Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-09-15
he Story Of a George
to,0n University Boy
Who Was Decorated
in France for Bravery.
S,oan, the Marne and
Rescued w o unde d
Trench an While
Hams Made Things
Lively With Machine
Guns.
By GEORGE II. sELDEs.


heroism and Of typical American
courage and endurance. and-but 1t
needs no adjectives, for here IL the
action:
Nay--The German offensive.
June-Germans stopped at Marine by
/, American forceA Flannery rallies,
cooks, orderlies and wounded, ana
I holds the south bank. Swims Marine
and rescues wounded Frenchman on
German side. Gets croix de guerre
July-Ailied counter offensive. Elan
merry first to lead company over
Marine. Gets distinguished service
CROSS from Gen. Pershing.
August-Germans retreattng across
the yesle. Flannery takes and passes
Crosses the Marne in an automobile.
4 \
AE I
So you sec that Flannery sums up
In himself tho American effort OF the
bravo past months and Its reward.
His full name il Walter r. Flan-
merry, and his homo is in Pittsburgh.
Pa, and II the name Of the city con-
notes steel and wealth. the assump-
= tion Is correct in this case. But young
Fiannery has been no idle son. Ever
since he graduated from Georgetown
University he has worked either IN
his fathers works or ofices IN ritts-
detrimental department OF tho Foro
works In Detroit, Mich.
: when he started to 60 to war
every one tried to dissuade him. HIS
friends insisted that he let the un.
some said they Could get him q nice
Job In Washington. Then he went UP
for examination. ana the board told
him he was steel expert, and there
9 fore indispensable at home. to which
he made two replies: =. ,o,,ou.
In America who can do that sort OF
work. The place for q fighting Irishman
in this war is at the front"
80 after a little while he got his
first lieutenant's commission; and the
went with q heavy heart, for he mad
Just become q father and little Har-
# Tiet WAS just four days old.
e That was only last April. In MAY
he was at the front. and In June ne
, distinguished himself I'M open war
From Flannery and from his officer
friends, who supplied the details he
himself had modestly suppressed.
heard the whole story OF his first
I'd EE0SSln&s HNU ku0 ICaAOA AA&y JNu9
for himself whether that or the
event Immediately preceding 1t re-
fleets greater glory on the Flannery
record.
Ak
The German offensive of May ~
swept into Chateau Thierry on May
g.. and the sector from Chateau
Thierry eastward was held by the
. American division of which Flannery
commanded a company. On the first
day of June the Germans, by con-
icentration of guns which Frenchmen
say was greater than at verdun. at
fectively destroying every depot,
every kitchen, every water tank, kill
ing the horses, putting many guns
: out of action, causing numerous cas-
ualties to the men who were refuging
in dugouts hastily constructed. The
back areas were drenched in gas. The
e fire of heavy projectiles lasted nine
hours without minutes Interrupt.
ali resistance had been destroyed.
But the Americans. without food or
water, without adequate artillery pro-
lection, with their ranks depleted,
would not give an inch this side Of
that the Germans were crossing. They
came in boats and on RATS. over a
partly sunken bridge and over hastily
constructed pontoons. A smoke
screen aided them. The allied artil-
lery was doing its best. Tho allied
planes were harassing but not stop
ping the advance. Only the infantry
on the south bank could save the
day.
FlannAry's line was at Fossoy-a
critical point. When the report of
the crossing came he looked over his
positions and knew that they would
not hold. He had not the men or the
machine gums. There was but one
thing for him to do and he did 1t i'm
mediately. He went himself to the
supply lines, he called out the engi-
neers, the cooks who had nothing to
cook, the orderlies. the trench mortar
units and the odds and ends of any
and all combatant outfits he could
, find. He himself took up riflo and
led the way.
In temporary field hospital Elan.
merry found 100 wounded men.
The Germans are crossing the