Hickox (DD 673) - Naval Cruise Book

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Z.I5 REVBIULE SHIfT f t Sfi»1 HOURS

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THE END February 8th dawned damp and foggy and though to most of the world it was just another Monday that you couldn ' t hang out the wash, to us it was a big day — the day we were going home. The weather cleared later on in the morning and at about 1230, there it wasl We could see it now! Not Stromboli, not the White Cliffs of Dover, but the dim outline of the smallest state in the Union, in the greatest country in the world. It was Newport, R. I. We were to pass through its harbor and continue on to Fall River, Mass., where we would tie up to the USS Cassen Young. It wasn ' t long before we heard someone on the bridge say Mark the lightship abeam to starboard and we all began to think that it was almost worth going away just to experience this thrill of coming home again. Soon we were passing the landmarks that we know so well and they looked better to us than ever. Everyone milled around topside at first, talking and wondering who would be waiting for us. As soon as the special sea detail was set and our call letters went up, we all fell into quarters for entering port. Then we just stood there watching, waiting, and feeling very excited. As we steamed by the familiar Castle Rock, Coddington Point, Mellville and under the Mt. Hope bridge, we had many places and things to remember since the last time we were here. We had been to ten different countries . . . could say thank you in eight different languages . . . were l oaded with shillings, deutsche marks, lira, drachma, krone, francs and guilder but broke in American bucks. We had sets of undress blues that could walk by themselves, white hats ready for the rag bag, enough souvenirs to furnish the Taj Mahal . . . sea stories to bore our grandchildren for years to come. We had nineteen new fathers aboard who had not seen their offspring — somewhere over there on the beach, fifteen brand new little girls and four little boys waiting for their daddys. Pretty soon we started to make our approach and a couple of tugs came out to help us. We could make them out now — all the people standing on the Cassen Young — girls in bright red and yellow coats — some standing with babies in their arms, others waving frantically — children running up and down the deck — parents standing with searching looks on their faces. Everyone smiling. And so at 1407, 8 Feb. 1955, five months and 23,574 miles later, number one line was secured and we were there. The gangway went over, there was a mad rush and when we saw those happy, smiling wonderful American people, we knew we were home.

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THE GUYS