The Washington herald., 1919-09-18

Der of Congress and Veteran
of the civil wary
A history of the war activities of
the First Division, which will some
time be written could only be
hinted at in a single article, So ex-
tensive, valuable and inspiring they
were. Well might it be called the
First Division. as IL was the first
division of our army to cross the
seas; first in sector, and to fire a
shot at the enemy; first to conduct
raid and first to be raided; first
to capture prisoners and to infiict
and to suffer casualties. In one
thing alone was it last, and that
was in returning home. 1t had in
succession a most brilliant array Of
commanding officers, the first being
Maj. Gen. William L. Sibert, follow
ed by Maj. Gen. Robert l.. Bullard,
Mai Gen. Charles P. SummeralI,
Brig. Gen. Frank E. Bamford, Brig
Gen. Frank Parker and Maj. Gen.
command yesterday.
IidIy tuB
the First Division fought with great
distinction the battles of Can
tigny, in May. 1918; south OF Sois-
sons in July. 1918; st. Mihiel sa-
lient, September ~ and l3, 1918; Ar
gonne-Meuse, September 29 to Oc-
tober II, 1918; Mouzon and vicinity.
November / to IL. 1918. On No
vember II the First Division start
ed for Germany and crossed the
line at CobIenZ. December 13 and
II after a march of $50 kilometers.
$4,000 Men in Line.
An army division at its full strcEg u
with all its accessory organizations
comprises 1900 men, OF whom 2,JOJ
comprise the coIroat strength. Tho
First DiviSiCn as i; appeared in the
grand review yesterday had over D.U1
men. and the select regiment eco .-
a total OF about "iOo". IRE threads
upon the division during lts service
in Europe may be appreciated when
it is stated that to November II,
1918. there were %0,3b6 replacement.
I amounting to full duplication Of
the combat strength OF The division.
That does not mean that the entire
original membership OF the division
was replaced. as one original man
might easily be replaced suCcessi.ely
by several. The division lost 4.4ll
men killed and died Of wounds. IN
addition there were 17,2u wounded
and gassed. They lost but l52 taken
prisoners, although the division cap-
tured l63 German officers and 6,S0i
German men. This shows that the
Germans were not so reluctant to h'
taken prisoners as were our boys OF
the First Division. The division also
captured ll9 pieces of German artil-
ierN. 81 trench mOrtaTS and 4lS ma
chine guns. The First was 20 days
in front line, and its members receiv-
ed $50 Distinguished Service Crosse.
As we look at these brave boys.
briskly passing in military forma-
tions with their officers in their ap-
propriate stations and the Stars and
Stripes and their regimental f1aEs
floating over them, the scenes of blood
and struggle that these figures suE-
Cest present themselves to our con-
sciousness.
We see them at Cantigny IN their
first battle. deporting themselves like
3 veterans. thus giving fresh courage
. to all our army and 10 our hard
/ pressed French and British sssoci-
4 SNNs1 anu VI Ille lllb Jpg anu ~ rue ~
( the hearts of all loyal men and women
whom they left at home.
Sees Them on BattIcheIds.
We sec them again in the St. Mihiel
salient, with relentless determination
taking from the Germans powerful
forts and strategic positions which
they had held uninterruptedly for four
years, flattening out the troublesome
/ salient, and threatening the marvel
ously fortified military city OF Metz.
p But most graphic of all is their lonS-
sustained. bitterly contended. bur
finally triumphant battle OF the Ar
Sonne-Meuse. We see them strug-
Cling with the best troops of Germany
in the Argonne Forest. taking one
range of wooded hills after another
but not without the loss OF many a
brave comrade.
We visualize the 4.411 brave men OF
the First Division who fill humble
graves in France-just such splendid.
Courageous men and as full OF life
and hope as those whom we delighted
ly gazed on yesterday as they passed
through the broad avenues OF Wash
inCton. We may also endeavor to con
slider the 17,01 who suffered wounds
or who were compelled to inhale the
poisoned gases invented by scientific
German minds, directed to diaboliC
ends. Just think for a moment. We
saw about 1900 men in the grand
ROY .ew. 1t required several hours for
th"m to pass the reviewing stand. OF
their ,~mrades, about one-fifth as
many as we saw sleep their last SLEEP
in France. and the wounded and gassed
added to the killed would have made
q procession nearly as imposing ir
numbers as that Of yesterday-in exact
numbers 2l.612 were killed. wounded
and Cassed, against about 1900 II
yesterdays review.
Back to Days of Is6I-65.
The grand review of yesterday
naturally carries the mind back tc
the only other event of this char
acter to which 1t is comparable ir
interest and significance-the grand
review which was the closing scene
of the great civil war of lS61-65. II
occurred fifty-four years and foul
months ago. less six days. The
grand review occupied two days
May % and "a, 1865, when more
than 100000 men passed in review
before the reviewing stand in from
of the White House, which was
erected on precisely the same spot
as that of yesterday. The army Of
Sherman had crossed the Atlantic
Coast and thence advanced nortr
and was in North Carolina wher
the end came at Appomattox. Sher.
mans army continued its marct
north, and Joined the forces inf
mediately under Gen. Grant a
Washington for the grand review
Sherman's forces comprised the