The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 9, 1918, takes pleasure in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross to Sergeant First Class Paul A. Smithhisler (ASN: 1538321), United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in action while serving with Headquarters Detachment, 112th Engineers, 37th Division, American Expeditionary Forces, near Heuvel, Belgium, 2 November 1918. Under cover of darkness Sergeant First class Smithhisler swam the Scheldt River at a point where it was covered by hostile machine-guns and reconnoitered a road for a distance of 500 meters, returning with valuable information.