Bob was my XO when we recommissioned SEALION in Philadelphia. We were almost like a boat of pirates. We could, would, and DID steal anything that would help our boat. Bob was fun loving BUT completely professional . He was the type of submariner that I include in the highly restricted category of those with whom I would have wanted to go on a war patrol as a leader, contemporary or subordinate. He simply got his job done, helped you get yours done and made both of them fun. You cannot imagine how many times I have thought about him since I left SEALION in 1962 !!! As you mentioned in your discussion of his career, brass simply did not impress him. The last example of this I managed to see was his reaction in April or May of 1962, when we were near Bermuda providing services for the USS WILLIS A. LEE (DL- ??), a destroyer leader (this class ship no longer exists). The seas were fairly rough and this prevented my relief as Engineer Officer who was aboard that "Admiral-striker" type of ship from being transferred by whaleboat to SEALION. We went alongside the super-destroyer so they could pass us mail by a light line. Submarines and submariners were not noted in those days for being sticklers with respect for uniforms being worn correctly in port and , at sea, we paid even less attention to the uniform regulations. When we pulled alongside the WILLIS A. LEE, the admiral-to-be CO apparently almost had a stroke. He made his officers and enlisted men stand bridge watches in the very warm weather around Bermuda in Dress Blue wool uniforms. That CO had the word passed on his ship for Lt. ____, my relief, to "REPORT TO THE BRIDGE" and did NOT have the word passed for him to "Please lay to the bridge" as might be expected if the surface ship officers needed to know something about a submarine. When my relief arrived on the bridge, the very senior Captain, USN, chewed my relief out about the fourteen "modes of attire" he had observed on SEALION because we had sailors in tee shirts, no shirts (sunbathing) ,no hats, cutoff dungarees , barefoot, shorts, civilian sport shirts or whatever looking at that big target. Our skipper got a nasty message from the CO of the DL about the appearance of our crew and it wanted to know just what navy our CO thought we were in. Bob prepared the response to the blast we had received and managed to get our CO to send it. The response basically told the much senior surface officer that we were submariners and that it was considered a recreational period for our crew to go along side a surface ship. During these times the otherwise more restrictive dress code was relaxed and that this was done for morale purposes. The message was accurate. When submerged or below decks , our crew normally wore shoes. On another occasion, SEALION was in San Juan, Puerto Rico as was another submarine. I forget which New London boat it was. We were home ported in Norfolk. It was a Friday and the officers went to the Officer's Club for lunch. There we met the officers from the other boat and we decided that both wardrooms would meet at some specific tine that evening and go out on the town together. When the appointed time came, SEALION officers reached the Officer's Club but the other wardroom was a no-show. After about an hours wait, we gave up. I was preparing to attend postgraduate school so I decided to go back to SEALION an do some work on a math refresher course to prepare for school. Bob also decided to go back to catch up on some of his paper work as XO. When we reached the boat, our enlisted men wanted to know why we were not out in town with the officers of the other boat. Bob told them we "had been stood-up"!! The CO of any ship is RESPONSIBLE for everything about it including its morale but, on SEALION at that time, our morale was the direct result of Bob's influence and leadership. To say that it was high would be to make a gross understatement. Our crew's reaction to the stand-up, which neither Bob nor I knew at that time, was to get mad at that their officers had received such shabby treatment by the other boat. SEALION, as you know was a very special troop transport submarine, It had ten large inflatable rubber boats and we had outboard motors for these which were almost silent when running. The other submarine was tied up next to a submarine tender in the harbor about five miles from our berth. Our crew determined that 'THEIR" officers were not going to be treated by the other boat like they had been without consequences. The crew decided to send a raiding party by boat in the dark and decorate the other submarine with a special paint job. Somehow I found out about this raid and I managed to persuade the men to allow me to participate. About an hour after midnight we drove the rubber boat around the harbor and, in a strong rainstorm, tied the rubber boat under the stern of the submarine tender where no one on deck could see us. I was one of the two of the raiding party who went in the water and swam up alongside of the other submarine which had a topside watch with a loaded 45 pistol to keep swimmers and other intruders away. In the rain we painted the words "SUNK - SUNK - SUNK" with bright orange paint with wide paint brushes and with letters as high as we could reach along the entire starboard side of the other boat. We were never detected and returned to SEALION without event. The next morning Bob found out about what we had done. I was ROYALLY chewed out by him. His complaint with my actions was not for what I had done but for not inviting HIM !!!! Bob would have managed to get a good laugh if I had been able to remind him of those times. I truly regret that I did not get the chance to get the stories out to him in time. I truly regret the loss you have had. Bob was a GREAT person, a man with character and principles who got a lot out of life but gave even more to others. It was my huge privilege to know him, to serve under him and to have him as a friend. With sympathy, Edward B. Vaughan. Jr. , Cdr., USN (Ret)