The Project Gutenberg eBook of HISTORY OF THE AMERICAN NEGRO IN THE GREAT WORLD WAR by W. ALLISON SWEENEY.

Dr. Thomas Jesse Jones, who went to France under the auspices of the Y.M.C.A., sent back the following account of the burial of a Negro soldier at sea:

"A colored soldier was buried at sea today. The flags on all the ships of the fleet have been at half-mast all day. It mattered not that the soldier came from a lowly cabin. It mattered not that his skin was black. He was a soldier in the army of the United States, and was on his way to fight for Democracy and Civilization.

"The announcement of his death was signalled to every commander and every ship prepared to do honor to the colored soldier. As the sun was setting the guard of honor, including all the officers from commander down, came to attention. The body of the Negro trooper wrapped in the American flag, was tenderly carried to the stern of the ship. The chaplain read the solemn burial service. The engines of the fleet were checked. The troop ship was stopped for the only time in the long trip from America to Europe. The bugle sounded Taps and the body of the American soldier was committed to the great ocean and to God.

"The comradeship of the solemn occasion was the comradeship of real Democracy. There was neither black nor white, North nor South, rich nor poor. All united in rendering honor to the Negro soldier who died in the service of humanity."

First Lieutenant George S. Robb of the 369th Infantry was cited for "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty" in action with the enemy near Sechault, September 29 and 30, 1918.

While leading his platoon in the assault at Sechault, Lieutenant Robb was severely wounded by machine gun fire, but rather than go to the rear for proper treatment, he remained with his platoon until ordered to the dressing station by his commanding officer. Returning within forty-five minutes, he remained on duty throughout the entire night, inspecting his lines and establishing outposts. Early the next morning he was again wounded, once again displaying remarkable devotion to duty by remaining in command of his platoon.

Later the same day a bursting shell added two more wounds, the same shell killing the captain and two other officers of his company. He then assumed command of the company and organized its position in the trenches. Displaying wonderful courage and tenacity at the critical times, he was the only officer of his battalion who advanced beyond the town and, by clearing machine gun and sniping posts, contributed largely to the aid of his battalion in holding its objective. His example of bravery and fortitude and his eagerness to continue with his mission despite the several wounds, set before the enlisted men of his command a most wonderful standard of morale and self-sacrifice. Lieutenant Robb lived at 308 S. 12th Street, Salina, Kansas.

Second Lieutenant Harry C. Sessions, Company I, 372nd Infantry, was cited for extraordinary heroism in action near Bussy Farm, September 29, 1918.

Although he was on duty in the rear, Lieutenant Sessions joined his battalion and was directed by his battalion commander to locate openings through the enemy's wire and attack positions. He hastened to the front and cut a large opening through the wire in the face of terrific machine gun fire. Just as his task was completed, he was so severely wounded that he had to be carried from the field. His gallant act cleared the way for the rush that captured enemy positions.

In August, 1918, back in the Champagne, a German raiding party captured a lieutenant and four privates belonging to the 369th Infantry, and was carrying them off when a lone Negro, Sergeant William Butler, a former elevator operator, made his presence known from a shell hole. He communicated with the lieutenant without the knowledge of the Germans and motioned to him to flee. The Lieutenant signalled to the four privates to make a run from the Germans. As they started Butler yelled, "Look out, you Bush Germans! Here we come," and he let go with his pistol. He killed one Boche officer and four privates, and his own men made good their escape. Later the German officer who had been in charge of this raiding party was captured and his written report was obtained. In it he said that he had been obliged to let his prisoners go because he was attacked by an "overwhelming number of blutlustige schwartzemaenner." The overwhelming number consisted of Elevator Operator Bill Butler alone.

September 30th the 3rd Battalion, of the 370th Infantry, composed of down-state Illinois boys from Springfield, Peoria, Danville and Metropolis, achieved a notable victory at Ferme de la Riviere. This battalion, under the brilliant leadership of Lieutenant Colonel Otis B. Duncan, made an advance of one kilometer against enemy machine gun nests and succeeded in silencing them, thereby allowing the line to advance. This battalion of the Illinois down-state boys succeeded in doing what, after three similar attempts by their French comrades in arms, had proven futile. During this engagement many were killed and wounded and many officers and men were cited and given decorations.

Company C, of the 370th, under the command of Captain James H. Smith, a Chicago letter-carrier, signally distinguished itself by storming and taking the town of Baume and capturing three pieces of field artillery. For this the whole company was cited and the captain was decorated with the Croix de Guerre and Palm.

Lieutenant Colonel Duncan, who has been attached to the office of State Superintendent of Public Instruction of Illinois for over twenty years, is one of the greatest heroes the Negroes of America have produced. He returned as the ranking colored officer in the American Expeditionary Forces. Instead of being merely an assistant Colonel, he was actively in command of one of the hardest fighting battalions in the regiment. He has been pronounced a man of native ability, an able tactician and of natural military genius.

Sergt. Norman Henry, 5127 Dearborn St., Chicago, attached to the 3d Machine Gun Company, 370th Infantry, won the Croix de Guerre and Distinguished Service Cross. It was in the Soissons sector September 30 in the first rush on the Hindenburg line.

All of the officers and men fell under a heavy machine gun barrage except two squads of which Sergeant Henry was left in command. They took two German dugouts and were cut off from their own line without food. They held the Germans off with one machine gun for three days. Often the gun became jammed, but they would take it apart and fix it before the enemy could get to them.

Lieut. Samuel S. Gordon, 3934 Indiana Avenue, Chicago, of the 370th Infantry, exposed himself to open machine gun fire for six hours and effected the rescue of two platoons which had been cut off by the barrage.

Company H had been badly cut up in a sudden burst of machine gun fire. Lieutenant Gordon with some men were rushed up to relieve what was left of the company, and while reconnoitering were cut off by the same fire. A stream of water four feet deep lay between them and their trenches. By standing in the stream, Lieutenant Gordon let the men crawl to the edge of the bank, where he lifted them across without their having to stand up and become targets.

Corporal Emile Laurent, 5302 So. Dearborn Street, Chicago, a member of the 370th Infantry, had a busy time dodging machine gun bullets one night near Soissons. Volunteering as a wire cutter, he crawled out with his lieutenant's automatic in one hand and the wire clippers in the other. Half a dozen machine guns were opened upon him as he sneaked along the terrain. "Never touched me," he would yell every time a chunk of steel parted his hair. He was out for three hours and cut a broad line through the charged wire. Then he crawled back without a mark on him.

Private Leroy Davis of the same regiment, won a decoration at the Aillette Canal for bringing a comrade back under machine gun fire. When he got back to his own lines he would not trust him with the ambulance outfit, but carried him three miles to the emergency dressing station and then he ran back to the canal to get even. This little stunt saved his comrade's life.

Praise for the American soldier comes from Charles M. Schwab, the eminent steel manufacturer, who was chosen by President Wilson to head the Emergency Fleet Cororation, and rendered such conspicuous service in that position. Returning in February, 1919, from a trip to Europe, Mr. Schwab said in an interview:

"I have come back with ten times the good opinion I had of our soldiers for the work they did. Everywhere I went I found that the American soldiers had left a good impression behind and there was nothing but the greatest praise for them.

"During the present voyage I have been among the colored troops on board and talked with them and learned what American soldiering has done for them. They are better men than they were when they went away."

CHAPTER XXIV.

THOSE WHO NEVER WILL RETURN.

A STUDY OF WAR—ITS COMPENSATIONS AND BENEFITS—ITS RAVAGES AND DEBASEMENTS—BURDENS FALL UPON THE WEAK—TOLL OF DISEASE—NEGROES SINGULARLY HEALTHY—NEGROES KILLED IN BATTLE—DEATHS FROM WOUNDS AND OTHER CAUSES—REMARKABLE PHYSICAL STAMINA OF RACE—HOUSEKEEPING IN KHAKI—HEALTHIEST WAR IN HISTORY—INCREASED REGARD FOR MOTHERS—AN IDEAL FOR CHILD MINDS—MORALE AND PROPAGANDA.

It has been said that war has its compensations no less than peace. This saying must have had reference largely to the material benefits accruing to the victors—the wealth gained from sacked cities, the territorial acquisitions and the increased prestige and prosperity of the winners. There is also an indirect compensation which can hardly be measured, but which is known to exist, in the increased courage inculcated, the banishment of fear, the strengthened sense of devotion, heroism and self-sacrifice, and all those principles of manliness and unselfishness which are inspired through war and react so beneficially on the morals of a race. There are some, however, who contend that these compensations do not overbalance the pain, the heart-rending, the horrors, brutalities and debasements which come from war. Viewed in the most favorable light, with all its glories, benefits and compensations, war is still far removed from an agreeable enterprise.

Like so many of the other material compensations of life, its benefits accrue to the strong while its burdens fall upon the weak. A contemplation of the maimed, the crippled and those stricken with disease, fails to engender anything but somber reflections.

Owing to the advancement of science, the triumph of knowledge over darkness, the late war through the unusual attention given to the physical fitness of the soldiers, probably conferred a boon in sending back a greater percentage of men physically improved than the toll of destroyed or deteriorated would show. Yet with all the improvement in medical and sanitary science, the fact remains that disease claimed more lives than bullets, bayonets, shrapnel or gas.

Negro soldiers in the war were singularly free from disease. Deaths from this cause were surprisingly few, the mortality being much lower than it would have been among the same men had there been no war. This was due to the general good behavior of the troops as testified to by so many commanding officers and others. The men observed discipline, kept within bounds and listened to the advice of those competent to give it.

Out of a total of between 40,000 and 45,000 Negro soldiers who went into battle or were exposed to the enemy's attack at some time, about 500 were killed in action. Between 150 and 200 died of wounds. Deaths from disease did not exceed 200 and from accident not over fifty. Those who were wounded and gassed amounted to about 4,000.

It speaks very highly for the medical and sanitary science of the army as well as for the physical stamina of a race, when less than 200 died out of a total of 4,000 wounded and gassed. The bulk of the battle casualties were in the 93rd Division.

The figures as given do not seem very large, yet it is a fact that the battle casualties of the American Negro forces engaged in the late war were not very far short of the entire battle casualties of the Spanish-American war. In that conflict the United States lost less than 1,000 men in battle.

While battle havoc and ravages from disease were terrible enough, and brought sadness to many firesides, and while thousands of survivors are doomed to go through life maimed, suffering or weakened, there is a brighter side to the picture. Evidences are plentiful that "housekeeping in khaki" was not unsuccessful.

According to a statement issued by the War Department early in 1919, the entire overseas army was coming back 18,000 tons heavier and huskier than when it went abroad. Many of the returning soldiers found that they literally burst through the clothing which they had left at home. Compared with the records taken at time of enlistment or induction into the draft forces, it is shown that the average increase in weight was twelve pounds to a man.

Improvement of course was due to the healthful physical development aided by the seemingly ceaseless flow of wholesome food directed into the training camps and to France. Secretary Baker was very proud of the result and stated that the late war had been the healthiest in history. The test he applied was in the number of deaths from disease. The best previous record, 25 per 1,000 per year was attained by the Germans in the Franco-Prussian war. Our record in the late war was only eight per 1,000 per year. The Medical Corps did heroic service in keeping germs away, but cooks, clothing designers and other agencies contributed largely in the making of bodies too healthy to permit germ lodgments.

The hell of war brought countless soldiers to the realization that no matter how much they believed they had loved their mothers, they had never fully appreciated how much she meant to them.

"I know, mother," cried one youth broken on the field, whose mother found him in a hospital, "that I began to see over there how thoughtless, indeed, almost brutal, I had always been. Somehow, in spite of my loving you, I just couldn't talk to you. Why, when I think how I used to close up like a clam every time you asked me anything about myself——" He broke off and with fervent humility kissed the hand in his own. "Please forget it all, mother," he whispered. "It's never going to be that way again. I found out over there—I knew what it was not to have anyone to tell things to—and now, why you've got to listen to me all the rest of your life, mother."

Angelo Patri, the new York schoolmaster who has been so successful in instilling ideals into the child mind has addressed himself to the children of today, they who will be the parents of tomorrow. His words are:

"Man has labored through the ages that you might be born free. Man has fought that you might live in peace. He has studied that you might have learning. He has left you the heritage of the ages that you might carry on.

"Ahead are the children of the next generation. It's on, on, you must be going. You, too, are torch-bearers of liberty. You, too, must take your place in the search for freedom, the quest for the Holy Grail. 'Twas for this you, the children of America were born, were educated. Fulfill your destiny."

Morale and propaganda received more attention in the late war than they ever did in any previous conflict. Before the end of the struggle the subject of morale was taken up and set apart as one of the highly specialized branches of the service. The specialists were designated as morale officers. They had many problems to meet and much smoothing over to do. In the army, an Americanism very soon attached to them and they became known as "fixers."

With respect to the Negro, the section of the War Department presided over by Emmett J. Scott was organized and conducted largely for purposes of morale and propaganda. Much of the work was connected with good American propaganda to counteract dangerous German propaganda.

It is now a known fact that the foe tried to lure the Negro from his allegiance by lies and false promises even after he had gone into the trenches. This has been attested to publicly by Dr. Robert R. Moton, the head of Tuskegee Institute, who went abroad at the invitation of President Wilson and Secretary Baker to ascertain the spirit of the Negro soldiers there.

Dr. Moton was told of the German propaganda and the brazen attempts made on members of the 92nd Division near Metz. He gave the following as a sample:

"To the colored soldiers of the United States Army.

"Hello, boys, what are you doing over there? Fighting the Germans? Why? Have they ever done you any harm?

"Do you enjoy the same rights as the white people do in America, the land of freedom and democracy, or are you not rather treated over there as second class citizens? And how about the law? Are lynchings and the most horrible crimes connected therewith a lawful proceeding in a democratic country?

"Now, all this is entirely different in Germany, where they do like colored people; where they treat them as gentlemen and not as second class citizens. They enjoy exactly the same privileges as white men, and quite a number of colored people have fine positions in business in Berlin and other German cities.

"Why then fight the Germans? Only for the benefit of the Wall street robbers and to protect the millions they have loaned the English, French and Italians?

"You have never seen Germany, so you are fools if you allow yourselves to hate us. Come over and see for yourselves. To carry a gun in this service is not an honor but a shame. Throw it away and come over to the German lines. You will find friends who will help you along."

Negro officers of the division told Dr. Moton this propaganda had no effect. He said the Negroes, especially those from the South, were anxious to return home, most of them imbued with the ambition to become useful, law-abiding citizens. Some, however, were apprehensive that they might not be received in a spirit of co-operation and racial good will. This anxiety arose mainly from accounts of increased lynchings and persistent rumors that the Ku Klux Clan was being revived in order, so the rumor ran, "to keep the Negro soldier in his place."

After voicing his disbelief in these rumors, Dr. Moton said:

"The result of this working together in these war activities brought the whites and Negroes into a more helpful relationship. It is the earnest desire of all Negroes that these helpful cooperating relationships shall continue."

In conversation with a morale officer the writer was told that the principal problem with the Negroes, especially after the selective draft, was in classifying them fairly and properly. Some were in every way healthy but unfit for soldiers. Others were of splendid intelligence and manifestly it was unjust to condemn them to the ranks when so many had excellent qualities for non-commissioned and commissioned grades. The Service of Supply solved the problem so far as the ignorant were concerned; all could serve in that branch.

The officer stated that the trouble with the War Department and with too many other people, is the tendency to treat Negroes as a homogeneous whole, which cannot be done. Some are densely ignorant and some are highly intelligent and well educated. In this officer's opinion, there is as much difference between different types of Negroes as there is between the educated white people and the uneducated mountaineers and poor whites of the South; or between the best whites of this and other countries and the totally ignorant peasants from the most oppressed nations of Europe.

In the early stages of the war, there was a great scarcity of non-commissioned officers—sergeants and corporals, those generals in embryo, upon whom so much depends in waging successful war. It was a great mistake in the opinion of this informant, and he stated that the view was shared by many other officers, to take men from white units to act as non-commissioned officers in Negro regiments, when there were available so many intelligent, capable Negroes serving in the ranks, who understood their people and would have delighted in filling the non-commissioned grades. He also thought the same criticism applied to selections for commissioned grades.

It is agreeable to note that such views rapidly gained ground. The excellent service of the old 8th Illinois demonstrated that colored officers are capable and trustworthy. An action and expression that will go far in furthering the view is that of Colonel William Hayward of the old 15th New York, who resigned command of the regiment which he organized and led to victory, soon after his return from the war. Like the great magnanimous, fair-minded man which he is and which helped to make him such a successful officer, he said that he could not remain at the head of the organization when there were so many capable Negroes who could and were entitled to fill its personnel of officers from colonel down. Colonel Hayward has been laboring to have the organization made a permanent one composed entirely of men of the Negro race. A portion of his expression on the subject follows:

"I earnestly hope that the state and city will not allow this splendid organization to pass entirely out of existence, but will rebuild around the nucleus of these men and their flags from which hang the Croix de Guerre, a 15th New York to which their children and grandchildren will belong; an organization with a home of its own in a big, modern armory. This should be a social center for the colored citizens of New York, and the regiment should be an inspiration to them. It should be officered throughout by colored men, though I and every other white officer who fought with the old 15th will be glad and proud to act in an honorary or advisory capacity. Let the old 15th 'carry on' as our British comrades phrase it."

It is to be hoped that we never have another war. Nevertheless these Negro military organizations should be kept up for their effect upon the spirit of the race. If they are ever needed again, let us hope that by that time, the confidence of the military authorities in Negro ability, will have so gained that they will coincide with Colonel Hayward's view regarding Negro officers for Negro units.