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 (Medical Corps) Joseph Aaron Mendelson, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism in action while serving with 305th Infantry Regiment (Attached), 77th Division, American Expeditionary Forces, near Ville Savoye, France, 15 – 16 August 1918. During a heavy enemy bombardment with gas and high explosive shells, Lieutenant Mendelson worked for more than three hours, picking up wounded and gassed men and securing their evacuation, being forced to remove his gas mask in order to accomplish this work. Though he was almost exhausted from fatigue, he then proceeded to the aid station of another battalion and assisted in treating hundreds of men. Though he was himself suffering from the effects of gas, he refused to go to the hospital upon the completion of this work, as all the other medical officers had been evacuated.