The Paris caucus convened at the American Club near the Place de la Concorde on the afternoon of March 15th, Colonel Wood presiding. Lieutenant Colonel Bennett C. Clark of the 88th Division was selected Chairman of the caucus and Lt. Col. T.W. Miller of Pennsylvania, and serving in the 79th Division, was elected Vice-Chairman. When Colonel Wood called the meeting to order nearly one thousand delegates answered the roll-call and these were of all ranks from private to brigadier general; and every combat division and all sections of the S.O.S., were represented. Colonel Wood briefly reviewed the self-appointment of the temporary committee during the previous month and outlined the purposes of the caucus.
A few minutes after Colonel Clark had taken the chair an officer of high rank, a colonel to be exact, moved that while in the convention hall, the after-war status as fellow civilians be forecast and that the stations of rank would there cease to exist. It was agreed that they would be resumed with full force and full discipline as soon as the delegates crossed the threshold of the convention hall and regained the street.
It was the ability of the American officer to do this—to be friendly to a certain extent with his men and yet at the same time to keep them perfectly disciplined—which amazed the officers of the armies of our Allies. No more striking example of this was ever given than within the confines of the American Club on that 15th day of March. The Colonel's motion was unanimously carried and the work of the organization began. Then generals forgot their rank, corporals engaged in hot debates with colonels, sergeants argued with majors and everybody talked with everybody else in a most boylike spirit of fraternity and equality.
Captain Ogden Mills of G.H.Q. moved that four caucus committees be appointed to draft suggestions and submit them to the caucus, one committee to design machinery for convening the winter convention; one committee to submit suggestions as to a permanent organization; one committee on tentative constitution; and one committee on name. Each committee consisted of fifteen members, and was appointed by the Chairman.
Here are the committees, appointed by the chair:
Committee on Convention
| Brig. Gen. Sherburne, | 26th Div., Chairman |
| Wagoner Shaw, | 88th Div., Vice-Chairman |
| Capt. Ogden Mills, | G.H.Q. |
| Colonel Graham, | S.O.S. |
| Prvt. C.W. Ney, | 1st Army Troops |
| Captain Mahon, | 77th Div. |
| Sgt. Obrecht, | 1st Army |
| Capt. Kipling, | Troops serving with French |
| Sgt. J.C. Hendler, | Paris Command |
| Lt. Col. Appleton, | 2d Army Hq. |
| Major Gordon, | 36th Div. |
| Field Clerk Sowers, | Press Section G.H.Q. |
| Major Hungerford, | 3rd Army Hq. |
| Cpl. J.H. Anderson, | Paris Command |
| Lt. Col. Wren, | 36th Division |
Committee of Permanent Organization
| Colonel Donovan, | 42d Div., Chairman |
| Lt. Col. Graham, | 88th Div., Vice-Chairman |
| Capt. Boyd, | 29th Division |
| Sgt. Tip Bliss, | Stars and Stripes |
| Lt. Col. Fitzpatrick, | 35th Division |
| Sgt. Rollo S. Thorpe, | 88th Div. |
| Lt. Col. Crosby, | S.O.S. |
| Pvt. W.L. Thompson, | 11th R.R. Engineers |
| Major Graff, | 28th Division |
| Major Barry Wright, | 79th Division |
| Sgt. Rommel, | Paris Command |
| Sgt. V.V. Trout, | Paris Command |
| Capt. Carlstrom, | S.O.S. |
| Major R.C. Patterson, | Peace Commission |
| Lt. Col. Smith, | 89th Division |