Evening star., 1929-11-17

The annual Armistice day ball, staged
by the District of Columbia Department,
Veterans of Foreign Wars, was declared
a success. Junior Vice Comdr. j. Allen
Praether was chairman Of the commit
tee. assisted by Past Department Comdr.
Joseph NJ Beattie, Harry j. Hooley and
others. One of the features OF the ball
was the parade of the massed colors OF
all posts to the music of the overseas
Military Band, Drum and Bugle Corps.
With the colors formed, there were 103
men in rank.
Past Department Adj. E. Laurence
Hazard was awarded a gold past adju-
tants badge as q feature of the Armis-
tice ball, in token of appreciation OF his
services during the term of office of
Past Department Comdr. Charles H.
Reilly.
Among the guests at the ball were
Gen. Frank T. Hines, director of the
Veterans Bureau, and Col. Earl ID.
Church, commissioner of pensions.
There is great interest in the race for
the gold medal to be awarded by De-
partment Comdr. Harvey L. Miller to
the individual v. F. w. member bring
ing in the most recruits from November
l to January 81, 1880. The medal will
be awarded to the winner at formal
dress parade of the Departmental Band
and Drum Corps. The Gen. Anton
post making the largest gain over the
same period of time.
The recruiting streamer to be award
ed annually and to be carried on the
post standards of the winning post in
recruiting will be awarded to the post
making the highest percentage of gain
from the 1929 department encampment
to the 1880 department encampment.
Preparations are being made for the
1880 national encampment in Bali.
more, on which occasion the District
of Columbia delegation hopes to set the
pace for every State in the Union IN
the matter of colorful attendance in the
annual v. F. w. national parade.
The Overseas Band and Drum Corps
will lead the parade to be staged from
Mount Rainier to Hyattsville December
z, celebrating the opening Of the new
boulevard.
Fifteen thousand Marines and Navy
men are eligible to the ranks Of the
Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United
States by action of the Bureau of Navi-
CATION, authorizing campaign badges fol-
those who served in Nicaragua during
the period of August 27, 1925, to July !,
1929.
The Veterans of Foreign Wars, as ar
organization open to all veterans who
have seen active service on the high
seas or on foreign shores, is the only
veteran outfit to which these men are
eligible.
Navy men who participated in the
Nicaraguan uprising must have been at
tached to the special service squadron
sent to Nicaragua for the protection OF
American interests to be eligible to the
v. F. w. This excludes those men who
merely made up the crews on transports
conveying personnel and supplies to the
scene of the fighting.
August 81. 1926, is recognized by the
Navy Department as the official date or
which occurred the first landing o1
United States naval forces in Nicara-
qua. AS the campaign is still off1cially
in progress it was recommended thai
the date marking the termination OF
the period for which these men will be
awarded badges be determined later.
The award has been authorized for al
officers and men of the Navy and Ma
rine Corps who served on shore ir
Nicaragua and to those assigned to duty
with the special squadron.
Beginning, May l, 1880, groups o.
mothers and widows of American deaC
buried in France will leave this country
on pilgrimageS to the graves of loved
ones, with all expenses paid by the Gov.
| ernment.
Names of those eligible to make the
| journey to France at Government ex.
pense, should be forwarded immediatel,
to Mai. Gen. B. r. Cheatan, Quarter.
master Corps, War Department, Wash.
| ington, D. c., or to Edwin s. Bethlehem