Belding banner. (Belding, Mich.) 1889-1918, 1907-05-30
.IVEN FOR BRAVERY
HOW THE MEDAL OF HONOR Is
AWARDED.
Decoration In American Army Core
spends to Victoria Cross of Eng
land and Famous Iron Cross
Of Germany.

While the American people love
their flag and boast of their army be-
ing second to none, 1t is strange fact
that few of them know of the medal
of honor, the greatest decoration that
can be bestowed upon soldier in the
United States army. Every British
subject knows the meaning of wearing
the Victoria cross; every German
knows what 1t is for a soldier in the
kaiser's army to possess the iron cross.
and while both of these decorations
represent bravery, they do not neces-
sarily mean as much as does the pos
session of the medal of honor
Regarding the granting of the medal
of honor the Army Register says:
"In order that the medal of honor
may be awarded, officers and enlisted
men must perform in action deeds OF
most distinguished personal bravery
or self-sacrifice above and beyond the
call of duty, so conspicuous as clearly
to distinguish them for gallantry and in
trepidity above their comrades, involv-
ing risk of life or the performance of
more than ordinarily hazardous serv-
ice. and the omission of which would
not Justly subject the person to cen
sure as for shortening or failure in
the performance of his duty. The rec
ommendatlon for the medal will be
Judged by this standard of extraordi-
nary merit, and incontestable proof
of the performance of the service will
be exacted.'
At the present time there are only
GA officers and enlisted men in our
army who possess the congressional
medal. When it is taken into consid-
Grafton that the maximum strength
of the army is 66,3S5, it shows how
hard il is to win the medal of honor.
Less than. one in every LOCO possess
II. OF those who have been awarded
the decoration, 46 are now officers on
the active list, out of 1859 in the sery-
ice. There are now on both the active
and retired lists 100 whose deeds of
gallantry have been recognized by the
granting of the medal The awarding
of these covers a period OF 40 years,
including days of the civil war, Indian
campaigns, the Spanish-American war,
the Philippine insurrection and the
Boxer trouble in China. During the
numerous engagements hundreds OF
gallant deeds, which would have
brought the medal of bravery in for
eign armies, went entirely unnoticed
unlike the foreigner, the American sol
L ~ of Pn AIRY (
ply to try and win the medal. Hun
dreds of British soldiers have lost their
lives in a vain effort to obtain the Vic
tor.a cross. Such no doubt was the
| case when Lord Roberts son was
killed in South Africa in an effort to
| save battery.
1t is nearly always the young officer
who performs the gallant deed. Out
of 112 officers who have won the med
| al for bravery II of them were under
the rank of captain at the time OF per-
forming the act of gallantry which won
them the decoration. Nearly all of the
others were young captains, although
now and then a name appears on the
| list showing the possessor was a field
or staff officer, but in nearly every
! c Sc he belonged to the volunteers and
held a high rank at young age.
The youngest officer who was ever
awarded the decoration is now the
senior officer of the army, Lieut.. Gen.
Arthur Macarthur. For bravery when
he was IS years of age he won the COW
eted medal. 1t was at the time he was
boy adjutant Of the Twenty-fourth
Wisconsin infantry when his regiment
was charging up Missionary Ridge.
The color sergeant became exhausted
and went dov-n, when Macarthur picked
up the flag, ran to the head of the regi-
ment and amid storm of bullets
which swept down The hill led his regi-
ment up.