Phillips Exeter Academy - PEAN Yearbook (Exeter, NH)

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t, 4xQ 2 -0' QNX 'N 1 5 1 ,c D , . ., X 1 1 0 NQXX A i ...M X e Exeter Men in thelGreat War HE clash of arms, the roar of battle, the screech of shells, -these and all similar con- eomitants of gory war have been stillcd for some sixmonths. Now we are engulfed in the terrible backwash of a mighty struggle, we are battling to stabilize the world so nearly disrupted in these past terrible years. At this moment the greatest intellects of modern times are associated in the stupendous task of gathering up the tangled ends of the skein of national life and ol' weaving them into a fabric of right, justice, democracy, and enduring peace. It is a monumental task and one fraught with momentous consequences to the world at large. To those Iilxonians who helped make possible the initiation of this tremendous project of a new world order, it is meet that we pay some small tribute - a tribute, were it tendered by the greatest orator or the noblest poet, were all too weak fittingly to express the depth of our love of our grati- tude and of our unbounded admiration for the way in which their strong hearts and keen minds answered the eall to arms and yielded up on the altars of their country whatever sacrifice was demanded of them. To review those first few frightened weeks that immediately followed the outbreak of the war in Europe is unnecessary for us all who are so well acquainted with the history'of those stirring days. We on this side of the Atlantic maintained a calm aloofness, a dignified reserve which set us apart from Cwhat it seemed to us at the timej merely a reiteration of the centuries old domestic struggle which has continually rent the old world since the days of Caesar in Gaul. But there were some among us even then who were quick to discern the issues involved and who were eager to throw the weight of their lives in the balance that right 'and democracy might prevail. Among those pioneers in the cause from a nation unmoved as yet from the lethargy of peace, Exeter numbers some of her bravest and most illustrious sons. 'l'hc rosters of the Foreign Legion and of the French Army, of the Royal Field Artillery and of the Royal Flying Corps, of the Cana- dian Expeditionary Forces, the French Ambulance Corps, the Red Cross and kindred organiza- tions bear most eloquent testimony to service performed by lflxetcr men when the war was yet young. Records of their service, as yet incomplete, are nevertheless sullicient to show the undy- ing courage that inspired their heroic deeds. Among them we find the names of Florence .l. Price, '01, killed in action at Ypres, May, 1016, llenry 141. M. Sucklcy, '06, of theAmericanAmbu- lance Field Service, killed near Salonica, Harry A. Butters, '00, killed in action, August 31, 1016, Oliver M. Chadwick, '07, killed in action, August 14, 1017, Edwin C. Parsons, '10, American ace, member of the famous,Lafayette and Stork lilsearlrillesg John ll. MacVeagh, '11, liritish Field Artillery, Appleton 'l'. Miles, '12, Ambulance Corps, Frank Fitzsimons, of the American Ambu- lance, Arthur liluethenthal, '00, American Ambulance Service, later transferred to French Avia- tion, Foreign Legion, killed in action, June 7, 1018, these are but a few, but they are typical and characteristic of lCxeter's contribution to the war. The following list indicates the decorations received by those who were in at the first: Henry E. M. Suckley, '06, Croix de Cuerre, John ll. MacVeagh, '11, Croix de Cucrre tliighest elassjg Appleton 'l'. Miles, '12, Croix de Cuerre, with Palm, Arthur liluethenthal, '00, Croix de Cuerreg Norman C. Lee, '16, Medaille Militaire, Oliver M. Chadwick, '07, Medal of Aero Club of America, 12

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x , x4 -1' ii Ns 'g fi Ns fi , , ,, X 1 , . 1 U ' t . f 'lk .4 Q ' ' 4 ful, i71id 7 it ni! N332-XELFY sitgwqtgisaafacxtixwrfevsifki aeexiiggg .-Gifs.-qw f w -1 H x X i- . 4 i. wife' . . .1 -as-v-GN. f. a-fee-tee. ,.-X-:lasts-st t. -1atvsstaiwsz,rxsassssa-1Q1-s.ta:w:..Mi Wie? Edwin C. Parsons, '10, Croix de Cuerrc, with Nine Palms, Medaille Militaire, Cross of Legion of Honor, Cross of Leopold. This is the b1'illiant reco1'd of the vanguard of Exonians whom the zest f or adventure and the desire to serve a lnunane civilization against a cultured barbarism wrested from peaceful lives of comfort and pleasure, and subjected them to the terrific ordeal of a modern war. To them it was a wonderful opportunity to donate to a glorious cause the greatest gift within their power: no man hath greater love than this, that he lay down his life for another g this they did, and to them belongs all praise and honor. In a letter from one of the early volun- teers this passage occurs: - . . . Don't think for a minute that 1 won't do everything l can to live - 1 love life - but my life does not new belong to me. lt belongs to France -- to the Allies - to the cause for which I have pledged myself till the war is over and won ..... - And if l shouldn't come back I want you not to feel badly about it. I am glad l have the chance to live in times like these and to do my bit for the future of the world - for a world that my family is going to be able to live in peace and happiness, because there will be no more war . . And if l Slltlllltlllili ever see you again, remember not to be sorry but glad and proud of me ....... mis is a funny way for me to write, isn't it? But I am a lot more serious over here than I was at home. Here we face every day the stern facts of life and death and we are not afraid. lt's hard to explain the way we feel about it all, about France - we who volunteered to fight for her before our own country was not too proud to fight. Alan Seegar, who was in the Foreign Legion, our regiment, summed it all up in his 'Ode to the Volunteers' fallen for France- the following verse -- H Ylwl 'Yet sought they neither recompense nor praise, Nor to be mentioned in another breath 3 Than their blue-coated comrades whose great days It was their pride to share - ave, Share even unto the death. N : rather France to ou the rendered thanks Y J I Y Seeing they came for honor nel. for gain, ,- Who opening to them your glorious ranks, Gave them that grand occasion to excel, That chance to live the life most free from stain And that rare privilege of dying well.' When finally the United States entered the war Exeter's sons hastened to be foremost in offering their services to the government. They helped to swell the ranks of the R.. 0. T. C., in camp and college, making the most of opportunities to fit themselves for trained service. Others, more impetuous and restless at the thought of delay, enlisted in the ranks of the army and navy as privates, speedily winning advancement in recognition of their efficient service. Several Exeter men were attending Annapolis and West Point. ln the Red Cross and Y. M. C. A. work, in hospitals at home and abroad, Exeter men' served in all branches of service that forwarded the 13