The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, 20 July 1942, takes pleasure in presenting the Legion of Merit to Colonel (Field Artillery) Ernest Orrin Lee, United States Army, for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services to the Government of the United States in the Office of the Chief of Finance, U.S. Army, Washington, D.C., from January 1945 to May 1946.