The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1917-05-26
BY G. G. Lyon
Reporter for The Times.

by ". y. Lyon
Reporter for The Times.
| The notion that submarine
crews consist of dare-devils who
don't know the meaning of fear
or care whether they live or die,
| is wrong.
The crew of the CA is typical
of the crews on the rest of the
submersibles in the United States
navy, and the members are the
most careful, conscientious, best
behaved and best disciplined
bunch I've met up with.
Ready to throw their lives
away?
Why, half of them are married
and many have Riddles at home.
| just Provoked EN-.
Says Capt. Foster: II believe
the chief reason there is such fine
discipline and close fellowship
aboard submarines Is because
every man realizes miscue on
his part might cost the entire
crew their lives.
1 I1C tdhCS Ills WI III uCduiy
seriousness and expects the other
fellow to do the same
A member of the ca crew was
on a submarine a few years ago
that dived to a depth of about
100 feet, then refused to come
to the top.
1--WE often thought of that ex-
perience,' he told me one day.
when we found something
had gone wrong it never entered
my mind to lose my nerve and
tell myself my final hour had
come.
'Instead of being panic
ed and sore because we could
not locate the trouble.
Finally, after nearly two
hours, we discovered the trouble,
fixed 1t, and came to the top.
All in Days Work,
1--WE were all so mad at the
way the boat had acted 1t was not
until we we're on land that we
began to perspire and realize what
close call we had had"
Deep sea diving is general
ly considered dangerous, yet
submarine men are trained
for that work and consider
the dOnning Of a divers out
fit and q dive to the bottom
OF the ocean after a lost tor
pedO all I'm a days work.
willie" Greene Is the most OK
pert of the deep sea divers aboard
the ca.
1t has been part of my work
aboard the boat to help operate
the air pumps when Willie goes
overheard.
Pumping air to a fellow on the
bottom is no snap. You've got
his life in your hands and you
can't quit pumping no matter how
tired you get.
Are Well Paid.
Members of the crew get 81 an
hour extra for work under the
surface in a divers suit.
Willie often remains down two
hours and always comes up apol-
ogizing to us bumpers, of whom
there are four.
at doesn't seem fair for me to
get dollar an hour while you
gobs up here at the pumps have
to do all the hard work for moth
ing"
Apparently 1t never enters Will
lies head that the chances he
takes ought to be worth consid-
erably more than dollar an hour.
The U. s. government shows in
many ways that it appreciates Its
submarine crews. Submarine
men, as a rule, are the best paid
of all enlisted men.
Can Have Home Life.
Besides their regular pay, which
varies according to ratings as ma
} chinists' mates, electricians, gun
ners, etc., the government adds IS
/. month to the pay of every man
D aboard submarine then pays him
9 ST for every dive the boat makes,
y up to Is dives a month.
:. This enables a number of the
e ca crew to earn from $50 to 500
n a month, in addition to their
/. board and lodging and many per-
9 quisites.
= Then after they have served 80
a years they are retired on three
fourths pay for life, often amount
: ing to 500 a month, because with
each re-enlistment their base
lpay" Is increased.
Submarine men may go ashore
every afternoon at 4:30 and re-
main nutil s o'clock the following
morning. On Saturday after
moons they get 4S hours liberty.
This enables the married men
!, Ito move their families to the sub
, marine base and enjoy home life.