The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, July 9, 1918, takes pride in presenting the Distinguished Service Cross (Posthumously) to Colonel (Infantry) John Marcus Craig, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in action while serving with Regimental Headquarters, 16th Infantry Regiment, 1st Division, American Expeditionary Forces, near Soissons, France, July 18 – 19, 1918. After the commander of the front line battalion and most of the junior officers had been killed, Lieutenant Colonel Craig voluntarily left regimental headquarters and assumed command of the assault battalion. He led a small detachment of soldiers in a personal reconnaissance, locating and destroying machine-gun nests, thereby permitting the battalion to continue the advance which he led personally until he was killed.