Arizona republican., 1917-12-26
NEWSPAPER STORY STARTS PERSH|NG
 OUT AS SOLDIER
CRepublican A. D. Leased Wirej

newspaper story that diverted John J. Pershing from his purpose to become | a school teacher and started him upon | the military career which lead to his | appointment as general in the United | States army and commander of the 1 American eXpeditiOnary force in | France. The story is told by General | Pershing's sisters, Mrs. Butler and | Miss May Pershing, who are residents | of Lincoln and who have given to The | Associated Press intimate views of | Pershings character in his youthful days.
 It was while Pershing and his sister, now Mrs. Butler, were attending the Missouri State Normal school at Kirk ville Mo, that his attention was one day called to a newspaper announce ment that examinations were to be ! held for appointment to the West Point Military academy. Young Persh- ing asked his sisters advice as to whether he should try for the appoint ment and she advised him to do so. Then followed a short season of in- tensive study in preparation.
 In a few days he was called before the examining board and, although inn properly prepared, received the highest mark among the contestants and soon afterward was notified of his appoint ment. Up to this time his action had been a secret between his sister and himself and it remained so until he was ready to start for West Point. On his way to the military academy he stopped off at the home of his parents and for the first time they were told then they were to have a soldier in the family.
 As boy, General Pershing, his sis ters says, was of quiet serious tenn peTament assuming, as the oldest of six children, many of the responsiblli- ties of the family. He was wont, dur ing his early years which were spent in Laclede. Mo, his birthplace, to man. age one of the several farms operated | by his father, John F. Pershing, a merchant and farmer of Laclede.
 "John." Mrs. Butler said, although of quiet disposition, liked a good | time and enjoyed fun as much as any | one. Yet when he started anything he wanted to get the result and he gen. orally attained that object before he | gave it up"
 While at the normal school at Kirk vile he was always in the center of student activities and never was con | tent to be merely one of the crowd but wanted to be head of the movement. | His personal magnetism and generally | likeable character quickly won him ! friends and supporters and soon he be- came one of the student leaders. After having been graduated from l West Point and having served with 1 General Miles in a campaign in New | Mexico against the Indian chief Ger onimo, Pershing was stationed as mili- tary instructor at the University of Nebraska. His friends there remem- Der him as a fun-loving young man who enjoyed music and dancing, part ies and other social activities and who appreciated a good joke.
 "Old Jack Best" the veteran trainer at the university, remembers Pershing intimately He was the finest man that l ever worked with" said Best. It's true he was mighty strict with his
 work but the results he got were so l good that everybody he worked with
 loved him for it. When he was here we had a regiment the university could
 be proud of. I just worshipped that
 man and everybody around the uni versity felt the same about him. If 1 any of you newspaper men get a l chance to tell it to him, you just say
 that old Jack wishes him the best luck
 in the world and that he hopes he will
 beat the Germans all alone.
 "Usually he was mighty dignified ir
 his work but he had way of getting
 next to new men," continued Best
 "The first time I ever saw him he
 walked right up to me, slapped me or
 the shoulder and said, Well, Jack
 they tell me you get along mighty vel
 with my predecessor. If you did, an
 darned sure we'll get along just a: we'll
 "The boys at the university got {
 surprise the first day Pershing drilled
 them," said Best. It had been theil
 habit before that time to come to dril with shoes blackened or not, just a! they pleased. When Pershing took hold , the first thing he looked at was to SCI that all shoes were well blacked ant that the heels looked as good as tn ? toes He was just thorough going il , everything all the time. He was A
 in every way and you can ask anyon , who knew him if that isn't the gospe
 truth
 Odd as it may seem in a fighting l man, General Pershing's one fad, ac cording to his sisters, is gardening. Hi , father was an expert gardener and tn taste descended to the military mar I | Whenever he was on leave, he imme f diately would don workday clothe: z go into his fathers garden, seemingl
 enjoying the work over the vegetable
 as much as he enjoyed social activitie!
 The first time that General Pershin
 appeared in Chicago and was seen b | neighbors, he was clad in overalls an
 was hard at work in a vegetable gar
 den in the yard behind his father
 house in the southside of the cit! | There was some surprise among tn neighbors that man who then wa
 entitled to wear the uniform and bras buttons of captain should be willin
 to put them aside and hoe the garde
 but the incident is illuminative of tn
 character of the man upon whom tn |, country relies to lead the America q forces to victory against the German n in Europe.
 If