Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-11-24

the arrival OF the liner PRESIDENT
Roosevelt at New York City bearing
the bodies of SO American soldiers recovered
during the late Summer in the extreme north
of Soviet Russia.
The bodies viii be received with full military
honors by high representatives of the United
States Army and United States Navy, as well
rs by representatives of the Veterans OF Foreign
Wars and other organizations. An escort will
20 with the bodies to Detroit, where final
resting place has been prepared. The men
were all from Michigan
Senator A. H. Vandenberg Of Michigan used
the phrase quoted in the opening paragraph IN
describing the expedition to find and bring
back the bodies. In recent remarks in the
Senate, during which he received permission
to incorporate the names Of the Michigan men
in the Congressional Record Senator Vanden-
berg gave some background of the mission of
our soldiers in Russia In 1918 and 1919, in
part, as follows:
BACK upon this bleak, mysterious and in
scrutable World War front the lost graves Of
our martyred dead at last have been found
by oficial groups of their own faithful and
unforgetting buddies. Most of those brave boys
who last saw their country's flag upon strange
and unsupported battle lines in this Far North
Russian country were from Michigan. From
Michigan largely came the impulse which, after
10 years. has insisted that these honored dead
once more should know the Stars and Stripes
above their last, long home. The precious adj
venture has succeeded. Back to Michigan these
sons are coming home
There was little romance to soften the hard
detail Of duty Detailing these Polar Bears, as
they subsequently have become known upon
the obscure and dubious errand which our
World War strategy assigned to them. Tar, far
from the Western front. The more the honor
that Is due for faithful service rendered 1t
was desperate business amid the bitterest ex-
posture. It was patriotism under acid test"
THE historical facts Of the expedition to
- Russia may be sketched briefly, but among
rsAsadents Of the World War there Is sim dispute
a 10 the value Of the expedition. It win be
recalled that the 1917 revolution overthrow the
Gar and the monarchy In Russia, and that
after sanguinary internal conflicts Russia by
November, 1917, became q Communist State.
under Dictatorship of the pruletariat. Rus
STA early In 1918 made separate peace with
Germany, thereby dropping out Of the war Is
one Of the allies.
Confronted with this loss of Russia the
allied nations and the United States, which,
almost coincidental with the quitting Of Russia,
had entered the war on the allied side, had to
consider what the central powers might do in
Russia to use its vast resources. Even though it
subsequently became apparent that Russia would
not join Germany in the fighting the situa-
ton seemed to the allied and associated powers
to demand efforts to make that certain. Hence
the joint expeditions to North Russia and to
Siberia, in which American soldiers particle
pated.
The specific reasons for sending soldiers to
Russia were given as the necessity of guarding,
in the Northern port Of Archangel and the
Pacific port of Vladivostok, large quantities OF
military stores and Red Cross supplies sent to
Russia before it dropped out Of the war, and
to help about $4,000 Czech soldiers to leave
Russia.
The Czechs had deserted from Austria dur
ing the war, and as long as Russia was one Of
the allies, had fought with them against the
central powers. With Russia out Of the war
tLle Czechs started the long march from South
ern Russia through Siberia to the Pacific as the
most practicable way out. The allied nations
and the United States undertook to help them
by taking over stretch Of the Siberian Rail-