Joseph Strauss (DDG 16) - Naval Cruise Book

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vi a ' 'ld-lilffii f '3 2 lxff Xi, QNAQ li i f ! j l Xf , gf, i l Davy Jones inspects the troops-and a sorry lot they are! , i g ...040O Hours. And all the mean and nasty shellbacks in the whole world, for so it .y,, i seemedl were yelling and screaming and 5 ren'r using those shillelaghs to conduct what i J rrii , if 'rri S X is k X . Q ,X X in S XX i QSX N z' M X st f N X M W sv XA in X MXN? r K 1 l x NxxXQNXX xmx X Ni as 4 x QQ N 2 f NXKS K Vmwt Q Wx 5 XX 12' X f X Q X . . Q V S' F ' . -SSN ' , t .. 5. l . 1. x X' ' Q' .- M A lf- 1 .ix .N V M K '13 5 ' k. V x ff - -X , gf., I ,- S WN-1-X Wwt I Q' W, ' 1 .1 1fif5WMf9,,, x , ' . ' 5 so R x i' . ' X, 17, ' ' X v . , V 44.70 . ps g ffif,,!.,, ' f l l i 3 'Z uf' l 4 had to have been the fastest reveille in the history of STRAUSS. The wind was literally howling as we scrambled up to the fo'c's'le and down, again, on our knees on the brutal and ferocious deck tread. But this was not to be a mere interlude of a few minutes as yesterday's beauty contest was. This was to be a three hour ordeal com- plete with shillelaghs, fire hoses, cold salt water, cold decks, cold pollywogs, and Shellbacks who were at least twice as hap- py as we had ever seen them. And complete with breakfast, also cold, grits and coffee for us pollywogs. It was eaten and we were escorted back to the fo'c's'Ie on our knees, which was how we got to the mess decks. On the deck tread we were waiting hopeful- ly for the sunrise and the arrival of King Neptune, and an end, we hoped, to our worsening misery. Little did we know, though, that misery had not even visited us as yet that clammy September morning. And finally, as the sun rose on a scene of abject misery, and with a flourish of cold salt water on already drenched pollywogs, came the long awaited arrival of...

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The first order of business was the selection of a proper escort for King Neptune. Each division, the wardroom, and the DesRon 33 staff had represen- tatives. All vied fiercely for the honor of being Miss STRAUSS. A!S Division had a strong entry in DeeDee Dewolf, as did R Division in Miss Dowler. The title was awarded, however, after much careful deliberation, to FOX Division's stunning entry, Miss Hawryliw, the new Miss STRAUSS. By this time we pollywogs were beginning to feel the effects of yesterday's transgressions. A few hours of kneeling on bare knees on cold and rough deck tread were having a certain effect on the most hardened pollywog. But the worst, by far, was still to come, and little did we know that September 27th would start at... And the eventual winner of the Miss Strauss beauty pageant was the lovely Miss Foxy Hawryliw seen here with her dashing debonaire escort, Harry Walker. Mr. Maixner and Miss Neal, the wardroom entry. '-:ii-vs 1,-Y: 'i The' hairy Miss Brooks and escort. IQ.fL3ri-wrggrz V YQYZi?fF5-B'i !E5'7-fs41f'3'1T!---f::.::.. - - . I gc, J., t , .. ,, V. , 1-3 5-f-1,-r,:.p.b,gq,.:. ,,, , U -v..,f....... , - ,A ut-A 5.5 -,-N 4...:.-,.,:L-:::l.' ' ' ' L' ':

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...King Neptune. lAIias Capt. Fl. E. Ward, ComDesRon 33i. And the fun began in earnest...for the Shellbacks. First was a knee destroying crawl down the biggest part of the 437 foot length of STRAUSS. Then there came the eggs. Eggs in our white hats. Eggs in our shorts. Eggs, whole, raw, cold, undiluted, sticky, and nasty in our mouths. Yolks, whites, shells, in yellow, slimy profusion dripping from our anatomies. And the royal baby's belly, which was covered with mustard and something horrible. We got to kiss it. The Royal Defender, STC Sherman, defended nothing in the world but his own sense of humor, and got the pollywogs convicted of a succession of crimes which ranged from wanting to impersonate an officer to having a terminal case of the uglies. Then the doctor, Floyal Doctor, of course, RMC Downs, cured us of whatever was wrong by giving us something that was worse. Then we were guillotined, washed down in a coffin with fire hoses, allowed to crawl through a thirty-foot-long garbage chute, made to hop like a frog , and crawl into a pit full of water, where we were asked to state what we were. Slimy Pollywog, we replied, by now terrified of shillelaghs and fire hoses. Instan- taneous wipe-out by fire hose followed. What are you , louder still. Slimy pollywog we yelled louder. Again the fire hose. And then it dawned. The light bulb finally lit up. We had made it. lt was over. We had become Trusty Shellbacks. The misery and suffering suddenly seemed like the greatest fun in the world. And it would be weeks before we would stop talking about the day that STRAUSS crossed the Line. More pictures of Crossing the Line on page 76. rig?-T-1 f1..f -'-- dw. A-fe-.-4.-. ,Y Mcffsv- -...eva W., -..-...,,1,,,' 'T g' -G is-. --5.-.gg.f:-qgkfk ..:.,'.3-f--'fg,s-3----.-.,a. '1..,- .. V --A------,...,, . , rf' - '.,.?f-gf-F3?1L'...:.:..,.. mr-qfnl ,m::1.7.q,.,1g,-?,,,:3f,:'s---y..-'1ff...f.Rit. f -P-Q1-U..-Q-. - V V A - A - -Y .' -'-- -.,.,...E-,.. .: , 'f L--,, , ,. -5--.1...:s,.,.t,h,H '-ver... f S- --f ,, ,. 9--.,52t,.,'g:-'v-'