Newspaper Page Text
My Experiences
in the World War
By General John J. Pershing
< Copyright. 1931, in all countries by the North American WN U
Newspaper Alliance. World rights reserved, including the IP Service*
Scandinavian. Reproduction In whole ot pan prohibited, jf
CHAPTER XIV
In response to my request to Wash
ington for an experienced man to take
charge of rail transportation, AV. W.
Atterbury, general manager of the
Pennsylvania railroad, arrived , in
France and reported to me Septem
ber 1, 1917.
At Atterbury’s suggestion a cable
was sent requesting certain men to fill
Important positions in the organiza
tion. The list included J. A. Mcßae,
general manager of the Long Island
railroad, for general manager, with
M. Bunting as business manager, H. C.
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Pershing and Joffre.
Booz as engineer for construction,
and J. G. Rogers as deputy. The rail
way problem was far from easy, and
many wete the obstacles to be over
come, botn in our own and In the
French services. Successful manage
ment would have been very doubtful
under a leader without Atterbury’s pa
tience, ability and force of character.
Visits to our training areas by the
Frertth, official and otherwise, had be
come rather frequent. One of the vis
itors, M. Georges Clemenceau, who al
ways remained a power even when not
in any oflicial position (Clemenceau
was not then prime minister), called
at the headquarters of the First divi
sion, accompanied by General de Cas
telnau, the commander of the group
of armies with which it was serving.
Clemenceau Urges Action.
In tiie course of the conversation
with General Sibert, the division com
mander, M. Clemenceau, with consid
erable emphasis, urged that our troops
be put into the line without delay. It
was explained to him by General de
.Castlenau that as soon as they were
sufficiently advanced the troops of the
division were to be placed by brigades
. with the French in a quiet sector near
Luneville.
M. Clemenceau went on to say that
America had now been in the war
( several months and the French people
• were wondering when they expected
to take an active part. He said that
the French army was exhausted by the
war and that its morale was poor. He
insisted then, as he did with even
greater vehemence later on in an offi
cial capacity, that it was not so much
a question of troops being ready as it
was of giving relief to the allies.
Although the division was only par
tially trained it could have been used
in an emergency, but there was noth
ing threatening in the situation at
that time and no suggestion had been
made that it should go into the line
for serious work.
' The failure of our aviation bureau
to keep abreast of airplane develop
ment in the contending armies cost us
serious delay.
With a lack of data in the begin
ning, little progress had been made at
home on our aviation program at the
end of five months. Fruitless efforts
to describe mechanical construction
and give definite information concern
ing production and otherwise reach de
cisions by cable prompted Washing
ton to send a special mission to
France, of which Maj. R. C. Bolling
was the head.
Through his ability and expert
knowledge he rendered exceptional
service in co-operating with those in
control of allied aviation and in fur
nishing the necessary technical infor
mation upon which to base action at
home. The investigation made by his
mission confirmed the view that our
manufacturers could not begin to fur
nish planes before the summer of 1918.
Pershing Orders Planes.
After inquiry as to French capacity |
to turn out planes, I made a contract '
with the air ministry late in August !
committing us to an expenditure of !
$60,000,000 for 5,000 planes and 8.500 ;
engines, to be delivered as rapidly as I
possible at intervals before the first j
of June, 1918, on condition that we i
should provide certain tools and raw |
materials. To make a contract to pay ;
such an amount appeared somewhat
bold, but under the circumstances I
some one had to take the initiative in |
providing planes needed at once for
the development of our air force.
As aviation was in no sense a logi
cal branch of the signal corps the two
were separated in the A. E. F. as soon
as practicable and aviation was or
ganized and maintained as a distinct
force. To /co-ordinate our training
witli that at home Brig. Gen. William
L. Kenly was sent over the latter part
of August and was appointed chief of
aviation in the A. E. F. Colonel
Mitchell, who had succeeded Major
Dodd, the first chief of aviation, was
given jurisdiction over aviation in the
zone of advance. Major Bolling was
placed in charge of aviation in the
zone of the interior, and soon succeed
ed in securing a better co-operation
through an interallied aircraft board.
The next essential step was the
training of airplane pilots, and accord
ingly arrangements were made for our
men to enter flying schools in England,
France and Italy after they had passed
their preliminary tests at home. Va
cancies were held for us in the schools,
but we were unable to take full advan
tage of this opportunity for training
because of the delay in sending over
flyers. However, we proceeded with
the establishment of our own training
centers, the first of which, located at
Issoudun, was planned for a capacity
of 900 pilots by spring.
Use of Gas New Problem.
The use of poisonous gases in war
fare had been discussed at The Hague
conference in 1899, with the result
that several nations pledged them
selves against the employment of pro
jectiles the only object of which was
to give forth suffocating or poisonous
gases. This action had created a feel
ing of security regarding such a pos
sibility.
Germany had subscribed to the
agreement, and when her armies disre
garded this pledge and became the
first to use gas shells, the impression
was that they had now thrown every
consideration of humanity to the
winds.
This action by the enemy forced the
allies to adopt this weapon themselves
as a matter of self-protection. From
that time on the employment of gas
became common to all combatants.
The use of gas in warfare presented
an entirely new problem to us, and
the organization of a service to handle
it demanded immediate attention. The
first plan of the War department pro
vided that the engineers should devise
and handle the mechanical features
and the medical department the chem
ical, but this soon proved to be Imprac
tical and it became evident that, as we
had maintained at the beginning, a
separate service would be necessary.
Meanwhile application was made for a
complete chemical laboratory to be
shipped to France for use mainly in
investigation as supplementary to sim
ilar work in the states.
Gas Service Established.
Considerable information concerning
gases and the organization of gas
troops had been gathered by my staff,
and on August 18 Lieut. Col. Amos A.
Fries was designated as chief of the
gas service. He made some further
Investigation of the subject in the Brit
ish and French armies, and as a re
sult an order issued September 3
established a department known at
that time as the gas service.
Experiments were at once begun to
discover new gases and devise im
provements in gas masks. To save
tonnage and avoid the dangers of ex
plosion in transit, it was decided,
after consultation with the allied serv
ices, to request the shipment from the
States of tlie basic elements and man
ufacture the chemical products in
t : : W
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Wartime Picture of Col. E. M.
House.
France. After thorough tests of dif
ferent types of gas masks we adopted
the box respirator used by the British,
and a preliminary purchase of 100.000
was made to meet immediate demands
for training.
With the development of trench
weapons and special tactical methods
of defense, never had the offensive
been more costly in human life than
EARLY COUNTY NEWS. BLAKELY, GEORGIA
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General Pershing With Gen. James G. Harbord, His Chief of Staff.
in this war. The ingenuity of the allies
was put to the test to devise new en
gines of war that would make the at
tack possible without excessive losses.
While the tank, which was simply an
armored caterpillar traction motor car.
was favored by many officers as an aid
to advancing infantry, this opinion was
by no means unanimous. Our investi
gations, however, led to the conclu
sions that we should accept allied ex
perience and also adopt the tank as
a weapon.
CHAPTER XV
I received many reminders Septem
ber 13 that another birthday had come,
including a surprise party by my staff
that evening. As this was exactly three
months after I had reached Paris, the
time seemed to be passing very rapid
ly, with little apparent progress
against the day when an American
army should be on the front line.
The importance of shipping for
America was beginning to be consid
ered in allied circles. I received a
letter from General Robertson, British
chief of staff, who spoke of their in
creasing losses and of his anxiety re
garding the voyage of our troops
across the Atlantic. As to tonnage
for us, he said, it was entirely between
Great Britain and ourselves, as none
of the other allies could furnish any
to speak of.
On top of this, in conference a few
days later with Lord Derby, the Brit
ish minister of war. I was told that
his government could not be counted
on to furnish us with ships as trans
ports.
The substance of General Robert
son’s letter was cabled to Washington,
suggesting the importance of taking
advantage of the opportunity offered
to obtain additional shipping. A few
days later we were told that needful
arrangements for transatlantic trans
ports were being made by the ship
ping board.
Gloomy Time for Allies.
There was little in the general situ
ation to give comfort to the allies.
Losses by the British through continu
ing operations were still growing.
There no longer remained any doubt
as to Russia’s fate, and it was conse
quently certain that German troops on
that front would be released for serv
ice in the west. Under the circum
stances the tired allied people were
easily influenced by rumors.
The pope’s proposal, issued in Au
gust, started some talk of peace, but
as it failed to condemn Germany’s vio
lation of treaties and her inhuman sub
marine warfare, the note did not make
a favorable impression on the allies.
In fact, it was criticized in terms that
were not at all moderate. The vari
ous replies from the different govern
ments did. however, arouse some hope,
which was altogether unwarranted by
the real attitude of the belligerent
powers on either side.
The discussion was unfortunate, be
cause the French people, not realizing
that peace was improbable, lost some
of their courage, and the depression
from this and other factors caused un- ,
easiness among both civil and military
leaders.
From our sources of information,
which included the intelligence bu
reaus of the allied armies, we got the
impression that Austria, Bulgaria and
Turkey would make peace on any reas
onable terms if they could do so.
Visits Artillery School.
The military post of Le Valdahon.
near the Swiss border, used by us as
a school for our field artillery, was one
of several which had been kindly set
apart for Americans in different parts
of France. The others were at Cost
quidan and Meucon. near St. Nazaire.
J '' ■■ . ■ ■ ■ ' 1 m-. u ' ■t" ..
Graves oi corporal j. B. Gresham and Privates Enright and Hay.
> ■ and at Souge and La Corneau, near
Bordeaux, and also at Montmorillon,
. Saumur and Angers, with a school for
heavy artillery at Mailly, southeast of
, Rheims.
The school at Valdahon was then
under tlie direction of Brigadier Gen
eral March, an energetic and alert
commander. At the time of my visit
the Fifth, Sixth and Seventh regi
ments, comprising the field artillery
brigade of the First division, were
there for training.
As to the signal corps, and its prog
ress, Colonel Russell, before leaving
Washington, had ordered a large con
signment of material for both tele
graph and telephone services, but so
far none had been received except
what was sent with us on the Baltic.
Finding it necessary to establish our
own service in Paris, where the city
system was almost useless, we were
fortunately able at once to obtain
enough material for the purpose in
England and France.
Telephone Girls on the Job.
The signal corps had, of course, to
anticipate the communications neces
sary in battle. Therefore definite de
cisions wen required some time in ad
vance as to spheres of operations.
Tons of material, most of which, ex
cept wire, was obtained in France, and
any amount of labor was used in the
actual installation. The main tele
phone and telegraph lines in proximity
to the actual battle area were, when
practicable, laid underground to pre
vent destruction.
One of the crying needs when we
once began to use our own lines was
for experienced operators. Instead of
trying to train men of the signal corps
I requested that a number of experi
enced telephone girls who could speak
French be sent over, and eventually
we had about 200 girls on this duty.
No civil telephone service that ever
came under my observation excelled
the perfection of our system after it
was well established. The telephone
girls in the A. E. F. took great pains
and pride in their work and did it
with satisfaction to all.
The Hospital Problem.
The medical department’s plans con
stantly received my careful attention
through frequent conferences with the
chief surgeon, Colonel Bradley, and his
assistant, Colonel Ireland. Our prob
lem of handling the sick and wounded
was more difficult than that of any of
the allies, as we had no civil hospitals
of our own available. Full provision,
therefore, had to be made for hospital
accommodations in France, as only
convalescents manifestly unfit for fur
ther service could be sent home. The
early estimates submitted in August,
based upon a small force of 300,000
men, called for 73,000 beds in perma
nent, semipermanent or temporary hos
pitals, and plans for expansion were
in hand to keep pace with the expect
ed requirements of our armies once
they should become engaged. While
this beginning appeared quite liberal,
yet it was calculated to meet further
demands of the immediate future.
All the facilities through France ;
were available for the French, yet I
they had so many sick and wounded
that their hospital resources were
pretty well exhausted. As there I
seemed to be only a few suitable build- j
ings that could be assigned to us we I
had to plan considerable new construe- |
tibn. This required additional labor
and material, both of which were ;
scarce, and although there was some |
delay we managed by persistent effort
to keep pace with requirements.
Danger of Coal Shortage.
The destruction by the German
army of the mines of northern France
had forced the importation from Eng-
land of a large proportion of the coal
needed for various purposes in both
France and Italy. Lack of cross-chan
nel tonnage had produced a serious
situation, and the danger of coal short
age during the approaching winter
gave us much concern. Italy was even
worse off. due to the greater distance
from the source of supply.
The outcome of our efforts, with the
I very effective assistance of Admiral
Mayo, was that some colliers, one of
which was already at Brest, were or
dered into service for immediate use.
and these were supplemented later by
vessels from the shipping board. An
organized cross-channel service was
completed under the control of our
quartermaster department and later
transferred to the transportation de
partment. Although the coal question
became more or less critical at vari
ous times, in the main we were fairly
well supplied.
(To Be Confirmed.)
LAND SALE.
Under and by virtue of the au
thority contained in a security deed
executed by Bessie C. Sheffield to
Herman Hachmeister, dated Decem
ber Ist, 1923, and recorded in the
office of the Clerk of the Superior
Court in Early County, Georgia, on
March 3rd, 1924, in Book 37, page
119, there will be sold before the
Court House Door of Early County,
Georgia, on Tuesday, July 14th,
1931, between the hours of ten
o’clock A. M. and four o’clock P. M.,
to the highest and best bidder for
cash the property conveyed by said
deed and described as follows:
Three Hundred Twenty-five (325)
acres, more or less, in the Twenty
sixth (26th) District of Early coun
ty, Georgia, described as follows:
The North one-third (1-3) of Lot
Four Hundred Six (406) and that
part of Lot Four Hundred Nine
(409) which lies North of a line
beginning at a point on the Chatta
hoochee River Five Hundred Forty
one (541) yards South of the North
line of said lot and running East to
the foot of the hill dividing the
low land from the high land; thence
North one hundred seventy-five (175)
yards; thence East to the East
boundary line of said Lot of Land
Four Hundred Nine (409) and con
taining One Hundred Twenty-five
(125) acres, more or less; also that
part of the West half of Lot Three
Hundred Seventy-nine (379) and of
Lots Three Hundred Eighty-eight
(388), Four Hundred Five (405)
and of fractional lots of land Four
Hundred Ten (410) and Four Hun
dred Twenty-five (425) South of a
line running parallel with the South
line of said lots Twelve and three
tenths (12.3) chains North of the
same.
Default has been made in the
payment of the debt to secure which
said security deed was executed,
and the said Herman Hachmeister,
the legal holder of said security
deed and note, has elected to declare
the entire indebtedness due and
payable, in accordance with the
terms of said security deed, and
said property will be sold as the
property of Bessie C. Sheffield for
the purpose of paying said indebted
ness, which will amount to $4355.45,
plus any unpaid taxes and plus
the cost of this foreclosure pro
ceeding.
Herman Hachmeister will execute
.to the purchaser at said sale fee
simple title to the above described
property.
J. R. Burgess, of Turner County,
Georgia, has been appointed agent
and will conduct said sale.
This 12th day of June, 1931.
(Signed) Herman Hachmeister.
Try the News for Job Printing.
BULL FOR SERVlCE—Register
ed Jersey bull, formerly owned by
J. B. Tarver, now at Duncan Hall’s
dairy, $3.00. See Duncan Hall, Dr.
W. A. Fuqua or OSCAR WHITCH
ARD.
General Typewriter Repairing
Sales—Service
306 Georgia Home Building
COLUMBUS TYPEWRITER
COMPANY
COLUMBUS, GEORGIA
Special Excursion To
Texas June 30, 1931
A Fine Opportunity To
Visit Texas
Only one fare plus 25c Round
Trip Tickets good in coaches also in
sleeping and parlor cars upon pay
ment of Pullman charges.
Final RETURN LIMIT July 12,
1931.
Ask Ticket Agent or any repre
sentative for exact fare, schedules,
sleeping car reservations, etc.
Central of Georgia Railway
INSURANCE
FIRE-LIFE-AUTO
Farm Insurance
a Specialty
V.L. COLLINS
THE CANCER PROBLEM.
By J. L. Campbell, M. D., F. A. C. S.,
Chairman of the Cancer Commis
sion Medical Association of Ga.
(This is the third in a series of
seven articles on the Cancer Prob
lem in its relation to Public Health
written by Dr. Campbell at the re
quest of the Georgia State Board of
Health. Succeeding articles will be
published in The News until the se
ries has been completed.)
Dr. Robert Battey Greenough of
Boston, Massachusetts, Chairman of
the American College of Surgeons’
Committee for the Study of Malig
nat Diseases, in an editorial in the
October issue of ‘Surgery, Gyneco
logy and Obstetrics’ said:
“The plan for the organization of
cancer service and cancer clinics in
general hospitals throughout the
country marks a definite step for
ward in providing more adequate
service for cancer patients. This
project has the support of the di
rectors of the American Society for
the Control of Cancer, as well as the
Regents of the American College of
Surgeons, and already special clinics
of this nature are proving their value
in the communities in which they
have b«en put in operation. A
wider development of these clinics
cannot fail to contribute greatly to
the early diagnosis and the adequate
treatment of cancer, with the re
sources now at hand, and thus aid in
diminishing the unnecessarily high
mortality of this disease.”
Georgia is already well provided
with men and means for treating
cancer with the latest approved
methods, and we are glad to note
that this step is in keeping with the
views of such eminent students of
the subject as Dr. Greenough and
his Committee.
An erroneous belief has been de
veloped that cancer is incurable.
Many factors have contributed to
this delusion. It seems that people
cannot be convinced that a lump or
sore (and cancer begins as a pain
less lump, or an ulcer, or a scaly
spot in the skin) is dangerous unless
it causes pain or is tender to the
touch. When a cancer begins to give
pain, it is generally too late. Pro
crastination has gone too far.
Patients who have a suspicious con
dition must consult a doctor early,
cooperate with him and follow his
advice; a conscientious, well-trained
doctor will not give advice unless he
can substantiate it. Only when this
plan is followed will the death rate
from cancer be materially reduced.
Who among the people of Geor
gia, having fever, would wait for
a hemorrage to occur before send
ing for a doctor? In such a case
a cure” would not be expected. The
majority of early cancers can be
cured. Unfortunately, a patient who
has been cured of cancer seldom
tells the neighbors or friends. On
the other hand, a death from can
cer becomes public gossip.
Our Boards of Health have no
such means of preventing cancer, as
they have for contagious infections
or epidemic diseases, for cancer is
neither contagious, infectious nor
hereditary. Bad blood has no in
fluence on its development.
Cancer is an independent growth
of body tissue. It may occur in any
part of the body; but these are
some parts much more susceptible
than others. Certain varieties of
cancer occur at almost stated periods
of life; for instance, cancer of the
bones and lymph glands are more
frequent in children and young
adults. Fortunately, these are rare.
Other structures are attacked later
in life.
Statistical research has taught us
that cancer of some parts of the
body can be prevented, while in
others it cannot. But, when we
know the early symptoms and are
able to recognize a dangerous lesion
while it is still local, the majority of
them can be cured.
LOWREY STONE
Attorney at Law
Alexander Bldg.
BLAKELY, : GEORGIA
C. T. ALEXANDER
Dentist
BLAKELY, : : GEORGIA
Office upstairs in Southern Stat#
Life Building, rooms 5 and 6.
Office hours: 8:30 to 12:00 a. m ;
2:00 to 6:00 p. m.
FELIX P. DAVIS
Dentist
BLAKELY : : GEORGIA
Prices reasonable and all work guar
anteed. Specialist on Crown and
Bridge work. Office in Gay building,
first two rooms at head of stairs.
Phone 157.