Columbia (CL 56) - Naval Cruise Book

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As days wore on, things smoothed out, or at least, it seemed so. There are those of our number that claim that like a fighter who is hit so hard and so often that he ceases to feel pain, we were, to put it in plain language, punch-drunk. We stood in a line two thousand men long to get paid. We stood in a line one thousand men long to get something to eat . . . and cursed long and heartily at the consuma- tion of the act. We couldn't eat it anyway . . . but there was always the everfaithful bulk of ships service, where- the line was only five hun- dred men long. fNote: It moved slower.j However, as the month struggled to a close, we managed to live it through. We shut one eye a bit more tightly, clutch the pillow angrily, and worm our way just a bit deeper into the blankets. Newly married, newly deprived men mumble something about, Oh, go to sleep, Honey. But' slowly our pri- vate room for eighty comes to life. First twenty men stay in the sack. Better hurry up . . . Huh? Seven-fifteen? I must have gone to sleep! Let's go to chow. Beans? No, its Tues- day. The chow line is there, swaying like. a giant Conga line to Serenade to Blue Fingers. Hurry up and wait. Hey, let's pull the cord up there. . . . c'Cereal should taste good. It'1l have tomato soup in it. Wonder who washes these bowls? . . . uSay, what is the--. No, maybe you'd better not tell me. The odor of dish- water, steam, and hot coffee, along with the crash of trays and the yells of messboys endow our wardroom with a certain intangible decor. Breakfast having been taken care of, we burp our way to morning quarters, unless, of course, beans have been served. Imagine the spectacle: 4-50 impeccably groomed, handsome, debonair young Ensigns standing in perfect formation, alert, eager men, men of brain, bone, and sinew! And then in a dynamic voice, comes the clarion call we know so well, Regiment-td attention! Regiment-to-attention! And a strange, fierce pride mounts within us. QDamned strangelj But we are not here to play. We rnust study, and strive to master intricacies of Navy work and Navy tools. We may leave behind our slide

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n eight over the base, Newport, and the surrounding country side. After the first day, the base ceased to hold much of interest, so off we went to Newport. March, it seemed, was not the season for big doings in Newport, so the crowds on the Providence busses grew larger day by day. Our duties at Newport during these first few days consisted only of meeting morning forma- tion, and standing an occasional watch, and turning out at reveille. This last was not scrupulously carried out for long, since we quickly lapsed back into the deeply ingrained habit of the V-12 in regards to the sack. For one reason or another a lot of us began to hang around the barracks more in our spare time. We amused ourselves there in various ways. There was the perpetual bridge game, the rowdy game of hearts, and the latest Es- quires. For the beaver there was flute practice, washing clothes, or if he had a mad desire to exercise, a little basketball practice. Naturally, we all took time to give the bul- letin board a daily once over, for it was by this medium that we were administered the latest jab .... V-12 and NROTC Ofhcers will not wear insignia on the station. They will be permitted to wear blues on liberty, howeverf' Or the tongue in the cheek jab . . . V-12 and NROTC OHicers will be permitted to use the Of'Hcer's Club, but due to their large num- ber they are urged not to over-exercise this privilegef, . . . and so on. .nfs ...,

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nz- rules and integral tables, but trod with deter- mined steps to our classes-say, for instance, firefighting. There can be no question but that firefighting knowledge is of prime importance in many emergencies at sea, and we agree wholeheartedly that we should understand it. And with its usual thoroughness, the Navy is interested in giving us the best possible instruction in the short time available .... To give us an appre- ciation of Hre, we learn that fire requires oxy- gen. Fire needs heat to start. Fire must have fuel. Water extinguishes Hre. Another Audio- Visual-Aids masterpiece shows us that a float- ing body displaces its weight of water, that the water produces a buoyant force, that a moment is a force acting through a lever arm .... All this we learn in only two hours. Then to the fires .... Break down those hoses .... Roll up those hoses .... Hook up those hoses .... Nozzle this way, handle up. Forward position off, vertical position fog .... On these Christmas Trees, keep low .... How diya keep these boots on? I have to take three steps before mine move. But we get the feel of it, and the fires get bigger. The applicator gives us an umbrella of spray, possibly to filter the smoke we breathe. Then the engine rooms .... Hey, stop push- ing the hose! . . . Take it slow, no hurry. . . . How do you breathe? It's pure smoke! . . . Can't see that again .... Cold out here, isn't it? . . . Then it's foam and CO2 and Handy Billies, and as we nurse our wounded, dirty our faces, and Ungentine our burns, we begin to think that maybe we could tackle a fire. But it is work. Our pictures show it, and our stomachs know it.