Evening star., 1937-08-01
BY COL. FREDERICK PALMER,

BY COL. FREDERICK PALMER,
Author OF Our Gallant Madness" Etc.
7 AFAYETTE, they, too, will be
there. The dead. sleeping si-
lently under 6 feet of earth,
- will be present at today's stir
ring ceremonies at Montfaucon
Do not forget that-when you hear
over the radio, or read in tomorrow
mornings paper. the address by the
President of France and the broad
cast from the White House. when the
l75-foot monument that towers over
the largest of our soldier cemeteries
in France is formally dedicated to
commemorate the services and sacri-
fees Of the American troops in the
Meuse -Argonne battle
During the rest of the Summer, un-
der Gen. Pershing's eye. the memo
riAls of Na1H~ other battlef1elds. from
ST. Ntihiel into Belgium. will be dedi-
Gated. Distinguished guests will find
that all is ready for the official tribute
to valor and victory. They will see
monuments Of enduring stone in We'll
Handicapped parks, look out on fields
OF white crosses Of enduring stone
the Star of David for the Jews) set
in greensward
All the crosses are alike, the same
distance apart. in rows of perfect
alignment. All care has been taken
except to assure that another Euro
pean war shall not spread into France
to make the scene Of the long sleep
of the men under the white crosses
quietly peaceful. 1t is in unforgettab BILE
contrast with the last scene that they
knew on earth: the shell-torn ground,
the roar of gun blasts, the undertone
of hoarse commands. and then, Hes
got it!"-as he got his future white
cross.
"White Cross Summer"
The dedications might warrant call
ing this the White Cross Summer
They might point the way to nation
al White Cross day on which. unlike
Memorial day, we would honor only
the memory of men killed in battle.
But the men under the white crosses
in France will not know this. They
will not see the flowers on their graves
or hear the orators sound their praises
unless they look down from their
Valhalla.
Monuments and crosses Of stone out
OF quarries and the flesh of youth
always Of youth! For the men under
the white crosses were killed in the
full tide of youths ardor.
The story OF today's dedication real
ly began more than 20 years ago when
youth stood in line at the training
camps. Behind them was the war
emotion OF a nation in mad, impetu-
Gus haste-a nation unprepared and
without ships. Their bodies and
minds-as it must be in war-were
surrendered to the goad and spur
and stern regime of military COM
mand.
The -toughened, war-wise old
hands in Europe, in the prestige of
their scars, said Americans never could
be trained in time to be Of any use
against German veterans. But there
we were in the trenches winning our
first white crosses of death; and then
under the fire of Montsec we earned
more of them.
In the great crisis of the German
drives of 1918 our soldiers earned a
spatter of white crosses near the little
village of Cantigny-our first of1en-
sive. We stood fast, back Of Chateau
Thierry, on the Paris road, while the
people were evacuating the French
capital
We stormed Belleau Wood. A lot
more white crosses The Allies were
in ecstasy. We were the .saviors.
Our people at home thrilled with
pride at the news-news that Ameri-
can youth had not forgotten how to
be brave since Gettysburg and San
Juan Hill.
In immortal stonewalling and in
itiative we made good on our own
"They shall not pass" We threw
the fifth German offensive back across
the Marne And at last Paris breathed
freely again. Then we put our weight
into the closing OF the deep Marne
salient, and finally turned the tide
against the enemy. But that fighting
resulted in the second largest field OF
white crosses in France. The tourist
may see it at Fere-en- -Tardenois, be-
yond Belleau Wood from Paris.
When the old European war hands
saw how good the first Americans
we're they cried for more of us "You
shall have more and more until we
win this war" answered America in
the white heat of determination, driv-
ing the throb of its mighty energy
across the Atlantic.
Since we were so willing, 20 ambi-