Albany (CA 123) - Naval Cruise Book

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r People take pride in a job well done. I can say that without fear of contradiction, especially when the job concerns a much larger unit which, to function efficiently, demands the efficient func- tioning of the individuals who comprise the major portion of the ship ' s crew and who are very neces sary cogs in a large piece of machinery. So far, I ' ve shown you our team; the man, his friends and his superiors who are all a part of us . You ' ve been taken into the lives of my many ship- mates. Now, I ' m going to show you where all this gets us; what the ALBANY does with her crew, or better, what the crew makes possible for the ALBANY to do. The high-speed approach (25 knots) on the re- plenishing ship, for instance, takes a great amount of teamwork and no man involved — and there are many — can take a back seat. The Big A always seems to receive her ust deserts from her crew; and the crew can justly identify itself with the ship. So we have the men and the ship; but enough : here are some of the facets of shipboard ife. Maybe you will see what I mean.

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CH I I $ COMMANDER CRUISER DIVISION FOUR Rear Admiral Charles L. Melson was graduated from the Naval Academy in 1927 and at- tained to his present rank dating from 1 June 1955. Admiral Melson ' s war record is a series of commen- dations for outstanding service. Judging from our experience with his staff and the state of their alertness, we have had no difficulty in realizing why. A good example is the Admiral ' s preference for wartime procedures, such as visual communications rather than the use of comparatively insecure voice circuits. ii Admiral Melson served on various ships commencement of World War II: the United States MACK, PITTSBURGH, DUPONT, DICKERSON SON. In September 1942, he became Commanding great deal of action in his year and one-half on dexterity. In January 1944, he became Commander mendations while here begins, For conspicuous 1952, Admiral Melson assumed command of the ingly in Korea. Then, in March 1957, he became son has seen duty on many staffs as well as with duty has always gained recognition for him. after he received his commission and until the Ships TRENTON, PENGUIN, NAPA, McCOR- NORTHAMPTON, PENNSYLVANIA AND PATER- Officer of the U.S.S. CHAMPLIN which saw a board and where he received commendations for his Destroyer Division THIRTY-TWO; one of his com- galantry and intrepidity in action . . . In October U.S.S. NEW JERSEY, which performed outstand- Commander Cruiser Division FOUR. Admiral Mel- the Navy Department where his performance of In addition to an amazing number of letters of commendation plus location medals and unit cita- tions, Admiral Melson has been awarded the Silver Star Medal, the Legion of Merit with two Gold Stars and Combat V , the Bronze Star Medal and the Commendation Ribbon with three Bronze Stars and Combat V .

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vj ■ I— HI I IIIIH i H MI ' . . . when I go to sea, I go as a simple sailor . . . True, they rather order me about some and make me jump from spar to spar, like a grasshopper in a May meadow. And at first, this sort of thing is unpleasant enough. It touches one ' s sens e of honor, particularly if you come of an old established family in the land . . . The transition is a keen one, I assure you, and re- quires a strong decoction of Seneca and the Stoics to enable you to grin and bear it. But even this wears off in time. Melville . . . Moby Dick