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Show THE r j--rr hie Atoioan LEGION (Copy for Tht Department Supplied by the American Laon News Barvloa.) "FIGHTING JOE" IS NATIONAL CHAPLAIN -- righting Joe" la the title which fcas been bestowed by general consent an Rev. Joseph Lonergaa of Durand, 111., recently elected national chaplain of the American Legion. And the title It has a Is not airy tinsel, either. toackgrouud. For It harks back to kid days when as a boy with two fists who knew how to use them and Father Joe sometimes found employment for them In ways other than earning money by working on railroad tracks to go to college. The story goes back to the time when he was a famous footbaU star, "the miracle halfback" t St. Viator's college. The nickname recalls a baseball career culminating In a batting average for his last year of .448, rather a big league average. It carries a picture of Father Joe, the ecclesiastical student at Montreal, tying up his priestly soutane above bis knees and sliding bases like Ty Cobb. It Is reminiscent of the young priest at Aurora, 111, who appeared In the pulpit one day with a bulging black eye fruit of too strenuous endeavors to show x , P:: A;: . - f . ar , ' ' : ' ri Rev. Joseph Lonergan. In the school league bis he organized how to take 'em hot off the bat. Then comes the time when Father Joe took up his work with the Eighty-sixt- h division organizing at Camp Grant. He was without military status and without salary, but he carried on. While there he lectured to all officers at Camp Grant on the necessity of religion. Shortly afterward he got a commission as first lieutenant chaplain, and began his extraordinary activity in the fighting game. It was he who spoke at Camp Grant's greatest day, July 4, 1918, when he addressed 50,000 of the division gathered there. A sentence stood out, which was flashed over the country: A man never became a man until be got a good punch on the Dose." Then the Argonne and the Vosges. Father Joe says that when the shooting was close he became Dugout Joe, but the boys don't say that. They, think he's all man. The chaplain reorganized a hand for the Twelfth engineers, "the band with a personality,' chosen by the French mission to accompany them when they took over Alsare and Rtrassburg from the Germans. He was transferred to the Ninetieth division and remained with them until he was discharged. Membership In the American Legion followed soon and then his election as department chaplain for Illinois In 1022. In 1024 he was unanimously named notional chaplain. That's the story of "Flghtln' Joe" Lonergan. wheae record at the front with the men end red him to all veterans and makes hlra a very popular "padre." eighth-grader- s Legion Posts Aim to Cut Down Fire Lost The source of America's largest and most preventable waste la fires, and American Legion posts and departments throughout the country are taking up the problem with sn aim to appreciably cut down the loss annually of millions of dollars from fire," declared Legionnaire J. II. Dulaney. He and W. 8. Atkinson are heading the department of Oklahoma's move for fire prevention. Both are leaders In the Oklahoma Fire Prevention association. The American Legion, department of California, has been active In fire prevention In the redwood forests on the coast the past year. Prix or Student It's time to reward the studious lad with the bulging cerebrum, as well as the campus hero of bulging blrrpe, decided the A. A. Mountain pot of the American legion of MrMechen, W. Va. Accordingly, they offered a substantial rash prize to the high school student whose scholarship record Is best durtnj the year. NEPHI, UTAH TIMES-NEWS- , HOW GREAT MEN MAKE LOVE EDUCATION WEEK HERE is no record In his-"p 1 tory of a military organ ization manifesting such an In terest In the themes of peace and there has never before been such an expression on the part of a military organization of a consciousness of the importance of universal education as a guarantee of the safety and perpetuity of our democracy, aa has been displayed by the American Legion," was the declaration of Vernon M. Rlegel, director of education, state of Ohio, In congratulating the Legion as having been responsible for the Inauguration and promotion of American Education week. The Lewith nagion in tional agencies Introduced American' Education week In 1921. The week has been observed annually since then by Presidential proclamation. MANY POSTS AFTER MEMBERSHIP HONORS American Legion posts throughout the nation have been extremely active for some weeks In signing up members In advance for 1925, according to Frank E. Samuel, national director of organization and membership. Posts have been tumbling over themselves to claim honors for early membership returns. Never before has there been such a contest and such a scramble for recognition In this work, it Is declared. First dues for 1925 were received by national headquarters from Joe Williams post at Farmer City, HI., which had signed up 14 men for 1925 by the first of October. The first post In the country to sign up more members for 1925 than it had had In 1924 and to send the dues to national headquarters was Victor Cornell post, Pell-ca- n Rapids, Minn. Fowler post. Fowler, Ind., the home post of Thomas S. McConnell, department commander for 1925, was a close second. Other posts which were among the first to go over the top In this hot contest were Pulaski post, Detroit, Mich., and Roy Cole post. Grand Ledge, Mich. The Florida and Connecticut departments are staging a contest to see which will have the larger percentage of 1524 membership signed up for 1925 by the time the bells ring out on New Tear's eve. Florida suggests that the losing department buy the delegates and alternates of the winning outfit a big dinner at the Omaha convention of the Legion next year. Florida appears to be looking for won something. That department only three of the big Legion prizes offered at the 1924 convention. They carried home the trophies for the largest percentage of membership signed up by March 1 over the preceding year's membership, for the largest percentage signed up for the year over the preceding year's total and that for the largest .number of man miles traveled to the national convention at St. Paul. Florida surely basked In the limelight. Colorado, Utah and Wyoming are mixing things in a little friendly rivalry. Western style. The winner Is to be the department which signs up for 1925 the largest percentage of Its 1924 membership and will receive a stand of department colors presented by the losers. Organized German Labor and Escort Companies Do you know who directed the destiny of the German prisoners of war taken by American troops during the late fuss abroad? Ills name and title Is Lieut. Col. William Rrlswold Gough, at present deputy county surveyor of San Diego county and a member of the San Diego post of the American Colonel Gough Is a veteran Legion. of the Mexican border trouble, enlistWhen the ing In the army In 191(1. World war Included the United States he was sent to France with the commission of captain. With the Fifteenth Held artillery he was wounded In action and then was placed on the general staff, where he took complete departcharge of the prisoner-of-wa- r ment of the A. K. F., and In that capacity organized the German labor and escort companies. THE Trying to Get Station CLOIDN'S CHRISTMAS T-A AS REVEALED BY THEIR LOVE LETTERS By JOSEPH KAYE 0 by Wneeler Byodicma. Inc.) By Mary Graham Bonner (. 1924, GOV. JOHN WINTHROP AND MARGARET WINTHROP Wwtim Nawapapar Union.) OR TEARS he had been funny. For years he had painted his face, worn funny clothes and had made Jokes. He had traveled first of all In this country with a road circus. Then, when the road circus was going out of business, more or less, he Joined a road circus abroad. And now he was very old. But every afternoon and every night for ten months of the year he made Jokes. He was in a small circus, too, so sometimes he had to take other se parts. The performing fox terriers acted with him. They were his pets. And how he loved them. How could some people be unkind to their petsT Not the old clown. There was the donkey, too. When he paid too much attention to the dogs the donkey came along and gave him a push to tell him that the donkey, too, wanted some attention. And now he had planned to have a holiday. A long holiday. He would take a little place and with his donkey and his fox terriers they would rest after their work. They would not Join the circus another year. They were all old. How tired he had ' become after some of the performances that year. He had washed his face in the basin " OV. JOHN WINTHROP was a Englishman who was appointed governor of Massachusetts and upon whose principles largely the commonwealth of Massachusetts was established. The correspondence he left shows that he was as loving a husband as he was a wise leader, and both the governor's letters and those of his wife preserve la a elianniug manner the tenderness of their love for each other. "My deare Husband," wrote Mrs. Wlnthrop, "I know not how to my love to thee or my desyres of thy wished wellfayre, but my hart Is well knowne to thee, which will make relation of my affections, though they may be smalle In appearance; my thoughts are nowe on our great change and alteration of our corse heure, which I beseech the Lord to blesse us Husband che.re In, & my good up thy hart In the expectation of God's poodnesse to us, & let nothing dismaye or discourage thee; If the Lord be with us, who can be against us : my greefe Is the feare of staylnge behlnde thee, bu I must leave all to the goode provldence of God. I thank the Lord we are all' I A REAL SANTA CLAUS here In reasonable goode health. I received a letter since you went from INCE we must have our my sonne John, which brout goode Christmas trees the chief nrnKluni la hno thov nro tn Nuse from Nue E. : I praye thank him for it, I will rite to him If I have be obtained. The cutting, 'ship- & ping and selling of Christmas time, & thus with my best respect to S trees has developed Into an estab- thyeselfe, brother and .sister D.: I commit you to God and rest, lished business, extending over "Your faythfull wife, One large S5 the entire country. "MARGARET WINTHROP." shipper of New England has J been in the business forty years To which Wlnthrop replied : and in that time has sold many "Deare. I am still detayned tlioiiunnd rnrlnnria of frpps. from thee but It is by the Lord, who Some of these have been shipped S hath a greater Interest In me than " as rar soutn as Texas ana as rar thyselfe, when His work Is donne He fs west as Chicago. This pioneer will restore me to thee agalne to our In the industry Is now eighty- mutual comfort : Amen. I thank thee for thy sweet Lre (letter) : my heart p two years of age. but he Is still 'S active, and was with thee to have written to thee curiously enough he Is o real Santa Claus In appear- every daye, but business would not ance. Frank Herbert Sweet. permitt me. I suppose thou hearest 1924. Weatern Newapaper Union. much newes from hence; it may be, I? some grievlous to thee: but be not troubled, I assure thee things goe well, & they must needes doe so, for God Is me much Joy and we all went to dinwith us and thou shult see a happy Isner. Your grandfather and I ate at sue. I hope to be with thee tomor-row-e the first table; most of the women and a frend or 2: I suppose. So waited, for In those times the men I kisse my sweet wife and rest, always ate first. I suppose It was "Thine. . proper then ; anyway, they did. "Jo: WINTHROP." "The next day we drove over to your grandpa's home for the lnfare, GENERAL SHERMAN AND and had another big dinner, and I had ELLEN EWING a cheaper calico. I called It my sec ond-dadress. We visited my folks EXERAL SHERMAN'S love let-teand his folks about a week and then are models of what love letto took our belongings in an ters are not supposed to be. When his father died In 1820 he went to live with the family of the Hon. Thomas Ewing of Ohio, who was then senator from his state. The lad was treated as a son and the friendship which eprang up between him and the senator's daughter, Ellen, became deeper as the years went by until the couple were married. Rut In the lengthy corour home, four miles away a respondence which passed between log house built by grandpa, Sherman and his fiancee the following, l'our mother was born there. written from West Point when he waa "That was a great Christmas, and nineteen and Ellen fourteen. Is one of we were happier In one room than the most endearing letters: those In mansions today. "West Point. N. Y, Nov. 1, 1S32. I have been Intending for some time a great day! Tes, It "Oh, that was truly Christ's day and Christ's to write to you for the purpose of acway. The same Savior reigned then knowledging the reception of those as now, and he has the same mes- slippers which you were kind enough sage 'I go to prepare a place for you, to make for me some time since. They that where I am there ye may be were brought by William Irvln. They fit exactly, but are so neat and beautialso.' ful as to preclude all Ideas of my ever "Good night, girls, grandma must retire. Tomorrow Is Christmas day, but wearing them. Indeed, It would amount years ago I received a gift to sacrilege for me to do so. I will better than any I'll get tomorrow. I'll keep them carefully In remembrance of her who gave them and hope that at be with father before another Christsome time or other I will be able to mas rolls around and there'll be another great Christmas and the same present something In return as acceptChrist will reign. Good night, dears." able as these are to me. Why Is It that you have been silent so long? Did you not receive my last, written almost Immediately upon reception of yours? I have been anxious lest you may have ristmas been unwell or had returned home, and hope that I may soon be relieved by hearing from you." By ANNA LOUISE STRONG g in Ufa and Lujht U Probably upon Miss Ewlng's pointed comment on the politeness of his epistles, Sherman answered: of Peace), across th "I cannot express how great was my SWEET Child strife upon receiving this morning pleasure Brlnnlna; (lad melody of angel your very kind letter. I can only show psalm, Our hearts are restless with the car my sense of It by punctuality. ot life "1 sincerely thank you for pardonus to O, bring; Thr calml ing me the apparent adherence to cerewait-I- n mony In my letter to you, for, believe Dear Lord of Love, th world still me, no one regrets the disposition of The high achievement of Thy grathis world to surround the sweetest cious plsn; and best pleasures of this life with the O, grant us Thin good cold garb of formality, and If at any will, time I should bow to Its dictates It Is Thr loving faith In man! because 1 fesr that a departure from Uaster of Death, Thy greatest (tft I them would give offence." know Thy sacrifice, to share Thy J id passes. a 'x"t 1 Her Christmas IDedding & ... 2 ' Bi Emilvj (, of cold water outside his wagon and i had not even bothered to get off all the makeup. The water was cold. It was hard to heat water after the performance was over, and only a little of the paint came off only a HtLle pink water was at the bottom of . the basin. But the dogs didn't mind. They slept on the end or by the side, of his cot in Ills wagon. They Jumped In after him each evening, and they each kissed him good night. They didn't mind paint. They were used to it. Oh, yes, he would take a long, long holiday. He would rest on the little he had managed to save. It would be enough f jr htm and his pets. But as the ' days passed along he seemed to feel rested and the pets seemed to have new vigor and strength. It was splendid to feel rested again. A family had Invited him to Christmas dinner and he had accepted and he had asked, too, if he could come with his donkey and bring his dogs along. They, he said, would help put on a little show for the children. It was all agreed. But when Christmas afternoon came and the Christmas dinner was over, and the old clown was beginning his show for the children, he knew then that he could never take more than a few months' holiday from being a clown. The laughter and the delight and the shrieks and the cries of Joy from the children were things the old clown could not get along without. This Christmas had shown him that! g 1924, Burks Adams Western Newspaper Union.) 1UNDM OTHER. tell us a real Christmas story one you really experienced. Tell us the very best Christmas you ever had " Julia and Jua-nlt- a, grandmother's adored granddaughters, settled themselves, for, to them, no one could tell stories equal to grandma. "All right, girls, that won't be hard. The very best Christmas I ever had was my wedding day. I was married on Christmas day and the most precious gift I ever received was your grandfather. "Well, it was like this: Our Chrlst-mase- s and weddings were very different from now. My wedding dress was a pretty calico, the first I ever had, and cost one dollar a yard. Up to this time I had worn woolsey, we called them, and I spun and wove It. My mother was afraid I'd take cold, so 1 had to wear my calico over the wool one. We didn't have hope boxes then we had hopes, though. It was a disgrace for a girl to marry and not possess a feather bed and some quilts blankets. I and a pair of home-mad- e had all these, to be sure. "My worst worry was for fear Peg's cakes would be flat, for she had a habit of spoiling cakes by making them too rich, when she wanted them especially good. I, too, wanted the plum pudding Just so, and the turkeys Naughty Papa properly cooked In cose we got any for my father had to go to the woods and kill wild turkey." "Oh I grandma, how thrilling I Did you get a turkey?" "Yes, your grandfather came In with six. Peg cooked four, for we were expecting all the klnfolks from both Fine Clubhouse for sides of the house. This was the day before, and our klnfolks begun coming Hollywood Legion Men that evening, for some lived ten miles LeHollywood (Cal.) American and It was too far for the oxen to gionnaires will hare one of the largmake the trip In time next morning. est and finest clubhouses In the Oh, yea, we drove oxen and I much United States, If plans approved by auprefer them to these hutmin-klllinthe Hollywood post of the Legion are tomobiles of today. carried out. The clubhouse will be Both Julia and Junnlta laughed. erected on property already owned by do go on, grandma !" "Oh, the post and will Include swimming we were to be married at "Well, pool, a dormitory, gymnasium and othhigh noon Christmas day, so by ten er departments usually found In the o'clock Christmas Eve our feather beds most exclusive men's clubs. Money will full. We didn't try to put more does CIhus love Santa "Mother, my were six In one be obtained to finance the building ot bed three at the head than toot" the club from the weekly boxing bouts nursemaid, and three at the foot beds were made "I guess so, Thomas. WhyT' held at the Legion stadium, which "Well last Christmas I saw Santa on the floor all over the house, and we have proven very popular with the slept as soundly as you on your fine holding her on his lap." "movie" populace, stars and "extras box springs of today, and nothing disalike. Hollywood post recently raised us only an occasional snore, turbed $100,000 to carry on the peat's rellel wasn't half as bothersome as that and work for disabled veterans. jk RIBBONS ON WREATHS the sputtering of these flying ma- I chines. if 77T,IE wrpatni' h"n ,n tfi dows. and attached to eoch 2 Iowa County Lot Mott Men 2 "Well, the next day dawned fair, wreath was and I think everybody said "Happy Is Madiaon county, Iowa, according t splendid rlb- j the bride the sun shines on." Peg asfigures of American Legionnaires ol 3 bon bow. For was It not Christmas sured me the cakes were fine and turthe county, lost more men during th And should not every time? World war than any county In th keys tender. The great, long table Christmas wreath be dressed, was "set" and we were married under United States In proportion to popuand your grandn bough of m'ntletoe Its best for the holiday season! lation. With a l"M of .12 men, Madison county gave m than any counfather klssJ me for the first time. Mary Graham Bonner. . Weetem Union I'm sure no girl of today can say that. safstf plan ty to mak the world to live la Everybody shook my hand and wished !. Ne-ap- (, y rs ox-ca- rt one-roo- m s sixty-seve- n SACK Prayer 1 loss. Lest In th mirth of Christmas w for- get The glory of the Cross. Lt'fl for Rett of Year The trouble with such a lavish distribution of Christmas spirit Is that a number hove little left for Uie rest of the year. Expretied Nation's Faith "In God we trust" first appeared on coins of this country In 1804. 8. P. Chase, secretary of the treasury, addressed a letter to the director of the mint at Philadelphia stating that our coinage should bear a motto exprea-In- g In the fewest words that no nation caa be strong except In the strength of God. This particular motto wss finally decided upon. It first appeared. dob a two-cepiece. |
