By Ellis                                             H.C.R. No. 176
         77R7763 MMS-D                           
                             HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
 1-1           WHEREAS, The Texas Legislative Medal of Honor was established
 1-2     by the 58th Texas Legislature to honor gallant and intrepid service
 1-3     by a member of the state military forces of Texas, and through his
 1-4     courageous actions during battle in World War II, Colonel M. B.
 1-5     Etheredge of Huntsville distinguished himself as a worthy recipient
 1-6     of this prestigious honor; and
 1-7           WHEREAS, Raised in East Texas, Col. Etheredge was serving as
 1-8     superintendent of a small school district in Damon when the United
 1-9     States entered the war; resigning his position, he enlisted in the
1-10     army as a private in 1942; after completing basic training he was
1-11     sent to noncommissioned officers' school and, after only eight days
1-12     there, to officers' candidate school in Fort Benning, Georgia,
1-13     where he graduated on February 5, 1943; and
1-14           WHEREAS, On the night of March 12-13, 1944, Col. Etheredge
1-15     was assistant commander of a combat patrol when it came under heavy
1-16     machine-gun fire north of Carano, Italy; disregarding the bullets
1-17     flying all about him, he personally led his squad in a successful
1-18     assault on the machine gun; when a second machine gun erupted, he
1-19     again braved the barrage as he directed his men in laying down
1-20     fire, allowing the main part of the patrol to advance against the
1-21     gun and silence it; and
1-22           WHEREAS, Farther along, a third strong point opened heavy
1-23     fire; once more, Col. Etheredge moved about aggressively in the
1-24     midst of this attack, developing a strong firing line and enabling
 2-1     the main body of the patrol to skirt the house and continue on its
 2-2     mission; altogether, the patrol killed at least 10 Germans,
 2-3     captured 12, and knocked out two machine guns, and Col. Etheredge's
 2-4     remarkable gallantry and leadership in this operation earned for
 2-5     him a Silver Star; and
 2-6           WHEREAS, Two months later, on May 23, 1944, in Italy, Col.
 2-7     Etheredge immediately took charge of Company "K," 30th Infantry
 2-8     Regiment, when the commanding officer and other key personnel were
 2-9     cut down; deciding to continue the attack, he ignored heavy fire to
2-10     move up and down a ditch for 75 yards, reorganizing his company and
2-11     bolstering its morale; though wounded in the leg, he then led his
2-12     men running and crawling into the face of steady small arms fire
2-13     for some 550 yards, rested them for 10 minutes, and then resumed
2-14     the assault, advancing another 250 yards, overrunning the objective
2-15     and organizing an all-around defensive position; and
2-16           WHEREAS, Col. Etheredge's actions were instrumental in
2-17     securing a vital battalion target, relieving pressure on two flank
2-18     companies, and opening a way for a third company to advance; his
2-19     critical role in this day's action was rewarded with the appendage
2-20     of an oak leaf cluster to his Silver Star; and
2-21           WHEREAS, Col. Etheredge subsequently commanded Company "K" in
2-22     France; there, on August 16, 1944, he once again exposed himself to
2-23     gunfire in the course of significantly assisting the American
2-24     advance; he was sitting atop a tank destroyer, directing its fire
2-25     at German-held buildings 200 yards distant, when he barely escaped
2-26     a machine-gun fusillade; and
2-27           WHEREAS, A platoon flanking the building then fell into
 3-1     disarray and Col. Etheredge dashed across 75 yards of open ground
 3-2     through more machine-gun fire to reorganize the group; choosing a
 3-3     route that skirted the barbed wire outside the buildings, he next
 3-4     led a 50-yard assault that captured 29 enemy soldiers, an anti-tank
 3-5     gun, a mortar, large quantities of ammunition, and numerous
 3-6     vehicles; in recognition of his bravery and decisive command, he
 3-7     received a second oak leaf cluster; and
 3-8           WHEREAS, During the war Col. Etheredge also received two
 3-9     Bronze Stars and two Purple Hearts; he was eventually discharged
3-10     with the highest efficiency rating of any officer discharged from
3-11     the Fourth Army; this dauntless soldier later served three terms in
3-12     the Texas Legislature and taught for 33 years at Sam Houston State
3-13     University; and
3-14           WHEREAS, The Texas Legislative Medal of Honor is the highest
3-15     commendation Texans can bestow on members of our state military
3-16     forces, and the outstanding valor manifested by Col. Etheredge on
3-17     repeated occasions most assuredly merits the award of our state's
3-18     supreme military honor; now, therefore, be it
3-19           RESOLVED, That the 77th Legislature of the State of Texas
3-20     hereby confer the Texas Legislative Medal of Honor on Colonel M. B.
3-21     Etheredge in recognition of his heroic service and express to him
3-22     our deepest appreciation on behalf of all his fellow Texans; and,
3-23     be it further
3-24           RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
3-25     prepared for Col. Etheredge as an expression of highest regard by
3-26     the Texas House of Representatives and Senate.