"My Experiences"

Of the great commanders on the Western Front, Death has come to Foch and Joffre of France, French and Haig of Britain. Petain remains as military chief

..." of the French War Council. Ludendorff, the genius who made Hindenburg famous, sulks in retirement, slightly off his mental balance. Pershing, now a civilian, has turned to letters. Last week in 157 newspapers through out the world began "My Experiences In the World War" by General John Joseph ("Black Jack") Pershing, profitably syndicated by the North American Newspaper Alliance. In careful, undramatic style the Commander-in-Chief of the American Expeditionary Forces detailed his work of building up in France a U. S. Army of nearly one million men and his use of it to bring Allied success. What was awaited as of the largest historical importance was General Pershing's account of his struggle to preserve the national entity of U. S. forces against the persistent efforts of French and British army chiefs to absorb them into their commands.

P: Major-General Pershing's first inkling of overseas service came in a telegram from his father-in-law, the late Senator Warren of Wyoming, asking if he knew French. Son-in-law Pershing wired back the "comparatively accurate" response that he once knew and spoke the language and could easily "reacquire" it. Not for days after he reached Washington did it dawn on him that he was being made, not a divisional commander, but chief of the whole A. E. F.

P: The Army's unpreparedness for war "chagrined" the new chief. Said he: "Through a false notion of neutrality which had prevented practically all previous preparation, a favorable opportunity to assist the Allies was lost, the war was prolonged another year and the losses of human life were tremendously increased. . . . The War Department seemed to be suffering from a kind of inertia. . . . The War Department was face to face with the question of sending an army to Europe and found that the General Staff had never considered such a thing. No one in authority had any definite idea how many men might be needed, how they should be organized or equipped nor where the tonnage to transport and supply them was to come from. ... To find such a lack of foresight on the part of the General Staff was not calculated to inspire confidence in its ability. . . ."

P: Pershing's inventory of U. S. military equipment when he took command: 285,000 Springfield rifles which had to be discarded; 1,500 machine guns; 400 pieces of field artillery; 150 heavy guns; ammunition enough for nine hours barrage fire; 55 training airplanes; 35 officers who could fly.

P: Everybody, it seemed, wanted to go abroad with General Pershing. Theodore Roosevelt asked him to take as privates his sons Theodore Jr. and Archibald, adding: "If I were physically fit, instead of old and heavy and stiff, I should myself ask to go under you in any capacity down to and including a sergeant; but I suppose I could not do work you would consider worth while in the fighting line (my only line) in a lower grade than brigade commander."

P: Before General Pershing sailed for England, Britain and France were already begging for raw U. S. manpower to fill their lines. Britain alone wanted 500,000 recruits to train for her own use. Pleased indeed was the A. E. F. commander to receive from Secretary of War Baker instructions that "the forces of the U. S. are a separate and distinct component, the identity of which must be preserved." Upon those orders General Pershing stubbornly stood throughout a year's wrangling with foreign war chiefs.

P: After a luncheon at Buckingham Palace, King George led General Pershing to a window below which was a flower garden "producing potatoes." Writes the A. E. F. chief:

"His Majesty spoke bitterly of the inhumanity of the Germans, dwelling especially on the night bombing of London. Pointing to the beautiful statue of Queen Victoria just outside the window, the King suddenly exclaimed:

" 'The Kaiser, God damn him, has even tried to destroy the statue of his own grandmother.'

"For a moment I was surprised at his words, but I quickly realized that it was a solemn expression of profound indignation, and not profanity."

P: At Les Invalides in Paris, according to General Pershing, Napoleon's sword was "reverently removed from the case and offered to me as if to transmit some of the genius of the great captain."

The Pershing narrative did not fail to stir up old controversies. First to object was Major General Hugh Lenox Scott, retired. Chief of Staff when General Pershing took command. He insisted the War Department had done "everything possible to do at that time." He related how Congress had jeered at him the year before because he requested a million men. As an illustration of how little comprehension men had then of what lay ahead, General Scott declared: "I remember General Pershing asking if I thought it possible for him to get a Cadillac touring car for his personal use in France. I told him to go out and buy ten for himself and staff. I would now have said 100."*

*In France, General Pershing rode mostly in a big brown Locomobile limousine with double rear wheels.

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