Legion in Louisville

Negroes from North Carolina, coal miners from Indiana, a detachment from the Chicago Board of Trade, another composed of Oklahoma Indians, a mud-covered dozen of doughboys from Chattanooga (advertising war's discomfort), these and others to the number of 35,000 marched and countermarched last week in Louisville, Ky. at the American Legion's eleventh annual convention, a record-breaker both for spectators and for excitement.

Sergeant Samuel Woodfill received a decoration from the Polish Government to the joy of his fellow Hoosiers, who agree with General Pershing that he was "the greatest hero of the A. E. F.," outshining even Tennessee's potent Sergeant Alvin York.

Major O. Lee Bodenhamer of Arkansas was elected the Legion's new Commander, to succeed Paul Vories McNutt of Bloomington, Ind. The Bodenhamer election came by acclamation, without a rollcall, when Albert L. Cox of North Carolina, his chief rival, jumped up and did the nominating himself.

Commander Bodenhamer was born in Texas. He used to teach English and coach athletics at Southwest Texas State Teachers College (San Marcos, Tex.).

Now he is in realty at El Dorado, Ark., where he is president of the Chamber of Commerce, a 39-year-old booster-bachelor. Accepting his new office, he cried: "I should hold high and keep clean the banner ... !"

The question raised by Los Angeles boosters, trying to get the 1930 convention for their city, was: "Orange juice or beans?" But Boston won, 742 votes to 400.

At various sessions, the Legionaires:

P: Heard a committee report advocating a Department of Aeronautics in the Federal Government.

P: Heard Rear-Admiral Hugh Rodman, U. S. N. retired, say: "There is little or no use in having an inferior navy. You might just as well expect a lame mule to win the Kentucky Derby. . . .

"So far as I am aware, we are still putting lightning rods on churches. . . .

"Faith, hope and parity. And the greatest of these is parity." P: Passed a resolution "demanding" that the U. S. Senate, in view of its quizzing of Big-Navy Propagandist Shearer (see p. 14), investigate also the lobbying of such organizations as the Federal Council of Churches.