Remembrance "I'Ll Never Forget. Never."

By LEE GOLDFARB

A 71-year-old retiree in East Hanover, N.J., he was a radioman on the minelayer Oglala when the attack began.

We were outboard of the Helena, a cruiser. A torpedo went under us, slammed into the Helena and loosened our plates. We started to take on water. Several minutes later I copied the famous message, "Air raid on Pearl Harbor. This is no drill." We're tilting -- I know this is no drill.

An hour later, the Oglala rolled over and sank. Me and Wally Gojanovich, who lives in Florida now, got off together. While we were running, they were strafing us. Little chips of cement were jumping up from the machine-gun bullets. I looked up and saw the plane, I saw -- saw! -- that smiling face. The mustache, the white scarf and the smiling face that I'll never forget as long as I live. Never.

In San Diego, when we were being assigned to ships, I said, "What the hell is the Oglala?" This young kid says, "It's an old minelayer. An old tub. I got the battleship Arizona." He's still on it. His name is Arthur Blais.