Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1914-12-26
FRENCH
!. MEDALS MEAN
Gross of Legion Of Honor Less
Priced Than Little Ser
vice Medal.

y IN
with which General Jotfre received
the military medal recently shows
that even he, who might be regarded
as having exhausted all of the OH
cial honors that could be conferred
on him, when he received the grand
cross of the Legion Of Honor, values
the little silver medal quite as much
as the common soldier.
To receive the military medal it is
necessary to have been cited in dis
patches, to have gone through four
campaigns, to have been wounded il
face of the enemy, or to have &C
complished some signal act of cour,
age or devotion. OF late years the
decoration of the Legion of Honor
has been considered far more aces
sible. The military medal is not ex-
actely a successor of the medal of the
veterans instituted in 1881, but its
purpose is the same and the qualifi-
cations of the men upon whom it is
conferred r in part the same.
The Legion Of Honor, as Bonaparte
conceived it and Instituted it, was in
tended to recompense signal, services
in both peace and awar,kand Napoleon
III. thought there should be a decora-
ton for military services distinc;
from an order like the Legion of Hon
or, which was accessible to every
one.
Its not everyone who wills that
shall wear this sign Of honor" Ma.
poleon said when the Legion of Honor
was established, and his first inten.
ton clearly vas to make it, an incen-
tive to his men and officers; he him
self stated that the desire to obtain
the cross grew so rapidly that it be
came a species of fury, beginning with
Austerlitz. For a long time it was
only the theatrical profession that
was excluded from the Legion OF
Honor. Napoleon himself establish
ed a precedent of according the dec
Grafton il recognition Of important
industrial and commercial achieve
ments by decorating a man who had
built up an enormous industry il
wall paper. "You compete so vigor
ously with the English with your wall
paper he said, Il think you shoulC
be assimilated with the brave officers
of my army, for in your way you are
accomplishing the same thing a!
they"
Calrobert, who commanded the 6tt
army corps in 1870, is quoted as say
ing to a young rifleman that he dec
Grated with the military medal on the
field of battle: ".Now then, he is
equal to me- with less stripes
though" replied the decorated man
Just then both were upset by a shocf
from the explosion of a shell. "Yor
see very well,' said C%anrobert, Whe1
he had gotten to his feet and shaker
the dust from him, "that | was righ'
in saying that we we're equals, TO
you see that shell had the same effec
upon both of us; give me your hand.
Before the war of 1870, $4,000 sol
diers had been decorated with thu
military medal, while during that wa
5000 new decorations were accord
ed. Before the opening of the presen
campaign there were about $4,000 en-
titled to wear this decoration.
Among recent Inscriptions for tn
military medal in the Journal Official
the following exceptional cases ar
reported:
Conductor Desbrus Of the 57th al
tillery, received "a wounds from frae
meots of shells and had the right arr
broken during the battle Of the Aisne
September 21st. Taken back to tn
base. Notwithstanding his lprotests
lions. he said to the doctor who care
for him: "It's far better that it b
me than the captainaWho was hit b.
that shell, for the captain is nor
useful to France than l." Desbru
died from his wounds after receivia
the military medal.
Sergeant Cabour lof the 9TH infar
try. installed an observatory in {. tire
and remained there three days Will
OIL. relief or provisions, under v!olen
infantry and artillery fire. COMMUNAL
giving the most useful %informatio,
on the enemy's movements and pos
tiea Of the enemy artillery ~ tele
pnoEe.
Lieutenant Flag i5earer t'arrere 9
The 1aSth infnntry Was present tn
22nd o: August at the moment Wher
unjer terrible lire. several con1Iar
les showed hesitation. to advance
But he deployed the flag of the reg
ment md the cry Of 80 The flag
To he fiag!. sire so.sd in ircvOkin
a ~, /, ,1.at o,yck - {l1n oYyft1.o f1~1l