Foote (DD 511) - Naval Cruise Book

Page 9 text:

S foxf T LITTLE BEAVER The image of LiTTle Beaver painTed gaily on The side of all LiTTle Beaver Squadron ships has been a familiar sighf since The early days of The war. LiTTle Beaver was adopTed as The squadron's insignia aTTer a h' h rankin officer remarked, They work like a group oT liTTle beaversf' The name sTuck and. by permission 'Q Q T F d H rman LiTTle Beaver's creaTor lRed Ryder comic sTripl This insignia has been used since ThaT Time. o re a , Here is a replica of LiTTle Beaver by Gene SchnaubelT, STaTf ArTisT, as iT appears on our ship.

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f47h56aafane,, l-IIS book is abouT The UniTed STaTes Ship FooTe lDD 5I ll, The men ThaT wenT To sea wiTh her and The iob They did TogeTher. In This collecTion oT Taces Trom every corner oT The naTion and oT such snapshoTs as may be Taken oT an operaTing warship, perhaps may be discerned some oT The personaliTy oT The FooTe, some oT The elemenTs ThaT, combined, made oT her The characTer ThaT she was. Among These Taces are Those oT The men ThaT raised The com- mission To her Truck in I942g ThaT shared her TirsT anger -- againsT a U-boaT in The ATlanTicp ThaT TelT her near-morTal wound oTT Bougain- ville: ThaT exulTed in her vicTory over Kamikaze aircraTT in The Philip- pines: ThaT one unbelievable nigh+ olll l-lagushi Beach aT Okinawa when The TirsT hinT oT peace was aired, knew Tor an insTanT some- Thing oT The paradox oT her deadly mighT. For, Though we didn'T oTTen admiT iT ouT loud, The l:ooTe was all oT us, and all oT us made up The FooTe. We shook her down, we Took her ouT, we ToughT her all around The world, and we broughT her back home. We had her boilers on The line and her guns sTanding ready and when she was needed we gave all she had. The FooTe's iob is well done, we're proud oT her and glad ThaT iT is The men who knew her ThaT are going To puT her away up The river in abeyance Tor World War Ill. Our TondesT hope is ThaT she is never used again.

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7a Wlemafzdam O Those men who gave Their lives while serving aboard This ship, we humbly dedicaTe This book. NoT only do we dedicaTe This book, buT we shall have a solemn prayer in our hearTs Tor Them and Their loved ones always. We were so close as shipmaTes, They seemed as broThers To us: so we would like, here, To quoTe a TiTTing poem. LiTTle broTher, Think oT me- From your grave beneaTh The sea: Pray Tor us whose Thorns are deep- STrengThen us who mournTul weep. LiTTle broTher leT us pray ThaT God will granT we meeT some day: ThaT l may clasp a hero's hand ln The greaT eTernal land. LiTTle broTher, how l miss Our bygone days oT boyish bliss: l hope you died wiThouT much pain . . 'l pray you haven'T died in vain. -KEVIN J. FINN Now ThaT. The war is over we know Tull well ThaT They did noT die in vain, Tor The world is on The road To peace-A peace we pray will make This a humane world Tor God and his kingdom.