(Previously posted - with a small correction)
Here is a short story that I have read many times and I think about in difficult situations.
Admiral Herbert E. Schonland
In November of 1942, a U.S. cruiser, USS SAN FRANSISCO, led a convoy of
American transports to Guadalcanal. Lieutenant Commander Herbert E.
Schonland was aboard as the Assistant Damage Control Officer.
On November 12th, undetected by radar, a squadron of 25 Japanese bombers
suddenly attacked the ship. One badly damaged bomber crashed into SAN
FRANSISCO, killing 30 men and seriously injuring the Executive Officer,
Commander Mark Crouter. Commander Joseph Hubbard became the new Executive
Officer making Schonland the new Damage Control Officer. Alerted to an
approaching Japanese task force, SAN FRANSISCO left Guadalcanal that
afternoon and through the night awaited the impending battle.
Captain Cassin Young, the Commanding Officer, stood on the bridge with the
navigator, Commander Arison. Hubbard was just aft of the bridge and
Schonland was three decks below in Damage Control Central, all awaiting
the inevitable first hit. At 1:30 AM on the 13th, the radar detected 14
Japanese ships in three columns with a giant Kongo class battleship in the
van. Their objective was to clear a path for a big convoy of troop
transports that were 12 hours behind. The American cruisers were clearly
outgunned.
Admiral Daniel Callaghan, directing the operation from his flagship, SAN
FRANSISCO, ordered his warships to run the gauntlet between the Japanese
columns. Leading the charge, SAN FRANSISCO almost immediately felt two
hits.
Fires raged below and holes ripped through the hull, causing water to pour
into the boiler and engine rooms. Schonland quickly and methodically
countered each outbreak. On the bridge, the battle raged, killing Admiral
Callaghan, Captain Young and Commander Hubbard. Commander Arison was
severely wounded. With all officers dead or wounded, Schonland was the
senior officer.
Inter-ship communications were destroyed, so Lieutenant Commander Bruce
McCandless, who survived the explosion, informed the other vessels of the
officers' death through blinker lamps. Although damaged, SAN FRANSISCO had
endured and had crippled the opposing battleship. Callaghan died in the
effort, but his strategy worked, as the Japanese fired at each other in
confusion.
When Schonland learned he was the senior officer aboard, he decided that
his skills were more urgently needed in controlling the damage. He ordered
McCandless to carry on.
Since explosions had knocked out bridge control, Schonland took over
steering and engine control below decks. He maintained control between the
speakers leading from Damage Control Central to the bridge, using shifts
of messengers.
Fires continued to break out and holes were plugged with anything
available to stop the flooding. Swiftly and precisely Schonland dispatched
men to quell each problem. Remaining calm and confident throughout the
chaos, he continually reassured, "We'll come through it."
A shell exploded in a flooding compartment, killing 20 men and destroyed
the automatic valve control panel. As water flowed in, with the valves
opened, Schonland organized a team to manually close them, struggling and
finally succeeding in the darkness under five feet of water.
When word came from the bridge that the battle was over, the main activity
was helping the wounded and repairing the damage. Schonland spent two more
hours below decks supervising repairs. At about 4:00 AM he went to the
bridge and assumed active command.
SAN FRANSISCO was never forced to slow down in battle, nor was her
fighting effectiveness impaired. Schonland carried out his cardinal duty:
to keep the ship in fighting condition.
Dawn of Friday the 13th found four crippled ships, having been separated
from the rest of their squadron, limping along in formation. USS HELENA
led followed by USS SAN FRANSISCO, USS JUNEAU and USS BUCHANAN. When a
lookout spotted four torpedoes heading toward SAN FRANSISCO, Schonland
deftly maneuvered her out of the torpedoes' path. Unable to warn JUNEAU,
the new target, they helplessly watched her explode, taking with her the
five famous Sullivan brothers.
Twelve hours after the pivotal night battle of Guadalcanal, Japanese
transports arrived on schedule. U.S. Marines on Guadalcanal easily
destroyed all the transports.
The havoc wrought by the Japanese was considerable. Although her deck was
splintered and twisted and her superstructure full of holes, the SAN
FRANSISCO heroically survived. She disabled the giant Kongo battleship
HIEI, sank one destroyer and damaged two cruisers. The U.S. Navy had
successfully delayed the landing of Japanese reinforcements on
Guadalcanal, which ultimately turned the tide of battle on the island in
favor of the U.S. forces.
On December 28,1942, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt presented the
Medal of Honor to Commander Herbert E. Schonland. He later retired as a
Rear Admiral. Schonland Hall at the Surface Warfare Officers School in
Newport, Rhode Island, is named in his honor. |
