The Pleasantville press. (Pleasantville, N.J.) 1912-1929, 1923-10-31

singled u FOR special notice becaus,
he Is leaving the service. as many
other officers have left 1t. to enter on \
business career. The answer is easy
enough. General Butler Is the only
living man In the United States sea
service who has two congressional
/ medals Of honor for conspicuous per-
sonal gallantry in battle. medals given
for the performance of acts over ana
above the call of duty. and which omis-
sion 10 perform could not have brought
upon his head even the slightest sug-
gestion or criticism. He took the one
chance in a million twice and each
time, by the fractional part of a hairs
breadth. came through with his life.
During the World war Quakers were
exempt from military service because
Of that provision in their creed which
directs that they shall in effect turn
the other cheek. Butler apparently.
however, thought that. with his u
try in danger, his duty was above any
yes. let US say it-quibble of con
science.
Marines VIII Miss Him.
Smedley D. Butler is a Pennsylva-
nlan. He graduated from a school I'M
der Quaker direction and in his identi-
fcation papers in the War department
his religious faith Is given as that OF
Quaker. The marines will miss him.
1t is a goodly fellowship of heroes. Of
fcers and enlisted men. which he Is TO
leave behind him in the service.
1t is said that the Marine corps has
suffered less from the diminishing
processes since the war than any other
branch of the service. Ii Is not as large
a corps by any manner of means as II
has been. but it is still fairly strong In
numbers and entirely strong in spirit.
Of course, when n reads of the
Marine corps, he thinks coincidently
perhaps of Belleau wood, which the
marines and two army infantry regi-
ments took from the Germans after a
week of hand-to-hand fighting. Belleau
wood, however. Is only n of scores
of battlefield names written into the
record of Uncle Sans Marine corps.
MOl. dCu. JbAil n bEJ1AtiN 10 ''N
commanding officer OF the marines. He
has hero decorations in numbers. In
a way the commissioned personnel of
the Marine corps has been known as a
religious personnel. Many of the Of
ficers of the corps are fighters and
y in one. Perhaps the conduct
of these men on the battlefield has
shown what some people hold. that the
more religious a mar is the better
fighter he Is.
Lejeune a Church Member.
Major General Lejeune was in
charge of the great layman parade
which took part in the services n
nected with the conservation of the
new Episcopal bishop of Washington,
DR.. James Z. Freeman. This ranking
officer of the Marine corps is a warden
of Epiphany church in this city. He
is a leader in the young mems societies
and he works as hard for his church as
he does for the marines.
1t is true, perhaps, as a great many
people have said, that the Marine corps
Is given more consideration by the peo-
pie than any other branch of the serv'
Ice. Now, this does not e at all
that the Marine corps does its duty any
better than the other branches of IN
Gle Sans armed forces, but it means
simply that, because of the nature of
the corps, 1t usually has been given the
opportunity to serve first in almost
any trouble in which the United States
has been engaged in foreign lands.
Ships carry the marines and they are
the first landing forces TO be employed
in case of trouble. The opportunity Is
given them to be first. II it were given
TO the infantrymen of the army they
doubtless would do the work Just as
well, and so would any other branch
of the service.
The marines have fought in China,
In the Philippines. in Panama, in Cen
tral America, in Mexico. in Europe and
In a good many isles of the seas. More
than this, however. they have been not
only first in the fight. but they have
been first in almost every case to carry
relief where relief was necessary. The
United States marines were first in the
work of aiding the stricken ones at
Yokohama.