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 First Lieutenant (Infantry) John E. Douglas, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in action while serving with 142d Infantry Regiment, 36th Division, American Expeditionary Forces, near St. Etienne, France, 8 October 1918. Lieutenant Douglas was a member of a patrol consisting of himself, another officer, and three soldiers, which came under fire from an enemy machine-gun nest. Leading the patrol forward by short rushes to within a short distance of the enemy position, he had his companions take cover while he continued on alone in full view of the enemy, and by accurate fire from an automatic rifle at a range of 40 yards, silenced the nest, capturing 20 men and four machine-guns.