Castor (AKS 1) - Naval Cruise Book

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SHE WAS INDEED A FRIEND TO MAN DEDICATION The Castor sailed from Seattle January 30, 1945. She re- turned to the Pacific Coast early in August. During a little more than six months at sea she covered about 30,000 miles over Pacific waters. She issued thousands of tons of stores to every kind of Navy ship. Her missions were completed promptly. All orders received were completed with dispatch. When the squadron commander ordered You Do, the Ca5 or silently affirmed Can Do. . Six months at sea becomes tedious and tiresome. This cruise had its high spots and its low spots. There were times when life was good and pleasant, like movies on number four hatch under a starry tropical sky with a fine breeze blowing and a good picture on the screen. There were moments when it seemed as if the day ' s work would never end, the heat so stifling that both spirit and body sagged. Softball and beer on tropic ball diamonds brightened life above and below the equator. Long periods of lying at anchor, waiting, fearing and sweating, dulled the mind and slowed the body. Endless nights lying in thick smoke while fanatical yellow devils looked for targets at which to aim their suicide planes were nerve wracking. Swell holiday dinners of turkey and all the fixin ' s made life more tolerable. Letters from home, even when two months late, gave all hands a new lease on life. Through these high spots and low spots, these ups and downs the Castor sailed on and on until she turned eastward again with all hands knowing full well that her work had been well done. During all these long months there was one creature that maintained an even disposition, a tolerance for all human moods and an unwavering loyalty to every man, jack aboard. No human being aboard the Castor was able to maintain an equilibrium through tension, pain and drudgery and at the same time give as much pleasure to their fellow men as this creature did. Although not human, but merely a dog, she was oblivious to change and time and danger. Her indis- criminate charity to all helped make life at sea endurable. She was indeed a friend to man. And so this Lucky Bag, the pictorial record of this cruise of the Castor, is dedicated to LULU, a little dog whose canine benevolence did more than any other living creature to alleviate the tension of six long months in Pacific waters.

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The Lucky Bag When men aboard ship are careless with their clothes and possessions, leave them lying around, they are appropriated by the master-at-arms. They are placed in a repository called the lucky bag, and it isn ' t a lucky thing, paradoxically, to have your possessions in that bag. If the owners are identified they are subject to the performance of extra duty. All clothing which isn ' t identified and returned to its owner after he has performed extra duty, is auctioned off from time to time. Keeper of the lucky bag aboard Castor is R. E. Davis, known universally among his shipmates as Lucky Bag Davis. Lieut. Marvin Park, USNR, and F. J. Mandella, CEM, took all the photos and made them up in the ship ' s own dark room. APC L. A. Gambino helped in the dark room. Lieut. W. E. Huelle, USNR, made the layout for the book and wrote the material for it. Capt. F. C. Huntoon supervised the whole effort. One would think that a department titled Costumes might be going a bit too far on a Can Do ship like the Castor. But after all. Castor had its Queen and the queen had to have costumes. Credit must be given then, to the guy who created and made the costumes Lulu wears throughout this presen- tation, namely, Shelby Minton, signalman first class, whose expert flag maker ' s fingers gave our little dog the finery she exhibits here and there among these pages.

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HONORS MARINE CORP MEDAL PURPLE HEART MARTIN LUTHER MILLARD, Chief Gunner ' s Mate, USN, awarded the Navy-Marine Medal for ' Devotion to Duty, extraordinary courage and disregard of his own personal safety at Pearl Harbor Dec. 7, 1941. The presen- tation of the medal was made by Captain F. C. Huntoon of the Castor, June 5, 1945. Purple Heart CLIFFORD F. HILL seaman first class Purple Heart JOHN M. WILEY seaman second class Purple Heart CAPT. F. C. HUNTOON, USNR The commanding officer and two seamen were awarded the Purple Heart Medal for wounds received as the result of enemy action during this cruise of the Castor.