Page 182 - Mastheads Jan-June 1945

PAGES THE MASTHEAD,, SATURDAY, JUNE 2, 1945

Buoys Are the Business Verba Buena Coast Guard Depot Assigned Vital Tasks NAVY SEEKS MEN
Of the Verba Buena TO TAKE ORIENTAL
~r- .
Coast Guard Depot LANGUAGE COURSE
Qualified Naval male officers and
When an ocean liner steams past enlisted men are being sought by
Mile House Rock and enters the the Bur.eau of Personnel to submit
Golden Gate, its progress about the applications for enrollment in
bay is marked as surely as with Schools of Oriental Languages for
street signs. For inside the bay are instruction in Japanese, Chinese,
large numbers of floating markers, Malay and Russian.
every one of which has a meaning Interested Center male personnel
to the navigator. One might have a who meet the qualifications of a
red light, another a green, or a mm1mum of two years of college
white. One might be flashing and who are between 19 and 29
quickly, and be equipped with a bell years old should consult the Edu-
or whistle. These buoys mark out cational Office, Room 169, first deck,
the sides of the principal channels in the Administration Building, for
as well as the shoals, rocks, and detailed information. ·
wrecks. Other Requirements
Their upkeep is a never-ending From among applicants who
task for the busy fleet of lighthouse meet the college requirements, two
tenders, which are constantly pick- categories of students will be se-
ing up, and setting out the buoys, lected. They ar-e:
restoring them to their proper sta- 1. Applicants whose college rec-
tions, bringing them in for their ord is of a high honor standing
annual overhaul, and supplying the and who show evidence of special
lighted buoys with acetylene gas linguistic ability in the study of
compressed in tanks. one or more foreign languages. All
Shouldering this load for the applicants who submit a knowledge
Twelfth Naval District is the U. S. o{ a foreign languag,e will be exam-
Coast Guard Depot at Yerba Buena ined directly in that language.
Island, under the direction of Lt. 2. As an alternative, applicants
(jg) H. W. Simonson. may qualify by showing a minimum
Changed Hands of two years of college work of Phi
Although records of the station Beta Kappa grade, which may be
date back as far as the late 1800's, interpreted as a minimum of 80
it has been only since July 1, 1939, percent A's, or rank in the top five
that the Coast Guard has been p.ercent of the class, or average
manning the lighthouse, the repair grades of 3.6 and above on the
shops, and the buoys. Prior to that Navy scale.
time, the station was th.e domain of Schools Listed
the Lighthouse Service. Early light- The intensive training courses
house keeper . appointments, then are offered by Navy schools at the
signed by the President, have re- University of Colorado at Boulder,
cently been sent to the National and Oklahoma A. and M. at Nor-
Archives in Washington, D. C. man, Okla. The instruction in Japa-
When the Coast Guard took over, nese lasts 14 months; Chinese, 18
many government employees highly MEN BEHIND THE BUOYS-Above are scenes tails. Three staff members pictured above are (left to months; Malay, six months ; and
skilled in the maintenance and re- from a big day in the life of a Coast Guard buoy- right) Ethel Dial, S2c, one of the twelve Spars on the Russian, six months.
pair of buoys remained to work for the day of its annual overhaul. Top left-First step stati,on; A. W. Rutledge, CSK, assistant to the com- Upon successful completion of
the new employer. Today they form is t,o scrape off old paint and loosen bolts so tanks manding officer; and H. Burlingame, a civilian em- three months' work in any one of
an essential part of the comple- may be removed. Top right-Next it is hoisted over ployee. His family once owned the spot where the the courses, students enrolled in
to the sand blasting house, where its surface is town ,of Burlingame stands today. Lower right-On
ment. thol'oughly cleaned for the new paint job. Lower left the roof of one of the buildings, lanterns receive their civilian or enlisted status will be
Following the B·uoys -In the administration office are records of the final check-up and testing. At left is H. J. Pfleghaar, recommended by the Commanding
When a buoy is brought in from number and positions ,of buoys, when they were .last M,oMM1c, and at right is L. H .. Beal, M,oMM2c. Inset Officer for appointment as commis-
overhauled, and many other small but important de- -Lt. (jg) H. W. Simonson, Commanding Officer.
its station after a year's service, sioned officers in the Naval Re-
the long exposure to salt water and serve, if physically and otherwise
as much as $8,000. It is no wonder, chored in places where rough or road with a broken right hind leg.
the elements has taken its toll. in all respects fully qualified for
then, that when they used to break deep water would make it impos- Other women · drivers in the
Paint is peeled off, rust gnaws at such appointment. Waivers of
loose and wash ashore back in 1800, sible to construct a lighthouse. The transportation pool chipped in with
the metal, and it may have dents minor physical defects, non-organic
wreckers would cut them up and ships stay out for a year and come $10 and the dog was taken to a
dealt by craft steering too closely. in nature, will be considered. Of-
sell them for the copper they were in for repairs at the end of that San Francisco veterinary who put
Seaweed is probably tangled in its ficers so appointed who subsequent-
made of. period, but their crews come ashore the leg in a cast.
anchor chain. every week or ten days. ly fail to complete successfully the
After its light is detached, crews Finally it is foaded back onto one The victim is now in ''sick-bay" entire course of which enrolled may
swarm over it, scraping off rust. of the five sturdy buoy tenders and Many Activities in the Treasure Island brig while be discharged from the Naval Re-
Then it is lifted by crane to the carried back to its · station which On Yerba Buena also are shops arrangements are made to find it serve in the event that other bil-
sand blasting shop where it is pre- may be ,either inside or outside the that repair hulls and engines of a home. lets for which they are qualified are
pared for the thick coat of red Golden Gate. Buoy tenders are small craft. Telephone equipment It is only fair to warn kind- not available.
paint that is later applied. singular-appearing vessels, built for used to connect stations up and hearted persons before they volun-
In the meantime, its batteries are rough going and heavy loads. They down the coast is stored there. teer to take in the canine waif. Don Morris, rugged swimming in-
charged if it is run by electrictity. are named for some plant or tree Thousands of feet of anchor chain She's strictly a Navy pooch. structor in the Combat Tank, was
In the case of the acetylene oper- that grows in the vicinity in which lie waiting in the sun. A portion of a halfback for University of Denver
ated buoy, charged tanks of gas are the vessel is to be used. The "Se- the station is built out over the She bites civilians! football team; also a hard man to
inserted, its· burn-er cleaned and ad- quoia," based at Yerba Buena, has water on piers, so that the tenders push around on a basketball court.
justed. Tiny worn-out parts are re- been in service since 1906. moor close to the buoys lined up She used to be the belle of the He's a good man to practice your
placed, bolts tightened, glass Floating L:ighthouses on the dock. It is hard to rea!.ize town but somebody tolled on her. aquatic life saving on. But cooper-
that such a great amount of ac-
cleaned. >'Light ships" are small craft so ate, brother~Cooperate !
tivity goes on in a space not much
Costs Are Great called because they are really
larger than Treasure Island's
Buoys are costly, and may cost floating lighthouses. They are an-
Galley "K." Islands Newest "Jump" Band
Were it not for our Coast Guard
The Wolf by Sansone' neighbors on Yerba Buena, the
ships of the Navy might have a
Co,i:ri1~t 1945 bp UOaard Sansone, dl1tributed by c.,np Newspaper rtic.t
pretty difficult time fiinding their
way among the numerous islands,
shallows, and bridges of the San
Francisco Bay.
She's Strictly
A Navy Pooch

This is another pooch story and
who doesn't like a good pooch
story? ,
According to her sailor friends
at the Treasure Island brig where
she is temporarily berthed, the cen-
tral figure in this yarn is a pint-
sized f-emale dog · of the terrier
class, origin doubtful but apparent-
ly good.
Until a few days ago the dog was
cruising around Treasure Island in
strictly sea-going physical condi-
tion. Then she got smacked aft on ROLLICKIN' RHYTHM-Current sensati-on of the San Francisco Bay
the starboard side by a truck or ar-ea is the Frontier Base eight-piece "jump band." Led by A. L. Dixon,
prolific drummer, this newly-organized jive-combo made its debut some
something.
weeks ago at San Francisco's Scottish -Rite Hall. Since that time, these
.. Naida Moller, a bus driver for exponents of "jazznocracy" have attracted throngs of music lovers at
"Step to the rear, please ... plenty of room in back!" the Twelfth Naval District Trans- USO Clubs in Berkeley and at dances in the Oakland Auditorium.
portation pool on Treasure Island, M-embers ·o·f 'the ·band personnel .are J. Burno, guitar; A. Prather, .trom-
found th.e dog at the side · of the· bone; O. Thorp,e and ·, Ri Ewing, saxophones; T. Gardner and E. Knox,
trumpets; Dixon, drums and D. Valentine, bass.