A hardboiled ex-topkick of the Marines, a two-time winner of the Congressional Medal of Honor, joked last night at the expense of his Major General and got away with it. More than that, he became the hero of 1,200 veterans of the Second Division, A. E. F., who, with their wives and families, were attending a dinner in the main ballroom of the Hotel Astor. It was the last event of the three-day reunion of the Second Division Association.

The ex-Marine was Sergeant Dan Daly, 73d Machine Gun Company of the Sixth Marines. The target of his gibes was Major Gen. James G. Harbord, who commanded the Marines of the Second Division and now is chairman of the board of the Radio Corporation of America.

General Harbord has spoken. So had Major Gen. Paul B. Malone, Major Gen. Hanson B. Ely, Major Gen. Dennis E. Nolan and Major Gen. Logan Feland. A few other major generals remained to be heard from, but some one in the audience took up the cry for "'Dan Daly." It echoed through the ballroom and Dan, white-haired, ruddy-faced and a little the worse for wear, was pushed to the speakers' table.

He clambered across and stood up to the microphone.

"We was in Belleau Woods one day," he began, "when General Harbord came up. He was, on a horse. Yeah, a horse! The Orders had been for the men to clean up their guns and horses and such. He came up and he asked me where my company was.

"I said 'carrying out their orders, sir.' 'Fine,' said he and he rode off. Now the fact was the whole company was over to one of the canteens. So that was one time anyway when the marines put one over on the army.

''And so, with all due respect to the generals, I think we should give a hand to the enlisted man."

General Harbord was one of the first to give the enlisted men a "hand" and he slapped Daly on the back. Order was forgotten as the Sergeant returned to his table. The guests began throwing fire-crackers and imitating the sound of a "whiz-bang." Finally Dan was seated and the speaking went on. Others who addressed the assembly were Floyd Gibbons and Major Gen. Albert J. Bowley.

Divisional medals of honor were conferred upon 125 of the veterans during the afternoon. The medals, awarded for honorable service in France, wre presented by Major Gen. Harbord, Major Gen. Malone, Major Gen. Ely and Mayor Gen. Feland.

The regiments represented by medal winners at the ceremony were the Ninth and Twenty-third Regular Infantry, the Fifth and Sixth Regular Marines, the Twelfth, Fifteenth and Seventeenth Regular Field Artillery, the Fifth and Sixth Machine Gun Battalions, the Second Engineers and the Second Sanitary Train.

The audience of about 300 other veterans and their wives and families stood in silent tribute as Major Gen. Feland, newly elected national president of the Second Division Association, called for Gold Star mothers and fathers of fallen veterans of the division to accept the meda[ls] that were their sons'. Six mothers and one father came forward.

It was about the only silent moment of [t]he reunion since the veterans took over the hotel on Thursday. Captain C. O. Mattfeldt, secretary of the association, said 2,000 men had registered and the hotel, from lobby to roof garden, has been echoing with tall stories, pointed references to former "topkicks" and unexpurgated versions of "The Old Gray Mare" and "Mademoiselle from Armentieres."

The Second Division—as any veteran will tell you (and invariably does)—won the war. It had the highest casualty rate in the A. E. F., 86 per cent. It took a fourth of all the prisoners taken by the American forces, captured a fourth of all the guns and equipment. It fought in Verdun, battled for forty days and forty nights at Belleau Wood, cut through the German line at Soissons and pushed them back at San Mihiel. Every battle was refought during the three days of the convention.