Macon (CA 132) - Naval Cruise Book

Page 193 text:

Truly, this was a land ol legend and of histoiy. All about us tlie phantoms ol ages Past crowded into the Present. There were times when our ship ot steel almost seemed to become a Grecian galley as we lelt oursehes a part ot some mysterious magic. ATHENS Atlii )i . another u ' t ol jjaradox, trownetl our Argciin atlventiire. it was a giay Aud laiiiy moining in Phaeleron Bay on the seiond ol Apiil. I ' irtieiis -was only a fuel stop but the t-aptain helped us make the most ol it. Three luuuhed siioui; we iiowded ashore into waiting busses to go to Atluns, goldiii tit ol a gokien age. It was no disappnintiiieiu. 1 he iii,igi( was not gone. You lelt as il ou weie ni anoiliei age when sou asceniletl the steps to the A(iopo|is. Da zliuL; be oiul cnn poor jioweis to dcs(iilie. il w.is .j|i c as notliing iiianiman- ou h,ni ever seen (ouUI Ij -. l-. en in its ])iestiu si.uc ol p.ulial Itiin as .1 lesull ol tiirliau (aniiou.ide selling oil a [iiikish powdei iiiat;.i ine in lliS7, it is still L;nainess pel sonil ieil. The gieai gate a ■ liie l ' ij lc(i -- thiough which lan the S.uied Wa to llie I ' m lliriiini : ihe !■ i r, li llicuii) ill vvhiili si, Hues ol (.i(( k maidens act as sup|ioiiing (ohimiis to the i . lol ol ilie em losed poi i h: I he niiiiiaHn e temple ol i lon. lei oiisirui ted in llic I ' hh ienUir , a lilittciint; gem; all (.l.issical C.ieek .11 its best - about l. )(i H,C:. In the (,nl,lri, .l;u- nj I ' rtiilr.. Do ou leineiiibel llie iiilnais leelilii; ol leluclaiuc v ilhiii ou as We l(;ll AiIkiis to letiiiii 10 ihe ship ' - It was alinosi as il ihe i ' leseiil had losi iis 1 liaiin .... lost it 10 the golden m.iL;i( ol centuries past whose tintist is still ali c in the iials ol cjur age. PALACE GUARD

Page 192 text:

Do ou remember the bright mornina; the twill suinmits of Skyrus came into vie v? It :is the l)irilipl.ice of Theseus, who carried out the union ol many Attic-communities into a sini le state and extended the territory of Atiica to the Isthmus of Corinth. It was here that Arhillcs. legendary hero of the Trojan Wars, was placed by his mother among the maidens of Kiinj; Ly- (oincdi ' s so that the sinister warning of the Oracle at Delphi might not come to pass. It was here that Ulysses released him from his bondage to join the armies of Menelaus before the walls of Troy. The magnificenf acropolis We strained our e es as we scanned the plains of Troy at the entrance to the Dardenelles, in hope that we might see the ruins of ancient Troy that lay about Si , miles off our starboard bow. Here on this very beach, after ten long years of fruitless siege, the Greeks left their Tro- jan Horse. Thinking it to be an offering. to the gods, the Trojans rolled it into the city and cele- brated the lifting of the siege. Then, in the quiet- ness of the night, while Troy lay in stupor, the Greeks stole forth from the belly of the horse, swimg wide the city gates to the fleet that had returned, and Troy was sacked and burned.

Page 194 text:

Cltapl|ifti Aetintiy ' Pause, if you will, you who must fashion the futuic-pause and look again in your minds ' eye- hack adoss the length and hieadth and timclessncss ot this greatest of inland seas; to Mare Nost- riun, whiih has hut recently been your six-montli home and habitation. In the lands to the east and south of this inhind sea, recorded history tells us man made his first impact upon the planet Earth. Here our religious laitli and heritage took on new me.uung. In this Hasin the ancient Hebrew prophets led their people to a new vision and understand- ing ot the nature of Cxod. This was the seaway over which jomiKved the phalanxes of Alexander, stalking f:, ) ' ? and destiny, giving to the Aferf terra?(r(i;( iror i . its only common tongue, Cireh. which Ijccame the language of Peter and Paul. Here all of us, Protest, ml . Cdtholir and Jeiu, found common groimd in the beginnings of our faith. Hoc our diversity ol worship lound new expression as in our Present we sought our God of the Kutine as did our spiritual forebears in the Past. This was the blue highway across which roamed the Iickks who sought .nid lound ilie treas- ures of Saiiunkinid and the Hind; of the Nile and li -inili inn : ol Cele ,incl Cnldiieini. Hcic loved the mariners of Sliali and Snllan; King and Caliph: Emperor and Doge. Scarcely a league of this sea but has seen its moment of glory and despair, honor and shame; scarcely a league but whose battle-la.shed currents have left their watermark on the pages of history. But there is a paradox too. Here, also, traveled Peter and Paiil-ihc vanguard of a great host to follow -.1 host who man bed not with .sword and sail bm in the (ompaiiv ol the Spnil of llie .Man jioin Sa ' jiielli. who captured the hearts of men with a more enduring Power. Your acts and expressions of worship pictured in these pages-your deeds of kindness to the homeless and helpless who cros,sed our path-Are voin- eyes yet clouded, or does your vision pierce the ha e? Can you see, ])erhaps. . .