Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1919-07-28
]From the Buffalo News.1

FRANK GAFFNEY, acclaimed by
II General Pershing the second
bravest American soldier of the
war, told Buffalo friends the other
day that his heroic exploits resulted
from his bullheadedness, desire to
take chance, love of fight and
eagerness to save his company from
annihilation.
His rewards for saving Company
G, 10Sth Infantry, at Ronssoy,
France, September 20, 1918, at the
peril of his life, and his later brill
liant performance along the Saint
Souplet front October 19, when he
lost his arm, are Congressional
medal, Distinguished Service Medal
and a pension of $21 a month. His
home is in Lockport, N. Y.
DR.. c. Frank Bruso, who accompa-
MED Gaffney about Buffalo, de-
clared: "Gaffney is not the second
bravest soldier; he is actually the
bravest American of the war, not
even excepting the remarkable Ser
geant Alvin G. York.
The distinct difference between
York and Gaffney is that York was
a noncommissioned officer and car
ried authority to do things which
Gaffney was supposed to execute only
when ordered. But Gaffney went
beyond his line of duty when he
smashed the resistance of the ma
chine gunners at Ronssoy. Single
handed, he too, accomplished the
surrender of the German machine
gunners after he had killed some
and crippled the remainder by
dashing the body of a German over
their parapet."
Until Doctor Bruso convinced him
that his many friends and every
American would be greatly pleased
to hear more of his wonderful ex-
ploits, Gaffney stolidly refused to
| discuss his heroics in France.
Kept Himself Happy
Il always was very optimistic"
said Gaffney. Seldom did l worry
when things went wrong over there!'
Somehow l always saw the bright
side of everything. Home to me
was wherever 1 hung my hat. Sure,
1 thought of Lockport, my real
home, with desire to be there. But
| kept myself happy by pretending
my home was back of the lines and
my work was up in the trenches.
Many times l thought of the
great differences in jobs. How differ
ent the battle lines were to paper
making in the international Paper
| Company in Niagara Falls. I al
ways thought things could have been
worse; those Germans, you know
would have come to America If we
didn't go there.
"Homesickness was worse with
more of our boys than bullets OF
| real disease. In the thick of every
fight 1 always told the boys that the
work was like pink tea party COM
pared to our bottle parties back in
Lockport.
! Whenever | saw a chance for real
action l ached to take long chance
| l must have the gambling spirit, all
right. All along 1 thought I was
born under a lucky star because
was never wounded or captured.
| II guess l wasn't born under that
star, though. The last day my
company was in action 1 got struck
with shrapnel in the side beneath
the shoulder. That later caused me
to lose my left arm"
Major General John F. Organ
wrote to Private Gaffney July a.
| follows:
'I read in the press the fact that
you had been presented with the
Congressional Medal of Honor, as q
result of your extraordinary gal
lantry September 29 last. In the
same article / learned of your sub
sequent wound and was very sorry
indeed. to know you suffered the
loss of an arm.
after the Hindenburg line battle
I carefully examined the recon-