The Mercedes News (Mercedes, Tex.), Vol. 5, No. 23, Ed. 1 Tuesday, February 7, 1928 Page: 3 of 8
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THE MERCEDES NEWS,TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 1928
GENERAL McCOY. WELL KNOWN
ON TEXAS BORDER HAS NEW AND
IMPORTANT DIPLOMATIC TASK
As Supervisor Of Elections In Nicaragua He Will
Add Another Experience To His Vivid
Military Career—Trained Under Wood
BY OLIVER MCKEE, JR.
NOTE—Gen. Frank R. McCoy is
well known in the Rio Grande Valley,
especially to those who were here dur-
ing some of the bandit trouble. He
has just been chosen for a most im-
portant mission and we reprint the
following article about him.
On July 1, 1898, a Second Lieu-
tenant in the Tenth Cavalry, fresh
from West Point, was wounded at the , , ,.
Battle of San Juan Hill, in Cuba.! ??es n0^ ^ose Prfstige with his fort, or
Though not severe, the wound was a
mountain guns and a regiment of in-
fantry. Three hundred and sixty five
shots were fired at the place, after
which the natives were allow to es-
cape, Ali with them.
“I thought that was a white thing
to do,” said Governor Van Horne of
Cotacato. General Wood could easily
have massacred the natives, but he
wanted to avoid butchery and Ali was
allowed to go. No one realized at
the time that a datto of Ali’s stamp
trying one, and the young officer
was losing a good deal of blood thru
the temporary bandage he was wear-
ing. A regimental commander came
along. He looked at the subaltern
and said:
“This bandage will have to come
off.”
Off it came, and a new one was
.put on, under the personal super-
vision of the Colonel. When the
first-aid treatment had been com-
his money, or his honor, or, indeed,
with anything but his life.
So our men got the fort, but Ali
escaped, and the war was on again.
He had taken refuge in the inaccess-
ible Cotacato Valley. A year of small
expeditions followed, all failing in
their objective of capturing or killing
the Moro chief. Then McCoy heard
General Buchanan, in charge of the
and his officers. McCoy subsequent-
ly served as secretary of the Moro
Province and in 1906 as engineer.
Soon thereafter McCoy was made
aide to President Roosevelt. An as-
signment to the White House under
Roosevelt was anything but a “soft
billet.” Roosevelt had been a soldier,
he liked to ride, and a man appointed
to be his military aide was sure to do
a day’s work.
General Wood became Chief of
Staff in 1910. He soon asked that
McCoy be assigned to the General
Staff as one of his principal assist-
ants. In this capacity McCoy learned
a great deal about the staff work of
our small pre-war army and familiar-
ized himself with the workings of the
War Department.
Commanded on Rio Grande
In 1914, by the operation of the so-
called Manchl law—which prevents an
officer from staying in Washington
more than a certain period of years—
McCoy went down to the Mexican
border, almost the second home of the
American cavalryman. He commanded
the cavalry patrol districts on the
Rio Grande border and was in action
against Mexican bandits in 1915-16 at
Cavazas Crossing and Ajo-de-Agua.
McCoy here showed that staff and ad-
ministrative work had not unfitted
him for the work of practical soldier-
ing.
McCoy belonged to the “Wood
POWER COMPANY’S
VALLEY OFFICES
LEAD THE STATE
According to the Pentagon, publish-
ed monthly by and for the employees
of the Central Power and Light Com-
pany, at San Antonio, the Lower Rio
Grande Valley led all sections'of the
state in merchandise sales of that
company, not only for the month of
December, but for the entire year of
1927.
The nearest competitor of the Val-
ley in merchandise sales was the Rice
belt of Texas. This is a good indica-
tion of the prosperity of the Valley as
compared with the remainder of the
State.
department in Wood’s absence, ask if S'_rouP^ a^a^iember oT the
any one knew the rear entrance to the
Cotacato Valley. It happened that
McCoy had been through this valley
pleted the regimental commander „ , ,
patted the Lieutenant on the back and ^
said cheerfully, “Now you will be all
right.”
The name of the Colonel was Leon-
ard Wood. That of the young Lieu-
tenant was Frank Ross McCoy. From
that chance meeting on the battlefield
of San Juan grew a close personal
friendship. And it was more than
that. Until the death of Leonard
Wood, McCoy was closely associated
with him in the career which gave
him a place among America’s colonial
administrators. In Cuba, in the Phili-
ppines, in Washington, on the General
Staff, McCoy served as Wood’s right-
hancLman.
Off on a New Mission
During about thirty years of asso-
ciation with Wood, McCoy had^ an
unrivaled opportunity for insight into
his chief’s theory of the administra-
tion of our overseas dependencies. And
now President Coolidge has sent Mc-
Coy to Nicaragua to supervise the
election to be held this October under
the provisions of the agreement ne-
gotiated by Henry L. Stimson last
year between the Liberals and the
Conservatives.
Those who know McCoy best say
there is no man better fitted for this
.mission, the success of which means
so much to Qjir future relations with
Latin America. McCoy has made an
enviable record since he was grad-
uated from West Point in 1897. He
has been associated with big men;
he has taken an important part in un-
dertakings of moment; he is said to
be as much at home in an embassy
room as on the parade ground, and,
withal, he is a first-class fighting
man, who has made good as a leader
of men in battle. In the World War
he commanded for several months the
165th Regiment of Infantry of _ New
York—the old Sixty-ninth Regiment
—and later a brigade of the Thirty-
second Division.
A Trusted Aide of Wood
Leonard Wood had a habit of se-
lecting his subordinates carefullyand
giving them full responsibility within
certain limits. When he had tested
their mettle and learned what each
could do he was likely to ask for
these men again. McCoy, Halstead
Dorey, Gordon Johnston, George T.
Langhorne—these we,re some of the
best known of his lieutenants, one or
more of them usually being with him.
McCoy was commended for gallan-
try in action against the Spanish
forces at Las Guaysimas, Cuba, on
June 24, 1898, and at Santiago a few
days later. He was later detailed as
.aide-de-camp to Wood at that time a
Bbpajor General and Military Governor
K Cuba. One of the very junior
^officers in the army, he had neverthe-
less attracted the attention of Wood,
and in 1903 accompanied him to the
German Army manoeuvres. The time
was to come when McCoy would lead
an American brigade against that
army.
War in the Philippines
Late in 1903, on the strength of his
administrative work in Cuba, Wood
went to the Philippines. He took with
him McCoy, still a subaltern. In the
next three years the United States
had a gigantiqtask in establishing law
and order through the islands. A
civil Government had to be set up and
supported, revolts put down, schools
established, roads and railroads built,
modern sanitation introduced.
During part of this period Wood
was military Governor of Mindanao,
including the Moro privinces, whose
inhabitants were among the last in
the Philippines to defy American
rule. The Moros were a thorn in the
side of the American military au-
thorities, and here McCoy performed
one of the most brilliant exploits in
the Philippine occupation—the cap-
ture of the Moro chieftain, Dattu Ali.
All had for somfe time actively op-
posed the American forces. His men
laid ambush after ambush, and then
escaped into the jungle. The guer-
rilla warfare lasted two years, in the
course of which more than a thousand
lives were lost. In the Summer of
1904 the Americans penned Ali in his
wilderness fortress 'of Saranaya, con- J
structed as a refuge to hold 1,000 men. 1
Wood came on the scene with two j
New York, a member of the Philippine
Opium Commission. McCoy came
forward, and plans were made to lay
the final trap for the wary Ali.
Friday the Thirteenth
Buchanan was to launch with os-
tentation another campaign from the
river, like the previous unsuccessful
attempts. McCoy was to come fi'om
behind and turn the trick by surprise.
With a fine contempt for supertition,
Buchanan started his expedition on
Friday, Oct. 13, 1905. The news of
his offensive operations immediately
spread through the valley, and within
six hours the swift-footed Moros were
able to tell Ali how many men Buch-
anan had and the trails he was using.
Ali lay secure in his fortress, con-
vinced that no white man could reach
him that way. But he reckoned with-
out McCoy.
Shortly after dawn on Oct. 22 Mc-
Coy and a small column came upon
Ali’s headquarters from the rear. He
gave his orders clearly, decisively and
quickly. Johnson with a file of men
was to flank Ali from the left, West
was to guard the rear, Remington was
to lead the advance, while McCoy
himself was to close in on the right.
Until the advance had given the sig-
nal no one was to fire a shot.
As the parties started to close in,
four bolo men creeping in the grass
were surprised and killed. Ali leaped
for his rifle as Remington and his men
left cover. The two fired almost to-
gether—Ali first, but his haste cost
him his life. Remington’s file leader
fell and Ali fell dying on the veranda
of his house. Remington’s bullet had
gone through his heart from a dist-
ance of 100 paces.
Aide to Roosevelt
In this fight fifteen Moros and
three Americans were killed. A week
later the merchants of Zamboanga
gave a public celebration for McCoy
Children Swallowing Buttons, Etc.
It not infrequently happens that
a child swallows some hard object
such as a button, coin, piece of metal,
screw, etc. The best thing to do is
to keep calm and everything will
come out all right in the great ma-
jority of cases if the object has al-
ready entered the stomach. On no
account should a purgative or emetic
be given. Do not frighten or scold
the child; keep it quiet and feed it
on soft, easily digested foods—
bread, potatoes, milk, etc. Usually
the foreign object is passed without
trouble.
initial staff of G. H. Q., A. E. F.—
all Pershing’s own selections—speaks
for his ability and reputation. Per-
shing and Harbord had been at San-
tiago and both had known McCoy in
Cuba. Pershing picked McCoy for
his staff when he went to France and
after the war, when Harbord went to
Armenia as head of the American
Military Mission, he asked that Mc-
Coy accompany him as his Chief of
Staff.
For nearly a year McCoy was sec-
retary of the General Staff of the
A. E. F. This was the period when
Pershing was laying the foundation
for an overseas army which grew to
2,000,000, and the General Staff was
perhaps the busiest group of men in
the army. A thousand and one dif-
ferent problems pressed for solution.
McCoy had much to do with planning
the organization of our overseas
forces.
With the New York Troops
Like every true soldier in war, Mc-
Coy wanted duty with troops. In
May, 1918, he was assigned to com-
mand the Sixty-ninth Regiment of
New York, then the 165th Infantry of
the Forty-second Division. William
J. Donovan, now Assistant Attorney
General, was a battalion commander
in this regiment. Later he was its
Colonel. Here is what Donovan tells
about the way the men of the regi-
ment felt toward their commander:
“In May, 1918, Colonel McCoy came
to the Sixty-ninth New York. At
that time the regiment was stationed
at the so-called ‘quiet sector’ in front
of Baccarat. He came to us with the
reputation of having done all kinds
of duty that an officer could be call-
ed on to perform, but the one thing
that made his coming welcome to the
men was the statement that he never
missed a fight. The regiment took
to him at once. They saw immediate-
ly that he had a knowledge and ap-
preciation of its tradition and confi-
dence in its military quality.”
Later McCoy commanded the Sixty-
third Brigade of the Thirty-second
Division. He wears the D. S. M. for
his services as secretary of the Gen-
eral Staff and as commander in bat-
tle of the 165th Infantry and the Sixty
third Brigade.
McCoy again displayed his versatil-
ity in a new field. He was made
director of the Army Transport Ser-
vice and director general of trans-
portation of the A. E. F. In 1919 he
accompanied Harbord to Armenia, and
in 1921 he went'to the Philippines as
a member of the special Wood-Forbes
Commission. From 1921 to 1925 he
was assistant to Governor General
Wood, his long experience in the
islands proving very valuable.
A Reputation for Tact
In 1923 McCoy happened to arrive
in Japan at the time of the earth-
quake which laid Tokio and Yokohama
in ruins. It was characteristic of the
man that he immediately wired the
War Department and took charge in
the emergency, directing the activities
of the Red Cross and successfully
heading the American Relief Mission.
Last year McCoy visited Nicaragua to
study conditions in that country, and,
on Henry L. Stimson’s recommenda-
tion, President Coolidge has selected
him to supervise the elections this
year.
McCoy has a reputation for tact.
He speaks Spanish and has a wide
acquaintance with men and conditions
in Latin America. The qualities that
made him a trusted lieutenant of
Wood, Taft, Roosevelt, Pershing and
Harbord may be counted on to serve
him in good stead in Nicaragua.
McCoy is a member of the famous
“Bachelors’ Club,” next door to the
Metropolitan Club in Washington. He
stays there when he visits Washing-
ton, but he is no longer a bachelor.
Mrs. McCoy is a niece of Leonard
Wood.
Washing Lace
The great point about washing
lace is to do it gently, never rubbing
soap onto the surface nor using
strong soap. A lather may be made,
either with soap jelly or a very mild
washing powder; or it may be washed
in borax water, hot but not boiling.
If lace is very dirty it can be steeped
first in cold water.
Wrinkles in Skirts
To freshen a skirt that has become
wrinkled badly from a long crow-
ded ride throug the country,, bluish
carefully so that all dust may be re-
moved, then hang over a tub of hot
water. After it has been thoroughly
steamed it will have all the appear-
ance of a tailor-cleaned garment.
-o--
The Democratic convention is
going to be held in Texas and some
of the much-tooted candidates can
raise their stock in “long horns.”
A man taking an aimless walk is
usually at a disadventage because the
driver’s aim is always good.
Build a Home
It helps you save your
money.
It is a good investment.
It gives you a better
standing in the commun-
ity.
It improves your credit.
It improves your home-
life.
It increases your self re-
spect.
It relieves you from the
yoke of rent paying.
Jake Fossler
Contractor and Builder
Phone 9000-F21
Every 500 Miles
Don’t forget—have your car washed and greased, your
oil changed and your battery examined. We wash with
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delivered.
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The Mercedes News (Mercedes, Tex.), Vol. 5, No. 23, Ed. 1 Tuesday, February 7, 1928, newspaper, February 7, 1928; Mercedes, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth634956/m1/3/: accessed July 10, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Dr. Hector P. Garcia Memorial Library.