peace. It was designated as "less an offer of peace than a war maneuver." The Allies further characterized it as "empty and insincere." HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 307 The Kaiser's response to this manner of meeting him was an order to his army: "Our enemies did not want the understanding offered by me. With God's help our armies will enforce it." Conflicting expressions from American citizens, press, and public men met the President's effort to draw forth a statement from the belligerents that would afford a basis for peace. The note was both denounced and supported. A response to the President's note was given out December 26, 191 6, from both Germany and Austria-Hungary. They expressed the belief that a direct exchange of views would be helpful; and suggested a meeting of representatives of the belligerent powers on neutral ground. Neutral powers of Europe hoped that the initiative taken by the President would bear fruit. English publicists held that the issues could not be put in diplomatic language, could not be bargained for. The German press said that Germany's conditions could be made known through President Wilson. The Allies did not believe it possible "at the present time" to obtain such a peace as would assure reparations, restitution, and such guar- antees as were necessary to establish the future of European nations on a solid basis. They deplored the losses, but denied responsibility for the war, and in detail recited the wrongs of the Central Empires against neighboring nations. No fact was better established than "the willful aggression of Ger- many and Austria-Hungary to insure their hegemony over Europe and their economic domination over the world. Germany proved by her declaration of war, by the immediate invasion of Belgium and Luxemburg, and by her manner of conducting the war, her systematic contempt for all principles of humanity and all respect for small states." But the President wished that the belligerent powers state what they sought by continuing the war. They sought the "restitution of Bel- gium, of Serbia, of Montenegro, and the indemnities due them; the evacuation of the invaded territories of France, Russia, and Rou- mania, with just reparation;" the "reorganization of Europe guaran- teed by a stable regime, and founded as much on respect of nationalities and full security and liberty of economic development" as upon "terri- torial conventions and international conventions and international 3o8 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY agreements." They demanded the restoration of provinces wrested from the AlHes in the past; the Hberation of Italians, Slavs, Rouma- nians, Tcheco Slovaks from foreign domination ; "the enfranchisement of peoples subject to the bloody tyranny of the Turks," and the expul- sion from Europe of the Ottoman Empire. With the note from the Entente Powers came one from Belgium, In it the officials of the invaded kingdom held that if ever there was a country that had a right to say it had taken up arms to defend its life that country was Belgium. Forced to fight or submit to shame, she passionately desired that an end be put to the unprecedented suffering of her people ; but she could accept no peace which did not assure her reparation, security, and guarantees for the future. In response to the Allies' answer to the German peace proposals, Germany came forward with a note directed to neutral governments. She reviewed England's holding of colonies as illustrating that she was not consistent in asking for the national life of small nations, asserted that she was insincere and that the means of war used against Ger- many indicated a desire to restrict the strength and union of the Cen- tral Powers. Balfour, British minister for foreign affairs, wrote that no peace could long endure if the foundations were defective. He reviewed territorial conditions, largely with reference to Turkey and Germany's then domination, and said that peace under those circumstances would afford less occasion for future wars, but no guarantee against war, and the hope of the President for the future of the world would be as far as ever from realization. So long as Germany remained the Germany which without the shadow of justification overran and barbarously ill- used a country she was bound by treaty to protect, no state could be secure if its rights had no better protection than a treaty. No peace could last unless the existing causes of international unrest were re- moved or weakened; unless the aggressive aims and unscrupulous methods of the Central Powers should fall into disrepute among their own people; unless behind international law, behind all treaties for preventing hostilities some form of international sanction should be devised which would make the hardiest aggressor pause. The very day this note was delivered at Washington, the British HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 309 admiralty announced that a German raider was in the Atlantic, that it had sunk eight British and two French merchantmen, and had cap- tured two, that "the Japanese Hudson Maru" had reached Pernambuco with 237 officers and men from the lost ships, and that the others, some 450 in number, had ben placed on the captured steamer Yarrowdale. The captain of the Dramatist, one of the ships destroyed by the raider, on reaching Pernambuco on the Hudson Maru, stated that the 1 8th of December he sighted a steamer going in the same direction as his ; that early in the afternoon she drew alongside, broke out the Ger- man naval ensign, dropped her sides under the forecastle bulwarks, revealing two guns trained on the Dramatist, and called on him to surrender. The Dramatist was then boarded and, after her crew was transferred to the raider, was torpedoed. Later, part of the crew was sent to the Hudson Maru and orders given to follow the raider until January 12th and then proceed to Pernambuco. Reports from Buenos Aires added eleven ships, British, French, and Danish, to the list given out by the admiralty. The Yarrowdale, with 469 prisoners, of whom seventy-two were Americans, reached a German port in safety. To the astonishment of the country the President now appeared, unexpectedly, before the Senate, and delivered an address which amazed Europe. He requested of the belligerents more definite in- formation than had yet been made of the terms on which it would be possible to make peace. The President demanded "peace without vic- tory," that every people be permitted afifiliation with governments of common faith and purposes; that the "paths of the sea must alike in law and in fact be free." He was "proposing government by the con- sent of the governed; that freedom of the seas which in international conference after conference representatives of the United States have urged with the eloquence of those who are the convinced disciples of liberty; and that moderation of armaments which make of armies and navies a power for order merely, not an instrument of aggression or selfish violence." This message did not find a responsive spirit in England; victory was essential for safety. Germany would not agree to peace without victory. Everywhere the message was regarded as ideal. The Cana- dian Senate adopted a resolution that "only representatives of nations 310 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY which have taken part or been engaged m the present war should par- ticipate in the negotiations for peace." And now all this discussion of peace, and the terms of peace, and ways to enforce peace, came to a sudden end when, on January 31, 191 7, the German ambassador presented a note announcing the imme- diate resumption of ruthless submarine warfare. Germany indicated a desire that the peace to be signed with Belgium should provide such conditions as would prevent her ever again being used for hostile pur- poses against Germany. She alleged that the real aims of her enemies were the dismemberment of Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey, and Bulgaria, and expressed the conviction that the Entente Powers "de- clared only such a peace to be possible as shall be dictated by the En- tente Powers." A new situation has thus been created which forces Germany to new decisions. . . Under these circumstances Germany will meet the illegal measures of her enemies by forcibly preventing, after February I, 1917, in a zone around Great Britain, France, Italy, and the eastern Mediterranean, all navigation, that of neutrals included, from and to England, from and to France, etc. All ships met within that zone will be sunk. Another memorandum defined the boundaries of barred zones, and the open routes through them, and stated rules for the guidance of American shipping which limited sailings to one steamship a week in and out of Falmouth, England, only; and further specified that the ships must be painted in a certain way to distinguish them from other ships. The limitations specified a route via the Scilly Islands, and a point fifty degrees north and twenty degrees west. The situation thus created is pointedly summed up by John Bach McMaster in his history, The United States in the World War : Our country had now received its orders. Had the German armies been in possession of every foot of our soil from the Atlantic to the Pacific these orders could not have been more tyrannical. No "Avis," no "Proclamation," no "Order" signed by Von Bissing, or Von der Goltz, or Von Buelow and pasted on the walls of Brussels, or Liege, was written more in the spirit of the conqueror. Once each week one passenger steamship, striped like a barber's pole, and flying at each masthead a flag resembling the kitchen tablecloths of bygone days, might leave one port of the United States, and making its way along a HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 311 prescribed course, enter a specified port in England on a Sabbath day, or be sunk without warning. The gravity of the situation alone pre- vented such a spectacle from being laughable. The threat of the President in his note on the Sussex left no choice as to the stand of the United States. When the note was made public stocks fell, the rate of marine insurance rose, sailings of neutral vessels were cancelled or suspended, the port of New York was temporarily closed; a searching examination was made of seventeen German ves- sels, which had been lying at piers in New York or Hoboken since the opening of the war, lest they should attempt to make a dash to sea, or block a channel; officers and men on interned German raiders were denied shore leave; torpedo boat destroyers at the New York navy yard were put in readiness for sea and the crew of the German freighter, Liebenfels, long anchored in Charleston harbor, opened the sea-cocks and sank her in forty feet of water. The press of Germany exhibited defiance in the face of public opinion in the United States. On the afternoon of February 3d President Wilson announced to Congress that diplomatic relations were broken, and in the message stated that "If American ships and American lives should be sacrificed, I shall take the libert}^ of coming again before the Congress to ask that authority be given me to use any means that may be necessary for the protection of our seamen and our people in the prosecution of their peaceful and legitimate errands on the high seas." The German ambassador, the several consuls, and their families comprised a party of 149 persons who took their departure from New York on the 14th of February. President Wilson suggested that it would make for the peace of the world if other neutral nations would take action similar to that taken by the United States. None of them did, but Switzerland, Holland, Spain, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Brazil, Chili, Peru, Cuba, and China protested against the ruthless submarine warfare and the re- stricted zone. The sinking of the American ship Housatonic it was thought would be the overt act to which the President had referred, but investigation of the case showed that the ship had been boarded and searched; that 312 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY the crew had been given time to take to the boats, and later the boats were towed to the coast of England by the attacking submarine. The American national militia prepared for mobilization, public property was put under guard, great industrial plants gave notice that they were ready to cooperate in case of war — and meanwhile pacifists were making a formidable effort to protest against the declaration of war. The Senate passed a resolution approving the course taken by President Wilson. When the first week of submarine frightfulness had passed sixty- nine ships of various nations had been sunk. At this stage Germany presented verbally, through the Swiss min- ister, a proposition concerning submarine warfare. When the Presi- dent asked that it be submitted in writing Germany complied, stating that now, as before, she was willing to negotiate with the United States provided the commercial blockade against England will not be broken thereby. A response was forthcoming from our secretary of state saying that the United States would be glad to discuss matters pro- vided that the proclamation of January 31st be withdrawn and would not discuss submarine warfare unless assurances of May 4th would be renewed. The written note through the Swiss Government made it plain that Germany considered that the only subjects of negotiations were certain concessions regarding American ships carrying pas- sengers. Then on January 19th was announced the capture of the Hudson Maru and other ships to which reference was made in a previous para- graph. Germany alleged that the Americans captured were "removed as prisoners of war insofar as they had taken pay on armed vessels." Prisoners captured by sea raids totaled 1,389 — fifty-nine of whom were Americans. Demand was made for their release on the ground that they did not know when they shipped that Germany would treat armed merchantmen as ships of war. Whereupon the German For- eign Office replied that they would be released at once. But just at that time diplomatic relations were broken ; the men were not set free and the Swiss minister notified the Department of State that the men would be detained until the Imperial Government was informed concerning the treatment of the crews of German warships HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 313 interned in American harbors and until she had definite assurances that the crews of German merchantmen would not be held or impris- oned. Washington was amazed. The crews of the raiders, Prinz Eitel Friedrich and Kronprinz Wilhelm, and of such gunboats as were interned at Guam and Honolulu were, under international law, held as prisoners during the war. German merchantmen were not interned, remained in our harbors as ports of refuge, were at liberty to put to sea at any time, and the members of their crews were as free as any aliens to enter our country on complying with the requirements of the immigration laws. Until then they were held aboard their ships by the immigration authorities. The United States had seized no German ships. A formal demand was then made through the Spanish ambas- sador for their immediate release. He was asked to say that if not liberated at once, "and allowed to cross the frontier without further delay," the United States would be forced "to consider what measures it may be necessary to take in order to obtain satisfaction for the con- tinued detention of these innocent American citizens." March nth they finally reached Zurich. When Von Bernstorfif was given his passports from the United States it naturally followed that our minister at Berlin, Mr. Gerard, should be relieved of official connections there. He was treated much like a prisoner on the pretext of uncertainty as to the treatment of Von Bernstorfif in this country. Germany professed to have no report from the United States to know how her ambassador and consuls were far- ing and made other excuses of suspected American ofifense against the usual customs in such cases. Not until the good treatment given to Germans in this country was known in Berlin was it arranged that the ambassador and attaches should go to Switzerland by way of Berne. Before Mr. Gerard left Germany officials of that country submitted to him a proposal to secure approval of a protocol to a treaty confirming and enlarging the privileges of German subjects in America and Amer- ican subjects in Germany. The existing treaty provided that subjects of each country should be exempt from war-time restrictions for a period of nine months after war should be declared. The whole pro- posal was rejected — first by the ambassador and later by the State Department when submitted through the Swiss minister. 314 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Immediately after the severance of diplomatic relations relief work was abandoned in Belgium because of restrictions imposed by the mili- tary rule of Germany. The diplomatic privileges and immunities of our Belgian minister, Brand Whitlock, were withdrawn. Between March 25th and April loth four Belgian relief ships were sunk by German submarines. When relief work was abandoned by Americans it was taken up by the Dutch. President Wilson asked for authority to arm merchant vessels, stat- ing that Germany had established a blockade of our coasts by so terror- izing our merchants that our ships were not sent to sea. In response to this request a bill was introduced in Congress to appropriate $100,- 000,000 for the protection of merchant vessels. With the announcement of the sinking of the Laconia debate over granting to the President power to afford protection for vessels went on until February 28th. It then developed through an announcement in the Associated Press that Germany was intriguing to unite Mexico and Japan against the United States, and had stated to these countries its determination to begin submarine warfare unrestricted. Germany promised financial support to Mexico, suggested that they make war together and together make peace, with the further suggestion that Mexico reconquer the lost territory of New Mexico, Texas, and Ari- zona. In the face of these developments opposition to the armed ship bill was dissipated and it was passed by the House of Representatives. When the Senate filibustered to prevent the passage of the bill before the session adjourned by limitation, seventy-five of the ninety-six mem- bers signed a protest. With Congress adjourned the Department of State notified members of the diplomatic body that an armed guard would be placed on all merchant vessels passing through the barred zone, and newspapers were asked not to publish sailing dates of vessels. At this time the Russian revolution developed ; the Czar abdicated ; and though the new government assured the Allies that they were desirous to continue in support of the Allied cause, the finding of stored food in Petrograd led to the conclusion that the old regime was trying to create an excuse for making a separate peace. Congress had been called to meet in extra session the i6th of April, HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 315 but when the American ships, the City of Memphis, the Ilhnois, the Vigilancia were sunk by German U-boats it was apparent that the overt act had been committed. The date for Congress to assemble was now advanced to April 2d. The purposes of the President in calling the extra session were not long withheld. On the first day of their assembling he delivered the war message to that body. Pacifists behaved in an unseemly manner in seeking to retard him in his purpose, but never was he greeted by such applause, such cheering, as when he entered the chamber of the House, walked to the speaker's desk and looked out upon an excited audience, almost every member of which was waving a national flag. That night, before the two houses adjourned, a resolution declaring a state of war existed was introduced in each. After a debate of thir- teen hours the resolution passed the Senate, and on April 5th came before the House with a long report from the committee on foreign affairs. After some fifty speeches attacking and defending Germany the House, a few minutes after three o'clock on the morning of April 6, 1917, passed the joint resolution; the yeas were 373 and the nays 50. Thus empowered to act, the President on April 6th issued a procla- mation declaring that "a. state of war exists between the United States and the Imperial German Government." Orator Won State Contest A war-time oratorical accomplishment that is worthy of record in this volume was that of Miss Dewey Deal, a student in Buena Vista College, who, as a representative of that institution, won the state oratorical contest at Morningside College, Sioux City, March i, 1918. The text of the oration makes it especially enlightening with reference to the subject matter handled in this volume. Miss Deal spoke from the subject, THE POEICY THAT EAILED On the eighteenth day of June, 181 5, Napoleon, who had made him- self master of all Europe, met his final defeat and another dream of world conquest had failed. When the armies were gathering for that mighty struggle at Waterloo there was born in the little kingdom of Saxony a leader who laid the foundation for another government whose ambition was "world power," whose motto was "Might makes Right." 3i6 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY For more than thirty years after the fall of Napoleon the struggle for representative government and the rights of man grew and spread until the royal houses of the empires of Europe were shaken to their foundations, but the cause of Democracy and popular government did not produce a leader, outside of France, strong enough to overthrow royal power and destroy the military autocracies. This young Saxon, from the fall of Napoleon to 1848, watched the struggle for the rights of the people against the power of the King. During that time the genius of Sharnhorst built up a system of uni- versal military training in Prussia. Every man was taught that he was one of the defenders of the Fatherland. The military strength of Germany grew at the same time that the struggle for representative government came to the final test. The King of Prussia was repeatedly forced to promise a constitu- tional government to his people, which promise however, was never performed. The popular demand became so strong in 1848 that a convention was called for the purpose of forming a liberal constitution. The representatives of the people were confi.dent and the King was alarmed. The young man of Saxony who had seen the struggle coming and had taken his position on the side of the King, was a delegate to this convention. This was his first appearance on the political stage of Europe upon which for more than a quarter of a century he was des- tined to play a leading part. He was chosen to represent the King because of his uncompromising belief in "the fundamental right of royalty to rule its subjects." The King of Prussia recognized the power of the man who was daring enough to follow this ruthless policy without hesitation ; the man who finally put into definite form the corner- stone of his national policy and announced to the astonished subjects of his royal master the road by which Germany should reach her ulti- mate destination. He said, ''not by speeches and resolutions of majori- ties are the mighty problems of the age to be solved but by a policy of blood and iron." "Blood and Iron" became the foundation upon which the future power and greatness of Germany was reared by the master statesman of the nineteenth century, Prince Otto von Bismarck. Full in the face of the universal demand for representative govern- ment in Germany, Bismarck took his stand upon the side of his sover- eign. He had an unshaken belief in the divine right of kings and had the courage to announce his faith in that doctrine and to preach to the people of Germany a policy of absolute submission to the royal com- mand. His policy must necessarily be built upon military force. Every HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 317 parliament that convened was asked to authorize expenditures for a great army. This authority was never granted, yet the army was organized, assessments were levied, and the people paid the taxes. In 1864 the Schleswig-Holstein controversy offered him his first op- portunity. By making rich promises to Austria, he secured the cooper- ation of her armies. After a brief but bitter fight, Denmark was de- feated and Schleswig and Holstein came under German and Austrian rule. Trouble at once arose over the division of the spoils of conquest. Bismarck had no intention that Austria should share in the plunder. When Austria saw that the German leader had played false, war was inevitable. Prussia welcomed the war because her armies were secret- ly equipped with the new breech-loading rifle. The defeat of the Aus- trians was assured in advance. Her armies were destroyed at the great battle of Sadowa. She relinquished all claim to Schleswig and paid a heavy indemnity as the price of peace. Bismarck well knew the temper of the German people, and knew that his policy was not yet accepted by them. The dispute with Napoleon III offered him another opportunity. By cleverly changing the word- ing of the famous Ems telegram, the people of both Germany and France were aroused to the most intense hatred against each other, and the Franco-Prussian war followed. Bismarck understood the weakness of Napoleon and knew the strength and power of the German war machine. In thirty days the armies of the French were scattered or destroyed. Alsace and Lorraine were annexed to Germany, France Avas compelled to pay an indemnity of one billion dollars and in the great palace at Versailles the leaders of all the scattered German states united in proclaiming William I as Emperor of all Germany. Almost in a day, from being the most hated man in the kingdom, Bismarck became its great national hero. The leaders of the demo- cratic movement forgot he was their enemy, the people accepted him as the greatest statesman in German history. They took the provinces, the indemnities and the policies of their leader and incorporated them into the German Empire and the German system of government. A long period of peace and industrial prosperity followed. From that time the political prestige, the industrial organization, and the edu- cational system of Germany progressed most remarkably. With the growth of the power and prosperity of the empire, the position of her rulers became increasingly strong; individual thought, political free- dom, and popular rights were surrendered. When the power and prestige of Bismarck was at its height, William I died. His son lived but a short time and William II came to the 3i8 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY throne. It was not possible for two such men as Bismarck and Wil- helm to work together. Neither could accept advice nor take instruc- tion. The break soon came, Bismarck was retired and the young prince became heir to the military conquests, the prosperity and power that had been builded by his grandfather, by Von Moltke, and Bis- marck. This empire had been thoroughly converted to the beliefs and doc- trines of the great chancellor. There was no popular movement to- ward democracy. The German nation did not care to disturb the military system that had been organized by its war-lords. She was satisfied with the schools whose principal teaching was "Deutschland uber alles." She accepted a religion that recognized only a German God as the supreme ruler of the universe. After half a century under such a government, the time appeared to be ripe, the people were sub- missive, and the military thunderbolts of Germany were ready to be let loose upon the world. In July, 1914, the murder of an obscure Austrian prince gave the needed pretext for another conflict of aggression to satisfy the ambi- tions of the war mad Emperor and his people. Bismarck never would have committed himself to the present war. He probably would not have started a world war at any time, and yet he must be held respon- sible for the working out of the policy which he inaugurated. William II accepted Bismarck's proposition and carried it to its logical conclu- sion. What d©es it mean to teach a great nation for more than a half cen- tury that the only way to attain its national destiny is by a policy of "blood and iron" ? For a hundred years hence, all the historians of the world will be busy writing the record of the result of such a policy. It has made the very name of Germany infamous throughout the civilized world. She disregarded her treaties. She signed her name to the solemn obligation to protect and defend the integrity of Belgium, yet she violated that pledge without a moment's hesitation, with no other apology than the plea of military necessity. Her most sacred argument is, it stood in the way of her military aggression, became a "mere scrap of paper." Her statesmen were pledged to the representatives of the civilized nations of the world,, that unarmed merchant ships should not be sunk or destroyed without first safeguarding the lives of the passengers and crew. When called upon to account for violating that pledge she solemnly agreed that the offense would not be repeated. Then, without warning, she destroyed the greatest passenger ship upon the waters of the oceans and a thousand defenseless men, women, and children perished. She sent her spies HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 319 into every community of the civilized world with specific authority to stir up strife and wars between neutral nations, to destroy property, and to take the lives of any person or organization that interfered with Germany's military ambition. Within the walls of her vast factories, she secretly built monster guns, manufactured poisonous gases, and trained her soldiers to destroy without hesitation and without mercy anything or any man that stood in the path of her invading army. She built great ships of the air and sent them forth in the night to drop explosives upon peaceful cities, the homes of unarmed men and defenseless women and children; attacking the hospitals of the sick and wounded that were maintained by the greatest organization of mercy and charity the world has ever seen. She taught absolute annihilation of the population in any territory occupied by her armies ; she adopted a policy of f rightfulness to terror- ize the nations of the world that stood in the pathway of her mihtary conquest. Her soldiers in obedience to the written orders of their commanders have committed more crimes than have occurred in the military history of the world. She stands condemned today in the eyes of right think- ing men and in all the years to come she will never be able to make right these wrongs. For more than two years we were unable to understand that the aim and ambition of the German government was world conquest. One hundred million people of a peace loving and law abiding nation were slowly awakening to the truth. The final chapter in this ruthless program of German}^ was written, when in the face of her solemn agreement she announced to the world that she had resumed her policy of unrestricted submarine warfare. The time for temporizing, for argument had passed, the hour for action at last had come. William II had let loose against the whole civilized world his great fleet of pirates and murderers of the sea. Success appeared to be within his grasp. The fleets of Germany's foes were being wiped from the surface of all the seas. His starving and helpless enemies must surrender. WilHam II and the thousand of his lords were feasting and celebrat- ing the anticipated victory. "They brought out the golden vessels, taken from the temple of the house of God. They drank wine and praised the gods of gold and of silver, of brass and of iron, of wood and of stone. In the same hour came forth the fingers of a man's hand and wrote over against the candlestick upon the plaster of the wall of the King's palace, and the King saw the part of the hand that wrote. Then the King's countenance was changed and his thoughts troubled him, so that the joints of his loins were loosed, and his knees 320 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY smote one against another. Then was the part of the hand sent from him ; and this writing was written : 'This is the interpretation of the thing: God hath numbered thy kingdom, and finished it. Thou art weighed in the balance and found wanting.' The Government of the United States has declared war upon Germany." The policy of blood and iron had failed, and failed forever. THE ARMY OF THE WORLD WAR IF ONE were to ask what has been the biggest achievement of the United States in all her history, there could be only one answer: The Army of the World War. The growth of an army of but 190,000 on April 6, 1917, to one of 3,665,000 men on November 11, 1918; the transporting of more than 2,000,000 men of this army to France; the training of this large number of men in the various de- partments of the army; and the furnishing of supplies and equipment to these various departments, constitute the almost unbelievable achievement of our country in the Army of the World War. The Growth of the Army On April 6, 191 7, our army consisted of 190,000 men, with no definite plan for increasing it. There had been, of course, considerable dis- cussion previous to this time as to ways and means of building up an army, but all so indefinite that our army program dates from the declaration of war. At this time it was the concensus of opinion that while we must train a large army to be ready for any emergency, our part in the war was principally to furnish money and munitions to our allies — but not for long, as very soon the call from across the ocean became very insistent for men and more men to take part. The first response from the country following our entry into the war came in the form of offers of service from the people. For weeks there poured into the War Department an almost bewildering stream of letters and visitors offering services of every kind. The regular army was busy taking in new recruits. The governors of the various states had called the National Guard into state service in anticipation of the national call, and in order to build up its various companies to nearer war strength. Buena Vista County had no military organization; the nearest one was Company M, Iowa National Guard, at Cherokee. A mass meeting was held at Storm Lake on Saturday evening, April 7, 1917, at which time twelve enlisted for service, eleven of them in 322 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Company M. Of this number, Claude Nichols, Harold Coulson, and Harold Labron failed to pass the physical examination. On April 13th, Company M was invited down to Storm Lake to attend a large patriotic meeting. At this time six more men enlisted, and after that men were leaving nearly every day for places of enlistment. Congress rapidly perfected its legislative program, and in a few weeks very definite directions began to appear in the work of prepara- tion. The act of May i8th, entitled "An act to authorize the President to increase temporarily the military establishment of the United States," looked to three sources for the army which it created: 1. The Regular Army, of which the actual strength on June 30, 191 7, was 250,157 men and officers. The provisions of the act, how- ever, contemplated an increase to 13,377 officers and 470,185 enlisted men. 2. The National Guard, containing on June 30, 191 7, approximate- ly 3,803 officers and 107,320 enlisted men. The provisions of the act, however, contemplated an increase to 13,377 officers and 455,800 en- listed men. 3. In addition to this, the act provided for a National Army, raised by the process of selective conscription or draft, of which the President was empowered to summon two units of 500,000 men each at such time as he should determine wise. One of the most serious problems confronting the War Department in April, 1917, was the procurement of sufficient officers to fill the re- quirements of the divisions that were to be formed for overseas duty. As the first step toward the solution of this problem it was decided to ofifer a three months' intensive training course to qualified civilians at summer training camps modeled after the Plattsburg idea, for which Major General Leonard Wood was so largely responsible. In August, 1917, a total of 27,341 candidates were graduated from the first series of these officers' training schools, a number sufficient to meet the im- mediate needs of the army. A second series was held during Septem- ber, October, and November, and a third series from January to April, 1918. The first two series were essentially civilian in character, and because of the need for officers of all grades commissions were granted up to the grade of colonel. The third series, however, drew ninety HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 323 per cent of its candidates from the enlisted men of the army, and the other ten per cent from civihans of draft age who had received military training at recognized educational institutions. The candidates in the third series were, upon satisfactory completion of the course, listed as eligible for appointment as second lieutenants and in a few weeks after graduation were commissioned and assigned to duty. First Officers' Training Camp George McCullough writes : There were about sixty men lined up at headquarters when we ar- rived and it took us about an hour to get an O. K. on our admission cards. We were then taken to the hospital and given an examination by army surgeons, and I might say this examination was the most rigid one could imagine. All men were stripped before the examination and it took about ninety minutes to go over the men who went in when we did. Many were rejected on account of poor teeth, poor sight or hear- ing, weak heart, fiat feet, or for many other reasons. All the Storm Lake boys went through in good shape. We were then assigned to quarters. We drew our clothing, consisting of shirt, hat, shoes, leggins, trous- ers, coat, and our equipment, consisting of cot, mattress, two blankets, two mattress covers, two pillows, rifle, bayonet, haversack with all its contents, as soon as we had been accepted. In the engineer company we also have sheets and pillow cases. Our daily routine for the past week has been about the same except on Saturday. All men are expected to arise at 5 a.m., and be ready for the first drill at 5 :2^. This lasts until 5 155. Breakfast is served at 6 :o5 and the next drill is from 7 to 9 :30. This is the regular infan- try drill and it is surprising what progress has been made in one week. At 9:30 we go on a hike of four miles and get back at 10:30. From 10:30 to 12 we have "conference." These consist of lectures and in- structions by regular army ofificers on methods of warfare and duties of the officers. Dinner is served at 12 :30. At i :30 we have drill again, this time with rifles and equipment, from sixty to ninety minutes. Then we have aiming and sighting and another conference, which will usual- ly require the balance of the afternoon until 5 p.m. At 5:45 we line up for retreat, when the flag is lowered. Supper comes on at 6:05, and 7 to 9 in the evening we study for the next day's conferences. Lights in barracks are out at 9:15 and all lights on the reservation go off at II P.M. This makes up a real day, one that is strenuous indeed. Wednesday morning four men went to the hospital and Thursday 324 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY morning there were fifty. But the main trouble was "sore feet" and all but five were sent back to their companies. Men used to out-door work stand this course of training well, but the men who come from offices are having a hard time. But in spite of this everybody is on the job all the time and no one has a single complaint to offer. Satur- day we had inspection. In spite of all the cleaning and rubbing of guns for days the inspector seems to be able to find grease and dust. On Saturday a part of the companies, including ours, had to take the anti-typhoid inoculation. It will give you an idea of the efficiency of this organization when I tell you that 1,292 men got "shot in the arm" in two hours and forty minutes by the hospital corps. The result of this treatment is some pretty sore arms, and in some cases heads, too. This is a three course treatment, the next one coming May 29th and the third one June 8th. Orders have been issued to keep the engineer company here five weeks and then take them to Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, for special training. It is too early to predict what our work will be at the end of the train- ing camp, but great stress is being laid on methods of training recruits, so we think part of the men at least will help train the conscript army. WAR SPIRIT GROWS This week ends the five weeks of preliminary training here, and an- other "sorting" has begun. There are 130 men here who want to join the coast artillery as officers. Fifty of them will be selected this week and sent to Fortress Monroe, Virginia, for special training. The cavalry men have all been transferred to the artillery and infantry, as it has been decided that any cavalry sent to France will go unmounted. Our company of engineers will be thinned out some and Saturday, June 1 6th, we leave for Fort Leavenworth. During the last three days nineteen men have gone back home. An examining board has been appointed to report on the cases of the men reported by company com- manders to be mentally, morally, or physically unfit. It seems to be the policy of the government to train only those men whom it is sure can do the work required. The real facts of war are becoming more evident to us here as our in- struction progresses. For the first two weeks we took bayonet drill as prescribed by the United States army. This has now been dis- carded and we are using the English and French systems. This drill has caused much thought among the men here. We are beginning to realize the things we must teach to thousands of young men in this country, and wondering what the efifect is going to be. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 325 I have seen many comments in the papers in regard to our food. As was to be expected, there was some confusion in getting started, but now we are getting good food and plenty of it. We haven't seen any pie or cake, but we seem to do well without them. Every article of food has its food value determined, and the amount and variety are determined by what the body requires of the different elements. We have seen no pay for work as yet and some of the men are getting low in funds. This is serious business and every hour must be made to count. MOVING OVER UNKNOWN ROUTE Yet another view of training camp activities is presented by George K. McCullough in writing from Fort Leavenworth under date of June 23, 1917. In this letter he writes as follows: We had a good example of how the government moves troops when we came down here. We were unable to find out anything about the route we were to take, for they told us it had not been determined. Finally after we boarded the train the train crew told us we were to go via Omaha and down to Leavenworth on the Kansas side. About 9 o'clock that night we found we were going through some towns that could hardly be on our Omaha route and then we finally were told that after starting the route had been changed. We came down here through Fort Dodge, Des Moines, St. Joseph, and then to Leaven- worth. The work we are having now is more along engineering lines, that is, military engineering, although we still have drill every day. One day this week we built a pontoon bridge across a lake here about three hundred feet wide, in less than three hours. These bridges are strong enough to carry troops marching four abreast, and artillery pieces. In fact they will carry anything that is required to cross except the largest of the motor trucks. Larger pontoon bridges have to be built where these are used. Quite a system of trenches has been built here for the benefit of the training camp. These include the barbed wire entanglements and the machine gun emplacements used in connection with the trenches. The engineering companies from camps at Fort Snelling, Fort Sher- idan, Fort Benjamin Harrison, Fort Riley, and one camp in Texas have all been sent here for the final work in our training, making 1,200 men in all. We have a general mess, that is, the 1,200 men eat at one time in one room, and there surely is some system to the way they feed us. We are allowed fifteen minutes for breakfast and supper, and twenty minutes for dinner, and there is no trouble at all for everyone 326 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY to get all they want to eat in that time. There are twenty-four cooks and seventy waiters employed, besides all the extra help in the kitchen. The feeding of these 1,200 men has been let by contract, and while we are not getting as good meals as we did at Snelling, still we are getting fair service. SHAM BATTI^B TRAINING Training for actual warfare is the gist of a letter from George K. McCullough under date of July 14, 191 7, as follows: This week we "followed the flag" for the first time. Up to date we have not had any of the formal parades and exercises. But now they have divided our eight companies into four parts of 300 men each, and every one of these groups puts on a formal battalion drill at 5 130 P.M. This is officially designated as "retreat," and is the time when the flag is lowered for the night. It is a very inspiring sight. The prison band furnishes the music. We also had a real war this week, 600 men designated as the "Mis- souri Kids" on one side and 600 more known as "Kansas Blues" on the other side. We were with the Kansas Blues. We were armed with blank cartridges. The Missouri Kids crossed the terminal bridge over the Missouri River at Leavenworth and attempted to capture our store- house at Fort Leavenworth. We had a lively time and a good deal of noise. The result hasn't been announced by the umpire, but the store- houses are still there. A fourth series of officers' training schools, with an initial enroll- ment of 13,114, was established May 15, 1918, in twenty-four National Army and National Guard divisions in the United States. These schools were an integral part of the divisions to which they were attached and under the original plan the school would accompany the division when it moved. Due to the urgent need of line officers, how- ever, these schools were separated from their divisions, five central officers' training schools were established at permanent replacement camps, and candidates for such divisions as were scheduled for early overseas service were transferred to these central schools. On No- vember I, 1918, there were about 46,000 candidates in these schools. Eleven men from Buena Vista County made application to the first officers' training school, of whom seven were called and sent to Fort Snelling, where all received commissions. The other four were called for the second school. In the list of records will be found the names HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 327 of the above mentioned men and also those of many other Buena Vista County men who attended these schools. On the 3d day of July, 191 7, the President by proclamation called into the federal service the national guard of the several states. The principle of voluntary enlistments to fill up the ranks of the Regular Army and the National Guard was preserved in the act of May 18, 19 1 7, the maximum age for enlistment in either service being fixed at forty years. The total number of enlistments for the Regular Army for the fiscal year 1917 was 160,084. The act authorizing the increase in the military establishment provided that any deficiency remaining in either the National Army or the National Guard should be made up by selective conscription. The introduction of this new method of enlistment so far affected the whole question of selection for military service that any deductions, either favorable or unfavorable, from the number of voluntary enlistments, Avould be unwarranted. In the preparation of the act providing for the temporary increase in the military establishment, very earnest consideration was given by the committees of the two Houses of Congress and by the department to the principles which would be followed in creating a tremendous emergency facing the nation. Our own history and experience with the volunteer system afforded little precedent because of the new con- ditions, and the experience of European nations was neither uniform nor wholly adequate. Our adversary, the German Empire, had for many years followed the practice of universal compulsory military training and service, so that it was a nation of trained soldiers. In France the same situation had existed. In England, on the other hand, the volunteer system had continued, and the British army was rela- tively a small body. The urgency, however, of the British need at the outbreak of the war, and the unbroken traditions of England, were against even the delay necessary to consider the principle upon which action might best be taken, so that England's first effort was reduced to that voluntary system, and her subsequent resort to the draft was made after a long experience in raising vast numbers of men by volun- tary enlistments as a result of campaigns of agitation and patriotic ap- peal. The war in Europe, however, had lasted long enough to make 328 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY quite clear the character of the contest. It was obviously no such war as had ever before occurred, either in the vast number of men necessary to be engaged in strictly military occupations or in the elaborate and far-reaching organization of industrial and civil society of the nation back of the army. Our military legislation was drafted after very earnest considera- tion, to accomplish the following objects : 1. To provide in successive bodies adequate numbers of men to be trained and used as combatant forces. 2. To select for these armies men of suitable age and strength. 3. To distribute the burden of the military defense of the nation in the most equitable and democratic manner, and to that end to recognize the universality of the obligation of service. 4. To reserve to the public authorities power so to control the selec- tion of soldiers as to prevent the absorption of men indispensable to agriculture and industry, and to prevent the loss of national strength involved by the acceptance into the rhilitary service of men whose greatest usefulness is in scientific pursuits or in agricultural produc- tion. 5. To select, so far as may be, those men for military service whose family and domestic obligations could best bear their separation from home and dependents, and thus to cause the least possible distress among the families of the nation as a whole, and assuming both the obligation and the willingness of the citizen to give the maximum of service, institute a national process for the expression of our military, indus- trial, and financial strength, all at its highest, and with the least waste, loss, and distress. The people soon saw the essential fairness of the selective draft. They saw it meant honor to the men who could compose the great American army. The word "selective" indicated that the government would find a man and say to him; "A great work is to be done. The government needs strong men, fighters, brave men who will go on and accomplish the purpose of this war. You are such a man. Come." The argument was good. Its interpretation came to mean exactly this : The man inducted into the American National Army was hon- ored above his fellows who, falling short, were not acceptable to the HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 329 government. The men of the National Army, save in few instances, felt honored. They were honored. The ages first agreed upon for the men to be chosen by selective draft were twenty-one to thirty-one inclusive, which meant that a man who had not yet reached the age of thirty-two years should be drafted. The War Department had asked for ages eighteen to twenty-eight. Within a year the larger range of ages was seen to be right, and the draft ages became from eighteen to forty-five, partly in order to deal more effectively with the labor needs of essential industries. But in order to assure supply of educated young men as officers and for technical work the younger ages were assisted to go to college rather than sent immediately into the field. The selective draft law was pronounced constitutional by the United States Supreme Court, its operation worked out by the War Depart- ment, its interpretation given to the press, and the work of the new army-making machinery was begun. The W^ork of Crowder The directing head of the draft system was Provost Marshal Crow- der, whose efficient methods of applying the selective draft and explain- ing its many angles and various provisions won the admiration of the entire nation and its allies. Provost Marshal General Crowder was ofifered as a reward for his achievement immediate promotion to lieutenant general but modestly refused it on the grounds that he did not deserve more than many others who had made the American war machine possible. Draft boards were appointed throughout the country, composed of business and professional men; the nation was divided into small dis- tricts; registrars were appointed for each district, who acted without pay; and the time set for the registration on June 5, 191 7, of the mil- lions of American men whose age^ were twenty-one to thirty-one inclu- sive. Pro-Hun agitators predicted riot and insurrection. There was opposition only by isolated cranks; 9,586,508 men walked quietly to the appointed places and registered. Buena Vista County regis- tered 1,932. The following is the list of men who served without pay: 330 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Bui:na Vista County Registrars E. L., Chindlund, Brooke Frank W. Mack, Storm Lake, H. L. Steig-, Washington Fourth Ward Robert Gring, Hayes Roy U. Kinne, Storm Lake, Fourth John C. Bell, Storm Lake, Third Ward Ward Don G. LaGrange, Storm Lake, R. A. Jones, Storm Lake, Third Second Ward Ward T. D. Filers, Storm Lake, First L. C. Anderson, Elk Ward W. L. Clough, Lee H. G. Mittelstadt, Storm Lake, D. E. Ingram, Lee First Ward C. L. Sipe, Sioux Rapids J. N. Horlacher, Washington J. H. Wegerslev, Marathon Oscar Peterson, Maple Valley Joel E. Johnson, Poland W. L. Holtz, Newell C. J. Benna, Fairfield L. F. Parker, Newell C. E. Gulbranson, Albert City James Jensen, Providence H. L. Pierce, Linn Grove A. B. Haeth, Providence E. O. Loe, Barnes S. B. Crouch, Grant H. C. Berger, Rembrandt James G. Anderson, Coon Fred A. Nelson, Rembrandt Ira Angier, Storm Lake Township G. H. Edwards, Storm Lake C. H. Wegerslev, Alta Township L. E. Swanson, Alta A. C. Smith, Storm Lake, Second R. A. Edwards, Scott Ward R. H. Leonard, Lee Fred H. Higgins, Grant Louis Morris, Brooke Robert C. Fulton, Hayes The registrants had been clerks, farmers, factory workers, miners, teachers, students, professional men, idle millionaires. But they all quickly became soldiers. Many of them became heroes on the field of action, all of them were heroes in the hearts of their own people. The Procession Overseas As the camps were completed and enlarged and as the officers' train- ing camps graduated leaders, more calls were filled by the draft boards and the National Army grew. Then the War Department began send- ing units to Europe. Some were taken to England for last training, and others found their last training camps in France. And more men were called from civil life to the cantonments. Provost Marshal Crowder, meanwhile, was watching everything connected with the operation of the selective draft and the making of HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 331 an army. He saw that many hmidreds of thousands of youths not twenty-one years of age when the law became operative, were reach- ing their majority, and Congress passed an act bringing such young men under the jurisdiction of the new law. President Wilson, with the anniversary idea in mind, issued a proclamation naming June 5, 1918, as the day for such youths to register. This brought 735,834 youngsters into the operation of the selective draft law, a heavy per- centage of whom easily qualified physically for service. On August 13, 1918, President Wilson issued a proclamation re- quiring those who had attained the age of twenty-one since the regis- tration of June 5th to register on August 24th. On this supplemen- tary second registration 159,161 young men of age twenty-one were registered. Buena Vista County registered 196 on June 5th and August 24th. The military situation in August was such that it was seen that all class one men would be called by October ist, and with the general program of the War Department 2,000,000 men would have to be called to service by June, 1919, in addition to those called by October 1st. A bill was, therefore, passed by Congress, and signed by the President on August 31st, to register all male citizens and declarants between the ages of eighteen and forty-five, both inclusive. The proclamation was issued for holding the registration on September 12, 1918. The total registration was 12,966,594. Buena Vista County registered a total of 4,377. The total number of men in the army, navy, and marine corps was 4,178,172, of which 2,810,296 men were inducted through the selective service. LocAi, Board for Buena Vista County Under the act of Congress of May 18, 1917, every sheriff and county clerk (in Iowa the county auditor) was appointed as a member of county registration boards, and asked and expected to serve without compensation, which this board did. In the latter part of June, 19 17, the registration board was discharged as their work was finished, and immediately thereafter the President appointed the same county offi- cers to constitute local exemption boards. The registration board and the first exemption board of this county was made up of Dr. J. H. 332 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY O'Donoghue, medical member, Auditor W. W. Bennett, and Sheriff B. F. Skeels, who acted as secretary. In the latter part of July, after Dr. O'Donoghue had enlisted in the medical division of the army, Dr. F. C. Foley of Newell was appointed by Governor W. L. Harding as the medical member of the board, and with the above named county officers served until the close of the war. In addition to these. Dr. J. W. Morrison of Alta, Dr. J. A. Swallum, Dr. E. D. Banghart, and Dr. R. V. Graves, all of Storm Lake, and Dr. M. N. Armstrong of Newell, were appointed by the governor as assistant examining phy- sicians of the board, though they did not have the standing as regularly constituted members. Clerks who assisted with the work of the board were Miss Ida Eckert of Storm Lake, Mrs. Edwin Hoch of Storm Lake, Charles Rawlins of Storm Lake, and Carl Larson, a limited service man from Red Oak, Iowa. Provost MarshaIv's Report A resume of the duties and problems of the local boards is covered in the following quotations from the report of Provost Marshal Crow- der. The duty of the local board was to mobilize the selectives as directed. But in this concise statement is comprised the entire gamut of a hun- dred complex processes. Except for the initial registration of June 5, 191 7, the local boards had charge of every one of the steps in the transit from home to camp. The registration was the first main stage of the process. Then came the determination of order and serial numbers. The classifica- tion was the next and largest stage. And finally came the call and the entrainment. But each of these parts became itself a center for many minor processes, and each of these in turn for others. Moreover, each individual case had its own variety or peculiarity, and led to special inquiries and deliberations. Add to this, that records must be accu- rately kept of each act done in every part of every registrant's case. And, besides the attention necessary for merely reaching an official decision, there was added the time and labor demanded in almost every case for a cluster of tentative and informal inquiries appurtenant to matters coming before the board. The regulations composed a thick HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 333 volume, numbering 250 sections and 433 pages, with more than 100 important forms ; and these must be mastered for daily and instant use. In short, the duties of the local boards, even when considered merely in the dry enumeration of their several details, constituted a complete and intricate administrative system. It would be idle here to set them forth in detail ; suffice it to say that there is scarcely a page in the entire volume of regulations which does not contain a half dozen times, in endless variety, that most familiar phrase of duty, "The local board shall proceed" to do this or that. The annals of every board, no doubt, here run much the same. But the following letter to a state adjutant general, with its frank but good-humored repartee and its revelation of dogged perseverance un- der a hopeless overload, may be taken as typical of the cheerful and manly American spirit which helped the boards to carry their heavy duties ; the letter was written in response to a request for an immediate report of progress due to be made in the classification of registrants of September 12, 191 8: Sir : Because this board and its meager staff is so busy Counseling registrants — Reconciling mothers — Patiently answering dozens of inquiries by mail, telephone, and tele- graph — Issuing permits for passports — Writing to transfer boards and telHng them what to do with Form 2008- A — Making out induction papers for S. A. T. C. registrants — Copying our 4,439 registration cards — Writing up cover sheets — Hunting up questionnaires without order numbers in order to ap- pend additional late arrival affidavits of the X. Y. Z. Co. for deferred industrial classification in Class II of aliens (who are sure to be in Class V) — Preparing routings and transportation requests for individual inductants under competent orders, who are to be entrained for Kelly Field, San Antonio, Texas, or Carlstrom Field, Arcadia, Florida — Counseling the poor innocents as to how many "suits of underwear shall I take?" — Advising them firmly though with kindness what while requests for tourist sleeping-car accommodations will be issued to them, our experi- i 334 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY ence is that there will be no tourist cars available, and that they will sleep on the floor — Preparing seven meal tickets, three copies for each man — Issuing new registration cards and new final classification cards to men who have "had their pocketbooks stolen" (?) and are afraid of being rounded up — Issuing certificates of immunity to 46-year old men who present proofs of birth date so that they won't be rounded up — Advising colored ladies (to their manifest satisfaction) as to pros- pective Government allotments and allowances to come from their casual spouses when in the service — Telling anxious Y. M. C. A. recruits how they can apply to have their cases reopened and claims for occupational exemption consid- ered — Advising by mail the assistant district attorney of county, who desire to prosecute a registrant for not supporting a wife — Trying to keep several thousand questionnaires and registration cards, minus order numbers as yet, out of irremediable chaos due to lack of filing cabinets or other facilities — Reconciling our hardworking limited service man to writing up his "daily morning reports" on a form adapted for a full company of men, including mules — Conducting voluminous correspondence with perturbed mustering- in officers at distant cantonments about registrants who have been picked up without Form 1007 in their possession and shot into camp without proper induction papers in order that some yap deputy sheriff can get the $50 reward because he needed the money — Futilely registering ex-soldiers and sailors discharged for physical disability — Getting into a corner occasionally and going crazy trying to study out an abstruse legal problem from an interesting 433 page textbook called Selective Service Regulations, second edition. Form 99-A — Classifying questionnaires — Engaging, for physical examinations of several hundred men, doc- tors who are already bereft of their wits on account of the Spanish influenza — Preparing dozens and dozens and dozens of Form loio for these ex- aminations, three copies of each - — Postponing the examinations after all, because the doctors simply can't come, and redating all the Forms lOio — Doing dozens more things daily and nightly and Sundays and holi- days, of which the foregoing are mere samples — HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 335 Because, I say, the board and its meager staff are so busy with a number of such matters, I beg to report — That, though probably about half the questionnaires of the "First series, registrants of September, 1918," have been classified, we haven't time or inclination or energy to count them, even approximately ; about half the physical examinations have been concluded, and on Sunday we are going to try to catch up with our correspondence, if the master list doesn't come, which we presume it will, however, in which event, we hope to have four volunteer typists pound out five copies of Form 102 (the churches are all closed, so it won't matter) — and, anyhow, we lost the "Progress chart" the very day it arrived, and it is our opinion, if we may be permitted the liberty to express it, that what the Government wants (or ought to want in the present urgency) is men, not classifications, and we firmly believe that the boys on the firing line in France don't care a whoop in hades how many registrants Local Board No. 3 of Union County classifies in Class V or in Class IV, Division A, so we called out every man who made no claim or who waived all claims, or who had a manifestly insufficient claim, classified him at once, and called him for physical examination; if it were not for the blessed epidemic, we should be ready to report practically fuli completion of physical examinations now ; but we shall be in any event, with a week, even if we explode in the attempt and incapacitate for all time the few remaining distraught doctors that are still available to cajolery and patriotic urging; in the meantime, we shall classify- now and then, when we can, an alien or two, to swell our general list of classifications. The fact is, we have been wanting to write this letter since we were appointed in May, 191 7, so excuse it please. Furthermore — and we say this in no mood of rancor or in undue pride of spirit — we don't care if you do send it to the Provost Marshal General. In fact, we wish you would. No more benevolent attention could accrue to mem- bers of local boards than the gently joys of court-martial and cool retirement somewhere in nice quiet cells, fed and cared for, during the period of the balance of the Emergency. And further deponent sayeth not (because his wife has just tele- phoned as to why the deuce he doesn't come home, he'll surely be sick), and will now quench the midnight shining bulb, and go, and try to get around early in the morning and endeavor to find that lost "Progress chart" (drat it). But it is idle to attempt to put into words here the full story of what the local boards achieved. Every military man must recognize what 336 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY they did for the nation's army; and every civihan must recognize what they did for the nation's Hberty and welfare. And every American is proud of them. Whatever of credit is accorded to other agencies of the selective service law, the local boards must be deemed the corner- stone of the system. Government Appeal Agents Local and district boards had exclusive authority to pass upon ques- tions vitally affecting the interests of the individual and the Govern- ment. But there is fallibility in all bodies exercising judicial func- tions ; and it was early foreseen that, whatever the character and ability of the personnel of such boards, errors of judgment would undoubted- ly creep in. These occurrences, unless an ample opportunity was given to correct them, would tend to raise doubt in the mind of the American public as to the fairness of the execution of the law relied upon to pro- duce our armies. Provision was therefore made at the outset by which individuals were given adequate means, in cases affecting their inter- est, to make their appeal from the boards of original jurisdiction to appellate tribunals. But it would have been manifestly unwise to provide such safeguards for individuals and yet to neglect to make similar provisions for the full protection of the interest of the Govern- ment. In the majority of instances, county and city attorneys were ap- pointed to perform these duties. The Government appeal agent ap- pointed for Buena Vista County was Guy E. Mack, county attorney. Under the selective service regulations effective December 15, 191 7, the governors of the various states were authorized to designate for each local board one or more persons to take appeals for and on behalf of the United States. Their duties, however, were so enlarged that they were now re- quired to appeal, from deferred classifications by a local board, rulings which in the opinion of the appeal agent were erroneous ; to care for the interests of ignorant registrants; to inform them of their rights, where the decision of the local board was against the interests of such persons, or where it appeared that such persons would not take appeals, due to their nonculpable ignorance, and to assist them to enter appeals HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 337 to the district board; to investigate and report upon matters submitted for such purpose by local or district boards ; to suggest a reopening of any case where the interests of justice might require ; to impart to the local board any information which in the opinion of the appeal agent ought to be investigated; to furnish suggestions and information to the district boards; to instruct local boards to take additional proof; to receive information from interested persons affecting any case under the jurisdiction of the boards where such interested persons did not desire to make a personal disclosure to the boards; and to prepare appeals in any cases, whether by the registrant or by the Government, where he considered appeals to be to the interest of the Government. In these various capacities the Government appeal agent was author- ized to administer oaths; and, in fact, a large proportion of the time of the appeal agents was taken up in assisting with the probate of questionnaires. We quote from provost marshal general's report : The outstanding fact that this duty was performed uncomplainingly and without any compensation whatever, places them in the enviable position of the patriot who is unrewarded, save in the consciousness of duty well performed, and in the knowledge that both the Government and the people composing it proudly acknowledge a debt which can not be liquidated. Legai. Advisory Board The legal adage that "Ignorance of the law is no excuse" could not, as a practical proposition, be applied to the administration of the selec- tive service law. After a very few months of the draft it was recog- nized that a law which applied alike to the literate and illiterate, and the success of which depended upon the prompt compliance of regis- trants, could be successfully enforced only by careful instruction of the people as to its requirements and by assisting them in meeting those requirements. Some ready and competent means of bringing the selective service system to registrants of every description and of assisting them in dis- charging the duties imposed by the draft, were obviously necessary. The selective service law and regulations contained many technical requirements which people not versed in legal matters might find con- fusing. In searching the field for an agency which might meet the 338 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY situation, the legal profession was naturally resorted to as the institu- tion best fitted for the service. The fullest success of the plan for availing the selective service system of the services of attorneys, and of other citizens in a position to assist registrants, could be attained only by the utilization of the maximum number of attorneys. It was, however, realized that greater efficiency would be had by constituting small committees. These could be held to strict accountability. For the assistance of those commit- tees, as many other attorneys and other public spirited citizens as possible would be associated. Pursuant to this plan, there was con- stituted for each local board a legal advisory board, composed of three reputable attorneys, whose duties were to see that there should always be a competent force of. lawyers or laymen available to registrants at any time during which the local or district boards within such district were open for business. To legal advisory boards fell the task of mobilizing assistant advisers for their districts and of distributing as evenly as possible the work to be exacted of them. These latter ad- visers were called associated legal advisers. Legal advisory members were constantly consulted with reference to legislation cognate to the selective service act. Particularly was this so in the case of the soldiers' and sailors' civil rights act and the war risk insurance act. The task of legal advisers lasted for the duration of the war. When it became apparent that Class I was not as large as had been reckoned upon, and that a general rectification was necessary, legal advisory board members were asked in May of 1918 to cooperate with local boards in accomplishing that reclassification. With this request there was a most hearty compliance. Again, in September, 1918, the new registration laid upon the selective service officials a task equivalent to all that they had previously accomplished, and legal advisory boards were again called upon to help meet the situation. Willingly and promptly they reconvened, and placed themselves at the disposal of the new registrants, as they had done with respect to the old. Provost Marshal Crowder says : There is no brighter chapter in the history of the draft than that of the services rendered by the law5^ers of the country. Legal advisers HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 339 richly deserve the credit for upholding- the tradition of American fair- ness in the administration of her laws. Not only did the expert advice accorded by the lawyers of the country contribute toward the expedi- tious creation of an army; but the impression of equity engendered by their services was of inestimable value in developmg and in main- taining a healthy morale in the body politic. On the honor list of the war must be numbered the thousands of lawyers and other public- spirited citizens who, without emolument and without the glory of the battlefield, served their country by supporting and aiding in the admin- istration of the most drastic legislation of the last half century. A. L. Whitney Legai, Advisory Board James DeLand, Chairman A. D. Bailie Associate Legal Advisers STORM I.AKE W. C. Edson Guy E. Mack J. E. Buland Roy Kinne T. H. Chapman SIOUX RAPIDS C. L. Sipe T. M. Murdock LINN GROVE E. O. Loe H. L. Pierce MARATHON J. H. Wegerslev E. B. Weils ALBERT CITY A. L. Bergling C. E. Gulbranson NEWELL Geo. W. Chancy L. F. Parker Ab Foster REMBRANDT H. H. Covey H. C. Berger TRUESDALE H. H. Lang G. F. Thompson ALTA C. H. Wegerslev A. R. Browne G. F. Tincknell GRANT TOWNSHIP Rev. F. Albrecht BuENA Vista County Instruction Board eor Drafted Men A. E. Harrison, Chairman C. E. Akers, Storm Lake R. R. Morrow, Sioux Rapids S. G. Reinertsen, Alta D. M. Bateson, Linn Grove C. B. Whitehead, Albert City H. H. Linton, Newell The purpose of this board was to meet drafted men two to four 340 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY times before they left for service. Instruction was given in the causes of war, why America entered the war and why America must win the war. The necessary character of the American soldier was taken up in detail with information concerning the duties of a soldier upon entering camp. Complete information was given concerning the work of the United War Work Organizations and the services they ren- dered and the assistance given by the American Red Cross. War risk insurance, compensation, and allotments and allowances were explained and advice was given concerning the securing of these. Points and suggestions were given about keeping well and in keep- ing the body clean and free from venereal diseases. Instruction was also given in military courtesies. This board was organized June 15, 1918. Instruction was given to 600 men, in twelve different meetings. A large number of the men were met two times and some more than two times. The work of this board was being fully developed at the time of the signing of the armistice and the work was disbanded November 15, 1918. Provost Marshal Crowder, in his report, says: The value of this work in fitting them to become good soldiers more rapidly is shown by the numerous reports from the boards of instruc- tion, relating with satisfaction that a large number of their men who had taken this training were made noncommissioned officers within a short time after arrival at camp. Had the war continued, and had the new registrants of ages eigh- teen to forty-five been called into the military service, there can be no doubt that the work of the boards of instruction would have been a most effective means of improving the pre-induction morale of the selectives, and thus of making more effective the organized army. Transporting the Army After the entrance of the United States into the war, missions of a diplomatic and military character from the great belligerent countries at war with Germany visited the United States. Upon each of them men of military distinction and soldiers of prominence came to bring us the benefit of the experience of their respective armies in the war. As a result of the exchanges of views which took place between the military missions to the United States and our own Government, it HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 341 was determined to begin at once the dispatch of an expeditionary force of the American army to France. General John J. Pershing was selected as commander in chief and with his staff departed for France, to be followed shortly by a full division. Immediately thereafter there was formed the so-called Rainbow Division, made up of National Guard units of many states. The pur- pose of its organization was to distribute the honor of early partici- pation in the war over a wide area. The marines, with their fine traditions and honorable history, were likewise recognized, and regi- ments of marines were added to the first forces dispatched. These were all safely transported and enabled to traverse without loss the so-called danger zone infested by the stealthy and destructive subma- rine of the enemy. The organization and dispatch of the expedition- ary force required the preparation of an elaborate transport system, involving not only the procurement of ships and their refitting for service as troop and cargo transports, but also extensive organizations of terminal facilities both in this country and France; and in order to surround the expeditonary force with every safeguard, a large surplus of supplies of every kind were immediately placed at their disposal in France. Our activities in this regard resulted in the transporting of an army to France fully equipped, with adequate reserves of equip- ment and subsistence, and with those large quantities of transportation appliances, motor vehicles, railroad construction supplies, and animals, all of which were necessary for the maintenance and effective opera- tions of the force. The act authorizing the temporary increase of the military estab- lishment empowered the department to create special organizations of technical troops. Under this provision railroad and stevedore regi- ments were formed, and special organizations of repair men and mechanics to render service back of the French and English lines in anticipation of and training for their later service with the American army. By this means, the United States had already rendered service of great value to the common cause, these technical troops having actually carried on operations for which they were designed in effec- tive cooperation with the British and French armies behind hotly con- tested battle fronts. 342 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Raii^roading in France The following is by William F. Bryant and Arthur J. Johnson of the Thirteenth Railway Engineers. These men were together through- out the entire period of their enlistment. We landed in France on August 17, 191 7, and immediately were sent to Chalons where we spent about six weeks learning to operate French trains. The French trains were not very much like our Amer- ican trains, the average size of their engines runs smaller than ours and their freight cars are very much smaller, and I am sure that any men of the A. E. F. will remember them well as they probably have all had a ride as passengers on them. Nearly all the cars have a sign, "Eight Horses or Forty Men" as their capacity. From Chalons we went to Fleury-sur-Aire, which is located about five miles from the front lines. This town was the headquarters of the Thirteenth Railway Engineers. There were about 1,200 men in our regiment. These men represented all the various lines of work required to operate a system of railroads: such as conductors, brake- men, engineers, firemen, operators, dispatchers, trackmen, repair men, etc., and our officers acted in the same capacity as superintendents, trainmasters, road supervisors, and other executive positions as handled in this country. The average train crew consisted of an engineer, a fireman, a con- ductor, and three brakemen. These crews usually had a regular "run" between certain terminals or towns, such as between Sommeille and Verdun. This was a distance of about sixty kilometers. The loads carried on this train varied from troops to ammunition and supplies of all kinds. The trains had to stop at all stations intervening between these points to have their orders signed by the operator at each station. The round trip on this "run," for instance, might take from twelve to seventy hours, according to the difficulties they might meet with enroute. The possibility of delay ranged from having the track dam- aged by enemy shellfire or aerial bombs to the train being hit by enemy shellfire or aerial bombardment or on account of gas attack. The ammunition and supplies carried would be unloaded at the terminal or at the point nearest to the front lines to which the train could be taken. The unloading was done by a special detail of soldiers located at these points. Embarkation Service In the nineteen months elapsing from the declaration of war to the signing of the armistice, the army created an embarkation service HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 343 which succeeded in shipping overseas 2,075,834 men and 5,153,000 tons of cargo. Even these figures do not adequately express the extraor- dinary nature of the achievement. As time was required for the drafting and training of men and for organizing the production of suppHes, most of the stupendous movement occurred in the last half of our active participation in the war. In the final ten months, from January i, 1918, to the signing of the armistice, the army embarked 1,880,339 men and shipped 4,660,000 tons of cargo. Nothing to compare with the movement of this tremendous number of men and tons of supplies across the Atlantic Ocean is known in the military history of the world. Organization of the Embarkation Service At the start of the war the quartermaster's department was main- taining a small steamer service to Panama, in addition to the transport service from the Pacific Coast to the Philippines ; and the transporta- tion of troops and supplies for the expeditionary force was given over to this department. Two primary ports of embarkation were estab- lished, one with headquarters at Hoboken, New Jersey, and the other at Newport News, Virginia, and each was placed under the command of a general officer. A number of American steamers were chartered as transports and the North German Lloyd and Hamburg-American piers at Hoboken were taken over. In February, 1918, as the move- ment of troops and supplies continued to increase in volume, and the diversity and complexity of the problems of securing and loading suitable ships became greater, the shipping control committee was created and charged with responsibility for the allocation and distribu- tion of available ships and for the exchange of tonnage with the Allies, with the loading and unloading of cargo in United States ports, coal- ing, supplies, repairs, and inspection and manning of vessels except those commanded by the navy. It also has had charge of the manage- ment and operation of docks, piers, slips, and the loading and dis- charging facilities connected therewith. Port Deveeopments New York and Newport News remained the principal ports of em- barkation, half the cargo and over four-fifths of the troops being shipped from the former and a fourth of the cargo from the latter. 344 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY The two other principal ports used were Baltimore and Philadelphia, while smaller shipments were made from New Orleans, Charleston, Jacksonville, and Boston. The army shipped cargo through the port of New York during the fall of 191 8 at the rate of 400,000 tons a month, and did this with an average detention in port for the large army cargo transports of only fifteen days. To care for the troop movement through New York two camps of embarkation were established — Camp Merritt, com- pleted in the fall of 191 7 at Tenafiy, New Jersey, and Camp Mills, on Long Island, put in service in September, 1917. Each of these camps had a capacity of 40,000 men. Space for 20,000 was later provided at Camp Upton on Long Island. During the fall of 1918 the port of Newport News was developed to a point such that cargo to the extent of 150,000 tons a month and. animals to the number of 20,000 a month were shipped through it. At Baltimore and Philadelphia, during the fall of 1 91 8, each of these ports handled 80,000 tons of freight a month. Troop Movement Movement of troops overseas began, at the earnest solicitation of our co-belligerents, very soon after our entrance into the war. May, our first month in the war, saw the dispatch abroad of selected per- sonnel to the number of 1,718. In June 12,261 troops and 2,798 marines were embarked. By the end of the year, as the former Ger- man liners came into service, embarkation increased to a rate of 50,000 a month. By the end of December 187,916 troops and 7,579 marines had been embarked. At this point negotiations were entered into with the British Gov- ernment by which three of its big fast liners and four smaller troop ships were definitely assigned to the service of our army. In March the movement jumped to 83,782 troops and 1,081 marines. It was in this month that the great German spring drive took place in Picardy, with a success that threatened to result in a German victory. Every ship that could be secured was pressed into service, and the aid fur- nished by the British was greatly increased. It was then that the trans- port miracle took place. In April 117,205 troops and 1,432 marines were embarked; in May 244,344 troops and 1,606 marines; and in HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 345 June the numbers were 277,973 ^^^ 777- Before the first of July 1,000,000 men had been embarked. The July record exceeded all expectations, the number of troops embarked being 306,185, and before the end of October the second million men had sailed from our shores. During the three months, June, July, and August, 875,753 ^nen were embarked. When the armistice was signed the total embarkations amounted to 2,045,169 troops and 30,665 marines. No troop movement such as that of the summer of 1918 had ever been contemplated, and no other movement of any such number of people by water such a distance and in such a time has ever occurred. The performance stands unique in the world's history. Furthermore, this performance wrought a decisive efifect upon the world's history at one of its great critical junctures. Credit for this movement must be shared with the Allies, and with the British in particular, since approximately half of the troops were carried in their ships. At the same time it must be recognized that under the pressure of the critical situation on the western front ways were found to increase the loading of our own transports by as much as fifty per cent, and that our transports exceeded those of the Allies both in the extent to which they were loaded and in the speed of their turn-around. Too high praise cannot be given our navy, which armed, manned, and convoyed the troopships, for its efficient cooperation. S1.EEPING ON Wave Washed Decks Written by Private Eskil M. Westlin. It didn't require a tonsorial artist to get us in shape to go overseas. At Camp Merritt we spent most of a night waiting for our turn at the clippers, where the operators took turns at manipulating the tool and at turning the handle for power. Orders to march to dock arrived at 2 a.m. It was a long, hard march and in spite of threats of court martial some of the men fell out along the way, to be picked up by trucks which would come after.. Though tired and hungry we boarded the ferry boat about 6:30 without any breakfast and did not have anything to eat until the Red Cross served us just before going onto the transport at 11:30. Their coffee and sandwiches tasted wonderfully good. When, because of crowded con- dition on the Plattsburg, we were assigned to quarters on deck we felt 346 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY that we were pretty lucky, but we changed our minds about mid-ocean. We were struck by a storm which lasted three days. The first night a buddie and myself were laying on deck when it was impossible to sleep for the roar of the water. Finally the old ship stuck her nose under a big wave, the water from which washed down with terrific force and speed, and though we got to our feet our equipment was soaking wet. The next night, while lying in about the same position, with slickers on and wearing life preservers for pillows, sleep out of the question, we were again swept by a wave which soaked us through and through. We then went below to lie down in water soaked cloth- ing in the corridors between state rooms, and from sheer exhaustion slept well even if the crew did walk over us all night. Next morning it was so rough the stewards could not serve any breakfast; it was almost impossible to get the chow from the kitchen to the mess hall. They did manage to get up a couple of. barrels of apples, which were all we had to eat until supper time. Two meals a day was the schedule on ship board. We were denied the consolation of tobacco, for we had not been permitted to go to the canteen before sailing, and it was difficult to get it on deck. The ship's store seemed to be for the accommodation of crew and officers only. A requisition made by our supply sergeant was filled just a short time before we landed. After our experience on deck we found it agreeable to be assigned to quarters below the water line, though it was hot there. A few days before we landed, and when reaching the danger zone, the convoy was met by sub-chasers., which bobbed about in the rough waters so much that their masts were just discernible above the waves. In the night our convoy was split up, some going to England and some to Brest, France. The rest camp to which we went was in a low place and was surrounded by a fence built of earth. Though our company had never seen a pup tent pitched we were ordered to pitch ours when it began to rain, and we got them together in irregular shape. Half a cup of coffee, a small slice of bread, and a slice of bacon constituted our breakfast the next morning while preparations were being made for more complete cooking. Some of us who were detailed to handle baggage at the docks slept one night in the big shed, and the next morning staggered around as badly as though we were still on deck. Cargo Movement Altogether from our entrance into the war until the signing of the armistice the army shipped from this side of the Atlantic 5,153,000 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 347 tons of cargo. Unlike the case with regard to the troop movement, this cargo was carried ahiiost entirely in American bottoms, and less than five per cent was lifted by foreign ships. Of all the cargo shipped, only 79,000 tons were lost at sea. Included in the cargo shipment were 1,145 consolidation locomo- tives of the 100-ton type. Of these' 350 were shipped set up on their own wheels so that they could be unloaded onto the tracks in France and run off in a few hours under their own steam. Shipment of set-up locomotives of this size had never been made before. Special ships with large hatches were withdrawn from the Cuban ore trade for the purpose, and the hatches of other ships were especially lengthened, so that when the armistice was signed the army was prepared to ship these set-up locomotives at the rate of 200 a month. The army also shipped 17,000 standard-gauge freight cars, and at the termination of hostilities were preparing to ship flat cars set up and ready to run. Motor trucks to the number of 34,433 went forward, and when fighting ceased were being shipped at the rate of 10,000 a month. Rails and fittings for the reenforcing of French railways and for the construction of our own lines of communication aggregated 423,000 tons. In addition to the tons of cargo mentioned above the army shipped 54,000 horses and mules, and at the cessation of hostili- ties was shipping them at the rate of 20,000 a month. The increase in the shipment of cargo from the United States was consistently main- tained from the start of the war, and at its cessation was undergoing marked acceleration. Aside from the cargo shipped across the Atlan- tic General Pershing imported large amounts from European sources, the chief item being coal from England. In October he brought into France by means of his cross-channel fleet a total of 275,000 tons of coal and other commodities. Growth gi;' Army Transport Fleet The task laid upon the army of creating a great transport fleet at a time when the world was experiencing its most acute tonnage shortage was a heavy one. At the outbreak of the war a start was made at once by chartering a few of the American merchant steamers immediately at hand, and at the end of June there were in service seven troop ships 348 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY with deadweight of 46,000 tons and six cargo ships with deadweight of 48,000 tons. From these small beginnings there was developed a great trans-Atlantic fleet which on November i, 1918, included thirty-nine troop ships of 390,198 tons, thirty-eight animal transports of 372,011 tons, four tankers of 31,271 tons, and 228 cargo ships of 1,807,336 tons. In addition General Pershing had gathered a cross-channel fleet which numbered 104 vessels and aggregated 311,087 tons. Accordingly the army had in service on November i, 1918, a fleet of its own amounting to 431 ships and totalling 3,004,445 deadweight tons. At this time it also had definitely assigned to it sixteen alhed troop ships approximat- ing 150,000 deadweig-ht tons and 160,000 tons of loaned British cargo ships. On November 13th, two days after the signing of the armistice, the army had American shipping either in operation or under definite allocation totalling 3,800,000 deadweight tons, a fleet over twice as large as the entire American merchant marine engaged in "foreign trade at the start of the war. In building up this fleet the first great increment, especially in the matter of troop transports, was the seized German vessels. These ships came into service during the fall of 191 7 and accounted for ap- proximately 460,000 tons. In the spring of 1918 the taking over of the Dutch steamers gave the army the use of another 300,000 tons. The chartering of Scandinavian and Japanese tonnage during 1918, which relieved the whole tonnage position of our country, also was reflected in the growth of the army fleet. The War Trade Bureau, by drastic restrictions of non-essential imports made possible the release of large amounts of shipping from the import trades. During the whole period of active hostilities the army lost at sea 'only 200,000 deadweight tons of transports. Of this total 142,000 tons were sunk by torpedoes. No American troop transport was lost on its eastward voyage. For this splendid record the navy, which arranged the convoy system, deserves the highest commendation. Our troop ship fleet, including the slower vessels, averaged under forty days for a complete turn-around or cycle. The faster ships averaged under thirty days. During the summer the Leviathan transported troops at the rate of over 400 a day, at which rate she landed the equivalent of a German division in France each month. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 349 Two American ships, the Great Northern and Northern Pacific, have each made a turn-around in nineteen days. French Ports At the cessation of hostihties the army was using twelve French ports with a permanent assignment of seventy berths, and was dis- charging supphes at the rate of 1,000,000 a month, a rate exceeding that maintained by the British during the period of their operations in France. The work of the army engineers in building up in a foreign country, 3,000 miles removed by sea from their base, such a colossal port service in so short a time must rank among the greatest achieve- ments of the war. Situation at the Cessation oe Hostieities When the armistice was signed, the army's shipping position was strong and was increasing in proportion to the demands of its great program. Over 3,000,000 deadweight tons of American shipping were actually in its service and 800,000 more were allocated to enter its service. Additional tonnage was being delivered to it at the rate of a half million tons a month. While for the moment its own shipping was still somewhat behind requirements, a temporary loan of British tonnage had been arranged for, and the increase in our own ship build- ing promised the return of this loan before spring and the repayment of it before the end of the following summer. At the time hostilities ceased the supply of cargo at ports was ade- quate, the performances of the transports were at a high point of efficiency, and the French ports were proving equal to the burdens laid upon them. With the decreasing submarine menace and the increas- ing shipbuilding, good reason existed for confidence with respect to the army's ability to carry out the shipping requirements of the great Eightieth Division program. The whole record of the army shipping organization was the cooperative effort of the embarkation service, the shipping control committee, the French port organization, and the cooperating branches of the navy, which made possible our effective and decisive participation in the war. After the armistice was signed every ship was withdrawn from the service as soon as it could be 350 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY spared and put back into trades or the carrying of foods for relief work in Europe. Hoi^i^man's Stormy Trip Sam L. Hofifman tells a story of a trip overseas that involves con- flicting orders, a fight against the influenza which grew rampant among the men, fear of a court-martial, and the loss of men overboard because their hob-nailed shoes could not hold a footing on deck when high seas were running. HofTman enlisted in the first officers' training camp at Fort Snell- ing, Minnesota, May 15, 191 7, expecting to be assigned to an engi- neers' company. He was kept in suspense on this point for a few days, but was finally placed in the group of his choice. He finished his train- ing course at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, then went to Camp Cody at Deming, New Mexico, for nearly a year. With two other members of his company he was then assigned to take a month's course of study in the use of the new government rifle, at Camp Perry, Ohio. Upon return to his regiment at Camp Cody, he was given command of the engineer group of the Pioneer Infantry and was directed to equip them for over- seas service. Soon after getting everything assembled he was ordered to turn everything in. Almost a wreck from working without sleep, he was subjected three times to the need of drawing and then turning in the company equipment before final orders were received for sailing on H. M. S. Celtic, on what Hoffman describes as probably "the most hellish trip" which a ship ever made : There were thirteen ships in the convoy, six troop ships, five torpedo boat destroyers, and two battleship cruisers. The first day out all hands were kept below decks on account of a submarine which was chasing us and which had shot a hole in a small vessel that we passed in coming out of the harbor. It was so hot below decks that our men nearly suffocated, but the regulations would not permit of opening the hatches. When orders were finally given to take the men on deck one hundred or more were discovered to be so sick they could not be moved. Fears that they were sea sick were removed the following day when the condition of the men was diagnosed as the influenza. Then began one of the most terrible experiences I had during the war ! I did what I could, with the assistance of a second lieutenant who was soon after taken ill. The accommodations for twelve men in the ship's hospital were soon filled, and after some delay officers located a HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 351 place for a hospital that lacked in many ways of meeting the standards generally required for a hospital. Here fifty men were carried, nearly all on the verge of pneumonia. You. can well imagine what the sani- tary conditions of this place were within a few days ! Because I tried to care for ten of the men in their bunks instead of sending them to this poor infirmary I was threatened with court martial by the chief medical officer, but was spared by the kindness of the colonel of our regiment. However, the men were all sent below, and the next morn- ing the first one of mine died. We buried twenty-two of them at sea, and left more than thirty at the hospital in Liverpool, where five died. One man was lost at sea on account of an inspection ordered to be held during rough weather while passing through the English Channel. The men, ordered on deck with full packs, were just as helpless on the steel decks with hob-nailed shoes on as if they had been wearing roller skates. When an unusually large sea hit us on one side and the ship heeled over on the other, five of the boys went skating down the deck like a shot, struck the section of rail that is taken out when baggage is being unloaded, carried it with them and went over the side. One of them went straight to the bottom, two were thrown back against the side of the ship where they could be rescued, and two were picked up by one of the destroyers to join the regiment three months later. Al- though our destination was Glasgow, the day before we were to make port we ran into a nest of subs and had to turn back. After fourteen days from New York we landed in Liverpool. Life; in a Rest Camp A story of the trip to France is not complete without the experiences of the "rest camps" in England. Hoffman's impressions of them were not favorable in the light of the fact that they were gained during the time of a rain which began when he reached England and continued until he left there eight months later. Hofi:man was left with a detail to unload the baggage from the ship, while the others went to the "rest camp" at Winchester. The baggage for 5,000 men and officers was unloaded in about twelve hours. He recounts an incident to show how accommodating an Englishman can be : I had tried all afternoon to learn from a young English captain in charge of transportation when my train Avould leave. The best he could tell me was that it would follow another train which was being loaded. Though we were nearly fagged, twenty-five of us responded to orders to assist in loading the other train. Imagine our surprise when coming back to the former location of our own train to find no 352 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY train there. Of course I hailed the dapper young captain for informa- tion. "My word, old chap, your train has gone and left you," he ex- plained, without amazement. I was scared for a minute but it did not seem to bother this Englishman, for he quietly went over to a telephone on a post, called up some one, and in about twenty minutes here came my train back. It did not seem to be any trouble to have a train that was out in the country fifteen or twenty miles stop and come back. Any man who was over there can tell you what a "rest camp" is. An Iowa hog-yard in March is a fair comparison. After a week here we shipped to Manchester by train, then across the Channel to Cher- bourg, France, and from there marched seven miles to another "rest camp," where most of the men had the "fiu." In the morning we marched back to Cherbourg, there to embark on a journey destined to consume three days and nights, which one of our trains could have covered in five hours. We landed at Mesves hospital center, where they were trying to finish the hospital for the accommodation of 15,000 sick and wounded, returned from field hospitals, who were being shel- tered in tents and wooden buildings. I was assigned the duty of building some narrow gauge railroad and some wagon roads through this mud-hole. It was a job that some one else was doing when I left France and it looked about the same as when we started it. There is no bottom to anything in this country. Car loads of stone dumped on the roads disappear as though they had been dumped in a well. We were not detained on this assignment long, for on the second day we were ordered to report to headquarters of the Second Army, which took us to the front where we would see the big show. Enroute we had the first glimpse of war, for Big Bertha, the long range gun of the Boche, had left her mark in several places. Incide^nts of the: SoIvDier's Life Written by Conrad H. Anderson, private Company D, Three Hun- dred and Sixteenth Infantry, Seventy-ninth Division : I do not know if you think it is great or not to be in the army. Few who are in it do; one feels just like a cog in a machine — no chance to exercise the free will we are wont to boast of. When ordered out of Camp Merritt we hiked six miles to the debarkation point on the Hud- son River. We would have enjoyed the subsequent journey down the river more if we had not been soaked through by a heavy rain on our hike. And then, of course, we felt that we had possibly stepped on our dear American soil for the last time. This was the 29th of August, five weeks after we left Storm Lake. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 353 One order from our commanding officer which seemed ridiculous required us to carry two boxes of hard tack, part of our reserve ration, in the Hfe preservers which we wore all the time. The order was, how- ever, revoked by the. time our hard tack boxes were worn out carrying them around. There is something majestic about traveling on the ocean. The afternoon we landed at Brest we marched through the city. We seemed to read an expression of welcome on the faces of the old people, while the children were running along with us, peddling nuts and begging pennies and cigarets. After dark we marched to the barracks where Napoleon trained his soldiers. I feel that the officers and non-commissioned officers at this place deserve special credit for the manly way we were treated. And their ability to train soldiers far surpassed that of the officers in the States. Probably one reason for this was that these men felt that they were closer to the war and the real danger, hence had less of that proud and haughty spirit and a keener desire to use their energies in the work which counts in military life. On Sunday afternoon some of us boys were roaming through a Catholic cemetery where, among other things, there were caves and statues representing Calvary and the crucifixion. This was very im- pressive and to me was the most profitable Sunday I spent in France. I did not have the opportunity to attend any real religious services while there. On Monday night, October 7th, we moved by train to Verdun. The city was under bombardment that night by the big German guns, so our arrival was by no means pleasant. We sought refuge behind an embankment outside the city until daylig"ht. This was the first time we heard the cannon and saw the fliash of fire at the front. Seeing this at a distance and hearing the thundering of the cannon reminds one very much of a thunder storm although this really seems to come from the very depth of Hell, and any one who has ever been at the front feels that it could not be worse if it really did. After we left the box cars it was reported that they were hit by a shell and destroyed. On the 25th of October, we left this place and joined our companies in the Three Hundred and Sixteenth Infantry. During the short time I was at the front the woods changed in appearance very much, due to the destruction of trees and brush by enemy shells. It is deplorable to see the devastated country over which the war has raged. As you see small villages with only a wall stand- ing here and there you think of the family ties broken and their homes destroyed. 354 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY After being wounded on the 3d of November, I gradually worked my way to a first-aid station. From there I went to the next dressing-station, where I was told to continue and walk as far as I could; so I did, although it was difficult to walk on my sore foot. But stretcher bearers were scarce and every one who was able had to walk. Having walked two or three miles, and seeing several dead men and horses along the road, I finally got a ride on the running-board of a crowded ambulance to a field hospital, where we were served hot cocoa and sandwiches by the Red Cross. From there I rode on a big army truck about fifteen miles to a hospital, but as it was crowded the less serious cases were taken on further after our wounds had been re-dressed. Then I went twenty miles to another hospital, where I was operated upon at midnight. Then I was taken to Hospital No. 53, and there had time to reflect upon how fortunate I was to escape with my life. About Thanksgiving I was removed to a hospital at Brest. Brest is noted for its almost daity rainfall and the consequent mud. The nurses had to wear rubber boots going between the different barracks and wards. Christmas was not the most pleasant. But one thing which added some charm to Christmas Eve was the singing of carols by a few nurses and some men who visited the different wards. The rest of the evening I had to spend listening to the profanity and impurity of heart of some wounded soldiers. I had a feeling of deep gratitude that I had the privilege of returning to our dear America possessing all my limbs, while I saw many less fortunate cripples around me, and thought of the many who had made the supreme sacrifice for the cause of civilization over in France. The: Probi^em of Purchase In the spring of 1917 there were in the United States some 4,000,000 young men who were about to become soldiers, although they little suspected the fact. Before they entered the army, as well as after they were in it, these men consumed such ordinary necessities of life as food, coats, trousers, socks, shoes, and blankets. These simple facts lead directly to the mistaken conclusion that the problem of supplying the necessities of life for the soldiers in the army was the comparatively simple one of diverting into the camps sub- stantially the same amounts of food and clothing as these young men would have used in their homes if there had been no war. These men constituted about one twenty-fifth of the population of the HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 355 country and undoubtedly consumed before the war more than one twenty-fifth of the food and clothing used in the United States. But after every possible allowance has been made for the requirements of youth and the wastefulness of war, the figures of army purchases still present surprising contrasts with those of civilian use in normal times. The army purchases of blankets in 1918 were two and one-quarter times as great as the entire American production in 1914. The rea- sons for the enormous figures of army purchases are not far to seek. In the first place, men who went to camp received complete equipment of new articles, whereas ordinary production in peace time goes mainly to replace articles that have been worn out. In the second place, the supplies required for an army increase in proportion to the distance that separates the army from its home base. In the third place, the consumption in action is three or four times the peace rate. The stream of supplies going forward to an army may be likened to the water delivered against a fire by an old-fashioned bucket brigade. For every pailful thrown on the fire there must be many that have been taken from the source of supply and are on the way. As the distance from the source increases this supply in transit constantly grows. When an army is 3,000 or 4,000 miles from its sources of supply the amounts of supplies in reserve and in transit are enormous as compared with the quantities consumed each month. The rule generally followed for clothing was that there should be for each man at the front a three months' reserve in France, another two or three months' reserve in the United States, and a third three months' supply continuously in transit. Wool coats, for example, last about three months in active service. Hence for every coat on a man's back at the front there had to be a coat in reserve in France, a coat in transit, and a coat in reserve in the United States. The same thing was true for other supplies and munitions. The need for reserves and the time required for transportation called for the supply of enormous quantities and called for it at once. The immedi- ate needs for each man sent forward were in fact far in excess of the later requirements. For munitions difficult to manufacture, such as artillery and ammunition, the problem presented by this necessity for reserves and large amounts in transit, in addition to the actual equip- 356 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY ment of troops, was almost insuperable. The initial need is so great in a situation of this character that it can only be met in one of two ways ; either by having the initial equipment available at the outbreak of war, or by immediately securing such an enormous productive capacity that it is larger than is required for maintaining the establishment later. In supplying food and clothing and other articles which are matters of common commercial production, the problem was not as difficult as with ordnance, but the large needs for initial equipment did put an enormous strain upon the industries concerned. All the more common garments needed could be made in ordinary commercial factories, but their quantity, was so enormous that at a number of times during the war it was feared that the demand would run ahead of the supply. When the troop movement was speeded up in the spring of 191 8 the margin on woolen clothing was dangerously narrow. To secure these and other articles in sufficient quantity it was found necessary in many cases for the army to take control of all stages of the manufacturing process, from assembling the raw material to inspecting the finished product. For many months preceding the armistice the War Depart- ment was owner of all the wool in the country. The British army had in a similar way some years before taken control of the English wool supply in order to meet army and navy needs. Something the same story might be told for about 30,000 kinds of commercial articles which the army purchased. Purchases included food, forage, hardware, coal, furniture, wagons, motor trucks, lumber, locomotives, cars, machinery, medical instruments, hand tools, machine tools. In one way or another the army at war drew upon almost every one of the 344 industries recognized by the United States census. In all of them an enormous production was required. In the cases of some articles all the difficulties of quantity production were combined with the problems of making something not before manufactured. Typical instances are the 5,400,000 gas masks and the 2,728,000 steel helmets produced before the end of November, 191 8. Machini^ry of Distribution For those supplies that are to a certain degree articles of commercial manufacture, the problem of distribution was fully as difficult as pro- curement. For production, machinery already in existence could be HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 357 utilized; for distribution, a new organization was necessary. In this country the problem was not hard for there were ample railway facili- ties; an abundance of motor transportation could be requisitioned if necessary; and the troops were near the sources. In France, a com- plete new organization was necessary whose main duty it was to dis- tribute munitions and supplies. It was called the Service of Supplies, and had its headquarters at Tours. It was an army behind the army. On the day the armistice was signed, there were reporting to the com- manding general of the Service of Supply, 386,000 soldiers besides 31,000 German prisoners, and thousands of civilian laborers furnished by the Allies. At the same time there were in the zone of the armies 160,000 noncombatant troops, the majority of whom were keeping in operation the lines of distribution of supplies to the troops at the front. The proportion of noncombatants in the American army never fell below twenty-eight per cent. In the British army it often ran higher. Distributing supplies to the American forces in France was in the first place a problem of ports, second a problem of railroads, third a problem of motor and horse-drawn transportation, and fourth a prob- lem of storage. The ports and railroads of France were crowded with war traffic and fallen into disrepair. American engineers added eigh- ty-three new berths to the existing ports, together with warehouses and dock equipment. It was not necessary to build new railroads, for France already had a railway net denser per square mile than that of the United States, but it was desirable to increase the carrying capacity by nearly 1,000 miles of new trackage, and by switching facilities at crucial points, by new repair shops and round-houses and by new rolling stock. These things were done by the engineers. The prob- lems were not wholly solved. There were never wholly adequate rail- way facilities, but with the help of locomotives and freight cars shipped from this side freight was carried inland about as fast as it was landed. Narrow-Gauge Railways and Motor Trucks Railroads carried American supplies from the ports in France to intermediate or advance depots, but beyond a certain distance the stan- dard-gauge railroad did not go, as for instance where the danger of shelling began or where the needs changed rapidly as the battle activity 358 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY shifted. Then came the narrow-gauge railroad, with rails about two feet apart. American engineers built 538 miles of these roads, for which 406 narrow-gauge locomotives and 2,385 narrow-gauge cars were shipped from this country. Beyond the range of the narrow-gauge railway came the motor truck. The truck could go over roads that were under shell fire. It could retire with the army or push forward with advancing troops. Trucks were used on a larger scale in this war than was ever before thought possible. The American infantry division on the march with the trucks, wagons, and ambulances of its supply, ammunition, and sanitary trains stretched for a distance of thirty miles along the road. The need for trucks increased as trench warfare gave place to a war of movement. The number of trucks sent overseas prior to the armis- tice was 40,000 and of these 33,000 had been received in France. They ranged in size from three-quarters of a ton to five tons. Beyond the range of the motor truck the horse and wagon were the means of supply distribution. The shipment of animals overseas was discontinued early in 1918 on the information that horses could be purchased overseas. Then in the fall when every ton of shipping was precious, the supply of foreign horses proved inadequate and twenty- three of the best of the army's cargo vessels had to be converted to animal transports. About 500 horses and mules were embarked in September and 17,000 in October. The shipments could not, however, be started soon enough to prevent a shortage. A horse uses as much ship space as ten tons of cargo. In general, it may be said that the army overseas never had enough means of transportation. It may also be said that they had very large quantities and that they produced remarkable results with the supply they had. Forty-Se^ven Thousand TeIvEGrams a Day In order to operate the transportation of supplies in France, a new system of communication had to be set up, so the signal corps strung its wires over nearly every part of France. Miles upon miles of tele- graph lines were wholly constructed by Americans of wires strung on Fr'ench poles. Others were leased from the French or taken over from the Germans. At the time of the signing of the armistice the signal HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 359 corps was operating 282 telephone exchanges and 133 complete tele- graph stations. The telephone lines numbered 14,956, reaching 8,958 stations. More than 100,000 miles of wire had been strung. The peak load of operation reached was 47,555 telegrams a day, averaging- sixty words each. Construction in the United States To build factories and storage warehouses for supplies, as well as housing for troops, 200,000 workmen in the United States were kept continuously occupied for the period of the war. The force of workers on this single activity was larger than the total strength of both south- ern and northern armies in the battle of Gettysburg. The types of con- struction included cement piers and warehouses, equipment for proving grounds, plants for making powder and explosives, repair shops, power plants, roads, and housing for troops. Building was required in every state in the Union. The region of greatest activity was the northeast, at once the most densely populated section and the center of munitions production. Housing constructed had a capacity of 1,800,000 men, or more than the entire population of Philadelphia. The operations of the construction division constituted what was probably the largest con- tracting business ever handled in one office. The total expenditures in this enterprise to November 11, 19 18, were, in round numbers, $800,000,000, or about twice the cost of the Panama Canal. The largest single item is the cost of National Army cantonments which was nearly one-quarter of the total. Ordnance department projects, including the building of enormous powder, high- explosive, and loading plants, come second. The costs of construc- tion were probably higher than they would have been for slower work. The outstanding feature of the accomplishment was its rapidity. Each of the cantonments was completed in substantially ninety days. It was this speed that made it possible to get the draft army under train- ing before the winter of 191 7 set in and made it available just in time for the critical action of the summer of 191 8. 36o HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Construction in the A. E. F. The conduct of the war in France necessitated a construction pro- gram comparable in magnitude and number of projects with that in the United States. Less new building was required for shelter and for the manufacture of munitions, but more for the development of port and railroad facilities and for the repair and operation of the complicated equipment of a modern army. The storage space con- structed in France was more than nine-tenths as large as the amount built at home. Hospital capacity constructed in France was twice the new capacity at home. The labor force consisted largely of Amer- ican soldiers and German prisoners, although French and English civilians and Chinese cOolies were used wherever available. To econ- omize, tonnage materials were obtained in Europe as far as possible, sometimes at high prices. The engineer corps ran its own quarries and its own logging camps and sawmills. Only such materials as could not be obtained abroad — chiefly machinery and steel products — were purchased in the United States. Immense Buieding Project in France America heard much of the large buildings and increased trackage facihties which it was necessary to build in France to provide storage and transportation to meet the vast needs of the ever-increasing army as it was being assembled. A Buena Vista County man had part in this big task and the part in which he was engaged gives a compre- hensive idea of the character of the work that the army engineers did overseas. His notes begin at the early stages of his training experi- ence. Excerpts follow from private notes of Captain J. F. Reynolds of Storm Lake, Company A, Five Hundred and Fourth Engineers : After the preliminaries of training I reported at Camp Devens Sep- tember 6, 1917, was assigned to the recruit company, under Captain D. G. Hatmaker, and spent most of my time drilling the new men who were arriving daily. On the 4th of October I was ordered to Camp Merritt to organize the Five Hundred and Fourth Engineer Battalion. We had with us fifty-eight enlisted men who were transferred from the Twenty-fifth Engineers to the Five Hundred and Fourth Engi- neers. I found myself on duty with Company A, with Warner I. Risley as captain and Charles H. Bade as second lieutenant. I was serving HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY . 361 under a commission as first lieutenant. During the period of organ- ization, Captain Risky took care of the paper work, insurance, allot- ments, and the opening of all company records. Lieutenant Bade acted as mess officer, looking after the kitchen and feeding the men. My duty consisted of outfitting the men with individual equipment for overseas duty and drilling. When orders came to go overseas we went to Hoboken November 19th, and until the 26th the whole battalion was engaged in censoring Christmas packages for the men overseas. The day before sailing, after all of Lieutenant Bade's personal baggage was on board ship, he received orders transferring him to the Three Hundred and Third Engineers at Camp Dix. We debarked at St. Nazaire December 13th, and while we were at Camp No. i the men were detailed to unloading ships. Company A, of 250 men, was quartered in barracks without bunks or stoves, mak- ing it necessary for the men to sleep on the earth floor. As in addition to other discomforts the men were under quarantine most of the time, it was only natural that the question most frequently asked was, "Where do we go from here?" and the orders to move to Is-sur-Tille, Cote-d'Or, was heartily welcomed. Leaving St. Nazaire December 21st, Companies A and D reached a siding at Is-sur-Tille, a hundred yards from the barracks which they were to occupy, on the afternoon of the 23d. These barracks were of the same type as those at St. Nazaire, but were provided with stoves and wood bunks. The ground inside the barracks was frozen and the fires soon converted the frozen earth to sloppy mud. This mud, later in the spring, joined with the sea of mud that was everywhere outside, made it necessary to wear rubber boots inside the barracks as well as out. Cinders were used, but these soon became mixed with and lost in the mud. The East Depot at Is-sur-Tille was about twenty-five per cent com- plete at this time, the work having been done by the Sixteenth Engi- neers. For some time after arrival our men were detailed to and worked by the officers of the Sixteenth Engineers, assisted by the officers of the Five Hundred and Fourth Engineers. The following from the history of the Five Hundred and Fourth Engineers gives a mental picture of what was found and what was done by the American engineer at Is-sur-Tille: "Like many other French railroad towns before the arrival of the Americans, Is-sur-Tille was a quiet valley village at the confluence of two little streams, hardly large enough to be called good creeks in America, but the French called them rivers and named them the Tille 362 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY and the Ignon. The neighboring fields of this now well-known town of Is-sur-Tille were formerly used for raising hops, but after the com- ing of the Americans the French removed many thousands of their hop poles, and in a spirit of resignation to whatever might be in store for them turned their fields over to the American engineer to make of them whatever he deemed necessary for the inevitable triumph of the Allies over the despicable Hun. In less than six months from the day the first Americans arrived on the bank of these far distant tributaries of the Rhine River, there was created, as if by magic, one of the largest supply depots in France. "From this place of hubbub and smoke and seeming confusion went forward thousands of tons of every conceivable kind of army supplies to the American forces that were in operation against the enemy dur- ing the last and determining year of the war. "The engineer officer in charge of Is-sur-Tille employed every able- bodied man that was available. Besides American engineers there were hundreds of 'doughboys' and members of other branches of the service. There were in addition to these, Chinese, Spaniards, and German prisoners, both British and American captives, employed in the project." Contini;ing his notes, Captain Reynolds writes : The Sixteenth Engineers left Is-sur-Tille March 3, 1918. From December 23, 191 7, to March i, 19 18, Company A, Five Hundred and Fourth Engineers, had men working on all parts of the project. This work consists of grading, laying tracks, ballasting, excavating gravel, building warehouses, building barracks, operating trains, driving motor vehicles, driving teams, and assisting the quartermaster loading and unloading supplies. Early in January I was placed in charge of grading for tracks in the East open storage yard. In addition to detail from Company A, I also had men detailed to this work from various infantry companies. After the open storage yards were graded, I was placed on grading for the south hump of the French classification yard and filling for additional tracks on the east side of the same yard. An old German steam shovel, operating day and night, furnished the filling material. On this work I was usually on duty at night. Captain Graham of B Company, which had arrived at Is-sur-Tille a short time before, was placed in charge of all railroad construction' on this project March i, 1918. At the same time the West Depot was started, and Captain Graham placed Captain Breed directly in charge of all track construction in the West Yard, and myself in the HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 363 same capacity in the East Yard. In addition to the East Yard, I was given charge of the German steam shovel, as it was then making a cut for trackage in the East Yard. It soon developed that a new spur track to the gravel pit was necessary, and as the trackage to the bakery came off this spur the construction of both was included in my terri- tory. A force of forty men grew to 200 by the first of May. As the East Yard grew in size the question of track maintenance became more pressing, and by the first of May I had four section gangs taking care of approximately fifty miles of track. On April 7th Company A moved from her muddy home in what was known as "The Flats" to more comfortable quarters on the hill, or to what was known as Camp Williams proper. The average number of men used daily on my work was : In May, 200; in June, 200; in July, 130; in August, 850; in September, 700; in October, 910; and in the first fourteen days of November, 670. In 191 8, previous to November 5th, those working under my direction constructed about fourteen and a half miles of track in Is-sur-Tille yards, ballasted the same amount, built about 120 switches, both French and American, and made many changes in existing trackage necessitated by the growth of the project. During the greater part of the summer of 191 8 a two and one-half yard steam shovel of German make was working under my direction. In July this shovel was put to work excavating solid rock. A gang of thirty-five to fifty Spaniards drilled and blasted ahead of the shovel. As the German shovel was proving too light for this work, a Bucyrus- 70 was put in and for a time worked on the same job. Later the Ger- man shovel was removed and the task was finished by the Bucyrus. The leveling up was done and the old corners excavated by a gang of German prisoners. In all 2,800 cubic yards of rock was excavated. No complete record was kept of the earth yardage moved. The Bucy- rus steam shovel was moved from the rock-cut to the gravel-pit on September 27, 1918. After this date it was operated by Captain Hat- maker's men on gravel excavation. On the 14th of November I was ordered to take charge of the water supply for the Is-sur-Tille project. I found two pumping stations, many miles of pipe from three-fourths inch to eight inches, and two reservoirs with a combined capacity of 125,000 gallons. One pump- ing station was equipped with two eight-horse power gasoline engines and two triplex pumps. The other had two steam boilers and two 9x10x8^ duplex pumps. The pumping capacity of both plants was 900,000 gallons a day and the consumption was about the same. When one pump failed to operate there would be a shortage of water. To do away with this trouble, I installed a third duplex steam 364 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY pump in one plant; and, one engine and pump in the other station being worn out, installed a complete unit in the gasoline station. This provided five pumps, and I attempted to keep four of the five running twenty-four hours a day. This gave sufficient water until the con- sumption increased, when it became necessary to get more pumps in operation. This was due to increased railroad operation and water service extensions. Two pumps, installed in the bakery power-house, were brought into use and operated part of the time. During this time a bath-house, consisting of forty showers, was installed in the old rest camp. The water was heated by a 25-horse power steam boiler used as a hot water heater. To prevent steam generating and the boiler burning out, an overhead open tank was connected to the steam dome. A new rest camp was built, consisting of two bath houses with fifty- six showers each. Water for these was heated by a 70-horse power steam boiler and had two 5,000-gallon overhead open tanks. By using the low pressure for the hot water to the showers and a high pressure for the cold, it was possible to install a mixing chamber. The mixing chamber consisted of a piece of 8-inch pipe seven feet long in the hot water line. The cold water was tapped into one end of this with a one-inch pipe, and a thermometer was tapped into the other end. The mixing valve and the valve operating the showers being close together, it was possible to operate one bath house as a unit. Then in permitting a great number of men to bathe, they would fill the bath room, the operator would turn on the water properly mixed for bathing for a short time. Then he would turn the water ofif while the men were soaping and scrubbing; then turn it on again for a good rinse. As soon as this group of men could get out the system would be ready for the next bunch. The first of March, 1919, I was relieved from water supply as I was going on leave to Ireland. Description of Advance Depot No. i Captain Reynolds furnished for the history the following facts and figures concerning the equipment and accommodations at Is-sur-Tille: This depot is located on the East Railway near the village of Is-sur- Tille, Cote-d'Or, and is a large distributing point furnishing supplies for about a million troops. Work was begun on East Yard and camp about September 20, 191 7. It is divided into four distinct projects, comprising the East Yard, West Yard, Bakery, and Camp Williams. The East Yard includes HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 365 all trackage and warehouses east of the Is-sur-Tille-Chatillon branch of the East Railway ; the West Yard is that on the west side ; and Camp Williams includes all barracks, headcjuarters, and other buildings for care of troops. East Yard has a total of fifty-nine miles of track and twenty ware- houses, nineteen of which are 50x500 feet, one 50x504 feet, and two steel buildings 240x500 feet, besides numerous smaller buildings for offices, etc. This yard is used as quartermaster depot and ordnance depot. The quartermaster depot has zj/^rr.ooo square feet of covered storage and 1,754,794 square feet of open storage. Ordnance depot has 240,000 square feet of covered storage and 175,000 square feet of open storage. The West Yard consists of thirty miles of track and twenty-six warehouses, seventeen of which are 50x504 feet, eight are 50x405 feet and one is 60x400 feet, besides numerous small buildings in use as offices. The open storage in this yard is 5,000,000 square feet. The various depots housed are : Air Service 70,700 square feet Engineer 190,600 square feet Medical 141,400 square feet Signal Corps 95,900 square feet The bakery consists of three main buildings — two 240x380 feet, and one 55x125 feet. The latter is the power-house. The buildings are one-story steel, with corrugated iron sides and roof. They are completely equipped with modern mechanical bakery machinery, elec- trically driven, and with patent ovens; capacity, 500,000 loaves of bread per day of twenty-four hours. The power-house ecjuipment consists of two 330-horse power Thompson vertical water tube boilers, designed for a working pressure of 200 pounds and super-heat of 250 pounds, two tube alternators of 500 K.W. capacity, together with condensers and other auxiliary machinery, including- three-phase trans- former to ultimately take care of all power and lighting in yard and camp. Camp Williams has 154,000 feet of barracks, fifty-one 125-foot bar- racks, and it houses 15,900 troops. There are quarters for 532 officers near headquarters, as well as four buildings for training ordnance troops. The project is completely equipped with electric lights and water. Water is secured from the Tille River and is chlorined before entering the mains. Light is furnished by two power houses ec[uipped with iio-volt direct current gas engine diesel sets. 366 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Up to the signing of tile armistice construction projects had been undertaken by the corps of engineers to the number of 831. The A. E. F. left its trail in the shape of more or less permanent improve- ments over the greater part of France. The projects cluster most thickly around the ports used by American forces and the American area on the southern end of the battle line. Food and Clothing at the Front The real test of the efficiency of the supply service comes when an army engages in battle. Measured by that test the work of feeding, clothing, and equipping the American army was well done, for, in the main, the expeditionary forces received what they needed. At no time was there a shortage of food in the expeditionary forces. Sol- diers sometimes went hungry in this as in all other wars, but the con- dition was local and temporary. It occurred because of transportation difficulties during periods of actual fighting or rapid movement when the units outran their rolling kitchens. The stocks of food on hand in depots in France were always adequate. During the winter and summer of 1918 the amounts on hand rose steadily. On May ist, about the time when American troops were entering active fighting for the first time, they were well over the forty-five-day line, which was considered the required reserve during the latter months of the war. In the matter of clothing also, the supply services rose to the emer- gency of combat. There were periods in the history of many individual units when needed supplies could not be immediately obtained but, as in the case of food, the difficulty was one of local transportation. The records of the quartermaster show that during the six months of hard fighting, from June to November, the enlisted men in the A. E. F. received on the average : Slicker and overcoat, every five months. Blanket, flannel shirt and breeches, every two months. Coat, every seventy-nine days. Shoes and puttees, every fifty-one days. Drawers and undershirt, every thirty-three days. Woolen socks, every twenty-three days. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 367 RlFI^ES During the years immediately preceding our entrance into the war there was much discussion within the War Department, as weh as in the country at large, of the need for increased military preparedness. It was agreed that the army that would have to be called into the field in any large emergency was one of 500,000 men. While our available resources in trained men, in airplanes and in machine guns were en- tirely inadequate, our reserve stocks of rifles and small arms ammuni- tion were sufficient for even a larger army than the half million sug- gested. On the outbreak of hostilities there were on hand nearly 600,000 Springfield rifles of the model of 1903, probably the best infantry rifle in use in any army. What no one foresaw was that we should be called upon to equip an army of nearly 4,000,000 men in addition to furnishing rifles for the use of the navy. The emergency was met in several different ways. The available Springfields were used to equip the Regular Army and National Guard ' divisions that were first organized. In addition to these rifles we also had in stock some 200,000 Krag-Jorgensen rifles that had been stored for an emergency and were in sufficiently good condition to be used for training purposes. In addition, efforts were made to speed up the manufacture of new Springfields. It was soon found, however, that manufacturing difficulties would make it impossible to increase the output of Springfields to much beyond 1,000 per day, which was clearly insufficient. At this juncture decision was reached to undertake the manufacture of an entirely new rifle to meet the deficiency. Fortunately, there were in this country several plants which were just completing large orders for the Enfield rifle for the British Gov- ernment. A new rifle — the model 191 7 — was accordingly designed. This rifle resembled the British Enfield sufficiently so that the plants equipped for Enfield production could be rapidly converted to its man- ufacture, but it was chambered to use the same ammunition as is used in the Springfield and in the machine guns and automatic rifles of American manufacture. Beginning with slightly less than 600,000 Springfields at the out- 368 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY break of the war, the total at the end of the war had increased to nearly 900,000. The Enfields first came into production in August, 19 17. After their manufacture had actually begun the output increased rapid- ly until it totaled at the end of the war, in November, 1918, nearly 2,300,000. During the entire period the production of spare parts for the Springfield rifles was continued at an increased rate. The first divi- sions sent to France were equipped with this rifle. It is a fact that about half the rifle ammunition used against the enemy by United States troops was shot from Springfield rifles. The test of battle use has upheld the high reputation of the Springfield, and has demon- strated that the American Enfield is also a weapon of superior quality. The American troops were armed with rifles that were superior in accuracy and rapidity of fire to those used by either their enemies or the Allies. The use of machine guns on a large scale is a development of the European war. This is demonstrated by the records of every army. In the case of the American forces the figures are particularly impres- sive. In 1 91 2 Congress sanctioned the allowance of the War Depart- ment of four machine guns per regiment. In 1919, as a result of the experience of the war, and the new army plans provided for an equip- ment of 336 machine guns per regiment. The annual report of the secretary of war for 1916, said, "Perhaps no invention has more profoundly modified the art of war than the machine gun." Although the Vickers-Maxim type had been recommended after thorough tests, it could not be put on a quantity-production basis be- cause of difficulties of manufacture. A new gun well adapted to quantity production was presented for trial. This gun, the heavy Browning, performed satisfactorily in all respects and was adopted as the ultimated standard heavy machine gun. The light Browning, designed by the same expert, was easily in the lead as an automatic rifle, weighing only fifteen pounds. The Lewis gun, too heavy for satisfactory use as an automatic rifle and not capable of the long-sustained fire necessary in a heavy gun, was very well suited, with slight modification, for use as a so-called flexible gun HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 369 on aircraft. A small number (2,500) of these gmis were ordered for training purposes for ground use, but the bulk of the possible produc- tion of this gun was assigned to aircraft purposes. In addition to the flexible type, airplanes require also a synchronized gun ; that is, a gun whose time of firing is so adjusted that the shots pass between the propeller blades. The Vickers gun had been used successfully for this purpose in Europe and the call was insistent for their diversion to this use, both for our own planes and for those of the French. After many trials and adjustments, however, the Marlin gun, a development of the old Colt, was adapted to this purpose. A subsequent development was the design of a modified form of the heavy Browning for aircraft use as a synchronized gun. The earliest needs of our troops in France were met by French Hotchkiss machine guns and Chauchat automatic rifles. A little later, divisions going over were provided with Vickers heavy guns and Chauchat automatic rifles. After July ist, divisions embarking were equipped with light and heavy Brownings. Both Browning guns met with immediate success and with the approval of foreign officers as well as with that of our own. Although the light and heavy Browning guns were brought into production in February and April of 191 8, they were not used in battle until September. This was not because of any shortage of supply in the later summer months but because of a deliberate and most signifi- cant judgment on the part of General Pershing. What he feared was that if the first of the guns to reach the expeditionary forces were used in battle there would always be some chance that one might be cap- tured by the Germans. If this should happen it was possible that with their quick recognition of the importance of any military improve- ment and the demonstrated German industrial capacity for quantity production, they might begin the immediate manufacture of German Brownings. For these reasons the Brownings were not used in com- bat until they were used in large numbers in the Meuse-Argonne battle. When troops embarked for France they carried with them their rifles, and sometimes their machine guns and automatic rifles. From the beginning of the war the call for pistols was insistent. In this case the American army was fortunate in having in the Browning- 370 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Colt a weapon already in production and more effective than the cor- responding weapon used by any other army. But while there never- was any question as to the quality of the pistol, there was much trouble in securing them in numbers adequate to meet the demands. To help meet the situation a revolver was designed using the same ammunition, and placed in production in October, 191 7. As a result the troops in France who were likely to require them for close combat were supplied with one or the other of these weapons so far as possible, but full equip- ment was never secured. A sufficient supply of small-arms ammuni- tion has always been available to provide for troops in service. To meet the special needs of the air service and of anti-aircraft defense, new types of ammunition have been designed and produced, the pur- poses of which are indicated by their names — armor piercing, tracer, and incendiary. We never had nearly enough of these weapons to equip fully our entire army, and only during part of the months of the war were there enough for the full equipment of the troops in France even if all the pistols and revolvers had been there and issued. In the cases of automatic rifles, machine guns, and rifles there was always a supply on hand in excess of Avhat would have been required for the equipment of the expeditionary forces alone. At this point it is appropriate to comment on the fact that there are many articles of munitions in which American production reached great amounts by the fall of 1918 but which were not used in large quantities at the front because the armistice was signed before big sup- plies of them reached France. In the main, these munitions are arti- cles of ordnance and aviation equipment, involving such technical difficulties of manufacture that their production could not be impro- vised or even greatly abbreviated in time. ArTILIvKRY It was true of light artillery as it was of rifles, that the United States had, when war was declared, a supply on hand sufficient to equip the army of 500,000 men that proponents of preparedness had agreed might have to take the field in the event of a large emergency. The great difference between the manufacturing output necessary HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 371 to get an army going quickly and that required to keep it going after it has been equipped, explains the enormous industrial disadvantage suffered by a nation which enters a war without its stocks of military supplies for initial equipment already on hand. The decision was made in June, 191 7, to allot our guns to training purposes and to equip our forces in France with artillery conforming to the French and British standard calibers. The arrangement was that we should purchase from the French and British the artillery needed for our first divisions and ship to them in return equivalent amounts of steel, copper, and other raw materials so that they could either manufacture guns for us in their own factories or give us guns out of their stocks and proceed to replace them by new ones made from our materials. With our initial requirements taken care of in this way, we should at once prepare to manufacture in our own plants artillery of these same calibers for the equipment of later divisions. Of the enormous amount of equipment made necessary by the expan- sion of the army from its first strength to the contemplated force of 5,000,000 men, the artillery and artillery ammunition could be im- provised with the least facility, for the necessary processes of its man- ufacture involved irreducible periods of time. In spite of all these handicaps, the record of actual production on United States army or- ders only, is 1,642 complete units of artillery before the armistice was signed. In the magnitude of the quantities involved the artillery ammunition program was the biggest of all. Copper, steel, high explosives, and smokeless powder were all required by the hundreds of millions of pounds. As no firms were prepared to manufacture complete rounds, it was necessary for the ordnance department to make contracts for each component and to assume the burden of directing the distribution of these components between manufacturers. For the shrapnel it was possible to use the design substantially as had previously been used in this country, but the high explosive and gas shell proved more trouble- some. A large supply of American shells was produced, however, before the signing of the armistice, and shipment to Europe in quantity had begun. The ammunition actually used against the enemy at the front was nearly all of French manufacture, but the approaching sup- 372 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY ply from America made possible a more free use of the French and British reserves. One of the striking contributions of the United States to the cause of the Allies was the enormous quantity of smokeless powder and high eplosives produced. From April i, 191 7, to November 11, 1918, the production of smokeless powder in the United States was 632,000,- 000 pounds, which was almost exactly equal to the combined produc- tion of France and Great Britain. This was not all for our own use. About half the British supply in 191 7 was drawn from this country, and in 1918 over a third of the French supply was American made. The established rate of production in this country by the close of the war was forty-five per cent greater than the combined French anci British rate. The American production of high explosives — T. N. T., ammonium nitrate, picric acid, and others — was not established, when we de- clared war, on so large a scale as that of smokeless powder. It was necessary therefore to erect new plants. This need, by the way, was the main reason for the restrictions on the sale of platinum, which is necessary at one point in the process of manufacture. As a result of the efforts that were made, our established rate of production of high explosives at the close of the war was over forty per cent larger than Great Britain's, and nearly double that of France. The result of the high rate of production of both smokeless powder and high explosives was that the artillery ammunition program was never held up for lack of either the powder which hurls the bullet or shell from the gun or the high explosive which makes the shell effective when it reaches its destination. When the clouds of chlorine suddenly enveloped the British and French lines in the Ypres salient, early in 191 5, a new weapon was in- troduced into the war. That it was a powerful weapon is evidenced by the fact that during the year 191 8 from twenty to thirty per cent of all our battle casualties were due to gas. At the time we entered the war we had had practically no experi- ence in manufacturing toxic gases, and no existing facilities which could be readily converted to such use. At the signing of the armis- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 373 tice, we were equipped to produce gas at a more rapid rate than France, England, or Germany. In the early days of our participation in the war it was hoped that concerns engaged in chemical manufacture could be put into this new field. There were many valid objections, however, to such a plan. Many of these concerns were already crowded with war work. En- tirely new equipment would have to be installed, which, in all likeli- hood, would be practically worthless at the close of the war. Exhaus- tive investigation and experimentation would mean delay in securing and retaining adequate labor forces. For these reasons the Govern- ment found it necessary to build its own chemical plants and to finance certain private firms. The majority of these producing plants, togeth- er with plants for filling shells with gas, were built on a tract of land in the Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, which came to be known as the Edgewood Arsenal. Chemical Warfare Service The following on the chemical warfare service of the army was written by Major Frank W. Mack of Storm Lake : This department of the United States army was organized in the early part of 191 8. Its pioneer work was started out of two depart- ments; one the American University at Washington, D. C, which did most of the early chemical research work, and the other department was the ordnance corps which started actual building of factories for the manufacture of the different chemicals and put the manufacturing of the same on a large production basis. It was in July of 191 7 that a number of young engineers from Storm Lake volunteered their services and attended the Second Officers' Train- ing Camp and afterwards received their commissions. The writer was one of this group and received orders to report to the ordnance corps at a certain address in Washington. It was the trench war- fare department of the ordnance corps where I found a corps of en- gineers who had been working since early June on building a small chemical plant filling station. All work was made as mechanical as possible, due to the large number of fatalities which were occurring in the French and English armies while handling the gases. The first plant which these engineers were working on grew in capacity so rapidly, due to an increasing demand for gas, until in April of 191S 374 HONOR ROLI. OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY we had built an enormous chemical and filling plant, adding to this factory the largest chlorine plant in this country. It was at this time that our President and Congress were forced to recognize the enormous project that was before this country in the line of gas and chemicals, and it was then that the chemical warfare service was born, and at its head was placed Major General Sibert. This department was divided into two major heads : The defensive and the offensive. The defensive department was headed by Colonel Dewey. Their main work consisted of manufacturing gas masks, protective clothing, booths, and canisters. Also, to be represented in each regiment with officers and men to instruct all the soldiers in the various means of self-protection and the proper way to aid in taking care of the men who get gassed. They surely did a wonderful work in the production of masks, as it was only a short time before masks became plentiful. The offensive department was organized to manufacture the various gases and chemicals and to fill all gas projectiles for artillery use. Also, to have an experiment station where these gases and projectiles were tried out. In order to understand what this department had to undertake, you must realize that a series of factories had to be built and a main factory and shipping depot had to be built; that to build and operate a main factory and depot it was necessary that railroads, highways, water and sewer, systems, light and power, and immense storage buildings had to be built, in order to handle the raw and fin- ished products. Also, that such a plant would have to be built off by itself because of the danger of its raw and finished products. Congress purchased what was known as the "Gunpowder Reserva- tion," a neck of land stretching out into the waters of the Chesapeake Bay, with the Gunpowder River on one side and the Bush River on the other. It is about twenty miles northeast of Baltimore, near the Pennsylvania right-of-way. Here the main and central factory was built during the fall of 19 17, and nearly completed within one year. This plant was called Edge- wood Arsenal and was divided into three large divisions as follows : The chlorine plant capacity was 250 tons of gas, besides its by-pro- duct, caustic soda, in many tons. The chemical plant manufactured liquid chlorine, chloropicrin, phosgene, mustard gas, brombenzal cyanide, white phosphorus, and tin tebrachloride. Almost all of these were produced in tons per day and some ran very high in production. The filling plant section was built to fill shells of from 75 mm. to 9.4 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 375 shells, Livens drums, incendiary drop-bombs, stokes, and various other projectiles with the gases manufactured by the other two departments. In addition it was the duty of this division to maintain and operate all the railroads, water, and light plants. Its production ran over ten thousand daily of shells, besides a large production of bombs and other projectiles. My first assignment was to build a 6000 KVA electric plant which we started in December of 191 8, and continued through one of the worst winters the state of Maryland had had for many years. When we had this about two-thirds completed the officer in charge of general construction was released from duty and I was called in to take over the completion of the filling plant as its field officer. This forced me to supervise the construction of forty barracks, commissary for the regiment, Y. M. C. A. building, highways and standard gauge rail- roads, refrigeration plants and the filling plant itself. When we were swinging full pace I had a force of some six thousand civilians and about two thousand soldiers, most of whom were engineers. My part was to see that I had a good organization and then to see that this organization worked in harmony. Had it not been for the wonderful talent and ability of both men and officers I would not have been able to swing the job. Wish to say that practically seventy per cent of our men and officers were picked men and I would not ask any greater honor than to work with the class of soldiers and officers that were in my battalion. My battalion had forty-five hundred soldiers during operation of the plant and with few exceptions all were men. Motor Transportation An innovation in this war, development of which in the future promises to be even more important, was the increased use of motor transportation. As applied to the artillery, this meant the use of caterpillar tractors to haul the big guns, especially over rough ground. When we entered the war no suitable designs existed for caterpillar tractors of size appropriate for the medium heavy artillery. But new five-ton and ten-ton types were perfected in this country, put into pro- duction, and 1,100 shipped overseas before November ist. About 300 larger tractors were also shipped and 350 more secured from the French and British. 376 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Tanks The tank was an even more important application of the caterpihar tractor to war uses. In the case of the small six-ton tanks, the efforts of this country were largely concentrated on improvement of design and on development of large scale production for the 1919 campaign. Up to the time of the armistice sixty-four had been produced in this country, and the rate at which production was getting under way is shown by the fact that in spite of the armistice the total completed to March 31, 1919, was 778. The burden of active service in France was borne by 227 of these tanks received from the French. From the pen of John Carey of the headquarters company, tank corps, comes the following concerning this branch of the service : The tanks, a very vital element in the winning of the great war, have been more or less a mystery to most Americans on this side, ow- ing to the fact of their scarcity in this country and to the policy of secrecy on the part of the government. For those who are interested in this branch of the service I think the best way to enlighten them about tanks is to take them through the Course of training just as Uncle Sam did when he received his recruits at one of the many tank recruiting stations. The recruit, as I once was, was sent to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, where with wondering eyes we almost neglected the historical signifi- cance of the site of the famous Civil War battle in our anxiety to see droves of the famous fighting machines. But a wise government ear- ly in the game teaches recruits that the army is full of disappoint- ments. On asking of a tired-looking guard where the tanks were I received a worn-out grin and a not too-assuring answer that I would find tanks everywhere. I did find "tanks," but of a difTerent species than I had seen on the posters of the recruiting station. There was one French tank in Gettysburg so well guarded that no one could see it, for Gettysburg was where the tanker was given his infantry train- ing.- At this point I might interrupt and say that a recruit for the tank corps must qualify in three branches of the service — the infantry, the cavalry, and the artillery. Infantry, because an extra tank crew advanced with the following "doughboys"; cavalry, because the tank assumed cavalry tactics ; artillery, because the tanks were armed with 37 mm. guns, or the equivalent of our one-pound canons. This also explains the significance of the tank corps' shoulder insignia, which is a large triangle containing three small triangles of infantry blue, artillery red, and cavalry yellow. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 377 Back on that famous old battlefield of Gettysburg, then, we received our infantry drill, and on the less famous but more rocky fields of Tobyhanna, Pennsylvania, we received our artillery training. This plan, however, was broken by an early call overseas. On September 23, 1918, after a score of inspections, the order to entrain was given and we arrived in Hoboken at 3 130 a.m., and were placed in a ware- house waiting to go on a much camouflaged English ship at a nearby pier. If a fellow tanker ever reads this and was in that warehouse with me for those twenty-four hours, please don't tell why I laugh when I recollect that only too short space of time; and to those who know not, a word of warning: Never keep soldiers and Old Scotch in the same warehouse, for it exemplifies only too well a law of elec- tricity that "unlikes attract each other." We bade the Statue of Liberty good-by on the 25th and hit for the open seas with a naval plane overhead, a destroyer to our right, and a big four-stacker cruiser ahead of us. Like every one who sailed the seas in those days, we expected to have a submarine show up and blow up the whole thirteen ships of our convoy before we were a day out. We were rather disappointed that a submarine didn't at least give us a thrill, but we were destined to have thrills of a different nature. Two days out we encountered one of the worst storms in thirty-five years, so the English crew told us. This storm lasted during the whole twelve days to come. Then the "flu" hit us, and before our ship landed we had buried thirty-seven of our number at sea, and we left 1 19 on the pier at Liverpool dying with pneumonia. This was not the only mis- fortune of our convoy, for the storm was so great as to throw the destroyer Kashimir out of the water and on the very decks of our sister ship, the Otronto, wrecking both ships on the coast of Ireland, with a great loss of life. After this trip, every man knew how to die, as every ship suffered a like number of deaths and their flags were always at half-mast. There was hardly a moment but we could hear the faint echo of "taps" from some of the convoy, calling another comrade to his last sleep. We landed in Liverpool on October 7th, disembarked next morning, and were loaded on trains bound for Southampton. It was getting dark when we neared Southampton and here we saw our first glimpse of war, for the sky was ablaze with great shafts of light swinging back and forth in search of the dreaded Zeppelin. From Southampton we crossed the Channel in the night to Cherbourg, France. They say the Channel is rough ; I don't know. I slept all the way across, as did two colored bunkies who flanked me on either side of the passage way floor. The blackest one of the two awakened me in the morning with a jab. 37cS HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY saying, "Heali we ah, white buddy; heah is France! Heah is mo' ground. Ah ain't ever gwine to eat fish any more. Even mud don't look the same to me any more. Too wet ! Too wet !" I never saw him afterwards, but I'll wager he ate fish and I know he saw mud, for government gold fish was our menu, and mud — well, mud was everywhere. We next were burdened with a rest at an English rest camp. Then we boarded our "40 horses" and "8 Chevaux" tourist cars, which made me envy, for the first time, an American tramp with a whole box car to himself. We went across France to our training center at Langres. There we saw our first fleet of tanks, plying back and forth among shell holes. Here we were introduced to veteran tank men, for at the same time that the tank corps was organized in the United States there was a tank corps organized in the A. E. F. and these men were the only ones who ever saw real action in the tanks. These men had been used at St. Mihiel, Essey, Larsard, Beney, St. Maurin, Janville, and in the Meuse-Argonne drive at Varrennes, Cheppy, Boulney, Apremont, Martinville, Charpentry, Very, Montibeau Woods, Exermont, Som- merance, St. Jivin, Landres, and St. Georges, and at many points with the British. At the Argonne-Meuse, according to Lieutenant-Colonel Vives, they had 115 per cent casualties, including their replacements. The veterans of these battles were instructors in our school. The companies were split up and while one-third was taking a course in mechanics, others were training on machine guns and 37 mm. guns and others were getting instructions in driving. The training in me- chanics and in gunning was more or less technical and uninteresting. The real thrill was when one came into his own and occupied a seat as a driver in a real tank. The Renault tank, which is the tank adopted by the American army, is a two-man or baby tank. It consists of an elongated armor body about thirteen feet in length, six and one-half feet in height, a trifle over a yard wide, equipped with a set of caterpillar treads and motor. The armor is one-fifth to three-fifths inches in thickness and capable of withstanding small-arms fire and the burst of smaller shells. The body is surmounted by a revolving turret which carries either a single machine gun or the short barrelled three-inch canon. The interior is divided into two compartments — one for the crew and the other for the power plant. In the forward compartments sits the driver and back of him the gunner, who operates the gun in the revolving turret. A wide belt of strap serves as a seat for the gunner, who can turn the turret to any point. Shts seven-eighths of an inch wide afford a measure of vision for both men. Entrance is by doors HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 379 immediately in front o£ the driver. The rear compartment is entirely separated from the front compartment by an armor bulkhead. This compartment contains the Renault engine, oil tank, and radiator. The crank handle for starting the engine extends into the forward compart- ment directly behind the gunner. The tank is guided by two handles which control the treads, e.g., advancing the speed of the right tread would turn the tank to the left. - With this understanding of what we are driving let's take a ride. A course is mapped out, taking in many different depths of shell holes, and our last instructions before going v/ere to hit the holes square or we would tip over. It is difficult for the driver to see through his little slit and the gunner must direct him by pats on either shoulder for right or left, or at the head for a halt. I can describe it best by falling downstairs to charivari music with a pail of oil thrown on for good measure. After I had finished my course, I was assigned to a platoon or fleet of tanks. There are five tanks in a fleet and when attacking they travel in a large triangle with the signal tank ahead. During an advance every tank zigzags in order to allow no direct hits. Signals are given by flags from the commanding tank and also by runners. Distress signals can be sent by any of the tanks. Their chief use is advancing before infantry, breaking the wire entanglements and rout- ing machine gun emplacements. The Huns combated the tanks with anti-tank guns, gas, large high explosives, and traps. The anti-tank gun resembles a rifle but is larger and si -^-s an armor piercing bullet. The bullet is soft-nosed and uponimpav,. ^^ the armor plate it forms a cone. The heat of impact softens the armor and allows a small, hard steel slug to pass into the tank. The traps were large holes, filled with water and covered so as to resemble the terra which would collapse on being driven over. Many tank men lost their lives in these traps. One of the most conspicuous instances was that of Corporal Harold W. Roberts of San Francisco, on whom Congress bestowed the Congressional Medal of Honor through General Pershing's recommendation. Roberts, during a charge on Germans, was driving a light tank which plunged into a water-filled trap. Water and mud covered the tank. Only one of the two-men crew could escape. Roberts pushed his companion out to safety, saying, "Well, only one of us can get out — and out you go." This is but one of the many instances of bravery often spoken of by drivers or gunners. Might I add in conclusion that the greatest difficulty in all tank 38o HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY training was the finding of a man on whom you thought you could depend to be a fellow member in a tank crew. Somehow or other they all paired up and many peculiar teams were the consequence. My driver was an ex-minister. I was afterwards accused of mercenary motives in choosing him, but, strange as it may seem, common sense can be used to some advantage even in the army. The efforts of this country in the case of the heavy thirty-ton tanks were concentrated on a cooperative plan, by which this country was to furnish Liberty motors and the rest of the driving mechanism, and the British the armor plate for 1,500 tanks for the 1919 campaign. The most important single fact about our artillery in France is that we always had a sufficient supply of light artillery for the combat divi- sions that were ready for front-line service. This does not mean when the divisions went into the battle line they always had their artillery with them, for in a number of cases they did not. The statement does mean, however, that when divisions went into line without their artillery this was not because of lack of guns but rather because it takes much longer to train artillery troops than it does infantry and so, under the pressure of battle needs in the summer and fall of 1918, American divisions were put into line a number of times supported by French and British artillery or without artillery. In every one hundred days that our combat divisions were in line they were supported by their own artillery for seventy-five days, by British artillery for five days, by French artillery for one and one- half days, and were without artillery for eighteen and one-half days out of the hundred. Of these eighteen and one-half days, however, eighteen days were in quiet sectors and only one-half day in active sectors. There are only three records of American divisions being in an active sector without artillery support. Camoufi^age Written by Manson Redenbaugh of Storm Lake: The first I heard of the camouflage outfit was at the One Hundred and Sixteenth Engineers' camp, in Angers, France, where I was first stationed. Here the camouflage section had established a school with Master Engineer Munn at the head of the work. The school had three classes, one class being sent out each week and new men coming in every week. At the end of my second week in this camp, I saw HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 381 a notice on the bulletin board asking for more volunteers for camou- flage work. I inquired into the work and volunteered. The next week I started to school, finding it a great relief from drilling all day as I had been doing for two weeks. Our first lesson was a talk on camouflage by our master engineer. The rest of our lessons were usually obtained out in the field where we were shown how to do the real work. We put up flat-tops for eight- inch howitzers, anti-air craft guns, French 75's and larger. We also concealed large guns under trees so that they could not be seen at a dis- tance of 300 feet. We also learned how observation posts were built. Some were made in the trenches, some under ground in front of the trenches, and others in trees, etc. We were taught how to camouflage communicat- ing trenches, machine gun nests, and whole trenches, which may be necessary at times. Occasionally, we would have a class on the inside on map reading, compass reading, and a few secrets of photography. Camouflage is not all painting or mostly painting as some people may think it is. Flat-tops, which are used for covering large guns, are made of fish-nets and burlap or chicken wire fencing and burlap. The fish-nets the usually of two sizes, 30x30 inches, and 37x37 inches, having about one-inch mesh. All through these nets strips of burlap are tied. The strips are from six inches to ten inches long and about one inch wide. When the strips are being tied great care is taken to not get them in any regular order. They must be irregular. Every- thing in camouflage is done to imitate nature and nothing in nature is regular, so we are taught. The burlap is colored to suit the sur- roundings. If the ground is covered with dead grass, a light brown burlap is used ; if the grass is green, a green burlap is used, etc. The thicker and taller the grass, the darker it will show in a picture. In a picture grass will have the same effect, as may be seen in a brussels rug. The longer the brussels, the darker the rug, although there may be the same number of brussels. This is due to the shadows that the brussels or grass, as it may be, will cast. All this must be kept in mind by the camouflage man as he picks out the camouflage best suited for the position. This napp effect, as it is called, is also shown in the flat-top camouflage, the thicker the strips the darker it will show in the photograph. One can see by what has been explained that flat-top camouflage does not have to be the same color as the earth or grass, but can be thickened or thinned as may be necessary to match the surroundings. When putting up these flat-tops there are many other difficulties that may arise; for instance, you may want to place the gun where there is a furrow, roads, or possibly where two fields meet, such as a 382 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY .stubble field and a plowed field. To cover a furrow the furrow must show through the camouflage, for if it doesn't, when the pic- ture is taken by "J^^^ry" he will see the furrow stopping in one place and commencing again a short distance away and will know immedi- ately that there is something wrong. '^Jerry takes pictures every day and everything must be done to avoid causing one picture to be any dififerent than the other, for as soon as he has any suspicion of a spot he will turn his guns on it, to make sure, and if a Sammy happens to be there, it is goodby Sammy. A furrow will show up dark in a picture and to show this effect in the camouflage, the strips of burlap must be tied thicker directly over the furrow. It is always best to place a gun near a road or partly under trees, which will make it easier to camouflage. If a gun must be placed out in the open, possibly in the middle of a field, it will be necessary for a road to be made out to the gun to get the gun there and to bring up ammunition and supplies. Roads or wheel tracks of any kind show up very plainly in a photograph and to remedy this diffi- culty the road must be made on past the position, possibly to some other road or to some trees. Then these tracks or road must be made to show in the camouflage as the furrow. Then when the pic- ture is taken nothing will be seen but the road, and although Jerry may know what has caused it, he will not know where the gun is. When putting up a flat-top great care must be taken to allow no one to tramp on the ground outside of the ground that will be cover- ed, for foot-prints either in grass or on the bare ground will show up greatly in a picture. To avoid this, the men must do the work with- in the ground to be covered, and from underneath the top after it is stretched. Such work as thinning or thickening the camouflage may be done from beneath after it is up. About all that is needed to put up a flat-top are a few seven-foot poles, some heavy wire, a few staples, and a heavy hammer. The camouflage made from chicken-wire fencing and burlap is used more than the other, for then a position can be made any size or shape desired. To put up a position for a French 75, or in fact, any gun, the di- rection of fire must first be determined. Then the space needed for the gun and men must be marked off. • For a 75 mm. gun a space of eighteen feet by twenty-seven feet is usually desired. A smaller space could be used but the more room the easier it will be for the bat- tery men to work. Around the outside of this space two or three layers of posts will be placed and the heavy wire stretched tightly HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 383 across them and staked at the ends on the outside of the position, in this manner. The posts are usually put about nine feet apart and are merely set on the ground, for the wire will hold them in place. After the posts are set and the wire stretched, the scrim as it is called, or cam- ouflage, is put on top, stretched tightly and thinned out as is needed. On the side in the direction of fire an embrasure must be made. An embrasure is a door that may be opened when the gun is fired. When completed the position will look something like this from above. For larger guns larger positions may be made. There are many other forms of camouflage, but the flat-tops are used more frequently. A big gun may be camouflaged by placing it underneath a large tree or trees and putting camouflage in front and around it so that it will look as though there was nothing there but the trees. This may be done wih scrim and garlands, colored to match the surroundings. Garlands are strips of burlap tied on fence wire about six inches apart. The scrim and garlands may be thin- ned or thickened as is essential for the circumstance. BUII.DING OBSERVATION POSTS Building observation posts is also a part of camouflage. These are made any place that the enemy may not detect. Sometimes an underground passage will be dug to a dead stump and then the stump hollowed out and a small hole made in one side where one man may sit and watch the enemy's movements. An observation post may be made just in front of the trench. This is done by digging under- ground for a short distance and coming up to an old cart roll of wire or something of the kind where a periscope may be pushed up with- out detection. Other times they may be placed in the rear bank of the trench, when it is higher than the fore bank. In all such places where here is danger of being hit, the observation post is protected on the inside by plate steel. Other parts of camouflage have to do with covering machine gun nests, communication trenches, camouflaging roads, making snipers' suits, and making canvas coverings for airplanes. When camouflaging roads, camouflage is merely hung along one side of the road high enough that trucks or men passing by may not be seen. The camouflage may be very conspicuous, but the enemy cannot tell when any one is passing over the roads so will not know when to fire. At the factory the French girls tie the strips of burlap on the nets and fencing; they also do the painting of the airplane coverings and 384 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY do what sewing is needed. The painting the girls do is done with ■ mops or brooms; no skill is needed. The burlap that is used for strips is painted by machinery. A large percentage of glue is added to make it water-proof. The girls often did heavy work, such as to load and unload trucks, push Irish buggies, etc. Our work at the factory in Dijon lasted for only one week and then we were sent to the front, but too late to get into real action. Air Servick prewar equipment When war was declared in April, 191 7, the United States had two aviation fields and fifty-five serviceable airplanes. The nation- al advisory committee in aeronautics, which had been conducting a scientific study of the problems of flight, advised that fifty-one of these airplanes were obsolete and the other four obsolescent. This judgment was based on the operations in Mexico, which had demonstrated serious defects in the designs of American planes used there. It was well known that improved types had been developed in the European conflict, but the details of their design were care- fully guarded and withheld from neutrals. Immediately following the declaration of war, the Allied govern- ments, particularly the French, urged the necessity of sending 4,500 American aviators to France during the first year, if superiority in the air were to be insured. This request emphasized the need of speed. The European instructors who came over later to assist in the training work made no pretense that the 4,500 schedule was practical. The problem was to approximate it as nearly as possible. Public expectation was greatly exaggerated, due to the general ig- norance, shared by even the best informed American authorities on aviation, as to the requirements, other than simple flying ability which this service exacts. There were three primary requisites for bringing into existence an elementary aviation service. These were training planes, avi- ators, and service planes. All of them had to be created. For the task of training, as well as that of securing the necessary planes and motors, there existed in our army no adequate organiza- tion of qualified personnel. Before the war our air service had been HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 385 small, struggling, and unpopular. Aviation was restricted to un- married officers under thirty years of age, and offered no assured future as a reward for success. It had made its greatest appeal to the younger and more daring types of line officers, and was not an organization on which a great industrial expansion could be built, or from which any large numbers of qualified instructors could be drawn. Training for aviation divides itself into three stages — element- ary, advanced, and final. Elementary training, given to all candi- dates alike, includes physical raining, hygiene, various practical and theoretical military subjects, the study of the structure and mech- anism of airplanes and engines, signaling, observation, ground gun- nery, and elementary flying to the point of doing simple flying alone. Advanced training consisted in the specialized work necessary to qualify the student as a well-prepared all-around pilot or observer, as the case might be, ready to take up and master quickly any type of machine or any kind of observation or bombing duty which the ex- igencies of the service might necessitate. Final training, given in Europe, was a short intensive specializa- tion on the particular tj^pe of machine, or any particular military problem to which the pilot or observer was finally assigned. The initial shortage of instructors and the opening of new fields made it necessary to retain a considerable proportion of the early graduating classes as instructors. At the date of the armistice there were thirty-four fields in operation, with 1,063 instructors; 8,602 men had been graduated from elementary training, and 4,028 from ad- vanced training. There were then actually in training 6,528 men. The total personnel of our air service, including flying and non- flying officers, students, and enlisted men, increased from about 1,200 at the outbreak of the war to nearly 200,000 at the close. With 4,500 aviators demanded and only fifty-five training planes on hand, the production of training planes was the problem of greatest im- mediate concern. Deliveries of primary training planes were begun in June, 191 7. To the date of the armistice over 5,300 had been pro- duced, including 1,500 of a type which was abandoned on account of unsatisfactory engines. 386 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY . Advanced training planes reached quantity production early in 1918; up to the armistice about 2,500 were delivered. Approximate- ly the same number were purchased overseas for training the units with the expeditionary force. European experience had demonstrated that the maintenance of a squadron, whether in training or in service, requires more engines than planes for replacements. Pending the results of American ex- perience, British figures, requiring an average production of two en- gines per plane, were adopted as standard for American computa- tions. Extensive orders were placed for two types of elementary and three types of advanced training engines. Quantity production of training engines was reached in 191 7 and by the end of November, 1918, a total of nearly 18,000 training en- gines and more than 9,500 training planes had been delivered. Of the engines, all but 1,346 were built in the United States; and of the 9,500 elementary training planes, more than 8,000 were of American manufacture. As soon as war was declared it became possible for American offi- cers and engineers to learn the secrets of the great improvements that had been developed during the war in the design of airplanes used in battle service. A commission was immediately sent abroad to select types of foreign service planes for production in the United States. A controlling factor in their selections was the necessity of redesign- ing the models so as to take American-made motors, as foreign en- gine production was insufficient to meet even the needs of the Allies. Because of this and because of the rapidity with which the designs of the smaller planes were changing, the best Allied authorities urged the concentration of American production on the more stable obser- vation and bombing machines, leaving the production of pursuit planes to the European factories, which were in closer contact with the front. In the case of any plane selected only an estimate could be made as to its probable adaptability to a new type of motor, this engineering risk being less in the more conservative types of design. This consideration, together with the imperative need for quick large scale production, led to the selection of four types for this experiment : The De Haviland-four (British) observation and day-bombing ma- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 387 chine, the Handley-Page (British) night bomber, the Caproni (Itahan) night bomber, and the Bristol (British) two-seated fighter. This selection was approved by the French and British authorities. The redesigned De Haviland-four proved to be a good, all-aromid plane of rather poor visibility, with a tank design which increased the danger in case of a crash, but with these defects more than compen- sated by unusually good maneuver ability, and great speed. The De Havilands were acknowledged to be the fastest observation and bombing planes on the western front. At the time of the armistice this plane was being produced at the rate of over 1,100 per month. A total of 3,227 had been completed, 1885 had been shipped to France and 66y to the zone of advance. The Handley-Page was redesigned to take two high-powered American motors, passed its tests, and on the date of the armistice, parts for 100 had been shipped abroad for assembly. Delay in the receipt of plans for the Caproni greatly retarded the redesign of this machine. Successful tests of the new model were, however, completed previous to the armistice. The Bristol fighter was a failure. The changes necessary to accommodate the American engine so increased the total weight as to render the machine unsafe. The rapid development of the heavier types of airplane, together with the pressing need for large scale production, made necessary the development of a high-powered motor adaptable to American meth-' ods of standardized quantity production. This need was met in the Liberty 12-cylinder motor which was America's chief contribution to aviation. After this standardized motor had passed the experi- mental stage production increased with rapidity, the October output being over 4,200. The total production of Liberty engines to the date of the armistice was 13,547. Of this production 4,435 were shipped overseas to the expeditionary forces and 1,025 were deliver- ed to the British, French, and Italian air services. Other types of service engines, including the Hispano-Suiza 300 horse-power, the Bugatti, and the Liberty eight-cylinder, were under development when hostilities ceased. Up to the end of November, 1918, the total number of service en- gines secured was in excess of 22,000. Of this number more than 388 HONOR ROLL OK BUENA VISTA COUNTY 16,000 or seventy-three per cent were from American sources and less than 6,000 from foreign sources. The American and alHed airplane programs called for quantities of certain raw materials, which threatened to exhaust the supply. This was true of spruce and fir, lubricating oils, linen, dopes, and mahogany. In order to meet the spruce and fir shortage labor battalions were organized and placed in the forests of the west coast, loyal or- ganizations of civilian labor were fostered, new kiln processes were developed which seasoned the lumber rapidly, without loss of strength and resiliency. These methods solved the problem. Ap- proximately 174,000,000 feet of spruce and fir were delivered, of which more than two-thirds went to the Allies. Castor oil was at first the only satisfactory lubricant for airplane motors. The limited supply was far short of the prospective de- mand, but the situation was met by planting a large acreage of cas- tor beans and the development of a mineral oil substitute. To meet an acute shortage of linen for the wings of planes a fab- ric of long-fiber cotton was developed which proved superior to linen. ^ The standard "dope" used by the Allies to cover the wings of their planes, making them air and water tight, was limited in supply and highly inflammable. A substitute dope, far less inflammable and of more plentiful basic materials, was produced. Mahogany for propellers was partially replaced by walnut, oak, cherry, and ash, and by improved seasoning processes excellent re- sults were secured. Few facilities and little experience existed at the beginning of the war for the development of many of the delicate instruments and in- tricate mechanisms required in the equipments of service planes. In- tensive research brought some notable results of which several de- serve especial mention : The oxygen mask, equipped with telephone connections, enabled the flyer to endure the rarified air at any altitude which his plane could reach without losing speaking contact with his companions. The military parachute, which was developed to unprecedented safety. This was used principally for escape from burning balloons, HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 389 and was improved so that it would bring- down safely the entire bal- loon basket with its load. During the entire war there was not an American casualty due to parachute failure. The electric-heated clothing for aviators on high altitude work. The electric suit, developed in the latter months of the war and used at the front was lined with insulated coils through which current was driven by means of a small dynamo actuated by a minature propel- ler driven by the rush of the plane through the air. Long focus, light-filtration cameras, by which good photographs could be taken through haze from altitudes of three miles or more. Primary credit for this belongs to Europe, but America improved the mechanism and standardized the design for quantity production. The wireless telephone, by which the aviator is enabled to con- verse easily with other planes and with ground stations. This de- velopment came too late to be of any substantial use at the front, but its value for peace as well as for any future war is obvious. In no field did American manufacturing achieve a greater rela- tive success. Before the armistice we had produced 642 observation balloons and had received twenty from the French. Forty-three of our balloons had been destroyed and forty-five given to the French and British. This left us with 574 balloons at the end of the war. On the same date the Belgian Army had 6, the British 43, the French 72, and the Germans 170 on the western front. These figures mean that at the end of the war we had nearly twice as many observation balloons as the enemy and the Allies combined had at the front. FoRTY-ifivE Squadrons at the Front The American pilots of the Lafayette Escadrille were transferred from the French to the American service December 26, 191 7, flying as civilians until formally commissioned in late January, 1918. They were then attached to and served with the French Fourth Army, operating over Rheims. In addition to the purely American operations, two full squadrons were attached to the British royal air force in March and June re- spectively, of 191 8, remaining with the British throughout the war, 390 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY and participated in the following engagements: The Picardy drive, Ypres, Noyon-Montdidier, Viellers, Bray-Rosieres-Roye, Arras, Bapaume, Canal du Nord, and Cambrai. The strictly American aviation operations started in the middle of March, 1918, with the patrolling of the front from Villeneuve-les Vertus by an American pursuit squadron using planes of the French built Nieuport-twenty-eight type. These operation were in the na- ture of a try-out of the American trained aviators, and their com- plete success was followed by an immediate increase of the aerial forces at the front, with enlargement of their duties and field of ac- tion. By the middle of May squadrons of all types — pursuit, ob- servation, and bombing — as well as balloon companies were in op- eration over a wide front. These squadrons were equipped with the best available types of British and French-built service planes. Observation squadrons, whose business it is to make observations, take photographs, and direct artillery fire; pursuit squadrons, using light fighting planes to protect the observation planes at their work, to drive the enemy from the air, or to "strafe" marching columns by machine-gun fire; the day bombers, whose work was the dropping of bombs on railways or roads; and the night bombers, carrying heavier bomb loads for the destruction of strategic enemy works. The equipment of American squadrons was in the early months entirely of French and British manufacture. American De Havi- land-four planes were first used at the front on August loth, and the number in service increased rapidly from that time on. The rapid rate of destruction of planes at the front is illustrated by the fact that out of 2,698 planes dispatched to the zone of ad- vance only 1,162 remained at the time of the signing of the armistice. Three major operations, marking the critical points in American participation in the war, also furnish a comparison indicating the growth of American air forces in action. These are: The Second Battle of the Marne, St. Mihiel, and the Meuse-Argonne. On the Chateau Thierry-Soissons front the Germans had at the start a pronounced superiority in the air. The American air service succeeded, however, in establishing the lines of contact with enemy airmen from three to ten miles within the enemy's lines, photograph- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 391 ed the entire front and the terrain deep behind the hnes, and played an important part in putting German air forces on the defensive. German concentration for the attack of July 15th was reported in de- tail and the location of the German reserves established, while the secrecy of the allied mobilization for the counter-attack was main- tained and the Germans surprised. The American force employed consisted of four pursuit squadrons, three observation squadrons and two balloon companies. In capturing the St. Mihiel salient the American First Army was aided and protected by the largest concentration of air forces ever made, of which approximately one-third were American and the other two-thirds were French, British, and Italian squadrons operat- ing under American command. Throughout this operation the German back areas were kept under bombardment day and night; their reserves and munition dumps were located for the American long-range artillery; propaganda designed to disaffect enemy per- sonnel was dropped; record was made by photograph of every move- ment of the enemy's lines and reserves, such information being fre- quently delivered to headquarters in finished photographs within half an hour after its occurrence ; and fast pursuit planes armed with machine guns flew low over the German lines, firing directly into his infantry. Day bombers and corps and artillery observers were forced to fly low on account of the fog which hampered all the day operations, greatly reduced the visibility, and made infantry liaison especially difficult. This accounts for the fact that some trouble was experi- enced by the infantry with German "strafing" planes. The American air force employed consisted of twelve pursuit squadrons, twelve observation squadrons, three bombing squadrons, and fifteen balloon companies. This large force performed an amount of flying approximately three times as great as was done during the Chateau Thierry operations. Because the Meuse-Argonne engagment covered a wider front and a more extended period of time, against an enemy who had im- proved his distribution of air force along the entire southern section of the front, no such heavy instantaneous concentration of planes 392 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY as was made at St. Mihiel was possible. In this operation, more- over, less assistance was rendered by French and British flyers. The American force used during the engagement was considerably larger than at St. Mihiel. During the six weeks' struggle, the losses were heavy, but re- placements were brought forward so rapidly that at the last stage of the action the available American strength was greater than at the start. The final test of the American air service is the test of battle. The final record is the record of the results of combat. Casualty figures are an important part of the record. American aviators brought down in the course of their few months of active service 755 enemy planes. Our losses in combat were 357 planes. Training p'or Air Service Written by John Laird Parkhill : I enlisted in the air service January 10, 1918, hoping to be of some service to my country as a flyer. At Omaha, where I enlisted, I had to pass a strict mental and physical test. The only alteration that I needed physically was to have my tonsils removed, which I did, with a great expenditure of saliva. The "whirling chair" test was an unusual feature of the physical examination. It was designed to determine whether or not one re- acted normally to whirling motions such as would be experienced in tail spins, power spirals, and other similar stunts. It made me sick for the rest of the day, which was normal reaction, and rather de- preciated flying in my eyes for the time. My call to service came April 25th and directed me to report at Austin, Texas, June ist. I spent three months of hard study in the school of military aero- nautics in Austin. That was "ground school." Here we learned all we could about flying while on the ground. We studied engines, aeroplanes, meterology, and other technical and military subjects, as well as the gentle art of infantry drill. Austin is known as the "West Point of the air service." Studies were hard, and discipline strict. Such a system of elimination was used that thirty-three per cent of the cadets were "busted out." This created an atmosphere of continual strain, because everyone was intensely ambitious to be a flyer. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 393 Upon graduation from ground school most of us were placed in a concentration camp, Camp Dix, Dallas, Texas, due to a lack of train- ing planes. At this memorable camp we lived in cow barns and pig pens on the state fair grounds; and shoveled coal, did K. P., and stood guard. This for six to eight weeks. I was certainly glad when, on October 25th, I was sent to Eberts Field in Arkansas for flying instruction. We used the Curtis-J. N-4, which would almost fly itself on a calm day. Now most of my hard work was over, barring a few coal piles and tours of K. P. and guard. I enjoyed every minute I was in the air. At this time we were given the "re-breathe" test for altitude en- durance. It consists of putting one through all the stages of suffo- cation (excepting the last) and noting his reactions. I passed with an A, meaning no altitude limitations. When the armistice was signed we were given an opportunity to resign, but I stayed in for the love of flying. As a good many had left the service and the small fields were be- ing closed, the Eberts Field cadets were sent down to Love Field, Dallas, Texas, on January 19, 1919. Eberts Field had been rather a dead place socially, but in Dallas we were literally accorded the freedom of the city. In Texas I learned to stunt, fly in formation, and fly by compass. At the end of my flying course I passed the R. M. A. (Reserve Mili- tary Aviators) test and was commissioned March 13, 1919. The R. M. A. test consists of taking off out of a field 2,000 feet square and in one circle of the field gaining 500 feet altitude, the gaining 2,000 feet altitude, cutting the motor over the field, and spiraling down into the field. You must make a spiral to left and right and land zooming over a ten-foot wall, and stopping close to the lime- marked spot in the field. This is not as hard as it sounds. No words can express my disappointment at not getting across, but my experience in flying was worth while, and the air shall always attract me the same as the sea called to our adventurous forefathers. Aviation — the Balloon Section Written by Forrest L. Hoeffle : The balloon is made of a silk-rubber fabric sufiiciently water- proofed. When inflated it measures something like ninety feet long and about twenty-seven to thirty feet in diameter. It is fitted with a main gas bag surrounded by a small air space; of a shape in a general way like a cigar, with ear-shaped projections at the tail 394 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY which in the parlance of the balloon men are called "fins," the pur- pose of which is to keep the balloon from rolling. A rudder located beneath the fins is for the purpose of keeping the balloon headed in- to the wind. The rigging includes the basket ropes, handling guys, and metal- lic V. Gas is injected into the balloon through a valve in the nose. Control of the balloon is maintained by means of a standard steel cable wound from a drum of a winch on the ground, which is cap- able of drawing down at the rate of 1,500 feet a minute. The cable carried also telephone wires which afi:ord communication from the officers in the basket to the men on the ground. In observation work the balloon is generally floated at 700 meters or 2,100 feet. The winch from which the lead runs to the balloon above is usually a single motor car, though some of the cars are equipped with two motors, one for driving the car, the other for driving the winch. The balloons have a capacity of 35,000 cubic feet of hydrogen gas. If a gas plant is near, they are filled by the nurse-bag process, from a large bag made of balloon cloth, but when operating in the field the gas is furnished from steel cylinders. In handling a balloon there are required forty-two men, a balloon sergeant, and a balloon or flight officer. The entire company con- sists of 170 men, 4 medical men attached, and 8 officers. All are designated as special duty men except the 40 who are required to handle the balloon. Special duties of the several men are: Tele- phone men, to take care of the telephone lines around the balloon; switchboard men; radio men, to look after radio work; chart room men, to keep records of the observations made by the men in the bas- kets; riggers, whose duty is to take care of the riggings of the bal- loon; fabric men, to attend to the patching and repairing of leaks; gas men, who inflate the big bag with gas; machine gunners for anti-aircraft work; chauffeurs, mechanics, welders, and special duty men. This personnel is divided as follows: Two master signal electricians, 12 sergeants first class, 10 sergeants, 16 corporals, 6 chauffeurs first class ; 1 1 chauffeurs, 32 privates first class, 76 privates, with officers consisting of commanding officer, supply officer, medi- cal officer, balloon officer, 4 observation officers. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 395 Constructing Airpi^ane Hangars in Engi^and Written by Fred D. Steinbeck of Albert City, who enlisted as a brick- mason : The first aviation camp at which we were stationed was at Lok- combe Corner, England, where we arrived April 4, igi8. Inasmuch as this was a new camp and few conveniences had been provided we were compelled to live in tents and a few shacks, with cloth hangars to house the flying machines. Our duty here was to construct brick hangars and barracks. Our forces erected nearly fifty new buildings, such as hangars, barracks, a garage, laundry, hospital, a place of amusement, and every such building as is necessary to make a camp modern. Some of the buildings were very large, ranging from 50 to 350 feet in length. The four hangars were 150x250 feet, twenty feet high, with steel roof and with doors in both ends. Buildings erected at this camp were substantially built and will stand many years. What they can be used for since the close of the war is a mystery to me, for there are many such camps in England, and some of them are even larger than this one. No American flyers were stationed at this camp; all of the aviators were Britishers. This was the place at which finishing touches were put on their training, and when they left here they were ready for the front. Some of the men we knew there were superior aviators. At times there would be as many as thirty in the air at once, doing different stunts which never failed to be of interest to us. After six months of work at this camp we were ordered to Man- chester, a much larger camp, but work there was interrupted by the signing of the armistice, and as far as I know it was never finished. After having observed the large scope of the plans for military operations at these two points I can easily believe the wonderful stories we have been told of immense army equipment, supply, and housing plans at other places. Spruce for Airplanes Contributed by Dr. J. H. O'Donoghue, Captain in the Medical Corps : During the summer of 191 7, the slogan of the American people was "Airplanes will win the war." The United States had no air- planes, but possessed an abundance of raw materials from which to make them. Chief among these materials is spruce to make the 396 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY wing beams and other wooden parts, for it is light, tough, and very strong. A bullet may cut a spruce wing beam half in two, but this wood does not split readily and will still hang together. Spruce in abundance is to be had in western Washington and Oregon, but the lumber industry of the Pacific Coast, in 191 7, was prostrate through controversies between labor and capital and the activities of the L W. W. In the late summer of 191 7, the United States, with our allies, England, Italy, and France, managed to send troops to these states partly to intimidate the I. W. W., who were threatening sabotage, and partly to get out airplane spruce. The several cantonments contributed their share of men, the men being selected because of some previous experience in logging, milling or railroad building, or rafting. The wishes of these men were not consulted in the matter. They were not volunteers, but were or- dered to this service just as their comrades were ordered to France or elsewhere. In the autumn of 1917 the soldiers built the famous "cut up" mill at Vancouver, Washington, all operated by electricity, where the spruce "cants" were sawed into wing beams and started on, their way for the places where airplanes were to be built in England, France, and Italy, and of course, also in this country. Our troops departed for the saw mills, lumber camps and ship yards in Decem- ber, 19 1 7, and although the winter was well begun and logging oper- ations practically discontinued, they set the saws moving and the donkey engines puffing, and the dead lumber business came suddenly actively to life, and steady streams of Douglas fir and spruce were soon moving toward ship yards and the cut-up plant at Vancouver. But still the supply of spruce was far below that needed, and in Jan- uary, 1 91 8, the government organized camps to get out airplane spruce exclusively. The spruce tree is a very wonderful tree, growing two or three hundred feet high, and attaining a diameter of ten feet at the sawing plane, ten feet above the ground, but it is twisted like a barber's pole and if sawed as the western mills do it, the pieces are cross grained and useless for wing beams, so it was necessary to split or "rive" the logs into "cants" so that the cut-up mill could saw with the grain. This was a tremendous undertaking as the riving must all be done by means of wedges and jack-screws, as powder would ruin the wood for wing beams, and was not permitted. The average spruce log was six feet in diameter, and spruce splits with great difficulty, but the soldiers succeeded all the same and a steady stream' of "cants" was soon moving into the cut-up mill at Vancouver. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 397 The apparatus used in logging is very impressive. The donkey engine and its outfit of cables is the unit of all operations. The don- key engine is erected on a great sled-like thing whose runners are logs about three feet in diameter and thirty-five to forty feet long, and it travels around through the woods under its own power much as I imagine the big tanks did in France, and with as little regard for trees and stumps, and other obstructions, crossing ravines and rivers with no appreciable delay. In selective logging, the experts — tree spotters — go into a region which the engineer determines from maps and surveys may yield air- plane spruce, and select the spruce trees which will furnish airplane stock, but none less than four feet in diameter at the cutting level. These are marked and carefully located on a map. The "fallers" come after the spotters, and cut the trees down, the "buckers" follow and cut to suitable lengths, then come the donkey engines, each with about two or three thousand feet of steel cable, two inches in dia- meter. Three donkey engines make a team. First the "yarder," which is one or two thousand feet from the plank road or railroad track, hauls all the logs within two thousand feet to its landing by means of a "high lead." The high lead is a tree cut off about one- hundred fifty to one hundred eighty feet above the ground, guyed by cables, and supporting a stationary block or pulley, weighing about five hundred pounds, through which the two inch steel cable which drags the logs in from the woods runs. Next the "roader," a don- key engine similiarly equipped, which drags the logs from the "yar- der" to the loading place on the plank road or railroad, and next the "loader," which lifts the great logs and lays them carefully on motor trucks or railway cars, which convey them to tide water in rivers or inlets where they are dumped into the "booms" and after- wards made into rafts and towed to the saw mills by motor or steam tug boats. A hazardous looking business it is. The high climber must blow ofif the top of the tree for the high head with d3mamite. He must perch around up there to put the guy cables and tackle. If anything breaks, some one is sure to be hurt or killed. The "choker" men put a turn of cable around one end of a log six feet to eight feet in diameter; the donkey engine starts from a signal from the "whistle punk" and the cable begins to run through the pulley at the top of the high lead and the huge log comes crashing through the woods, taking smaller trees and stumps out of its way. It is followed by a man called the "chaser" who signals any trouble to the whistle punk who must also keep him in sight and he in turn signals the engineer 398 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY to stop, go back, go ahead, etc., by means of a signal wire. A "chaser" was killed one day by a catapulted six-foot log thrown into the air when the log he had choked started to move. Another was killed by an old dead tree struck by the moving log which for some unaccountable reason did not topple at once, but fell just in time to get the following chaser. An entire camp was caught in a forest fire and escaped down the creek bed to the tide flat, scantily clad, but without casualties. We used tons of dynamite in clearing for plank roads, railroads, and deepening stream beds, but strangely enough we had no serious accident from dynamite, though on two occasions huge billets of wood tore through the infirmary tent and interrupted operations in progress. The much feared L W. W. never gave any trouble, but of course armed guards were posted night and day, and no sabotage was ever perpetrated, nor do we know that it was ever planned. In the early spring of 1918 the "genius" appeared and showed the western saw mill men that a spruce log could be cut into cants with the grain in any modern saw mill, so after that the riving ceased, and the soldiers did "selective logging" which enormously increased the output, and when the armistice was signed, the cut-up plant was run- ning twenty-five units twenty-four hours a day shipping 1,000,000 feet of wing beams to the factories every day, and in fact the lumber situation had improved to such an extent that a regiment had been ordered released for foreign service December, 1918, and others were to follow later as they could be spared. The division at the date of signing of the armistice contained 32,000 officers and men under the command of Brigadier General Brice P. Disque, and was known as the air service production divi- sion. They were not limited service men nor industrials, but it seems to the writer rather superior to any other large body of troops with which he became acquainted during the war. Selected from the various cantonments for their special experience, and knowledge of logging, milling, and railroading, they had no option but to serve at home in this humble way. Living in canvas camps, remote from civilization, working and sleeping in the rain and mud, they expe- rienced all the hardships of service on the battle lines, and while they can not share in the greater glory which so deservedly rests upon their comrades who fought across the sea, they were not exempt from its hazard, for of the 2,300 men with whom the writer was associated during the summer and autumn of 19 18, fourteen met with accidents which resulted fatally, while a very large number of lesser "casualties," like loss of hand, a leg, or an eye, occurred. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 399 The writer is not prepared to say what part, if any, this division had in whipping the Kaiser, but he knows that the amount of spruce for airplanes started on the way to the mills should have been suffi- cient to darken the sky of the Kaiser's great domain, and we left 90,000,000 feet of lumber in the woods, on the plank roads and rail- roads, and on the booms in Willapa Harbor subdistrict alone, when the armistice was signed. Aerial Photography Writing from the aviation field at Dayton, Ohio, in May, 1918, Carl A. Johnson, a photographer from Newell, gives the following ideas of war photography: This is one of the largest and oldest aviation fields in the United States. I would like to send you a picture of it but we are not per- mitted to have cameras for private use and there are no views for sale. We are a company of eleven men, all from Cornell University, and will get busy at once to make a mosaic of the camp. A mosiac is an aerial photograph map. We are the first photographers on the field and will have our hands full. Aerial photography has been called the "eyes of the army." It is more than the eyes — it is the truthful and accurate observer and the unfailing memory, the historian without suspicion. Of all sources of information concerning the enemy, that obtained by means of aerial photography is most perfect and complete. A photographer desirous to serve in the aerial photographic sec- tion must first take a course in the United States Army School of Military Aeronautics, and thoroughly familiarize himself with this branch of the service. Various types of cameras are used. They are fastened in the bottom or on the side of the fuselage, as they are too cumbersome and bulky to manipulate except when held in rigid position; though of course hand cameras are also essential for oblicjue photographs. The C. & E. changer type and the L type cameras are equipped for 4x5 plates and each magazine accommodates twelve or twenty- four plates. Magazines are interchangeable so the operator may carry several when up on a photographic mission, as they are easily changed while in the air. The G. E. M. and the Brock automatic are equipped for roll film 4% inches wide by 46 feet long, and an area 33 miles long and one-third mile mile wide can be strip mapped with a single film. For mapping purposes an altitude of 5,000 feet is generally used. 400 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY The work of an aerial photographic section at the aviation fields consists of instructing cadets in aerial photography and aerial map- ping, and photographing officers and cadets for records to be kept on file at Washington, D. C, photographing every crash or mishap and all other photographic work which may be of interest to the authorities. Chaumont Neve^r Under Attack Written by Mahlon H. Johnson, Company C, Headquarters Bat- talion : Chaumont, a quaint little old French city, lodged in and about the valley of the Marne, where, centered on the highest elevation, in majestic beauty, is the Damremont Caserne, was the home of the General Headquarters of the American Expeditionary Forces from September, 191 7, until June i, 19 19, when G. H. Q. broke up almost as quickly as the clouds break away after a summer rain. The Cas- erne (French for garrison or camp), a large, enclosed, and fortified French training camp, provided the quarters for the multitudinous departments and sub-departments of the administrative organiza- tion of the G. H. Q. Within a short distance of the Caserne, to the east, courses the river Marne; to the west lies the Valley of Peace, in which are seen beautiful pastures, picturesque gardens and wooded hills, separated and crossed by snow-white macadamized roads. To the northwest' the two valleys join and the river Marne, bordered by the beautiful Marne canal, which shines on a clear summer day like a white silk ribbon, winds about a high, wooded hill, and out of view it flows on, to Paris. It is said that Chaumont was selected as the site for the main head- quarters of the American Expeditionary Forces because of the stra- tegic importance of its location with respect to that of the fighting forces of the American army, and because of the excellent natural protection that the surrounding hills gave the city from any manner of attack by the enemy. The city was not at any time attacked by an armed force of the enemy, from land or air, although those stationed in the city felt in danger of nightly air-raids. The blinds were kept tightly drawn at the windows of the ever-busy offices at all hours of the night until the day of November nth, when it seemed that a heavy blanket was lifted from the entire place. On one autumn day "Jerry" did come over, about i :oo o'clock in the afternoon, bent on photographing, according to the rumors. It HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 401 was said that there were five Boche planes. Cloud shells were sent up over the Caserne from the anti-aircraft guns, and the minute that the enemy was discovered a half dozen planes from the Ameri- can and French aviation center shot up into the air, but "Jerry" ran home as quickly as he came. On another day a balloon was brought down near the city, but there was nothing in it, and the assumption was that it got over the lines at night, after breaking loose, and floated away from the fight- ing. It was received with pleasure and most of it was sent back to this side in little pieces as souveniers of the "Battle of Chaumont." The Caserne proper consisted of three massive buildings, laid at right angles, facing Rue des Etats Unis (Road of the United States), and a number of smaller buildings, which are completely surrounded by a great wall of masonry. Between the three enormous struc- tures lies the parade ground, on which thousands of people may as- semble. Around the outskirts of this perfectly level and macada- mized quadrangle is an elaborate display of trees. Rue des Etats Unis was perfected by our own engineers, who added artificial beauty to the already existing natural enviroment. Long rows of trees are lined in single file beside the promenade; a road to each side of the promenade; more trees at the edge of these two roads, and then two more walks, which add to the convenience and beauty of the road as it winds its way into the city of Chaumont. On this street was the soldiers' Y. M. C. A. building, one of the most complete in France. Therein were reading, writing, and class rooms, two large auditoriums, a canteen, a restaurant, an enormous fire- place — everything practicable which could have been supplied for the entertainment and instruction of our men. Further up the street was the officers' Y. M. C. A. — more elaborate, but not less pleas- ing or serviceable. The entire Rue des Estats Unis is lined with architecturally artistic residences. In the French section of the Caserne, to the left of the three great buildings, were soldiers' quarters, administrative offices, infirmaries, and other necessary departments. Throughout the district are small plots of gardens and winding macadamized paths. Other sections of the Caserne were occupied by the British, French, and Italian missions. To the east of the Caserne, Camp Babcock occupied a prepossessing spot, and therein soldiers who worked at General Headquarters were quartered. To the west, leading down a gentle hill toward Peace Valley, was Camp Bacon, where most of the clerks who worked in the offices were quartered. To the south were the Marine Barracks, so called because it was there the Marines were housed during the year of their stay with G. H. Q. 402 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY In the three magnificent buildings of the Caserne the greatest part of the executive work of G. H. Q. was carried on. Here Gen- eral Pershing maintained his offices and those of his staff, and it was here that G-i, G-2, G-3, G-4, and G-5 held forth, under which a few of the departments were: Information, secret service, topography, censorship, intelligence corps, administrative services, services of supply, quartermaster corps, medical corps, engineer corps, ordnance department, signal corps, air services, chemical welfare service, general purchasing agent, transportation, provost marshal's service, beside the numerous branches directly or indirectly connected with these services. Chaumont was the center of an administrative web which extend- ed in every direction for miles and miles, the influence and effect of which has been felt throughout the world. It was at these head- c[uarters where the schemes and plans were created which resulted, on July 21, 1918, at Chateau Thierry, in turning the tide of battle. It should be mentioned that "chaumont" is the French word for camel, and that the city was given the name because of the long hill shaped like a camel's back, upon the top and in the valleys at the foot of which the city rests. Chaumont, as the city in which the General Headquarters, Ameri- can Expeditionary Forces, were established, will live forever, and those who have been privileged to enjoy its hospitaHty will ever look back with pride in having been included in G. H. Q.'s vast personnel. A Mii^ivioN DoivivARS AN Hour For a period of twenty-five months, from April, 191 7, through April, 191 9, the war cost the United States considerably more than $1,000,000 an hour. Treasury disbursements during the period reached a total of $23,500,000,000, of which $1,650,000,000 may be charged to the normal expenses which would have occurred in time of peace. The balance may be counted as the direct money cost of the war to the end of April, 1919, a sum of $21,850,000,000. The figure is twenty times the pre-war national debt. It is nearly large enough to pay the entire costs of our Government from 1791 up to the outbreak of the European war. In addition to this huge expenditure loans were advanced to the Allies at the rate of nearly half a million dollars an hour. Congress authorized for this purpose $10,000,000,000, and there was actually HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 403 paid to various governments the sum of $8,850,000,000. Of the United States Government war cost, the army was responsible for the expenditure of sixty-four per cent, or just short of two-thirds of the entire amount. The total direct war costs amount to about $186,000,000,000, and of this sum the enemy countries spent about one-third and those on the allied side about two-thirds. Germany spent more than any other nation, and was closely followed by Great Britain, whose ex- penditures include those of her colonies. The figure for France is $12,000,000,000 less than that for Great Britain, and our own figure is below that for France. The Austrian expenditure was almost equal to that of the United States. It is noteworthy that the United States spent about one-eighth of the entire cost of the war and some- thing less than one-fifth of the expenditure of the allied side. The quartermaster corps, which paid the soldiers and furnished them with food, clothing, equipment, and miscellaneous supplies, spent the most. The ordnance department was next in order, with over $4,000,000,000 for munitions, more than half of its expenditures being for artillery ammunition. The total of our army expenditures about equals the value of all the gold produced in the whole world from the discovery of America up to the outbreak of the European war. P:eRMANENT ASSENTS As a result of the war efiforts large quantities of munitions, sup- plies, and equipment have been secured which will be of value for many years to come. The army now owns some of the finest docks in the world. The sixteen National Army cantonments and three National Guard camps will be retained permanently as training- camps. A number of first-class aviation fields and depots and bal- loon schools will be a permanent asset. As to rifles and machine guns and their ammunition, light and heavy artillery and ammunition, tanks and tractors, of these we have a supply more than sufficient to equip fully an army of a million men and maintain them in active combat for six months. Thousands of Liberty motors and service planes are immediately available for any 404 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY emergency. Engineer, signal, and medical equipment is on hand to the value of millions of dollars. Health and Casuai^ties the deadi.iest war Of every lOO American soldiers and sailors who took part in the war with Germany, two were killed or died of disease during the pe- riod of hostility. In the Northern Army during the Civil War the number was about ten. Among the other great nations in this war, between twenty and twenty-five in each lOO called to the colors were killed or died. To carry the comparison further, American losses in this war were relatively one-fifth as large as during the Civil War and less than one-tenth as large as in the ranks of the en- emy or among the nations associated with us. The total battle deaths in this World War were greater than all the deaths in all wars for more than lOO years previous. Russia had the heaviest losses, in spite of the fact that she with- drew from the war after the fall of 191 7. American losses are third from the bottom of the list. German losses are thirty-two times as great as the losses of the United States, the French twenty-eight times, and the British eighteen times as large. - BATTLE DEATHS BY SERVICE The chances of death are much heavier in the infantry than in any other branch of the service. Of each 1,000 enlisted men in the infantry forty-six were killed in action or died of wounds. The offi- cers show a higher rate. For every man who was killed in battle, seven others were wound- ed, taken prisoner, or reported missing. The number who died of wounds were only six per cent as large as the number who were wounded. Hospital records show that about eighty-five per cent of the men sent to the hospitals on account of injuries were returned to duty. The number of men reported as missing was steadily reduced from a total of 22,724, exclusive of prisoners, to 2,913 early in May, HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 405 19 19. Under date of September 10, 1919, it was announced by the War Department that every American soldier who became a casu- alty in the war against Germany had been accounted for. This end was accomplished without clearing any case as dead, except on evi- dence establishing beyond doubt the fact of death. Only twenty-two per cent of those who were originally reported as missing in action have been returned as dead. The work of the central records office of the American Expedition- ary Forces in clearing up the cases of men listed as missing has been more successful than that done in any other armies or in any previ- ous great war. When the records are finally completed, with all American soldiers accounted for, the missing lists of the other na- tions still runs into the hundreds of thousands. BATTLE AND DISEASE EOSSES The total number of lives lost in both army and navy from the declaration of war to May i, 19 19, is 122,500. Deaths in the army, including marines attached to it, were 112,432. About two-thirds of these deaths occurred overseas. There were 768 lost at sea, of which 381 are included under battle deaths, since their loss was the direct result of submarine activity. Almost exactly half the losses were from disease. If the comparison between disease and battle losses is limited to the expeditionary forces, battle losses appear tnore than twice as large as deaths from disease. This was the first war in which the United States was engaged that showed a lower death rate from disease than from battle. In previous wars insanitary conditions at camps and the ravages of epi- demic diseases have resulted in disease deaths far in excess of the number killed on the battle field. The death rate from disease in the Mexican War was no per year in each 1,000 men; in the Civil War this was reduced to 65 ; and in the Spanish War to 26, while the rate in the expeditionary forces in this war was 19. The battle rate of 53 for the overseas forces is higher than in any previous war. It is higher than in the Civil War because all of the fighting was concen- trated in one year, while in the Civil War it stretched over four years. 4o6 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY • THE CONTROI. OF DISEASE Some of the outstanding causes of the remarkably low disease death rate in the war against Germany are : ( i ) A highly trained medical personnel, (2) compulsory vaccination of the entire army against typhoid fever, (3) thorough camp sanitation and control of drinking water, and (4) adequate provision of hospital facilities. During the war 31,251 physicians from civil hfe were commissioned in the medical corps. This number included leaders of medical science who have not only made possible the application of the most recent advances of medicine in the prevention and cure of disease, but have themselves made new discoveries during the course of the war, resulting in great saving of life in our own and other armies. The intestinal diseases, such as dysentery, the typhoids, bubonic plague, cholera, and typhus, have ravaged and even obliterated ar- mies in the past. During the Spanish-American War typhoid fever alone caused eighty-five per cent of the total number of deaths. In the war with Germany these diseases were practically eliminated as causes of death. Pneumonia was the greatest cause of death. More than 40,000 died of that disease. Of these, probably 25,000 resulted from the influenza-pneumonia pandemic which swept through every camp and cantonment in this country and caused thousands of deaths in the expeditionary forces. Two other diseases which offered difficult problems for the med- ical force were measles and spinal meningitis. Measles was preva- lent during the first year of the war and was particularly dangerous as the predecessor of pneumonia. Meningitis caused nearly 2,000 deaths, ranking next to pneumonia. VENEREAE DISEASE Great success has also been experienced in the control of the ven- ereal diseases. A comprehensive program of education, together with medical prophylaxis, produced unusual results. While these diseases continued to be the most frequent cause of admissions to the sick report, and the greatest source of non-effectiveness in the army, a large proportion of the cases were contracted before entering the army. A special study of all new cases of venereal diseases report- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 407 ed at five large cantonments shows that of 48,167 cases treated, ninety-six per cent were contracted before entering the army and only four per cent thereafter. HOSPITALIZATION At the beginning of the war what was then considered an extrava- gant program of hospital construction was entered upon, with the intent that in no case should the army lack facilities for the care of its sick. On December i, 1919, there were available in army hospi- tals 399,510 beds, or one bed to every nine men in the army. Of these, 287,290 were overseas and 112,220 were in this country. The hospital capacity was exceeded in this country only during the influ- enza epidemic, when it became necessary to take over barracks for hospital purposes. The overseas record was even better. Except during two weeks in October, at the height of the attack on the Hin- denburg line, the number of patients did not exceed the normal bed capacity of the hospitals, and at that time there were approximately 60,000 unused emergency beds. A Nurse's Experience The experience of a Red Cross nurse is told in the following story from Miss Eva Delbridge, told in the Storm Lake Pilot-Tribune upon the occasion of a furlough in June, 1919, just after returning home from overseas. When asked about her experiences. Miss Delbridge said that the most wonderful thing that she had seen was the spirit of the wound- ed boys. Early in the war, the hospital service of the army was far from efficient. The 114th hospital unit had to wait three months for their hospital to be finished. At one time they were taking care of 7,000 men. There were only fifty-eight nurses and sixty medical corps men. The nurses would start dressing wounds early in the morning, and would not get through until eight or nine at night. There were men who were actually sufifering for a drink of water, to say nothing of getting their wounds dressed. And yet, said Miss Delbridge, there was not one word of complaint from them. Con- ditions rapidly grew better, but the wish of the wounded men seemed to be to cause as little trouble as possible. "They are simply wonder- ful; 100 per cent grit," said Miss Delbridge. 4o8 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY She said that in civihan hospitals the big problem is to keep peo- ple from giving up. But that is not the case in the army. Men come to the hospitals, mangled beyond relief. But there is never one word of complaint. They fight to the very last. Shortly before her death Miss Delbridge wrote the following ac- counts of experiences and conditions during her period of service. Base Hospital Unit 114, originally an orthopedic unit, was one of a number of hospital units sent to Beau Desert, which place was the largest hospital center in France, in fact the largest in the world. It was at the time of the signing of the armistice, equipped and prepared to care for 20,000 wounded soldiers. Base 114 sailed for France about the 5th of June, 1918. It was made up, in addition to our personnel of doctors, nurses, and corps men, of about thirty reconstruction aids and occupational aids. The reconstruction aids were sent principally for orthopedic purposes. On our arrival in Bordeaux we found this hospital was not yet fin- ished and in no way ready to receive our wounded. Our unit was then temporarily broken up, and many of us sent to the different evacuation hospitals at the front. We were badly needed up there and did service. After about three months we were called back to our respective places in the base center. After this, surgical teams, consisting of two doctors, two nurses, and three corps men were sent in turns to the front as needed. At this time our base, as well as others at the place, were equipped, but the center as a whole was not in readiness — not fully equipped as for supplies and organized hospital unit. However, the wounded continued to pour in just the same. The base hospitals which were already in running order were called upon to open other units in the center, and during the big drives in September, October, and the first two weeks in November our base, as well as others, was caring for 6,000 to 7,000 wounded boys. Our boys had always the fighting spirit with them. Those of our con- valescent patients who were able to do errands, were glad to be of as- sistance to us and to their more unfortunate comrades. Thus they took many minor case from our personnel and added greatly to the comfort of our severely wounded. The boys were always cheerful and hopeful — pure grit. With those of them who were seriously wounded, perhaps mortally so, one wish was to be soon able to go "home." With those who were less wounded, the one cry was to soon get back to their company. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 409 Little ortheopedic surgery was done. It was deemed best to send patients needing work of this kind back to the United States as soon as they were able to be moved. About two months after the signing of the armistice our unit was again broken up; many of our nurses were sent to the different camp hospitals throughout France, but most of us eventually came together again and were sent back as casuals, landing in New York harbor on the 23d of May, 1919. Rkd Cross An army of nurses and Red Cross workers overseas were as sub- stantially backed up by the civilian work done here, as the fighters were backed up by the subscriptions to liberty loans. This point is brought out in a letter from Miss May Schweitzer, written in Sep- tember, 191 8, when she said: You've no idea what a splendid work the Red Cross is doing. We simply could not get on without them. Everything they send is made and done up so nicely; and as you see we have no time to make things you can imagine what that means. The boys tell of the won- derful work the Salvation Army is doing up near the front, too. I scarcely heard of them in the States and am surprised to know how strong they are over here. We realize more each day how fine you people at home are for the splendid way you are supporting these organizations. Caring for the; Wounded Five surgical teams, each consisting of two surgeons, two nurses, and two corps men, cared for 250 to 500 wounded men a day, says Mart E. Wright, who went from Providence Township and was as- signed to medical corps duty in the task of opposing the Hun. Wright was in the base hospital at Souilly, Meuse, in the Verdun sector. He writes as follows of his experience: The duty of a corps man was to clean the wounded men and make them ready for the surgeon. The wounded came to us after they had been through the receiving room and the X-ray room. We as- sisted with the anaesthetic and helped care for the men until they were over the effect of it. Because of the heavy fighting on the front we were busy every day; five surgical teams handling from 250 to 500 wounded men a day — mostly American wounded, a few French, and also quite a few wounded German prisoners. 4IO HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Wright gives the same testimony in regard to the spirit of the suf- fering men as did Miss Eva Delbridge in her story written from her observations as a nurse. He says: The wounded never complained of their wounds; ah were cheer- ful. Men with eyes out and arms off said they were lucky that it wasn't their head. I stopped to talk to one man who was waiting to be operated upon, to ask him how he felt. He said, "Pretty good, but I'd feel better if I had gotten that German who heaved a hand grenade at me." The man had thirty-two wounds, both arms brok- en, and one toe off. The German wounded received the same care as our own wounded; though quite a few of them seemed scared as to what was going to happen to them. The number of Germans who spoke English was remarkable. Most of them were glad to be out of the fight. They all thought the Allies would win, but did not believe the war would be over until the summer of 19 19. THE WORLD WAR Heavy increase in the fighting- equipment of Germany, failure to endorse any policy of arbitration, refusal to cooperate to secure the ends desired of the Hague Conferences, or to limit armaments, the forming of an alliance with Austria-Hungary and Italy, the educa- tion of her people to a state of mind in favor of war, all point to the fact, especially in the light of later developments, that Germany was planning a war during the years when the rest of the world was seeking a basis for permanent peace; Military leaders of Germany anticipated with ill-concealed pleas- ure ''Der Tag" (The Day), when the Central Empire would crush her rivals, and especially was her hope strong for reducing England to a subordinate position among the nations. It was recorded that about the time of the close of the Spanish- American War a German diplomat made the statement to an Ameri- can army officer : "About fifteen years from now our country will start her great war. She will be in Paris in about two months after the commencement of hostilities. Her move on Paris will be but a step to her real object — the crushing of England. Everything will move like clockwork; we will be prepared and others will not be prepared." A determination to increase her standing army was decided upon by Germany in 191 3. Though immense sums were needed for such a project they were raised through taxation, with the addition of suf- ficient amounts to purchase aircraft and guns of sufficient range and caliber to raze the heaviest fortifications. The fall of 1914 was set as the time when these warlike preparations should be complete. The Kiel Canal, important in a naval way, was widened and deepened to carry the immense battleships built during late years. This task was completed July i, 1914. With all equipment at hand and all forces ready for war, the consideration lacking was an excuse for opening hostilities. 412 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY In the southern provinces of Austria-Hungary the Serbs and other Jugo-Slavs had for years been in a repressed state of rebelhon against Austrian rule. Formal annexation of the provinces of Bos- nia and Herzegovina, after a period of time, when Austria-Hun- gary had been governing them temporarily, did not serve to mitigate the dissatisfaction. The ambition of the Serbian people was for a united kingdom of the peoples speaking that language. Serbia, as a small nation, hardly had the courage to assert herself, but successes during the Balkan Wars demonstrated her strength of arms, and, observing this success, the Serbs in Austria took courage to mani- fest their restlessness. This spirit was encouraged by the Serbs in Serbia, who inspired opposition to Austrian Government. Fearful that other subject peoples might be aroused, Austria set about find- ing an excuse for crushing her southern neighbor. Her decision to make war upon Serbia was announced in 191 3 to her allies, Germany and Italy. Italy refused to be involved. Ger- many saw further than Austria. She was hardly ready, as yet, for the conflict that would ensue if Russia should come to the defense of Serbia, so persuaded Austria to withhold the attack. Francis Ferdinand Assassinated The summer of 1914 brought the event that was destined to make longer suppression of European unrest impossible. During a visit which Archduke Francis Ferdinand, heir to the throne of Austria- Hungary, made to the southern provinces of the monarchy, the archduke and his wife were mortally wounded by pistol shots, while driving through the streets of Serajevo on June 28th. The assassin was proved to be an Austrian Serb, whose offense was the more in- criminating because he was a member of a secret organization of Serbians whose purpose was to secure a final union of all Serbian provinces into the Kingdom of Serbia. The crime stirred all of Eu- rope. Furthermore, it gave Austria occasion to attempt to settle the conflict with Serbians. The intrigue of Germany to bring about war soon became appar- ent. Statesmen and generals of Austria and Germany were in con- ference on July 5th, at Potsdam, where, it is assumed, was reached HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 413 the agreement to crush the Serbs. Even though Russia might come to their assistance Germany, being fully prepared, was not averse to taking advantage of the situation created to open the way for a general European war. Among the demands for accountability which Austria made upon Serbia the most humiliatiing was that in which the great power in- sisted upon the privilege of taking part in the investigation and sup- pression of anti-Austrian activities. This demand was in conflict with Serbian sovereignty. The note, dated July 23d, allowed the Serbians only until 6 o'clock, July 25th, in which to make a reply. Response was made within the time limit, consenting to all demands except the offensive one above noted. Serbia further suggested that possible differences be submitted to The Hague Tribunal. Aus- tria professed that the response was unsatisfactory. In less than an hour after the Serbian note was delivered, the Austrian minister addressed the Serbian government stating: ''That not having re- ceived a satisfactory answer within the time limit set, he was leav- ing Belgrade." Preparations for war were at once made by Aus- tria-Hungary and on July 28th she declared war. Engi^and Offe:rs Mediation Great Britain, France, and Italy immediately set in motion means to preserve peace. As early as July 26th, it was suggested by Sir Edward Grey, British foreign minister, that representatives of Ger- many, England, France, and Italy might conceive a plan of settle- ment which would be acceptable to both Austria and Russia. Ger- many remained obdurate against any spirit of cooperation to this end. She only asked that Austria be permitted to deal with Serbia in her own way. In the light of the heavy mobilization of Austrian forces which followed it seemed apparent that Austria was preparing to fight Rus- sia also — and Russia prepared for the conflict. Germany held out against any action which might have avoided war — even went so far as to ignore a suggestion from the Czar of Russia that the Austro-Serbian question be submitted to The Hague Tribunal. Ostensibly in the fear that the mobilization of Russian forces was 414 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY a threat of war, Germany, on July 31st, sent ultimatums to both Rus- sia and France. She demanded of Russia that preparations for war be stopped. Of France she demanded a statement within eighteen hours as to whether that country would remain neutral in case of war between Germany and Russia. Before the German people the Kaiser tried to create the impression that "the sword is being forced into our hand." Russia refused the demand of Germany. Immediately Germany declared war upon the Czar's country. On August 3d, after learn- ing that France would stand by her ally, Germany extended her dec- laration of war to include France. Thus was set in motion the most stupendous military conflict of all ages. Immediately a contingency arose upon which Germany had not counted. Her military leaders believed that Great Britain would not enter the war. Yet behind this was the deliberate intention that when she had made herself supreme on the Continent that England's turn would come. Provisions of the Triple Entente did not demand that England join France and Russia in case of war. In spite of a treaty in which she agreed to respect the neutrality of Belgium, Germany chose a route through the little kingdom as the shortest road to France; hence, England, pledged to support of Bel- gium's neutrality, demanded that Germany desist from such a course. Germany refused, and on August 4th England declared war. With- in a period of one week, successive declarations of war had brought Russia, England, and France at war against Germany and Austria- Hungary. Italy remained neutral. First Year op the War German militarists planned to crush France before Russia's forces could be mobilized; then, with France under her heel, turn to the east and overcome Russia. Speed must be made in reaching France ; hence, the need for a short line of travel and the commission of one of the greatest national crimes of history. Because of heavy fortifications and easily defended territory, the most direct route from the German border to Paris was not attempt- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 415 ed. The aggressors decided to attack from the northwest, over a comparatively level plain through Belgium and up to Paris itself. Depending upon the neutrality of Belgium, which had been guar- anteed by treaties with Germany, Russia, France, and England, France had never built fortifications in this direction. In violation of this treaty, contemptuously referred to by the German chancellor as "3. scrap of paper," Germany violated the neutrality of Belgium, hoping to crush France before the world could enforce any protest. Belgium resisted the invasion firmly, delaying the Germans ten days. During that time the intruders inflicted heavy punishment on the defenders of their homeland; but the delay gave France time to move her troops to a point of vantage and for England to put 100,- 000 soldiers at the front. Paris was not captured, nor was France conquered. The little kingdom of Luxemburg, imagining itself secure under the same guarantee that had been given to Belgium, was without any army, and was soon occupied. On the 4th of August German forces attacked the fortress of Liege, in Belgium, and by the 27th the country, with the exception of Antwerp, was in the hands of Germany. The first conflict of German troops against French and English forces occurred August 2ist-23d, when the defensive was pushed back toward Paris for twelve days, to a point within twenty miles of the city. Fearful, lest Paris be captured, government archives were moved to Bordeaux. The line of battle now covered one huhdred and seventy-five miles from near Paris to the fortress of Verdun. Then occurred the first battle of the Marne, September 6th-ioth, when General Joffre hurled against the Germans a secretly collected army and drove them back fifty miles from their nearest advanced position. With a renewed sense of security the French capital was returned to Paris. The river Aisne afforded for the retreating German armies a place to entrench themselves and more firmly resist the push of the French and English. Each side of the river was occupied by opposing armies. The Germans, hopeful of capturing Calais, in order thus to cut off communication between England and France, made a dash for the North Sea. Antwerp was captured on October 9th, Lille 4i6 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY on the 13th. Then followed the battle of Flanders, October 17th to November 15th, when by massed attacks the Germans lost 150,- 000 men in a vain effort to break through the British lines. Belgian dikes of the river Yser were cut and the lowlands flooded in order to stop the push of the enemy. With the opposing armies in a deadlock the tactics of trench war- fare were adopted on a front of over three hundred miles. Germany, with possession of practically all of Belgium and the richest manu- facturing districts of France, began a reign of horrible barbarities and systematic frightfulness wholly in conflict with The Hague Con- ventions, with a view to reducing the population to a state of ser- vility. Machinery was stolen from factories; heavy fines imposed upon cities, and the country was plundered. Belgium was saved from starvation only by the humanitarian efforts of friends in France, England, and America. More than two hundred thousand people were forced into industrial slavery. Turn to Eastern Front Delay of the program in the west enabled Russia to assemble an army in Russian Poland, from whence the forces moved to drive the Germans out of East Prussia and the Austrians from Galicia. When the Russian armies entered East Prussia in the middle of August their first efforts met with success. But they were met by German reenforcements in a marshy lake region and in the battle of Tannen- berg, August 26th-3ist, Von Hindenburg's army captured 70,000 Russians and large quantities of supplies. The aggressors were compelled to retire from East Prussia. With the capture of the city of Lemberg and the fortress of Przemysl, the Russian campaign in Galicia was counted more suc- cessful. The Russian army crossed the difficult passes of the Car- pathian Mountains in order to make a series of raids upon the plains of northern Hungary. With the end of the year 1914 it was counted that the Russian sit- uation was disappointing. The campaign in East Prussia had failed, while an offensive in Galicia was successful. The advance toward Berlin could not be attempted. An important feature of her activities HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 417 was that she had drawn German troops away from the western front. Austria, with part of her forces engaged in defense against the Russians, attempted to overwhelm the Serbians and met with disas- trous defeat. A counter Serbian offensive was repulsed and was pushed back on her own soil. The Austrians secured control of Bel- grade, the Serbian capital, for twelve days in early December, but were driven out. Turkey Becomes Bei^eigerEnt Turkey, professedly neutral at the beginning of the war, soon de- veloped a friendliness for the Central Powers. Germany, hav- ing had a large influence in the training of the Turkish army, was in a position to practically dominate the policies of that country. A secret treaty, formulated as early as August 5th, united the two countries for war purposes. Without having declared war, Turkey, in October, attacked a Russian fort on the Black Sea and destroyed French and Russian vessels at Odessa. Whereupon, Russia declared war upon Turkey. Soon after Great Britain and France declared war upon Turkey. With the entrance of Turkey into the conflict, Germany hoped for a religious war, which did not materialize. Germany hoped further that Turkey would keep Russia engaged. Germany, unable to furnish naval protection for the Pacific pos- sessions, lost all of them in the first four months of the war. This loss robbed her of coaling stations and interrupted her plans to make war on Allied commerce by means of fast cruisers. Germany had hoped that the Boers in South Africa would take up arms against Great Britain, but in this they were disappointed, for the Boers promptly joined their mother country in the effort to capture Ger- many's colonies in Africa. The struggle continued for three years. The last of the colonies, German East Africa, surrendered in De- cember of 1 91 7. Some Navae Activity At the opening of the war, Germany's fleet, built up at a cost of a billion and a half dollars, was hardly two-thirds as strong as the British fleet. The design of the German navy must be to so weaken 4i8 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY the British fleet that it could not assure safety to English trade in munitions or supplies, nor protect transportation of troops from Eng- land or her colonies to the various fronts. Two definite tasks faced the British navy. The German fleet must be bottled up in port ; and such portions of it as were some distance from home must be searched out and destroyed before they could get out and destroy British commerce. After a review of the Brit- ish Grand Fleet in July, 1914, the fleet was at once assigned to the first of these tasks. These two strong belligerents adopted the same plan for the de- fense of their respective sea coasts — that of laying fields of mines, so placed that they would float in the sea just under the water and so arranged as to explode on contact with the hull of a ship. Cer- tain open channels were reserved through these fields of mines for such traffic as was welcome and could be advised of the safe route to be followed. The first conflict between any portions of the two navies occurred August 28, 19 14, in the waters between the German coast and the Island of Helgoland, a distance of eighteen miles. Two destroy- ers and three cruisers were lost to the German contenders, and although every British vessel returned to port, some were badly bat- tered. A German fleet that was in China, and which slipped out of port a few days before the outbreak of war, did considerable damage before being disposed of by the British navy. By the close of 19 14, thanks to the efforts of the British navy, the German navy was bottled up in ports back of their mine fields, German merchant ships were afraid to hazard trips out of neutral ports, and commerce raiders were made ineffective. The War in 191 5 Compared with actions in previous wars, some of the engagements during the year 191 5 might be considered as major events, yet no material advantage accrued to either side during this year. The Germans introduced poison gas; which inspired the invention of the gas mask as a measure of protection. Later the Allies adopted the use of gas in bombs and shells in order to fight the Germans with HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 419 their own medicine. The use of hquid fire by the Germans proved almost as dangerous to the one who employed it as to the enemy. During the month of February the campaign of Gallipoli opened, with its objective the capture of Constantinople. Here the Allies lost heavily in a siege which lasted practically all year and termi- nated with discouraging results. Though Przemysl was captured by the Russians in March, the Russians were involved in a disastrous campaign in East Prussia, in which they lost 100,000 prisoners in addition to 150,000 killed and wounded, against a German army commanded by Von Hindenburg. When Germany and Austria assumed the offensive a general re- treat of the Russian armies in Galicia and Poland was made neces- sary. Przemysl and Lemberg were recaptured, and 65,000 square miles of thickly-populated territory in Russian Poland were captured by the Central Powers. Prejudiced by past events, Bulgaria entered the conflict by declar- ing war upon Serbia, thus definitely taking her stand as an ally of the Central Powers. Timing an invasion of Serbia with another by Austria the countries of Serbia and Montenegro were not only con- quered, but horrible cruelties were inflicted upon the population. On the eastern front the year of 191 5 had been a year of failure. The Gallipoli campaign had been a humiliation for the Allies. The Russians had been driven from Russian Poland and from the Aus- trian province of Galicia. Bulgaria had joined the Central Powers, linking Austria-Hungary with Turkey. Serbia, the country whose quarrel had been the occasion of the whole world struggle, had been conquered by the enemies of the Allies. Italy entered the war in May, 191 5, with a declaration of hostili- ties against Austria, and a year later extended it to include Germany. Three reasons prompted this action: (i). Her old enmity toward Austria; (2) her desire to annex the neighboring territory inhabit- ed by Italians, but ruled by Austria; and (3) her feeling that Aus- tria was opposed to the interests of Italy in the Balkans. Geographical conditions favored Austria, but Italy pursued her course with vigor. Well protected mountain passes protected the 420 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Austrians, yet by December Italy occupied positions well within the Austrian frontier. During the year 191 5 the Allies continued to control the sea and make more effective the blockade against Germany. Restriction of commerce affected the trade of the United States with Germany, and with neutral nations, who, it was suspected, were in turn supplying goods to Germany. This course on the part of England drew forth protests from America and resulted in a course of correspondence that continued until this country entered the war. Because of trans- shipments made by neutral countries to Germany the blockade was enforced against neutrals as well as belligerents. Germany, skeptical as to the usefulness of the submarine, purchased only four of these craft when the war began. The sinking of three British cruisers demonstrated the value of them, and though they were powerless against properly-armed vessels it was realized that they would be effective against merchant ships. Before long num- bers of them were placed in the waters around the British Isles. Larger ships which were sent to sea were protected against subma- rines by patrols of lighter and faster crafts and by great nets made of heavy wire cables. In the spirit of retaliation, Germany declared a blockade of the British Isles. Yet because she could not convey captured neutral ships to German ports the submarines would sink them. The United States and all neutrals protested against any policy which would disregard the lives of the people on board ships so attacked. Then, on May 7, 191 5, occurred the sinking of the Lusitania, with the loss of twelve hundred lives, many of them women and children. Of the number one hundred and fourteen were Americans. The German campaign of frightfulness was furthered by coast raids upon the defenseless towns of Yarmouth, Whitby, and Scar- borough, where no military ends were accomplished, though hun- dreds of old men, women, and children were killed or wounded. The German hope in this campaign was that this reign of terror would create a clamor for peace. A German squadron which attempted such a raid in January, 191 5, was overtaken and defeated by British war ships. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 421 Immense dirigible balloons, known as Zeppelins, that had been used for observation and for dropping bombs on Antwerp, were now sent over England to create terror among the inhabitants of defense- less towns. Up to October, 191 7, there were thirty-four such raids, resulting in the death of nearly one thousand persons and wounding three times as many. Instead of creating a demand for peace these raids only increased the determination of the British to overcome their enemies. Retaliatiory raids, into Germany, directed mainly against railroad and munitions factories, brought forth a demand that air raids on places not in the military area should be stopped, so that the Ger- man cities should not be bombed in retaliation. England came to the conclusion that the war, in conformity with the prediction of Lord Kitchener, was to be of long duration, and began to prepare accordingly, both in the overseas dominions and in the mother country. The War in 1916 With twenty thousand men on each mile of the front for a distance of twenty-five miles, Germany prepared to attempt the capture of Verdun, one of the most strategic positions, and thereby demonstrate that the German army was invincible. A struggle which began in February continued until July. A bitter fire of artillery, machine gurts, and rifles mowed down the Germans like grain; yet reenforce- ments continued to face the slaughter. The French battle cry, "They shall not pass," was ever the inspiration of the defenders who suffer- ed terribly. Germany lost a half million men before her leaders de- cided to abandon this campaign. Before the issue of this conflict was determined the French and British took the offensive along the Somme River in July, driving the Germans back on a front of twenty miles to a maximum depth of about nine miles. The aggressors did not succeed in making a break in the enemy line, but pushed it back. This proved a relief to the Verdun sector for it attracted part of the German army to the west. At this stage of the conflict British tanks were first introduced. (E. L. Green of Storm Lake took part in this action.) 422 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Aircraft became constantly more useful in the prosecution of the war, not only for observation and photography, but for battle and bombing uses. The development of this adjunct of warfare was more rapid than that of any other agency or implement. Russia made a successful campaign in Armenia in the early months of 1916, inflicting serious defeats upon the Turkish forces, with the ultimate result of preventing them from making an invasion of Egypt. On the whole, this campaign was a very serious blow to the power of Turkey in Asia Minor. The English had less success in a campaign in Mesopotamia when, after a campaign in the year 191 5, forces and supplies failed to reach General Townshend in time and he was compelled to surrender at Kut-el-Amar, about 100 miles below Bagdad, on April 29, 191 6. General Brusilov led an army of Russians into a successful inva- sion of Austria-Hungary, capturing hundreds of thousands of Aus- trian prisoners and causing Austria to transfer troops from the Ital- ian front. The year of 191 6 closed with the Russians in a decidedly more favorable military position than they had occupied a year before. Roumania had long hoped for the annexation of the territory known as Transylvania, in southeastern Austria, where lived two million Roumanian speaking people. Encouraged by promises from Russia, Roumania entered the war in August, 19 16. Her western front was impregnable. But clanger lay between the Danube and the Black Sea. Instead of planning for a defense here she sent her armies into Transylvania. After her armies were a long way from the base of supplies an army of Germans and Bulgarians marched into Roumania through Dobrudja, in the southeastern corner and marched north in a resistless offensive. A shortage of ammunition probably caused by the failure of certain pro-German Russian offi- cials to cooperate with the Roumanians as they had promised, con- tributed to the downfall of the Roumanian forces. Germany forced herself in until she practically occupied the country, cutting off a long battle front and acquiring valuable oil and wheat fields. Hardships on the Italian front during the winter of 1915-1916 were made unusually severe by abnormally cold weather conditions. Snow laying thirty feet deep on some mountain tops made military HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 423 operations quite impossible. Austria assembled nearly 400,000 men and vast supplies to push into Italy in a spring offensive. During May and June, 1916, their efforts were successful, and Austria ad- vanced dangerously close to the rich regions of the Po River but was compelled to retire to defend an offensive begun by Russia on the eastern frontier. With Trieste as the objective, Italy began an advance across the Isonzo River, then after months of struggle took the city and fortress of Gorizia on August 9, 1916, and continued on to Trieste. The British and German navies met in a battle off Jutland, the pen- insula of Denmark, on May 31, 191 6. After battling all day the British fleet was reenforced. But when the Germans became aware of the fact that the British fleet was strengthened they retired be- behind the defense of mines and shore batteries. The issue of that conflict was never decided. Both fleets lost heavily. Submarine activities and sinkings increased during 191 6, but the facts concerning this part of the war are more fully told in the chap- ter on diplomatic negotiations. Out of a total of nearly 4,000,000 tons of shipping destroyed from the beginning of the war to January, 1917, more than half was lost during 1916. Great Britain, which had been depending upon volunteer enlist- ments, now found that in order to raise the necessary five million men she must resort to the selective service system. This country met with a new source of contention from an organization known as the Sinn Fein, composed of the more radical of the home rule party in Ireland. Promised assistance by Germany, the Sinn Fein opened a rebehion April 24, 19 16. It was soon put down and Sir Roger Case- ment, one of the leaders, was executed for treason. The War in 1917 Infantry activity was comparatively light during the winter of 1916-1917, but an unsuppressed fire was maintained by heavy artil- lery. The spring plans of the Allies contemplated a great drive in the region of the Somme River, but a general retirement of the Ger- mans in March to what was known as the Hindenburg line carried them back to a point one hundred miles in length between Arras and 424 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Soissons. During this retirement the Germans destroyed towns, buildings, and orchards, leaving a terribly desolate waste, but aban- doning a territory of thirteen hundred square miles. British and French troops followed hard upon this retreat. Cana- dian troops took Vimy Ridge on April 9th. The pursuit was not a mere occupation of abandoned territory, but the French and British became aggressive on more than one occasion, in the course of the campaign capturing 50,000 prisoners, together with large quantities of munitions. Territorial gains were made during the summer and fall by Allied armies. Heavy artillery fire became almost constant. It was during this campaign when, for three weeks, the French city of Rheims was bombarded with German guns which fired 65,000 large calibre shells and inflicted seemingly irreparable damage on the magnificent cathedral of that city. The capture of two ridges known as Chemin des Dames and Pas- schendaele constituted two important triumphs of this action, and was made possible because the artillery was able to mount advanta- geous positions. The French forced a retreat of the Germans over a thirteen-mile front. (E. L. Greene, of Storm Lake, took part in this action.) In October the first American combat troops entered the lines in the quiet Luneville sector. The First Division, Regular Army, had the honor of being the first in fine. The First Division Written by Glenn E. Clabaugh, Company C, Sixteenth Infantry : The First Division landed in France June 26, 191 7. For months they were put through the hardest kind of training with the help of the French Alpine Chasseurs, or "Blue Devils." About the middle of October, 191 7, the first battalion of each regi- ment was ordered to the trenches in the Toul sector for a ten-days' stay, thereafter to be relieved by the second battalion of the four regiments, and they in turn were relieved by the remaining bat- talions. This was known as a quiet sector, just the place to break in fresh troops. It was cold and wet and very disagreeable on the night we were to relieve the French. We were ordered not to make a sound. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 425 so for two kilometers we hiked along-, whispering our only conver- sation; but when we reached the place we found the French talking away, making more noise than a machine gun itself. For ten days we passed through what I believe was the hardest experience of all because all the time the Germans kept firing over us to our back area. I don't believe that the first two or three nights a snake could have crawled through our lines without being riddled with bullets. It was at this time that the first American artillery was let loose. Then we felt safe, because we were confident that our Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Field Artillery had all the French or any other artiller}) cheated. The second battalion of the i6th were not so lucky as we were, for they lost the first American lives and gave the first prison- ers — but they also received the first French War Cross. Not being with them I can not tell the story otherwise than it was told in the regiment. The Huns had undermined our wire entanglements and at a cer- tain time they laid down a box barrage so fierce that it was impossible to get any help to the boys thus inclosed. But they put up a grand scrap against odds that were too strong — about two hundred Huns against that handful of Americans. The Germans paid a heavy price for every American life they took and the prisoners they cap- tured, as the German dead numbered large, besides the ammunition they wasted. It was a German failure, this, the first German-Ameri- can engagement of the war. New means of aggressive action, brought into use by the British, made it possible to make an attack with less preliminary action. The plan of attack up to this time had been to precede infantry attack with long bombardments, which would of course give the enemy some idea of what to expect. Now the English sent over a large number of tanks, which broke down barbed wire entanglements and brought about a new force with which to contend in trench fighting. It was through the advantage of such an attack that the British successfully surprised the Germans in the battle of Cambrai, November 20th to December 13th. A general review of steadily increasing accomplishments in air- craft battle service will be of interest. The more successful of the airplane pilots were designated as aces. A distinguished Frence ace, who suffered death on September nth, was credited with the de- struction of fifty-four enemy machines. As the number of machines 426 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY in use increased they were formed into escadrilles, or companies, of varying numbers, sometimes being over one hundred. In 191 6, as many as 611 enemy machines were destroyed or damaged by Allied forces. In one period of twenty-four hours in 191 7, forty-three air- planes were destroyed by the French; while in another combat the British brought down thirty-one enemy planes. German planes to the number of 339 were destroyed by the Allies in one week in 1918. A single bombing expedition sent out October 9, 1918, by the Ameri- can army numbered 350 airplanes in the flight. Russia Fails the Allies Early in 191 7, Russia failed the Allies. In withdrawing from the conflict the Allied cause was for the time greatly weakened. A long suppressed desire on the part of certain groups to overthrow the Czar and his autocratic government now came to the front with in- sistence that a more representative system of government be adopted. Many conflicting ideas were brought forward. The Czar establish- ed the Duma as a representative body, but even it lacked the power to meet the hopes of the people. German intrigue was ever pres- ent to weaken the unity and strength of the Russian Government and found receptive spirits among corrupt Russian officials. Shortage of food added to the discontent caused assemblages of the populace, which were difficult to suppress. Out of all this developed the Rus- sian Revolution. Soldiers and workingmen made a direct demand upon the Duma for a representative government. Nicholas II was informed that he was deposed ; even army leaders were informed that they must take orders from the representatives of the people. The insurrection against the old government went so far that some of the soldiers joined the revolutionists. Following the abdication of the Czar on March 15th, a new gov- ernment, with moderate reformers in the several departments, was recognized by the United States, Great Britain, France, and Italy. Hope prevailed that the government would thus be stabilized and continue in support of the Allied cause. Officials went so far as to call elections in the several Russian provinces to elect delegates to an assembly which should make a new constitution for Russia. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 427 But the more extreme socialists were hard to satisfy. Composed of men who owned practically no property this party began an agi- tation for the equal distribution of all wealth. Kerensky, the hope of the stabilizing influences, promised to be a strong man, but later proved unable to control the extremists. German intrigue persis- ted in an effort to cultivate among the soldiers the belief that Ger- many was their best friend. Kerensky combatted this propaganda with speeches made at the front to the armies, and for a time the sol- diers were kept in the spirit which inspired military successes against the Germans and Austrians, with a promise of the recapture of Lem- berg. Shortage of ammunition and the rapid spread of peace senti- ment among the troops caused disorganization in the army with the consecpent retreat from Galicia. The Bolsheviki, the party of the extreme socialists, drove Kerensky from Petrograd on November 7th, under the leadership of Lenine and Trotzky, whose efforts were supported with large sums of money made available by Germany. Upon securing control of affairs the Bolsheviki made known their desire for an immediate peace. They favored the division of the land among the peasants. The newly-elected constitutional assem- bly was not extreme enough to suit the ideas of the Bolsheviki and was adjourned before it could accomplish anything. Lenine and Trotzky were wielding the scepter of power as arbitrarily, as any Czar. An immediate armistice with Germany was arranged to take effect December 7th. This agreement did not stop the Germans from their determination to overrun Russia, for they continued to press on from Riga which they had captured in September. Though denied the cooperation of Russia as contemplated for the campaign in Mesopotamia, the British began in January, 191 7, an offensive which was rewarded by the capture of Bagdad on March nth, from the Turks. Another military success was recorded by the British in Asia. Efforts of the Turks to seize the Suez Canal, and thus to cut off British communication with the Far East, was countered with an offensive in that region which began early in 191 7. Up the Sinai Peninsula the British marched and against powerful resistance from the Turks made slow progress north through Pales- tine, suffering occasional reverses. Operations were started during 428 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY the period of excessive heat, but in the fall the British continued their progress through the Holy Land, and on December loth, General Allenby captured the historical city of Jerusalem. General rejoicing was felt that Jerusalem was again in the hands of a Christian nation after seven centuries of Turkish control. The accomplishment renewed the hope of Jews for the reestablishment of a Jewish nation in Palestine. Its most important military signifi- cance was that it freed the Suez Canal from hazard. Italy was, in 191 7, still pursuing her campaign for the capture of Trieste, which was only eleven miles beyond their most advanced lines. It seemed that a two-years' campaign was to make possible the incorporation of Trieste into the Italian kingdom. However, large Austrian forces, relieved from duty in the east by the collapse of the Russian offensive, returned to the Italian front. Germany, facing reverses on the western front, was anxious to improve the morale of her troops by making a better military showing on the Italian front. Austrians and Germans united to crush the Italian forces which were extended over a semi-circular front of 150 miles. Austrian forces controlled the mountain passes, so that they could attack this time where they would. German divisions assumed the offensive on an already weakened front. In a drive during the last three months of 191 7, the Austro-Ger- man army drove the Italians back from Gorizia, recaptured moun- tain positions which had formerly been taken by the Italians at enor- mous cost, and caused heavy loss of men and materials. Italy was Spared the loss of Venice only by the arrival of British and French assistance. The final stand was made by the Italians along the Piave River. Meanwhile, the policy of unrestricted submarine warfare by Ger- many with its consequent offense against neutrals was gradually drawing the United States into war. Soon after this country de- clared its stand, Brazil and other South American countries either broke off" relations with Germany or declared war against her. Argentine experienced a striking example of German treachery. While Argentine was at peace with Germany the German ambassa- dor at Buenos Aires communicated to his government a wish that HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 429 Argentine ships might be spared from submarine attack; but, if not, he suggested that they be sunk without leaving any trace — as ex- pressed in German, "Spurlos Versenkt." This could not be accom- plished without drowning and murdering the crews. Sweden was involved in this vicious proceeding, for it was through connivance with the Swedish minister that the message was forwarded in cipher over allied cables. The War in 1918 An effort to reach an agreement of peace, in which the initiative was taken by Germany, is covered in the chapter on "Diplomatic Ne- gotiations." Alertness of military forces was not relaxed during the period of diplomatic correspondence, and when it resulted in fail- ure to arrive at a basis of peace all was in readiness for the continu- ance of the bitter struggle. Russia was the only country whose conduct was affected by the peace move. Through the Bolshevist leaders who were in control of the government, armistice with the Central Powers was negoti- ated. Consequently all fighting was stopped along the eastern front, making thousands of German soldiers available to fight in the west. Difficulties were experienced in arriving at a basis for a peace treaty even after the armistice was signed. The peace council was in session at Brest-Litovsk, a town in Russian Poland, from December 23, 1917, to February 10, 1918. Germany's demand to be permitted to keep parts of Russia which she occupied was resisted by Russia to the point that Germany finally opened military operations to en- force her demands. Finally, Levine and Trotzky, Bolshevist lead- ers, acceded to German occupation ; but, in spite of that, German forces advanced to within seventy miles of Petrograd. Unsettled conditions were further aggravated by the rebellion of the people of Ukrania, in the southwestern corner of Russia, and of Finland, in the northwest corner, against the Bolshevist Government. Prompted by hopes of securing material resources in these territo- ries, Germany encouraged them in their rebellion. However, Ger- man control was not acceptable to the people, and this state of mind interfered with Germany's realization of her hopes. On March 3d, a treaty was finally signed at Brest-Litovsk between 430 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Russia and the Central Powers, by the terms of which Russia was compelled to surrender her western provinces of Poland, Lithuania, Livonia, Esthonia, and Courland; to recognize the independence of Ukrania and Finland; to cede to Turkey certain important districts south of the Caucasian Mountains ; and to pay a tremendous indemnity. The insincerity of Germany in her talk of "no annexations and no indemnities" was now evident. More humiliating acquiesence in treaty demands has seldom been forced upon a vanquished nation. It has been estimated that the treaties of Brest-Litovsk took from Russia 4 per cent of her total area, 26 per cent of her population, 37 per cent of her foodstuffs production, 26 per cent of her railways, 33 per cent of her manufacturing industries, 75 per cent of her coal, and 73 per cent of her iron. With the moral and military support of Russia lost, Roumania made peace in the spring of 1918, with considerable loss of terri- tory. She ceded to the enemy the whole of the Dobrudja and also about 3,000 square miles of territory on her western frontier. The Central Powers gained material supplies by being given control of Roumania's extensive petroleum fields and rich wheat fields. Rou- mania was later strengthened by the annexation of the Russian pro- vince of Bessarabia, populated by people of the Roumanian race. This was accomplished without force and by the voluntary action of Bessarabia. Hopeful that with some assistance Russia could solve the prob- lems of the divergence of political feelings in her widespread pro- vinces the United States and the other Allies continued to regard Russia as a friendly nation. Serious complications presented them- selves in the presence of an army of Czecho-Slovaks in the country. These soldiers, native of the northwestern provinces of Austria- Hungary, had originally fought in the Austrian army and had been taken prisoners in the successful campaign which Russia had made in Galicia. Their fighting for Austria was not altogether voluntary, for their sympathies were with the Allied countries. After peace was signed with Germany and Austria, fearing that they would be called back to Austria, the Czecho-Slovak armies secured permis- sion from the Bolshevik government to travel eastward through Rus- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 431 sia and Siberia to the Pacific, with the plan to ultimately take ship to a point where they could join the armies of the Allies. The per- mission to travel through the country was suddenly withdrawn, pre- sumably at the demand of the German influences, but the Czecho- slovaks, persistent in their course, were compelled to occasionally combat Bolshevist troops, which in turn were assisted by German and Austrian prisoners. Anti-Bolshevik Russians gave the Czecho- slovaks assistance which enabled them to seize control of most of the Siberian Railroad, and of parts of eastern Russia. The United States and the Allies, deciding upon a course of mili- tary intervention in Russia, placed an army of American and Japa- nese troops on the east coast of Siberia to cooperate witth the Czecho- slovaks. With this assistance at hand the latter abandoned any plan to leave Russia, with the hope that they could aid the Allied cause where they were. On the northern coast of Russia another Allied force began operations against the Bolsheviki, which by this time was conducting a campaign of pillage, murder, and rapine. When large districts north and east of Moscow declared themselves free of Bolshevik rule new hopes for a democratic Russia were con- ceived. (Anton Jonas, of Storm Lake, was in this Siberian action.) From the Philippines to Siberia Written by Theodore Nielsen of Alta, Company F, Twenty-seventh Infantry, Twenty-eighth Division. Nielson enlisted in Company F of the Twenty-seventh Infantry as a private on January 18, 1918, and was first stationed at Fort Mc- Dowell. His company sailed for Manila on February 5th and land- ed on March 8th. He was promoted to the rank of sergeant. From the time that he reached Manila he had many exciting experiences. He tells in his own words the story of his experience in Sibe'ria. Speaking of his training at Manila he says : There started my soldiering career as a soldier of the great war, not knowing that on the seventh of August we would sail for Siberia. We arrived at Vladivostok on the fifteenth, and after a two days' stay we started northwest on the Trans-Siberian Railroad, taking up railroad guard duty at Ragedonia until August 22d. We were then 432 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY again moved north to Svaggano where owing to Bolshevik activities we were forced to leave the railroad and start hiking in heavy march- ing order through the swamps of Siberia to some place where we could again proceed on the railroad. The Japanese cavalry fur- nished our advance guard, keeping the enemy well under control, but rain caused impassible roads. Trouble with the heavy wagons, long hikings, and expected attacks made life miserable. However, none came and the Japanese airplanes hovering overhead gave us assur- ance of no ambush. Thus we continued through muddy swamps and seemingly un- ceasing rains for six days, finally arriving at Usuria on the banks of the river of the same name, a distance of ninety miles from our starting point. Footsore, weary and ragged, a sorry looking skele- ton regiment was the Twenty-seventh. After a two days' rest more men from the States arrived, bringing each company to war strength. But conditions were still tough, as the month of September in Siberia brings frosty mornings and sleep- ing on the damp ground with only pup tents over one is not agree- able. However, we did not fare so bad, as we were soon ordered to our train for Habarousk to receive reenforcements and get located for the winter. The city has a population of 50,000, and was not very interesting except as an example of a Far Eastern city. On the outskirts of the city we found huge brick barracks, with room enough for thousands of soldiers. We took quarters on the south, and the Japs and Cossacks were in other parts of the town. IN ACTION Our next move was to Ipasskoe where v/c stayed for two weeks. We were then ordered to march out and take the supposedly Bol- shevik heights of Upspanko. On the night of June 9, 1919, we de- trained at Smakofka, camping in pup tents along the railroad until the morning of the tenth. We then started in heavy marching or- der for our objective, Upspanko. A very high spirited bunch of men were the three platoons of F Company under the command of Major Wallace and assisted by our own Captain Killian. The rest of the company was dropped at a station a few miles south of Sma- kofka called Krienske. Twenty-three men, commanded by Lieu- tenant Rick, were dropped as a guard against railroad attack as the company advanced on their objective. It was found that the roads being impassable, a detour must be made, coming into the town from the rear instead of marching direct. After plodding along for twelve HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 433 weary miles we finally stopped at a Russian monastery for the night, finding fair quarters in a barn. At 5 :30 the next morning we were on our way, passing through a little village whose inhabitants thought we were Cecho-Slovak troops. We halted at noon in a woods where a much needed rest and a fine dinner was had. While we were eating an enemy patrol was sighted a quarter of a mile away on the hills, so after resting some our march was resumed. We had only fairly started when our advance patrol signaled the sight of the enemy outpost, but we continued on our way. After a short rest we started out again, weary and hot. We were startled by the sharp crack of a lone rifle followed by a burst of rifle fire over our heads. The lone shot, the first fired by us, was the work of Corporal Murphy of the advance patrol firing on the retreating ene- my's outpost. Never having been under rifle fire before, it was cer- tainly a funny sensation. The Major shouted, "Down, and out of the road," which was unnecessary as everybody was already down as close to the earth as they could get. The enemy was holding a position on top of a hill about fifteen hundred yards from our left front, and there was a small detachment on our right rear that poured a heavy rifle fire, mostly over our heads. But after our automatic rifles got the range the enemy was soon dis- persed, leaving several dead and wounded behind. The firing last- ed about twenty minutes, and judging from the amount of steel and lead coming over our heads we estimated that enemy to be about 250 strong. When we were able to look around after the firing ceased we found that good fortune had followed us as we had only five wound- ed, one seriously and the others slightly. It took quite a while to get squared around, and after getting twelve prisoners pumped of information and the guard out, night was coming on. We tried for a few winks of sleep, but the second platoon was ordered to take the town of Upspanko, still two miles away. At 2 o'clock in the morning the second platoon moved forward to- ward the town expecting resistance at every step, but finding none, took possession of the town at 4 o'clock. A few enemy stragglers were shot and some killed while running through the streets. We camped on a hill by the church overlooking the river and nothing of interest occurred other than the receipt of a few notes from the ene- my asking why we fired on them and advising us to return to the railroad. We did this on the fifteenth, starting at 5 130 a. m., and after a twelve-mile hike arrived at Krieske. When we reached the railroad we learned that our small detachment at Krieske had been 434 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY attacked by i8o Bolsheviki, and after an hour of hot work had dis- persed the enemy. They lost one man killed and one wounded. After a few days' rest the company was again split up into four de- tachments, and for three months we were on duty guarding the rail- road. Then came the orders to prepare to return to the good old U. S. A. We left Vladivostok October 7th at 8 o'clock in the morn- ing, and landed at Hong Kong, China, October nth. We left on the I2th, and landed at Manila on the morning of the 14th; we left Manila on the i6th and landed at Honolulu on the 26th. We ar- rived in 'Frisco on the ist of November, and I got my discharge on the 3d. Germany's renewal of military operations, after her peace pro- posals had failed to meet any acceptance, contemplated a vigorous and harsh offensive to the west. She sought to enforce conditions that were not accepable to the Allies by choice. Confident that the United States could not get any large number of troops to France before 1918, she was anxious to crush France before assistance would be available. With that accomplished, the plan was to con- tinue into England and overwhelm that country. New miliary tactics were developed, and confident that they would be effective, German military leaders determined to stake their all upon this offensive. Confident of superior numbers, they planned three new methods which were expected to be effective. The first of these contemplated more of a surprise attack than had been pos- sible with the use of the immense barrages previously used, which in themselves announced the attack. Men were moved to the front by night marches, hidden in the woods, beneath smoke screens, and various sundry means of camouflage. When the zero hour arrived they were then able to attack opposing trenches quickly and unex- pectedly. Artillery of large caliber and in greater numbers was as- sembled, to throw destructive shell-fire upon the roads and supply routes behind the opposing army, as well as against the trenches. Highways, railways, and bridges were thus to be destroyed to the rear of the Allied lines. Smothering "mustard" gas was discharged in large shells to incapacitate reserves, motor transport drivers, and even the horses and mules used in transport service. By this means the Allied forces would be so confused that they could not effectively HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 435 concentrate their forces. The third new plan was to organize a se- quence of "shock troops" to proceed in waves, each to reheve the preceding wave when that one became exhausted or thinned out. The ultimate hope was to separate the British from the French army, to seize English Channel ports and interrupt the transportation of troops and supplies from England to France, and b}?- the capture of Paris compel France to withdraw from the war. Subsequent events will show why the Germans failed to realize these aims. The battle of Picardy, between March 21st and July 15th, was di- rected toward the first of the three previously stated objects. Near the Somme River was the union of British and French. Plere the surprise attack netted considerable territory before French assist- ance could be secured. With odds against them of three to one, the British fell back, the point of greatest retreat being thirty miles back of their former lines. Danger to the French city of Amiens caused the British and French to stand firm. Early in 1918, a num- ber of American divisions entered the lines, in quiet sectors, for "Baptism of fire" and final training in preparation for impending offensives or combat work. Trench Warfare Written by Fred J. Robinson, Company M, One Hundred Sixty- eighth Infantry, Forty-second Division : On the night of February 21, 191 8, at 10 o'clock, we left the town of Baccarat where we had been in training for the front lines. Our battalion was assigned to the support, or second line. This line ran through the village of Pexonne, where we were located, and was about three kilometers from the front lines. This line was prac- tically out of range of rifle fire, but well inside of artillery range. The sector was known as a quiet sector. Both the French and the enemy had been using this sector for training recruits and to rest men of the older outfits who might be enjoying relief. The activity on this front consisted mostly of artillery engagements, with an oc- casional raid. There had been no material change in this line since the first year of the war. Our division was stationed on this front for 125 days without reHef. On the night of March 8th our battalion received orders to move 436 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY up to the front line trench to reHeve the first battaHon. Just at the edge of the village of Badonvillers we entered the communicating trench in single file and about eight feet apart. This communicat- ing trench was dug in a zig zag line so that the enemy could not fire through the length of the trench. It was about the same depth as that on the front line, five to six feet, and not much more than wide enough for a man to walk through. We reached the front line in about an hour and a half. No lights whatever were allowed, and no smoking now. The front line trench was arranged in a zig zag line,' with narrow trenches dug forward at short distances for post guards and as listening posts. Two of us would be on guard in these outposts for two hours at a time, then relieved for two hours, and so on for the twenty-four hours. Sometimes when the outpost was fairly close to the enemy lines we could hear them talk. But hardly ever did we get to see any of the enemy, excepting in the early morning when we could see them away off in the distance against the sky line back of their lines. In front of the trench was strung barbed wire to guard against a surprise attack. Our two hours oft' guard were spent in dug-outs. These were cut into the front sides of the trench on a slant, with an opening like an outside cellar door. They were cut down from ten to fifteen feet below the surface of the ground and were comparatively safe excepting from our own shell fire dropping short, which happened occasionally. The dug-outs were about eight feet wide, eighteen feet long, and nine feet high. Bunks built in three tiers would accommodate fifteen to twenty men. Our first night in the front lines and until noon of the next day was particularly quiet. Hardly a shot could be heard, excepting at a great distance. Shortly after noon our artillery put over a bar- rage for four hours in preparation for a large raid which our com- pany and Company F and three French companies were to make. The zero hour was 5 :o5 p. m. Promptly at the time specified we climbed out of our trenches on ladders, formed our lines, and started advancing toward the German lines. The Germans were giving us heavy artillery and machine gun fire; the latter coming principally from three aeroplanes just over us at a height of about one hundred yards. We had been advancing twenty minutes when a machine gun bullet from one of the aeroplanes struck my left arm. The hole went through on a slant from above. The wound was not painful or serious enough to keep me from advancing with the rest of the outfit. After taking the second line of German trenches we returned to our own trenches. In the meanwhile the three enemy HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 437 aeroplanes had been dropped by the American fire. In the whole ad- vance the only Germans I saw were the men on the three aeroplanes. Our two companies, however, captured three Germans during the raid. We returned to our trench a little after 6 o'clock. Upon our arrival there the sergeant of our platoon applied first aid bandages .to my arm. At 10 o'clock we were relieved and I was sent to the hospital. So far as action was concerned our time in the Luneville sector does not compare with later actions, but nevertheless I believe that most of us will remember it about as much as any other. A Closk Shave: Charles V. Gilchrist, Company M, One Hundred Sixty-Eighth Regiment, a Lee Township soldier, puts more valuation upon time than most doughboys. He barely escaped death by one minute, just sixty seconds by the clock, while on the Lorraine front in May, 1918. "I was on guard duty one day," says Charles in the Des Moines Register and Leader, "when another fellow in the company relieved me from duty. I had just stepped from the post and he took my place, when over came a shell and killed him instantly. I had just been gone a minute from my post." Private Gilchrist was detained as a patient at Fort Des Moines after returning to this country. Unity of Command Now it became apparent that a unified command would be essen- tial in governing the movements of the Allies ; whereupon the French General Foch was designated for the important station as comman- der-in-chief of Allied forces. Even before this General Pershing had offered the American army of 200,000 men to be used wherever it would be most effective. The British were the victims of the second assault, made this time in Flanders, farther to the north, in the territory between Ypres and Arras, a distance of thirty miles. An assault of ten days' dura- tion netted an advance of ten miles to the Germans. Yet because of the desperate resistance of the British the German losses were great. When the advance was finally checked it meant that the Chan- nel ports were saved. 438 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY The First Division at Cantigny Written by Wm. G. Aitken, first lieutenant, Machine Gun Company, Twenty-sixth Infantry, First Division: On that memorable day when the Allied commanders placed their confidence in one man, Marshal Foch, and made him commander-in chief, the First Division of the United States army, composed of the First Brigade, comprised of the Sixteenth and Eighteenth regi- ments of Infantry; the Second Brigade, comprising the Twenty-sixth and Twenty-eighth regiments of Infantry; the First regiment of En- gineers; the First, Second and Third battalions of the Machine Gun Corps, and the Fifth, Sixth and Seventh Field Artillery, was in the line at Mount See. Major General R. L. Bullard was in command of the division. Rumors came thick and fast about a coming movement, and men and officers alike were eager to get out of a quiet sector. Finally orders came, and the Twenty-sixth or "Yankee Division" took over this sector from the First Division on the nights of April ist and 2d. By march and truck train our division moved to Camp Bois L' Evique, just southeast of Toul, where we enjoyed our first bath since about January 15th, at which time the First Brigade went into the line. New equipment such as could be secured was issued, travel rations were issued and everything was made ready for a long, hard move, we knew not where. On April 5th we entrained at Moran and after a 300-mile journey we detrained April 8th at Mern, a beautiful little village about forty kilometers northwest of Paris. After about two weeks of grueling training the First Brigade relieved the exhausted French on the night of April 24th, while the Second Brigade moved to support positions in the vicinity of Frois- sy. But our time was coming, for after three weeks of terrific de- fensive work the Second Brigade moved up to relieve the First Bri- gade, the Twenty-sixth Infantry relieving the Sixteenth Infantry in the Broyes sector. This relief was effected on the night of May 15th, a night so quiet that it seemed to presage a storm, and shortly after daybreak on the i6th we were thinking the storm had broken, for the Boche artillery fire was terrific. The importance of the First Division's position may be realized when I say that we were at the very apex of the advanced German salient, with orders to hold at all costs, for the loss of a few miles would cripple the railroads to northern France, and Amiens, a large railroad center a few miles northwest of us, would have to be given HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 439 up. This disaster would have had the effect of isolating the British army from the rest of the western front; hence our position on the apex was of critical importance. On the night of May 27th we felt the fangs of the enemy, but the "Fighting First" not only held their ground but made the enemy pay a heavy toll. In the vicinity of Belle Assise Farm the fighting was very heavy with Companies I and K, Third Battalion of the Twenty-sixth, bearing the brunt of it. But the "High Command" had more in store for us, for the ac- tion of May 27th seemed but a "test action" on the part of the Boche to feel out our strength in preparation for something larger. The Twenty-eighth Infantry had been training for nearly a week, and at daybreak on May 28th the artillery opened a terrific fire, driving the enemy to their shelter, and at 6:30 a. m. ,the Twenty-eighth went over the top. Taking Cantigny inside of an hour, our troops were digging in and consolidating the position on the ridge just back of the village almost before the first prisoners arrived at the rear. The casualties were slight in taking the village — yet the six terrific counter attacks reaped a heavy toll, not only from the Twenty- eighth but also from the First Battalion of the Twenty-sixth, just on the right of the Twenty-eighth, as Major Roosevelt and his men beat back two heavy counter-attacks. Major Roosevelt showed great courage and bravery in remaining at his post, for he was near- ly blind from gas received the day before. Through his battalion adjutant he directed all movements of his men and out-matched the Hun at every move. Little did we, up there in our fox holes, know of the importance of our "little" victory, for it was on the same date. May 28th, that the Hun cut his way through to Chateau Thierry and thus placed Paris in immediate danger of capture. When the news of our victory reached the other forces it proved that a great counter-offensive was possible and it proved to the Allies that the men from the U. S. A. could fight and win at all times. The effect of this news in cheer- ing up the war-weary men of England and France was almost magi- cal. The sector continued active, but the only excitement we had was in pulling off almost nightly raids in order to keep in touch with enemy movements and changes in divisions opposite us. Again rumors were floated about a relief by the Second Division, but such relief was denied us at this time, for the Second Division had been rushed to Chateau Thierr}^, where the marines and "doughboys" fighting side by side made a name for the American soldier that will long stand at the top. Finally, on the night of July 7, 1918, the Two Hundred Ninety-fourth French Infantry and the 440 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Nineteenth Chasseurs reheved us and we bade good-bye to trench warfare. Our casualties at Cantigny had been heavy, and men and officers who marched out on the night of July 7th did so with hearts aching for the comrades and friends who were left behind to lie forever on the beautiful fields of Picardy. We supposed we were headed for a rest, but after two days at Han- divillers we were recalled by the French command as corps reserves, being stationed at Camprenny. On July 13th we mounted trucks at St. Eusoye for an all-night ride to the vicinity of Ermonville, thirty kilometers northwest of Paris, and we were but nicely settled amid beautiful surroundings and with splendid billets when, on the evening of July 15th, the French camions appeared again, and again we left on our way to the front after a rest of but a few days. Day- break found the Twenty-sixth Infantry on the eastern edge of the Compiegne Woods, on the hillside just above the village of Palesne. The peace and quiet under the giant evergreens could hardly be imagined by one who was not there — a beautiful, warm day with the murmur of the wind through the trees, everyone at ease — again the hush and quiet preceding a storm prevailed, and many of the boys who slept that day under the evergreens would never sleep the earthly sleep, for that night we moved up to — Soissbns. Glen Clabaugh of Sioux Rapids, was also in this action. Cognac for Disturbed Nerves Writing early in June, 191 8, Lieutenant William G. Aitken told the following amusing incident: I shaved and washed my hands and face today, which was poor judgment on my part for now I will have to go thirsty until 11 p. m. when the water detail and our one hot meal a day will arrive. Last night a chunk of shell knocked a hole in the boiler that the chow wagon was bringing the coffee up in, and if you ever in your life saw a mad bunch of men you should have seen those men when we got no coffee. I believe they would have gone right through to Berlin if it hadn't been such a long walk. I'll have to include in this letter before I close a funny thing that occurred last ni'ght. Two of my men were sent back about three miles to guide a carrying party up with some material for the work- ing parties. They started back at dusk and were hiking along the road at a pretty good rate, when one of them kicked something ly- ing on the road. He investigated and found a bottle of three star HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 441 cognac, and as both were men who held duty first, they were going to keep it for a time when they were oflf duty. But — they had only gone a step or two when they both fell down into a big shell hole. The one carrying the bottle came in contact with a man's leg and the other the right hand and part of the forearm of a French soldier. The leg and arm of the man were all they could find, and it so unset- tled them that they sat tight in that same shell hole and drank the whole bottle of cognac; but I'm glad to say though feeling pretty good both of them were not at any time unfit for duty. To finish the story, the French officer in charge of a liaison post near my posi- tion was over to see me just before daybreak. He came over to see if the man whom he had sent back for some wine and cognac, had by chance found his way to my post instead of his own. Of course I told him about my men finding the bottle of cognac and the pieces of a French soldier. He went back to his post, a little out of temper, because he had to go without his wine for dinner that day. It must have been a ten-inch shell at least that killed the Frenchman, but it will always be a puzzle to me how the bottle of cognac came through unbroken. For a month it was quiet while the German forces were being re- organized. Though all plans were made by the Allies for an attack between Soissons and the sea, the enemy again effected a surprise by an attack between Rheims and Soissons, the weakest point in the Allied line, with the expectation of opening the road to Paris. This drive began May 27th. For a week results went against the French. They fought valiantly in an efifort to hold back the enemy from a ter- ritory which they had not traversed since September, 1914. The advance continued thirty miles, to within forty-four miles of Pans. Again the Marne River was the line of conflict, and the enemy con- trolled the main roads from Paris to Verdun and to the eastern parts of the Allied fine. Chateau Thierry First Great Test oe Boche and Yank From the Stars and Stripes: From a strength reckoned by the Allies about 80,000 men on the front between Coucy-le-Chateau and Reims on the evening of May 26, 1918, to a strength which they soon knew to be at least 145,000 men on the same front the following morning and over 200,000 on the 28th — such was the surprise efifect of superior numbers quickly 442 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY concentrated which the Germans, owing to their possession of the initiative, were able to inflict upon their opponents in the third of their great offensives of the spring and summer of 1918. By the break in the Alhed hue which they thus accompHshed, par- ticularly along the famous" ridge of the Chemin des Dames, the Vllth German Army, under General von Boehn, operating toward Sois- sons and to the east and west of it, and the 1st Army, under General F. von Buelow, advancing to the eastward of the Vllth Army, with the left wing of its attack near Reims, were able to pour swiftly south- ward, forcing back before them the weary and outnumbered French and British divisions, most of which had been sent to this "quiet" sec- tor" to recuperate after their desperate fighting in the battles of April and May in Picardy and Flanders. For a few days following the 27ith, the situation looked dark enough from the Allied standpoint. The German tidal wave, con- stantly reenforced by fresh divisions, continued, in spite of the stub- born resistance, to move southward toward the Marne, overrunning Soissons and Fere-en-Tardenois, leaving the devoted city of Reims in a salient which became daily more difficult to hold, and at last, by tremendous pressure, beginning to spread distinctly toward Paris along the comparatively open and level country between the Marne and the Ourcq rivers. SEVENTY-F'IVK KII.OMETERS FROM PARIS By the last of May the advance of the Germans at the nearest point was scarcely 75 kilometers from the French capital and, al- though the speed of their push had been considerably slackened by the resistance of the French divisions thrown against them, they still possessed all the advantages of the initiative and could elect their own points for driving their line ahead anywhere on , the 40 kilo- meters of front between the vicinity of Soissons and that of Chateau Thierry, which constituted the western face of the salient they had created. Although the French army and people, with the gallantry and he- roism which had characterized them in every previous crisis of their national history, refused to become panic stricken at this third great success of their arch enemy within a period of ten weeks, the situa- tion was obviously one of extreme gravity. The Allied commander-in-chief. Marshal Foch, was obliged to keep in hand sufficient reserves to meet any blow the Germans might direct at any other point on the long western battle front; at the same time he must utilize enough of his available strength to halt HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 443 the formidable attack actually under way. That his forces were in- adequate for such a crisis only adds to the brilliancy of the success with which he met it. Among- the reserve troops available for the disposition of Marshal Foch were the 2d and 3rd United States Divisions. These, with the ist Division, already engaged in its splendid battle at Cantigny, con- tained all of the American troops which were at the moment j^-et seasoned by experience for major operations, out of all the vast hosts whose coming was so eagerly and anxiously awaited by the French and British Armies. "aIvI. that we have is yours" Relying once more upon General Pershing's devoted declaration, made on behalf of America during the days of the German offensive in March, that "all that we have is yours; use it as you wish," and with faith in the valor of the Americans which was the best incen- tive to their utmost efforts, the Marshal ordered these two Divisions to a place of the greatest danger and, therefore, of the greatest hon- or — to the banks of the Marne near Chateau-Thierry and to the great Paris-Metz national highway where it crosses the rolling hills northwest of that city, here to throw themselves across the apex of the German invasion and bar the road to Paris. The 2d Division, Maj. Gen. Omar Bundy commanding, was in rest billets at Chaumont-en-Vexin, northwest of Paris, and had just finished its observance of Memorial Day, May 30th, when the order came for it to entrain as soon as possible and move immediately to the vicinity of Chateau-Thierry. During the ensuing twenty-four hours the troops were making the tiresome journey, and by the early morning of June i, most of them had detrained and advanced beyond Montreuil-aux-Lions, where division headquarters were established, a hamlet some 10 kilometers west of Chateau-Thierry, on the Paris- Metz road. As they went forward, the news became steadily more disquieting. French troops were fighting a few kilometers to the northeast, but they were badly outnumbered and exhausted by long fighting and marching, and the Germans were pushing on so steadily that it would be necessary for the Americans to establish defensive positions at once. By dark that evening that work had been, at least, begun. The 9th Infantry was in line from Bonneil, near the Marne southwest of Chateau-Thierry, to Le Thiolet, on the Paris-Metz road, whence the 6th Marines extended to Lucy-le-Bocage and the 23rd Infantry, op- 444 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY crating temporarily under the 43rd French Division, continued the Hne to the Bois de Veuilly. Out in front of this position, which was about 12 kilometers in length and faced toward the northeast, the direction whence the Ger- mans were coming, lay the crests and slopes of a ridge of hills, some of them heavily wooded, descending to the valley of a little creek, the Ru Gobert, along which lay scattered the villages of Bouresches, Bel- leau, Torcy and Bussiares; all names soon to become famous in the annals of the American Army. On the other side of the creek the hills rose much more steeply a;nd the enemy was already in possession of them, with his artillery, fur- ther back, sweeping the American positions with a heavy fire. To the right of the 2d Division was the 164th French Division, which was holding the southern part of Chateau-Thierry, on the left bank of the Marne, with the assistance of some troops of the 3d Uni- ted States Division, whose superb work here will be described a little further on. To the left of the 2d was the 43rd French Division, parts of which were also still clinging to positions in the valley of the Ru Gobert near the villages mentioned above, but with the distinct understand- ing that as soon as the American defensive line should be organized they were to fall back through it from their own indefensible tem- porary line. Having felt out this Franco-American front and found it strong, the Germans did not attack it in force until June 3, when, pursuing their purpose of pressing on toward Paris, they drove against the line from Montcourt, near the Marne, clear up to Chezy-en-Orxios, five kilometers northwest of the Bois de Veuilly, trying to dislodge both the 2d United States and 43rd PVench Divisions at once. But the rest of the combat units of the former were up now, includ- ing the 5th Marines and the three regiments of Brig. Gen. William Chamberlain's 2d Field Artillery Brigade, the latter reinforced by six groups of French Field Artillery. The enemy was stopped every- where; on the American front, for the time being, in the valley of the Ru Gobert. ATTACK ON JUNCTION POINT That night the French outpost retired through the American line, and about dusk of June 4 the Germans made a concentrated attack on Veuilly-la-Poterie, at the junction point between the 2d and the 43rd Divisions. It was repulsed north of the village. At 10 p. m. they attacked again, and were repulsed, with a loss of about 200 men by one American battalion, gaining only one point, the little Hill 123, from which they were ejected next day by the French. During the evening they also attacked Hill 142, south of Bussi- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 445 ares, but were dispersed by the artillery. The fighting had been violent and more or less confused, and the 2d Division had suffer- ed losses of between 200 and 300 men, but everywhere the line had held, and it is safe to say that the struggle of the night of June 4 marked the tactical end of the German push for Paris in this section, as it was marked at practically the same time a little further east by the repulse inflicted upon the enemy in Chateau-Thierry. That night the situation all along the front was improved by the relief of the tired 43rd French Division by the 167th Division, on the left of the 2d, and that of the 164th Division by the 4th Cavalry Division, on the right, while the 2d itself was strengthened by having its left flank drawn in several kilometers, from the Bois de Veuilly to the road between Bussiares and Champillon, and by the introduc- tion into the line of the 23rd Infantry. The division front shorten- ed to about nine kilometers, now stood, from right to left : 9th In- fantry, 23rd Infantry (constituting the 3rd Infantry Brigade, under Brig. Gen. E. M. Lewis) ; 6th Marines, 5th Marines (constituting the 4th Infantry, or Marine, Brigade, under Brig. Gen. James D. Harbord). THIRD AT CHATKAU-THIERRY In the meantirae, scarcely more than five kilometers east of the 2d Division, in fact, so near that liaison was soon to be established be- tween the two American organizations, the troops of the 3rd United States Division were making for themselves in the streets of Chateau- Thierry a name worthy to stand beside that of Berden's Sharpshoot- ers in the streets of Fredericksburg, Va. The 3rd Divison, commanded by Maj. Gen. Joseph T. Dickman, was stationed in the vicinity of Chateauvillain and La Ferte-surAube far to the rear when its orders came on May 30 to move at once to the battle front. Less fortunate than the 2d Division, it was not from the first to do its fighting as a body. Its instructions, which were carried out practically unmodified by later developments, were that the 5th Infantry Brigade, under Brig. Gen. Fred W. Sladen, consisting of the 4th and 7th Infantry and the 8th Machine Gun Bat- talion, should be attached to the 6th French Army, commanded by General Degoutte, and assigned to the defense of the passages of the Marne from Chateau-Thierry to Dormans. The commander of the 6th Infantry Brigade, Brig. Gen. Charles Crawford, was given one of his Infantry regiments, the 38th, and half of his Machine Gun Battalion, the gth, and instructed to hold the crossings of the Marne from Dormans east to Damery, under stafif direction of the loth Colonial Division (General Marchand) of the 5th French Army. The remainder of the 6th Brigade, namely, the 30th Infantry and half of the 9th Machine Gun Battalion, was placed 446 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY in support of the 5th Brigade, while the Divisional Machine Gun Battalion, the 7th, was ordered to march at once, on May 30, for Chateau-Thierry, the rest of the troops starting next day by rail for their destination. MACHINE GUNNERS IN the: THICK OF IT As it happened, except for a heavy engagement in the Jaulgonne bend of the Marne, where the enemy was halted north of the river, the intense fighting of most of the divisions was not to come for a time, but the 7th Machine Gun Battalion was in it from the moment it reached the front. With 180 kilometers of weary road march behind it and 36 hours without sleep, it plodded into Chateau-Thierry at six o'clock on the afternoon of the 31st under bursting shells. Be- fore it the tired French troops were struggling with the enemy's advancing infantry in the streets north of the Marne — those streets in which Jean de la Fontaine played as a child and over which have frowned, ever since the year 720, the battlements of the castle of Charles Martel, "the Hammer" that once broke another barbarian invasion of France. Was it a portent? Hastily finding positions for the guns which enabled them to sweep the main bridge in the center of town and the river banks both up and down stream, the men of the 7th Battalion went into a battle which continued for 96 hours. Time after time the Germans swept down on the river in determined effort to carry the bridge or to effect a crossing elsewhere which would permit them to spread into the open country beyond the Marne. But, like the defenders of Verdun, the American machine gunners set their teeth and said, "They shall not pass," and for the second time in four years they made the Marne the high tide of Hun invasion. First Lieut. John T. Bissell, with 14 enlisted men of his company, held a position on the north side of the river for 30 hours, and when at last obliged to retire, he advanced in face of the guns of his own Battalion beyond the bridge until he could make the gunners stop firing, thus enabling his own detachment, as well as about 300 French troops who were also north of the river, to cross the bridge to safety. Behind the unbroken barrier maintained by these men and their equally devoted comrades in the French ranks, the Army command was enabled to dispose the other troops of the 164th French and 3rd United States Divisions in strong defensive positions along the Marne on both sides of Chateau-Thierry and to effect, through the 30th In- fantry, complete liaison with the 9th Infantry, on the right of the 2d Division, near Montcourt, west of the river. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 447 ENEMY DELAYS SIX WEEKS When the exhausted 7th Battalion was at last relieved at 3 o'clock on the morning of June 4, it marched to the rear knowing that its hard-held positions had been left in strong hands, and that if the Germans were ever to cross the river they would have to smash through a whole French division and through the two regiments of French troops and two regiments of the American 3rd Division, which, on June 5, 'were constituted, under General Dickman's com- mand, as the Reserve Group of the 38th Army Corps. It was to be more than six weeks before the enemy would make up his mind to that desperate endeavor; when he did, the dawn of his undoing was at hand. We may now return to the 2d Division. It has been said that in the struggle of the night of June 4, between Montcourt and the Bois de Veuilly, the German advance was definitely stopped. But though it was stopped, probably neither the Germans nor their opponents fully realized it as yet. The German airplanes were consantly over the American lines, 89 flights being noted on June 5th, when 10 enemy observation bal- loons were also up; the German artillery was raking every part of the front and rear with a terrible fire of high explosives and yperite, and it was only because the Paris-Metz road, the American line of communication and supply back to La Ferte-sous-Jouarre, was pro- videntially hidden from the enemy's view behind the hill crests, that the troops could depend upon a certain supply of food and ammuni- tion. GERMANS ANGRIEY AT BAY It was not sufficient that the enemy had been stopped. Now that a firm line of defense was established, it became imperative that he be pushed back from the observation posts and strong i^oints which he had seized on the left side of Ru Gobert, so that the Americans could dominate at least the valley of that stream. On June 4 the best information available indicated that the enemy was employing not less than 33 divisions, about 300,000 men, on the whole front of his ofifensive. Of these, the 197th Division was con- fronting the 2d United States. It had tried to smash through the latter, had suffered bloody repulse and was now standing angrily at bay. Could the Yanks do better in a line plunge? Could they keep it up longer? The time had arrived to find out. At 5 o'clock on the morning of June 6, in conjunction with the 167th French Division on the left, the ist and 3rd Battalions of the 5th Marines swept out through the broken woodlands that clothe the 448 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY hill crests of Champillon in an assault whose objectives were the edges of these woods and crests looking down into the open valley about Torcy and Bussiares. They were met by an intense machine gun and rifle fire, but push- ed on, and at 7:10 a. m. had obtained all their objectives and were in command of the valley at this point. It was during this advance that among other deeds of valor, First Lieut. Albert P. Baston, shot through both legs, earned for himself a D. S. C. by refusing to re- ceive treatment until he had seen to it that every man in his platoon was under cover and in a good firing position. The dash of the 167th French Division gained for it like success, and at 7 o'clock it also was estabhshed on the dominating heights, west of the 5th Marines. IN COMMAND 01? VALI^EY But the very fact that the left of the 2d Division had now advanc- ed made it necessary that the center should be brought up also in the direction of Belleau village and Bouresches. Accordingly, at 5 p.m., the 5th and 6th Marines and the 23rd Infantry assaulted for an ob- jective line extending along the valley from a point a little distance east of Bussiares to the eastern edge of Bouresches. It was the bitterest struggle that had yet occurred, for the Ger- mans were now thoroughly on the alert and prepared for a desperate resistance. Throughout the night, among the thickets and tumbled bowlders of the Bois de Triangle and the Bois de Belleau, the lines surged back and forth in as ferocious a conflict as that between the men of Grant and Lee in the Wilderness of Virginia. Nest after nest of German machine guns was taken in savage hand-to-hand combat, while the ground behind the lines was torn with bursting shells and the night was lit by the hectic glare of flares and rockets. At 8:30 o'clock the next morning, though the left of the line had been able to add little to its great gains of the previous day, the right was in possession of Bouresches and had pushed into the Bois de Belleau as far as the northeastern summit of Hill 181, placing the Marines there on higher ground than the enemy, who still occupied the greater part of this tangled woodland to the north. But the German machine gun nests in the village and in the woods had exacted a terrible toll. In its two battles, the Marine Brigade had lost 24 officers and 390 enlisted men, killed and wounded, and the 9th and 23rd Infantry had lost 377 officers and enlisted men killed or wounded, the 23rd suffering most during the repulse of a Ger- man counter-attack on the night of the 6th. From that day forth for several weeks a battle almost without lull continued along the American front, especially around Bouresches HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 449 and southeast of it, toward Vaux, and in the Bois de Belleau. The ability of the Americans to advance at these points or of the Ger- mans to prevent them from advancing became so obvioush^ a test, before the audience of the whole world, of the relative moral stami- na of the two races, that the contest took on an importance far greater than was represented by the tactical value of the mere ter- ritory involved. And in this vital test the Americans consistently maintained the upper hand; not always and at every point, for, as in a bout between two mighty and well-matched wrestlers, so American and German swayed back and forth more than once. But time after time fiery attacks carried the American front for- ward greater or less distances, as when the 9th Infantry on June 7th advanced north of the Bois de la Morette at the same time that French troops and Companies E and F of the 30th Infantry, 3rd Di- vision, took the southern slopes of Hill 204 and the village of Mon- neaux; as on the early morning of June 10, when the Marine Bri- gade lunged forward 800 meters and carried all the southern half of the Bois de Belleau, and the next morning, when, behind a rolling barrage, it took all the remainder of the woods except a few north- ward reaching spurs, together with 300 prisoners and 39 machine guns and trench mortars ; and as on June 25 when, at last, all of these places were cleared out by a superb advance which did not halt until it was far out in the valley toward Torcy and had netted over 300 more prisoners and 24 more machine guns and automatic rifles. Similarly, time after time the German attempts to recover lost ground were beaten back. They failed on the night of June 7 and again on that of the 8th to wrest from the 23rd and the 9th Infan- try any part of the ground around Bouresches and north of the Bois de la Morette, from which they had just been expelled, and they failed again, always with sanguinary losses, on the early mornings, of June II, 14 and 15, when their violent assaults on both Bouresches and the Bois de Belleau were hurled back by the combined efforts of Infantry and Marines, despite the devastating preliminary bom- bardments of German gas and high explosives. WHAT THE SECOND MET During these weeks the 2d Division had opposing it at dift'erent times on various parts of its front the following German divisions. wholly or in part: The 197th (which was relieved about June 9); the 237th (relieved about June 11); the loth (relieved about June 15); the 28th (relieved about June 21); the 5th Guard; the 231st, and the 87th, of which the last was known as "the Aluminum Division." 450 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY In the meantime, the only reHef enjoyed in the 2d Division was by three battahons of the Marines, whose places were taken for five days, from June 16 to 21, by the three battalions of the 7th Infantry, 3rd Division. It was small wonder that the Germans thought, as one of them expressed it in a captured letter, that the "American divisions are still too fiery." Up to July I this American division, against the most powerful opposition that the German army could exert, had advanced its front by dogged, unrelaxing pressure an average of over two kilometers and had taken more than 800 prisoners and more than 90 machine guns, minnenwerfers and automatic rifles — and this at a time when Germany was exultantly proclaiming to the world the impending overthrow of the Allied armies. As a matter of fact, it was precisely at this time and on account of this fighting that the German High Command had borne in upon it the iron fact that the scale was swinging against them, slowly but surely. One more feat of arms, and this to the combined credit of the 2d and 3rd United States and the loth French Colonial Divisions, as though to set the seal of unison upon their common struggle, re- mains to be recounted before the great counter-ofifensive of mid- July. THE ATTACK ON VAUX In the creek valley between Hill 204, taken by the French and Americans on June 7-8, and the positions north of the Bois de la Morette, taken by the 9th Infantry at the same time, lay the village of Vaux, a tiny place but deadly. Its stone houses were fortresses armed with German machine guns, its cellars were bomb proofs sheltering hidden swarms of infantry, its streets were covered ways filled with ghastly surprises for the enemy. It thrust out^ a menacing salient, into the American line, sweep- ing with its fire Monneaux and the communications of Hill 204. It had to be taken. The 9th Infantry, for the 2d Division, and troops of the 3rd Divi- sion, in liaison near Monneaux, prepared to take it. Every particle of available data on the subject of Vaux was carefully studied. Maps and old picture postcards were gone over and refugee inhabitants described in minute detail the construction of its cellars and the in- tricacies of its streets. CElvIvAR FOR EVERY SQUAD On July I, every platoon and squad leader who was going into the town had a map showing in red ink the particular cellar which he was to capture and how he was to get to it. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 451 At 5 :30 p. m. on that day an intense artillery bombardment began which quickly reduced the village to ruins, and at 6 the assault went over the top on a front of about two kilometers, the 9th Infantry being supported on the left by an advance of the 23rd Infantry, and the troops of the 3rd Division acting in concert with those of the loth Colonial Division. In 15 minutes the first wave was in the outskirts of the village, and by 6:25 p. m. it was completely taken, and the front had gone forwatd a thousand yards from its jumping off points. TWENTY-THIRD TAKES BOIS DE EA ROCHE Meantime, the 23rd Infantry took the Bois de la Roche, immedi- ately to the northwest of Vaux, while on the right the Allied posi- tions on Hill 204 were materially improved. Over 60 machine guns were captured by the Americans and 500 prisoners, most of them Poles of the Aluminum Division, and it was estimated that for ev- ery man killed or wounded in the American ranks, two of the enemy were captured and one was killed. Indeed, so badly demoralized were the Germans that the regiment in line had to be withdrawn and another substituted to make the counter-attack, which was not attempted until 4 o'clock on the afternoon of the next day — 22 hours later. When it came, it mis- carried; the troops detailed to retake the Bois de la Roche did not start; those that attacked Vaux were repulsed and then cut off from their retreat by an American machine gun barrage and 150 of them were taken prisoner. Vaux was never recaptured by the enemy. In Chateau-Thierry, in the Bois de Belleau, in Bouresches and Vaux and on Hill 204, the Germans had now faced the men from across the seas in fair combat; before the audience of the world they had met with them in moral test, and the result was a foretaste of what was soon to come. By the first day of July, 191 8, men of dis- cernment in Germany could trace the word defeat across the setting sun of "Der Tag." Engineers Under Fire Henry Wehrenberg of Newell was in Company A of the Second Engineers. He says that after his company built a hospital at Bur- mond, France, he was transferred to Solwell, France, to get ready to go to the front. He worked with the members of his company on the engineer's dump near Metz and was sent back to Solwell to drill. On Decoration Day, 191 8, they were ordered to the Chateau Thierry front, between the English and French armies, to stop the 452 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY German drive to Paris. He was wounded here by pieces of shrap- nel on July I St. One piece struck his left leg, two pieces in his right leg, two pieces in his right arm, and one just over his right eye. His platoon was nearly wiped out by that high explosive shell. Eight or nine men were killed and more than twice that number were wounded. He was in the base hospital at Mudpound, France, a little over a month. He got back to his company just as the men were ready to start upon St. Mihiel drive, and took an active part in that historic drive. From there they moved to the Champagne front, where his com- pany in twenty-four hours built a road a quarter of a mile long- through the Hindenburg line to carry ammunition and supplies to the boys at the front. From there the group went to the Meuse- Argonne front, where the Newell soldier helped build a floating bridge across the Meuse River the night before the armistice was signed. A permanent bridge was built across the Meuse the next day. After this his company went to Germany with the Army of Occupation and they built horse barns, mess halls, etc., at Engers, Germany. On June 9th, the fourth drive was opened by the Germans, this time between Soissons and Montdidier, where they were able to ad- vance only six miles. With power to direct all forces where they were most needed the advantages of a unified command began to appear. The; "Lousy" Champagne Written by George D. Crissy, Company M, One Hundred Sixty- eighth Infantry : When relieved from the Baccarat sector on the Lorraine front about the 21st of June, where we had spent 140 days without relief, we hadn't the slightest idea where we were going, but after long rides in box cars and cramped in motor trucks we found ourselves behind the lines on the Champagne front not far from Chalons-sur- Marne in the valley of the Marne River, where we spent four days drilling to restore discipline which had become rather slack during our long siege at the front. Suddenly and without warning, the Rainbow Division was transferred to the Fourth French Army, and on the sultry nights of June 28th and 29th we made long, punish- ing marches a distance of thirty-five kilometers toward the front, to the famous drill ground at Camp de Chalons. It was a historic HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 453 battleground in the present war. The Germans swept over it in 1 9 14, and were in turn swept back over it in the first battle of the Marne. This country, the Champagne, is not what its name implies. There isn't a vineyard or a garden there, and it is known by the French as the "lousy" Champagne because of its desolate condition. The small trees were dwarfed and twisted, with just enough foliage to empha- size the bareness of the country. Heather was plentiful, chalk was everywhere. The glaring whiteness of the chalk reflected back the heat and also kept the coolness of the ground in. But it made the roads firm, and a dug-out of great strength could easily be built. The only color on the whole scene was the thick patches of red poppies. There is a superstition among the French soldiers that wherever a man dies the red poppies will bloom forever. Without delay we started drilling for a proposed offensive against the Germans, but instead, on the Fourth of July, our division as a part of the Fourth French Army under the command of General Gourauds, was informed that we would be directed against the main German ofifensive in their drive against Chalons. Our division ac- cepted this responsibility on the birthday of our country, July the Fourth. Our division, the Rainbow, went into the line the fifth of July along with the One Hundred Seventieth and the Thirteenth French divi- sions, and pur defense position, the second line of resistance, was very cjuiet, not a shot being fired during the day, and it was almost as quiet at night. We spent the time sleeping during- the day and reenforcing defense positions during the night, doing up-keep work on our trenches, rebuilding machine gun emplacements ; in fact, forti- fying our position in every possible manner, protecting ourselves against the attack which we knew might come any minute. The plan of defense was to withdraw from our own front line the moment the German infantry struck it, sending signal flares to our artillery, who would then proceed to blow up our own line and the Germans with it, thus checking the most brutal part of the German blow without loss to ourselves. The quiet and suspense continued for about one week, until mid- night of the 14th of July, when the German artillery opened up. But we were prepared for them. Thousands of French and American guns spoke with such intensity that it caused the atmosphere to shake with an unbroken roaring sound. The stars could no longer be seen because of the flashes of fire in the sky from guns of both con- batants. It seemed as though all hell had turned loose, and it was impossible for a single mind to conceive what really took place. When the bombardment started our men came rushing out of the 454 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY trees where they had been sleeping and went to their defense posi- tions in the trenches. We were smothered by gas and knocked down by the concussion of the high explosives. But we reached our positions — -and remained there until about 4 o'clock the next morn- ing when the German waves of infantry hit our front line. Every- thing worked out as had been planned; our line was evacuated and our artillery fairly rained upon the enemy. But the Germans came back at us to the best of their ability. Shells screamed and roared, racing through the air in both directions. The German infantry kept coming and coming; the slaughter was terrible, but they could not break our line, though they came into the face of almost certain death, fighting to the very last. The white and desolate landscape was covered with a cloud of dust and smoke. For four hours this was kept up, and the change that was wrought is beyond realization. No matter what direction one looked ammunition dumps could be seen burning. Horses, mules, and men lay dismembered all over the white, chalky plain. Ani- mals ran wild, neighing through the trees until they fell dying because of the wounds from which they suffered. About 4:15 the following morning the German infantry, which had not been caught in the trap, attacked again, but they were held, again suffering heavy losses. But German artillery fire was coming over as though from aeroplanes. We had different attacks similar to this one, but they found our line invincible and the infantry at- tacks died out by the 17th. During the nights of the i8th and 19th of July we bade good-bye to Champagne and moved west toward Chateau Thierry to become participants in that great American offensive known as the second battle of the Marne. On a front of one hundred miles east of Soissons the fifth drive opened on July 15th. It met the Allies fully prepared, and though they were forced at first to fall back they soon regained most of the territory thus lost. At three points Germany had bent back the Allied line, quite abruptly in some places. But in so doing the Germans had placed themselves in positions that would be dangerous in the event that the Allies should assume the offensive. Foch appreciated the op- portunity thus created. With transportation of American troops greatly facilitated, one million Yanks were now in France. In an action which began July i8th, fresh American and French troops took the offensive along the Marne, compelling the retirement of the German forces within a few days. The British introduced tanks into an attack on the Montdidier sector, begun August 8th, and by HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 455 skillful adaption of the surprise element drove the Germans back for a distance of ten miles on a long front. The: Batti^e: at Soissons Written by W. G. Aitken : On the night of July 16, 1918, the Twenty-sixth relieved the troops of the Moroccan Division in the vicinity of Roy St. Nicholas, while the other elements of the division also moved forward. On the night of July 1 7th- 1 8th the actual move to the jumping off line was made. The night was inky black, a thunder storm was raging, and over c|uagmires of roads jammed with traffic of all descriptions the weary doughboy plodded along. Through fields and forests, over unknown roads, we slowly made our way, often falling — into shell holes, over wire entanglements or from sheer exhaustion, through the shell torn village of Couevres and into position. Not many units were in position much in advance of the zero hour 4:35 a. m. — but none were late, although some had to hurry theywere ready to ad- vance when the artillery opened. We entered the fight under a new division commander, Major- General Summerall. On the left of our division was the One Hun- dred Fifty-third French Division, on the right the veteran First Mo- roccan Division with its noted "Foreign Legion," while the regi- ments of the First Division from right to left were the Eighteenth, Sixteenth, Twenty-sixth, and Twenty-eighth. Daybreak was calm and serene; the artillery had made no demon- stration that might warn the enemy; all in all this was to be a sur- prise attack — the master stroke to mark the turning point in the great war. I might state here that for the first two days I was acting as bri- gade liaison officer from brigade headcjuarters to regim,ental and battalion headcjuarters of the Twenty-sixth and Twenty-eighth In- fantry regiments and hence saw no personal work on these days. The Second battalion under Major McCloud led off from the Twenty-sixth, through the village of Cutry and up the steep slopes to the heights above, where could be seen Soissons. At the first gun the men broke from their positions in perfect order. At 5 130 a. m. we had advanced two kilometers and the first objective was ours; at 7:15 two more kilometers had been gained and we were on the edge of the Missy aux Bois ravine and village where the resistance was very stubborn, and only after two hours of hand to hand fighting were the ravine and village captured. Although we suffered quite heavily we took many prisoners, machine guns, and some light and heavy field pieces. While the First Brigade had reached their third 456 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY - objective the Second Brigade had been held up, and was temporarily disorganized between Missy aux Bois and the Paris-Soissons road; so we called it a day's work and dug in. On the night of July i8th orders to "carry on" were received, and it was while delivering these orders and on my way back to brigade headquarters that a German shell hit the ground almost underneath my feet and I sailed away about fifty yards. When I regained con- sciousness three hours later it was to find that someone had taken my compass, my emergency and reserve rations, and the precious little water I had left. I had been slightly wounded and badly shaken up, but continued on my way to brigade headquarters to report delivery of orders and to look for some chow. But that was not for me that night as liaison men were scarce, and after a hasty gulp of coffee I was on my way to the front. Again the sun arose clear and bright, but the resistance from the very start on the 19th was more stubborn, and the casualties were very heavy. The advance was made to a short distance east of the Paris-Soissons road. Orders to continue were received and at 5 130 p. m., with the First Battalion on the right, the Second on the left, and the third in brigade reserve, we jumped off for the second time that day. The terrain was rolling wheat fields, criss-crossed with sunken roads and fairly alive with machine guns. Of the five days of this campaign the second day was one never to be forgotten. Major McCloud, wounded in the arm in the morning, was killed at the head of the battalion; and with him, each at the head of their companies, Captain J. H. Holmes and Captain J. N. C. Richards paid the supreme sacrifice. Captain Richards had been my company commander be- fore I was transferred to the machine gun company. He was dearly beloved by all who knew him and I might say that in avenging his death nearly four-fifths of his company died on that same field that day. But night was falling. As we had taken Ploisy and the ravine of that same name we dug in. The boys settled down to await the chow carts, for reserve rations were low and two days had passed since they had partaken of a warm meal. They waited in vain that night, for it was not until twenty-four hours later that any warm food could be brought forward, and then very few men got any -of it. On July 20th we "carried on." I had been placed in command of a replacement battalion of about 700 men just overseas, and under fire for the first time. I met and talked with Morton (Casey) Stull for a few minutes that morning before daybreak, and then orders came to send men to replace the battalions at the front, and I didn't see him again until our return home. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 457 Resistance had stiffened considerably. The French on our left were almost exhausted and the Twenty-eighth U. S. Infantry was called upon to take Berzy-le-Sec, while the Twenty-sixth was to con- form to its movement and take the railroad. The capture of the railroad and the village meant the loss of that salient to the Germans as Berzy-le-Sec dominated the railroad from Soissons south. Hence the fighting was desperate, the battle swaying to and fro with the balance slightly in our favor, though we failed in our mission that day. That night General Summerall came to the front lines and cheered the men up considerably by his coolness and bearing. Relief was promised — but we wanted Berzy-le-Sec first. So on July 2ist, at 4:30 a. m., we swept forward through Berzy and beyond. All day the battle raged, fierce and furious, but the fighting First Division held every inch gained and the German loot. But what a toll ! Lieutenant Colonel Elliott, ''Daddy" Elliott to the older officers, was killed by a shell while directing the attack — and many men had previously fallen. We dug in and held on during the night and next day, for we were too exhausted to carry on, although able to hold our gain. Our work this last day was chiefly in cleaning out enemy machine gun nests on our immediate front, and while directing an attack on one of these nests near the sugar mill at Noyant, Colonel Hamilton A. Smith was killed — less than two hours after he had personally con- ducted the reconnoitering party from the Fifteenth Scottish Divi- sion over the front. Relief was accomplished on the night of the 22d, marching to the Bois-le-Retz where we spent the night, then mounted trucks on the morning of the 24th for Orry-la-Ville. It was here we buried our colonel, beloved by every man in the regiment. In summarizing the five awful days of fighting: My regiment, the Twenty-sixth United States Infantry, entered the line wih 3,100 enlisted men and ninety-six officers. Twenty officers were killed and forty-two were wounded; 1,560 enHsted men were among the killed and wounded, and all field officers were either killed or wound- ed. The regiment came out under command of a captain of less than two years' experience, and one battalion was commanded by a first lieutenant. The regiment captured 750 prisoners, including fourteen officers, besides many guns and vast quantities of supplies, and during the five days of terrific fighting had advanced eleven kilometers. As history the victory of the First Division against six of the best veteran divisions will undoubtedly be classed as one of the great bat- tles of the war, as it marked the turning point. The place of honor on the Soissons front was given to our First and Second Divisions and to chosen veteran French divisions. We well upheld our reputation in the five days fighting, as the First 458 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY and Second United States Divisions together captured 7,000 prison- ers, over 100 pieces of artillery and much material, and in the First Division it was the Twenty-sixth Infantry that led in casualties, num- ber of prisoners captured, and it was here the 26th received its first citation : EXTRACT "General Orders No. 40 — The Division Commander cites the fol- lowing organizations, officers and men for distinguished conduct during the operations of the Division south of Soissons July 18-22, 1918: Twenty-sixth United States Infantry for distinguished conduct in overcoming determined and constant resistance while sustaining heavy losses, and in capturing and hold- ing all objectives assigned to it in the advance between July 18-22 inclusive. "By command Major-General Summerall. "H. K. LOUGHRY, "Major F. A. N. A. Division Adjutant." Why "Fritz" Lost at Chateau Thierry Von Turpitz, LudendorfT, and various other bedraggled war lords have written volumes trying to explain how and why the other fel- low lost the war. But it is Lieutenant von Kurt Hesse who really understands. The lieutenant was at Chateau Thierry when Tirpitz was safe in Berlin, and Ludendorfif was carefully protected beneath the earth of a snug dug-out. Here is the way Lieutenant Hesse explains it: The time for the German barrage to move arrived, and the cross- ing was going on better. The Fifth Grenadiers actuahy pushed on 1,000 yards, to the neck of the two miles wide peninsula on which they had landed. In the morning mist they saw a counter-attack coming down on them from the right — men in brown uniforms — Americans — who did not charge, but halted and fired, and the Ger- mans turned back, but eventually rallied on the railway embank- ment, and there clung on. Never have I seen so many dead, and never witnessed such terrible scenes. The Americans shot down two of our companions at close range. They waited lying down in a half circle until our men got within thirty or fifty paces, and then wiped them out. Credit we must give them for nerves, but also for bestial rough fighting (Bestialische Roheit). "Die Amerikaner schlagen alles tot!" was the fearsome cry of July 15th that long haunted the bones of our men. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 459 Surprising the Germans at the Ourcq Written by Walter Crissy, Company M, One Hundred Sixty-eighth Regiment, Forty-second Division: On the morning of July 25th the Rainbow Division arrived in the locality of Epieds and Verdilly. The boys of the Rainbow Division found themselves facing the Forest de Fere, where the Germans had stored great quantities of ammunition and supplies for their drive on Paris. The key to this position was Croix Rouge farm. This was a commanding position, where the Germans had amassed great nests of machine guns. Be- yond lay the River Ourcq. The Americans were ready to play offensive, and Croix Rouge farm was the first point to gain. The capture of this farm would mean the capture of many Germans, be- sides gaining the coveted knoll upon which it was situated. The Germans were sure of themselves, but not yet had they come to realize the daring of the American army. At 5 130 in the after- noon three regiments of the Rainbow Division attacked Croix Rouge farm — the One Hundred Sixty-eighth from the right. Every ma- chine gun in the vicinity poured forth its rain of bullets. One by one the brave lads of the One Hundred Sixty-eighth fell — but on they came. Then suddenly, as though they had dropped from heav- en, the boys of the One Hundred Sixty-fifth and the One Hundred Sixty-seventh, from the woods at the front and the left, swooped down upon the surprised Germans. The machine gun fire was no longer directed entirely upon the One Hundred Sixty-eighth. But the surprise was too much for the Germans. Steadily the Ameri- cans approached, and Croix Rouge farm was taken at the point of the bayonet. A number of the One Hundred Sixty-eighth Regiment gave their lives to gain this important position, but our losses were few com- pared with those of the Germans. In one trench alone 250 Germans were found dead. The first attack was successful and after taking time to reorgan- ize the platoons and appoint new platoon commanders, the One Hun- dred Sixty-eighth went on. The River Ourcq was next to be cross- ed. There were no bridges but we had no difficulty in wading across. We pushed on and advanced more than half a mile with- out serious resistance. Our line was made up of groups of about twelve men each. As our group passed through a bit of woodland, separated on either side from the remainder of the company, right in front of us we discovered a number of Germans with a nest of machine guns. Luckily, we discovered them before they discovered us. Without a moment's hesitation we threw ourselves upon them. 46o HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY The two German gunners were killed before they could open up their machine guns. But even then seven of our twelve men were killed. (Storm Lake people will be interested to know that it was in this battle that Harold ShafTer made the supreme sacrifice.) The position was taken, and not a German was left to carry the news back to his company. Out of twenty Germans only four were left; two of them were wounded and all four of them were prisoners. This point gained our objective was reached and there we waited for further orders. Wounded at VesIvE River — Back eor Meuse-Argonne Written by Corporal George C. Barnes, Headquarters Company, Fifty-eighth Infantry, Fourth Division: My first training for military service was at Camp Pike where I put in five months under trying conditions. I was then transferred to Camp Greene, and a worse camp I have yet to see, but can be thankful that the course there was short, for in April we were or- dered to prepare for the trip overseas. From New York we em- barked May 1 1 with a large convoy, but after being out four days en- gine trouble developed, so our ship returned to Halifax, Nova Sco- tia. There repairs were made, we were assigned to another convoy, and this time the ship completed the trip. On June 2d we experi- enced the excitement of a submarine attack, but thanks to the good work of the submarine destroyers the convoy made the trip in safety, landing at London June 5, 191 8. From London we proceeded to Folkstone, England, to enjoy four days relaxation at a rest camp, and then went on the way, crossing the English Channel to Calais, France. From there this outfit was ordered to Lizy, about forty kilometers from Paris, for another brief training period. On the night of July 17th we hiked to the firing line, and on the morning of July i8th went over the top in the first Allied oiTensive at the Marne. After three days we were re- lieved, but on receipt of next orders were sent to the Vesle River, where we met very stubborn resistance; and it was there on the 7th of August, that I was wounded and sent to the base hospital at Di- jon. Later I was transferred to base No. 24 at Limoge, from which I was sent to a replacement camp at St. Aignan, there to be reclassi- fied and sent back to my original company for duty. I joined them just before the Meuse-Argonne drive, and on the 28th of September we took the lines for the last time. For twenty-two successive days we remained there, only to be released and ordered to the Metz sec- tor, but just then the armistice was signed and thus we were saved HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 461 from further combat duty. However, we were next ordered to take a long- march to Coblenz, Germany, there to serve in the Army of Occupation. With these advances accompHshed, the offensive was now in the hands of the AlHes. At one point after another the enemy met re- verses. Harry W. Larson of Company K, One Hundred Nineteenth In- fantry, Thirtieth Division, tells of the capture of Mt. Kemmel on the Belgian front, August 31, 1918. Capture 01^ Mt. Kemmei. The facts of personal history, including the life of a "rookie," and the course of preparation in home camps, can have little or no inter- est in a writing of this sort. The process of turning a civilian into a soldier is an experience valuable only to the subject operated upon. The editor of this volume is insistent on the "war story," and I must, as best I can, obey orders, which was the first and most im- portant lesson taught me at Camp Dodge. The chances or designs of the service put me, with other Iowa and Northern boys, with the One Hundredth and Nineteenth Infantry, of the Thirtieth Division. Mostly made up of Southern men, this was known as the "Old Hickory" or "Boys from Dixie" Division. It proved to be a splendid aggregation of men, and gave evidence that the same spirit animated the American soldier, no matter what his birthplace or his racial origin. On May 7, 1918, orders came to the division to leave for France. On the 1 2th of that same month we sailed from Boston for the dis- tant battle front. The story of our voyage was really no different from hundreds of others. A German submarine managed to steal within our protecting screen of destroyers, and attacked the last ship of the convoy. A torpedo fired at our boat fortunately missed its mark. This gave us the first experience of real war, and the in- cident was certainly exciting to the landsmen while it lasted. The truth is that we were very near a panic. But the jflurry was soon over. Liverpool was reached May 22d, and there we entrained at once for Dover, and the next day a channel boat landed us at Calais, France, where we went into temporary camp. There, some thirty miles from the fighting lines, we could hear the big guns. On the second day my corporal and myself broke camp and went into town. At a wine shop we bought a bottle of champagne and a box of sar- dines. The fizz was ten francs (two dollars) and the sardines — the old nickel kind at home — cost us forty cents. 462 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY After three days at Calais we were moved forward. Our rifles were turned in and Enfields issued to us. This change was neces- sary, as we were to be attached to the British Fourth Army. Our first day's hike covered twenty-three miles. A five-weeks' period of drill followed, after which we marched into Belgium, reaching the trench area of operations July 5th. Ours — the Thirtieth — and the Twenty-seventh Division (composed of New York troops) were the first American soldiers to reach Belgium. On July 24th we took over the first support line trench at East Poperinge. The command made is way to the front under cover of ■darkness. After five days in this position we were sent nearer — into the front-line trenches. For a short time we were attached to a Scotch brigade. A half platoon of Scotchmen acted as trench in- structors to an equal number of Americans. And, for all our pre- vious training, there was much to learn. For now we were actually at the business of war. The two nationalities mixed well, and there was a respect and sincere liking on both sides. A short period of this seasoning process with the big German shells screaming over us, and then back to rest camp to recover our nerves. We did not give it any such name, however, for it was drill, drill for eight hours every day, with Boche aerial raids every night. We could not smoke after dark, nor have any fire. Again we were ordered forward, being then stationed in the sec- ond line of trenches. Then and there we had the experience of our young lives! I believe it was on or about the loth of August when we definitely, and for ourselves, took over the trenches with the Twenty-seventh Division on our right. We were about one-half mile south of Ypres. That once thriving city was but a mass of ruins, pounded level with the ground by the long-continued artillery fire. We had been in the trenches but a few hours when the enemy put over a barrage. And then I reached the conclusion that my "t in hat" was altogether too small. The Germans kept up this amuse- ment for about an hour, sweeping the first and second line trenches. I could at last realize the meaning of the word "war." I can also admit that I was scared. I have come to the conclusion that any man who says he is not afraid of shell fire is lacking in veracity or good sense. We were for a time alternated between the two positions — four days in the first line and the same length of time in the second. This served to slightly reliei^e the terrible strain. And when the regi- ment had been twelve days at the front, it was relieved by another, moving back to the reserve lines. While on the front we met some of the best entertainers I have ever known or seen. When not being amused by the Germans, there Wf^re our friends, the "cooties." They were persistent, intimate, HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 463 and numerous. Our clothes were alive with them, and the size and vigor of individual specimens were a constant source of wonder and admiration. Many of you have looked down upon the street from some tall building, from which point the people and vehicles below looked so small and grotesque. Now these same "cooties" looked like street cars thus seen, all having diverse routes, and all being ex- ceedingly busy. Beyond the artillery fire we withstood frequent attempts by ene- my raiding parties to enter our lines. Back of the first line we did guard duty. At night we brought up rations for those in front. There were working parties organized, repairing trenches or dig- ging new ones. While in either the first or second line we managed to cook coffee, at least once a day. In doing this we had to avoid making a smoke that would be perceptible to the enemy, and it was really surprising how expert we became in hiding our culinary oper- ations. In the second line, of course, our cookery was somewhat more elaborate. But our menus at the front were exceedingly sim- ple, though the food was sufficient. August 29th we received orders to act as reserve to the Twenty- seventh, in an attack by the latter on Kemmel Hill. In front of our lines the Germans were retreating, and a few men, comparatively, could straighten the line. Companies L and I, of our regiment, went over the top, to keep in touch with the enemy. The Twenty-sev- enth was successful, taking Kemmel Hill, at a cost of many casual- ties. Our two companies in the advance suffered considerable losses. My own company held with the reserve line, moving forward only about 1200 yards. The Germans put over an almost continuous barrage, and by the last of August our regiment had quite a list of casualties. Chateau Thierry Written by Denton Gregg, Headquarters Company, One Hundred Sixty-eighth Regiment : On the 25th of July the Forty-second Division relieved the Twenty- sixth Division in the Chateau Thierry region, near Epieds-and Ver- dilly. On the 25th the Second Battalion took the lead and during the latter part of the afternoon, while on the part of the road that was under heavy shell fire, the sergeant who was in charge of the Third Battalion section infantry signalmen was wounded. He had started out with that battalion to furnish communication by telephone, T. P. S., visual signaling, pigeons, etc. When he was wounded I was put in charge of a sector, with orders to run a line from an old battalion post command forward to the Third Battalion 464 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY post command. No one knew where the Third was located; even the runners were getting- lost. Now comes the part that I shall never forget — nor any of the men who were with me. This is what we had to do : Go back a half mile over some hastily constructed road through the woods that the artillery was using, get some material, including several big iron spools of heavy French twisted wire, together with a couple of heavy camp telephones and a four-drop switch board, then forward again to the point from which we had started, and from there follow a line to that old post command. From there we went to locate the Third Battalion and to run a line to them that night. We stared out. It took one man to keep hold of the wire we were following. The rest of us took turns carrying the material. Just as we started it began to rain — and did it rain? Well, I hope to tell you it did. The road we were to travel was pretty well shot up and as we started in the midst of dense darkness at 10:30 p. m. you can imagine what a lovely time we had. An occasional shell coming- over did not improve matters any either. There we were, staggering along in the dark, through almost a river of mud, pitted in many places by shell holes, and strewn with roots and branches. Several of the fellows twisted an ankle or a knee, mak- ing it harder of course for the rest of us in carrying the wire, etc. The distance we had to go was about two and a half kilometers, or nearly two miles. As I mentioned, we started about 10:30 p. m., and we reached the old post command about 2 :30 a. m. There we had been four hours in traversing a distance of less than two miles. A steady downpour of rain, shell holes to entrap us, parts of trees to stumble over; litter bearers coming with the wounded, for whom, of course, we had to step to one side. Maybe these litter bearers didn't have a terrible time ! We were carrying wire, etc. ; we could fall down, curse a little, get up and go on. Those men carrying the wounded did not dare to even as much as slip. I would rather be anything else than a litter carrier. Well, to conclude. As I said, we arrived at that old post com- mand at about 2:30 a. m. It was impossible to find the Third Bat- talion before daylight, so we curled up in a ditch about four feet deep, with water and mud in the bottom two to three inches deep, and got what sleep we could. That morning about 5 :30 a comrade and myself went out and were successful in our quest for the Third Battalion. Then we all got busy and run the line. This will give some idea of how difficult and discouraging it is to attempt keeping efficient telephone service in advance in open warfare. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 465 CoMPiviMENTs Rainbow Division A resume of activities of the Forty-second, or Rainbow Division, together with an acknowledgment of especially heroic performances, was made by Major-General Charles T. Menoher in the following address issued from Headquarters : To the officers and men of the Forty-second Division — Rainbow Division : A year has elapsed since the formation of your organization. It is, therefore, fitting to consider what you have accomplished as a compact division and what you should prepare to accomplish in the future. Your first elements entered the trenches in Lorraine on February 2 1 St. You served on that front for no days. You were the first American division to hold a divisional sector and when you left the sector June 21st, you had served continuously as a division in the trenches for a longer time than any other American division. Al- though you entered the sector without experience in actual warfare, you so conducted yourselves as to win the respect and afifection of the French veterans with whom you fought. ■ Under gas and bom- bardment, in raids, in patrols, in the heat of hand-to-hand combat and in the long dull hours of trench routine, so trying to a soldier's spirit, you bore yourselves in a manner worthy of the traditions of our country. You were withdrawn from Lorraine and moved immediately to the Champagne front where during the critical days from July 14th to July 1 8th, you had the honor of being the only American division to fight in General Gouraud's army which so gloriously obeyed his order, "We will stand or die," and by its iron defense crushed the German assault and made possible the offensive of July i8th, to the west of Rheims. From Champagne you were called to take part in exploiting the success north of the Marne. Fresh from the battle front before Chalons, you were thrown against the picked troops of Germany. For eight consecutive days you attacked skillfully prepared j^ositions. You captured great stores of arms and munitions. You forced the cross- ings of the Ourcq. You took Hill 212, Sergy, Meurcy Ferme, and Serginges by assault. You drove the enemy, including the Imperial Guard Division, before you for a depth of fifteen kilometers. When your infantry was relieved, it was in full pursuit of the retreating Germans, and your artillery continued to progress and support an- other American division in the advance to the Vesle. For your services in Lorraine, your division was formally com- mended in General Orders by the French Army Corps under which 466 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY you served. For your services in Champagne, your assembled offi- cers received the personal thanks of General Gouraud himself. For your services on the Ourcq, your division was officially complimented in a letter from the commanding general, First Army Corps, of July 28, 1918. To your success, all ranks and all services have contributed, and I desire to express to every man in the command my appreciation of his devoted and courageous effort. However, our position places a burden of responsibility upon us which we must strive to bear steadily forward without faltering. To our comrades who have fallen, we owe the sacred obligation of main- taining the reputation which they died to establish. The influence of our performances on our allies and our enemies can not be over- estimated for we were one of the first divisions sent from our coun- try to France to show the world that Americans can fight. Hard battles and long campaigns lie before us. Only by cease- less vigilance and tireless preparation can we fit ourselves for them, I urge you, therefore, to approach the future with confidence; but, above all with firm determination that so far as it is in your power you will spare no effort whether in training or in combat to main- tain the record of our division and the honor of our country. Charles T. Menoher, Major General, U. S. Army. Cut Up Baeloons egr Souvenirs Clyde Ibsen, in August, 191 8, wrote the following explanation about a strip of yellow paper which he enclosed: This is a piece of German propaganda balloon. The balloon is taken about a mile into the air in an airoplane and turned loose to fall behind the American and French lines. Attached to it are German papers published in French with cartoons of Wilson kneeling in front of the kaiser. This is for the purpose of discouraging the Allies. But of course that is impossible. The balloon is about the size of a mail bag. The Boches send them up every day and the French and Americans return the favor. This piece was taken yesterday and it surely had some funny cartoon. It is almost impossible to get a piece of the balloon as the soldiers contend for a piece of it to send to the folks at home. Net Resuets The enemy was kept so constantly engaged that he had no time to gather for a counter-attack, and was furthermore confused by lack of any indication as to where the next blow might fall. Prac- tically all of the territory which Germany had acquired in the spring HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 467 offensive was recovered by the Allies, though as the enemy retired he left a trail of devastation which will cripple the country for years. On the days of September 12th and 13th, General Pershing's com- mand of French and American troops wiped out an old German sali- ent near Metz, taking 200 square miles of territory and 15,000 pris- oners. The net results to the Allies by the end of September were the capture of a million prisoners, with 3,669 cannon and 23,000 ma- chine guns. Army Thrice: as Large as Grant's Won St. Mihiei/ From the Stag's and Stripes : Probably few persons, however casually they may have followed the larger events of the World War, or however little previous knowl- edge they may have had of the geography of Europe, when the phrase "Western Front" is mentioned, can fail to recall the two dia- grammatic lines which decorated the pages of magazines and news- papers for a period of about four years. Somewhat like the edges of a sagging curtain they hung down over the map of northern France, the upper end fastened to the coast line near the westermost corner of Belgium, the lower end similar- ly fastened to the frontier of Switzerland. Of the two lines, the bottom one, which sagged alarmingly in the middle towards Paris, was dotted and generally bore the label, ''Farthest German Advance." Perhaps the most striking feature of the dotted line, less notice- ably reproduced in the solid one, was the sharp kink in it just above the sag toward Paris ; it was as if the falling curtain had caught on a peg there which held it up and prevented it from falling further. There was a good deal of truth in the simile because that peg was Verdun, and if the French had not gritted their teeth and set their strength to keep that peg from breaking, it is very possible that the black curtain of Hun domination might have fallen completely over western Europe. GERMANS STICK AT ONE POINT In August and September of 1914 the Germans, in their repeated tremendous efforts to take Verdun, had the fortress at one time prac- tically surrounded on three sides; west, north and east. But they were eventually forced back completely from the western side and a few kilometers on the north and east. At one point, however, they stuck. Bavarian troops captured the city of St. Mihiel, about thirty kilometers southeast of Verdun, forced their way across the Meuse river, on which Verdun also lies, es- tablished a small bridgehead around the suburb and hill of Chauvon- 468 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY court and the western bank, and here fixed a peg of their own which for four years remained a constant threat and embarrassment to the defenders of Verdun because upon it was hung the St. Mihiel saHent. This sahent, always the sharpest inequaHty in the western battle front, broke forward from the general line of the front near Les Eparges, about seventeen kilometers southeast of Verdun. From this village, which is on the abrupt edge of the reverse slopes of the heights of the Meuse where they drop to the plain of the Woevre, or Voivre, the western side of the salient ran almost due south for about twenty kilometers, crossing the high, forested hills and descending their western slopes into the valley of the Meuse and then crossing that river to embrace the small bridgehead directly west of St Mihiel. There were scarcely two square kilometers of ground within the trenches of this bridgehead, but it was large enough effectually to cut the double-track railway from Verdun to Toul, which, reaching on the south to Epinal and Belfort, had, before the war, linked up the four great fortresses of the French eastern frontier. SUBSTITUTE RAII^ROAD ROUTES » Deprived of this extremely important line, Verdun was obliged to depend for all its rail communications upon the double track line ex- tending westward from St. Menehould, supplemented because it was so close to the front as to be subject to interruption by another, mili- tary, double track line built in 191 6 southwest from Verdun to the existing St. Menehould Revigny line at Nettancourt. The substi- tute routes were, however, so circuitous that it was a slow process to shuttle troops back and forth by them along the eastern frontier defenses. Crossing the Meuse again just above St. Mihiel and including in its circuit Fort du Camp des Romains, the one French fort of the line between Verdun and Toul which the Germans captured and held through most of the war, the front swung eastward, again crossing the heights of the Meuse, and descended into the plain of the Woevre at Apremont, northeast of which rose the lofty bulk of Mont Sec, a detached hill affording artillery positions to the Germans which for miles dominated the Allied lines in the lowlands. From Apremont the front ran on by Xivray, Seicheprey, Flirey, Limey, Regniville and Fey-en-Haye and through the Foret du Bois de Pretre to a point on the Moselle river just above Pont-a-Mousson, about forty kilometers from St. Mihiel. The total length of this salient was about sixty-five kilometers ; at its gorge between Les Eparges and Regniville it was about thirty kilometers wide, and from the line between these two points it thrust forward from the general configuraion of the front about twenty-two kilometers into HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 469 French territory. Directly back of it and supporting it, with ex- cellent rail and road communications, was the great German fort- ress of Metz, hardly over fifty kilometers from St. Mihiel. During the first year of the war the French made several power- ful efforts to wipe out the St. Mihiel salient with its constantly envel- oping threat to Verdun. But, working under the tactical theories of trench warfare then in vogue, they met with little success so far as ground gains were concerned. The first efifort was made at Les Eparges, where, in February, 191 5, they began an attack to break down the face of the hills to the plain of the Woevre. After the attack had been sustained on into April the French were in possession of Les Eparges and believed that they had killed 30,000 Germans. But their own losses had been very heavy, the salient was not yet broken and the effort here was given over. During the summer of 191 5, they again attacked, this time along the southern face and particularly at Apremont, beneath the edge of the hills, and at the Bois le Pretre. At the latter place they tried to force their way down the deep ravines into the valley of the Mo- selle. For months the battle went on, literally from tree to tree, until the forest had been wiped from the face of the earth. By this time the French had captured most of the few square kilometers of ground within the confines of the woodland, but at a terrible cost of life, and shortly afterwards a German counter-offen- sive of the same nature forced them to relinquish a considerable part of the ground gained. From that time until September, 1918, the St. Mihiel salient remained among the "quiet sectors" not because the French did not desire to oblierate it but because their forces were too constantly engaged on other and more vital fronts to allow of the great concentration necessary for its reduction. AMERICANS ON SALIENT'S EDGES Largely because it was a quiet sector lying in that region of east- ern France which, from the first entry of the United States into the war, had been designated as the zone of operations of the future Am- erican armies, several of the American divisions first to arrive were placed along different parts of the salient, particularly between Pont- a-Mousson and Apremont, as part of their training in becoming first-class fighting divisions. This was the case with the First and Twenty-sixth Divisions, of which at least one, the Twenty-sixth, had a battle there of no insig- nificant proportions when one day in April a German shock regiment attacked Seicheprey, carried the village, held it for a short time and was then ejected by the New Englanders. 470 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY It was quite natural, therefore, that when the American forces in France had at last, by the latter part of August, 19 18, risen to num- bers sufficient to constitute an army, having at least nine divisions which had participated in the great offensive battles between the Marne and the Vesle, and corps staffs which had learned to function in command of troops in major operations, the St. Mihiel salient should have been selected as the place for the First American Army to demonstrate its power and fitness as a fighting unit. In addition to relieving Verdun and is rail communications, the suppression of the salient would restore 150 square miles of occupied French territory, including a city inhabited before the war by 10,000 people; would reverse the threat of German attack on Verdun to a threat of Allied attack on Metz, and would furnish a base line for future operations both against the Briey iron fields just north and east of Metz, which were vital to Germany's war industries, and against the double track railroad which, running up from Alsace through Metz, Montmedy, Sedan and Mezieres to Valenciennes in Flanders, furnished the means of transportation by which German divisions were rapidly shuttled back and forth as needed fpom one end of their Western battle front to the other. FIRST ARMY IN THE MAKING The general conception of the operation having taken form, avail- able American divisions were gradually drawn into the front and rear zones adjacent to the salient, some from the training areas farther back, some from the quiet sectors of the front in Alsace and the Vos- ges mountains, but particularly a number of divisions which had recently gone through the hard fighting in the Marne salient. In addition, a considerable number of French troops already in position were placed under American command. The staff of the First American Army was created and General John J. Pershing, commander-in-chief of the American Expedition- ary Forces, himself took command of that army for its first opera- tion, as a natural preliminary to assuming command of the group of armies which were soon to be organized. The first work, necessarily, was the constitution of the army itself, a complex mechanism which had to be built and made to work prop- erly from the front line back to the Services of Supply, which now, for the first time, were called upon to take complete care of their own army from their own base ports to their own railheads. After that, for the coming operation itself, maps and plans, of which the army orders alone, including battle instructions, field orders, etc., filled a book of fifty-five pages, were worked out by the HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 471 staff with a detailed care probably never before bestowed upon the preparation of an American army for battle. The exact zone of action of every organization, the objectives to be attained at certain hours and minutes all along the line, the duties to be performed by every one of the multitudinous units of the army ; infantry, field, heavy and railway artillery, engineers, tanks, pur- suit, reconnoissance, observation and bombing aviation, cavalry, gas and flame troops, ammunition and supply trains and other motor trans- port, Signal Corps troops, water supply, anti-aircraft defense, hospi- tal units, troops charged with the evacuation of prisoners, with traf- fic control and with liaison — all these details and many more minutely prescribed and no contingency that could be foreseen was left un- provided for. SEPTEMBER 12 "d day" At length September 12th was definitely fixed as "D Day," and "H Hour" as 5 o'clock in the morning, and there began the gradual concentration of attacking troops along the front, concealed from the enemy by every possible artifice and precaution. The troops already in sector, which were, from right to left around the salient, the Eighty-second, Ninetieth, Eighty-ninth, and First United States Di- visions, and the Thirty-ninth, Twenty-sixth, and Second Dismounted Cavalry French Divisions, maintained only their normal activities. New batteries of artillery coming in were not allowed to register on the targets in their zones of fire; aviation activity was not increased, and the masses of arriving troops and transport marched by night and concealed themselves by day. Nevertheless the enemy got an inkling of what was going on, and several days before the actual attack he began preparations for evac- uating the salient in case of necessity. But, judged by the standard of previous German military decision, their measures in his case seem to have been curiously nerveless and hesitating. Apparently they were somewhat awed by the magnitude of the prep- arations against them; at all events, they neither reinforced the sa- lient so strongly as to guard it against any attack, nor frankly gave it up and abandoned it; though it should be noted that at this time the German mass of reserves was already pretty thoroughly in- volved in opposing the British and French offensives between the Somme and the Oise. In the St. Mihiel salient they stopped some construction work which was in progress and began slowly withdrawing some heavy artillery and supplies. But, on the othe hand, orders were issued to the troops in the sector and those within close supporting distance looking^ to the holding of the positions with the forces on the ground. The German defenses, after the expenditure upon them of four 472 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY years of labor, were naturally strong in themselves. Behind the in- tricate and deeply-organized first line they embraced a second line called the Schroeter zone, which was virtually a smaller salient five or more kilometers inside the original one. Starting northeast of Les Eparges at one end, it ran south over the heights of the Meuse, uilizing their boldest profiles so as just to retain their eastern escarp- ments, then near Varvinay, swinging east to Buxieres, and then, be- hind the deep valley of the Rupt de Mad, running northeast by Non- sard, Lemarche, Beney, and Xammes to Rembercourt. Here it connected with the Michel position, the real withdrawal po- sition of the salient, which was a part of that ultimate system of de- fense called in some places the Hindenburg line, in some the Kriem- hilde Stellung, and so on, but which everywhere the Germans re- garded as the line on which they should say to the Allies, "Thus far and no farther." The Schroeter zone covered the roads leading northeast from St. Mihiel by Chaillon and north from Apremont by Heudicourt, through Vigneulles and St. Benoit-Woevre to Gorze, behind the center of the Michel position. It was largely no more than a wire line, well sited but only partly intrenched, and, though fairly strong by nature, the fact remained that it was a temporary withdrawal position only; that a good 2.2 kilometers intervened between the St. Benoit crossroads and the main salient at either Apremont or the Chauvoncourt bridge- head, and that it would be necessary, in case of a strong attack, if the forces around the latter points were to escape capture, for the hold- ing troops to keep the Schroeter zone intact until the retreating col- umns could clear their flanks past St. Benoit. DISPOSITION OP* enemy's FORCES It was to the prevention of this result that the American battle plans were largely directed, and for its accomplishment that the Germans made some rather hesitating arrangements. Thanks to some German official reports captured some time after the event, it is possible to know with more accuracy and detail than usual something of the disposition and movements of the enemy's forces during the operations in the salient. It appears that Lieutenant General Fuchs, commanding Army De- tachment "C," disposed in the salient from right to left the Twenty- fifth Austro-Hungarian Division, forming, perhaps with troops of the Eighth Landwehr Division, to its right, the "Combres, group"; the One Hundred Ninety-second Division and the Fifth Landwehr Di- vision forming the "Mihiel group," and the Tenth Division form- ing the "Gorze group." The Thirty-first Division was in close re- serve, and the One Hundred Twenty-third, the One Hundred HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 473 Seventh and Eighty-eighth Divisions further away, but within reach. On the extreme right flank, lapping over the front which was ac- tually attacked, the Eighth Landwehr Division apparently belonged to the Fifth Army of General von Francois, while on the extreme left, astride the Moselle, was the Two Hundred Fifty-fifth Division, com- mand of which, for purposes of better coordination, had been repeat- edly requested by Fuchs, but which he did not receive until 5 145 o'clock on the morning of the attack. Probably all of these divisions were very far below g,ooo rifles each which the Allies reckoned as the normal strength of German divisions, but it was claimed that the One Hundred Ninety-second and the Tenth Divisions were particularly depleted, while the Seven- tieth was regarded as unreliable because of the large proportion of Alsace-Lorrainers in its ranks. FOUR AIvIvlED ARMY CORPS The order of battle given differed materially from that presumed at the time by the American command, which believed nine divisions to be in line with one in support, instead of seven in line with four in support. According to the estimate of General Fuchs, he had in line one division to each twelve kilometers of front, which perhaps meant with disposable reserves, a total of 75,000 men. With their wonder- fully organized defense and immense quantities of artillery and ma- chine guns, such a force could logically be expected to make a very stubborn defense. On the front to be attacked. General Pershing disposed four Army Corps. The First United States Corps was under Major General Hunter Liggett and operated from Clemery, east of the Moselle, to Limey; the Fourth United States Corps, under Major General Joseph T. Dickman, operated from Limey to Xivray; the Second Colonial Corps (French), under Major General Blondelat, later under Major General Claudel, operated from Xivray to Mouilly, and the Fifth Uni- ted States Corps, under Major General George H. Cameron, operated from Mouilly to Watronville. The First Corps had from right to left the Eighty-second, the Ninetieth, the Fifth, and the Second Divisions, with the Seventy- Eighth in reserve. Of these the Eighty-second, under Major General William P. Burnham, was to hold fast with its right and follow up with its left, which was astride the Moselle, the advance of the line further to the west. The Ninetieth, Major General Henry T. Allen; the Fifth, Major General John A. McMahon, and the Second, Major General John A. Lejeune, were to advance in sectors which, swinging on the pivot of the Eighty-second, had a direction first northwest and then north, ending in front of the German Michel position. The Sec- 474 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY ond Division, which was on the marching flank, had Thiaucourt to capture, and was the only division of the corps which would have to cross the Rupt de Mad and penetrate, at its extreme left end, the enemy's retired salient, or Schroeter zone. The Fourth Corps had from right to left, the Eighty-ninth, Forty- Second, and First Divisions, with the Third Division in reserve. The Eighty-ninth, Major General W. M. Wright, closely cooperating with the Second Division in cleaning up trenches and woods, was to move in a general northward direction, crossing the Rupt de Mad and the Schroeter zone just west of Thiaucourt and driving across the enemy's St. Mihiel-Gorze line of retreat just northwest of St. Benoit. The Forty-second, Major General Charles T. Menoher, and the First, Major General Charles P. Summerall, starting from the region of Seicheprey and Richecourt, were to mop up the country around La- hayville, St. Baussant, Essey, Pannes, and Nonsard, so heartily hated for many weary months by American divisions in training, and then to push on to Vigneulles and St. Benoit. objkctive;s and expi^giTatign The advance of the First and Fourth Corps was to attain certain objective lines by given times; a "ist phase" line just short of the Rupt de Mad. was to be reached early on the 12th; a "ist day" line em- bracing Thiaucourt and the crests beyond the Rupt de Mad as far as Nonsard was to be reached by the evening of that day, and a "ist phase, 2nd day" line, including Vigneulles and St. Benoit, was to be reached as soon as possible on the 13th. After this, if not already upon it, the advance was to be carried up to the "Army Objective," which would be a line of resistance straight- ened out in front of the enemy's Michel position, but at some distance from the latter, while the "Line of Exploitation" would carry the front, and particularly the outpost zone, as far ahead of the line of resistance as it could be forced without undue effort and sacrifice. The French Second Colonial Corps had from right to left the Thirty- ninth and Twenty-sixth Infantry Divisions and the Second Cavalry, with no division in corps reserve. The Thirty-ninth, Brigadier General Pougin, was to follow up on its right the attack of the First United States Division; the Second Cavalry Division was to follow up on its left, across the hills of the Meuse, the attack of the Twen- ty-sixth United States Division south of Les Parges. The inner flanks of these divisions and the Twenty-sixth Infantry Division, Brigadier General Belen, around the points of the salient and east and north of St. Mihiel were to press in only strongly enough, by means of limited frontal attacks and raids on important points, to force the Germans to engage and prevent them from retiring until HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 475 the American attack could break across their Hne of retreat near Vigneulles and St. Benoit. Though it might reasonably be expected that the fighting here would not be as heavy as on other parts of the front, the task assigned to the Second Colonial Corps was one calling for great tactical skill, as the pressure to be exerted would have to be carefully controlled according to circumstances if the desired desults were to be achieved. The formidable Mont Sec, which lay in the sector of the Twenty- ninth Infantry Division, was not to be attacked directly, but engulf- ed in the general advance. ON sai,ie;nt's western face The Fifth United States Corps had in line from right to left the Twent3^-sixth United States Division and the Fifteenth Colonial In- fantry (French), with the Fourth United States Division in reserve. The Twenty-sixth Division, Major General Clarence E. Edwards, came into the line east of Mouilly on the nth, replacing the French Second Cavalry under Major General Hennoque, which dropped back to a support position in the rear. The Twenty-sixth Division was to make its attack at 8 a. m., three hours after the advance should have begun on the south face of the salient, and was to drive southeast across the hills and up the creek valley of the Ruisseau du Longeau to a "ist day" line just east of the village of Dommartin. Thence, it was to sv/ing east with its extreme right flank overrun- ing Hattanchatel, where it would come into contact with the left of the First Division, Fourth Corps, advancing from the other side of the salient, and close the enemy's line of retreat from St. Mihiel to Gorze. From this line it would then swing northeast down the faces of the hills to the army objective line fronting the Michel position on the plain of the Woevre. To the left of the Twenty-sixth Division, the French Fifteenth Colonial Infantry Division, Major General Guerin, swinging on a smaller arc of the same semi-circle, was to attack in front the enemy's strong positions on the three detached hills of Les Eparges, Combres, and Amaranthe while the Twenty-sixth Division was flanking them through the creek valley, and after capturing them was to line up with the Twenty-sixth Division on the army objective. The Fourth Uni- ted States Division, Major General John L. Hines, of which, at the last moment, a part was put in line on the extreme left, was to follow up as a hinge, performing the same functions on that flank that the Eighty-second Division performed on the other. 476 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY GREAT ENVElvOPING OPERATION The whole great maneuver was designed to be, in effect, an envel- oping operation, breaking through the bases of the salient, closing to its center and pocketing its garrison. Altogether for the attack the First American Army had, as indicated above, eight divisions in line and three corps in reserve, counting the Fourth as reserve, while in ad- dition, the Thirty-fifth and Ninety-first Divisions were in army re- serve and the Eightieth and Thirty-third Divisions were available if needed. This meant about 216,000 American possibly 48,000 French troops in line, and about 190,000 American troops in reserve, or more than 400,000 American troops for the battle. General Pershing had therefore assembled, in the First American Field Army which had existed since the Civil War, a mass of American troops considerably more than three times as large as had ever before been assembled in one army, the largest previous one having been the Army of the Po- tomac, under General Grant before Petersburg in 1864-1865, which numbered at its maximum about 125,000 men. To compare it in numbers with other armies of the past preceding the World War, Napoleon's Grand Army at Leipzig numbered 160,- 000, and that of his Austrian, Russian, and Prussian opponents 240,- 000; the German army at Sedan numbered 250,000 men, and the Jap- anese and Russian armies at Mukden, the largest up to that time au- thentically recorded in the history of the world, each numbered about 310,000 men. Although General Fuchs was in direct command of the German troops in the salient, the real antagonist of the Americans was Gen- eral von Gallwitz, the commander of the army group of which Fuchs' detachment formed a part. Von Gallwitz was an officer of high rank at the beginning of the war. He commanded an army group of the German forces during the intense fighting and constant maneuvering in Poland in 191 5. Later that year and during part of 19 16 he was in command of an army in Macedonia, and in the fall of 1916 the Second German Army on the Somme was placed under him. In March, 1917, he was put in command of the Fifth Army in the Verdun sector and at a later date was given the army group which he still had in September, 1918. On the score of experience in ma- nipulating masses of troops on many victorous fields, the Germans certainly had rather the best of it. But the sequel showed, as it often has done, that in such matters experience and prestige are not everything. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 477 St. MihieIv Attack CivKan Cut Victory of American Arms From the Stars and Stripes : It has seemed worth while to describe in some detail the rather in- tricate battle plans of the American army for the reduction of the St. Mihiel salient because, from the American side, the description of the plans amounts almost to a description of the battle. Seldom in history has a military operation been carried out more precisely ac- cording to program. At I o'clock on the morning of September 12th, the artillery prep- aration began with one terrific burst of flame from many hundreds of guns, French as well as American, ranging in size from the 75's to the great seacoast guns, some as large as 400 mm. in caliber, which, fir- ing from railway mounts, carried harassing fire to rail and road junc- tions as far behind the German lines as St. Benoit, Mars-la-Tour, Gorze, Conflans, and even Metz. The stupendous bombardment shook the earth for four hours, driv- ing the enemy's troops into their dugouts, tearing up their trenches and demoralizing their communications of every description. Mean- time, the hundreds of thousands of infantrymen, the hundreds of machine guns, the scores of American and French tanks, and the great- est assemblage of American, British, and French aviation ever em- ployed for a single operation on the western front all waited, tense and eager, for the word to sweep forward over the shell torn fields and roads and trenches which a heavy rain that had begun in the evening was rapidly turning to quagmire. ROUTING BARRAGE STARTS At 5 o'clock, which was still twenty minutes before daybreak of that wet and foggy morning, the bombardment of the German front lines in the sectors of the First and Fourth Corps suddenly changed to a rolling barrage, and behind it the infantry jumped off, preceded by detachments with wire-cutters and bangalore torpedoes to destroy the numerous successive belts of German entanglements. Immediately occurred the first agreeable surprise. The enemy's wire was in very poor condition, rusty or broken. Little difficulty was experienced in passing it, some of the troops even being able to go over or through it without cutting. At most points only scattered infantry fire greeted the Americans as they advanced, and upon their arrival at the trenches the German soldiers began popping up out of the dugouts, boyaux, and strong points ~and surrendering with the utmost docility. The feats of many individual* Americans were exemplified at St. 478 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Baussant, just north of Seicheprey, where Corporal Frank Smith, Company K, One Hundred Sixty-sixth Infantry, Forty-second Di- vision, discovering a German machine gun about to open an enfilad- ing fire on his platoon, shot the gunner, pursued the other three men of the gun crew, who fled, and after capturing them dashed into the village and, single-handed, took sixteen more prisoners in one group. Somewhat later the same morning, at Bouillonville, in the sector of the Eighty-ninth Division, Sergeant Harry A. Adams, Company K, Three Hundred Sixty-third Infantry, chased a fleeing German into one of the houses of the village, fired the last two shots from his pistol through the door, which the fugitive slammed behind him, and demanded the surrender of the occupants. His demand was com- plied with, but he was rather astonished to have something like 300 Germans, including seven officers, file out and give themselves up to him. HARD TO KEEP UP WITH RUSH It was obvious why streams of prisoners, very soon after the attack began, were pouring back to the American rear on every road and path. The advance, however, proceeded with all the precautions ar- ranged beforehand, the troops flanking the successive woodlands, farms, villages, machine gun emplacements, and other probable cen- ters of resistance and mopping them up afterward. There was some artillery fire from the German batteries further back, but otherwise, especially at the beginning, the enemy seemed paralyzed and impotent. While the Allied aviation completely con- trolled the air, the majestic sweep of the host below rolled on over everything so rapidly that few of the tanks or field batteries detailed to accompany the front lines could keep up with them. From the facts now known concerning the efforts of the Germans to stem the flood, it appears that when the bombardment began, only their Seventy-seventh and Tenth Divisions, which had long been in sector there, were on the southern front opposite the First and Fourth United States Corps. The Thirty-first and One Hundred Twenty-third Divisions were assembled in reserve at convenient points behind the Michel position, and as soon after the bombardment began as General von Gallwitz would consent to their movement, they were marched toward Thiaucourt.' Long before they approached it, the Americans had smashed com- pletely through the Seventy-eighth and Tenth Divisions, and at 11:50 a. m. the advance of the Second Division was in Thiaucourt, the most important German center and supply depot of the salient. General Fuchs thereupon ordered his approaching reserve divis- ions to counter-attack, the Thirty-first against Thiaucourt and the One Hundred Twenty-third against Vieville-en Haye, southeast HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 479 of Thiaucourt. But the counter-attack was not vigorous enough to have more than a temporary delaying effect upon the Americans, the attack on Thiaucourt being put down by Third Brigade of the Second Division and that on Vieville b}^ the Tenth Brigade of the Fifth Di- vision and the troops of the Ninetieth Division. The Fifth Division, indeed, was already on its sector of the army objective at 10 a. m. and met the counter-stroke there, while the Ninetieth reached it at 4 p. m. and the Second at 5 p. m. The livel}^ fighting near Thiaucourt and Vieville inspired many deeds of hero- ism, such as those of Sergeant E. S. Willis, Company A, Fifteenth Machine Gun Battalion, Fifth Division, who led his section with the greatest courage and while consolidating his objective was severely wounded by shrapnel but remained in comrnand until he fainted from weakness; of Private Joseph Thornton, Company I, Eleventh Infan- try, Fifth Division, who alone charged an enemy trench with an auto- matic rifle and forced the surrender of the occupants, and of Sergeant Gilmore Tomlin, Company G, Sixth Infantry, Fifth Division, who similarly charged alone a machine gun nest which was firing on his company, killed the gunner and captured the gun. The Ninetieth Division made its splendid advance through the for- bidding waste of the devastated Bois de Fretre, the network of trench- es and the woods and deep ravines of its sector largely because of the impetuous gallantry in rushing machine gun nests and because of such an act as that of Corporal Jesse W. Grisham, Company L, Three Hundred Ninety-fifth Infantry, who jumped out of a trench when his company was held up by an impassible wire entanglement, ran for- ward under heavy machine gun fire and cut sufficient paths for his comrades to pass through before he was himself killed. SHARP FIGHTING AT QUART DE RESl^RVE The Eighty-ninth, Forty-second and First Divisions, of the Fourth Corps, with longer distances to cover, moved forward with as rapid strides as the divisions of the First Corps, and the German front lines were taken almost as fast as the troops could march over them. Probably the most serious opposition anywhere encountered was that presented to the First Division by some troops of the enemy's Tenth Division at the last trench line of his forward system, where it ran through the Quart de Reserve, a small woodland about half way between Lahayville and Nonsard. It cost that First Division about 600 casualties to take these woods, but nevertheless it was on the "ist Phase" fine with the rest of the corps front by noon. At evening all the divisions of the corps had far overrun the "ist Day" line, with the Eighty-ninth in possession of Beney and Xammes, the Forty-second well north of Pannes in the Bois de Thiaucourt, and 48o HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY the First north of Nonsard in the Bois de Nonsard. Though it had not experienced the earher offensive battles of the other divisions in the corps, the Eighty-ninth kept fully abreast of them, led by such officers as First Lieut. John H. Ale, Three Hundred Fifty-fifth In- fantry, who, after losing his right hand and being wounded in the chest and both legs and finding that he could not possibly go further, told his platoon that he was confident that the pride in their organi- zation would enable them to go on without him and with his own su- perb courage fired them to continue the advance. . CAVAIvRY TAKE:S A HAND The First Division, being on the outer flank, was pushing hard all the afternoon to reach and cut the St. Mihiel-Gorze highway between Heudicourt and Vigneulles. Before 2 o'clock, tanks and a squad- ron of the Second United States Cavalry, closely supported by in- fantry, struck west through the Bois de Nonsard and the Bois de Creue and by 4 p. m. had crossed the road and taken some prisoners, though they were too few to exploit their success, and some of the enemy's troops, pressing their retreat in desperate haste from Apre- mont before the advancing French, could still make their way past, while the road over the hills from St. Mihiel by way of Chaillon to Vigneulles was yet open. The tanks, waddling about over the fields on their special missions, had adventures of their own, like those of the battalion under Major Sereno E. Brett, who went ahead of his tanks on foot and guided them through the machine gun and artillery fire all the way from Richecourt to the Bois Quart de Reserve, and like that one under Captain Harry H. Semmes, which fell into Rupt de Mad and was com- pletely submerged, whereupon Captain Semmes, escaping through the turret door, found that his driver was still in the tank, and, under machine gun fire, returned and rescued him. HANDS ACROSS THE SALIENT At that time a brigade of the Third Division — Fourth Corps Re- serve — having been sent up to reinforce the First Division, the left flank of the latter was pushed eastward decisively, and by 10 o'clock a company of the Twenty-eighth Infantry was firmly established across the important road. At 3:15 a. m. of the 13th the ad- vance detachments of the Sixteenth and Eighteenth Infantry, of the First Brigade, were in the outskirts of both Vigneulles, in the plain, and Hattonchatel, on the brow of the hills, effectually closing all remaining roads northward arid eastward out of the salient, while about 7 o'clock in the morning the patrols of the First and the Twen- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 481 ty-sixth Divisions encountered one another in Hattonchatel, thus joining hands across the base of the obhterated sahent. Turning- now to the region west of the Fourth United States Corps we find the troops of the Second Colonial Corps performing their deli- cate mission with the greatest success. At the points where follow- up attacks with limited objective were to be made, they were sched- uled to jump off one hour after the beginning of the general Ameri- can advance. In accordance with the arrangements, during the course of the day the Thirty-ninth French Division captured Apremont, Loupmont, and Mont Sec, forcing the Germans to engage a large part of their forces in action, and thus delaying their retreat by the threatened road through Heudicourt, Vigneulles, and St. Benoit. The Twenty-sixth French Infantry and the Second French Cavalry Divisions, employ- ing similar tactics, engaged the Germans around the nose of the sali- ent and along its western front. Finally, when the proper moment came, they broke through with strong raids at Spada and Marie Hill, north of St. Mihiel, clearing the Chauvoncourt bridgehead, partially occupying the city of St. Mi- hiel, and from Spada driving in to Chaillon, where they came outside the road over the heights of the Meuse by which a large part of the enemy had to retreat from St. Mihiel to Vigneulles and the Michel position. AUSTRO-HUNGARIANS ROUTKD On the extreme left, the Second Cavalry Division vigorously sec- onded the attack of the Twenty-sixth United States Division, drove the troops of the Thirty-fifth Austro-Hungarian Division through their successive S3^stems of powerful trenches on the hills and ravines slopes overlooking the Meuse Valley, and greatly assisted in reducing this division to the stream of panic-stricken fugitives which, as night fell, was freeing blindly through the upland forests towards the open plains eastward. The attack of the Fifth United States Corps going off at 8 a. m. had by noon carried the Twenty-sixth United States and the Fif- teenth French Colonial Infantry Divisions to the crest of the hill of Les Eparges and close up to the western edge of St. Remy and the woods of that village, but not without hard fighting. Well established in their exceedingly strong positions, the troops of the enemy's Combres group, which, in front of the Twenty-sixth United States, were the Sixty-third Austro-Hungarian Infantry, the right regiment of the Thirty-fifth Austro-Hungarian Division, and the Eighty-second Landwehr Regiment of the Eighth Division, and, in front of the Fifteenth French Colonial Infantry Division, the 482 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Fifteenth and Fiftieth Regiments of the Eighth Landwehr Division, at first made a vigorous defense. But they were heavily outnumbered, and, ahhough, after the Fif- teenth French Colonial Division had captured the crest of Les Epar- ges Hill, a counter-attack by three or four reserve companies of the Fifteenth Landwehr Regiment recovered a part of the ground, they were soon driven back, while on the rest of the front the enemy grad- ually gave way without any attempts at reaction. Until night parts of the Seventh Landwehr Division clung to the eastern crests of the hills of Les Eparges, Combres, and Amaranthe, and then retreated to the Voivre plain. Forcing its way after the retiring Austro-Hungarians, however, the Twenty-sixth Division drove them first from their strong Tranche de Tilsit, then from the Tranche de Kiel, and, finally following their disordered retreat through the woods, captured the villages of St. Remy and Doumartin. ORDERED FORWARD TO VIGNEUEEES Toward evening an order came to the Twenty-sixth to push a bri- gade forward to Vigneulles. The regiment in divisional reserve together with the divisional machine gun battalion, were at once started across the hills for that objective and reached it and Hat- tonchatel by 2 a. m. of the 13th, while the other regiment of the bri- gade, which had to be assembled from deployment, followed a few hours later. At 7 a. m. of the 13th, as previously mentioned, liai- son was complete across the base of the salient on the army objective. The efforts put forth by the Germans against the attack on Sep- tember 1 2th seem to have been singularly ineffectve. Undoubtedly this was largely due to their great inferiority of numbers, but it does not appear that General von Gallwitz might not have remedied this and made a better showing. His subordinate. General Fuchs, had warned him repeatedly of the imminence of a heavy American attack on the salient, yet he let matters drift without guaranteeing the safety of the troops and the vast quantities of material which it contained either by reinforcement or retirement. When the attack broke on the south front, several days before even Fuchs looked for it, the Eighty-seventh Division at once went to pieces, as had been anticipated, while the Tenth Division, to its right, though a somewhat higher state of morale caused it to fight as it retired, had its flank in the air and could do nothing efifective. Fuchs' appeals to his higher command brought no response in the way of support, and he early devoted the body of his local reserves, the Thirtieth and One Hundred Twenty-second Divisions, to the counter-attacks in the region of Thiaucourt, which at least resulted in saving the part of his Michel position northeast of there from be- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 483 ing pierced by the exploitation of the First United States Corps from its army objective. VAIN ATTEMPTS TO STKM TIDE Shortly before noon, Fuchs learned that the American advance on the south had pushed the Tenth Division back across the Rupt de Mad, and he then received information from the other flank that his Combres group had been attacked, that St. Remy had fallen, and that the Combres Hill was also probably lost. Although at that time the One Hundred Ninety-second Division, along the hills north of St. Mihiel, and the Fifth Landwehr Division, eastward to Apremont, seemed able to withstand the French attacks, Fuchs, alarmed by the rapid penetration of the American columns from south and northwest toward their line of retreat at Vigneulles and St. Benoit, hastily issued orders transferring the defense to the Schroeter zone and directing the retreat of the One Hundred Ninety- second and the Fifth Landwehr Divisions upon that line. At the same time he sent instructions to various scattered battal- ions and companies, at rest or working in the rear areas, to converge upon Nonsard and Lemarche for the protection of the St. Benoit crossroads. But about 2 o'clock Pannes and Nonsard had been taken by the Forty-second and First Divisions, and the cavalry and tanks as the latter division was advancing eastward toward the road be- tween Heudicourt and Vigneulles, while some forty deep-flying battle planes were attacking the chateau grounds and crossroads of St. Be- noit with machine guns and grenades, and the French were driving back the One Hundred Ninety-second Division from the heights of the Meuse. I.AST ENEMY RESERVES THROWN IN Everything was tumbling in and, the Schroeter zone being already broken at Nonsard, Fuchs gave up hope of defending it and ordered everything back to the Michel position, meantime devoting all his efforts to patching up some sort of a line for delaying the irresistible rush of the First and Forty-second Divisions toward Heudicourt, Vigneulles, and St. Benoit. On his own initiative, the commander of the Fifth Landwehr Di- vision had already ordered the two resting battalions of his Twenty- fifth and Twenty-sixth Landwehr Infantry Regiments to counter- attack the American advance north of Heudicourt, establishing flank contact with the other regimental fragments which were trying to constitute a line through the woods toward a point southeast of St. Benoit, and it was probably with these battalions that the Sec- ond Cavalry collided on the road between Heudicourt and Vigneulles. 484 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY About 5 130 in the afternoon the Eighty-eighth Division, Fuchs' last reserve, having arrived within reach for use, was ordered into the retirement sector of the Tenth Division in the Michel position for the protection of the right flank of the Gorze group. This disposition Fuchs probably made becauseby this time there was not much left of the original Gorze group — the Tenth and Seventy- seventh Divisions- — -to occupy its assigned sectors in the new battle zone of the Michel position. The burden of holding the latter had fallen upon the Thirty-first and One Hundred Twenty-third Division, still fighting east and northeast of Thiaucourt, and the Eighty- eighth Division. Even the division which was in line just to the left of the Gorze group, the Two Hundred Fifty-fifth, was being pushed back down the Moselle by the vigorous follow-up attack of General Burnham's Eighty-second Division, slowly but steadily advancing northward to- ward Norroy. All through the afternoon the stafifs of the German divisions which were still down toward the point of the salient seem to have been find- ing pressing business at the rear, establishing new posts of com- mand well behind the Michel position a good many hours before any of their retreating troops were even up to Vigneulles. Indeed, it was 2:30 o'clock in the morning of the 13th before the army detachment commander had any news of the One Hundred Ninety-second Divis- ion, whose advance was at that hour reported as having at last arriv- ed in the Michel position. How much more of it eventually arrived there, or how much of the Fifth Landwehr Division, is very uncertain. CANNON LOSSES LAID TO BURSTS However well Fuchs may have done with inadequate forces against overwhelming odds and considering the utter lack of support from his army group, he seems to have done very well — he was, at least in his reports thus far available, very far from frank in his admission of losses. He ascribed to the One Hundred Ninety-second Division total casualties of 715 officers and men, most of them missing, and 82 machine guns and minenwerfers, and to the Fifth Landwehr Divis- ion casualties of 624 officers and men, also chiefly missing, and 82 ma- chine guns and minenwerfers and two cannon, the latter on account of bursts in bore. Of the losses of other divisions he says nothing, yet, as a matter of fact, the First American Army took in the operation approximately 14,500 prisoners, 443 pieces of artillery, and enormous quantities of other material, by far the greater part during the first twenty-four hours after the attack. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 485 The Seventy-seventh German Division, according to all evidence, was virtually wiped out, while the Tenth Division and the Thirty- fifth Austro-Hungarian Division suffered very heavily, indeed, the Twenty-sixth United States Division alone taking 2,330 prisoners in the fighting at the northwest corner of the salient, a large part of them Austro-Hungarians. The suppression of the St. Mihiel salient was virtually accomplished within the space of one day, for in that time the army objective was reached, if not overrun, at all points. During September 13th, 14th, and 15th further progress, averaging three or four kilometers, was registered along most of the front, frequently at the cost of hot local fighting. THROUGH BROKEN COUNTRY It was in such fighting that the line of the Second Division, for example, was carried forward through the broken country bordering the Rupt de Mad about Jaulny and Bembercourt by the impetuous daring of such men as Private G. M. Chatman, Seventy-fifth Com- pany, Sixth United States Marines, who, being with his platoon in an outpost position, which was being harassed by three German snip- ers, jumped out, under the fire of their own rifles and that of machine guns, charged them alone and overcame them. Further to the right, in the sector of the Nineteenth Division, how close the opposition lines were on the second day of the fight may be realized from the fact that, while some American officers were hold- ing a conference in a dugout on the outpost line near Vilcey, a Ger- man patrol darted across the foot bridge over the little stream which winds past Vilcey and threw a hand grenade into the dugout. Cor- poral Willie Greene, Company B, Three Hundred Fifty-eighth In- fantry, who Avas close by, promptly stood on the grenade to save his officers from injury, and then, from his precarious position, shot two of the retreating enemy patrol. At the end of three days of this sort of work, when the Americans virtually came to a stop close up before the Michel position, every- where except for a short distance in the center, where most of the large Lake of Lachaussee remained for the ensuing few weeks within the German lines, the outposts were ahead of the projected line of exploitation and within a dozen kilometers of such places as Mars-la- Tour, Vionville, and Gravelotte, whose bitter memories of 1870 were soon to be effaced from the minds of the French people. FOUR YIJARS' SITUATION REVERSED At last the situation of four years was reversed. The American observatories on the redeemed heights of the Meuse, particularly the 486 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY one at Hattonchatel dominated the enemy's positions as formerly from Mont Sec the Germans had dominated Xivray, Seicheprey, FH- rev, and all the low country for miles south of these villages. Besides the great number of prisoners and guns whose capture has already been mentioned, the Americans and French took in the salient vast quantities of light railway material and rolling stock, including railway artillery, and all kinds of other military stores which the ene- my left intact in his precipitate retreat. All through the woods were cantonments vast enough for the army which they at times contained, arranged with every comfort and convenience that semi-permanent field cantonments could afford, left standing with everything in them — bunks and bedding, stoves^ dishes, cooking utensils, personal prop- erty, even sometimes meals cooked and ready to be eaten on the tables. As an example of the booty won in the eastern part of the salient, the Third Brigade, Second division, which captured Thiaucourt and repulsed the German counter-attack there, losing in its operation five officers and 8i enlisted men killed, and nine officers and 274 enlisted men wounded, took from the enemy over 3,000 prisoners, including 74 officers, 92 pieces of artiller}^, including some guns of as large cali- ber as eight inches loaded on cars in Thiaucourt, 6,000 rifles and 200 machine guns, over $5,000,000 worth of ammunition, a hospital train complete with locomotive, a trainload of ammunition and 51 other standard-guage cars, numerous lumber yards, and hundreds of tons of wire, tools, and other material. VICTORY COST 7,000 CASUATTlES M'aterially, this victory, perhaps the swiftest and most spectacular ever achieved on the western front, yielded enormous prizes, and they were gained at a cost of 7,000 casualties over fields, where, in earlier efforts, the French had sometimes given many times that number to win a single trench. At St. Mihiel, America proved to her Allies that they had not trusted her in vain; to her enemies that, in flouting her, they had sealed for themselves irrevocably fate's decree of ignominious defeat. Between the Argonne and the Meuse she was soon to bear, with those same Allies, a glorious part in carrying that decree into final exe- cution. Through St. MihieIv Written by Aage Eskildsen, Company C, Three Hundred Fifty- seventh Infantry, Ninetieth Division. Our approach to the St. Mihiel salient was by a series of night marches which lasted for nearly two weeks. Enroute we stopped at HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 487 Martincourt, five miles back of the front-line trenches, where Ave spent a few days cleaning up yards and streets. After three days of training as to how to hold front-line trenches we camped in the tim- ber a half mile out of Martincourt. On September loth the comman- der sent the supply man after food supplies, but a shell hit him, blow- ing man, cart, and horse all to pieces, so we did not get anything to eat until the night of the nth, when a small portion of corned beef was provided for each man. At night, after we got this little to eat, we started for the front in a driving rain, reached the trenches at I o'clock, remained here until 5 o'clock in the morning, when we went over the top for the first time. We started with 250 men and at the finish of the fight had 137 left. Twelve were dfead and the rest wounded. In this advance my friend, Lauritz Mikkelsen, was shot down — he with whom I had been since I had left Storm Lake. We had driven the Germans out of their first and second-line trenches and were waiting for our barrage to lift before taking the third line, when a German soldier stood up and called, "Kamerad." Our sergeant or- dered Mikkelsen to take the Boche back to another group of prison- ers. Mikkelsen turned his head to answer the sergeant and just that minute the German whipped a revolver out of his sleeve, shot Mik- kelsen through the breast and then ran back to the trenches. But our sergeant went right after him and got him when he was going to leave the trenches. We then took the third line trenches; that day we drove the Ger- mans seven miles, taking lots of prisoners and ammunition and also a small training camp. That night, between 10 and 12, we dug our- selves in, which means to dig a hole in the ground large enough to lay on one's knees, sometimes two or three in one hole, and always a foot of water in the bottom. Over there if a hole is dug two feet in the ground water will seep into it, and it was the same on a hill top as in the valley. For three days we had only what rations we carried, but on the third day the kitchens came up about noon. At 6 o'clock on the 15th, we again went over the top and drove the Germans back two miles or more. The 23d of September, we were still at the same front. On this date a new supply of blankets came up and we were put in a dug- out; but the Germans put three shells in that same dugout, ruining every blanket and also burying three of our men whom we had to dig out. For three days and nights we dug trenches without any sleep at all. 488 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Advanced Nineteen Kieometers Written by Howard Crissy, Company M, One Hundred Sixty- eighth Regiment, Forty-second Division. The night of September nth we were camped in the Forest de la Reine, about ten kilometers from where we were to hit the line on the St. Mihiel salient. In spite of the heavy rainstorm which pre- vailed most of the night, we had orders to be in the front line trenches by midnight. However, the traffic of guns and supplies was so heavy that we could not make it by the specified time. Our barrage started at i a. m., and luckily for us the Germans did not return much of a barrage, for we were still in the open because we could not reach the trenches from which we were to make the at- tack until about 2 130 a.m. We started from this trench at the schedule time of 5 105. The guides who had been assigned to our company to lead us through the wire entanglements had all been either killed or wounded, so we had to find our own way. We had some trouble keeping up with the rest of the outfit on account of its being dark and rainy, yet managed to catch up even with them as we hit the German lines. About the second line is where we first saw tanks in action. We struck pretty stifif fighting from the time we hit their lines until we reached the woods back of their third line. It was here that we suffered most of the casualties of this bat- tle. Though we had some difficulty in clearing up the machine gun nests in the woods it was in this part of the fight that we captured quite a number of prisoners, for each of these nests usually had eight to ten men. From here we continued to a little village, meeting a stiff fight to take the heights leading to the village. After capturing that we went on to a little town named Essay which we took about noon. This was about the place that we were to reach by night, our first day's objective. Here we first got sight of released French civilians. They were very much suprised to see American soldiers and did not waste much time getting back to the interior of France. At Essay we were "leap frogged" by the Second Battalion, and followed in reserve of the First and Second. With only about forty men and no officers left in our company we followed on to the village of Pannes, where we stayed all night. Here we captured a great amount of arms and ammunition. I saw the ruins of an artillery camp here. Dead horses were strewn all around. The next morning we were awakened by the artillery which had moved up during the night. We moved forward about 5 o'clock on to the towns of Beney and St. Benoit. At Beney we saw quite a num- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 489 ber of large captured cannon, and found the cellars well stocked with beer and wine- — -and no drinking water anywhere near us. We moved into the woods of Dampvitoux, our final objective, about 9:30 in the morning. We had proceeded faster than schedule, and be- cause the new positions had to be protected by artillery and munitions before foodstuffs were allowed to come up we did not get anything to eat until noon of the 14th. Altogether we advanced a distance of nineteen kilometers. Later, when our outfit was assigned to duty with the Army of Oc- cupation, I was billeted in the house of a man who fought at St. Mi- hiel and whose son was killed in the action at Beney in which our regiment recovered the town from the Germans. When he realized that we belonged to the same outfit that had killed his son it was ne- cessary to restrain him and to remove him from the vicinity in order to prevent his doing harm to our men. The tanks were of considerable help to us, as they would go right through the wire entanglements and make paths for us to go through ; also would destroy machine-gun nests. I saw one tank in trouble in a trench which was too deep and too wide for it to go through. The last I saw of it it was still trying to get out. These tanks were small French tanks operated by American soldiers. In the Coast Artillery Written by Sergeant Emmet L. Holmes, Battery B, Fifty-seventh Artillery, Thirty-first Brigade. The memory of my experience at the front will always be with me, but war and the actual feeling and emotions derived from an active part in it can never be truly pictured to others, therefore I trust that an effort will be appreciated. Our regiment, the Fifty-seventh Coast Artillery, went into posi- tion on the nth of September and the drive commenced on the fol- lowing morning about 5 o'clock. The drive was planned so perfect- ly that we met but little resistance and the doughboys had gained their objective by 8 130 a.m. It was in this position that we experienced our first night air raid. The town of Vignot was well protected, as a great many caves had been built and at the first signal the women and children ran scream- ing to the caves. But the excitement of it all was too great for us and it was with an effort that the officers kept us off the streets. All that could be heard was the hum of the engines and the bursting of the dropped bombs. A bomb fell on either side of the road where our guns were located, missing the emplacement by about fifty feet. When an Allied plane took pursuit a battle was staged above us. 490 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY We could hear the two motors humming, each with its different hum, and could see the flashes from the machine guns though the machines themselves could not be seen. The sensation of having someone over you dropping bombs when you cannot see is one not to be forgotten. We received orders on the i8th to convoy to the Verdun front, which movement took us two days, and on arriving there we were given a position near what was formerly the village of Montzeville, better known as Dead Man's Hill. In front of us was the Hinden- burg line. This drive was wonderfully planned and thousands of guns were brought up and put into position in less than four days time. No guns, trucks, or other munitions were moved in this sec- tion during the day, and in the great valley in which we were located there was no visible movement that would signify that artillery was being massed, yet at night the roads were one moving mass which never stopped a minute. There were guns of all calibre, trucks con- taining supplies, ammunition trains, machine gun carts, and men moving toward the front, going into position every little distance. When daylight came this activity ceased and it was as quiet in this sector as on the preceding day. We were shelled by Fritz, of course, but only a couple of times a day, while our guns and the reserve ar- tillery going in never fired a shot. This was classed as the greatest concentration of artillery during the 'war. At the end of the fourth day, which was September 25, General Pershing drove into the village to talk with our officers, and we later learned that this was to see that everything was in readiness for the drive. A few of the 75's opened up that evening about 11 :i5, and at 12:25 3-iT^- every gun was fired at rapid fire, which kept up for six hours, after which a slower fire was ordered which kept up for four- teen hours. For the first six hours the noise was terrific and the whole valley was one mass of fire from the discharge of the guns. Every battery had a definite schedule to work out and everything was like clock work. The smaller guns put over the barrage for the in- fantry and the 155's, eight-inch, and fourteen-inch naval guns did the destruction work back of the German lines. Our battery, which had the 155's, first fired at a German artillery battery, silencing it in twenty-five minutes; then an ammunition dump, next a concentra- tion of troops, then a convoy of supplies which was retreating, then a reserve infantry camp, and so on until the schedule was completed. The following morning we could see long lines of German prisoners filing back through the heavy fog and some told us that nothing could live through such a bombardment and that all they could do was to retreat or surrender. Two days later we. moved to a position further on near Esnes to take part in another drive October 4th. From there we moved to HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 491 Cuisy, where we were for two weeks, firing every day from three to five hours at both rapid and slow fire. Rapid fire is one shot from each of four guns every thirty seconds, while slow fire is generally about fifteen shots an hour at irregular intervals. We were often called upon to fire upon a wood filled with German machine guns which the infantry could not take. We would put 150 or more shots into it in less than twenty minutes and there would then be very little resistance. We next went into position in the Argonne for- ests near Romagne on the Argonne-Meuse front. Here we were stationed in the edge of the wood and had to work thirty hours straight getting the guns into place, as it rained for three days pre- ceding this, with the consequence that the wood was one big mud hole. Here we were shelled by the Germans every day and lost sev- eral men. Every night we were disturbed by three or four gas alarms, which proved in most cases to be sneeze gas, so no one was seriously affected. We took part in the great November ist drive which pushed the Germans back fifteen kilometers, or about eleven miles. As soon as the heavy firing ceased our battalion was made a pursuit battalion and ordered to move forward in pursuit. The fol- lowing day we started to go into position just west of the village of Bantheville, but before we had the guns set up we learned that the Germans were retreating so fast we would be out of range, so we went into position north of Beaufort and just one mile back of the German front line. Here we were shelled continually and our bat- tery lost three men killed, eleven wounded, and six gassed. I was in charge of the communication work of the battery and it was almost impossible for us to keep our telephone lines open on account of shell fire, but by working day and night we were able to establish commu- nication so that we could continue firing. Our orders for the morning of November nth were to cease firing promptly at 10:55, but we kept firing steadily until that fime, while the Germans kept putting them all around us until the agreed time. I think that afternoon seemed more quiet to me than any I can remember. Our battery received four citations for excellent firing and valued support in the drives, and yet another for being the battery of 155's nearest the front lines. Trained Ammunition Supervisors Written by Sergeant R. H. Leonard of the Ordnance Detachment of the Munitions Office, Corps Artillery, Fourth Army Corps. On my arrival at intermediate ordnance ammunition depot No 4, on April 15, 1918, we found a great amount of work in store for us. 492 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY This depot was between Verizon and Bourges, France, about one kilo from the village of Foecy, and nearly ninety mile south of Cha- teau Thierry. A general idea of the size of this ammunition depot can be gained from the fact that it was composed of eight warehouses, each i,ooo feet long by seventy-five feet wide, with twelve-foot sides. Railroad tracks were laid on both sides of each building, so one train could be loading ammunition for the front, while on the other side could be unloaded cars of ammunition which was being received. This was an intermediate base depot, where the ammunition was first brought from the ports on its arrival from the United States or England, or from the French factories. From here we sent ammunition to the various army ammunition dumps in the advanced sectors, of which I will relate later. Space will not permit me to go into the many details of this place. By July all of these buildings were full, with nearly twice as much stored on the grounds outside. The munitions consisted of American thirty- ball calibre and forty-five calibre cartridges, also four point seven's and fourteen-inch shells, French 75's, 155's, 120's, and other sizes, also British eight-inch and nine point two inches. The spring of 191 8 at this place found ordnance men, infantry men, artillery men, and engineers all busy building warehouses and railroads, and taking care of the ammunition which was coming in on us so fast. In July I was sent' through an ammunition school where we were given a course preparatory for handling and supervising all the various kinds of shell, ponders, fuzees, pyrotechnics, etc., on ad- vance ammunition dumps at the front. In August I was sent to Dongermain, in the Lorraine sector, an advanced army dump to which we had shipped ammunition from intermediate depot No. 4. We called these dumps railheads. The munitions had been trans- ported thus far by broad-gauge railroad, and from here the smaller, narrow gauge railroad hauled the supply as far toward the front as it was possible for them to go, to what were called corps or division dumps. I was at this place only two days when I was transferred to duty with the First Army ammunition and artillery park on the other side of Toul near the front. I was on corps and division dumps in this sector until after the St. Mihiel drive of September 12th, when the First Army left for the front and the Second Army was formed, in which I was attached to the munitions staff of the artillery of the Fourth Army Corps. Our batteries had left a great amount of ammunition at gun em- placements on the 1 2th, as they had been equipped for three days fir- ing and only fired from i o'clock in the morning until a few hours later when the advance had to be made in such haste that this supply HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 493 of ammunition was left behind at the old gun positions and only a small portion could be moved ahead at that time. Soon after the drive I was put in charge of some trucks, salvaging good material, moving it ahead to advance dumps to be reissued. This work was continued until in October when preparations were made for the drive on M'etz. Then I was put in charge of a dump near Thiau- court, about twenty-five kilos from Metz. The corps and division dumps were stationed around the heavy artillery, and from here the various divisions drew their supplies of ammunition by trucks and horse drawn caissons to their various battery and infantry positions. After the armistice was signed, and on the 15th of November, I started with the Fourth Corps troops toward Germany, where w^e were stationed at Mayen, about twenty-five kilometers from Coblenz, where we established our corps dump. In January, 191 9, I was sent by the chief ordnance officer to the Third Army at Coblenz to recheck German ammunition and grenade depots in the vicinity of Coblenz and across the Rhine near Neuvied. In February I helped supervise the clearing out of ammunition at the fort across the Mo- selle from Coblenz. This fort was called "Testa France." From out of these underground dungeons w^e took millions of rounds of British and French small arms ammunition which, during the pre- ceding four years, the Germans had captured, then policed off the fields and stored in this place. We also took out of this arsenal a cjuantity of German material which we shipped toward the United States. On March 8th I received orders from General Headquarters to leave at once for replacement camp in France, for transportation home and immediate discharge, which was good news. I will say in conclu- sion that being on an advanced ammunition dump under the enemy's shell fire is not the most pleasant experience — and occasionally they located and blew up our dumps. What Won the: September Drive This victory over the Germans was the result of three elements: (i) the dogged steadfastness of the British and the heroism of the French soldiers and civilians; (2) the brilliant strategy of General Foch, and the unity of command which made this effective; (3) the material and moral encouragement of the American forces, of whom nearly 1,500,000 were in France before the end of August. Austrians Battee Southerners During the same summer Austria initiated an offensive against the Italians along the Piave River, probably with the design of drawing 494 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Allied forces away from the western front. The Italians proved an adequate force, which repulsed the Austrians with heavy losses. The Balkans and Near East The Balkan front was also a scene of great military activity. A mixed army of Serbians, Greeks, Italians, British, and French under the command of General D'Esperay, who held headquarters in Sa- lonica, held the line from the Adriatic Sea to the ^gean. They were opposed by an army of Bulgarians, Austrians, and Germans. The defeat of the Germans in the west was a substantial encourage- ment to the Allied forces in this territory, and the enemy whom they faced was weakened by the withdrawl of troops' to be used on the western front. Under these conditions Allied forces began an offen- sive, making advance after advance, capturing many thousands of prisoners and recovering many miles of Albanian and Serbian terri- tory. Bulgaria appealed for an armistice, accepted the terms de- manded, and withdrew from the war. This action on their part cut off the lines of communication between the Central Powers and Tur- key and effectively curbed Germany's domination in the Balkans. The moral effect in Germany, Austria, and Turkey was the greatest result of this campaign. To the general public of these countries it brought significance to the indications that it was only a question of time until the Central Powers must surrender. Developments were opening in Palestine and Syria, meanwhile. The British army of General Allenby, who captured Jerusalem in the latter part of 191 7, was reenforced by Arab forces. An aggressive joint campaign resulted in the capture of 50,000 Turkish soldiers and hundreds of guns. The cities of Damascus and Aleppo, both important, were taken by GeneralAUenby's men in October. This was followed by a British offensive in Mesopotamia. Turkey now appealed for an armistice and on October 31st agreed to terms which meant complete surrender. Dissolution in Austro-Hungary ; the establishment of independent governments by the Czechs, the Hungarians, and the Jugo-Slavs through revolutions in the several territories involved; the victory of the Italians at the second battle of the Piave, all contribu- ted to discouragement to the cause of the Central Powers. The second battle of the Piave was opened October 24th, with the Allied forces under the command of General Diaz. They crossed the HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 495 river and broke up the Austrian lines. Through the capture of im- mense numbers of men and guns the Itahans performed a mihtary feat that accorded them vengeance for the defeat of the year before. Austria agreed to an armistice November 4th. On Italian Batti^e Front Written by Carl C. Hansen of Company C, Three Hundred Thirty- second Regiment, Eighty-third Division. Our regiment was the only fighting unit of soldiers sent to Italy. We were sent to France in the first place, but were transferred to Italy after being in France five weeks. Our regiment went to the front lines on the 28th day of October, 191 8, and remained there until the armistice was signed. In the course of that time we advanced from Treviso, Italy, to Carmon, Austria. The greatest suffering of our army life was experienced dm'ing this time, when we were practically without food, found it necessary to sleep out of doors, often when it was raining or when nights were so cold as to be ex- ceedingly uncomfortable. I often wonder now how we ever got back to the good old U. S. A. It took us five days to start the Austrians back from the Piave River, and when we reached the Taglimento River the Austrians made their last stand. There they opened fire on us with twenty- four machine guns, which made it decidedly uncomfortable just then. My pal was killed right beside me, while I didn't get a mark of any kind. I was born lucky, that's all. In that battle, called the bat- tle of Vittorio Veneto, our regiment won great fame with the Italian people. We captured over 13,000 prisoners, who were as glad as we were that it was over. They just refused to fight. They were a hard- looking bunch of men, I must say. Compel German Retreat With the Germans driven back to their former lines in France, the fear of the Allies was that the military operations would return to the difficult form of trench warfare. However, they made their of- fensive so strong that the Germans, even though strongly entrenched in some cases to a depth of ten miles, could not hold out against the terrific drive of Americans and Allies. Attacks were launched at both ends and in the center. By October 20th, British and Belgian troops, fighting in the north, recovered to the Allies all of the Bel- gian coast, together with submarine bases. The British took the 496 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY city of Lens, where are located valuable coal mines, as well as the city of Lille. Troops fighting- at central points forced their way to and took pos- session of Cambrai, St. Quentin, and Laon. BELIvICOURT Harry W. Larson of Company K, One Hundred Twenty-ninth In- fantry, Thirtieth Division, writes of the attack at Bellicourt, on the Hindenburg line, which took place September 29th-30th, 1918. At II o'clock of the night of September 23d, our regiment was loaded into big army trucks and rushed south about seventy miles. We arrived at Tincourt about 6 o'clock in the morning. We were then at the Somme front, in the St. Quentin sector. We marched about six miles to a big forest, where we stayed under^ cover all day. On the night of the 27th, having kept moving, we were within about 3,000 yards of the trenches. We rested in dugouts that night and all the next day. Then we found that we were to take part in a big bat- tle. The Australians had, about six days before, driven the enemy back over this same ground, and many dead Germans were piled up along the roads and elsewhere. The enemy was shelling the dug- outs where we were covered, and were putting over gas. Our task was to aid in breaking the famous Hindenburg line. Our division and the Twenty-seventh, being shock troops, were put in for the sac- rifice. On the 29th of September, at 5:50 in the morning, we were to make the attack. This was a Sunday morning. We rested all day Saturday, until late in the afternoon. Then we had additional am- munition issued, also hand grenades, flares and rockets for signal- ing, and smoke bombs. I was a Lewis gunner ; there were eight au- tomatic machine guns in the company. In the eight squads there were that number of gunners, and leaders, the rest carrying ammu- nition. Sunday morning about 2 o'clock our company was lined up, ready to go to the front and get on the tape line, which the engineers had put out early in the evening. It had been raining nearly all night, and there was considerable fog. Finally we started for the front line. Our company was the last; the Twenty-seventh Division was on the extreme left, and an Australian division on our right. We had Australian artillery to cover our two divisions. This armament consisted of 1,175 cannon of all calibers. Ours and the Twenty- seventh Divisions covered a front of fifteen miles. Each division was expected to take 4,000 square yards in depth, with Bellicourt as HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 497 our objective. There were five big trenches to break through, each with its barbed wire entanglements, and we were slated to reach our objective in six hours. The Hindenburg line had before been attacked five times by the British, and once by the Australians, and had withstood all attempts to break through. Our orders were that it must be taken, if at a cost of all our men. We lay flat on the ground at the tape, waiting the "zero hour." The men were placed five paces apart, except that the Lewis gunners and leaders were grouped together. We had not been in position more than a few seconds when the artillery opened fire, and our barrage was on. For a moment it seemed that the earth itself had exploded. All one could see was fire, spitting and flaming into the fog, shells bursting everywhere, dirt and debris flying, and great clouds of smoke all about us. To appearance the fog made matters worse, but in reality this was our salvation. For the density of the fog made it impossible for the enemy to perceive our move- ments. We got on the tape without being seen. The Germans had been throwing over a few gas shells previous to our attack; sneezing gas, mostly. When our barrage started we received orders to rise. Our first wave was ordered forward, and when they had gone about 100 feet the second wave followed. We were to keep on going until the object- ive was reached. Our artillery kept up a "creeping barrage," lift- ing and advancing about as fast as a man could walk. Some of the boys were too anxious, moved too fast, and were killed by our own barrage. This was to be kept up for the entire six hours of our in- tended progress, dropping shells about every ten feet. A smoke screen was also put up, so dense that one could not see the man ahead. We had to hold to each other's coats that we might keep to- gether. When the second wave had gone forward its hundred feet, we of the third and last wave moved ahead. I was with this, the "mopping up" battalion. Our orders were to clean up all the trench- es and dugouts. Meanwhile the first and second waves were to keep up with the barrage, and were only to check what resistance the Ger- mans might put up. The intensity of the artillery fire was such that the enemy could not come out into the open to fight the advancing waves. Thus until the barrage had lifted and passed beyond their trenches the Boches could not do much against the first two waves of our troops. While our third wave was advancing the Germans put over a barrage on us. But they were shooting high, and so far we were not in any great danger, as the enemy purpose was to pre- vent reenforcements from coming up. We had an Australian divis- ion in the rear to back us up. And as we reached our objective they were to move forward. 498 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY When the third wave had nearly reached the enemy's first line trenches the German machine gunners had crawled out of their pill- boxes and dugouts, and opened a heavy fire upon us. The smoke had by that time thinned materially. When within about 300 yards of the German first line trenches our corporal ordered our squad into a shell hole, where we could prepare for action. Our effort was to lo- cate the enemy's machine guns. This was very difficult, so cleverly were they camouflaged and concealed. In the meantime our mount- ed machine gun company, in our front trenches, was pouring over a barrage of machine gun bullets, shooting at such high elevation that we were below their line of fire, while there was a veritable rain of lead in the German trenches. There was a constant humming over our heads as we lay in the shell hole. Nor were the aeroplanes idle. Wherever one looked the planes were to be seen, following us at a certain distance. They could not come close because of the shell fire; nor could they stay back too far for fear of getting in the path of our own artillery fire. By some error we became separated from the Twenty-seventh Division, and when we reached the enemy first line trenches we had thus left a large gap or wedge between the two. This was caused by density of fog. Officers and men were separated from their companies. In conse- quence of thus losing touch on the left, the machine guns and snipers were able to attack us from the rear. Bullets were coming at us from all directions. There was but one thing to do — to lie low in the shell holes until the artillery slackened somewhat. The Germans threw over some gas, but few of these shells fell in our vicinity. Two of our squads were in the gap. Our captain was in the same shell hole with myself and others. Tiring of being made the target of the enemy machine guns, he ordered us to move forward, in an en- deavor to locate and clean out the nest. Meanwhile the rest of the company was advancing, mopping up the trenches and marching out prisoners in groups. The Germans were coming out of their shelters crying, "Kamerad." But the machine guns were still playing upon us. I had noticed a spot where the barbed-wire entanglements seemed thicker, and believed the guns were there. So we started in that direction, crawling, from one hole to another. We managed to make about two rods distance and fire our Lewis guns at this point to make them keep their heads down while our other squad would take advantage of our fire; meanwhile progressing until we were within 100 feet of them, with the Australian division advancing in combat groups. The six hours in which we were expected to reach our ob- jective had expired, but we were not there because of the heavy re- sistance encountered. Under protection of our first and second HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 499 waves which were about a mile ahead of us we tried to take this ma- chine gun nest. Our two squads, assisted by two AustraHan squads, flanked, crept up closer, and finally, while standing up trying to get the range between I saw two German machine gunners stand up in plain view. My "buddie" could not see them as plainly as I because of obstructions of barbed -wire and old trunks of trees. ' I was just ready to duck when a bullet hitting my helmet sent it to the ground like a top. For a minute I could not realize what had happened. The bullet went through my helmet, right over my left ear, cutting ofi^ some of my curly hair and leaving a black streak over my ear, though it did not hurt me whatever. I fixed up the helmet by tying the band together so I could keep it on my head. Just then the Germans began throwing hand grenades at the shell hole we were in. About twenty-five grenades missed us a rod, but a lad lying in a shell hole ahead of us did not fare so well. He soon came crawling back to where we were and begged me to take his leg- ging off and bandage his leg above the wound, but I advised him to make for the rear. During this time one aeroplane which came to our aid located the machine gun post. Assisted by the aeroplane charge on the enemy we began to make it interesting for them by the use of hand grenades. Just as I started forward again to get a little closer to their position I was hit again by a sniper, right above the hip on the right side. Here again I was spared from injury by a small bag hanging on that side which contained extra parts for our machine gun. The enemy's bullet lodged in these parts. We all started throwing hand grenades then; we could do nothing with our machine guns then because the enemy were concealed in their pits. Just as I sighted several German helmets rise into the air the Austra- lian squad threw a smoke bomb and the game was up. Fourteen Germans came crawling over the parapet with hands up, calling for mercy and yelling "Kamerad." Some of them had watches and rings in their hands ; they were Prussian Guards, well dressed, large, husky fellows — one a sergeant-major, and thirteen privates. One Australian took the sergeant-major, while one American took charge of all the privates and marched them back to our division headquar- ters. By this time our boys were marching prisoners back to battal- ion headquarters by the hundreds. During our little skirmish, we lost two men — both killed outright — and I had two narrow escapes myself. Going forward to join our company we reached the enemy's third-line trench to find forty more Americans who had become sep- arated from their companies. We were puzzled to know what to do, because the enemy was still kicking up a lively fire; it seemed like they had machine gun nests all over, when we would get one silenced 500 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY others would pop up. At 3 o'clock in the afternoon we took time to eat while awaiting orders which directed us to advance to the German's last-line trench and stand guard there until further orders were received. We mounted our guns and prepared for a counter- attack. Australians were then coming up in large numbers. Our boys in the front line were having a hard time at Bellicourt, our ob- jective, where they were meeting a stifif resistance. Aeroplanes fly- ing over our lines dropped signals to get together as the Australians were to make an attack in the morning, so they were advised not to advance any further or our barrage would get them. When it be- gan to rain about 10 o'clock in the evening I was standing guard in the trench and was soaked to the skin. About 11 o'clock the Aus- tralians brought us somehing to eat from their rations, although we had rations of our own for forty-eight hours, but no water. It was surely a miserable night. As day started to break an Australian officer gave orders to prepare for action. The Germans were mak- ing a counter-attack on our front line, which was checked; at 6 o'clock they made another attack but were checked again and at 8:30 made another attack, more severe than either of the former efforts. They put a barrage of shell fire on the trenches we were holding, which we had taken from them the day before. Because they knew the range on these trenches they were able to drop their shells very close, destroying the trenches here and there. Fears that they had broken through our front-line trenches were dispelled by orders to hold and to keep every man by his gun and ready for action. But we were surely tired. Having been fighting all the day before, and with no sleep, it was beginning to tell on us. At 9 o'clock my "buddie" was killed right by his gun, by a big shell which exploded about three rods ahead of him, a piece of shrapnel hitting him in the heart. I was coming from a dugout with some ammunition, when I saw him reel, fall on his back, and heard him exclaim, "Harry, I'm hit." By the time I reached his side he was dead. That broke my heart — there was my pal dead — we had been the best of friends since we came into the army. He was a splendid lad, always jolly and witty. Just as I took his pocket piece an Australian officer came along to take his name and identification number, and with him came a guide to take us to our company. Though the counter-attack had been stopped for a third time we had lost many men in our trench, including Americans and Australians. Though we were ready to return to our company at i o'clock shells were still dropping around us and it was deemed best to remain in the trenches, where we could clean up our guns and try to get a little rest. These trenches would hold fifty to a hundred men, were thirty-five to forty feet deep, well built, HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 501 made of concrete, timbers, and sheet iron ; some even furnished with chairs, table and hanging- lamps which the Germans had taken from French homes as they advanced. Only four of our squad were left; the other four were either killed or lost. Right in front of one of these dugouts I was holding my machine gun and sat down to ask one of the boys what outfit he was from. But he did not answer. Just then a high explosive shell flew past my head and struck directly in front of the dugout. I could not realize what had happened. I was thrown down on my back, my whole body stinging with pain; blood was running down my face, and from my arm ; a large piece of shrapnel was burning my left thigh, paining my knee and foot. My arm felt as if it was paralyzed, as though it was severed. I threw from me the piece of shrapnel that was burning my thigh. My pal's watch, with its crystal broken, had saved me from an ugly wound in another spot. Men, coming out of the dugout, yelling and screaming with pain, with blood running down their faces, were surely a hor- rible sight. I was lying helpless when Red Cross stretcher-bearers came to my aid. They gave me first-aid dressings, meanwhile try- ing to cheer me up. These men played their part well in this war. At the first aid station in the trench I had to wait about fifteen min- utes for attention, and when the doctor came he gave me a shot of antitoxin to prevent lockjaw. After my wounds were dressed and I had been examined carefully I was carried back two miles to ambu- lances which took me to the casualty clearing station. It was full of wounded and more were coming in rapidly. I reached there at 4:30 in the afternoon, and at 7 was stripped of all my wet and muddy clothing, taken to the operating room, put under an anesthetic, and after being given attention was taken to a ward full of wounded sol- diers and wounded German prisoners. Though my arm was in a splint I did not have any pain to speak of the next morning, October 1st. All that day and night, indeed until 4 p.m. of October 2d, we rode on a splendid hospital train to Trouville, France. There the Red Cross was right on the job looking out for us wounded lads, serv- ing hot cofifee and cakes, smokes and chocolates. Ambulances driv- en by Red Cross girls took us to a British hospital, where we were given attendance by a British doctor who was a major. An X-ray of my arm disclosed a severe compound fracture. On the morning of the 6th when I woke up I had blood poisoning in my arm; it was black and blue. I was almost certain then I would lose it. When I was hit in the trenches it seemed that something told me I would lose that arm; yet I was certain at the time that I was not going to die. When the nurse came to dress my arm, and she shook her head in a disconsolate way, I knew then that I had guessed right. The 502 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY major then came ; he sat down upon the bed and broke the news to me. He said amputation was necessary at once to save my Hf e ; that even if the arm could be saved it would be useless to me as the elbow was badly fractured, and all the nerves were severed, and the arm was almost severed. It was discouraging, but life is sweet at the last mo- ment. The operation was performed that afternoon. Throughout my period of convalescence I received faithful attention, both from the doctor and the nurses. The Red Cross and Salvation Army visi- ted me every day, leaving sweets or fruit or something tempting to eat. After remaining here until the 20th of October I was transfer- red to England. Taken Prisoner Beyond the Hindenburg Line Written by Lars Hansen of Company H, One Hundred Nineteenth Infantry, Thirtieth Division. On the morning of September 29th we went over the top at 5:50 o'clock in the attack on the Hindenburg line, in what is known as the Somme offensive; we of Company H were in the first wave. When we started going toward the German line it was. so dark on account of the fog that we could hardly see anything. As we got very near to the first German trench we were met by German machine gun fire and found it necessary to get down into shell holes. In the course of ten minutes we managed to kill most of the Germans in the trench by our machine guns and hand grenades. When we got into the trench we found but two left alive, whom we made prisoners. Pass- ing over this trench and to the next, which was a very deep trench, the one known as the Hindenburg line, we found a great many German dead, killed by our barrage, and our men took a num- ber of prisoners from dugouts. We crossed this main trench and continued forward until we neared the next German trench. Here we were held for a short while on account of terrific German artil- lery and machine gun fire near what was the German railhead and a point which the enemy disliked to have us gain. As we approach- ed two Australian tanks we found one ready to go back and the other forward. The one that was ready for the advance went forward with our outfit for nearly half an hour, when it was hit by a German shell. One man came out of the tank. I did not find out what might have happened to anyone else who might have been in it. When we reached the third trench up on a hill and found no Ger- mans there we stopped for about a half hour to rest. Then, under orders of our lieutenant, we went forward to capture what he thought was a machine gun nest about a half a mile ahead of us. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 503 There were about thirty of us, some from other outfits, the confu- sion having occurred because the smoke and fog had been so dense that it was impossible for men to stay together in their own outfits. As we neared our objective we discovered that it was a German trench filled with machine guns. Whereupon we dropped into shell holes. A comrade and myself were together in one about a hundred yards in front of the German trench. And it was a very small shell hole, hardly large enough for two. Our packs showed above the surface and the sniping enemy kept shooting at them. One got too far down and hit me in the shoulder. About five minutes later a piece of shrapnel from a shell which lit close got me in the hip. Our small crowd was at too close range to venture out, and too far from our own bunch to get help. With all our ammunition used up we lay there for about two hours — then a dozen German soldiers came out and ordered nine of us, five of whom were wounded, out of the shell hole and into their trench. They took us back of their lines, march- ing us all afternoon and half of the night, and put us in a cellar so full of water that we could not lie down. At 10 o'clock the next morning they took me to a hospital where they washed my wounds with warm water and put on paper bandages. I was permitted to leave the hospital at 2 o'clock ; then they put us in a wagon and drove until evening, when we were put in another hospital for two days. Here we were provided with fairly good meals. Then we were put on a train and traveled for three days. The only meals we had were each evening when the train was stopped and we were given vegetable stew and a small piece of bread. Meanwhile our wounds were not dressed. We finally reached the German prison camps where were all kinds of prisoners, though it was our fortune to be the first Americans. We were taken to the barracks and the British prisoners dressed our wounds. Our daily rations were usually tur- nips three times a day, cofifee made of barley once a day, and a little black bread. We were thankful to receive a little food from the Brit- ish Help Committee, and after a month we received a little package from the American Red Cross each week^ and after that we did not receive a bit of the German stuff. These Red Cross packages con- sisted of about fifteen cans of meats, fish and vegetables, with thir- teen pieces of hardtack. We also were provided with army clothing forwarded through the American Red Cross. Our Red Cross pack- ages contained twice as much as those furnished the other prisoners by their home countries. We learned about 5 p.m. on the nth of November that the armis- tice was signed. You may be sure there was rejoicing among the bunch of us. Thousands of prisoners were here, some of whom had been captured after the opening of the war. The Germans started 504 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY moving us to France soon after the armistice was signed, and it was about a week afterwards that they took me to Metz by train. America's Greatest Battee Frederick Palmer in Collier's Weekly, tells the following story of the Meuse-Argonne struggle: It is the Argonne battle which will be oftenest on the lips of the re- turned soldiers of our combat divisions. There is not a township in the United States which did not have a son in the battle; in all, first and last, there were 650,000 Americans engaged. Every state was represented by some home division, or a part of some division, whose gallantry will be a heroic tradition in the state's annals. Perhaps in fifty, perhaps in a hundred years some historian will write an adequate account of this battle which, it goes without say- ing, was the greatest we have ever fought; but some of us, who will not be able to tarry long enough on earth to wait for that masterpiece, may want such an account as I am writing in these three articles. Thus far we have read the vivid newspaper dispatches, such brilliant descriptive articles as Mr. Ruhl's, and narratives of the exploits of individuals, platoons, and battalions which could be gathered in the course of action. All the visible part of the battle was familiar to me from personal observation at the same time that I was in touch with the different headquarters where our forces were directed, but all that any one pair of eyes might see of the battle was no more than a fly on a chariot wheel might see of Armageddon. Later I read the divisional reports written after the battle was over. I went over all the fields, map in hand, and studied and thought over the Argonne battle, and I write at a time when there is no need of secrecy except as it affects inter- Allied relations at the Peace Conference, and when I am in possess- ion of certain information which was not hitherto accessible. The more I studied the Argonne the mightier it grew in its impor- tance in ending the war, in the complexity of its tactics, in the sub- lime human endurance and will exhibited, and thus it will grow as history brings it into perspective. It was an all- American battle; the battle that tested our people's character all the way from the gassed woods and bullet-swept ravines to the homes of the United States where our sons are bred. If we had not won the Argonne battle in the fall of '18 we should have won it in the spring or summer of '19, for this battle was to go on until we did win a decision. Such was the part set for the Ameri- can army, in keeping with the plan which was made soon after Gen- - HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 505 eral Pershing's arrival in France, that the American zone should be on the right of the long line from Switzerland to the North Sea. There were to be three great Allied armies in France: The Brit- ish on the left, with the channel ports at their back; the French in the center, with the heart of their France at their back and the Americans on the right. When the American army was ready the three armies were to strike and keep on striking — the vigorous young American army, with its reserves of man and resources, to lead in the final continued offensive on the right flank against Metz and toward the Rhine. The time of the execution was a matter of judg- ment, and the method one of tactics, but the plan which won the war was never changed in its broad lines from its conception when the United States had not as yet a full division in France. As Grant stuck to his idea of "hammering it out on this line," so General Pershing stuck to his through trials and irritations which would have broken the spirit and health of average leaders, and rent their nerves to tatters. He is the kind of general who makes up his mind where he is going, and then goes. He may have to tack to weather storms, or get a better wind, but never takes his eyes ofif the compass. The first of the offensives in the plan, as already decided in July, 191 7, was to be an operation against the Saint-Mihiel salient, which was to cover Metz. We were diverted temporarily from its consid- eration by the German offensives of 19 18, which scattered our forces to assist in the defense of Paris and then to assist in the reduction of the Marne salient. While some of our divisions were still engaged in that salient we began preparations for Saint-Mihiel. Our attack there was to conclude our summer campaign. With its experience as a guide, while our output of guns, machine guns, tanks, airplanes, and all supplies at home were beginning to arrive in quantity, we were to spend the winter training and forming our army for the spring offensive. French guns and aviation and six French divis- ions were to assist us at Saint-Mihiel. The original objective was a drive through to Gorze, Mars-la-Tour, and Etain, and possibly to Metz itself. A celebrated British general had said that our new army would go to massacre against the strong positions of Saint-Mihiel. Other ex- perts had made equally dire prophecies. As a new army against fortifications which had been for four years unbroken we expected a severe trial. A few days before we attacked at Saint-Mihiel Marshal Foch and General Pershing had a conference which changed our plans. The Allied counter-offensive now had been developing rapidly. The suc- cess of the Somme offensive, begun on August 8, had thrilled us all 5o6 HONOR ROLIv OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY with high expectations. The Germans were being pressed back from their positions in Flanders and northern France. Information indicated that possibly Ludendorff was making a rear-guard action with the intention of falling back on the line of the Meiise. If the Ger- mans were going, the thing was to press our advantage. ]?ROM THi: MKUSE TO THK ARGONNE; I can imagine a congressional committee, or any board of academic military experts which heard the result of the decision of General Pershing's conference with Marshal Foch, telling General Pershing that he must not consent to any such plan, and exclaiming: "This is murder. We will not have Marshal Foch use our army as cannon fodder." Thus far the old front line had not been broken in the Allied counter-offensive at any point from east of Rheims to the sea. We were about to break this section for the first time at Saint-Mihiel. Marshal Foch now proposed to extend his operation in an audacious bid for immediate victory. When we were in the very fever of preparing for the Saint-Mihiel operation, uncertain as to the result and the extent of casualties that it would entail, we were suddenly set to work preparing to fight in the fall of 191 8, in the oft'ensive which we had planned for 191 9 and for which we expected to prepare on the basis of our army's first experience with time enough to organize all the material due to reach us in the next four months. We were to throw all the strength we could muster in one fell blow against the old front line from the Meuse River to the Argonne. If that attack did not succeed, General Pershing might, according to the precedents of military history, as surely expect to be relieved of his command as Falkenhayn was after Verdun. He would have had the glory of a Pickett who sent, not a division, but more than half a million men in an effort to break a bat- tle line, or the position of Grant if Grant's Appomatox campaign had failed. The Army of the Potomac had been completely ready when it struck. It had more guns than it could use. It was on its own soil, with ample reserves. We were on foreign soil, lacking guns and material of all kinds, and dependent upon ocean transport. Our troops were to be ready for this new attack on the morning of September 25, as a part of the plan which included attack in Flanders by the British, French, and Belgians, and by the British against the Hindenburg line, the hope being that the numerous thrusts over such a long front would so disorganize the German army and exhaust its reserves that it would not be able to maintain its organization. The logistics of the preparations for the extension of the offensive to the HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 507 eastward were more difficult and stupendous than the AUies had ever undertaken. The Fourth French Army, which was to attack on our left at the same time that we attacked from the Meuse to the Ar- gonne, was already in line, and the necessary reserves for its advance were for the most part close at hand. THE DiFFlCUIvTiES OF MOBILIZATION We had thirteen days from Saint-Mihiel "D" day (the day of at- tack) to the Argonne "D" day in which to move all our troops and all they required, to bring up our heavy guns, prepare our ammuni- tion dumps and depots, assemble our transport, and school our divis- ions in their task. The British new army had taken five months in preparing for the Somme in 19 16. Its divisions which had engaged had all had battle experience. It built roads and light railways and communication and assembly trenches, and assembled enormous amounts of material. These elaborate arrangements gave the ene- my a warning which afforded him plenty of tim^ to prepare for the attack. They were now out of date ; we were in a new era. All the armies were now depending on swift preparation and sudden attack. As nothing is so easily identified by an airplane as a new road, if we began the construction of a single one in the Argonne it was serving notice of our concentration and our purpose. Therefore we had to use the roads that existed, and there were only two leading up to that sixteen-mile front for all our troops, our guns, ammunition, and other supplies. We had none of the older veteran divisions to spare for this first shock of the attack which was to break the fortified line. All were in the Saint-Mihiel operation, and when they came out they would be exhausted and require rest. So we summoned divisions from quiet trench sectors, from the training grounds in France — divisions hardly yet acclimatized and with their training yet incomplete. Two of these had never been under fire before. The Allied instructors had directed their training at home along the lines of stationary war- fare, without foreseeing the open tactics which were necessary if we were to maintain our progress once we had broken through the forti- fications. Some of our divisions were without artillery, while Allied divisions had had team play with their artillery units for four years, and nearly all our divisions were short in some sort of equipment. Artillery brigades received their guns one day and were off to the front the next. The 77th and 28th Divisions were the only available divisions that had fought serious engagements as divisions. They had just finished their grilling advance from the Vesle to the Aisne. They needed replacements; they were short of transportation and animals, 5o8 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY and they had to come by forced marches from the region of Chateau- Thierry at a time when they should have been in comfortable billets' recuperating. Short of transportation and animals! How familiar that phrase sounds in recollections ! Horses were coming from home, but they would be too late. Browning machine guns, heavy artillery, and tanks and tractors were coming from home, but they also would be too late, unless we did not win the Battle of the Meuse-Argonne. France had been drained of horses as well as of all other kinds of material for this driving offensive campaign which wore down men, horses, and all equipment. The variety of traffic that must be put on the limited roads toward the Argonne was due to insufficient rail- way lines as well as rolling stock. All the movement must be at night, without lights, to avoid detection. Units withdrawn from the Saint-Mihiel had to cross the streams of traffic running to the Saint- Mihiel front. Tractor-drawn heavy material, which could go only three or four or five miles an hour, limited the speed of motor trans- port that could go twenty in the solid columns which occupied the roads. Weary horses could not be forced through according to the usual schedule for transport. Other units were delayed by having horses killed in withdrawing them from the Saint-Mihiel front. TWENTY-FOUR HOURS LEEWAY These were some of the difficulties of mobilization, and without an understanding of the difficulties, which were hardly played up at the time for the encouragement of the Germans, any picture of the Ar- gonne battle may be impressionistically appealing, but it will be most unreal to ''those present." Nevertheless we achieved the miracle. On the night of the 24th we were in position. Our different corps headquarters had had only four days on the ground to familiarize themselves with the situation. Our divisional commands had even less. Corps commanders like to know their divisions through battle action, which was not the case this time and could not have been the case when some divisions had had no battle action. Division com- manders like to know their ground by thorough personal observa- tion. They want to know their commanders through the experience of battle rather than reputation gained on the drill grounds, and they want their artillery to be acquainted with their divisions. The artil- lery brigades of some divisions had been attached to the divisions for the first time in the last twenty-four hours. Artillery units which had horses used their horses to bring up the guns of units which had none. The French had been generous in assisting us in the enor- mous concentration of guns which was to destroy the barbed wire, and generous in assisting us with aviation which gave us more planes HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 509 for the attack of September 26 than had ever been assembled for any engagement. But our aviation, including the French, was new. The pilots of combat planes might force the combat, winning acclaim as aces, but the observation planes and the new units of artillery and infantry, however well grounded in theory, must lack the skill in tactical co-ordination, more important than the glory of aces, which is developed only by experience. Our men were exhausted by their hard marching and their ardu- ous labor, and our officers by the pressure of their responsibilities and their apprehension in trying to have all details ready. Marshal Foch postponed the attack from the 25th to the 26th, the understanding be- ing that the French Fourth Army was not yet ready. Possibly, however, the marshal had in mind that we would not be on time, and he would give us twenty-four hours' leeway to gather up any broken ends of preparation. These twenty-four hours were valuable to our engineers, who, occupied in the Saint-Mihiel operation, could not arrive until the day before the attack. They ought to have been in the Argonne as soon as our troops began to move, but we had not enough engineers to look after two great battles at once. Now, let us consider the ground where we were to operate, the line of defenses which we were to overcome, and the plan of the battle. From the plain of the Woevre before Metz stretches an area of com- manding hills and irregular ground to the Argonne Forest, which there drops into the rolling country of Champagne. This includes to the east the heights which we had to conquer in the Saint-Mihiel salient, and north and west of them the forts of Verdun. The Meuse River runs through the town of Saint-Mihiel, which is at the point of the Saint-Mihiel salient, and through the town of Verdun, and then northward through the Verdun battlefield, where the famous Dead Man's Hill, or Le Mort Homme, is across the river from the forts; and then the Meuse winds in a westerly direction through vSedan. The Argonne Forest, a dense wood situated upon an irregular ridge, is the bastion of this area of strong natural defenses, where the republican forces of France once stopped the Duke of Brunswick. In the German advance of 1914, the Crown Prince's armies swept over this region, mastering the forest and reached Saint-Mihiel, south of Verdun, as Joffre rallied his forces for his counter-stroke on the Marne. In their retreat from the Marne the Germans stood on the southern edge of the forest and established their line on chosen posi- tions, with the commanding heights in the rear as a support from the forest to the Meuse. In 1916 the Crown Prince's armies fought the battle of Verdun for the forts and heights protecting Verdun, whose possession with 5IO HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY that of the forest and the Hne to the Meuse, in the German hopes, would open the way to the plains of the Marne again and to a decision. defi;nsive advantages No sector in the old German lines was considered more redoubtable than the Meuse- Argonne sector. It was as essential to the integ- rity of the German front, from Flanders to Switzerland, as the hills of Verdun to the French; for it protected the Germans' lines of com- munication to all their armies in Belgium and northern France. Had a strategist from Mars been shown a map from the Rhine to the At- lantic, without contours and with the railway systems outlined, he would have instantly said that the Allied stroke should be on the Meuse-Argonne line toward the German railway communication through Mezieres; but, if the hills from the Argonne to the Woevre had been raised in relief on the map he would have changed his mind. Though the inviting point of attack was in the Meuse-Argonne, all the Allied offensives on the western front had been west of the Ar- gonne, on the plains of Champagne, in Artois, and on the Somme and in Flanders, where alone attacks against frontal positions seemed to have any chance of success. It may be mentioned, too, that there had never been any question that the German line from Switzerland to the sea could be broken with sufficient men and material to allow of great offensives at many points, including one in the Meuse-Ar- gonne, which should come at the decisive moment when the Germans could not spare enough reserves to prevent a break. For hard blows swiftly struck at alternating points, confusing the enemy in his po- sitions, had always been the obvious plan for victory. It was for Marshal Foch to apply the plan with his brilliant and daring tactics when he had the American army at his disposal. The German trench system in the Argonne was as elaborate as in any part of the old German line. It embodied all the experience of four years of stationary warfare. The Hindenburg Line was not stronger than the Meuse-Argonne, while, once the Hindenburg Line was broken, the country beyond was much more favorable for rapid advance in open warfare than back of the Meuse-Argonne line, where the commanding hills, many wooded or with wooded slopes, rose in a kind of whaleback to a depth of some ten miles. Any attack against a frontal line was always in danger of forming a salient which would be under pressure on either side — and the de- fensive force had the advantage of the recoil of its forces in defense upon its material and reserves and prepared roads while the offen- sive force was extending its communications and bringing up its ma- terial and men over ground accurately plotted for the enemy's HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 511 Thus the Allied offensives from Neuve Chapelle to Passchendaele, as well as the German offensives, had failed. In all the early offen- sives the elaborate preparations of roads and engineering material and the immense number of reserve labor troops, had been for the purpose of continuing the communications over the conquered area. Our engineers, having arrived thirty-six hours before the attack, were very short of material. This was not their fault, or anybody's fault; it was merely the fault of a desire to win the war in the fall of 1918. A NATIONAI, ARMY AND NATIONAL GUARD AFFAIR Our right flank was on the Meuse, which would protect us from any infantr}^ advances across the river, but not from shell fire. There we had Bullard's Third Corps, with Bell's 33d Division of the Illinois National Guard on the bank, and Cronkhite's National Army "Blue Ridge" Division, and Hersey's 4th Division of regulars, adjoining, in order. On our left flank Liggett's First Corps, in touch with the French Fourth Army, which had elements of the 92d (colored) Division on its right, rested in the Argonne Forest. Alexander's 77th National Army Division faced the forest, whose eastern side breaks out in wooded escarpments overlooking the small river Aire, which winds among the hills. Muir's 28th National Guard or "Keystone Divis- ion," was to move up the west bank of the river, whose valley was literally a trough between commanding heights. Traub's 35th Division, Missouri and Kansas National Guard, was expected to conquer the westerji wall of the Aire. As any continued frontal advance in the forest was out of the question — the Fourth French Army was to exert supporting pressure to "scallop" by a fprward movement on the western side of the Argonne, and the 28th was to perform the same service on the eastern edge. In the center was Cameron's Fifth Corps with Kuhn's 79th Divis- ion from Camp Meade on the right; Johnston's 91st National Army from the Pacific Northwest, and Farnsworth's 38th National Guard from Ohio, in order from right to left. The Fifth Corps divisions were full and the troops were fresh. The 91st and 37th had served in cjuiet sectors, while the 79th had not even had that experience; but the Fifth Corps had less difficult ground on its immediate front than the two flanks. The order of arrangement of the divisions was not so much a matter of choice, but of necessity in arranging the "march tables" in order that all divisions might be up on time. Everything de- pended upon speed in all the preparations. Only one of these divisions, then, was regular, and the attack was a National Army and National Guard aft'air. Aside from the 28th 512 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY and 77th, the 33d had had some battle experience. The officers of the others knew Httle in practice of the technique of how to keep their men in formation through the barbed wire and across the sea of shell craters, and in face of bursts of machine-gun fire and sudden concen- trations of gas and other shell fire, and of the methods of overcoming machine-gun nests. One wished for the addition of one or two of the veteran divisions, such as the ist, 2d, 3d, or the 26th, or 42d, which had been through the hell which was the only schooling for real battle 'efficiency in the ghastly business of war. It had assisted the French in breaking the old line northwest of Soissons. BUZANCY AND THAT WHAIvEBACK One wished for the older hands all the more in view of the plan of attack, which required extremely difficult maneuvering. It was to be in the form of a bulging thrust from the center, and our ultimate objective may be best denoted on the map as the town of Buzancy. When we had Buzancy, the whaleback was ours. All its heights, its tricky slopes, its ravines and plots of forbidding woodlands, would be at our backs. We should look down on the sloping ground to- ward the Meuse from Stenay to Sedan, prepared to strike that four- track railway system, which was the lateral line of German communi- cations. The Fourth French Army was nearest to the pivot of the attack, and we were to make the great swing, Marshal Foch having called our reserves, of fresh man power to the supreme gamble. It was a wonderful and intoxicating strategic conception which one saw on the map, with the curves of corps and army lines which formed our ambitious objectives. 'We'll do it!" every one said. No one would allow the tongue to utter any other thought. An army must not go into action with any one spreading skepticism. What one was thinking in the back of his head was another matter. There had been other great concep- tions: Neuve Chapelle, Champagne, and Loos in 191 5, the Somme in 1916, and the Allied offensives of March, 191 7, and Arras and Passchendaele and Cambrai. In all the start had* been made with the same steel-tempered determination. A skeptic might think, too, that thus far the Allies in their counter-offensive had for the most part fought over the open ground which the Germans had taken in their offensives. At most points, indeed, at the time the Meuse- Argonne offensive was planned, we had only reached the line from Rheims to the sea, where the Germans had started their spring offen- sives, while the main portions of the Hindenburg Line were not yet taken and Rheims was as yet disengaged. The Germans still had forty ^ood battle divisions in reserve. Ludendorff might yield from HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 513 Rheims to Flanders, but he could not afford to yield Buzancy while he had a single reserve division left. Personally I foresaw another Somme for us, with the attrition of steady months of pounding at enormous costs, wearing down the enemy, as the Somme had in this war of attrition, which, in the broad sense, was won by attrition. Before we took Buzancy we must conquer the Argonne Forest and the gap of Gran Pre and much of the great forest of Bourgogne be- yond the Argonne, and on our right w^e must advance up the west bank of the Meuse, with sufficient support on the east bank to free its heights of masses of artillery which had a free sweep of the west bank. Literally, the approaches to the whaleback were commanded by a series of heights on both sides. Nature could not have done the Germans a much better service than the way she had fashioned the ground. MAINTAINING UNIFORMITY Did the enemy know of the attack? How far was he prepared to receive it? In order that no American prisoners should be taken, a thin line of French had occupied the frontal trenches to the last mo- ment as we massed. But a few days before the attack the Germans became restless and began raids for information. There was no cjuestion that they expected an offensive, but we know now that they did not realize its magnitude. It was not within Ludendorff's calculations, apparently, that this new American army of inexperi- enced divisions hurriedly rushed to France could master a mobiliza- tion requisite to a great thrust elsewhere so soon after Saint-Mihiel. The very audacity of our plan and its speed of execution formed one of the reasons for its success. I shall not describe the tremendous preliminary bombardment, or the suspense when the dawn broke, while the guns still thundered and the airplanes took wing and the machine guns thrummed in aerial combat. It was a spectacle revealing the mighty power America had summoned across the seas. Nor shall I dwell on how I chose to follow the 79th Camp Meade men in order to see that division which had never before been under fire against the machine-gun nests ; for along that sixteen-mile line all our men were advancing in the same fashion. Everyone has read such descriptions. And I stick to my account of the battle as a whole. No attack against old-line fortifications had been more completely successful. We had everywhere mastered them. Not a single strong point had caused the delay which had ruined so many oft'en- sive movements. It is a miracle how the new divisions had accom- plished their part; through barbed-wire which the artillery had often failed to cut, over the maze of trenches, and across the shell craters 514 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY of No Man's Land, whose edges, often joining, were fringed with weeds shppery in the morning mist. The men had to pick their way around these shell craters, bearing their full equipment, while the earth, spongy from the concussion of shell bursts, yielded under their feet. To maintain a uniform line over this wicked ground, in many places over a mile in depth, was in itself a triumph, even if there had been no resistance. Our men had not been drilled in vain in their training camps at home or in France. THE ADVANCE ON THE 26TH At the end of the first day we had advanced to a depth of five or six miles at some points. The colored troops on the 77th's left, in their inexperience, had been baffled by the intricacies of a compli- cated battle maneuver and were shortly relieved from their trying position. The 77th's had had hard fighting at points before they were out of the region of defenses in the forest's edge, but by night- fall they had gained all their objectives. The 28th had been able to do its part by taking the dominating Hill 263 on the flank of the forest, while the 35th had taken the neighboring hills 216 and 234 beyond the village of Very, in a four-mile advance. This was ex- excellent start in gaining the heights along the Aire, which were the crux of the problem for Liggett's corps. On the Meuse flank Bullard's corps had been equally fortunate. The 33d Division had lived up to the promise which it had given on the British front of becoming an efficient battle division. In an ad- vance, which exhibited both tactical skill and resourceful strategy, it had taken the Forges Wood, cleaned up the edge of the Jure Wood, and was opposite Consenvoye in the swinging movement toward the river, which was a part of a very clever maneuver. The 80th Division also gained all of its objectives promptly; but in the afternoon the German guns from across the Meuse and machine- gun fire from the Septsarges Wood and the En Dela Wood were cut- ting into its advance. The 4th Division, which had taken its objec- tive by twelve-forty, had to intrench against artillery fire, waiting on the Fifth Corps to advance. With minor exceptions only, it can be said that the First and Third Corps had accomplished their aims on the 26th. In the army plan the Fifth Corps had farther to go than the other corps in order to make the bulge which was required; and this was the one thing, of course, that the Germans meant that we should not accomplish as soon as the character of our attack was developed. The German staff could read maps quite as well as ours could, and its experts knew as well as ours which points were valuable for 'the Germans to hold and for us to gain. Owing to uncut wire the 91st HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 515 Division made slow progress; but the men from the Pacific North- west kept going all day with steady and admirable persistence, and night found them on the Very-Montfaucon ridge, with patrols pushed forward into Epinonville. The 37th was not only handicapped by uncut wire ; it had to pass through Malancourt Wood, where the prac- ticed cunning of the German machine gunners made the most of the cover of the thickets for their nests. When its advance was halted the 37th sent in more reserves and kept on driving. We expect physical vitality and initiative from men from Ohio, and the 37th Division showed both on this day. If the division could not gain all the distance set on the corps map for the 26th, this was not for want of courage. In front of the 79th Division the ruins of the village of Montfau- con stood out as its goal like those of the AcropoHs against the sky line. From every approach to Montfaucon its units were met by en- filading machine-gun fire which they could not locate. They had come three or four or five miles ; they had already done a mighty day's work ; their artillery could not keep up with their advance. In- fantry units were scattered. Commanders who had never operated before in battle became confused in maintaining the uniformity of the line under conditions which would have baffled the most capable of veterans. There was no want of will on anyone's part. Every weary man was ready to charge, if only told where and how. When I thought of the true story of the first Bull Run, where fresh troops were engaged, and I thought of what the 79th had done, and had the heart to do, I realized how far away from Civil War days we were, not only as an army but as a people, in the fact that we could bring into action for the first time a draft division capable of the advance that it made and of such stoicism under fire. The fact was that the Fifth Corps, although it advanced as far as the other corps, was not able to take its objective on the 26th. So much for our infantry on the first day, when we went further than any other day until November i. Now we turn to the problem of the paucity of roads, which I have already mentioned. In all history armies have been tied to their stomachs, and their stomachs have been tied to the roads. Signal wire cars, balloon trucks, the rolling- kitchens that are to serve soldiers hot meals at the end of the day, all the guns, tractor and horsedrawn, munition wagons and ambu- lances, must move up behind the infantry, or it is left hungry, with- out food, surgical care, and the support of other arms. It was realized from the time that we planned the attack that we should have trouble with our transport, as every other army had had in its offensive operations. In this as in all other arrange- ments everything was subject to the demands of haste. Our divis- 5i6 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY ional engineers, upon whom we had largely to depend, were as in- experienced as the other units of the divisions, for the engineers of our older divisions still had their hands full in the Saint-Mihiel salient or elsewhere. / SPEED AND THE ENGINEERS / Our divisions which had been in the reduction of the Marne salient had moved over roads which had been only slightly damaged in the six weeks that the Germans had occupied the salient line. Thus the connecting link of No Man's Land after an advance was easily re- paired. In the Argonne the roads had been ruptured by shells, leav- ing great craters for a mile or more back of the old French line, where they were cut by the deep trenches and support trenches. Beyond that was No Man's Land, where any road became an indistinguish- able part of the weedy landscape. On the other side of No Man's Land were the German trenches, and another space of a mile of the same land of shelled area as that behind the French line. Instantly our infantry was over the top our engineers began work. Either they had to bring up material, which helped block the road in the rear, or they had to find some on the spot. Where heavy guns or motor trucks broke through they piled in more stones, only to have them sink. If one vehicle was stalled, all behind it were stalled in that column of every kind of vehicle from divisional transport to heavy artillery. There was no room for anything but a dispatch rider on a motorcycle to pass. The column would be moving again, and all would seem to be going well for a few minutes, when another great truck would slow off into a rut, or artillery-men would put their shoulders to the wheels and the engineers would assist them with snatch ropes as they brought a gun out of difficulties. All day and all night the struggle of transport went on, a struggle in which Mother Earth took revenge on man for having made fair fields deso- late by four years of shell fire. Even in the Argonne a day was only twenty-four hours long, and a man could work only twenty-four hours a day. The rest of the time he must sleep. BITING IN, MIEE BY MIEE Nevertheless the 79th had its guns up the next day for its prepara- tory bombardment of Montfaucon which enabled it to take the town. On succeeding days we continued our attacks, sometimes short of ammunition because of the state of the roads, but with no break in our persistency. The 77th kept on biting into the Argonne, gather- ing in more machine guns that were hidden in the thickets, and on October i it made a bound of over a mile. The trough of the Aire HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 517 Valley was under increasing blasts of shell fire and gas. Will any- one with the 28th Division ever forget the Bald Oak Hill and the Taille I'Abbaye Hill, those redoubtable heights extending as escarp- ments from the forest into the river valley, which they attacked, and kept on attacking, while they repulsed German counter-attacks? The 35th Division had made substantial gains on the 28th, but later met the same kind of opposition as the 28th Division. It fought against wickedly strong and vital positions. Exermont ravine will be associated with its history as long as the Missouri flows past Kan- sas City. There it suffered from the inexperience of platoon comman- ders and non-commissioned officers, and all of the men bunching under shell fire as any but veterans will. Reports were circulated among the men that they were to be relieved, and some wrong orders were given by subordinate commanders, with the resultant confusion. The amazing thing was that it did not happen earlier. On September 27 the 91st Division had made a mile. On the 28th it made another mile, with resistance increasing. On the 29th it drove beyond the Cierges Wood, but had to intrench in the face of fire from Cierges. The 79th, now beyond Montfaucon, broke through the Beuge Wood, tried for the Ogons Wood in an attack in which all the sup- porting tanks were put out, and was obliged to re-form on a line of defense. In Bullard's corps the 4th Division, driving home its attacks with regular precision, had to fight for every yard of ground gained. The 80th, which had been temporarily taken out and relieved by a brigade of the 33d, returned to the fight with fresh vigor, and swung past Dannevoux toward the Meuse. All three of the divisions were un- der an increasingly wicked shell fire from the heights of the 17th German Corps sector across the Meuse. Rest and Reassurance By October i the first stage of the battle was over. The Germans had now connected up their line of defense in the Kreimhilde-Stel- lung Line, taking advantage of the high ground and the wooded slopes with masterly skill. Every American division was sending in reports of prisoners taken from fresh German divisions which had arrived. The German gunfire kept increasing in violence. We could not go on putting exhausted divisions against fresh German divisions; and our handicap in the want of rested and sufficiently trained divisions was evident. We must regroup our forces before making another vital attack, and thus, for the time being, we reduced our density on the front owing to the fatigue of our men, without, however, ceasing to hold the Si8 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY upper hand over the enemy by offensive tactics. The 79th and the 37th and the 35th Divisions were withdrawn. They had been given hard tasks ; they had suffered from the psychological effect upon them of the suspense before the action, and the strain during the action, particularly among the inexperienced officers, was bound to be great- er than in the older divisions. In some cases they had fought with too great density, and in other cases they had failed to put their re- serves in at the right moment. Our staff work had not always been perfect; no staff work is. Criticism is easy, but if the best possible use was to be made of the new divisions it was necessary that they have a real rest in the rear, where the gaps could be filled by replace- ments, and the results of their recent experience could be applied by a period of brief instruction. It was found again and again that when a brigade or a regiment had become tired it not only needed rest, but the reassurance that comes from a few days in billets and a general reorganization. HOI^DING ON TO THE BATTI.E; We had not committed the German to this battle, and had com- mitted ourselves to it. We did not mean to let go of him and he did not dare to let go of us. Even to hold him under the threat of breaking through was of immense moral value at this time when the British had broken the Hindenburg Line and the Fourth French Army, with varying success, was engaged beyond the Argonne Forest. On the western edge of the Argonne Forest the French were having the same experience as our First Corps on the eastern, with certainly no better results, veterans though they were. It was better, no doubt, that our new divisions should have been used for the initial attack, in which their freshness and their vigor in the charge might be exerted, and that the older divisions, as they became available after Saint-Mihiel, should be used for the more complicated work which was now required. The ist and 3d Divis- ions were already in army reserve, and the 32d, which had become veteran in its brilliant attacks from the Ourcq and which had just won greater renown by breaking through the old first-line trenches northwest of Soissons as a part of General Mangin's army, came in at a time when we were mastering the control of traffic and had our roads in condition to take the place of the 35th, 37th, and 79th, in the period of steady and bloody hammering that was now, in merci- less sacrifice and endurance, to break the spirit of the enemy. In Historic Surroundings "We soon were in a military atmosphere," writes Stanley B. Espe, referring to the arrival of American troops in France, and continues : HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 519 From Brest we were sent to Camp Shelby, Napoleon's old train- ing camp. This consisted of about five acres of ground covered with stone barracks, topped with slate shingles, and all showing the marks of age. The scafifolds used for execution in those days are still stand- ing, all surrounded by a wall of solid masonry ten feet high. At the town where Joan of Arc was born we exchanged our Spring- field rifles for the English Enfields, and there received gas masks. Arriving at Amiens, a large city and railroad center, we found ruins everywhere and the city deserted except for soldiers and war workers. Amiens Cathedral, still standing, was the target of long range guns. In the Verdun sector we located in French dugouts, caught cooties and trench rats while waiting for artillery forces numbering 2500 to get in place for the offensive which began at 5 a.m. September 26th in the Meuse-Argonne. This caught me at Dead Man's Hill and ended my military cares by sending me to the hospital. Prisonkr of War Herbert E. Fairchild, a private in Company L, One Hundred Thirty- first Infantry, Thirty-third Division, was for two months a prisoner of the Germans, and writes as follows: It was near Albert that we had our first experience in the battle line. On the Fourth of July our regiment, in conjunction with the Australians, was called upon to go over the top. This was the battle of Hammel Woods, with the town of Corbie as the objective. Our company was in the supporting line and they had a smaller share in the fight as the first line gained the objective, taking many prisoners. Following this battle we were in a twenty-days' drive near Brie on the right of Albert. Here some of the most stubborn fighting of the war occurred, as the Germans contested every foot of their re- treat. We were again called upon to go over the top in what was the first drive of the battle which started September 26th. Our company took the lead in this drive, which advanced the American forces about four miles, or to the river Meuse. This was in the face of the most stubborn machine-gun resistance. The Germans would continue fir- ing until the Americans were upon them, and then would shout "Kamerad." The boys were not always in the mood to accept this tame surrender when their comrades were lying dead around them and many of the gunners paid the extreme penalty. This regiment held the line of^he Meuse until the engineers could come up and pre- pare a crossing of the river, when the battle was resumed. A cross- ing of the river was effected on the evening of the 9th of October, and it was on the morning of the loth, after the company had 520 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY reached its objective, that I was captured. The company was cjuite far advanced and I was called upon to go back to battalion headquarters to see about the disposition of the wounded. It was while on this that I unexpectedly ran into a German stronghold that had moved in behind, after our rapid advance. After my capture I was taken to a prison camp near the province of Luxemburg, where I remained about a week, then I was removed to another prison camp at Mount Media. Here we remained for eleven days, and were again trans- ferred, this time to the American prison camp near Rastatt, located across the Rhine in the province of Baden. It was well located and the sanitary conditions were good. The food was also very good, as the American Red Cross saw to it that the boys received good, whole- some food and plenty of it. It was during the first eighteen days of my capture, in the two first mentioned camps, that I almost starved to death. One loaf of bread, about the size of our fifteen-cent loaf, was issued to seven men for the day. This bread was composed of a mixture of two-tenths sawdust, three-tenths potato flour, and the other five-tenths barley and wheat flour. In the morning we were given a very poor substitute for cof- fee, and at noon had a thick stew composed of turnips and cabbage, and though it was also supposed to contain some fat this was hard to locate. The boys would not eat it until starved to it by hunger, as it smelled and tasted rotten. However, there were a few Russians in camp and they seemed to thrive on it, for the boys would turn their soup ration over to them. For supper a thin replica of the dinner was issued. Outside of this starvation diet we were quite well treat- ed. It will be remembered it was at this time that the Germans were treating the Americans especially well, as they had the after-war settlement in view. . Everybody knows how scarce soap was in Germany at this time and the boys in the prison camps were especially well supplied with this precious article through the Red Cross. The Germans would go to almost any length to obtain it, paying as high as fifteen marks for a small cake. Our boys kept themselves in a small supply of spending money by being saving of their soap ration and selling it to the Germans. Before we reached a branch of the American Red Cross I was so nearly starved that my stomach would not retain clear water. After the signing of the Armistice the prisoners at Rastatt were released and given in charge of the Swiss Government for transpor- tation back to France. N. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 521 Barragk Pretty at a Distance Written by Arvid S. Johnson, a private of Company A, One Hun- dred Thirtieth Infantry, Thirty-third Division. The night of the 27th of September, 191 8, was the worst night I ever spent. During the day we hiked to Chateau Court, and in the evening to some reserve trenches. I rained all night and we had no shelter at all. On the morning of the 29th we relieved the Three Hundred Twentieth Regiment of the Eightieth Division. The Germans were putting over a barrage at the time, and the only thing that saved us was the dense shrubbery in the woods. We were under shell fire from three directions and for a week we were under continuous shell fire until the Fourth Division on our left and the French on our right went over the top and drove the Germans back. After that it was not quite so bad, but I surely had given up hopes of ever seeing the States again. We called the place 'Whizz Bang Hill," though the correct name is Bonnaveaux Woods. Many times the shells struck so closely as to throw dirt and rocks all over me, but I was fortunate enough that I was never struck with any pieces of the shells. We held the line here until October iSth. On the morning of the 17th we relieved the One Hundred Twenty- ninth Infantry of our own division at Consonvoye. Here I inhaled some of the German gas, but not enough to hurt me any. We were relieved by the Frenchmen on the night of the 20th, and hiked twenty- five miles to some French barracks, where we had our first real bath and rest for a month. The night of the 26th we went to the relief of the Three Hundred Fifteenth Infantry. On the 7th of November we went over the top and raided Chateau-de-Aulnois, captured forty prisoners, and had the good fortune to get back to the trenches with very few casualties. The raid was a success. We took the Germans by surprise. On the morning of the 9th of November, the Germans attacked us, but we drove them back with heavy losses. That same day we sent out a daylight patrol of forty-seven men who ran into five battalions of Germans. Though we fought them for a while, the odds were too strong and we retired to our trenches with only a few casualties. On the morning of the nth we had orders to go over the top and to con- tinue for about fifteen miles. We were laying out in No Man's Land waiting for the barrage when orders came to return, and not to fire another shot until further orders. The artillery on both sides kept on firing until the last minute, when on the nth, we received the glori- ous news that the war was over. In the celebration that night the sky was ablaze with all kinds of lights. 522 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Beginning the 7th of December we hiked 135 miles through the pro- vince of Luxemburg and into the German town of Cherbilhg. Thirty-third Division Won War, Says Chief On the arrival of the transport Aquitania in New York, Lieutenant Colonel Frederick Huidekoper was interviewed and his remarks are given in a New York dispatch under date of March 31, 1919. Col- nel Huidekoper was adjutant general of the "Prairie" boys, who re- turned on the Aquitania. He said: Soldiers of the Thirty-third Division are the equal of any troops in the United States Army. They have made the best record of any National Guard outfit in France. The British were amazed at the vigor, dash, and initiative shown by the Guardsmen. They'd never seen anything like it, as we were the first Americans to operate with them on the Somme. I think it can safely be said that the Thirty-third Division started the drive that led to Haig's big offensive and the smashing of the Hindenburg line. In the Argonne the Thirty-third fought with wonderful skill. In- dividual cases of valor are too numerous for mention. I think the record of the One Hundred and Thirty-second Infantry in winning seven out of forty-one congressional medals awarded to the entire A. E. F., speaks louder than anything else. Papers taken by our intelligence officers from captured and slain German officers showed that they held the Thirty-third Division to be "shock troops" and among the best operating against them. My World-War Experiences Written by Morris Nelson of the Thirty-fifth Division. Many years ago it was my ambition to visit Europe. Even after we had declared war on Germany, it was my desire to go as a soldier for my country. It was not because I was possessed of a roving dis- position, nor because I bore hate in my heart for an unknown enemy, and much less for the sake of honor or romance. There were, es- pecially, two fundamental reasons: first, to be one with the many to bring about the downfall of autocracy and the birth of democracv; and, second, to be one of the common throng. In the army, as in no other place, I could get in contact with all classes of men, could face the same temptations and feel the same thrills of the varying moods of mankind. There in camp, in trench, and on the battlefield I could touch elbows with the brave men who dared to die for justice and all HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 523 that was dear to them, and thus through it all, I could better learn to understand the great needs of humanity. My early ambition to visit Europe was fostered, largely, through the study of history, and to a great extent, because it was the birth- place of my parents. I had read of old Mont Blanc; of the snow- clad Alps of Italy and Switzerland; of the Roman ruins, including the Temple of Diana, and ancient fortresses that had often withstood the ever-invading hordes. I had read, with awe, of Hannibal's Pass, traversed by that great Carthaginian general as he led the forces over the mountains and into Italy. All these scenes, together with many others, it has been my fortune to see during my stay in Europe. How wonderful it seems now that my youthful dreams should be realized under such strange circumstances. The snow forts and sham battles of school days were only too symbolic of maturer years. The child's pleasures, to a great extent, govern his whole life and are quite prophetic of his future indulgments. Being no exception to the common rule, I, naturally came to serve my country. On the 25th day of February, 1918, I was drafted into the service of Uncle Sam, and on the following day was sent to Camp Dodge, Iowa. It. was somewhat hard, for a time at least, to become recon- ciled to the new life of apparent servitude. The Cause, however, was urgent and I soon entered into the spirit of my responsibilities. Little did I surmise that I was soon to break home ties. Early on the morning of April 12th, after only a month and a half of training, I said good-by to the best friend in all the world, and entrained for a three-days' ride to the coast. It was a strange parting. Uncertain- ties, like spectres, stared us in the face ; four thousand miles of ocean were to separate us ; the clouds of war darkened our hopes of future happiness. Faith, however, in a greater Power, gave us courage to venture out into the unknown. I had never been farther east than Chicago. The trip to the coast was, therefore very interesting. We passed through Illinois, Indi- ana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, and part of New Jersey. At some of the larger cities we were allowed to get off and parade up the main avenues. Everywhere the people received us with cheers and sent us away wishing us Godspeed. Many and varied were the scenes along our route. There were the hedge and rail fences of Ilhnois and Indiana of which my father had often told me, and the solid stone cliffs along the Ohio River covered with evergreen and shrubbery. There was the beautiful Lake Erie, as smooth as glass. We were fortunate to cross this lake just before sunset, and such a sunset I shall never forget ! It simply was superb ! It seemed as if the peace- ful waters opened up to receive it; its very beauty seemed to mock me. I thought of home and dear ones, of the grandeur and freedom of my 524 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY native land, and wondered why I was called to sacrifice my happiness for another world, a world of war and isolation. At Weehawken, New Jersey, we got off the train and boarded a steamer which was to take us across the Hudson River to New York. This little trip was the climax of anything- we had seen yet. The river itself is about a mile wide. It was literally covered with hundreds of liners, steamers, transports, flatboats, and vessels of every descrip- tion ; all of them busy doing their "bit" for Uncle Sam. On some of these flatboats I counted as many as thirty or more railroad cars, loaded with supplies. On April 15th, we reached Camp Mills, New York, a camp situat- ed on Long Island. At this place we stayed about nine days. On the 24th day of April, we broke camp, preparatory to going overseas. That same day, we boarded the Shropshire, an English transport, or in other words, cattleboat, for that is what it really was. The follow- ing day we were tugged out to sea and started off on a thirteen-day voyage. In the distance, the Statue of Liberty and the red building of Ellis Island loomed up, for a little while, through the morning mist, and then gradually disappeared from our sight. It was the last lin- gering glimpse of the good old U. S. A. My trip across the ocean was far from enjoyable. In a few days my appetite vanished completely. My digestive organs reversed and I spent many gruesome hours along the railing of the vessel. I swear to you that I never was before so sick. One consolation, however, was that I had a lot of company going through the same performance. Our quarters were close and uncomfortable. We lived on English rations which consisted chiefly of goat, tea, and slum. That word "g'oat" or "go-at" soon became a by-word of derision. When the waiters appeared at the stairway, there arose from everywhere, a mighty chorus of "Go-at ! go-at I" That was enough, I had to beat it for the hatchway. On the 7th of May, we sailed up the Mersey River to Liverpool, and as we approached the beautiful city, our band played "America," and "The Star-Spangled Banner." It was very impressive. The English officers and civilians were there to greet us and they gave us a very hearty welcome. Immediately after landing, the unloading of the ship began. We were a large force of workmen, so the thousands of barracks bags, officers' baggage, and other paraphernalia were soon disposed of. The next day, May 8th, we were entrained for Southampton, situ- ated on the southern extremity of the British Isles. This trip was very interesting. It was a balmy spring afternoon, the scenery was at its best, the hillsides were covered with groves and orchards. Oc- casionally a patch of heather and a quiet stream added to the beauty HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 525 of the picture. I had often wondered why England produced so many of our best poets but I can readily understand it now. No- where in my travel, have I seen more beautiful and varied scenery. The red-roofed buildings of the little villages and hamlets, with their odd construction and pleasant surroundings, were indicative of the carefree and happy peasant life. Numerous canals and waterways irrigate the fertile soil. Fruit farming and truck gardening is car- ried on extensively. The larger farms are divided into small irregu- lar patches, each enclosed by a well-kept hedge. Much of this land is owned by the lords and nobles, who live in beautiful mansions, while their servants must be content with humble huts. For a time the stern realities of a world war were forgotten and I was enjoying a pleasure trip through Nature's gardens. On the night of May 9th, we crossed the English Channel. Judging from the vessel's interior appearance, it must have been, previous to our voyage, used as a stock and freight transport. The discomfort was almost unbearable, for we were actually packed in like sardines. Many of us found no place in which to lie down. The ones who did were covered with pitch, lime, and other refuse. It was but a gentle foretaste of coming days, when we would have been only too glad to partake of its shelter. The following morning we entered the harbor of Le Havre, unload- ed, and hiked about eight kilometers (approximately five miles) to a rest camp. It was a warm day, the packs were heavy, and the great- er part of us had not yet fully recovered from the strenuous ocean voy- age. On the way, therefore, many of the boys fell by the roadside. To carry a hundred-pound pack, for hours at a time, is a man's job, especially on the hard and hilly roads of France. The next six weeks were spent, principally, in training and hiking from place to place. A fifteen-kilometer hike was generally longer than estimated; therefore, instead of calling them kilometers, we would call them "kill-a-soldier." For several weeks we were under English training and lived on English rations. It was the usual diet of "go-at," tea, and slum, a combination that I abhorred. It was a happy day when we again changed to American ways of living. With the exception of Russia, France has the greatest national riches of any European country and has a very agreeable climate. There are vast acres of pine and beech forests. Much of this has, of course, been laid waste by war. Potatoes, cereals, and grapes are the chief products of the soil. She has a good and safe railroad system, all crossings being well guarded. The public highways are also far superior to ours, having a surface of gravel or crushed rock. In times of peace, these roads are kept in perfect condition at all times. France is a land of history. Because of its natural resources and 526 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY fertile valleys, it has for centuries been the envy of other nations. Such characters as Charlemagne, Louis IX, Joan of Arc, and even Napoleon, and of our own times such leaders as Joffre, Clemenceau, and Foch, have all helped bring France to her present high position. It is the land of the Dark Ages, the Crusades, the Great Revolution, and the recent World War. Upon her soil more decisive wars have been fought than in any other land. So far I have only mentioned the milder side of military life, but a more strenous time was awaiting us. It was about the middle of July, when the Americans began their great offensive. At Chateau Thierry, our marines wrote themselves into fame by taking Belleau Woods. They pressed the Germans on all sides and fought their way through shell fire and machine-gun nests, often without food or water for five days at a time. A few days later the second battle of the Marne took place. Everywhere the enemy were driven back over the pontoon bridges and sustained fearful losses. In the fury of the bat- tle they were forced into the river and drowned. At the same time that such fearful slaughter was taking place near Paris, our division, the Thirty-fifth, was being initiated in the Vos- ges Mountains in Alsace. We started for the trenches on the even- ing of July 19th. It was a hard march. All night we climbed up the dark mountain side. Not a sound was made, save the heavy tread of hobnails. No smoking or lights were permitted. Occasionally a smothered curse could be heard from some one reeling under a gall- ing pack. Just before daybreak we entered a dense forest on the mountain side. There we unrolled our blankets and hid through the day. To keep from rolling down the steep slope while sleeping, many of the boys tied themselves to trees. In the evening the hike was continued and we reached our dugouts about 11 o'clock. The next night a detail, including myself, was sent up to the front line to re- pair a breach in the wall. This line was within a hundred yards of the Boche and I assure you, we had a delicate and dangerous task be- fore us. We could not work fast, as any little noise would attract the enemy's attention. Occasionally a flare or bursting shell would go up and illuminate No Man's Land, or a stray bullet would whistle by and we would duck down, then we would resume our work, only to duck again. Thus the first fearful night passed and the breach was repaired. We spent a month in this sector. It was very hilly and covered with brush and forest. In many places only the barren stumps and numerous graves remained to tell the stories of past years when the two armies met in fearful conflict, each side suft'ering enormous losses. We did very little fighting on this front. There was one night, how- ever, when something must have scared Jerry, for all of a sudden all HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 527 Hell seemed to break loose. He was evidently preparing to come over. Our signal for a barrage went up and in two minutes, every valley and hillside was pouring forth a volley of artillery and machine- gun fire that no army could have withstood. Every available man was instantly at his post with fixed bayonet. Before daybreak everything was quiet again and, although serious enough, we couldn't help but joke over the excitement. At night time, a sentinel's duty on an outpost was very nerve-rack- ing. Objects seemed to be transformed into weird crouching figures. In a nearby tree a hoot owl would perch, doling its mournful notes, or a bold rat would scamper over the tin roof. During the daytime, our tasks were less strenuous. We would often go to the rear of the lines to gather raspberries and huckleberries of which there was an abundance. In the early morning of August 17th, we were relieved by another outfit and went back in reserve. This period was of short duration, for things were happening all along the battle front, and so we were soon on our way to the St. M'ihiel sector, where we were to be in sup- port. We started on the eve of September 12th, and hiked all night with heavy packs, through mud and a drenching rain. Just before daylight we pitched pup tents by the roadside, under cover of brush and trees. All night long the cannon boomed and we were not sur- prised the following day to hear that our doughboys were driving the enemy before them and taking thousands of prisoners. At night time the airplanes would fly over us, dropping bombs and causing a little alarm. On the 1 8th of September, we started toward the Argonne and Meuse front. The first day we were transported in trucks, the next few days we spent in hiding by day and hiking by night. On this sector, the Germans had concentrated scores of their best divisions. Among them were many of the Crown Prince's famous Prussian Guards. They were evidently expecting a drive, but were puzzled to know when it would take place. On the twenty-fifth we "pulled stakes" and started off for the "big shoot." Under cover of dark- ness, we hiked for about three hours and stopped just outside of a little ruined village. Here we waited on a hillside until about day- break. All night long the artillery barked unceasingly, flares and signal lights going up all along the lines. To the rear of us the giant marine guns were sending over their huge sixteen-inch shells, each discharge fairly shaking the ground we stood on. At 2 a.m., a three- hour barrage began and every piece of artillery was turned loose on the enemy's fortifications. It was a continuous roar. For once Jer- ry was having his "iron rations" issued in great style. At about 5 o'clock the barrage lifted. The zero hour had come and we went 528 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY over the top! The One Hundred Thirty-eighth was in the lead and our regiment, the One Hundred Fortieth, followed in support. It was a grand sight. Not a man flinched or lost his nerve. Every command was obeyed and we were soon marching on across No Man's Land in squad column. It was hard to find our way through the fog and smoke. Communication lines, wire entanglements, and shell holes made progress very difficult. We had not gone far when we began to meet large groups of prisoners. Each group would be conducted to the rear by two or three Americans. The prisoners were shabby-looking fellows and were glad enough to fall into our hands. The Germans' front line was well fortified. They had tunneled into the hillsides and were living in concrete apartments. Some of these were several tiers high. Judging from the food, fine furniture, and other conveniences, they had apparently lived in luxury and pleas- ure. For about four years these had been their permanent homes. It was too bad the Yanks should come over and destroy their play- house. Although we were only in support, that first day was not without its hardships and dangers. We carried light packs, but before night were glad enough to lay them down. We must have advanced that day about four miles. We soon came within range of the enemy's artillery fire, and often had to seek protection in some trench or shell hole till the worst was over and then advance again. At about 3 o'clock we came in sight of our first dead. They had evidently run into some machine-gun nests. At sight of these dead, my heart filled with loathing and hatred. Was this a demonstration of Prussian civilization? Was this the expression of German kultur? That night we slept on a hillside just outside of Cheppy. Our covering con- sisted of a slicker and the blue skies above us. It was chilly and by morning a drizzling rain set in. Just before daybreak we were aroused and were once more on our unpleasant march. We took the lead and relieved the One Hundred Thirty-eighth, which the previous day had suffered immense losses. We had left our artillery pretty well in the rear and soon realized that we were up against a stiff proposi- tion. We needed support. The command was therefore given to "dig in" and wait for tanks. Our ranks were being shelled terribly. It was while waiting here that I had the bayonet blown off my gun. A shell burst almost within arm's length of where I lay, severely wounding a couple of machine gunners lying near me and almost covering me with earth. At about 3 o'clock, we saw the tanks ap- proaching. They came up about twenty or thirty yards apart. They looked like monstrous caterpillars slowly wending their course up and down the hillsides, defying every obstacle, and apparently heedless of HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 529 the withering artillery fire. As they passed us, the command was given to go over the top. Not a man hesitated. It was a grand sight to see the Yankees fearlessly advancing down the hill, against a terrific barrage. The men fell on either side and the stretcher- bearers were soon busy carrying off the wounded. Some of these were mangled in a horrible manner. We advanced to the next hill and that night slept for the first time in German trenches. In the early dawn of morning, we were again aroused and once more the serious command was given to advance. Little did we real- ize that within a few hours the nearby hills and valleys were to be strewn with thousands of dead and wounded. Our advance as usual was obstructed by shell holes, trenches, and endless miles of wire entanglements. Through the latter the tanks soon made a pathway for the infantry. As we approached the crest of the hill, the Boche, from the opposite hill, turned loose on us all their war machinery and we were compelled to go down on the other side through a perfect sheet of shell fire. Men were hurled several feet into the air and in many cases they were wiped out in squads. This all happened in less than an hour. This sector might very appropriately be called the "Valley of the Shadow of Death" or the "Devil's Playground." An entrance made in my diary that afternoon gives a vivid picture of the battle: "September 28, — Still in the Van. Advanced about a mile but had to fall back a little and wait for tanks. Advanced again about a kilo, under heavy shell fire. Lost many in few minutes. At present, hiding in brush. Can hear a wounded soldier crying for water, his mouth and face shattered. War is HELL!" That even- ing, under cover of darkness, we retired to some dense brush. There through a drizzling cold rain, we sat down in the mud and waited for morning. Never before in my life had I felt so forsaken. I had borne a good deal, but this night's experiences were almost unbear- able. The following day, Sunday, September 29th, nothing of special im- portance took place on our part of the sector. Our regiment was, however, exposed to enemy machine-gun fire and during the afternoon it was necessary to fall back about a half mile and strengthen our po- sitions. There was heavy shelling and at night a lot of gas was sent over. Then next day was spent in the trenches prepared by the engineers the previous day. At last the welcome rumors came up to the front line that our division was to be relieved the next morning. The Ger- mans must have heard it, too, for all night long they pestered us with mustard gas. This ruse of the enemy is often more deadly than shell fire. Death from it is terrible. It burns out the lungs and finally strangles its victims. 530 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Just before dawn of October ist, the First Division came to our relief. Our shattered division assembled at the foot of the hill. It was a sorry-loking outfit. Five days of ceaseless fighting had re- duced us to less than half of our original strength. Our dlothing was torn and dirty. For a week we had neither had time nor con- veniences to shave or wash, but we had won our objective and could well afford to forget our worries. What a field of waste and misery we had to cross that morning. Words positively can not describe it. A person must use his own imagination. Vegetation had been totally destroyed. Guns, wag- ons, rolling kitchens, and other accessories laid heaped up everywhere. Horses and men were strewn from hill to hill. Many of the men were so fearfully mangled that they were beyond recognition. Their severed limbs, alone, gave evidence as to whether they were friends or foes. After five days rest (?) which consisted principally of hiking and drilling, we were again, on October 12th, sent to the front lines. This time to the famous Verdun sector, where the French had resolved that the Germans should not pass. I will not begin to describe the extreme ruin of this part of the war zone. Words can not tell it. While here I had the rare privilege of seeing a Boche plane brought down in flames. One dark and rainy night a hundred of us were sent out on a scouting raid, with -explicit orders to get a prisoner at any cost. We scoured No Man's Land all night but failed in our ob- ject. We stumbled over several of Jerry's trenches but he was no- where to be found. On November 5th, we left the lines and for several days made long hikes. We did not know where we were going, but we were told we were bound for something real lively, the Metz drive. But, thanks to Good Fortune, this was November loth, and the following day, the Armistice was signed. Were we happy? Not as hilarious as the folks at home, but just glad. Could it be true? Was this really the end? Were we soon going home? Little did we think that there would be five more months of anxious waiting till that dream could be realized. These were trying months indeed! There was a monotonous grind of guard duty, hand drilling, and real soldiering. It was during the Holidays that I had the special privilege of going to Aix-les-Bain on furlough. It was a trip long to be remembered. Our fare, board, and lodging were, of course, paid by the Govern- ment; and the Y. M. C. A. did the rest. I will not go into detail as I have already mentioned some of the historical and ancient places it was my good fortune to see. On the 9th of March we started on our relay for the good old U. S. A. On Sunday morning we entrained for Le Mans. Here we HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 531 stayed till the 31st of March, on which date we again entrained, this time for St. Nazaire. Our ship was in port and we had expected to board it at once, but we still had two weeks left of rigid inspection while the vessel was being unloaded and made seaworthy for the homeward voyage. On the 15th of April we bade farewell to foreign shores and boarded the Nansemond, a captured German transport, and on the following morning we were tugged out and started for "God's Country." It was a long and tedious trip. There were about 5,000 on board, in- cluding a large number of casuals. The sea was calm and every- body was in good spirits. On the morning of the 28th land was sighted and at about 10 a.m. we entered Hampton Roads, Virginia, and once more we marched out on American soil. It was a thrilling experience. The people greeted us heartily. Even nature seemed to rejoice. It was a clear, warm day; the trees were blossoming, and everywhere the birds were singing their happiest carols. How un- like a year ago — this was indeed the sunshine after the rain. Things were moving pretty fast and we were soon on our way to Camp Dodge, where, on the 7th of May, I received my discharge. The fetters were off and once more I stepped out as a free man. An Advance Near Verdun Written by Lyle Chapman, second lieutenant of Company M, One Hundred Twenty-sixth Infantry, Thirty-second Division. On the night of September 25th we moved from the Bois de Lavoy, starting for the front. We marched until 3 o'clock in the morning, stopping to rest in the woods just south and west of Verdun, in which place I first heard the sound of high explosive shells — and one of them wounded three boys of Company I. We rested here until 10:30 in the morning, when we received orders to proceed to the Bois de Hesse. It was shortly after receiving orders to move forward that I witnessed the death of the only American observer killed during our participation in the war. A German, flying an Allied plane a little over our observation balloons, which were three in number, turned quickly and shot a phosphorous bullet into the first American balloon, which contained two observers. The observer who jumped out on the right side got away safely; the downyard flight of the other one, who jumped out on the left side, was in the direct path of the burn- ing balloon; the balloon fell directly on his parachute, which caught fire and came down burning, head-over-heels, to the ground. In our advance to the Bois de Hesse, being under continual observa- tion from the enemy at all times on account of the train, it was neces- sary for us to use what is known in the army as approach formation, 532 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY keeping off the main traveled roads, using what cover was available. We arrived at Bois de Hesse at 5 130 on the night of September 26th, being called to a halt right in front of our own artillery. The Germans caused us some inconvenience during the night and until noon the next day, at which time a scouting party was sent across No Man's Land and captured the snipers. We remained in the Bois de Hesse until the night of September 29th, when orders came to pro- ceed to the front. We rolled our packs, issued the rations and am- munition, and evacuated camp at 6 p.m. on the night of the 29th. On account of the congestion of the roads across No Man's Land it was difficult to make any headway. By 9 o'clock at night we had ad- vanced about one kilometer. From that time until 6 o'clock the next morning we were held up and during that time we laid alongside the road, where, lying in the mud with rain falling all night long, I had as comfortable sleep as I had ever had. We were on our way again at 6 o'clock and moved forward through what had been No Man's Land, through Avercourt up to the Bois de Montfaucon. We pitched our tents here at 11 a.m., September 30th, but at 2 p.m. received orders directing us to relieve the Thirty-seventh in the front lines that night. We started marching forward at sun- down. Previous to this time we had always marched in columns of two; now our orders were to march in single file, five paces between each man. We marched until 3 a.m. when we reached our position in support of the Second Battalion, One Hundred Twenty-sixth In- fantry, near the little town of Ivory. Our battalion was located in and alongside of a stone quarry, my platoon being to the right of the quarry, along a single line of hedge. It was cold and rainy, so we got in very little sleep before daylight, but the morning came off bright and sunshiny. The first thing after breakfast we walked part way up a hill just in front of us that had been battle-ground a couple of days before. Here we saw hundreds of guns, thousands of rounds of ammunition, packs, etc. The first part of the morning there was no activity whatever, so we made no particular preparations to dig ourselves in. At 10 o'clock the Ger- mans sent over about a dozen high explosive shells right into our sec- tor — and within four minutes there was dirt flying in all directions. During our stay in support we had about twenty-five casualties from high explosives and gas. While in this location we could observe much aeroplane activity and saw quite a number of flights each day, occasionally seeing observation balloons being shot up and burned. On the evening of November 3d we moved into the front lines at the Bois de Eimont. We started at 9 o'clock p.m., arriving in our positions in the front lines at 12 o'clock. We dug ourselves in and gave the boys orders to unroll their packs and get some sleep in an- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 533 ticipation of an attack the next morning. At 4:50 a.m. I received orders to report to battalion headquarters, there to receive the order of battle and pyrotechnics. We got instruction to go over the top at 5 :25, with orders that the barrage was to advance at the rate of 100 meters in five minutes. This was to be without advance artil- lery preparation. The order having reached us so near to the time of going over we had to do considerable hustling to get our packs rolled to be ready in time to start. At exacty 5 :25 the barrage started, and exactly at 5 125 the Germans started a counter-barrage. Some of the boys who had been through the earlier battles of the war at Chateau Thierry and Soissons said that this counter-barrage was the greatest the}^ had ever witnessed, making advance impossible. This was my first experience in an attack. It was impossible for us to move with heavy shells dropping around and among us, with trees falling all about us, but I was afraid possibly the rest of the outfit might be going forward, so I managed to get to a point of contact with the other platoon arid found that they were in the same position as my platoon. Finally, the officer in command of the company or- dered us to withdraw to the stone quarry. There we reformed our company, and found that we had eighty-one men left out of the origi- nal 243. Then our company of eighty-one men was formed into two platoons and reported to our major at the Bois de Eimont, who or- dered us to proceed with the attack. We went forward out of Bois de Eimont until we got out of the woods in our advance toward La- Grange farm, each man for himself from shell hole to shell hole, finally capturing LaGrange farm about 11 a.m., continuing our ad- vance to the Gaynes-Romagne road, where we dug in and consoli- dated our position to remain until the next morning. At 7 o'clock we again tried to advance, going forward possibly 300 meters, but on account of the terrific machine-gun fire and hand grenades we went back to the road. In about an hour we tried it again but were again forced to return to the road, making a report to our major that it was impossible for us to advance against the Boche's terrific fire. At 10 o'clock three French tanks were brought up to assist in the ad- vance and we followed about fifty yards behind them. The tanks cleaned out three or four machine-gun nests, turned around and went back. We dug in and consolidated our position about 200 meters from the Gaynes-Romagne road and held this position until relieved by the One Hundred Twenty-fifth Infantry an the evening of Oc- tober 25th. Then we went back to our starting point, the rock quar- ry. I left here on the morning of October 8th and was evacuated to the field hospital. 534 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY America's Greatest Battle Part II of Frederick Palmer's story in Collier's Weekly, of the Meuse-Argonne offensive. In the first article we have seen our army break through the old first-line fortifications from the Meuse River to the Argonne Forest and, after its rapid advance in the open, clinch with the Germans before the strong positions on the whaleback of the heights toward Buzancy, which was our goal, while Ludendorff marshaled his fresh divisions, his veteran artillery, and his chosen machine gunners to make the most of the reverse slopes, ravines, woods, and all the de- tails of a tricky commanding landscape. This article covers the second and the hardest phase of the battle which lasted all through the month of October. Autumn was now upon us in earnest. The nights were penetratingly cold and the ground, where the men had to lie, moist from the chill rains which turned paths and roads into sloughs. Mist interfered with aerial and artillery observation. The overcast sky was in keeping with the character of the battle. For days on end there seemed no sign of any color in relief from the dull grays and browns except the red, white, and blue bull's-eye of an airplane when it flew over low. We were preparing another general attack for October 4 with the fresh divisions which had just been brought into line. On the left the 77th Division was still knitting its way through the Argonne Forest. The French Fourth Army on its left and the 28th Division on its right had not been able to make rapid advance at first, and the farther into the forest the 77th went the more formidable became the ground and the difficulties of keeping any uniformity of formations in the attacks through the thick underbrush. The Argonne was a strange hunting ground for the 77th; one better suited for Davy Crockett than for city men. But the 77th did not want to yield its place in the Ar- gonne to any other division. It wanted the conquest of the forest to be as much its own as if it belonged to Manhattan Island. In an advance on October 3 Major Whittlesey's battalion gained its objec- tive and then found that it had lost contact with the battalion on its left, that its messengers did not get through to the brigade command, and finally that it was cut off. For five days, with rations for only a day and a half, his battalion was to remain dug into a hillside, among the roots of trees on the walls of a great ravine, while the Germans enfiladed his position with trench-mortar and machine-gun fire. This quiet young lawyer, whom a training camp at home had sent to the Argonne, shaved every morning and kept himself looking neat and cheerful when he went among his men, although he was as hungry as they. He acted as if this was not an unusual situation for a bat- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 535 talion in the Great War — but, on the contrary, a recognized feature of the game. As they saw he never flinched, it was easier for them not to flinch. It was a gallant, appealing incident, that of this battalion of Metropolitans lost in this famous old forest, while their comrades could not break through in the rear to them, while the French on the left could not relieve the pressure or their 28th Divis- ion the pressure on the right, while all the way to the North Sea the guns were thundering in the Allied advance and from the Aire to the Meuse our men were attacking throughout these five days with a fervor which in an Asiatic race might have been called fanaticism. When I went over the ground with Whittlesey he explained the ac- tion. He had little to say of what he had done himself; this to any- one who knows something of the mettle that makes good soldiers was significant that he possessed it. He deserved great credit; but — and he understood this simply and finely — he deserved no more than many other battalion commanders. The Lost Battalion ! — the be- sieged battalion! — appealed to public imagination! Other battalions did equally glorious things with equal skill and equal stoicism. On the east of the forest the 28th was still fighting in attack after attack to master the wooded escarpments which the forest flings out into the valley of the Aire. Across the Aire, along the heights which protected the heights of Buzancy, the Germans had built the Friemhilde-Stellung, a rough trench line with barbed wire guarded by covering positions in front which was especially strong in the Romagne forests. Under this name of Romagne may be grouped the series of woods which were the Wilderness of this campaign. Beyond, toward the Meuse, there were other woods: Cunel, a small wood but wickedly situated, and Fays and Foret Woods, which con- tinued, in a little congeries of woods and heights, the line of German defense; and bear in mind the heights on the other side of the Meuse — always keep them in the picture, for in the battle to those who were within range of their shell fire they were never out of it. Our men in the front line had dug themselves in — and so had the Germans — in little fox holes in ravines, on reverse slopes or in the edge of the woods, where they kept watch until we attacked in force again or repulsed counter-attacks with machine-gun fire, or crept out at night as patrols, or in the first flush of dawn made a rush to take another "bite" and gain some vantage point. Trench warfare in the old sense was now completely over. The armies had all accepted this new system of thin outpost lines in the fox holes while the machine gunners moved their guns skillfully about in forming crisscross zones of fire. Tactics had been resolved back to the individualism of the old days for the infantryman. It was not in our nature to fight in the way that the French fought, 536 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY and better too that it was not our way, as we were the young army, with the freshness of young and growing power in our thrusts. The French had fought with our driving intensity on the Marne; latterly they had become thrifty. They were at their best — unexcelled — in making "bites under the protection of their artillery. When they had won a gain they would dig in thoroughly and wait until every- thing was ready to make another. Our men were impatient of this method. It was slow to them. They wanted to make "a real" job of it when they attacked; to "go to it" with a rush "right on through." This kind, of tactics developed their alertness, their resourcefulness, and their dynamic nervous energy. Moreover, our men liked to feel that they were a- part of a big attack. Retail business did not interest them. They had come from a land of department stores and huge industrial corporations. No general can change a soldier's racial character, he is wise only as far as he may mold it. Now, it was evident, as you looked at the position on the morning of October i, after our first rush had spent itself, that we must take the heights east of the Aire in another rush. This was the key to the situation. We had the experienced ist, 2d, and 3d Divisions going into line in place of exhausted young divisions. The ist had been in reserve in the center. It was to have been used to drive on through in the bulge toward Buzancy after the 79th had exhausted itself. There are men who say that if we had had the ist, 2d, and 32d in the center at the start of the Argonne battle and our new divisions had been given the task at Saint-Mihiel, which was better suited to their capabilities, we should have gained the crest of the whaleback on the second day and taken 100,000 prisoners. This is interesting speculation for the gossips of Paris or for headquarters of any one of the Allied armies ; and all headquarters are always expecting more of their forces than it is in human power to accomplish — which is a sound rule for commanders to follow. However, we could not have had the old divisions on the Argonne and Saint-Mihiel too, when we were preparing for the Argonne before we struck at Saint-Mihiel. A DOZEN BKIvIyEAU WOODS The 1st was now transferred from Cameron's Fifth Corps to Lig- gett's First Corps. It was given the place of honor in the general attack of October 4, and a place of honor in the Argonne battle was bound to be costly though glorious. It was to drive a wedge into the German lines by moving up and down the slopes and over the crest of the thickly wooded hills on the east bank of the Aire. All our troops in the Argonne Forest and all eastward to the Meuse were calh HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 537 ing for this action in grim necessity. So too were the British and French armies, either wanting German reserves drawn from its front and both hoping that we might make a decisive thrust. Since my return home I have been asked if Belleau Wood was our most brilHant action. One answers: "Brilhant in what respect? In battle efficiency? In courage?" For at the front we thought of divisions only in terms of efficiency. At home you thought of them in terms of sentiment, pride, and affection and of a great faith. I should place in even higher esteem than Belleau Wood the drive of the 1st and 2d divisions toward Soissons in July and possibly still higher that drive which the ist was now to make. We had a dozen Belleau Woods in the Argonne. The 1st was a regular division, the pioneer of our divisions in France, the longest trained; but it was not regular in the old sense, being better than regular to my mind, as we have understood that word regular in the past. Many of its young officers were out of the training camps, and the men who had filled the gaps in the ranks had come from the volunteers or the draft in all parts of the country. It was amazing how soon that divisional machine made a recruit a veteran. "Buddy, you now belong to the ist, and in the ist we — ." Thus the neophyte soon learned the ways of the ist. .As a "kid" lieuten- ant of the 1st, who has now answered his last roll call, said: "This is a mean, nasty war, but it is the only war we have had or most of us ever want, and we will have to put up with it and fight the boche in the meanest, nastiest way possible, if» that is the way to lick the mean, nasty boche." This was certainly not a sophomoric view of war, and it was characteristic of the ist Division. "as per schedule" I think that possibly when the ist Division went into the Argonne battle it was the most efficient American division that ever wore shoe leather ; if it was not, then perhaps the 2d was — as all men of the 2d will agree. We were all thrilled when the ist took the place of 35th and advanced over the ground where the 35th had fought desperately. The dead of the 35th were in groups in the Exermont ravine. When the men of the ist saw them they knew how good it was to be veter- ans under exacting, competent direction ; for veterans do not bunch under the enemy's fire. This is giving the enemy a target. And Summerall was in command! He had led the ist in the drive toward Soissons. He is a leader compounded of all kinds of fighting qualities, a crusader and a calculating tactician, who, some say, can be gentle as the sweetest-natured chaplain, while others say that he is 538 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY nothing but brimstone and ruthless determination. The ist, with Summerall in command! We knew it would ''go through!" It has always gone through. This was the part cast for the ist in the A. E. F. We knew that it would not attack in too great density, for that is not being mean and nasty to your enemy. Its battalion com- manders would not hesitate in an emergency, and its veteran gunners would roll barrages of fire accurately and steadily in front of the in- fantry. Where strong points resisted, the artillery would be prompt with its blasts of destruction to clear the way. "As per , schedule," the brief divisional report begins the account of this operation — a report which is the coldest, prose I have read for as hot a piece of work as I have ever seen. I am not quite sure that among his other names the general might not be called "Per Schedule" Summerall. The Germans had a hot reception prepared for the ist, but the ist expected this. It was due on those heights unless the Germans had forgotten the art of war. Four new divisions were identified on the ist's front on the first day's attack. Constantly, undaunted by cas- ualties, the division kept plowing ahead, blasting the enemy's counter- attacks before he could bring enough troops to bear, keeping the initi- ative in its own hands. There were delays from scorching machine- gun fire down the roads and ravines; on the slopes of Hill 240, from gas and shells as well as machine-gun fastnesses that would have baf- fled inexperienced hands, but no prolonged repulses. The mood of the ist was right; it was the mood of men who will not take no, and require an immediate yes. For eight days altogether the 1st was fighting steadily, not taking bites, but in determined, per- sistent action. It had taken Fleville, a Village on the bank of the river, but that was only an incident. Fleville fell when the hills that overshadowed it fell. With flanks on the eastern valley wall of the Aire exposed to fire from the western wall the ist applied the skill which it had learned in hugging cover from fire both in flank and in front as it greedily sought more advantages. When the ist came out, its losses were over 9,000 in killed and wounded. Half of its infantry was out of action. It had paid the price, but it was the price of vital success. If in future years you should ever ride down the valley of the Aire as you look up at those hills which command all the valley and the gap of Grand Pre, you may conclude that not only the ist but the other divisions which fought through their machine gun nests and underbrush were capable of deeds which make Lookout Mountain appear somewhat less of a battle by comparison than some of us think that it was. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 539 THROUGH A GAMUT OF SHKIvL FIRE The 1st had reheved the pressure on the 77th, thus helping to ex- tricate the Lost Battahon, and opened the door closed by cross fire for the 28th, somewhat beleaguered, but now pressing forward on the other side of the Aire Valley at the forest's edge, to repay the ist in kind by helping to relieve it of fire from across the valley; for the business of each division was to keep up the schedule set for it as one of a number of units in line, lest it prove an unwelcome companion which exposed its neighbors. For a week the 28th had fretted against the formidable Taille I'Abbe, with its only avenue of approach open field under the eyes of waiting machine gunners. Now it work- ed its way around this frowning obstacle and it crossed the Aire and took Chatel Chehery with its storming parties, making sure that at least one height. Hill 244, would not enfilade the ist any further. The 28th had been in that infernal trough of the Aire for two weeks at a cost of 3,000 casualties; but before it was relieved it had finally cleaned the last of the Germans out of the Thickets, the Abbe Woods, which had been the nightmare of its Argonne career. Some people were calling it the Iron Division. Steel is tempered iron. The 28th was tempered in the Aire Valley. After the Aire the Susquehanna or the Monongahela ought to look pleasant. If the salient which the ist made had not been spread, then the ist had simply made a thrust into the lion's jaw. If the salient were sufficiently spread, then the lion's jaws were dislocated. As the 28th alone was not equal to that task, the 82nd Division, under Duncan, a sound, cool soldier trained in the school of the ist, was put in on the 6th as a link between the ist and the 28th (which it was later to relieve) with mission of making a rush worthy of the company it kept across the river bottoms, to take some particularly sheer and difficult heights on the Argonne Forest side of the valley which com- manded the zone of the ist and impeded ultimate progress of the 77th in the Forest. The 82nd was inexperienced in battle, but our com- mand had learned that the National Army divisions never lacked drive, and this one, the "all-America" division, seemed to feel that its honor was bound up with that of all the draft men in the United States. Having failed to check the thrust of the ist, the next step for the Germans was. to try to check this thrust. They did not depend upon machine guns and artillery on the ridges alone, but brought both down on to the river bottom to wait for our infantry as it came upon ris- ing ground. Field guns attached to battalions fired at point-blank range. In that case the thing to do was to take the guns; and the 82nd took them. 540 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY In places the men could ford the Aire. In other places they had to build bridges. The)^ had six days of repeated charges. Not every charge went home. Some that went home did not stick. Twice they took the village of Cornay and twice they had to retire in face of counter-attacks, but night found them in each instance farther ad- vanced. They climbed up the ridge walls around bowlders and through thickets to find that the German machine gunners had some unexpected angle of fire that required further consideration of the situation. They were gassed and shelled continually, of course. Take it for granted that everybody in front was gassed and shelled through- out the battle. One battalion of the 826. lost all but 190 men. In one batch of 300 prisoners that the 82d took every man was a machine gunner or an artillerist, and a large percentage of these were veteran noncommis- sioned officers of a type that usually do not bother to surrender while they have a cartridge left. The 82d was in the sector twenty-five days. Its casualties were 6,700, including a thousand killed. At one time it was down to 4,500 men fit for duty on its morning reports. General Duncan established a divisional rest camp for the tired men out of range of the shells, and his parental care and the extraordi- nary tenacity of the men kept the division going at a time when we needed every man we could muster at the front. At the end of the second of those first six days the 82d had so far cleared the road for the 77th that it had a new lease of life in a sin- gle bound of eight kilometers through the Argonne Forest. At the end of the sixth day the 82d had reached the Kriemhilde-Stellung itself, where it got the kind of information from the Germans which was a sufficient hint to our army command that the 82d had better pause in its eager course of victory. On the other side of Grand Pre the French Fourth Army could not bulge out toward the Bourgogne Forest and the 77th crossed the river and entered Grand Pre and Saint-Juvin quite handily. Now, thanks to the gallantry of the 82d, all that stretch of river bottom called the Grand Pre gap was ours, while ahead there looked down upon us still the final summits of the whaleback which we must attain before we could strike downhill to- ward the German lines of communication. This covers Liggett's corps through the first ten days of October. We turn to Cameron's Fifth Corps, which was facing the center of the enemy's position. There the 32d, of Michigan and Wisconsin, had come into line for the attack of the 4th in place of the 37th. Its division staff had established a reputation which it must maintain. The divisional emblem of the 32d is an arrow, which means that when- ever the 32d went against the German line it pierced the German line. There were some men from Wisconsin who relished that kind HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 541 of an operation, as it gave them a chance to show Prussian guards how Americans of German origin could fight. In their first battle on the heights of the Ourcq the men of the 32d learned, as the 82d learned in the valley of the Aire, that if you fail to take a position the first time try again and if you are put out of a position retake it. Now they had a tougher problem than they had on the heights of the Ourcq or at Juvigny. They were expected to pierce the Kriemhilde-Stellung, the great Romagne defense line. Between them and the Stellung were strong covering positions pro- tecting all approaches. Through a gamut of shell fire and swept by machine-gun fire they reached the village of Gesnes; but the Ger- man guns concentrated on Gesnes and put a circle of shell fire around it in a way that made it no place for wise soldiers to occupy until some of the German guns had been silenced. After they had with- drawn, their artillery had a free hand to pound every point where the gunners thought there were machine-gun nests or enemy batteries. Then the 32d attacked again, making and holding gains, but finding that the more machine guns they captured and the more that were destroyed by artillery fire, the more the Germans seemed to have. CONSOLIDATING GAINS On the 7th a brigade of the 91st which still held a place in the line after its fierce experience in the first days of the battle was put under command of the 32d; but what the 32d needed was more artiller}^ The guns of the 42d or Rainbow Division, which had just come up in reserve to go into line, were attached to the 32d. This gave it double its usual complement of artillery — and veteran artillery into the bargain. The two artillery brigades ought to be able to blast a way for the infantry. With artillery enough, if there were sufficient room for it, all the Germans in the Kriemhilde-Stellung could be mixed with the desiccated landscape. Time was important too, for the 32d had the same kind of mission on the right of the ist Division in breaking into that Romagne woods system that the 82d had on the left in spreading the salient. The right flank of the ist was bent back un- der the sweep of the fire from the Cote de Chatillon, the worst of all the hills, and the Dame Marie Ridge. With the support of the combined artillery of the two divisions the 32d put all its back into a fresh attack. Many an attack in this war with more gunfire in support has failed against less redoubtable posi- tions. On that day the German aviators were particularly spiteful. They flew low, pumping bullets from overhead in addition to the sweep of bullets from all kinds of ground angles in front. In the 542 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VI^TA COUNTY center the men of the 32d were checked. On the left they got a foothold in the Cote Dame Marie where the Germans came at them from all sides. On the right they got into the trench system and mixed it up hand to hand with German machine-gun fire cutting into their supports. There was nothing left to do but to "consolidate gains," as the communiques say, and give the guns another inning in which, as the result of information acquired in the advance, they could apply their blasts with better results while the infantry made ready for another attack. BRE^AKING KRIEMHIIvDE: STElvLUNG Meanwhile the 426. came into line in place of the ist to endure the same kind of hammering from the heights that the ist had endured until the heights were mastered. The 426. was also a proud division with a proud record. The two divisions had a common task. As they were fighting side by side their rivalry was not a sedative to their am- bition in going against the strongest positions which they had ever attacked; and in the intricate business of Liaison, with commanders directing their men in supple formations along lines of least resist- ance, it is not surprising if there is some question as to which did the most to win the war. Both divisions made supreme efforts on the morning of the 14th, applying all the veteran experience of their infantry in their actual plans and of their artillery in flexible supporting barrages of shell fire. On its left the 32d drove through the town of Romagne itself, and despite the German artillery concentration on the town, mopped it up. On the right it had to intrench on the slopes of Cote Dame Marie for protection against irresistible fire. Then the 42d gained the ap- proaches to Hill 288, which was the key to the position, in such fash- ion that the command of the 32d, quick to see its opportunity, rushed a battalion around in flank and broke the Germans out of the Dame Marie. By night the 32d had advanced a mile and a half, which was a long distance against those Romagne positions. Fifty yards count- ed more than a mile after the line was finally broken on November i. As for the 42d, there were times in those succeeding days of re- morseless, grinding, driving efforts — with support for patrols driven forward at night to renew the attack in full force in the morni'ng, when it seemed as if it were not within human strength to go on. But Summerall was now in command of the Fifth Corps sector, which had been side-slipped in order that he might have charge of that drive against the heights which he had begun with his old division. The task was set; it must be performed. It was performed. Will any soldier of the 42d ever forget the fearful pressure of the HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 543 corps commander or the fire that swept down from ever}^ possible hid- ing place ? The 42d took that monstrous Cote de Chatillon and Hill 288. We had broken the Kriemhilde-Stellung, which was news to put heart into any tired army. General Menoher of the 42d and General Haan of the 32d, who had commanded the divisions from the time of their arrival in France, had seen the results of long service in an accomplishment which is the soldier's best reward. The 32d's casualties were 5,019, with only 474 killed, and 1,095 prisoners had been taken. The 42d's casualties were 2,895, including the 380 killed. The drive of these two divisions and of the 82d, after the ist had made the wedge, with the taking of the Grand Pre gap, stand out sensationally in their tactical importance above the ruck of battle which was raging in repeated attacks all the way to the Meuse River; and the divisions on our right toward the Meuse, whose equally per- sistent pressure was equally important in the whole plan, sufifered as much as those on the left, if not more. It was the viciously brave work of the veteran regular 3d on its flank, under Major General Beaumont Buck, and later under Brigadier General Preston Brown, which permitted the success of the 32d. SILENCING H11.1, 299 On the morning of the general attack of October 4 the 3d advanced over one ridge on its front and gained the second, where it drew a withering fire. In front of it was Cunel Wood and the valley of the Moussin Brook, where it later formed for the attack on the strong Mamelle trench, which it took finally on October 9. On the follow- ing days it repulsed a counter-attack and endured a furious and venge- ful German response to its success. The men had to withdraw from their new positions under concentrated bombardments only to slip back as soon as the fire was lifted with a catlike celerity before the Germans had time to improve their opportunity. For the 3d, no less than the other veteran divisions, had "old mas- ters" among its men to teach the raw recruits the tricks of the costly trade of war. They knew the bitterness of attacks that failed, of ad- vanced units having to filter back at night from dearly won vantage points which it was impossible to hold in small force. But defensive methods were not in their Chateau-Thierry tradition or in that of their commander. They had held the German under a threat of swinging in on the Romagne position, which diverted his fire from the 32d and 42d even when the 4th was gaining no ground. By October 20 they were ready to silence forever Hill 299, which was the high- est of all the hills in the area and looked down on the ravines and the 544 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY roads and among patches of woods as upon an arena.. They ap- proached it on either side, and in an emergency Colonel Morrow took command of runners and any troops available and personally led them through the Claire Chenes Wood. When the 3d, after twenty-six days in line, was relieved, its casual- ties in the Argonne battle had been 8,072, including 927 killed, the heaviest of any except the ist, I believe. The same kind of dogged, fiendish, and thankless work fell to the 4th (regular) Division, under Major General Hersey, which had not been out of the line since the battle began and was to remain in line until October 18, when its cas- ualties were 5,960, including 679 killed. It had on its front the Freya Stellung, an eastern extension of the Kriemhilde Line, and a series of woods apparently separated only for the purpose of giving the German zones and observations. The 4th took Fays Woods, which was only an introduction to the charges and countercharges in the Foret Wood and the Brieulles A¥ood, whose conquest could only be won by smothering the Germans out with shells and gas and then holding on against German shells and gas. Cronkhite's 80th, the Blue Ridge Division, which had been out of line after its brilliant advance, returned to the line for the Oc- tober attacks. And to what a sector, there on the heights above the trough of the Meuse ! On the morning of the 4th the 80th reached the edge of the Ogons Woods in flanking attacks which were stopped by flanking fire from the Fays Wood, and at night its patrols filtered into the wood, for that was the part the men from the Blue Ridge were fitted to play. They knew woods and mountain roads and how to shoot Germans as well as squirrels. TOWARD ROMAGNE The next morning Cronkhite had all his guns playing on the woods, and his machine guns gave his infantry the further protection of in- direct fire for a charge that gained something, but not the woods. At dusk the men repeated the attack, and this time they succeeded. There were other woods ahead, of course, — always more woods. By the night of the 9th the 86th was along the Cunel-Brieulles road, and in the small hours of the morning two companies slipped quietly — oh, very quietly — into the village of Cunel, bringing back two battalion staffs of thirty German officers and sixty men. There was some style to that, although the officers did not see it in that light, and it was also something further in keeping with Blue Ridge tradi- tions. On the night of the loth the 80th was relieved by the 5th, a regu- lar division, but inexperienced, commanded then by Major General John E. McMahon, and later by Major General Hanson E. Ely. The HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 545 80th passed on to its successor a legacy which recjuires no further comment. What they called "dispersion" happened to the 5th in its charges against the Pultiere and Rappes Wood; that is, the men, bunched in the open, scattered, lost their way in the woods, and failed to use their gas masks and to take care of themselves generally, with resulting casualties and sickness which depleted their effectiveness. When Ely took command on the i6th the rifle strength of the divis- ion was reduced to a little less than one-quarter of the full strength. Ely was a smiling man weighing 200 pounds and tall in proportion, who had been long fighting in France, and he had, moreover, kindly blue eyes and a square jaw with which to remedy the situation in the 5th, tactically, physically, psychologically, and in all other ways. Neither he or any other leader who -was on the west bank of the Meuse could check the shell fire from the east bank. From the heights there the Germans had observation of all our roads. When the 8otli was assembling for an attack on the loth its officers thought that it was out of view; but the German observers from the crests across the Meuse were watching the process with the satisfaction of a cat playing with a mouse, and in good time sent over a hail of shells, with murderous results, into our formations. As our right swung in its attacks toward the Romagne positions of the whaleback from the trough of the Meuse, the men faced artillery fire from Romagne in front and from the left flank, while from across the river they received artillery fire in the right flank and sometimes in the rear. The German observers on the Romagne and the Meuse crests kept each other informed of the movements within their vision, and plotted them on the map for each other's guns. They were hav- ing a joyous time, the kind they had in mind that they made sure of holding the Romagne heights in their retreat from the Marne. In- cidentally, the shells from across the Meuse included, with gas and usual variety of calibers, many of big caliber from long-range artillery. GAS AND MACHINE GUNS So our men in the valley of the Aire did not have a monopoly of the hell of the Meuse-Argonne battle. The hell was pretty well distri- buted all the way to the Meuse. The 17th French Corps, which had the mission of protecting our Meuse flank, lacked the forces neces- sary, and we had to send assistance. On October 8 our 33d Division crossed the river, and this and our 26th and 29th Divisions were to fight for the heights which hampered our main offensive. They had a long struggle against strong prepared positions which I shall de- scribe in the course of the next article. There is a certain likeness and monotony in the records of the divi- sions which I have given, but each division (when up to strength) 546 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY represented 27,000 men, and each saw the battle as its own. The battle was monotonous to each man of the 27,000 only in the sense that a jumping toothache is monotonous. A thousand pictures of that battle crowd my recollection, arid each is suggestive of a thousand thoughts. In weapons it was particularly a battle of gas and machine guns. Gas was used abundantly by both sides to saturates the woods, where its poison lingers after it has evaporated from open ground. You had gas always in mind when you were at the front; and of all the equipment which man has ever had to carry in battle none was ever more important or more of a nuisance than a gas mask. You were always listening, too, for the crack of machine-gun bullets; and as, at their sound, you took to cov- er uttering the customary prayer, sometimes with a brimstone ac- companiment, you wondered if you might not still be visible to some hidden gunner or sniper. Any one who knew where to go and how might go far with relatively small risk; the inexperienced might go only a short distance before walking straight into death. You won- dered too at the good luck which let some men off unscathed after months of exposure and at the bad luck which caught others the first time that they were under fire. OUR YOUNG WIIvI. Men who are gassed usually recover. In open warfare the whole body is exposed to machine-gun bullets. This explains why in the casualty lists which I have given the percentage of killed to wounded is frequently only i to 8, 9, or 10, whereas in the old days of trench warfare, when a man exposed only his head above the parapet of a trench to a bullet wound which was usually fatal, or he was hit by a fragment of a high-explosive shell, or blown to pieces by its burst, the percentage was i in 3 and even i in 2. But all the wounded, the sick, and the footsore, with ashen faces and sunken eyes, as well as the men caught in the epidemic of influenza, which made serious rav- ages, whether borne back in litters or hobbling along the road, were out of action for the time being. To me the battle recalled the Somme and Passchendaele; and I feared that it might end with us pinioned on the threshold of the heights which we had sought to gain in the welter of blood and mud all winter, with the enemy looking down upon us, as had happened to other offensives. When I think of the battle concretely and try to resolve all the pictures of recollection into simple factors the words will, drive, endurance, and power appear. We were tried in these as we had not been tried since the Civil War, and as one hopes that we may never be tried again, while without being tried we shall retain the requisite qualities for standing the test of such a trial. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY " 547 It was our will — our young will — to gain the victory grinding on the German will, worn and desperate with its back against the wall in skillful defense; the will of hundreds of thousands of men of a young army strengthened by the will of the commander in chief, who was in the room of the town hall of the little town of Souilly — upstairs and first door on the left — where Petain held council over his maps in the defense of Verdun. Pershing might suffer acutely as any indi- vidual, but any hesitation must mean heavier losses in the end. The will to drive and keep driving, driving, however tired of mind or body — the driving of Jackson on his marches and in his attacks afterward, of Grant on the way to Appomattox, of Sherman to the sea, of the Argonauts of '49, of the contractor cutting a tunnel through a mountain on a time contract! No one realized until his warning came how cumulative was the strain on heart and nerves. Any commanding officer had the authority to relieve any officer under him in the course of action. It was exercised frequently — sometimes too ruthlessly, no doubt, sometimes unwisely. "I found Major not far forward enough in person to direct his battalion, and immediately relieved him and put Captain in command," as one colonel wrote in his report. In such instances which were rare, a stigma might attach to being "canned," as we call it in our army, or "degummed," as it was called in the British. In many instances it meant only that his superior saw what others saw and the officer could not see himself — that he must soon collapse. Even when an officer was staggering and inarticulate from fatigue, and the orders which he gave showed that he had lost his grip of his duties, he would straighten up and insist that he was all right, with the fear in his heart that he might be sent to the rear. Again, commanding officers, who were themselves at the breaking point, lost their self- control and vented their temper by relieving a subordinate. Major generals were among those who broke down and who were sent away to rest. One never was certain what officer might not crack or what one might prove that his nerves were of steel. The thing was to give all that there is in you. Lieutenants from training camps and from West Point too, whom nature had not meant to command men, had leadership taken out of their hands by sergeants and corporals who were meant by nature to command men. In the elbowing of units in the attacks, in their overlapping, in the gamble of positions, in the uncertainties of attack and withdrawal in face of sudden blasts of fire, in all the business of orders given and changed and canceled in re- sponse to fluctuating situations, in the direction of the minute de- tail of compact, who was to say where justice or injustice lay in per- sonal claims? Success was the brutal criterion under the pressure for speedy victory. 548 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY The risk of death was only an incident to the hardship of snatches of sleep at any hour on piles of shells, or on the wet, chill earth, or in dugouts or ruins, and it was the anticipation of the unexpected, the apprehension of some costly mistake and the stern whip of discipline which were wearing men down. We were proving that we had en- durance — such endurance as the British had shown in France and Flanders and the French at Verdun. Our men were not all heroes in the accepted terms of your imagina- tion. They did not all take machine-gun nests single-handed wear- ing flowers in their tin hats. Those who were at it never admitted that they liked charging machine-gun nests. Weary men do not rush gladly into modern battle. They go in as automatons of duty in response to orders, with their blood rising as they charge in the desire for the goal or to come to close quarters. BACK OF THK IvINE We had stragglers in the Argonne, though nothing like as many as in the Civil War days. The doctor's knowing eye, by a glance or, if not, by adequate tests, sent the malingerers back into the fight. Bat- tle police watch the roads. There was a public opinion in the army on this subject — one that applied the principle of the draft to the hesitating. It was everybody's battle, and everybody supposed to be in front must be there. Yet there were rare instances when men would not follow an officer wherever he chose to lead; his was the decision, which must be made in an instant frequently, whether or not he might be leading them to futile sacrifice. We sent out from that mighty arena of the struggle of titanic forces weary battalions relieved from the line to miserable packed Cjuar- ters in barns and ruined houses to rest. They were "deloused" and "Y. M. C. A.'d," and they slept and slept and slept. When they awoke they were still dazed from sleep. They were set to drilling with the replacements which had arrived to take the place of the fallen ; and with the replacements — weary themselves from being packed in railway trains from the ports and untried and unacclimatized — came officers who knew their book of tactics but did not know their Argonne battle. I am not sure that anyone ever knew that battle or ever will. We simply kept on fighting that battle until it was won. And we sent out from that area, too, empty motor trucks and the stream of wounded who were passed on to waiting hospital trains which followed the rails across France until they ran out on spur tracks at one of the great hospital centers which we had built for such an emergency — some with 18,000 beds in one group. From that other world, the Service of Supply, which we called the "S. O. S.," we received back our empty motor trucks and cars and wagons load- ed with shells and cartridges and our daily bread. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 549 In the S. O. S. another army, which was no less a part of the plan of July, 191 7, than the combat army, was under an equal strain and under the hardship of missing what we were seeing- at the front. All that it had built and organized was also put to the test of sudden emergency. Gray-haired officers from civil life were working hard- er than in all their career. Mechanics who were sticklers for trade- union hours put in twelve and fourteen hours a day, including Sun- day and Saturday. The hundreds of thousands of workers in the S. O. S. had only one duty and thought of only one — to answer the calls from the front for the material which was needed. Back of all this power of material and of industry was the power of the country at home, narrowing as it reached the base ports in a greater concentration, narrowing on the way across France until the point of the wedge of all the power was a soldier in a "fox hole," who wanted a hot meal at night from the rolling kitchens, that dared all shelled roads. "Yes, they are driving us and cheering us on," said one soldier, "from the President and the people down through the generads and the colonels and the kid lieutenants, right down to us humble privates — and we've got nobody to drive except the boche." THE 78TH COMES IN Both our veteran and new divisions had been exhausted in the first three weeks' fighting. Now that we had the commanding approach- es of the Romagne position, our next move was planned to be decisive. Meanwhile, bear in mind, our flank on the Meuse was still exposed to fire from the heights on the other side. On the left the French in the great movement, in which our 2d Division assisted in disengag- ing Rheims, had been resisted by only a rear-guard action in their ad- vance to the Aisne after the British had broken the Hindenburg Line. They were not facing the Burgogne Forest and the heights of Grand Pre. Ludendorff must still hold the Bourgogne Forest and the heights of Grand Pre and the whaleback of Buzancy if he were to protect his flank. On October 16 McRae's 78th National Army Di- vision relieved the 77th. It was not to have its baptism of fire in this battle in any charge in the open, but against the keystone of the enemy's positions for the moment. The 77th had occupied only a few houses in Grand Pre, which is a good-sized town lying against a bluff, and the 78th had to clean up the town, house by house. Above the town was the "citadel," and beyond that three formidable hills. Storming the citadel was like storming an ancient battlement defend- ed by modern bombers. Only two or three men could scale it at any possible point of approach not swept by machine-gun fire. The French joined with the 76th in the first attempt on the hills, and both Allies 550 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY had to fall back after they had gained a footing. But, finally, the 78th got the hills and the citadel. It did not have such good fortune against the Loges Wood, where it persisted in five days of unbroken effort under baffling interlocking machine-gun fire at every point. Then, although the corps commander ordered a halt, the men wanted to go on. They might be beaten back out of the Loges, but they did not want any order that they were to make no further effort for it. They could well afford to wait on the great attack which was originally set for October 28, only to be postponed by the High Com- mand until November i. Verdun Front Written by Wm. F. Marquardt of Storm Lake, a private in Com- pany A, One Hundred Second Regiment, Twenty-sixth Division. October 226. we moved into the city of Verdun in support of the One Hundred First Regiment, who were in the first line. We were billeted in the ruined buildings of the city and were under continual shell fire. Verdun was entirely in ruins. I do not believe there was a building there which had not been hit. We moved October 27th onto the front about ten miles north of Verdun into an old line of trenches. At 6 a.m. on the 29th, A, B, C, and D companies attacked a hill about three-fourths of a mile in front of us where a German trench was located. We made the top of the hill, but were forced to go back to our trench because of machine gun fire. About 4 p.m. we attacked again, and in a fight of an hour and a half again reached the top of the hill, this time being able to hold it. We captured a few prisoners and a few machine guns. Out of 200 in our company only 38 were left. This was the last hill necessary to be taken to get the fighting into open country in this part of the line. I saw twelve French tanks at one side waiting to go in as soon as we captured the hill and re- moved that source of fire. The hill was too rough for the tanks to move over it. Before breakfast, on the morning of the 30th, we were relieved and sent a short way back. Here we dug holes to drop into and I laid there all of the 30th and until the evening of the 31st, when a mustard gas shell alighted too close. Some of it went to my lungs, while mv body was even more affected. These burns from this gas kept me in the hospital three months. This covers the action in which George H. Martz, Company I, One Hundred Second Regiment, was killed October 28th. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 551 Aiding Communication In the following, Glenn H. Doty of Newell, a member of the Three Hundred Seventh Field Signal Battalion, Eighty-second Division, tells : About September 20th, our signal battalion left the St. Mihiel sec- tor, traveling in trucks to the woods in the rear of Clermont-en-Ar- gonne. After staying there about a week we moved to the town of Varennes to help the One Hundred Third Field Signal Battalion of the Twenty-eighth Division. The rest of the Eighty-second Divis- ion was in the woods that we had left. The signal corps always goes right into a sector in advance of the rest of the division, then they are acquainted with the telephone lines and stations when the divis- ion takes over the sector. Varennes had been in the hands of the enemy until the Twenty-eighth Division drove them out. The town was built upon a hill, from which one could see for miles in every di- rection. At this time the enemy was at Apremont, putting up a stiff resist- ance. The next morning, with the aid of the light tanks and artil- lery, we took and held the town. A part of the Three Hundred Seventh Engineers, Eighty-second Division, was in this fight. At Apremont we helped straighten out the tangle of telephone wires. The men following the infantry do not have time to put up these wires as they should be. Almost all of the wires were lying on the ground and in the streets, where trucks and wagons could run over them. We were here about three days until our battalion head- cjuarters were moved to La Forge farm. It was here that our bat- talion took over all the signal corps work in that sector. The next day I was put into a detail that took over an advance station at Apremont. The Germans must have left in a hurry, for there were all kinds of German helmets, packs, pistols, and belts lying around. We established the station in a dugout and started to straighten that awful tangle of wires. Our work here was the same as at Varennes. In one place a tank had run into a shell hole and carried all of the telephone wires with it. After a while we moved to Cornay. By this time our whole division was in the lines. They had a tough fight before they succeeded in taking this town. It looked the part, too. Guns and all kinds of equipment were lying around. The Germans were kind enough to have a well-stocked commissary and we lived high while we were at Cornay. Our station was used as a relay station. The object of a relay station is to shorten the length of lines that one detail of men are to maintain. Cornay is about half way between the towns of Chatel and Fleville, which are about six 552 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY kilos apart. It is almost impossible for a few men to keep up all of the lines for that distance. We had a small switchboard at this station. It is the duty of the switchboard operator to test out the lines every fifteen minutes. If a line was out, two men would be sent out to repair it — if one man did not get through the other prob- ably would. If there was no shelling only one man would be sent. When the Germans were in this town they had put a heavy gun in one of the houses and fired it through a window. When the Ameri- cans took the town they captured this gun. The Yanks reversed it, pointed it out the opposite window and gave the Germans a taste of German shells fired from a German gun. After five or six days here we moved to an old chateau. I believe it was called Cheherry farm. This time I was put in the wire-cart detail. These carts, with two spools of wire upon them, are drawn by two horses. The wire can he. unwound as fast as a horse can walk; and it is tied to trees, poles, or buildings by the two linemen that are with each cart, which is more rapid than unwinding it by hand. I worked with the wire carts and then was sent to division head- quarters to help repair telephones which, while used as test sets, be- came covered with mud and water. They would be useless until they had been cleaned and dried. Between mud, rain, and breakage, it kept two men busy repairing telephones. This was too easy to last long. On October 17th I was sent as a switchboard operator to a relay station located near Sommerance, about a mile from our lines. It was a hot place for sure, with the Germans shelling the place day and night. All went well until the afternoon of October 20th. Our company commander. Captain Busch of Sioux City, came to our sta- tion with a detail of men who were stringing a new line from a sta- tion on our right to brigade headquarters. It was about 3 o'clock when they stopped to cut the new line through our switchboard. The captain had cut the line in and received the "O.K." when some- thing real happened. I can remember seeing a bright red flash and hearing the report of the shell; then everything was black. During the fraction of a second I had time to think: "Am I hit?" and "Will I get through all right?" Upon regaining consciousness I found that an eight-inch shell had hit the corner of the building directly above the switchboard and about ten feet from where I had been sit- ting. Not a thing was left of the switchboard or the wires running into it. The captain and a number of others had been struck with pieces of the shell. I had been hit in the face but did not know at that time that the shrapnel had entered at my left eye and was lodged in the roof of my mouth. Of course, my main thought was to get to a dressing-station. A stretcher-bearer directed me. My eye was dressed and I was put in a dugout. That night I was taken to Evac- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 553 uation Hospital No. 10, where I was operated upon. That was the end of my signal corps work, and also the end of the war as far as I was concerned. My only regret is that I went through this engage- ment and did not get a shot at a German. A signal corps man is a non-combatant. In the Champaign Chris S. Jorgusen writes: In the Champaign we started early in the morning of October 3d. Our company was right in the front line. We had advanced only a short distance when the enemy opened fire on us and began throwing hand grenades. They should not have started such tac- tics, for I am sure that not a man of them could have gotten out alive from our return fire. We kept on advancing, taking everything before us ; if they would- n't meet us with their hands in the air they went to another world. We advanced until some time that afternoon, when we took a posi- tion in the enemy's trenches. Then we were called back and took po- sition in reserve. During the whole week that we remained here the enemy was putting shells over constantly day and night, the shells following us until we got clear out of their range. According to my opinion, the Champagne battle was as fierce as Soissons and the Argonne, and compared with St. Mihiel. But I would like to see a place that the Second Division could not go through. The Argonne Written by Aage G. Eskildsen, Company C, Three Hundred Fifty- seventh Infantry, Ninetieth Division. On September 27th, we went back to rest camp for four or five days and got the first clean clothes we had had since we began fighting. On October loth we started at 10 p.m. for a march of twenty miles, to arrive at Martincourt at 7 a.m. of the nth. After a rest through the day, and dinner, orders were given to start on another march of twen- ty miles to a large timbered tract near a French rest camp, but French soldiers were there first, so our captain took us out to the wood and told us to roll in. It was pouring down rain as it always is; and the mud was almost a foot deep — and there was our bed — just roll up in a blanket, still in our wet clothes. With rain coming down from above and lying in mud we slept a good, sound, peaceful sleep and never dreamed sweeter dreams at home in a bed. They let us sleep until 6, or until we were so cold we awoke. At noon we started to hike twelve miles to a village further on, where we slept that night in 554 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY a hay-loft of a barn over the cows, but that old hay was like a feather tick to us. At 4 o'clock, October 13th, we were called to find our breakfast in the dark — no lights allowed. By 8 o'clock we were ready to start in big trucks for the Verdun front, a distance of eighty miles, riding with as many crowded in the truck as possible. After riding all day Sunday we dismounted from the trucks to hike until 2 a.m. when we reached a small camp at which we remained until the 21st. Then we were sent out to support a position ; on the 22d we went up within six miles of the front. All the time from the 13th until now there was talk of peace. On October 23d we again went over the top and in this drive the captain and several of the privates were gassed. When we again went over the top on the 24th, and just as we stopped to dig ourselves in, shrapnel fell behind me and a piece entering my right shoulder made a gash about six inches long. Some of my comrades helped me to a shell hole and after two hours I was able to walk to the first-aid station. All the time I was in the several hospitals I had as good care as I could want. Commends Fifth Army Corps Under date of October 26, 1918, Major General Charles P. Summer- all, writing from headquarters of the Fifth Army Corps, compliment- ed the Eighty-fourth Infantry Brigade, consisting of the One Hun- dred Sixty-seventh and the One Hundred Sixty-eighth regiments, as follows : This brigade, under the command of Brigadier General Douglas MacArthur, has manifested the highest soldierly qualities and has rendered services of the greatest value during the present operations. With a dash, courage, and a fighting spirit worthy of the best tradi- tions of the American army, this brigade carried by assault the strong- ly fortified Hill 288 on the Kriemhilde Stellung and unceasingly pressed its advance until it had captured the Tuilerie Ferme and the Bois de Chatillon, thus placing itself at least a kilometer beyond the enemy's strong line of resistance. During this advance the enemy fought with unusual determination with a first class division and in many cases resorted to hand to hand fighting when our troops ap- proached his rear. The conduct of this brigade has reflected honor upon the division, the army and the states from which the regiments came. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 555 America's Greatest Battee Part III of Frederick Palmer's account of the Meuse-Argonne offensive in Collier's Weekly. In those decisive months of September and October General Retain was calling for our divisions with the French; and Marshal Haig was calling for them with the British. General Mangin, who had had our ist and 2d Divisions in his drive toward Soissons in July and the 32d at Juvigny in August, said that if we could not send him a division he would welcome a regiment, as the very presence of American troops in his command had a vitalizing effect on his troops. Meanwhile we needed every one of our divisions for the Argonne offensive. It was for Marshal Foch, as supreme commander, to decide whether or not some of them were even more needed elsewhere, in the development of his strategy which seemed to take into consider- ation the value of our vigorous rushes in breaking through old front- line positions. Even the facility of his rapid combination, which were hard on shoe leather and rolling stock, could not have a division in two places at once; but at times it seemed to some of the soldiers as if the High Command were trying to achieve that impossibility. As we came from a country of great distances, the marshal apparently thought that we liked to travel. Movements which were then neces- sarily shrouded in the strictest secrecy, in order to safeguard our aim of surprising the Germans with sudden blows, are now revealed as the processes of a masterly plan. GETTING INTO THE OPEN Consider the secpence of events in conquering the trench systems. On September 26 we had attacked in the Meuse-Argonne in conjunc- tion with the Fourth French Army west of the Argonne Forest. On September 29 the British went against the Hindenburg Line to clean up the last of the old front line in their sector, and on October 2d the French attacked to clean up the last of it in the neighborhood of Rheims. The Germans resisted these operations strongly and with a certain success at the outset, which, taken in connection with the slowing down of our First Army's and the Fourth French Army's offensive, it is said, encouraged Ludendorff in the belief that German tactics were still supreme and that he could successfully withdraw his army; but all he had was a little breathing spell. Each of these actions which finally freed the Allied armies from the shackles of the trenches for mobile operations, and committed the Germans to open warfare, influenced the others. In the first we played the major part; in the other two our detached divisions played a part which I 556 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY should like to describe at length, and which I may mention because of their relations to the Argonne battle. Of the ten divisions assigned to the British army after it fought with its back to the wall against the March and April offensive, Mar- shal Foch had withdrawn all but two for the defense of Paris and the counteroffensives of the Chateau-Thierry operations, and then passed them on, according to plan, to our own army. On September 26 these two, O'Ryan's 27th, New York National Guard, and Lewis's 30th, or Old Hickory Division of the National Guard from our South- ern mountain States, forming our Second Corps, under Major Gener- al George W. Read, attacked the Hindenburg Line at one of its strongest points where the Saint-Quentin Canal runs in a tunnel through a ridge. The 30th, with the easier going of the two, won all its objectives handily; the 27th, against positions which were impreg- nable by every rule of natural and artificial defenses, with its flank exposed, its communications cut by shell fire, fought a battle of com- pany, platoon, squad, and individual heroism which was an immortal tribute to its manhood; and the Australians, with a gallantry in keep- ing with their record, finished a task which our men could not com- plete. VETERANS AND TEND^RFEKT Our 2d Division, one of our two "best" veteran divisions, attacked on October 2 east of Rheims against the famous and infamous Cham- pagne defenses. It was a wonderful action of the same order as the 1st Division's drive of the wedge across the heights of the Aire in the critical juncture of the Argonne battle. With the same veteran precision as the ist the men of the 2d kept their formations; with the same spirit they "drove through." When the operation was finished the Germans had fired their last shot into Rheims. The 2d .was relieved by the 36th, Smith's hardy and stalwart National Guard of Texas and Oklahoma, which had never heard a hostile shot fired until its line was subjected to a sudden tornado of a prolonged German bombardment of the kind which mili- tary sagacity had been wont to prepare troops by gradual stages of "fire endurance." The men of the 36th were in the open; they had to "dig in." But they dug in where they were, not to the rear. They were not demoralized, though it took a little time for them to reor- ganize for an effective attack, and there was no thought of anything except attack, in answer to that outburst which the Germans, in their spleen, doubtless enjoyed visiting upon a new division. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 557 "what ark they there for, anyway?" What a contrast between these two divisions ! The 2d, with all its equipment complete, all its veteran units, artillery, machine gunners, trench mortars, and hospitals, working systematically, crowning its achievements with one of singular skill ! The 36th, tenderfeet on the front, with incomplete equipment, depending on alien artillery, al- together inexperienced but stoically meeting the test which was sup- posed to throw fresh troops into a panic ! Afterward the 36th hurried along with the French pursuing the Germans to the Aisne ; for by the middle of October the German army from the Argonne Forest to the sea was feeling the Allied tidal wave in full flood and its operations were those of rear-guard action, which was persistently resourceful in the use of machine guns and artillery. From the Argonne to the Meuse, where our First Army was fighting for the Kriemhilde Stellung, as I wrote in my second article, Luden- dorff had no less reason for desperate resistance now than before to keep us from closing the door of his retreat; while across the Meuse back of Verdun, he had all the more reason for tenacity. I have described how the Argonne battle was a fight for the whaleback of heights with the Aire River forming a trough on one side and the Meuse River on the other ; and how on the Meuse side the German artillery from the heights on the other side of the river played upon our Third Corps on one flank while that from the heights of the whaleback played upon the other. Until those heights across the Meuse were mastered the Argonne operation itself was in jeopardy; and the Seventeenth French Corps across the river wanted American divisions for the task. These included Bell's 33d Division of Nation- al Guardsmen on our extreme right. The Illinois men of the 33d were not only good soldiers but thrifty ones. On the first day of the Argonne they had captured eighteen guns (or cannon, as some people still call them), a narroAV-guage railway, and 1,450 prisoners, with a loss of only thirty-six killed and 207 wounded and no missing. No farther advance was expected of them as a part of our army. They were in a picturesque position beyond Le Mort Homme or Dead Man's Hill, where the French and Germans had struggled in the Verdun battle days, and they were patrolling the river bank to keep any German counter-attack from crossing. Without even telling the Third Corps staff about it, they had built their own road over the shell craters of Le Mort Homme, which made them perfectly independent and snug on their job. On October 4 they were transferred back to the Seventeenth French Corps, which meant that they were to cross the Meuse as soon as the French had cleared the bank opposite them to give them a footing. 558 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY On the heights across the river the Germans had plenty of artillery to bring to bear at any point they chose along the river on the 33d's front. It is a mystery to me still how the 33d's men spanned the Meuse with such slight losses. I think that it was because they ap- proached the task as part of the day's work. They had together the material for their bridges at Brabant and Consenvoye in sight of the Germans, and had to build them under unceasing shell fire while they wore their gas masks. That at Consenvoye took five and a half hours and according to the report there were ninety shells a minute falling. I did not envy the work of the man who had to do the counting. Both bridges were up on time, and the infantry under cover of the Forges Wood waited for the French to give the cue. In the middle of the morning, under full observation, while the 33d's artillery was raining shells on the other bank to cover their crossing, they started over the bridge. By nightfall one regiment was on the other bank and digging in on the southern side of the Chaumes Wood. The next thing was to go for the heights, which brings us to as bit- ter, savage fighting as any in the Meuse-Argonne offensive, involving three other American divisions in a battle which was a battle by itself, fought on the edge of the old Verdun battle field in the cold autumn rains under conditions such as the French endured in 191 6. It was more thankless for these divisions than being in the Argonne. They did not have the center of the stage. If they succeeded, their opera- tions would be considered subsidiary to that of our main army. If they failed, then their comrades in the Argonne battle would be say- ing: "Why the devil don't those fellows clear out the artillery that is shooting us in the back? What are they there for anyway?" For that is the way divisions think of their neighbors in the press of battle when they see only their own troubles without considering that other divisions may have even worse troubles than they. The Germans had still another reason for holding this system of heights than having a vantage point for pounding our advance on the heights of the whaleback. It vitally concerned their second line of defense, where they were supposed to make their stand on a shorter line in Ludendorff's reported plan. With the hills of the Meuse and the hills around Verdun lost, the plain of the Woevre was completely open: the American army would begin its spring campaign of 1919 on German soil. Thus the positions on the east bank of the Meuse were the rivets in the flange of the hinge of the door. With them taken, we had not merely swung the door open; we had burst it open. The Germans were defending positions whose character they knew as you may nev- er know it from map studies — through feeing out every square yard of it in the Verdun battle. At their backs were all their tried gun HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 559 positions, all the barrack buildings for quarters, all the roads which were prepared for the assembly of material for the gigantic Verdun offensive. MARSHAL FOCH, DIRECTOR At our backs was the wreckage of village and broken roads which would have to be rebuilt through No Man's Land; and the ground was against us at every turn of our advance. Any attempt to clear those heights of German observers, who mapped our movements on the west bank of the Meuse to artillery securely out of reach of our guns, was an assignment of the kind that has built many new ceme- teries on the battle fields of the western front. Yet the effort was obviously necessary. No one could criticize the wisdom of the French plan. Succeed or fail, the effort must be made; and there could not be complete failure. Every shell fired on the east bank of the Meuse was drawing one from the west bank. Every German killed or wounded or exhausted was one kept out of the Argonne battle, and of all the actions Marshal Foch was director. Morton's 29th Division, "Blue and Gray," National Guard from New Jersey, which had come from the quiet sector of the Vosges, where a few shells daily broke the monotony in deep trenches, came, as the other new divisions had come, in these months of September and October, to endure such a mortal test as that of the Etrayes, the Plat du Chene, Belleu, and Ormont Woods. The Jersey men were on the scene of one of the greatest battles of all time. They were compan- ions of Frenchmen who had been in that battle; while their own countrymen across the river were calling them to do their utmost. They were expected on that first day of October 8 to carry the great Malbrouck Hill, to go through to Molleville Farm, and this they did. They were expected, too, to take the Grand Montague Ridge' and the Etrayes Ridge, which in one drive would have given them the German positions which harassed us on the other side of the river, and this they could not do. Through ravines and woods, up the slopes and down again, the 29th gained three miles after an attack which was made without any artil- lery preparation, in order that it should be a surprise — as it was, in that the German guns did not become active for twenty minutes. By this time they had a full realization of the danger that threatened their positions. The next day the 33d, with its left on the river bank, got through the Chaumes Wood, but its right extended into that region of woods and ravines where the Germans were prepared for desperate resist- ance against the 29th. French and Americans had met the kind of opposition which for four years had kept the line of the western front unbroken. They had to form up their line of resistance, bring in 56o HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY patrols which were too far forward, and then attack, and attack and attack, and defend themselves from counter-attacks for days and weeks. The Austrians and other weaker troops against them were now replaced by Prussians and Wurttembergers, who had the con- fidence of their strong defenses and a sentimental feeling that they would not yield ground which had been theirs throughout the battle of Verdun. TURNING TH^ KI;y Our movement here was much like that in the main battle, a swing in from the river bank toward the high ground, fighting from the trough of fire of the roads, under full observation of the enemy artil- lery, uphill at every point in tortuous ground. Death Valley is a memory that will never be effaced in the mind of any man who ever had to run its gamut of gas and shells. Working in a bowl as we were, our line was necessarily in a dis- advantageous semicircle looking up to the rim. On the northern rim, the left, the side toward the river, the forest heights of Mon- tague and Etrayes surmounted the rim, with the Pylon Observatory the supreme goal; and on the other side, toward the plain of the Woevre, covering the road in this direction, was the Haumont Wood ; and then, farther up, the commanding little Ormont Wood; and beyond that, on the other side of the road, just where the road passed over the ridge was the Belleu Wood. They were key woods — Ormont and Belleu. With both taken, you looked out on the valley of Damvillers, and you had the Montagne-Etrayes positions in flank. The hills on the other side of the valley of Damvillers were the last barrier to the open sweep of the great plain to German soil. There was no describing . the defenses as first, second, third, and fourth lines. They were continuous, beginning at the edge of a wood and at the bottom of a slope and utilizing every thicket, every twist of a ravine all the way to the crests. Concrete pill boxes and trenches roofed with logs, which the Germans had built in other days, were used as the strong points in linking up the system of machine- gun emplacements in open warfare. Each vantage point had been carefully studied in its relations to all others in full knowledge of how limited was our area of effort. Any tactical surprise was out of the question except through unexpected vigor of attack. Of course the way to get Ormont Wood was to encircle it ; and the 29th gained a foothold in the edge of it and was part way around it when the Germans answered our success by counter-attacks which had the ardor of the early days of the war. The 29th counter-attacked in turn and held some of the gains — held them in precarious fox holes in the midst of brush and seeping earth where to raise the head HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY- 561 was to receive a spray of machine-gun fire. In another effort we reached the Grande Montagne Wood and once more were in Molle- ville Farm, but the interlocking fire from the ridges left the balance against us. The thing was either to "go through" or else not to put yourself in a position where the enemy simply wore you down. ACCORDING To TRADITION On October 27 Edward's 26th, the Yankee Division of New Eng- land's National Guard, came in to relieve a French division. General Edwards, who had been exhausted by his long service, had to yield command on the 24th to General Bamford. The 26th was as veteran as the 32d and 42d. From the time it had had its first trench ser- vice in the Chemin des Dames on through the ghastly Toul sector, through the operations of Chateau-Thierry, and finally in its swift march cutting the Saint-Mihiel salient, it had had all the varied ser- vice that could fall to any division, and now it was to finish its career in France with an experience which drew on the character associated with New England's "stern and rock-bound coast" traditions to the full. Its veteran artillery joined the veteran artillery of the French in a preparation for an attack on the morning of the 23d which gave the ofifensive in the battle something approaching the gun power of the defensive. How the men would have welcomed a straight-on drive on a clean frontal line instead of this irregular front of ravines, hills, cups, and woods with its baffling intricacy! The 26th gained its ob- jective in the Molleville Farm and converged on the Etrayes Ridge as its part in the operation with the 29th on its right; and a second battalion, leapfrogging the attacking battalion, went through the im- important little Belleu Wood which commanded the valley beyond. This was a dagger thrust into the very heart of the German defenses. That night the German guns from all directions turned on high ex- plosives, shrapnel, and gas on this small area, where not a square yard was uncovered by the hail of death. Then there was a mis- understanding of orders, it is said; at least, the men, many of them protesting, were withdrawn. The 26th was not discouraged. Its temper was up now. With all its strength, freshened by its rest before going into line, it forced the fighting all day and all night of the 24th, while the German artillery raged with increased fury. Again the 26th penetrated the Belleu Wood — and held there against three enemy counter-attacks, each coming on with fresh reserves, and finally, while the enemy was pound- ing all the roads and laying barrages against our reserves, the New Englanders, outnumbered, gassed, and exhausted, had to yield the 562 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY five hundred yards which they had won to a fourth counter-attack. It was bitter hard luck. THROUGH DEATH VAI^LEY A night of re-forming in the ravines where cover could be found; another call for the artillery to clear the way, and not waiting for dawn this time, but in the dead of night at 2:30 a.m., while the light of the bursting shells flashed, the figures of friend and foe in relief — out of the darkness the men of the 26th again won possession of a large part of the wood, though not that on the crest of the ridge. On the afternoon of the same day, still forcing the issue, they tried for the wooded bastion of Ormont. They were met with blasts from the artillery and trench mortars and enfilading machine-gun fire, and, taking profit from what they had learned, they re-attacked the next day and gained the Ormont summit, but it was not in human flesh to retain it in face of the reception which they received. Two days' "rest" followed — rest in the midst of gassed woods under machine- gun fire and in the troughs of fire. Then they tried again and made their footing stronger in the Belleu, but they could not take Ormont. The Germans could not afford to yield the mastery of those two key positions, Ormont and Belleu. On the night of the 28th-30th the 29th Division, with the faces of the men as gray from fatigue as the reeking moist fresh shell craters by the roadside marched down the trough of Death Valley for the last time, and in their place had come the men of Kuhn's 79th Divis- ion, which had had its baptism of fire breaking the first line in the Ar- gonne battle. The persistent work of the 26th, 29th, and 33d on the east bank of the Meuse was having the same effect as that of the divisions in the main battle — of breaking the enemy's will. Fresh- ened by its rest, having digested its lessons of the Argonne, the 79th came into the arena at the time when we were making the final rush in the Meuse-Argonne battle. East or west of the Meuse, we were on the slooes of the last of the heights. Much was expected of the 79th, and it was to do much. When it took over the treacherous line of the Molleville Farm sector it brought against the German posi- tions of the Montague and Etrayes Forests the same energy that the 29th had shown in its first advance. When it had cleared the wooded valley of the Damvillers road it was before that high, bald knob, the Borne de Cornevillers, which the soldiers called "Cold Corned Willie." The approach to the crest was over a smooth rise against trenches, with machine-gun nests in the woods sweeping across the line of advance. In three days of repeated bull-hearted attacks the men of the 79th stuck to their mission until they had cleared the woods of HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 563 machine guns and taken the Borne, whence they looked down on the valley of the Meuse, as the German observers had, and along the roads and open spaces clear to the Romagne positions; and they un- derstood now why we wanted these heights. THE EINAI^ GRAND ATTACK When the 79th now faced around toward the other side of the rim, taking over some of the front of the 26th, which side-slipped and was still undaunted, the scales balanced in our favor, as the Germans were in retreat on our main battle ground. Sending its fresh men into the fox holes, which the 26th had dug in the Belleu Wood, the 79th turned all the wrath of its artillery upon the other edge of the woods and the crest. We gained and held the crest in a final charge, and the Pylon Observatory was ours too, as we looked down on the valley of our desire as the next stage of progress. Now we turn to the final grand attack in the main battle. Our gunners had a glitter in their eyes on the morning of November i. This time we had something like enough guns. New guns Avere ar- riving throughout the battle. From every source we had drawn on our reserves. Our corps and army artillery had a force in keeping with their high-sounding importance; and they had learned their parts in the scheme of the shower of projectiles in a great offensive which General' Hinds, the chief of artillery, had planned. Admiral Plunkett had his long-range naval guns in position; and his blue- jackets wanted to use them at point blank lest the navy should not be really at the front when it engaged in land warfare. The artillery of divisions whose infantry was recuperating had been kept in line. And all were glad to be in the line when there was to be a big party, which meant no piecemeal attack, but that all the guns along the whole line would be roaring. "old hands to puIvL you through" The barrages, which are what his shield was to the soldier of old, were to march ahead of our men with a prodigal hail, and the other guns of all calibers, with their different missions, were to pound the enemy's battery positions, his machine-gun nests, his new trenches, and all the points where he might have lightning in store to destroy the infantry. It is the soldier, the infantryman, the doughboy, who has the most appeal of course ; but a part of that appeal, blended with the affection and the awe we feel for him, is the joyful satisfaction of walking miles with guns on every hand, all firing shells to make a bridge for the man who takes the ground away from the enemy. I felt on the day before the attack, as I moved about the army, that all 564 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY the effort, all the disciplme, all the irritations, all the determination against all manner of obstacles, from the base ports to the front line, had come into being in an organization which had found itself . in the crudest, most monstrous and exacting game that a mad world had ever staged. November i was a bright day in the Argonne re- gion, fit for the triumph which it was to bring. How you thrilled when, after our infantry advanced under its thunderous protection, there came no great reponsive chorus from the enemy's guns ! It was the thrill of the hope that the end of the war might be near. The plan of the attack was to pass the center of gravity to Dick- man's First Corps on the left. In close reserve behind the 2d, the left division of Summerall's Fifth, the center corps, was the ist Divis- ion with its gaps refilled, ready for another great effort, and behind the 80th the right division of the First Corps, was the 426. or Rain- bow, rested after breaking the Romagne positions. The message of the veteran ist to the veteran 2d was the same as that of the 42d to the 80th : "If you get in trouble, hete are some old hands to pull you through, and to follow through, too!" Think of the 2d, which was "the best" division in the army, being told that the other "best" di- vision in the army had any such thoughts in mind. For once we had the enemy going we meant to have enough fresh troops in hand to keep him on the move. This was one reason why we had taken time to prepare for the final rush. Alexander's 77th, which had had a rest after the Argonne Forest, was in line again. There was no doubting the spirit of the 77th. And beyond the Forest of Argonne, to the north, was the great Forest of Bourgogne, which might have been a part of it, being of the same nature, if the gap of Grand Pre had not separated the two. THK STUP^F THAT WINS We did not try a frontal attack on the Bourgogne as we had on the Argonne. The French were to squeeze it on the west side and we were to squeeze it on the east and by way of making the process easier we soaked it with Yperite gas. On the left of the First Corps was McRae's 78th, the Lightning Division men whom we had seen keeping their discipline, their grit, and still singing the song — warn- ing the Hun to keep down his head if he did not want to join "his father in the old fatherland" — which I heard them singing when I saw them going into the trenches for the first time on the Amiens- Albert road. In their storming of the "citadel" of Grand Pre and their efforts to take Loges Wood the men of the 78th had shown that they had the stuff that "keeps coming on" — the stuff that wins wars. They had thoroughly "Yperited" the Loges Wood on the HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 565 morning of November i, but the Yperite did not silence the German machine gunners there or in the Bourgogne Forest. If it had, the 77th might have taken the Champigneulle sooner, and the First Corps, which had the hardest task and hardest fighting on November i, would have gone farther. Probably the German staff recognized the danger, for to the last the German staff was masterly as the devil himself in its tactical direction of its troops, which still had the spirit to fight well. Be that as it may, the 78th got forward in the Bourgogne, and the 80th kept going, and the next day the Germans had retired fi-om the Loges Wood, as well they might, considering what our center, the Fifth Corps, was doing. On November 2 we had the word that everywhere the First Corps had broken the enemy's resistance and struck its stride as a further item of the good news that thrilled us clear into our marrows. In the Fifth Corps was Wood's old division, the 89th, which Wright, a man who faced the enemy "all four-square," commanded, and the 2d, rejuvenated after taking Blanc Mont in helping the French to disengage Rheims. Summerall had said that he would "go through" if he had a bridge of shells, and kept his word, as' well as he might with two such divisions as the 89th and the 2d. Without any halts, as in a maneuver, the 2d and 89th advanced under the curtains of protecting fire while groups of prisoners filtered back behind the movement. Our artillery had done a fine piece of mowing; our in- fantry was doing a fine piece of gleaning. The Fifth Corps had made the bulge required, and rather kept the center of gravity to itself. The men of the 2d might not have understood what was meant by the center of gravity in a tactical plan, but with the ist tagging their heels waiting for a chance to "chip" in, they were not inclined to allow a center of gravity or anything else get away from them. For neighbor on his right Summerall had Hines, with the Third Corps. Hines, who also trained in the school of the ist, had suc- ceeded Bullard when Bullard was promoted to command the Second Army, and Liggett to command the First Army; and he was worthy to be Summerall's neighbor. He had as his National Army division the excellent 90th, worthy companion of the 89th, under "Hal" Allen. Although Allen's mustache is white now, he is as young in heart as he was on the polo fields twenty years ago. I want to add that the 90th, which had come into line on October 23, had taken Bantheville, and that the 89th, too, in the preliminary operations for the final at- tack, had gained most important positions — both divisions now being classed as veteran. With the 90th in the Third Corps was the 5th, which had now be- come regular in the full sense. The Meuse bends westward, and the Third was tilting toward the Meuse. It gained all its objectives on 566 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY schedule on that first day, working swiftly and efficiently, under well- timed artillery fire and a curtain of machine-gun bullets. On the morning of November 2 the German communique announced, for the first time in four years and more of its literary propagan- da for the German people and the world, that the German line had been broken ; and on that day our whole line made another spring for- ward on schedule time. The whaleback was ours. We looked down on the valley of the Meuse, winding toward Sedan. The survivors of the step-by-step advance in the Argonne had only to stretch their legs now. Motor trucks followed the infantry over unharmed roads hurrying up supplies. Other motor trucks brought the reserves. Civil population in villages, uninjured except by a few shells, wel- comed us. It was a march against a little artillery fire and some machine gun fire, while we gathered in the stragglers of many brok- en German divisions. CROSSING THE MEUSE CANAE Our movement was now becoming fan-shaped, with our rushing divisions on our left spreading out into the sector of the French Fourth Army, and the divisions on our right gradually forming their front on the bank of the curving Meuse. Of course the 5th, on the extreme right, was the first in position for a crossing. It had to pass over the Meuse Canal after it had passed over the river. By i a.m. of the 3d a patrol was across the Meuse, but was checked at the canal by machine guns, which also stopped some engineers who were trying to build a footbridge at dawn. At dark that night engineers had a footbridge over the river, but the artillery joined in with the machine guns and forced them to dig in on the bank of the canal. However, the evening was yet young. Two footbridges were put over the canal before morning, but when small columns tried to rush across all their efi:orts were swept back by well-directed blasts. At nine-thirty the next morning the army sent word that the cross- ing must be effected, as the whole movement of the army depended upon it. Therefore, it was not in order to wait on darkness. We must get to work immediately. We should try many points, and at some points we were bound to succeed. At Clery-le-Petit we started to make a bridge of pontoons, but the pontoons were smashed by shells as fast as they were put in the water; and, although the bridge was made, there was no crossing it against the hurricane of fire. A little later two battalions, attacking by surprise without artillery prepara- tion, gained a crossing at Brieulles, and about the same time another battalion, the men using improvised rafts, or duckboards, poles, and ropes, and swimming, slipped over into the Chatillon Woods. As HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 567 all the men were wet to the skin and the night was cold, action was the only means of keeping warm, and before morning they had clean- ed up the woods. The next thing was to master the town of Dmi- sur-Meuse. "Take the shelling and the machine-gun fire," was the divisional command. "Go through Dun and then go east. Push things along." By midday of November 5 Dun was taken. The German was being given no time to rest; and the next day the men of the 5th advanced four miles among the heights on the other side of the Meuse. The enterprise of the 5 th had forewarned the Germans what they might expect from the 90th, which had farther to go than the 5th, and had some bad ground to clean up on the way. Meanwhile a regiment of the 32d had come in between the 90th and the 5th; so the "Arrows" were not out of the pursuit. MOUTH-WATERING HOUNDS The Germans on the bank opposite the 90th were intrenching-, and while dropping gas shells on our bank their artillery was as quick as their machine gunners to concentrate their fire on our attempts at crossing. The 90th went through much the same experience as the 5th. The Texans were not in a mood to be stopped by a river now that they had tasted pursuit, and after stiff fighting they took the town of Stenay on the other side on the loth and extended their advance to the hills beyond. Wright's 89th, of the Fifth Corps, in the center, was keeping up with the 90th, and it found, as the 90th and as the 2d, on its left, had found, that the Germans were continuing to cover all the approaches to the river with machine-gun and artillery fire. It had been the "race-horse" second which had captured the German officers at a card game, and which in one of its night marches captured an officer in the midst of his inspection of his machine-gun platoon preparatory to making a strategic retreat. All the divisions were making night marches, but the 2d had a particular reason for urgency on this score, because there was the ist in reserve pressing up for a chance — yet, it had the impudence to think that it might go through the 2d — to relieve anybody in the front line that was tired — with all the mouth- watering watchfulness of a hound waiting to pick up a bone if an- other hound dropped it. When it was decided that the 80th, which had been put in without sufficient time for recuperation after its ser- vice in the Third Corps, should be given a little rest in reserve, the 1st, which had been thirty-six hours at a stretch on its feet, had its ambition — as our first division to arrive in France to be in at the finish — gratified. To every man of ours the sight of that valley 568 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY as he moved downhill after he had fought an uphill fight for six weeks, was as the sight of water calling a thirsty man in the desert. The little men from the tenements, in the 77th, New York's own Liberty- Division, kept forcing themselves along under their heavy packs, for it is not the habit of Metropolitans to miss a parade. As the first National Army division to arrive in France, they had just as much right to be in at the finish as the ist — though, to tell the truth, it was not sentiment which kept a division in or took one out, but the tactical considerations of the moment. The 42d, pressing forward for an opening with all the fervor of the ist, went through McRae's "Jersey Lightnings" of the 78th — all honor to them and their com- mander: they who had shown the endurance of porpoise hide after their grueling attacks in the Grand Pre gap by making a fifteen-mile advance fighting along the edges of the Bourgogne Wood. "press the enemy" As the 42d represented twenty-six States, it would not have paid much attention, even if its orders had been dififerent, to army sectors when it was in full cry after the enemy on the way to the River Meuse. The report that the Rainbows had entered Sedan was due to a misunderstanding by one who read the Rainbow's message on the subject. They had entered Wadelincourt, a suburb on the other side of the river from Sedan. The difference was that of mistaking Jersey City for New York if the North River was about a sixth of its breadth. The French took Sedan ; and that was as it should be. There was historical fitness in those veteran poilus, in their faded blue coats, be- ing the first to enter that town where a French disaster due to a travesty of imperial leadership had glorified the Hohenzollern and his army which was now broken in retreat ; and it was equally fitting too that the British veterans should take Mons, where Sir John French's "contemptibles" had shown how bravely men could die against overwhelming odds. The 42d side-slipped out of the French sector. On the night of November 10 the 2d and the 89th Divisions accomplished their cross- ing of the Meuse. The next morning we continued to advance along our whole front on the other bank, while our Second Army in the Saint-Mihiel sector made an attack which was part of plans already made. As an army we had no orders yet except to press the enemy, gaining every advantage we could. We had no official word that the armistice would be signed. One of the most convincing reasons which the Germans had for signing it — and many officers thought that the Germans might not sign it, as they still had a large army in being — was the events on the Meuse during the first ten days of Nevember which gave us all the positions of the Meuse. On many HONOR ROLIv OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 569 occasions German peace talk had had no object apparently except to injure the morale of the Allied armies; and throughout the peace discussions of October it was not the business of the soldiers to be in- fluenced by it, but to go on fighting all the harder until the order to cease firing came. whe;n dreams come true Until eleven o'clock on November 1 1 the German artillery was fir- ing at some points where we were not attacking. Instantly the mess- age that an armistice was signed came from Marshal Foch's head- quarters it was transmitted over the lines and operations were stop- ped as fast as units could be informed. Some small parties, working their way against machine-gun nests, could not be reached in time. Individual soldiers who were creeping forward in Avoods and ravines had to be warned in person before they stopped sniping at machine- gun nests which they were encircling. The 79th Division had only one more hill to take before it gained the great plain of the Woevre. When one of the advanced units received the word that the war was over a soldier exclaimed: "Hell! Aren't you going to let us take the last hill and finish the job?" The New Englanders of the 26th were fighting beside the 79th, advancing steadily after their terrible days in the battle for the heights on the east bank of the Meuse. Now we had them all except that one hill. Oh, the happiness of that day of the armistice to one who had been four years with the war! The guns were silent — silent all the way from Switzerland to the sea; the grindings of the mill of hell had ceased. And the happiness of the succeeding days following our troops to the Rhine and in seeing King Albert enter Brussels, the British guarding the bridge at Cologne and the French in Alsace — dreams come true at every turn of the road in every soldier's face in every village ! But this is not an article of impressions. AEE PROVED THEMSEEVES The Meuse- Argonne battle had been won. Our army, in the course of the winning, had stretched its resources to the utmost. We had only two fresh divisions in reserve, while the French had fourteen and the British seven — which I mention to show that, although we came into the war late, we were all in at the end. Six of our Nation- al Army divisions participated in the final phase. All had proved themselves. But why think of the army in divisions when the gaps in the ranks of divisions had been filled by strangers to the localities from which they came? In order to have replacements we broke up two National Army divisions — which was a heartbreaking thing to do — and all the more so as the pressure on the lines of communica- 570 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY tion required that some of the battahons should be turned into labor troops. Our hospitals were full. Our teams of surgeons, our divisional surgeons, our privates, our officers, all hands, were groggy with the kind of fatigue that one night's rest would not cure after that fearful six weeks' draft on their nerve energy. One does not forget the stretcher bearers, and least of all one does not forget the nurses. I mean not the women of the volunteer organizations, but the army nurses, the practical, trained women under army discipline who worked double time. They became hollow-eyed with weariness, but remained cheerful and smiling. In all the gatherings of veterans' associations they should have a place of honor. Trench Fighting Written by Conrad Anderson of Company D, Three Hundred Six- teenth Infantry, Seventy-ninth Division. We arrived at the front in the Meuse sector about 3 o'clock in the morning of Tuesday, October 29th, to relieve the Twenty-sixth Divis- ion. Some of us were immediately sent ahead for outpost duty in small rifle pits ahead of the lines. These pits were small holes in the ground camouflaged with leaves and branches. We were three in a pit — there I was with one Jew and one Italian. Here we were on guard all day. After dark we were relieved and went back for twenty-four hours rest, spent in a shallow cave covered with corru- gated iron. In all, we were about forty men crowded into this small cave, which would not allow us all to lie down. The shells were fly- ing all around, and we had one very close call when a shell made a dent in the iron of our cave, though luckily it did not explode. The next evening we resumed our positions in the rifle pits for another twenty-four hours, after which we were relieved and went back about a kilometer for rest in dugouts which the Germans had constructed. These were substantially boarded up with planks and were about thirty-five feet in the ground. Some were provided with small stoves but we did not use them as the smoke would betray our positions and expose us to even more shell fire. Our position at the front was not very favorable. We were, so to say, in a horseshoe with Germans on three sides. Early Sunday morning, November 3d, the Germans sent over a heavy barrage and we were to take our positions in the lines to be ready for a counter- attack. During our removal in the night members of our company became mixed with other companies. We were short of candles and it was pitch dark in the dugouts. I was in the first platoon ordered out, but when we had gone a little distance I did not recognize any of HONOR ROLL OF EUENA VISTA COUNTY 571 them, and upon inquiry as to what company they belonged to I was dismayed to reaHze that I was with the wrong company. It was on my return that I was hit by a bursting shell. Consequently I was not able to move out with our own company, but remained in this dugout all day, together with three others who were gassed and a stretcher-bearer. Although we were so deep in the ground, the earth fairly shook when the big shells struck above us. In the evening we attempted to reach a first-aid station, but were compelled by heavy shell fire to seek refuge in another dugout for the night. The fol- lowing morning I reached safely the first-aid station. Taken Prisoner at Meuse-Argonne Written by Vear Nichols of Company B, Three Hundred Six- teenth Infantry, Seventy-ninth Division. On November 3d, with seven of my comrades I became separated from the command on the way back to the reserve lines. It was very dark, and that section of the Argonne in which we were fighting was rough in the extreme, filled with shell-holes, and the forest itself dense and tangled beyond description. It was impossible to find one's way without runners or guides. Ben Kaufman of Storm Lake and Fred Boettcher of Grant Township were among our little party. After wandering about until daylight we found ourselves near an empty dugout, which we at once occupied. It was almost sure death to move about during the day, and we hoped to escape observation by thus hiding. About noon Boettcher and two of the other men made a try for the camp kitchen, in spite of the obvious risks. I do not know whether or not they succeeded in working through, as that was the last I saw of Fred. During the evening of the 3d we managed to get in touch with a runner, who guided us to the company dugout. The company itself was then on the front line, and we rejoined it the next morning. Shortly after, we advanced in the face of heavy machine gun fire, and captured about seventy-five of the "square heads" sending them to the rear. About 8 o'clock the enemy sent over a heavy barrage, under which we dug in as best we could. Our captain was killed shortly after the barrage started, and our major was wounded in the leg. The Germans kept up this fire until there were only about thirty- five or forty left of two full companies. Then they came at us, hurl- ing hand grenades as they advanced. With the barrage back of us it was impossible to retire. We kept firing with our rifles until the Boches were right on us, in overwhelming numbers. There was nothing left to do but to give up. I can not understand how au}^ of us were left to surrender. 572 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY I started to get out of a little ditch to help a man just in front who had been hit. But hardly had I moved when my rifle was hit by a bullet, just grazing my hand. As soon as we had yielded, the Ger- mans started back with us. Another comrade and myself carried the wounded major to the enemy's first-aid station, where he was attended to. We were then taken back of the German lines to a small town, where we were placed in the underground apartments of a ruined church. There we found our two lieutenants and a couple of our men. The next day eight of us were marched all day, under guard of two mounted men, arriving at a somewhat larger town about 6 o'clock in the evening. There we found the remains of our outfit, and there our gas masks and helmets were taken. The next morning we were hiked to a rail- road and given an hour's ride. That evening we were taken back to a point near that from which we started, and were joined by about 150 other American prisoners. On the morning of November 7th we were all headed for Germany, on foot. The hike was continued until evening, when we reached Virtun, Belgium. There I was taken from the party and sent to a hospital. About a week previously I had bruised my elbow, by strik- ing a tree while carrying food at night to the front line. The injury did not seem serious enough to require examination or dressing. But it had become infected, and by the evening of the 7th I was no longer able to keep up with the others. I was put in with a bunch of French and Italian wounded. There is but little left to tell as to my experiences. We did not know that the armistice had been signed until November 12th, when the guards left. All the wounded who were able to move started at once to make their way back to France. The Frenchmen certainly were in a hurry, and they can "beat it" toward the homeland, as well as toward the enemy. My injury still threatening, I was sent into the main hospital. There were about 1,600 wounded Germans in the lot, and I found eleven other Americans among the men under treatment. And you can believe I was sure glad to be where I could talk United States again. The Germans started moving out all their wounded men who could stand the transfer the day after the armistice was signed. On November 13th the advance guard of the American army ar- rived. It brought magazine and cigarettes, among other good things, and we were certainly glad to see the men and the supplies. On the 1 8th we were taken back to the American hospital. I must say that we were given excellent care and attention in the American hospital until December 12, when I was sent to the classification camp at St. Aignan. I saw Harry Kruse^ of Grant township, while at the classi- 1 Kruse died later in a camp in Virginia. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 573 fication camp. He was the only person I knew that I saw from November 7th until I returned to Camp Dodge. Best Find of All, From The Stars and Stripes, issue of November 22, 191 8. Then, treasure trove of treasure troves, the advancing Americans found in the German hospitals some Yankee wounded. In the big hospital at Virton, for instance, the Germans had been obliged to leave behind some 400 men too seriously wounded to be moved — left them there with a full staff of surgeons and nurses to care for them — and among these were nine Americans. They had lain there, lone- some and helpless, for many days and nights. They awoke on the morning of the 12th to find friendly Americans swarming around their beds, showering them with cigarettes and magazines. Seventy-ninth Division In a short reminiscence of the last few days of the war, Victor Os- car Johnson tells of straightening out a horseshoe sector, of going without food for three days, and of being lost for days from his com- pany: On November 4th we got orders to straighten out the left flank, also to take Hill No. 378. I was in the first platoon. Company D, Three Hundred Sixteenth Infantry. We went over the top the morn- ing of the 5th, captured our objective, and held it until the evening of the 6th, at which time we were relieved. This was the first real action in which I participated. The artillery fire again'st this hill by the Germans was very heavy, and their machine guns so active that it was almost impossible to get any rations to us. On November 4th, 5th, and 6th, I did not have a bite of any kind to eat, not even water to drink. The little water that was in my canteen the first day I gave to a wounded comrade. In the evening, after being relieved, I helped carry a man with one leg shot off to the first-aid station. Close to this place we found two kitchens, and though they had been shelled through the day we found some bread, syrup, and corn beef, so had a big feed. When the three of us finished our meal at midnight we did not know the way back to Company D, so we crawled into a shell hole to sleep until morning. Then we located our company. The Three Hun- dred Fifteenth and the Three Hundred Sixteenth Regiments were still holding the lines along this sector when the armistice was signed. It was a wonderful relief when the thunder of the big guns ceased. On November 13th I was with a detail of men looking for dead sol- 574 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY diers. We found quite a few of them; then we dug a grave a little way behind the lines, where we laid them to rest. ■ On November 14th we moved to a prison camp that had been used by the Germans, located between Reville and Echannay. Our last long hike was in the latter part of March, 1919, to the fourth training area in the general vicinity of Chaumont. This hike lasted for five days, but it was toward home, so everybody was happy. Pushing Back the Enkmy The best laid plans go oft awry. In handling two million men over disorganized transportation routes there were numerous oppor- tunities for miscarriage of plans. Chris Kladstrup of Newell tells of one such incident and the difficulty encountered in again finding the organization. At Montichard we stopped and had roll call and were then divided into small parties of about forty men each. The group I was with was sent to a small country town, St. Georges, about nine kilometers from Montichard. After drilling two weeks we entrained again, with forty-five men and equipment in each of the small French cars, to take a two days' journey to Is-sur-Tille, one of the large United States camps in France. Here was where the confusion occurred. Though most of the train was switched to the proper place, two cars were sidetracked by mistake, and the boys who were in them were separated from the rest of the company. I was in one of these cars. A day's ride took us to St. Dizier, where we spent the remainder of the day; then followed a rail journey of another day's. duration, after which we were loaded on trucks, and after riding almost all night failed to find our company. The next day we hiked seven kilometers, and again rode several hours on trucks, at the end of which we were fortunate enough to locate our company. After joining them we hiked during the night to some French barracks near Issoncourt, where we were part of an assemblage of 2,500 soldiers. Here we remained from the 14th to the 27th of October, then took a long hike to join the Three Hundred Thirteenth Infantry of the Seventy-ninth Division, and I was there given final assignment to Company F. This was at Rupt. That night we hiked a distance of thirty-five kilometers to Verdun, reaching there at 4 a.m. We were under shell fire from this time until November nth. We left Verdun October 29th for Cote der Roche and pitched our tents on the slopes of a hill directly in front of the artillery. There was a great deal of artillery at this place — mostly five and six-inch guns. We were terribly shelled on the way up to the front November HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 575 5th and lost many men in killed and wounded. The three Hmidred Thirteenth attacked at i o'clock at Brabrent. Cornsenoje Forest, Reville, Waville, Crepion, and Moirey were also captured by detach- ments of the Seventy-ninth Division. We were advancing all the time against the enemy, who was retreating very rapidly until November 9th, when we were relieved about nightfall. That night we got some rest and were moving into the lines the morning of the nth when the news first reached us of the signing of the armistice and that at 1 1 a.m. all hostilities would cease. It seemed too good to be true. Se^venty-ninth Division Written by Ernest W. Lehman, Company E, Three Hundred Six- teenth Regiment, Seventy-ninth Division. The start for the front was made on the afternoon of November 5th. That night we slept along the railroad track. The following day we hiked six hours and after spending the night in a church at the town of Dugny we were hauled in trucks to a point north of Verdun. From here we hiked four miles to find shelter in dugouts, where we had to be on guard for gas all night. On the 8th we marched to Etraye, where seventy-two men were transferred from the infantry into the machine gun company as ammunition runners. For thirty-six hours we carried messages. When, on the afternoon of the loth a comrade and I were ordered back to our original company, our first concern was for something to eat. On the morning of the nth, after aris- ing at 5 :30 and loading our ammunition carts, we started for the front intending to send over a barrage. Enroute we found a bridge blown to pieces, so had to unload the ammunition from the carts and carry it two miles. Thirteen machine guns were set up ready for action when orders came to move a little further forward. From the second location, further up the hill than the first, we sent our last barrage at 7:05 in the morning, while the German shells were flying all around, and put three machine guns out of commission, but for- tunately no men were severely wounded. At 11 o'clock everything was quiet. To include March 8, 1919, the total battle casualties of this division as reported, were 3,223. To include March i, 1919, eighty Distin- guished Service Crosses were awarded individuals of the Seventy- ninth Division. From To Subject 576 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Citation for 79TH Division Headquarters 79TH Division, American E. F., France. November 27, 191 8. Commanding- General. Co. O, 316th Infantry, thru C. G. 158th Infantry Brigade. Commendation of Regiment. 1. In the final offensive on the heights east of the Meuse and north of Verdun the task of breaking the enemy's resistance at the Borne du Cornouiller (Hill 378) devolved upon the 316th Infantry Regi- ment. Stubbornly defended by the enemy, this tactically strong point presented an obstacle of most serious character. In spite of all diffi- culties the Regiment succeeded after three days heavy fighting, No- vember 4th to 6th, in capturing and finally holding the Borne du Cornouiller, in breaking the enemy's resistance and contributed ma- terially to driving the enemy from the heights east of the Meuse a few days later. 2. Numerous authenticated instances of gallantry, tenacity and endurance have come to the Commanding General's notice, proving beyond a question that the Regiment acquitted itself with the great- est credit and in a manner worthy of the best American traditions. 3. The Commanding General takes great pride in the achieve- ments of the Regiment and directs that you bring this letter to the attention of your command. Joseph E. Kuhn, Major General U. S. A. The Lost Battaeion Company E of the Three Hundred Eighth Infantry was in "the Lost Battalion" and Albert Wolfe of^ this company tells the follow- ing story of these forces : Our boys were in the pocket six days and nights. When we got out there were only fifty of us left — the rest were killed, wounded, or taken prisoners. I was one of the bunch who filled the company up then. We went on for a few days and were relieved by the Sev- enty-eighth Division. On the morning of November 3d, we went into the line again but were not called upon to do much fighting; the Germans retreated too fast. It was just hike and hike to keep up within sight of them. We crossed the Meuse River on the last drive. The bridges were all blown up. Some of the boys lost their guns as well as other parts of their equipment in making the crossing. Our boys who were taken prisoners in the Argonne were returned to us about the first of January, 1919. They said they were treated pretty well while being prisoners. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 577 One boy by the name of Olson, from Rembrandt, who went when I did, died of pneumonia while I was with him. But that is the only boy I was with who died. Danne Redenbaugh was with our group when we went overseas, but we were separated after we got to France. BattIvE of Audenarde John E. Reese, of Nokomis Township, writes thus of Ninety-first Division^ activities: King Albert of Belgium had asked the Allied commanders for two good American divisions to be sent up there to put "pep" into the armies fighting in Belgium at that time. The Ninety-first and the Thirty-seventh, which were just out of the first big Argonne drive, were sent in answer to this call. This, by the way, was supposed to be the largest move the A.E.F. ever made, considered from the short length of time that it took to get these two divisions into Bel- gium. We were attached to the Fifth French Army Corps. We made two drives there — that is, we were in the second when the armistice was signed. We were at that time in Audenarde, where we were held up temporarily for a few days. There are three canals and the river Scheldt running through Au- denarde, and as all the bridges were blown up and the opposite banks well fortifi.ed we had to stop. Not much was known about the con- dition of the bridges, etc., but we did know that the Germans were shelling the place so badly that it was impossible to get through. The Allied forces did not have any luck getting information with air service because of weather conditions and heavy bombardment. So volunteers were called for from the engineers. Our captain sent two of us in first to observe conditions. We were busy dodging shells and Germans until 5 o'clock in the morning, but by this time we had learned the location of their batteries and their machine-gun layouts, as well as the condition of the blown-up bridges. "J^'^^y/' as we called the Germans, is a bear on demolition work. The next day we were in position to go in there — that is, after our artillery had moved Jerry's batteries. We had plenty of shell fire even for a few days later while we were building bridges, but we soon crossed the river and had him on a high lope by November nth. 1 Data on this division shows that thirty members of the division were given the Distin- guished Service Cross. John E. Reese was one of the men so honored. 578 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY The Wreck of Chateau Thierry Impressions of the wreckage at Chateau Thierry are recounted by S. L. Hoffman who was assigned to duty in that sector with an engi- neer company. For several miles we picked our way over this field on a track that had just been laid. Along the river pontoon boats and parts of bridges showed me where fellow engineers had attempted to build bridges across the stream under fire. The town of Chateau Thierry was just a pile of stones and dust, with every tree and brush wiped off the earth by machine gun and shrapnel. From here on the country looked worse and worse. Everywhere there were signs of war — tracks were lined with big guns and all along the road were thousands of French and American soldiers moving to the front. During a half hour's halt at Commercy we saw the marks of a bomb dropped from a Boche aeroplane. The track was not demolished, but the station and sheds were, and all the glass in town was shattered. At Toul I had to exhibit my orders to half a dozen French officers. Here I received my first mail, and among it the good news that I had been made captain on September 17th. I immediately donned the two bars. Toul was full of American colonels and generals and French officers of high rank, and I soon found out that a captain was small potatoes here. One of my first duties was to spend a week get- ting familiar with the locations and the surrendered positions of the Germans. All the stories about dugouts and shelters being furnish- ed with bath tubs, pianos and electric lights are true, for I saw men who fitted their camps with these conveniences from captured dug- outs. Nearly all the salvage companies had a piano or two. I saw considerable aerial fighting, and later had my first attempt at building a storehouse at Woinville knocked all to splinters by the Boche artillery. We built it up again and it remained unmolested. Let me illustrate the treachery of the Boche. Soon after beginning the construction of a railhead at Woinville there appeared one day a small Boche scout plane. It showed no signs of having a gun mount- ed on it, neither did it carry bombs. The French chased it away several times, but after concluding that it was not trying to do any harm ceased their vigilance. The driver would sail over us and drop down hand bills on which were printed advice to our boys to come over and join the German forces while they had a chance or they might never see home again. This peddling of bills kept up for about a week, when suddenly one day he darted over to a big observation balloon we had in the woods near by and riddled it with a machine gun he had cleverly hidden in the body of the plane. Our fellows HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 579 watched him after that, and in a few days brought him down in a shower of shrapnel. When the armistice was signed the nth of November the Boches came out of their holes, offered wine and bread, of which they seemed to have plenty, to our boys, and two hours after they ceased firing our fellows were over in their trenches and the troops were all mixed up. I celebrated the occasion by going to the Second Army staff offi- cers' ball at the French club. It was the first time the city had been lighted since the war. Everybody was in the spirit of the occasion. The morning of the 13th Colonel Downing and myself, after an ex- citing trip, made entrance into Metz, and claimed the distinction of being the first Americans to do so. We did not have any excitement after that until we got our first sight of the Statue of Liberty. Engineers BuiIvD Warehouses The wide variety of work accomplished by engineering companies is illustrated in the recital of the following incidents from the record of Major George K. McCullough of Storm Lake : The Eighty-eighth Division was organized at Camp Dodge during the fall of 191 7. The camp was not completed when the men report- ed there and the first duty of the engineers was to assist in the com- pletion of the buildings of the camp to make ready for occupancy. The Three Hundred Thirteenth Engineers was organized at this time and I was placed in command of Company B of this regiment. By the middle of October this regiment was practically filled up and the training commenced. About the last of October it was found by the War Department that replacements for the troops overseas at that time would be far in excess of what had been estimated and accord- ingly replacements were taken from the divisions in training on this side, the Eighty-eighth Division being included with the others. Dur- ing the fall of 1917 and the early spring of 1918, 756 men were on the rolls of Company B. These men were given from one to two months training and then sent as replacements for other units. In May, 191 8, orders were issued to fill up the units of the Eighty-eighth Di- vision and prepare them for departure overseas. The training schedule for overseas troops was commenced at Les Laumes, France, and after two weeks another move was made to Hericourt, about twenty-five miles from the eastern boundary of France. Here the regiment was split up and the First Battalion, of which Company B was a part, marched eastward to the town of Cha- vanne, arriving there on the 19th of September, 1918. The training schedule was resumed at this place, and in addition the tools and equipment for an engineer battalion were assembled and made ready 58o HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY for use. By a series of night marches October 5th, 6th, and 7th, Company B moved into Alsace, being billeted in the village of Elbach, This company was put in charge of the maintenance and reconstruc- tion of the trenches occupied by a part of the Three Hundred Fiftieth Infantry on this front. Listening posts and machine gun emplace- ments were built here and work commenced on the draining and re- pair of the trenches, when the company was ordered to move to Fontaine. This point was the base of supply of the Eighty-eighth Division, and the quartermaster had been notified that he would have to release all the French buildings which he was using. This required the construction of eight warehouses twenty feet by seventy feet. This duty, assigned to Company B, was completed in seven days. We then moved to Pagny-de-Barrine, where we were billeted when the armistice was signed. Company B was then immediately ordered on the work of rebuilding the railroad from Paris to Metz through Pont-a-Mousson, and for this work went into camp in a deserted vil- lage which had been almost totally destroyed, Pagny-sur-Masehe. Prior to the war the railroads of France and Germany had not been connected, and it was at this point that Company B made the connec- tion between the French and German railroads, where heretofore had been the transfer station. On the 5th of December Company B was detached from the Eighty- eighth Division and attached to the Ninth Corps at St. Mihiel as corps engineers. On February 17th we were ordered to De Mange- aux-Eau to take charge of an engineer depot. I was advised of my promotion to major on February 25th and was sent to Marson to take command of the First Battalion of the Three Hundred Thirteenth Engineers. In March the American schools at St. Joire, consisting of fifty-one buildings, was erected by Companies A and C. This battalion was then put on highway work, which was their special service until the 17th of May, when they marched to De Mange to entrain for St. Nazaire, the port of embarkation. TeivLS His Story in Rhyme The war developed considerable poetical inclination among fighters. One Buena Vista County boy recounts his experiences in verse. Charles Samsel had never claimed any distinction as a poet laureate, but in the following quatrains gives vent to a form of war reminis- cences that are novel and interesting: In the year of nineteen-eighteen, There five weeks was spent in training On the twenty-fourth of June, Ta learn to fight the deadly Hun I was drafted in the army Then we left for over-seas And to Camp Dodge was taken soon. Where the worst was yet to come. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 581 Three days and nights we rode by rail Through many noted eastern points — A stop or two to march a trail To rest our weary, aching joints. We took a dive in Indian Lake, A bath in the "Y," Wilkes-Barre, Where excitement was no fake, Two Yanks there received a jar. Niagara Falls in the early morn The boys were marched to see ; I failed to have the pleasure The guards were not to be set free. Next we landed in Camp Upton, Where we stayed four days in wait For our over-seas equipment E'er we left United States. Once on board the huge Olympic, Our navy's second largest boat. We sailed the blue and wide Atlantic, Seven days we were afloat. One day and night spent in Southamp- ton Sunday eve we loaded tip And at night we crossed the Channel While the convoys formed a cup. At dawn we dropped an anchor safely In the harbor of LeHavre, Where it appeared to us, ere evening. We had come abroad to starve. We were marched some four miles distant To a "rest camp" — Ah, indeed ! Where we groomed ourselves, each instant Fondly waiting for a feed. While formed in order for our mess Beloved Cap received his orders — We must march ; entrain at once ; And move to reserve quarters. In cattle cars we traveled Through foreign towns galore ; The second night we landed In Epoisses, cramped and sore. Twelve-thirty a.m. in company order, Puppy tents were pitched in haste ; For each Yank had learned already That he had no rest to waste. The following day at one p.m. We rolled and slung equipment; After a march of a mile and a half We were handed another shipment. Three weeks, two days, at Corrombles We drilled, half starved and worried; Then made the trip to Belfort Where our hopes of peace were buried. Eighteen miles were made by route- step With a rifle and a pack. At Les Laumes we entrained To ride again the railroad track. Arrived at Belfort we unloaded; Ate our breakfast out of cans; Slung equipment, journeyed onward To the village of Dorans. Ten days here the fast continued. Sick-hook carried quite a list. There's where I got the influenza, Three weeks I struggled to exist. Exposed to gas and aircraft shrapnel, Masks and helmets issued out; Pack well loaded, three blankets o'er it. Once again we took the route. Under darkness, six miles distant, A new location here we found ; Just a week we stayed in safety Listening to a roaring sound. Now Endelans left behind us. Gas alarms began to snort ; Thus we learned the beastly nature Of the Boche — in Menencourt. Twelve miles covered, here we tarried; Camouflage was now the game. One week later found us moving, Kaiser Bill was all to blame. Vauthermont, eight miles before us. We must travel Sunday night ; Seven days here, dodging shrapnel. Getting closer to the fight. Night and day, close watch and guard- in o* Every Yank must be alert. Thirteen miles to the bloody trenches With Death's toll we now must flirt. 582 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Aircraft skirmished, artillery rumbled, Gas shells whistled through the air ; Outposts kept a watchful lookout. Determined not a Boche to spare. Eight days guard on a quiet sector, Each man gloried in belief That soon we'd leave those gas-proof dugouts. Back to Fakhwiller for relief. Six days and nights we spent, not knowing Where or when we'd take a step ; But after sunset we were going Nine miles back to visit Reppe. Just a day to wait for darkness And to rest us from the jaunt. Eleven miles revealed our smartness, Also, found us, Offermont. Here two days; the following evening Twelve miles more we must proceed To take the cars at famous Belfort — A well earned ride, we all agreed. At Bernecourt, our destination, We debarked with all our might ; Then jammed in trucks, with packs and rifles, A nine mile ride we had that night. Three weeks we stayed at Minorville. Sheep sheds make a glorious place For a white man to inhabit ; A doug"hboy suffers no disgrace. November tenth, 'twas in the evening, All were huddled 'round the fire. With no surprise we got the order — "Prepare to move, and not retire." Twenty miles to hike e'er morning, To take our turn on the Toul front ; The orders changed, we had no warn- ing, A sleepless night — a common stunt. From dawn next day 'til the eleventh hour, The distant roar of guns increased ; Then the armistice proclaimed its power And all was quiet — war had ceased. Church bells rang and cheers resound- ed; Thought of home and Qiristmas time ; But still we drilled in mud, astounded ; Squads rig*lit and left now seemed a crime. Afany miles we walked on detail. Policing up some fiilthy burg. . Thanksgiving day we walked to Francheville — A sandwich dinner seemed absurd. Returning home, each Yank disgusted. Foreign service was well discussed ; Reflecting on the past, and "Justice," "Finish soon," "In God we trust." The sun had set, and candles flickered. Weary heads prepared for rest; Then to our midst there came an echo To move — 'twas rumored, now to Brest. An early breakfast, a hurried forma- tion. At daylight we were on the road. Seventeen miles. We were near star- vation As we trudged along with heavy load. With broken ranks we entered Aulnois Assigned to billets, tired and worn. P'ourteen miles, oh faithful doughboys. Next day reached Melna La Hoigne. The third day out we rode the hob- nails Ten miles more. We stood the test To Reffroy, where we dodged the details ; Mumps and quarantine progressed. In rain and mud we spent December Assuming squads, both right and left; But we resumed, we'd well remember. Our visit with the A. E. F. We maneuvered, drilled, took turns at detail. And seldom ever had dry feet. We thought our letters had struck a derail ; Our famous "Y" was incomplete. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 583 For firewood, we took collections, And slept in blankets on the floor. We asked for clothes at all inspections ; The answer was, "We have no more." S'o 'twas thus we lived in Reflfroy Through the winter days in France; Thinking of home and future joy, For which we took a daring chance. Over rocks and hills we wandered, On "problems" of a coming war; Our time and francs we freely squan- dered At various schools in St. Joiare. February brought a change of weather Snow and ice we then endured. With chillblained feet in frozen leather, Our minds were broadened and ma- tured. Six months had passed since embarka- tion ; The gold stripe now we each possess, Which stands for grief, and aggrava- tion, "Received in full," while O. A. S. Long, dreary days of anxious waiting; As spring approached we hoped in vain That soon we'd all be emigrating To where they "compree Meri-cain." April found us in the same location, With "beaucoup" rain the whole month through We now had gained the information In May we'd cross the ocean blue. We now marked time with pick and shovel. Policing up for miles around. The eighth of May, with full pack shouldered, Partee Reffroy — homeward bound. DeManges, four miles, the waiting box cars. Was now our home "to not abuse ;" Two days of brilliant scenes — and ox- carts ; At 9 a.m. we reached LaSuze. We detrained and transferred baggage To trucks that seemed but odd to us. To Voivres, four miles, an ideal village, A well kept place, 'twas obvious. After six days we departed ; Equipment now must show repair. With packs reduced, from LaSuze we started For a twelve-hour ride to St. Nazaire. At least we reached the goal of No- where ; The end of box car circumstance; Four miles to camp, two days laid over; On May nineteenth we finished France. On board the steamship Rijudam We sailed, alone, eleven days ; All hearts rejoice when at last we land And are welcomed back to the U.S.A. At Hoboken dock we walked the gang plank ; Once more our gratitude to feel For a safe return, and to fully thank The Red Cross for a good, square meal. With slight delay we next were loaded On cars to ride those cushion seats, To Camp Merritt, where a week de- voted Our time to bunk fatigue and eats. Again we leave to proceed with plea- sure On sleeping cars — Oh, what a treat! O'er a land that all most highly trea- sure And with which no other can compete. On June the ninth we paraded Clinton And left again at 8 p.m. In Des Moines, next day, with packs we're sprintin' "Twas a happy day wlien we salvaged them. Just a day at Dodge for examination, And to receive our last allotted pay; Then home, sweet home — oh, the con- solation A doughboy feels on discharge day. 584 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Tanks Rumble: On In Victor's Path Through Argonne; From The Stars and Stripes: Private William Kenworthy, Irishman by birth and fighter by in- stinct and enlistment, late of the Canadian E. F. and more recently of the American Tank Corps, was languishing in the brig of an S.O.S. town when the whole A.E.F., from Verdun to Brittany, began to tingle with the preparation for the drive in Argonne. It was too much for Private Kenworthy. It was painful enough to be detached from his outfit in this man- ner under any circumstances: to be away from them when they were going into action — that was a thought unbearable. That evening at sundown there was a jail delivery of one. Smelling the battle from afar, the escaped prisoner followed his nose. Dodging M.P.'s enroute, hooking rides, lying cheerily to the too curious R.T.O. men, advancing by forced night marches, sleep- ing by day and eating when and where he could, he reached the edge of the Forest of Argonne in time to snuggle down on the driver's cushion of a baby juggernaut, crank her up and start her roaring, lurching, smashing her way along the blasted road that leads to Berlin. IvIKE A garden sprinkler Today the armor of his battered tank is so pierced with bullets that it looks like the business end of a flower sprinkler. His face is one large blister, memento of a breathless moment when he saw a brother tank burst into flames after a bullet had reached its gas res- ervoir. Kenworthy stuck his head out as a turtle comes out of its shell, grasped the situation, jumped clear, raced to the rescue and, in the nick of time, dragged the scorched and unconscious driver to safety. Once Kenworthy had to retreat, for his tank, clearly visible, was drawing fire from the German 77's to where the doughboys lay, and just then the doughboys could not go forward. So the tank had to go back. But the railroad bridge on which it came over had just been blown to matchwood, of which the wreckage was floating down- stream, while all that remained from shore to shore was a pair of gleaming rails. Kenworthy started for the river's edge. The lieutenant in the gun turret, who usually guides and instructs the driver by a code system of pats and pokes — one in the neck, one on the crown, one on the right shoulder, one on the left, each has a meaning — found his list of signals unequal to this occasion. So, crouching down, he howled at Kenworthy above the deafening hub- bub of the tank: "You can never cross on those rails." HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 585 HE couldn't, but he did Kenworthy's answer, which was drowned in the roar of the en- gine, is beheved to have been, "The hell I can't," or words to that effect. Anyway, he did. Meanwhile, his AWOL status has not yet been adjusted. His case is somewhat complex, A compromise of some sort may be effected. Very likely he will be given the D.S.C. and shot at sunrise. Kenworthy's story is worth the telling if for no other reason than that it is true to the spirit of a branch of the service that necessarily calls upon adventurous souls throughout the Army, summoning them to a life that fairly brims with excitement and danger. For the tanks are the cavalry of this war. How great the danger is can be best guessed by glancing over the list of killed, gassed and wounded in the Tank Corps, or by looking at the mauled and twisted tanks themselves. One brigade that has been operating along the eastern edge of the Forest of Argonne it- self had more than a dozen tanks come to grief in the first month of the battle, of which all but one have been salvaged in varying stages of wreck. The other, with good reason, is believed to be in the proud possession of the enemy. A PURELY DEFENSIVE WEAPON The many and lively experiences of the month have proved that there is little the enemy can do seriously to halt the irresistible advance of the tanks. That is a cheering fact, for every increase and improve- ment in tank warfare works in favor of the Allies, and the Allies alone, because the tank is solely an offensive weapon, and a military critic need be neither an inspired prophet nor a daredevil to predict that, come what may in the months that lie ahead, the armies of Ger- many will not again assume the offensive in our day and generation. If the enemy digs a trench, the tanks go down one side and up the other. If he rolls logs across the road, the tanks skirt them rakishly. The tanks knock down stone walls and proceed, somewhat groggily, across the debris. They brush aside small trees with contempt. If a stream is unbridged and unfordable — why, then, one tank can make a sacrifice plunge, with the others crossing on its back. HOW TO DODGE A MINE FIELD The tanks laugh at mine craters. They even laughed at a large sinister mine field in Argonne — a tremendous patch of hidden con- tact mines which the enemy had sown, praying for a harvest of death. But, in the agitaion of his retreat, he committed the important error 586 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY of forgetting to take down the danger sign which had served to warn his own traffic of the field's existence. Then tanks, then, can go any place, but the journey is not necessary pleasant. Indeed, the sensation is a little like motoring in an earth- quake. Probably the earlier tank casualties are all bruises and sea- sickness. A tank ride suggests a sail in a steam roller off the Grand Banks during a squall. The month has proved, too, that the great enemy of the tanks is the yy. Only a direct hit can do the business. This means the enemy must bring his artillery into the front line, and any weapon which compels him to such a course may be said to have proved its useful- ness. One jy did for two of our tanks in Argonne. That particular gun now reposes at a tank headquarters, for a third tank did for it. THE ANTI-TANK ElvEPHANT GUN Then there is the anti-tank rifle, a villainous affair, an elephant gun, really, nearly six feet long and firing a five-and-a-half inch long, armor piercing shell. One of these ripped its way through the 17mm. armor of the gun turret, through the 3mm. steel head shield, through the gunner's lower jaw and out the other side. And he lives to tell the tale. Probably he will still be telling it when he is 83. One brave Boche stood squarely in the center of Main Street, Var- ennes, as one of the little monsters came whiffling into town, bur- bling as it came. Everyone else had fled, as well they might, for to see a tank bearing down on you is as demoralizing an experience as would be the sudden appearance of a dynosaur in Main Street. This lone hero stood with his anti-tank rifle ready for action, eas- ing its- weight and its kick by a feather pillow stuffed in at his shoul- ders. He stood his ground. The tank did not stop. For a few moments, Varennes was full of flying feathers. Then there is the tank trap. Our enemy had dug a good many pits in Argonne for our destruction, and through the thin roof that concealed one of these, an unwary tank pitched down only to find that the trap was filled with water. The sergeant gunner could climb out of the submerged juggernaut through the freely flapping doors of the turret, but there was no hope for the corporal who was driving. All he could do was to lend the last of his strength to a good upward push for his pal. He did that. TIPSY WITH GAS Adventures? There have been hundreds. Think of the gunner whose driver, tipsy with gas, was evacuated and who was settling down within his idle tank to wait for reinforcements when some ma- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 587 chine guns, hidden in the fringe of the Argonne Forest, opened up on him. He pointed the tank in the general direction of the attacking nest, started her going, cHmbed up into the turret and went after those gunners alone. He got them. Think of the captain who, scouting ahead through the fog in ad- vance of this little battery of peripatetic one-pounders, stumbled into a German trench and a very much occupied German trench at that. Eight Bodies surrounded him, and were about to bear him off in tri- umph when, over the edge of the trench, an inquisitive tank poked its snout. At the first sight of it, the eight fled. It was a rout. Like all good soldiers, the men of the Tank Corps acknowledge a gallant enemy when they meet him. They met him in the First Prus- sian Guard, or rather among the older members of that famous divis- ion who had belonged to it before the catastrophic deterioration of its personnel set in after the Ourcq last August. Certain machine gunners of that Guard division stuck to the guns and kept firing them — though they must have known that the bullets rained harmless as pebbles thrown at a rhinoceros — stuck to their guns till guns and gunners both were run down — literally run down by a tank. Eve:n babes are cumbersome These are just a few of the stories of the Tank Corps. Scores like them can be read in the lacerated, perforated armor, the twisted tracks, the shattered turrets of a dozen war-worn tanks standing drunkenly in the mud outside the repair shop. For they are such heavy, cumbersome things, even the tiny 6^ ton babies, that a long haul to the rear is out of the c[uestion and the repair shop must and does hum on the battlefield itself. Not only the scars, but the empty ammunition racks are eloquent of past adventures. They tell how, from each turret, the old one pounder fired its 237 rounds before it gave up, and usually the 45's carried by the gunner and the driver also come back empty if they come back at all. Such a shop is camouflaged, of course, till it looks like an inno- cent old vineyard. There ingenuity works day and night, for after all, America is one big Menlo Park. There the wreckage of a doz- en tanks must be converted into a half dozen tanks fit for action. There a Mercedes engine, deftly extracted from a fallen German plane, serves as a dynamo. There, in idle moments, the men speculate on what Uncle Sam might do if the war should end abruptly and leave him embarrassed with the possession of a large fleet of juggernauts. They have it all worked out now. Even a baby tank will pull four plows, go through 588 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY sage brush, negotiate irrigation ditches, and generally be mighty handy around the farm back home. SALVAGING A GRIDDI.E There cakes are served to sustain the morale of the men sentenced to repair work. The armor plate from a salvaged tank makes a pos- sible griddle, and even the pancake turner is ingenious. The blade was once an oblong trench mirror. The stem was the ramrod of a German gun. The handle was the shell of an anti-tank rifle. Griddle cakes are needed to cheer the tank men and keep their minds off the corps insignia, which depresses them. That elaborate collar design, which shows a salamander fairly rampant over some- thing or other, is the subject of more jesting in the tank ranks than its designers are allowed to suspect. Of course, each tank — or bug, as the men call their juggernauts — has some insignia of its own. One company has its turrets gorgeous with hearts, clubs, spades and diamonds, according to the platoon, and the drivers can preserve a fair skirmish line in battle by merely following suit. TAII^OR MAKE;S good AT IT Apparently, no calling especially fits a man for service with the Tank Corps. One tailor has made very good. So has a window dresser. But what does that prove. Chauffeurs are not especially in demand. That might surprise you, unless you remember that the wise cavalry recruiting officer never willingly enlists a cowboy. A miscellaneous personnel, then, has made good in the Tank Corps. Made good as fighters, that is, for as parents one brigade, at least, has proved an abysmal failure. It carries along its own little French war orphan, who got himself adopted by the simple process of break- ing loose from an asylum and coming along. He lords it over the mess sergeant and the adjutant, smokes cigarettes, and behaves in such a way any one can tell at a glance he was not one of the Stars and Stripes war orphans. A cunningly designed attack from the rear was planned by the French and Americans as the objective of an advance along the Meuse River, when it became apparent that a general retirement from Bel- gium and France had been decided upon by the German leaders. With the necessity of such a course facing them and with fear of defeat as a result of the constantly pressing offensive, the German Government renewed overtures for peace. A diplomatic note was received by President Wilson from the German Chancellor on October 6th, ap- pealing for an armistice, suggesting that the United States direct the HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 589 work of restoring peace, and stating her willingness to accept as a basis for peace the considerations set forth in President Wilson's speech to Congress of January 8, 1918, and in subsequent addresses. President Wilson did not accept this suggestion without qualifica- tions. He insisted upon an evacuation of Allied territory before an armistice could be signed, or until agreements could be reached by American and Allied military advisers as to terms which would make impossible the resumption of hostilities by Germany. He further took occasion to call to the attention of the Imperial German Govern- ment the following quotation in his address of July 4, 1918: "The destruction of every arbitrary power anywhere that can separately, secretly, and of its single choice disturb the peace of the world, or, if it cannot be presently destroyed, at the least its reduction of virtual impotence;" reminded them that he viewed the Teutonic military au- tocracy as such a power; and made known his determination to deal only with a German Government whose rulers should be representa- tive of the people. On November nth, in a status of war which placed the advantage on the side of the Allies, when German armies operating in Belgium and France were being defeated by the unified armies of America, France, Great Britain, and Belgium, envoys from the German Gov- ernment accepted the terms of the Allies from General Foch in an agreement for an armistice that meant virtual surrender of Germany and thus brought to an end a conflict of more than four years, dur- ing which had been employed the largest forces of men and the great- est death-dealing contrivances of any war in the world's history. "HoMMES 40, Chevaux 8" From ''Battery F," A.E.F. Three Hundred thirty-ninth Field Artillery : Roll, roll, roll, over the rails of France, See the world and its map unfurled, five centimes in your pants. What a noble trip, jolt and jab and jar, Forty we, with Equipment "C" in one flat-wheeled box car. We are packed by hand, Shoved aboard in 'teens. Pour a little oil on us And we would be sardines. 590 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Rations ? Oo-la-la : and how we love the man Who learned how to intern our chow in a cold and clammy can Beans and beef and beans, beef and beans and beef, Willie raw, he will win the war, take in your belt a reef. Mess kits flown the coop. Cups gone up the spout. Use your thumbs for issue forks. And pass the bully beef about. Hit the floor for bunk, six hommes in one homme's place; It's no fair to the bottom layer to kick 'em up in the face. Move the Corporal's feet out of my ear ; Lay oft', sarge, you are much too large, I'm not a bedsack, dear. . Lift my head up please, i From this bag of bread. Put it on somebody's chest, i' Then I'll sleep like the dead. Roll, roll, roll, yammer and snore and fight. Traveling zoo the whole day thru and bedlam all the night. Two days in the cage, going from hither hence; Willie raw, he will win the war, take in your belt a reef. HELPED Win Army Athletic Honors Howard T. Torkelson of Sioux Rapids, during his army experience assisted in bringing an honor to the American army in an activity rather out of the line of military tactics, yet one in which the Buena Vista County comrades and friends took just pride. Torkelson par- ticipated in the inter-allied games as a member of the American 800- meter relay team (Paddock, Haddock, Torkelson, Teschner) that won the event at the games and also broke the world's record for the event. This quartet was hard pressed by the fast Canadian team. The Buena Vista County member of the team was the recipient of one of the special medals presented by President Poincare of France. The inter-allied games took place in the new Pershing Stadium at Joinville-le-Pont, Paris. The opening excercises were held on June 22d and the games continued daily until July 6th, when General Pershing and President Poincare of France awarded the medals. These were the regular Minister of War medals given for extraor- dinary service, and were only given to athletes who broke records or performed extraordinary feats. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 591 The following countries took part: England, France, Belgium, Italy, Portugal, the United States, Czecho-Slovakia, China, Greece, Roumania, Brazil, Japan, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Arabia, Hedjaz, Servia, Guatemala, and Montenegro. About 2,000 men took part in the games. General Pershing sent Colonel Joseph Thompson, a former athletic director in the east, to the United States to collect a team here to take over there for the games. As there was no time for tryouts here in America, the coach- es of the largest institutions and clubs were asked to pick the team from the best athletes in America. About 500 names were sent in to the final selection committee that picked the team of forty-eight men who accompanied Colonel Thompson to Paris, where they joined the athletes still in France with the Army. The team sent over from America consisted of boxers, wrestlers, swimmers, tennis players, weight throwers, jumpers, and runners. All other teams were picked entirely from the men already in France with the army and marines. The games were held as a means for binding more closely the Allied nations and to take the place of the Olympic games that were post- poned on account of the war. In the greater part of the games, the American athletes were far superior to those of other nations as will be seen by looking over the place winners received in each department of sport. Australia also made a good showing. RESUI.TS OF THE GAMES Track and Field — First, United States; second, France; third, Australia; fourth, Belgium; fifth. New Zealand; sixth, Canada. Boxing — First, United States; second, Australia; third, France; fourth, Italy. Swimming — First, United States; second Austraha; third, France. Wrestling — First, United States; second Belgium; third, Czecho- slovakia and France. Tennis — First, Austraha; second. United States; third, France. Rugby — France. Association Football — Czecho-Slovakia. Base Ball — United States. Basket Ball — United States. Fencing — First, France; second, Italy; third, Portugal. Horse Riding — First, France; second, Italy. 592 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Rifle and Pistol Shooting — First, United States; second, France; third, Canada. Torkelson was captain of the Phillips Exeter track team of Exeter College, Exeter, New Hampshire, and in the class of 1919. Into the Enemy's Country . Written by Eskil M. Westlin of Albert City. Soon after arriving in France I was picked out with a group of other men to go to the cavalry training depot at Autun, to study methods of traffic control at the front. After six weeks spent there, and just as we were about ready to go to the front, the armistice was signed. But my interesting experiences did not stop. With eighty men I was sent to France for military police duty. For a time we were assigned to station patrol, looking after men of the A.E.F. who were constantly passing through Paris. During the two weeks of the inter-allied race meet the American military police had charge of all the police work at the immense stadium, a task which we fulfilled with such skill as to draw forth complimentary mention from the provost marshal general. We were proud that the Americans walked away with most of the prizes. On July 14, 1919, the big national holiday in France, I was on duty in the Champs Elyses palace which was army headquarters. People came the night before to get places along the Champs Elyses to view the parade. From that time on there was not much military police duty in Paris. For a time we had charge of a group of prisoners. About the ist of August our provost marshal general. General Bandholtze, was ordered to Hungary to head a mission to Budapest incident to the peace conference. I was one of twenty-four military police, who, with one field clerk, was designated to escort the General to Hungary, expecting that we would be gone only a fortnight. We traveled south through France, going into Switzerland. Because the latter was a neutral country the regulations stipulated that we should not pass through in uniform, bu we had no other apparel. Passports which we were expected to have were never completed because of our haste, and consequently our party was held up at the border. After some parley we were permitted to proceed under guard, though not permitted to leave the train. We had a day's ride through beautiful snow capped mountains, and at night enjoyed a good rest in a hotel at Brigg, Switzerland, close to the Italian border. Next morning we boarded an electric train which passed through a tunnel eighteen kilo- meters long. Our party passed through interesting points in Italy and into the small country of Slovacia, and here during a stop of six HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 593 hours found a hot cHmate. At Vienna we enjoyed a dinner which was the first meal we had had for twenty-four hours, though usually we had been faring very well. Here we were honored by being grant- ed a special train consisting of a baggage car and one passenger coach to carry us to Budapest. People there did not seem to know who we were. Wearing our campaign hats with red band, red collar tabs, with belts, side arms, full packs, and two hundred rounds of ammunition, we formed double rank and marched through the streets. Crowds rushed out to see us. Some in the crowd who could speak American told the others who we were. Evidently they were glad to see us, and asked if more Ameri- cans were coming. Roumanians had taken military possession of the city to protect it from the "Reds," who had raised so much havoc. The Roumanians, having meagre supplies of their own, had forcibly taken what they needed to eat and to wear. Every shop was closed, the soldiers had gone through every shop and left the owners little. The first impression of the citizens was that we had come to drive out the Roumanians. For a week we were quartered at the Hotel Bris- tol, with only such rations as we could gather from a few boxes of supplies that had been left by the American Red Cross. After that week we stayed in the quarters of a prince, who had been compelled to evacuate. Though all the furniture was removed we managed to have a good bunk apiece and such other conveniences as were neces- sary, with civilian cooks. General Bandholtze and the officers had quarters across the street, where also was located our mess hall. All of these were close to the King's palace, where we were on duty. Guard duty fell to us Americans every fourth day, as there were with us delegations of British, Italians, and French, each of whom took turns in guarding the castle where sessions of the peace mission were held. Duty was lightened by the fact that three of we non-commis- sioned officers took turns in HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 653 BOARD 01* DIRECTORS Mrs. E. B. Wells, Marathon ; Mrs. H. J. Holmquist, Sioux Rapids ; Mrs. H. L. Pierce, Linn Grove; Mrs. E. L. Boylan, Rembrandt; ]\Irs. Jesse Wilkinson, Alta ; Mrs. F. C. Foley, Newell ; George R. Anderson, Albert City; Miss Wilcox, Storm Lake; Miss Frieda Witter, Storm Lake; Miss Anna Toohey, Storm Lake; Mrs. F. E. Branch, Storm Lake; Rev. F. M. Olson, Storm Lake; Mrs. A. E. Brunson, Storm Lake; W. L. Geisinger, Storm Lake; P. C. Toy, Storm Lake; G. M. Triplett, Storm Lake ; H. E. Swope, Storm Lake ; T. D. Filers, Storm Lake ; F. V. Dumbaugh, Storm Lake ; Dr. J. W. Parkhill, Storm Lake. On Saturday, June 6th, was held a special county meeting to per- fect plans to raise the first war fund of $5,000. C. H. Wegerslev was appointed chairman, R. U. Kinne, secretary, and P. C. Toy, treasurer. Soliciting committees were appointed in each town and township, and as a result of their work, the quota was far exceeded, and $12,000 was raised. This war fund was divided seventy-five per cent to the National Red Cross and twenty-five per cent to the district in which the money was raised. Each county of the state had been designated as a unit for a Red Cross chapter, with headquarters at the county-seat. Each chapter was then to be subdivided into districts covering the trade territory of the towns of the county, and in some cases school districts, for the convenience of members assisting in the work. These districts were called branches. These branches worked in connection with, and through, the headquarters organization, the county chapter, the chap- ter in turn working with and through the state and district head- quarters. During the six months term of office, the organization of branches of the county chapter was perfected, with the exception of Lincoln- Lee Consolidated School District, which was organized as a branch in April, 191 8. The work of organization was done by the officers with the assistance of A. L. Whitney, R. U. Kinne, and J. H. O'Donoghue, who, in each town in the county, and in each consolidated school dis- trict, called a public meeting where the origin, aim, and object of the Red Cross was explained. Eagerness and a desire for information was shown in every instance and in a short time the following branches united in forming a county unit : Alta, Albert City, Fairview, Highview, Linn Grove, Marathon, Newell, Sioux Rapids, Storm Lake, Rembrandt, and Truesdale. 654 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY So responsive were the branches to call for workers, that it was truly irksome to be restrained by the seeming slowness of the move- ments of the officers at Storm Lake, whose patience, indeed was be- ing sorely tried, as they were having rare trouble in getting direc- tions or advice of any kind from national headquarters. Of course, as we all learned later, the poor little A.R.C. at Washington, which up to this time had proved quite adequate to Red Cross needs, was now quite completely buried under an avalanche of letters and tele- grams similar to those sent from Storm Lake. The heart of America was touched by the appeal for help, and the fingers of the American women were aching to be permitted to roll bandages, make garments, and knit. But in these new days of war and conservation, women could not be permitted to cut up cloth indiscriminately and with lack of uni- formity, so they must wait even when waiting tortured their souls, until a vaster and more complete organization of Red Cross could work out details and give to the chapters definite working plans and patterns. In reviewing this situation, it seems to us now that all this was ac- complished in an incredibly short time. In July we were making surgical dressings, hospital supplies, and knitted articles. It was with a great deal of satisfaction that the first boxes of beautifully finished garments were packed, nailed up, and sent to Des Moines for inspec- tion and further shipment. SURGICAI, DRESSING INSTRUCTIONS It was impossible for us to acquire the necessary knowledge of the making of surgical dressings without an instructor and we conceived the idea of sending a young woman to Des Moines to take the course in "the making of surgical dressings." Des Moines had but now acquired this knowledge, having sent a pupil to Chicago. Miss Cora Siberall came back to us from Des Moines, qualified in the art, and ready to conduct classes of instruction in Storm Lake or elsewhere in the co-unty. Very soon Storm Lake, Newell, Alta, Marathon, Sioux Rapids, and Truesdale had introduced the making of surgical dressings into their Red Cross activities. The first shipment made containing surgical dressings, was Sep- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 655 tember 7th, 1917: i box surgical dressings, 84 pairs pajamas, 16 convalescent robes, 53 dozen handerchiefs, i dozen hospital shirts, 23 dozen table napkins, 14 dozen pillow cases, 10 sheets, 9 dozen dish towels, 13 dozen wash cloths, 11 dozen hand towels, 7 tray covers. REVIVE ART OF KNITTING The war found our women with little or no knowledge of knitting. The majority of women had never knit a stitch and many had never seen a stitch knitted. In July orders came for sixty sets of knitted articles, each set to contain a sweater, a muffler, a helmet, a pair of wristlets, and a pair of socks. With grim determination the quota was accepted and pledges ex- tracted from women for knitted sets. Yarn and knitting needles were acquired by the chapter. The few experienced knitters sprung into universal popularity and women with knitting bars of every color and size might be seen wending their way to the seat of instruction. The sixty sets were sent in on time. The next quota which came, asked for two hundred and fifty sets, and more followed. Buena Vista County women became as expert knitters as their grandmothers ever were. The total number of Red Cross members in the county at the close of the year was 2803. At the annual election in October, 191 7, the following officers were elected: Chairman, Mrs. J. H. O'Donoghue; vice-chairman, Mrs. J. A. Schmitz; secretary, Mrs. George Sedwick; treasurer, P. C. Toy. The executive committee comprised the officers and in addition, Mrs. Bert Lewis, Mrs. R. U. Kinne, Mrs. L. M. Nusbaum, W. C. Ed- son, and Chas. Skewis. The Christmas campaign for members for 191 8 was very success- ful. On Christmas day the Red Cross service flag might be seen in a window of nearly every home in the county, and the one hundred per cent in a great many cases appeared with it. The reports from the branches showed a membership of : Alta, 844 ; Albert City, 294 ; Fairview, 192; Highview, 116; Linn Grove, 349; Marathon, 222; Newell, 741; Rembrandt, loi ; Storm Lake, 2060; Sioux Rapids, 544; Truesdale, 90; total, 5553. 656 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY GENEROUS BUYERS AT SAEES During the first several months of 1918, nearly all of the branches held Red Cross sales. At these sales, livestock and a great variety of different articles that had been donated by members, were put up at auction and the entire proceeds were put into the local treasuries for the use of the Red Cross. The rural members, in a great many cases, were particularly generous in the donation of live stock. In each of the sales, one or more articles was sold and re-sold many times. To quote from the Pilot-Tribune of April 12th: Less than a year ago there was no organization in Buena Vista County known as the Red Cross, and it is safe to say that not ten people in a hundred knew what the society stood for. Yet in the past three months, men, women and children have dug down into their pockets and given willingly nothing short of $100,000 to keep the Red Cross from financial handicap and embarrassment. Buena Vista County can vie with other counties in the state for the number of successful Red Cross sales. In the last three months $60,000 was netted in eight sales in the county. In the May war drive, the Buena Vista allotment was $13,000. While Red Cross speeches were made throug'hout the county. Red Cross sermons given in the churches, literature distributed, pennants and posters hung everywhere on our streets, there was no fear that the county would fail at any point in the amount expected. There was the settled conviction that Buena Vista County would always do its share. More than $13,000 was ready the first day of the drive, each branch of the county having given its pro rata share. There was held in Storm Lake a chapter course in home service work, with Mr. Mannheimer and Mrs. Crooks, sent out by the State University, instructors. Home service work, already under head- way here, was strengthened by this course. EADIES INTO EOREIGN WORK Miss Jennie Skewis went from our chapter to Chicago to take a six weeks' course in a Home Service Institute held there in June. After taking the course, financing herself as she wished to do, she was willing to return and work at home, but found a field in Chicago that needed her experience more than this community did, so she was re- leased and is still devoting her talents to the work there, without re- muneration of any kind. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 657 The appeal for nurses for service abroad called from our county Miss Eva Delbridge, Miss Ida Schweitzer, and Miss Josephine Hoff- man of Storm Lake; Miss Irene Robar of Alta; Miss Stacy and Miss Blanche A Merry of Sioux Rapids, and Miss Taletta Haroldson of Rembrandt. Miss Edith Dunn and Miss Hughena Burns registered for service, but had not received their call at the time the armistice was signed. The remaining graduate nurses registered for home service and during the influenza epidemic gave their services freely. The Red Cross assisted the Council of Defense in a campaign for student nurses to take training. As a result several young women from this county are now in hospitals preparing for the profession of nursing. METHODS OF WORK A committee appointed for the purpose, had prepared a "Red Cross Map" defining the territory of each branch, where the branch had not defined its own territory when organized. The entire county was now Red Cross territory, Lincoln-Lee coming in at this time. Chapter headquarters received literature and instructions from division head- quarters in Chicago, and the branches the same through the chapter offices — the chapter being responsible to the division for the branches. All articles made by the branches were brought to Storm Lake for inspection and shipment. Up to this time we had been urged to make and send in as many supplies of all kinds as possible, buying our materials on the open market, or in Chicago at the supply house. But now the plan was changed, and we were given county quotas to make in surgical dress- ings, hospital supplies, knitting, etc. Now we were asked to cease purchasing on the open market and buy all goods in Chicago at the supply house. Orders were obeyed and the change was made. National headquarters at Washington had developed system, and in the interest of conservation of materials and labor, issued a general order that the promiscuous making of garments must cease. Each of the thirteen divisions would now be given a quota of garments to be furnished and made, each division dividing its quota among the chapters in its division, the chapters re-dividing among the branches. Formerly each of our branches had bought as much material and made as many articles as it desired, now the chapter receiving its dictum from the division, found it necessary to dictate the amount of work 658 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY for each branch, which dictation, it may be added, was always cheer- fully accepted. At this time it became evident that the zuorking capacity of each branch was not always equal to its financial ability, so it was decided by the board of directors to divide the work among the branches, ac- cording to the amount of work the women were able to do, but to let the burden of the payment for the necessary materials be divided pro rata among the branches according to the population of the territory included in each branch, reckoned by townships. In this way each branch would bear its own financial responsibility regardless of the number of garments it could make. This proved acceptable to the county, and was in effect after that time. The following is each branch's proportion of the county's responsibility: Storm Lake, 24.31 per cent; Newell, 14.05 per cent; Sioux Rapids, 7.02 per cent; Alta, 13.53 P^^ cent; Fairview, 4.38 per cent; Highview, 3.03 per cent; Linn Grove, 5.31 per cent; Marathon, 7.2 per cent; Albert City, 9.61 per cent; Rembrandt, 4.66 per cent; Truesdale, 5.1 per cent; Lincoln-Lee, 1.8 per cent. When the edict went forth to do only the work contained in the quota given by headquarters, nearly all the branches were overstocked with materials. As the quota given by the division might not de- mand the kinds of material the branches happened to have in stock, there probably would be the necessity for buying other materials while already heavily stocked with material of a different kind. Thus would come a failure in conservation of yarns and cloths, besides ty- ing up the branches' funds in unused materials which, bought at a high price, would later deteriorate in price. The chapter came to the rescue, taking over the goods from the branches at cost price as per invoice, giving each branch credit for the same, assembling the goods at Storm Lake, then sending an invoice of all assembled goods to the division with the request that so far as possible, Buena Vista County Chapter.be given quotas in which these goods could be used; quota, which in time to come would cover the amounts and kinds of mate- rials held by the chapter. This cooperation was gladly promised and all goods have been used in quotas, and few other purchases have been made. Several thousand dollars' worth of goods was thus conserved and made into garments of mercy for hospitals and refugees' relief. "No flaws in Buena Vista County Red Cross" said Mrs. Aileen HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 659 Dougherty, field secretary of the Red Cross, as she addressed an as- semblage of Storm Lake and county workers in a meeting called for that purpose, August 8th, and she pronounced the county organiza- tion "perfect," admitting, however, that she ought to find some flaws, but after going over the work of the administration, in justice to die officers and workers, she must state that it was quite flawless. She said that she expected to find an organization which was good because she was met at the depot by a member of the Red Cross Motor Corps, Lieutenant Steig, and conveyed to her appointment. Aside from, possibly, Des Moines, Storm Lake's corps was the first to. be organized in the state, and she called us "up to the minute." RED CROSS PICNIC The officers and committee chairmen of the chapter, had planned a picnic for the Red Cross workers throughout the county, and had issued invitations to all the branches to that eflfect, when the official call came for a large number of our boys to leave for service on that day. Hurriedly, the picnic plans were changed, the date set forward a day, and the entire population of the county invited to participate in a farewell program and picnic in honor of the boys of Buena Vista County, who upon the following morning, would leave for war ser- vice. Many Storm Lake business men volunteered their assistance to the committee in charge, Mrs. L. M. Nusbaum and Mrs. W C. Kerlin, and all possible arrangements were made for the big event. The early afternoon brought to the picnic grounds thousands of people — "the largest crowd ever seen in Storm Lake." Our soldiers (not yet in khaki) having received their instructions at the court house, were conveyed by the ladies of the motor corps with shining cars and fluttering pennants, to the park where seats had been re- served for them. Then followed a fine program of inspiring speeches and good vocal and instrumental music, the Linn Grove band and the Storm Lake orchestra participating. After the program, came the picnic supper. Long tables were provided for the guests of honor, but the immense crowd of people sat in groups on the grass. Coffee and ice cream were served free and in great abundance by the Storm Lake business men, proving an agreeable addition to the basket fare. 66o HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY The beautiful park aglow with the late afternoon sun and dotted with white cloths covered with delectable food, and surrounded by people who had come from the ends of the county to do tribute to the county's young manhood, was a scene long to be remembered by all and presented a picture that each young soldier doubtless carried with him across seas. Probably the most pleasant and inspirational occurrences of the year were the "get together" meetings of the county workers which were held from time to time. Speeches, reports, round table discuss- ions, etc., were usually the order of the afternoon and great loyalty and unanimity of purpose were shown. In October a big county autumn festival was planned by the D.A.R. and many tickets were sold, but the Spanish influenza epidemic made it necessary to indefinitely postpone the festival. SUPPLY NURSES AT CRlTlCAI, TIME During the influenza epidemic a nurses' registry was established with Mrs. J. A. Schmitz in charge. In this way nurses were supplied to the different parts of the county at a time when they were most needed. Later, with the assistance of Mrs. A. E. Webb, a complete survey of the county was made. REORGANIZE WITH 6109 MEMBERS The annual meeting and election, which occurs in October, was postponed on account of Spanish influenza. It was finally held No- vember 20th, only a small number being in attendance through fear of exposure in a public meeting. Officers were elected as follows: Mrs. George M. Pedersen, Chairman; Mrs. J. A. Schmitz, vice-chair- man; Mrs. George Sedwick, secretary; P. C. Toy, treasurer. The annual report of the secretary and treasurer shows a chapter membership at the beginning of the year, of 2603, and at the close of the year, 6109, as follows: Alta, 88 1 ; Albert City, 319; Fairview, 219; Highview, 122; Linn Grove, 378; Lincoln-Lee, 115; Marathon, 271; Rembrandt, 125; Sioux Rapids, 619; Storm Lake, 2161 ; Trues- dale, 118. As a natural consequence of the cessation of hostilities and the advent of peace, the entire section for military relief throughout the HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 66i county became inactive. Finished quotas were sent in and no new work along military lines received. Greater activity was demanded of the communities on refugees' relief, and a few heavy quotas were received, which have been fininshed to the last garment and sent on their way and the committees relieved. A great amount of praise should be given the faithful women who remained constant to their trust after the battle urge had ceased, and the army of workers had retired from the field and resumed their usual tasks. The members of the refugees' relief committee did a great share of the work themselves, one member alone making six dozen pinafores. The assembled goods of the chapter were all used in this relief work, as well as some other goods purchased from the Chicago supply house. In the Christmas campaign for members for 1919, the membership was increased from 6109 to 6619, even though only adults were so- licited. (Since the organization of the Junior Red Cross all those under eighteen years of age were solicited for Junior memberships only). The roster of those handling this campaign is as follows: Chairman, T. D. Filers; publicity representative, A. E. Harrison; cashier, Ray Cutchall ; manager of supplies, Fred P. Foster. CHAIRMAN 01? BRANCHES Alta, C. H. Wegerslev; Albert City, Geo. R. Anderson; Fairview, Miss Nellie M. Johnson; Highview, Mrs. Mike Hanson; Linn Grove, C. A. Fulton; Lincoln-Lee, Miss Bea Gavin; Marathon, L. C. Bruwell; Newell, Miss Halley Kinney ; Rembrandt, A. D. Odor ; Sioux Rapids, C. L. Sipe; Storm Lake, rural, John Doyle; Storm Lake, city, Miss Grace Mack; (Ward i, Mrs. Jim Brown; Ward 2, Mrs. Harry Foster; Ward 3, Mrs. E. G. Scofield; Ward 4, Mrs. E. W. Oates). GOOD SPIRIT PREVAILED Much praise and appreciation is due the A.R.C. committees and their helpers for the untiring and successful work done by them and for their fine and cheerful cooperation with officers and executive committee. The absence of friction in the machinery would indicate that the lubricant of unselfishness was fully administered and a splen- did harmony and team work were the result. It is scarcely possible that any county could be more patriotic than 662 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Buena Vista, as is fully demonstrated by the work and self-sacrifice of its Red Cross women, who gave their strength, their rest periods, and worked on in fatigue, their slogan "Carry On." No request in the name of the Red Cross was ever refused or ignored. As well as wives proud of their husbands and sons, there are many husbands and sons proud of the part their wives and mothers took in winning the war. However, not alone should the women receive the credit for Red Cross accomplishment. The men of the county in their work on committees, in public speaking, in financial support, and in many other ways were a tower of strength. SOIvDiKRS ADVISED ON AI^EOTMENTS Shortly after the United States entered the war with Germany, and when it became apparent that under the provisions of the federal law that the matters of allotments, allowances, and insurance would be a very important factor in connection with the service of the sol- diers and sailors in the army and navy of the United States, the Ad- jutant General of the State of Iowa, issued a commission to a member of the legal profession in each county to take care of this matter. A. D. Bailie was appointed in this county to look after the interests of soldiers, sailors, and their dependents in Buena Vista County. During the period of the war a vast number of cases came under his care, and careful consideration and attention was given each and every individual case. After the appointment of Judge Bailie to the above position, the Red Cross organization of the county elected him to the position of chairman of the committee on civilian relief of the American Red Cross. In some cases financial help has been secured and furnished to de- serving dependents, pending their receipt of allotments and allow- ances. Many cases of applications for discharges, furloughs, bonuses granted by the federal government, and applications for changes of insurance policies, reports of death claims, applications for voca- tional training, and for compensation have been referred to him, and while there appeared many apparently unwarranted dela3^s in pro- curing allotments and allowances for the benefit of dependents of sol- diers and sailors in the service, such delays have been occasioned by the congested business of the department at Washington. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 663 In addition to the above duties, Mr. Bailie has been called upon to give time and attention to correspondence between families and rela- tives with the soldiers and sailors overseas. Such service was giv- en with the earnest endeavor to aid those dependent upon the soldiers and sailors in the service of the United States. REPORT OF ALBERT CITY BRANCH A turkey took the honors as one of the large revenue producers for the Albert City Red Cross. It was sold and re-sold, as were several other items which were introduced into the sale ring, where W. R. Ritchie conducted the sale. The membership of this branch in 191 7 was 170; for 1 91 8 it reached 316; the number for 1919 was 217. Through sales the total amount of money raised for Red Cross work was $7,931.99; community meals raised $36.45; solicitations and do- nations contributed $1,084.92 more. The soliciting committee for 191 7 was Mrs. B. B. Bridge, chair- man; Mrs. Ben Bryson, Miss Moore, Emil Nissen, Mrs. Danielson, Mrs. Nero and Mrs. Gust Anderson. The work committee consisted of Mrs. B. B. Bridge, F. L. Daniel- son, Mrs. F. Youngciuist, Mrs. G. T. Swenson, Florence Hultman, A. J. Ryden, Mrs. H. Lampe, Mrs. O. M. Farb, John Whitman, Mrs. Elmer Sundholm, Mrs. Gulbranson, Mrs. Ben Bryson, Mrs. Emil Nissen, Mrs. Earl Post, Mrs. Nero, and Mrs. W. W. Kischer. The buying committee was Ed Swanson, Carl Gulbranson, and W. W. Kischer. The 191 7 selling committee was comprised of Miss Florence Hult- man, Mabel Moore, and Amanda Lundgren. Miss Jennie Smith served as chairman, G. T. Swenson as vice chairman. Miss Moore as secretary, and G. E. Gulbranson as treasurer. During this year the branch raised $471.88 and disbursed $45. The 191 8 organization was completed with the election of the same executive committee as noted above for 191 7. New committees were chosen. The working committee consisted of Mesdames Nero, Ry- den, Bridge, Lampe, Farb, Earl Post, August Anderson, Sena Lar- son, F. L. Danielson, F. T. Youngquist, John Whitham, Adolph An- derson, Amanda Lundgren, C. J. Benna, Lawrence Paulson, and Mrs. O. C. Anderson. 664 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY A committee for Belgian relief was composed of Mrs. John Whit- man, Sena Larson, and Mrs. Adolph Johnson. The directors for 1918 were Miss Sena Larson, Mrs. J. Whitman, Mrs. L. O. Putnam, Amanda Lundgren, Mrs. Carl Nero, Miss Jennie Smith, Mrs. G. T. Swenson, Alice Larson, C. E. Gulbranson, George R. Anderson, Mrs. O. C. Anderson, and A. J. Ryden. The buying committee for this, the most active year of the Red Cross work, was Mrs. Ed Swanson and Mrs. E. E. Gulbranson. The financial committee report shows that for this year there was received from membership fees and general receipts the sum of $566.22; from refreshments, $23.15; from donations, $915.74; from fines for hoarding sugar, $105.15; from Red Cross Sale, $7,718.61; a total of $9,328.87. Of this amount $500 was disbursed to the soldiers' rehef fund; $112.90 to the Lincoln-Lee branch; $1,485.90 to the Buena Vista County chapter, and $1,330.90 in general items. At the end of the year the branch had a net fund of $5,899.17. When the reorganization was effected for 1919 Miss Jennie Smith was elected chairman; Mrs. G. T. Swenson vice chairman; Alice Larson and Florence Hultman secretaries, and C. E. Gulbran- son treasurer. The directors chosen were Sena Larson, Mrs. Whit- man, Mrs. Putnam, Amanda Lundgren, Mrs. Carl Nero, Mrs. G. T. Swenson, Alice Larson, Jennie Smith, Mrs. C. E. Gulbranson, George R. Anderson, O. C. Anderson, and A. J. Ryden. The working committee consisted of Mrs. Frank Youngquist, Sena Larson, Mrs. John Whitman, Mrs. Andrew Ryden, Mrs. Ed Swan- son, Mrs. Carl Nero, Mrs. C. E. Gulbranson, Jennie Smith, and Mr. O. C. Anderson. Membership fees and sundry items amounted to $333.28; a sale brought $18.20; and donations amounting to $3 brought the total re- ceipts for the year to $354.48. With the liberal balance left from the previous year the branch was able to contribute to general ex- penses the sum of $631.80; and to the Buena Vista County chapter the sum of $355.26. Mrs. J. G. Lodine, who, on July 10, 1919, reached her eighty-fifth birthday, knitted eight scarfs, ten sweaters, and four pairs of socks for the Red Cross. Edwin Farb, though paralyzed and permitted the use of only one hand, knitted seven sweaters for the Red Cross. He is thirty-two HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 665 years of age and lives with his sister, Mrs. F. T. Youngquist, at Al- bert City. REPORT 01^ ALTA BRANCH Alta's branch of the Red Cross was organized June 9, 19 17, short- ly after this nation had entered the war against Germany and the Central Powers. A preliminary drive in the month of June netted 840 members from the territory assigned, which was all of Maple Valley and practically all of Nokomis Townships. The amount of funds raised from the preliminary campaign was modest, compared with amounts raised afterward, but withal, the membership as com- pared to population was the highest ratio in the county. From the very start a spirit of willingness to work and to give characterized the Red Cross in the Alta branch. The women who worked did so willingly day after day, and it is a commendable fact, indeed, that every quota of work allotted was completed on schedule time, and shipments were never delayed to await the Alta branch. The Junior Red Cross, organized in the schools, registered 100 per cent efficient, every child of the age being enrolled and all v/ork as- signed was complete on time and in an accredited manner. In the spring of 191 8 it was felt that the membership campaigns were not productive of the necessary financial aid, and therefore, in the month of March a Red Cross day was arranged, with the result that the proceeds of one day's efforts were in the neighborhood of $12,000 — the largest amount raised by any one branch of the Red Cross in Buena Vista County, and of which the branch felt justly proud. The funds were raised by an auction sale of a huge assort- ment of articles, from pigs to books, from corn to cakes, but most re- markable was the sale and resale of a small goat which brought in the neighborhood of $5,000 before the final bid. A supper served in the community room at the school building at the close of the street sale served hundreds of people, and was followed by an inspiring pro- gram. In the fall of 1918, when the influenza epidemic swept the communi- ty, the Red Cross opened an emergency hospital at which a large number of cases were cared for. It is remarkable that while many deaths occurred elsewhere the fatalities here were very low, owing to excellent care at the outset. After the armistice was signed in November it was believed that 666 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY there would be no interest in Red Cross work, but in spite of that the canvass for members in December following the cessation of hostili- ties, netted the largest membership of the three general solicitations recorded. It is also to be recorded here that during the shortage of help dur- ing the harvest season of 191 8, when so many of the young men were absent overseas and in the training camps in this country, the busi- ness and professional men of the town went to the fields and assist- ed in caring for the crops on the ground. From this source close to $200 was paid into the Red Cross treasury and the crop, so badly need- ed, was saved in several instances. The humble "wienie" contributed of its goodness to the swelling of Red Cross finances, for sale of sandwiches netted $285. On April i, 191 9, the organization had in its funds a balance of $5,250.17. Members had made surgical dress- ings to the number of 6,264, while the total number of pieces made by the senior and junior organizations reached the splendid total of 10,585. Pomegranate Lodge No. 408, A. F. and A. M., jointly with the I. O. O. F. fraternity, donated an electric sewing machine for the work room. Cash donations were made by many individuals, as well as by the following organizations: Northside Club, Wednesday Club, La Coterie, Danish Ladies' Aid Society, Presbyterian Ladies' Aid Society, Mission Ladies' Aid Society, Alta Chapter, O.E.S., Naomi Circle, and Rebeka Lodge. Christmas day of 191 7 was made happy for twenty-five boys in camps by the receipt of special packets which had been filled by Red Cross workers at home. The Red Cross, in the community, was of lasting benefit in many ways, but chief was that it taught unselfish giving and brought to mind that most valued tenet, that the land we love is entitled to our best endeavors and heartiest support. The list of officers changed in only one instance during the three years that the organization was intact. Mrs. J. Wilkinson served as president through the three years, as did Mrs. J. H. Allen in the office of vice chairman, and Mrs. G. F. Tincknell in the position of treas- urer. Miss A. E. Johnson was the first secretary of the organiza- tion, but was succeeded by Mrs. Wm. Rawn, whose period of service extended through the years 19 18 and 1919. Upon organization of HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 667 the branch a membership of 840 was enrolled, which the following year was increased to 872, and in 1919 limited as it was to those above eighteen years of age, was 878. Below is a complete statement from June 9, 1917, to April i, 1919: Receipts: A-Iemberships, $2,114; refmids from chapter, $1,006.46; contributions, $681.19; auction sale, $9,210.95; supper, $473.59; tags, $235.07; fines, "Rooster Court," $149; post cards, $24.50; fancy work booth, $193.70; "wienie" stand, $285; skating rink benefit, $88.35; harvest help, $177; help on park walk, $30; supplies returned, $144.29; "flu" hospital, $113.75; a total of $14,926.85. Disbursements: Supplies and materials, $3,557-76; express, tele- phone, postage, etc., $22.44; workroom ec[uipment and maintenance of branch, $143.75; emergency "flu" hospital, $191.81; home ser- vice, $431.70; war loan apportionment, $1,758.90; Syrian- Armenian relief fund, $2,035 J memberships sent to national headquarters, $1,535.32; balance on hand April i, 1919, $5,250.17. COMPLETE LIST OF ARTICLES MADE Surgical dressings: 200 absorbent cotton pads, 8x12, 104 irri- gation pads, paper back, 16x24, 8 irrigation pads, paper back, 12x18, 50 muslin triangular bandages, 26 split irrigation pads, 21x26, 585 compresses, 8x4^^, 85 scultetus bandages, 75 shot bags, 15 webbing splint straps, 161 5 sponges, 2x2^, 32 five-yard gauze rolls, 75 dress- ing pads, paper back, 18x23, 2040 compresses, 4x4, 975 compresses, 9x9, 60 folded gauze strips, 45 four-tail bandages, 65 T bandages, 105 abdominal bandages, 33 three-yard gauze rolls, 60 face masks, II pneumonia jackets. Junior Red Cross articles: 186 refugee garments, 200 knitted ar- ticles, 10 knitted afghans, 825 surgical dressings, 18 hospital supplies, 26 miscellaneous. Hospital supplies: 93 pillow cases, 35 sheets, 36 towels, 116 hos- pital bed sheets, 148 suits of pajamas, 74 convalescent robes, 29 caps, 10 handkerchiefs. Refugee garments: 17 boys' blouse suits-, 65 women's chemises, 96 girls' drawers, 7 girls' dresses, 224 pieces for infants' layettes, 21 girls' nightgowns, 42 girls' petticoats, 26 women's petticoats, 30 girls' pinafores, 24 boys' drawers, 30 children's undershirts, 20 camisoles. 668 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY For soldiers and sailors: 312 sweaters, 67 helmets, 266 pairs of wristlets, 72 mufflers, 674 pairs of socks, 139 comfort bags filled, 12 comfort bags, 11 housewives, 63 handkerchiefs, 20 towels, 75 wash cloths, 107 napkins hemmed, 21 pairs of bed socks, 74 knitted wash cloths. Report oe Fairview Branch In June, 191 7, a community gathering was held at the Fairview Consolidated School for the purpose of organizing the Fairview branch of the American Red Cross. A program was given, with A. L. Whitney and Roy U. Kinne of Storm Lake as the principal speak- ers, after which a basket social was held for the benefit of the Red Cross. The proceeds of the sale amounted to $31.20, which constituted the original fund of the branch. Mrs. Parish, chairman of the Storm Lake branch, was present at this meeting, organizing the sub-branch with 76 members. Mrs. G. R. Fanning was elected president, Mrs. Wm. Bice, vice chairman; H. W. Hasse, treasurer, and Mrs. Joe Steig, secretary. It was decided at this time that the branch would meet every Tuesday afternoon for work, after which "tea would be served at ten cents each, this money to be used for a "comfort kit fund." This fund was pledged to the purpose of providing each of the Fairview boys with a comfort kit, sweater, and $5 in cash when entering the service. At the end of 1917 the branch had $75.25 on hand, and a member- ship of 183. The year 1918 proved to be a very successful one for the branch. A new membership of 212 was taken. On February 1 2th a Red Cross sale and dinner were held at the schoolhouse, where a large and enthusiastic crowd made both a success. E. E. Rutledge of Alta and James Blake of Fairview were auctioneers. A turkey was the principal article for resale, selling as many as twenty times at sums totaling $284. The receipts of the sale were $1,360.85, while the dinner netted $97.50. In June, at the time of the war fund campaign, the branch sub- scribed $609, an over-subscription of $159.60. At the end of the year the sum of $1,288.87 remained on hand. During the Christmas roll call for 19 19 members, a membership of 285 was enrolled, show- ing an increase of 201 members since the organization of the branch. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 669 Even after the armistice was signed the workers did not lose interest but kept up their work, which, of course, was not as strenuous as previously. About 700 articles were made, including hospital supplies and knit- ted goods. On July 24, 1918, the Fairview branch, in cooperation with the Alta branch, gave a farewell at Alta to the boys who left on July 25th for Camp Gordon. About thirty-three boys of this branch were in the service, two of whom made the supreme sacrifice. As soon as a number of the boys returned a "Welcome Home" was given at the schoolhouse, which proved to be one of the most enjoyable events of the community. On June 14th another reception was given to twenty of the boys. An- other was held in November. At the time of the making of this report, early in September, 191 9, the branch still had in its treasury the sum of $1,332.23. The 700 aricles made were classified as follows: 8 summer bed shirts, 6 winter bed shirts, 5 pairs of bed socks, 18 handkerchiefs, 57 underdrawers, 15 sheets, 155 pillow cases, 19 dish towels, 24 bath towels, 96 wash cloths, 6 hot water bag covers, 10 hospital comfort bags, 20 refugees' drawers, 49 sweaters, 157 pairs of socks, 11 muff- lers, II helmets, 13 wristlets. The chairmen of the different committees were: Supplies, Mrs. Wm. Bice; hospital supplies, Francis Johnson, Matilda Madsen; ship- ping, Mrs. Oscar Bodine; knitting, Mrs. Wm. Bice; sewing, Mrs. Roy Fanning; serving, Mrs. H. W. Haase; soliciting money, United States Red Cross War Fund, NelHe M. Johnson; memberships, 1918, Ar- thur Rehstrom; memberships, 1919, Nellie M. Johnson. The following amounts, which were raised by the means indicated, were sent to the National Red Cross: Public sale, $1,360.85; com- munity meals, $97.50; solicitation, $790.00; basket social, $31.20. Under date of March 10, 1919, the branch appropriated $248.93 to national headquarters, leaving $1,200 in the treasury. This was ap- portioned among three different causes, with $400 each to relief work, home service, and Red Cross. Additions were made to this fund until, on the ist of July, 1919, the branch had on hand the sum of $1,332.23. 67Q HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Report oe Highview Branch The big item of funds raised by the Highview Red Cross was $2,949.17, which was netted from an auction sale held March 19, 19 18, at which E. E. Rutledge of Alta was the auctioneer. For communi- ty meals there was realized the sum of v$iii ; by solicitation $131 ; sale of ice cream $85; with a total of $3,793. The membership for 1917 was 39, in 191 8 it grew to 121, and for 191 9 memberships subscribed were 158. The branch made 83 hospital garments, 312 pieces of hospital supplies, filled 25 comfort kits, made 58 refugee garments, and 256 articles for soldiers and sailors. When the first efifort was made to secure a large membership Emil Chindlund was chairman of the organization which had charge of the work; with Lillian Chilgren as assistant. The third member- ship drive was under the leadership of Mrs. Mike Hansen. Highview banqueted every quota before leaving for camp, and also gave each soldier five dollars at his departure from camp. The final home coming given the men of that community was on October 3, 191 9. Report of Linn Grove Branch Final accounting of the work done by this branch shows the follow- ing quantities of hand work: Knitted — 36 wash cloths, 325 pairs of socks, 97 sweaters, 13 helmets, 48 wristlets, 115 mufflers or scarfs. Sewed — 48 pajamas, 8 bed socks, 54 bed sheets, 48 pillow cases, 24 face towels, 18 bath towels, 36 hospital shirts, 20 pinafores, 15 draw- ers, 15 shirts, 10 skirts, 20 complete kits, 15 Belgian waists, 36 con- valescent gowns, 20 w^sh cloths. Activities of a social nature which brought some revenues and in- come producing work are shown by the following calendar : June 21, 1917, general meeting called for organization; officers elected. May loth, opened Red Cross work room. July 4th, served lunches all day; proceeds $130. August 8th, tag day sales, netted $34.25. September 9th, piano recital, netted $13.23. During November, 191 7, proceeds of two basket ball games given to the Red Cross. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 671 December iyth-24th, booster campaign for memberships. In December filled twent}^ Christmas boxes to be sent overseas. March 29, 1918, held Red Cross sale and supper, receipts $5,603.31. A mounted silk flag donated b}^ Ole Fuller, an overseas boy, was sold and resold, then was finally given to mother of donor. ^V. R. Ritchie, auctioneer. April, 1918, Junior Red Cross formed. April, 19 1 8, band concert by local band netted $70.50. Sale of Red Cross thimbles, $52.35. In August, 1 91 8, held community farewell reception to drafted boys. December 13, 191 8, emergency hospital started. February 25, 1919, reception for returned soldier boys. August 28th, home coming day for soldier boys. Receipts: Tag sale, $34.25; community meals, $497.36; lectures, $133.55; concerts, $177.43; contributions, $111; memberships, $1,333.55; refunds from chapter, $722.34; sale, $5,745.01; other sources, $126.06; a total of $8,880.55. Disbursements: Express and drayage, $8.62; materials, $870.36; supplies, $1 10.73 '' home aid, $218 ; memberships, $1,618.42 ; allotments, $857.30; war savings stamps, $832; certificates of deposit, $3,523.47; miscellaneous, $283.98; cash on hand February 15, 1919, $557.23. Memberships for 1917, 161 ; for 1918, 377; for 1919, 350. Chairman of soliciting committees: 1917, A. H. Barnette; 1918, Dr. C. S. Van Ness; 1919, C. A. Fulton. Chairman knitting com- mittee, Mrs. Andrew Johnson; to choose work, Mrs. J. T. Evans, Mrs. H. E. Erickson; purchasing committee, Mrs. O. H. Hesla, su- pervising committee, Mrs. C. W. Rowlands, Mrs. C. A. Fulton; home work, Mrs. C. A. Fulton, Mrs. Maggie Mayne; publicity committee, Mrs. George Evans ; to put away work, Mrs. J. E. Davies ; finance com- mittee. Dr. C. S. Van Ness. During the year 1917-1918 Mrs. Wm. Rutter was chairman: .Mrs. O. H. Hesla, vice chairman; Miss Rose Larson, secretary; H. L. Pierce, treasurer. Upon the reorganization being effected for 1918- 1919 Mrs. Ida Michalson was named chairman; Mrs. H. E. Erickson, vice chairman ; while Miss Larson was retained as secretary and Mr. Pierce as treasurer. 672 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY RjepoRT OF Marathon Red Cross Branch The Marathon branch of the American Red Cross Society was or- ganized in the month of June, in 191 7, with the assistance of Mrs. U. S. Parish, who was at that time the chairman of the Buena Vista County chapter, and other ladies from the county-seat, with A. L. Whitney as speaker. The organization meetings were, held at the Masonic Hall, and the following officers were elected: Chairman, Mrs. T. L. Roberts; vice chairman, Mrs. J. A. Hitchcock; secretary, Mrs. M. R. Soth; treasurer, J. H. Wegerslev. The chairman appointed a committee on membership, consisting of Messrs. E. R. Peters, N. G. Olney, and J. E. Ekstam. In July a meeting of the entire membership was held at the school building at which time the following were chosen on the board of di- rectors: One year term — ^Mrs. T. H. Welch, J. W. Couch, N. G. Olney, E. B. Wells, C. W. Kettle, J. A. Hitchcock, Eugene Garton, Mrs. W. J. Miller, Mrs. J. A. Hitchcock, Mrs. Laura Figert; two year term — Mrs. M. R. Soth, J. D. Wolcott, T. H. Welch, W. R. Ritchie, W. J. Miller, Mrs. W. M. Howe, Mrs. A. A. Wells, Mrs. Thomas Roberts, Mrs. J. D. Wolcott, Mrs. James Thomas; three year term — Mrs. J. Delahunt, R. E. Belden, R. W. Williams, J. W. Jenson, Mae Campbell, Mrs. J. H. Wegerslev, Mrs. M. W. Gamble, Mrs. T. L. Roberts, Joel E. Johnson. The chairman appointed an executive committee as follows : the officers of the chapter and Mrs. E. B. Wells, Mrs. J. Delahunt, W. J. Miller, J. W. Couch, R. E. Belden, and T. H. Welch. Other com- mittees appointed were: Purchasing committee — Mrs. A. A. Wells, Mrs. Geary and Mrs. W. F. Couch; work room and equipment — J. W. Jenson, L. C. Burwell, Mrs. J. W. Jenson, Mrs. W. M. Mather, Mrs. E. R. Peters, Mrs. T. H. Welch, Mrs. W. J. Watts, Mrs. Frank Erickson, and Mrs. M. W. Gamble. Activity work was taken up at this time in the basement of the Methodist church, which had been secured for the work room, and with limited equipment the members did a great deal of work and always met their quotas in full and in record time. A committee on sewing had been appointed consisting of Mrs. W.M. Mather as chair- man, and Maud Ekstam, Claribel Hartshorn, Mrs. C. G. Carlson, Mrs. Otto Bergling, Mrs. J. B. Parris, Mrs. H. D. Gillespie, Mrs. J. H. Wegerslev, and Mrs. James Thomas. This committee was sub- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 673 divided as follows: Pajama coats, Mrs. J. H. Wegerslev; pajama pants, Mrs. James Thomas ; bed shirts, Mrs. W. M. Mather, convales- cent gowns, Mrs. H. D. Gillespie; bed socks, Claribel Hartshorn; towels, Maud Ekstam; wash cloths and handkerchiefs, Mrs. J, D. Delahunt; sheets, Mrs. C. G. Carlson; pillow cases, Mrs. J. B. Parris; knitting, Mrs. T. H. Welch. Deep interest was taken by the people of the community in the work of the chapter and every call for help was met with a liberal and hearty response. The business men were liberal and donated a share of their profits at various times. One merchant sent in his bill for supplies for the chapter marked paid, and also donated various articles. Each activity was made the occasion of a holiday, and the funds poured into the treasury in such a manner that there never was any embar- rassment in that line. NINETEEN EIGHTEEN The second year of the chapter was the busy one, and the work was pushed with much energy, and while the workers were not so numerous, those who did help did so much that the record for filling quotas on time never sufifered. The ofificers of the chapter for this year were: Chairman, Mrs. T. L. Roberts; vice chairman, W. J. Miller; secretary, Mrs. M. R. Soth; treasurer, J. H. Wegerslev. The executive committee was appointed as follows: The officers, together with Mrs. E. B. Wells, Mrs. J. Delahunt, Mrs. J. A. Hitch- cock, J. W. Couch, T. H. Welch. The membership committee was reappointed, and Mrs. Fannie Starrett was made chairman of the work room with the following supervisors: Pajama coats, Mrs. J. H. Wegerslev; pajama pants, Mrs. James Thomas; convalescent gowns, Mrs. H. D. Gillespie; re- fugee and relief work, Claribel Hartshorn and Carrie Wagner; hos- pital bed shirts, Maud Ekstam; towels, Mrs. J. W. Couch; sheets, Lillian Storm; girls' sewing, Sara Patten; knitting, Mrs. T. H. Welch. A purchasing committee composed of Mrs. E. B. Wells and Mrs. N. F. Hawk was named by the chairman. The auditing com- mittee was W. J. Miller and E. R. Peters; and Mrs. W. J. Miller, Esther Johnson, and Jennie Hartshorn were made the committee on publicity. During the year an auction sale was held in the Sundholm ga- 674 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY rage, which was well attended and well patronized. Many useful articles were donated, and the sale of live stock was quite large. W. R. Ritchie was the auctioneer, and N. G. Olney, J. H. Wegerslev, and E. B. Wells acted as clerks. The sale netted the chapter a little over $4000.00. While this amount was not so large as that of some of the neighboring towns, it was sufficient to provide plenty of means with which to carry on the work, and the public in general was not asked to make further donations. All the funds required from Po- land Township in the Red Cross drives for funds for the society in general was paid out of the funds of the local chapter. The Red Cross work in the meantime was carried on by the faith- ful women of the community and each quota of work was turned out before the time asked for, and each working department was kept up to standard in efficiency. During the year Mrs. T. L. Roberts resigned as chairman, and W. J. Miller was elected to take her place, his place as vice chairman being filled by Mrs. E. B. Wells. This year the work was not so active, and all unfinished work was being rapidly completed. The officers of the society were as follows: Chairman, W. J. Miher; vice chairman, Mrs. E. B. Wells; secretary, Mrs. M. R. Soth; treasurer, J. H. Wegerslev. In January Mrs. Soth resigned as secretary and the treasurer was elected to fill the office until the next annual meeting. FINANCIAL STATEMENT Receipts: Memberships, $1008.15; auction sale $4164.93; other activities, $694.98; Nichols lecture, $112.75 ; home talent play, $207.64; Decoration Day benefit, $188.69; band concerts, $31.25; shocking oats, $35; received from Buena Vista chapter, $476.09; a total of $6919.48. Expenditures: Supplies, $1264.83; paid Buena Vista chapter, $1026.92; express and freight, $19.27; local chapter expense, $689.10; second Red Cross drive, $936; balance on hand, $2983.36. In the membership drive, which was conducted by L. C. Burwell, the last registered membership was 540. The Junior Red Cross made 30 mufflers, 36 sweaters, 34 pairs of wristlets, 5 helmets, 6 knitted squares, 2 quilts, i set of quilt blocks, 3 wash cloths, i quilt that was made by the sixth grade. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 675 The Marathon branch knitted for soldiers : 29 hehnets, 201 sweat- ers, 54 mufflers, 128 pairs of wristlets, 448 pairs of socks, 4 knitted lap robes, 10 wash cloths, 7 knitted squares. They made five one-patient outfits, each consisting of 15 suits of pajamas, 10 bed shirts, 15 bed socks, 15 socks, 5 convalescent gowns, 20 hand towels, 10 bath towels, 15 wash rags, 5 slippers, 30 hand- kerchiefs. Hospital supplies — -97 towels, 19 bath towels, 3 table napkins, 44 hospital bed shirts, 107 suits of pajamas, 80 convalescent gowns, 43 bed socks, 8 small bags, 42 handkerchiefs, 31 bed shirts, 17 helpless case shirts, 5 taped bed shirts, 48 property bags, 40 comfort bags, 2 comforts, 30 draw sheets, 39 bed sheets, 46 pillow slips. Surgical dressings — 1,290 gauze compresses, 105 irrigation pads, 230 four-tail muslin bandages, no abdominal bandages, 15 gauze rolls, 75 shot bags, 85 many- tail bandages, 36 T bandages, 1,075 gauze wipes. Refugee garments — 3 men's undershirts, 3 ladies' underwear, 16 petticoats, 7 hoods, 5 pairs of mittens, 17 dresses, 10 coats, 4 capes, I overcoat, 2 boys' wool suits, i ladies' suit, 3 ladies' jackets, 22 stock- ings, 7 caps, 14 suits underwear, 8 undershirts, 6 sweaters, i scarf, 9 vests, 6 dresses, 3 shirts, 2 waists, i house jacket, 4 baby blankets, I romper suit, 3 aprons, 2 child's dresses, 20 cotton suits, 5 boy's waists, 20 underdrawers, 50 undershirts, 64 underdrawers, 81 girls' drawers, 3 pinafores, 15 baby Cjuilts, 63 napkins. Report of Newell Branch The Newell Red Cross branch was organized in June, 191 7. As the home boys one after another entered the service interest increased in the work, reaching a climax January i, 191 8. This was Communi- ty Red Cross day. Nearly every woman throughout the vicinity brought food for the dinner and some donation for the sale ; while the men responded generously in giving thoroughbred stock, poultry, etc. The enthusiasm and optimism of the auctioneer, John Layman, to- gether with the hearty cooperation of the people, made this sale a wonderful success and a red letter day in Newell's history, as $10,000 was added to the Red Cross fund. The fine dinner served in Union Hall, cafeteria style, put every- one in good humor and ready for lively bidding. A twenty-six ])ound 676 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY turkey was the object of greatest interest, eclipsing the American eagle in its flight — as it soared from thirty cents a pound to over $140 a pound, netting about $3,800. Later, this notable turkey was sent to President Woodrow Wilson at Washington, D. C, and his message of thanks will always be prized by the recipient. The treasury now being so generously supplied with funds, quanti- ties of material were ordered, to be ready for the making of the need- ed supplies. Much credit is due to the chairmen of the several com- mittees, who worked unceasingly; and the responsiveness of the workers, ever ready to help "go over the top" with their quotas, was refreshing. A dozen or more groups of women, aside from those knit- ting in the homes, worked faithfully week after week making surgical dressings, hospital supplies, comfort kits, etc. The Junior Red Cross is worthy of commendation, as they proved their interest by a one hundred per cent membership and by making dozens of refuge garments. The Red Cross work surely proved a blessing, not only to the boys in service but to those at home, as it was an outlet for The strivings of the human soul to do Innumerable deeds of service true; To lift the world from out its sorrow vast To Peace and Love and Brotherhood at last. Officers of the Newell branch were Mrs. George W. Chaney, presi- dent; Mrs. W. L. Holtz,secretary; L. F. Parker, treasurer; and in ad- dition to these the executive committee consisted of Mrs. James Rogers, Mrs. W. D. Rust Sr., Mrs. F. C. Foley, Mrs. E. M. Barnard, Mrs. L. F. Parker, Mrs. Carl Trukken, Mrs. H. H. Linton, Mrs. Wm. Huxtable, Mrs. George Anderson, Mrs. W. A. Olsen. Membership increased from 623 in 1917, to 781 in 1918, and 901 in 1919. The branch sent a total of $4,644.64 to the national Red Cross. In ad- dition to the $10,000 mentioned previously as the returns of the sale and community supper, the branch raised $3,330.64 by solicitation. Miss Hallie Kinney directed the membership drive for 191 7 and 1919, while Mrs. G. W. Chaney directed the work for 1918. The respec- tive chairman of each working committee was : Knitting, Mrs. Belle Norton, Mrs. C. A. Althen, Mrs. Peter Madsen; surgical dressings, Mrs. L. F. Parker, Mrs. C. A. Collins; pajamas. Miss Ella Rasmus- sen, Mrs. J. E. Holden, Mrs. Wm. Huxtable; hospital shirts, Mrs. G. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY ^yy W. Chaney, Mrs. Carl Trukken ; refugee garments, Mrs. G. W. Cha- ncy, Mrs. Carl Trukken; small articles, Mrs. Henry Williams; com- fort kits, Mrs. M. A. Armstrong; purchasing, Mrs. F. C. Foley; local disaster. Dr. F. C. Foley. Members of this branch made 1,393 hospital garments, 776 items of hospital supplies, 9,234 surgical dressings, 516 refugee garments, 1,626 articles for soldiers and sailors, 265 parts of layettes, and 2,181 miscellaneous articles. Newell raised the sum of $15,998.44 for Red Cross purposes. Of this amount $10,000 was raised in the Red Cross auction sale and this sum was used to provide materials for local work. In the several membership drives $1,314 was secured; in the first war fund the sum of $1,504.16 was subscribed, and in the second war drive it was in- creased to $1,826.48. These last three items were all forwarded to the National Red Cross. Auctioneers whose work contributed to the success of the Red Cross sale were E. P. and John Layman and C. A. Bodholt. Report of Sioux Rapids Branch The Sioux Rapids branch of the Amercian Red Cross was organ- ized at the home of Mrs. T. M. Murdock May 25, 191 7, by represen- tatives of the several aid societies, having fourteen names. A mem- bership campaign was soon started and the membership brought up to an efficient working force. Work in hospital supplies was started in the Masonic Hall under the chairmanship of Mrs. George Boynton, while Mrs. E. M. Duroe conducted the campaign for knitted garments from her home. Later, the work room was moved to the Bank of Sioux Rapids building until 1918, when the plan of small circles in various homes under com- petent directors was adopted. In January the making of surgical dressings was started in the rooms of the Bank of Sioux Rapids, with Mrs. A, W. Wilson as chairman. This work was later carried on at the schoolhouse. In practically every instance the cooperation of everyone was fine and the many calls for work most cheerfully complied with. This time of anxiety to all proved to be also a time of better understanding of each other. The spirit of "get together" which was engendered and 678 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY the broader charity developed are a testimony of the value of ser- vices for others. The membership which was 497 in 191 7, grew to 572 in 19 18, and for 1919 it was 306. The total money sent to the National Red Cross was $1,926.76. For local work there was raised at a public sale, at which W. R. Ritchie was the auctioneer, the sum of $7,000.17. At this sale a rooster and a calf were sold and resold until each brought a large sum. C. L. Sipe was chairman of the committee which per- fected and carried out the plans for this sale. During the year 191 7 Mrs. A. W. Wilson served as chairman, while Mrs. R. R. Burr and Mrs. J. A. Smith acted as secretary. Mrs. L. R. White was chairman for the two years, 1918-1919; the secre- tary for 1918 was Mrs. W. H. Clark and for 1919 was Mrs. G. M. Sherman. The chairman of the knitting committee was Mrs. E. M. Duroe during 191 7, but for the following two years Mrs. L P. David- son served in that capacity. The chairman of hospital supplies for 191 7 was Mrs. George Boynton, while the following two years that work was directed by Mrs. L. A. Torkelson. The surgical dressings chairman was Mrs. A. W. Wilson; chairman of comfort kits, Mrs. F. Mather ; chairman home service, C. L. Sipe. During the period of active work of the Sioux Rapids branch the members made 216 absorbent cotton pads, 20 irrigation pads, 311 bandages, 440 sponges, 85 scultetus bandages, 10 splint straps, 1530 dressings, 108 gun wipe packages, 202 shot bags, -929 gauze wipers, 1,005 hospital garments, 415 pieces of hospital supplies, 539 refugee garments, 1,244 articles for soldiers and sailors. First Aid Ci^ass In the spring of 191 8 a class in first aid to the injured was organ- ized in Storm Lake by Mrs. C. F. Wellmerling, chairman of chapter first aid committee, with Dr. E. D. Banghart as instructor. This course proved very interesting and profitable to the members of the class. Examinations were taken and the course completed May 24th, Those receiving certificates were: Mrs. E. D. Banghart, Edith Cooke, Dorothy Franke, Mrs. Jas. Holmes, Mrs. C. B. McGih, Mrs. C. T. Millard, Mrs. Thos. Park, Mrs. E. E. Schor, Mrs. L. S. Todd, Mrs. Ralph Van Buskirk, Mrs. C. F. Wellmerling, Alice E. Wilcox. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 679 Motor Transport Corps This branch of service was organized as an adjunct to the Storm Lake branch of the Red Cross, and its first service was performed in the fall of 1918 when the Red Cross hospital was established in the Odd Fellows lodge hall, and the members of the transport corps took upon themselves the duty of assembling the cjuantity of kitchen equip- ment and ward furnishings that were necessary. Mrs. J. H. O'Don- oghue was commander and Miss Grace Buland the secretary of this group of workers. During the winter the young lady members took instruction in driving and quick repair work from competent mechanics of the city who, in this manner, contributed to the success of the organization. In October, 19 18, Miss Alta Burns, a member of the corps, went to Chicago to enlist for overseas service in such work. She was accept- ed, but the signing of the armistice soon after removed any occasion for her to go overseas. Red Cross Notes Soldiers leaving in the several contingents were each given a com- fort kit and a housewife, an assemblage of a dozen little conven- iences which Uncle Sam did not feel called upon to furnish, but hav- ing, enabled the soldier boy to be better able to take care of his every day needs. In the organization of the Junior Red Cross, forty-eight schools were organized, with a total of 3,546 pupils. Activities began in August, 191 7. As Christmas, 1918, approached, it was announced that only one parcel of gifts would be permitted to be shipped overseas, and the handling of these was delegated to the Red Cross. "The Red Cross Nurse," an interesting war-time play was given by home talent at Marathon and Storm Lake, in each case netting a neat sum to the local organizations of the Red Cross. As a recognition of worthy services rendered, the emblem' of the Red Cross was bestowed upon 100 women who had sewed or knitted thirty-two hours. Thirty women were presented with crosses and ribbons for 128 hours of work. This ceremony took place at Storm Lake May 14, 1918. When the need of a new element for newly-invented gas masks 68o HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY was made known the local Red Cross began the collection of nut shells and fruit pits, from which was made the charcoal that made the masks effective. Seven pounds of pits were required for one mask. Twenty members took a course of instruction in the home care of the sick under Mrs. E. S. Ballou. The proceeds of a public supper given December 21, 191 7, by the Yeomen lodge of Storm Lake were given to the Red Cross. Red Cross sales at different points in the county netted approxi- mate sums as follows: Rembrandt, $5,000; Linn Grove, figures not given; Highview, $3,200; Albert City, $8,000, included in which was a turkey that sold at $4,000. At a sale at Fairview Consolidated School, a rooster sold and resold until it raised $167, while a turkey brought $200. Report 01'' Storm Lake: Branch Organization of the Storm Lake branch was effected with practi- cally the same officers who had been named to lead and direct the county work, because of their intimate knowledge of the demands of the task set for them. The first officers were: Chairman, Mrs. U. S. Parrish; vice chairman, Mrs. J. H. O'Donoghue; secretary, Mrs. F. P. Kinne; treasurer, Mr. George J. Schaller. Funds were needed as well as memberships, and in June, on regis- tration day, thirty young ladies divided into committees went out to canvass business and residence districts. At the end of the day they brought in $700 in money, and presented a roll of five hundred new members. Donations were made, the first large one being a gift of $100 by a member of the P. E. O. sisterhood. Another $100 gift followed short- ly and many smaller donations were made by interested individuals. During the summer of 191 7 work in hospital supplies was under the direction of Mrs. George Coulson, assisted by Mrs. August Dlu- gosch and Mrs. H. E. Swope. In the making of comforts for fight- ing men, together with comfort kits and knitting, Mrs. S. B. McMakin had charge. Mrs. J. A. Schmitz, assisted by Miss Cora Siberall, di- rected the making of surgical dressings ; Mrs. J. H. O'Donoghue was superintendent of the women's bureau. A class of first aid was given a course of instruction by Dr. J. H. O'Donoghue, and examined by HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 68i Dr. J. A. Swallum. By the end of this year the Storm Lake branch had accumulated a fund of $2,256.68 with which to carry on further work and as a nucleus for a larger fund to be raised through the year. When it came time to effect a reorganization in October, 191 7, Mrs. J. H. O'Donoghue was named for chairman, Mrs. J. A. Schmitz as vice chairman, Mrs. George Sedgwick was chosen secretary, and Mr. P. C. Toy as treasurer. First aid instruction was continued, with Dr. E. D. Banghart as- sisting the two physicians who have been formerly mentioned in this connection. Mrs. Ernest Ballou, herself well trained in the care of the sick, conducted classes of instruction in this work, while the prob- lem of dietetics was covered by Miss Violet Pammel, who abandoned a position as domestic science instructor in the high school to give service as dietitian in the base hospital at Camp Lewis, Washington. BIvIZZARD ON SALE DAY During the winter it was decided to hold a Red Cross sale in Storm Lake to secure funds for the local needs. The sale was to be inau- gurated by a community dinner at noon, with the sale following, and supper served at the regular evening hour. It was hard luck that the day set, January 12, 1918, should prove to be the most severely cold and stormy day of a record-breaking cold winter. But even in the midst of this blizzard, one thousand people surprised the management by appearing at the noon hour at the ap- pointed place, the Lakeside church, for their dinner. Food was gen- erously donated for this splendidly served meal. Every creed, class, and clique was there, working in harmony, for the success of an ef- fort which demonstrated the finest community spirit ever seen in town. Postponement of the sale for one week was found to be advisable because of weather conditins, so it was agreed that another community dinner should be served. Again a thousand people were fed and again the committee in charge proved fully ec^ual to the task of din- ing so large a company generously and with dispatch. For this day the food had not been solicited, but with the exception of the fresh, homemade pies had been purchased by the committee and paid for from the receipts of the dinner. Reenforced by a good dinner, the company' was in good spirits for the sale which was held in the big Spahn-Rose lumber shed, the wea- 682 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY ther being still too cold for an out-of-doors assemblage. The men largely responsible for the sale, Fred P. Foster, H. G. Mittlestadt, Pat Clancy, and T. D. Filers, had made a canvass of the county for live stock which was offered for sale by Ray C. Point, and with other ar- ticles contributed netted the sum of $8,500. The largest single in- come producer of the sale was a Red Cross goose which sold and re- sold until it netted $4,600. This accomplishment won for the bird sufficient distinction that it was counted a worthy present for a high dignitary, so the next week Colonel George Currier and E. B. Acker- man of Province Township took the goose to Iowa's capital city and presented it to Governor W. L. Harding. The Red Cross treasury was replenished with $880 from the first dinner and $380 from the second dinner. With these resources in the treasury the ladies of the branch and the community were free to bend all their energies to the making of supplies, without the ne- cessity of worrying about funds with which to buy the needed materials. Generosity with the Red Cross did not cease with this effort. Throughout the year contributions were made to the fund which made possible a steady continuance of work. Donations of time, talent, and money aided in splendid cooperation with the Red Cross. Especially should attention be called to the help of the Masonic and Yeoman lodges, the Order of Eastern Star, the W.C.T.U., the I.O.O.F., the Storm Lake band, the library board, the Commercial Club, various women's and girls' clubs and other organizations, as well as many individuals who gave unsolicitated donations of money. The tele- phone management and service, the postoffice force, and the press of the city are credited with services which contributed to the success of the work. During the year there were donations made to the . amount of $2269.08, the majority of the donors seeking no publicity through their gifts. Probably the first in the year was a "tag day" conducted by the Women's Relief Corps, when $171.17 was netted for the Red Cross. At a time when the work was urgent and it was facilitated appreciably by such a gift a kindly disposed citizen presented the branch with an electric cutting machine for the use of the hospital supplies and refugees' relief committees. The Storm Lake band gave weekly concerts all summer and turned HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 683 over their entire net proceeds to the Red Cross, besides giving their services for the benefit of the organization on other occasions. Shortage of help was experienced by the farmers during the har- vest season. Several business men went to the rescue, giving to the Red Cross the returns of their labor. Young- girls, also, went into the fields and shocked grain, donating their pay also. Ladies gave their services in arranging dances and luncheons, the proceeds of which were given to the Red Cross. An entertainment feature that attracted unusual attention was the presentation of "The Red Cross Nurse," with Everett Walker, comedian, directing, assisted b}^ Roy U. Kinne and Ray Samuels, with a cast of Storm Lake home talent assisting. The entire basement of the public library was made available as a surgical dressings and packing room; the M. E. church basement provided similar conveniences for the making of hospital supplies and refug-ees' relief garments. All of the churches opened their audito- riums for public gatherings under Red Cross auspices. When the season became so cold that public buildings which were only occasionally opened were too cold for assemblage, private homes were opened for the work of these committees — and, of course, this involved the use of sewing machines and similar equipment. NEED FOR EMERGENCY HOSPITAL Signing of the armistice on November 11, 1918, permitted the Red Cross to pass the peak of its activities — yet there remained one im- portant emergency service that could not be overlooked in a time of such stress. Buena Vista College had one hundred and twenty-five young men from this and adjoining counties in the Students Army Training Corps when the Spanish influenza became an epidemic. Because of the demand for nurses everywhere it was impossible to get nurses for individual cases. To meet the situation, a Red Cross hospital was fitted up in the LO.O.F. hall, where the regalia and lodge equip- ment had to be removed temporarily for the installation of the hos- pital equipment. Mrs. Ernest Ballou and Mrs. A. E. Webb assumed responsibility for management of the affair and direction of the nurs- ing, and were given assistance by other nurses. The special commit- tee appointed to oversee this humanitarian enterprise consisted of 684 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Mayor W. C. Edson, Mrs. J. A. Schmitz, Mrs. Bert Lewis, Mrs. S. Olinger, Mrs. J. H. O'Donoghue and Mr. George Sedgwick. Dr. E. F. Smith who had been appointed by the War Department as sur- geon for the S.A.T.C. was the doctor in charge. Acknowledgement of the service rendered by this great work was made through the following letter written on behalf of the college management to the committee: Storm Lake, Iowa, November 8, 191 8. Mrs. J. H. O'Donoghue, Storm Lake, Iowa. My Dear Madam: The trustees, faculty and students of Buena Vista College desire to tender to the Storm Lake branch of the Red Cross their sincere thanks and appreciation for your efforts in behalf of the members of the Students Army Training Corps at the college. This ought to go down in the history of Storm Lake as one of the splendid things done by your chapter. We have been informed that this was the only unit in the Students Army Training Corps in the cen- tral division where no lives were lost from the epidemic of Spanish influenza. W^ill you, as president of the organization, extend to its members our thanks for what you have done? Very truly yours Buena Vista College W. C. Edson, Chairman Board of Trustees. W. M. Storey, Secretary Board of Trustees. The Spanish influenza continuing, it was deemed expedient to es- tablish a Red Cross hospital for civilian relief. The upper floor of the Benson building, at the corner of Third and Railroad streets, was rented and Miss Luella Burns installed as nurse in charge. Mrs. J. A. Schmitz, Mrs. Charles Richardson, and Mrs. H. E. Swope were the committee in control. Generous donations were received, such as beds and bedding, furnishings, and supplies. Care was given a number of patients. The hospital closed the latter part of February. MAKE HOME-COMING HAPPY Four months after the signing of the armistice our boys from over- seas and from the several camps in this country were gradually re- turning to home and friends, and the Red Cross decided to give them a fitting welcome home. To this end a "Home-Coming Committee" was appointed, consisting of John R. Bell, Rev. John Erb, Chas. H. J. Mitchell, Mrs. U. S. Parrish, Miss Frieda Witter, Miss Wynn La- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 685 Grange, Mrs. G. M. Pedersen, Dr. W. M. Storey, P. J. Toohey, Lou Thomas, E. L. O'Conner, C. C. Colwell and A. T. Troeger. The first reception arranged by this committee was held January 24, IQ19, in the display rooms of Brader's garage, a beautiful new building of large capacity, which was appropriately decorated for the occasion. A short program was given, with speeches and music, and an exhibition drill by Lieutenant Schwarz. F. F. Faville, a former citizen of Storm Lake, gave the principal address. Refresh- ments were served to the 1500 people present, after which dancing was enjoyed for the remainder of the evening. On May 2d another home reception was given the returned sol- diers, as their numbers had been largely increased since the January reception. Carney's Hall, a recently finished improvement to the city, accommodated the 2,000 people who had assembled to do honor to the men returned from serving our country. Again a program of music preceded a patriotic address, given this time by Hon. James B. Weaver, president of the state organization of the Red Cross, the man who signed the charter for the Buena Vista Chapter, and who was prominent as the Polk County representative in the Iowa legis- lature. Ice cream and the homemade cakes for which the boys so often longed were the treat provided. Again dancing with the maids at home was a diversion which inspired in the maids a sense of pride as keen as the satisfaction the soldiers experienced in again being at home. When Storm Lake decided to make its Independence Day celebra- tion for the summer of 19 19 a reception to the soldiers, members of the Red Cross united to extend to the visiting soldiers, sailors, and marines a canteen service that would remind them of all the best that they had had in days of real army service. At a stand on the lake front, the ladies served free to the service men, refreshments and smokes that made them happy the day long. On this occasion Hon. J. R. Files of Fort Dodge was the orator who made the special address. FIGURES TEI.I. THIS STORY Other interesting points of the development of the activities of the Storm Lake- branch are shown by the fact that in 1917 the member- ship was 835, in 1918 it was 2,161, while in 1919 it was 1,360. De- crease in memberships is apparent from the fact that all member- 686 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY ships under eighteen years were registered in the Junior organization, and also because no gift memberships were soHcited. During the time when road conditions were the worst some of the country terri- tory was not solicited for memberships. Of the money that was raised, $3,345.23 was sent to the National Red Cross; $6,882.07 was raised from the sales held; $843.97 was netted as a result of communi- ty meals served, $3,139.03 was assembled in outright donations, and the total of all money raised, including memberships, was $22,833.33. The total of sewing and knitted work credited to the combined branch- es of the county was: Pajamas 3,498, bath robes 510, bed jackets 235, operating leggins 40, pillow cases 795, towels 1,545, napkins 624, tray cloths 354, wash cloths 1,082, hot water bag covers 83, handker- chiefs 1,355, comfort pillows 71, bed sheets 2,216, draw sheets 78, boxes of clippings 4, pairs of ward slippers 5, Christmas packages 52, completed comfort kits 250, empty comfort kits 23, partially filled comfort kits 45, wall kits 33, partially filled housewives 23, empty housewives 26, pairs of scissors 7, adhesive tape 6, property bags 5, afghans 20, property kits 892, convalescent suits 57, complete layettes 50, refugee garments 3,080, surgical dressings 49,290, pairs of socks 5,172, sweaters 2,242, helmets 403, mufflers 590, pairs of wristlets 1,050. FINANCIAL REPORT Buena Vista County Chapter and Storm Lake branch funds were not kept separately, and part of the items shown in the following financial statement are funds such as memberships and war funds that were handled for the other branches. The showing is for 'the full time from organization until July 1,1919. It follows: Receipts: Hospital supplies sold, $59.60; receipts of Red Cross hospital, $261.35; Junior Red Cross Magasine subscriptions, $4; tin foil sold, $10.97; R^d Cross badges sold, $8; proceeds from dances and other benefits, $585.70; instructions of classes, $93.95; class books sold, $27.30; Red Cross pins sold, $9.45 ; country club luncheons $52.14; balance from county Red Cross picnic, $5.27; received from harvest work by business men, $121 ; merchandise sold by branches, $5,335.71 ; membership dues, $10,716.25; donations, $2,732.31; receipts of com- munity dinners, $843.97; thermometers sold, $3; received for cutting material, $11.37; home-coming reception supplies sold, $28; canteen HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 687 service supplies sold, $17; refund on war funds, $6,240.95; receipts of community sale, $6,882.07; a total of $34,048.66. Disbursements: Rent of chairs 30 cents; livery for delivery of supplies, $5; janitor service, $2; typewriting, $26; telephone and tele- grams, $32.91 ; express, freight, and drayage, $137.18; electricity and supplies, $14.71; printing and postage, $400.47; Christmas boxes, $12.50; expenses of cutting machine instructor, $3.61 ; rental of quar- ters, $50; lumber for packing boxes, $59.28; instruction of classes, $23.50; expenses of Junior Red Cross, $62.77; delegates' expenses to regional convention, $18.90; insurance on material, $21.24; expenses of band, $12; civilian relief, $194.82; heating church for community dinners, $7 ; refund on lunch cloth sold at sale, $5 ; receipts of play to national headquarters, $74.52 ; refund of Albert City membership dues, $6; national headquarters membership dues, $7,628; yarn and other merchandise, $11,374.35 ; proportion of war fund, $3,160.30; refund on war fund to branches, $4,325.10; expenses of home-coming receptions, $343.20; advertising Christmas drive, $32.20; canteen ser- vice July 4th, $97.48 ; flowers for sick, $5 ; hospital expenses, $1,796.06; balance in bank, including hospital fund, $4,117.26. West Hayes Auxiliary This group of ladies, ten in number, met in private homes every two weeks, with work that consisted mostly of sewing and knitting. Each lady took extra work home, on which to keep busy between meetings. Members knitted 4 sweaters, 30 pairs of socks, and 20 wristlets. They sewed 150 hospital bed shirts, 204 hand towels, 12 hot water bag cov- ers, 10 operating leggins. The ladies also did some refugee work, making 46 ladies' skirts and 18 boys' waists. They made and filled 7 comfort kits — and all the time were counted as full fledged Red Cross workers. Miss Daisy Fultz was the secretary of this group. Report of Truesdale Branch In 19 1 7, 108 memberships yielded $189; in 19 18, 105 memberships raised $110; in 1919, 197 members raised $198. The total of all money raised, including memberships, was $1,175. This branch made 1171 surgical dressings, 11 hospital garments, 130 pieces of hospital supplies, 40 refugee garments, 144 articles for soldiers and sailors. 688 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY For 1917 the organization was as follows: Chairman, Mrs. Ed Sweet ; vice chairman, Mrs. Ed Vogel, secretary, Mrs. H, Steinhilber ; treasurer, H. H. Lang. For 191-8-1919 the officers who served were: Chairman, Mrs. Walter Ernst; vice chairman, Mrs. Bert Walker; secretary. Miss Wanda Berkler; treasurer, H. H. Lang. The chairman of the sewing committee was Mrs. Gossit; knitting committee, Mrs. Martin; inspecting committee, Mrs. H. Steinhilber; purchasing committee, Mrs. T. E. Walker; surgical dressings com- mittee, Mrs. E. F. Sweet. Roster Red Cross Workers^ AETA Mrs. M. Ankerson, Kista Ankerson, Mrs. C. M. Reese, J. A. Allen, Mrs. J. H. Allen, Mrs. A. J. Anderson, Edna Allen, Mrs. Jennie An- derson, Mrs. J. A. Berkeland, Mrs. G. A. Benson, Mrs. James C. Bell, Mrs. Elmer C. Benson, Mrs. R. C. Brogmus, Mrs. Wm. Batten, Louise Isbell, David H. Carpenter, Mrs. David H. Carpenter, Miss Margue- rite Carpenter, Grace Clemons, Mrs. E. W. Clemons, Mrs. N. A, Chirstensen, Audry Christensen, C. E. Cameron, Mrs. C. E. Cameron, Mrs. John Cavey, Mrs. Martha J. Connor, Bertie Claybaugh, Ida Claybaugh, Mrs. Peter Cox, O. P. Dagger, Mrs. O. P. Dagger, Pearl Davenport, Golman Davenport, Mrs. S. P. DeLay, Leone DeLay. Geo. B. Fanning, Mrs. Geo. B Fanning, Mrs. Frank Friedlund, Mrs. C. S. Grabin, Mrs. B. Gurney, Mrs. Lincoln Gurney, Maletta Gurney, Mrs. George Gosmire, Mrs. J. F. Haight, Mrs. C. J. Hetrick, Stella Haight, Lethe Haight, Mrs. D. E. Hadden, Lola Hadden, Mrs. C. Hille, Alvira Hille, Mrs. C. P. Holmes, Miss Ellen Holmes, Mrs. J. C. Henkel, Mrs. T. J. Holmes, Mrs. Gus Helgerson, Mrs. G. E. Hol- lingsworth, H. J. Hoffeins, Mrs. H. J. Hoffeins, Mrs. C. C. Iverson, Mrs. Swan ■ Johnson, Augusta E. Johnson, Mrs. C. J. Jimmerson, Olive Jimmerson, Hazel Jimmerson, Mrs. L. E. Jockheck, Mrs. Louis Johnson, Lillian Johnson, Myrtle Johnson, Nels Johansen, Mrs. Chris Jensen, Mrs. John Lindhe, Mrs. C. E. Larsen, Mrs. H. S. Larson, Mrs. Lars Larson, Lillian Larson, Mrs. H. J. Litchenberg, Ora Lit- chenberg, Elizabeth Litchenberg, Mrs. Hans C. Larsen, Geneva Lar- ^We have tried to give as many names of people who have assisted vi^ith Red Cross work as posible. V/e presented questionnaires to all families in the county and secured information from the families in the county as to the work that each member of the family had done in the various activities. The names given were secured from the ques- tionnaires which were returned to us. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 689 sen, Mrs. Eddie Larsen, Miss Mary Lindlief, C. A. Lindlief, C. A. Lindlief, Chris E. Larsen, Mrs. C. Larsen, Miss Pearl Maggs, Mrs. R. T. McElderry, Mrs. P. Morrissey, Miss Maude Morrissey, Miss Millicent Morrissey, Lola Morrissey, Helen Morrissey, Mavie Mikle- son, Mrs. C. H. Millard, Mrs. Oakman, Mrs. J. Jay Parker, Leah Parker, Alvira Peterson, Mrs. C. J. Parker, Mrs. C. D. Peterson, Mrs. E. E. Peterson, Miss Helen Peterson, Miss Florence Peterson, Mrs. August Peterson, Mrs. E. L. Pearson, Samuel Parker, Mrs. Samuel Parker, Mrs. John Poulson, Mrs. Langlett, Rebecca Poulson, C. F. Peterson, Mrs. C. F. Peterson, Elsie Peterson, Roy H. Wilkin- son, Mrs. Roy H. Wilkinson, Mrs. George Walton, Mrs. Martin Willfong, Rose Willfong, Phoebe Popham, Mrs. J. F. Porter, Mrs. Anton Peterson, Mrs. Wesley Reynolds, Mrs. W. C. Rowlands, Mrs. Wm. Rawn, Mrs. A. C. Rader, Mrs. John Swanson, Elsie Swanson, Mrs. Lena Peterson, Mrs. J. L. Slutz, Miss Lena Peterson, Miss Carrie Smith, Mrs. Orris Swanson, Mrs. C. Stamm, Mrs. James Staples, Mrs. W. M. Smith, Selma Soderquist, Evelyn Soderquist, Nellie Soderquist, Thomas Scambler, Mrs. Thomas Scambler, Mrs. A. Cone, Fern Hazel Scambler, Mrs. Albert Swenson, Mrs. E. C. Thatcher, G. F. Tincknell, Miss Florence Tincknell, Marjorie Tinck- nell, Sybil Tincknell, Mrs. Mary J. Tincknell, Mrs. C. A. Van Bus- kirk, Jesse Wilkinson, Mrs. Jesse Wilkinson, Mrs. J. Wilkinson, Sr., John B. Walker, Mrs. John B. Walker, Mildred Walker, Mrs. C. D. Wilcox, W. W. Ullom, Mrs. W. W. Ullom, Julia Ullom. FAIRFlElvD TOWNSHIP AND ALBERT CITY Mrs. Oscar Fark, C. E. Gulbranson, Mrs. C. E. Gulbranson, W. M. Hansen, W. W. Kischer, Mrs. W. W. Kischer, C. J. Lorengren, Frank D. Linder, Mrs. Frank D. Linder, H. W. Lampe, O. Nelson, Alfred Paul, B. A. Peterson, Mrs. B. A. Peterson, Miss Jennie J. Smith, A. J. Ryden, Mrs. A. J. Ryden, G. T. Swenson, Mrs. G. E. Swenson, S. M. Danielson, Mrs. J. G. Lodine, Mrs. F. T Youngquist, Mrs. G. R. Anderson, Carl Anderson, Aug. Anderson, Mrs. Aug. Anderson, Axel Beina, Mrs. B. S. Byson, Mrs. C. J. Benna, A. L. Bergling, Mrs. A. L. Bergling, Mrs. B. B. Bridge, J. F. Boyd, Ralph E. Carlson, Jesse Caskey, C. H. Englund, Mrs. J. P. Eckman, J. P. Eckman, Elmer Walstead, Ernest Warren, Andy Walstead, Mrs. C. A. Walner. 690 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY BROOKE TOWNSHIP Mrs. John Chilgren, Mrs. Morris Anderson, Miss Lillie Anderson, Mrs. A. B. Colman, Mrs. W. M. Grapinthin, Mrs. W. M. Haxby, Mrs. Frens Hanson, Mrs. T. O. Halverson, Mrs. Richard Peterson, Mrs. B. J. Peterson, D. E. Smith, C. L. Haight, Mrs. C. L. Haight, Mrs. John Swanson, Mrs. N. P. Christenson, Miss Hanah Christen- sen. Miss Nettie Christensen, Mrs. Howard Davis, Mrs. R. J. Brad- ley, Miss Edna Bradley, William H. Boese, Mrs. Herman Boese, Mrs. William Rutter. COON TOWNSHIP Henry F. Almholtz, J. G. Anderson, A. Engler, H. W. Griffel, J. C. Gran, Mrs. A. E. Madison, Cora Madison, John J. Thompson, Henry D. Thieman, Ross Wilson, H. Wendrup. ElvK TOWNSHIP Mrs. A. W. Buckingham, L. C. Kramer, Mrs. L. C. Kramer, Henry W. Haase, Mrs. Henry W. Haase, Mrs. C. N. Christensen, C. N. Christensen, Mrs. Jacob Johnson, Miss Marguerite Johnson, John R. Pierson, Gertrude Hansen, Amelia Halverson, Mrs. J. A. Buckingham, Mrs. Geo. N. Booth, Mrs. Frank Vetcher, Mrs. N. E. Burgeson, Nettie David, P. H. Hansen, Mrs. Bertel Hansen, Mrs. Emery C. Jorgensen, Mrs. Ed. Johnson, Mrs. Claus Johnson, Claus Johnson, A. C. Johnson, Mrs. A. C. Johnson, Mrs. Carl Johnson, Nellie M. Johnson, Albin Johnson, Mrs. Jacob Johnson, Mrs. Jorgen Larson, Miss Anna Larson, Mrs. Peter Langlett, Mrs. Randrup Miller, Lillie Madsenk, Mrs. Christian Swenson, Mrs. A. G. Meyer, Mrs. Soren Miller, Mrs. J. A. O'Banion, J. R. Pierson, Mrs. J. R. Pierson, Miss Sigrid Peterson, Mrs. Carl E. Peterson, Mrs. Will Reckoff, Ed. Rhenstrom, Mrs. Ed. Rhenstrom, Mrs. Edward Ryd- strom, J. F. Vanderhoff, Anna Vanderhoff, Mary Vanderhoff, Mrs. Aaron Vanderhoff. GRANT TOWNSHIP Rev. F. Albrecht, Fred H. Higgins, J. M. Hussey, Ed. C. Spooner, Mrs. R. A. Corbin, Mrs. N. M. Hofi'man. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 691 HAYDS TOWNSHIP Mrs. E. L. Chadwick, Mrs. Charles Christensen, Mrs. J. A. Chind- lund, Evylin Chindlund, Opal Chindlund, Mrs. F. W. Crowley, Mrs. Frank Eckhardt, Mrs. Ross Fultz, Daisy Fultz, Job Francis, Grove Francis, Orpho Francis, Mrs. J. E. Fultz, Mrs. Robert C. Fulton, Mrs. W. E. Gaffey, Mrs. Henry Grieme, Mrs. S. R. Harris, S. R. Harris, Mrs. Jacob Horth, Mrs. W. F. Horth, Mrs. Frank Johnson,' Mrs. M. G. Kimal, A. O. Mainhard, Mrs. Wm. Oatman, Mrs. C. H. Peters, Mrs. Wm. Pike, Mrs. J. H. Ross. LEE TOWNSHIP Mrs. B. E. Tremain, Ruth Tremain, Miss Mildred Lee, Olive Byam, Mrs. Sam Bennett, Mrs. Margaret Evans, Mrs. T. R. Fairchild, Mrs. Joe Gunderson, Louis Hadenfeldt, Mrs. C. L. Jones, Levi G. Lands- ness, Mrs. C. H. Pewsey, E. P. Williams. LINCOEN TOWNSHIP Henry Hadenfeldt, Mrs. Henry Hadenfeldt, Mrs. Albert Meyers, Mrs. O. Olson, M. C. Renland, Mrs. M. C. Renland, A. E. Sivert, Mrs. A. E. Sivert, E. S. Sivert, Mrs. E. S. Sivert, Mrs. R. R. Smith, Mrs. Mary Siekman, Miss Amelia Siekman, Mrs. Aug. Siekman, Miss Edna Siekman, Mrs. J. F. Taylor, Mrs. Bert Walker, Mrs. Geo. W. Zesbe, Mrs. Louis Wittmer, Mrs. Chas. Wittmer, Cecil Dahlstrom, Mrs. Ed. Dahlstrom, Ellen Dahlstrom, Elsie Dahlstrom, Miss Beda Anderson, Miss Esther Anderson, Mrs. John Atkins, Mrs. W. F. Burkler, Miss Wanda L. Burkler, W. F. Burkler, Chas. Blomgren, Miss Media Blomgren, Earl Blomgren, Mrs. J. H. Chase, Mrs. R. A. Edwards, Mrs. Earl Richardson, Mrs. Art Flannigan, Bea Gavin, Miss Ruby Hutchison. LINN GROVE AND BARNES TOWNSHIP Mrs. Otto Dokken, Mrs. Edward Evans, Harry E. Erickson, Mrs. Henry E. Erickson, John T. Evans, C. A. Fulton, Mrs. C. A. Fulton, Mrs. C. O. Friedlund, Mrs. H. Haroldson, F. A. Hein, Mrs. Christ, Halverson, Mrs. O. H. Hesla, Mrs. Ira Hansen, Miss Amelia Hansen, Mrs. A. J. Johnson, Mrs. J. S. Johnson, Mrs. Bert Johnson, John A. Johnson, Mrs. John N. Johnson, David Jones, Mrs. G. W. Johnson, Mrs. Andrew Johnson, Mrs. W. E. Landsberg, Mrs. Ida Mickelson, 692 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Mrs. D. R. Miller, Mrs. Fred Mangold, H. L. Pierce, B. L. Shirk, Mrs. B. L Shirk, H. C. Sondberg, Mrs. H. C. Sondberg, Robert Kramer, Mrs. A. H. Mickelson, Mrs. Olaf Sewalsen, Olga Sewalsen, Mrs. Tenie Bertness, Mrs. WilHam McGrew, Mrs. W. F. Anderson, W. J. Rystad, O. A. Peterson, Hannah Morris, A. L. Anderson, Mrs. A. L. Anderson, O. L. Anderson, Mrs. O. E. Anderson, Mrs. Alex Cuthbert, Mrs. John S. Cleveland, Emma Christensen, Mrs. Wm. Clayton, C. J. Christensen, Roy Cleveland, Mrs. Roy Cleveland, Mrs. J. E. Davis, Mrs. Maggie Davis, Mrs. O. L. Danielson, O. L. Daniel- son. MAPI.E VAIvIvEY TOWNSHIP Victor Nelson, Oscar Peterson, Mrs. Thomas Patten, Mrs. Char- lottee Starr, Marie Starr, Eve Star, Amelia Starr, Mrs. C. E. Smith, Mrs. E. F. Sanderman, Henry Stille, J. E. L. Schmidt, Mrs. J. E. L. Schmidt, Bert Schoelke, Mrs. B. R. Thayer, Frank Eutt, Mrs. Frank Eutt, Geo. Eolzin, Gus Turnquist, Mrs. Herbert Wall, Mrs. H. Wen- del, Charles Zwemke, W. H. Schmidt, Wm. Younie, Clara Younie, Mrs. W. M. Barr, A. C. Beecher, Mrs. A. C. Beecher, Mrs. Wm. Beecher, Henry Brisbois, Miss Florence Huseman, Ed. Gustafson, Mrs. Fred H. Harjes, Mrs. Charles Holtz, Mrs. Charles Hill, Charles Hill, Carl Harris, Mrs. Carl Harris, John Holtz, Mrs. John A. Hol- lingsworth, Gus Johannesen, Mrs. Gus Johannesen, Albert Jorgensen, Kate Clark, Mrs. Henry Larson, Mrs. Josephine Minard, Alice Minard, Herbert G. Wall. MARATHON AND POLAND TOWNSHIP Mrs. Bertha A. Bisby, Mrs. Nellie Smith, Mrs. Cora A. Smith, Mrs. Alfred Gustafson, Gus Erickson, W. J. Miller, F. A. Nichols, Mrs. M. C. Starrett, Mrs. E. R. Wells, J. H. Wegerslev, Roy White- hill, Mrs. Roy Whitehill. newe:lIv (town) Mrs. Geo. W. Chancy, Mrs. P. Peterson, Mrs. M. A. Armstrong, Mrs. J. F. Brown, Mrs. Geo. Bishop, Mrs. Olive Conley, Mrs. C. A. Collins, Jeannette Collins, Mrs. J. D. Cheney, Mrs. Nels Christensen, Sophia Christensen, Mrs. H. Peter Christenson, Mrs. Leo E. Couch, Mrs. R. J. Clausen, Mrs. W. A. Cameron, Agnes A. Chancy, Jessie M. Chaney, Mrs. J. E. Christensen, Mrs. E. O. Clark, Mrs. A. E. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 693 Couch, Mrs. Charles A. Doty, Mrs. G. L. Elhson, Mrs. S. Eskisen, Mrs. Geo. W. Eggilston, Rev. Geo. W. Eggilston, Mrs. J. H. Evans, Mrs. C. Frandsen, Mrs. Aug. Faber, Mrs. R. Fredericksen, Dajmar Frederickson, Ella Frederickson, Nanna Frederickson, Mrs. Geo. L. Fredenberg, Mrs. F. B. Fransen, Mrs. E. E. Grave, Mary Hansen, Mrs. Chris Holmen, Mrs. J. E. Holtz, Mrs. Wm. Huxtable, Mrs. F. O. Holcomb, Mrs. W. L. Holtz, H. A. Harvey, Mrs. H. A. Harvey, Mrs. Will Hunter, Mildred Hunter, Mrs. Minnie Harkness, Mrs. F. Hanson, Mrs. D. L. Hoeffle, Mrs. Katherine Jensen, Mrs. Nels Jen- sen, Mrs. Olaf Jorgensen, Mrs. P. M. Jensen, Mrs. S. W. Kelso, Mrs. Earl King, Mrs. Nels Kinnerun, Mrs. Agnes Langdon, E. P. Layman, Mrs. W. H. Lawton, Carrie Mikkelson, Mollie Mikkelson, Mrs. John Newton, Mrs. C. M. Nelson, Mrs. Walter Olson, Mrs. A. Post, Mrs. Louis Peterson, Mrs. F. L. Point, Mrs. Charles Peterson, Mrs. Piercy, Mrs. Nels Peterson, L. F. Parker, Mrs. L. F. Parker, Mrs. W. D. Rust, Mrs. C. J. Robinson, Mrs. Frank Rodd, Mrs. F. G. Redfield, Francis Redfield, Dora Redfield, Mrs. M. Sorenson, Mrs. R. J. Thomas, Mrs. C. E. J. Whitesit, Belle Whitesit, Ora Whitesit, J. A. Thompson, Mrs. J. A. Ehompson, Mrs. Ella Erukken, Rev. J. D. Vinding, Mrs. C. R. Waterman, Mrs. W. A. Waterman. NKWEIvL TOWNSHIP Mrs. J. P. Johnson, Mrs. Eric P. Kruse, Anna Kruse, Mrs. Peter Kladstrup, Mrs. John Kruse, Golda Kane, Wanda Kane, Mrs. Nels Larsen, Mrs. Lee Linsley, Mrs. J. B. Linsley, Mrs. L. P. Lind, Mrs. Lee P. Lund, Mindred Lund, Mrs. Grace Marguess, Mrs. W. E. Moreland, Mrs. A. Mikkelson, Anna Mikkelson, Mrs. Carl L. Nelsen, Mrs. J. P. Olson, Mrs. Peter Peterson, Mrs. L. B. Phillips, Mrs. P. M. Pendergast, August Schroder, Mrs. August Schroder, Viola Rod- da, Mrs. C. Alltren, Mrs. L P. Olsen, Mrs. Ivan M. Adams, Marinus Anderson, Mrs. Wm. E. Barnes, Mrs. J. A. Brown, Mrs. K, C. Bod- holt, Mrs. Oman Barrett, Mrs. George Boyce, Mrs. William Bahl, Mrs. Charles Borran, Ella Christensen, Mrs. Amiel Christensen, Mrs. J. A. Dallenbach, Mrs. Archie M. ElHs, Mrs. O. B. Elhs, Mrs. An- drew P. Gran, Miss Nellie Herrick, Mrs. Ferdinand Hemmingsen, Mrs. M. C. Haines, Mrs. M. A. Conklin, Mrs. Herb Piercy, Mrs. Henry Piercy, Mrs. James Rogers, Mrs. Lyle Smith, Mrs. Earl Sny- der, Mrs. Paul Snyder, Mary Swenson, Mrs. Anton Thompson, Miss 694 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Pearl Van Cleave, Genevieve Wilson, Lucille Wilson, Marion Wil- son, Emery Wilson, Mrs. Geo. Watterman, Florence Watterman, Mrs. J. P. Young, Florence Young. NOKOMIS TOWNSHIP Peter Strom, Mrs. Peter Strom, Miss Millicent Strom, Mrs. Ed. Lemmons, L. C. Anderson, Mrs. L. C. Anderson, Mrs. B. A. Adams, Miss Mabel Anderson, Anton Anderson, Mrs. Anton Anderson, Mrs. O. W. Anderson, A. L. Anderson, Mrs. Art Adams, Mrs. Ed Brick- sen, J. A. Blom, Mrs. J. A. Blom, C. J. Bains, Mrs. C. J. Bains, Mrs. S. E. Barnard, Mrs. F. C. Butler, Mrs. John Benson, Mrs. Geo. Bovee, Mrs. Fred Breecher, J. C. Bensene, Mrs. J. C. Bensene, Miss Norma Brown, Mrs. C. M. Coombs, Mrs. F. W. Corneliussen, F. W. Corneliussen, Mrs. Frank Carpenter, C. F. Erickson, Mrs. Henry Frederickson, Mrs. Geo. G. Glawe, Mrs. C. G. Gulbranson, L. H. Hatch, Mrs. L. H. Hatch, Mrs. Martin Hansen, Christian Hansen, Miss Annie Hansen, J. W. Heywood, Lucy Heywood, Mrs. G. W. Isaaksen, Mrs. Ross Johnson, Mrs. Helmer Johannesen, Miss Bernice Johannesen, Laura Johnson, Mrs. George A. Johnson, L. E. Johnson, Amanda Kindwall, Opal Lindberg, Hulda Lindberg, Mrs. Gust Lundgren, Mrs. Martin C. Madsen, Mrs. Peter Matson, C. Moff- att, Mrs. C. Moffatt, Mrs. Andrew Nelson, Mrs. Herman Nelson, Mrs. Carl Oquist, Mrs. D. J. Wessman, Mrs. Geo. Parrott, Mrs. A. poulson, A. W. Peterson, Mrs. A. A. Peterson, S. C. Porter, Miss Regina Porter, Bert Poulson, R. E. Parker, Mrs. R. E. Parker, Mrs. Homer G. Robar, P. J. Swanson, J. B. Stomberg, Mrs. J. B. Stom berg, Mrs. Ellen Swanson, C. L. Swanson, Mrs. C. Schott, Albert Waldo, Mrs. Frank W. Wilson, Mrs. B. A. Warme. PROVIDENCE TOWNSHIP Bessie Robins, E. B. Ackerman, Mrs. Clarence A. Bodholdt, Mrs. Emil Bodholdt, Mrs. C. S. Boch, Anton Boch, Mrs. W. Barnes, Hans C. Bodholdt, Ida Barnes, Mrs. Ed Duffy, Mrs. Wm. Gee, Katherine Gee, Mrs. Archie Henry, Mrs. A. B. Heath, Stella Heath, Mrs. Ben Hopkins, Mrs. Christian Jensen, Mrs. E. A. Jones, Mrs. Jensen, Mrs. John McFadden, Mrs. Thos. Mernin, Mrs. Joe McKenna, Fred C. Britton, Carrie Mikkelson, Mrs. J. H. McKenna, Mrs. Matt Nelson, Glennie Petty, Ruth Petty, J. N. Reding, Mrs. John Sturchler, Dora HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 695 Thuesen, Mrs. Anna M. Thuesen, Jennie Thuesen, Edna Thuesen, E. P. Wright. REMBRANDT Mary Kaufman, Gust Peterson, Mrs. H. C. Berger, H. C. Berger. SCOTT TOWNSHIP Mrs. Carl Swanson, Mrs. Ivan Bodine, R. C. Kramer, Mrs. R. C. Kramer, May A. Kramer, P. H. Betz, Mrs. P. H. Betz, Lillie Betz, Mrs. Rachel Lokken, O. A. Lokken, Mrs. Ed. Anderson, Augustus Brow, Wm. Bice, Mrs. Wm. Bice, Oscar F. Bodine, Mrs. Oscar F. Bodine, G. R. Fanning, Mrs. G. R. Fanning, Mrs. J. C. Hanson, Mrs. H. C. Lindlief, Agnes McCabe, Mrs. A. Swensen, Lillian Madsen, Matilda Madsen, Bodel Madsen, Mrs. Peter A. Nyden, Elsie Nyden, Mrs. C. W. Peterson, John M. Rhenstrom, Mamie Rhenstrom, Mrs. G. L. Steig. SIOUX RAPIDS Mrs. A. A. Osmundson, Miss A. Osmundson, Miss Mabel Osmund- son, Miss Luella Olson, Mrs. O. P. Olson, Mrs. A. G. Gustafson, Mrs. Alfred Olson, Mrs. Vhristian Olson, Mrs. P. F. Parker, Mrs. Isaac Remillard, Mrs. Jacob G. Rufif, Mrs. R. Reynolds, Mrs. A. A. Richardson, Mrs. O. O. Rosell, Miss Ida Rosell, Mrs. B. E. Sickles, Mrs. H. J. Christenson, Mrs. E. H. Shultz, Mrs. Lena Seversen, Mrs. Howard Aawyer, Mrs. Clinton Summy, Mrs. Jacob Smith, Ruth Smith, Isabella Smith, Lydel Smith, James O. Smith, Alice M. Smith, John W. Smith, Mrs. A. A. Scott, Mrs. J. K. Salveson, Mrs. G. T. Smith, Mrs. P. A. Saxerut, Mrs. A. B. Snyder, Miss J. M. Snyder, Mrs. C. P. Sickels, Mrs. N. C. Simonsen, Mrs. A. Steen, Mrs. Anna Skelton, Mrs. L. A. Torkelson, Mrs. H. E. Urdahl, Mrs. W. F. Wright, Mrs. Emma Wilson, F. D. White, Mrs. F. D. White, Mrs. S. R. L. Wright, Mrs. T. H. Whitehead, Rofa Whitehead, Miss Ruth Eatin, Mrs. Ford Vaulke, Mrs. Frank Schweitzer, T. W. Murdock, Mrs. E. C. Matteson, Miss Marie Matteson, Mrs. Ed. F. McFarland, Mrs. Martin Murphy, Mrs. C. J. McDanel, Miss Merna McDanel, Mrs. C. E. McFarland, Miss Bessie Martz, Miss Mabel Martz, Mrs. Geo. McDowell, Mrs. Lon Wydall, Mrs. S. G. Undstrum, Mrs. F. K. Northey, Miss Genevieve Northey, Mrs. Ed J. Norris, Mrs. O. Oberg, Miss Adelia Johnson, Miss Julia Johnson, Mrs. James Peppeson, Mrs. 696 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY L. E. Kleppe, Miss Helsa Kleppe, Miss Hedwig Kleppe, Miss Ellen Kleppe, Mrs. E. W. Bowers, Mrs. Oscar Eaton, Miss Ruth Eaton, Mrs. Elmer Anchild, H. G. Lickvold, Mrs. C. W. Leighton, James Levison, Mrs. N. A. Lundvall, Miss Isabel Lundvall, Mrs. E. Merry, Mrs. F. B. Watler, Mrs. John Merry, Mrs. A. E. Myers, Mrs. Miles Moe, Mrs. F. H. Diercks, Miss Emily Eade, Miss Ernla Graham, Miss Coral Graham, Mrs. L. C. Goodman, Mrs. R. E. George, Mrs. Elizabeth Hagemen, Miss Florence Hageman, Mrs. H. H. Hall, Mrs. U. M. Hamstreet, Miss Grace Buckholz, Mrs. J. P. Hedin, Mrs. Amy B. Haskins, Miss Mamine Hoskins, Miss Margaret Hoskins, J. E. Holden, Mrs. J. E. Holden, Mrs. F. A. Jackson, Mrs. Niel Johnson, Miss May Jackson, Miss Elizabeth Jackson, Mrs. J. C. Johnson, Mrs. Andrew Johnson, Mrs. J. H. Aronstedt, Mrs. G. W. Alexander, Mrs. Edward Anderson, Mrs. Axel Anderson, Miss Julia Anderson, Mary I. Boynton, Mrs. R. R. Burr, Mrs. T. C. Eongman, Mrs. Joseph F. Brown, Mrs. F. B. Ballentyne,. Mrs. J. F. Clough, Miss Anna Clough, Mrs. Anna Clough, Mrs. Annie Clark, Mrs. G. A. Christensen, Mrs. Geo. Crick, Mrs. Alex Cook, Mrs. L. D. Christy, Mrs. G. A. Cady, Miss Madge Dodge, Miss Arline Dodge, Mrs. E. M. Punoe, Mrs. I. P. Davidson, Mrs. Enoch F. Davis. STORM LAKE Mrs. W. F. Adams, Mrs. B. K. Abbott, Mrs. Wm. Aitken, Agnes Aitken, Mrs. V. J. Anderson, Mrs. Fred Biggins, Mrs. A. E. Brun- son, A. D. Bailie, Mrs. J. S. Bell, Mrs. H. E. Barrick, Mrs. J. I. Bullard, Elsie Battern, Ana Grace Buland, Leila Buland, Mrs. L. E. Ballou, Jr., John R. Beh, Mrs. John R. Bell, Robert Bleakly, Mrs. Robert Bleakkly, Robert Bleakly, Mrs. Martha Busby, Matie Mailie, Mrs. Amos A. Bouchy, Marie Bouchy, Mrs. J. F. Brown, Mrs. E. D. Bangheart, Mrs. Culbertson, T. H. Chapman, Mrs. E. H. Chapman, Mrs. E. M. Clapp, Mrs. Elmer Cobb, Mrs. Ellen Condon, Mrs. C. C. Colwell, Mrs. Mathew Connor, Mathew Connor, Ileen S. Louise Connor, Mrs. George Currier, Mrs. Roy Davidson, Mrs. H. S. Darr, Mrs. Dlugosch, Mrs. A. Dlugosch, Mrs. Edward Dahl, Mrs. F. V. Dumbaugh, Mrs. L. S. Dlugosch, Mrs. Nehie M. Deal Miss Elsie Planalp, W. C. Edson, T. D. Filers, Mrs. E. D. Filers, Mrs. Gred H. Ensign, Mrs. B. B. Fiscus, Mrs. F. P. Foster, F. P. Foster, Mrs. G. H. Fracker, Anne Fracker, Mrs. Harley Adams, Mrs. R. Gaffin, W. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 697 L. Giesinger, Mrs. W. L. Giesinger, Mrs. R. J. Geisinger, Mrs. John Glowczewsky, Mrs. A. G. Gilmore, Mildred Gilmore, Donald M (5rant, Mrs. Chas. Ga^n, Mrs. M. D. Grimes, Julia Hayes, H. J Hahne, Mrs. Aug. G. Hoch, Mrs. J. Haywood, Mrs. A. E. Howard Mrs. T. H. Harden, Mrs. M. J. Hughes, Mrs. Ben Hollenbeck, Mrs G. W. Harner, Verlin Harper, Shirley Harper, Mrs. Joe Hopkins Mrs. John Jenkins, C. C. Jackson, Mrs. W. A. Jones, Mrs. Clififord J. Johnson, Mrs. A. W. Kaufman, Mrs. Roy Kinne, Mrs. Lillie Kes- ler, Mrs. Wm. Kurtenback, Mrs. Florence Kerslake, Mrs. James Po- land, Mrs. Fred Bruhn, Miss Nell Kerslake, Mrs. Clarence Keester, Mrs. Colin Lovesee, Colin Lovesee, Mrs. C. W. Liercke, C. W. Liercke, Mrs. W. H. Manchester, Grace E. Mack, Mrs. Frank Mack, Mrs. D. H. Miller, Mrs. M. J. Miles, Mrs. Geo. Blakely, Gladys Blake- ly, Mrs. Margaret Miller, Mrs. A. F. Morse, Mrs. C. T. Millard, Mrs. J. L. Munson, Mrs. Ernest Melcher, Mrs. Kittie Miller, Mrs. A. Stanton, Mrs. Wm. Miller, R. E. McKenna, Mrs. Grace Marshall, Mrs. L. J. Metcalf, C. H. J. Mitchell, Mrs. C. H. J. Mitchell, Mrs. Geo. C. Mack, Mrs. John McPherson, Mrs. Frank Martine, Mrs. B. B. Morris, Mrs. Ray North, Mrs. Wm. North, Mrs. Frank Newell, Mrs. James Newell, Mrs. J. H. O'Donohue, Mrs. E. W. Oates, E. W. Oates, Mrs. Anna Olson, Mrs. J. S. Peterson, Pearl A. Pewsey, Mrs. W. E. Post, Mrs. G. T. Putnam, Mary Putnam, Mrs. R. C. Point, R. C. Point, S. Quay, Mrs. D. E. Quinn, Mrs. Claud Roberts, Mrs. M. Renshaw, Mrs. Ed Richardson, Mrs. Wm. Rosenbrook, Mrs. Eliza Keith, Ruth Keith, Mrs. R. W. Roberts, Mrs. Elizabeth Rae, Mrs. Wm. T. Roub, Mrs. H. E. Roberts, Olive Shreve, Mrs. E. F. Smith, Mrs. W. C. Skiff, Mrs. Lester Stone, Mrs. E. G. Scofield, Mrs. Barbara Schmitz, Mrs. Stephen Satchell, Mrs. Wm. Streblow, Mrs. John W. Saathoff, Mrs. Herman Stefifen, Mrs. W. G. Stock, Geo. J. Schaller, J. A. Schmitz, Mrs. J. A. Schmitz, Mrs. J. W. Souther, Zoe Souther, Mrs. A. C. Smith, Mrs. L. B. Sharp, Mrs. Ernest W. Stanley, Mrs. Grace Stevens, Mrs. Eliza Turner, P. C. Eoy, Mrs. P. J. Toohey, Mrs. A. F. Eymeson, Mrs. E. R. Eurner, Mrs. Esther Ehomas, Elizabeth Ehompson, Mrs. J. W. Van Bibber, A. T. Eoeger, Mrs. A. E. Eoeger, Mrs. W. D. Van De Mark, Mrs. L. H. Weisen- berger, Mrs. Wm. Wilson, Mrs. C. R. Woniack, Eva Womack, Mrs. J. P. Wahlstrom, Mrs. Eva Wilkins, A. L. Whitney, Mrs. A. L. Whitney, Mrs. L. E. Yerington, Mrs. Fred Steig, Mrs. A. M. Mor- 698 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY rison, Mrs. Thos. Park, Mrs. G. E. Whealen, Mrs. F. L. Hughes, S. R. Satchell, Luella Burns, Hughena Burns, Alta Mae Burns, Mrs. H. Mrs. H. Junkmeir, Mrs. S. C. Snyder, Mrs. O. B. Kelly, Mrs. Will Mittelstadt, Mrs. Ralph Diehl, Mrs. J. H. Hoffman, Mrs. Chas. Chap- man, Mrs. J. H. Haughey, Mrs. Wilbur Kaufman, Mrs. J. Morten- son, Mrs. John W. Gibson, Mrs. Chas. Peterson, Mrs. Mary Neu- baur, Mrs. D. A. Rice, Betty Rice, Mrs. Fred Schar, Mrs. Frank Butler, Mrs. G. H. Carlson, Mrs. Matilda Soeth, Mamie Soeth, Marie Doxsee, Mrs. W. A. Abernathy, Mrs. Frank Mittelstadt, Mrs. Marie Meyer, Mrs. W. J. Geisinger, Mrs. Everett Hughes, Mrs. U. G. Burton, Mrs. Paul Blair, Mrs. S. E. Hesla, Mrs. H. E. Swope, Lurene Swope, Mrs. Mary Harker, May Harker, Mrs. J. J. Metcalf, Mrs. J. H. La Grange, Zoe La Grange, Mrs. Mary L Jones, Mrs. Effie Nusbaum, Mrs. David Gilmer, Mrs. J. J. Taylor, Mrs. A. E. Morse, Mrs. T. E. Carney, Mrs. Fred Schaller, Mrs. J. W. Planalp, C. H. McDiarmid, Mrs. C. H. McDiarmid, Mrs. C. H. Bauman, Mary E. Ensign, Evelyn Ensign, Mrs. C. A. Fulton, Mrs. R. J. Geisinger, Agnes Aitken, Esther Aitken, Ruth Aitken, Annie Aitken, Mrs Ait- ken, Mrs. J. L. Clapp, Mrs. H. L. Hughes, Alice Hughes, Kathryn Hughes, Mrs. S. E. Farnsworth, Mrs. C. F. Wellmerling, Mrs. J. E. Buland, Mrs. S. S. Graeber, Mrs. C. Richardson, Mrs. Henry Steig, Mrs. W. D. Foster, Jessie McGill, Mrs. L. B. Florey, L. B. Florey, Lillian McFadden, Bell McFadden, Mrs. M. Saathoff, Gertrude Saathoff, Mrs. E. B. Benedict, Mrs. L. S. Todd, Mrs. C. W. Samuels, Mrs. Ed Culver, Marion Johnson, Mrs. Henry Peters, Mrs. Randall Lindlief, Mrs. C. J. Iverson, Mrs. J. Park Blair, Mrs. Jos. Nattress, Mrs. Art La May, Mrs. Clarence Samsel, Mrs. Luvy B. Bowers, Mrs. Jeanne C. Webb, Vivian Lewis, Helen Lewis, Mrs. R. W. Ford, Mrs. C. D. Grieg, Mrs. W. F. Park, Mrs. E. L. O'Banion, Mrs. H. A. Conrad, Mrs. L. C. Doan, Mrs. M. F. Fischer, Mrs. Marie Fisher, Mrs. James S. Bell, Mrs. Walter Throckmorton, Mrs. Chas. Newell, Mary Newell, Winifred Newell, Annie Newell, Edith Newell, Mrs. Chas. Richardson, Mrs. M. Hardyman, Margaret Hardyman, W. R. Faust, Raymond Faust, Lester Faust, Mrs. W. R. Faust, J. T. Edson, Mrs. Burt Hughes, Miss Bessie Hughes, J. L. Munson, Eda Wilkins. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 699 WASHINGTON TOWNSHIP Mrs. Roy E. Brown, Mrs. G. W. Arnold, Mrs. W. E. Bushman, Mrs. Richard Barnes, J. O. Blake, Mrs. H. R. Boettcher, Mrs. Fred Burnes, Mrs. Ray L. Cone, Mrs. Henry L. Delbridge, Mrs. E. L. Davidson, Miss Prudence Davidson, Walter L. Ernest, Mrs. Walter L. Ernest, Mrs. M. T. Fletcherm, Joseph Gutel, Sarah J. Holcomb, Mrs. H. H. Holmes, Mary Huber, Mrs. J. W. Horlocker, Mary A. Le- doiix, H. H. Lang, Clara B. Mark, Frank J. Meyer, Mrs. Frank J. Meyer, Jerome, A. McBride, Mrs. Tom O'Neill, Mrs. Henry L. Steig, Mrs. Wm. Scrambler, Mrs. Fred H. Steig, Mrs. Bertha Stull, Henry Steinhelber, Mrs. Pearl Steinhelber, Mrs. Augusta Potter Sprague, Robert Smith, Mrs. W. H. Turner, Joe Ullom, Mrs. Joe Ullom, Mrs. Ed. C. Vogel, Mrs. C. E. Willcutt. Juniors in Rkd Cross Work. The enthusiasm and deep interest of young hearts was injected into America's participation in Red Cross work by the organization of a junior body, which was mainly effected through the educational personnel of the county. County Superintendent A. E. Harrison served as chairman of the committee, with Stella M. Russell, Super- intendent C. E. Akers, Mrs. C. E. Akers, and Miss Mary Toohey as- sisting. Most eft"ective work was done by the chapter school committee, as the results which we are proud to chronicle, will show. Every school in the county enrolled in the Junior Red Cross, each pupil paying his or her own membership fees in full without assistance. Buena Vista was the first county to send in its record of complete Junior Red Cross organization, and the only county, so far as we have been able to learn, that was absolutely 100 per cent in organization and 100 per cent in its record of finished articles made by the pupils, as re- ported from headquarters at Des Moines after due inspection of the work. A campaign for renewal of memberships in the Junior Red Cross was taken up beginning December 15, 19 18, and ending January 15, 1919. In a good many schools funds were again raised to the amount of twenty-five cents for each pupil, while in other schools a pledge of service was given and at the close of the campaign all schools had renewed their membership in the organization. The amount of mon- 700 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY ey raised was not as large as for the drive the year preceding. The total amount of cash reported to the chapter school committee was $151.52. A portion of this money, in addition to what was left over from last year, has been spent for putting the Red Cross Magazine into the schools, and for other patriotic material and supplies that are of great value. Sixty-seven schools, with a membership of 3,767 pupils, raised $1,107.85 in membership fees, with an additional amount of $205.20. Work done by the various Junior branches is shown by the follow- ing figures : Storm Lake public schools: 18 wash cloths, 18 flannel brassieres, II muslin brassieres, 6 outing dresses, 6 capes with hoods, i cape without hood, 7 girls' dresses, 8 bags, 24 chemises, 16 pinafores, 34 pairs of bootees, 18 pairs of leggings, 185 towels, 58 strings of gun wipes, 56 comfort pillows. Girls under direction of Mrs. Arthur Edson: 100 diapers, 7 pairs of bootees, 16 layette bags, i baby dress, 14 crib blankets, 50 layette bags packed, i large comfort, i scrap book, 60 binders rolled, 40 rolls linen, 5 afghans for Camp Dodge hospital, i comfort top, 17 glasses of jam, 3 comforts sold, with kitchen holders, conservation cake re- ceipts and popcorn to the value of $43, 16 Christmas boxes, 2 large silk quilts, started bank account, collected rags and cut handkerchiefs. Truesdale public schools: i complete baby's outfit, 2 chemises, 4 pinafores. Hayes consolidated schools: 5 chemises, 10 towels, i afghan, 10 hospital towels, 2 comfort pillows. Highview consolidated: 2 bed socks, 5 sheets, 10 hospital bags, 2 comfort pillows. Albert City schools: 4 chemises, 24 hospital bags, 4 layettes, 12 scrap books, 8 ambulance pillows, 1200 gun wipes. Rembrandt consolidated: 7 sateen pinafores, 24 scrap books, 20 knitted wash cloths. Lincoln-Lee consolidated: 4 chemises, i knitted afghan, 2 pina- fores, several towels. Marathon public schools: 300 gun wipes, T^y pairs of wristlets, 1 1 helmets, 9 pairs of socks, i hood, 4 capes, 3 sleeve boards, 2 broom holders, 3 bracket shelves, 237 quilt blocks, 42 scarfs, 56 sweaters, HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 701 7 wash cloths, i quilt, 4 pinafores, 2 book racks i shoe box, 2 meat boards. Providence consolidated: This school did some splendid work, but because the superintendent went into the service before the close of school, no complete record of the work was turned in. Linn Grove public schools : This school did some good work, but no report was turned in to the chapter school committee. Fairview consolidated: This school did some good work, but the pupils worked with the seniors, and no separate report was turned in to the chapter school committee. Newell consolidated: 140 9x9 compresses, 125 4x4 compresses, 208 2x2 compresses, 335 8x8 compresses, 19 five-yard rolls, 6 split irrigation pads, 10 aprons, 6 petticoats, 4 chemises, 5 capes with hoods, 30 dresses, i night gown, 28 pairs of knitting needles at 35c, 22 dresses, 26 shirts, 5 quilts, 15 capes, i apron, 2 sweaters, 23 hoods, 21 pairs bootees, 24 jackets, 1300 gun wipes, i knitted quilt. Sioux Rapids public schools: 100 gardens started, 32 petticoats, 24 petticoats partly complete, 5 bonnets, 4 pinafores, 4 capes with hoods, 12 wash clotths, 3 afghans, 3,000 gun wipes, 100 shot bags, snippings. Alta consolidated: no wash cloths, 6 comfort pillows, 4 strings, gun wipes, 4 chemises, 4 capes with hoods, 150 afghan squares, i large afghan, 2 complete layettes, 2 bonnets, 8 jackets, 22 diapers, 26 pairs bootees, 20 flannel shirts, 17 infant dresses, 225 9x9 com- presses, 175 8x4 compresses, 9 hospital shirts, 225 4x4 compresses, 50 2x2 sponge wipes. Rural schools of Newell Township: 8 quilts, 6 bags, 4 towels, 120 5x5 squares, 90 trench candles, 106 gun wipes, 4 baby dresses, 3 slips, 2 dresses for child, i pair baby bootees, 8 pairs bootees. Lutheran school. Grant Township: 2 dozen khaki handkerchiefs. Elk No. 5: Ellen Hanson, teacher — 2 knitted wash cloths, 5 af- ghan squares. Grant No. 4: Olivia Anderson, teacher — 12 towels. Pickerel Lake : Mabel Wassom, teacher — 1 1 towels, 4 hot water bag covers. Coon No. i: Marie Ehlers, teacher — i complete baby layette. Fairfield No. i : Doris Hawk, teacher — i knitted quilt. Fairfield No. 2: Mabel Anderson, teacher — 14 towels. 702 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Fairfield No. 3 : Agnes Nelson, teacher — 50 gun wipes, 23 towels. Fairfield No. 4: Lottie Sweet, teacher — 5 scrap books, 2 quilts. Fairfield No. 6: Alice Larson, teacher — 16 towels, 14 bunches gun wipes. Fairfield No. 7 : Audrey Sturchler, teacher — i quilt, 2 wash cloths. Lincoln No. 7: Media Blomgren, teacher — 100 gun wipes, 6 towels, 2 quilts. Fairfield No. 9 : Florence Carlson, teacher — 200 gun wipes. Coon No. i: Bertha Doxsee, teacher — 12 pairs baby bootees, 12 handkerchief substitutes, 4 hospital shirts, 11 pairs leggings, 7 towels, 2 quilts, 6 hot water bag covers. Coon No. 2: Carrie Bloem, teacher — i pair bootees, 16 gun wipes. Coon No. 5 : Nellie Strauss, teacher — 616 gun wipes, 3 hot water bag covers, 16 trench candles. J. U. G. C1.UB A group of fifteen little girls rendered a service of splendid spirit. These little maids, banded together as the J. U. G. (Just Us Girls) Club, seeking an opportunity to do something useful, approached Mrs. Arthur Edson to direct their efiforts when they learned that she was the lady who had charge of the making of layettes for Belgian babies. She first assigned them to the duty of hemming napkins, which they did so well that they were soon given the making of bootees, crochet- ing, the making of layette bags, running the tape in jackets and hoods, rolling binders, and many other little things. They also assembled the material and made fourteen crib quilts. In April the Des Moines Capital asked for donations of jelly for the hospital at Camp Dodge, and the club sent a box of twenty glasses. This exhibition of willing- ness to do for the soldiers brought a request from a Des Moines lady for knitted afghans for invalids at Fort Des Moines. Thereupon the girls knitted two for Camp Dodge, two for the base hospital at Fort Des Moines, and were asked for others, to be used by convalescents who go about in wheeled chairs. The little girls have many friends who have helped them in every way possible, so have had much material; but it has been necessary to buy considerable yarn and other materials. In order to meet this ex- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 703 pense the girls pieced and sold one comfort top for $3, one woolen comfort for $6.50, another for $5, and two silk quilts which sold for good figures. They also sold "Conservation cake" recipes which netted about $20, pop corn for $2, and made and sold kitchen holders for $7.50, all of which was placed in and disbursed through the bank. With the re- turns of this fund they filled sixteen Christmas boxes for the returned wounded soldiers at the base hospital at Fort Des Moines, and bought linings and cotton for comforts and yarn for afghans. Even after this was accomplished money was left over which was spent for providing comforts for boys in hospitals. At the time of the "flu" epidemic the club collected rags and cut them into squares for the local Red Cross hospital. The girls hemmed twenty-five handkerchiefs for the Red Cross and collected forty used phonograph records for base hospitals. Club membership is limited to fifteen girls, all of ages between nine and twelve years, and they met every Thursday afternoon after school. They continued their work of providing comforts for wounded men long after the signing of the armistice. "Thank you" letters for Christmas boxes came from men between nineteen and twenty years of age, who had lost either arms or legs, with the exception of one, who was suffering with an effection of the spine. Two members of the club, Margaret Van Wagenen and Virginia Mack, were ill with the influenza when the picture which appears in this book was taken. Soon after the photograph was made Eileen Connor resigned to become a member of a club of older girls, and her membership in the J. U. G. Club was taken by Mary Putnam. The J. F. F. C1.UB Another group of girls who contributed to this work was the J. F. F. Club, whose name suggested the spirit of their work. J. F. F. stands for "Just For Fun." This group was organized May 8th at the home of Helen Banghart. The object of the club was to do Junior Red Cross work, study a Red Cross lesson from the Red Cross magazine, and have a short social meeting each time. The members voted Helen Banghart as president, Mary Putnam as vice president, Gertrude Beatty as secretary, and Pauline Whitney as treasurer. Mrs. E. D. Banghart served as patroness of the club. 704 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Meetings were held every Friday afternoon during the entire sum- mer, and Hght refreshments were served at the close of each afternoon. The club prepared and gave three songs at a community sing. The members made fifty-four comfort cushions, which were sent to the hospitals; two dozen knitted squares for comfort quilts, unravelled contributions of knitted garments to secure the yarn for other uses, and helped make layettes for Belgian relief work. The sum of $4.50 was earned and turned into the Junior Red Cross treasury. The membership consisted of Helen Banghart, Gertrude Beatty, Ruth Johnson, Esther Millard, Ella Manchester, Helen Mittelstadt, Erma Mittlestadt, Charlotte Schultz, Phyllis McGill, Joyce Kaufman, Virginia Morey, Louise Parkhill, Mary Putnam, Geneva Roberts, Elizabeth Skewis, Pauline Whitney, Ruth Angier, Opal Oglesby, Maurine McClure, Evelyn Carlson, and Alberta Bell. Financing the Great War American emerges from the war a creditor nation. In other words, the financial balance for the first time in history is all in her favor. When America entered the war she automatically assumed respon- sibility as the world's banker. To meet and discharge that respon- sibility she has built up a vast and smooth running financial machine that is now without equal. The hugeness of the sums involved made the building of such a machine absolutely necessary. One authority estimates that the aggregate monetary cash of the war to the Allies was $152,000,000,000,000. The United States' share was approximately $20,000,000,000. The bills of the other six active Allies were: Great Britain, $52,- 000,000,000; France, $32,000,000 000; Russia, $30,000,000,000; Italy, $12,000,000,000; Roumania, $3,000,000,000; Serbia, $3,000,000,000. The meeting of these costs necessitated going deeply into debt ; they were forced to borrow during the war in the neighborhood of $96,- 000,000,000. This indebtedness, added to the pre-war obligations, means a combined debt of approximately $115,000,000,000. DEBT EAR BEEOW WEAETH These figures seem stupendous at first glance, but in comparison to the estimated national wealth and annual income of each they are really small. The almost staggering total of American war debt is HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 705 to be seen in proper proportion if compared with obligations follow- ing the Civil War. As compared to population and resources the latter was far greater. A conservative estimate of the wealth and yearly income of the four nations active at the close of the war, to- gether with their debt, is appended: Wealth Debt Income United States ...$300,000,000,000 $23,632,821,219 $50,000,000,000 Great Britain . . . 86,000,000,000 30,000,000,000 12,500,000,000 France 62,000,000,000 26,000,000,000 8,000,000,000 Italy 16,000,000,000 10,000,000,000 3,000,000,000 The United States debt on June i, 19 19, as shown above, includes $1,208,000,000 of pre-war debt. America's loans to thk allies It is well to remember, however, that of this amount $7,912,976,000 represents credits and loans advanced to our allies and some small states inactively opposed to Germany. Of this sum $100,000,000 was advanced to Italy and $80,000,000 to France after the armistice had been signed. The total advance to each individual nation follows: Great Britain, $3,745,000,000; France $2,445,000,000; Italy, $1,160,- 000,000; Russia, $325,000,000; Belgium, $193,520,000; Greece, $15,- 790,000; Cuba, $15,000,000; Serbia, $12,000,000; Roumania, $6,666,- 666; and Liberia, $5,000,000. American raised a considerable part of the war cost through taxa- tion, the revenue receipts in the fiscal year 1917-1918 amounting to $3,694,703,000. Of this, $2,839,083,000 represented war excess prof- its and income taxes paid in June, forms of levy entirely new to America. LIBERTY BONDS AND WAR SAVINGS STAMPS There were other new measures besides the unusual method of tax- ation adopted by the United States in meeting her war cost. Liberty bonds, with the methods of sales, war savings stamps, and certificates of indebtedness were new to our country. The sale of $21,430,126,350 in bonds was no small task. The of- ferings were spread over nearly two years of time, June 15, 191 7, to May 20, 191 9, but in the same period all the world was bidding ex- orbitant rates for money. To restrain competition in the capital mar- 7o6 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY ket the government supervised all security offerings and barred those which were not absolutely necessary. So successful was this measure that corporate and municipal financing fell off perceptibly, with the result that the fourth liberty loan — the largest piece of financing ever attempted — was over-subscribed by nearly fifteen per cent. The following table shows the dates, the quota, subscription, and the amount issued in the different loans: Quota Subscribed Issued ist — June 15, 1917 . . .$2,000,000,000 $3,035,226,850 $1,989,455,550 2d — Nov. 15, 1917 . . . 3,000,000,000 4,617,522,300 3,807,864,200 3d — May 9,1918 3,000,000,000 4,176,516,850 4,175,148,150 4th — Oct. 24, 1918. . . . 6,000,000,000 6,992,927,100 6,957,658,450 5th — May 20, 1919 . , 4,500,000,000 5,249,908,300 4,500,000,000 Total 18,500,000,000 24,072,101,400 21,430,126,350 The first loan found Buena Vista County quite unprepared. A chairman had been appointed for the county, but no definite plan had been worked out for the sale of the bonds. The U. C. T. members and quite a number of others volunteered their services as salesmen. They solicited principally in the towns of the county. The rest was left largely to volunteer purchase through the banks. This was the only loan in which Buena Vista County failed to make its quota, but she made up for it on the other issues as shown by the county detail chart. The liberty loan organization for the second issue was in some- what better shape to handle the sales. The county chairman had ap- pointed chairmen for each town and township. They, with volunteer salesmen and the banks, succeeded in selling more than the amount allotted for the county. This was made possible by some of these workers putting in a full month's time at the work. In order to better spread the work of selling the next issues of government loans, as well as getting a better distribution of the bonds, the county chairman had all the banks in the county make up lists of all the subscribers of the first and second loans, showing their place of residence and the amounts subscribed. These lists and amounts were compared with the population and assessed' value of the differ- ent towns and townships at a meeting of the liberty loan workers from over the county. The comparison at this meeting showed the HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 707 necessity for a better organization, as there was a total of only 415 subscribers to the first loan and 2,000 in the second. In the first loan there were eleven precincts with less than ten subscribers. It was concensus of opinion among the workers that a better plan of organization should be worked out at the next meeting of the workers to be held after the meeting of loan workers of the Federal Reserve District at Chicago in advance of the third liberty loan. At this next meeting the men who attended the Chicago meeting report- ed back the War Service League plan as the ideal organization to simplify the work and to get all of the citizens of this county to take their fair share of each liberty loan. The operations and methods of this War Service League are told in another chapter. COUNTY COMME^NDED Writing on behalf of the Treasury Department, from the offices of the war loan organization of the Federal Reserve District in Chicago, under date of May 26, 191 9, C. H. Schweppe says: Before the organization disbands, I write to congratulate Buena Vista County on the splendid showing in the recent Victor Liberty Loan campaign. It went "over the top" in fine shape. LIBERTY LOAN ROSTER^ Fairfield Township and Albert City — August Junkermier, Henry Hadenfelt, John Patten, M. C. Reuland, A. E. Sweet, Aug. Siekman, A. L. Shaffer, W. L. Wehlmerling, John Atkins, W. F. Burkler, Charles G. Blomgren, T. E. De Spain. Alta — Thomas Scambler, Jesse Wilkinson, John B. Walker, W. W. Ullom, W. C. Rowlands, Roy H. Wilkinson, C. D. Peterson, Samuel Parker, Henry J. Poulson, Lars Larson, M. J. Lundahl, P. Morrissey, D. E. Hadden, H. J. Hoffeins, Ned E. Dahl, Frank Fried- lund, J. H. Allen, G. A. Benson, David H. Carpenter. Brooke Township — A. B. Colman, H. C. Erickson, Frens Hansen, Frank Lindlief, Fred Plagman, L. D. Schultz, C. L. Haight, Walter Christensen, W. T. Spurlock, Nels Chilgren, Lee Pennington, George Gaffey. 1 We have tried to give as many names of people who have assisted with Liberty Loan work as possible. We presented questionnaires to all families in the county and secured in- formation from the families in the county as to the work that each worker had done in the various activities. The names given were secured from the questionnaires which were re- turned to us. 7o8 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOQ vr)»^-ooi^Li-^CDC>Loo O CM LO rv CM O On ro m O 00 1^ O0_ O'J^ c^ >-<_ r^ <>J t^ t^ oo" rvf o" oC t-C ^ 0\ o Tt-" i-n o ro" op" ^^ ut" im" ^o" oC \d" co" ^^c^f^ooo^'>^(^^o^r^u^o0^r-^^-^(^^Tj-t^l-o >— I,— ((NJ.— ICM,— I,— I,— I f\)r_CMT— !,—(,_,— I,— (r-lr-HT— I 6G- o (M CM i^ O o d HO oooooooooooooooooooo 00 \0 00_ 0\_ ^H 0_ -^ •;*-_ ro 00__ CSJ \0 0_ CM_ U-) rM__ •— I CM CM "^^ rC cvf o" iW 0\ 0\ rC ^'' oC i-o oo" t<" vo" ^ cm" o" On" i^" oo" ■^" I— lvo^c^^cMlJ^^oa\oo<^l>^lJ^'— '"^^oo^u^io •6«- C3 (M vO" O P u < O u < I — I > < o OOOOOOOOCSOOOOOoOOOcSO (N]_ 1J^ 00_ -^_^ -^_^ O 0\ CO CM 00_ ^ o r^ O o CM_ ^ ro vO fM_ oC oT <3" <^" 0\" ^" r<" t-h" oo" tC oo" o" •-(" ^ no" oo" ro" o" rC cm" rO'^'^'OsD'^roroCMvO'^-^c'^ — ~^ — _.-^.~ ro '^ ro '^ T:f i! o ooooooooooooooooooo OiOC>L0OOiJ0i-0C>O^O>-0C^OL0Lr)OO"^ o^oOf*^fMooONO^^^^ou^c<3■^ O ^ u^ 1^ ■ o" o" no" no" vo On" t~--" to iW T}-" u-T CO CO .— r rvT (xf cm" vn ■g--^rovO-*fOCMCMvOio-*fO^^'^ro^^ o o o" ^i^ CM o 3 3 OC/2 tin ;2a ooooooooocsoooooooooo OLOOLOOOOCDvoOuOC^OOOvoirjOC^^^ \0_ --H 00_ ■-<_ "T^ ■*_^ r^ NO ■— <_ On "* to nO^ CX)^ nO^ r^_ (^ I>-_^ '^^•^ ■-h" oo" 2 in ro 5 <<9- OOOOOOOOOOCDOOOOO oiovoomoc^Lou-jciJOvoLoooo^/^^.—-^ CM ro >0 CO. 00 O 00 •-■ CM NO t^ Tf rf 0_ NO 0_ NO lO r^ CM_ O" C5" jf CO" ^" "^ r-T _no" o" On" irf cm" '— <" ^ f^ '— ^ CnT nO" ^ ■^NONO'^OONOi-Oron ^O NO o o lO lO NO t:}- LO vO t^ m- o t3 . j: 3 o o o o o o to m vo o Lo o Tt- CO CN) CS ,-H 00 n CO ooooooooooooo lOLnLovooOCJOvoioLovoc:^ On On ^_ O -^_ lO_ CO On CO^ 1-0_ 00 co_ •-<_ " vo o oC no" co" vo vo co" vo NCf i—T oC vo" i— <" ncT t— T c^ ■— icotMCMCM^H^CM^<-i(MCMCMCMf^ o o O vo CM Nq_ T)-" On" On cm 40- • i: o ^ 3 Ha OOOOOOOOOQOOOOOOOOOO o voiomovoooovoovoovovovooiovnvoo ■* nO_00\0_nO_vo^O_OCOCMCOCO_^vovot]-voOCOON '^^ ro" oo" oo" '*" no" oo" nO" >-<" O vO oo" OO" co" t-C \0~ ON Cm" t-C oo" r--" co" rtT-l,-l,-lCM'-Hr-l,-(,-iCM^^r-iT-H,-l,-l^,-l,-Hr-l nO o ON o Cnj" o 3 o o CO t^ V5- oooooooooooooo oovovoc5moovnvoo~"~ ~ COvo.— ivonOCM-— iOnOnO(3n " tC t<" —T oo" On" o" CO '^" 1-1 rt CM CO o o vo vo O vo O C3) r^ vo CO CM c:^ CD o 8 •§5 o o CDOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO vovoLOOvo." ^ o ON o .i: 3 o o o o vo vo O vo ^ O CO nO On" co" CM 3 - ■ " o 3 3 o o ft 3 o •^ s c^ c« £ o • o HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 709 Coon Township — Henry F. Ahmholtz, O. F. Bellows, A. Engler, Fred W. Griffel, Jr., H. W. Lehmkuhl, William Minden, Carl Niel- son, C. F. Poiath, W. O. Sievers, Henry D. Thieman, Ross Wilson, H. Wendrup, L. F. Webber. Elk Township — A. W. Buckingham, L. C. Kramer, Henry W. Haase, C. N. Christensen, John R. Pierson, C. M. Hansen, J. P. An- derson, J. A. Buckingham, George N. Booth, Claus Johnson, A. C. Johnson, Carl Johnson, Jens Miller, C. G. Olson, J. R. Pierson, A. W. Peterson, Ed. Rehnstrom, Carl Watson. Grant Township — Rev. F. Albrecht, W. L. Danforth, Fred Hig- gins, J. M. Hussey, Herman Melhop, Ed. C. Spooner, W. H. Sievers, P. A. Soeth, N. M. Hoffman. Hayes Township — Frank Eckhardt, Ross Fultz, Job Francis, Robert Gring, J. S. Haines, Frank F. Johnson, A. O. Meinhard, Wil- liam Pike, J. H. Ross, Ira Canon, T. M. Renshaw, Paul C. Eroeger, H, E. Ehayer, Ed. J. Zinn. Lee Township — George ^Brown, Oliver Byam, Sam A. Bennett, Milton Evans, Louis Hadenfeldt, J. Oliver Landsness, Eve Thomas, B. J. Eorkelson, A. B. Torkelson, E. P. Williams, A. L. Wilson. Lincoln Township — John Atkins, W. F. Burkler, Chas. Blomgren, T. E. DeSpain, Henry Hadenfelt, August C. Junkermeier, John Pat- ten, M. O. Reuland, K. E. Sweet, Aug. Siekman, A. I. Shaffer, W. L. Welmerling. Linn Grove and Barnes Township — A. H. Mickelson, Eennis Bertness, William McGrew, C. O. Friedlund, W. J. Rystad, O. W. Peterson, W. F. Anderson, P. A. Barstad, John S. Cleveland, C. J. Christensen, Otto Dokken, John T. Evans, C. A. Fulton, E. E. Fried- lund, H. Haroldson, O. H. Hesla, A. J. Johnson, Fred Mangold, N. P. Nelson. Maple Valley Township — H. D. Hinkeldey, W. H. Schmidt, L. S. Plog, Wm. Younie, Wm. Breecher, W. E. Driscoll, Charles Holtz, Carl Harris, John A. Hollingsworth, Ernest- Neumann, Oscar Peter- son, Bert Schuelke, George Tolzin, Gus Eurnquist, Rev. Henry Weh- king, H. Wendel, Charles Zwemke, William Frederick. Newell (Town)— M. J. Ehuesen, Geo. W. Chaney, Mrs. M. A. Armstrong, J. E. Brown, R. Frederickson, Geo. L. Fredenberg, F. O. Holcomb, W. L. Holtz, E. P. Layman, L. T. Parker, F. G. Redfield, C. O. E. Trukken, Rev. J. D. Vinding, C. R. Waterman. 7IO HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Newell Township — H. A. Robbins, Geo. W. Schultz, R. H. Santer, Anton Thompsen, Henry Nitzke, John Wart, E. P. Kruse, Mert Rodda, Ivan M. Adams, J. A. Dallenbach, O. B. Ellis, Andrew P. Gran, M. C. Haines, Ferdinand Hemmingsen, T. F. Householder, J. P. Johnson, Eric P. Kruse, John Lenahan, L. P. Liml, Lars Larsen, Lee P. Lund, Warren J. Newton, M. J. O'Connor. Nokomis Township — Peter Strom, A. L. Anderson, J. A. Blom, Fred H. Breecher, F. W. Cone, D. C. Holmes, Christian Hansen, Geo. A. Johnson, Geo. ¥L Larson, Chas. McCurdy, Martin Madsen, Peter Matson, P. R. Moser, Andrew D. Newlson, Geo. J. Parrott, A. W. Peterson, A. A. Peterson, S. C. Porter, R. E. Parker, P. J. Swanson, J. B.,Stomberg, C. Schott, Albert Waldo, B. A. Warme. Marathon and Poland Township — Wilfred Gary, Sanford Lund- gren, W. J. Miller, E. R. Peters, Lee Ruebel, M. C. Starrett, Charles Thomas, Z. W. Ereman, E. B. Wells, J. H. Wegerslev, R. B. Wetzell, Roy M. Whitehead. Providence Township — E. B. Ackerman, Emil Bodholdt, James Jensen, John H. McKenna, J. N. Reding, John Toohey, E. P. Wright, Fred C. Britten. Rembrandt — H. C. Berger, O. J. Hegna, Forrest W. Hickman, W. O. McGrew, Conrad J. Peterson, H. D. Kaufman. Sioux Rapids — William H. Clark, E. M. Puroe, F. H. Diercks, F. W. Fairchild, J. E. Holden, James Lewison, T. W. Murdock, A. B. Snyder, C. L. Sipe, E. E. Smith, William J. Sutton, Howard Sawyer, Jacob A. Smith. Scott Township — R. C. Kramer, P. H. Betz, A. O. Lokken, Oliver Brandvold, Wm. Bice, Oscar F. Bodine, G. R. Fanning, H. C. Lind- lief, J. C. Larsen, Guy McGibben, C. N. Matson, Jake Spears. Storm Lake — A. E. Brunson, Ona Grace Buland, L. E. Ballou, Jr., John R. Bell, Robert Blakely, Frank Barr, T. H. Chapman, George Currier, Ed Dahl, T. V. Dumbaugh, Tom D. Filers, B. B. Fiscus, W. L. Geisinger, Donald M. Grant, M. Hayes, Ben HoUen- beck, C. C. Jackson, Ray Jones, J. W. Salter, David F. Shannon, P. C. Toy, P. H. Eoohey, Mrs. E. R. Eurner, Eorrence Ehomas, A. E. Troeger, L. H. Weisenberger, Ralph Witter, A. L. Whitney, Fred Steig, Thos. Parks, Ralph Diehl, John W. Gibson, Frank F. Mittel- stadt, Guy E. Mack, Ernest Melcher, Wm. Miller, Chas. H. J. Mit- chell, George C. Mack, E. W. Oates, R. C. Point, D. E. Quinn, E. G. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 711 Scofield, Walter S. Steffin, Geo. J. Schaller, J. A. Schmitz, D. A. Rice, J. H. La Grange, Ariel Tymeson, C. H. McDermott, J. L. Clapp, C. B. McGill, L. B. Florey, Boyd McFadden, E. B. Bennett, L. S. Todd, J. Park Bair, R. W. Ford, M. A. Fischer, J. T, Edson, Grant E. Triplett. Washington Township — E. H. Burkler, Joseph R. Gutel, L. M. Holcomb, Alex Holmes, J. N. Horackler, H. H. Lang, Wm. Gutel, John Strock, Henry L. Steig, Fred H. Steig, Ralph Stull, Henry Steinhilver, A. P. Sprague, G. F. Thompson. WAR SAVINGS STAMPS Buena Vista County oversubscribed her War Savings Stamps quota by 3.74 per cent, while the nation as a whole did not subscribe to quite fifty per cent of the national allotment, according to the final figures. This is another way in which the county did more than her share to help finance the war. This was a form of financing from what originated in the sale of Thrift Stamps, which began in December of 191 7. It was intended to conserve the smallest savings with a view to converting them into a national resource. The Thrift Stamps were purchased for twenty- five cents each. They were affixed to a card officially known as a War Savings Certificate and more popularly known as a "Baby Bond." When twenty of these stamps were assembled on the certificate, which was valued at sums ranging from $4.12 to $4.23, according to the month in which they were purchased, the purchaser paid the dififer- ence above the $4 represented in stamps attached and the purchase price at that time; then the certificate became an interest bearing security against the United States due in five years. The law which authorized this form of financing provided that the sum outstanding at any time should not exceed $2,000,000,000, maturity value, the amount of War Savings Certificates sold to any one person at any time should not exceed $100, and no person should hold an aggre- gate amount exceeding $1,000 at any one time. While it was pri- marily intended that these certificates should run for five years, they could be redeemed at any money-order postoffice upon ten days' notice. On March 31, 1919, the net cash receipts derived from the sale of War Savings Stamps and Thrift Stamps were $994,694,869.77. Buena 712 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Vista County's quota, based upon the contemplated issue of $2,000,- 000,000, was $334,240, but she finally bought in a sum totaling $357,128.50. While the sale was conducted primarily through the postoffice, banks were authorized to make sales, as well as railroad and express companies, department and other retail stores who patriotically offer- ed their services without expense. Postmasters of the county gave personal attention to the sale of War Savings Stamps and Certifi- cates. The postmasters of the county during this period were : Storm Lake, Mrs. E. S. Morcombe; Alta, N. A. Christensen; Newell, W. E. Holtz; Albert City, Oscar Farb; Marathon, Mrs. Laura Figert; Sioux Rapids, Mrs. Holmquist; Linn Grove, H. E. Erickson; Rem- brandt, Regina Spiegelberg; Truesdale, C. B. Andrews. Under the newly-installed system of postal accounting the county seat was the central office of the county as a district and all reports were made to the postmaster at the county seat. L. F. Parker, of Newell, as chairman of the county organization which pushed the sale of the stamps was assisted by the following organization : Executive committee: County Superintendent A. E. Harrison, Storm Lake; Mrs. C. T. Millard, Storm Lake; Andrew Brown, Alta; H. L. Farmer, Sioux Rapids; W. E. Herren, county agricultural agent. Storm Lake. Local chairmen: A. H. Barnett, Linn Grove; A. B. Snyder, Sioux Rapids; Laura H. Figert, Marathon; G. B. Egington, Storm Lake; Chas. Van Buskirk, Alta; W. L. Holtz, Newell; Frank L. Mott, Truesdale; C. E. Cooper, Rembrandt; C. B. Whitehead, Albert City. Township chairmen: O. E. Anderson, Brooke; A. D. Oder, Barnes; J. O. Landsness, Lee; Joel E. Johnson, Poland; J. W. Akins, Elk; John Rehnstrom, Scott; W. L. Ernst, Lincoln; August Anderson, Fairfield; R. C. Brogmus, Nokomis; H. H. Lang, Washington; C. F. Gutz, Grant; D. Kischer, Coon; L. C. Plog, -Maple Valley; L. R. Mclntire, Hayes ; R. C. McRae, Providence ; W. H. Holtz, Newell. Programs were held in many of the schools, and speakers from out- side were secured to help educate and enthuse Buena Vista County people on the matter of purchasing War Savings Stamps. At the time \yhen the War Savings Stamps plan of finance was first announced it was expected that the quota would be taken up dur- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 713 ing the year by the children and people who wanted to help win the war by laying aside small savings. The committee in charge spent a lot of time and effort in educational work with considerable suc- cess. However, when the year was more than half gone national and state leaders of the W. S. S. found that the amount asked for would not be raised by the end of the year, so they made a universal call, asking for direct solicitation of all people in order to raise the quotas. Buena Vista organizations and people responded nobly to the call as the foregoing" figures show. WAR SAVINGS STAMPS ROSTER^' Fairfield Township and Albert City — Oscar M. Fark, C. E. Gil- branson, M. M. Hansen, Peter Lindgren, B. A. Petei-son, G. M. An- derson, Aug. Anderson, Axel Benna, C. J. Benna, J. F. Boyd, Ralph E. Carlson, John Erickson, R. S. Sprague, C. A. Walner, Ernest Toval. Alta — C. A. Van Burkirk, Walter Partridge, W. C. Rowlands, Roy H. Wilkinson, Samuel Parker, Henry Poulson, M. J. Lundahl, Peter Coxx, R. C. Brogmus, David H. Carpenter, N. A. Christensen. Brooks Township — A. B. Colman, H. B. Erickson, Frens Hansen, Frank Lindlief, Fred Plagman, L. D. Schultz, C. L. Haight, Walter Christensen, Nels Chilgren, Lee Pennington. Coon Township — Henry F. Almholtz, J. G. Anderson, O. F. Bel- lows, Fred W. Grififel, Jr., Wm Minden, C. F. Porath, E. G. Soder- quist, W. O. Sievers, L. T. Webber. Elk Township — A. E. Vanderhoff, L. C. Kramer, Henry W. Haase, C. N. Christensen, Ellen Hansen, Mrs. C. E. Amnions, J. A. Buckingham, Nels Fredericksen, V. W. Haahr, Bertel Hansen, Claus Johnson, A. C. Johnson, Mrs. Gust Kruse, C. N. Madsen, W. H. Peterson, Gus Peterson, Carl Peterson. Grant Township — C. F. Gutz. Hayes Township — Mrs. J. H. Ross, Ira Canon, E. M. Renshaw. Lincoln Township — Ed Dahlstrom, John Atkins, Geo. Hutchison, Miss Amelia Seikman, Miss Rose Shaffer. Lee Township — R. R. Morrow, Floyd Anderson, Oliver Byam, An- drew Edwardson, E. Fairchild, Rose Hadenfelt, Edna Hadenfelt, J. 1 We have tried to give as many names of people who have assisted with the War Savings Stamps work as possible. We presented questionnaires to all families in the county asking the names of the members of the family who had assisted in the various activities. The names given here were secured from the questionnaires which were returned to us. 714 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Oliver Landsness, A. B. Torkelson, A. C. Vail, Blanche Wilson, Fay Lenhart, Myrtle Lenhart, Pearl Lenhart, Cordelia Skelton, Wendell Skelton. Barnes Township — Edward Evans, Harry E. Erickson, J. A. Hein,- O. H. Hesla, Ira Hansen, A. J. Johnson, John A. Johnson, A, W. Michelson, O. E. Anderson, W. J. Rystad, O. L. Anderson, Donald M. M. Bateson, Carl Colby, Roy Cleveland, Andrew Johnson, C. A. Storla, H. C. Sondberg. Maple Valley Township — L. C. Plog, Wm. Younie, R. H. Younie, John A. Bruhns, Wm. Frederick, C. J. Schmidt, Geo. Tolzin, Rev. Henry Wehking. Marathon and Poland Township — Adam Bentley, L. C. Agler, Fred Bjork, J. E. Johnson, A. Lindgren, A. R. Nelson, Adolph Nel- son, Roy M. Whitehill, Letha Erickson, Emil Erickson, Almright Erickson, W. L. Dingman, Fred Claussen, Ernest Claussen. Town of Newell — Geo. W. Chaney, J. E. Brown, L. E. Couch, F. O. Holcomb, W. L. Holtz, H. A. Harvey, D. L. Hoeffle, John Newton, Walter Olson, L. F. Barker, F. G. Redfield, R. J. Thomas. Newell Township — R. H. Sauter, E. W. Cook, Andrew P. Gran, Eric P. Kruse. Nokomis Township — Peter Strom, L. C. Anderson, Oscar Adolph- son, J. A. Blom, D. C. Holmes, Charles McCurdy, Andrew D. Nel- son, S. C. Porter, P. J. Swanson, J. B. Stomberg, C. Schott. Providence Township — A. B. Heath, James Jensen, Ehos. Mernin, Joe McKenna, M. Morrissey, John N. McKenna, J. N. Reding, John Toohey, E. P. Wright. Rembrandt — Gust E. Peterson, H. C. Berger, A. D. Oder. Scott Township — R. E. Peterson, John M. Rhenstrom, P. H. Betz, A. O. Lokken, Oscar F. Bodine, J. P. Conley, C, G. Gustafson, H. C. Lindlief, J. C. Larson, Miss Lillian Madsen, Will Patton. Sioux Rapids — Mrs. G. W. Alexander, H. S. Farmer, R. E. George, j. E. Holden, T. M. Murdock, A. B. Snyder, C. P. Sickels, O. P. Ol- son, Alfred Olson, Howard Sawyer. Storm Lake — Mrs. O. J. Anderson, Miss Grace Buland, L. E. Ballou, Jr., Mrs. J. H. Brown, Mrs. Ed. Dahl, Tom D. Filers, Mrs. B. B. Fiscus, Mrs. August Hoch, J. W. Souther, Mrs. Chas. Chap- man, Grace E. Mack, Chas. H. J. Mitchell, Geo. C. Mack, Mrs. E. W. Oates, Mrs. George T. Putman, Mrs. H. E. Roberts, Mrs. W. G. Stock, Mrs. R. W. Roberts, Mrs. J. L. Clapp, Mrs. Henry Steig, F. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 715 B. Florey, Boyd McFadden, E. B. Barnett, L. S. Todd, J. Park Bair, Mrs. Lucy W. Bowers, Mrs. Geo. A. Lewis. Washington Township — Henry L. Steig, E. L. Davidson, Walter Ernest, H. H. Lang. TREASURY CERTIFICATES Because of the rapid flow of money through the federal treasury to meet heavy demands of war time expenses it was necessary for the government to anticipate, at some stages of the war, the revenues to be realized from the sale of liberty bonds. In this emergency the banks were again called upon. Treasury certificates were issued, which were purchased by the banks. These were outstanding claims against the funds of the next subsequent issue of bonds. The cer- tificates were redeemed from the bank when the bonds were sold, then it would not be long until another issue of the certificates was needed — and again the banks furnished funds temporarily. The financial institutions of Buena Vista County did not ask their customers to carry any of this form of collateral, but carried it themselves. Just previous to the third, fourth, and fifth loans they loaned in this way to the government sums which totaled $2,887,000. The amounts credited to the several banks of the county are as follows : Farmers Savings Bank, Albert City, $57,500; Security Savings Bank Albert City, $212,500; Alta State Bank, Alta, $278,000; First National Bank, Alta, $202,500; Bank of Linn Grove, Linn Grove, $54,500; First National Bank, Linn Grove, $140,500; Citizens Bank, Marathon, $35,500; First National Bank, Marathon, $78,000; Mara- thon Savings Bank, Marathon, $82,500; First National Bank, Newell, $111,500; Miller & Chaney Bank, Newell, $204,500; Farmers State Bank, Rembrandt, $85,500; First National Bank, Rembrandt, $74,500; Bank of Sioux Rapids, Sioux Rapids, $145,500; First National Bank, Sioux Rapids, $166,000; Citizens National Bank, Storm Lake, $455,000; Commercial National Bank, Storm Lake, $253,500; Securi- ty Trust & Savings Bank, Storm Lake, $184,500; Truesdale Savings Bank, Truesdale, $65,000. BANKS HELPED MANY WAYS Reference at this point to the service of the banks in this particular line is a reminder of the generous service rendered by these institu- 7i6 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY tions at many stages of the war period when it was desired to coordi- nate individual resources into an activity for the common good. It was indeed very natural that the banks should be sought out as the proper sources of advice and information on financial issues in volving support of governmental finances. No citizen of this county ever went to a Buena Vista County banker but what he received all the information that was available. The bankers explained the de- tails of the many operations ; in the first and second liberty loans they practically carried the whole county quota. When the public began subscribing for these bonds, the banks sent out notices as to when the payments came due ; they offered their safety deposit facilities for the safe keeping of bonds before and after delivery to the purchasers ; and above all they recommended the purchase of bonds when they knew that the payments to meet them would deplete the savings and check- ing deposits in the institutions. The banks were active in all the campaigns. Reports required by the new income tax law were naturally referred to the banks. There were months during the rush of war measures that the full time of one man was occupied with this service for the public and the government. And this at a time when every business house in the country was operating with limited personnel. Well trained men from every institution had gone into the service of the country, making a substitution necessary. Long hours of over-time were put in by the active banking forces in order to anywhere near meet the demands of the business and the public. PIvAN FOR EFFICIENT WORK Representatives of the liberty loan organization of Buena Vista County who attended the meeting of the Chicago Federal Reserve District in advance of the third liberty loan were given a choice of two ways of handling the liberty loans of the future. One way was to use a colored card system — sending the names of those refusing to subscribe on a yellow card, those willing to subscribe part of the allotted quota on a pink card, while those who subscribed the full • quota would be listed on blue cards, the complete list of which would be forwarded to the Treasury Department. Under this plan the Treasury department would handle the enforcement of the bond sub- scription. I HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 717 A second plan was the War Service Association plan. The loan representative elected to adopt the latter plan because it was thought that quicker action could be had under this plan, a better organiza- tion could be perfected and held together, and also the loans would be handled with less, trouble to the people of Buena Vista County, be- cause the cases of those who refused to subscribe in full for their allotment were in nearly all instances caused through misunderstand- ing rather than by hostility to our government. Under the war ser- vice plan they could be approached, could be given information and have their misapprehensions explained away by people with whom they were acquainted. The choice was evidently a wise one, as in no case was it necessary to call in the federal authorities, and not a single resident of Buena Vista County was tried or convicted under the dif- ferent laws of the United States Government during the entire period of the war. The War Service Association plan called for a complete organiza- tion authorized to handle all loans, campaigns, and drives for funds used for patriotic purposes during the period of the war and for six months thereafter. The organization was made up of a county board of ten called the War Service Bureau, a state marshal with commission from the gov- ernor, and an executive committee of five or more members for each town and township, in addition to committees which might be neces- sary in sub-divisions of towns or townships. The county board of ten, or the War Service Bureau, was of neces- sity made up of men living in the county seat, because they must be ready at all times of the day to hold meetings on short notice. They were selected on the basis of getting men who would handle the af- fairs of the bureau without fear or favor. They were under oath to attend meetings on call, and not to let business or family relations interfere with matters that came up for their attention. The manner of selection of this committee assured a representative personnel. The county liberty loan chairman appointed two men ; they selected the next two; the four two more, and so on until the board of ten was completed. The board was made up as follows : T. D. Eilers, A. L. Whitney, T. H. Chapman, P. J. Toohey, W. C. Edson, F. P. Foster, J. A. Schmitz, E. W. Oates, and George M. Pedersen. The officers of the board were: T. H. Chapman, president; A. L. Whitney, first 7i8 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY vice president; W. C. Edson, second vice president; T. D. Eilers and George M. Pederson, secretaries. The man to serve as state marshal was selected by this board, upon whose recommendation Governor Harding appointed Pat Clancy of Storm Lake who, though serving without remuneration, was com- missioned with authority to arrest and hold for investigation. Be- hind him and the local board was a law passed by Congress making it unlawful to circulate false reports with intent to instruct the sale of liberty bonds. The measure was intended to protect the govern- ment against those who would weaken its ability to raise the necessary funds to finance the war in the manner prescribed by Congress. Pun- ishment was designated as a fine of $10,000, twenty years' imprison- ment, or both. The executive committees of the towns or townships were appoint- ed by the bureau with the recommendation of the chairman of each district. The chairmen appointed were the men who had been acting as chairman of the first and second loans in their respective precincts. Articles of association set out the purposes and agreements of the men who constituted the bureau as a determination to "aid our gov- ernment in carrying on the war and promoting loyal and patriotic responses to all plans of government, promulgated by constituted au- thority, in aid of its war poHcies, and to that end we pledge our loyal devotion." The pledge taken indicated that every member regarded the signing of the card as an enlistment in the civilian army of the country. No dues were assessed against the members. Any mem- ber could be expelled by a three-fourths -vote of the members present at a regular meeting, provided that such a member should be entitled to be advised of the charge against him and to be heard in defense. Happily, no occasion ever arose to invoke this provision of the rules. The names of the subsidiary organizations and their official per- sonnel is as follows : Liberty Loan and War Service Association — George J. Schaller, Storm Lake, county chairman; E. M. Ruroe, Sioux Rapids, vice county chairman; J. R. Bell, Storm Lake, publicity chairman; Chas H. J, Mitchell, speakers' bureau chairman. Providence Township War Service Association — E. P. Wright, chairman; executive committee, A. B. Heath, H. C. Bodholdt, James Jensen, E. B. Ackerman, W. G. Avenall; committee, E. J. Compton, HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 719 Frank Reding, A. Y. Nichols, Carl Christensen, M. T. Toohey, J. H. Toohey, J. H. McKenna, Ed Daniels, Wm. Boyce, Henry Haarup. War Service Association, West Grant Township — J. M. Hussey, chairman ; executive committee, Ed Spooner, Fred Higgins ; commit- tee, M. Hoffman, J. S. Amis, Paul Soeth, P. J. Gaherty, Theo. An- derson. War Service Association, Washington Township — Chairman, William Gutel; executive committee, J. N. Horacher, H. H. Lang, Joe Gutel, Frank Barr, Ben Eno; committee, A. P. Sprague, Elek Holmes, John Strack, Luman Holcomb, Richard Burns, Henry S. Steig, Ralph Witter, Ralph Stull, Fred Steig Jr. War Service Association, Scott Township — Chairman, George R. Fanning; executive committee, Oscar Bodine, William Bice, Oliver Brandvold, A. Kacmarynski; committee, P. H. Betz, J. C. Connely, J. C. Larson, Sam Enderson, Harry Lindlief, Martin Olson, Harold Olson. War Service Association, Coon Township — Chairman, H. W. Lehmkuhl; executive committee, W. O. Sievers, Dick Kischer, O. F. Bellows, C. F. Porath, H. F. Ahnholtz, Fred Kischer, H. D. Thieman; committee, Wm. Griffel, A. A. Peterson, Walter Wendrup, R. W. Wilson, Carl Neilson, Louis Weber, A. Engles, Mm. Minden, Fred Griffel Jr. War Service Bureau, Nokomis Township — Chairman, George H. Larson ; executive committee, F. W. Cone, Peter Matsen, Peter Strom, P. J. Swanson; committee, A. A. Peterson, Christian Hanson, O. W. Anderson, Albert Waldo, S. C. Porter, Dave Holmes, George Parrott, Albert Ankerson, C. Schott, P. R. Moser, Chas. McCurdy, John Stom- berg, Ray Parker, Thos. Cattew, George M. Bell, Alfred Blom, A. D. Nelson. War Service Association, Maple Valley Township — Chairman, Oscar Peterson; executive committee, Bert Schuelke, George Tolzin, Chas. Zwemke, L. C. Lichtenberg; committee, Chas. Holtz, John Hol- lingsworth, John Koth, Wm. Schmidt, H. D. Hinkeldey, Wm. Fred- ericks, John Lichtenberg, Wm. Breecher, Carl Harris, Wm. Younie, Alfred Cottong, Henry Husteadt, Gust Turnquist. Newell Township War Service Association — Chairman, T. F. Householder; executive committee, Ivan M. Adams, E. P. Kruse, L. 720 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY P. Lund, John Ward; committee, J. P. Johnson, Mike O'Connor, Will Sauter, F. Hemingsen,, Andrew Grau, Will Porath. War Service Association, Elk Township — Chairman E. M. Matz- dorf; executive committee, C. M. Hanson, J. A. Buckingham, A. N. Peterson, C. G. Johnson; committee, A. C. Johnson, J. P. Anderson, Ed Rehnstrom, Walter Lauridson, C. G. Olson, J. V. Petton, George N. Booth, Earl Waters, C. N. Christensen, John Pearson, W. H. Haase, E. J. Warne, Carl Peterson, Almus Buckingham. Lee Township War Service Association — Chairman, W. J. Sut- ton; executive committee, B. J. Torkelson, Sam R. Bennett, O. L. Byam Art Wilson; committee, Oliver Landsness, Edward Endsley, Lou Hadenfeldt, E. Williams, Gus Grey, E. E. Thoma, H. E. Holmes. _ Rembrandt-Barnes War Service Association — Chairman, D. W. Thomas ; secretary, O. J. Hegna ; executive committee. Forest Hick- man, Conrad J. Peterson, Hans Olson; committee, A. H. Mickelson, Oliver Tolifson, Olof Sewolson, Helmer E. Haroldson, George K. Peterson, Wm. McGrew, Harol Haroldson, Oscar Peterson, Tennis Bertness, Fred Fairchild. Sioux Rapids War Service Association — Chairman, C. L. Sipe ; executive committee, F. H. Diericks, L. R. White, T. M. Murdock, E. E. Smith, A. B. Snyder; committee, O. P. Olsen, Alfred Olsen, Howard Sawyer, H. L. Farmer, John Brummer. Linn Grove War Service Association — Chairman, Will F. Ander- son; executive committee, Otto Dokken, H. C. McDanel, Oscar Ris- Vold, E. E. Friedlund, N. P. Nelson, James Lewiston, C. J. Christen- sen, Henry Berg, Oscar Erickson, C. F. Stuhlmiller, C. O. Friedlund, Fred Mangold, J. T. Evans, O. H. Hesla, Andrew Johnson, H. L. Pierce, O. E. Anderson. Poland Township War Service Association — Chairman, Sanford Lundgren; executive committee, Z. W. Treman, Will Geary, Frank Lalley, Charles Thomas; committee, C. V. Okerberg, Joel E. John- son, Lee Ruebel, R. W. Williams, G. M. Pullman, O. O. Howard, J. W. Watts. War Service Association, Storm Lake Township — Chairman, Chas. Robbins; executive committee, Ira Angier, W. L. Geisinger, J. T. Edson. Fairfield Township and Albert City War Service Association — Chairman, George R. Anderson; executive committee, C. E. Gulbran- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 721 son, F. D. Linder, A. J. Ryden, A. L. Bergling, Frank G. Johnson, Carl Anderson, Alfred Danielson, Axel Benna; committee, C. J. Benna, Louis E. Larson, Fred Gustafson, J. P. Eckman, Aaron Olson, Hans Johnson, Victor Anderson, Chas. Rutherford, Fritz G. Anderson, Paul Anderson, Mike Conlin, C. H. Englund, Everett Warren, E. Carlson, Arthur Anderson, Chas. A. Anderson, H. W. Lampe, F. T Youngquist, Olof Nelson, B. A. Peterson, O. C. Anderson, Albert Walstead, Thos. Frykberg, Wm. Behrens, J. A. Patten, George W. Anderson, Amandus Skog, August Lindell, Frank Walner, Joe Evans, H. Kischer. Brooke Township War Service Association — Chairman, Frank Lindlief ; executive committee, H. C. Erichsen, C. W. Plagman, Fred Plagman, Nils Chilgren; committee, Clayton Haight, Frans Hanson, Walter Christensen, L. D. Schultz, L. W. Morris. Marathon War Service Association — Chairman, W. J. Miller; executive committee, E. B. Wells, J. H. Wegerslev, E. R. Peters, M. C. Starrett, N. G. Olney; committee, W. F. Couch, L. C. Burwell, M. R. Soth, C. A. Johnson, F. O. Danielson, L. J. Olney, A. W. Ve- derstrom, J. A. Hitchcock, A. A. Wells, T. H. Welch. Newell War Service Association — Chairman, C. R. Waterman; executive committee, M. J. Theusen, M. W. Conley, C. O. E. Erukken, E. P. Layman; committee, G. W. Chaney, L- F. Parker, F. G. Red- field, E. R. Norton, W. L. Holtz. Lincoln Township War Service Association — Chairman, M. O. Reuland; executive committee, W. F. Berkler, A. E. Sweet, August Siekman, A. L Schaffer, Henry Hadenfeldt, Wm. Wellmerling, T. E. DeSpain, Chas. Blomgren ; committee, Gus Benson, Chas Swanson, L. H. Green. Alta War Service Association — Chairman, Samuel Parker; exec- utive Committee, C. H. Wegersley, L. E. Jockheck, H. J. Poulson, J. W. Wilkerson, J. H. Allen; soliciting committee, C. A. Vanbus- kirk, H. J. Hoffeins, Wm. Farrow, Frank Watson, R. H. Wilkinson, R. C. Brogmus, F. N. Sipe, Frank Parker, N. E. Dahl, C. F. Sang- ston, C. J. Hetrick, L. A. Rader, C. E. Cameron, George Hultgren, Rev. C. H. Leonard, Lars Larson, O. J. Ellis, E. J. Edwards, D. E. Hatten Rev. N. J. Lundahl, C. F. Peterson, P. Morrissey, C. Lind- lief, Frank Friedlund, C. D. Peterson, Thos. Scambler, Rev. J. B. Walker, J. P. Hultgren, G. F. Tincknell, A. R. Browne. 722 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY East Grant War Service Association — Chairman, Wm. H. Sie- vers ; executive committee, Rev. F. Albrecht, Gust Lehman ; committee, Herman Mehlhop, John Sievers, N. C. Nelson, Otto Krog. Hayes Township War Service Association — Chairman, Ira Can- non; executive committee, Robert Gring, Will Mauser, Alfred Mein- hard, Tom Renshaw; committee, W. E. Gaffey, Harry E. Thayer, S. R. Haines, Paul Troeger, Will Oatman, Robert Fulton, Ralph Diehl, Frank Johnson, Ed Zinn, Wm. Pike, Rudolph Meinhard, Job Francis, Frank Eckhardt. Storm Lake War Service Association — Chairman, T. D. Filers; executive committee, H. G. Mittelstadt, J. A. Schmitz, H. J. Hahne, George M. Pedersen. First Ward Committee — H. G. Mittelstadt, chairman; George Daniels, E. M. Tracy, J. H. Southers, Wm. R. Beals, George C. Mack, Frank Kaufman, Carl Jackson, Oscar Bitter, W. N. Tullar, Arthur Highes. Second Ward Committee — J. A. Schmitz, chairman ; J. Park Bair, T. K. Alexander, J. B. McKibben, C. F. Wellmerhng, J. E. Spooner, Bert Marchant, L. S. Todd, B. S. Hollenbeck, E. H. Melcher, F. V. Dumbaugh, W. S. Steffen, W. F. Miller. Third Ward Committee — H. J. Hahne, chairman ; George F. Wagner, M. F. Fisher, Fred P. Foster, Frank Mittelstadt, J. W. Gibson, Frank E. Balzer, A. E. Brunson, G. M, Triplett, Ray Point, D. A. Rice, J. C. Bell, N. P. Swanson. Fourth Ward Committee — George M. Pedersen, chairman, A. T. Troeger, vice chairman; Roy W. Murray, Walter Leckington, Ben Kramer, W. G. Young, John O'Boyle, W. E. Christopher, Mike Hayes, John Doyle, Chas. F. Meyers, Dick Meinking, Robert Bleak- ley, P. J. Toohey, Lawerence Foell. Bureau of Military Affairs — T. H. Chapman, chairman; E. W. Oates, P. J. Toohey, G. M. Pedersen, F. P. Foster, A. L. Whitney, W. C. Edson, H. J. Hahne, J. A. Schmitz, T. D. Filers. PROPORTION SHARE O]? PLEDGES Immediately after the executive committee was organized it pro- ceeded to get the pledge cards signed as provided for in the articles of the association. All but four of the people of Buena Vista County who were asked to join the association signed the cards. These four HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 723 declined on account of holding conscientious objections to war. On in- vestigation it was found that religious grounds were the only reason they had for refusing to subscribe to membership. They agreed to donate, and did so liberally, to such funds as their conscientious scruples would permit. After the registration of members of the War Service Association was completed a meeting of the executive committees of the county was held at the county seat to arrange for the division of the quotas of the different funds as given to the county by the state committee in charge. A committee consisting of G. F. Tincknell, Alta; J. N. Horlacher, Washington Township; E. B. Wells, Marathon; George W. Chaney, Newell ; and J. A. Schmitz of Storm Lake, was appoint- ed to make up a list apportioning the proper percentages of the county quota to each town or township unit, on the basis of population and assessed valuation, taking into consideration the fact that in some townships there was a larger percentage than the average of resi- dents who were renting farms. This committee reported back with the following percentage list, which was approved by the meeting — these proportions to apply on all quotas or until such time as the executive committee might see fit to ask for a re-rating. Brooke, 3.3145 per cent; Linn Grove-Barnes, 4.576 per cent; Sioux Rapids, 4.52 per cent; Lee, 3.544 per cent; Poland-Marathon, 6.446 per cent; Elk, 4.474 per cent; Scott, 3.874 per cent; Rembrandt, 2.653 per cent; Lincoln, 2.5135 per cent; Fairfield- Albert City, 6.35 per cent; Nokomis, 4.45 per cent; Alta, 4.432 per cent; Washington, 3.263 per cent; Grant, 4.252 per cent; Coon, 4.014 per cent; Maple Valley, 4.693 per cent; Hayes, 3.048 per cent; Providence, 4.143 per cent; Newell Town, 4.45 per cent; Newell Township, 4.346 per cent; Storm Lake, 16.644 per cent. . The executive committee then made ratings to apportion among the members the quota allotted to each precinct, basing each member's share on ability to give, taking into consideration both income and net worth. The committee called on the members for the subscription al- lotted members for the fourth loan, but for all succeeding campaigns the members were notified to appear at their polling places to make subscriptions. The latter way was much more satisfactory, taking less time and work. The executive committee gave due notice of a 724 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY meeting previous to each campaign for the purpose of hearing any complaints from individuals who thought they were not correctly rated. During the campaign the committees were instructed not to accept less than the quota assigned. If a person thought the ex- ecutive committee had been unfair he could appeal to the County War Service Bureau who checked up his rating in comparison with per- sons in like circumstances. If a rating was found too high it was reduced; if correct, the first amount was insisted upon, and in all cases was received. If a man ignored the solicitation of the com- mittees or did not answer the call, the executive committee turned in his name to the county bureau. The county bureau then notified him to appear at the county seat at a specified time to explain his conduct. If no response was made to this notice the state marshal was sent to bring him before the board. The bureau handled an average of about twenty cases for each campaign, a very small number consider- ing that there were between 4,000 and 5,000 members of the associa- tion. All cases handled by the bureau were settled amicably. The War Service Association handled the third, fourth, and fifth loans. The details of each will be found under the chapter on liberty loans. They handled part of the War Savings Stamps, details of which will be found under the chapter of War Savings Stamps. They handled the second Red Cross drive, the amounts of which are includ- ed in the figures given in the chapter on Red Cross. Details showing the work on the united work drive are covered in another place. A few of the members of this association refused to donate to this last mentioned fund; while others refused to do their share on the fifth loan. These were for the most part people who had persisted in objections before, but the executive committee reports show con- siderable of a surprise in the north part of the county, where one of the prominent citizens refused to take his full quota which was easily not too high. CouNCii, OF National Defense Soon after the declaration of war. Congress authorized the devel- opment of an advisory body which was known as the Council of Na- tional Defense. Shortly thereafter the council was organized, its ad- visory commission appointed, a director chosen, and its activities planned. It appropriately directed its first attention to the Indus- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 725 trial situation of the country and, by the creation of committees rep- resentative of the principal industries, brought together a great store of information both as to our capacity for manufacture and as to the readaptions possible in an emergency for rapid production of supplies of military value. Under the law of its creation, the Council of Na- tional Defense is not an executive body, its principal function being to supervise and direct investigations and make recommendations to the President and the heads of the executive departments with regard to a large variety of subjects. There was no intention on the part of Congress to subdivide the executive function, but rather to strength- en it by equipping it with carefully matured recommendations based upon adequate surveys of conditions. It was admirably adapted to the task because among the members of the council were those whose normal activities brought them into constant contact with all the varied peace time activities of the people and who were, therefore, the best qualified to judge the most useful opportunities in the new state of things for men and interests of which they respectively knew the normal relations. The Buena Vista County Council of Defense consisted of A. L. Whitney, Storm Lake, chairman; E. B. Wells, Marathon, vice chair- man ; V. E. Herbert, Storm Lake, secretary ; Emil Chindlund, Brooke Township; A. H. Barnett, Barnes Township; W. J. Sutton, Lee Township; Jens Miller, Elk Township; George R. Fanning, Scott Township ; Edgar Eastman, Lincoln Township ; C. E. ' Gulbranson, Fairfield Township ; D. H. Carpenter, Nokomis Township ; Dan Ken- nedy, Washington Township; F. F. Higgins, Grant Township; James Anderson, Coon Township ; John Hollingsworth, Maple Valley Town- ship; W. E. Gaffey, Hayes Township; E. P. Wright, Providence Township; L. F. Parker, Newell Township; W. F. Anderson, Linn Grove, member at large. The county council gave assistance to all patriotic activities. They "kept their ear to the ground" for any indication of pro-Germanism or disloyalty. They acted in an advisory way with all other civilian war organizations. They were the first group organized and they assisted materially with the organization of the other groups. y2^ HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Wome;n's Council of Defense The purpose of the women's committee of the Council of National Defense was to so coordinate the activities and the resources of the organized and unorganized women of the country that their power might be immediately utilized in time of need, and to supply a new and direct channel of communication and cooperation between wo- men and governmental departments. The state divisions in turn or- ganized local units of all women's associations and societies without regard to creed, purpose, or color. Departments of the work consist- ed of registration for service, food production, food conservation, women in industry, child welfare, maintaining existing social service agencies, safeguarding moral and spiritual forces, educational prop- aganda, liberty loans, and Red Cross and allied relief. The national head of this organization was Dr. Anna Howard Shaw. Prominent leaders in women's work from all over the union assumed leadership in this effort, and all its members served without compensation. Headquarters were provided by the government in Washington, D. C. The Iowa Division was organized June 12, 191 7. Mrs. Francis E. Whilley of Webster City was elected state chairman. Mrs. Dora M. Millard of Storm Lake was appointed chairman for Buena Vista County and proceeded to promote the organization of the county division which was effected August 18, 191 7, when the follow- ing officers were elected: First vice chairman. Miss Steha Russell; second vice chairman, Miss Grace Mack; third vice chairman, Mrs. Charles Richardson; secretary, Mrs. Jesse McGill; treasurer, Mrs. Ethelyn Edson. In the week of the special drive on War Savings Stamps, from April 29 to May 3, 1918, this organization sold $25,250 in stamps, bringing the total for the town to date to $42,000. In August, 1 91 8, they established the central station for the physical examination of children. A unit organized at Alta October i, 1917, had as its officers: Chair- man, Mrs. Jessie Herron; first vice chairman, Mrs. WilHam Miller; second vice chairman, Mrs. George Watson; secretary, Mrs. Elmer Benson; treasurer, Mrs. J. W. Morrison. The activities at Newell were organized October 24th of the same year, when the following ladies were elected to leadership: Chair- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 727 man, Mrs. Florence M. Armstrong; first vice chairman, Mrs. Lillian Norton; second vice chairman, Mrs. John Layman; secretary, Mrs. George Fredinburg; treasurer, Mrs. Frank Point. Marathon was organized September 6, with Mrs. A. A. Wells as chairman ; Miss Esther Johnson, first vice chairman ; Miss Mae Camp- bell, second vice chairman ; Mrs. Jay W. Couch, secretary. On the 26th of September organization was effected at Sioux Rapids by the election of the following hst of officers: Chairman, Mrs. O. H. Jones; vice chairmen, Mrs. J. Ruft" and Mrs. Rev. Barry- .man; secretary, Miss Maud Lamb; treasurer, Miss Cullen. The Linn Grove ladies met in October to prepare to cooperate with the other women of the county in this work. The members organized by electing Mrs. John T. Evans, chairman; Mrs. C. A. Fulton, first vice chairman; Mrs. A. F. Johnson, second vice chair- man; Mrs. Wm. Rutter, secretary; Mrs. H. E. Erickson, treasurer. Activities were not wholly covered by these local organizations, so district committeemen were appointed, as follows: Lincoln-Lee, Miss Bea Gavin; Fairview, Miss Lillian Madsen; Albert City, Mrs. B. S. Bryson; Rembrandt, Mrs. Alta Church Bonicson for 191 7, and Miss Esther Thomas for 1918; Highview, Miss Mabel Anderson for 1917, Mrs. William Haxby for 1918; Truesdale, Mrs. Ed Vogel for 191 7, Mrs. M. T. Fletcher for 1918. Reviewing the activities of this women's auxiliary to the National Council of Defense it is recounted that they canvassed for signatures to the food pledge cards in 191 7, resulting in securing the coopera- tion of 3,000 women in the food conservation movement ; in February, 1918, they had charge of the Colby-Beecher meeting; sent out kitchen cards and conservation recipes to every family in the county ; obtained memberships to the organization which secured the home demon- stration agent. By the united effort of this agent and the council a food exhibit was prepared for the county fair at Alta in August, 1918. The council cooperated with the food administration to send Hoover's message on conservation to every home; worked with the Red Cross to secure recruits for the Student Nurse Reserve, and worked to further the response to each liberty loan. 728 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY women's council of defense roster^ Hayes Township — Mrs. John E. Higgins. Maple Valley Township — Mrs. W. H. Schmidt, Mrs. Chas. Holtz, Mrs. J. A. Hollingsworth, Mrs. J. E. L. Schmidt, Paula Schmidt. Town of Newell — Mrs. M. A. Armstrong, Mrs. Geo. Brisby. Providence Township — Mrs. Duane Shaw. Scott Township — Mrs. R. C. Kramer, Mrs. Oscar F. Bodine, Lil- lian Madsen. Saving Food Systematically When the United States went into the war, one of the big tasks that was laid upon this country was the providing of a sufficient quantity of foodstuffs to meet the needs of that part of Europe which was too preoccupied with war activities to produce anywhere near their nor- mal crops. Furthermore, when the young men should begin leaving this country it would take a certain proportion from agricultural pur- suits, thus restricting in a measure the production of this country. Profiteers could not be permitted to hoard foods to influence a rise in the market; those who were best able to provide for their own needs could not be permitted to corner the supply to the exclusion of those who must depend upon small and frequent purchases of the necessities. Above all, the resources of this country must not be used to satisfy excessive desires in this country, while our soldiers overseas, the military men of our Allies and the civilians of the coun- tries cooperating with us might be suffering. In an editorial comment in April, 191 7, the Storm Lake Pilot-Tri- bune said in referring to the food situation: "The cry is not so much for soldiers and sailors, at least for the present, but it is for producers." . A food conservation program was initiated early in 191 7. Herbert Hoover was appointed national food administrator ; the work in Iowa was under the immediate direction of J. F. Deems of Burlington, and the Buena Vista County supervision was put in the hands of W. F. Anderson and T. D. Filers. Representatives from all over the state met at Des Moines April 4, ^ We have tried to give as many names of people who have assisted with the Women's Council of Defense work as possible. We presented questionnaires to all families in the county asking the names of the members of the family who had assisted in the various activi- ties. The names given here were secured from the questionnaires which were returned to us. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 729 191 7. A general committee was formed for the purpose of creating a greater food production for the state of Iowa. All members were actual practical farmers, and met monthly at either Ames or Des Moines. They formulated the food production ideas that were car- ried out by the State Food Administration, S. R. Haines of Buena Vista County presented resolutions pledging the Eleventh Congres- sional District and the people of the state to a cooperative effort in food production and the most extensive plan of conservation. Mr. Haines was named chairman of the Eleventh District organization. The state committee was organized May 16, 191 7. The campaigns of education which was necessary to secure uni- form support of the conservation program was begun the ist day of July, 191 7, when all the pastors preached on the subject. In Decem- ber, 1917, specifications were sent out for a standard loaf of bread, making it sixteen ounces, and at that time the selling price was es- tablished at eight cents, though it soon raised to a higher value. A rule to restrain profiteering in flour said that the dealer should not ask a profit greater than $1.25 per barrel. Soon the rules concerning the use and sale of both sugar and flour became more restricted, and a federal law was passed giving authority to make the rules effective. Sugar was sold in five-pound quantities at an established price of ten cents a pound. Sugar bowls were taken off the tables in public eating houses, after which such proportion of sweetening as was per- mitted to each customer was served by the waiter. These limitations had their effect in reducing the production of soft drinks as long as the war lasted. As the canning season approached a revision of the limitations was necessary. Arrangements were made to permit the issuance of sugar certificates through authority of the county food commissioner. The amount of sugar that could be purchased at one time was ten pounds, and the customer was expected to make all of his purchases at one store where a record of them was kept with a view to limiting his monthly purchase to two pounds per person in the family. In the fall of 19 18 sorghum mills were put up in different parts of the county, which were operated under license of the food administra- tion, which gave them governmental protection. An earlier agita- tion in favor of the raising of cane had provided a good crop, and this resulted in providing a substitute sweetening. 730 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Wben food regulation was established it was ordered that any per- sons having more than two sacks of flour or ten pounds of sugar should return the surplus to the store from which they made the purchase. Regulations laid down as affecting flour required that an equal quantity of substitute should be purchased with flour. Corn meal, oat meal, rye, and graham were counted in this consideration. The quantity of flour permitted to be purchased was six pounds per month for every member of the family. Milling processes were regulated,' so that the fancy patent flour was under the ban, and instead of using fifty per cent of the berry, seventy-four per cent was used. This made some change in the color of the finished product, as it was darker than the American people had been in the habit of using. This method of milling reduced the supply of bran, shorts, and the by- products, which in turn inflicted certain hardships upon the mill feed trade. The need of a large meat supply overseas caused the promulga- tion of limitations on the use of beef in the summer of 1918. These provided that boiled beef should be served not more than twice week- ly, beef steak at only one meal per week, with a total allotment of one and a half pounds of beef per week for each person in the family. The use of pork was recommended, as it was more available for home consumption and less adapted for overseas shipment. Even after food regulation began the fourth meal was taboo. If fraternities or societies desired to indulge a social occasion at which refreshments were to be served it was recommended that they be held at an hour which would permit the serving to substitute for a regu- lar meal. The very great needs of Europe in regard to food were impressed upon the people of the county when they gathered for a meeting at Storm Lake February 21, 191 8, at which addresses were made by ex- Senator Everett Colby of New Jersey, and Miss Beecher, a Southern lady, both of whom had shortly before visited Europe. Both address- es were enlightening and inspired the home folks to greater sacrifices for the cause. Methods of food conservation in lines outside of those which were under strict regulation were made known by Miss Bertha Knight who came into the county as home demonstration agent in June, 1918, to HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 731 be engaged with a society organized in connection with the county farm bureau. She also demonstrated methods of canning which en- abled housewives to conserve a large supply of vegetables and fruits. County food administrators of the Eleventh Congressional District met in Storm Lake the 23d of May, 1918, when W. W. White of Spirit Lake acted as chairman of the meeting. Another group of food conservators who met at the county seat was the hotel men of the county who assembled July 5, 1918, to discuss methods of effect- ing savings in their particular line of business. Toward the latter part of June, in 191 8, a more general scope of price fixing was entered upon. The first price fixing committee con- sisted of T. D. Eilers, Dr. V. E. Herbert, H. E. Swope, George Sterg, J. N. Horlacher, and H. C. Foster. This committee was later revised to include the following as its personnel: A. E. Troeger, chairman, Joe J. Duffy, J. C. Bell, J. N. Horlacher, Geo. Steig, H. E. Swope, Harry C. Foster, V. E. Herbert, and S. A. Treman. Other county officers who had part in handling the food regulations were: P. W. Walred, assistant for Storm Lake; Fred C. Bitter, assistant for Sulphur Springs; H. H. Lang, assistant for Truesdale; Chas. Van Buskirk, assistant for Alta; F. G. Redfield, assistant for Newell; J. T. Boyd, assistant for Albert City; Dr. J. A. Delahunt, assistant for Marathon; D. W. Thomas, assistant for Rembrandt; C. L. Sipe, as- sistant for Sioux Rapids; George Tolzin, assistant for Hanover; H. E. Swope, merchants' representative; L. M. Slagee, merchants' rep- resentative; Oscar Bitter, hotels and restaurant representative; J. C. Bell, bakers' representative; Rev. W. T. McDonald, ministerial rep- resentative; C. C. Colwell, fraternal representative; Mae Hamilton, publicity; Pat Clancy, enforcement; Fred Higgins, threshermen's representative; W. Herron, county agent; Sam Haines, president Buena Vista County Farm Bureau. Prices were adjusted weekly to permit only a reasonable profit to dealers, based upon prevailing wholesale prices, and the publication of these prices in the current press kept householders informed as to fair prices that they ought to expect to pay. In order to establish regularity between the many crews and con- formity with administration rules threshers of the county met June 22, 19 1 8, to formulate rules which should govern the amount and kinds of food to be served, and other rules that would control the 72,2 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY policies of the crews. Prices for threshing were estabhshed at three and one-half cents for oats, four cents for barley and six cents for wheat, with the understanding that the farmer should furnish the fuel consumed for power. It was further agreed that all crews should work until 8 p. m. At the meeting of June 22d, H. S. Orrick of the United States Food Administration was present. Fred Higgins of Grant Township was the chairman of this meeting. Under presidential order of May 14, 191 8, all dealers in eggs were required to have a license. In order to curtail the use of flour in the making of ice cream cones the sale of this confection was restricted by prohibiting sales on Mon- days and Wednesdays, and on any other day after 5 p. m. In the fall of 191 8 the planting of winter wheat was urged upon all farmers, and with the assurance of an established price of $2.26 per bushel, guaranteed by the Government, encouraged more ven- tures in winter wheat in Iowa and in Buena Vista County than had ever before been attempted. Seed was secured for the farmers by the county agent, and the sale of it from car load lots was a new ex- perience in Buena Vista County agriculture. Five persons appeared before the food commissioner to answer to infractions of sugar regulations in August, 1918. A. T. McElroy, writing at a time when the work of the sugar di- vision was about to be closed, said : Several days ago I wrote in a general way, expressing my appre- ciation for the cooperation you have given us in this sugar work. Buena Vista is one of the counties who stuck with us through thick and thin. Later he wrote, "During the entire period Iowa has confined her- self to just the amount of sugar allotted her by Washington. We are one of the few states than can look back with pride on our sugar conservation record, and to the men who were actuated by the desire to serve their country, must be given the credit." Gratification over the splendid results of the food conservation campaign was expressed in the following language of a letter which J. F. Deems directed to the county committee: It is gratifying that through self-sacrificing devotion to this war service, and with the help of the members of the Women's Committee, Iowa gained a position of leadership in the Food Administration work of the nation. The credit is yours. As time goes forward we must HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 733 feel a constantly increasing gratification that the opportunity was afforded to render such signal service for our nation and our de- fenders. As I review the tasks undertaken and the achievements of the Ad- ministration, the thrill of having done a real service for our nation, the gratification resident in helping our boys win the war, the satisfac- tion involved in the discharge of a solemn duty, so far outweigh the trials and tribulations, the vexations and disappointment, that only pleasant and heart warming memories will live after our organization has passed away. War Activities of the Farm Bureau From the date of the declaration of war with Germany, the Gov- ernment ordered the county agents' program to be« adjusted to war conditions. The problems of increased production of farm products was em- phasized as a major problem in winning the war. The Allies were running short of certain staple foods, and the German submarine was making the situation more serious every day. With the mobilization of a great army from this country the num- ber of non-producers and consumers would be greatly increased, and there was a grim necessity that the food supplies of the country be greatly increased in order to provision our own and the allied armies, as well as to give some relief to the civilian population of the war- stricken countries of Europe. The farm products which were most urgently needed, and which could be most easily transported abroad were, wheat and meat. Among meat products, pork and animal fats were most in demand. The declaration of war on April 7, 191 7, was too late to greatly change the plans of production for the season. So a conservation program was adopted. To save all kinds of food stuffs was the ur- gent need. To use substitute foods in place of those which could best be sent abroad. To abstain from the use of certain foods so that the supplies for our soldiers and the allies might be increased. To this end the Farm Bureau employed every means to bring the attention of the people of the county to the necessity of producing more of their own food stuffs and the necessity of cutting down on the consumption of certain staples. The county agent asked for a special meeting of the officers and 734 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY directors of the Farm Bureau for the purpose of taking up the special problems of increased production and conservation and the abandon- ment of some of the work projected previous to the outbreak of the war. S. R. Haines, president of the Farm Bureau, called a meeting at which the plans of production and conservation, as outlined by the Department of Agriculture were discussed. It was voted that the Farm Bureau organization, through its agent, W. Herron, and the special committees appointed, devote the entire energies of the or- ganization to the problems related to winning the war. The Government was urging an increased acreage of corn, potatoes, and garden stufifs. The corn acreage had been practically determined at this date, but some increase was secured by using some of the land intended for small grain, and by breaking up some extra meadow land. Increased potato production was urged in the vicinity of Alta. A garden campaign helped to increase potato production throughout the county, especially in the towns. Vacant lots were utilized and practically every square yard of ground was put under cultivation. In Storm Lake a considerable part of the parking between the sidewalk and the street was utilized. This "front door" gardening- occurred to some extent in every town in the county. The increase in pro- duction of potatoes in this county in 191 7 was estimated at over thirty thousand bushels. The corn acreage was increased at least ten per cent. With the prospect of a draft of many young men from the farms, the farm labor situation was attracting attention. To meet the situation to the best advantage a free labor bureau was organized with headquarters at the county agent's office. During corn culti- vating, haying, harvest, and corn husking, a large number of men were secured for the farmers, but not enough could be secured to take care of all demands. The Farm Bureau did much in securing fur- loughs for farm boys at the various military camps. The season of 191 7 was cold and backward and early frosts de- stroyed the germinating quality of corn. A seed corn famine loomed up in the midst of other activities. The Farm Bureau at once set to work to test samples of corn and the seriousness of the situation was made public. During the fall, winter, and 'spring the Farm Bureau put in much time locating seed that would be fit to use. By planting time enough seed had been secured to save the day, but not HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 735 without shipping in a considerable quantity which had been located in South Dakota, Nebraska, and in other counties of this state. During the spring of 191 8, the Farm Bureau arranged for the ship- ment into the county of four car-loads of seed wheat for the purpose of increasing the acreage of spring wheat as a war measure. A campaign demonstrating home canning by the cold pack method was held during the first two weeks in June. Twenty-four meetings were held with a total attendance of 1105. This campaign brought splendid results. A conservative estimate of thirty additional quarts per family attending these demonstrations would be an increase of over 33,000 quarts for these families. Judging from reports received, the actual increase was much more than this amount. Assistance was given the liberty loan campaign by mailing out lit- erature to the farmers on the liberty loan. The mayor of Storm Lake was asked to address a meeting of 250 farmers called by the Farm Bureau. Help was given in the sale of W.S.S., and the raising of funds for the Red Cross, and the Y.M.C.A. war work. Assistance was given to the Food Administration in making food and live-stock surveys, and in a campaign to save grain at threshing time by urging more care in the handling of grain and the better operation of thresh- ing machines. After July i, 1918, Miss Bertha Knight was appointed as home demonstrator for the Farm Bureau. Miss Knight gave her time to war work among the women. Demonstrations were also given in saving wheat, meat, fats, and sugar. Demonstrations were also giv- en in canning and drying of fruits and vegetables, and on the saving of fuels and clothing. Miss Knight gave vlauable assistance during the influenza epidemic as a dietitian, and in community nursing. Girls' canning clubs were organized for the purpose of saving fruits and vegetables. The four girls' canning clubs canned 210 quarts of fruits and vegetables. Nine garden clubs were organized with 397 juniors enrolled. Twenty women's units were organized in the coun- ty for food and clothing conservation, with a total membership of 477. Bulletins on conservation to the number of 12,575 were distrib- uted. A survey was made for the food administrator to determine the amount of food saved by canning and drying. This survey showed that there were 426,942 quarts of fruits and vegetables, and about 900 736 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY pounds of dried fruits and vegetables put up in 1918. One woman at Storm Lake canned 388 quarts of vegetables, 574 quarts of fruit, T35 quarts of pickles, 20 quarts of jelly, 68 quarts of jam, and put down one barrel of kraut. Assistance was given in the thrift campaign by encouraging sav- ing, and the keeping of household accounts. Test leaflets on account- ing were tried by 197 women, and 75 more took yearly household ac- count books. Many minor activities associated with the necessity of the war, were undertaken by the county agent and the home demonstrator. Grateful acknowledgment is tendered to the 144 district cooper a- tors who gave of their time to help the Farm Bureau in its war program. Full days and long hours, "without stint to the limit," was the war program of the County Farm Bureau workers. Officers of the Buena Vista County Farm Bureau were : President, S. R. Haines, Storm Lake; vice president, A. B. Heath, Newell; treasurer, Joel E. Johnson, Marathon; secretary, L. C. Anderson, Alta. The name of each township with its respective director is giv- en in the appended list, followed in each case by the district coopera- tors : Brooke — Fred Flagman, director; Levi M. Morris, John Swanson Lewis Schultz, Herman Miller, Frank Lindlief, O. A. Lindblade, Franz Hanson, George Johnson, Fred Flagman. Barnes — George B. Anderson, director; Wm. Leighton, Ben Shirk, A. E. Isacson, George B. Anderson, C. J. Christenson, James Lewis- ton, Tennis Bertness, Hans Olson, Harvey McDanel. Lee — S. A. Bennett, director; Garfield Goodwin, Will Sutton, Ed Duroe, Sam Bennett, Fred Fairchild, Earl Fuller, Gustav Grey, Charlie Pewsey, Lou Hadenfeldt. Poland — Zidon Tremain, director; S. H. Jeffers, Ben Roberts, C. L. McLaughlin, George Pullman, Charles Thomas, Chas. G. John- son, Joel E. Johnson, C. B. Hazard. Elk — Jay Buckingham, director; N. P. Benson, Gust Peterson, George N. Booth, Jay Fetlon, Ross Johnson, Jacob Johnson, Eck Warme, Wm. Reckoff. Scott — Halver Hegna, director; Guy McKibben, Martin Olson, R. C. Kramer, Sam Enderson, John Larson, Tom Kevan, P. H. Betts, Roy Fanning. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 737 Lincoln — H. A. Wellmerling, director; Gus Benson, George Kirby, Edgar Eastman, Henry Hadenfeldt, August Siekmann, Albert An- derson, Carl Blomgren, M. O. Reuland, A. E. Sweet. Fairfield — Carl Erickson, director; Conrad Carlson, Edward A. Johnson, Oscar F. Anderson, Ephraim Carlson, Alfred Danielson, Carl A. Erickson, W. T. Johnson, Everett Warren, Frank G. Johnson. Nokomis — C. E. Cameron, director; A. A. Pederson, George H. Larson, Frank Scott, Charles McCurdy, Peter Matson, Leslie Hatch, F. C. Butler, J. A. Blom. Washington — J. N. Horlacher, director; J. C. Andrews, Joe Hintz, Dan Kennedy, Ralph Witter, R. Ben Eno, Fred H. Steig Jr. Frank Barr. Grant — J. M. Hussey, director; Joe Goetchius, John Lullman, Ed Spooner, Fred Higgins, A. M. Morse, Herman Mehlhop, H. C. Krog, Paul Soeth. Coon — H. D. Thieman, director; Erick Soderquist, Will Griffel, James Anderson, W. O. Sievers, Andrew Nitzke, C. F. Porath, Ross Wilson, Oscar Grau. Maple Valley — Oscar Peterson, director; Bert Schulke, John Hol- lingsworth, D. C. Plog, William Fredericks, Carl Harris, William Younie, Alfred Cattong, Henry Hustedt. Hayes — Job Francis, director; H. E. Thayer, S. R. Haines, Ira Cannon, Fred Crowley, J. Chindlund, Rudolph Meinhard. Providence — John Council, director ; Clarence Bodholdt, E. B. Ackerman, Wm. Gee, Milton, Crowley, Christ Hansen, E. P. Wright, Ara B. Heath, John McKenna, D. D. Shaw. Newell — Wm. Huxtable, director; William Sauter, Ivan Adams, Harry Shock, Will Porath, John Wart, J. P. Johnson, Harry Robbins, George M. Allee. Storm Lake Independent — John T. Edson, H. V. Geisinger. Alta Independent — C. E. Cameron. Assuring the Fuel Supply In the autumn of 1917, after a campaign of education as to need of coal conservation, when every citizen who was able to do so had been admonished to store a winter's supply of coal in advance of the actual use of it, the need of fuel regulations were apparent. Early storage of the fuel supply was recommended in order to permit the 738 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY railroads to handle the traffic at a time when roads were not subject to a tie-up from weather conditions, to relieve the burden of traffic in the heavy winter season, and in all respects to handle the fuel sup- ply with the least burden to common carriers. Conservation of do- mestic consumption was advised to meet the heavy demands on ac- count of transportation of troops and supplies by steam railroads and steamships. This particular end was furthered by other means as well. In De- cember, 191 7, an order was promulgated establishing two lightless nights a week, Thursday and Sunday, when the lights on signs and display windows should not be burned, thus saving the consumption of electricity which is generated through the use of coal. Only one light of the cluster used for street illumination was permitted to be used. In the middle of January, 191 8, Prof. H. W. Wagner, of the engineering faculty of Iowa State College, visited the county to in- spect furnaces with a view to seeing whether or not they were being fired efficiently. He gave instructions to householders which helped them to use fuel more economically. The first of February open hours for stores were shortened to save fuel. Mercantile stores were open from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p. m. ; drug stores from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m.; billiard halls from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. During the season of heavy consumption, when transportation was slow, deliveries were limited to one load to a customer. As an instance of the stress of the situation it can be recalled that the week of January 14, 191 8, not one of the seven dealers in Storm Lake had a pound of coal in their bins. During the winters of 1917-1918 and 1918-1919 very little an- thracite coal was permitted to come to the central west because of the long haul involved. The county committee which had charge of the enforcement of fuel regulations consisted of J. A. Schmitz of Storm Lake, Harry H. Covey of Rembrandt, and R. C. Brogmus of Alta. S. R. Haines was appointed chairman of a committee to promote the use of wood for fuel. While the county had no considerable field of wood supply, there was waste wood from many groves, the use of which would reduce the demand for coal. The week of March 18 to 23, 1918, was designated as "Cut wood for fuel week." Chairmen of the wood fuel movement in the several precincts of the county were: Storm Lake, S. R. Haines; Lincoln Township, HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 739 Henry Hadenf eldt ; Fairfield Township, August Anderson; Grant Township, Fred Higgins; Scott Township, Halver Hegna; Barnes Township, George B. Anderson; Lee Township, S. A. Bennett; Elk Township, E. M. Matzdorf ; Hayes Township, Job Francis ; Washing- ton Township, J. N. Horlacher; Providence Township, John Connell; Maple Valley Township, L. C. Plog; Newell Township, Wm. Hux- table ; Coon Township, H. D. Thieman ; Poland Township, Zidon Ere- man; Brooke Township, Fred Plagman. Report of the; Y. M. C. A. BY NATIONAI, HEADQUARTERS Among the welfare organizations which conducted work in the camps at home and with the troops overseas, and which received generous support from the people of this country, was the Y.M.C.A. In view of the large sums which were contributed by the people at large it will be interesting to know something of what was accom- plished by the organization, though only a cursory resume of it can be attempted here. When the assembling of an army began it became apparent that welfare work was needed along many lines, and it was only natural that organizations already operative should enlarge their functions to meet the demands. Lewis A. Crossett, a citizen who made a trip ■overseas, has the following to say of the work of these activities : From the start the moral welfare of the American soldier was the great problem that faced General Pershing, and he summoned every one and every influence that could be helped to make a clean army. There were seven organizations which the government selected to aid General Pershing in his task. They all cooperated with the medical staff of the army. The result is that General Pershig has held and is sending home a clean army, and that object has been accomplished in a way never before known in the history of the world. The Y.M. C.A. is a religious organization; so is the Salvation Army, and so is the Knights of Columbus. These organizations, along with the chap- lains, have represented the Church to the soldier, and just as much as the Church is needed at home, so is it needed overseas; and if religion is worth anything to anybody, it is a help and comfort to the men who are away from home and facing death and suffering pain in the hospitals. The first efforts of the Y.M.C.A. were directed in the camps at 740 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY home. Wholesome diversion was suppHed for hours of recreation in the way of entertainments, athletics, and social centers. Buildings were erected in the camps to provide quarters for these activities. In . due time they were extended to overseas service. Work was taken up in the Italian army at the request of the King himself after he understood the aim of the physical, mental, and spiritual building up of the men. Work was carried on in Russia, in Czecho-Slovakia; American secretaries were permitted with the Australian, the New Zealand, and the British secretaries to go with Allenby all through the wonderful Palestine campaign. A special order from French army headquarters was necessary to secure authority to establish the "Foyer du Soldat" with the French armies, and later Premier Clem- enceau said they had been one of the principal factors in maintaining the morale of the Franch army. It was the only agency serving prisoners of war on both sides from the beginning of the struggle. John R. Mott, head of the National Y.M.C. A., says : I know I am well within bounds when I say that this agency was the means directly of saving the lives of tens of thousands of prisoners; and the sanity of thousands of more; and its spiritual ministry was literally life from the dead for multitudes. The expense of maintaining these activities was immense on the whole and in particular cases unusual to a remarkable degree because of the unusual conditions which marked all traffic and supplies pur-, chasing at the time. The "Y" paid between $60 and $70 a ton for coal in order that in hundreds of village and other places where our men were billeted there might be one place where the men could dry themselves and get some warmth. The gigantic athletic and enter- tainment program involved the necessary expenditure for taking to Europe hundreds of athletic directors above the draft age and the ex- penditure of between $1,000,000 and $2,000,000 on athletic supplies. One hundred entertainment troupes were maintained overseas for the diversion of the soldiers. Moving picture entertainments were provided at the "Y" huts, musical instruments were available for amusement; 10,000,000 sheets of writing paper and the equivalent en- velopes were distributed each week. Money was exchanged, remit- tances sent home for the soldiers. In order to supply the paper the association bought paper mills in Spain and conducted them for the production of the paper that was HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 741 necessary for soldier correspondence. To provide cooky and cracker confections the Association took over the management of forty-four factories in France and there made some of the products that were sold through the canteens. One of the largest tasks of the Y.M.C.A. was that of handling the Army Canteen, which duty the Association was requested by the Gov- ernment to take over. In one place the "Y" men were not expected to go, and that was to the hospitals. It had been agreed that the Red Cross should have charge of all work there. From June, 1918, to April, 1919, the Y.M.C.A. handled in France alone upwards of 2,000,000,000 cigarettes, 32,000,000 bars of choco- late, 18,000,000 cans of smoking tobacco, 50,000,000 cigars, 60,000,- 000 cans of jam, 29,000,000 packages of chewing-gum, and 10,000,000 packages of candy. From June, 1918, to February, 1919, 9,554 freight-car loads of Y.M.C.A. supplies were hauled. In the month of October alone some of the principal items were 765 cars of general supplies, 86 cars of flour, 148 cars of sugar, 150 cars of tobacco, 59 cars of chocolate, 63 cars of raw materials for manufacture, and 144 cars of lumber and hut materials. On March i, 1919, the Y.M.C.A. had in operation in Firance 587 buildings of various kinds which it had erected itself, 596 which it had leased, and 782 centers in tents and army buildings. Hotels were operated in important centers where the men on leave could be accommodated for reasonable charges. During the years 1918 and 1919 it provided over 2,250,000 athlet- ic articles. Included in this aggregate were 575,000 baseballs, 140,- 000 baseball bats, 65,000 fielder's gloves, 85,000 indoor baseballs and 75,000 footballs. These supplies were given to the soldiers. The English soldier in France was only a few hours from his home, and the French soldier was very close to his home. When an Eng- lish soldier obtained leave he could spend his holidays at home. Not so with the American soldier. He was far from home, in a strange land, with a strange language, so the Y.M.C.A. endeavored to pro- vide a substitute for home. It opened large hotels and recreation grounds at various centers in France, England, Italy, and Germany, where our men could go and spend their holidays. These recreation 742 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY centers were operated jointly by the army and the Y.M.C.A. Enter- tainments of all sorts were provided and every effort made to have the holiday of each man a success. Sight-seeing departments were pro- vided with most of these headquarters. Casualties to Y.M.C.A. men during the war are summarized in the following statements: Killed in battle zone, lo; died of wounds, I ; died of accident and disease, 72 ; wounded and gassed in battle zone, no; injured in accidents, 22; missing, made prisoner, 23. Thirty-one Red Triangle workers have died in service in the United States. Of the many workers overseas, 140 were awarded war medals and 214 were cited in official reports. ''Y" workers wore a uniform that simulated the regular army uni- form and were distinguished by a chevron of the red triangle which is everywhere accepted as the emblem of the Y.M.C.A. IN BUENA VISTA COUNTY Interest in the welfare organizations became manifest early in the war. With the whole hearted support which the people were giv- ing to governmental preparation they responded to the call for civil- ian auxiliary work which it was afterwards proven was so success- ful in sustaining the morale of the men. Early in May, 191 7, the Y.M.C.A. made an appeal for funds to premote the work which was in line with what that institution had been doing among men for years. An organization to secure a worthy response from this county was soon ready to function. Every town and township was organized. Meetings were held in every part of the county, and E. C. Wolcott, general secretary for the Y.M. C.A. at Sioux City, was in Storm Lake to tell of the big plans for the work. In the one meeting at which he spoke the sum of $700 was raised. The quota for the state was $150,000; for Buena Vista County $1500 — and we made it $2,000. In the fall there came a call for a much larger quota. While meet- ings were held in all the towns of the county, the big enthusiasm pro- ducer was held in Storm Lake, where A. H. O'Connor, battle-scarred veteran of the early days of the war, gave people here the first com- prehensive idea of the real horrors of war. A sum of $19,000 was raised in the county at that time. A county organization of the Y. M.C.A. which was active at that time had a drive scheduled just at HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 743 that time in the fall to raise the budget for the county work, so the effort to raise the sum of $3,000 to maintain the county organization was included with the drive for the welfare fund, and that sum was raised in addition to the $19,000 for national work. As the several draft contingents left, men of the county were des- ignated to accompany them to the camps to look after the comfort and happiness of the men enroute. It was generally the rule that two men should accompany the contingent. In the first campaign undertaken the national call was for $3,000,- 000; Iowa's quota was $125,000; Buena Vista County's share was $800. There was pledged and raised the sum of $1,000. In the second campaign the amount asked made the first quota seem insignificant and emphasized the largeness of the work being planned. The national call was for $35,000,000. Of this amount Iowa was asked to raise $800,000, with a quota of $7,000 assigned to Buena Vista County. Again she exceeded expectations. The county raised $16,010; $15,802 was pledged by seniors, while the boys' earn and give campaign netted $208. When the third call came it was under the title of the United War Work campaign, wherein the needs of the Y.W.C.A., the Salvation Army, the American Library Association, the Jewish Welfare Asso- ciation, the Knights of Columbus, the War Camp Community Ser- vice, and the Y.M.C.A. were presented as one claim for $170,000,000. Of this grand total Iowa's quota was $6,133,000. Buena Vista County was asked for $43,400. Again she was over-generous; the sum of $61,205 was raised. Adults raised $58,000; the boys' victory cam- paign, under the leadership of County Superintendent A. E. Harrison, raised $1,650; while the victory girls, directed by Mrs. U. S. Parish, raised $1,555- 'The Y.M.C.A. and the Knights of Columbus were the two agencies concerned in the united war work drive which were most intimately known to the people of this county. The officials in charge of the earlier drives were George M, Allee of Newell, chairman; N. H. Johnson, Storm Lake, executive secre- tary; Dr. W. M. Storey, Storm Lake, treasurer. The War Service Board took charge of the united war work drive. Our county had the honor of being one of the leading counties in the state in all three drives. Reference has been made to the local county organization. 744 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY It was shown that counties where the Y.M.C.A. was organized on a county basis responded most generously to these calls. General Pershing, writing of the work of the Y.M.C.A., says : On behalf of the A.E.F., I desire to express to you and your fellow workers my appreciation and thanks for the splendid services which the Y.M.C.A. has performed for the American Army in Europe. Yours has been the same spirit which has animated the American Army and made possible its contribution to the successful conclusion of the war. A Buena Vista County soldier, writing to the Pilot-Tribune in June 1918, said: The Y.M.C.A. gives us some excitement once in a while and we can see some real American pictures. Can you imagine that, right up near the trenches? We have volley ball and boxing to drive dull care away. Early in September, 1918, Captain George K. McCullough wrote: I am writing at an officers' rest hut run by the Y.M.C.A. It is pretty nice and convenient. Lieutenant Cecil P. Troeger, from the field in France, communi- cated this word: We are stopping at a little better place than our last — a Y.M.C.A., which is equipped with a few luxuries, such as baths and warm water, writing desks, billiard table, magazines, etc. They also serve meals and have a very fine dining room. It costs us two francs a meal, about forty cents in our money; and althoug^h the bread is wheatless, and our meals are almost meatless, and the chocolate candy has no sweetness, they all taste good to one who is hungry. Conrad Anderson, in an address at Albert City after returning from the war, said: The Y.M.C.A. has been severely criticized for its inefficiency dur- ing the war. It is proven that some of its secretaries have been dis- honest, but I do not think that the organization as a whole is to be blamed for this. Personally, I have always been treated just and fair. Admiral T. H. Mayo, in his report to the Navy Department, com- mends the work of welfare organizations overseas as follows: It was satisfactory to note that in practically all cases, whether our own naval facilities provided reading, writing, and amusement facili- ties for the personnel or not — the Y.M.C.A. was in evidence. Their HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 745 arrangements were, in many places, all that could be expected in the way of comfortable and cheerful quarters ; and, in those places where the facilities were not so good, inquiry usually revealed the fact that a suitable building was either under way or soon would be. In at least one place the Knights of Columbus were found established in a commodious building with all in readiness to duplicate the character of the work generally associated with Y.M.C.A. activities. Re^port of National Scope of Knights of Columbus BY NATIONAL HFADQUARTERS In the report of the war relief activities of the Knights of Colum- bus for the year ending June 30, 1919, the Supreme Board of Direc- tors of the organization show how the K. of C. have disposed of the $17,000,000 received by them up to that date from the united war fund of $170,500,000, their quota of which was $25,000,000. In this report the Knights also give an accounting for $1,776,409 of their pre-drive fund, the fund collected by the K. of C. independently of and previous to the united drive of November, 1918, The disbursements from the united war work fund were : For ac- tivities in the United States, $5,468,060.79, and for activities over- seas, $9,550,082.62, a total of $15,018,151.41, leaving an unexpend- ed balance on June 30 of $2,112,151.46. The $5,468,060.79 expended for activities in the United States was apportioned among the following divisions: Building program, in- cluding new constructions and additions, rentals, operation and main- tenance and equipment, $1,303,022.85. The Knights had 178 build- ings and 14 tents in the eastern-northeastern department, 89 build- ing and 5 tents in the southeastern department, 152 buildings and 7 tents in the central-southern department, and 42 buildings and 6 tents in the western department; making a total of 461 buildings and 32 tents. Eleven buildings were being constructed, at permanent army posts, on June 30th, Personnel expenses, including salaries, traveling expenses, uni- forms, and other personal equipment, but excluding headquarters staff, cost the Knights $1,046,680.11 for a total personnel of 1134. Activities or service program, including athletics and sports, motion pictures and other entertainments, educational, social, and employ- ment service, cost $745,659. Motor transport service cost $170,- 746 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 244.01. On supplies for free distribution, including stationery, pe- riodicals, tobacco, food and candy and miscellaneous supplies, such as soap, shaving materials, etc., the Knights spent $1,063,368.63. Freight and insurance cost the Knights $92,411.53, and general administra- tion, $138,058.18; this item covered salary and expenses of headquar- ters staff, publicity and rents, and office supplies and incidental ex- pense. Other disbursments, including funds at offices of department directors and camps and hospitals to meet the hourly needs of opera- tions, amounted to $908,616.48. For their overseas work the Knights, in the year ending June 30th, spent $9,550,082.62. Of this amount $50,294.41 were spent on build- ing and equipment; $623,700.01 on personal expense; $438,438.19 on athletics, social and moving-picture entertainments, etc.; $110,032.83 for motor transport service; $4,562,982.06 for supplies for free dis- tribution; $166,933.31 for freight and insurance; $89,253.61 for gen- eral administration; and $3,508,448.30 for disbursments to overseas commissioners for expenditures overseas on operations. Overseas, the Knights maintained 125 huts and clubs of substan- tial size, while other more or less ephemeral clubs were equipped and maintained to bring the total number of K.C. points of contact with the troops to 250. Of these clubs 32 were in Germany, 4 in Italy, and 9 in the British Isles, with i opened later in Antwerp. In Siberia the K. of C. have a secretary and more are enroute. The Knights have also recently opened clubs in Panama, Hawaii, Alaska, and clubs have been operated in Cuba and Porto Rico and large quantities of goods shipped to Haiti. All this latter work is now included in the domestic department. The Knights sent 1,075 workers overseas out of a total number of 7,414 applicants. Every state in the Union was represented in the overseas ranks of the K. of C. The total amount expended by the Knights on free comforts dur- ing the year was within a few dollars of $7,000,000. This includes the comforts distributed on transports by the 108 K. of C. secretaries engaged in transport work. This sum represents goods purchased in this country. Overseas the Knights purchased vast quantities of supplies for free distribution. Items included in the list are 900,000,- 000 beef cubes, 618,000,000 cigarets, 3,750,000 pipes, 546,851 pounds of pipe tobacco, 3,000,000 pounds of candy. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 747 For collection, care, and general administration of their funds the Knights spent $166,616.76 — 2.63 per cent of entire disbursements, a sum exceeded by the total discounts accruing from prompt payment of merchandise bills. The money expended during the 3^ear by the Knights for their pre-drive fund, distinct from the united fund, was distributed through the different avenues of expenditure in a propor- tion generally relative to their- disbursments of money received on their quota in the United States. When Iowa's part in the greatest of all world wars has been finally written and completed, and the commendable activities of the various welfare organizations which did so much to help sustain the courage and morals of the brave boys overseas and in American training camps have been recounted, the Knights of Columbus of the Hawk- eye State will be entitled to their part. The Knights of Columbus in Iowa claim the record among frater- nal organizations of the state for the number of members in the ser- vice. By careful count, 3,800 K. of C.'s voluntarily offered their services to help defeat autocracy and today many of these modern knights sleep beneath the blue canopy of Flanders field that true de- mocracy might survive and flourish. Men who have for years been known as leaders in this great Catho- lic organization have gladly taken off their coats, opened their purse strings and shut up shop that they might go out and help raise money not only for their government, but for other worthy causes and in- stitutions not allied with their faith. When the Knights of Columbus as a whole entered the war work at the urgent request of the Government in order that Catholic boys might be given the same opportunity to keep up their religious duties as those of other faith, an appeal was made to the Catholic people of Iowa and a total of $243,224,80 was raised on a quota of $100,000. Only in a few remote instances did non-Catholics contribute to this particular drive, because the Catholic people felt the money could easily be secured among themselves. Soon after the President expressed a wish that all welfare agen- cies unite in one drive for funds during the fall of 1918, J. H. Deva- ney of Cascade, then state deputy for the Knights of Columbus in Iowa, offered the support and resources of the organization to the state committee which was being formed to handle the campaign. The 748 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY offer was gladly accepted and the K. of C. state secretary designated as the one who would actively represent the state organization in Des Moines. Consequently, for over three weeks the state secretary was in Des Moines as a member of the state executive staff of the united war work campaign, being in charge of publicity and the dis- tribution of posters and literature. In addition to assisting in every way possible the welfare work of the Knights of Columbus at Camp Dodge, which was in direct charge of the Fosdick Commission, the order in this state helped to maintain a K. of C. club house for the boys at Ames. A K. of C. hut and sec- retary also took care of the soldiers in training at Iowa City. While the boys to whom the Knights of Columbus ministered overseas and in camps on this side of the water have demanded no accounting, that organization published a statement of the receipts and expenditures of the body for war work. The statement shows just how the $25,000,000 allotted to the order from the united war relief and other funds was expended, activities on this side of the water being listed separately from foreign expenditures. Following is the financial report: ' ' U.S. A.E.F. Buildings, maintenance, and equipment. $1,309,022. 85 $ 50,294.41 Personnel (traveling expenses, etc.)... 1,046,680.11 623,700.01 Entertainment, employment, social 745,659.00 438,438.19 Motor transport service 170,244.01 110,032.83 Supplies for free distribution 92,411.53 4,562,982.06 General administration 138,058.18 89,253.51 Freight and insurance 166,933.31 Directors' operations funds 908,616.48 3,508,448.30 Totals $5,468,060.79 $9,550,082.62 While the Knights of Columbus expended approximately $7,000,- 000 for cigarettes, candy, cigars, and other comforts, all of which were given free to the men, their administration expenses were but $166,616.76, which amount was more than offset by cash discounts for prompt payment of bills. They gave away more free supplies to the men than all other relief organizations put together. Exclusive of the money raised during the united war activities drive the Knights of Columbus of the state contributed $275,000 to war relief funds while hostilities were in progress. They began dur- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 749 ing the border trouble with Mexico in 1916 when the 16,000 Knights of Columbus in the state gave $2 each, or a total of $32,000. In the fall of 191 7 and the spring of 191 8, a campaign among the councils and the Catholic families of the state netted $243,000. LOCAI, WORK IN K. 01? C. On April ii, 1918, members of St. Mary's parish met in Foresters' Hall and organized a body for the purpose of collecting funds for the benefit of our boys at the front. This organization was called "St. Mary's Parish, Storm Lake, K. of C. Fund." P. J. Toohey was named as president; E. P. Wright, treasurer; and O. B. Kelley, sec- retary. Committeemen were appointed to call on every member of the parish and put the matter before them. No stated amount was required from anyone, but purely voluntary subscriptions were asked. Every member of the parish contributed in amounts ranging from fifty cents to $100 each, with the result that the total amount of money collected was $2,588.75. This was forwarded to Joe McCormick, state secretary of the K. of C, to be disposed of as state leaders thought best. This organization remained active in the drive for united war work funds, from which the K. of C. received a previously determined proportion. The final subscription over the nation to this united war fund was $205,000,000, an over-subscription of 20.2 per cent, as compared with the over-subscription of this county of 52.5 per cent. BuENA Vista S. A. T. C. Buena Vista County was fortunate in having in its midst an insti- tution qualified to meet the requirements of a Students' Army Train- ing School. Buena Vista College began, as soon as the authorization of this army attachment was made, to make plans on taking care of the young men of this section of the state who would attend such a training school. The law was passed in August, 191 8, at the same time that the registration of September 12, 191 8, was ordered. The law provided a course of study intended to keep the young men in college work as long as possible and at the same time to give them some class work and considerable drill which would fit them for sol- diering should it ever become necessary to use men of that age. The 750 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY law contemplated the division of the year into four equal periods of three months each. The work of the men in school was to be checked over every three months by army officers and they would decide who, over eighteen years of age, was qualified to go to an officers' training school, and furthermore to determine who, not qualified for officers, should go into the Infantry. The course of study was hard and the drill stiff. The program of the days filled the hours from 6:45 a. m. to 9:30 p. m., with the excep- tion of three twenty-minute periods, which were allowed for relaxa- tion. On Saturday and Sunday the drill and study hours were not so long. The college did not find it necessary to erect barracks to accom- modate the local company. The one hundred members were quar- tered in the third floor of the Bradford Hotel, where living conditions were made as nearly like they would be in barracks as was possible. The sight of the S.A.T.C. company marching back and forth each day between the hotel barracks and the college was a constant remind- er of preparations that were being made all over the country for war. Officers of the company were Captain Robert Shaw, commanding; Lieutenant Orrin Letson, Lieutenant Ethan Norton, Lieutenant Ed- ward Edwards. BuENA Vista CoIvIvEG^ in War Work Aside from being brought conspiciously to the front in war activi- ties by reason of the S.A.T.C, Buena Vista College students and faculty members promoted a host of notable work which contributed a worthy share to the general activities that were being urged and consummated from time to time. A summary of war activities of those who claim Buena Vista College as their alma mater shows that the institution had 209 representatives in the service. Of this num- ber 96 were in the S.A.T.C. In the army there were iii, while in the navy and marines there were 18. Two faculty members were in the service, and one student paid the supreme sacrifice. Of the representatives of the college who were in the service one was a major, two were captains, twenty-two were lieutenants, ten were sergeants, five were corporals, one won the rank of ensign, and one was a quartermaster. The number who actually went overseas was 47. In civilian work members of the college faculty were busy. Presi- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 751 dent Stanton Olinger, Dr. J. W. Parkhill, and Prof. J. J. Yost served as four-minute men and all were members of the Council of National Defense; Alice E. Wilcox completed the course in first aid and home nursing and worked in the surgical dressings workroom; Miss Edith Cooke completed the courses in first aid and surgical dressings, served as workroom supervisor and instructor in the latter, and helped to establish workrooms in Marathon and Newell; Miss Jessie Coles worked in the surgical dressings workroom, as did Miss Marie Agnew. Those who took the surgical dressings course under Miss Cooke between January 12 and April 20, 1918, were Marie Agnew, Esther Aitken, Ruby Angier, Irma Beazley, Genevieve Benedict, Jessie Coles, Mary Chapman, Dorothy Eyres, Mabel Fife, Margaret Hanson, Mil- dred Heath, Opal Kraemer, Ruth Meighen, Edna Motter, Florence Mitchell, Nora Rohwer, Alice E. Wilcox. Three young ladies who finished the standard course were Esther Aitken, Ruth Meighen, Florence Mitchell. The college as a whole contributed to the Y.M.C.A. war fund on November 21, 19 17, the sum of $300; during the united war work drive the student friendship war fund received a contribution of $319 from the college; and on November 4, 1919, on the third Red Cross drive the sum of $53 was raised at the college. From the receipts of a play, "The Wayside Piper," the Y.W.C.A. gave $10 to the hostess house fund. During the campaign for books for soldiers 123 were collected through the college library. By the sale of badges of the Allied colors, the Women's League raised $55. A French orphan was adopted by this same organization, and the sum of $36.50 pledged for its support was raised through the benefit recital given by Mrs. Holden. Christmas presents for soldiers were collected both in 19 17 and 1918. During the Armenian relief drive the sum of $45 was realized from a "Conundrum Supper." The total amount raised through the college agencies for war and relief work was $818.50. Library War Service Chairman, Miss Stella Russell; secretary, Miss Elizabeth Walpole; treasurer, L. E. Ballou, Jr. 752 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY RliCORD 01^ COUNTY MEN Before the present war history was planned the Storm Lake Public Library, at the request of the State Historical Department, took steps toward securing a permanent record of the men in the service of their country, also of all the Red Cross nurses. The state department con- sidered it a patriotic duty on the part of collectors and took it up with every librarian in America. Miss Elizabeth Walpole, librarian of the Storm Lake Public Li- brary, and the library trustees met with the county board of super- visors June 21, 1918, to discuss ways and means of preserving a historical record of the soldiers and sailors from Buena Vista County. The supervisors agreed to furnish binder, index, and blanks neces- sary for such record, with the understanding that the county record- er would keep the record. Miss Walpole was appointed county chairman and a chairman was also appointed for each township. Through this organization the data for records of the men were assembled. In addition, a cas- ualty list was kept, which was a frequent source of information to relatives, friends, and organizations. I.IBRARY WAR COUNCII. People of Buena Vista County who appreciate the companionship of books rallied promptly to the call of the American Library Asso- ciation which was organized completely within a few months after the United States went into war. In June, 191 7, arrangements were made with the commission on training camp activities to give the American Library Association full responsibility for providing library facilities in all army camps, cantonments, and naval stations. The sum of $1,000,000 to be raised by a drive the first week in No- vember, 191 7, was raised to extend library facilities to all men in the service. The Buena Vista Library War Council held its first meeting Sep- tember 17, 191 7, in the public library at Storm Lake, and organized by the election of those listed at the head of this section. With the co- operation of women's clubs and other agencies this county put on a campaign which resulted in a raising the sum of $808.10, giving it the eighth place in the list of Iowa counties in this work; and, for- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 753 tunately, none of this sum was absorbed in expenses of collection. In October of 191 7, the Storm Lake Library sent 131 books to Camp Dodge. In December a second drive netted 429 books as Christmas presents for the boys at different camps; in April, 1918, another con- signment of 714 books of fiction were forwarded; and the following December 52 books were sent to the army hospital. Storm Lake and vicinity sent 1,325 books and 1,000 magazines, while the towns of the county, through women's clubs and similar organizations, con- tributed reading matter for the boys. In November, 1918, another sum was raised for the library work through the united war work drive. Welfare Work Co-ordinated As the war progressed and more men kept constantly pouring into war activities, the needs of the several welfare organizations in- creased. Means were developed to handle the raising of the funds for these organizations more efficiently. When, in the fall of 1918, it became apparent that the several organizations would each need to make a campaign a decision was reached to coordinate the efforts of the several activities, unite the several budgets into one large sum, then apportion the sum raised on a pre-agreed basis among the several activities. The national war work council of the Y.M.C.A. was to receive $100,000,000; the war work council of the Y.W.C.A., $15,000,- 000; the national Catholic war council (K.C.), $30,000,000; the Jew- ish Welfare Board, $3,500,000; the War Camp Community Service, $15,000,000; the American Library Association, $3,500,000; and the Salvation Army, $3,500,000 — a grand total of $170,000,000, to be used in providing comforts and good cheer, to sustain the morale of the American soldiers at home and abroad. Iowa's original quota was $4,610,000; Buena Vista County's was $43,400. But when all plans were laid it began to appear that a larger army would be called into service than was realized when the plans for the drive were made earlier in the year. To meet this situation the general quota was increased by fifty per cent. Buena Vista County accepted the increased quota cheerfully. Final figures show that she went fifty-two and five-tenths per cent over the first designated quota. Iowa finally contributed $6,500,000, an over-sub- scription of forty-one per cent. 754 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY The amounts contributed by the several precincts of the county were as follows: Storm Lake, First Ward, $1,398.50; Storm Lake, Second Ward, $2,146; Storm Lake, Third Ward, $3,308; Storm Lake, Fourth Ward, $3,ri6.5o; Storm Lake Township, $737; Albert City District, $4,- 058.50; Alta, $3,126.50; Brooke Township, $1,936; Coon Township, $2,632; Elk Township, $2,863; Hayes Township, $1,795; East Grant Township, $1,639.25; West Grant Township, $1,195; Lee Township, $1,771.50; Linn Grove District, $2,695; Lincoln Township, $1,620.50; Maple Valley Township, $3,047.50; Marathon District, $4,532.50; Newell Town, $3,366.25; Newell Township, $3,220; Nokomis Town- ship, $3,137.50; Providence Township, $2,197.50; Rembrandt District, $1,912.50; Sioux Rapids, $2,465.50; Scott Township, $2,226; Wash- ington Township and Truesdale, $2,021; Victory Boys' campaign, $1,226.50; Victory Girls' campaign, $1,007.20; a total of $66,398.20. From this should be deducted the expense of campaign, $189.97, leav- ing as the net amount deposited in bank, $66,208.23. "It does beat all the way Buena Vista County continues to climb. You have made a most marvelous record, and I fully appreciate it. . . You may be proud of your record." Thus wrote Bruce W. Tallman, state Victory Boy leader, in commendation of the effort of the boys of the county to contribute to the united war work fund. An apportionment of $5 per boy was set, and only one other county in the state came as near reaching this mark as did Buena Vista County. According to the prevailing proportion of boys, this county was counted on for an enrollment of 258 boys, but 475 made pledges. The plan of the campaign was to have the boys make pledges and then make their payments as the money was raised. The amount credited to the Victory Boys in the above tabulation is of date of January 9, 1919, while the table which follows was a complete report to July I, 1919. The detailed result of their work is shown in the following figures : No. of Amt. Amt. District Leader Boys Plgd. Paid ElkTownship — C. G. Olson 5 $8.00 $8.00 Washington Township — R. B. Eno 5 5.00 1.50 Lincoln Township — Mrs. M. O. Reuland 10 15.75 15-75 Storm Lake — Supt. C. E. Akers 100 337.75 232.75 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 755 Storm Lake — St. Mary's School 6 6.00 6.00 Albert City — Supt. C. B. Whitehead 17 71.75 71-75 Truesdale — Supt. W. L. Ernest 13 52.00 44.50 Marathon — Supt. J. W. TeWinkle 39 200.00 181,50 Maple Valley Township — Prof. Jacob Schmidt 11 60.00 60.00 Brooke Consolidated — Mrs. Frank L. Mott ... 6 30.00 30.00 Providence — Miss Grace Russell 22 91.00 88.50 Newell — Supt. H. H. Linton , . 38 122.50 122.50 Rembrandt — Supt. L. C. Lackore 6 27.50 17.50 Lincoln Lee — Supt. Fred E. Gates 6 27.50 18.50 Linn Grove — Supt. D. M. Bateson 28 145.00 120.00 Fairview — J. M. Rehnstrom 10 50.00 50.00 Grant Township — Prof. C. F. Gutz 22 70.00 70.00 Alta — Supt. S. G. Reinertsen : 69 168.75 1 15-25 Sioux Rapids — Supt. R. R. Morrow 45 145.00 129.00 Grant No. i — Genevieve Wilson 2.00 2.00 475 1,683.001,441.50 VICTORY GIRLS Under the leadership of Mrs. U. S. Parrish the Victory Girls were organized in the county as an auxiliary body to arouse the interest of the girls in this, which proved to be the final act of financing welfare activities for the war. The report of this group shows results from every portion of the county as follows : District Girls Amount Alta 86 $125.50 Marathon 53 222.50 Newell 39 122.00 Storm Lake 145 33i.io Sioux Rapids 51 i95-00 Rembrandt 15 72.50 Sulphur Springs 19 80.00 Truesdale 15 34-00 Albert City 21 69.00 Linn Grove 22 80.00 Fairview Consolidated 15 44.00 Brooke Consolidated 6 17.00 Hayes Consolidated 15 45-35 756 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Lincoln-Lee 15 47.00 Washington Township 4 4.00 Maple Valley Township 4 4.75 Grant Township 15 15-75 St. Mary's Parish School 10 10.70 Lincoln Township 25.50 War Mothers op* America At a reception tendered to the mothers of boys in service by Mrs. A. P. Scott and Miss Mae Hamilton, at the Commercial Club rooms, on March 19, 19 18, a club was organized which at that time selected the name of the Service Mothers' Club. Later the name was altered to the War Mothers of America to affiliate with a national movement which looked to a permanent association of the mothers whose inter- ests had become so much in common through their common sacrifices and interests. During the early months of organization the mothers met the last Thursday of every month to spend an afternoon reading the latest news from the boys and to scatter cheer while they knitted or sewed. Later the meeting date was changed to the nth of each month, a date that was chosen in commemoration of the time of the signing of the armistice. Membership in the organization has always been open to mothers of soldiers, sailors, marines, or nurses, and associate memberships are received from wives, sisters, and daughters of such. Formal initia- tion was never required; it was only expected that ladies would asso- ciate themselves with the club by attending the meetings. The first corps of officers chosen consisted of Mrs. A. T. Troeger, president; Mrs. James Deland, vice president; Mrs. William Aitken, secretary. Upon the reorganization in January, 1919, when the club affiliated with the national organization, Mrs. James Deland was named as president; Mrs. John McFadden, first vice president; Mrs. W. J. Beatty, second vice president; Mrs. G. M. Gilhland, treasurer; Mrs. William Aitken, secretary; Mrs. L. W. Bowers, historian. The object of cheering each other was never forgotten. The com- ment was made that during the months of war there was not a mother who did not feel her morale strengthened by meeting with other mothers and hearing what they had to say. This was especially true HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 757 when some of our boys were called upon to make the supreme sacrifice. The program of the meetings seldom varied during the months of ac- tive war. In answer to the roll call response was made by each mo- ther telling the latest news of her hero. When occasion offered the boys home on furlough or returned from service were proudly brought to the gathering to tell of their experience in training camp or battlefield. This great organization, approved by President Wilson, and with national headquarters at Evans ville, Ind., has enrolled over one mill- ion members. In peace, these mothers, wives, sisters, and daughters will work to perpetuate those ideals their men had defended, by: ( 1 ) Fostering such a democracy among women as our sons found in the trenches. (2) Refusing to recognize again the little cliques and classes which once separated us by keeping alive the big things that drew us together. (3) Refusing to return to those non-essentials in domestic life which were cast out that we might find time for war work. (4) Assisting as an organization in the Americanization of for- eigners, and promoting a nation-wide campaign for pro-American talks. (5) Cementing the ties of sisterhood which bind us to the women overseas whose sons, husbands, and brothers have fought with ours. (6) Preserving in each community records of the patriotic ser- vices of our men and women. (7) Insisting upon such education and training of the coming generation as shall assure us that our dead shall not have died in vain. (8) Assuming our share of responsibility in determining the char- acter of the new world which shall be after this war, (9) To consider the importance of the question involved in the absorption in other work of thousands of men now engaged in war in- dustries, and the replacement of thousands of men by women workers. (10) To consider the question of education, including the encour- agement of further education of the returned soldiers, the return to school of hundreds of children drawn into the industries by war demands. (11) To connect and supplement the work done by religious or- ganizations, there should be methods adopted. (12) Opposing the teaching of German in our public schools. Ev- ery organization should be represented on all committees pertaining to their local civic welfare such as charities. Red Cross, school boards, 758 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Young Men's Christian Association, Jewish Welfare Board, American Library Association, and the Salvation Army, and give their support to the Young Men's Christian Association and the Knights of Columbus. The executive secretary of the national organization is the only paid officer employed. The treasurer is required to give a bond with surety approved by the national executive board. At the time of the writing of this record the selection of a badge or emblem has not been made, but it is planned that one shall be designed which will suitably represent the purposes of the organization. New Revenue Laws One method of raising finances to which resort was taken was a new law which taxed practically all incomes. Every married person with an income over $2,000 per year, and every single man whose in- come was more than $1,000 a year, was required to make a report to the Government detailing his income, and was then required to pay a tax upon the excess above the sums noted. The levying of a revenue tax against negotiable paper and property transfer instruments reached practically everyone with any consider- able business dealings. The sale of stamps to represent these taxes was conducted through the postoffices and began December i, 191 7. One of the items in the current press of the times recited the fact that Robert Bleakly paid $100 revenue for the recording of a deed to 480 acres, the value of which was $105,600. A revenue tax against amusements was charged against each pat- ron of the enterprise in the sum of ten per cent of the admission fee. During the summer amusement season of 19 18, the George D. Sweet theatrical enterprise, which made headquarters at Storm Lake, paid in the sum of $2,600 in war tax. Protecting Home Suppeies Following reports which were received from governmental sources to the effect that an organized effort was to be put forth to destroy grain elevators and other storehouses during the holidays of 191 7- 191 8, a meeting was held at the Commercial Club rooms in Storm Lake December 26, 191 7, when a company of home guards was organ- ized. Business men of the city signified their willingness to do ser- HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 759 vice in this line, and during the remainder of the winter a dozen men patrolled regular beats about the sections of town most liable to dan- ger from any such malicious source. A fire was discovered in the factory of the Storm Lake Tank and Silo Company on the night of January 22, 191 8. At different times transients who were unable to give creditable accounts of their presence upon the streets at unusual hours of the night were taken in charge, and on two or three occa- sions were found to be men who had attempted to evade the draft in other communities. As an extra precaution members of the fire company took turns in sleeping in pairs at the fire station to be on hand for duty should emergency call. For Hungkr Relief in Europe Buena Vista County contributed the sum of $8,823.73 to an Ar- menian relief fund. The whole amount raised by the state was $654,148.56. This contribution was solicited in the county by the Rev. W. T. IMcDonald, pastor of the Methodist Episcopal Church of Storm Lake, and forwarded through a state committee headed by Dr. J. Edward Kirbye of Des Moines. Soldiers' Relief Committee A committee appointed in Storm Lake to provide needed soldiers' relief consisted of George Currier, chairman; A. R. Biddle, M. E. Tracy, H. G. Mittelstadt, Robt. Bleakly, and Chris Mikkelson. Mr. Currier solicited a fund of $112 which was used to purchase a large flag that hung over Lake Avenue during the war and on patri- otic occasions thereafter. A soldiers' relief committee from Albert City, of which A. L. Berg- ling was treasurer, reports the collection of $756.33, of which $200 was still in the treasury at the end of the war. Through subscrip- tions they raised $63 ; the proceeds from an oyster supper added $33.23 ; from an entertainment, $160.10; from the Albert City Red Cross ■chapter, $500. Total, $756.33. Of this amount $35.84 was disbursed for an oyster supper for the departing soldiers; $81.84 for material for comfort kits; $56.60 for funeral expenses of Private Gottfred Bengston; $12.20 for a service flag; $5 paid each departing soldier totaled $370. The Hanover Church in Maple Valley Township, of which Rev. 76o HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY Henry Wehking was pastor, raised the sum of $1300 for the Luther- an Brotherhood. Zion Evangehcal Lutheran Church in Grant Township, under the pastorate of Rev. F. Albrecht, contributed to the Lutheran Church Board for army and navy rehef the sum of $517. Another activity taken up by the young people of this same congregation was the col- lection of a fund at band concerts to be sent to the boys under the flag. The several amounts here totaled $128.38. Thk Maids 01^ Ami^rica Shortly after war was declared a number of young ladies at Storm hake organized a club for the purpose of doing whatever they could to make for the comfort of Buena Vista County men in the service. They held frequent meetings at the homes of the members. The activities of this organization were the sending of candy, cake, fruit, letters, and Christmas packages. They knitted at all meetings and paid for the yarn they used. The following were the members of the Maids of America: Opal Toy, Margaret Skiff, Esther McAnulty, Helen Hurley, Mamie Soeth, Mary Foote, Gladys Nusbaum, Genevieve Benedict, Lurene Swope, and Frances Chapman. Supporting Fre;nch Orphan The A.B.C. Club is an organization of ladies in the vicinity of Alta, with a membership of fourteen. The club was organized at a meet- ing held April 3, 1918, with the purpose of helping a bit to win the war, or to relieve in any measure the distress of suffering humanity. The ladies used their time in sewing for the Red Cross. One of the most interesting efforts was the raising of $36.50 which was sent to France for the support of a war orphan. The secretary of the club, Mrs. J. B. Stomberg, received the following letter of acknowledg- ment from the widowed mother of little Clotilda Dusson, to whom the support was given. The letter is produced with fidelity to the original. It reads: I am come to receive from the Office of Repartitions of America two orphans of the war, and after some days your address and money order for forty-five francs for my little daughter, Clotilda Dusson. Oh how much I thank you for this generous gift. I would have been HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 761 very happy if my little girl could thank you herself with a polite let- ter. But she is still very little, five and a half years old. She has not been in class more than two months, and does not yet know how to write. However she asks me to tell you that she intends to work with her best effort to be able to do so soon. I enclose a photograph which was taken last year and I hope it will please you. AVith our thanks and good wishes of happiness on the part of little Clotilda. I ask you to accept the assurance of my respectful regards and of my sincere friendship. Madam Dusson^ 4 Rue Asile Alamagny, St. Charmond, France. Newspaper Men Helped Acknowledgment is due to the newspaper men of the county who attended the meeting looking to organization for public activity, gave much helpful publicity to all work, and helped carry the plans and the spirit of the various committees directly to the people. The editors and publishers of the county during this trying time were George W. Evans of the Linn Grove Independent'^ C. E. Ryder and G. M. Sher- man of the Sioux Rapids Republican-Press ; M. R. Soeth of the Mara- thon Republic; ]. T. Boyd of the Albert City Appeal; H. C. Gordon of the Newell Mirror; Mrs. E. C. Thatcher of the Alta Advertiser; Chas. H. J. Mitchell of the Storm Lake Pilot-Tribune; John R. Bell and Scott H. McClure of the Storm Lake Register. Soon after the close of the war the Albert City Appeal was purchased by Ira W. McNames, who had just come home from a long campaign with Uncle Sam's army overseas. He also saw service on the Mexican border before the United States entered the war against Germany. The Marathon Republic has been purchased by Mr. Fish and the Alta Advertiser by a company of Alta business men. Sundry Items ^ The first Buena Vista County man to make the supreme sacrifice was John Brazel, son of Mr. and Mrs. James Brazel of Scott Town- ship. The young man was first taken with the measles when he was serving as fireman on the Montana. Apparently he improved, but was later taken with malarial fever and passed away on a hospital ship at Norfolk, Virginia. He had been married to Bell McGrew 1 Clipped from county newspapers. 762 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY a few years before he enlisted and they had made their home at Sioux Rapids, just prior to the war. Probably the youngest man in the service from this county was Sidney Lanham of Alta, who was born July i6, 1901, and at the time of enlistment was 17 years, 8 months, and 15 days old. One of the notable farewell occasions held before the departure of Buena Vista County men was the reception held by the A. F. and A. M. of Storm Lake, on August 25, 191 7. At that time Jos. E. Morcombe first made known his plan to give each member of the lodge who went overseas a letter of introduction and recommendation to Masonic circles in France. The card, printed in French, was valuable to the soldier because of Mr. Morcombe's standing as the representative in this country of the Grand Lodge of France. ''Smokes for Soldiers" was a popular slogan, to which there was a generous response soon after the country realized that every effort the citizens made contributed to the comfort of the men in service. T. A. Marten and George C. Mack were the Storm Lake committee who handled this work, and there were committees in each town. The collections were taken largely through receptacles left at con- venient places about towns. The first drafted men left September 5, 191 7. Miss Josephine Sibberell, thoroughly trained as a nurse, was re- jected for service with the Red Cross because her mother was of German nativity. In draft contingents which went prior to November 23, 191 7, five aliens declined to ask for exemptions because of the fact that they were aliens. Enlistment permitted them to be naturalized without the long years of giving notice of intent. Victor Penn of Alta was the first to return his questionnaire when the selective service process was being carried out. He had his re- sponse in the hands of the board twenty-four hours after it reached him. The first contingents which were sent were selected from the in- formations contained in their registration cards, without waiting for the return of the questionnaires, which required considerable time. Service flags were the proud possession of churches, fraternities, schools, business institutions, clubs, and any other organization which numbered soldiers, sailors, marines, or nurses a.mong its membership. The service flag was a white quadrangle for the center, with a wide HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 763 red border all around. Blue stars represented the men in service, gold stars those who had made the supreme sacrifice ; while the nurses were represented by red crosses. Many an inspiring patriotic service was held to mark the dedication of a service flag for county, communi- ty, or organization. If the army could have been counted by the stars on all the service flags it would have been overwhelming. Contributions for the Navy League, an organization which did wel- fare work among men of the navy, were cared for in Storm Lake by the Security Trust and Savings Bank. Unnaturalized Germans were required to register early in 191 8. With the data which the Government demanded each registrant was expected to furnish a photo of him or herself. The number which was registered in Buena Vista County was not large. Postmasters were made the registering officers for this service. Penalty for fail- ure to meet this demand was internment for the period of the war. The G.A.R. and the W.R.C. of the county seat presented Buena Vista College with a beautiful flag which was presented at a patri- otic service held February 22, 191 8. Jean Norris, a son of Mr. and Mrs. E. J. Norris of Sioux Rapids, was appointed secretary to the American Legation at Copenhagen in February, 191 8. A soldiers' relief committee was appointed early in 191 7, consist- ing of Colonel George Currier, P. C. Mickelson, M. E. Tracy, Robt. Bleakly, and H. G. Mittelstadt. A flag pole and a large flag were presented to the town of Sioux Rapids by a patriotic citizen in the spring of 1918. It was announced in March, 1918, that 30,000 letters written by soldiers in France went down in the Andania. Fred J. Robinson was the first Buena Vista County boy wounded in France. Hayes Consolidated School bought a large flag and staff which was erected as soon as the frost was out of the ground in the spring of 1918. When Arthur G. Hughes, a member of the Storm Lake fire depart- ment, departed on April 9, 1918, with others who were bound for Madison, Wisconsin, he was escorted to the station by members of the company, who had the big truck decorated in flags and bunting for the occasion. In April, 191 8, orders came to refuse all mail parcels addressed to 764 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY soldiers overseas unless it was specifically shown that the soldiers had asked for the shipment. This was made necessary to relieve east-bound shipments. A Newell young lady received a nice little note from the censor at Washington in April, 19 18, informing her that her sweetheart had said "too much" in his letter and that it could not be forwarded to her, but added for her peace of mind that he was well. Wives, widows, and daughters of Civil War veterans made feather pillows for soldier convalescents. The teaching of German was tabooed in the Storm Lake High School by action of the board taken March 22, 191 8. Early in May, 191 8, it was announced that the War Department would permit the publication of the addresses of men in connection with the casualty lists. A previous system of leaving off the address gave rise to some confusion regarding men with similar names. Checks cashed through French banks by Buena Vista County sol- diers were at one time a curiosity. Alta dedicated a very substantial flag pole June 14, 1918, with a special address by Judge F. E. Helsell of Fort Dodge. Robt. Wallace was arrested at Alta in May, 1918, as a draft eva- der. It was afterwards learned that he had registered at Peoria, Illinois, but when it came time to answer a call to service he was found to be among the "missing." Revision of regulations concerning mail worked to the comfort of soldiers overseas after the change was effected in May, 1918. Pre- vious to that time the Government had refused to keep the postoffice advised of movements of troops on account of the fact that this might be divulging important information. Trained clerks were fur- nished to handle the soldier mail and the overseas postoffices were designated by numbers rather than by name. In the summer of 1918, community sings were an effective means of arousing enthusiasm and patriotism. A regular course of such sings was held in the park on the lake front at Storm Lake. The idea was suggested by the federated clubs. One-fourth of the corn output of the Storm Lake factory of the Sac City Canning Company was sold to the Government in 191 8. Two men attired in army uniforms who visited Storm Lake early in the summer of 19 18, and who told vivid stories of experiences with HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 765 the One Hundred Sixty-eighth Regiment overseas, were afterwards found to be deserters from the home guards in Des Moines. Miss Belle Kearney, returned from overseas, visited the county in July, 1918, speaking on the subject, "War Time in Europe." She came in behalf of the W.C.T.U. In the summer of 1918, the Storm Lake band gave Sunday after- noon and Saturday night concerts and at the end of the season turned $500 into the Red Cross treasury. The director served without sal- ary to further this good purpose. A Gypsy band traveling through Alta in the summer of 191 8, plead- ed guilty to having among their number an alien enemy who would not go to war, but they made peace with officers by paying $150 to be divided among various war welfare funds. An effort to reorganize a company of militia to take the place of the National Guard company which had gone into federal service was made in August, 19 18. Practically all of the men of age which gen- erally are active in such an organization were already in war, so it was necessary to recruit it from very young and middle-aged men. At one time 135 of the 150 men required were subscribed. The or- ganization was never completed. Probably so complete a revolution of normal affairs was not accom- plished in any other line as in the readjustment of retail credits. While there was never any doubt but what this section of the country had ample resources to meet all the calls for the sale of bonds and contributions to welfare work, yet conditions in commerical circles, working out through the regulation of wholesale credits over the entire country, had their effect even down to the most resourceful communi- ty. Credits were shortened in the wholesale trade. Naturally the retail trade had to meet the emergency. Finally, in August, 191 8, many of the retail dealers announced a "Cash and Carry" plan of doing business. Deliveries were curtailed and finally abolished with a view to doing away with one of the items of expense which would, if maintained, add to the steadily rising costs of the most necessary supplies. This revolution brought the housewife to market, with the result that she did much more careful buying than she could possibly do over the telephone. This scheme of things had its effect on retail merchandising for many months after the war was over. In fact, 766 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY it educated the whole population to a more exact idea of merchandise credits. Even the newspapers felt the restrictions of war regulation. In the summer of 191 8, the War Industries Board established rules pro- hibiting the circulation of papers to others than strictly" bona fide subscribers, restricting the printing of extra copies and needlessly large editions, with a view to conserving the supply of print paper so that all publishers might be supplied. Reports were required at regular intervals showing the consumption of paper. Assemblages for farewells were not held alone at the county-seat, whence the draft contingents took their departure, but committees, churches, and fraternities each paid their own compliments to those of their number or membership who might be leaving. In nearly every such instance a useful gift was presented to the departing soldier. "American flags wave from every door and window as the troop trains pass," wrote Don Hill from England in September, 1918. With a view to conserving all resources for war purposes an order was promulgated from Washington in September, 1918, directing our board of supervisors not to let any contracts for road or bridge work. This, however, was in line with a policy that covered all manner of public construction. While Buena Vista County was at that time in the midst of an era of progress which was accomplishing new public building enterprises at the many towns of the county it is not record- ed that any very important work was delayed by this policy. Some splendid public enterprises had been started before the need of this order became apparent, and they were finished. In October, 191 8, Colonel George Currier, a fervid patriot of Civil War service, raised $100 to buy a community flag- for Storm Lake. This was suspended from a rope that hung between buildings on Lake Avenue. The Spanish influenza, which was epidemic among soldiers and .sail- ors, also worked its ravages in the civilian population. In the fall of 1 91 8, the man power of the county was greatly weakened by the epidemic, and every resource at command was made necessary to com- bat it. Many county activities were retarded by the plague. A special campaign of patriotic instruction and enthusiasm was be- gun in Storm Lake April 13, 1917, when Company M came down from Cherokee to have part in a loyalty demonstration. Schools, the HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 'jdy college, the G.A.R., and other organizations participated. The spirit of patriotism was inspired by addresses l3y J. H. Haughey, a veteran of the Civil War, by F. F. Faville and the Reverend T. A. Ambler. Another great meeting was held October lo, 191 8, when the principal speaker was F. H. Helsell of Fort Dodge, Iowa, formerly of Sioux Rapids. The record of one of the faithful knitters is available to date of February 15, 1918. Mrs. C. M. Reese, of Alta, sixty-one years of age, and with three boys in the service, had knitted 18 sweaters, 8 pairs of socks, 4 pairs of wristlets, 7 helmets, 2 scarfs, 4 pairs of mit- tens, and one pair of gloves. The first large enlistment of Storm Lake boys was on April 5, 1917, at a public meeting at the Commercial Club rooms, when twelve men enlisted. Soon after the declaration of war it was announced that mail ser- vice to Germany, Austria, Luxemburg, and Turkey was cut off. On Christmas morning, 191 7, the Red Cross was given a check for $100, the proceeds of a supper given by Storm Lake Homestead No. 361, Brotherhood of American Yeomen. One service man in Buena Vista County entered the service three times and was discharged three times. The Social Club of Storm Lake In 19 1 6 the Social Club sent a Thanksgiving box containing cook- ies, jellies, towels, etc., to the boys on the border. June 7, 191 7, the club voted to donate the sum of $5 to the Red Cross ; also to do as much Red Cross work as possible during the year. October 11, 191 7, donated $10 more to the Red Cross. December 3, 1917, donated $10 for Chrstmas packages for the soldiers. December 13, 1917, the members each gave $1.50 for the purchase of yarn to be knitted at home to supply soldiers who had no one to supply them. Four complete sets were volunteered. October 8, 1918, voted $10 for filling twenty housewives for the soldiers. December 12, 19 18, took up the work of serving for the Belgium children which work they continued to do as long as there was need. February 18, 1919, the Social Club adopted a French war orphan 768 HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY (a boy). His name, Francois Tangui; born May 9, 191 1, in Guis- criff, Moebihan, France. November 6, 191 9, the Social Club voted to support their war or- phan for another year. Bue:na Vista Chapter of the D. A. R. Adopted three French orphans. Gave 100 per cent of chapter's part toward second liberty loan drive. Gave 100 per cent of chap- ter's part toward the restoration of village of Tillovoy. Entertained S.A.T.C, numbering 100. Gave $109.50 to the local Red Cross. Preparedness League oe American Dentists ' The dentists of the United States formed themselves into a league for the purpose of free assistance to the men enlisting in the army. They agreed to give at least one hour each day of free service, in- cluding materials, to help make our boys dentally fit. They performed more than a half million free operations. We quote from a letter signed by J. S. Easby-Smith, Lieutenant- Colonel, National Army: I hope that you will convey to the members of the League the as- surance that the value of the magnificent patriotic work it has under- taken and is performing is appreciated, not only by this office and by the War Department, but also by all our people to whom it is day by day becoming better known. Buena Vista County dentists took an active part in this work. The following were members of the Preparedness League of American Dentists: Storm Lake, Dr. V. E. Herbert, Dr. E. J. Schultz, Dr. W. M. Storey, Dr. G. W. Clemons ; Sioux Rapids, Dr. F. E. Ander- son, Dr. Liekvold; Marathon, Dr. Heine; Newell, Dr. Nason, Dr. Freiberg; Alta, Dr. C. F. Sangston. Deephian Ceub oe Storm Lake May 22, 1918, adopted a French orphan, paying each year $36.50;- total $73. Gave: To furlough houses, $18; to Red Cross, $13.20; to hostess houses (Y.W.C.A.), $4; Council of National Defense, $1 ; total, $109.20. Made: 60 bed coats, 6 (furnished) property bags, 36 (furnished) tea towels. HONOR ROLL OF BUENA VISTA COUNTY 769 Tuesday Club of Storm Lake Bought one liberty bond, $50; hostess house, $5; to Council of De- fense, $1; devoted one (Tuesday) afternoon each week to Red Cross work ; donated magazines and books to soldiers for Christmas ; secured old clothing for refugees and poor; bought own material used in Red Cross work; each member gave two towels for hostess house; and, instead of giving flowers to our sick, money was given to Red Cross. Y. W. C. A. This drive was carried on just after the hoHdays (1918) and dur- ing the influenza epidemic. The towns that were able to report were : Alta, $97.50; Marathon, $45.77; Newell, $87.50; Storm Lake, $610.37. Thursday Afternoon Club oe Sioux Rapids The following letter was written to Miss Bertha Knight of Storm Lake, by Emily Eade, corresponding secretary of the Thursday After- noon Club: "Dear Miss Knight: In reply to your letter con- cerning war work done, the Thursday Afternoon Club gave $85 for camp library, $25 for furlough house in France, supported one Bel- gium orphan, and did sewing each week instead of study work." The club also sent two boxes of books to the soldiers at Camp Dodge, and numerous magazines. Women's Federated Club oe Newell Adopted one French orphan, collected eighty records for Camp Dodge ; collected five sacks of magazines for the convalescent soldiers ; made a drive for second-hand clothing for Belgian relief; had a war lecture by Captain McQueen. INDEX Army of the World War, the, 321 "Audenarde/" action at, 577 American Red Cross, 646; Buena Vista County, 652 ; Junior Red Cross, 699 ; report of branches, 663 Babies, 228 "BelHcourt," action at. Civil War veterans, 225 Civilian workers, 260 "Cantigny," the action at, 438 "Chateau Thierry," the action at, first phase, 441 ; second phase, 463 "Champagne," the action at, 452 Council of defense, 724 Diplomacy of the World War, 287 Editorial foreword, 11 First Amrericans in line, 424 Financing the war, 704 Food Administration, 728 Farm bureau activities, 733 Fuel Administration, 737 "Gold Stars," records and photographs. Girls in war work, 258 Honor roll of Buena Vista county, rec- ords and photographs, 35 "Hindenburg Line," action at the, 502 Italian battle front, action at, 495 Knights of Columbus, 745 Laying the background, 275 "Lost Battalion," the, 576 Liberty Loans, the, 705 Library Fund, the, 751 "Mt. Kemm.el," action at, 461 "Meuse-Argonne," action at, first phase, 504; second phase, 534; third phase, 555 Navy in the war, the, 608 "Ourcq," action at the, 459 Photographs of general interest, 229 Policy that failed, the, 315 "Siberia," action in, 431 "Soissons," action at, 455 "St. Mihiel,' action at, 46/" Story in rhyme, 580 Trench warfare, 435 "Vesle river," action at the, 460 "Verdun," action at, 531 World War, the, 411 War in 1918, the, 429 War A/[others, 756 War Savings Stamps, 711 War time spirit in Buena Vista county, 645 What constitutes a division, 594 Women's Council of Defense, 726 Y. M. C. A., 739 m. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 016 092 262 A mi ■m-im -?^^ ll# %