ARMY & NAVY: My Experiences

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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.

¶ 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.

¶ 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. . . ."

¶ 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.

¶ 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."