Evening Republican, Volume 22, Number 226, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 18 September 1919 — Conscience and Gun and Redhead Nerve [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

Conscience and Gun and Redhead Nerve

7 "Oh, the English and the Irish, and the ’owlln’ Scotties, too, The Canucks and Aiistrllee-uns, and the ’airy French pollu; The oply things that bothered us, a year before we knew, t Was ’ow in 'ell the Yanks *d look an wot in 'ell they’d do.” • • • “The leggy, nosy new 'uns. Just come acrosst the sea! We couldn’t ’elp but wonder ’ow in ’ell their guts’d be; An' the only thing that bothered us in all our staggerin’ ranks Was wot in ’ell would ’appen w’en the ’Uns ’ad ’it the Yanks. "My word, it ’appened sudden w’en the drive ’ad first begun. We seen the Yanks a-runnln’ —Gaw lllimy, 'ow they run! ■ But the only thing that bothered us that seen the chase begin Was ’ow in 'ell to stop ’em 'fore they got into Berlin. "They didn’t 'ave no tactics but the bloomin’ manual; They—’adu’t learned -no orders but 7 ■ ’Ooray’ and 'Give ’em ’ell!’ But the only thing that bothered us about them leggy, lads Was ’ow In ’ell to get the chow to feed their Kamerads.” . . . "Talk of the Greeks at Thermopylae! They fought like mad ’till the last was dead; But Alvin C. York of Tennessee Stayed cool to the end though his hair was red, . Stayed mountain cool, yet blazed that gray October the eighth as 'Redhead’s Day.’ ’’

By JOHN DICKINSON SHERMAN.

LVIN CULLUM YORK, corporal in Company G, Three Hundred and 'Twentyeighth infantry, Eighty-sec-ond (All-American) division, October 8, 1918, in the Meuse-Argonne battle, made his name a household word in every American home

where there Is fighting blood. What he did is briefly and concisely this: York was one of 16 Americans ordered to put out of action certain German machine guns over a ridge. In a cuplike valley they found 30 Huns, officers and men, apparently holding a conference. The Yanks opened fire Hn d the Huns surrendered. Then dozens of hidden machine gupju on the farther slope not 30 yards away opened up. Prisoners and Yanks threw themselves flat. Six Yanks were killed and three, including the sergeant in command, were wounded. .This left York and six privates. The six privates

were guarding the prisoners and could not help York. Directly in front of York lay some of the prisoners, so the machine gunners had to fire a little high. The stream of bullets cut off the bushes just above York’s head as clean as would a scythe. Then York got into action. With 17 shots from his rifle he killed 16 Huns, yelling between shots, ‘‘Surrender! Come down!" Then a lieutenant and seven men jumped up and charged him with bayonets from a distance of 20 yards. He killed all eight with his pistol. When the Huh lieutenant fell the machine gunners Quit firing; they couldn’t stand York’s shooting. York continued to pick off Huns. A major came to York from the prisoners and in English he said that he would make the machine gunners surrender if he would stop shootlug. York agreed and the gunners abandoned 36 machine guns, surrendered and came down. York and the six privates rounded up their prisoners, picked up the three wounded Yanks and started back for the American lines. York marched the majorJp front of him. The Yanks ran into several other machine gun nests from the rear, but after York had killed one Hun with his pistol all the others surrendered at the command of the major. When York reached the American lines his prisoners numbered 132, officers and men. When York’s exploit became known every detail was verified. He was made a sergeant and was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross and the Congressional Medal of Honor. When he arrived in New Ydrk recently the ci|y was his. Since then his fellow citizens have paid him honor at every opportunity. In Washington the house of representatives rose up and cheered him. Governor Roberts went up into the mountains and married him to Grace Williams, who had been waiting for him. Fortunes have been offered him to write tor the press and to go into the motion pictures and on the stage. York is generally spoken of as the “greatest hero of the war.” That is nonsense. He is also spoken of as the “bravest soldier of the war.” That is nonsense, too. York’s exploit is thrilling. But to the good American the most fascinating thing about it all fe the man hlm-

self. Here are some highlights on his individuality: He is a Tennessee mountaineer of unmixed English blood. He lives In a mountain shack, built a century ago by his great-great-great-grandfather. He is a blacksmith and farmer, and supports his widowed mother and his unmarried brothers and sisters. When younger he spent some of his time “a-drinkin’ an’ a-gamblin’ an’ a-hellin’ around." Then he joined the Church of Christ and Central Union, becoming second elder and leading the singing. The draft found him a conscientious objector, torn between patriotism and the belief that to fight and kill was sin. He compromised by going to Camp Gordon and frankly stating hie position. Captain Danforth succeeded in convincing him from the Bible that - “blessed is the peacemaker." So York went to France with a clear conscience to help make peace. His conscience is still at ease. Ho believes he was fighting for a sanctified cause. Also, he is still sure “Blessed is the peacemaker.” He is thirty-two, stands a little over six feet and weighs 205 pounds. He is redheaded. He is a dead shot with both rifle and pistol. He is the rare fighter who does not “see red,” but gets cooler and more efficient as the danger grows. His features are dear cut, not rugged. He has gray eyes, flecked with; brown. The expression of his face is one of kindly humor. His voice Ist pleasant, and even gentle for so largo a man. There is absolute sureness of self in his steady gaze. But—stir him to resentment, and his eyes harden and contract and into his gentle voles comes a trumpet-note of danger. He is genuinely religious. He prayed while he fought, and believes that God watched over him. . In all the honors showered upon him he has never lost his balance for one moment. He looked everybody in th eye, smiled his genial smile and kept his perspective. He is going back to his mountain; valley at Pall Mall Cross Roads and take up again the life for which he judges himself best fitted. Conscience arid gun and redhead nerve; efficiency* balance and modest self-respect • ' - - ■ . - Some American!