with
Generals D'Esperey and Gourand, visited Rheims and Bar-le-duc and
spent the day of the 20th at Verdun.

During the next few days he visited the United States Army
headquarters at Chaumont and Toul and was back in Paris on the 26th,
when he received orders from the A. E. F. to return to the United
States by way of Bordeaux. On the 21st of March he arrived in New York
and was summoned four days later to appear before the Senate committee
on military affairs to report his observations.

He was then examined by the Mayo examining board, pronounced
absolutely fit physically and on April 12th resumed command of the
89th Division at Camp Funston, Kansas.

The training of this division was practically finished in late May and
the 89th was thereupon ordered abroad for service.

After seeing some of the elements of the division off for the
evacuation station at Camp Mills, Long {230} Island, New York, General
Wood left Funston himself and proceeded to Mills to see to the
reception of his division and look to its embarkation. He arrived at
the Long Island camp on May 25th and there found an order from the War
Department relieving him of his command of the 89th Division and
instructing him to proceed to San Francisco to assume command of the
Western Department. After finishing some necessary work he went to
Washington on the 27th and saw the Secretary of War. Little is known
of what took place at this conversation except that General Wood
requested that he be reinstated in his command of the 89th Division
and sent abroad, which was refused.

Wood saw the President, explained the situation and was told that the
latter would take the matter under consideration.

No consideration was ever reported.

Meantime the order sending him to California created such an uproar
throughout the United States that it was rescinded and General Wood
was ordered to Camp Funston again to train a new division--the
10th--which was ready to go {231} abroad when the armistice was signed
on November 11th.

This constitutes General Wood's services to his country during the
period of the war.

Much might be said in regard to this history. Much might be surmised
as to the causes which led to keeping the man who was the senior
officer of the army out of the war entirely. Much--very much--has been
said throughout this country in and out of print during the past two
years. The theory that he was too old for active service could not be
a reason, s