STORY OF A TRANSPORT

[Music] thank you guys [Music] [Music] issue [Music] Bots [Music] but it's the girl that makes the things [Music] thank you the ports of the United States air millions of tons of equipment have been handled here millions of Americans have boarded transports to be carried overseas the speed with which these vessels are loaded is felt on the battlefronts thousands of miles away [Music] from the moment a ship enters the port not only speed but also safety is a military necessity and of all the vessels guarded and protected none receives greater care and more attention than the troop transport for material can be replaced human life cannot [Music] one of the largest fastest troop transports is the Coast Guard manned Wakefield a unique ship a ship of 24 000 tons a ship to carry thousands of men a ship as safe as any vessel afloat and a ship with a colorful history just returned from overseas the Wakefield is preparing for another voyage there's not much time for Shore leave and before she sails she must be clean and seaworthy she will take twenty thousand bags of mail aboard one million pounds of letters will reach our men overseas in record time or the Whitfield is a speedy Traveler before the troops are loaded Army and Coast Guard transportation officers who know every inch of available space aboard face the complicated and exacting chore of quartering thousands of soldier passengers the loading of troops is systematic and fast the men come aboard at the rate of 1200 an hour each man has a card directing him to his bunk which he is not allowed to leave until sailing time no cheering crowd fit the Wakefield farewell the departure of any vessel in Wartime is a closely guarded Secret while still in coastal Waters the Wakefield is guarded by a Navy blimp which hovers watchfully overhead but when the blimp has to turn back she's on her own alone without escort from now on the continued security of the ship is the sole responsibility of the Coast Guard officers and crew to avoid enemy Raiders the ship follows an irregular zigzag course at high speed [Music] everybody wakefield's best defense against attack is the power of her fast engines burner tips are replaced regularly as a precaution against the smoke Haze which might betray the ship's position to the enemy [Music] safety also demands complete radio silence during the Crossing messages can be received but not sent it's room for the soldiers aboard every inch of space is utilized for just one purpose carrying the maximum number of troops but the Wakefield is one of the few fortunate ships where such privileges as smoking below decks are made possible by exceptional fireproofing and ventilating systems while on most other transports only salt water is available for washing the Wakefield can produce 90 000 gallons of fresh water daily more than enough for every man aboard [Music] The Crossings of the Wakefield a spirit of cooperation and comradeship has sprung up between the Army passengers and the Coast Guard officers and crew on dozens of passages through the Dangerous Waters of the Atlantic the ship has never been attacked by submarine or plane nevertheless as a precaution and for training early every morning General quarters is sounded [Laughter] foreign [Music] thank you [Music] after the novelty of being at sea has worn off life for the troops aboard the Wakefield is quiet and uneventable [Music] weather permitting Coast Guardsmen get together to relieve the monotony for their army passengers musicians many of them former members of popular bands are part of the regular crew and play in addition to their normal shipboard duties [Music] with so many soldiers aboard there are always some able to entertain themselves and Their audience thank you but there's a job ahead and to keep in physical trim is compulsory for everyone the cooking necessary for so many thousands of hungry men is done on an enormous scale from the 2500 loaves of bread which are eaten daily to the hundreds of pounds of butter everything is in huge quantities but KP Duty for the soldier aboard ship is no pleasanter than it was ashore thank you hear this [Music] feeding the tropes twice a day is a challenging problem of organization four lines of soldiers move forward continuously and a thousand men are fed every 20 minutes the men ate cafeteria style standing up but it was not so long ago that on this same ship and on the same deck the passengers found a different atmosphere [Applause] it was the atmosphere of a ship designed for leisure and comfort where the passengers had all the Carefree relaxation of Peace time travel or the droop transport Wakefield was down the luxury liner Manhattan whose colorful history began long before this war the largest merchant ship ever built in this country has just been christened by Mrs Theo Roosevelt the USS Manhattan finally the U.S has a passenger ship to equal the luxury liners of other nations a passenger ship this country can truly be proud of the Manhattan leaves on her maiden voyage thousands of people have come to bid her godspeed on her first trip across the ocean to Ireland England France and Germany the pride of America's Merchant Marine is on her way [Music] and as all luxury liners the Manhattan has her share of beauty aboard I think celebrities have become regular passengers aboard the ship Babe Ruth King of Swat arrives Jimmy Walker returns from his long stay in Europe Wrong Way Douglas Carrigan makes a triumphant entry on their way to the Olympic Games in Berlin on the USS Manhattan are the best of American athletes on Deck Glenn Cunningham and Jesse Owens anticipates stiff competition in this greatest of all sports events disembarking in Hamburg they're cordially received by German officials foreign [Music] is just returning from trouble Europe ship reporters and photographers board the luxury liner at quarantine to interview our returning ambassador to Germany William E Dodd who makes a forceful statement living in Europe these days is profoundly discouraging Nazism and fascism are gaining ground everywhere this is a world crisis the greatest crisis for democracies since the first Napoleon Germany at war with England and France and thousands of Americans caught by surprise by the hostilities jammed the decks of the USS Manhattan returning from a Europa Flame 1867 passengers the heaviest load the ship has ever carried the greatest ship on the smallest Reef in recent Maritime history barred from Europe by the Neutrality Act the liner Manhattan runs a foul a sandbar off the Florida coast on route to California the Coast Guard has saved all aboard but the giant is helpless and her officers believe she'll be hung up here for weeks the damage is estimated at more than a million dollars [Music] the famous steamship Manhattan is a luxury liner no longer fresh out of dry dock where she underwent repairs and conversion the Navy has taken over the vessel and given the command to the Coast Guard she's a troop ship now with a new name the Manhattan has become the Wakefield and here she arrives in New York with thousands of troops from her first maneuvers the attention of the world is focused on Singapore Britain's Mighty Outpost in the Far East here the American troop transport Wakefield is unloading troops when a formation of Japanese planes attacked the harbor [Music] a direct hit has landed on b-deck and the worst effects of the explosion are felt in the ship's Hospital nine Americans injured five killed [Music] Wakefield Appliance in one of the worst and most costly sea fires and years the American troop ship Wakefield returning from a British port with 850 passengers burns like a torch off the New England coast the crew fought the flames valiantly and the charred hole was finally towed into an American port hats off to American Shipyard workers 18 months ago the troop ship Wakefield was burned out from villages to mask today she's almost ready for service again but she's a different lady now the Promenade deck has been removed portholes closed all fittings and Equipment have been installed with one function in mind the transport of troops the sum of the experience of a hundred buyers has gone into her rebuilding bulkheads paint decks everything is non-combustible here's one ship hard to set a fire even with a blowtorch watertight compartments make the Wakefield almost Unsinkable a Triumph of ship building Ingenuity and soon she'll be at Sea again [Music] and the Wakefield has continued to live up to all expectations through dozens of Crossings carrying hundreds of thousands of troops now in mid-ocean again she is traveling in treacherous Waters Into the Heart of the war zones or the Coast Guard crew the watchword is Vigilance while the troops below deck the watchword is faith faith in the ship throbbing beneath them [Music] the great transport pushes on and vigilance increases as the ship enters the last lap of the journey [Music] aircraft Ferry 290 The Guns of the Wakefield are not fired the plane is a friendly one come to Shepherd the ship into port [Music] land at last solid immovable land land that doesn't pitch or toss or roll or the troops aboard the voyage is almost over and the tension of combat approaches [Music] before gay Russians are issued after the last meal on ship food for the soldiers may not be available between Port and their next destination tradition calls for the Coast Guard Skipper to speak to the gis he has transported across attention all Army personnel man that's land in sight and we're coming to the end of the trip for many of you it's been the first time on deep water for all of you I trust it's been Pleasant soon you men will be doing a big job fighting on land to fight your win I'm sure soon I hope the Wakefield has the privilege of carrying you back home good luck men and may God be with you foreign well the Wakefield and her Coast Guard crew the end of one trip is but the beginning of another once again the quartering of men must be carefully planned once again every available inch of space must be charted for use once again troops come aboard with these troops for the return Crossing are of a different kind and of a different mind these prisoners were captured by Americans perhaps by Soldiers the Wakefield had taken overseas a few months before get to the officers and Men of the ship they are just troops to be checked in ordered and cared for the agreement protecting prisoners of War applies at Sea as on land whatever the personal attitude of the coast Guardsmen the Nazi captives are given everything guaranteed then by international law no more no less once again the watchful blimp hovers over the Wakefield once again the Wakefield returns to her home as when she deported there are no celebrating crowds to greet her arrival the Wakefield has delivered the goods she has come back with another live cargo cargo of men who were once part of a mighty destructive force Chicago of men now broken and defeated Wakefield will sail again she and her Coast Guard crew will carry Americans overseas and whether she goes to the Atlantic or Pacific she will do her part quietly and efficiently in this war your War are War but Wakefield is just one of the thousands of American ships which carry the war to the enemy ships which have to be built drawing on the nation's tremendous resources and Manpower ships which have to be manned ships to carry the armies of American soldiers to the Battlefront and transport the millions of tons of supplies to back up those fighting men supplies that your war bonds Buy price of Liberty is high in Blood Sweat and money speed the victory Speed The Return of our men [Music] foreign