USS RICH (DD-820)
Fleet Post Office
New York 09501

SATURDAY                                                    JULIAN DATE 2295
                                 PLAN OF THE DAY            21 October 19XX

DUTY SECTION                    DEPT DUTY OFFICER            UNIFORM OF THE DAY
OFFICERS: VI                    OPS: EWC HARDAWAY            OFFICERS AND CPO'S
ENLISTED                        WEP: ENS WERTENBERGER        Tropical White Long
DUTY MAA: IC2 CALDWELL          ENG: MMC CORTES              OTHER ENLISTED
DUTY YN:  PN3 LONG              SUP: SD1 LOZADA              Tropical White Long
CDO: LT VANCE

    CARRY OUT THE NORMAL UNDERWAY/INPORT ROUTINE WITH THE FOLLOWING EXCEPTIONS:

0545 Messgear
0600 Breakfast for cooks, messcooks, POl's and the oncoming watch
0615 Breakfast for the crew
0715 Muster on station, submit muster reports to the ship's office
0719 Sunrise
TBA  Station piloting detail
0730 Station special sea detail
TBA  Anchor in Limon Bay
TBA  Put motor whale boat at the rail
TBA  Receive Canal pilot
TBA  Commence tropical fresh water washdown in Gatun Lake
1045 Messgear
1100 Dinner for cooks, messcooks, PO1's and the oncoming watch
1120 Dinner for the crew
TBA  Moor NAVSTA, Rodman
TBA  Muster in-port fire party
TBA  Liberty call.  Expiration to be promulgated.
1630 Check setting of material condition YOKE, make reports to the Bridge
1630 CDO inspection of ship
1700 Messgear
1730 Supper for the crew
1820 Sunset, darken ship

NOTES:

1. Watch Bill 
      QWO              POW            MSGR            COLOR GUARD
08-12 ENS WERTENBERGER QM3 PEARSON    SA CHRISTIE     BMSN ENSCH
12-16 BMC AMOS         STG3 PECK      BMSN ENSCH      RDSA PETTIS
16-20 RD1 SVAIB        PN3 LONG       SA MARKOVIC     PIER SWEEPERS
20-24 BT1 LEWIS        SK3 SIMMONS    SA SANCHEZ      SA CHRISTIE
00-04 EWC HARDAWAY     ETN3           SN GLASS        SA SANCHEZ
04-08 SD1 LOZADA       GMG3 ROGERS    RDSA PETTIS     ASROC
                                                      FTGSN LAPACZ
1.  LIBERTY
    Information pertaining to liberty this evening will be promulgated
as soon as it becomes known.

2.  CAPTAIN's MAST
    The Commanding Officer held Captain's Mast yeaterday with the
following results:

    RICHMAN           VIOLATION                   AWARDED

    BTFR GABLE        UA from 0730, 30OCT72 to      20 days restriction
                      1450, 11OCT72                 $50 forfeiture

    BT3 VARNEY        UA from 0730, 16OCT72 to      15 days restriction
                      0640, 17OCT72                 reduction to E-3 was
                                                    suspended six months

    BTFA MANLEY       Fail to obey a lawful order   20 days restriction
                      issued by a superior PO       $100 forfeiture

    BTFN MCELHANEY    Fail to obey a lawful order   15 days restriction
                      issued by a superior PO       $25 forfeiture

    SN MANN           Fail to obey a lawful order   15 days restriction
                      issued by a superior PO

    BTFA BOLES        Fail to obey a lawful order   15 days restriction
                      issued by a superior PO       $25 forfeiture

3.  ATTN ALL FAT BOYS or just anyone desiring to work out in the
afternoons.  On the flight deck at 1600 at sea or after liberty call
in port, anyone desiring to join-in the fun can participate.  Just
bring your body whatever shape it's in.  Exercise periods will not
be longer than 30 minutes and you begin at your own pace.


BRIEF LOOK AT THE PANAMA CANAL

    The Panama Canal is a lock-type ship canal across the Isthmus
of Panama in Central America.  Built and operated by the United States
it was opened to commercial traffic on August 15, 1914.  It is, in
effect, a United States Government Reservation.  It has shortened the
voyage between Atlantic and Pacific ports of the United States by as
much as 7,000 miles.  The channel is 51.2 miles long, with a minimum
depth of 38.8 feet and minimum width is 300 feet.

    Basically, the canal consists of sea-level channels at each end
which are separated from and connected to an elevated midsection 32
miles long by three lock systems.  These locks serve the dual purpose
of raising and lowering ships to and from sea level and damming up the
water in Gatun Lake which forms the mid-section.  The surface of Lake
Gatun ranges from 82 to 87 feet above sea level.  The canal follows a
zigzag course running generally northwest to southeast.

    The locks are constructed of concrete.  The lock chambers are
separated by massive stell gates which swing open to permit a ship to
pass from one chamber to another.  When the gates are closed the water
level is regulated to either raise or lower the ship to the next level.
Electric locomotives, commonly known as mules, assist the ships through
the canal.  Each lock chamber is 1,000 feet long and 110 feet wide.  A
complete ship transit from ocean to ocean results in the release of 52
millions gallons of fresh water from Gatun Lake into the ocean.  Abundant
rainfall on the isthmus during most of the year maintains the lake at
the desired level.

    Except for the restricted channel through Caillar Cut (big-ditch
section),  the canal can handle continuous two-way ship traffic.  Tolls
for use of the canal are based on Panama Canal net tons, 90¢ a ton for
laden vessels and 72¢ a ton for ships in ballast.  These costs are
virtually the same as when the canal was opened 58 years ago.  Average
tolls are about $6,185 for oceangoing commercial vessels.  Using the
canal rather than circling South American may save shippers 10 times
the cost of the passage.

    The typography of the Canal Zone is broken and hilly.  Geographically,
the country is principally volcanic in origin.  The climate is typically
tropical with high humidity and an even temperature ranging from 73 to
87 degrees.   Rainfail is the heaviest in October and November - our luck!

    The governor of the Canal Zone is appointed by the President of the
United States,  subject to the confirmation by the Senate.  He is auto-
matically president of the Panama Canal Company, which operates the
canal and the railroad.  The Panama Canal enterprise, consisting of the
canal company and the zone government, is self-sustaining and operates
at no cost to the United States taxpayer.   (That sure is different.)

    The Canal Zone is the headquarters for the Joint United States
Southern Command, which is responsible for the defense of the Panama Canal,
directs the United States military assistance program in 17 Latin American
countries, and is responsible for U.S. military activities, except for
defense attaches, in more than 7.5 million square miles of the Latin
American land mass.  The United States Naval Forces, Southern is part of
the Joint Command.

    Vasco Nunez de Balboa explored the Isthmus of Panama and discovered
the Pacific Ocean on September 25, 1513.  However, credit for first pro-
posing an interocean canal has been given to Alvaro de Saavedra Ceron,
cousin of Hernan Cortes, conqueror of Mexico.  In 1826 a New York City
merchant, Aaron Palmer, contracted with the new confederation of Central
America to build a canal but could not raise the $5 million estimated cost.
In 1850 American interests began to build the Panama Railroad, linking the
Atlantic and Pacific.  This route was opened in 1855, and soon regular
shippings lines made the railroad terminals ports of call.  The American
Civil War and its aftermath prevented further planning of canal construction.
In 1876, Vicomte Ferdinand Marie de Lesseps, the builder of the Suez Canal,
became head of a committee that proposed to make a thorough Isthmian canal
survey.  Work finally began in February 1881,  but the engineering problems,
tropical disease, and the scarcity of skilled labor soon magnified the task.
After many setbacks, financial loses, and much criticism the French in 1901
offered to sell its property and rights to the United States for $40 million.
Due to political difficulties, treaty problems, and a revolution in Panama
(Panama gained its independence November 3, 1903) it wasn't until February
23, 1904 that a treaty make possible the United States construction of the
canal.  On May 4, 1904 in a historic ceremony at the city of Panama, the
French rights and properties were purchased by, and formally transferred
to the United States.  Work was begun at once, but hampered by bureaucratic
confusion.  The chief engineer, John F. Wallace was replaced in June 1905
by John F. Stevens.  Stevens, still troubled resigned in 1906.  President
Theodore Roosevelt then named Lt. Col. George W. Goethals, U.S. Army
Engineers, the chief engineer.  The human labor cost was impressive; as
many as 40,000 persons were employed at one time.  During the 10 year
construction period more then 6,000 persons lost their lives.  By energetic
measures against the disease-carrying mosquitoes, Col. William Crawford
Gorgas, chief sanitary officer of the Panama Canal Zone from 1904 to 1913,
succeeded in virtually eradicating yellow fever and reducing drastically
the toll of malaria.

   

[Contributed by Tim Kubicek, MM3, 71-73]


 
     

     
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