[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 77 (Friday, June 17, 1994)]
[Senate]
[Page S]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: June 17, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
 HONORING JAMES NORMAN HALL FOR HIS CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE UNITED STATES 
                         AND THE SOUTH PACIFIC

  Mrs. BYRNE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee 
on Post Office and Civil Service by discharged from further 
consideration of the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 215) honoring 
James Norman Hall and recognizing his outstanding contributions to the 
United States and the South Pacific, and ask for its immediate 
consideration.
  The Clerk read the title of the concurrent resolution.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from Virginia?
  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, reserving the right to object, under my 
reservation I rise in support of House Concurrent Resolution 215.
  (Mr. GILMAN asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, further reserving the right to object, I 
yield to the gentleman from American Samoa [Mr. Faleomavaega] who is 
the chief sponsor of House Concurrent Resolution 215.
  (Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA asked and was given permission to revise and extend 
his remarks.)

                              {time}  1250

  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Virginia, 
[Mrs. Byrne], and my distinguished colleague and friend from New York 
[Mr. Gilman], as well as the distinguished members from the Iowa 
delegation, Congressmen Jim Leach, Jim Lightfoot, Neal Smith, Fred 
Grandy, and Jim Nussle, for their assistance in the passage of this 
legislation.
  I would also like to recognize the efforts of certain staff--
including Denise Wilson of the House Post Office and Civil Service 
Committee, Thomas Dawson, Bill Tate, Christine Smith, Steve Greiner and 
Kathleen Black with Members' offices, and Enere H. Levi and Martin 
Yerick of my staff--that worked long and hard for the adoption of this 
measure. I thank them for their help.
  I rise today--along with my esteemed colleagues from Iowa and the 
over 230 Members of this great institution who are cosponsors of House 
concurrent resolution 215--to urge adoption of this measure, which 
provides a long overdue tribute to James Norman Hall, a son of the 
great State of Iowa and an outstanding American known throughout the 
world as an author and a true warrior.
  James Norman Hall--adventurer, soldier, ace pilot, author, essayist, 
and poet--was a great man marked by contrasting qualities and eclectic 
tastes. While fighting axis forces of oppression during World War I, 
Hall was the consummate, steely-eyed warrior who distinguished himself 
in battle; yet, in peacetime, James Michener wrote this sensitive man 
was ``the most loved American who ever came to the tropics. He had a 
gentle humor and abiding concern for people and a ready franc for 
anyone in need.''
  James Norman Hall was born in the Iowa farmtown of Colfax, in the 
district of our colleague, the Hon. Neal Smith. Hall lived the life of 
a typical farm boy, with a taste for Huckleberry Finn adventures. Upon 
graduating from Colfax High School, Hall was accepted to Grinnell 
College. There, James Norman Hall excelled in academics while working 
his way through school. He majored in the fields of literature and 
music. Graduating as a Phi Beta Kappa, Hall, even then, was a prolific 
writer, producing a good number of poems and essays.
  In the summer of 1914, after experiencing frustration and rejection 
while trying to establish a writing career in Boston, James Norman Hall 
traveled to England for a break. In August of that fateful year, World 
War I erupted. Although the United States had not yet entered the 
conflict and Americans were not accepted for service, Hall's commitment 
to freedom and democracy would not be deterred. In order to enlist, 
Hall posed as a Canadian to join Lord Kitchener's volunteers with the 
9th Royal Fusileers.
  James Norman Hall fought alongside British forces as a foot soldier 
in the worst of the early, deadly trench wars. During the battle of 
Loos, in particular, casualties were tremendously high. Hall was one of 
few in his company to survive the battle. Later, Hall received word 
that his father was dying in Iowa. Upon requesting leave for a brief 
visit, it was discovered he was not Canadian. Against his will, Hall 
was honorably discharged.

  Shortly after his return to the United States, James Norman Hall 
continued efforts to support the allied cause. Hall wrote ``Kitchener's 
Mob'' a pro-Allied book that became very successful. Many feel that the 
work strongly influenced public opinion, leading to America's eventual 
entry into World War I.
  As a fledgling writer for the Atlantic Monthly and Boston Globe, 
James Norman Hall was sent back to Europe to cover the formation of an 
American pursuit squadron in the French Air Service. Rather than simply 
report, however, the adventurous Hall yearned to enter battle again. 
Hall not only wrote of the exploits of the squadron but joined it, 
learning to fly as a pilot with the Escadrille Lafayette N-124. During 
this time, Hall started another book, ``High Adventure,'' which became 
very popular.
  It was not long before James Norman Hall established his prowess in 
the air over France. His daring and courageous feats in dogfights 
against German Fokkers during WWI became legend. As an ace pilot, James 
Norman Hall was also shot down and severely wounded. Returning from his 
injuries to fly again, Hall became a celebrated hero of France. In 
gratitude, the French Government awarded James Norman Hall France's 
highest medals for bravery, including the Legion d'Honneur, Medaille 
Militaire, and the Croix De Guerre with five palms.
  With America's entry into WWI, James Norman Hall was made a captain 
in the U.S. Army Air Service and transferred to the 94th ``Hat in the 
Ring'' squadron. While serving as wing commander, Hall also acted as 
mentor for a rookie destined for greatness, then-Lt. Eddie 
Rickenbacker. Rickenbacker's first kill was under the guidance of 
Captain Hall. In memoirs of his famed career as a fighter pilot, 
Rickenbacker wrote that Capt. Jimmy Hall was idolized by the American 
pilots and that Hall served as an inspiration for them all in their 
darkest hour.
  Captain Hall's legendary exploits and gallantry in battle earned him 
the U.S. Distinguished Service Cross, which was awarded personally to 
Hall by General Pershing.
  After the destructiveness and brutality of WWI, James Norman Hall 
sought serenity and peace to heal, away from the ``mess and muddle'' of 
western civilization. His search ended in the South Pacific, where in 
1920 he moved to the remote Isle of Tahiti. A most humble and self-
effacing man, James Norman Hall locked away his war medals and hero's 
decorations, mentioning them to no one. Hall's life was purposely low-
key; he loathed publicity and avoided the limelight.
  Traveling extensively throughout the society islands and the South 
Pacific, James Norman Hall came to know the people intimately and to 
love them. Hall's gentleness and kindness was returned many-fold, as he 
was widely revered, respected, and loved by the people of the Pacific.
  In 1925 Hall married Sarah Teraireia Winchester, the Tahitian 
daughter of an English sea captain. They had two children, Nancy and 
Conrad, for whom Hall was a devoted and adoring father. The daughter, 
Nancy, is married to Nicholas G. Rutgers, whose family established 
Rutgers University in New Jersey. Hall's son, Conrad, is an Oscar 
award-winning cinematographer for his work on ``Butch Cassidy and the 
Sundance Kid'' and resides in Hollywood.
  Over three decades until his death in 1951, James Norman Hall lived 
in Arue, Tahiti, and wrote extensively in his library. With the support 
of his wife and family, Hall authored a prodigious number of books, 28 
in his career, not including his numerous essays and poems.

  James Norman Hall's most famous works, however, were those that 
enriched the world's understanding of the people of Tahiti and the 
South Pacific. With friend and co-author, Charles Nordhoff, Hall 
collaborated to write ``Mutiny on the Bounty,'' ``Pitcairn's Island,'' 
``Hurricane'' and ``The Forgotten One.'' In assessing Hall's career, 
James Michener notes that these masterpieces have come to epitomize the 
topics and that they constitute some of the greatest books ever written 
on the Pacific. Many of James Norman Hall's works, in particular 
``Mutiny on the Bounty,'' have been immortalized on the silver screen.
  In July 1951, James Norman Hall died in Arue, Tahiti, and was buried 
on a hill overlooking his home and beloved library. Hall's death was 
greatly mourned in the south seas, prompting James Michener to write, 
``When he died, on every island in the Pacific where even no man could 
read, there was sorrow.'' Upon sorting through Hall's Belongings, his 
war decorations were finally discovered. It was only then that the 
people of Tahiti and the Pacific Islands learned that in their midst 
had lived a true war hero.
  The home and library of James Norman Hall in Arue, Tahiti, have been 
restored as a museum to honor the life of this great American.
  Mr. Speaker, I would urge my colleagues to join me in adopting the 
resolution before us, which recognizes James Norman Hall and his 
outstanding contributions to our Nation, France, Tahiti, and the South 
Pacific, including James Norman Hall's extraordinary service rendered 
in wartime for the defense of freedom and liberty, his exceptional 
achievements in the literary field, and his lifework that has enriched 
the world's understanding of the people of the South Pacific.
  Mr. Speaker, upon passage of this piece of legislation, it would be 
my sincere hope that the President of the United States, through his 
personal representative, present this resolution to the President of 
Tahiti Nui, His Excellency the Honorable Gaston Flosse of French 
Polynesia, where it may be publicly displayed at the James Norman Hall 
Museum in Tahiti.
  Mr. Speaker, I cannot think of a more appropriate manner for the 
people and Government of the United States to express their deep sense 
of gratitude and enduring appreciation for the contributions and 
achievements of James Norman Hall, a great American and a distinguished 
son of the State of Iowa.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask for passage of this resolution.

          [From the New York Times Book Review, Oct. 19, 1952]

                   A Gentleman Lost in a Modern World

                          (By James Michener)

       The most loved American who ever came to the tropics was 
     James Norman Hall, the Iowa small-town boy who arrived in 
     Tahiti in 1920. He had a gentle humor, an abiding concern for 
     people, and a ready franc for anyone in need. When he was 
     working on a novel Chinese merchants, American beachcombers 
     and broken-down European counts would report daily to the 
     local bars on Jimmy's progress, certain thereby to cadge a 
     free drink. When he returned to Tahiti from Hollywood or from 
     a visit to Ellery Sedgwick in Boston children would meet him 
     at the dock with flowers. He enjoyed a place in island 
     society such as few writers have even known in any society. 
     When he died, on every island in the Pacific where even no 
     man could read, there was sorrow.
       Many of us, allured by this romantic figure of the writer 
     deified during his life, have overlooked the fact that Hall 
     was a prodigious worker (twenty-eight books in thirty-six 
     years) and that his interests covered practically the entire 
     field of writing. His books include propaganda to influence 
     American's entry into World War I, ``Kitchener's Mob'' 
     (1916); factual reporting, ``History of the Lafayette Flying 
     Corps'' (1920); legend, ``The Far Lands'' (1950); biography, 
     the superb Frisbie essay in ``The Forgotten One'' (1952); 
     hilarious local color, ``No More Gas'' (1940); and excellent 
     historical romance, the ``Bounty'' trilogy (1932-34).
       Contrarily, he thought of himself primarily as a poet, but 
     his most successful work in this field was his outrageous and 
     gay literary hoax, ``O, Millersville!'' which he published in 
     1940 as the outpourings of a precocious Iowa schoolgirl.
       Hall may one day be remembered as the last of the great 
     essayists, for he published several books like ``Faery Lands 
     of the South Seas'' (1921), which contained highly polished 
     examples of this now-outmoded form. More likely his 
     reputation will rest on his tales of tropical adventure, but 
     his position among his peers is yet to be decided. Stevenson 
     commanded a more gracile pen, Rupert Brooke was a greater 
     poet, Maugham a finer master of plot, Pierre Loti a lusher 
     romanticist. Louis Becke knew far more about the Pacific, 
     Conrad had a deeper sense of the mysterious, and Melville a 
     greater sense of the tragedy of the sea.
       Yet Hall accomplished something that none of his 
     distinguished predecessors attained. He wrote, or helped to 
     write, those fortunate masterpieces which epitomize the 
     tropics. I know of no more skillful Pacific romance than 
     ``The Hurricane.'' None of Jack London's South Sea stories 
     equal Hall's cruel and bitter ``The Forgotten One.'' Surely 
     nothing Stevenson accomplished in Samoa approaches the 
     ``Bounty'' series. And I know an occasional poem, or part of 
     a poem, in which Hall equals Brooke's best Pacific lyrics. 
     Not the greatest man to have written about the Pacific, he 
     nevertheless wrote some of the greatest books.
       His last work was this present autobiography. It is a 
     curious book and he would be amazed to know that it can be 
     read as tragedy. That was not his intention, for he devotes a 
     major portion to the golden days he spent in Iowa, sharing 
     with us his boyhood apostrophe to the grubby stream that 
     wandered near his home:

     Oh, loverly River! Gentle Skunk!
     Beneath this shining pool was sunk
     The body of a Colfax boy!
     How could the stream we love destroy
     The life of little Willie King
     And leave his parents sorrowing?
     And throw his body on the ground
     Nearly a mile from where he drowned?

       He recalls his experiences while waiting table in a house 
     of prostitution, acting as social worker in the slums of 
     Boston, serving as a volunteer with the British Expeditionary 
     Force in France, and flying with Eddie Rickenbacker over 
     Germany. He became an ace, knocking down five German planes, 
     and he met with his future collaborator, Charles Nordhoff, 
     the novelist and travel writer, of whom he says, ``* * * My 
     first impression was unfavorable. He shook hands with me in a 
     coldly punctilious manner and I was thinking: `Lord! How am I 
     to work with this man?'''
       Like Pierre Loti before him, Hall vacillated between Tahiti 
     and Iceland, each of which he immediately appreciated. ``I 
     loved Iceland from the moment I set foot in the country, and 
     had it been possible I would have been commuting between 
     Iceland and the Southern Seas these past thirty years.''
       Finally, on Page 301, he settles down in Tahiti (1923) and 
     the reader takes a deep breath, prepared to discover what it 
     was in the tropics that captivated men like Hall and Conrad 
     or how two such dissimilar writers as he and Nordhoff 
     happened to become collaborators.
       The tragedy is that when he reached the important days in 
     Tahiti time was running out for Jimmy Hall, He lived to 
     complete only two chapters, an inconclusive one on a famous 
     hotel and a haunting verbatim conversation with Nordhoff. The 
     mysteries of the South Seas he does not touch upon and we are 
     deprived of the understanding we sought. ``All of my roots 
     are still in America, in the prairie country of the Middle 
     West. I realize now that it is useless trying to grub them up 
     to transplant on this little island. They won't come up.''
       Hall can be understood only as an eighteenth-
     century English gentleman. Spiritually he was close to that 
     perfect man, Capt. James Cook; artistically he held much in 
     common with Goldsmith and Addison. He cultivated innumerable 
     eighteenth-century reticences. ```We are waiting on table in 
     a bawdy house,' my friend said with a faint wry smile, His 
     term was the one more commonly use in Iowa for such places, 
     but I use `bawdy' because it seems, somehow, more refined.'' 
     Or again, ``I dislike change in manners, customs and habits 
     of thought as much as I do in material aspects.''
       In his autobiography Hall refers only once, and then most 
     casually, to Sarah Winchester, the wonderfully vivacious 
     Tahitian-English girl he married. Their love story is one of 
     the most glowing in this century, but Hall could not bring 
     himself even to mention it, though his assembled family 
     begged him to.
       While writing his last novel Hall was faced by his 
     determined and beautiful 18-year-old daughter who said. ``you 
     must explain to the reader that your hero and heroine are 
     actually in love.'' ``That has no place in books,'' he 
     insisted. ``Father! You don't know what's in modern books. 
     Sit still and listen!'' She read him a chapter from a recent 
     book and when she finished Hall blushed deeply and asked, 
     ``Did James Michener write that * * * in a book?'' Nancy 
     replied that she could have read from Mailer, ``or some of 
     the others who really get down to cases,'' and Hall cried, 
     ``They ought to be ashamed of themselves! All of them!'' So 
     Nancy outlined the missing chapters, but when Hall heard what 
     was needed he gulped, blushed and said, ``Well, if that's 
     what the public demands. * * *''
       Hall's truncated biography is good reading. It tells of a 
     distinguished gentleman lost in a modern world, of an Iowa 
     boy who perpetually longed to return home: ``Iowa, for all 
     the years I have been away from it, has always been, and 
     still is, home to me.''
       The book's omissions are partly repaired in an excellent 
     concluding chapter by Edward Weeks, Hall's editor. He 
     explains how Nordhoff and Hall worked and he shares with the 
     reader a remarkable letter sent him from Tahiti after Hall's 
     funeral. ``When I look down upon that cushion upon which are 
     pinned his medals and decorations from the leading 
     governments of the world I for the first time realize that we 
     had living amongst us a great man. * * * In our midst dwelt a 
     hero.''
                                  ____


                      [From the Profile magazine]

                           James Norman Hall

                       (By Barbara Jo Elkington)

       Two hundred years ago this year, the famous Bounty salied 
     out of Matavai Bay, Tahiti, bound for Jamaica with its load 
     of breadfruit plants. Mutiny was waiting. Fifty-seven years 
     ago, James Norman Hall and Charles Nordhoff immortalized this 
     true tale in their novel Mutiny on the Bounty, thereby 
     gaining immortality for themselves, Fletcher Christian, and 
     Captain Bligh. Most of us remember either Clark Gable and 
     Charles Laughton or Marlon Brando and Trevor Howard, 
     depending on our ages and the movie versions we saw. 
     Unfortunately, not as many of us remember Nordhoff or Hall 
     very well.
       James Norman Hall, like many Pacific writers, is under-
     appreciated and vastly more readable and talented than his 
     present fame merits. Even those of us who claim some 
     enchanted island in the Pacific as home don't know as much as 
     we should about Hall and other writers who by birth or choice 
     made the Pacific more than the stereotyped paradise of paper 
     back novels. Hall, in addition to being the co-author with 
     Nordhoff of Mutiny on the Bounty, Men Against the Sea, and 
     Pitcairn's Island, wrote some 16 major works on his own, as 
     well as numerous essays and poems, lyrics for a number of 
     songs, and several plays. Almost all his writing relies on 
     the Pacific, war, or the sea for locale, and much is 
     historically based and factually accurate. Two of Hall's 
     basic themes, according to Louise Hanson, are ``that the 
     twentieth century is vulgar and moves too fast, and that man 
     is essentially good.'' Hanson, a research specialist at the 
     University of Pittsburgh, goes on to say: ``James Norman Hall 
     hardly fulfills the stereotype of a betel-nut chewing 
     beachcomber on a tropical island. * * * What he sought in 
     Polynesia was a certain simplicity of life impossible to find 
     in the West. His customs and habits, however, remained 
     American down to the fixed daily routine, book-lined study 
     and shined shoes. * * * As an unregenerate optimist and 
     idealist, he was out of place in the twentieth-century world. 
     * * *''
       An optimist out of place in a pessimistic century seems to 
     be the capsule definition of Hall. What kind of life did he 
     lead to bring this about? He left the Iowa town where he grew 
     up, became a flying ace in World War I, escaped to a South 
     Seas island, and became a writer famous in his own time. He 
     traveled the world, married happily, and, to quote James 
     Michener, was ``the most loved American who ever came to the 
     tropics. He had a gentle humor, an abiding concern for people 
     and a ready franc for anyone in need. * * * When he died, on 
     every island in the Pacific, even where no man could read, 
     there was sorrow.''
       This is a true and a complimentary epitaph. Hall died in 
     1951. His son-in-law's choice for his grave marker in Tahiti 
     came from an early Hall poem. Nicholas G. Rutgers, Jr., 
     changed barnyard to hillside resulting in a suitable 
     sentiment:

     Look to the northward stranger.
     Just over the hillside there.
     Have you in your travels seen
     A land more passing fair (Briand 376).

       Though Hall had written this during his Iowa childhood, it 
     predicts his life and his successful search he undertook for 
     that land more fair.
       His search began after his graduation from Grinnell College 
     in Iowa where he was a Phi Beta Kappa. He also earned his 
     Master's degree there in 1922 after taking some classes at 
     Harvard and the University of Iowa. In 1950 he was awarded an 
     honorary Ph.D.
       During the early part of his search, while in Paris on 
     leave from his duties as a volunteer American airman with the 
     Escadrille Lafayette, Hall first encountered the tale of the 
     Bounty. Pausing at Brentano's bookstore on the Champs 
     Elysees, he picked up a reprint of a history, The Mutiny of 
     the Bounty, by Sir John Barrow in 1831. During his boyhood 
     Hall had read something of British naval history and the 
     names Bligh, Christian, and Pitcairn's awakened vague 
     memories. In 1917 he read about ``Otaheite'' and made a 
     promise to himself that someday he would wander among those 
     fabled isles ``under the wind.''
       In Tahiti in 1929 when Nordhoff and Hall were searching for 
     a likely subject to provide the base for a novel, Hall came 
     across Barrow's book again and rushed to Nordhoff 
     ``breathless with enthusiasm.'' Biographer Paul Briand tells 
     the story:
       ``Have you ever heard of the Bounty mutiny?'' Hall cried 
     out. ``Of course.'' Nordhoff calmly replied. ``Who hasn't, 
     who knows anything about the South Seas?''
       ``Well, what about that for a story?'' Hall suggested 
     eagerly * * *
       ``Maybe we've got something there! * * * What a story! What 
     a story!'' said Nordhoff (316-317).
       Indeed it was something. Ellery Sedgewick of Atlantic 
     Monthly and their editor Edward Weeks assisted in research, 
     while the Bishop Museum and the British Museum in London 
     supplied background material. A retired British Commander, 
     E.C. Tufnell, RN, provided copies of hundreds of historical 
     documents and even a scale model of the Bounty.
       Over a period of five years Hall and Nordhoff pondered, 
     read related materials, and wrote, resulting in the three 
     volumes detailing the mutiny, Bligh's sea voyage in an open 
     boat, and Christian's settlement on Pitcairn's Island. Weeks 
     declared he was impressed with the manuscript for the first 
     book which took three years of effort: ``It was a book of 
     exceptional beauty and one which drew a striking contrast 
     between the golden age of Polynesia and the tough brutality 
     of man to man which existed aboard Bligh's ship.'' (Briand 
     318)
       The authors worked as a team. Nordhoff provided the 
     narrative push, keeping the action moving. Hall paused to 
     describe, to wonder, and his passages furnished insights and 
     commentary on Polynesian life, which Hall firmly believed had 
     suffered under the impact of European and American contacts 
     as the ending of Mutiny on the Bounty where Captain Byam 
     returns to Tahiti after twenty years attests:
       ``A few people were discernible along the beach, watching 
     us apathetically but they were pitifully few beside the 
     throngs of former days, and where once the thatched roofs of 
     their dwellings had been clustered thick under the trees, 
     there was scarcely a house to be seen. Even the trees 
     themselves had a withered, yellow look, for as I was to 
     learn, the victorious party had hacked and girdled nearly 
     every breadfruit in Matavai.'' (Nordhoff and Hall 370) 
     Invasion, war and pestilence had changed forever the lives of 
     the people.
       Hall, who traveled widely in the Society Islands, knew and 
     loved the people. In 1925 he married Sarah Teraireia 
     Winchester, the lovely part-Tahitian daughter of an English 
     sea captain. She made a home for him and provided a reason 
     for the determination and focus he needed in his writing. 
     They had two children, a son Conrad Lafcadio (named for 
     writers Joseph Conrad and Lafcadio Hearn), and a daughter 
     Nancy Ella. Hall was a devoted father and found great 
     pleasure in his children.
       In researching Bounty materials, Hall read widely in 
     English eighteenth century literature which influenced his 
     own style and content. A novel he wrote in 1940, Dr. 
     Dogbody's Leg, proved to be a lively collection of nine salty 
     tales cataloging the many ways the charming British ship's 
     doctor lost his left leg. Another 1940 novel he co-authored, 
     No More Gas, told of the Tuttles, a large and hospitable 
     Tahitian clan, always out of gas for boat or truck, but never 
     out of food or love for fellow man.
       All his life Hall fancied himself a poet, but, 
     interestingly, his biggest poetic hit was a hoax. In 1941, he 
     created a poetess, Fern Gravel, who with his help 
     ``authored'' fifty-eight versus collected under the title Oh 
     Millersville! Fern was supposedly a nine-year-old resident of 
     Millersville, Iowa, who had an observant eye and a sharply 
     barbed pen, resulting in verses which enchanted the critics 
     who didn't discover until 1946 that Hall had fooled them all.
       Essays written by Hall have proved to be one of his 
     strongest literary contributions. A collection titled The 
     Forgotten One reveals Hall's eye for detail and his deep 
     sense of humanity.
       Before his death, Hall visited his daughter, Nancy, and her 
     husband, Nicholas G. Rutgers, Jr., in their Lanikai home on 
     Oahu. The Rutgerses still make Hawaii their home for a part 
     of each year, living in Kamuela on the Big Island and doing 
     much to maintain important papers and documents Hall 
     collected. Conrad, an Oscar-award winning cinematographer, 
     lives in Hollywood and maintains a home in Tahiti.
       Were he alive today, Hal might read the work of authors 
     like O. A. Bushnell of Hawaii whose marvelously rich prose in 
     such books as Molokai and Kaaawa tells of the impact of the 
     outside world on the culture of Hawaii, creating a cry from 
     the heart. Witi Ihimaera of New Zealand, author of Ponomu 
     Ponomu and Tangi would interest Hall because of his ability 
     to put on paper the Maori heart. Albert Wendt of Samoa, 
     author of Leaves of the Banyan Tree and Sons for the Return 
     Home, would doubtless find Hall a helpful friend and critic. 
     James Norman Hall was a writer who read constantly. Perhaps 
     we should follow that suggestion, enriching our lives by 
     reading not only Hall's works but find other delightful or 
     challenging pieces of Pacific literature to add to our 
     libraries.
                                  ____


                     The World of James Norman Hall

                        (By Edward H. Joesting)

       The south pacific during the says of James Norman Hall was 
     a romantic spot which would have fascinated any author. To 
     Nancy Hall Rutgers, daughter of the late James Normal Hall, 
     life among the South Sea islands before World War II almost 
     seems like an unreality. Although Nancy now lives at Lanikai 
     with her husband, Nick, and their two small boys, Tahiti for 
     many years was her home.
       Nancy's father traveled to Tahiti some thirty years ago. At 
     that time Hall was practically an unknown writer who had just 
     returned from World War II. He also was only a few years away 
     from the family farm in Iowa. Before many years had gone by 
     this quiet unknown man had become a famous writer. Mutiny on 
     the Bounty, Pitcairn's Island and The Hurricane became 
     household words and with them the names of the co-authors, 
     James Norman Hall and Charles Nordhoff.
       To Hall, by nature a sensitive man, World War I had been a 
     doubly terrible experience. Never fearing solitude, Hall 
     sought it even more after going through two years of trench 
     warfare with the British and then flying many combat missions 
     with the Lafayette Flying Corps. Although Eddie Rickenbacker 
     marveled at Hall's coolness in action, at the war's end the 
     aspiring young writer more than ever longed for some refuge 
     away from modern civilization. Once Hall had seen the South 
     Pacific he knew that it was exactly what he had been 
     searching for. Here was the answer to his prayers. Here was 
     solitude, beauty and stimulation.
       Certainly one of the most stimulating things about the 
     South Seas in 1920 was the odd collection of individualists 
     who seemed to be drawn to that part of the world. Many 
     authors have been intrigued with these characters. Somerset 
     Maugham, Joseph Conrad and from the World War II years, James 
     Michener, have all written about them. These individualists 
     who were lured to the South Seas, hoping to find there a 
     primitive paradise, interested hall just as much as they 
     interested the writers before him.
       The man who became Hall's father-in-law was a good example 
     of the staunchest of these individualists. His name was 
     Joseph Winchester and at an early age he had run away from 
     his home in England to seek adventure in the South Seas. And 
     there was a great plenty of adventure to satisfy his 
     longings. Soon Captain Winchester had set himself up as a 
     sailor-merchant and had acquired two sailing schooners to 
     trade among the South Sea Islands.
       It was Captain Winchester who carried Gauguin, the famous 
     French painter, to many of the Marquesas Islands as a 
     passenger on his schooners. Gauguin was unable to pay 
     Winchester in cash, so he paid for his transportation in wood 
     cuts and paintings. Neither the redoubtable old sea captain 
     nor the rest of the world realized the value of Gauguin's 
     work in those early years. When Joseph Winchester thought 
     that all these wood cuts and paintings were cluttering up his 
     home he simply burned the lot. He little thought that he was 
     burning up a fortune.
       Another South Pacific individualist and one who Nancy Hall 
     Rutgers well remembers, was Robert Dean Frisbee. A man of 
     true genius, Frisbee had something less than the strength and 
     fortitude of a Captain Winchester. James Norman Hall 
     corresponded with Frisbee over the years and helped this 
     struggling writer along on many occasions. A thin, emaciated 
     man, the troubled Frisbee truly loved his native wife and 
     their children. Although Robert Dean Frisbee is now receiving 
     recognition for his excellent writing, he enjoyed little of 
     it during his life time. He thought of Hall as one of his few 
     real friends.
       Certainly not to be forgotten was Charles Nordhoff. 
     Nordhoff had served in France during World War I with Hall 
     and the two men were fast friends for more than thirty years. 
     Nancy Rutgers remembers Nordhoff as a man a good deal more 
     temperamental than her father. Nordhoff was a tall, handsome 
     man who would pace up and down rapidly throwing off ideas by 
     the dozen. Some of his suggestions were usable and many were 
     not. It was usually James Norman Hall, the plodding member of 
     the writing team who would insist that a certain idea had 
     merit. Hall would start to develop the idea he thought worth 
     while and soon Nordhoff would join in.
       Charles Nordhoff, besides being a writer, was something of 
     a dreamer. He would plan extensive fishing trips, he was a 
     devoted fisherman or he would carefully plot a cruise to some 
     distant island. His plans seldom materialized and those about 
     him soon realized that they were little more than dreams. 
     Often Nordhoff, as an excuse for delaying his plans would say 
     that he could not leave Hall at such a crucial time since 
     they were in the midst of planning an important chapter. A 
     week or a month later he would still have the same excuse.
       The literary styles of Hall and Nordhoff were so similar 
     that often they would alternate chapters in writing a book. 
     Nordhoff would write chapters one and three. Hall would write 
     chapters two and four. When the volume at last was published 
     no one could have guessed the particular author of the vise 
     chapters. Often times they would revise each other's writing 
     and a certain paragraph would be half written by Hall and 
     half by Nordhoff. After years of working together each person 
     knew exactly how the other thought.
       To Nancy and Nick Rutgers Lanikai at times seems far away 
     from Tahiti. They have, of course, a whole shelf of books in 
     their living room to remind them constantly that these bygone 
     days were once a reality. To readers of South Seas stories 
     there is little danger that the volumes Hall and Nordhoff 
     wrote will ever be forgotten. Their books will be constant 
     reminders of a picturesque era from the history of one of the 
     world's most romantic spots.
                                  ____



                             service record

       James Norman Hall, Colfax, Iowa.
       Previous Service: August 18, 1914, to December 1, 1915, 9th 
     Battalion, Royal Fusiliers (British Army).

                       Service in French Aviation

       Date of enlistment: October 11, 1916.
       Aviation Schools: October 16, 1916, to June 14, 1917, Buc, 
     Avord, G.D.E.
       Breveted: April 23, 1917 (Caudron).
       At the Front: Escadrille Lafayette, June 16 to June 26, 
     1917. Escadrille Spad 112, September 22 to October 3, 1917. 
     Escadrille Lafayette, October 3, 1917, to February 18, 1918.
       Final Rank: Sergeant.
       Service in U.S. Aviation:
       Commissioned Captain: February 7, 1918.
       At the Front: 103d Pursuit Squadron, February 18 to March 
     29, 1918. 94th Pursuit Squadron, March 29 to May 7, 1918.
       Shot down in combat: May 7, 1918, near Pagny sur-Moselle 
     (Meurthe-et-Moselle).
       Prisoner in Germany until the Armistice.
       Wounded in combat: June 26, 1917, and May 7, 1918.

                              Decorations

       Distinguished Service Cross.
       Legion d'Honneur.
       Medaille Militaire.
       Croix de Guerre, with five Palms.
                                  ____



                            H.Con. Res. 214

       Sponsor: Faleomavaega.
       Date Introduced: March 3, 1994.
       House Committee: Post Office and Civil Service.
       Official Title: A concurrent resolution honoring James 
     Norman Hall and recognizing his outstanding contributions to 
     the United States and the South Pacific.
       Co-sponsors: 232 CURRENT COSPONSORS.
       Mar 3, 94 Referred to House Committee on Post Office and 
     Civil Service.
       Co-Sponsors: 232 CURRENT COSPONSORS
       As Introduced: Smith (IA), Leach, Grandy, Nussle, 
     Lightfoot.
       May 18, 94 Abercombie, Ackerman, Andrews (NJ), Andrews 
     (ME), Applegage, Baesler, Ballenger, Barca, Barrett (WI), 
     Becera, Beilenson, Bentley, Berman, Bevill, Bilbray, Bishop, 
     Blackwell, Bonior, Brooks, Browder, Brown (FL), Brown (CA), 
     Brown (OH), Bryant, Burton, Byrne, Cantwell, Cardin, Clay, 
     Clement, Clyburn, Coble, Coleman, Collins (MI), Condit, 
     Conyers, Cooper, Coppersmith, Costello, Cox, Coyne, Crane, 
     Darden, DeFazio, de la Garza, DeLauro, Dellums, de Lugo, 
     Deutsch, Diaz-Balart, Dickey, Dicks, Dixon, Dooley, 
     Doolittle, Dornan, Dreier, Durbin, Edwards (TX), Edwards 
     (CA), Emerson, Engel, Evans, Farr, Fazio, Fields (LA), 
     Fingerhut, Flake, Foglietta, Ford (TN), Ford (MI), Frank 
     (MA), Franks (CT), Frost, Furse, Gallegly, Gejdenson, 
     Gephardt, Geren, Gibbons, Gilman, Goodling, Green, Gunderson, 
     Gutierrez, Hall (OH), Hamburg, Hansen, Hastings, Hayes, 
     Hefner, Hochbrueckner, Holden, Horn, Houghton, Hoyer, Hunter, 
     Hutto, Hyde, Inslee, Jacobs, Jefferson, Johnson (SD), 
     Johnston, Kanjorski, Kaptur, Kasich, Kennedy, Kennelly, 
     Kildee, Kim, Klein, Klink, Kopetski, Lafalce, Lancaster, 
     Lantos, LaRocco, Laughlin, Lehman, Levy, Lewis (GA), 
     Lipinski, Livingston, Lloyd, Lowey, McCloskey, McDade, 
     McDermott, McKeon, McKinney, McNulty, Manton, Martinez, 
     Matsui, Mazzoli, Meek, Menendez, Miller (CA), Mineta, Mink, 
     Moakley, Montgomery, Moran, Murphy, Murtha, Myers, Neal (MA), 
     Norton, Oberstar, Ortiz, Orton, Owens, Packard, Pallone, 
     Parker, Pastor, Payne (NJ), Payne (VA), Pelosi, Peterson 
     (MN), Peterson (FL), Pickle, Poshard, Price (NC), Quillen, 
     Rahall, Rangel, Ravenel, Reed, Regula, Reynolds, Richardson, 
     Roemer, Rohrabacher, Romero-Barcelo, Rose, Rowland, Roybal-
     Allard, Rush, Sabo, Sangmeister, Sarpalius, Schumer, Scott, 
     Shepherd, Smith (OR), Snowe, Solomon, Spence, Spratt, Stark, 
     Stokes, Swett, Swift, Synar, Tanner, Tauzin, Taylor (MS), 
     Tejeda, Torres, Torricelli, Towns, Traficant, Tucker, 
     Underwood, Unsoeld, Valentine, Velazquez, Vento, Volkmer, 
     Vucanovich, Waters, Watt, Waxman, Weldon, Wheat, Whitten 
     Wolf, Woolsey, Wynn, Young (FL), Young (AK).
       June 13, 94, Hughes, Wilson, Washington, Skeen.
  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, further reserving the right to object, I 
want to commend the gentleman from American Samoa [Mr. Faleomavaega] 
for his eloquent comments and for focusing our attention on the 
outstanding achievements and background and courage of James Norman 
Hall, a true hero.
  Mr. Speaker, further reserving the right to object, I am pleased to 
yield to the gentleman from Iowa [Mr. Lightfoot].
  (Mr. LIGHTFOOT asked and was given permission to revise and extend 
his remarks.)
  Mr. LIGHTFOOT. Mr. Speaker, one of the problems when you speak second 
after the gentleman from American Samoa, he has taken most of my 
speech. Only the gentleman from American Samoa [Mr. Faleomavaega] can 
do it in such an eloquent way.
  I would also mention that through the vagaries of politics, Mr. 
Hall's home now is in my congressional district, after the 
reapportionment, as is Grinnell College. I think it is only fitting 
today that we honor James Norman Hall, and certainly urge strong 
support for this resolution.
  As our friend from American Samoa has so eloquently outlined, Mr. 
Hall had a very colorful and exciting background. One of the books that 
he did not mention, ``The Men Against the Sea,'' along with ``Mutiny on 
the Bounty,'' are, I think, two of the greatest publications that 
reflect the South Pacific, American Samoa, and that part of the 
country, which I fortunately had an opportunity to visit with the 
gentleman from American Samoa [Mr. Faleomavaega] a few years ago.

                              {time}  1300

  And it was one of those things that one sometimes wonders how someone 
out of the middle of the continental United States can go to such a 
beautiful part of the world and then, through words, put it on paper 
and capture that beautiful part of the world and then, through words, 
put it on paper and capture that romance and excitement and adventure 
that goes with that for virtually generations to enjoy thereafter. I 
think that when we look at 16 major works that James Norman Hall wrote 
on his own, I do not know of any author that would come close in terms 
of the type of credibility, the type of intellect that went into those 
writings. I think that if nothing else Mr. Hall's works have stimulated 
the imaginations, and they certainly have entertained millions.
  We are very proud to claim him as a part of Iowa's heritage.
  Eni, we really appreciate your offering this resolution.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this very strongly.
  I would like to express my support for House Concurrent Resolution 
215, honoring James Norma Hall, noted author and Iowa native. He in 
fact hailed from my congressional district.
  Mr. Hall grew up in the small town of Colfax, IA. Shortly after 
leaving Colfax, Mr. Hall served in the British and French Air Force. He 
fought in the trenches in World War I, flew numerous combat missions 
with the Lafayette Flying Corps, and was commissioned as a captain in 
the U.S. Air Force. Hall was wounded twice during his years in combat 
and was shot down in May 1918. In addition, he was a prisoner of war 
until the war ended. For his service during the war he was decorated 
with the Distinguished Service Cross Award. After World War I he 
traveled to the South Pacific where he and coauthor Charles A. Nordhoff 
collaborated on books that will always be constant reminders of a 
picturesque era or history in one of the world's most romantic spots. 
These books included ``Mutiny on the Bounty,'' ``Men Against the Sea,'' 
and ``Pitcairn's Island.'' Hall also wrote 16 major works on his own 
along with many essays and poems.
  James Michener once said of James Norman Hall, ``He was the most 
loved American who ever came to the tropics. When he died, on every 
island, even where no man could read, there was sorrow.''
  Mr. Hall's works stimulated the imaginations of and entertained 
millions. We are proud to claim him as part of Iowa's heritage.
  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, further reserving the right to object, I 
thank the gentleman from Iowa for his eloquent words.
  Mr. Speaker, further reserving the right to object, I yield to the 
other gentleman from Iowa [Mr. Leach].
  (Mr. LEACH asked and was given permission to revise and extend his 
remarks.)
  Mr. LEACH. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of House Concurrent 
Resolution 215, a resolution honoring James Norman Hall for his 
outstanding contributions to the United States and the South Pacific. I 
would also like to thank our colleague, Mr. Faleomavaega, for his 
leadership in bringing this Iowa native son recognition he so richly 
deserves.
  The events of James Norman Hall's life read in many ways like the 
novels for which he is so justly famous. He was born on a family farm 
near Colfax, IA, and graduated Phi Beta Kappa from nearby Grinnell 
College. After joining the British Army and fighting in the trenches of 
the western front of World War I, Hall flew with the famed Lafayette 
Escadrille, was wounded twice, and ultimately shot down and imprisoned 
in Germany until the armistice.
  After the war, Hall moved to the South Pacific. There he became an 
author of world renown, writing some 16 major works, as well as 
numerous essays and poems, lyrics for a number of songs, and several 
plays.
  Hall is, of course, best known for the trilogy he coauthored with 
Charles Nordoff: ``Mutiny on the Bounty,'' ``Men Against the Sea,'' and 
``Pitcairn's Island.''
  The three books tell the story of the famous mutiny, of Captain 
Bligh's epic sea voyage in an open boat after being set adrift by the 
mutineers, and settlement of Fletcher Christian's band on Pitcairn 
Island. Many who never read the books learned the story of human 
courage and endurance they chronicled from Clark Gable and Charles 
Laughton or Marlon Brando and Trevor Howard, in their epic film 
portrayals.
  But James Norman Hall has left us far more than and a rich literary 
legacy. The senseless slaughter of World War I shattered the optimism 
that marked the end of the 19th century and for many made the 20th 
appear a century of dark pessimism and darker history. Hall survived 
the worst of what was supposed to be ``the war to end wars,'' yet 
remained throughout his life a man of unflagging optimism and idealism.
  The courage and character his books portray, his life exemplified.
  Another chronicler of the South Pacific, James Michener, said Hall 
was ``the most loved American who ever came to the tropics. He had a 
gentle humor, an abiding concern for people and a ready franc for 
anyone in need * * *. When he died, on every island in the Pacific, 
even when no man could read, there was sorrow.''
  Hall's epitaph was taken from a poem he wrote as a youth in Iowa: 
``Look to the northward stranger. Just over the hillside there. Have 
you in your travels seen, a land more passing fair.'' Two disparate 
lands, Iowa and the islands of the South Pacific, both ``passing 
fair,'' linked the life and work of an extraordinary man, James Norman 
Hall.
  Mr. Speaker, again I recommend House Concurrent Resolution 215 to my 
colleagues and express my gratitude to Mr. Faleomavaega for providing 
the House this opportunity to acknowledge the achievement of James 
Norman Hall.
  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, further reserving the right to object, I 
want to thank the gentleman from Iowa [Mr. Leach] for his contribution.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from California [Mr. Dornan].
  Mr. DORNAN. Mr. Speaker, I was honored that Eni asked me to speak 
because I have traveled through this most beautiful part of the world 
with our distinguished Representative from American Samoa. It is a 
pleasure to join this commemorative because Capt. James Norman Hall was 
one of the heroes of my youth.
  I had a friend who had about 20 of his books and, of course, a young 
person reaches for Mutiny on the Bounty first and then Pitcairn's 
Island, then Hurricane. But I had known of his exploits with Lafayette 
Escadrille because I knew a great Hollywood director, William Wellman, 
Sr., who was one of the youngest members of that squadron who flew with 
Hall and had a great, long association with him as a young man. I had 
not known he had guided America's ace of aces, America's leading eagle, 
Eddie Rickenbacker, automobile racer to his first victory in the skies 
over the trenches of Europe.
  When I found my dad's orders to go to pilot training with the Signal 
Corps and asked him why he ended up in artillery, he said the Pope was 
negotiating an end to the war in the Christmas of 1917 so he threw in 
the towel, but he said we used to shake our fists at the guys from 
Barley Duke because they would also arrive after the Germans had 
strafed the trenches.
  I said, dad, that is the guy's view from the mud on the ground. Our 
pilots in that war came in late, had a heroic record. And to know that 
James Hall was one of their leaders and a hero, that is just things 
brought out of this commemorative by my colleague from Iowa and by Eni 
that have resurrected this hero of my youth.
  Coming from the middle of America, the heartland of our farmland, 
Iowa, it is just another of these incredible stories of America's 
heroes that should be passed on to our youths.
  I will take an hour special order tonight to talk about the great 
navy admiral, 58 years on active duty, Rear Adm. John Duncan Bulkeley 
who rescued MacArthur from Corregidor and threw the wreath into the 
English Channel with Clinton D-day morning at dawn.
  I just hope that people will read this Record and look at these great 
people like this son of Iowa, James Norman Hall, and understand that 
our heritage is truly worth teaching to our kids in grade school and in 
high school and in college, that the United States of America is, as 
the gentleman from Georgia [Mr. Gingrich] calls it, a unique 
civilization, unknown in all of history, representing all the peoples 
of this tiny little delicate planet.
  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, further reserving the right to object, I 
thank the gentleman from California [Mr. Dornan] for adding his 
comments to this tribute.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield to the gentleman from American Samoa [Mr. 
Faleomavaega].
  Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA. Mr. Speaker, I just want to thank my dear friend 
from California for his comments. What is most interesting, at least in 
my observation about this son of Iowa, is where James Norman Hall, 
growing up in the middle of farm country without a great body of water 
nearby, could learn to enjoy the island life and island community. The 
fact that he came from midwest America and spent the rest of his life 
in the South Pacific, is evidence that he appreciated what island 
living is like. I thank the gentleman.
  Mr. DORNAN. Mr. Speaker, if the gentleman will continue to yield, one 
other observation about land, sea, and air, being born in 1887, he was 
16-years of age when the Wright brothers flew and found themselves 
dueling in deadly combat just a few years after that. It is an amazing 
life story. I thank everybody for this commemorative.
  Mr. GRANDY. Mr. Speaker, I am glad to pay tribute to an Iowan who 
left the State and went on to become a world-renowned writer. James 
Norman Hall traveled all over the world, fought as an ace fighter pilot 
during World War I, and to this day continues to expand the mind of 
readers young and old through his writings.
  James Norman Hall was a well-loved Iowan who left the State in 1910 
at the age of 23. He was born in the small town of Colfax, just east of 
Des Moines. He received both his undergraduate and graduate degrees 
from Grinnell College, just across the county line from his home. After 
such a wonderful grounding, and like many Iowans since, James Norman 
Hall left Iowa never to return permanently.
  I think it is very important to point out that being a lifelong Iowan 
and maintaining a permanent and continuous residence in the State are 
not necessarily the same thing. Hall considered himself an Iowan even 
though he left the State at a relatively young age. To quote from his 
biography, ``My Island Home,'' on page 329, ``Iowa, for all the years I 
have been away from it, has always been and still is home to me.'' That 
sentiment continues to be shared by Iowans worldwide.
  Hall's World War I dramas were at least as exciting as his most 
famous work, ``Mutiny on the Bounty.'' Hall fought with both British 
ground forces in Normandy with Lord Kitchener, and with French aviators 
before joining the American Air Corps.
  In the early days of aviation when man and machinery tentatively went 
aloft, this brave Iowan became an ace pilot. He volunteered for war 
duty with the French Escadrille Lafayette in 1916, when America had no 
Air Corps or Air Force. It was in 1918 that he joined the American Air 
Corps and flew with fellow ``Ace'' Eddie Rickenbacher. He was shot down 
behind enemy lines in 1918 and was imprisoned in Germany until the end 
of the war. The Germans greatly respected him however because he had 
spared the life of a German fighter pilot in a Christmas-day dogfight.
  After the war he met up with Charles Nordhoff to write the history of 
the Escadrille titled ``The Lafayette Flying Corps.'' The long and 
distinguished collaborative writing career of these two gentleman had 
then commenced. Hall's main literary tie to America was the magazine 
Atlantic Monthly. I read Hall's ``Mutiny on the Bounty,'' when I was in 
the ninth grade.
  A fitting tribute, the James Norman Hall Museum in Tahiti Nui (French 
Polynesia), opened this spring and I am glad that House Concurrent 
Resolution 215 will be displayed in the museum. Iowa has not forgotten 
this famous son, the archives at Grinnell College have also preserved 
much of this magnificent writer's papers.
  Mr. GILMAN. Mr. Speaker, I withdraw my reservation of objection.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Richardson). Is there objection to the 
request of the gentlewoman from Virginia?
  There was no objection.
  The Clerk read the concurrent resolution, as follows:

                            H. Con. Res. 215

       Whereas James Norman Hall, a native son of the State of 
     Iowa born in Colfax in 1887, and a graduate of Grinnell 
     College, was a decorated war hero, noted adventurer, and 
     acclaimed author, who was revered and loved in France and 
     Tahiti, and throughout the South Pacific;
       Whereas James Norman Hall exhibited an unwavering 
     commitment to freedom and democracy by volunteering for 
     military service early in World War I and by fighting 
     alongside British forces in the worst of trench warfare, 
     including the Battle of Loos, where he was one of few 
     survivors;
       Whereas James Norman Hall continued his fight for liberty 
     by becoming a pilot in the Lafayette Escadrilles, an American 
     pursuit squadron of the French Air Service, and his 
     courageous and daring feats in air battles earned him 
     France's highest medals, including the Legion d'Honneur, 
     Medaille Militaire, and Croix de Guerre with 5 Palms;
       Whereas James Norman Hall was commissioned as a Captain in 
     the United States Army Air Service when the United States 
     entered World War I, continued his legendary exploits as an 
     ace pilot, acted as wing commander and mentor for then-
     Lieutenant Eddie Rickenbacker, and was awarded the 
     Distinguished Service Cross Medal, for gallantry and bravery 
     in battle, by General Pershing;
       Whereas James Norman Hall sought serenity after the 
     destructiveness of World War I, moved to the South Pacific in 
     1920, married a Tahitian woman and lived in Tahiti for over 3 
     decades, and wrote a prodigious number of articles and books 
     in the library of his home in Arue, Tahiti;
       Whereas much of James Norman Hall's writing enriched the 
     world's understanding of Tahiti and the South Pacific;
       Whereas James Norman Hall coauthored, with Charles 
     Nordhoff, classic masterpieces that have come to epitomize 
     the tropics, including ``Mutiny on the Bounty'', ``Pitcairn's 
     Island'', and ``Hurricane'';
       Whereas, despite James Norman Hall's achievements as a 
     decorated war hero and famed literary figure, he remained to 
     his death a humble, self-effacing man who endeared himself to 
     the people of Tahiti with his keen sense of generosity, 
     kindness, and real concern for others, prompting James 
     Michener to state that James Norman Hall was ``the most 
     loved American who ever came to the tropics'' and that 
     when ``he died, on every island in the Pacific where even 
     no man could read, there was sorrow; and
       Whereas the home and library of James Norman Hall, in Arue, 
     Tahiti, are being restored as a museum to honor this son of 
     the State of Iowa and hero of the United States, England, 
     France, and French Polynesia: Now, therefore, be it
       Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
     concurring), That the Congress--
       (1) honors James Norman Hall and recognizes his outstanding 
     contributions to the United States, France, Tahiti, and the 
     South Pacific, including his extraordinary service rendered 
     in wartime for the defense of freedom, his outstanding 
     achievements in the literary field, and his lifework that has 
     enriched the world's understanding of the people of the South 
     Pacific; and
       (2) requests the President of the United States to provide 
     for the presentation of a copy of this concurrent resolution 
     by appropriate officials of the United States Government to 
     the President of Tahiti Nui (French Polynesia), so that it 
     may be publicly displayed at the James Norman Hall Museum in 
     Tahiti, where it will express the appreciation of the people 
     and government of the United States for the contributions of 
     James Norman Hall and will show recognition of the 
     achievements of this great son of the State of Iowa.

  The concurrent resolution was agreed to.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________