THE BATTALION
MONDAY, OCTOBER 20, 1980
Page 7
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United Press International
BOSTON — “Huzzah! Her sides must be made
)f iron!”
So shouted an American seaman as British can
ton balls bounced harmlessly off the sides of the
USS Constitution during her famous victory over
he British man-of-war Guerriere in the War of
1812.
“Old Ironsides” wasn’t exactly built of iron.
But her live oak sides deflected enemy shot
remarkably well and she has survived — at least
about 10 percent of the original Constitution has
survived — 183 years.
The vessel is today a naval oddity for she re
mains one of the rare tall sailing ships still in
commission in anybody’s navy.
The Russians use an ancient square-rigger,
Krusenstem, as a training ship.
But the U.S. Navy assigns an active duty offic
er, with the rank of commander, and the uniform
of 1812 to skipper ‘‘Old Ironsides.”
He is backed up by an active-duty executive
officer and a crew of 49 sailors who have volun
teered for the assignment from boot camp.
Cmdr. Robert Gillen of Charlestown, Mass., is
Constitution’s 59th commander.
On a recent summer day, he marched smartly
into his office, wearing the swallow-tail jacket of
his uniform, white choker, britches, calf-high
boots with tassels. On his head, he sported a
gold-trimmed “fore-an-aft” hat.
“How many at muster this morning?” he asks,
all business.
“Thirty-nine,” replies the executive officer.
A&M-developed sorghum
“We’re undermanned,” shrugs the skipper,
philosophically. “And that’s not unusual for most
U.S. ships today.”
Gillen and his men are required to wear the
ancient garb on special occasions. Cost to the
Navy for the skipper’s custom-tailored uniform
which cannot be handed down to his successor is
about $600.
It takes Gillen a full 45 minutes to squeeze into
the togs. When he does, he prefers not to sit
down.
Gillen wears two other more mundane “hats.”
He serves as the Navy’s senior representative
in Boston, once a busy naval center but much
reduced in importance since the Nixon adminis
tration.
Gillen is also the officer in charge of navy sup
port activities in the area.
“Some of my Russian friends find it hard to
understand what I’m doing now,” quips Gillen.
The Constitution, he explains, is more than just
a relic.
The Navy spends about $80,000 a year for
maintaining Constitution which needs constant
caulking, painting, polishing and shining.
“She’s evidence of the obvious commitment
the country has to preserving the freedom of the
seas,” says Gillen, leaning against a picture win
dow which looks up at the ship’s bowsprit and
dolphin striker.
“But it’s more than that. She’s symbolic of our
maritime history, of our national heritage.”
Constitution was the second ship built for
America’s Navy after the American Revolution.
Guatemalan farms boosted
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By USCHI MICHEL-HOWELL
Battalion Stair
A disease and insect resistant
strain of grain sorghum developed at
Texas A&M University has helped
small subsistence farmers and large
commercial producers in Guatemala
to increase their production by at
1 least 25 percent.
Until the project started, Guate
malans had grown a sorghum variety
that took 11 months to mature and
was of low yield, Bill Ross, assistant
director for international programs,
said.
, The white grain sorghum is called
ICTAM 777 and ICTAM 950. De
veloped by Dr. Fred Miller, plant
scientist at Texas A&M, genes allow
it to ripen in about 90 days.
The Guatemala project is one of
several international assistance prog
rams to foreign countries at Texas
A&M and was completed last Sep
tember. Costing $1,790,490, it was
ss and and can funded by the United States Agency
i 25 mph. for International Development,
issessing poll The ICTAM sorghum varieties
iting people- yield about three crops a year and are
i the wake of adapted to a small-plot economy that
ts are not sun uses almost no machinery, Bill Ross
jple-bear con- said.
s accessibleto “An advantage of the Guatemala
ing the bearil project is that it produced a commer-
t ; cial variety of grain sorghum that is
manage a wil£; also ideal for Texas growers,” Ross
is the grizzly;; said.
bn Craighead The Office of International Prog-
[e you get into rams is concerned with helping other
e chance ofai, countries improve, but also wants
j Texas fanners to benefit from the va-
blem is the it- rious projects, Ross said,
that the bei' Sorghum is important for Guate-
n the pastdt ; malans, because it is used for tortil
las, which besides black beans and
maize, are the main staples of
Guatemalan diet. Baby food, grits
or cereal are also made from sor
ghum, Miller said.
Small farmers consume their sor
ghum completely on the farm, and
Guatemalan commercial production
is mostly for the home market, Ross
said.
Sorghum is drought resistant, be
cause it rolls its leaves up when the
weather is dry and prevents mois
ture from evaporating, Miller said.
“The Guatemalan sorghum is not
more drought resistant, but is has an
increased yield, because we added
certain genes,” Miller said. “The
plant has longer panicles and more
seeds,” he said.
The new varieties can be used for
human food, Miller said, because
they taste similar to maize. In the
United States sorghum is presently
used only as livestock feed, but Afri
cans and Indians consume it daily.
Miller said.
Guatemalans practice intercrop
ping, a method where other crops
besides sorghum are grown in the
same field, Ross said. When the sor
ghum yield is increased, the other
crops also increase in productivity,
because they also can be planted
more frequently, Miller said.
■ The assistance project involved
training of Guatemalans at Texas
A&M as well as the sending of short
term consultants to the South Amer
ican country.
“The biggest problem that faced
us there was political instability,”
Ross said. Consultants were at times
in danger of being killed or kidnap
ped, due to constant fighting be
tween rival factions, he said. But no
incidents were reported.
The farmers in Guatemala, most of
whom live along the Carribbean and
Pacific coasts, have responded well
to the new sorghum variety, Ross
said.
Texas A&M-sponsored radio com
mercials promoted buying sorghum
seeds. “We sold the seeds in 10-cent
packages, at the same price you can
get a Coke over there,” Ross said.
“In the commercials we stressed that
the farmer who buys seeds with his
10 cents is a smart one, while the one
who buys a Coke isn’t.”
Designed by Joshua Humphreys and josiah
Fox, she was a technological marvel in her day
because she incorporated a number of important
new features in naval architecture.
Her bow was shaped more sharply than other
ships of the time. Her masts were taller. She
carried more sail — more than an acre’s worth.
Her sides were made of 21 inches of live oak,
one of the toughest kinds of wood available. And
she mounted 24-pound guns.
This combination allowed her to outsail her
enemies while pounding them to death when
engaged in battle.
A gold-framed mirror seized from the Guer
riere still hangs in the commodore’s aft cabin and
the original desk used by first skipper Charles
Stewart is sound and equipped with quill pens.
Gillen and his crew put to sea once a year much
like other crews. Their cruise is dramatic if abbre
viated.
On July 4 Constitution is tugged across Boston
Harbor where she fires a 21-gun “Salute to the
Nation.”
The salute celebrates the vitality of American
democracy — a thought which is enshrined in the
vessel’s name.
But there is a important technical reason for the
trip: To turn the ship around so she weathers
evenly on both sides.
Preserving Constitution has inspired many
over the years.
The nation’s school children chipped in their
nickels and dimes in the 1930s, inspiring Con
gress to come through with matching monies to
make a major rebuild possible.
Orchestra
plays tonight
The Bryan-College Station Cham
ber Orchestra will open its 1980-81
season with a concert tonight at 8
p.m. in Rudder Theater. Presenting
the concert is the Classical Piano
Group at Texas A&M University.
Featured soloist will be Carl Fis
cher, a nine-year-old pianist from
Dallas who began his piano studies
with Lyn Reyna of Bryan while his
father was attending Texas A&M
University College of Veterinary
Medicine. Carl is currently a student
of Dr. Richard Rodriquez of the Uni
versity of Texas at Dallas. Carl is the
son of Roger and Lucia Fischer of
Dallas.
LOUPOT’S BUYING
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NOW!
LOUPOT’S BOOKSTORE
Northgate — at the corner across from the Post Office
w
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rsity of Idak 1
izzlies inhali
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00 P.M.
lAY
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M 13.50
ame Cover
GARY P. NUNI
Of "Home With The Armadillo" 1
4410 College Main 846-9438
ECIAL
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WEEKLY AUTO SERVICE SPECIALS
FRONT-END
ALIGNMENT
$-j2 95
(Most American
& Foreign Cars)
Special Prices
Good Through
Sat., Oct. 25
ENGINE
TUNE-UP
4 cyl $29.00
6 cyl $35.00
8 cyl $41.00
(Most American
& Foreign Cars)
Remember We’ve Moved To 3818 S. College!
University Tire & Service Center
3818 S. College Ave • 846-1738
(5 Blocks North of Skaggs)
INDEPENDENT DEALER
Pipe Line Company
Management Training Program
Seeking high-potential BS, MS, MBA (with engineering un
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Placement Office. Recruiting on October 28-29.
(conoco)
Cross-country Skiing in
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ofEered by
MSC Outdoor Recreation
Keystone Environmental Education Center
Cost — 250.00
includes 5 days instruction
6 nights lodging
16 meals
transportation
Register in 216 msc Oct. 15 - Nov. 17
100.00 deposit required
Trip A — Jan. 4-lZ
Trip B — Jan. 10-18
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