Imperial Valley press., 1919-03-06
VALLEY NAMES
ADDED TO NEW
ROLL Of WAR

Two more names have been added
to the hero list of Imperial Valley
| soldiers with the citations for dis
| tinguished service made recently by
the French and American govern
| ments.
France has made a posthumous
award of the Croix de Guerre to
Private Isaac Stephens, while Corpo-
raj Albert F. Neil, former employe of
The Press, has been decorated by
the United States.
The full account of the manner in
which private Stephens lost his life,
| as published in San Diego newspa
per, is as follows:
"Mrs. E. c. Stephens Of Imperial
Valley yesterday received a Croix
de Guerre and the citation awarding
the medal which was given her son,
Private Isaac Stephens, well-known
San Diego boy, who was killed in
battle on October 8, 1918. The medal
and citation were forwarded to Mrs.
Stephens from the French govern
ment by the War Department.
According to letters received by
his sister, Mrs. William Hoyt Col
gate of this city, from comrades of
ike" as he was better known, he
was buried with full military honors
near the spot where he fell while
fighting.
The citation, which was given by
the French government with the med
ais, reads as follows:
with the appreciation of the COM
H., Il. h. A
peditionary forces in France, the
| marshal of France, commander-in
chief Of the French Armies of the
| east, cites in order of the army:
"'Private Isaac Stephens, Battery
E, Fifteenth regiment artillery.
"'Liason agent, followed the first
assaulting wave in the attack of
October 3, 1918, reported the most
| valuable information to the COM
.nander of the group. Was killed by
the enemy while accomplishing a
mission
During the first days of fighting
Battery + was cut off from the army
and when there were no friendly
troops to communicate with, Steph
ems volunteered to carry message
through the German lines. He was
aware of the fact that several at
tempts had already been made to
deliver the message by the patrols
and that the bearers had been eth
er wounded, killed or driven back.
By his courage ana strong determi-
nation he succeeded in delivering the
important message. He was making
his return when he was killed by
bomb.
''The call to arms at the entrance
of the United States into the great
war found Private Stephens ready.
He enlisted two months after the
declaration of war and was immedi-
ately ordered to Camp Kearney,
where he was stationed with the
143rd field artillery. After more
than ten months of intensive train
ing in the specialties of modern
! warfare, a call for volunteers was
issued and Private Stephens was one
of the first to respond He was
then transferred to Battery E, Fif-
teenth Field Artillery, and ordered
to New York to make ready for over
seas duty.
This battery was one of the units
which took part III the big parade
down Fifth avenue, New York, on
I July 4th of last year. Thousands of
people lined the streets that day to
cheer the troops The following day
the unit sailed for France. Again
an intensive training course was fol-
lowed behind the lines OF the Allied
| armies ard within the sound of the
big guns.
Letters have been received by his
sister, Mrs. Colgate, from officers
and men, of his regiment, and they
are uniform in their praise.
Besides his mother, Private
Stephens is survived by four sisters
Mrs. William Hoyt Colgate and
Mrs. Mary H. Whitley, both of San
Diego; Mrs. Harry l.. Titus of Coro-
nado and Miss Albert Stephens, and
by two brothers, Oren d. and Don
aid H., the latter of whom enlisted
in the army as an ambulance driv-
er shortly after his brother joined.
The official announcement by the
War Department describing the act
of heroism for which Corporal AL
bert f. Neil was awarded the Dis
tinguished Service Cross is as fol-
lows:
Corporal Albert F. Neil, Company
A, 301st Battalion, Tank Corps. For
extraordinary heroism in action near
Ronssey, France, September 20, 1918.