No Whitewash Here

After 40 years in the Navy, Admiral Robert L.J. Long was less than eight months into retirement when the call came from the Secretary of Defense: Would the admiral lead an inquiry into the bombing of U.S. Marine headquarters in Beirut? Whatever his qualms about investigating his peers, Long accepted. A friend explained, "After you've been in the Navy that many years, it is hard to say no."

Born and raised in Kansas City, Annapolis-trained Long, 63, spent part of World War II aboard the battleship Colorado. Entering the submarine service after the war ended, he received his first command at the age of 34. After a stint in Washington helping to develop the Navy's fleet of nuclear-powered submarines, Long went back to sea at the helm of the Patrick Henry, among the first of the new subs. By 1977 Long was a full admiral and Vice Chief of Naval Operations, and two years later he was made Commander in Chief of U.S. Forces in the Pacific. When the chairmanship of the Joint

Chiefs of Staff opened up in 1982, Long was reported to be a contender, but the job eventually went to Army General John W. Vessey.

Colleagues describe Long as a highly disciplined leader but also a "reflective and pragmatic" man who kept an eye on political developments. One of his few friends is House Speaker Tip O'Neill. U.S. Ambassador to Japan Michael Mansfield once referred to Long as "that sailor-diplomat."

When Long was named chairman of the commission investigating the Oct. 23 Beirut bombing, says one military source, he was viewed as the best man for the job. Notes a colleague: "Once assigned, he was certain to go where the evidence led."

For seven weeks, the evidence led Long frequently to Beirut, through hours of testimony and to painful conclusions. Says one acquaintance: "He asks the right questions, regardless of how tough they are." Long proved equally tough once the report was completed. If he was disturbed by Reagan's reaction to it, the admiral never let it be known. Instead, he quietly returned to his wife Sara and their new house in Annapolis, satisfied that a tough job had been done.

"The Secretary wanted a candid report," said he, "and we gave it to him."