The daily Alaska citizen., 1919-10-19

tropical islands behind heavy forts of palmwood. logs and giant creep CTS and thorn bushes woven into what was supposed to be impregnabIe
 defenses. Pershing had made a study of the conditions and so well . had he organized his little force
 consisting of battalion of infantry, squadron of cavalry and section of artillery that in two days the Moros strongholds were cleared out and the Island of Mindanao was soon placed under Pershing's military governorship.
 When he returned home in 1914
 he was given but short rest in San Francisco Trouble began on the Mexican border and he was sent there in command of the Eighth bri- gade, charged with the special duty
 of running down or driving off Villa l His expedition penetrated many miles into Mexico and army officers be lieyed that the ultimate capture Of Villa was prevented only be recall orders from Washington where the authorities decided that they were unwilling to continue a military policy. seeming certain 10 involve the
 United States in regular war with
 Mexico
 When Pershing was chosen 10 com
 mand the American forces in France,
 he took with him many Of the brown
 ed and hardened veterans of his
 Mexican campaign and these men
 formed the nucleus of the famous
 First division of the American EX-
 peditionary Force
 A terrible tragedy had come into
 Pershines life during his Mexican
 border service thru the loss of his
 wife and three of their little children
 who were burned to death in their
 home al the Presidio, in San Fran cisco, during his absence His life
 became hard and stern; not towards IllS SOlultlSr uON tN tl, Dul III Alit | f giment he imposed upon himself and
 in the objects he had marked for at tainmcnt He threw himself into his work with a passion that command
 ed success, evidently seeking relief from his private grief in public ser
 vice. It was said of him in France
 that he was never tired; he could
 be called upon any hour out of the twenty-four for consultation or di- rection without complaint on his
 part, in contrast with some of his
 famous colleagues in the entente
 armies.
 Pershing believed in teamwork; he
 knew that whatever success the Ger
 mans had attained was thru their unified command of hte armies of the central powers. So he was not only willing but anxious to see the same principle adopted by the entente
 armies He sank his private ambi- tions and freely rendered the ser
 vices of the last American soldier
 and all his army equipment to Cen eral Foch at the most critical point in the campaign. There is said to
 be no doubt that his example affect ed the other commands and went a long way towards bringing about the unificatiOn of the entente armies un- der Marshal Foch.
 It was not until Pershing was cer- tain that the plans he had made with , the assistance of his own staff for
 successful campaign into Alsace- | Lorraine had behind them the sup port of a sufficient number of Amer ican soldiers that Pershing felt jus tified in taking complete command of an important sector of the line of battle with the full assent of Marshal Foch and with the result that the
 American army broke the morale Of
 the Germans and prot the war to an end.
 For what he did in Europe Persh- ing has been praised beyond measure
 by the greatest rulers and soldiers
 of the world who have been glad to
 welcome him and press his hand.