LETTERS how I go t home for C hristmas in 1942. This Sea History was indeed a holiday treat. THORNTON THOMAS
Bellevue, Washington
H.R. 23 Follow-Up Letters We have received many letters regarding the notice on HR. 23, "Belated Thank You to the Merchant M ariners of WW!l " first posted in Sea History 111, p35, with follow-ip letters printed in the following two issues. Most letters are lengthy, detailed, highly authoritative, and from complete opposite viewpoints. Clearly, this is a complicated issue about which individuals feel very strongly. Four issues after the original posting, we will not be printing any new letters regarding this topic, though we appreciate the letters which help clarifj many points brought up and the ones that provide personal anecdotes related to the subject of the bill. For more information on HR. 23, please refer to your state's representative in the H ouse, Rep. Bob Filner (Ca lifornia), who reintroduced the bill, or to the web site, www.thomas.loc.gov, to track its status. -DO'R
O ut-of-Print Books I was delighted to see Roger Tilton's wo rk in th e las t issue of Sea H istory. I am the proud owner of two Roger Ti lton watercolors, whi ch he gave me many years ago. The subj ect of each is the barque Star of India. What a great gentleman he is. Regarding yo ur "Out-of-Print" column (SH 11 3, p47), yes, there are book quests that give me fits. It was all Karl Konum's fault. H e used to taunt m e with book titles, sending me out to search the pre-Web wo rld to find books that I often doubted ever existed at all . But that was Karl's way- to send yo u on romantic expediti ons where the path , and not the find , made yo u the better perso n. Once I asked him what the greatest maritime book in the wo rld was. He said there we re two, and that I should find them immediately, read them cover to cover, and cherish them in my collection. It took m e four years to find them. They are: Ship Modeler's Assistant and ~ys ofthe Sea, both by C harles G. Davis. I fo und them, read them cover to cover, and hated them. I can't remember
more boring reading. It was n't until I was halfway through the second book that I realized Karl wasn't suggesting these as great reading, but as necessary reading for anyone interested in wo rkin g in the m aritime industry. They describe every detail of a sailing ship, and yo u couldn't ask for a better source of ship parts. As a rookie waterfront reporter and even tual maritime museum consultant, I found them to be incredibly useful, even if they did taste like cod liver oil going down. Books I have N OT been able to find include Errol Flynn's Beam Ends. Why search for thi s book? I really don't know, but I'm a firm believer that every man should have a littl e Karl Kortum and a little Errol Flynn in him . I have searched for this book unsuccessfully, going on four yea rs. JO SEPH DrTLER
Coronado, California
We welcome your letters! Write to: Editor, Sea History, 7 Timberknoll Road, Pocasset, MA 02559 ; e- mail : editorial@seahistory.o rg.
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SEA HISTORY 114, SPRING 2006