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 Silas J. Johnson (ASN: 1099182), United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in action while serving with Medical Detachment, 56th Infantry Regiment (Attached), 7th Division, American Expeditionary Forces, in the Puvenelle Sector, France, 3 November 1918. When the company to which he was attached withdrew from their position and the medical personnel was ordered to find a place of safety, Sergeant Johnson refused to leave the wounded. He carried a seriously wounded officer one and a half kilometers through a heavy artillery barrage to the battalion aid station.