Evening star., 1944-03-12


be looking at Gen. Clark's ribbons
When the citation ended, the
general stepped forward and put
the Medal of Honor, with its blue
neckpiece, about Sergt. Kelly's neck
Your kind of men make the 5th
Army tick" the general said.
Thank you, sir, said the sergeant
Then he saluted and marched
over to the side.
Everybody watched Sergt. Kelly
because everybody, from his CON-
mander on down, thinks the little
145-pound sergeant. who stands 5
feet inches, is what you mean
when you say "guts"
Sergt Kelly, who used to work in
a Pittsburgh bottling works, got of
to a bad start soon after he en-
listed. He went over the hill for
18 days and was invited to leave
his parachute outfit.
Then he slipped again. Maybe it
was his mother, Mrs. Irene Kelly
who has six other sons in the serv-
ices, that he wanted to see. Maybe
it was Miss Mae Connelley, who
lives q few doors away in Pitts.
burgh Anyway, Sergt. Kelly went
AWOL again, for 10 days this time.
He spent little time in confine-
ment for that.
Then He Went Overseas.
Soon afterward he was sent over
seas and it wasn't long before he
was storming beaches.
Sergt. Kelly began killing Ger
mans September 9, 1943, when he
went ashore and began an almost
fantastic series of exploits. He
went all over the initial beachhead
area as a volunteer scout patrol
leader under the greater weight of
German shelling, mortar and ma
chine-gun fire. Three times he vol
mteered with patrols assigned to
destroy machine nests.
Sergt. Kelly ran out of ammuni-
ton for his automatic rife while
withdrawing through Altaville. He
crawled through enemy positions
and heavy fire to get some more
and then stood guard over the am
munition storehouse all night. Ir
1.-The morning he began picking of
the enemy from window. He
burned out four automatic rifles anl
used up all the ammunition in the
dump. One of his men was killed
during this fighting and severa
were wounded
Used Shells Like Grenades.
When the rifle ammunition was
gone, he pulled the pins from &C
millimeter mortar shells anC
dropped them from the window onto
the Germans like hand grenades
One shell killed five Germans.
The enemy kept moving in or
the storehouSe. however. and the
detachment decided to evacuate. Ur
stepped Sergt. Kelly, volunteering to
hold his position at the window anc
cover the withdrawal.
AS the detachment moved away
Its members saw Sergt. Kelly
methodicaly loading a bazooka anc
blazing away out the window Wher
he had fired the last bazooka shell
he slipped outside and found ar
antitank gun which he turned or
the Germans.
Somehow, Sergt. Kelly got bach
TO his company. He went along w
through Italy, took part in tn,
bloody. futile crossing of the Rapidt
in January and came back un.
scathed
You had TO believe Sergt. Kelly
when he said after today's cere'
mony
Il don't give a damn about al
this. Sure killed 40 Germans
But all these medals will be jus
lot of brass after the war
After the war" he went on. :"
want to travel-in the United States
If l ever get back there they'll
never get me out again I don
want another damned thing bu
that
Says What He Thinks.
Sergt. Kelly always says what h
thinks. He doesn't cushion anythln
and he has no false notions or in
hibitions.
Asked if he smoked, he said: Nc
but l chew"
His commanders swear by hin
and Capt. Marion p. Bowden Q
Belton. Tex, who brought him over
seas, said:
Hes my idea Of a soldier I'd lik
to have whole battalion like him.
Capt. John C. Morrisey of S
Louis declared that nothing worrie
that boy. He's okay."
Their eyes were shining as the
saw Sergt. Kelly have his day.
Asked If he got the scar on hi
nose in combat, Sergt. Kelly didn
hesitate minute:
Nav. got hit with a knife in
fight at home
Eerpf Cvnlldei uybn rny, bis Dis