Evening star., 1945-02-19
Brig. Gen. SiIvehhorn
Wins Legion Of Merit
For Guam Operation

Brig. Gen. Merwin H. Silverthon,
Marine Corps, chief Of staif to the
commanding general Of the Sd Am
phibious Corps, recently was pre-
sented with the Legion of Merit for
his help in planning the capture Of
Guam, the Marine Corps announced
today.
Gen. Silverthorn, 48. "skilfully and
effectively o-ordinated all general
and staff details" the citation
stated. He recently won the Silver
Star with Cluster, and also holds
the Navy Cross, the Army Distin-
guished Service Cross and Purple
Heart.
His wife, Mrs. Marie A. Silver
thorn, and youngest son, Robert,
live at 4711 Dover road. Two other
sons. Capt. Merwin Silverthorn and
Second 1t. Russell Silverthorn, are
in the Marine Corps.
Mai. Gen. Robert NJ. Webster,
commander Of the 18th Air Force.
has been awarded the Distinguished
Service Medal, according to an As
sociated Press dispatch from Rome.
He was cited previously as COM
manding general Of the 42d Bonn
bardment Wing for directing the
operations of medium bombers dur
ing the march on Rome. He also
received the Legion OF Merit for es-
tablishing the air base at Sardinia
for operations against the Germans.
He and his wife, Mrs. Flora Web
ster, live at 1000 Cathedral avenue
NV. They have two sons, Roland, a
student at Western High School, and
Robert NJ, first-classman at West
Point.
Col. Nels H. Nelson, ~, Marine
Corps, signal officer of the Sd AM
phibious Corps, was awarded the
Legion of Merit for salvaging and
repairing Sufficient material to
fulfill the initial communication re-
quirements" after much equipment
was lost during the early phases Of
fighting on Guam.
He made continuous trips to the
fighting front to inspect, supervise
and coordinate signal activities, u
the accompanying citation said.
Col. Nelson lives with his wife and
Mary Ann, at 1924 Thirty
ninth place NV.
Capt. Ernest E. Hermann, 48, U.
S. NJ, of 1896 Twenty-eighth street
NV, received the Legion Of Merit
for superb leadership" as COM
officer of q cruiser as
signed to a task unit covering the
of warships from jap
anese waters, the Navy Department
today.
Handicapped by darkness and
continuous enemy air attack, the
citation said, Capt. Hermann fought
his ship gallantly, and contributed
greatly to the successful withdrawal
of valuable combatant vessels to
safety.
Capt. Clinton A. Mission. Al, U. S.
NJ, of 3401 Fulton street NV, won
the Legion of Merit for keen re-
sourcefulness and expert profess
sional ability" while comanding a
transport division during the
assault on an enemy
held island in the Pacific last June.
According to the citation, he
1abored tirelessly throughout the
planning phase OF the assault opera
lions and, by his fine grasp Of the
tactical situation, effected an ex-
oeditious landing Of the combat
,eam embarked in, ships Of his
iivision." II
Col. Walter A. Wachtler, Marine
Corps, assistant chief of staff Of the
Sd Amphibious Corps, was awarded
a Gold Star in lieu Of a second
Legion Of Merit for his supervision
Of training prior to the Guam opera
ton, which welded the entire land
ing force into an efficient military
unit"
He demonstrated superior knowl-
edge of tactics and understood fully
the many requirements of modern
warfare" the citation stated. His
wife. Mrs. Leila c. Wachtler, lives
at 1901 Connecticut avenue NV.
1t. Col. Justice M. Chambers, Ma
rine Corps, recently was presented
with the Legion of Merit for his
work as commander Of a 4th Marine
Division infantry battalion on Sal
pan and Tinian.
Col. Chambers. whose wife, Jo-
hanna, and three children live at
$50 Quebec place NV, also wears
the Silver Star and Purple Heart
with Gold Star for wounds sustained
on Tulagi and Saipan.
1t. James E. Ball III, "a, infantry,