Weekly Caledonian. (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1919-1920, 1919-06-04
CHAPLAIN MOODY
{. 'onderful Will Power and
cn~, tronger in Training Wis.,
iting His Boys Daily


June l, IN the article headed "Parsor
Preached to HIMSELF" by Capt. Jean
B. LeMcitour, the following is taken
relative to the work of Chaplain
Moody while he was chaplain of the
1O3d Infantry:
But here is an example of another
sort, case where will power master
ed fear, silencing it first and after
ward making it disappear complete
ly. This happened to Chaplain
Moody, then attached to the 1O3rd
Infantry.
When he was with his regiment at
Liffol-le-Grand, near Neufchateau,
Chaplain Moody visited his boys prac-
tically every day. His means of trav-
ell were not very luxurious, but il
was very practical, and you could see
him on the road going from one bat
TALON to another in an ambulance. In
sector, the car was not practicable,
and as Chaplain Moody wanted to go
on with his work, to see his men as
often as possible, he had to walk.
He was regularly every day in one
part or another of the first line held
by his regiment. l often had occasion
go with him, though Chaplain
Moody was s.u4uy and well built. l
thought first that he had used the car
too much when we were in Neufcha-
teau area, and that he was out of
training.
Every day noticed that he stood
up better; he improved too rapidly
for me to believe that it was a ques-
iton of physical training. At the end
of Il fortnight Chaplain Moody could
march a whole day at a time; he pas
sed his time in the front lines and
returned in the evening as fresh and
lively as if he had been on a mere
stroll.
allowed myself to congratulate
the chaplain on the results he had OBJ
tanned in so short time.
"But," he said to me, 81 find my
self neither more nor less tired than
formerly; l am not afraid any more;
|
"What do you mean, fear? Why
do you talk to me about fear?"
~ speak of fear because for a
good many days have suffered ter
ribly from it. If you noticed that l
was tired before, it was question
of being out of training-not out of
moral training, but physical train
ing"
A few days later we were on the
way back from the front lines, and
noticed that for some time the enemy
artillery fire had been coming down
on a ridge where one of our observa-
ton posts was situated, and by which
we had to pass.
Not for the world would Chaplain
Moody change his route. The en-
emy fire was not a barrage in inten-
sity, but it was very fast and it was
an enormous risk to go past that
place at such a time. But the Chap
lain would not break training when
he was going so well, and he did
pass by there, obliging me to go into
training of which felt no need.
"You understand" he said to me,
"before, was afraid every time l
went into line, even when there were
no shells. l must confess that even
now am not entirely callous, above
all when they are falling. But you
don't get a chance every day to walk
through them, and you have to grab
every opportunity to harden your
self"
That was the method that the chap
lain practicd daily.
Since then Chaplain Moody, who
was then attached to the 103rd Infan-
try, has been promoted. He is not
yet in the Council of Ten nor of Four
but he was sent to Chaumont to be
a member of the Council of Three.
Knowing the grit, the energy, and
the will power of his admirable char
acter, am certain that his influence
there, as elsewhere, must have been of
the strongest. l know that when
Chaplain Moody left the 103rd, every
body was sorry.