Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Sailing Into History

The SS Riviera returned back to India and father rejoined the crew, albeit with a very different face than what he had started the voyage with!  And he found that life aboard ship had once again become of an explosive nature.  You have to remember that he was third officer and the welfare of the crew was his duty.

The Captain, for some reason, had become dictatorial.  Food rations had been cut.  Salaries were cut.  It was as if the Captain actually wanted a mutiny on his hands.  The crew became belligerent and somewhere between India and the US, the Captain killed one of the German crew.

Probably the only thing which saved the situation, was the Indian Government filed a complaint concerning the physical condition of the vessel and the insurers of the ship ordered the Captain to report to the nearest shipyard for inspection.  This was based upon father's random conversations with others during his recovery in India.

So, the Captain was forced to put into Portland, Oregon.

What was to follow was to become a part of Maritime history and US organized labor history, with lawsuits going all of the way to the US Supreme Court and a bit of an uproar back in Germany as well.

As for father - it was to be his capture by the US Government - he had so long dreaded and managed to dodge for eight years.

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