The daily Gate City and constitution-Democrat. (Keokuk, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1919-09-08
Greeted AS AMERICAS C0NQUER|NG HERO
|FN[RAL PERSH|NG ARRIVES HOME TODAY
WELCOMED AS IDOL OF THE NATION

ii I'LL tsHtIUu
strain of a great emotion when
Baker ceased speaking.
Senator Wadsworth and Congress-
man Mondell then spoke briefly.
William G. McAdoo said:
I'VE sent you over to do job, and
you did it ahead of time. The best
part Of it is the fact you came back
with your hat band the same size
as when you went away"
The general grinned at this.
Mrs. F. H. Swack, representing the
governor of Missouri, then presented
Pershing with bouquet and small
American flag. Responding to these
greetings, Pershing said:
IF this Is to be continued, l be
lieve before many days ! shall wish,
perhaps, that the war continued,
ITO say / am happy is wasting
words. / am overwhelmed and over
come with emotion when ! think Of
what 1t really means to all Of US. AS
regards your extremely compliment
airy words about the part it was my
fortune to play. can only say that
what we accomplished and the VIC
tory we won was possible only
through the united efforts Of the ma
ton. The men at the front felt
the spirit of the nation behind them,
and their morale was never shaken.
All credit is due to those brave fell
lows who faced a well-trained, sea-
soned army with unbounded enthu-
siasm. / trust those we left behind
may receive the respectful attention
of a grateful nation and their graves
may be fittingly decorated and con-
secrated so they may ever be future
lesson to all Americans
Three Rousing Days.
NEW YORK, Sept 8.-Three rous-
ing days of welcome for the com
mander-in-chief, the staff and the
First division Of the American ex-
peditionary forces begin today when
General John ]. Pershing landed in
New York after twenty-seven months
of campaigning in Europe.
The welcome home functions will
eliminate with victorious parade
Of the veteran First division, first to
reach France and the front line and
last to leave with full war equip
ment, down Fifth avenue. General
Pershing will ride at the head OF the
pioneers.
Hundreds of parents, wives and
sweethearts of headquarters and
First division men flocked to New
York to see the pioneers as they
reached American soil. War service
societies and organizations Of wound
ed veterans are prepared to entertain
the ''buddies' and the chief"
Squadrons of army planes and a
flotilla of small boats lowered about
the Leviathan, on which the COM
mander-in-chief returned from Brest,
from the time she passed Sandy
Hook Among them was the police
boat patrol, carrying Mayor Hylan's
committee of welcome.
From the pier, General Pershing
drove to the Waldorf-Astoria In the
afternoon he will pay an official visit
to Mayor Hylan at the City hall. Re-
ceptions and dinners are crowded to-
gether during the generals entire
stay in New York.
The second day Of welcoming is
entirely under direction of Secretary
Of War Baker, who came to New
York as President Wilson's envoy to
welcome General Pershing. Secre-
tary Baker and his party present the
commander-in-chief with the gold
sword voted by congress in apprecia-
ton for distinguished services.
The war department has charge OF
the parade. which starts at One Hun
dred and Tenth street and moves In
full war regalia, gas masks, guns,
packs, artillery, ambulances, tanks
and every other department, down
Fifth avenue past the official re-
viewing stand in front of the Metro
politan Museum Of Art, through the
Victory arch at Madison square. This
is the first parade of full war equip
ment Americans have seen, and Will
take four hours to pass in review.
General Pershing's welcome and
the review of the victorious First
division pioneers is strikingly appro-
pirate. Tho poneers landed in France
shortly after the comamnder-in-chief,
who reached Paris on June 10, 1917,
lust as the morale of the French was
ebbins low. The American general
and the handful of "Yanks'' who pa
raded in khaki shirts through Paris
on that July Fourth, few days later,
were strange sight to the wildly
affectionate French, to whom cour-
age and hope returned like a flash
of lightning.
The next few months were period
of allied struggle to keep up morale,
while General Pershing raced against
time, training fighting divisions just
behind the lines, building harbor IA
elites railroads, telegraph lines and
the service of supplies which in the
following summer enabled him to
throw and maintain almost two mil
lion men per month against the Ger
mans and wear out their best divi-
sions.
! General Pershing and his staff