DEATH OF LIEUTENANT EADIE '18

Lieutenant Harold Field Eadie '18, killed in action on the French front March 1, is the first Dartmouth man to die fighting in the Great War. He is the eleventh Dartmouth man to give his life since the war began in 1914.

According to General Pershing's report, the battle in which Eadie was killed was one of the hardest in which American troops have yet engaged, German gas bombs and shells pouring in a continuous rain over the American lines. The sector being guarded lay slightly north of Toul, where the Germans have lately been concentrating their offensive efforts.

Lieutenant Eadie was a prominent member of the 1918 class in college. Coming here from Andover Academy, where he won his letter as quarterback, he immediately threw himself into Dartmouth athletics as well as into other undergraduate activities. He captained his freshman football team, playing the quarterback position. He also won his numerals in baseball. In his sophomore and junior years Eadie was a member of both the varsity football and varsity baseball squads.

Eadie was one of the first Dartmouth men to enlist in the service, leaving college with the declaration of war in April. He was the only junior from Dartmouth admitted into the first Plattsburg training camp last spring. At Plattsburg he was given a commission as second lieutenant upon the successful completion of the Reserve Officers' Training Course in June, and from here he was ordered to Camp Bartlett at Westfield, Mass., where he remained all summer, training with the 103d United States Infantry, 23d Division. He was assigned to Company C of this regiment, and it was with this company that he was fighting when he met death on March 1. His contingent crossed to France in October.

Although Dartmouth's honor roll numbers eleven men since the death of Eadie, he is the first to have perished in actual battle, the others having given their lives in trial aviation flights and in the ambulance service. He is also the first member of the class of 1918 as well as the first officer from the State of New Hampshire, to die in this war.

Details of the way in which this brave Dartmouth man met his end are contained in the letters written to his mother by the commanding officer and the chaplain of his regiment quotations from which are given below:

"Hdqrs. 103rd U. S. Inf., France, March 3, 1918.

"MY DEAR MRS, EADIE:

"Permit me to voice for the Regiment which I command, and for myself personally, the deep sense of loss which we all feel in the death of your son. It is a costly gift that you have laid upon the Altar of Freedom. Lieutenant Eadie was one of the most promising young men in the Regiment, and after the Regiment came into action, every day revealed the qualifications of the promises. The gallantry with which he did his duty, his constant alertness, his energy, were all an inspiration to the officers, and an example to the men. What the French thought of his heroism and bravery is evidenced by their bestowal of the coveted Croix de Guerre, which was attached to the French Flag and which they wished placed on his casket. This Cross lam sending on to you as soon as I can find a safe way to transmit a thing so precious.

"I understand that fuller details are being sent you, and so do not trespass farther upon your grief. But I did want you to know that the sympathy and the respect of the entire Regiment, and for that matter, the Army is with you in your sorrow. I assure you that we will all strive the harder that he may not have died in vain.

"Yours very sincerely,

"Col. Comdg. 103rd Inf."

"DEAR MRS. EADIE:

"As one who was privileged to be in the hospital when your son died, I hope that what I may say will not be in the nature of an intrusion. We all feel keenly that a mother's grief is sacred.

"Your son was wounded about half past eight. There was a good deal of activity that night, and it was with characteristic bravery and devotion to duty while in action, when he was struck by a piece of shrapnel which pierced his lung. It was realized at once that the wound was dangerous, but could not be ascertained that it was fatal. Word reached us soon after it had occurred, and the Colonel instructed me the first thing in the morning to go to the hospital some miles distant, where he had been taken. The greatest care was exercised in carrying him to the hospital and I need not tell you that he was exceedingly plucky. I talked to the ambulance d river, who spoke of his pluck and the great care his bearers had taken.

"It had been deemed best at first not to operate, but when I arrived at the hospital, it had been decided that this was best, and he was just being placed under the ether. A very brilliant and skillful surgeon operated, and our own doctor told me he had seldom witnessed such skill. Following this, a transfusion of blood was tried, and there was no trouble in finding a willing volunteer in the hospital.

"After this, I was permitted to enter the room, but he did not know me, and a few minutes later, at about one-twenty P. M., he died. The burial was held yesterday with full honors, and the French requested that their flag as well as ours be on the casket. High French Officials were at the ceremony, as well as our own Colonel. I read the part of the 90th Psalm, and the last chapter of Revelations, and the prayers for those who suffered in this case were sincere, I assure you.

"I am not permitted now to tell you more where the grave is at this time, than that it is in the Military Cemetery on R-1 and is numbered 233. It will be marked for the immediate present, by a cross of wood, and in the earth is placed a paper with his name and organization placed in a: heavy glass bottle. He had his identification tag about his neck. The one which he had about his wrist, I have turned over according to regulations to be sent home through his company commander.

"The American Doctor, Lieut. Drury, was full of praise for his bravery. He said that your son had tried, to talk, but finding it difficult, when he was brought in, had winked at him, and he and the French doctors did everything in human power for him, and worked unremittingly, never giving up hope until the end. You will permit me, I hope, to add a word, as to the place he held in regard to the regiment. He was a man who could be counted on always to throw himself into anything which was for the good of the regiment, or the service. It was because of this, he was appointed Town Mayor.

"It was quite characteristic of him that on one pay day alone, he persuaded his platoon to save and send home a sum in the vicinity of four thousand francs. He was always ready and always alert. One of my friends, the French Officer attached to our regiment, does not hesitate to point out to me the failures or excellences of our officers, but he had one word for your son, "He was wonderful," he said, on the line, and I know that he considered him one of the best, if not the best of the younger men of the regiment. He feels the loss keenly. What the French officials thought is shown in the 'Citation,' and the war cross which was placed upon his casket; the very duty on which he was engaged when the last call came. It was one of extreme danger; a less conscientious man, a less courageous man would have shirked it.

"He gave his life to the cause, and I believe he does not regret it. I am very certain, that while the regiment is poorer for his loss, a great one, it is also rich in the tradition he has left it, and the men, especially of C company, will try all the harder, to be worthy of such a sacrifice.

"Sincerely and respectfully yours, "PAUL DWIGHT MOODY, "Chaplain, 103rd Inf."

On Sunday evening, March 17, a memorial service for Lieutenant Eadie was held in the Congregational Church at Tilton, New Hampshire, the home of Lieutenant Eadie's parents, in which the entire town did honor to his memory.