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Che Battalion
Page 2
College Station, Texas Thursday, December 16, 1965
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CADET SLOUCH
by Jim Earle
MERRY
CHRISTMAS
Being photographer for a col
lege newspaper is a fun job and
one that everyone should try at
least once. You get to meet
many people, go to many places,
and occassionally be with pretty
girls.
But once or twice a year you
come up with an assignment
which takes away from the joy
of the profession. An assignment
although done before always
makes you sick.
That assignment is the dread
of the newspaper world. It’ll be
a beautiful day until you receive
that phone call of a Fatal Acci
dent. Then even jokers turn ser
ious and a cloud of gloom ascends
on what is normally a loud and
boisterous office.
Last year I was driving into
town when I heard the sirens
sound. Being a fire-truck chaser
I raced to the scene where a train
and a sports car had crossed
paths. The train came out okay,
but that was all for the sports
car and its driver.
Although a veteran newspaper
man might say I was lucky to
get there early, I would disagree.
Since I represented a paper I
was let through the blockade to
get a clear picture. Too clear a
picture. Seconds later they placed
a sheet over the body but I had
already seen too much.
And that wasn’t the first time
either. In Aspen, Colorado sum
mer before last a date and I
were in a coffee house when a
man reported an accident. We
raced to the scene at high speeds
only to find we had beat the
ambulance. Two teenagers were
dead and two were mangled for
life. Since it was late and I
was one of four men there, be
sides the cops, I had to help in
removing the bodies from the
demolished car. That was enough
for me and my date, and I
creeped back into town with both
hands on the wheel.
I no longer chase fire trucks
even if duty does call. If you’ve
ever seen a body up close it’ll
take something out of you and
make you think. Your skin will
crawl everytime death is men
tioned or everytime you read of
an accident which happens almost
daily. And you always have those
pictures as constant reminders.
Last summer in Italy I came
upon three fatal accidents in two
days. The ambulance crews were
still there and the bodies lay
under clean white sheets.
I went out of my way to
avoid them. I wasn’t surprised
or shocked because the Italians
drive like maniacs passing on
hills and taking corners on two
wheels. But their fatality toll
is high and they seem to have
little regard for their life.
Not so with me. I’ve seen
too much death for a student my
age. After the Thanksgiving
game I drove to Austin. There
was a three car accident and the
wrecking trucks were hauling the
cars away. I read in the paper
a 20-year old University girl was
killed. Some family did not have
a happy Thanksgiving.
Being a photographer is fun,
but not all fun. You may not
think about it often, but occas
sionally something reminds you
that anytime you could receive an
emergency assignment. It isn’t
pleasant to think of, but you
could arrive at the scene and
find it to be a friend, a close
friend.
Then a photographer’s job
grows serious, the nights un
easy. Weeks will pass before you
feel easy at the job again, and
months before you can pick up
a newspaper without being re
minded of the gruesome details
of a wreck.
Capsules Rendezvous, Make History
A Merry Christmas?
Christmas is a time for happiness. For some it will
be a time for mourning - .
The traditional joys of Christmas will not infect the
homes of some Texas families this year..
Instead the sorrow over departed loved ones will over
rule the festiveness of the Christmas season.
Estimates predict that 110 Texans will never live to
see the new year of 1966 but will instead die violent deaths
on the highways of our state.
Four Aggies have already died this year from injuries
received in automobile accidents. Will you be the fifth?
The Photographer’s Dread
By RONALD THOMPSON
AP Aerospace Writer
MANNED SPACE CENTER,
Houston—Four excited U. S.
astronauts culminated a tense
space hunt in the lonely world of
space Wednesday nudging their
two spaceships into a historic
rendezvous 185 miles above earth.
Gemini 6 pilots Walter M.
Schirra Jr. and Thomas P. Staf
ford masterfully flew up for a
visit with the tired, bearded crew
of Gemini 7, Frank Borman and
James A. Lovell Jr., then together
set out on a six-hour formation
flight.
The tiny spacecraft continued
their twin voyages nose to nose
only six to 10 feet apart.
First word the maneuver was
successful came from Stafford.
He calmly reported to anxious
ground controllers over a noisy
communications channel shortly
after 2:30 p.m., EST: “We’re
about 120 feet apart and sitting.”
The meeting occurred high
over the Pacific Ocean during
Gemini 6’s fourth orbit of the
earth and Gemini 7’s 165th.
A busy worldwide tracking net
work, for the first time in history
keeping tabs on two spacecraft at
once, came to a virtual standstill
during the final breathtaking
minutes of the momentous and
dramatic meeting in space.
“This is the waiting time,”
Mission Control said as the final,
tricky maneuvers to bring them
only feet apart started.
“It’s all up to them.”
Even though they were travel
ling 17,500 miles an hour over a
13,000-mile chase course, Schirra
cautiously maneuvered the space
craft at a relative speed of only
a few feet a second nose-to-nose
with Gemini 7—not risking a
collision.
“We did it,” someone said over
the command channels.
Thus the United States claimed
title to man’s greatest space ad
venture, one that represents an
other giant step in its race to put
men one the moon by 1970.
If American spacemen are to
return to earth once they land
on the lunar surface, they must
launch themselves from the
moon in their excursion vehicle
and rendezvous with an orbiting
mothership.
Twice stalled in an attempt to
become the nation’s first hunter
spacecraft, Gemini 6 roared off
its Cape Kennedy, Fla., launch
pad right on schedule at 8:37
a.m. EST.
The new kings of space travel,
Borman and Lovell, took a back
seat to the razor-sharp Gemini 6
crew. The Gemini 7 pilots ap
peared cheerful and chipper while
circling the earth waiting for the
big moment of meeting.
With Schirra, a cool, veteran
of space travel, at the ship’s con
trols, and Stafford, making his
first rocket ride, running the on
board computers, Gemini 6’s six-
hour stalk of the sky appeared
destined for success from the
start.
At the moment of blastoff,
these elated words were heard
from Gemini 6: “I should say.
This is a real one.”
The chase was on.
Nose skyward, the mighty 90-
foot Titan 2 rocket roared stead
ily from the pad in a cloud of
pink-tinted smoke. Minutes later,
Schirra and Stafford got the go-
YOUR FIRST DRINK
MAY BE YOUR LAST
The more alcohol there is in
the blood, the longer you must
wait until you can drive safely.
On the average, it takes one hour
for each bottle of beer or each
ounce of whiskey to be absorbed
by the body. Even if you seem to
be able to hold your own with al
cohol, your driving ability is im
paired during this period. Stay on
the safe side — don’t drink if
you plan to drive. Your first
drink could be your last!
THE BATTALION
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- ,7_ , j j. -m 7 rm repubhcation of all news dispatches credited to it or not
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Battalion is a non tax-supported non- ^erL^are"^ rSf^d. of repub,ication of a11 other
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prise edited and operated by students as Represented nationally by National Advertising Service,
a university and community newspaper. Inc., New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
News contributions may be made by telephoning 846-6618
Members of the Student Publications Board are: Joe Buser, or 846-4910 or at the editorial office. Room 4, YMCA Building,
chairman; Dr. David Bowers, College of Liberal Arts; Dr. For advertising or delivery call 846-6416.
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* The Battalion, Room 4, YMCA Building, College Station, Texas.
The Battalion, a student newspaper at Texas A&M is
published in College Station, Texas daily except Saturday, EDITOR GLENN DROMGOOLE
Sunday, and Monday, and holiday periods, September through Managing Editor Gerald Garcia
May, and once a week during summer school. Sports Editor ZJZZIZZZL Larry Jerden
MEMBER News Editor Tommy DeFrank
The Associated Press, Texas Press Association Photographer Herky Killingsworth
ahead for rendezvous on the
fourth orbit—just as planned.
“You’ve got a big fat go from
us!” Schirra gleefully replied.
Gemini 6 was drilled into an
initial egg-shaped path around
the world 100 miles low and 165
miles high, virtually what flight
controllers wanted.
Applause broke out in the con
trol room. Gone were fears
Gemini 6 might be a jinxed space
craft. Schirra and Stafford had
made two earlier trips to the
launching pad and failed to get
off the ground.
On Oct. 25, they had to climb
from their capsule when an
Agena rocket they were to chase
and link up with failed to go Into
orbit. Then Sunday, a small plug
prematurely fell from the base of
the rocket and shut off the
Titan’s engines at the moment of
ignition.
But all went well Wednesday.
“Tom says there’s no doubt
about liftoff,” radioed Schirra,
who had felt the pulse of big
rocket engines before—on his
nine-hour Mercury flight three
years ago.
Gemini 7 dashed overhead.
“We didn’t get to see the lift
off,” Lovell told earth. “But we
saw them coming up through the
clouds.”
As Gemini 6 shot into orbit,
spacecraft communicator Elliott
M. See Jr., an astronaut, told
Schirra: “Steering looks good
from here, Gemini 6.”
“Oh, she looks like a dream,”
Schirra replied.
Told everything was “go” for
rendezvous, Borman replied with
one happy word: “Wonderful.”
This word set them for the
spine-tingling hours to follow.
At 10:12 a.m., near the end of
the first revolution, Schirra made
his first move toward catching
Gemini 7, then about 1,200 miles
away. A blast from his jet
thrusters adjusted the high point
of his orbit and placed him 17
miles below Gemini 7 and 690
miles behind. Then, at 10:55
a.m., over the Indian Ocean, he
used small jets to elevate his low
point to 135 miles.
First radar contact between
the two small vehicles came
three hours and 22 minutes after
launch. And at the same time,
the four spacemen began carry
ing on conversations between
each other, but most did not
reach ground stations.
Gemini 6 moved into a near
circular path 17 miles below that
of Gemini 7 at 12:19 p.m. over
the Indian Ocean. It trailed by
about 115 miles.
Schirra reported two minor
problems with the Gemini 6
spacecraft. He said there was a
little smoke across the windows
during blastoff, but Mission
Control conjectured it was just
Florida haze.
He noted that his cabin tem
perature was a bit higher than
expected. Early in the flight it
rose to 90 degrees, but then
dropped to a point where it was
not a problem.
PEANUTS
By Charles M. Schulz
UlELL,THANK X DOES THIS MEAN
Y01U APPRECIATE THERE'S STILL A
THAT... J CHANCE THAT YOl/
AND I MIGHT SET
MARRIED SOMEDAY?
(j^OT AT ALL! J)
1 hate
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BIRTHDAY!!
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