Roseburg news-review., August 29, 1936, Image 9

ntimate Glimpses Into Life of Admiral Byird
' ff Experiences and Achievements "v
fffr inf Famous Explorer Told ST;' ) v
II i,rfrV I if "'.' l',0 ' V ? s j Little America, picturing the wireless station with which Admiral Byrd and his daunt
1 I II v vK "'tr S less companions kept in touch with the outside world.
v I MWMCi Ok Sqf
Claude A. Swanson, Secretary of the United ; I s f. i IS XW A ' I flfii C Jt
States Navy, who has known Richard E. ' , ' ! If (I (Al J ltA 0V'
Byrd since the lattcr's childhood and who j , f , Vf Ii ' -'J -V I V r I .
has written many heretofore unpublished i I, if. ' ; "5$ ' CV If I j
incidents in the life of the intrepid explorer. j 111 ' - ' p .ff ' ' V jfjS
By Claude A. Swanson jfi " ' ' Jj "".1 x "
Sect.ry of th. Unit.d St.t., N.vy VVT fii t" "JKD ZZ3ZJ tYA 111 f
As Told By 1 1UJIUII- , .i" , I J
John Richard Finch I 1 fell wk I 'J&S Zftt .H 5if 11 I
Li '" M Pl 111
Approaching the forbidding ice foot in the , I j JSVW j Pi l xOr 'It it
Antarctic. Caution in transferring supplies H 'x,. E .- I ' I 1 la
was necessary. An unforseen mishap might St k'", , ' ' TT'w f J I'l'lftX
have meant disaster to the entire expedition, s jHf , ' x Jj"
REAR Admiral Richard Evelyn Byrd, in
trepid flyer, adventurer, and explorer, is
today thrilling an admiring world with his new
book, "Discovery," in which he so graphically de
scribes the exciting adventures, the despernte
trials, the scientific discoveries, and ultimate
success in the long Antarctic months in which
he and his men conquered the elements the
white ice mountains at thev "bottom of the
earth," to climb the naked shingles of the world
and capture for America the distinction of being
the first nation to fly over the South Pole.
Rear Admiral Byrd, now retired, has been in -the
public eye for many years. He is one of this
country's national heroes. Thousands have read
about him, but know him only for his explora
tions and air victories. In reaching for an Insight
into Admiral Byrd's background, who could bet
ter tell his story than Claude A. Swanson, the
Secretary of the United States Navy, who knew
him as a boy, watched him grow to manhood RnH
looked upon his accomplishments with as much
pride as if Byrd were his own son?
In commenting on Admiral Byrd's new book,
"Discovery," recently published by G. P. Put
nam's Sons, Secretary Swanson gives an intim
ate touch to the explorer's early life and back
ground. In part he says:
"As a life-long friend of Dick Byrd and of his
distinguished father before him, I can look back
to his early youth and his official record in the
Navy before he entered on his career as an ex
plorer with a great deal of pride. Dick was a
fine boy.
"As a member of the Senate Naval Committee
for more than twenty years, and more recently
as Secretary of the Navy, I have had exceptional
opportunities to follow his brilliant career from
the day when he entered the Naval Academy ns
a slender midshinmn, until he electrified the
worM by his munificent (lights across the At
lantic and over the Arctic and Antarctic poles.
It is not my intention to praise Byrd. but simply
to record some umdorned and unknown facts.
"As a boy, Dick gnt into rather more than hip
share of mischief, and what his exasnrrnted
father used to call 'rccklers deviltry.' though
when not leading his gang of Winchester young
sters in some new and hitherlo nnhearl-of form
of escapade, he was a no'nhly on'' an tVught
ful lad.
"At times I think his father's in lirrn-.nt de
nunciations of foolhardine.ss wore more than jus
tified. Certainly that was so when as a young
ster, with little or no experience in handling
boats, he insisted, over the vioVnt pro'eU of
his seafaring hosts, on taking a smMI sailing
craft across Hampton Roads in the fnce of a
rising storm, and there and then came within an
ace of ending forever his career of a'iventire.
"But perhaps it was from some of these heed
less and ofttimes reckless adventures and ex
periences of his youth that he learned the need
of preparedness when nnythins wortliw'iil" is
to be accomplished. Without the carofr.l plan
ning which has marked all his ar'Mtirs in Mcr
life he could not have achieved his marvelous
record of never 'osing a man on his four sep
aratc expedition? to the Polar regions; or on the
Naval Aviation Station he commanded during
the war with i pprsnnrH nf more than 300 men;
or when, in the early : 'ys of the war. he de
veloped and instrur'"-! his assistants in the then
extremely r'"-""iii art nf nitrht flying over
water
"And yet i nuwl confess that my reading of
the official reports of his personal activities on
the Polar expeditions docs not encourage me to
believe that the leopard has changed his pots.
or that Dick Byrd, the man, is any less willing
to take a chance than was Dirk Byrd, the youth.
It has always been his own life, however, thai
he has placed in jeopardy. His impulsive re
sponse to the calj of some new adventure has
never Involved unnecessary danger to the lives,
the limbs, or the health of his subordinates, or
needless risk to the successful accomplishment
of his undertaking.
QEFORE entering the Naval Academy, Byrd
J spent two years at the Virginia Military
Institute and one at the University of Virginia.
Like other famous polar explorers, Admiral Byrd made constant use of dog
teams, but when it came to the final dash for the South Pole, he employed an
airplane and succeeded.
Although he had missed a year's schooling when
he adventured around the world, he was the
youngest student at the Institute when he en
tered at the age of 15. The usual age require
ment of Hi years had been waived in his case
because of the notable progress he had made in
the studies prescribed at the Institute, especially
mathematics and elementary physics, and also
because of his manifest ability to hold his own
with any group of boys of advanced school age.
"His exceptional ability as a leader, that in
nate talent for leadership so highly prized in
the Army and Navy, began to disclose itself on
the day he entered the Naval Academy. He was
elected chairman of his class in his plebe year,
and he held more offices during his four ye;-rs
at the Academy than any other member of his
cla.'-s. Greatly devoted to football, Byrd was nno
of the most reck'evs players on the tr-nm in the
bad days before the g;ime was opened up to
make football safe for the undergraduate; and
in leading the gymnasium team, of which he was
captain, he smashed his ankle in nn attempt to
perform an exceedingly hazardous fmt on the
flying rings.
"After graduating, this passionate liking for
athletics brought about a rigorous regime nf ex
ercise and sports, which kept him so phys'callv
fit that when leaving on his first expedition hi?
condition was as good as during his Academy
days.
"But what manner of midshipman hp was is
best told in his class annual, which records the
estimate of his classmates after four years of
clce and intimate contact. Here it is:
From Class Record
" "Richard Evly" Byrd: Athlete. Leadaf in all
things. F'iflnd. Gentleman, From tK time w entored et
Plebsi until th prent Dick hai bean putting hij whole
heart into vryfhinq he tja including th little meat
ing behind the old hospital M-)it of the time Diet
moves around with e far-away look in hi yet. But go
whe'S he may he cannot hope to find the truth and the
beauty of which he dreams He hi fllmidy lived a
iife rich in tiperienc and he will tve a life rich
itill. But he will alwayi give to life ror than he tales'
"I know It Is telling tales out of school, but
It is no secret now that the 'affair behind the
hospital' wbj a memorable fight Dick had with
a civilian In Annapolis. This young man had
manhandled more than one of the midshipmen,
and at a class Indignation meeting Dick was
selected to challenge the ptignarious youngster.
The challenge was accepted. After a thorough
battle Byrd emerged the victor by a slight mar
gin so slight a margin that when they shook
hands after the fight they had learned to respect
each other profoundly, and from that moment
they became friends. I could fill many pages
with the story of Byrd's service in the Navy.
But I believe that story is best told in the fol
lowing extracts from his official record.
From Officiil Navy Records
" 'Twenty-two detailed reports of fitness on Lieutenant
Byrd by different officers in th Navy made since 1917
show him to be above the q'pnt majority tha highest
marl that can be iven in the following: Cooperative
qualities devotion to duty education, force, industry
initiative, judornen. iustice. leadership physical enerqy
and endurance, relinbility telf-rnntrnl discipline of mb
ordinate, loyally of sub-rdinnte? effi-itney of person
net based upon the results it'hith the offir.or concerned
has accomplished in piping up or improving the ma
ferial under his rharqol-
" 'Special remarks: Chief of Bureau of Aeronautics
April I to Scoenbet 30 1921: Lieutenant By'd is en
eireptionall loyal capab's and efficient obiter. Fo
his age and length of service he has romatlfnbly good
judgment tact and an ability to cooperate with others
Hn is icalous and irdifatiieble In the performance
his d ity pesii'ent in accnm pushing the end view
and dees so without creating friction or opposition. I
have no hesti'ation in saying that he more than any
one el by his own qualifications had much to Ho with
ge'tinq passed the 'eo islet ion coating the Bureau of
Aeronautics in the Navy Department It was by his
knowledge ot aviation it lelationship to the Navy, and
by his tact and persistence in persuading those opposed
to it, end also in making new convert, (hot the law
was pasted. His work in this connection was invaluable
to the director of aviation and later to the chief of the
bureau and to the service. He has a pleating and
strong personalty end brings credit to the service in
his contact with civilians.
" 'On account of his original end valuable wort In
devising instruments end methods for air navigation in
connection with the trans -Atlantic flight, he was de
tailed to go fo England to return on the ZR-2 to assist
n navigation, Hs was there during the lost of ZR-2,
and rerde'd prompt and valuabl assistance at tnis
criti-.el time, and received Utter of thanti d com
mendation from th firitiih authorities whicb, it l
sumd hav been mad part of this record.' (Th
above remarks concerning navigation refer to the frit
successful trans-Atlantic flight that took p'ace in I9t9.
Byrd had eharge of th navigational praparation for that
flight.)
Admiral Byrd as he appeared during
his explorations in the Anfactic.
J'PrcOM these extracts from Byrd's record It
I can easily be seen that he made his mark
in the Navy long before he became famous.
"None of Pick's Polar flights worn sponsored
by the Navy Department, although the Navy
was always keenly interested and went -the limit
in furnishing him su-di moral and material sup
port aa were permissible under Nnvy regula
tions. "As a result, in the maintaining discipline,
Byrd was compelled to rely wholly upon his
personal authority as leafier of each of those
expeditions. His authority hrg:'n and ended with
himself. He larked the power to courtmartial
his men. Many, if not most of them, were vol
unteers without pay. He could not discharge
them after they once reached the polar regions.
Threats of decking their pay wen?, of course,
meaningless. And yet he has never had a case
of direct disobedience to his orders on any of
his expeditions.
"Of course, there were instances of Infraction
nf regulations. But these never seriously threat
ened the discinline of any of his expeditions,
even to a slight degree.
"Another unique phase in the handling of hi
expeditions Is the full responsibility that Byrd
must bear single-handed. Other expeditions than
his have been backed either by thnir govern
ments or a group of men. whereas, in thfse en
terprises of his, the largest ever sent to the
polar regions, the full responsibility rested with
him alone, to such an extent that the mistnkes
of any of his men could easily result in the loss
of his reputation or plunge him into bankruptcy.
"It has been said that Byrd's last expedition
was the most useful and, from a scientific stand
point, the most productive Polar expedition of
all time.
ii IS THIS connection I was Informed that
I when the Congress had it in mind to vote
him a special medal of honor after his flight to
the South Pole on his first Antarctic Kxpedition,
Byrd asked that medals be given to his men
instead. It is only necessary to add that Con
gress broke all precedent by voting medals for
every man as he requested.
"And now I shall tell one more tale out of
school. I myself radioed Byrd at Spitsbergen
after his flight over the North Pole that the
.'Javy and that Congiess would promote him to
the rank of Admiral in recognition of that mag
nificent achievement By his reply, absolutely
refusing to accept such an exceptional honor on
the ground that his exploit did not, and could
not justify such an exceptional exercise of the
power of Congress, effectively squelched the
movement. After his subsequent flight over the
South Pole, the demand from the public for his
promotion to the rank of Admiral was so Insist
ent that he was promoted tn spite of himself.
His promotion was on the retired list, as Byrd
wired that' under no circumstances could or
would he accept an appointment which would
have prevented the promotion of a number of
fellow officers, had he been passed over the
heads of thousands of officers on the active list.
"I may add that, contrary to the widespread
belief, his appointment as Admiral on the retired
hst carried merely a few dollars increase over
the pay to which he was already entitled.
"I have tried to depict this man as he Is
known to his friends and his associates, but I
feel that no account of him would be complete
that omits the story of his long vigil in his ad
vance weather base on his Inst expedition. I
was deeply moved by the account written on the
spot when it was still fresh in his mind by Dr.
Thomas C. Poulter. his chief scientist, and sec
ond in command.
Doctor Poultcr's Account
Little America. Antarctica Our arrival at Comman
der Byrd's advance base weather station at the south
rnmost and coldest spot ever inhabited by man marked
the end of horrible ordeal endured by a man alone,
cut off from human aid by a code that he refused to
breafc. Though, for two months, throe of us were with
our commander, lammed in his 9 by 13
learned nont to nothing from him of his exDeriene. inr
ho told ui no more than bare courtesy required. I had
expected this, for I Inew that the many thousands who
hoard him lecture on hit last expedition were itruclr by
the fact that not once did he mention himself. There
fore, when he writes of this expedition, hs will. I am
sure, as tt Is his custom, omit the part he played. That
his experience may not be entirely lost. I record it her.
When we first saw him on August 10, we wart
shocked at his appearance. Emaciated, hollow-cheeked,
weak, and haggard though he was, he met ui casually,
calmer by far thart any of ui. He spoke to ui as it he
had seen us only yesterday, but hii ghastly condition
and husky voice told us that in spit of this matte-of.
factness, he had beon through some terrific things.
When 1 learned that his condition had been even worse,
and that his most desperate time had been many weokt
before our arrival, in the vary middle of the winter
night, I realized dimly what his battle for survival must
have been.
Since that time I have been collecting hers and there
the pieces that go to make a consecutive story of his
trials. Some I have gathered from casual remarks he
has dropped from time to time in convention or in
the discussion of his cold-weather problems. Some t
have from his old friend Murphy, who received and
handled his radioed instructions, and still more from
hit record, a part of which I had a chance to1 rnnd.
Putting the pieces together I discovered that I have
come upon something rare. It Is a picture of a mighty
trail of manhood and spirit, and reveals something of
Byrd the man.
He wont much further than his refusal to call for help,
and In so doing lessened his rhances for survival. Time
and again he exhausted the slander reserve of strength
he had struggled so desperately to gain in order to
keep radio intact. After hii engine broke down, he had
to hand crank the generator. He knew thai, in spite of
his instructions to the contrary, hit mon at Little Amer
ica would have fought through to him had radio com
munication with him suddenly coased. He does not talk
of this, but the facts show hii reasoning.
These facts came afterward we did not know them
at Little America. When w did reach the advance
base in August we ware scarcely two weeks ahead of
the sun. His need for aid had passed. Ho had fought
it out alone and wholly within himself in June and In
spite of rocur'ing periods of weakness. He was nnce
more struggling uphill.
I don't know of anything finer than that in life or
literature. The odds were so overwhelmingly against
him that h should rightfully have lost his fight. Had
he don so, hi chilvalroul regard for us would hav
been only too evident. It ti natural that he should have
our deep gratitude, for what he endured and for hii
willingnesi to face tn supreme sacrifice in his thought
fulnss for our safety.
"To my thinking, this explains the real Byrd,
and gives us an insight into his greatness."
Secretary of the Navy Swanson interestingly
reveals something of Byrd, the man. Admiral
Byrd's book recounts modestly, but forcefully
and thrillingly, giving most of the credit to his
men, the events of his last great expedition
Every American should read it.
(Copyright,
AGE fHr.btl