ho
have grown weary of pompous words when we must pay dearly for each
failure of performance."

An intimate friend of his boyhood writes: "John was and still is
intensely human and that is why we all love him. His old playmates and
friends are proud of his success as a soldier, but they love him
because of his high standard of principles and unswerving integrity.
John J. Pershing is revered by the entire population of Linn County,
Missouri, and I hope in the near future to see a statue of Pershing
erected in the beautiful town park of Laclede, in his honor."

A well-known college president writes of him: "It is his foresight as
distinct from vision which has most impressed me. He sees what ought to
be done and then does it. His spirit of determination, his persistence,
his foresightedness, seem to me the predominant traits in a well-rounded
character. Strength rather than brilliancy, solidity, reliability,
saneness are other terms by which the same qualities might be defined."

Another distinguished president of a college in General Pershing's
native State makes the following analysis: "I have been here twenty-six
years and have had a good deal to do with young men. I have never seen a
man yet that had these characteristics that failed in his life work:

"_First_, Pershing's modesty.

"_Second_, His friendliness--his ability to get along with his fellows.

"_Third_, His industry.

"_Fourth_, What the boys call, 'everlastingly on the job'--always in his
place, always had his lessons, always performed his duties.

"_Fifth_, His courage in facing every obstacle.

"_Sixth_, His forward look--his looking ahead.

"My secretary adds that I have omitted one of the strongest of General
Pershing's attributes--his sense of right."

It is a great asset when the people of a man's native town speak of him,
even of his boyhood, in terms of affection and confidence. It is to his
credit when school and college mates write of their belief in his
sterling character. It is a source of pride when the early efforts of a
young man, in the trying days of his first experiences in his chosen
profession, find a cordial response to his efforts and it is a still
deeper source of gratification when he has done his best and has
received recognition and reward from the nation at large. And then when
maturer days have come and the glitter and the glamour have lost much of
their appeal, for one to find that the great ones of the earth recogn