Voyage Six
SS Frederic E. Ives - Page 4
The Coast Guard was waiting for me when I got back. A letter had arrived at my parents' address dated 21 October, 1944 the day after I had sailed from Houston on the Frederic E. Ives. It summoned me to appear before the U.S. Coast Guard Hearing Unit, in Room 217 at the Galveston Post Office Building in connection with Merchant Marine Hearing Unit Case 628-471. The letter was signed by a Lt. Comdr. Roy E. Van Benthuysen, USCGR. Well, it turned out that my Dad knew this Coast Guard Commander. Dad had worked on the fireboat for some years and knew most of the Coast Guardsmen stationed at Fort Point Station and besides this man was from Galveston and my father and him were kids together. Dad went to see him and told him what had happened and that I was already gone back to sea on another Liberty Ship. Van Benthuysen told my father that he'd see what he could do. He got the case transferred from New Orleans to Galveston where he was in charge of the Hearing Unit.
I had been home about a week when I went down to the Post Office Bldg. on January 26, 1945 to appear before their Hearing Unit. This Lt. Commander was an older man my father's age and he took me into his office. He asked me to tell him what happened on the Cape Falcon and I did. I was honest and I told him that I wasn't going to work for any man who cursed me and threatened me like Mortensen did. I had quite a temper back then and I told him that I didn't care what they did to me. I wasn't going to take any crap off anybody.
Van Benthuysen was very patient. He asked what happened to make me leave the ship. He heard me out. He agreed that he saw no reason to throw away good food when it was rationed and many went hungry. But he told me that I had to control my temper and that I had to obey rules and regulations. Even though the Captain and the Steward might be wrong in what they did, he said that they had the authority to do it. He said he expected me to obey regulations and the chain of command in the future because another incident could get my papers pulled and me inducted into the Army or worse - thrown into the brig.
I told him I didn't care if they drafted me into the Army. I told him that I had been rejected by the Navy when I tried to enlist and that I wouldn't mind it one bit if the Army took me. He laughed and said that the Army had plenty of men and that the country had more need of an experienced merchant seaman than another soldier. He asked me if I would promise to obey orders in the future. He was really nice to me and I promised him that I would.
Well, these young officers were gung-ho and started asking all kinds of questions and pressing me. Commander Van Benthuysen stuck his head into the hearing room and saw what these guys were up to and he blew his stack. He yelled a them, "Goddamnit, I told you what this man had to say. Didn't I tell you I wanted this settled and him cut loose?" Then these young Ensigns started stuttering , "Aye aye sir and right away sir. " They scribbled something on a form and handed me back my seaman's papers and told me that I could go. That was a nice guy and he really took care of me. I guess that I was lucky that my old man knew him. I don't know what happened to Curtis Hurst but he must have had everything worked out, too.
See summary of the Coast Guard Hearing that Danny Traverso only saw more than fifty years later.