Colonel Roosevelt called the advanced committee to order a little after two o’clock in the afternoon, in a small and very noisy parlor in the Hotel Statler.  The gavel which he used was made from wood from the rudder of Admiral Peary’s North Pole steamship The Roosevelt, which had been presented to him by Colonel E. Lester Jones of Washington, D.C.

“The idea underlying the formation of the American Legion is the feeling among the great mass of the men who served in the forces of this country during the war, that the impulse of patriotism which prompted their efforts and sacrifices should be so preserved that it might become a strong force in the future for true Americanism and better citizenship,” Colonel Roosevelt said.  He spoke very slowly and measured his words carefully but emphasized them in a tone of deepest conviction.  “We will be facing troublous times in the coming years,” he continued “and to my mind no greater safeguard could be devised than those soldiers, sailors, and marines formed in their own association, in such manner that they could make themselves felt for law and order, decent living and thinking, and truer ‘nationalism.’”

In this opening sentence, Colonel Roosevelt foreshadowed the spirit of the entire caucus.  These service men wanted an organization not for their own special benefit, not that they might obtain pensions or offices, but that they might become a power for truer Americanism and better citizenship!

Colonel Wood, the secretary, explained in greater detail the purpose of the proposed Legion.  He broached the subject of the reemployment for soldiers, a legal department for the handling of insurance claims, allotments, etc., and sketched the fundamental principles of the organization as follows: 

First, its non-partisanship.

Second, that this society should be equally for those whose duty called them overseas and for those who were held by circumstances on this side.

Third, that it is fundamentally a civilian organization, one in which all ranks, be they private or general, admiral or seaman, should have an equal share and participation.

Then the advance committeemen began themselves to talk.  Each one, no matter on what subject and regardless of the side he took upon it, was permitted to air his feelings to the full satisfaction of himself at least.  Like the Paris Caucus, the discussion grew heated at times and every now and then the chair was forced to remind overly fervid orators that this was an advanced meeting of the caucus and not the convention.  There were those present who wanted to obligate the caucus to go on record for or against universal military training, woman suffrage, prohibition, permanent headquarters, and to elect permanent officers, and each of these had to be shown that it would be unfair to the men still in the A.E.F. to take such preeminently vital steps without consulting them.  Then there were those present who wanted to exclude