New Britain herald., 1919-09-18
C0NGRESS GREETS
 LEADER OF VICTORS General PershinS Warmly Re-
 ceived by Both Houses Today CUMMINGS MAKES ADDRESS

Work of American Commander and
 Straectist-House Galleries Crowded
 Washington. Sept. 1S.-Standing ih the cham ber of the house of repre- sentatives with the full membership of the senate and house about hlm and with galleries crowded with admirers, General John J. Pershing received to- day the formal thanks of congress for the services he and the officers and men he commanded in France ren- dered during the great war. .,
 Senator Cummings, as president pro tenn. of the senate, sat with Speaker, Gillett and extended the first greet ing. /.
 Cummings Extends Greetings.
 General Pershing," he said, it is my high privilege to extend to you the sincere and cordial greetings of the senate of the United States. The mes sage I have the honor to bear is not a greeting alone, but an earnest welcome and hearty congratulation upon your safe and victorious return to your native land. Nor is 1t a welcome only for 1t Is full of deep appreciation for the trem mendouS task you have so won derfully and worthily accomplished. You were called upon to assume the immeasurable responsibility of com manding the greatest body of soldiers who ever marched under the Ameri- can flag, and you led this superb in incible host of our brightest, best and bravest boys to the very summit of military fame and national glory. While our tears are flowing and our hearts are breaking, as we solemnly emember the tens of thousands who sailed away with spirit so resolute and courage so perfect and who will re- turn never more until God calls us all on His judgment day, we receive with unbounded Joy and undying gratitude those who have passed unharmed through the perils of the cruelest war in the history of the world.
 Praises American Army. .u s'Your entrance into France, follow < ed, ehxss sssn earra which ' exceeded in. and sar nassee in daring the K most enthusiastic prophecies. was the most impressive spectacle in all the annals of warfare, for America hastened to the aid of that stricken but defiant country in way and to 8 degree never before witnessed and which has no parallel in the record of nations of this or any other age A little more than a year later, With d purpose which never faltered and skill which never failed, the United States had accomplished it's mission; and when the day of armistice dawned ii had won the admiration and held the confident esteem and affection Of every country of the earth whose peo- pls loved justice, revered liberty, and honored manhood.
 Fame of II. s. Rises.
 Upon thaH day, the name ana fame of the American soldier and the nation of his allegiance had risen to the highest point ever attained in the cause of humanity. May the Ruler of the Universe help us to maintain through all the stormy years to come the respect and faith which you and vour gallant army so magnificently won for America and her beloved in- stitutions.' x
 Speaker Gillett followed:
 speaker GiIletts Address.
 "When one of the marshals of Louis XIV" he said, same to take farewell of his sovereign before leaving for a campaign, the friendly monarch said to him:
 "'GO and fight my battles ana Will protect you against your enemies at home, to which the blunt soldier re- piled:
 "'Sire, I would prefer that you should protect me from my friends. | can protect myself against my enc mies.'s And l wonder if our distn- puished guest, under the constant fire of receptions and reviews and com- pliments to which he is exposed, will not feel like praying for protection against his friends. Certainly he needs none against his enemies, for in this country he has none."
 After paying tribute to the men of the American army Speaker Giliett said. turning to Gen. PershinG: "Of all the details Of your general ship and your strategy We are not now qualified to judge. But we do know that you were gloriously successful. And we know that you had abundant opportunity for glaring mistakes. You were surrounded by pitfalls. Far from vour governm ent in a foreign land. you had to rely upon yourself. Even in what you said you must be prudent you must not doprecatc your allies while vindicating your own country. Therc was every chance for errors. But, sir, if you made them. eitber in policv or in statement, We have not heard of them. You have seemed to us not only a successful general bending all his great power without favor and without leniency toward the one stern purpose of vic-