The evening Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1918-1920, 1919-07-05
MOODY i
WARNS OF GREAT 4
STRUGGLE lll.l AHEAD D
Continued from page ~

q and said that the great cclebratio
N OF the Fourth was the result of th
q enterprise of the Commercial club an
q its support by patriotic citizens. II
u said that the Commercial club ha'
q put across the biggest and most pa
triotic thing in the history of tn
J, town He asked st. Johnsbury citi
\ zens to back President E. G. Asselil
to the limit in support of doing biz
things for st. Johnsbury
Mr.. Brooks said his lips quiveret
when he heard the bells peal fortl
their first salute of the Fourth. Elk
asked for a silent tribute to the mer
who had died for their country'E
cause In the Great War.
Mr.. Brooks introduced Adjutant
General Johnson who spoke in detail
of Caledonia County's part in the
war. He said in part: 'aaH
caledonia County can well be
proud of her part in what has beer
accomplished in the past two years
You have sent into the Army and
Navy some 10000 men, more than q
full regiment on a pre-war basis. %
"St. Johnsbury alone has furnished
approximately one-half this number.
Many of these men saw over two
years service and have come back vet
Grams in every sense of the word. The
larger part of your old Company d
became Machine Gunners which is
the most dangerous branch of the
service. Your casualty lists have
been large, SO men having given
their lives to the cause, one-half of
these being killed in action in France,
some Cd were wounded in action and
ten others taken prisoners.
"The Goth Division National Guard
was the first complete American Di-
vision in France, and in February.
1918, began to take over front line
sectors with the French and from
that time until the signing of the
armistice were almost continually in
the front lines.
"What was true of the 26th Di
vision was also true of every other
Division composed of National Guard
of National Army men. These Di-
visions, composed of men who only
few short months before had been
peacefully working in the shops or on
the farms, were thrown into the front
line sectors as organizations or as re-
placement troops with seemingly very
little preparation, but "My God, how
they did fghtw
He told of letter received from
the front lines after Vermont's men
had their first baptim of fire. One told
of the German raid of February %,
in which some of our own boys took
and Sergt Sidney Morency, Roy Met
calf and Raymond Pease were severe
ly wounded, and were the first Yer
mont casualties in France. Sergt.
Morency was also cited for bravery
at this time.
vermont can well feel proud of
the quality of the men she sent out
as officers into the Army. / have yet
to learn of an officer who was reduc- !
ed or returned as unfit; this is a
splendid record in view Of the fact !
that some five thousand National !
Guard officers were dropped for va
rious reasons. Many of our officers
have received promotions or citations
on the field.
"You have splendid example of
the kind of men we sent into the
Army in your own Chaplain Moody,
a man who more than made good as
an Army Chaplain and was picked as
one of the Council of Three stationed
at G. H. @. to adr1i
work in the A. e. f. 1t is said of
Chaplain Moody that as a chaplain
of the 103rd infantry he was tireless,
in his efforts to keep in touch with
the men when in the front lines and
that he would deliberately walk
through a barrage as moral training.
to keep himself properly hardened to
such things. Also in Chaplain Adams
who as Chaplain of the 101st Am
Train did a splendid work
and endeared himself to all who knew
The speaker made a plea to the
soldiers to support the reorganization
of the National Guard. He said: &,
"You boys have proved the eff
cheney of a citizen army, now it is upA
to you to show that you can "come
back" and come back strong by re-
your National Guard at
once and then demand that this coun-i
try compel its youths to serve there
in at least a years enlistment, SO that
we may never again find ourselves so
as in April 1917. You
boys must show that it takes more
than one war to discourage an Am
eiican soldier. t''
"This is your present day duty and
your work is not finished until you
see to it that the future of this coun-
try is provided for and that the peace
which you have, for time, forced
upon this Old World may be lasting
and that you or your children will not
have to again cross the ocean to pro-
tect your own shores.
Chairman Brooks introduced Chap
lain Mondiy who cnoko b1.inAI H.