472 



THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 



ber of clasps authorized — 230; however, 

 seven was the largest number given to 

 any one man, and only two received that 

 many. 



The history of decorations in the 

 United States is remarkable in its simi- 

 larity to the British experience. At first 

 only the services of the commanders were 

 recognized, the rank and file being en- 

 tirely ignored. The first medal bestowed 

 by our government was one in gold to 

 General George Washington, to com- 

 memorate the evacuation of Boston by 

 the British in March, 1776. Captain 

 John Paul Jones was similarly rewarded 

 after his famous fight with the Serapis 

 in 1779. 



Several military and naval commanders 

 were presented gold medals to commem- 

 orate battles in the War of 18 12. Gen- 

 erals Scott and Taylor were given gold 

 medals for their services in the Mexican 

 War, and General Grant had a similar 

 reward after his victory at Chattanooga 

 in 1863. 



In all these cases the medal conferred 

 was to commemorate some special vic- 

 tory. It was presented only to com- 

 manders of the troops or ship involved, 

 and accompanied the thanks of Congress. 

 It was never worn by the recipient, and 

 was never intended to be worn ; in fact, 

 it might be said that it was really not a 

 decoration in the sense we now use that 

 word, but was a material evidence that 

 the possessor had received that much- 

 prized honor, the thanks of Congress. 

 The rank and file received nothing. 



In 1847, during the Mexican War, 

 Congress authorized the President to 

 present a certificate to enlisted men who 

 specially distinguished themselves. No 

 medal or decoration, however, accompa- 

 nied this award, and it was not until 1905 

 that a badge was authorized to show that 

 the wearer had received a Certificate of 

 Merit (No. 5). So in its early days it 

 was in no sense a decoration. 



MICDAL OK HONOR SOE£ MILITARY DECORA- 

 TION FOR 40 YEARS 



In 1861 the United States, by establish- 

 ing the Medal of Honor (Nos. 6 and 25) , 

 departed from what had become a settled 

 policy against medals and decorations for 

 wear. This was by congressional action, 



and at first applied only to enlisted men 

 of the Navy, but was soon extended. 

 However, it remained for nearly forty 

 years the sole American military decora- 

 tion, the life-saving medals (Nos. 20 and 

 21) authorized in 1874 not being military 

 in character. 



At this point the writer pauses to cast 

 a retrospective glance to the days before 

 the Spanish- American War, when he en- 

 tered the service. We now have in the 

 Army alone 16 different medals, and as 

 many more in the Navy, not to mention 

 the numerous foreign decorations which 

 have been bestowed, all of them available 

 to every grade ; so that a uniform is 

 hardly considered complete without a 

 row of ribbons on the breast, and two or 

 three rows are by no means uncommon. 



What a difference a few years make ! 

 Then the Medal of Honor was our only 

 decoration, and, as thirty years had 

 elapsed since the Civil War, there were 

 not many in the army. There never had 

 been many, in fact ; but at that time they 

 were exceedingly scarce ; and not only 

 that, but one might be well acquainted 

 with a Medal of Honor man and still be 

 ignorant of the distinction, because no 

 ribbons were worn to show possession of 

 it. Only on state occasions, when in full- 

 dress uniform, was the medal produced. 

 In fact, a decoration in those days was 

 about as common as a bison on the streets 

 of New York City, and created just about 

 as much of a sensation, even in the Army. 



DECORATIONS NOT HEREDITARY IN ANY 

 COUNTRY 



It was undoubtedly the idea of repub- 

 lican simplicity that operated to retard 

 the growth of this ^custom in the United 

 States. The belief existed that decora- 

 tions were akin to nobility, and not in 

 harmony with true democracy, but part 

 and parcel of the monarchical system. 

 Nevertheless, republican France has pre- 

 served the customs of imperial France in 

 that respect without any sacrifice of de- 

 mocracy. All republics had something of 

 this character, but we were the last to fall 

 in line. 



It is not contrary to democratic ideals 

 to reward merit, and that is the purpose 

 of decorations and orders. Not even in 

 imperial nations are they awarded on 



