The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1919-04-16
WHOLE SIDER1
FAMILY IN WAR
!Ilustrious War Horse and Five
Sons Helped Lick
Kaiser.
ALL HAVE fine RECORD
Maj. Gen. William e. Sibert, Director
of Chemical Warfare Service, Has
Had Distinguished Career
Sons Render Good Service.


Washington.-Sho Maj. Gen
William L. Sibert, director of tn.
chemical warfare service of the United
States army, ever decide to write his
autobiograpbN.sha can, like the late
Col Theodore Roosevelt, his warm
personal friend, tell what my five
sons and T. did to lick the kaiser, for
every one of the male members of the
Sibert family is in the service, and
every one has an excellent record of
achievement behind him.
An interesting question around the
Army and Navy club and in army
circles generally just now Is: "What
do you suppose will be the next as
signment of General Sibert?" for this
distinguished son of Alabama is rec
ognized as one of the big men of
Americas fighting forces, and it is
generally conceded that he will be
picked for some important place, even
If the chemical warfare service is
not perpetuated.
General Sibert's work as the build
er of the Gatun dam in Panama is
known all over the world. 1t is also
generally known IN this country that
he carried the first expeditionary
forces to France, where he and his
engineers paved the way for Per-
shing. Owing to the necessity for Sc
crecy in his latest command, however,
his work as director of the chemical
warfare service is not so familiar to
the American people.
Chemical Warfare Service.
The chemical warfare service came
into existence as such on July 13, 1913
by executive order. It's function was
to manufacture gas, to load it into
shells, devise additional appliances for
delivering it, and to provide defensive
appliances for protection of the troops
against similar devices on the part Of
the enemy.
That this function was fulfilled is
shown in the fact that on November
II, the day the armistice was signed,
standard plants were in operation
with a production capacity greater
than that of France, England and
Italy combined, and we were turning
out ten times more gas than Germany
We kept our allies supplied with toxic
gases, and while very little exclusively
American equipment got to France,
every American soldier at the front
was wearing mask that was wholly |
American in make.
While America, under the direction |
of General Sibert, produced ten tons |
of gas to Germany's one, the surface
of production had hardly been touched I
when the armistice was signed, and
had the war lasted until the spring
of 1919 Germany would have been
flooded with toxic gases such as the
world never dreamed of before.
Among these gases is one that is
known as methyl, produced at VIII
lOughby, O., near Cleveland, in what
was known as "the Mouse Trap"
Only five men in the world know what
the composition of this gas is, yet 1t
Is said to be 20 times more power
Pul than mustard gas. So great was
he secrecy in its manufacture that
he men at the plants were carried to
md from their meals under guard
md kept under constant surveillance
Built Up Big Army.
Within less than six months, in adj
lition to the building and equipping
# the big manufacturing plants, the
ocation Of training camps, proving
etc., General Sibert had built
Ip an army of about 1000 officers and
5000 enlisted men, nearly every man
n the organization being above the
verage in intelligence.
William L. Sibert was born near
Ala. He was graduated
rom the university Of that state and
rom West Point in 1884 He is a
major general in the regular army.
lis sons in the service are as fol-
)ws:
Franklin G. Sibert, lieutenant colo
Ell, divisional machine gun officer, A.
!. f., France; graduated from West
ONT in 1912; William O. Sibert, ma
,r, chemical warfare service, u. 8.
-; divisional gas officer Seventy
eventh U. S. division, A. E. f.,
rance; University of Virginia gradu-
tie, class of 1911; Harold w. Sibert
ajor, corps of engineers, Washing
IN, D. c.; Cornell graduate, class of
rs; Edwin L. Sibert first lieutenant,
cid artillery, West Point, 1918; Mar
n D. Sibert, corporal, A. e. f., Rus