Vernon
A ..
Well, I think that's one of the reasons that Al hired me without even talking to me,
because I had had enough experience in various types of hydrology and planning and that
sort of thing before I ever came into Washington. So I could review projects and know
enough about them that I could make the intelligent choices.
Well, I hope you get enough information here--I've always thought it was kind of a shame
that people with all this knowledge, like Al Cochran and some of them, really didn't get
their ideas and thoughts and so forth on tape or paper some place so that other people
wouldn't have to make all the mistakes they had to or that they had to go through.
Q ..
Well, this is a new effort. Though they were working on civilworks people before, they
had not made an effort to really work on the people in hydrology and hydraulic
engineering at all, especially hydrology. So there are many more that we're probably
going to be talking to. I have the names that you gave me.
A ..
Well, there are a lot of them around yet--maybe not working in the business anymore, but
they still have their memories. Maybe a lot of them have collections of material that
would be useful.
Q ..
No, we're going to go after them. I want to thank you for your cooperation.
A ..
Well, I`ve enjoyed talking about it. I know Jake [Douma] before he retired [said], "You
know it's too bad that the Corps doesn't have some plan where they can take guys like me
and let them have an office, some space, in the office. Don't pay me any money but let
me come to the office and work on things that I'd enjoy working on and do things I want
to do. I would contribute to answering questions and things like that and all they'd have
could come and go when I felt like it. I
to do is provide me some space, he says.
think that would be a good thing for the Corps and carry over information and concepts
from one generation to the next.
Q ..
I think these interviews will do that because they will be useful. A lot of them will be
printed and published, and they'll be used for study, too.
Well, the job I have now is kind of like this thing that Jake was talking about.
A
Davis pays me for sitting at a desk and working on special projects and having the
young engineers, when they don't know how to do something come and talk to me and
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