Evening star., 1945-05-18

another gun mount and started
Ijettisoning ammunition.
"Tive men had been trapped for
hours under hatch with 10 feet
of water over 1t, but we finally got
them out. I'd been trying to make
the chaplain get some rest, but he
wouldn't. Well, we got big slug
of whisky down each of the rescued
men. because they needed 1t, and
1 got the chaplain to take it, as
medicine, and he took a big drink.
Slept Like Baby.
Tt put him to sleep and he slept
like baby for several hours and
then he was up and going again.
| The next day there was another
fire aboard the ship and he went
in and fought it himself. He is the
most fearless man I've ever seen.
Then we had to clear out some
bodies, and that is job most men
are very reluctant to undertake.
The chaplain led the men and di-
rected them, and they made no
complaint
LIT. q. g. Donald A. Gary of
Oakland, Calf, found about 300
men trapped in a mess compart-
ment, where they would have suf-
focated. The lights all were out
and they became panic stricken.
In Navy slang, they were beat
ing their gums screaming and
shouting and they also were beat
ing their heads against the bulk
head said the captain. 1t. Gary
found them, and quieted them and
then told them he would find way
out. He crawled around and found
means of escape and then came
back and led the others up. He
went back three times, at the risk
of his life. and got every one out.
Get Boilers Started.
Besides rescuing the 300 trapped
men, 1t. Gary volunteered to lead
party down to the boiler rooms,
where it was 100 degrees, to fire the
boilers. They got them started
again and the Franklin was able to
make several knots under her own
power, despite many steam leaks
and ruptured pipes. This happened
during the night of March 10 and
by 10 o'clock next morning the
Franklin could make 16 knots, and
so it cast off from the Pittsburgh,
which had it in tow.
"The ship was under attack from
the japanese several times the first
day after she was hit and 1t wasn't
until three days later that the last
OF the attacks was made"
Mr.. Mccoy, in his dispatch, gave
a closeup picture of the Santa Fe's
daring rescue activities. He wrote:
Capt. Fitz Of the Santa Fe, a
light cruiser, was ordered to assume
command of the rescue operations
within an hour after the bombing
-Four destroyers were detailed to
assist. 80
Well Aware of Hazards.
Hazards of the rescue work were
well known to Capt. Fitz, who had
been witness to the explosion OF
the U. S. S. Princeton's magazines,
when the U. S. S. Birmingham was
alongside fighting fires and receiv-
ing crew personnel. If the maga-
zines blew up, his own ship would
be hurt. To tie up, dead in the
water, gave perfect target for
land-based Japanese planes only
minutes away. But several thou
sand lives were at stake in the event
the Franklin went down. Capt. Fitz
did not hesitate.
"Sightseers were ordered below
decks and the cruisers five fire hoses
were rigged. Life RATS and nets
were thrown over the side. The
cruiser began picking men out of
the sea, some of whom were
wounded. It's deck crew hauled on
the lines and tugged the survivors
aboard.
Lines were shot to the Franklin.
even as a terrific explosion shook
the Franklin's stern. The cruiser
small by comparison, appeared to
stand only half the length of the
enormous carrier. The first wound
ed man was received on the cruiser
at 10 o'clock, crossing the water gap
on a stretcher swinging on the
lines, three hours after the bomb hit.
Loses It's Position.
Fifteen minutes later the Santa
Fe lost its position on the Franklin
Forward radio antenna on the
Franklin was raking the life line.
The carrier had lost steering con-
troll and there was doubt whether
its magazines had been flooded. As
the lines were cut, CONSERVATION
showed on the faces of the men on
the sloping carrier decks.
The Santa Fe circled the Frank
lin. Capt. Fitz came in cutting
across the carriers bow at Is knots.
turned hard to starboard, and
stopped his ship abruptly, its en-
gines reversed, exactly alongside
the carrier. He kept his engines
going, forward and in reverse, to
maneuver. Every sailor who saw
the approach marveled at the sea-
manship, and it was long the talk
Of the rescue.
'The two ships pounded together
in the swells. Bringing his ship ex-
actly alongside, despite the damage
it would take, was necessary, Capt.
Fitz believed, because there was no
time to evacuate more than a thou
sand persons by travellers The
ships had to touch, and did.
Men Immediately began leaving
from the main deck of the Franklin
to the forward six-inch gun turrets
of the cruiser. Others dropped
down lines to the cruisers deck.
Over a projecting Sadio antenna
from the Franklin, men scrambled
wildly, slipped and jumped to the
deck.
Fire Hose Severed.
"The cruisers fire hoses pumped
thousands of gallons into the fam
| inc ho n 90 p derk hit co,1ld MT reo ~,