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| | CHIEF MECH. CLAYTON E. HORTON
Serial No. 2,026,574
Hillman, Mich.
Inducted into the service November 20, 1917, at Camp Custer, On March 4, 1918, 1st Class Private Horton was transferred to Motor Section F. A. Instruction School, at Rock Island, and returned to Custer April 5th, after receiving training, and was made Chief Mechanic of the Battery.
Along with Sergeants Housel, Dunn, Vigneron, Mechanic Horton was sent overseas in the Advance School Detachment and went directly to Coetquidan, where they were all sent to Liaison and Telephone Schools to be trained for army specialists.
In France, Horton was Section Chief of all the artisans of the Battery. In his charge were men who knew the science of building dugouts, bricklayers, carpenters, blacksmiths, as well as the sixteen mechanics in his own section.
Michael Angelo, the great sculptor, said: “Take away my tools and I will paint.” Such a man was Horton. He knew more than any man in the Battery about ammunition and shell fuses.
Always conscientious in the discharge of duty, yet he retained an attitude of good fellowship toward his men and inspired in them feelings of respect and love for him. Nature had bestowed on him the gift of handling men.
He was a hard worker and could keep others at work.
Much could be said of “Red’s” even-tempered good nature. He had acquired the nickname of “Red” and was generally referred to as Red Horton. In spite of his quiet disposition, on one occasion he provoked the anger of one of his men who, in a hasty outburst of passion, struck him on the jaw, knocking him down. Most men would have returned it, but Horton let it pass as “all in the day.” His innate feeling of sportsmanship tempered retaliation.
His decisions were never made hastily, consequently he was generally right.
His men were rarely absent or shirking detail.
They will remember that at Retreat he would rarely call the roll, as did other Section Chiefs, and which is in accordance with rules, but would look them over and make a bluff that he had called it. It was always a pleasure, especially to the buck private, to hear him answer, “All men
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present and accounted for” in reply to the snappy command of the Top Sergeant “Report,” but he never took a chance on “All men present but accounted for.”
Good-natured and considerate of others, a man of few words and inclined to be reserved; his pipe was his friend.
The backbone of an army is made up of such men as Horton. |