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MAGAZINE OF THE U.S. NAVY -55th YEAR OF PUBLICATION APRIL 1978 NUMBER 735

Features 4 DEPUTYCOMPTROLLER TALKS PAY An Interview with RADMJames R. Ahern

8 MUGS AWAY! Darts have taken over in Sigonella

13 FIRST AMERICAN ARTIST IN ANTARCTICA The works of Arthur E. Beaumont Page 22 22 QUIET PROFESSIONALISM IN A SEA OF HASTE A busy weekend in a naval hospital's emergency room

28 A LOOK AT Construction and life at the IndianOcean base

32 TO ALL SAILORSWHEREVER YE MAY BE Certificates document one's Navy travels

38 RIVERINE VETS Reservists go over lessons learned in war

44 FOR THE NAVY BUFF More lore on life in the Navy

Departments 2 Currents 17 Bearings Pane 28 27 MCPON 36 Grains of Salt 48 BuoyMail

Covers Front: One of the works of Navy Combat Artist Arthur E. Beaumont, jirst American artist to execute paintings in Antarctica. See page 13. Left: Gunner's Mate Seaman David Jutz greases the gun barrel chase of one of the two five- inch gun mounts on the USS Hull (DD 945).

Chiefof Naval Operations: James L. Holloway Ill Staff:LT Bill Ray Chief of Information: Rear Admiral David M. Cooney JOC Dan Guzman Dir. Print Media Div. (NIRA): John Alexander DM1 Ed Markharn Editor: JohnEditor: F. Coleman JOIAtchison Jerry News Editor: Joanne E. Dumene JOI (SS) Pete Sundberg ProductionEditor: Lieutenant ZakemJeff PH 1 TerryMitchell Layout Editor: E. L. Fast JO2 Davida Matthews Art Editor: Michael Tuffli J02 Dan Wheeler Research Editor: Catherine D. FellowsEdwardJenkins Elaine McNeil

Page 38 President’s Pay Commission Makes Final Recommendations 0 The President’s Commission on Military Compensation recently decided on its final recommendations to President Carter for the reform of the military pay and benefits system. Retirement A non-contributory retirement plan will be recommended to the President with the following features: 1. Eligibility forretirement pay: Com pleted years ofCompleted years service Payments begin 10-19 Age 62 20-29 Age 60 30 or more or 30 Age 55 2. Retirement pay is calculated by multiplying the base income (an average of the highest three years of basic pay) times the appropriate sum of multipliers from thefollowing table: Y ears of Service Per year multipliers year Per Service of Years 1to5 percent 2 to 10 2.25 percent 2.25 10 6 to 11 to35 percent 2.75 Example: (Member leaves upon completion of 15years’ service). 5 x 2 percent 2 x 5 percent 10 5 x 5 2.25 percent 1 1.25 percent 5 x 2.75 percent 13.75 percent 13.75 percent 2.75 x 5 35 percent x base income equals annuity at age 62. Comparable results.for other years ofservice: Years 10 2 1.25 percent x base income equals annuity at age 62 20 48.75 percent x base income equals annuity at age 60 25 62.50 percent x base income equals annuity at age 60 30 76.25 percent x base income equals annuity at age 55 Social Security will be integrated with the proposed retirementplan and retirement pay adjustments will be tied to the ConsumerPrice Index (CPI) to protect against inflation. Health Care, Exchanges and Commissaries Health care, exchange and commissary benefits will be extended to former service- members who have qualified for retirement pay after 15 or more years ofservice. Those per- sonnel who retire with 25 or moreyears of service with from 15 to 24 years ofservice will be entitled when their retirement paybegins at age 62 or 60. Military/Civil Service Retirement Under the proposed retirement plan, military annuities andcivil service annuities are fully coordinated. No one may receive a military annuity while working for civil service, but an- nuitants have two options for old age retirement: 1. Creditmilitary service to civil service systemand receive old age annuity after leaving civil service based on combined military andcivil service years of service, average high three years of civil service salary, and the civil service formula.

2 ALL HANDS 2. Credit civil service years to military system and receive old age annuity after leaving civil service based on combined military and civil service years of service, average high three years of military basic pay adjusted for CPI, andthe military formula. Trust Fund A deferred compensation trust fund, separate from the retirement system, would be established under the commission’s proposal to aid former servicemembers with 10 or more years of service in their adjustment to careers in civilian life. Members who die orleave active duty before eligibility would have no entitlement to payments. Afterfive years of service, a member begins receiving trust fund creditsbased on percentages of basic pay indicated inthe following table: Years of Service of Percent Pay Basic 6- 10 20 11 - 20 25 21 - 25 15 26 - 30 5 After 10 yearsof service, a member has several options: 1. Withdraw credits in installments over a specified time. 2. Leave all or part of the credits in the trust fund to continue accumulating interest for later withdrawal. 3. Use all or part to establish or supplement a retirement annuity. 4. Under certain limited conditions, withdraw credits as a lump sum. Severance Pay Under the new system, members who are separated involuntarily after five years of serv- ice and with less than 30 years of service would receive severance pay accordingto the follow- ing formula: one-quarter month’s basic pay per year for years ofservice up to 10; one-half month’s basic pay per year for years ofservice from 11 to 30, up toa maximum of 12 months’ basic pay. A servicemember who has begun his second enlistment,or (in the case of officers) con- tinued past an initial term of obligated service,or has entered the fifth year ofservice would be permitted to retire under the old rules, if thenew system is enacted. All others would come under the new system. Basic Pay The commission decided against recommending the substitution of asalary for basic pay and allowances and will recommend an annual aggregate increase in Regular Military Compen- sation (RMC) equal to the average percent increase given to civil service employees, as is now the practice. The commission believes that the Secretary of Defense should have discretionary authority to propose, within RMC, differential allocations of the annual payraise as a way to address the problems of personnel shortagesor surpluses. Bonuses and Allowances The commission also will recommend that all differential pay (special and incentive pay as well as bonuses for enlistment or reenlistment) should bedesigned to prevent or alleviate manning shortages and to incease the flexibility of personnel management and that a variable basic allowance for quarters be adopted to reflect geographical variations in the housing costs. The commission’s recommendations include the awarding of longevity payincreases to individuals based on time in grade instead of time inservice to enhance the pay of superiorper- formers and the extension of travel-related entitlementsto juniorenlisted servicemembers. The widespread dissatisfaction among military members, retirees and their families with the present health care system was noted by the commission. The committee recommended that a thorough studyof the military health care systembe conducted. For more information about thePresident’s Commission on Military Compensation and what SecNav and CNO told them, see the February 1978All Hands.

April 1978 3 I v; nurnlral nnern, now mat JUMYS (Jomt Unitorrn Mili- disbutonAA,reap.-. ,,st Christmas-our firstunder ful. Aectronic means to commercial financial institutions for JUMPS-several finance offices called to express apprecia- deposit to the individual accounts of members. This tech- tion for the chance to share in the holiday leave period. nologywill also provide the capability to paymembers directly from the central site in Cleveland. Q: DoesJUMPS also provide a better financialplanning TheAir Force is the front-runner in the use of EFT. tool to individual Navy members? However, for the Navy to reach this goal, we have to build A: There is nodoubt the monthly LES issued toour first a personnel and pay activity network with rapid data- servicemembers provides a good tool to assist in financial transmission capability. I am pleased to add, this effort is planningsince it sets forth sources of funds (pay entitle- well underway. ments in blocks 17 through 25) and fund uses (allotments/ Under the leadership of Vice Admiral James D. Watkins, deductions in blocks 26 through 43). But, it doesn’t or can’t Chiefof NavalPersonnel-under a project calledPASS be expected to do the whole job. Only the servicemember (Pay/Personnel Administrative Support Systemhwe are has the full knowledge required to make complete financial now consolidating and combining the 3,500 personnel offices forecasts for the months and years ahead. For example, the and150 disbursing offices ashore into less than 50 offices member has to add plans for disposing of net income called Personnel Support Activities. These offices will have mini-computers with telecommunication links to Cleveland (amount to bepaid in block 57) for discretionary. ... items, such as entertainment, as well as and BUPERS centralcomputers. It is this “real time” as payingoff a car or other loan. ommunicationslinkage which willpermit us to pay directly m Cleveland. The PASS project will give us quite a few

itional-- >. benefits.,.” =* ~ . - ~

j, , , ,&-.:.& - -L-:-“ Pi .3*-~J“ i ;; <, “!&5 ~ i( & . i(~ 1 :i : Whiit-are some‘of the benefits, admiral? A: Of primary interest to ourservicemember is the me stop shopping” aspect of PASS. Instead of being bounced backand forthbetween personnel and pay offices, a member will be able to get an answer by visiting the branch ofice nearest his or her place of work which will have an “on line” cathode-ray tube (CRT) connectionwith the their personal finances, and we added further information to regional Personnel Support Activity (PSA). the LES in February as part of the Navy’s efforts to make In fact, in addition to personnel and pay matters, we have our people more aware of the value of military compensa- already decided to put the passenger transportation office in tionand benefits. Specifically, the remarksblock on the the PSAsand I think other similar personal service func- JUMPS’ LES now explains the value of the tax advantage tions will beadded as wego along. For the Navy, the associated with the non-taxable quarters and subsistence savings coming out of the consolidation can be redirected to allowances. the operating forces.

Q: Sir, JUMPS has initiated beneficial changes in the pay Q: Are there other changes in thc aJac\.,,L lvll.rll uLr system. Is it the “last word” in pay systems or is something being contemplated at this time? better already in the planning stages? A: Of course, the big problem with going to a central pay A: Inmy opinion, JUMPS is far from the “last word” in system is servicing oursailors at sea.Obviously, if a pay systems. Although a big improvement, itis a labor- servicemember elects to send his pay to a financial institu- intensive, voluminous,hard-copy paper system employing tion because of the convenience, earnings on his account, slowmailbag communications between BUPERS, Cleve- orto take advantage of featuressuch as personal bill land, and more than 3,000 personnel and pay offices. paying, we will have to expand our personal check cashing But the central pay computationcapability provided by service afloat. Further, I can see the day when we willbe JUMPS was an excellent investment because it gives us the usingautomatic teller machinesaboard ship which will principal tool required to take advantage of Electronic permit the member to draw cash whenhe needs it. The Funds Transfer (EFT) technology. By EFT technology, I Naval Sea Systems Command already has a project under- .lean the capability to make direct deposits of pay through way to put small non-tactical computers on ships and they

BY 502 DAN WHEELER AND The Sigonella Dart Association is but there was no equipment, no JOC TOM JANSING only one of many Navy darting clubs apparent interest, and no place to do ashore and afloat. One sailor stationed it. I decided then and there to form a Some Navy people at NAF at Navy Recruiting District One in league.” Sigonella frequently squeeze three-in- Scotia, N.Y., not only admitted to That was more than a year ago. a-bed. Others seem to have chronic being a darter, but also immodestly Today, the Sigonella Dart Association cases of hard cheddar. Yet most, like proclaimed, “When you mention this boasts a growing population of darting darters everywhere, hurl an occasional command, you’re talking about the enthusiasts, and holds tournaments ton, too many bed ’n’ breakfasts, and New York champions.” regularly. Of course, Mrs. Lansford not enough corks when they middle Naval District Washington sponsors had to overcome some major for diddle. a tournament annually to which many handicaps before a league could be The 235 serious darters at the commands send up to 10 launched. There was no place to play, station are representative of more than representatives to compete at the neither the local community nor Navy four million Americans who regularly traditional game of “301.” They toss Exchange carried professional-type toss their arrows at sisal hemp darts at NAS Brunswick, , equipment, and potential members had dartboards mounted either seven feet on some ships homeported in San to work odd hours because of six inches away or eight feet away, Diego, and all points in between. operational commitments. depending on local rules. Fact is, darts From Tokyo to Sigonella, you have A less dedicated darter would have may be America’s fastest growing only to look-and usually not too pulled off her flights in dismay. “Not sport. Conrad Daniels, an American hard-to find a ton (100 points) being me,” said Mrs. Lansford. “When I go champion, claims that darting has shot and a loser getting a bit of hard out I always carry my darts in my been growing three times faster than cheddar (sympathetic consoling). purse just as I do my lipstick and either tennis or golf. It’s no wonder “I started throwing darts about wallet. I want to be ready in case I that Navy people, always ready for a three years ago when my husband and come across a dartboard.” With such challenge, have taken to the game in I were stationed in Naples,” said Mrs. enthusiasm, how could she have all parts of the world. Dee Lansford,. wife. of Chief Aviation failed? Electronics Technician Charles Lansford. “When we were transferred here, we wanted to continue throwing

8 ALLHANDS The keel was laid by making a trip to the NATO dart association in Naples to buy some professional equipment. There Mrs. .Lansford bought two “bristle” boards (originally boards were made of pig’s bristles, but that gave way.to synthetic fibers to avoid the inevitable stench) costing about $30 each, and a few sets of darts which range in price from about $5 for brass barrels to about $50 for the slimmer tungsten barrels preferred by many professionals. “Anytime the VP squadron (VP-49, deployed at Sigonella out of NAS Jacksonville) flew to Naples,” Mrs. Lansford said, ‘‘I hounded them to get anything they could for us. The problem was that every time the exchange .in Naples got equipment, it - sold immediately. If we didn’t get someone there at just the right time, It’s a game of skill we missed out.” Later though, she discovered that Scoffers sometimes claim that darts “Foot” was prepared to answer the an association member had a mother- is a child’s game, a gambler’s game charges. He requested that the in-law living in London. (In England, or, at best, a foolish pastime because magistrate allow him to demonstrate darts is second only to fishing in it is purely a “game of chance.” Not with a dartboard and arrows that darts popularity as a national pastime, and so, says Leeds Magistrate’s Court of was not a game of chance but a the world’s most prestigious England. Darters the world over owe game requiring the utmost skill. The tournament, The News of the World, a debt to “Foot” Anakin who fought magistrate agreed to the exhibition. is staged there annually.) the law and elevated darts, legally, After removing his dartboard from “Now whenever we need supplies, into the realm of skill. It happened his pub, he set it up in the court, we send a list to her and she gets our like this. stepped ,back eight feet and fired three supplies downtown and mails them to Before , in England, it darts into the treble-20 bed. “Foot” us,” Mrs. Lansford said. “We do so was illegal to operate games of chance invited the magistrate to take a crack much business with one London shop in pubs, taverns, or anywhere else for at it. that it now gives us a quantity that matter. Dartboards, however, The bewigged worthy declined but discount.” Demand for darting could be found in any workingman’s ordered a clerk to try. equipment at NAF Sigonella became local and every bloke worth his salt The clerk threw two darts into the so great that now the Navy Exchange tossed a mean dart. It was a matter of ornate woodwork and the third many and the Rod and Gun Club both carry national pride. No one ever beds away from the 20. a good supply of top-quality items. considered darts a game of chance “Foot” stepped up again and tossed The space-to-play problem was until the Leeds Magistrate’s Court three double-20s. solved when the manager of the chief took its first interest in the game since “Could you do that again?” asked petty officer’s club volunteered a the Middle Ages. the magistrate. portion of the building for regular In 1908, “Foot” Anakin, a tavern “Aye,” said England’s hottest meetings and tourneys. Eventually it owner, was arrested for presiding over darter, and he did. became common .knowledgethat a game .of chance on his.licensed “Case dismissed,” said the Sunday afternoons at the CPO club premises and .hauled into court to magistrate and darts acquired legal meant darting. Arrangements ‘were answer for his crime. The case had status as a game of skill and was made so that participants didn’t’have everything but “sex” and the darting legitimized under the law. to be chiefs to play at the club, though populace was up in arms over this all did have to be 18 years orolder indignation. because of club rules. The final con.sideration was how to schedule tournaments so that a maximum number could compete in spite.of odd working hours..It was decided to hold the jousts at the same

April 1978 time each Sunday. In time, this allows have an active darting league. Starting practically everyone to participate. L in early 1978, the NATO and Though more than 40 standard Sigonella associations are going to games can be played on the English e- hold quarterly tourneys pitting the board, the association opted for “301” Yanks against the Britishers. as their tourney game. This classic, There are now 16 women in the often called English Darts, is played at association among the officers, civilian most mjor tournaments and is employees, dependents, CpOs and all considered by champions to separate rates from top to bottom. There is no the men from the boys, women from segregation of the sexes either-men the girls-for, indeed, both sexes have and women play on the same team an equal chance at developing great and it’s not unusual to find a head-up proficiency since strength is no factor. match between a crackshot female In “301,” the bulI’s-eye, or cork,. is and a deadeye male. seldom used except to decide who will The association is now large enough be first-they middle for diddle, which that there are plans to split it into means the thrower of the closest dart sections and form intramural leagues to the center is first. Each player then among the various detachments and throws his darts in turn trying to place tenant commands. Mrs. Lansford one in the board’s narrow outer, or hopes that soon it will be possible to doubles ring, before he can begin to “respectable” players within three form a league for teenagers and rack up points. Subtracting his score months. Championship caliber, children as well. from 301 as he shoots, each player however, may take years to reach, if, Things have come a long way since tries to reach exactly zero first. in fact, it is ever attained. dartdom’s humble beginnings in However, there is a catch. The final In the there are more Sigonella last winter. Now, many dart, like the first, must be thrown than 7,000 pubs and taverns that sport sailors stationed there speak “darts” into the doubles ring and into a dartboards, and tens of thousands of almost as well as they do Italian. Drop number that reduces the score to recreation rooms. The main reason by the chiefs club any afternoon after exactly zero. The entire game can be darters go to a tavern to play, work and you’ll find a dozen or more played in six tosses, but that’s for according to Conrad Daniels, is not to dedicated darters tossing patiently at experts. It takes most players 20 or drink-though many players do sip a the treble-20, trying to beat their more. The loser is called “mugs” and few beers between shots-but “to be opponents and practice for Sunday’s gets first shot next game. “Mugs with friends, talk, and have a good contest. away” is the traditional way of saying, time. ” It looks easy. Simply hurl a “Go ahead, losers shoot first.” That style of camaraderie has not projectile weighing about an ounce at Though darts requires intense been overlooked by the Sigonella Dart a pie-slice-shaped section (called a concentration and great hand-eye Association. Indeed, they encourage it bed) on a dartboard eight feet away. coordination to excel, most champions on an international basis. There are Leaning over the hockey (shooting agree that with diligent practice and a some British players attached to line) is even allowed to shorten the will to win, most people can become NATO Headquarters in Naples who distance further. But you can’t imagine how really difficult it is until you give it a try, become addicted, and drift off to sleep each night with the sandman whispering in your ear, “Mugs away!” J,

ALL HANDS ‘Swans on a lake’ The language of darts is a heads of barrels, the center of combination of hybrid Cockney slang, which was sealed with a cork. metaphor and phrases that “stuck” 0 Dinky-doo-cockney for 22. for no apparent reason except they 0 Double-in-therequirement in sounded good. Darts has a formal “301” that each player must begin name for every part of the board and with a double. every action in the game and a slang 0 Downstairs-the lower half of the name for most as well. You can play board. without knowing the “slanguage” of 0 Fevvers-number 33, from the darts, but it’s a lot more fun to shoot Cockney saying: “Firty-free the winning point “on your knees” fousand fevvers on a frush’s froat.” than it is to throw a double three. 0 “Good darts”-a compliment paid Arrow-a dart of any make, size, any player who throws just that; it color or shape. is expected that such shots will be Away-started; if the player hit a accorded the recognition they double six on his first scoring toss, deserve. that individual has “12 away.” 0 Hardcheddar-“nice try.” 0 Bed-any wired-in portion of the 0 Hockey-the shooting line from board, though most only consider which all darts are thrown. a particular double or triple ring 0 Kelley’s eye-number 1. segment as being a bed. Married man’s side-the left-hand Bed ’n’ breakfast-the number 26 side of the board. when scored by hitting a 20, 5 and 0 Middle for diddle-the act of 1 ; comes from the price of a bed throwing for the cork at the start of and breakfast in Olde England a game to determine which which was 2/6d, two shillings and individual or team will shoot first. sixpence. 0 Mugs away-“losers go first.” Brush-a whitewash or skunk. Swans on a lake-number 22; so Beating your opponent before he/ called because of the shape of she scores. “22.” 0 Chucker-a very poor darter who 0 Ton-100 points; so called because rarely hits the board, much less his of the “weight” it places on your number. opponent. ’ ’ Clickety-click-the number 66; 0 Ton-eighty-180 points on one turn another example of Cockney- acquired by throwing three darts in rhyming slang. the treble-20 ring; highest possible Clock-the most widely used style score on one turn. of English dartboard. 0 Top 0’ the house-the double-20. 0 Cork-the bull’s-eye, bung, 0 Wet feet-“Your feet are over the bunghole or button. In the game’s hockey unless you’re dangling your beginning stages, archers frequently toes in the water or wearing your threw sawed-off arrows at the father’s boots.”

April 1978 11 Rights & Benefits Putting an end to harassment BY MAJ. JOHN T. FISHBACH, they owe a particular debt should tell USMCR the collector in writing that they dispute it. Harassment of servicemembers by A Federal Trade Commission rule bill collectors has been a common requires that consumers’ defenses practice for years. This harassment is must be preserved even if a debt has annoying, but can be particularly been sold to a third party. That means serious if the bill collector comes to a that, even if the promissory note commanding officer in an attempt to signed by an individual is sold to pressure the member into paying. somebody other than the original This practice not only takes lender, the debtor can still dispute the valuable time away from the debt. For example, if a sailor or commanding officer, but also may ruin marine buys a car and borrows money the reputation of the person involved. from the car dealer, the fact that the While no one should fail to pay just car dealer sells the note to a bank debts, Congress has acted to prevent makes no difference to the buyer. He some of the undesirable practices used can still dispute the debt if the car is by debt collectors, including that of defective. badgering employers to force payment The new Fair Debt Collection law, of bills. The Fair Debt Collection together with the Federal Trade Practices Act, recently signed into law Commission’s rule preserving by President Carter, contains several consumer defenses, should help end provisions that should help end the debtor except to tell him that there harassment by bill collectors. harassment and abuse. will be no further efforts made to For military bill payers, it should Under the law, bill collectors are collect or to advise the debtor that he, mean the end of efforts by collectors not permitted to contact third parties, the collector, intends to use some to contact commanding officers and including commandingofficers, other legal remedy such as a lawsuit to the embarrassment that goes with it. than to ask about the identity and collect. Such communications now are whereabouts of the person who owes Harassing or threatening conduct, violations of the law and could subject a debt. The bill collector cannot tell a use of obscene or profane language or the collector to law suits for damages third party that the individual owes repeated telephone calls intended to or fines or to administrative actions by any debt or call any third party more annoy debtors are forbidden. the Federal Trade Commission. If you than once, except to correct or Misrepresentation of the collector’s think you are being harassed, contact supplement information received business or of any of the remedies your legal assistance officer to see if previously. which might be involved is also this new law may help you. (MCNews). In contacting the debtor, bill forbidden. collectors must make their calls Post cards that can be read by other between 0900 and 2000. If the people must not be used by collectors. individual has an attorney, the bill Bill collectors must, within five collector must contact the attorney days of initial contact, send the debtor rather than the individual. a written notice telling the amount of If a person tells a debt collector in the debt, the name of the creditor to writing that he refuses to pay or that whom it is owed and a request that he wishes not to be contacted further, the debtor acknowledge the debt. the collector is forbidden to contact Service people who do not believe

12 ALL HANDS Arthur E. Beaumont 1090 - 1970 Arthur Beaumont was thefirst to admit thathe wasn’t shy. Still,he admired a good squelch. Thetelephone was nearly ringing itself off the hook one morning in his Los Angeles home as he was deep in the midst of a watercolor. Rule one in watercolors is thateven a moment’s interruption can undo hours of prepa- ration. Hetried to ignore it. Heasked himself, why should he answer it and spoil a masterpiece? It was probably a telephone salesman, anyway. Whoever it was,he was certainlypersistent. still, he thought, it just might be that long-awaitedmillion-dollar commis- sion. Angrily he grabbed the receiver. “Beaumont here,” he growled. A tiny voice asked, ‘Who?” He recognized the voice of his 6 combat artist, died this past January in of Art and Design. year-old granddaughter and answered, his Laguna Hills home in at In 1925 he returned to England and “This is the world’s greatest artist and the ageof 87. A naturalized citize- studied art in London and . you’vecalled atjust the wrongmo- native of Norwich, England-he began At first, he loved to paint horses and ment.” hisformal art study in 1912 atthe built a reputation as a cowboy painter. “Oh excuse me,” she said, “I must Univemity of California School of Art But his love of the sea turned him in have the wrong number.” in . Later hestudied at thatdirection-he became one of the Mark Hopkins School of Art in America’s foremost marine watercolor Arthur Beaumont, the Navy’s first Berkeley and the Los Angeles School painters.

14 ALL HANDS In 1932 he accepted a Naval Reserve in theAntarctic. He became best Operation Deep Freeze. commission as an artist. In that capac- knownfor his Antarctic workwhich When the admiral first arrived in the ity he traveled the globe covering the began during theInternational Geo- Antarctic in 1958, hesaid he was Navy’s story on paperand canvas. physical Year (1957-58) and continued “. . . astounded at the beautiful, vivid, Hiswork with the Navy included through 1%1. changing colors in the Antarctic. Color combat art during World War 11, Ko- Among his many admirers is retired photographs really didn’t do it justice.” rea and , and coverage of the Rear Admiral David M. Tyree who, as The admiral wanted “. . . to get Beau Bikini atom bomb tests, the Northwest CommanderTask Force 43, enticed down there because his paintingsal- Passage endeavor, and the Navy’s role Beaumont to go to the Antarctic with ways brought out the colors so well.” Beaumont actually shared the honor of being the first artist on the ice with another-Dr. E. H. Wilson of Scott’s fatal,early 20th centuryexpedition. 1 The doctor recordedmuch of Scott’s efforts in sketches and some water- colors.But, as Admiral Tyreeex- plained, Wilson’s “. . . primary job, however, was assurgeon in Scott’s earlyexpeditions and zoologist and leader of the scientific staff in the 1910 expedition.” ToArthur Beaumont, therefore, goes the title of first American artist on the Antarctic continent. Beaumont had a problem on the ice. One can hardly paint watercolors out- doors in -20” F. weather without hav- ing the water freeze. His answer was tomix the colors with alcohol. Tech- nlcally,his works became alcohol colors more so than watercolors. Another problem-painting while wearingmittens or glovesproduces sloppy work. He left two fingers of his painting hand bare and held a hand- warmer along with his brush. There he sat on a brightly colored camping stool, all alone in thevast wasteland of theSouth Pole or on McMurdo Sound's ice, painti- as fast as he could with one ear cocked €or the sound of $he chopper coming to return him to the bd sMion. Beau- mont confessed .that he didn't dare stray from ,the spot where the helo crew deposited him when he went -to the field. He accomplished some 20 paintings out in the open, including coverage of the icebreakers as the expedition ex- plored the wilds of the Bellingshausen Trencharea leading to the Palmer Peninsula. Bearinss ‘Decade of Dedication’ at least three major changes. The com- maintenance activity, providing timely mand was originally established to pro- repairs to ships of the fleet. Decemberwas a monthof sparkle vide shore billets for deprived fleet What the shore intermediate mainte- and celebration for the Development ratings while simultaneously improving nance activity concept means to the andTraining Center, FleetMainte- their professionalbackground through Navy is obvious: timely, quality re- nanceAssistance Group, Pacific special schools. In1972, the Chiefof pairs to the ships of the fleet. Through (DATC FMAG). Naval Operations expanded the com- training, as well, expert repairmen are The slogan, “DATC FMAG, A Dec- mand’s charter to include non-engineer- returned to the fleet for their sea tours. ade of Dedication, 1967-1977,” was ing ratings-the fleet Maintenance As- TheNavy’s retention program is sported on the rear bumpers ofmany sistance Group concept was born. strongly supported by giving engineer- cars at the Naval Station. A In July 1975, the charter wasagain ing ratings theopportunity to have hugesign posted above the center’s altered to meet the growingneeds of meaningful shore duty. administration buildingproclaimed its the modern fleet. Inaddition to en- “In theory,” Commander Joseph D. message to hundreds of passing motor- hancing the professional capabilities of Fenick,DATC’s executive officer said, “DATCFMAGPAC is trying to put itself out of business by returning to the fleet sailols who are effectively trained, experiencedand motivated. Most of the sailors received initially by our command areoperationally ori- ented but possess little or nomainte- nancebackground. DATC FMAG trains them.” “The DATC FMAG concept,” con- cludes Captain Frank C. Collins Jr., commanding officer, “isone of the most uniquely valuable concepts in the areas of maintenance, retention and morale ever conceived by the Navy. It’sthe best of bothworlds for the engineer, and there is a maximum payback to the Navy for every day a man spends at DATC FMAGPAC.”

“Story by J02 Ken Brrrsler “Photo by MM2 J. E. Muhoheq Copying the Original In 490 B.C., Pheidippides, a Greek soldier, ranmore than 26 milesfrom the plains of the Marathonbattlefield to Athens and announced the Athenian victory over the Persians. Last Octo- ber,two Navymen, CaptainEugene Finkeand Petty Officer 2nd Class Kevin Setnes, were among 1,800 run- ners from all over the world to dupli- cate Pheidippides’ run as competitors

April 1978 17 Bearinss in the 9th Classic Greek Marathon (DD967) did justthat when she citizens. Rockland High School Band Race for Amateurs. dropped anchor outside the breakwater treatedvisitors and crew to anunder- Captain Finke, of the staff of the at Rockland, Maine. Named for Lieu- way concert on the aft or missile deck Commander-in-Chief, U.S. Naval tenantCommander Arthur (Jack) El- as Elliot cruised calm waters off New Forces Europe, received a goldmedal liot, a Vietnam Warhero killed in England. for finishing first in his class (48-59 age combat, the ship was greeted by about More than 2,000 Maine residents group)with a time of 4:24. Setnes, of 40 pleasure craft carrying relatives, visited Elliot at anchor and crewmem- the Naval Communications Area Mas- friends and neighbors of the Elliots. It bers were received warmly ashore dur- ter Station Mediterranean, took second was the affair’s start. ing “Elliot Day” at a local county fair. place and a silver medal in his class On the day of arrival, the crew was Elliot’s lights, visible for miles, became with a time of 2:58:47. treated to an all-you-can-eat dinner of anadditional attraction for theweek- Theevent, held each Octoberto Maine lobster, clams and fresh corn, end, commemorate the run by Pheidippides, compliments of LCDR Elliot’s parents, During a brief Sundaymorning cer- follows the original route which begins Mr. and Mrs. Albert B. Elliot. In turn, emony, Elliot’s captain, accompanied onthe plains of Marathon, headsinto Elliot’s commanding officer, Com- by an honor escort of ship’s company, a IO-milehilly stretch, andends in the mander D. L. Gurke, washonored at laid a wreath at the grave of the ship’s AthensOlympic Stadium-a total dis- a joint luncheonhosted by local civic namesake in nearby Thomaston. tance of 26 miles, 385 yards. organizations. Rear Admiral Roy F. Elliot weighed anchor early on Mon- Hoffmann, Commandant, Sixth Naval daymorning, bound for thePanama Down East Affair District, spoke at that affair. Canal Zone and, eventually, her home- Highlighting the ship’s weekend visit port in San Diego. Whileit is unlikely It doesn’t happen oftenthat a ship was a daylightguest cruise onboard that Elliot will return to Rockland, it is visits thehometown of theperson for the recently commissioned Spvuance- certainthat her one visit will belong whomshe is named, but USS Elliot classdestroyer for about 650 local remembered. Pickup and Delivery Two Californiafishermen were res- cued by the guided missile USS Willicrm H. Stcrndlc.v (CG 32) when their small boat’s motorstalled and they began drifting out to sea. Dean Jacobs and Scott Broughhad beenadrift off SantaCatalina Island for fourhours when Standlry’s look- out, SeamanMike Leiby. reportedthe boat in distress. ‘The twofishermen werestanding in theboat waving a shirt tied to a pole. -. Stcrnd1c.v maneuverednear andlow- _7: eredone of her boats. After bringing lil the small craft alongside, two members of the ship’s engineeringdepartment attemptedto restart the motor. When it became clear that the problem would take some work, the decision was made to hoistthe boat on boardand take it nearshore where they would

18 ALL HANDS be met by members of the Los Angeles They Make House Calls speeds up repair work since the repair- County Department of Beaches. men only have to know one wiring “I thought Standley wouldonly ra- The five TV repairmenaboard the system. dio for help, which wouldhave meant USS Enterprise (CVN “We spend about $2,000 a year on not being rescued until after dark, and 65) are reallyno different from their parts,” explains Electronics Techni- we had no tights aboard,” said Brough. civilian counterparts, but they do have cian (Radar) 2nd ClassJoe Kayser. Jacob added, “We never expected one thingthat others can onlydream “Most of the parts we use are 5@ and to get this much help from the Navy.” about: a monopoly on the business. 75-centitems, like capacitors and Standley is a recent addition to the “We evenmake house calls,” says diodes. Occasionally, more expensive Pacific Fleet, having previouslybeen Interior Communications Electrician intermediate frequency moduleshave homeported in .Charleston, S. C. She 2nd Class Vince Dimartino. “As soon had to be replaced.” is namedin honor of Admiral William as we get a call from a division that a Besides TV repair, thefive electri- H. Standley, a former Chief of Naval set is broken, we take our tool kit and cians are responsible for over 500types Operations (1933-37). check it out. If we can’ttrace the of test equipment used on Enterprise. problemimmediately, we take the set There’s no doubt that a properly to the shop. Unless we have higher working TV set is an important morale Learning by Doing priorities, the set is usually fmed within factor.The TV studio is inundated Lieutenant Commander Pamela A. a couple of days.” withphone calls when a set goes on Kaires recentlybecame the Navy’s Enterprise’s 200 TV sets were pur- theblink. They relaythe message to first woman doctor to dive to 300 feet chased in 1974when the ship con- TV repair, andthen the crew can sit using the 290-pound Mark V mixed gas verted to a new entertainment system. back and rest assured that a repairman (heliudoxygen) diving outfit. They are all the same model, and this is on the way.-JOl Len Churilla Doctor Kaires, nowstudying sub- marine medicineat New London, Conn., previously completed an eight- week course atthe Navy School of Diving and Salvage in Washington, D.C. She undertookthe diving course to geta firmer understanding of the medical and practical aspects of diving. r

I

April ‘1978 19 Bearings

Report Raises Schools theEuropean Department of Defense high schools and one junior high in Dependent Schools after a recent study Italy, Spainand Germany and praised “. . . as fine as anywe’ve seen in bya four-member accreditation team the diversified instructional program America.” ”. . . therapport between from the North Central Association of and relationshipbetween teachers and teachers and their students is enviable.” Colleges and Secondary Schools. students. They observed that the pupil- Such werethe comments directed to The teamspent a month visiting 12 teacher ratios were much more favora- ble than in most high schools and that students seemed to have more time for teams fromcommands in the Carib- academic pursuits perhaps be- Winning Touch bean and Europe participated. “. . . cause they don’t have as much access Great Lakes began their fight for the Seven of the Navy’sbest touch to cars or to unlimited television view- championship in weather that ranged football teams, somecoming from as ing.” far away as Europe and the , from warm Indian summer days to “Probably your greatest resource,” cold rainand thunderstorms. In the clashed recently at the Meridian Naval the report stated, “is your students. In Air Station in Mississippi, in the annual first game they trouncedWashington spite of a fairly rapid turnover rate, All-Navy East Coast Touch Football 41-0. Next, theysneaked by Meridian yourstudents have as much spirit, as Championships. 28-26, followedby a 24-20 win over much sense of tradition as students do A tough, determined Great Lakes the team from Europe. in theMidwest. The intimacy of your team won the championship witha The final game between Great Lakes smaller schools especially allows for final score of 40-24 over runner-up and Norfolk wasplayed on a soccer most students to get involved in extra- Norfolk. According to Great Lakes field because of damagedone to the curricular programs-sports, drama, Coach Virgil Lewis,flexibility and original football fieldby periodic rain newspapers, clubs and other activities- teamwork clinched thechampionship and three weeks of competitive foot- a very, very healthy sign.” for his team. ball. The accreditation team expressed “We are totally flexible,”Lewis Althoughthe Norfolk team had some concern that many teachers were said. “We are a good ball club and we shown throughout the tournament that not taking full advantage of the oppor- pick up what our opponents are doing they are a come-from-behind team, the tunity to learn froma host, foreign and are able to adapt. That’s whywe 18-point lead that Great Lakes mounted environment. Their biggest criticisms won.” in the firsthalf was too much for centered on internal management prac- In addition to Great Lakes and Nor- Norfolkto overcome. Great Lakes tices. But for the most part, the NCA folk, teams from Meridian, Brunswick, wenthome victorious-already plan- report was one of praise. Washington(D.C.) and composite ning for next year’s championship. Obit of the Blue Tail The legend of the “Blue Tail Fly” wasborn in the Korean War, while Attack Squadron 153 (then VF 83 1) washelping set arecord for themost combat sorties flown in asingle day. Well, VA 153 is no more-it recently was decommissioned. But the story surroundingthe birth of those “Blue Tail Flies” will undoubtedlygo down as one more legend that the Navy will long remember. During the Korean Warthe squad- ron was flying F9-F5 Panthers off USS

20 ALLHANDS Princeton. Some of theplanes were Indeed, that plane’s fame soon be- combat ingenuityand resourcefulness. paintedblue while-for no explainable came so widespread that no one both- It’s good-bye, finally, to a squadron reason4thers were painted silver. ered to use a code for it during combat that was the only Light Attack Squad- During onecombat mission the tail missions; it was the “Blue Tail Fly.” ron toaccomplish the .remarkable section of a silver jet andthe nose The combat success of bothplane achievement of winning three consec- section of a blue jet werebadly dam- andsquadron during that deployment utive Battle “Es.” Lucky for U.S. aged by enemyfire. The planes, pointed up to themen of VA 153 that Navy aviation .that her accamplish- though battered, madeit safely back they had a goodthing going. Voila! ments will live on. to Princeton where crewmen began Soon all planessported blue tails and graftingthe remnants of thetwo continued to do so upuntil recently Hitching a Ride planes. Menworked day and night when the squadron ended its illustrious At dawn on Nov. 3 operating in the until one plane-possessed of a silver career during decommissioning cere- southwest of India, units bodyand blue tail-was born of the monies at Naval Air Station Lemmre, of Task Group 77.4 spotted a small fish- cannibalized parts fromthe shot up Calif. ing vessel in distress. Guidedmissile planes. So it’s good-bye to a squadron that destroyer USS Parsons (DDG 33), Mechanics who switchedthe tails, fought in , madeeight combat commanded by Commander W. T. electricians whodid the wiringand deployments to Vietnamand became Dziedzic, went to investigate. metalsmiths who accomplishedthe re- the first carrier-based squadron to win Parsons found a 3@foot fishing boat rigging all began singing the‘‘Blue the Arleigh Burke Award, given to the becalmed and.drifting away from the Tail Fly”-the birth of a legend. combat unit which achieves the great- fishermen’s Suvadiva Atoll home in This single “Blue Tail” airplane re- est improvement in battle efficiency the Maldive Islands. turned to combat whilemen onboard during any year. Through sign language, Dziedzic Princeton composed a verse about her It’s good-bye to a squadron whose found that the fishermen were using a unusual metamorphosis. symbol-theblue tail-was born of 1925 British chart as their sole naviga- tionalaid. They believed themselves to be east of their island home, but were actually 60 miles west of it. Underthe direction of Task Group Commander Rear Admiral P. A. Peck, Parsons tookthe fishing boat in tow. The fishermen were moved aboard the ship, where they received clean clothes and their first good meal in days. One fisherman remainedon their boat to help three Parsons’ sailors ensure boat safety during the tow. The rescue coincided with Parsons’ 10thbirthday as a DDG. In 1%7, she had been recommissioned following conversion at theLong Beach Naval . Seven hours after the rescue, Par- sons neared Suvadiva Atoll. Their orig- inal clothes freshly laundered, the Mal- diviansreturned to their boat and home. It concluded a uniquebirthday celebration in the fleet. &

April 1978 21 THURSDAY

Mrs. Ross moans and tries to move as she is wheeled into the emergency room.Charge nurse Lieutenant (j.g.) Kathy Geyerbegins to take the woman’svital signs. “Don’t move, hon. You’ve been in an accident and you’rein the hospital,” Miss Geyer

Below: Lt. j.g. Kathy Geyer (far right) directs ambulance crew bringing patient into the emergency room. I

22 “-IALL HANDS in a Sea of Haste Portsmouth Emeraencv Room 4 d gently explains. “We’re trying to help battery of X-rays. Specialists from the the damaged limbs, an I.V. will have you.” gynecology, orthopedic and neurology to be inserted into a neck vein. For theER staff, thesituation is wards areordered to report tothe “Mrs. Ross, we’re going to have to routine. For Mrs. Ross, it’s a night- operating room to assist. sticksome needles into your neck,” mare.She has a deep gash in her Everyone in the OR is busy-as the explains Dr. Armstrong. “Please try to forehead, a crushedpelvis, broken X-ray technician finishes thecamera remain as still as possible.” bones in botharms and legs-and work,blood is drawn, oxygen is ad- The area around the vein is anesthe- she’s seven months pregnant. ministered and vital signs aretaken tized. A long hollow needle is inserted LieutenantRichard Armstrong, a again. Convemation is terse. into the vein and then the I.V. line is surgical resident, takes over when the Dr. Armstrong consults with an or- pushed through the needle and into the patient arrives in the operating room. thopedist. Since any 1.V.s that are put vein. The needle is then removed and Hequickly examines Mrs. Ross and into the patient’s arms or legs will have theI.V. is sewn to the woman’s ordersan intravenous (I.V.) and a to be removed later in order to repair neck-seemingly brutal, but a precau- tionary procedure designed to keep it securely in place. It will be hours before Mrs. Ross is sfable enough to be m6ved-then it’ll be up to the specialists. Meanwhile, the emergencyroom desk people are busy; patients occupy five of the seven examinationareas and the waiting room is slowly filling up. Morethan 100 people aday, with every conceivable ailment, check into the Naval Regional Medical Center (NRMC)emergency room atPorts- mouth, Va. They comewith broken bones, skinned knees, seizures, colds, andsome with just “pains” in every part of theanatomy. There are the humorous, the minorand the serious cases. Some die; but many more, such as Mrs. Ross, are treated successfully. The first medical person a patient sees is a nurse or corpsman who asks what the complaint is and takes pulse, temperature andblood pressure read- ings. People with obvious problems such as chest pains, breathing difticul- ties or bleeding are seen first. Patients with less dangerousconditions must wait their turn to seea doctor. Between 0800 and 2100, minor cases are referred to the Medical Acute Care Clinic(MACC). The MACC,staffed by doctorsand clinical assistants, treatsthe colds, coughs, headaches andother, sometimes mysterious, physicaldiscomforts. The clinical

April 1978 23 ..

ALL HANDS FRIDAY “You’re not going to like it, but it’s not as painful as it is uncomfortable,” A man sits drinking and thinks of his explainsFellows. “We’re going to court-martial and pending discharge. haveto put this tube through your He also ponders his future-one that mouth. . . .” looks more hopeless with each drink. The ordeal begins. The near suicide He comes to a decision, goes to the victim begins to rally, he wants to live. medicine cabinet and takes out a bottle Day-by-dayexperience gained by of pills. . . . hospitalcorpsmen allows a profes- . . . the patientis jolted out of sional staff to be capable of handling unconsciousness by a loud voice. many emergencies suchas this one “Tom,have you ever had your without supervision. neck. He is immediatelyushered into stomach pumped?” asks Hospitalman an examination room to be seen by a John Fellows. doctor. The tentative diagnosisis cy- “No,” hemumbles, as he watches NEW YEAR’S EVE anosis, a bluish or purplish discolora- three corpsmen prepare for the job. tion of the skin or mucous membranes The ER, with its doctors, nurses and causedby a deficiency ofoxygen in specially-trained corpsmen are ready the blood and often present in people for anything this New Year’s Eve. Dr. Richard Armstrong, assisted by two with congenital heart defects. specialists, anesthetizes patient in preparation The man walks into the ER seeking Minutes later, the man comes out of for insertion of I.V. treatment for the blue splotches on his the exam room-his once blueneck now overshadowed by a red face. The doctor laughingly explains, “It wasn’t cyanosis,but, ‘pseudo cyanosis,’ a rather rare affliction caused by putting on a new, but inferior, blue shirt.” Meanwhile, an ambulance run has to be made. Lieutenant DavidRandolph isexplaining thecase to Lieutenant Wayne Hess, the doctor who will ac- company the ambulance. A chief petty officerhad been in- volved in a motorcycle accident earlier in the day and was nowin the emer- gency room atan outlying hospital. The hospital had completed the initial lab studies. There were possible inter- nal injuries along with a fractured fe- mur and a large hemotoma on his right leg. “We reallycan’t afford to send a doctor out on a nightlike this,” Dr. Randolph says.“We could bein a hurting position if we get a bad crunch out here on the highway. “But whenyou’ve got an outlying hospital that wants to transport some- body, it may mean they don’t feel their facilities are adequate to support the patient,” said Dr. Randolph. Theambulance leaves NRMC at 2130 and arrives at the civilian hospital 15 minutes later. Ninety minutes pass before Dr. Hess is satisfied the patient is stable enough to be transported. The ride back isn’t the flashing lights and wailingsiren type of drama por- trayed on TV, but it still is a knuckle- whitening experience. Theambulance driveranticipates how otherdrivers

April 1978 25 HN John Fellows and Dr. David Randolph monitor a system which measures spinal fluid pressure. next step for EMTs, are empowered with this responsibility. When working away from the hos- pital, Cardiac Technicians (CTs)can dispense medicines to patients without having a doctor present. In addition to the EMT training, another 172 hours of instruction is required before CT certi- fication. Until recently, NRMC had only three certified CTs, but with the installation of a Coronary Observation Radio(COR) monitoring system, the hospital found it could institute its own CT’training coursein order to use the system effectively. With a rh$ge’of 45 miles, the system is considered a boon to the area. “With a CT in the ambulance send- ing us EKGstrips,” says Dr. Davis, “and in constant communication with a doctor in the emergency room, we can get a coronary patient herein good shape.” Although only one ambulance is now equipped with the COR system, five moreunits have been ordered. Once thesystem has been expandedand enough CTs trained,the emergency room doctors will be relieved of the responsibility of having to accompany patients to the hospital. will react when they see his rig appear whatever might occur. A voice cracklesover the hospital in theirrearview mirror; he expertly The EMT training, whichis volun- emergency phone. pickshis way throughthe holiday tary and available to any person inter- “NRMC Portsmouth, thisis River- revelers and delivers the patient safely ested in patient care, spans 128 hours side Hospital, over.” to Portsmouth’s emergency room. of instructionin everything frompa- Geyser, Fellows and Randolphhurry tient handling to driving an ambulance to the phone-“NRMC over.” Anythingcan happen and often and the application of its related equip- “Happy New Year, Portsmouth!” does, but the ER staff doesn’t schedule ment. Although EMTs are qualified to answers Riverside. extra people just because it’sNew do jobs similar to those peIformed by Relief flowsinto everyone’s face Year’s Eve nor does the staff become paramedics, they cannot independently when they realize they had forgotten nervous or look for corners in which administer medicines or act as an ex- what night it is. to hide.Since most of the corpsmen tension of a doctor’s skills, even if a “Hey, we’vegot an M.I. (heart on duty are qualified Emergency Med- physician is directing them via radioor attack) out here,” someone yells. ical Technicians (EMTs), the ER team telephone. Thethree return quickly to what feels confidentthat they can handle However, Cardiac Technicians, the they do best. J,

26 ALL HANDS MCPON “Questions and Answers” the fact that not all ratings have a good Q. Will we see more womenin the opportunity to receive sea duty, espe- Navy in the future? cially at the senior levels. The letter A. Yes. We currently have approx- fromthe Chief ofNaval Personnel imately 19,000 enlisted women and which convenes the selection of boards 4,000 femaleofficers on active duty. addresses this matter. Our plans already call fc Ir an increase in the enlisted ranks to about 30,000 Q. Why didthe TISITIR require- and an increase infema le officers to ments change? about 4,600 by 1983. If thle amendment A. Recentand future time-in-serv- to Title 10, USC, Section I 6015 passes, ice (TIS) andtime-in-rate (TIR) thenumber of women will riseto changes arethe result of compliance 40,000. with Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) directives. In an effort to im- Q. Is Title 10, USC, being modi- prove military manpower management, jed topermit women to serve aboard OSD has established minimum normal combatant vessels? progression flow points,that is, the A. No. Approval of the proposed minimum desired TIS point at which a amendment to Title 10, USC, Section MCPON Robert J. Walker givenpromotion may occur. TIR 6015,would authorize utilization of An importantpart ofmy job as changes are an internal Navy manage- women aboard ships clas sified as auxi- Master Chief Petty Officer of the Navy ment tool to accommodate TIS changes lianes or service craft vvhich are de- is making official visits to Navy com- and to manage the enlisted paygrade signed for support funclLions and are mands throughout the world to meet structure. not required bycontingt :ncy plans to with enlisted men and women and participate in combat ope rations. describe the present state of the Navy Q. Are the changes really necessary as I seeit. I tryto do my best to inthe housingregulations with regard Q. Is the Navy really serious about answer their questions concerning any to utilities? the weight control progra m? facet of Navy life. A. Inorder to help conserveen- A. Yes,the Navy is very serious The following arequestions of a ergy, Congress has approved a plan to aboutthe weight contlrol program. generalnature I answeredduring a install and test utility meters in military BUPERSINST 6110.2B ilmplemented a recent trip to commands in the south- family housing. The test will begin this more stringent program nequiring com- east portion of the country: yearand take approximately two manding officers, with t he assistance years. Roughly12,000 family housing of the medical officer, tc identify and Q. Why do the selectionboards units will betested at 10 military classify members withiln theircom- always place such emphasis on sea activities.Throughout thetest pro- mandswho were ovem(eight and to duty? gram,mock billing will be practiced place them on a weight reduction pro- A. In a nutshell, sea duty is impor- and the occupant will not be required gram for a period of six nnonths . tant simplybecause this is the naval to pay for any excess usage. Congress If the member does no t demonstrate service. By placingemphasis on sea will review the test results, and, if they adherence to the progran 1, administra- duty in the selection process for E-718/ agreeupon the program, they will tive discharge action m;ay be taken. 9,the Chiefof Naval Personnel en- determine a “fair consumption rate.” However, if a member I;hows signifi- courages competition for this type of Becausefamilies in militaryfamily cant progress, yet requil-es additional duty which is vital to the accomplish- housing do not pay utilities, they are time to meet the weight Istandards, the ment of our basicmission. Addition- often not aware of how much energy Chiefof Naval Personnc 21 will decide ally, seaduty rounds out anindivid- they use. Military families will con- favorably on extension re quests. Those ual’s overall job experience. tinue to receive free utilities if the fair membersdischarged bty reason of However, simplyhaving had sea consumption rates become effective, obesity may reenlist at a laterdate dutydoes not ensure selection over butfamilies who exceed those rates providedthe reenlist1 nentweight someone who lacks it. This recognizes would pay for the extra energy used. standards are met. J, April 1978 ?I BY 503 P. M. CALLAGHAN transform the coral reef atoll into an maintaining $20 million worth of equip- island naval facility. Theirs is no eight- ment,” said Lieutenant Ray Pylant, It is not yet dawn as Seabees eat hour day-work continues around the Alfa company commander, “the chal- breakfast .in Diego Garcia’s dining fa- clock. lenge is great anddemands the best cility. Overcoffee and fried eggs, During the night, trucks haul cement from each of us.” crews discuss the coming day’s work. froman area near the lagoon to a Seabeesare currently lengthening Then, in fatigues andhardhats, the pair of concrete plants operated by the island’srunway to make it safer members of Naval Mobile Construction Seabees.These plants produce all and capable of accommodating a wide Battalion 62 greet another torrid day on the concrete used in Diego Garcia’s range of transiting aircraft. A gateway the island which sits just below the construction projects. to theoutside world, the runwayis equator in the Indian Ocean. “With the tremendous workload on priceless whenmeasured in terms of Day after day the Seabees work to Diego Garcia and problems we have in morale. A MilitaryAirlift Command “Starlifter” (2-141 flight arrives every Wednesday and Saturday bringing re- placementpersonnel, high priority cargo and, of course, mail. Early the next day, the Starlifer departs carry- ing outgoing mail, personnel going on leave and others being transferred. The arrival and departure of the C- 141 is a welcome relief, if only for minutes, for the menworking on the new runway. Even when the weather station’s thermometer reads a mere 90 degrees, Seabees on the off-white coral sands, whichwill one day be a run- way,suffer in thesun’s direct and reflected heat. At times, .the air seems unbreathable. Incomingflights always receive at- tention, but the major eventon this horseshoe-shapedisland is the day a ship steams into the lagoon cawing supplies. Normalworking schedules are altered as Seabees, NavalCom- municationsStation personnel,and

Seabees lay a foundation fora two-stor?, barracks on Diego Garcia. (Photo by pH3 Steve Frass.)

28 KLL HANDS Seabees place concrete at the site of Diego minor repair station for Allied ships. conditioned portahuts sleeping four to Garcia’s future swimmingpool. The concrete is made of cement and crushed coral. (Photo Today, two six-inch gun emplacements six men each, and open-air Southeast by PHI Robert Vaughn.) still guard the lagoon-curiosity pieces Asian seahuts sleeping 12 men each. gathering dust. Atthe end of eachday, Seabees specialists from Cargo HandlingBattal- In 1971, thefirst Seabees arrived return to camp. While they crowd into ionOne board “mike” boats and andlived in tents. Gradually, condi- thechow hall andplan the night’s barges to offload cargo from the hold. tionsimproved. The station is no activities, other men are waking. They This chore goes on for several days. longer the primitive site it once was; are preparingto begin their“day’s Not evenwhen Diego Garcia was now the 1,400 menwho call Diego work” on Diego Garcia which will end one of the largest producers of coconut Garcia “home”eat in a newdining at dawn. oil in the Indian Ocean could it boast facility,work out in a gymnasium, such a constant stir of activity as when relax in the enlisted club and will soon a supply ship arrives. When the ship sleep in a new barracks.Not that leaves, however, she’s gone-not even facilities are necessary to enjoy some a wake remains. But the plantations of the finer things about the island- that housed thecoconut barons are there isalways excellent fishing, sail- still there andready to be seen and ing, swimming and softball. explored. General living conditions are satis- Discoveredin 1498 by thePortu- factory (after you get used to them), guese, DiegoGarcia passed through butcertainly don’t equal what one French hands before it became a Brit- would enjoy in the states or at other ish possession in 1810. DuringWorld overseas deployment. sites. Quartering War 11, it served as a refuelingand is divided into two distinct types: air- .-April 1978 -29

Below: A Seabee makes his way up the ladder which winds around the side of a large fuel tank.

I When you’re born, you’re issued a and achievements denoting one’s serv- cumbered title to a single plank in the birth certificate. When-as the French ice upon thebriny deep-from the deck of the aforementioned illustrious say-you swallowyour birth certifi- Order ofthe Blue Nose to the Order unit.” cate,your passing is marked by a of the Big Ditch. One of the more difficult to obtain is death certificate. If you’vecrossed the equator, one which honors circumnavigators of Betweenthese two official docu- you’rea Shellback. If you’ve jour- the globe-the Round the World certif- ments noting the coming and going of neyedbelow the 66thparallel, you’re icate. Still, for one who can qualify, it man, most people collect a few certifi- an old antarctic explorer who entered places the owner in a special class with cates observing how they spent some the Domainof the Antarctic. Ifyou ‘’. . . Tattoed Brethren of the deep, ye of their time in life-diplomas, sheep- enteredthe realm of “. . . seaser- followers of the firstcircler of the skins, a testimonial or two certifying pents, crabs. mutineers, pirates of the World, Fernando Magellan.” some sort of service or achievement. yellow seas, andall other derelicts of Holders of such a certificate have Therein lie the achievementsof most far eastern seas,” you have been initi- one leg up on old Fernando-he didn’t people. ated into the Domainof the Golden live through his voyage, while modem Not so withNavy people. By the Dragon. day circlers survive. time one retires, a den’s bulkhead can Vaned are the certificates for which Whoamong you have met with be covered with citations,plaques, a sailor can qualify. Perhaps the most “. . . polar bears, walrus, seals, whales, photos and, oh yes, certificates. There meaningful is that of Plank Owner, by huskies, martens, foxes, reindeer . . .” for all to see are the accomplishments virtue of being a member of a commis- andwhat all? Why, the ones who sioning crew. By tradition, you ac- tually own a plank of that ship; getting it and securing it to one’s bulkhead at home maybe a problem.Best to substitute the certificate which attests tothe fact that the owner “. . . is entitled bythe laws of the sea, toall the rights and privileges of a Plank

Owner . . .” and ‘I. . . That he is enti- tled also to clear, free, open and unen-

32 ALL HANDS .. journeyed far north tothe Realmof its owner went from ocean to ocean, the Arctic Circle. There, one paid his either east or west, and thereby saved initiation fee in ". . . the land of Ici- himself a tiring (additional) journey of cles, Blizzards, Williwaws, and myriad 7,837 miles. Snowflakes. . . ." On the next few pages, we've high- There's one certificate which sailors lighted some of the certificates a Navy aboardaircraft carriers may have a person can collect in acareer. Cer- littledifficulty in qualifying for-at tainly we haven't shown or mentioned least that's been thecase in the last all that are available. three decades when carriers became Thecertificates shown here were wider and wider. That document is the provided to ALL HANDS courtesy of Order of the Big Ditch.Awarded to the U.S. Naval Institute, U.S. Naval those whotransit the Panama Canal, Academy,Annapolis, Md. 21402.- the certificateinforms the world that J.F.C.

i/

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Grains of Salt “Eating crow” is never easy. But if that proverbial meal thought it was a great joke. Here the “mighty” American Seemsless than appetizing, “fore-’n’-aft capa la carte” Navy could not even launch her ships without incident. It complete with gold trimmings is indigestible. Nevertheless, was rumored among European countries that, in all proba- history doesrecord one such meal offered to a Navy bility, the new fleet would sail no more formidably than the captain, and Old Ironsides was the maitre d’. Yankee ship of state. But more about that later. Constitution did get underway. Rated at 54 guns and with In 1794, the United States was at war with the Barbary her 400-man crew under the command of Captain Samuel pirates. Americanbusinessmen were clamoring for naval Nicholson, shesaw her first action in the quasi-war with protection for their merchant ships which were beingpirated . off the North African coast. Congress was helpless. There That was the testing ground and Constitution learned her wasno U.S.Navy to speak of and hadn’t been since lessonswell enough to be Commodore Edward Preble’s shortly after the Revolutionary War. Ships had to be built. flagship in the TripolitanWar soon thereafter. Still, her The government authorized the construction of six frig- greatest victory was yet to come. ates to fight the pirates and protect American shipping off By 1812, freedom of the seas was again being threatened, Algiers-themain offender. TheNaval Act contained the this time by the British Lion. Captain Dacres, commanding stipulation, however,that if peacewere made with the officer of the British frigate Guerriere, claimed he had the Barbary States, the building program would be shelved. “best fighting ship on the seas” and was itching to prove it. Since there was no Navy Department, Secretary of War So confident was he of his prowess, CAPT Dacres publicly Henry Knox was charged with coordinating the building of boasted that he could whip any American ship in 15 minutes a fleet. He made the project a national effort by recruiting or less and offered to wager his hat to all takers. volunteerworkmen from everystate, and by ordering On Aug. 19, 1812, the Englishmanhad a taker-Captain timberfrom the Carolinas and Georgia; ordnance from , commanding officer of USS Constitution. They Maryland,, New Jersey and Connecticut; met quite by accident on the high seas and Guerriere canvas from ; and anchors and cordage from every greeted the Yankeefrigate with a broadside. Hullswung available source. Constitution sharply and the enemy shells fell short. Next, Knox commissioned Joshua Humphreys, a Phila- Guerriere kept coming, firing asshe came. Another delphian, to design the warships. That’s when the contro- broadside missedand Constitution’s crewlooked to Hull versy began. Humphreys had a revolutionary idea-build a for the order to return fire. The American captain shouted frigate capable of cutter speeds and load her withheavy through his trumpet,“Hold your fire, boys. Holdyour guns. Naval shipbuilders from the old school scoffed. The fire.” plan was clearly impossible. A third broadside tore splinters out of Constitution’s deck No one had ever devised a way to arm a ship heavily yet and again the gunnery officer asked permission to fire. “Not stillkeep her lightenough to attain high speeds. Speed yet, sir,” replied Hull. “Not yet.” could be attained only by sacrificing armament. The Phila- A fourth broadside bounced off Constitution’s side and delphian ignored the scoffers anddesigned anextra long the adversaries were but a pistol shot apart. A cannonball frigate with the lines of a cutter and then addedheavy ploughedthrough the Americanpoop deck and British timbers to support the big guns. marinesbegan taking potshots at the crew. OneYankee Constructionbegan. Constitution was to be built in seaman fell. Boston; President in New York; Constellation in Baltimore; Still came the order: “Not yet! Hold your fire! Not yet!” Congress in Portsmouth; United States in ; and Anothermusket volley raked Constitution’s deckand Chesupeake inNorfolk. Before construction waswell Guerriere moved even closer, Dacresconvinced that vic- underway, however, the project was abandoned. A peace tory was imminent. How could the outcome be otherwise had been made. against a Yankee ship that was either afraid, or unable, to But with the end of one war,another began against return fire? French privateers on the high seas. Construction was again Suddenly Hull’s ship was pushed almost within boarding authorized and in latesummer 1797, UnitedStates and range of Guerriere and he yelled, “Fire! Pour it into them, Constellation were launched. On Sept. 20, Constifution slid boys!” down the ways at Hartt’s Shipyard-and stuck! When the smoke had cleared. Guerriere was half listing Americans saw the incident as a bad omen, but foreigners on her beam and her deck looked like a toothpick collection.

36 ALL HANDS ‘‘Fire!” then another. Guerriere was finished. Guerriere’s mizzenmast came down and fire broke out in By then Constitution had been dubbed “Old Ironsides” the forecastle. by her crew-so many cannon balls had bounced off her “Hull her boys!” shouted CAPT Hull. thick oakensides. Dacres boarded Constitution andthe And holes appeared at the waterline. defeated captain offeredhis sword to Hull, as was the “Again boys!” tradition. Hull, though, not caring for that sort of thing, With that, the crew of a severelydamaged Guerriere handed CAPI’ Dacres back his sword. Then Hull said: tried boarding Constitution, the ship they could whip in 15 “But, if you don’t mind, Captain, I’ll trouble you for that minutes or less. American marksmen made short work of hat!” A much humbler captain stood silent and bareheaded the ill-fated Britishers; none survived the Yankee onslaught. in the sun, not the last to “eat his hat” at the hands of Old Hull ordered another broadside at point-blank range and Ironsides. &

37 1

Part of this enthusiasm comes from explained CDR Dunbar, “and we the excitement of manning the boats leave the area to the hunters.” and heading for the Suisun sloughs. An important sidelight ‘to.all this With guns loaded with blanks and training is CRD 11’s popular helmets securely fastened to their community relations program. During heads, the crews learn boat tactics, the past few years, an estimated practice search and seizure,provide 250,000 people have visited the cover fortroop landings and defend command or have seen coastal their boats against ambushes in the riverine warfare demonstrated by

The armored troop carrier (ATC) is narrow waterways. In many of the A .PBR and PCF take part in an exercise in also a converted LCM-6 hull. In exercises there are goodguys~and bad the Sacramento River Delta. addition to its 11-man crew, it .can guys to add realism to the drills. carry 45 €idly loaded troops. CRD 11 organizes and participates CRD 11. “I consider it recruiting On Reserve weekends or summer in various exercises throughout the .support,” said CDR Dunbar. active duty for training, the boat year. The unit has worked with Some of the .numerous scout and crews are completely integrated with Marine Reserves in river assault drills, school organization visits are arranged Regular Navy types. Both Reserves with Seabees in setting up and by the 12th Naval District, but most and Regulars serve as boat captains. .defending base camps, and with of them are set up by local school Many of the reservists are National Guardsmen and Coast teachers and recruiters who have enthusiastic about CRD 11. “‘I like the Guardsmen in joint-service exercises. learned that a visit or demonstration action,” said one. “We don’t sit One such exercise.last March was a by CRD 1.1 is good for business. around and read books.” re-enactment of the Mayaguez High school and .college ROTC incident, the 1975:takeover of the units-from all over the West Coast U.S . merchant ship,by Cambodians. visit .CRD 1.1, sometimes spending The river rats, as they call several days there. In 1975-as themselves, don’t venture into the another Example of its popularity-a sioughs from October through ‘PBR went up-the Columbia River to January. “That’s duck season,” Idaho. At various stops, arranged and

40 ALL ’HANDS vould take to deploy a certain number bf boats for a certain number of days. It was a very profitable experience.” Today, the coastal riverine force is preserving the expertise that could, ne day, turn out to be a decisive tactor in protecting coastal or river delta areas of the free world. Added to that preparedness, CRD 11’s community relations and recruiting- support are proving profitable to the A Navy’s all-volunteer force. 9,

publicized by recruiters, almost 7,000 functionicywater?in Top: Engineman 2nd Class J. F. Gibson(left) persons visited the boat. and Hull’Technician 2nd Class M. G. “We’re hoping to put together a Williamsdiagnose the ailment of a generator. CRD 11 is not content with coldwater training operation Above:The monitor, heavily armed and remaining static and is trying to somewherein ,” said CDR armored, is thebattleship of the riverine extend its capabilities. For instance, Dunbar. “We would like it to coincide force. little is known how these boats- with an unconventional warfare especially the PBR-would perform in exercise.coming up in the near cold water regions. Just how would future.” the fiberglass hull and water jet One recent exercise called for the

April 1978 41. Waterborne Assault BY JOHN YONEMURA

Seabee Reserve training is not an patrol or newly placed bunker-just as eariier. But he added, “If you don’t, easy jog around an indoor track. It’s they would in a real situation. I’ll give you a case of beer.” slogging through the mud while For me, everything seemed I didn’t blame him, since I was not carrying a full pack and almost exaggerated; my senses were one of his comrades in arms. I was believing that the war games are for overreacting. I could hear every step I just an observer along for the ride. I real. took, and I cursed my imagined didn’t give them away-but I never While writing about Coastal River clumsiness. did get that case of beer. Division 11 at Mare Island, I took part “If you give us away, I’ll . . . .” We were almost there. Then, right in a full-scale Seal vs. Seabee Reserve one Seal vehemently had warned me on schedule, the other squad of Seals

F

42 Left: Seals made themselves as comfortable as possible in the mini-ATCs for the 45- minute ride into the “delta.” Below: The Seal team reviews their plan of attack one last time. attacked from the opposite side of the triangular Seabee camp. They didn’t have the element of surprise, the roar of their boats’ engines prevented that. But they landed and attacked simultaneously, taking a Seabee outpost immediately. Flares lit the sky. Percussion simulators exploded, sounding like mortar and cannon fire. M16s and SO- caliber machine guns chattered in abrupt bursts. Then we attacked. We did have the element of surprise. Our point man, crouching low, scurried forward. With two quick bursts of his M16, a machine gun emplacement on one corner of the camp’s perimeter was taken. In a matter of minutes the camp was ours. The “war” was over. As the excitement ebbed, I began to feel weary. It was 0400. I felt pain in my legs. I hadn’t noticed before but thorns had lodged in my thighs, probably from jumping into the brush from the boats when we had landed. Funny what adrenalin pumping through your system does to your senses. Several things had impressed me during the exercise. I could really appreciate the night boat tactics of the CRD 11 personnel. I could appreciate the purpose of the exercise itself: preserving expertise in all phases of riverine warfare for possible future need. Most of all, I could appreciate the abilities of the Seals, those professional warriors. All I had heard about them held true, at least in this case. I had expected no less from them, and wasn’t disappointed. &

43 Q: What is the difference between sloops-of-war, frigates, Q: What was “Washington’s Navy”? and ships-of-the-line? A: The U.S. Navy officially began on Oct. 13, 1775, when A: Duringthe Revolutionary War and into the 19th Cen- the Continental Congress authorized the outfitting of a tury, navalvessels were grouped into these three main numberof ships for defense. The firstNaval Committee classes. The characteristics of each were: bought and outfitted one 24-gun ship, Aljired, plusthe 20- 0 Sloops-of-war-Smallsailing warships carrying 10 to gun Columbus, and two brigs, Doria and Cabot. They were 20 guns on one deck only. Gun ratings varied with the era. ready for sea by December 1775. However, this fleet was 0 Frigates- of their day, these were next in predated by a little-known group of ships that came to be size. They generally rated from 28 to 44 guns which were known as Washington’s Navy. mounted on the spar and gun decks immediately below. During the summerof 1775, General Washington was 0 Ships-of-the-line- of the sailing days. Larg- concerned as hesaw British ships sail supplies and muni- est of all sailing warships, they were equipped with 64 to tions in and out of the Boston harbor untouched. He needed morethan 100 gunsof various sizes. Two or moregun supplies and ammunition for his army to carry on the siege decks located below the spar deck were their distinguishing of the British in Boston. Using funds provided for his feature. Army, Washington painfully assembled a small fleet of eight vessels that might be powerful enough to capture some of Q: How many did the US.Navy huve during theBritish supplies and ammunition.The schooner Hue- World Wmr I1 and how many were lost to enemy uction? nah, first of “Washington’s Navy,” wasin service in A: Whenthe Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, the Navy September 1775. Seven other ships followed: Lynch, Frank- had 111 -60 in the Atlantic Fleet and 51 in the lin, Lee, Harrison,Warren, Washington and Huncock. Pacific Fleet.The number of American subs peaked at 247, With the establishment of the , Washing- of which 52 were lost along with 3,505 submariners. After ton released his ships and their crews from active service. the invasionof North Africa, the U.S. decided to leave submarine operations in the North Atlantic to our allies and Q: What were loblolly boys? thePacific became the hunting ground for theAmerican A: Theloblolly boy is first referred to in theAmerican submarine force. These submarinessank 1,750 Japanese RevolutionaryWar. This rating then appears in the 1798 merchant ships, and more than 200 combatants-55 percent muster roll of the USS Constellation. Loblolly was a thick of the total Japanese tonnage sunk in the war. For an island gruel served to patients in a ship’s sickbay; the boys who nation such as Japan, these figures represented a fatal blow. hadthe task ofserving it were called “loblolly boys.” Loblolly eventually came to be slang for any medicine.

Q: Old photos of Nmvy gunners in action always seem to BY 502 DAN WHEELER catch them with their mouths wide open. Was it a coinci- dence or was there some reasonfor their dropped jaws? A: Gunners used to open theirmouths when firing large guns, but their jaws weren’t dropped in amazement. Back in the days before ear plugs and other protectivehearing devices, keeping his mouth open was the only way a gunner

44 ALL HANDS could protect his ear drums. When the mouth is open, air Q: Is it true that the Navy hadan “aircraft carrier” waves set in motion by the discharge of the cannon enter during the Civil War? the throat as well as theears. Consequently, the sudden A: Logic would immediately dictate that the answer to this pressure against the outside of the drums is counteracted by one be “no,” but, believe it or not, the answer is “yes”- an equal pressure against the inside, thereby preventing ear with a qualifying statement. USS George Washington Parke damage. Custis ofCivil War days might be legitimately labeled a “carrier” since she was a balloon boat from which obser- Q: Who was Harry Blufs? vation balloons werelaunched over enemy installations. A: During the 1830s and early 184Os, there was a growing Custis, 122 feet long, cost $150 to build. dissatisfaction with the way the Navywas being run and The first modern aircraft carrier couldbe said to have the amount of money that was being authorized for use by been the brainchild of a Frenchman who foresaw in1909 the Navy. The public was calling for naval reform and in ‘‘. . . flights over the ocean made possible by a new type of 1840and 1841 the Southern Literary Messenger, a Rich- ship . . . [whose] deck will be clear of all obstacles, flat and mond, Va., periodical, ran a column entitled “Scraps from wide as possible. [It will] have the aspect of a landing field the Lucky Bag” written by a person calling himself Harry . . . its speed shall equal that of a cruiser . . . housing of Bluff. These articles attracted a lot of attention and were planes will bearranged below deck and planes will have even reprinted for use by Congressmen. The writer accused folding wings . . . and to one side there will be the service the Board of Naval Commissioners of waste, extravagance personnel workshop. . . .” and bad judgment in building and repairing public vessels; What had been predicted came about in November 1910 of ruinous delays in fitting out ships; and of bad accounting when thecruiser USS Birmingham wasrigged with a and misstatements inmaking reports. According to Harry wooden platform on her foc’s’le, and a civiliannamed Bluff, the commissionershad “. . . turned out upon the Eugene Ely flew a bi-wing off the 57-foot (canted) runway- Navy a nest of tubs and sent them to sea as men-of-war.” the first takeoff from a warship by an airplane.Two months In 1842, the Boardof Naval Commissioners was dis- later, Elylanded a plane on a platformrigged on USS bandedand Congress began taking a closer look at the Pennsylvania. management of theNavy. This led to reforms in areas where management was lax. Q: What was the name of the Navy’sfirst aircraft carrier designed from the keel up? A: In 1934, USS Ranger became the Navy’s first aircraft Q: In what year did the first underway replenishment of a carrier which was not built on a converted cruiser’s hull. U.S.Navy ship take place? A: Supplying the fleet while at sea became a reality during Q: Now that the bell-bottomed uniforms are being tested the Warwith Tripoli in 1804. Commodore Edward Preble again for use by the fleet, what is the traditional explanation had tried but failed to maintain a continuous blockade of for each of its parts? Tripoli. Short provisions forced his ship to leave the area A: Navy tradition explains the reason for each part of the and get more supplies. Theketch Intrepid was finally uniformsoon to beworn again byE-1 through E-4 as ordered to transfer fresh provisions to the ships in Preble’s follows: squadron while they were still at sea enforcing the blockade. 0 Jumper collar-Sailors of old wore their hair braided in a pigtail which was kept stiff with tar.To protkct their

April 1978 45 E

Nileand Trafalgar4ut there isno proof tosubstantiate BREAKFAST DINNER SUPPER this. Mon. beans bean soup canned mutton 0 Neckerchief4ome say that sailorswear the black Tues. cracker hash salt horse scouse neckerchief to mourn the death of Admiral Lord Nelson, hardtack corn pone molasses but,again, there is nothing to substantiate this idea. coffee hardtack hardtack Actually, it was adopted after the jumper collar became part coffee tea of the uniform toserve the same purpose thatthe unat- Wed. hardtack salt pork dried apples tached collarhad served formerly-to protectthe uniform Thurs. prunes plum duff cracker hash from tar used to stiffen hair. When rules of smartness and hardtack salt horse hardtack appearance were introduced, sailors’hair was cut shorter molasses hardtack molasses and the pigtail was no longer necessary, nor was the tar. coffee molasses tea Today, the neckerchief is merely decoration andis worn coffee under the collarand secured with a square knot in front. Fri. cracker hash salt horse scouse Bell-bottomed trousers-there are at least three logical hardtack corn bread hardtack reasons for these: they are easily removed if one goes over molasses hardtack molasses the side; they cover one’s boots or shoes easily to keep rain coffee molasses tea and salt spray from running into them; and they are easy to coffee roll up above the knees while scrubbing decks. Additionally, sat. black molasses hardtack hardtack they can hold a lot of air when tied off at the ends, and can coffee coffee tea be used as an emergency flotation device. Sun. cooked dried plum duff cracker mutton apples salt horse hash molasses hardtack hardtack Q: How come cooks inthe Old are so often coffee molasses depictedas having oneleg, or, at best,some other molasses coffee disability? tea A: Cooks in the RoyalNavy were appointed by warrant The molasses was the old-fashioned blackstrap variety, and were oftenone-legged pensioners from the naval thick and heavy. As a rule, the coffee was so weak that a hospital at Greenwich.His position didn’t require him to sailor could see the bottom of the barrel when it was full. have any knowledge or training in the art of cooking since The pork and salt horse were packed in large barrels that boiling water for pea soup or salt “junk,” and keeping his had to be opened to leeward because of the odor. Before pots and galley reasonably clean were about the extent of eating these, the crew would generally tow them overboard his duties. in a cargo net to get rid of the smell and remove the rock

46 ALL HANDS salt. This didn’t create any problems since even the sharks, it is said, would not touch the meat. Scouse was hardtack soaked in leftover soup-not a popular meal.

Q: Hasa lieutenant in the Supply Corps,for instance, always been thought to be equal in rankand status to a line oficer holding the same rank? A: No. Almost from the beginning of our Navy, officers in corps other than the “military corps” of the Navywere thought to be inferior in status. Pursers were first given the status of commissioned officers by an act of Congress in 1812 andfrom that time on a greatdeal of bitterness developed overthe question of relative rank of supply officers with line officers. Line officers resisted the assign- ment of relative rank to the staff arguing that rank belonged only to the “military corps” of the sea service. They argued thatgranting of rank to staff wouldseriously undermine discipline and harmony of service as well as cause confusion among the ranks. A respectable lieutenant of the period is reported to have Q: The Continental Navy Jack of 1775, which was resur- said concerning the dispute: “I hold my rank dearer than rected and flew from the jackstaffs of US. Navy ships lifeitself, and were any purser of the Navy to sign an during the Navy’s Bicentennial and the nation’s Bicenten- official report above me, I would cleave him to the chin nial, bore a rattlesnake as part of its design, along with the with my cutlass. I couldnever suffer my rankto be admonition “DONTTREAD ON ME.” Whywas the outraged in that way; I would rather die.” rattlesnake, a deadly and despised serpent, used so ofen to The struggle for recognitionby staff officers surfaced symbolize our nation on early American flags? from time to time in the Navy until 1918 when the Secretary of the Navy wrote the final general order on the subject: k Back in the days of the American Revolutionary War, “The uniform of any given rank in the Navy shallbe numerous colonial and regimental ensigns displayed many identical in every respect throughout except for the neces- popular symbols includingpine trees,beavers, anchors, sary distinguishing corps devices, and every officer in the rattlesnakes, or a combination of two or more. As to why Navy shall be designated and addressed by the title of his the rattlesnake was chosen, one Revolutionary War writer rank without any discrimination whatever.’’ explained that the rattlesnake’s eyes exceed in brightness the eyes of any other animal. Also, it has no eyelid- Q: Is ittrue that the privateer fleet of the American indication of eternal vigilance. Revolutionary War was larger than the Continental Navy? The rattlesnake also was thought of as being without guile A: Privateering was legalized by the Continental Congress since it never began an attack (at least, not without warning) in March 1776 as a means to help break the British embargo nor, onceengaged, eversurrendered; therefore, it was and supply needed goods to the colonists. By July 1776, the pictured as the persodcation (so to speak) of magnanimity privateer fleetnumbered 136 ships with 1,360 guns-far and, perhaps, true courage. It was probably the deadly bite outnumbering the U.S. Navy’s 31 ships and 586 guns. It is of the mttler, however,which was foremost in the minds of no wonder that the privateers grew so rapidly in light of the flag designers. The threatening slogan “DONT TREAD ON recruiting advertisements aimed at potential buccaneers. ME” added further significance to the designs. One printed in the Boston Gazette was typical: “All those jolly fellows who love their country and want to make their Q: Where did the term “frocking” originate? fortune at one stroke, to repair immediately to the Rendez- A: We are not sure, but one reader of ALL HANDS offered vous at the head of Hancock’s Wharf, where they will be this explanation: “. . . when a ship lost an officer, either received with ahearty welcomeby a number of brave throughdeath, injury or asprize officers ofcaptured fellows there assembled and treated with theexcellent vessels, commanding officers usually would i3l these voids liquor called grog.” Those “jolly fellows” were immediately withmidshipmen who had passed the lieutenant’s exam. recruited into the ranks of what George Washington called These midshipmen wereappointed ‘acting lieutenants,’ “our rascally privateersmen.” wore the frock (coat)of a lieutenant,were called lieutenant, and had a lieutenant’s authority. However, their commis- sions were pending the approval of the Admiralty, in the case of the English Navy, or Congress. Since a midshipman usually wore a short jacket, it seems he was thus ‘frocked’ to lieutenant but without the pay until authorized.” The explanation makes sense to us, but we are open to other opinions. &

April 1978 47 Mail Buoy

Tin Can Wors only 250 hours on the airframe and en- Kinnicutt, 405 Upper Valley Rd., Roches- gines. It is presently in Richmond, Calif. ter, N.Y. 14624. SIR: Old Saltswho have shared the Our plans are to restore and modify the experience of going tosea in Nuval Air Trunsport Service-Third plane for oceanographic research. It would can now swap sea stories and rehash old reunion for all squadrons, active Reserve be an excellent tool for studying rapidly 1979. times as members of a new organization sometime in ContactCapt. Alvin designed especially for destroyermen, Tin occurring andshort-lived phenomena. I May Jr. (Ret.), 1015 West South Ave., In- havealready done a greatdeal to the dependence, Mo 64050. CanSailors. The group will encourage . aircraft during my leaveperiods. During camaraderieamong former and current USSGeneral J. H. McRac~(AP destroyermen by conducting national re- the summer of '78 we plan taking a trip to 149)"Reunionplanned for those who unions and publishing a monthly newslet- the plane from Virginiawith 20 or so served during World War 11. Contact Paul ter containing items of interest to mem- people to paint it and remove parts for Ruark, 2204 Brookdale Lane, Birming- bers. rework.Even though the project takes ham, Ala. 35216. USS Pittsburgh (CA 72)-Planning Already, Tin Can Sailors has more than most of my paycheck and free time, I 500 members, and it has been estimated have no regrets.Thanks again forthe reunion in 1978. ContactJ. C. Ayers, that there are at least 75,000eligible de- article on the flying boat.-Randall Grant, Wildwood, Ga. 30757. stroyermen. Membership fees, which are AMS2, USN. Aviation Ordnuncemen-Reunion in tax deductible, range from "Normal Mem- As yourletter indicates, the great Reno, Nev., 1618 June. All AOs, active, bership Contribution" of$7 to"Honor clippers are certainly not dead. Perhaps, retired, Navy and Marine welcome. Con- Membership Contribution' ' of $1,000. All sudlythough, they ure no longerthe tactTom Robins, 729 BuddlawnWay, Campbell, Calif. 95008. members receive the publication,decals mtrinstay of commercial uviution-they and a lapel pin. belong to another era. Good luck on your 302nd Seabee Battalion-31st annual Formedunder the aegis of the USS project."ED. reunion atMuscatine, Iowa, 13-16 July. Contact Calvin T. Rowe, 1515 Mulberry Mt~sst~chrrsettsMemorial Committee to re- placethe former League of NavalDe- Another Texas? St., Muscatine, Iowa 52761. stroyermen,the organization has a port USS ABSD-I-7th annualreunion and even a destroyer of its own-USS Sir: Iread with interestyour article 28-30 July in San Diego, Calif. Contact C. Joseph P. Kennedy, Jr. (DD 850), home- "USS Texas (CGH 39) Commissioning" E. Patterson Jr., 10226 Inwood Dr., Hous- ported in Cove at Fall River, in the November '77 issue ofAll Hands. ton, Tex. 77042. Mass. Plans are being developed for Ken- It should be noted,however, that more USS Thorn(DD 647)"Reunion nedy to house a libraryand museum for thanone USS Texas was decommis- plannedfor fall of 1978. ContactKaj memorabilia of interest to destroyermen. sioned, and remains in existence. Swenson, 2190 Allwood Dr., Bethlehem, The organization sponsors exhibits of This questionable honor falls to the third Pa. 18018. interest to the entire family and its "home- USS Texas, noted to have been decom- USS Savannah (CL 42)"9th annual port"also harbors USS Massachusetts missioned and renamed in1911. She was, reunion inmid-1978 at Philadelphia, Pa. (BB 59), USS Lionfish (SS 298) and PT in fact, reclassified as an armored cruiser, ContactLt. Murray C.Flanders (Ret.), Boats, Inc. The area is a treasure chest of and named USS Sun Marcos. 417 West Vista Court, Mobile, Ala. 36609. nauticalartifacts; a sure hit for a family She was finally written off after World USS Henrico (APA 45tReunion for outing. War I, I believe.Instead of being crew serving in the 1940s on October 20- Anyone interested in joining Tin Can scrapped,she was towed out and an- 21. Contact Jim Etter, 119 E. 20th, Wel- Sailors should write to Executive Director, chored off the Virginia Capes, then used lington, Kan. 67152. Tin CanSailors, , Fall as a static target by newer battleships of USS Benner (DD 807)-Reunion in July.Contact John Hile, 401 Christopher River, Mass. 02721"Edwurd J. Ward the Atlantic Fleet.The old girl is still there, in shallow water, and now marked Ave., Apt. 33, Gaithersburg, Md. 20760. as a navigational hazard.-TSgt. Douglas USS Wasp (CV 7)"Reunion for crew K. Howard, USAF and squadrons who served from 1939 to Ancient Bird 1942 sinking. Families invited. At Seattle, Wash., 14-16 July.Contact Larry Chute, SIR: I thoroughly enjoyed your article 1330 Nile Dr., Corpus Christi, Tex. 78412. on the VS-44 Sikorsky flying boat (See LST 1141-Reunion nearPasadena, "An ancientbird's one-way 'flight' " in Reunions Calif., 28-30 July.Contact E. H. Sallee, the September 1977 ALL HANDS.-ED.). Bowling Green, Mo. 63334. But you were incorrect in stating that the USS Arizona-The weekend before USS Ranger(CV 4)"12th annual great clippers are dead. Pearl Harbor Day, Reunion. Contact Bill reunion in New Orleans, La., on 11 and 12 Last year my brother and I purchased a Nolte, Secretary, USS Arizona Reunion August.Contact Ralph Koberstein, 55 Short Solent Mk 3 seaplane similar to the Assn., Hicksville, Ohio 43526. Magazine St., Cambridge, Mass. 02139. VS-44 Sikorskyflying boat.Our flying USS LSM 133"Reunion planned at USS Seal (SS 183)-Reunion in Nor- boatwas owned by the late Howard Lincoln, Ill., sometime in 1980 for World folk, Va., 2-6 August. Contact Irvin Hill, Hughes. The aircraft is in good shape with WarI1 crewmembers.Contact John B. 449 Prospect st., Plantsville, Conn. 06479.

48 ALL HANDS Stern Shots

The Navy has always been proud of its past as it moves into the future. Naval aviation vividly illustrates this point. Take a look at naval aviation's yesterdays and re- call the names of these aircraft.

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c Navy Artist Arthur E. Beaumont