[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 19 (Tuesday, January 31, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E231-E232]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                        A TRIBUTE TO FOUR HEROS

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                        HON. HERBERT H. BATEMAN

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, January 31, 1995
  Mr. BATEMAN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in recognition of four U.S. 
Army chaplains, 1st Lts. George L. Fox, Clark V. Poling, John P. 
Washington, and Alexander D. Goode, each one of different faith, who 
worked together and gave their lives in an effort to save others in a 
selfless act of heroism.
  Fifty-two years ago, on February 3, 1943, the SS Dorchester, an Army 
transport vessel, was in the North Atlantic en route from St, John's 
NF, to Narsarsuak, Greenland, transporting 904 passengers, in addition 
to some cargo. At approximately 3:55 a.m., the Dorchester was torpedoed 
without warning.
  The torpedo hit the ship just aft of amidships, near the engine room. 
The explosion was muffled and there was very little noise, but the 
concussion was severe. The ship took on water at such a fast rate that 
in a matter of just 25 minutes, it was lost.
  In that short time, it was the bravery of Lieutenants Fox, Poling, 
Washington and Goode, the four chaplains aboard the Dorchester, that 
saved the lives of many. According to many survivors, the chaplains, 
with complete disregard for their own safety, quieted the panic of men 
frozen by fear at the ship's rail, forcing them into boats and 
lifejackets. They handed out life belts from a box, and when those were 
gone, they gave their own to enlisted men. Additionally, they helped 
construct makeshift rafts out of timbers, cork, and other materials at 
hand. The only concern of these brave men was to do everything they 
could to save the lives of the others on the transport. Chaplain Goode 
even gave his gloves to another man, despite the bitter cold, knowing 
that having those gloves might help him survive. The recipient of the 
gloves did indeed survive, and 
[[Page E232]] credited his survival to the selflessness of Chaplain 
Goode.
  When these four brave men had done everything humanly possible to 
help those on board, and when the end was imminent, Lieutenants Poling 
and Fox, both Protestants, and Washington, a Roman Catholic, and Goode, 
who was Jewish, joined hands and prayed together as the ship went down.
  Because of their bravery, these four heroic men were posthumously 
awarded the Purple Heart and the Distinguished Service Cross. 
Additionally, in 1960, this body awarded Fox, Poling, Washington, and 
Goode the Congressional Medal for Heroism. This medal was specifically 
created to honor these men, and they are the only four to have received 
it.
  The SS Dorchester was built at Newport News Shipbuilding & Dry Dock 
Co., and was originally a passenger liner when delivered in 1926. With 
the commencement of the United States involvement in World War II, the 
owners chartered it to the Army Transport Service to transport 
personnel and cargo. In Newport News today, the memory of the four 
chaplains is kept alive by the efforts of the Four Chaplains Memorial 
Committee, and with the marble and bronze monument that was erected in 
their memory in 1989 at the War Memorial Museum grounds. Let us keep 
alive their bravery their actions embodied, by remembering their 
heroism today.


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