Lifeline

By Carse, Robert
1943, William Morrow, New York
Hardcover, 189 pages, 51 b&w photos

Descripton: By the author of There Go the Ships and the later Cold Corner of Hell. The former was a personal memoir, the latter an overview of the Murmansk convoys. This book gives an overview both of the history of the Merchant Marine and of the convoy system, as well as concentrating on the heroics of individual men in the US Merchant Marine on the hard journey from east coast ports to Murmansk. Much more than the first book it contains obvious elements of wartime propaganda. Most of the information presented about U-boats is surprisingly accurate, considering the book's date of publication, but there are a few errors, as well as mention of the (mythical) U-boat practice of machine gunning men in lifeboats. An appendix explains the system of watches at sea and presents an organizational chart of personnel on a merchant vessel. Also includes a glossary of nautical terms in usage at the time.