# The Wireless Operator—With the U. S. Coast Guard

The Wireless Operator—
With the U.S. Coast Guard
BOOKS BY Lewis E. Theiss
IN CAMP AT FORT BRADY. A Camping Story. 304 pages.
HIS BIG BROTHER. A Story of the Struggles and Triumphs of a Little Son of Liberty. 320 pages.
LUMBERJACK BOB. A Tale of the Alleghanies, 320 pages.
THE WIRELESS PATROL AT CAMP BRADY. A Story of How the Boy Campers, Through Their Knowledge of Wireless, “Did Their Bit.” 320 pages.
THE SECRET WIRELESS. A Story of the Camp Brady Patrol. 320 pages.
THE HIDDEN AERIAL. The Spy Line on the Mountain. 332 pages.
THE YOUNG WIRELESS OPERATOR—AFLOAT. How Roy Mercer Won His Spurs in the Merchant Marine. 320 pages.
THE YOUNG WIRELESS OPERATOR—AS A FIRE PATROL. The Story of a Young Wireless Amateur Who Made Good as a Fire Patrol. 352 pages.
THE YOUNG WIRELESS OPERATOR—WITH THE OYSTER FLEET. How Alec Cunningham Won His Way to the Top in the Oyster Business. 328 pages.
Cloth Bound—Illustrated by Colored
Plates and Photographs
The Wireless Operator— With the U.S. Coast Guard :
| ‍ |
| By Lewis Edwin Theiss |||
| ‍ |
| W. A. WILDE COMPANY |||
| BOSTON | CHICAGO |
Appreciation is herewith extended to the United States Coast Guard and the International Newsreel for the use of photographic material.
Copyrighted, 1924, By W. A. Wilde Company
All rights reserved
The Wireless Operator— With the U. S. Coast Guard
Made in U. S. A.
Author’s Introduction
Among all the various arms of government in our nation, no arm is at once less known or more worthy of renown than the Coast Guard. Like the knights of the Table Round, this company of gallant surfmen and sailors is organized and exists almost solely for the protection of others. Though few in numbers, the Coast Guard accomplishes deeds that are mighty. Skill of the highest order, daring incredible, and discipline that is perfect, make a giant of this little service. Stout of heart, indeed, must be the men who belong to it; for when others are fleeing for their lives, the Coast Guard is always heading straight for the danger, to rescue those incompetent or unable to effect their own rescue. Let those who think the age of romance is past but read the story of the Coast Guard and they will change their minds.
For those who demand that fiction be based upon actual occurrence, the author wishes to say that this book is hardly more than a transcript from life. Every major incident in it is based upon an actual happening. It was the Coast Guard cutter Yamacraw that lost six boatloads of seamen in the surf while attempting to rescue ​a helpless steamer. It was the Seneca that searched the wintry seas for the helpless oil tanker that had been abandoned by the tug towing it. And the final incident in the book, in which a stricken freighter sinks in a storm, and the wireless operator ministers calmly to his commander in the face of almost certain death, is but a poor attempt to recite the story of “Smiling Jimmy Nevins,” a mere lad, who went smiling to his death as a member of a volunteer crew from the Seneca, in an effort to save a torpedoed freighter for the Allies during the recent World War.
In preparation for the writing of this story, the author spent some time aboard both the Seneca and the Tampa. He wishes here to express his admiration for the Coast Guard as a whole, and his very great indebtedness to Captain B. H. Camden, of the Seneca, Captain Wm. J. Wheeler, of the Tampa, Lieutenant C. C. Von Paulson, of the Tampa, and Chief Electrician Belton Miller, of the Seneca, for their kindly assistance. Each of the four has played a heroic part in some of the deeds portrayed in this book.
Lewis E. Theiss.
Lewisburg, Pa. February 28, 1923.
FOREWORD
Reading into the present the history of the early mariner along our shores, one is impressed with the march of civilization. Institutions having for their purpose the saving of human life are products of civilization—a part of the great scheme of humanization.
This volume, dedicated “To those unsung heroes, the men of the U. S. Coast Guard,” is an interesting, an engaging, and a compelling portrayal of the everyday work of the Coast Guard, with its vicissitudes, hardships, perils and accomplishments. The Coast Guard in fact is an establishment of service and opportunity—service to those whose fortunes are cast with the deep and along our shores, opportunity for the young men of the nation of character, stability and fixedness of purpose, to follow the Stars and Stripes in the ever-beautiful cause of humanity.
F. C. Billard, Rear Admiral, U. S. Coast Guard, Commandant
CONTENTS
| I. | Henry Seeks His Fortune | 13 |
| II. | A Fight for Life | 29 |
| III. | The Search for the Derelict | 43 |
| IV. | The Watch in the Dark | 58 |
| V. | The Destruction of the Derelict | 72 |
| VI. | A Call for Help | 88 |
| VII. | A Tramp of the Seas | 102 |
| VIII. | In the Cradle of the Deep | 115 |
| IX. | The City of Paul Revere | 127 |
| X. | A Ship in Distress | 146 |
| XI. | Lost in the Sea | 162 |
| XII. | The Rescue | 172 |
| XIII. | Henry Finds He Has an Enemy | 186 |
| XIV. | A Catastrophe | 196 |
| XV. | Under a Cloud | 208 |
| XVI. | The Mystery Grows Deeper | 218 |
| XVII. | A Ship in Distress | 228 |
| XVIII. | A Clue to the Culprit | 248 |
| XIX. | The Culprit Discovered | 259 |
| XX. | Henry’s Exoneration | 265 |
| XXI. | Among the Icebergs | 281 |
| XXII. | Victory | 294 |
This work was published before January 1, 1929, and is in the public domain worldwide because the author died at least 100 years ago.
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