Atlanta tri-weekly journal. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1920-19??, 1920-09-25
WORLD WAR HERO
REFUSES TO QUIT
u. S. ARMY LIFE

Wearing coveted military decora-
lions of two armies for exceptional
ga1lantry in action on many battle
fronts during the world war, Cor
poral Harry Sawyer, United States
army, now on duty in Atlanta with
the army recruiting service, firmly
refuses to quit the service until the
expiration of his enlistment period
although he has repeatedly been Of
fered a discharge for physical dis
ability, resulting from wounds re-
ceived while on the western front
Corporal Sawyer is remark a. BE } e
the most quiet, unassuming, modest
chap in the recruiting office, not
withstanding the fact that he was
born in Chicago, Ill. Atlanta doctors
are now treating him daily, as ne
has never fully ID from tTa f t9f
wave of chlorine gas the Boche sent
over on April %, 1915.
, But Corporal sawyer refuses to
return to the status of a mere CIVIL
ian. He loves the khaki uniform; ne
has suffered in it and now he de-
until the army forces him to take
it off.
anG only twenty four years Old, the
corporal always loved the life OF a
soldier. He wanted action. So he
enlisted as a memmeber of the 10th
Irish-Canadian infantry at the out
break Of the war, and was promptly
assigned to the immortal Princess
Pat' regiment, the survivors, of which
today number exactly eighteen.
Was With Canadians
CORPORAL Sawyer is entitled to
wear the Canadian class A service
badge, having been member OF the
expeditionary forces of 1914-15; this
ENLARGEMENT badge was formerly
known as the coveted Marine Star
and has a medal attached; he is also
a wearer of the British war medal
which is given for active service on
all fronts; the Victory medal, given
any soldier of the allied forces; two
wound bars (the British use a silver
bar instead of the coat chevron in
their wound designations); one red
coat chevron, for 1914 service, ano
three blue coat chevrons, showing
that the Wearer was III British Serv-
ice on the front in 1915, 1915, 1917,
respectively.
The "Princess Pat" regiment pro
ceeded overseas to the battle lines
during the first weeks of the war
and as q member of it Corporal Saw
yer saw service on the western front
for many months while the war was
at it's heighth, and his unit was an
important cog in the machine of the
famous British Contemptibles."
Speaking of that first gas attach
(staged in the Polygon woods on the
Ypres offensive), the corporal said
when we saw the first elements OF
the cloud arising in the distance
near the Boche lines, we thought il
dream it contained the stuff which
would send most of US to Blighty
but as it grew closer we felt it's eff.
fects and tried to shield ourselves
with handkerchiefs and hats, and as
soon as the Red Cross people could
ammonia (the ammonia was worse
than the gas). We were absolutely
at their mercy. The casualties were
as is matter of history, countless
Twice Wounded
After coming out of the hospital
he was assigned to the Fourth Ca
madam Mounted rifles. He saw serv-
ice with that regiment until Sep
TENDER, 1918, when he was wounded
in the Cambria offensive. While
manning a machine gun he was
wounded by a German machine gun
ner, and few minutes later was
struck in the same side by frag-
ments of high explosive she'll, and
lay upon the battle field in state
of coma from o'clock in the morn
ing. till 2 p. m. In speaking of his
wait for the stretcher to carry him
off the field Sawyer said: "I re-
member going, into a sub-conscious
state, and that Fritz was putting
over heavy barrage, so, fool that
was, I stuck my hands up in the air
to keep any pieces of shell from fall
ing on me-" When he went to the
hospital this second time he weighed
1876 pounds, but in three weeks he
weighed So pounds.
Sawyer was sent back to Canada
in February, 1919, and was dis
charged from the British army in
May of that year.
On September %, 1919, he enlisted
in the American army and went over
seas again, this time with the Sill
clan expedition to Ochtendung, Ger
many. When he saw that the eli
mate Of that country was affecting
his weakened lungs, he had himself
examined by the medical authori-
ties and was returned to this coun-
try February 25, 1920.
Upon his being sent back to this
country and re-examined he was Of
fered disability discharge, but re-
fused to accept it, saying, that he
had 'signed up" for three full years
and was going to stick it out or
die trying"